BLACK RIVER, St. Elizabeth:
FORMER MAYOR of Black River, J.A.G Myers, says he believes that the People's National Party (PNP) is committed to Local Government as a means by which people can participate in building their communities and helping to satisfy their needs at the local level.
Mr. Myers told The Gleaner on Friday that Local Government, which was once a vibrant part of governance, "was dismantled by the JLP government during the 1980s, piece by piece." In the 1990s the PNP government embarked on a programme of reform of Local Government, by returning the Parish Councils the power and authority they lost during the JLP government.
Mr. Myers, who is also president of the Jamaica United Local Government Representatives Association (JULGRA), pointed out that the present PNP government had re-established a viable local government system. It has, he added, put structures in place to ensure that the Parish Councils are responsive to the communities and the people. More importantly he noted there is now greater financial accountability.
The former Mayor said he has always believed that for Local Government to succeed, those who manage and operate it must first believe in it and dedicate themselves to its service.
"That is why, I feel the PNP is the only party which has demonstrated a willingness to make it work. The party has included local government policies in its 1997 and 2002 manifestos, on the other hand there is an absence of any expression of policies in the 1997 or 2002 manifestos of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP)," Mr. Myers said.
