🗣️ Opinion | The PNP’s Selective Outrage: Where Was This Energy for Fenton Ferguson?

By Jamaica Live Editorial Team

In the ongoing debate about accountability in Jamaica’s health sector, the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) has taken a strong stance. They are now loudly demanding the resignation of Health Minister Dr. Christopher Tufton, following the tragic deaths of several newborns and allegations of systemic neglect in public hospitals.

But as this chorus of condemnation grows, one can’t help but recall a moment not so long ago when the shoe was on the other foot—and the silence from the PNP was deafening.

Back in 2015, it was then Health Minister Dr. Fenton Ferguson, a senior member of the PNP, who was embroiled in a healthcare crisis that shook the nation. Nineteen premature babies died at two major hospitals due to bacterial outbreaks. These were fragile lives—real babies, real families—lost under government care. But what made the situation worse was Ferguson’s now-infamous remark in Parliament:

“These were not babies in the real sense.”

The backlash was swift. Jamaicans were stunned, hurt, and angry. Yet despite public outrage, the PNP did not demand Ferguson’s resignation. Instead, they defended him, downplayed the crisis, and quietly moved him to another ministry—an act many saw as political shielding rather than accountability.

Fast forward to today: Dr. Tufton, under pressure over reported neonatal deaths and strained public health resources, is now being told by the very same party to pack his bags. The hypocrisy is glaring.

This is not a defense of poor governance. Any minister—regardless of party—must be held accountable for systemic failures, especially when lives are lost. But accountability must be consistent. If the PNP believes that Tufton’s actions or inaction warrant resignation, then they must also acknowledge that Ferguson’s crisis deserved no less.

To do otherwise is to admit that calls for resignation are less about justice, and more about political point-scoring.

The Jamaican people deserve better than this tired game of selective outrage. They deserve leadership that puts principles over party, and lives over loyalty.

Let’s call it what it is: If Ferguson stayed, then the PNP has no moral high ground now. And if Tufton must go, they should finally admit their own failings too.