Outgoing Lucea mayor claims JLP
LUCEA, HANOVER — Mayor of Lucea Sheridan Samuels is hoping that the People’s National Party (PNP) will be given another chance to be in control of the Hanover Municipal Corporation as he believes the party has unfinished business there.
At the same time, he has claimed that the corporation’s hands were tied under the Jamaica Labour Party-led central Administration.
“The challenge that I had is the fact that we are governed by a party that does not allow us to do a lot of things within the municipal corporation,” stated Samuels.
He was speaking with the Jamaica Observer following his nomination as a candidate for the Cauldwell Division on a PNP ticket.
“The fact that the Hanover Municipal Corporation was controlled by the People’s National Party team, we got a lot of sabotage. We were not able to do a lot of things,” Samuels said.
He cited the example of the corporation’s inability to get many things done despite the availability of the more than $100-million Special Grant for Repairs (SGR).
“There are so many things to get done in the town of Lucea, especially the Venture Gutter beside the market. We have made a lot of requests from the ministry and it was turned down while other municipal corporations that were led by the Jamaica Labour Party got the opportunity to use their SGR at their free will,” alleged Samuels, who just completed his first stint as mayor after two terms in representational politics.
The other individuals from Hanover Western who were successfully nominated on a PNP ticket on Thursday are the candidates for the Lucea Division, Brian Chambers; Riverside Division’s Daren Barnes; and the Green Island Division’s Marvell Sewell.
While the outgoing administration of the municipal corporation had three of four seats within Hanover Western last time, caretaker for the Hanover Western constituency, Heatha Miller said all four will be brought home for the PNP this time around.
“We are very confident. We are sure that we are going to get all four divisions and we are very confident that we are going to hold on to the Hanover Municipal Corporation,” she stated.
Those nominated on the JLP side are the Lucea Division’s Easton Edwards; candidate for the Riverside Division, Colville Allen; candidate for the Cauldwell Division, Angela Haye; and candidate for the Green Island Division, Demar Mckenzie.
Member of Parliament for Hanover Western, Tamika