Miller confident Portmore will be named a parish
Published:Saturday | February 3, 2024 | 12:08 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
St Catherine South Eastern Member of Parliament Robert Miller is voicing fresh confidence that Portmore will be designated Jamaica’s 15th parish after the local government elections.
“As the prime minister (Andrew Holness) stated some time ago, the bill is ready for Parliament, but the prime minister and the Government of Jamaica did not want it to seem as if it is a political move. So they decided to delay the bill until after the local government elections,” he told The Gleaner on Thursday at a meeting in Montego Bay, St James, where the February 26 elections were announced.
“Some persons were asked [recently] what is their view of Portmore becoming the 15th parish, and one person said there is a particular parish in Jamaica, which will be unnamed, that does not have a KFC, a Burger King or a stoplight, and it is a parish. Portmore has its own identity, and it will be a parish, and the citizens of Portmore need Portmore to be a parish,” Miller added.
In 2020, a joint select committee was formed to examine a motion that had been made in Parliament for Portmore, which is also known as the ‘Sunshine City’ and is currently located within St Catherine South Eastern, to be identified as Jamaica’s newest parish. A bill was subsequently drafted in 2022, which would have implications for the municipality’s boundaries and the ability of residents to directly elect a mayor.
In January 2023, Andrew Wheatley, the chairman of the joint select committee, recommended that a public education campaign should be put in place to dispel misinformation being circulated at that time on the issue.
Miller also expressed confidence that all five divisions in his constituency will be claimed for the JLP in the local government elections, particularly citing the work which has been done in Portmore’s development as a municipality.
“The constituency that I represent has five divisions, and one is represented by the JLP, and four by the People’s National Party, including the deputy mayor, Alrick Campbell. I am confident in all five divisions, and I am confident that I will retain all five divisions, along with the mayoral position in Portmore,” said Miller.
“I am confident because of the work we have been doing in the constituency, and with what the Government is doing in terms of developing Portmore. There needs to be proper leadership in Portmore, and that is what my candidates will take to the table in terms of leadership at the local level and ensuring that we bring the proper leadership to Portmore that is needed,” Miller added.