Proper community guidance needed
Editor: I was taken aback when I read the article in one of the newspapers re. Physical Planning putting a halt to construction work being carried out by some youths in the Redemption Sharpes community. While driving through the community a few weeks ago, I noticed the excavation of a foundation, then the construction of foundation walls and I wondered to myself if the authorities had eventually come to their senses to retrofit the public bath which was being utilised by some residents for domestic purposes.{{more}} The facility is one of the surviving and utilised facilities done in the Joshua time in the Kingstown area. Those in Green Hill, Largo Height and Murrayâs Village no longer serve the purposes they were built for and for good reasons. The Redemption Sharpes public bath is the only one which accommodates individuals and families without pipe borne water.
When I read the article which said that the project was stopped because the right procedures were not followed to do addition construction, I could not agree more with Physical Planning. According to what is reported in the article by Hon St Clair Leacock, he should have realised that he was wrong not to guide the youths who wanted to do the work in the right direction. Not because you are the politician you could suggest to the youths to do what they want and you went ahead to support them with materials and cash for labour. No wonder there is so much strife and conflicts among political rivals in that particular community, and these show their ugly head especially in sports.
A similar situation occurred in the Green Hill Community, where a budding politician told a young lady that she could go ahead and use the public bath structure to build a dwelling house knowing full well that she was squatting. In this case Physical Planning had to be called in also.
Why is it when individuals are looking for votes they will ignore good community development and procedures and help in creating conflicts among residents and community based organisations which mean well? What the youths need is proper guidance and support in doing the right even though you “the politicianâ does not get the credit.
Hon St Clair Leacock was wrong to tell the youths to proceed without offering guidance which should have had the following steps.
1. Have a plan of the work to be done; 2. Get permission from the Public Health Division under which the facility falls; 3. Submit to the Physical Planning drawings of what is to be done, with the approval letter from the Public Health; 4. Mobilise community support for the work to be done so that the facility will be taken care of by residents.
Congratulations to brother Hazell of Murrays Village for helping to develop the outside of the public bath in Murrayâs Village to a useful and helpful bus shelter. We need more community spirited individuals with ideas towards community development rather than politicians who believe that they know it all within five years. Community residents must lead the politicians rather than let them lead us. Hon St Clair Leacock, you know better, so do better. We however wish to see the completion of the project.
Community Worker
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