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Minister Robinson to Meet With Hanover Parish Council With View to Resolving Issues Speedily

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Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Local Government, Hon. Shahine Robinson  is stepping into the fray of what has become an ongoing impasse in the Hanover Parish Council, with a view to assist in favourably  addressing the issues that are seeming to negatively impact governance of the Council and its local jurisdiction.

 

Minister Robinson noted that she will be seeking to have dialogue with the relevant parties, both the political and administrative arms of council with a view to better understanding and hopefully successfully resolve the issues, pending a judicial review that is now  before the Supreme Court.

 

Failing this ministerial intervention effort, the Minister is issuing a strong warning to the Hanover Parish Council to speedily find an amicable way to resolving the issues that have kept the council out of session for almost two months.

 

“I am prepared to take strong measures within the legal remit of the law to deal with this impasse if we cannot resolve our differences amicably in the interest of the citizens and the continued development of Hanover,” She said.

 

Minister Robinson who has recently assumed the portfolio in light of the Government’s Cabinet reshuffle last month, indicated that she has been taking note and apprising herself of the issues relating to the seeming continuous impasse among the councillors in the  island’s western local authority. A situation which preceded her tenure.

 

The Hanover Parish Council has been faced with a series of political and legal issues allegedly stemming from what is being viewed as a leadership crisis. It is in this vein that the minister is expressing grave concern for the affairs of the citizens of the parish which she fears will suffer from the lack of effective decisions on the way forward that are to be made during Sittings of Council.

 

“We cannot continue this way, this is not good local governance; we need to address the bigger picture which is the business of the people who elected us to advocate on their behalf in making the right policy decisions; and we cannot do this effectively if we cannot work together,” she reiterated.

 

The Minister also noted that “the very fabric of local government reform and all its principles, particularly that of good governance, are at stake and would have brought our efforts to naught in Hanover, were we to allow this issue to continue unresolved”.

 

Notwithstanding the veiled threat, Minister Robinson is hoping that the Council will justify their presence and tenure by seeking to conduct themselves with decorum and professionalism and move with alacrity to treating the affairs of the people of Hanover like a business poised for growth through meaningful discourse, strategic planning and goal congruence.

 

The judicial review is set for Friday, July 22, 2011.

Robinson Calls for Dynamic Parish-Council Leadership

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Minister of State with Responsibility for Local Government, Shahine Robinson, says there is need for strong and dynamic leadership in the local authorities as the issue of governance has an impact on the finances and administrative processes of councils.
She was addressing members of the Westmoreland Parish Council at the opening session of their financial management retreat at the Riu Hotel, Montego Bay, last Friday.
The retreat was held under the theme ‘Strategies to Achieve Self-financing Goals’.
Robinson congratulated the council on its foresight in convening the retreat despite the challenges of financial resources.
“I note that your theme is one that has major implications for the survival of your council in the face of the global economic downturn from which some economies, such as ours, are only just emerging,” she said.
Robinson said that it is the duty of leaders to inspire confidence. She gave the assurance that the Government was prepared to lead from the front by encouraging the unmistaken view that it cannot be business as usual.
The state minister told members of the council that they had a golden opportunity to improve their revenue base, a task which, even if it appeared impossible, was achievable.
“We must remain unswerving in our determination to meet hard times with an even harder will,” Robinson urged.
Former minister of state with responsibility for local government reform and newly appointed Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Robert Montague, congratulated the council for its innovativeness in organising the retreat. He said that if the council is to meet its financial objectives, all regulations and by-laws must be reviewed.
“Let us maximise those that we know and have been using so as to become financially able to meet all monetary obligations and objectives,” he said.

Under the Local Government Reform programme, local authorities have been mandated to provide 30 per cent of their funding from own-source revenues. Consequently, the Westmoreland Parish Council decided to convene the workshop to focus on strategies to realise that goal.

Published by The Jamaica Observer

St Elizabeth Infirmary getting matron’s quarters

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GROUND was broken last Thursday for the construction of a $7.5 million matron’s quarters at the St Elizabeth Infirmary in Santa Cruz.

According to a news release from the State-run Jamaica Information Service (JIS), the facility will cover an area of 920 square feet, will comprise three bedrooms and feature concrete foundations, reinforced block walls, slab roofing, ceramic tiles and louvre windows.

“Construction will take six months, starting Monday, June 27, and will be done by Tropical Metal Construction and Equipment Company,” the JIS said.

Speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony, Robert Montague, the minister of state in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for local government, said that there are approximately 1,500 residents in infirmaries islandwide, all with different needs.

“They (the infirmaries) were originally designed to house the elderly who have fallen upon hard times. But the reality that we find today is that inside our infirmaries are the elderly, the mentally challenged, the physically challenged, some that have no challenge but have nowhere to go,” the JIS quoted Montague.

He emphasised that the responsibility for caring for people has become a part of the local government reform process, where the onus is placed on respective parish councils to demonstrate their caring side. However, he pointed out that taking care of the poor is not the sole responsibility of the Government, but also the responsibility of the community and the society as a whole.

