Bark Di Trute!: What's Happening, June 15, 2021

HEART-Trust NTA And GWEP

Today we heard about the Graduate Work Experience Programme known as GWEP which HEART-Trust NTA operates. This programme is for persons who have graduated from a university. Persons in the programme are assigned to various organizations to get work experience and they are given guidance during this time. The age limit for the entry into programme is 29 and for physically challenged persons it is 34. I believe that there should be no age limit for this programme. So long as someone can work and requires experience they should be given an opportunity.

You can email kingston@heart-nta.org to request the application form if you want to be a part of GWEP. There are now 10 persons on the programme in Kingston. You can also call 876 968-4441 for more information.

There is also a programme for those who have left at the secondary schools.

Food Prices

The following were the prices at the Coronation Market last weekend:

	ITEM	COST (JAD)	UNIT	COMMENT
1	Banana	100 – 150	doz
2	Cabbage	80 – 70	lb
3	Carrot	40 - 60	dozen
4	Cocoa	100 - 120	lb
5	Coconut	300 - 400	each.	scarce
6	Coconut Oil	1800	pint
7	Coconut Oil	2200	per bottle
8	Cucumber	80 - 100	lb
9	Dasheen	100 – 120	lb
10	Hot pepper	200	lb
11	Jackfruit	800	one
12	Lettuce	250 - 300	lb
13	Onion	250 – 300	lb	scarce
14	Otaheite apple	150	doz
15	Plantain	50 - 200	for three
16	Pumpkin	80 100	lb
17	Scallion	80 150	lb
18	Sweet potato	100	lb
19	Tomato (Plummy)	70	lb
20	Tomato(slice)	150 180	lb

Sickle Cell

Before you start having children, you and your partner should take a blood test to see if you have the sickle cell trait or you have the full blown sickle cell disease.

You should also have the new born tested to ascertain if he/she has sickle cell trait or the full sickle cell disease. It should be noted that 1 out of 150 babies in Jamaica are born with sickle cell.

Egerton Newman

Egerton Newman feels that transport workers should be given an incentive to take the Covid-19 vaccine. He suggested that having beers and stouts available would entice the men to be there. I quipped that having some women should help. He agreed and suggested that we could have some models at the arena where they would modelling.

Mr. Newman said that very few of his members caught covid-19 and only about three of them has passed on due to Covid-19.

Charlemont Drive Challenges

Since 2017 there has been a significant increase in the number of strata dwellings in the Widcome area in Liguanea. For example, Charlemont Drive/Avenue there are eight complexes.

The citizen's association met with MP Hon Faval Williams, the Public Defender, Mr Mark Barnett head of the NWC and there was also a NEPA representative at the meeting. Citizens at the meeting expressed objections to what appears to be a significant intrusion by developers wishing to erect multi-stories and multi-family dwellings in a neighbourhood for single-family houses. In a document sent to me, it states that all the persons who the citizens met with, expressed understanding of their concerns and the representative of the state agencies stated that they would provide support in any way possible to protect the community.

The citizens are saying that someone who has close contact with a government entity has interest in the developments in the area. They are saying that the person was able to have the covenants for a property changed easily. The matter has since been brought to the attention of the Integrity Commission.