Mark Titus, Freelance Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:

Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) caretaker for Central Westmoreland, Russell Hammond, said the closure of the Strathbogie Postal Agency, on the basis of cost efficiency, is not justified and has left many residents disgruntled.

According to him, residents of Banbury, Bath, Torrington, Amity, Hatfield, Meylers Avenue, Chantilly and Strathbogie now have to travel to Savanna-la-Mar to collect their mail and pension payment.

Due consideration

"The postal service must give due consideration to the residents who cannot afford the high transportation cost that they are now faced in having to travel to Savanna-la-Mar," reads a statement from Mr. Hammond.

He suggested that one of the unoccupied government-owned buildings in the area be used as an alternative.

Pension

However, regional coordinator at the Jamaica Postal Corporation, Mrs. Milda Mendez, told The Gleaner that pension was never paid at Strathbogie. "All our pensioners collect their pension in Savanna-la-Mar, so using the pensioners to politicise the issue does not go here nor there, there were also other issues. The postal agency in Strathbogie was not viable, and with Savanna-la-Mar less than two kilometres away, from a business sense, it was the correct thing to do," she explained.

"The agent had been in breach of a number of things, and when I spoke to her, she conformed for a while then went back to her old practices."

Mrs. Mendez also noted that of the over 600 postal points throughout the island, only 10 are viable.