WESTMORELAND — They may not have had any real power, but for one day recently 25 young people in Westmoreland got an up-close look at what it would be like to manage their parish’s local government authority.

The sitting of the junior council was part of the events to mark November as local government month. So at this special sitting of the authority, these junior councilors, representing the 14 parish council divisions, had an opportunity to make presentations on issues affecting their communities. The dominant issues were water, road conditions and solid waste management.

The mayor for the day was Denarto Dennis, a sixth form student at Mannings High School.

In the end, the juniors and those who regularly sit in the chamber agreed that it was a worthwhile initiative from which all sides benefited.

In his address, Dennis said the opportunity given to students to participate in the council’s activities was a step in the right direction and a move towards the critical development of politics in the country. He urged his colleague councillors not to take the exercise lightly but to learn as much as possible to prepare themselves for future leadership.

“I believe that from this very junior council, future politicians can emerge, who will make a difference in the governance of the country,” the junior mayor noted.

Pointing to the importance of an educated and committed youth population for a prosperous future, Dennis thanked the Westmoreland parish council for instituting such a “worthwhile” learning programme.

Savanna-la-mar mayor, Ralph Anglin, who was chief observer from the Westmoreland Parish Council, said the progamme was a success.

“This exercise is indeed worthwhile and it formed part of the Westmoreland parish council’s objective of securing the future of Jamaica through the youth,” he said. “We must continually train young people in order to have worthy successors.”