Jacob Williams https://jacobwilliams.com

Our Sunday service shall start in song, to the tune of hymn number 319, What a Friend We Have in Jesus:

What a friend we have in Kenneth
Kenneth Rowlands, PCC
He is smiling for the cameras
As he’s gypped some OAPs
Kenny wants to build a new tip
The locals’re spoiling for a scrap
But they really don’t have much hope
For our Ken’s the king of cr*p

The old site is inefficient
That’s the story to be told
Newsquest won’t be asking questions
The Council pays them too much gold
How could nobody trust Kenneth
And his ever-ready grin
Kenny he loves those dear people
He would never do them in

Another pretend “consultation”
Weasel words from PCC
In the Kremlin on the Cleddau
Half-truths are hard currency
Onward Saint Ken, ever onward
Please re-cycle all our sh*t
But he won’t do that in Johnston
Could Ken be a hypocrite?

Full credit for what I shall call this ‘po-hymn’ goes to ‘Doc Malik,’ who posted it as a comment on this Western Telegraph website story, and thanks to my own commenter, ‘ScoobyDooby,’ for bringing it to my attention.

In relation to the story, I would have to agree that, as newsworthy as this apparent U-turn from Cllr. Rowlands might seem, the proposed Waste Transfer Station that he is claimed to have fought from coming to Johnston over eight years ago is a much smellier beast to the Civic Amenity Site that’s proposed for the land next to the Brooklands Nursing home as the plans currently stand.

However, I and many others have sought clarification that the council’s already very unpopular proposal is not going to be a ‘foot in the door’ with the intention of adding a Waste Transfer Site on that land some time down the line. When such words as ‘potential’ and ‘expansion’ are used in the same sentence, one wonders whether or not a Waste Transfer Station really is envisaged as part of the replacement of the Tenby Civic Amenity site.

After all, the current Salterns site is barely big enough to accommodate the recycling, so a newer site in an environment which could accommodate future expansion and diversification would surely have to be a strong consideration in the planning stages of such an expensive and important capital project for the south-west region.

Aside from the important matter of unknown future intentions, the serious questions are over the suitability of this land for what is currently proposed, or any facility of this nature next to Brooklands, and I’m sure there’ll be lots more headlines in the local newspapers over this issue in the weeks ahead.

Going back to the po-hymn, I do hope this isn’t the last we’ve heard of Doc Malik’s council ditties. I’m sure there’s plenty of hymnal inspiration for County Hall shenanigans to be based upon:

• Till The Storm Passes By
• All The Way My Saviour Leads Me
• Have Thine Own Way, Lord
• Saviour, Like a Shepherd Lead Us
• Trust and Obey
• Praise Him, Praise Him
• Shall We Gather At The River?

❏Got any other po-hymn inspirations? Post your suggestions below.