Local Government and Rural Development Minister, Desmond McKenzie, has agreed that public cemeteries across the island are in need of attention.
At the same time, McKenzie reminded that the Government has announced a “comprehensive” programme to address the cleaning of all public cemeteries.
The programme he referred to was a mapping programme for cemeteries across the island, which is aimed at aiding the municipal corporations in the cleaning and maintenance of those burial sites.
“The entire island will benefit from that programme which was announced by me in my sectoral presentation last year,” said the minister as he responded to a question at Saturday night’s local government debates.
The particular question posed to team Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) was for them to identify one cemetery that they were proud of.
Taking on the question directly, McKenzie pointed to the new public cemetery in Old Harbour, St Catherine, which he said was established under the JLP administration.
He said the cemetery currently provides “first-class burials” while pointing to another public cemetery in Mandeville, Manchester that was also a new burial site.
But Scean Barnswell, the People’s National Party (PNP) councillor-candidate for Hayes Division in Clarendon, rapped the Local Government and Rural Development Ministry for its lack of care for public cemeteries.
“The cemeteries are out of space,” declared Barnswell, a former Mayor of May Pen.
Continuing, he said: “I know you (the citizens) are in trouble when trying to find a (burial) space for your loved ones to be buried.
“The JLP Administration has not even provided any other cemetery in any of the parishes,” Barnswell claimed.
He listed St Ann, St Mary and Clarendon as being among the parishes that were allegedly out of burial spaces.
“The People’s National Party will work closely with the UDC (Urban Development Corporation), (and) with NHT (National Housing Trust)… to make sure that we have space to put our loved ones to rest,” Barnswell proposed.
