ST JAMES, Jamaica — With the government announcing several infrastructure projects, party chairman Robert Montague has insisted that they are not election related.

“That’s not so, this is no election ploy,” was his response when quizzed on the issue.

His comments came just minutes after the announcement of the long-awaited local government elections that are to be held on February 26.

Montague told the Observer Online that works which were recently announced are in keeping with what the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has been doing over the years.

“For the last seven years we, the Jamaica Labour Party, at central government and at local government has been working, fixing roads, putting up streetlights, repairing streetlights, repairing leaks,” he stated.

In recent times, however, there have been several announcements and groundbreakings in particular to road improvement and rehabilitation. He explained that more is expected to come.

“You don’t see road repair yet we have the SPARK programme coming, some $44 billion will be invested in the infrastructure in our communities and the community people, Prime Minister Holness has said will be asked to prioritise those roads,” he remarked.

He insisted that the current government has never stopped working during its time and therefore whatever is happening is just the continuation of work for the benefit of the citizens.

“We are investing in our communities because the people of Jamaica had to sacrifice to get us there with various economic programmes,” he stated.

“The dividends of that sacrifice are now reinvested in the community for the people in the various communities. The Jamaica Labour Party is serious when we say we moving you from poverty to prosperity,” he added.

He said that the party is now looking to widespread success when election day comes and the expectation for a clean sweep in western Jamaica, taking control of all the local municipal corporations.