FOR 45 years the people of St Andrew North Central knew only one person as their Member of Parliament (MP) — Karl Samuda.

Usually clad in the green of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) Samuda held the seat from 1980 until Parliament was dissolved this year, although he donned the orange of the People’s National Party (PNP) in 1993 and successfully defended the seat before returning to the JLP for the 1997 poll.

On Wednesday the people of St Andrew North Central — based on preliminary data from the Electoral Office of Jamaica (EOJ) — elected the JLP’s Delano Seiveright to represent them as their first new MP since 1980.

After celebrating his victory in his second try at representational politics Wednesday night, Seiveright on Thursday, in a sit-down with the Jamaica Observer, made it clear that he understands the task facing him as he seeks to fill the big boots left by Samuda.

“I intend to work and build on the legacy of the Honourable Karl Samuda who has given almost 50 years of service to St Andrew North Central. Mr Samuda turned a seat that was traditionally a stronghold of the People’s National Party into one that now supports the Jamaica Labour Party.

“It is no doubt big boots to fill but I am glad that I have a strong relationship with Mr Samuda, his wife Pauline, and his family, who helped to shape me into the politician that I have become,” Seiveright told the Observer after the EOJ’s preliminary numbers showed him polling 5,769 votes to the PNP’s Christopher Henry’s 3,317.

“St Andrew North Central is possibly one of the most dynamic constituencies in Jamaica, given the spread of demography. I am genuinely grateful for the support across all the demographic groupings including the communities in need of transformation and the middle- and upper-income communities,” added Seiveright.

He said even before he is sworn in as MP he has a vision and plan for the growth and development of the constituency.

“My team and I have about three or four initiatives that we are already working on. We have pressing issues about roads in the constituency and coming in as the JLP’s caretaker just over two months ago we got the Charlton Ford fixed, [and] the Whitehall Road, which deteriorated in certain sections, is now being fixed.

“As we speak, and we have also committed to addressing the issues at the Manor Park bus lay-by; we are far ahead through a public-private partnership to fix that problem once and for all,” said Seiveright.

“And, of course, the issue of land titling and getting communities formalised and regularised, that’s a big issue for us. Another major priority is the Cassava Piece community which is in need of urgent transformation. I want to thank that community, which is usually strong for the PNP, for its support for my candidacy which means many of them have bought into the vision of transformation which I want to use to address the issues in that community and bring them along,” said Seiveright.

He added that he wants to use private/public sector partnerships, including Project STAR, to improve conditions in Cassava Piece.

Project STAR is a social and economic development initiative created by the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica and the Jamaica Constabulary Force, driven by communities to bring about societal transformation through targeted interventions in under-resourced areas of Jamaica.

According to the MP-designate, his next major project will be to make Red Hills Road a truly amazing commercial cultural hub and a gastronomy mecca with the jerk vendors along that corridor.

Seiveright admitted that the crime problem in the area has had a major negative impact on commercial activities on Red Hills Road but argued that efforts by Samuda and the police have helped to reduce tension in the area.

“The crime numbers here have declined significantly but the spectre of violence, the spectre of criminality, will always be an issue along that corridor. I will be working closely with the authorities and with the residents to let them understand that a successful Red Hills Road will benefit all the people along that corridor.

“Many of the residents have accepted this and we expect that this will lead to the revitalisation of Red Hills Road so that people know that it is safe for them to get jerk chicken, jerk pork, and other forms of refreshment,” added Seiveright, who served in the Senate and as minister of state in the Ministry of Tourism in the last JLP Administration.

Delano Seiveright (right), the Member of Parliament-designate for St Andrew North Central, greets his close friend Matthew Samuda at the Jamaica Labour Party mass rally in Half-Way-Tree last month. Seiveright will join Samuda in the House of Representatives when Parliament resumes.

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