MEMBER OF Parliament (MP) for central Westmoreland, Dr. Karl Blythe, says he will invite the Westmoreland Parish Council on a tour to look at the proposed cemetery site for Savanna-la-Mar along with other sites that might be suitable.
This 'olive branch' approach came after months of wrangling between the council and Dr. Blythe, the former Minister of Water and Housing, during which the council said it would give the MP a one month ultimatum to deliver the 15-acre plot. The land which is owned by Dr. Blythe's Central Westmoreland trust, was offered in exchange for an original site earmarked for the cemetery but later said to be unsuitable and taken over by the trust for housing development.
"My duty as the Member of Parliament is to listen to the people and they tell me they don't want a cemetery in that area," Dr. Blythe said in an interview in an obvious reference to the council's ultimatum.
However, it appears that Mayor Delford Morgan is not prepared to accept such an invitation as he told last Thursday's meeting of the council that he would be adopting 'a new approach' to the matter and was not prepared to lead a team to see or name a committee, as suggested by one councillor, to discuss the matter with the Member of Parliament.
"This thing is turning out to be a serious embarrassment to us. The Member of Parliament has been failing in his obligation to the people and we will not sit and allow the crisis that is looming to take place. This matter has been with us from 1999 and this will be our final appeal to Dr. Blythe," said Mayor Morgan who won support from several of his colleagues including councillor Earl Brooks who suggested that the matter be taken to the Prime Minister for settlement.
"I really don't want to get the Prime Minister involved in this as the land is owned by the Central Westmoreland Trust, a private entity with Dr. Blythe as the principal director," the Mayor declared.
Five years ago the Parish Council identified a burial site at Llandilo as a replacement for the Tate cemetery which was filled with graves; after the council spent $2 million to prepare the ground, Dr. Blythe took it over, claiming it was needed for housing development; in its place, he offerred the 15-acre plot on the Walter Cheddesingh property and promised to repay the $2 million.
This site is the subject of the present impasse while the Tate cemetery is still being used although the authorities see it as a health hazard.
