While purporting to be an employee of Hanschell Inniss Distributors, Mark Rudolph Murrell swindled several persons out of cash between March and April this year.

Murrell, of 2nd Avenue Rendezvous High Ridge, Christ Church, admitted to three counts of stealing money when he went before Magistrate Douglas Frederick today. Those were that on March 20 he stole $176 belonging to Krystal Blackman-Burton; on April 21, $50 from Daniella King and $300 from Christina Charlemagne-Mayers on April 25.

On the first date, Murrell went into a store offering breakfast items for sale. Blackman-Burton, along with other workmates, bought packages of nuggets, tins of tuna, hotdogs and other items.

The manager of the store, who paid for items, accompanied Murrell through Shepherd Alley in the City, until Murrell told him at one point to “wait there” until he returned with the items. He never did.

Regarding the second charge, Constable Andrew Henry told the court that Danielle King knew Murrell by name, since he frequents the mobile store where she works.

On the date, Murrell called the woman and told her he now worked for Hanschell Inniss and had items for sale. Further, if her purchase totalled $50, she would get an extra package of drumettes. She placed an order and Murrell said he would deliver the items the following day.

When he arrived the next pay, Murrell said he did not have the list with him at the time and so took her order a second time. He took the woman outside and showed her a truck which was parked in an alley, saying it was his. She paid $50 to Murrell, who then asked for two bags to put the items in.

She handed over the bags but Murrell never returned with the meat products.

In the last instance, Murrell approached food-stall owner Christian Charlemagne-Mayers. She too was told that he was a Hanschell Inniss employee and had meat products for sale. After receiving $300 from the woman, Murrell promised to return with her order but did not.

Today, when the magistrate referred to Murrell’s previous convictions – which were for similar offences – he replied: “That is when I was on drugs Sir.”

Murrell said since he left prison three years ago, he worked for Nature Care but that contract ended and he has been only doing odd jobs since then to help his mother pay her bills.

The accused said the incidents occurred after his mother told him “she ain’t feeding no 44-year-old man.” He therefore “went and do something . . . went and buy some groceries and give my mother $20 to put in she pocket.”

Murrell also insisted that Charlemagne-Mayers “give me $80, she ain’t give me no $300.” He remarked that he would like to “pay back people their money” with a day’s pay which is due to him.

Magistrate Frederick told Murrell that he was “a very intelligent man . . .  I am sorry you didn’t put it to good use.”

After hearing that he was sentenced to three months on each month to run consecutively, Murrell asked the court: “I don’t mean to be disrespectful or anything. But you really feel putting a man in prison will make he change?”

“I know it might not change you…although I would hope it would. But society will be protected from you,” the magistrate replied.

These students took time to pray before taking the examination.

With over 3500 students set to take this morning’s Common Entrance Examination, there was a definite buzz around the island’s secondary schools, where the exam is being held.

Nervousness could be seen etched on the faces of both students and parents, as they gathered outside the gates of their respective schools.

Over at Queen’s College, where 167 students are currently writing the exam, students from West Terrace and Eden Lodge Primary Schools said their goodbyes to their parents and guardians at the gate and orderly made their way to their respective examination rooms.

Some were visibly nervous and a little hesitant to leave their parents side, but majority appeared to be calm and confident in themselves. There was also a lot of encouragement going on among the peers.

These students from Boscobel Primary seemed confident ahead of the exam.

After months of preparation, students of Boscobel and All Saints Primary and Leacocks Private School gathered at the Coleridge and Parry School armed with their clipboards, pencils and erasers, ready to get one of the biggest examinations of their lives underway.
Before they went in to begin, they assembled at the gate, said prayers, chatted with friends and received last minute advice from their parents and guardians.

Parents watched anxiously as their charges ran off to begin their exam which began at 9:00 a.m. They will break at 11:00 a.m for lunch and resume at 11:40.(DB/AH)

On average, 25 persons are diagnosed with lupus in Barbados each year.

And the president of the Hope Foundation, Shelly Weir, is appealing to Barbadians to learn more about the autoimmune disease.

Hope Foundation President Shelly Weir

“Young women are usually diagnosed with it but men to can be affected as well,” she told Barbados TODAY, following a special seminar for newly diagnosed patients at the Savannah Hotel yesterday.

She reasoned that if more persons knew about Lupus, which is considered the most difficult of all auto-immune diseases to diagnose, and an equally complicated disease to live with, they would have a better chance at surviving.