Montague said, too, that because of the wide cross-section of persons now occupying infirmaries, the Department of Local Government has undertaken, through the Board of Supervision and in partnership with HEART/NTA, the training of persons in the fundamentals of caregiving. To date, 11 persons have benefited from that training.

He said the department is undertaking incremental improvements to all infirmaries.

The Jamaica Observer

MPs given limited powers of JPs

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THE SENATE yesterday passed with four amendments the Attestation of Instruments (Facilities) Act, which gives limited powers of justices of the peace to members of parliament.

The privileges given to the members of parliament are limited, according to Opposition Senator A.J. Nicholson, who said the powers are a conferral on the office of the MPs. The powers are not transferred to the individual if he or she loses the seat in an election.

“Under this provision, you will not see any sitting MPs conducting any petty session court, or things like that. It is an accommodation to attest to the authenticity of certain documents,” Nicholson said.

The privileges are also conferred on a councillor of a parish council, or the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation, and a mayor of a municipality who is not a councillor.

-The Gleaner

Portmore Municipality under Probe for Allegations of Impropriety

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In an emergency sitting of the Portmore Municipality with Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Local Government, Robert Montague on Thursday, a number of allegations regarding financial irregularities dominated the meeting
Documentation presented at the meeting by the Minister revealed a series of “missing cheques” from the Council’s  account as well as attempts to encash four cheques totalling more than 4.5million dollars.
Evidence also presented, indicated  that at least one contractor who was hired to carry out rehabilitation works presented a false Taxpayers Registration Number (TRN) and was paid despite this anomaly.
Presented with a list of names of contractors who have been paid and alleged to have carried out drain-cleaning and other works in various divisions within the Municipality, most councillors denied knowledge of the ‘ghost contractor’ or the work being undertaken.
Another issue of concern raised was the case of the missing “20 container shops” once utilized by entrepreneurs in the Gregory Park and environs of Portmore which were seized in a cease-and-desist operation by the Council. It is alleged that the container shops cannot be accounted for as they were deemed to have been ‘sold’ shortly after seizure. The question of a missing fogging machine also dominated the meeting on the purchase, loan and subsequent return of same.
In his response to the allegations, Minister Montague has charged both the council, and its administrative head to immediately conduct a probe into the allegations and call in the fraud squad where corroboration shows that there is evidence of fraudulent conduct on the part of any councillor or employee.
In addition, he has called on councillors to be more vigilant in the monitoring of their allocation and reminded them to “check your ledger accounts” individually to ensure you are aware of how your allocations are being spent.”
He also reminded the Council that the Auditor General’s report of the Municipality over time has not been a complimentary one and therefore more stringent measures of accountability should be reinforced to ensure checks and balances in the system of fiduciary management.
He warned Councillors not to allow the Council to be dissolved, as its actions were indicating that it was not managing the affairs of the municipality in the best interest of the citizens whom it serves.
Minister Montague implored both the political directorate and the administrative staff of Council to work together for the common good of its communities.
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Golden Age Home Sponsors Recommit to Assisting Home

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Four major sponsors of the Vineyard Town Golden Age Home in Kingston have recommitted to continuing their sponsorship of the home through cash and kind.
 In what is to become a quarterly meeting of the members of the Board and corporate sponsors of the home with Minister Robert Montague, the group noted that while they were aware of the recent emotive publicity of the operations of the home, they were not given to withdrawing their sponsorship but instead have resolved to strengthen their corporate social responsibility to the residents, their care and the facilities.
Meanwhile, Minister Montague, who has responsibility for Local Government and under whose portfolio the home operates used this morning’s meeting to thank the sponsors for staying the course and recommitting to continue the “good work they have been doing”.
“ …Your sponsorship has served the Golden Age Home well and while we recognize that this may not affect your bottom-line it sure does have tremendous influence and impact on the lives of our less fortunate…, a gesture that cannot be quantified in dollars” the Minister told the gathering.
Minister Montague expressed his appreciation amidst increased commitments for the rehabilitation of the bathroom facilities, introduction of therapeutic vegetable garden, physiotherapy, refurbishing of the kitchen facility, a 40-foot container for storage and the implementation of the more efficient LED lights for the compound.
The Minister also implored the corporate group to “spread the word to like-minded and committed companies to come on board in adopting clusters and improving the welfare of the residents as this type of generosity embraces the larger and greater cause of doing good for humanity.”

Local Authorities use one-day workshop to review Roles, Responsibilities and Relationships

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Minister with responsibility for Local Government in the Office of the Prime Minister, Hon Robert Montague urged local government officials to refocus on their individual roles as well as on building strong working relationships with other government agencies in strengthening the relevance of their respective councils and municipalities.
The Minister was addressing more than 200, local government personnel during a one-day consultation/workshop at the Jamaica Conference Centre last week Thursday, May 26, 2011.
The workshop which was heavily attended by Mayors, Councillors, Secretary/Managers, Directors of Administration and Disaster Coordinators, was aimed at reviewing the roles, responsibilities and relationships of local government officials as part of a relationship management strategy geared at enhancing the inter-relationships within councils as well as intra-governmental partners.
During his wide-ranging speech which looked a number of local government reform issues, the Minister pointed out that while the topic was by no means new, he, however, felt the necessity for this review “as we continue to assess our objectives towards achieving good local governance”.
In addition to increasing the awareness of agencies and ministries regarding the coordinating responsibilities of Local Authorities (LAs) Minister Montague said that the workshop provided a useful platform for face-to-face dialogue and consultation as one local government fraternity. He said it was his hope that it would provide renewed enthusiasm and focus in improving service delivery which will augment the quality representation to the citizens in their respective jurisdictions across Jamaica.  
 
