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People's National Party (PNP) President and Opposition Leader Mark Golding has come under fire after being caught using an expletive, which he later described as 'a little BC', during a party meeting last Friday, after experiencing persistent microphone issues.

At a meeting on Saturday, he apologised, but the incident has since sparked debate, with some calling for Golding to be reprimanded, while others dismissed the incident as overblown. Recently, Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) member Everald Warmington, dropped an 'F' bomb at a party gathering as he implored electors to vote for one of the party's candidates. After being chastised for his comments, he apologised via a release from the JLP.

When THE STAR visited Emancipation Park yesterday, the atmosphere was vibrant with people enjoying their recreational activities, but Golding's outburst was a hot topic among many.

"A regular sumpn dat, unuh a gwaan like a sumpn new. All inna Parliament dem cuss dem big bad wud," one vendor told his friend. "None a dem nuh betta dan none!"

Although he declined to share his name, he made it clear that his expectations of Jamaica's politicians are low.

"Listen to mi, di whole a dem a di same thing in deh. That's why mi will never vote, and mi nuh know why Jamaicans a kill up demself bout apology and punishment. Dem cyan punish one when di whole a dem do di same thing," he argued.

However, his friend, Kevin, disagreed, and said Golding should be held accountable.

"Yuh have police a arrest man fi a cuss bad word inna public, so why him must just get weh wid it? Dem a tek artiste song offa di radio because bad word inna it, so how him fi just can cuss it pan big, big stage and nothing nuh come out a it?" Kevin questioned. Angel, who is in her 20s, echoed the call for fairness in how laws are applied.

"My understanding is that it is against the law to be cursing in public, and you can't expect regular citizens to follow it while the leaders do what they want. So I believe that whatever consequence is applied to the average man should be applied to him too. An apology is not enough," she said. For 60-year-old Veron Green, the incident cemented her decision for the upcoming election.

"I never think him would he be a good leader, and this just show mi even more who I must vote for in the election because no matter what is happening, a leader must compose themselves and know how to behave. How yuh fi curse such a big bad word for the whole country to see, and then you want us to vote for you? No, no!" she said sternly.

But vendor Ricky had a starkly different take.

"A coulda 50 bad word him cuss, mi still a vote fi him! Because dis ya prime minister yah a only fi di rich. So if Jamaican poor people know wah good fi dem, dem nuh gi dah man yah a next term," he said.