Diego residents unimpressed by plans for borough status

THE PRIME MINISTER announced last month that two regional corporations, Siparia and Diego Martin, will be upgraded to borough status next year.

They will join the country's three other boroughs in Point Fortin, Arima and Chaguanas.

But it appears this movehas been lost on some Diego Martin residents.

Dr Rowley suggested the reason is to address the demands of the population of Diego Martin, which is among the most densely populated communities in the country.

He also recently said, "The corporation has already agreed and has advanced to the Cabinet that it wants Diego Martin to become the next borough," but elaborated little more.

Several residents of Diego Martin, who spoke with Newsday, said they would like Rowley to identify how the change in status will affect them and the rest of the west, which has been a stronghold of the People's National Movement (PNM) for decades.

In fact, a retired Carenage resident, who identified himself as "Peters," said the move resembled a smokescreen.

"There have been infrastructural work in Diego Martin (but) they can't seem to get things right... like traffic, flooding and crime," he said.

The upgrade from region to borough status will see Diego Martin and Siparia instal mayors. Peters said he hopes the mayor will take a greater interest in issues on the ground in comparison to the respective MPs, who have dominated the region for years.

The change in status, however, does not necessarily mean an increase in allocations for local government funding.

For example, the Port of Spain City Corporation was allocated $222.8 million for 2020, out of the $1.5 billion budget. Corporations like San Juan/Laventille ($157.1 million) and Tunapuna/Piarco ($157.2 million) were next, ahead of the San Fernando City Corporation. The boroughs of Arima, Point Fortin and Chaguanas all have lower expenditure demands.

Newsday spoke with several other residents of Diego Martin, who said the PM's announcement was too vague for them to share their thoughts on the change. But they agreed that while the ruling party continues to dominate their region, it should not take voters' support for granted.