AP News, December 13th, 2006
When Portia Simpson Miller became their first female prime minister Jamaicans celebrated in the streets, hailing "Sista P" as a warmhearted champion of the poor.
Just nine months later, much of her support has dissipated. A scandal over a political donation from a European company and her failure to reduce crime have voters questioning her effectiveness. The homespun style many once found endearing has begun to work against her.
With some opponents urging her to call early elections, Simpson Miller risks becoming one of Jamaica's shortest-serving prime ministers since independence from Britain in 1962.
She's obligated to call general elections by October 2007. With her approval ratings low, political analysts don't expect her to act sooner.
"If she calls it now, it would be like playing Russian roulette with two guns in her mouth," said Bill Johnson, who conducts polls for the Jamaica Gleaner, the island's biggest newspaper.
Often referring to herself as "Momma" or "Auntie Portia," the 60-year-old lawmaker _ who declined to be interviewed _ emerged as one of the Caribbean island's most popular politicians while representing some of Jamaica's poorest neighborhoods in parliament. Her penchant for kissing her supporters won over voters turned off by other, more traditional public officials.
She became prime minister by winning a vote among ruling party delegates to succeed P.J. Patterson, who stepped down in February after 14 years as premier, and quickly gained 70 percent approval ratings by pledging to root out corruption and transform crime-ridden slums.
Her reversal followed a scandal over the ruling party's acceptance of a $470,000 campaign donation from a Dutch-based commodities firm, Trafigura Beheer BV, which had chartered a vessel that dumped noxious waste in the Ivory Coast _ apparently illegally _ in August, killing at least 10 and sickening thousands.
Trafigura has contracted with the state-owned Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica to handle its shipment and sale of crude oil on world markets for more than a decade.
Simpson Miller did not make a public statement until two weeks after the September donation was publicly revealed _ a silence that was widely criticized. She said there was nothing inappropriate about the gift, but ordered the money returned to reinforce confidence in the government. The ruling party survived an October censure vote in parliament.
The company has said that it regretted "any misunderstanding that may have been caused" by its contributions. It emphasized it was not prohibited under Jamaican law from donating funds to a political party.
But Simpson Miller's popularity has plummeted to 29 percent, according to one recent poll, while opposition leader Bruce Golding has steadily gained.
Golding would win about as many votes as Simpson Miller if elections were held now, according to Johnson, of the Gleaner.
"The people are simply losing patience with her," he said.
Beyond the donation scandal, Simpson Miller's administration has failed to curb criminal violence, which many Jamaicans consider the country's most pressing problem. More than 1,000 people were murdered by October of this year _ the third straight year that homicides have topped that number on the island of 2.6 million people.
Some supporters say people have unreasonable expectations because Simpson Miller is a woman.
"When women take over high office, people expect things to be fixed overnight," said Audrey Hinchcliffe, president of the Jamaica Employers Federation. "Everybody wants roads to be fixed, they want houses and it's not possible in eight months."
Simpson Miller has blamed her gender for her flagging popularity.
"The way I'm being treated now, they would never treat a man this way," she said at a gender equality conference last month in Kingston.
