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Written by CTV3 Publisher Thursday, 23 February 2012 05:19

Politics

With fourteen days before the Municipal and General Elections the PUP Town Council Candidates in the Orange Walk division are hard at work ensuring that the message of change reaches all registered voters of the community.

That message is being spread through neighborhood meetings held in various areas across town. Last night the PUP 7 Team, headed by Mayoral Candidate Kevin Bernard, met with residents of Liberty Avenue and surrounding areas. For Bernard and the rest of the candidates it was an opportune moment to discuss the PUP Town Council Manifesto and at the same time make it clear that the PUP 7 team is ready to work hand in hand with the people.

Kevin Bernard, Orange Walk Mayoral Candidate

“People want to see that they are getting value for their money, so we as a council need to be responsible to make sure that we are offering the services that you expect us to offer, that we make sure that your streets are being maintained, that your drains are being maintained and areas of expansion that the necessary amenities and lightings and infrastructure are also put in place but ladies and gentlemen for too long we have had a council operating that lacks vision.  We are not going to be a council that is going to be manipulated by any politician, by any minister, by any party officials, we are going to make decision because our decision will count together with your input and that is where we will make the difference, if we know we need to move Orange Walk forward by bringing in tourism then we have to be that vehicle of change because we put in the policies in place and make sure that we as a council work hard to ensure that that happens.”

While women are normally left out of the picture the PUP 7 is making it a point to put into operation a plan that will create jobs for women.

Rozel Arana, PUP councilor candidate

“We also want to have personality development by having radio shows, talk shows, seminars where women can come together and talk about issues, women on a whole we need support  and if I am feeling the same thing that you are feeling in terms of a situation then we can find ways to assist one another by taking whether it is to help, discipline our kids, whether it is moral support at home whatever the case maybe, we want to have workshops to help develop that personality development for us to help our kids , for us to help ourselves and for us to help our families so that is one of the most important thing that we want to look at.  We can also venture into tourism whereby tourist can come down and whatever we have learnt to do, whatever we have had workshops in w could make stalls where people can come out and sale their art, their paintings, their local crafts to these tourists, and I will be working with women in that field, I am pretty sure we have a lot of women in our community that are very creative and talented, we want to promote those women to come out so that we could have a tourist day whether it is s Tuesday or a Thursday whenever the ships comes from Belize City link with NICH, link with BTIA, link with BTB and let us come together  and promote what we need to promote.”

It is no doubt that the streets of town are in the worse condition ever. But according to Councilor Candidate Neri Ramirez that’s about to change.

Nerry Ramirez, PUP councilor candidate

“One of the plans that is very good and people are telling us that is very helpful  and it is a very good idea that what we are saying is that lets take 75% of the revenue of transport and let invest it back into the streets repairs of streets and drainage, if we collect a million dollars imagine seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars a year and we spend it wisely on the repairs of streets in three years will do a lot, a lot of work we have the resources, we have the machinery, we have the human man power in the council but what the council is lack of is people with capacity, experience and people who have the will to work for the town and love this town, I believe that we have that here in front of you all, seven people who are ready to work for you.”

Another aim of the PUP Town Council Candidates is to promote educational opportunities among youths in the community.

Laddrick ‘Mad Bull’ Shepherd, PUP Councilor candidate

“My job is to get the youths off the street, give them an opportunity; I am the person that will talk for the youths, which will be my role in the council to talk to the youths, it is not only by organizing basketball tournaments or organizing football tournaments it is not only about sports, the thing is behind it is to get the youths back into school, they have dropped out of school because certain reason at home they don’t have the finance to go to school.  I will go in the schools and get these kids back into school it is not going to be an easy job, but with the work along with the community and I know that I can talk with the different principals of the different schools and we can be able to put back those kids into school it is never too late to go back to school.”

The next neighborhood meeting will be held on Tuesday February 28^th in the Fruits Area of Louisiana.

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