Mile Gully ­ a model rural division

WHAT IS THE AIM OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT?

ACCORDING TO a 1998 Organisation of American States (OAS) workshop held in Kingston on Local Government, Communitarianism and the Citizen: Opportunities and Challenges, "Local governance structures should have a special mandate to help eradicate poverty, food insecurity and joblessness. The aim should be to provide local work for local people in local areas and communities." If Local Government parish council divisions are able to achieve this, then they are on the path to sustainable development. Such a division would be worth emulating, an example of which is the Mile Gully division of north-west Manchester.

Located on the outskirts of the Cockpit Country, this farming region does not exhibit evidence of the overt political activity which is normally associated with governance in Jamaica. The divisional office does not even have a PNP sign. Instead, for the last 17 years, Councillor Anthony Watson has maintained his visibility in the division while allowing the communities to take charge of various development projects. He has done such a good job that it is a forgone conclusion that the new councillor will be from the PNP, as Mr. Watson is not seeking re-election. Evidence shows that whoever is elected councillor will have a hard act to follow.

'LOCAL WORK FOR LOCAL PEOPLE IN LOCAL AREAS'

Councillor Watson exemplifies a tradition of self-reliance which is present in the region. Born and bred in Mile Gully, he ran as councillor after noting the lack of facilities in his community. He has been able to spread what he has learned about community involvement to the villages of Evergreen, Comfort Hall, Inglewood, Bethany, Litchfield, Free Town and Epping Forest. In Comfort Hall and Epping Forest youth clubs, schools and citizen associations are key partners in community development. In Litchfield, when the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) invested $2m on road construction, the responsibility of managing it was given to the community's youth club.

Another example of community involvement is the Antioch Basic School in Glasgow. Currently housed in a one-room concrete building, it started over 50 years ago inside the Antioch Church of the Nazarene by its founder, Birdie Record. When she passed on, Miss Lorna Witter volunteered to succeed her. She and Mrs. Claudette Fearon teach 25 ebullient students basic reading and arithmetic. The community has always recognised the importance of this school and has supported it while ensuring that the teachers are paid.

'ERADICATING POVERTY, FOOD INSECURITY AND JOBLESSNESS'

"T'ings hard, but dem coulda worse." These words of a young farmer from Oxford exemplify the feelings of the residents of the Mile Gully division. Most of the villages in the division were established in the 19th century by newly freed slaves. Farming was the mainstay then and it remains so today, with crops such as yam, dasheen, cocoa and banana being the main sources of income and nutrition. This is supplemented by chicken, which are normally reared by the women in the community. The crops and livestock which citizens of the Mile Gully division raise provides both employment and nutrition to the residents. As such, poverty is not evident in the division.

A network of main and parochial roads were established to allow crops to reach the markets in Balaclava, Christiana and Mandeville. Today's transport network is based on these narrow, winding roads which traverse the fertile cockpits and in the steep northwestern corner of the division, these roads are well asphalted. Some roads have been widened, such as the Oxford to Spring Hill road which was completely refurbished in 2002. The original houses were simple wooden structures. Many still exist today, although they are being replaced by multi-room concrete houses. In order to facilitate this, three young men have gone into business in Auchtembeddie making concrete blocks with marl, stones and cement obtained from Mandeville.

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT

The lack of piped water in houses is a major hindrance in the entire division due to most of the rivers being subterranean. The villages surrounding Mile Gully are located where these rivers emerge as underground springs. This is seen at Oxford where water from the nearby Noisy River is piped to the standpipe in the town square. Cowick Park, Glasgow and Auchtembeddie are located in the highlands and their sole source of piped water is a tank, which pumps water from these springs to standpipes. For the past two months, this tank's engine has not been working, resulting in no water being available to the communities. This has affected everyone. The Antioch Basic School has to obtain water from its neighbours and the church, who have their own tanks. William and Warren, the block makers from Auchtembeddie have to walk five miles to the nearest spring to obtain water for their business. Residents have brought the broken engine to the attention of member of Parliament Dean Peart, but so far it has not been repaired.

Jamaica needs leaders with vision, integrity and sound management skills. After June 19, the Mile Gully division will have a new councillor. He will have to hit the ground running, and the supplying of water to residents' homes must be a priority. Residents have no home phones and are reliant on cellular phones. Many other challenges will arise. Hopefully the foundation which has been laid will be built on by the new councillor and the citizens of the Mile Gully division.