Councillors and Poor Relief Officers attached to the St. Mary Municipal Corporation have received state-of-the-art tablet and desktop computers and printers from the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development.
These are expected to significantly enhance their capacity for service delivery across the parish.
Portfolio minister, Desmond McKenzie, made the presentations during the Corporation’s monthly meeting in Port Maria on Thursday, October 12.
The provisions are the second such following similar allocations to the Clarendon Municipal Corporation in September, JIS reported.
The gesture is in keeping with the minister’s commitment to the island’s mayors, councillors and poor relief officers to provide them with the requisite technological resources that will advance their work.
Speaking at Thursday’s meeting, Mr. McKenzie said in addition to the computers allocated to councillors, the Ministry would seek to assist them in recruiting persons to serve as administrative assistants in their respective offices.
“So in giving you the tablets, we are giving you the kind of support that you need that will only make your job better. But equally, your job as councillors can be made even better with administrative support,” he said.
In the case of the poor relief officers, Mr. McKenzie said the Ministry had noted their concerns about the challenges they have been experiencing in carrying out their duties due to inadequate equipment.
“The Poor Relief Department has been struggling. The complaint was that the Department lacked computers and printers, and some of the poor relief officers felt that the technology was so far advanced that they risked being left way behind. As a result of the provision of the equipment, they won’t be struggling anymore,” he said.
Both sets of beneficiaries at the St. Mary Municipal Corporation, headed by Port Maria mayor, councillor Richard Creary, and inspector of the poor for the parish, Lincoln Brooks, expressed gratitude for the provisions and indicated that the equipment will go a far way in advancing the services delivered to residents .
