Newly installed Mayor of Montego Bay and Chairman of the St. James Municipal Corporation, Councillor Leeroy Williams is calling on representatives of the two major political parties, the Jamaica Labour Party, JLP and the People’s National party, PNP, to take immediate steps to remove all political paraphernalia from public spaces in the city.
Mayor Williams who officially took office on Sunday September 13, 2020, replacing now Minister of State for Local Government and Rural Development, Homer Davis, said one of his first move as head of the Corporation is to get the city cleaned up.
He said the JLP and PNP must by now come to the realization that events associated with the September 03, 2020 general elections are now over and the time has come for their parties’ promotional materials to be removed from the public space.
“The St. James Municipal Corporation recognizes the importance of the democratic process and has been very considerate to political parties in relation to their promotions ahead of an election. The Corporation earns nothing from these billboards, posters or flags which the parties display, but insist that once the elections are over, these paraphernalia must be immediately removed”, Mayor Williams said.
Mayor Williams who is the Councillor for the Montego Bay North Division pointed out that the St. James Municipal Corporation will be broadening efforts to get these items removed across the city.
“These political materials have been posted far and wide across the parish and I am therefore asking all the candidates who contested the September 3 general elections to instruct their workers to have them removed immediately. My intention is to ensure that communities across St. James are not recognized or tainted by partisan political colours”, Mayor Williams said.
He added that he was hoping that within a week the items will be removed, failing which the St. James Municipal Corporation will undertake the task and all associated costs will be passed on to the respective candidates.