When Margaret Jones Flores called our newsroom yesterday she sounded
like one of those real hard luck cases: out of a job, her house falling apart
and her Area Representative ignoring her. But Jacqueline Godwin told her she’d
see what she could do to help – and Jackie came through, in a big way.
Here’s more.
Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
This is what you walk into when you enter the home of forty nine year old Margaret
Jones Flores. The flooring that no longer exists has been replaced with pieces
of lumber and old lamp posts that the single mother has laid across the open
space to access one of the rooms. The wide open spaces between the walls of
the dwelling and further deterioration finally forced Margaret Jones Flores
out of the place she has called home for some twenty eight years.
Margaret says she had no choice but to leave some of her possessions behind
while other household items are stored at the homes of friends. Today Margaret
lives apart from her fifteen and twenty three year old sons who both reside
in separate homes. Margaret, a former sanitation worker lost her job due to
the economic recession and is presently unemployed.
According to the mother her eldest child who did help by giving her these two
piles of filling left outside in front of the property is unable to fully assist
because he too hustles to make a living by selling wine on the streets.
Margaret Jones Flores, Home Needs Repair
“My son assist me and give me that for filling up the inside of the 
house in the holes.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
“So how come they are still outside of the house?”
Margaret Jones Flores,
“Because I nuh have nobody to run it in. I will wait til mek I could
arrange for it to go inside. I will have to tear down the wall to put it in.”
The mother says since last December she has been trying to get help from Area
Representative Anthony Boots Martinez. She doesn’t want money but simply
assistance with the repairs so she can move back into her home
Jacqueline Godwin,
“And when you go to your Area Rep. what does he tell me?”
Margaret Jones Flores,
“He tell me after he done tend to the kids them for school he will
help me and I nuh see him up to now. Up to now when I go to the office I nuh
see he, I only see his secretary and the secretary tells me she will look into
it and I nuh di get no assistance. I just want him to come and assist me because
I really need it. I di punish out yah. I can’t the beg lodging dah people
place and I restless."
It is the plight of the underprivileged in Belize. Just across from number
4381 Faber’s Road Extension is another neighbor’s house also badly
in need of repairs.
What is equally disturbing is that it seems like the government of the day
including the opposition have been using much of their energy dealing with their
own internal rifts within their party than offering concrete solutions to the
problems affecting Belizeans quality of life. For example, the high cost of
living, the high interest rates, the high incidents of crime and clearly in
this case, inadequate standard of living.
Hon. Anthony Boots Martinez, Area Representative
“The media also is focusing on those and maybe that is right, that
is the story which sells. But also lots of positive things have been happening
in the city. The Venezuelan project in itself, under the Venezuelan project
in Belize City have produced over 65 houses, new homes. That is only under the
Venezuelan project since this project started. So again, government is doing
a lot of positive things. The southside project has assisted over seven hundred
and odd families in terms of home repairs and we have built over a hundred homes
on the southside of Belize City.”
Well it seems like Margaret Jones Flores is in for one big surprise. Today
Area Representative Anthony Boots Martinez told 7News the mother will receive
a brand new home.
Hon. Anthony Boots Martinez,
“It will be a two bedroom house with a bathroom.”
Construction on the new home should commence in and be completed in two weeks.
Reporting for 7News, Jacqueline Godwin.
According to Minister of Works and Port Loyola Area Representative
Anthony Boots Martinez under the Venezuelan Housing Programme a total of seven
hundred new homes in the city have been built and under the Southside Poverty
Alleviation Programme one hundred new homes have been built.
According to Martinez work under the Venezuelan housing programme will
commence shortly in the Port Loyola division. As for the other house mentioned
in the story that is also in need of repairs on Faber’s Road Extension,
Martinez told 7News like Margaret Jones Flores the homeowner will also be getting
a new home built but under the Southside Poverty Alleviation Programme.
Email
Print