Four days after the 2012 general election, the final numbers are in, the victory speeches have been made and a new prime minister has been sworn in, but now comes the mammoth task of the post-election cleanup, according to Director of Environmental Health Services Melanie McKenzie.
In some areas the department has already begun taking down smaller political signs and billboards, McKenzie said.
However, the major "sweep" of the country will begin by the end of next week, allowing candidates, members of Parliament-elect and their teams to recover some signs that are said to be quite valuable.
"This is actually the most we have ever seen. In past general elections there have not been anywhere near as many signs and billboards," McKenzie told The Nassau Guardian yesterday.
"Some of the signs were well made and people may wish to recover their wood, and so we allow them some time to do just that."
Despite wishing to catch up on some rest after a hard-fought election campaign, Progressive Liberal Party Member of Parliament-elect for Mount Moriah Arnold Forbes said yesterday that his team has begun to take down signs in his constituency and around his headquarters.
However, using a touch of ingenuity, Forbes said many of the signs are being replaced with new ones that will offer thanks to the people of Mount Moriah, and others that will recognize Mother's Day.
"Win or lose we had planned to do that, we had already ordered them and we are just getting them prepared, just to tell the community thank you and that we will not betray their trust," he said. "We need to be more innovative and more in touch with our communities."
McKenzie said that personnel will categorically clean district-by-district as quickly as possible to return the country to normalcy, but some people have already started to take down signs in many communities.
"We have persons assigned to various routes and we just asked them in the course of the day to take signs and posters down so that we can throw them away. At the same time we will be conducting street cleaning," she said.
So far, teams have been assigned to East Bay Street, West Bay Street, and Yamacraw Road. The Ministry of Works will assist with equipment, dump trucks and collection bags.
Each team is made up of around eight people, but McKenzie explained that each district could be assigned between six and seven teams, with some people volunteering.
"What's not taken down is where we come in," she said.

McKenzie said she was not aware of any legal ramifications for political parties refusing to remove or clean up signs and billboards.

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