“This is an annual seminar. Basically because we think that once you’re newly diagnosed with lupus, the idea is to teach you not to only survive with Lupus but to live good with it. Once you’re diagnosed early and it is managed well, you can live a good life with it.

Our aim is also to help patients get comfortable with living with the disease,” Weir said.

She said it was it was important for lupus patients to know about their medication and the things that can happen to you when you have the disease.

“The more you know about it the better your chances are of surviving,” Weir stressed.

She praised the Foundation for its work over the years in keeping the public informed.

“ I think that we have done a very good job in terms of lupus awareness over the last 24 years. Certainly, the doctors are more sensitive to it now. Before you would have heard about misdiagnosing . . .. I do not hear that as often as before. I am proud to say really that the medical profession has really been sensitized and they do take seriously the symptoms of lupus,” she added.

But Weir admitted that there could never be enough awareness since every case of lupus was different.

“It’s a very complex condition. No matter how much awareness we do, I don’t know if it would ever be enough, only because every case of lupus is different,” she said.

This year’s annual Walk for Lupus will be held on August 31st.

This morning got off to a smooth start at Queen’s College where 167 students wrote the 2015 Barbados Secondary School Entrance Examination.

Just after 8 a.m., the students of West Terrace Primary and Eden Lodge Primary said their goodbyes to their parents and guardians at the school gate and in orderly fashion made their way to their respective examination rooms.

Some students were visibly nervous and initially a little hesitant to leave their parents’ side, but the majority appeared calm and confident. There was also much encouragement among peers.

At 9 a.m. sharp, they were all sitting, in possession of their tools, and ready to work on the composition paper –– the first for the day.

Mother Sophia Boyce (second from left) embracing her triplets Tiffany (right), Devon (centre) and Tiana before they made their way into Queen’s College this morning.

West Terrace Teacher Quinthe Blackman-Clifford (second from right) offering some of her students words of advice.

Eden Lodge student Aaron Barnett (left) receiving a kiss from his mother Veronica Stuart outside Queen’s College gate.

Parents waiting at Queen’s College this morning.

Before going on to the school’s compound, a few students –– and their parents –– spoke to Barbados TODAY about how prepared they were.

“I’m feeling good,” said Eden Lodge student Aaron Burnett. Meanwhile, Burnett’s mother Veronica Stuart said she was hoping her prayer for her son to do his best was answered because he had “worked really hard preparing”.

“We have been giving him the support that he needs, and we are confident that he will do his best and get to the school that he is looking forward to going to –– which is Combermere,” Stuart said.

Dad Rodney O’neale said despite his son’s coping with a little cold, he was confident the fellow Eden Lodge student would do well.

“This morning, he was a bit nervous at first; but then when he caught himself after, and the time for the examination started to get closer, he got a little bit relaxed,” O’neale said.

Sophia Boyce was not just expressing well-wishes to one child –– rather to three. She hugged and kissed her triplets: two girls and one boy.

“The teachers really helped with extra lessons, and I tried my best, and they will come through. They were very upbeat this morning and they really encouraged each other,” Boyce said as she watched anxiously her three charges walk through the gate together.

Queen’s College principal Dr David Browne said he and his staff had done everything to ensure the students felt comfortable.

Browne said, there were also sixth form students from that institution writing Caribbean studies for the Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examination (CAPE), but that that had not deterred from attention to the 11-Plus students.

“Everything is going smoothly. We have been doing this thing for a long time; so we know the drill,” the principal noted.

Over at the Princess Margaret Secondary School there was calm as the students of St Martin’s Mangrove Primary turned up to sit the Barbados Secondary School Entrance Examination, better known as the 11-Plus.

St Martin’s Mangrove Primary principal Judy Braithwaite expressed delight at the composure her students had exhibited before the exam.

“This year, I found that the children were more settled, and they seemed more confident; and they are a good bunch. We are wishing them God’s blessings; and we are confident that He will bring them through,” Braithwaite said.

St Martin’s Mangrove Primary principal Judy Brathwaithe.

Evans Hinkson, senior teacher of Bayley’s Primary, a contingent from which also sat the 11-Plus Exam at Princess Margaret, thought his students were very well prepared, compared to previous years.

“The teachers worked hard with them and the children accepted what was given to them. We counselled them and prepared them for such an examination that would alleviate any nervousness. The students this year were ready for the exam,” Hinkson said.

Bayley’s Primary senior teacher Evans Hinkson.

He also offered advice to parents of children who will be sitting the exam next year.

“Keep working with your child, and eventually best results will be achieved.”

