Salt Marsh Residents Protest
In a scene that is reminiscent of one which took place last year, residents of the Salt Marsh area once again took to the street to protest the poor state of the roads.
Once again, Mayor of Falmouth Garth Wilkinson, was there to bear the complaints from residents.
The specific stretch of road runs between Salt Marsh and Davis Pen. This road has been terrible over the years. Recent rains which flooded several areas of Trelawny, have made conditions worse.
The political representative for the area is People’s National Party (PNP) Councillor Philip Service of the Martha Brae Division.
Company Proposes to Undertake the Repairs for Free
This time, residents were upset at the fact that a private company in the area Smith’s Asphalt had proposed to repair the stretch of road. The company is located just past Davis Pen (heading south). According to the protesters, the company says since their trucks travel on the road throughout the day, they will benefit from its repair, so they will fix it.
No one to give permission
They say that on contacting the parish council, they were not given permission on the grounds that it is a National Works Agency (NWA) road. This means that the NWA has authority over the repairs of the road.
Parish Council Road or NWA Road?
On contacting the NWA, the agency said it is a Trelawny Parish Council Road. Therein lies the confusion, residents say. The government didn’t want to fix it, and now they have found someone to do so, no one is claiming responsibility. As a result, their efforts have reached a stalemate.
Residents vow to continue protest
The residents have vowed to continue their protest until the strip of road is repaired.
This is when they should rush and fix the road, with the upcoming election on Nov. 26th. Or, is it that the wrong Party is in Power.?