We have not recently commented on the matter. This newspaper, however, remains severely provoked by the poor upkeep of the National Heroes Park in particular and how badly Jamaica maintains its public spaces in general. We are shamed too by the treatment of shrines and monuments to those Jamaicans we deem to honour.

Maybe, given recent talk, we may soon have one less cause for complaint and real reason to celebrate.

Before some niggling soul grows too determined to define for us what especially constitutes National Heroes Park and to delineate its boundaries, suffice it to say that we mean the whole shebang; the entire former racecourse, including the piece being squatted on by the finance ministry for its car park. The entire area could accommodate several soccer fields.

A portion of the park, towards the southern end, is decently fenced. It contains monuments to the country's national heroes and former prime ministers as well as a handful of other celebrated Jamaicans who are buried there.

Occasional rubbish dump

Most of the rest is, largely, an unkempt dust bowl and occasional rubbish dump, which is what we have so often complained about. For it says much about us that is not good if we can't maintain, in more than reasonably good order, this small portion of the national territory that is contiguous to an area declared to be in sacred honour of our heroes. And it is not only inside the park which we expect to be pristine.

It is in this context that we welcome the announcement by Mrs Joan Gordon-Webley, the executive director of the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA), of the agency's commitment to develop National Heroes Park as a place of which Jamaicans can be proud.

Mrs Gordon-Webley, unfortunately, has not defined the extent of the project beyond putting in some plants and "putting up a little juice bar". That does not sound solemn to us. And nor does it appear to take into account the needs of the surrounding communities for a green recreational area, including sport, even within the midst of this solemnity.

Criticism

In probability, Mrs Gordon-Webley has a well thought-out plan for National Heroes Park and Circle, which she intends to reveal in detail in the very near future. Nonetheless, we remind Mrs Gordon-Webley that nearly a decade ago, Mr Arnold Bertram, who was then the local government minister, had in the face of criticism of how decrepit the place had become, unveiled a plan for the development of the entire park.

The talk soon died, Mr Bertram lost office and nothing happened. Even before that Mr Bertram's boss, Mr P. J. Patterson, at the death of his predecessor, Mr Michael Manley, thumped his chest in declaring that he needed no lecture about the upkeep of National Heroes Park. The place was then in a sorry state and Mr Manley was to be buried there.

The point is that we are accustomed to the periodic declarations of intent and spasmodic outburst of energy at National Heroes Park. But it doesn't usually last. Maybe this time will be different; for the whole park, inside and out; not just for the defined area of monuments and shrines.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.