Tourist town looks for community development

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner: Friday | July 27, 2007

By: Claudia Gardner, Gleaner Writer

The contender who ascends to the position of Western Hanover Member of Parliament, will have to support education and drive community development, say residents of the constituency.

The three candidates contesting the seat are contractor Leonard Sharpe of the National Democratic Movement (NDM), insurance executive Donovan Hamilton of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and the People's National Party's (PNP) Ian Hayles, a businessman and former vice-president of the JLP's Generation 2000.

Hamilton and Hayles are first-time contenders, while Sharpe contested the 2002 General Election, and the Green Island division in the 2003 Local Government Election.

Poised for growth

The constituency, which is poised for spectacular growth in tourism, triggered by the construction of the Fiesta Hotel in neighbouring Eastern Hanover, already accounts for eight of Jamaica's much-acclaimed all-inclusive hotels, and the third-largest number of hotel rooms in Jamaica.

While Western Hanover was traditionally a farming area, noted for sugar cane and yam production, that industry has declined significantly.

Hanover's capital, Lucea, up to the early 1990s, was home to several major factories, which accounted for the employment of several thousand people. Today, only one of those factories remain.

Ray Kerr, a farmer of Clifton district, says rural development must be a priority of the new MP.

"Agriculture must be driven by modern technology. He (the new MP) needs to bring in all the services that exist in urban centres, such as financial services and recreation facilities. Farmers need to see the People's Co-operative (PC) banks back in the communities. Hanover has no PC bank and we have to be going all the way to Westmoreland.

"We have rivers, but most farms have no water to sustain their production. We need to promote agro-forestry for fruit crops and lumber, because there are a lot of unused farm lands, and youth could gain employment," Kerr said.

"Rural electrification must be revisited, because communities like Rockfoot and Crognation have never received electricity," Kerr added.

Eighteen-year-old Sankiah Allen, a recent high-school graduate of Grange district, says social development should be high on the agenda of the new MP.

"Education should be pushed," she said. "The MP should seek to provide scholarships for youngsters to go on to college and universities because some people can't afford to pay. Many high-school students can't even access student loans because the interest rate is too high," she said.

"Most youths are unemployed so there is a need for support of community group activities, as being involved keeps them out of trouble. The Noel Holmes Hospital needs an emergency theatre, as this would reduce the need for Hanoverians to travel all the way to Cornwall Regional Hospital in Montego Bay for health care," Sankiah pointed out.

Poor road conditions

Olivia Sewell, a 25-year-old fire-fighter of Prosper Road in Lucea, says attention ought to be paid to the poor road conditions in the upland communities. He says education and training need to be dealt with urgently.

"The roads are very bad, especially in areas like Bachelor's Hall and St. Simon, where most of the asphalt has worn away," he said.

"Also, the MP needs to provide some scholarships because most of the youths are bright, but many parents can't afford to fully finance their education, because they are poor. A trade-training centre is needed for the youths to learn a trade, because there is none in the parish. Many youths are not working and did not get the chance to finish high school, so provisions have to be made for those who do not have a certain level of education," he added.