128 years a Borough

How, then, are citizens faring, particularly in constituencies where the PNM either gained or retained control following the September 7, 2015, general election? Sunday Newsday continues its series in Arima, a constituency which the party won back last year.

Home to the country’s first peoples – the Caribs, calypso legend Lord Kitchener (Aldwyn Roberts), late radio and television and showbiz personality Holly Betaudier, and the famous Dial, Arima is a thriving commercial and residential district, steeped in culture, sport and community spirit.

Apart from its pulsating town centre, this eastern constituency, located in the south central foothills of the Northern Range, also comprises several outlying communities, including Aripo, Blanchisseuse and La Fillette.

Its inexorable growth has been influenced largely by an urban drift which has resulted in settlements in every direction: Santa Rosa Heights and La Horquetta to the south, Bon Air and La Florissante to the west, speckled farming and agriculture in Wallerfield to the east, and housing estates on and in the foothills of Calvary in the north.

With its potential for expansion, city status will not be a surprising demand. Meantime, Arima holds the reputation of being the only Royal Chartered Borough in the country.

In fact, the district is nearing the end of its 128th Borough celebrations, a signature event in which its burgesses have continued to take immense pride.

Yesterday, hundreds were parading through the streets to the amplified music of truck borne DJs as a part of the celebrations.

Upcoming events include the Santa Rosa Festival – in which the indigenous Carib Community takes the lead, - on August 28, Arima Men Can Cook and an Independence Day Celebration, both of which are scheduled to take place on August 31. But Arimians also love their politics, and as a popular stomping ground for Eric Williams when he was seeking to consolidate his party in the mid 1950’s, Arimians have been deeply loyal to the People’s National Movement (PNM).

Long seen as a PNM stronghold, the constituency however, has never been afraid to part company with the party, doing so in 1986 for the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) and again in 2010 when the Congress of the People’s (COP’s) Rodger Samuel won the seat over the PNM’s Laurel Lezama- Lee Sing in what many surmised was a one-off occurrence, driven primarily by the promise of change espoused by the People’s Partnership coalition ahead of the election.

The PNM wrest control of the constituency again after the September 7, 2015, general election when long-time educator and trade unionist, Anthony Garcia won the seat over Samuel by a hefty margin of more than 6,000 votes. Arima has an electorate of about 25,555 persons.

Former MP Pennelope Beckles-Robinson, who unsuccessfully challenged Dr Keith Rowley for the leadership of the PNM in May 2014, had served the constituency from 2000 to 2010. Other past representatives include Gloria Pollard, daughter of Clyde Arnold Thomasos, noted educator and reputed as the best speaker ever of the House of Representatives; Felix Bellamy, Dr Maxwell Phillip Awon, and Dr Rupert Griffith. But for all of its accomplishments over the years, Arimians, who spoke to Sunday Newsday last week, said the region was, to some extent, experiencing the same fate as other developing communities in the country with respect to the provision of proper infrastructure and amenities.

“There is just too much traffic all the time,” one woman complained while walking along the bustling Queen Street in the heart of Arima’s main commercial space. There has been a recent construction boom in that part of the Borough with most of the buildings relatively new.

“No matter what time of the day you pass through the town centre,” the woman observed, it is just crammed with bumper to bumper traffic.” The woman, who lives in the upscale Calvary also said a fullfledged hospital and market were also long overdue.

“Look how long we have been clamouring for that,” she complained.

“Government go, government come, that hospital is a necessary thing because we have a growing population. The same thing goes for the market.” Similar concerns were echoed at Sylvester’s Bar, a popular watering hole at the corner of Woodford Street and Robinson Circular where retiree Jamison Daniel and a group of his friends were enjoying a round of beers.

“Our major problem in Arima is to get that Arima Hospital up and running. It is time and that market is an eye sore. We are a borough and that is not good enough. We are too big for just a facility,” Daniel said.

His companions, though, who did not want to be identified, spoke about Arima’s bright spots, which they listed as its relatively sound infrastructure, efficient utilities and one-stop-shop for almost every item under the sun.

“Arima is just a nice place to live,” one said.

But Mayor George Hadeed, who has led the PNM-run Arima Borough Council since 2013, is still not pleased with the borough’s rate of development, noting that the area was bogged down by unemployment – this despite a fairly large industrial estate on the southern fringes of the borough - homelessness, traffic gridlock and the need for a new market.

Of the latter, Hadeed told Sunday Newsday: “We remain challenged with the market. Arima really needs a new market but in the meantime we are trying to see what improvements can be made to the existing facility.” Saying the market was about 70 years old, Hadeed said he was especially concerned about the increased vending outside of the facility’s covered area. This has increased many fold since an attractive green portion of that area was given over to vending in the 1980s.

“I don’t like the condition of the outside market. I am working to see, as I get funding, to cover that area. The look will change,” he said.

The businessman mayor said the issue of eliminating homelessness which manifests itself in the number of indigent whose abode is the town centre’s pavement, was a work in progress.

“We are trying our best but getting the homeless off the streets is not an easy thing,” he said.

Hadeed added that while the constituency has had its fair share of crime, over the years, the council was working with the police to reduce the menace as far as possible.

The mayor spoke about a peculiar dimension to unemployment.

“This is an ongoing problem yet you hear of businesses not being able to get employees. KFC, Pizza Boys always have signs for workers,” he observed.

“I think the problem with unemployment is really the level of job opportunities. The type of jobs is where we are having the problem.” Although the life of local government bodies is expected to end within the next few months in preparation for Local Government elections, Hadeed said a recycling programme for communities within the borough was on the cards.

He noted that while recycling has been around for many years, “the public has not really bought into the idea” in a significant way.

Hadeed said the council has proposed to select a community for a pilot initiative.

“We have planned to roll out the project in the new financial year and we are hoping it would continue with the new council,” he said.

Asked if he wanted a second term as mayor, a smiling Hadeed would only say: “I would always serve my community, my country and my political party in whatever capacity once I am called upon.” Agreeing that unemployment and traffic congestion needed to be urgently addressed in the borough, MP Garcia said affordable housing also ranked prominently on his burgesses’ list of concerns.

However, he expressed hope that the construction of the new River Runs Through housing development along the Arima Bypass Road will bring some measure of relief to home seekers.

Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley turned the sod for the project - expected to produce some 116 units - last month.

Regarding traffic congestion, Garcia told Sunday Newsday that his office was working closely with the borough council to devise a solution. “What we are looking at is a multi-story car park. It is just about identifying the land and funding,” he said.

Garcia, also a former councillor and Arima Deputy Mayor, said a new hospital and market also were high on the borough’s agenda.

“The construction of the hospital is ongoing and constituents are very happy about that but the market remains a cause of concern for many residents,” he said, assuring that no decision would be taken on the future of the market without the input of the burgesses.

Garcia, who is also the Education Minister, said his tenure as MP thus far has been extremely rewarding.

He said he conducts frequent walkabouts within the town and other suburban areas in the district and also maintains his office days on a Tuesday.

With the Parliament currently on recess for the July-August vacation, Garcia said he also sees burgesses on Fridays after noon at his constituency office.

This, he said, can be extended to Saturdays, depending on the number of constituents who need assistance.