As the Roseau North by-election approaches, independent contender Sherman Boston is calling for an end to partisan political division, arguing that cross-community unity is the only way to resolve the years-long unaddressed challenges that have plagued the Dominican constituency.
Boston laid out his platform during a public forum hosted by the Dominica Business Forum on Wednesday evening, held in the auditorium of the Dominica-China Friendship Hospital. The candidate, who has decades of experience working on local infrastructure projects, pulled from his own firsthand knowledge to detail the gaps in development that have left Roseau North residents underserved.
Among the examples he cited was the unfinished Netball Stadium, a project he helped conceptualize in the early 2000s that has yet to be completed. He also pointed to major highway infrastructure he worked on near Stock Farm and the local college, noting the critical safety gap created by the absence of sidewalks along the high-traffic route. For more than a year, Boston has been a vocal advocate for resolving longstanding problems with the constituency’s landfill, a issue that continues to impact surrounding communities.
These infrastructure shortcomings are not isolated, Boston explained, cutting across multiple neighborhoods spanning Stock Farm, Yampiece, Gutter, Tarish Pit, and Fond Cole. One of the most pressing issues he highlighted is the lack of vehicle access for hundreds of residents who hold legal land titles to their properties. Even after the government sold them the land and issued official documentation, many homeowners are still forced to walk long distances to reach their homes, carrying their belongings on foot because no access roads have been constructed.
Vulnerable populations bear the brunt of this neglect, Boston emphasized, adding that elderly residents in Yampiece, Gutter, and Fond Cole face disproportionate hardship due to the lack of safe, reliable access to their communities.
While Boston outlined a lengthy roster of unmet needs across the constituency, he made clear that his core campaign message is not just a list of grievances — it is a call for systemic change to the partisan tribalism that has stalled progress for years. “I could stand here all night listing every problem that needs fixing in Roseau North,” he told attendees. “But my priority tonight is to tell you that what we need first is unity.”
He argued that ongoing political factionalism has prevented meaningful progress on even the most basic community needs, and it is long past time for these divisions to end. Facing the complex current and future challenges that Dominica as a whole must confront, Boston said every citizen has a role to play in moving the country forward. “We need all hands on deck,” he stated.
Closing his remarks at the forum, Boston urged all Dominican people to set aside partisan divides and come together to build a nation that all residents can be proud of.