Dear Editor,

I listened to the sectorial presentation by Shahine Robinson, the Opposition spokesperson on tourism, as she raised concerns about several developments in the tourism sector. She is dead right that the $257 million to be spent by Tourism Minister Wykeham McNeill to upgrade a section of Windward Road in East Kingston could be better spent in tourism areas in the country.

The priority of the tourism ministry should be to develop the country’s tourism areas, making it more modern and attractive to visitors. No logical argument can be mounted against the need for serious investment in Ocho Rios, especially where there is a need for special intervention as it relates to potential for the enhancement of the tourism product. If the monies were to be spent on the development of Port Royal, one could appreciate the direction and thinking of the tourism ministry, because Port Royal could be a major tourism area in Jamaica.

The upgrade of the proposed section may be in the interest of the People’s National Party, but I do not think it should be a priority for the country right now. We have to elevate our consideration from being solely political to what is in the best interest of the country. Like the Opposition spokesperson, I urge Minister McNeill to reconsider the upgrade and to channel the money into something else that will have a more direct impact of the country’s tourism product.

Dominic Taylor

Montego Bay

dominic.taylorjm09@gmail.com

CAP:

Shahine Robinson