ANDREW Swaby, the new mayor of Kingston, on Tuesday appealed to residents in the Corporate Area to demonstrate “a sense of civic pride” by helping to keep their surroundings free from garbage.

Mayor Swaby, who was speaking after his swearing in at the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation’s (KSAMC) offices on Church Street, downtown Kingston, insisted on support to tackle the garbage issue, as well as a number of other problems facing the municipality in Jamaica.

According to Swaby, his administration believes that “we have been given a mandate by the people, to uplift and improve the lives of each and every citizen within our municipality”.

The mayor, who had been operating as minority leader for People’s National Party (PNP) members of the council prior to his elevation to leadership of the corporation, promised that over the next three months the council will be meeting with various stakeholders, including the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC), developers, vendors and other interest groups to air their concerns as well.

“We believe that it is important that we listen to the people in order to serve them even better. It is our desire to engage our constituents at every level of decision making as the decisions that will be made must be for their benefit. To achieve this, this administration, under my leadership, is committed to host quarterly town hall meetings each year,” he promised.

Swaby said that his administration believes in a bipartisan approach and is ready, willing and able to set aside political differences, and work with the Jamaica Labour Party’s (JLP) members of the council to achieve the mandate given to them by the people.

He said that for far too long, constituents have been living in “filth”, as “not only are there piles of garbage on our roads and in our town centres, but many of us have been forced to watch garbage pile up at home, as well as the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) has failed to collect waste on a regular and timely basis”.

He said that this was unacceptable and must be addressed forthwith and that, moving forward, the KSAMC will work with the NSWMA to ensure that they put measures in place for the long- and short-term collection and that disposal should be returned to the local authority, as one of its core functions.

The new mayor also reminded residents of the Corporate Area that they, too, have a responsibility to dispose of their waste “in a responsible manner”, and that the burning and dumping of garbage on the streets and in gullies is unacceptable and unlawful. He also urged business operators in the city to put proper measures in place to dispose of their commercial waste.

“This administration is appealing to the residents of Kingston and St Andrew to demonstrate a sense of civic pride by helping to keep our surroundings free of garbage,” he added.

The mayor also raised the issues of street lights, saying that the lack of functioning street lights continues to affect policing in many communities, and offers a cover for criminals and their nefarious activities.

He said that his administration is eager to engage the light and power company “in meaningful discussions on how to have these malfunctioning street lights repaired, in a timely manner”.

Mayor Swaby said that, in terms of the National Water Commission (NWC), there are varying concerns about the effect on constituents who are troubled by water and sewerage issues, which he charged has been the failure of the NWC to manage its resource efficiently, “as, from time to time, we have seen water running on our roads, not only does this destroy the road surfaces, but it creates potholes which are hazardous for motorists and pedestrians alike”.

Turning to the conditions in the markets, the mayor said that it “pains his heart’ to visit the market, “and witness the deplorable conditions which exist and to which shoppers are exposed”. He said that the reason is worsened by the fact that vendors, most of whom are women, have to use the sanitary conveniences in the markets.

“It is a shame to see the conditions to which the public is subjected. This cannot continue. We must find solutions to improve these facilities and make it more habitable for all users,” he said.

Speaking earlier at the swearing in, former Mayor Delroy Williams, who is now serving as the new deputy mayor, recalled his friendship with the new mayor and their confidence in each other’s ability to raise the consciousness of political supporters and the attention of the main bodies dealing with the needs of constituents represented by the 40 elected members.

Other guests included Opposition Leader Mark Golding; Minister of Local Government and Community Development Desmond McKenzie; and Minister of Education and Youth Fayval Williams.