THE considered main opposition National Democratic Congress fine tuned
Its current elections campaign when it brought together its candidates and their support staff for a review session on the weekend.

The special training and reporting session for the party’s key players
took place Sunday afternoon in a closed-door meeting at the Marion
Hall, but the day ended with a public meeting at La Tante junction.

NDC Leader Tillman Thomas said he is excited with the current team he
has, claiming that the party is more ready now for the national poll which though constitutionally due next year, is widely believed will be held in 2003.

Thomas said the reason why the elections are not yet called is because
The ruling New National Party’s own polling shows that it is trailing "a resurgent NDC."

Recent media reports here said an internal NNP poll had showed that the
ruling party winning only three seats in general elections – a claim
that has been denied by Prime Minister Dr. Keith Mitchell.

“The NNP is stuttering on the way to the polls and now the Prime
Minister is out of his depth as to when he should call the poll, hoping that with time they will make up for lost ground,” Thomas declared.

“But this government is caught between the devil and the deep blue sea,
since we are confident that we are also getting stronger with time. We
are entrenching our position all the time,” the NDC leader said.

Thomas said that based on the reports he received from the candidates
At Sunday’s session he is more convinced that ever that they are even more up to the task of what he expects to be a grueling election campaign.

“It says a lot about this current administration that less than five
years after it won an unprecedented 15 seats it is now just clinging on to power,” Thomas, who runs on a platform of integrity in government,
said.

Hundreds of villagers from La Tante and surrounding areas listened to
Thomas and a line-up of other candidates and other activists, including
well-known St David’s political activist Teddy Victor at Sunday night’s
meeting, in between dancing to local parang song “The Country Needs A
Change” and a calypso “Vote Them Out.”

Victor who has been a political organizer for over 30 years said he is
endorsing St David’s Candidate Dennis Lett because he has been a
central figure in all major developments in the parish in the last generation.

Victor, who was once jailed for his political activism, noted that Lett
has been actively in involved in the campaign of every major player who
has won the seat in 27 years.

He declared that he is now confident that he will finally win it under
His name and will be “the resident representative of the parish rather than absentee representative” – taking a swipe at incumbent Joslyn Whiteman who does not reside in the area.