Dear Editor,

The right to vote and the opportunity to vote are two basic features of any democracy. In sections of Portmore this right was never afforded to a number of electors in the Portmore Pines and Greater Portmore North parish council divisions. The Portmore boundary issue has dragged on for too long without any clear signs that it will be resolved in time for local government elections, which are now past due since March 31, 2015.

The Government is playing with democracy in a manner that can only lead to citizens staying away from participating in the process. People will stop voting whenever it reaches a point where it does not matter whom they vote for, since neither of the two major political parties care about them. Whereas it does not suit the electorate when they fail to participate, it’s a proper fit for the political parties, especially the current rulers, who are the solid belief that this is “PNP country”. Their rule has been gained by getting a majority of the minority who bother to vote. Those of us who summon the courage to stand up and speak against the state of affairs are labelled as detractors and ‘of the articulate minority’.

Portmore was granted municipality status by this Government, and it’s a crying shame to see how the community is being governed. Our first directly elected mayor passed away, and for 21 months the community is still without a directly elected mayor. There is no clear reason this is so, other than that the community is being taken for granted by a party that the electorate of Portmore has been more than generous to. This must not be taken for any political weakness on the part of the Portmore electorate, as it was this same electorate that voted against former mayor, George Lee, in the local government election of 2007 in a direct challenge to toll road issues. This same electorate then booted out Mayor Keith Hinds due to the Gregory Park fiasco in 2012.

We are not happy with the way that the Portmore boundary issue is being dealt with, we are not happy that we were not given the opportunity to elect a new mayor. We are not happy that after the death of George Lee, the first action was to throw out the Portmore Citizens’ Advisory Council, thus leaving the community groups on the outside rather than participating in the governance process.

Universal Adult Suffrage clearly embraces the right to vote and the opportunity to vote. Minister Arscott, I beg of you to sort out the Portmore boundary issues so that we can all exercise this right.

Howard Hamilton

Immediate Past Chairman

Greater Portmore Joint Council

How_hamil@yahoo.com