KINGSTON, Jamaica — Member of Parliament for St Andrew South Western, Angela Brown Burke, has expressed her support for a possible protest by Greenwhich Town residents against roadblocks set up by the authorities in the area.

Brown-Burke told Observer Online that some of the roadblocks were erected due to repairs being carried out on sections of East Avenue by the National Water Commission (NWC), transforming the roadway into a one-way with the intention of reverting to a two-way following the completion of the work. The MP said the blockages remain despite the works being completed and are a gross inconvenience to residents.

“The community has been extremely patient. It has been a great discomfort for individuals who drive, individuals who have to take taxis in and out…it is indeed a huge problem,” she said. “What this means is that you become a community that is completely locked in between East Avenue and West Avenue and you therefore become a target within that in terms of your movement.”

She noted also that some of the barriers were erected by the police as a preventative measure to stem the number of drive-by shootings in the area. However, she said they have failed to quell shootings.

“Initially that was what was said and so people said ‘let us work with it because we understand the intention.’ The truth is, with the number of killings inside that community, the number of shootings within that community, it is obvious that that (barriers) has not been a deterrent,” she said. “So it no longer satisfies for the residents what it was intended to do. Persons are concerned that it doesn’t offer the protection that people think it does…so it is becoming a major, major challenge.”

Against that background, with the residents’ frustrations mounting, the MP noted that the community is moving towards staging a protest to get the attention of the relevant authorities. She said she has opposed the measure in the past but says she now believes it may be the best option.

“The residents have been wanting to do a demonstration to press home their point and I have been saying let’s give them (authorities) a little more time to let this happen, but where I am now, I have said to them, any day you’re ready for the demonstration call me, I’ll be there with them,” she said.