MP Purkiss cries for more support for Hanover Eastern

WESTERN BUREAU:

Hanover Eastern Member of Parliament Andrea Purkiss has sharply criticised the level of government assistance reaching her constituency following the devastation caused by Category 5 Hurricane Melissa across western Jamaica.

She said thousands of residents remain in urgent need of food, clothing, shelter, water, and medical care while some communities – including Chigwell and Forrest – were still marooned up to this week.

Purkiss, moved to tears during an interview with The Gleaner, pleaded for increased government intervention to support those affected.

While acknowledging that she has received some financial aid and care packages, she stressed that the assistance is far from adequate given the scale of destruction. She noted, however, that support from the private sector and the diaspora has been significant, and in many cases, has “saved the day” for residents.

Hurricane Melissa triggered the opening of 27 shelters across Hanover Eastern, housing roughly 150 people. Communication issues have since made it difficult to confirm how many remain open or how many individuals are still occupying them.

Many homes suffered severe damage, and several families lost all their belongings.

“Since the hurricane, I have received 250 bags (care packages), plus 50 cases of water for a constituency with over 20,000 people,” Purkiss stated.

“I received $1.5 million [and] a second $1.5 million – that is through the Community Development Fund (CDF) – to purchase food items. Plus $500,000 cannot [prepare] 300 bags (care packages), so that is a drop in the bucket,” she argued.

Purkiss was also critical of how the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) distributed packages in Hopewell and Sandy Bay.

NOT HEARSAY

“I have witnessed this myself – not hearsay – in Hopewell and Sandy Bay on the main, during nighttime, boxes being thrown from a JDF vehicle to a soldier on the ground, who was distributing to citizens who had to form a line, and they (the soldiers) were, indeed, asking for persons to produce their TRN (Taxpayer Registration Number),” the member of parliament claimed.

Purkiss said that she has expressed the concern about this to Opposition Leader Mark Golding, who said he would address the matter further.

The MP argued that the JDF’s distribution efforts lacked coordination with churches, community organisations, councillors, or members of parliament, groups, she said, that are best positioned to identify residents most in need.

“The people in Hanover are struggling,” Purkiss stressed, calling for urgent action from the Ministry of Health, the local health department, and the National Solid Waste Management Authority.

She expressed frustration at the slow pace of garbage collection since the hurricane, raising concerns about the risk of disease outbreaks if the problem persists.

Advocating for the parish more broadly, she urged that Hanover be included in donations and relief shipments coming from overseas, noting that the level of need is severe.

“I’m at begging stage now to get some help for the people of Eastern Hanover. Treat us like we are humans. Remember our senior citizens and the children who are affected as there seems to be no hope as far as some of them are concerned,” she said.

editorial@gleanerjm.com