NAIN, St Elizabeth — Councillor Layton Smith (People’s National Party, Myersville Division) and the party’s Region Five Chairman Kern Spencer are warning that disgruntled residents may very well soon take drastic actions if the Government does not quickly repair roads and improve garbage collection in the south-central parish.

“When you look at the garbage situation within this division it is a disgrace and I call upon the Minister of Local Government [Desmond McKenzie] who go Parliament go boast and talk about how much money him collect on building fee, and we garbage can’t collect,” Smith said in reference to McKenzie’s sectoral debate presentation in May.

“How much money they [Government] say they collect on property tax. How much more money than what they used to collect they are collecting now. St Elizabeth was second from the bottom in property tax collection and now we are number two [islandwide],” he said while speaking at the Myersville Divisional Conference in Nain on Sunday.

Smith criticised the Government for what he appeared to suggest was its neglect of providing crucial services to communities.

“They are collecting our property tax and not spending it back to clean up the nastiness in the division and to give you water in the division, but I am saying I am watching,” he said.

He added that he is prepared to mobilise residents to protest.

“They come and they make their big promise of money to clean up for independence. We are going to watch and see what they are going to do, because Comrades any time I call upon you to walk with me go into Nain square and Myersville square to block the road and demonstrate to get our area cleaned and to get water, I hope you march out with me, because we are not going to live under this uncaring Government for much longer,” said Smith.

“And if they don’t want to do it. Mi ago tell uno fi stop pay uno property tax, because [it] is paid to keep up the place. If dem naa clean up wi area and nah gi we water wi ago mek uno stop pay property tax,” he added.

Spencer said people are frustrated with the condition of main roads in St Elizabeth.

“The taxi drivers, the motorists on the road say that it is a disgrace, every inch dem drive, every move dem move is a flat tyre based on the potholes,” he said.

“… If you drive from Black River to Tombstone 173 potholes in Holland Bamboo alone. From Junction to Gutters, 1,799 potholes. From Cross Road to Newell, 573 potholes pon that deh stretch deh… And we naah talk about the little one dem, we a talk bout the big crater dem,” he added.

Spencer said he has been receiving calls from people appealing for the deplorable road conditions across St Elizabeth to be addressed and has warned that protests are likely to happen.

“… Put the requisite stakeholders on notice that they [residents] are going to take to the streets and we are going to send a message that the roads in St Elizabeth need attention,” he said.

“People have said to me that they are going to come out in their numbers, because we can’t have an attraction like Holland Bamboo and you can’t drive pon the road. Every move you move you burst a tyre,” said Spencer.

He added that he advised residents to notify the police and “put everything in place to have a peaceful demonstration”.