By Howard Campbell, Staff ReporterALTHOUGH HE is a native of Trelawny, Dr. Raymoth Notice has considered himself a son of Spanish Town ever since he went to work as a medical intern at the Spanish Town Hospital in the early 1990s. Last year, he was appointed its mayor and says he is determined to salvage the reputation of one of Jamaica's most historic locations.
POSITIVES
Dr. Notice came to office only one year after entering politics. In the October 2002 General Elections, he contested the North West St. Catherine seat for the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), losing to incumbent K.D. Knight of the People's National Party. But seven months later he was back in the reckoning in the Local Government Elections, taking a division which helped give the JLP a 23-17 advantage in the St. Catherine Parish Council.
He cites co-operation between councillors on both sides as one of the positives of his tenure. "For the first few months it was a bit rocky but I told them that it wasn't going to be business as usual because we are here to serve the people," said Dr. Notice. "On that premise we act on the interest of the people not party."
While the relationship among Council members is stable, the same cannot be said of ties within Spanish Town's tension-filled communities, including Central Village, Homestead, Job's Lane and March Pen Road. In February, fighting escalated throughout Spanish Town resulting in the deaths of 19 persons.
FEUDING THE BIGGEST PROBLEM
Dr. Notice says feuding between gangs in the various communities is the town's biggest problem. "It prevents people from coming here and investing and I can tell you that we have all the ingredients for development," he said.
At the height of the hostilities in February, he proposed a gun amnesty plan he believed would reduce crime. Under this plan, persons giving information on the whereabouts of illegal weapons would be offered monetary rewards.
With the exception of a letter from Minister of National Security Dr. Peter Phillips saying that he would consider the mayor's proposal, Dr. Notice says there was no wide-scale support among parliamentarians for his gun amnesty proposal.
He says crime has overshadowed several accomplishments of his Council, including improved roads, the refurbishing of the Spanish Town market and an ease in traffic congestion.
However, he added that Spanish Town's physical appearance is unattractive, describing its garbage-strewn streets as 'deplorable'.
Dr. Notice told The Gleaner that for the remainder of 2004, he and his team will launch a two-pronged programme aimed at bringing back some prestige to the old capital. The first leg is a beautification initiative with the second stage geared at capitalising on the town's colourful history. "This will definitely be costly but it will benefit Spanish Town in the long run," he said.
