Samuda slams Knight for ‘playing politics’

Knight is the incumbent councillor of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), serving a second straight term as the people’s elected representative at the local government level.

In a recent post, though, Samuda held back no punches in berating his opponent over the “inequitable distribution” of jobs offered to persons living in the division for ongoing works on the Big Pond Drain and Road Improvement Project.

“Upon (my) investigation (I) concluded that only one set of persons are getting work on the site, and it is only persons who are affiliated to the JLP who are working on the site,” said Samuda, a renowned businessman.

He branded his opponent’s method of leadership as outdated while demanding “both PNP and JLP should be getting work”.

“It’s not only persons affiliated to the JLP have kids to feed, only have parents to assist with some medical. Everybody needs money right now, everybody needs assistance right now,” lamented Samuda, a native of Old Harbour North.

As a part of Jamaica’s political culture, it is the norm for politicians to provide labour for primarily low-skilled jobs for projects happening in their jurisdiction. But the approach is historically fraught with political marginalization.

Samuda said he personally sought to raise the matter with Knight, who he claimed was not open to having a conversation.

“Mr Knight said mi nuffy call him phone and him heng up him phone. I found that disrespectful. But it’s OK because I know that I am calling for the people, talking about the people, representing the people,” Samuda said.

“Twenty twenty-one, this type of politics should not be practiced in Jamaica any at all. Let us stop stigmatize people, both JLP or PNP. Any opportunity in the community both JLP or PNP must benefit,” he added while calling on residents to denounce such political culture.

He reiterated his call for Councillor Knight to “share the work equally with the people in Bullet Tree and in Big Pond”.

“Additionally,” he continued in his charge “if work is happening in Bullet Tree, in Big Pond, give Bullet Tree and Big Pond people the work. You don’t need to bring people from out of the community to do the work, to do mason work or labourer work. The community has enough persons with the necessary skillsets. Mek dem eat the food, mek dem get the work.”

Old Harbour News made several attempts to get a comment from Knight but calls to his mobile phone went unanswered. Neither did the councillor respond to our message left on his phone.