Christie Cries Shame On Gov’t Over Re-launch Of Urban Renewal Programme

"They had a cancel, and a start and stop. There was confusion attended to it and the removal of people from office and most certainly the programme was threatened," said the former prime minister in an interview with the Journal this week.

"The programme as we had developed it…really emanated from all of the consultancies and commissions that governments before my time and during my time had appointed to investigate the causes of crime and responses to crime."

Under the Christie Administration, the Urban Renewal Programme addressed the scourge of crime through community policing and other initiatives, tackled poverty, addressed environmental decay and provided positive extra-curricular activities for children residing in Over-the-Hill communities, according to Mr. Christie.

The opposition leader said he was very disappointed in the government’s approach to the Urban Renewal Programme.

Mr. Christie said the FNM government should have and could have continued the programme implemented under his watch, rather than dismantling the initiative shortly after coming to office.

On Sunday, the Ministry of Housing and National Insurance will re-launch the urban renewal effort in New Providence with a church service at the Church of God of Prophecy on East Street at 11am.

A press conference on urban renewal is scheduled for Monday. Minister of Housing and National Insurance Kenneth Russell is expected to attend.

Mr. Christie expressed difficulty with the re-launch.

"They stopped it and now they are talking about launching it again. The problem is they have so many political personalities tied up in the launch, I’m hoping that it has credibility to the community and that the community would not see it as simply an extension of politics," he said.

"That’s what I was concerned about in urban renewal – to minimize the extent to which people saw it as political. If it is political, as a representative I am sensitive to that and therefore my people will not collaborate as they should; it might be anti-Christie."

Mr. Christie added that a successful Urban Renewal Programme would have the backing of all concerned parties.