Campbell-Rodriques says she will improve lives of the people
Published:Monday | August 17, 2020 | 12:16 AM
First-time Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) prospective candidate for St Catherine North Central, Natalie Campbell-Rodriques, has criticised the People’s National Party (PNP) for taking liberty of constituents over the years.
On a campaign trail in Caswell Farm, a community in the Angels division, she said she would work to improve the dignity of people.
“They have no skips, no garbage collection, and that’s what representation is about. But because you think you’re going to win, you don’t have to pay dem nuh mind and this is what yuh end up with – tek liberty a people,” she said, as she pointed to heaps of garbage on an open lot.
She added: “The platform I’m running on is that of dignity. If you keep in mind dignity for people, then what happens is that whatever you do is governed by that.”
Campbell-Rodriques desires to make St Catherine North Central a model constituency, noting that her office will be painted in a neutral colour.
“I’ll be the member of parliament for all the citizens who rest in these four divisions of Above Rocks, Sligoville, Bog Walk and Angels.”
She said the JLP’s core base falls in Bog Walk and sections of the Angels division.
“Canvassing is a slow process, no matter what, especially in seats like these that do not have a culture for the Jamaica Labour Party, but we are working on it and our workers are aware of the importance of it, so we are getting it done.”
“The seat was lost in 2016 by 1,300 votes, and of that 1,300 votes, 900 came from the Sligoville division, so that was maximised for our opponent. We have to do the same, we have to maximise,” the candidate shared.
Jew Pen Hill, Caswell Farm and Giblatore are among the communities in the constituency that are without running water.
“They get water when trucks come by which is not regular ... I am currently in discussions with NWC to see why it is that these people can’t even get pipes,” the JLP candidate said, adding that illegal electricity also plagues some communities.
At the request of the youths, Campbell-Rodriques, a former councillor for the Westchester division in the Portmore municipality, has so far cleared an area of land in Caswell Farm to be used as a community recreational space.
“I am committed to making our lives much better in North Central St Catherine,” she said.