THE EXTENT of the work to be done in parish council divisions and the Corporate Area municipality seems to be coming home more forcefully to newly-elected councillors and mayors nearly two months after the June 19 Local Government Elections. At The Gleaner's Editors' Forum just over a week ago where eight of the island's mayors were in attendance, the message was clear - the proverbial breathing space and honeymoon period have ended and the mountain of problems in their various divisions have been thrown into sharper focus.
Of course it is the same old problems that remain to be addressed - inadequate water supplies, bad roads, no street lights, blocked drains, a pile up of garbage and poorly maintained markets.
In today's edition, Mayor of Kingston Desmond McKenzie is quoted as saying the more he and his officers examine the city's drainage problems, the more challenges they are seeing.
At the Editors' Forum, Portmore's Mayor George Lee said the drainage problem in the municipality is so bad, just a little rain leads to "severe" problems with flooding and mosquitoes. This scenario can be replicated a hundred times across the island.
We note that the mayors were bravely optimistic about their ability to tackle the problems but a lot more than optimism is needed now. The resources to get the job done have yet to be identified and few of the new councillors seem to have a workable plan of how to do this outside of the usual dependence on central government.
We certainly do not expect overnight miracles. However, the new regime in local government should begin to show evidence that even within the constraints of the purse strings being controlled by central government and the likely attendant political chicanery, they can fashion new ventures to tackle urgently and with creativity, the pressing problems of their constituents.
It is ironic that at a time when our leaders talk about globalisation and superhighways at the drop of a hat as if these are the sure signs of prosperity, communities continue to be overrun by vermin while little children play in filth.
The question to be addressed now is whether the new councillors are up to the challenge and will be able to deliver what their predecessors were unable to do in 17 years.
The mayors at the forum insisted they would deliver in accordance with the mandate given them by the electorate. We wait to see what creativity they will bring to the politics of local government to address the concerns of their constituents.
This is not to suggest that central government does not have a responsibility and will be let off the hook. They too must be held fully accountable, but we would urge the new councillors not to expect too much sympathy from an already impatient public, if they resort to the perennial whining and complaining.