The St Martin’s Mangrove students, in a review of the examination, too offered some counsel.

Class 4 students of St Martin’s Mangrove Primary before their exam.

Kiah Blackman advised future Common Entrance Examination students to be prepared for the unexpected.

“[Also] be prepared and bring all your stationary. And most importantly pay attention in class.”

Blackman said to her the maths was challenging, but the English was easy.

In contrast, Davonte Straughn said the grammar was a challenge, but the maths easy.

He advised future Class 4 students to revise as hard as they could for their exam and aim to do their best.

The High Court has placed a St Michael man on two years probation.

The sentence, handed down yesterday, came after LeAndrew Shabar Coward had pleaded guilty, on an earlier occasion, to having a gun and four bullets.

Coward, of Lot 1, #4 Field Place, Bayville was also ordered to reside with his mother for the next six months while he undergoes counselling.   

Justice Olson Alleyne also imposed a 7 p.m. until 6 a.m. curfew, which remains in effect place during that period.

The facts of the case were that police were in receipt of certain information when they saw Coward driving a car on June 23, 2012.

After they alerted him, Coward stopped the vehicle, opened his door and fell quickly to the ground. He was seen pushing something under some nearby bushes.

Police then retrieved a gun which had four bullets inside.

Coward has already spent nearly three calendar years on remand.

Crown Counsel Alison Burke represented the Crown while attorney-at-law Andrew Pilgrim QC represented Coward.

Trouble appears to be brewing at the Customs and Excise Department.

Reliable sources have told Barbados TODAY the industrial relations climate could take a turn for the worse, if the customs officers do not get a satisfactory response soon to their concerns, before further negotiation on the proposed transition to the Barbados Revenue Authority (BRA).

Customs officers are demanding an end to what they call “unfair supercession” within the Governnment department. They are asking that the matter be tackled urgently, as they object to the possibility of contentious appointments continuing under any offer of employment with the BRA.

“For example, clerical officers have been offered acting appointments up to the level of Assistant Comptroller of Customs, which has resulted in a number of senior officers having been unfairly overlooked.  No method of assessment has been applied to justify the supercessions giving rise to biased and an unlevel playing field,” one source said.

The Customs officers are also questioning the status of all outstanding appointments since officers have been acting in vacant posts for several years.

These public servants are said to have taken the position that they are not prepared to accept any employment with BRA with the cloud of uncertainty surrounding the employment status.

Sources also report a recent development where senior workers who were in acting positions were put back into their previous posts.

“They believe the action has been taken to frustrate the officers and force them into early retirement as a means of downsizing,” one official said.

When contacted, Acting Assistant General Secretary of the National Union of Public Workers (NUPW) Wayne Walrond said the union was aware of these concerns and was taking steps to deal with them.

The Barbados Labour Party (BLP) has been blamed for the many issues currently facing the Psychiatric Hospital.

Speaking in Parliament this afternoon, MP for Christ Church East Denis Lowe chastised the former administration for building a $400 million prison, saying they ought to have been paying more attention to the mental institution.

Minister of Environment Dr Denis Lowe.

“When Barbados had a chance to correct some of those things, rather than fixing the hospital, we were building a $400 million prison. That’s what we were doing.

“When we had a chance to address some of those issues. We had a chance to spend some of the money there,” Lowe emphatically stated.

The Minister of the Environment charged that when Glendairy Prison was damaged by fire in 2007, the BLP could have saved millions of dollars by repairing the affected section.

The money saved, he argued, could have been used to help upgrade the Black Rock facility.

“When the Glendairy prison supposedly burnt down, it was only an area of the prison that was damaged and could have been fixed. Rather than building a $400 million prison, what was wrong in isolating the damaged area of that prison and fixing it?

“I know that there have been challenges at the Psychiatric Hospital, I know that there are needs for improvements as they would be in any age-old institution.

“But what I also know is this: None of the challenges which we now experience at the Psychiatric Hospital were birthed post-2008. They must have been there long before,” he said.

Lowe said it had become a habit of the BLP to sit down and criticize everything the ruling Democratic Labour Party did.

However, he pointed out that members of the Opposition party had made some questionable decisions during their time in office.

“I am saying that if we are so evangelical today in telling the Government with what is wrong, there is nothing wrong with telling the Government your perception with what is wrong, but I am saying, and I say it all the time, that when a man chooses to point a finger of accusation against another man, he should first check himself.”

Minister of Education Ronald Jones says Government schools remain open, despite this morning’s crippling strike by bus drivers that has grounded the operations of the state-run Transport Board.

