$200M capital works programme moving apace
– several projects expected to be completed by November
GOVERNMENT has allocated $200M towards completion of capital works in Region 1, and some of those works are expected to be completed by November of this year. This was disclosed by Minister within the Local Government Ministry, Norman Whittaker, who also noted that $1.5B has been allocated for current works in all of the various sectors in Region One, including health care and public works.
Minister Whittaker was at the time addressing recently elected members of the Regional Democratic Council of Region One during a visit to that region on Thursday.
He commended the recently elected body for the steps they have taken to work towards the development of the region and its people.
Whittaker, who was a former Regional Chairman for Region One, reminded residents of his days as chairman, and pointed out that councillors should always remember their primary objective is bettering the lives of all the people of the region.
He said that unless this goal is achieved, priority would not be successfully targeted, thus he urged them to strengthen themselves in this regard, and gear their minds towards this achievement.
“I want to charge you, if not already taken up, to ensure that you have the responsibility of the people at heart. Not for the AFC, not for APNU or for the PPP, but the people,” the minister said.
Whittaker stressed that if councillors were to put the people first, they must first understand their roles as councillors. “We expect each of you to work together if we are to realize this vision for the region and its people,” he posited.
The Minister told the councillors that the responsibilities they have are not restricted to the statutory or committee meetings, but that a councillor should be able to listen to the issues, concerns and recommendations of the people themselves, and act upon those to better the region.
“The only way we can do that is if we reach out to the people of the region, just like how the churches and the PTA’s do it.
“When we do this, it is not the people we think voted for us alone, but it’s for the entire population at large.”
He further stated that a councillor having the best interest of the people at heart would not be focused on specific areas of development while leaving out several other areas.
He urged them to be leaders responsible for the people’s development.
Whittaker said government expects the newly elected body to play its rightful roles to ensure that programmes designed to benefit the people are executed in a timely manner.
“You are to ensure these are implemented effectively, having regard to procurement expected, and quality expected when completed,” he said.
Whittaker also told the Councillors that they should be “watchdogs of the region’s developmental work plan”.