Greenwich Town resident rejoices as Gov’t replaces leaky house
Published:Saturday | April 9, 2022 | 12:10 AMEdmond Campbell/Senior Staff Reporter
When dark clouds begin to gather, Avis Morrison will not have to worry anymore that as soon as it begins to rain, she would have to scramble with several containers to catch the water from the roof that leaks profusely into her house.
Described her living condition for many years as deplorable, Morrison said that her earnest desire was to get a house that was suitable to live in.
“I had to use a ladder to go on the housetop each time rain falls to put tarpaulin up there and set pans although it was there,” she told The Gleaner.
That dream to occupy a more comfortable dwelling and to call it her own came true yesterday when she was presented with the keys to a new three-bedroom house on Second Street in Greenwich Town, St Andrew, by Prime Minister (PM) Andrew Holness.
Residents of the community cheered when the announcement was made at a ceremony in the community, where Holness cut the ribbon to officially hand over the $5.6-million house to Morrison, who has lived in the area for decades.
The senior resident shared with The Gleaner that she had a conversation with St Andrew South Western Member of Parliament Dr Angela Brown Burke, who informed her about the Government’s social housing programme and she applied for a benefit.
Although she waited for four years before being offered a house, Morrison told The Gleaner that she was grateful.
“There are not enough words to explain how I am feeling right now. I am grateful to my member of parliament and I am grateful for the housing project that the prime minister came up with,” she said, gleefully.
Commenting on the project, the prime minister said that a simple design was used to build the structure, but it allows for further expansion if Morrison so desires.
“The house is given to you, but it is not free. It is paid for by the taxpayers and, therefore, what we ask from you in exchange for this house is that you must be an example to the community – an example of hope, an example of peace in the community,” Holness exhorted Morrison.
According to Holness, the idea behind the project is to assist those who are dispossessed and to give them hope.
“What I was particularly pleased about in handing over the keys to you is that the community was so happy for you getting the house,” he said.