The Minister also used the opportunity to provide an update on the local government reform process.
It was revealed that the legal review was progressing as submissions have been made with respect of several pieces of legislation; an organizational review of the parish councils was well under way; a most modern and appropriate government accounting system has been installed in several Local Authorities; Local Public Accounts Committees have been established in thirteen (13) LAs aimed at opening increasing public participation in the budget process; four (4) LAs are currently receiving direct financing from the Ministry of Finance instead of from the Department of Local government, thus allowing for increased autonomy over their own finances; while Parish Development Committees have been established and are being funded and institutionalized through a National Association of Parish Development Committees to deepen community participation as part of the citizens’ participatory model of governance.
Regarding Revenue Enhancement, Minister Montague reported that LAs have responded positively to the challenge of providing 30% of their budget from own source funds. He noted that the average contribution by Local Authorities is over 12% with some councils providing 27%   of their own budget.
“We now need to take the next step by becoming proactive facilitators for economic development within our respective jurisdictions” the Minister said.
The second segment of the two-part workshop also addressed the role of LAs with respect to disaster preparedness and management, particularly in light of the upcoming hurricane season. He cited the need for the strengthening of enforcement and monitoring of regulations adding that unplanned settlements are major contributing factors in the degree of severity in damage resulting from natural disasters.

A major decision emanating from the cross-functional workshop was the need for both political directorates at central and sub-national levels to meet and discuss a joint approach to moving forward.

Good News for Golden Age Homes and Infirmaries

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Through a proposed NHT Foundation the island’s infirmaries and golden age homes will benefit from approximately $600M. This was announced by Prime Minister Bruce Golding in his budget debate yesterday May 10, 2011, at Gordon House.
According to the Jamaica Observer … Four target projects have been identified, including improvements to golden age homes and infirmaries through physical upgrading and the provision of training for the staff of these institutions, particularly in enabling them to properly care for residents with special needs.
In explaining the proposals the Prime Minister noted that,  “The NHT proposes to establish a Foundation through which a maximum of 50 per cent of these funds will be channelled to support specific causes that are considered to be in the public interest”.

See full story in Jamaica Observer May 11, 2011 page 5

Parish council in the dark about beach development

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The Portland Parish Council is unaware of any planned artificial beach development at Blue Lagoon in the parish. Mayor of Port Antonio, Floyd Patterson, says the matter will be investigated by the Council’s Director of Planning.

“I am not aware of any such development,” Patterson told The Gleaner.

“This will be something that we will be investigating thoroughly; however, once approval has been given by the relevant agencies to the property owner, as it relates to any such operation, the council might not be able to change anything.

“But it is important to note that once one has met all requirements, one is within his or her rights to develop,” Patterson added.

Since the start of this month reports have surfaced that the operator of Tropical Lagoon Resort, Devon Wilson, plans to construct an artificial beach at Blue Lagoon.

While there is no confirmation of the reports, the Jamaica Environment Trust (JET) has objected to what it claims is the granting of a beach license by the Natural Resources Conservation Authority (NCRA) to the operator.

“In a letter to Prime Minister Bruce Golding Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of JET, Diana McCaulay, said it was their view that an artificial beach is inappropriate for Blue Lagoon, one of Portland’s premiere beauty spots.

According to JET, the clearing and removal of vegetation from the lagoon’s steep sides could result in silt running off into the sea.

Commercial recreational activities

The letter also stated that the beach license granted to Mr. Wilson by NRCA was to operate commercial recreational activities in the Blue Lagoon including swimming and the construction of a slipway for canoes.

Additionally the letter pointed out that although Wilson was strictly prohibited from modifying the coastline, he has ignored that warning.

The Gleaner visited the Blue Lagoon area recently, and observed a mini white sand beach area on the property owned by Wilson.

The Gleaner also observed that a number of trees were lopped, low walls built, and a chain-link fence.

But a senior source at Tropical Lagoon Resort, who asked not be named explained that they have adhered to all the guidelines and regulations from the NRCA including preservation of the vegetation.

The source added that the operators would welcome an investigation into their operation at any time, as so far, their conduct has been transparent.

Major Richard Reese, Director General leaves the Department of Local Government, when his contract ends, June 10, 2011.

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State Minister with responsibility for the department, Robert Montague, made the announcement last night as the Standing Finance Committee of Parliament examined the Estimates of Expenditure for the 2011-2012 fiscal year.

Reese is to take up a job as CEO of a major security firm. He, however, will continue serving on government boards.

Reese, who has served as commissioner of corrections, was a permanent secretary in the Ministry of National Security before he was shifted to the Department of Local Government last year.