Henry urges municipal corporation to restore public order to busy May Pen town centre

Central Clarendon Member of Parliament (MP) Mike Henry wants the newly-installed members of the Clarendon Municipal Corporation to focus on restoring public order in the busy May Pen town centre.

Henry, who is also the transport minister, cited the inappropriate use of the old police station compound on Main Street as a parking facility for taxis as a major source of chaos in the town centre. He said the space has been earmarked as a community green space and efforts should be made to execute the project.

The Central Clarendon MP is calling on the new mayor, Winston Maragh, to "put a stop to the taxi parking on the property right away, as there should be no hindrance at any stage ahead for the planned development of the property as an environmentally-friendly community space".

Henry lamented that there has been a breakdown in planning at the parochial level for some time, resulting in a general decline in public order in the bustling town centre. He said the facilities to accommodate vending and parking for public transportation have deteriorated significantly.

"Therefore, I urge the new municipal corporation to seek to balance the public order needs with the economic interest factor which drives the mushrooming of vending in the town centre, this as we work together towards the broad goal of bringing adequate, structured and orderly vending arrangements to the town centre," Henry said.

He warned that the councillors for the divisions in May Pen, which comprise the Central Clarendon constituency, will be directly held to account.