The action, which took commuters by surprise, has dislocated hundreds of people, including scores of school children.

Among the affected students are those currently sitting CXC and CAPE examinations.

Saying that he did not want to send mixed messages, Jones told reporters that schools would remain open today despite the current absence of buses to shuttle the students to their classes.  The Ministry has however decided that students doing regional exams can go to the nearest exam centre.

The bus drivers have been off the job since five  this morning.

Spokesman Neville Kirton has raised concern about hiring practices at the Board. He also said there were a number of other grievances, pointing out the workers were eager to be off the job since yesterday, but had decided to give way to primary school students sitting their Common Entrance examinations.

It was a case of same script, different cast at various centres in the north at the end of the Barbados Secondary School Entrance Examination today. The hundreds of students exiting the different schools all gave the same verdict.

Whether they loved English or mathematics, they said that overall the exam was “good”, but the maths’ Section C was the most difficult, many referring to the final two questions in particular.

These students gave their feedback on this morning’s exam.

Tiana Boyce, of All Saints Primary, said the final two questions puzzled her quite a bit.

“Some questions were simple, but others were challenging at times,” Tiana said, adding she hoped to go to The St Michael School.

Daniel Babb, of Boscobel Primary School, said a few of the maths questions required him to go into overdrive.

“The exam was good. It had a few challenging questions that required me to think harder; but I think I did well. Overall it was a good exam; it wasn’t that hard to me,” Daniel said.

Shavonte Johnson, also of Boscobel Primary, found the mathematics test challenging.

“I think the maths was very hard. They were a few questions I honestly thought were too hard,” Shavonte said.

But the verdict on the English paper was much different.

“It was really easy. I got through well. The composition was good too. I wrote about The Most Talented Person,” Shante Leslie, of All Saints Primary, said.

It was smooth sailing for the Roland Edwards Primary and Gordon Greenidge Primary students who took the exam at The Alexandra School. They could not wait to run off to their various after-exam activities.

A Gordon Greenidge trio, relaxing in Chefette, Speightstown, afterwards, said the examination was “good but had a few challenging questions”.

The consensus among the northern students though was: “We are glad its over!”

A good few students were heard shouting for joy, breathing sighs of relief, and offering thanks to God the exam was now behind them.

Anxious parents, nervous teachers and other edgy well-wishers were not to be left out of the Secondary School Entrance Examination drama, as they sat expectantly on many a bench secured from inside the schools, or in lounge chairs brought from home, passing the time as they awaited their charges’ return.

A few parents expressed frustration about having to leave their children at the gates, but most agreed the school authorities must have good reason for the decision.

The Opposition Barbados Labour Party (BLP)  is standing in solidarity with striking drivers at the state-run Transport Board.

Opposition Leader Mia Mottley, Shadow Minister of Transport Trevor Prescod and Leader of Government Business Santia Bradshaw showed up at the Board’s Weymouth, St Michael headquarters this morning where the unionised drivers have gathered and are refusing to work.

Prescod alleged that a relative of a top Government official was recently hired by the board, amid ongoing redundancy talks and that no consideration was given to workers who were recently sent home. He also said there were issues surrounding the outsourcing of charters, as well as an outstanding amount of $23 million owed by the Transport Board to UCAL for repair of its buses.

The strike has left  hundreds of commuters, including school children and workers, stranded.

Over a dozen people have reportedly been injured in a road accident at Maxwell, Christ Church, involving two public service vehicles.

Details are still sketchy, but police spokesman David Welch said lawmen are currently on the scene of what is being treated as a mass casualty situation.

Traffic has been diverted in the area.

This morning’s crippling strike by Transport Board drivers took officials completely off guard.

General Manager Sandra Forde, who arrived at the Board’s Weymouth headquarters just after 9:15 this morning, revealed,  in a brief  statement to reporters, that official correspondence had been dispatched to the President of the Transport Board Division, Neville Kirton, inviting him to a meeting to discuss outstanding grievances.

Transport Board General Manager Sandra Forde

Those talks were scheduled for 11 a.m. today, she said. Therefore, the General Manager expressed surprise over today’s strike action by the Board’s employees.

However, Kirton has expressed disgust over the Board’s hiring practices. In an interview with Barbados TODAY earlier this morning, he complained that new workers were being brought in, even though discussions were continuing at the level of the Labour Department on recent redundancies made by the Board.

He also reported that there were other outstanding grievances, while warning that the workers were prepared to remain off the job until their concerns were met.

