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Step up, MPs!
Paul Reid
Thursday, September 24, 2009
PRESIDENT of the St James Football Association, George Evans, recently opened up a proverbial can of worms when he accused the four Members of Parliament for St James of failing the youths of the parish.
Evans called for more involvement of the MPs in football and while we understand that his main focus would be on football, the truth is that our political representatives have neglected all sporting life in the parish.
Granted, Evans' claims were flawed in that the MPs he credited for making significant contributions to football in Kingston and St Andrew and Clarendon are involved with a particular club and not the FA per se. But the message is still the same, more can and should be done.
It is a fact that sports is the single entity that can unite as well as give youngsters an outlet for their abundant energies. So these political representatives should start looking at more ways of facilitating the engagement of our youths.
Some years ago a decision was taken by the previous government, owners of the still incomplete stadium at Catherine Hall, to transfer the grass to improve the very hard surface at the national stadium for our World Cup campaign.
Clive Mullings, then an MP in opposition, found it necessary to lead a protest over the move notwithstanding that the field was not being used by anyone and would at that time help our national football programme tremendously.
Little or no thought was put into the fact that the Government owned the facility and was free to do whatever they wanted with it.
Today, while Mullings is a government MP, we have yet to hear him come out and say that the completion of the stadium will take another few years, extending the total time under construction to nearly 15 years.
A year ago this column criticised Mullings for ignoring the outstanding achievements of Dexter Lee, a young member of his constituency who has distinguished himself as a two-time World 100m champion, something that not even Usain Bolt can boast.
Up to now we are still to hear anything from the second-term MP.
For years there have been calls for the construction of a swimming pool to facilitate the numerous competitive swimmers we have in the area, but all we hear is that MPs and others are "looking into it" and the most recent thing we heard is that the lands adjoining Jarrett Park were being considered.
Mt Alvernia High, Montego Bay High and Cornwall College were serious contenders in swimming for years and supplied numerous members to national teams but the lack of a pool has forced the programmes to close.
Basketball is arguably the fastest-growing sport in Montego Bay and has made serious strides with a young, vibrant and dedicated executive.
However, they could do with some help, and the two venues used for both basketball and netball - the Montego Bay Boys Club and the Montego Bay Cricket Club - are calling out for help.
The games are mostly played in the late evenings but are hampered by the poor lighting, which should not cost too much to replace.
Granted, both are private facilities, but we can't lose sight of the fact that they have opened their doors to the youths of the parish and region, and the least the politicians can do is offer a helping hand.
The woes of sports in the parish are too plentiful to be detailed here and while I don't expect any one to think the MPs are to bankroll every single thing, they do have an obligation to the youths of their constituencies.
Step up, MPs!
Paul Reid
Thursday, September 24, 2009
PRESIDENT of the St James Football Association, George Evans, recently opened up a proverbial can of worms when he accused the four Members of Parliament for St James of failing the youths of the parish.
Evans called for more involvement of the MPs in football and while we understand that his main focus would be on football, the truth is that our political representatives have neglected all sporting life in the parish.
Granted, Evans' claims were flawed in that the MPs he credited for making significant contributions to football in Kingston and St Andrew and Clarendon are involved with a particular club and not the FA per se. But the message is still the same, more can and should be done.
It is a fact that sports is the single entity that can unite as well as give youngsters an outlet for their abundant energies. So these political representatives should start looking at more ways of facilitating the engagement of our youths.
Some years ago a decision was taken by the previous government, owners of the still incomplete stadium at Catherine Hall, to transfer the grass to improve the very hard surface at the national stadium for our World Cup campaign.
Clive Mullings, then an MP in opposition, found it necessary to lead a protest over the move notwithstanding that the field was not being used by anyone and would at that time help our national football programme tremendously.
Little or no thought was put into the fact that the Government owned the facility and was free to do whatever they wanted with it.
Today, while Mullings is a government MP, we have yet to hear him come out and say that the completion of the stadium will take another few years, extending the total time under construction to nearly 15 years.
A year ago this column criticised Mullings for ignoring the outstanding achievements of Dexter Lee, a young member of his constituency who has distinguished himself as a two-time World 100m champion, something that not even Usain Bolt can boast.
Up to now we are still to hear anything from the second-term MP.
For years there have been calls for the construction of a swimming pool to facilitate the numerous competitive swimmers we have in the area, but all we hear is that MPs and others are "looking into it" and the most recent thing we heard is that the lands adjoining Jarrett Park were being considered.
Mt Alvernia High, Montego Bay High and Cornwall College were serious contenders in swimming for years and supplied numerous members to national teams but the lack of a pool has forced the programmes to close.
Basketball is arguably the fastest-growing sport in Montego Bay and has made serious strides with a young, vibrant and dedicated executive.
However, they could do with some help, and the two venues used for both basketball and netball - the Montego Bay Boys Club and the Montego Bay Cricket Club - are calling out for help.
The games are mostly played in the late evenings but are hampered by the poor lighting, which should not cost too much to replace.
Granted, both are private facilities, but we can't lose sight of the fact that they have opened their doors to the youths of the parish and region, and the least the politicians can do is offer a helping hand.
The woes of sports in the parish are too plentiful to be detailed here and while I don't expect any one to think the MPs are to bankroll every single thing, they do have an obligation to the youths of their constituencies.