Residents of Paripao ward in east Guadalcanal want a separate constituency created for them.
Currently they are part of North east Guadalcanal constituency, which they feel is too big to accommodate in terms of service delivery.
Provincial member for ward 17 in the Paripao area, Andrew Rayboy said the vastness of the area makes it more viable to demarcate it into an additional new constituency split from North East Constituency of Guadalcanal.
He said this would make it easier to cover in terms of service delivery to its citizens.
He said currently the vastness of the area makes it quite difficult to provide a fair and equitable share of development assistance to the people there.
Rayboy pointed out that communities of Paripao ward area have often come under constant threats by those from neighbouring wards causing friction of disparity between different tribal groups.
As evidence of prove of his call for a separate constituency, Rayboy pointed to an empty space in his mouth where he lost a tooth allegedly from an attack by mob gangs at Barande area who set up road blocks during the National elections in 2010.
He said this is also one of the reasons why it is necessary to demarcate Paripao ward area with a separate constituency of its own from north east Guadalcanal constituency.
Rayboy said the people of Paripao ward always felt victim to continuous threats from other wards in North East Guadalcanal especially during election time.
He claimed many of them voted under threat and duress for candidates not of their own choice.
Rayboy said his people prefer to split from North East Constituency and join with the highland people of Kolokarako, Vulaolo and Valasi areas as a separate new constituency.
He urges the national government to take this request seriously when it re-convenes the idea of creating additional constituencies in 2018.
He alleged under current administration, constituency projects and funds allocated for North East Guadalcanal have never reached the communities of Paripao area hence his ward remain undeveloped.
He said that continuous hostility towards Paripao people and the uneven distribution of constituency resources must not be allowed to continue undermine their rights to access those public funded assistance.
By AATAI JOHN
