WESTERN BUREAU ú New mayor of Montego Bay, Noel Donaldson says he will be pushing to revive the defunct Parish Development Committees (PDCs), as these are essential to local government reform.

According to Donaldson, the PDCs will ensure greater transparency and enhance the participatory model of government that the council has embarked on.

The PDCs, which comprise civic and community groups, were formed to ensure broad based representation of civil and community groups at the Parish Council.

“Part of the weakness at the moment, is that we do not have the Community Development Councils in place,” Donaldson pointed out, adding that the council would shortly “go out in the communities to ensure that we get the community groups in place that will give the foundation to the PDC”.

This community thrust, Donaldson said, will take place in the next few months.

He was speaking Friday at the first sitting of the council since the recent local government elections.

The mayor also pointed out that he would be encouraging businesses to beautify their buildings in a bid to enhance the aesthetics of the city.

“… So far, Horace Peterkin (general manager) from Sandals (Montego Bay) has actually gone ahead and committed several weekends for two, to assist us in enticing business people to give their business a better presence here in Montego Bay,” he said.

Donaldson said the council would also be launching a public education campaign to address the behavioural practices of Montegonians who engage in negative practices such as littering and graffiti.

In addition, the new mayor said his administration will also be investigating the allocations of monies spent by the previous council.

“We want to make sure that the citizens of St James receive an effective bang for every buck. One of the things that I’m doing right now is that I am examining some of the expenditures that have taken place over the recent past to see what is to be shown for those alleged expenditures.”

Donaldson, as chairman of the parish council, will chair its Executive Management Committee along with Deputy Mayor Cecil Davis.

The chair for the City Council committee, which was set up to oversee the process of local government reform at the parish council, will be elected by councillors of the divisions within the city limit.

Meanwhile Donald Colomathi was sworn in as councillor for the Springmount division by principal returning officer for St James, Majorie Morgan, following a magisterial recount that earned him one vote more than his Jamaica Labour Party opponent, Brenda Taylor. Colomathi gained 1, 392 votes to Taylor’s 1, 391.

After the ceremony, Colomathi told the Observer that he was not perturbed by the JLP’s decision to take the matter to the Supreme Court in an effort to overturn the decision.

“Whenever that time comes, and I know it will be a long time, I hope that good sense will prevail,” he said.

Colomathi’s victory brings to 7, the number of divisions won by the PNP to the JLP’s 10.