Byron McDaniel, Gleaner Writer

The constituency of Manchester North Western is said to be one of the largest in Jamaica and is bordered by Troy in Trelawny to the north, Greenvale in Central Manchester to the east, Dunrobin and Pepper in St. Elizabeth to the south and Hibernia in Manchester and Epping Forest to the west.

The terrain is hilly, rugged and difficult, rising to almost 3,500 feet at Huntley, where radio, TV, as well as cellular antennas dot the skyline. The major town is mile gully which is located at a low point.

The ancient courthouse at Skull Point is a nationally recognised historic monument.

In North West Manchester, the economic mainstays are farming, bauxite mining and a juice, extraction factory. A cheese factory was closed recently. Depending on the bauxite industry has its environmental drawbacks, the most obvious of them being the removal of top soil. However, the industry has also provided wells, supplying arid areas with water.

"A new bauxite company is working on a well which should alleviate the shortage and also provide employment for the young people, but the area needs a skill training facility to prepare them for work in the bauxite sector. So that is in the pipeline," said one resident.

Bearing in mind the important industries in the constituency, residents are concerned with seeing more farm and minor roads, a steadier water supply, as well as greenhouses to supplement the depletion of the soil by the mining of bauxite.

"Apart from a river at Oxford in North West Manchester, there is a water problem all around and residents have to depend on trucks and tanks for their water," said a government employee, who preferred to remain anonymous.

Occasional flooding

What was once a vibrant citrus industry in the constituency has been eroded by bauxite mining. Another concern is occasional flooding whenever there are heavy rains in Comfort Hall and Ever Green.

Crime, however, has been described as comparatively low. One resident of Comfort Hall, for instance, had indicated her satisfaction with the way the constituency was currently being run.

"We in Comfort Hall are lucky and quite comfortable. The Oxford River runs right through the area. We have electricity and the crime rate is low, no problem," she said.

On Monday, the PNP's Dean Peart will be up against the JLP's Timothy Scarlett.

While tourism is growing, another dilemma faces Eastern Hanover.

The constituency's lone garment factory, which employs several hundred people, mainly women, is set to close by year end, leaving many to hope the Fiesta Hotel will pick up the slack.

( L - R ) Peart, Scarlett