Henry lashes PNP's 'ginnalship'

Transport Minister Mike Henry came out swinging yesterday against detractors of the contentious Jamaica Development Infrastructure Programme (JDIP), saying for too long "we have allowed our people to live in a vortex of decline".

Henry, who was addressing the monthly meeting of the Jamaica Labour Party's (JLP) Area Council One in Kingston, said it was not good enough to only talk about the poor, "you must lift the poor".

"You bring them down one notch and you hold them there. So who wanted barber green road before, now satisfy with marl and who want marl satisfy with two stone fi walk on and, in five years, your children don't remember what kind of country we coming from," said Henry.

JDIP is a five-year $36-billion project funded by the government of China to restore major and parochial roads and bridges islandwide.

The transport minister said the programme, which was put on hold to allow for emergency repairs to roadways damaged by Tropical Storm Nicole, will see work commencing in all 14 parish by November 10.

The Opposition People's National Party (PNP), which has called for greater clarity on how the roads to be repaired will be selected, bore the brunt of Henry's broadside.

"What the ginnalship is, them smell US$400 million to spend," he said.

"So everything that them know them would do with it, them try to think is what we going to do it with it," Henry added to howls of laughter.

"And that is where we have to outginnal them with honesty and with integrity," said the JLP member of parliament for Central Clarendon.