Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness (centre) enjoys a drink of water during the commissioning of Phase One of the Rhyne Park Water Supply Improvement Project in Barrett Town, St James, last week. Sharing in the moment is Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett (left) and minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Matthew Samuda.
‘Misleading and mischievous’
PM says St Mary pipe removal video done with devious intent
RYHNE PARK, St James — Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness has dismissed as misleading and mischievous a recent video circulating on social media showing workmen removing pipes laid by the National Water Commission (NWC) in Mason Hall, St Mary.
The removal took place shortly after a commissioning ceremony attended, late last month, by Holness and minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Matthew Samuda.
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Speaking during the commissioning of the first phase of the $54-million Rhyne Park Water Supply Improvement Project in Barrett Town, St James, last Thursday, the prime minister explained that it is standard procedure for the NWC to remove temporary pipes following the commissioning of a system.
“It would be very intrusive for us to go into somebody’s house and have a ceremony in their house to show that there is water in the community. So what they do, they give a temporary connection to the main that is run to show that water is there.
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“Now, some smart person with devious intent to mislead, puts out a video to say, ‘See it, them a tek up the pipe dem dat dem lay,’ ” the prime minister explained.
In hammering home his point Holness pointed to the campaign leading up to a by-election in St Ann North Eastern in 2001 when Shahine Robinson was first elected Member of Parliament for the constituency.
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“Now the mentality, the kind of people who do that [circulate the video], are the same people who actually did that in the election for Shahine Robinson, God rest her soul, I believe in 2001. I saw [it] for myself that, just before the election, they came and put down pipes and told people that, ‘Yes, you’re going to get water’ and go to a place name Lime Bottom in Ocho Rios. And before the election could be finished, the night of the election, they came and took up the pipes. Now that’s the mentality. Why would you do that?” he scolded.
Robinson defeated the People’s National Party’s Carol Jackson, the National Democratic Movement’s Barbara Clarke, and independent candidate Astor Black in the by-election to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of the PNP’s Danny Melville.
Holness, who committed to addressing water woes facing Jamaicans was, however, clear that he cannot promise to immediately fix them all as Government is now faced with concurrently building new infrastructure and repairing some that are more than 50 years old.
“We’re doing the two things simultaneously, providing water for communities that never had water before, that’s new infrastructure; and we are upgrading, renewing, and rebuilding existing infrastructure. And this Administration, more than any other Administration, has been doing this consistently and doing it cost effectively and efficiently,” Holness said.
“I want to commit to Jamaica that, yes, we understand the challenges you have with water but I can’t bring myself to make wistful promises to you. I can’t bring myself to tell you that with the snap of a finger water going to be in every house overnight, because that would be telling you that horses can fly. And the sad thing, however, is that since we are in the promising season there are many Jamaicans buying the promise that they will get a horse that can fly,” he added.
During the event Samuda revealed that the Rhyne Park Water Supply Improvement Project will increase the volume of water for people living in the communities in and around the Rhyne Park and Barrett Town areas of St James from 750,000 to 1.5 million gallons per day.
“It means that over 10,400 persons living in [the] Rhyne Park and Barrett Hall area now have reliable water supply. That’s 2,600 households that are now benefiting from this reliability, from this investment,” Samuda said.
