More development coming for Portmore Gardens

Following on the recent installation of a Wi-Fi hotspot in Portmore Gardens, St Catherine South Eastern Member of Parliament Robert Miller is promising more infrastructural development projects for what he says is a long-neglected constituency.

The hotspot, which allows resident to access the Internet free of cost, was installed by the Universal Service Fund (USF) at a cost of $7.5 million.

The USF, which is an agency of the Ministry of Science, Energy and Technology, is on a mission to establish 189 community Wi-Fi hotspots islandwide by March 31.

Miller, who defeated People’s National Party-affiliated Member of Parliament Colin Fagan in the 2020 general election, told The Gleaner on Wednesday that following a tour of the community with former Minister of Housing, Urban Renewal, Environment and Climate Change, Pearnel Charles Jr, they agreed to a plan to allow residents to purchase land on which they have lived for years.

“Some of the residents got letters from the ministry already in terms of the amount that they should pay and after that, the land will be turned over to them. Subsequent to that, I have written to the ministry to ask if the cost could be reduced,” he disclosed during a donation of tablets by First Heritage Credit Union and the First Heritage Credit Union Foundation at its Portmore office. Ten tablets were donated to the Windsor School of Special Education in keeping with the Ministry of Education and Youth’s ‘e ‘One Laptop or Tablet per Child’ initiative.

Miller said that while some residents have been meeting their payment schedules, many others, including pensioners, were finding it difficult, hence his appeal on their behalf. In revving up the infrastructural developments in the areas, the MP promised to use money from his next Constituency Development Fund disbursement to begin to pave the roadways and lanes which are now just mere dirt tracks.

WORKING TO GET HOUSES WIRED

“Now there is Wi-Fi and running water and light (electricity) and as a matter of fact, some persons in the area are not on the JPS (Jamaica Public Service) grid,” Miller disclosed. However, through his intervention, the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) is on track to wire the houses of residents so they can be legally connected to the JPS grid.

“Many of the residents cannot afford the $90,000 to wire each house and getting it passed, so I am taking that stress from them. I have used some of my CDF money and in short order we will be wiring those houses to the national grid.”

In confirming its participation in the electrification project, Omar Sweeney, managing director of JSIF, told The Gleaner that the agency had already completed the electrical wiring of the houses in Passage Fort but some more work needs to be done.

“There is some additional infrastructure that is required based on JPS requirements to connect, so that is what the member of parliament would have meant. We do need to install some individual metres so that each household can have their own account. This is being done under the Ministry of Local Government’s electrification programme, which is an ongoing project, and as soon as we finalise the arrangements, which should happen by next month, we should connect those residents and they should be good to go,” he told The Gleaner.