KINGSTON, Jamaica — Member of Parliament for St Andrew Western, the People’s National Party’s (PNP) Anthony Hylton, is calling for the Government to demonstrate its “genuine concern” for the most vulnerable in society through a targeted programme of cost reduction/elimination for the wiring of houses.

He said this would provide those individuals who want to legally connect to the grid with legal access to electricity.

“All will be benefitted with the adoption/expansion of such a programme by government, not just the few who will benefit under the vote-buying scheme announced recently on the political platform,” said Hylton.

He was speaking in the House of Representatives on Tuesday during his contribution to the State of the Constituency Debate.

The vote-buying scheme he referred to was in relation to the announcement by Prime Minister Andrew Holness of a 53 per cent cut in the General Consumption Tax (GCT) component on electricity. The prime minister made the announcement on November 24 at the annual conference of the Jamaica Labour Party.

Some public commentators and the Opposition PNP have pointed out that the savings that will accrue to the majority of Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) customers will be in the region of $200 monthly.

Hylton raised the issue as he told the House that over 100 houses in Riverton City in his constituency were recently wired.

“This is the first phase of a two-phase programme designed to expand access to legal light by residents of Riverton City, and to reduce revenue losses to JPS by removing illicit connections. This is a partnership between the community and JPS led by myself and the councillor for the Seaview Gardens Division after patient, but deliberate, negotiation,” said Hylton.

“The next phase in this collaborative arrangement will be implementation of an improved distribution infrastructure to enable more houses, once successfully wired, to become formalised,” he added.

The Opposition MP questioned why only 100 homes were wired considering the benefits of the programme to all stakeholders involved. Answering his own question, Hylton said it was because of “the prohibitive cost involved to wire an individual house”.

Meanwhile, Hylton said the residents of Riverton continue to press for a better National Water Commission system for both potable water and a reliable sewer service.

“I will continue to advocate for their inclusion in accessing the improved and affordable services available to every community in Western St Andrew. They deserve no less,” he said.