McNeill eyes redemption in Trelawny Northern after 2020 defeat
Published:Sunday | June 22, 2025 | 12:08 AMRochelle Clayton - Staff Reporter
WESTERN BUREAU:
After serving five terms in Westmoreland Western before getting the boot in the 2020 general election, Dr Wykeham McNeill is seeking redemption in Trelawny Northern with ambitious plans to energise the constituency.
In one of the shock defeats of the 2020 election, McNeill (5,095 votes) – then a People’s National Party (PNP) vice-president –was defeated by political neophyte Morland Wilson (6,148 votes) as the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) swept the west.
After a lengthy period of uncertainty, Trelawny Northern was all but set for a matchup between incumbent Tova Hamilton of the JLP and turncoat Dennis Meadows, now representing the PNP after multiple failed attempts on a JLP ticket. But a costly gaffe by Meadows saw him being removed as the prospective candidate and the installation of McNeill.
Infrastructural and economic potential
A former tourism minister, McNeill sees Trelawny Northern’s infrastructural and economic potential as a way to usher in development. HE told The Sunday Gleaner that he believes the constituency has numerous opportunities to enhance the lives of the people, adding that his first priority, if elected, would be to rehabilitate areas of the township that he believes require repair.
“I have always had a keen interest in North Trelawny, just from a tourism point of view previously. I have worked on a number of projects there … so, I’ve always seen it as the new frontier for tourism,” McNeill said.
He continued, “My vision for the constituency is quite clear. I would start with Falmouth, it is the capital, a heritage town, [and] a tourism town. I would be rehabilitating the entrance.
If you drive in through Market Street now, the bush is coming in on both sides. There are no sidewalks, no street lights, and it’s dark at night. There are major schools in the area, so there are hundreds of students walking in the town every day, with not even a sidewalk.”
McNeill also expressed dissatisfaction with the conditions of the Falmouth Market.
“The market in town is in disgraceful condition, and it’s a relatively new market. The bathrooms are in bad condition, the infrastructure needs roofing, it’s the largest bend-down market in the country, and it’s in terrible condition. It needs to be fixed up properly, and remember, it’s actually at the entrance of the town.”
McNeill told The Sunday Gleaner that he also intends to breathe life into Falmouth’s historic Water Square and fulfil commitments to install a statue of hometown legend Usain Bolt in the area. He believes that these improvements will encourage more cruise ship visitors to explore the township, further driving financial gains for local artisans.
“We will be opening it up and rehabilitating it, and ensuring that we can restore it to its former grandeur because it’s one of the areas that is a tourist demand for people coming off the ship. They go to see the Water Square, and right now, there’s nothing there,” he said.
At the same time, he stressed that there is also a need to ease traffic congestion heading into the township. McNeill said he intends to develop the section of Falmouth known as ‘Rock’ to fix the problem.
“The bridge to Rock has been closed now for many years and has to be reopened, but it needs to be opened as part of a bigger plan. That plan includes not just opening it because we need to free up the traffic congestion in town, but it also gives us another entrance into town. I intend to fix it up as an elegant corridor by putting palm trees and fixing it up, so that we create a park-like environment there. So that locals and visitors will now have the benefit of that,” McNeill said.
Meanwhile, he intends to establish an education and training council to provide training and career options for young people throughout the constituency. According to McNeill, collaborations and support have already been obtained to help propel this project.
McNeill’s additional initiatives include road improvements, water distribution, and getting land titles for constituents. He also hopes to revitalise a rent-to-own scheme for young adults in Trelawny Northern who do not have the financial resources to buy a home.
Grants for young
first-time owners
“I have already started to look and identify land for 500 low-income houses that will be built in the constituency. We have to target the shortage of houses and young people who need to get housing, and of course, these will be buttressed by the programmes put in place with the grants for young first-time owners. [Such] as the rent-to-mortgage programmes, which are important for persons like even a taxi driver who does not have a payslip every month, but earns good money,” he said.
When asked about his readiness for the 2025 general election, McNeill told The Sunday Gleaner that he is confident. He emphasised that he has devoted time and effort to his campaign since being named the party’s standard bearer last year.
“I have done a lot of work. I have spent the last year walking the constituency, and the relationship that I have built with the people there has been tremendous. The welcome has been tremendous, and I feel very, very confident. I’m very happy. I feel a certain warmth in there, and we are working assiduously to ensure that our organisation is in a first-class position to face the election, and we are ready now for when it is called,” McNeill stated.