Delroy Chuck

Within weeks, Jamaica will start to host the Cricket World Cup, starting in early March with the opening ceremony in Trelawny and leading up to the semi-final in late April. Apart from the organisers, who knows what is going on, and how can ordinary Jamaicans make this event a memorable one? The Government and the organisers have simply kept preparations secret and, perhaps, expect everyone to just join in at the last moment.

I am a cricket fan and attend matches played by the West Indies at Sabina Park. At the present time, I feel no enthusiasm about the practice, preliminary or semi-final matches that will be played here. I have not even taken the trouble to find out the prices to attend the matches, as it is unlikely I will attend any.

I feel a sense of despair for Jamaica and this golden opportunity to showcase our towns, resorts and tourism products. In truth, if we had any shame, it would be best to hide the visitors away from the dirt, decay and decline virtually everywhere.

Beautiful place

Jamaica is a beautiful place, but our people have made it into a total mess. Most of the gullies look like Riverton city dump, as residents use them to dispose of their garbage, trash and junk. Uncollected garbage can be seen everywhere. NSWMA lacks the vehicles and resources to properly clean up the cities and towns. There is no sense of pride and no one in government seems to care if our cities and towns are dirty and full of grime and filth. Is this what we really want to show visitors to Cricket World Cup?

Then, if our visitors rent a car or even get a drive and move around the residential areas of Jamaica, what will they encounter? Many will get whiplash from driving on pothole roads and dirt tracks that they will only encounter if they were on a safari or in some remote jungle. Our residential roads have been neglected, in spite of the property taxes, GCT, road licences and other taxes that residents pay annually. So, even while the main roads may be fixed, visitors must be kept away from the inner cities or from most residential communities, to avoid showcasing the disintegration of our country.

And, God forbid if any of our visitors should get sick or need to attend any of our public hospitals for medical treatment. First, they will have to wait to pay a registration fee and, if they need an x-ray, get one privately before the doctors can attend to them. Secondly, they will wonder if any proper treatment can be obtained in an environment of scarcity, overcrowding and decay that are the hallmarks of our public hospitals. In fact, if visitors simply walk around Falmouth and view the police station, hospital, schools, etc., would they ever want to return to Jamaica?

Even while we hope to welcome thousands of visitors, where would we put them if they come? If for the semi-final here in Jamaica, India and Australia were playing and 10,000 visitors descended on Kingston, what would we do? Where would they stay?

No plans for excess visitors

I am yet to hear of any plans to accommodate an overflow of visitors, so perhaps we are hoping that only a few thousand visitors will come to Kingston, which would not be a bad thing as less people would share our nation's shame and despair.

To be fair, attempts are being made to get people excited and involved through advertisements and sound bites, but where is the $635 million that the Prime Minister promised to spend to clean up our cities and towns? Is it being kept, as usual, for the genetically connected or the favoured few to further enrich themselves? Jamaica can do better. It is time we hear from the Government what is being done to save Jamaica from the disgrace of exposing our dirty cities and towns from those who may visit our shores.