Mayor Barnswell, you just don't get it!

 THE EDITOR, Sir:

I read May Pen Mayor Scean Barnswell's response (published on April 10, 2013) to your story carried on April 7, 2013. This is my response to Mr Barnswell. Clearly I'm missing something here.

Mr Barnswell, please step aside. Yuh nuh ready fi dis. I was actually applauding your input as carried by The Gleaner on April 7, 2013. But it seems that I applauded a little too early.

I read your letter all the way through and at no point do you, the letter writer, point to the instance where there was "political interference" by the previous Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) admin. I even reasoned that it may be the blurb about work stopping when Michael Stern was member of parliament, but that couldn't be, because (alas!) he was MP between 2007 and 2011 when Mr Azan, then councillor, was carrying out work on the market. So it doesn't appear as if he interfered there.

So I am left trying to figure out to what exactly you were referring. You made sweeping references to 'councillors', but you shied away from identifying the meddling JLP parties. Am I missing something here? Please clarify your clarification.

FACILITATING AZAN

What I also find striking is the fact that you totally sidestepped the fact that the shops were constructed WITHOUT the required approval by the council. And you still have not made it clear if the council was aware of the construction of these shops before they were actually built.

It appears that it is totally lost on you the breach that has taken place RIGHT UNDER YOUR (and the other councillors') NOSE, facilitated by Mr Azan, your party colleague.

Finally, the council actually suggested the option to buy the shops from the man who (technically) illegally constructed them? Am I the only one who finds this a tad bit disturbing? The contractor did what is almost akin to squatting - taking over someone else's property without permission (and, in this case, the MP's word doesn't count because the property wasn't his to give), built shops, without going through proper channels of approval, and now is being paid for said (illegally constructed) shops by the owner of the property?

Wow! The owner has to BUY BACK ITS OWN PROPERTY? Oh, I see. A so we a move now?

And to save face, you are going to accuse The Gleaner of misconstruing what you said? That is all well and good - I wasn't there so I don't know the details of the interview. But in your attempt to clarify the situation, you've shown everyone that you just don't get it. Either that, or you're caught between doing the right thing in reprimanding Mr Azan for his role in this mess (which you failed to do in your letter), and maintaining party bond.

I mean, God forbid that you should have a dissenting thought! SMH.

DURIE DEE

mizd2u@yahoo.com

Toronto, Canada