THE Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) is making another bid to get mutual support from residents and businesses, as well as the council, to confront the latest rat infestation in the Corporate Area.

A noisy clash between councillors at the most recent meeting, on May 9, which was evidently the result of the members failing to suggest real solutions to the rapidly growing problem, led to Mayor Delroy Williams calling for a successful break and suggesting that he would not resume in the chair until members apologise for being offensive in the debate.

Williams returned to the room a short while later, after defiantly resisting calls for his return until members on both sides withdrew their offensive comments and join a bipartisan response to the issue.

The motion, which was tabled by the People’s National Party (PNP) leader in the council, Councillor Andrew Swaby (Vineyard Town), and seconded by another Opposition member, Neville Wright (Trench Town), urged members to support approving a resolution to be sent to the Minister of Local Government and Rural Development Desmond McKenzie, and all local authorities, including National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), the Kingston and the St Andrew Public Health Department before implementation.

It also suggested that the KSAMC should lead the efforts to reduce the rodent infestation, “by inviting various stakeholders to partner with us to devise, promote and implement safe and effective waste management solutions”, and that:

“The KSAMC and the NSWMA revisit the current arrangements in place for the markets and arcades, to find more effective and efficient methods of storing and disposing of waste;

“The KSAMC and the NSWMA become more proactive in monitoring and ensuring that business operators establish proper arrangements for the collection and disposal of the waste they generate;

“And be it further resolved that the KSAMC, in partnership with the KSA Public Health Department, should set up rat baits at strategic points in the city, and ramp up public education on how to prevent rodent infestation”.

Councillor Swaby insisted that it was not a political move in tabling the motion, and that he had tried his best to make sure of that in terms of the way the motion was handled.

“It is not political that we should have responsibilities and we should take our responsibilities serious,” he said, clearing the air that he was being impartial, and noting that there were several areas being attacked by rats which required immediate attention.

However, it was obvious that Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Councillor Rosalie Hamilton felt that some of the comments being made by the Opposition was “poison”, and independent member Venesha Phillips felt that it was asking too much of the council and too little of people who are illegally dumping garbage.

The history of rat invasion of the Corporate Area includes the Clean Up Jamaica project, which was established in April 2012 when Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller instituted an inter-ministerial committee to spearhead the activities across the island. The initiative was a response to a KSAMC parish disaster and public health committee disclosure that about 50 communities in the Corporate Area were heavily rat infested.

It shared $18.5 million, with between $1 million and $2 million to each parish, with Kingston and St Andrew being allocated $2 million; St James and Clarendon, $1.8 billion each; and St Ann and St Catherine, $1.5 million. The other parishes received $1 million each. But, after a few years undercover, the rodents again reappeared, in larger sizes and numbers, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, daring public health agencies to stifle their growth and halt their expansion, this time.

This situation led to more calls across the council halls for an immediate reintervention, and clashes between the councillors on both sides of the KSAMC meeting hall. Councillor Swaby told the media that he had been complaining about rat infestation in his division since 2017.

He said that, based on the current conditions at a specific premises on Antrim Road in his division, he was disputing the inspection report. However, he also noted that, in the past, he had complained that the KSAMC — after a visit to the location in Vineyard Town — had been told by the health department that the council did not have the right to carry out enforcement. Hence, the need to get them involved. The council unanimously approved Councillor Swaby’s proposal as a bipartisan effort, and voted in favour of the resolution.