The Jamaica Star :: Commentary :: Manage the markets properly

Elgin Taylor, STAR Writer

St Catherine

Something is terribly wrong with the way we manage our public facilities. Take the markets for example. Why is it so difficult to run them properly?

In recent times we have had problems getting persons to adhere to the designated vending areas, be it downtown, or the tourist resort areas of the north coast, Linstead or Old Harbour markets.

Certainly the parish councils, Central Parks and Markets or whichever organisation these markets and vending areas fall under, can and should be required to do a better job.

Granted, the problems may not be as easy to fix as they seem. The lack of civic pride in many of us, extortion and other forms of racketeering which have been popping up at these places show that something urgently needs to be done to reverse these trends.

Tourist attraction?

'Carry Mi Ackee Go a Linstead Market, not a quattie wut sell' is a line from the popular Jamaican folksong, Linstead Market. The song is still played in hotels by mento bands on the north coast and so it is not inconceivable for the market to become a tourist attraction. The construction of a few well-managed craft shops at the facility would be a step in the right direction.

But what do we have at the present time? We have a market where about 45 per cent of the vendors sell on the streets competing for the right of passage with vehicular traffic. Sections of Fletcher's Avenue and King Street are the areas generally affected.

In addition, the current system of garbage collection is woefully ineffective, and it is customary to see a herd of goats pulling the garbage in all directions on Fletcher's Avenue right next to the fish vendors.

The police and workers from Central Park and Markets try their best to get these vendors off the streets, but they returned as soon as the officers' backs are turned.

When it comes to markets on a whole though, on several occasions public health inspectors have warned of the unsanitary conditions prevailing at the markets, and have even ordered closure for some. But after a token clean-up exercise, everything is up and running and pretty soon it's back to square one.

The buck must stop somewhere, and people need to stand up to their responsibilities. Otherwise as a people we will continue to falter. We will continue to tinker at nation building.

When it comes to markets on a whole though, on several occasions public health inspectors have warned of the unsanitary conditions prevailing at the markets, and have even ordered closure for some.