KSAMC minority leader wants market and arcade fees slashed

The People's National Party Minority Leader in the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC), Councillor Andrew Swaby, is calling for the local authority to immediately slash market and arcade fees for the next six weeks.

Swaby says this will offer a reprieve to hundreds of  vendors who are adversely impacted by the economic downturn from the coronavirus pandemic.

He said the KSAMC must take proactive decisions to ensure the well-being of Jamaicans in the Corporate Area.

Swaby, as the KSAMC minority leader, says he wrote to Kingston Mayor Delroy Williams recommending that the corporation's meetings be relocated to the facilities of the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston where adequate spacing allows for physical distancing to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

Swaby said this precautionary measure, among others, would allow the sittings of the local authority to continue at this very crucial time when the Corporate Area features heavily in the spread of the disease.

“I would like to suggest that the temporary venue is considered for the upcoming General Council Meeting on Tuesday April 14, 2020. The Jamaica Conference Centre is quite ideal for this, and I am also recommending that the Public Health Committee Meeting be held immediately following the council meeting to look at some of the health-related issues throughout the city.

“The sitting will also enable the municipal body to receive an update on all COVID-19 related issues,” Swaby said.

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