Bill Johnson Poll: St Mary Western demanding jobs

By: Arthur Hall

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The people of St Mary Western have one message to whoever is elected to represent them on February 25: "We want work."

The lack of employment in the area is by far the most pressing concern for residents, followed by bad road conditions, crime, and water woes. The issue of poverty comes way down the line, tied with the need for a new community centre.

"Just like throughout the rest of the country, jobs are the major issue for the people of St Mary Western," said pollster Bill Johnson, following a just-concluded test of the pulse of the people in the constituency.

"What's interesting is that crime is not as much of an issue as it is throughout the rest of the country, particularly in the urban areas. If I was running a campaign here, I would be talking about jobs, jobs, jobs, roads, and water," added Johnson.

The Gleaner-commissioned Johnson poll was carried out in St Mary Western on February 13 and 14, with 480 respondents and a sampling error of plus or minus five per cent.

The People's National Party's (PNP's) Jolyan Silvera is defending a 227-vote majority against the man he defeated in 2011 to take the seat, the Jamaica Labour Party's Robert 'Bobby' Montague, and Paul Ward of the Marcus Garvey People's Progressive Party.

The candidates have been cam-paigning heavily in the constituency, which includes the major communities of Boscobel, Gayle, Carron Hall, Oracabessa, and Retreat.

The PNP has been campaigning on a message of stepping up the progress, while the JLP has been promising to lead the country from poverty to prosperity.

But the people of this rural constituency only want to know where the jobs will come from.

HUNGER NOT A MAJOR CONCERN

"When you are in a rural community, you can always find something to eat - fruits or vegetables - so I don't think abject hunger is as much of a problem in that part of Jamaica as it might be in Kingston, parts of St Andrew, and some other areas," said Johnson.

"What it is, is that these young people have left school, they don't want to do farming, and they cannot find any employment opportunities," Johnson added, as he hinted that the candidate who could best convince voters that his or her party will provide employment opportunities could get the nod on election day.

COMING SUNDAY: Who will take Western St Mary? Keep watching as The Gleaner continues to look at the 15 seats that could determine the election.

arthur.hall@gleanerjm.com