"Devil find work for Idle Hands"

-

Interestingly, but more so disturbingly, in a year when nature has spared Jamaica from the destruction associated with a hurricane the Kingston & St. Andrew Corporation (KSAC) has moved away from its core function to address cosmetic needs. The Kingston & St. Andrew Corporation mission statement unmistakably states the council should meet the local needs of the citizens of Kingston and St. Andrew by providing effective and efficient services to enhance their quality of life. However, recent developments and actions by the municipal council clearly lead one to question whose needs are being met and who are the citizens benefitting from an enhanced quality of life by the work of the KSAC? The KSAC has embarked on the registration of handcarts operators in downtown Kingston. According to the KSAC some 500 handcarts owners have registered to that. This initiative is aimed at regularizing hand cart operators across the city. Seriously!! Clearly, the KSAC needs to be reminded about the proliferation of sidewalk garages across the city. What about the needs of those of us, who pay property taxes, should we not have the right of easy access to and from our premises without being blocked and inconvenienced by uncaring and thoughtless motorists?
Has the KSAC forgotten about the many drains and gullies needs cleaning across the city or must we wait until a hurricane threatens? What about the mosquitoes nuisance across the city? Is there even a mosquitoes eradication programme?   
What about the numerous unregulated morgues and hair dressing parlours across the city?
Where are the effective and efficient services that your mission statement speaks of KSAC? Are these services only for one section of the citizenry in the corporate area?
For the most part living in Kingston and some parts of St. Andrew is characterized by social decay and unregulated planning. Yet for reasons which I don’t understand the KSAC has turned a blind eye to the obvious. There is a tendency for us in the society to find trivial matters to address in order to attract media attention while ignoring the elephant in the room.  The time has long passed KSAC for you to return to your core mandate! Get to work!   
Wayne Campbell

waykam@yahoo.com

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Promoting Literacy For A World In Transition

-
Image
Oftentimes we speak about literacy yet, the practicality regarding targeted interventions to support literacy in many educational institutions is hijacked in the politics of education. In the long term both the students and indeed the society suffer the consequences. Literacy ignities creativity and desire. Literacy is that springboard that must propel all students in order for them to navigate their educational journey successfully. Regrettably, without acquiring the tools of literacy one is imprisoned and those around also are serving this sentence. Literacy is a potent tool to eradicate generational poverty. Literacy also serves as a vehicle for social progress and sustainable development. Unfortunately, many societies do not invest as much in literacy skills as they ought to. The Global South oftentimes is burdened by debt repayment to multi-national lending agencies that cut into the budget that should be set aside as an investment in education. The statistic paints a damning pic
Read more

The Psychology Of Dunce

-
Image
The word ‘dunce’ has always had a fixed address in our local lexicon. The summer holidays are now over, yet the narrative associated with the ‘dunce’ labeled knapsacks has carried over into the new academic year. We often underestimate the power and force of our popular culture to our detriment. Gone are the days when teachers were seen as role models for students; there has been a tsunami-like shift in our values and attitudes over the years and this has given rise to a number of sub-cultures many of which are toxic. Many of the social ills of the society are grounded in our painful past of enslavement and colonialization. Unfortunately, the State has been complicit in the promulgation of some of these social problems. Sadly, as a society we have internalized this trauma and as a result generation after generation have had to deal with social problems of various forms in our post-slavery society. Over the decades we have inherited and we have continued to nurture an elitist educati
Read more

Israel Hamas War

-
Image
“Indeed, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.”- Psalm 121:4. It appears we have been hearing about the Arab/Israeli conflict from time immemorial. However, it is important that some historical and Biblical context be interjected into the narrative in order for a better understanding of this current war. In the Bible, the phrase ‘Promised Land’ refers to a specific region of land that God promised to his chosen people of Israel. God first gave this pledge of land to Abraham saying, “I will establish your borders from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, and from the desert to the Euphrates River.” This pledge was reiterated to Abraham’s descendants until the time came for His people to claim their inheritance. Abraham knew that he would not see God’s Promised Land with his own eyes. In fact, God made it clear to him that the land would not be given until four generations had passed, and that his descendants would face the hardship of slavery in Egypt before the
Read more