Residents of Palm City in Louisiana Township within Montserrado County District #1 express rejection over what they termed as a detachment and lack of interest by the local government to prioritize the construction of a bridge to connect them to central Louisiana. Speaking through their leaders in a community forum the group said despite their participation and various contributions to the well-being to governance and developmental activities in the society it seems that the efforts they are making are unnoticed by the local authority. The concerned citizens of the community mentioned that they have been advocating for the construction of a modern bridge for connection to the rest of the township. The people of the community indicated that they previously built a bridge with woods but it has been destroyed due to sub-standard materials. The lack of bridge accordingly disallows dwellers of Palm City to transportation and free movement most especially during the raining season.
The community leadership is making a SOS to national government for intervention in order to construct a bridge over the creek that flows through the area. The community leaders informed the In Profile Daily that they have met Representative RugieYatu Barry and the Township Commissioner of Louisiana Moses White on occasions and acquainted them with their development priority but nothing is done to tackle the problem.
Dwellers of Palm City Community said it is worrisome because the rains are intensifying and during the raining season they regularly faced difficulties to commute in and out due to flood. Women and children are hindered by risking to cross over when the area is flooded thereby impeding the movement of students, pregnant women, babies mothers and business people. According to them, they have to undress themselves with baggage on their heads to get across the water on a daily basis. The Bridge remains the focus of the people on grounds that the road leading through Palm City Community is believed to connect Pipeline in the Red Light area and this is also considered a major trade route to boost the local economy. The community is in isolation of basic social services and its residents are not easily accessible to other public facilities.
Chairman Mr. Ben S. Jah and Madam Agnes Brown the women executive member of Palm City Community said they feel rejected even though they are involved with the development of Louisiana Township in rural Montserrado County. In addition: we push vehemently for the election of Rep. Barry during the 2023 Elections on the basis that she will bring a change to our situation. We have professional and technical individuals in our community who are also contributing significantly to nation building.
“The construction of our bridge is our major priority even though we lacked other basic public services including electricity, pipe-borne water etc. We are calling on the government, philanthropists and other humanitarian organizations to come to our rescue,” Chairman Jah emphasized.
According to Madam Brown who is deputy to Chairman Ben S. Jah also said she has attended several meetings of the township and the district at-large and laid their plight before the local authority but to no avail. She detested that they are despised because no one cares and wants to listen to them about finding a solution to the problem.
“Actually I feel we are rejected as a community because when I raised the issue in the last meeting attended at the town hall, and the Township Commissioner said to me; ‘in fact how many of you people living over there’? For me this was not a good approach from a leader who his people should look up to for direction because we have lives and properties here in our community” she said.
Moreover, responding to the In Profile Daily via phone a conversation regarding the Palm City leadership’s plight, Commissioner Moses White said he does not know what the community leaders are talking about. Besides, there has been no communication from the people to his office concerning the bridge problem.
“I don’t like to operate on these kinds of things, if they said that they communicated to me once then what is the communication that they showed you…not because somebody knows you so you have to contact them on these kind of stories” Commissioner White rebutted the community’s claims made to the In Profile Daily.
He further that the leaders of Palm City Community should have channeled a communication to his office or invited him to see what they are talking about because he does not live with them in the community. Stating that they do not know what is in the national budget for them and if the bridge project is captured within then it becomes another issue.