The terminal building at Fairchild Street resembled a ghost town.

However, at least one Transport Board bus is in operation this morning.

Kirton said permission had been given for one driver to operate one of the omni-vehicles, in response to this morning’s mass casualty situation at Maxwell, Christ Church. Earlier in the day, dialysis patients were also transported to the state-run Queen Elizabeth Hospital for treatment.

A short while ago, BWU General Secretary Toni Moore also addressed the workers, who have been gathered since 5 a.m. at Weymouth. Moore said the BWU was standing firmly behind its members and she encouraged the drivers to remain off the job, pending the outcome of a meeting with the Board’s management to discuss their grouses.

Today’s crippling action has left hundreds of commuters, including school children stranded.

So far, the Ministry of Education has advised that Government schools will remain open and that students taking CAPE and CXC exams can report to the nearest exam centre to them.

Over a dozen people, including a toddler, have been injured following an accident, which occurred along Maxwell Main Road in Christ Church around 7:30 a.m. involving a ZR and a minibus. The two-year-old boy reportedly hit his face to a metal bar during the collision.

However, none of the injuries suffered was said to be life threatening, even though four people had to be transported to hospital by ambulance. The others, who complained mostly of neck, back and shoulder injuries, were treated on site, where the Barbados Defence Force had set up a temporary treatment tent.

The minibus, owned by McCarty Rentals, was driven by 50-year-old Eustace Morris of Welchman Hall, St Thomas, while the ZR, owned by MAH Transport Service, was driven by William Gamble for whom no address or age were given.

Up to 10:30 a.m. emergency officials were still busy on the scene.

A crippling six-hour strike by drivers employed by the state-run Transport Board has ended to the relief of hundreds of stranded commuters.

The announcement was made just after 11 a.m. by the General Secretary of the Barbados Workers Union, Toni Moore, who informed that Management had agreed to during their one-hour meeting this morning to release a clerical officer, whose recent hiring triggered today’s protest.

BWU General Secretary Toni Moore briefed workers on the outcome of the meeting before sending them back to work.

The employment of the officer, who is said to be a relative of a top official at the Board, was deemed to be a slap in the face of former employees who were recently sent home and whose retrenchment is still the subject of discussions between the Board and the workers’ bargaining agent at the level of the Labour Department.

Moore said management had however denied the workers’ claims that it had also gone ahead and outsourced chartered services, stating that to date it only reached the stage of accepting applications. Nevertheless Moore insisted that any outsourcing of these services would have been in breach of an earlier agreement reached by the two sides to give preference to recently laid off Transport Board employees to operate the charters.

She called on the workers to return to work to allow for discussions between the union and management to continue.

Today’s strike caused severe disruption,  with hundreds of workers and students forced to make alternative travel arrangements this morning.

The police are seeking the public’s assistance in locating a missing man.

Missing is Pierre Dexter Atwell. 28 years of 2^nd Avenue, Newbury, St. George. He was last seen sometime between 11.30 am and 11.45 am on Sunday.

At the time he was wearing a blue three-quarter jeans pants.

Atwell is 6’2” in height, slim build and has a long face. He has black hair, a thin moustache and beard, thin eyebrows, back eyes and a dark complexion. He frequents the Newbury and Taitt Hill, communities in St. George.

Anyone with information relative to the whereabouts of Pierre Dexter Atwell is asked to contact the emergency number 211, or the nearest police station.

The public is advised that Pierre Dexter Atwell, 28, of second Avenue, Newbury, St. George, who had been reported missing earlier today has been traced and is safe.

Prime Minister Freundel Stuart has apologized to his Vincentian counterpart Dr Ralph Gonsalves “for any discomfiture” he may have suffered when a security guard attempted to screen him at the Grantley Adams International Airport (GAIA) on April 14.

The incident, which was first reported by Barbados TODAY and later picked up by regional media houses, occurred while Gonsalves was in transit on his way home from Guyana. He entered the passenger lounge alone as no protocol officers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were on hand to greet him when his flight landed.

This photograph was taken by a passenger during the April 14 incident. In the right corner of the picture is Vincentian Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves. (Picture compliments I-Witness News)

“I told (Stuart) there was really no reason for (the apology),” Gonsalves told reporters in St Vincent yesterday. He added that Stuart remarked the incident was ironic since Gonsalves, on the outbound leg of the trip, had told him that the protocol and security officers at the VIP lounge of the GAIA were “arguably the best that I meet anywhere in the world”.

“He [Stuart] said, ‘It‘s ironic that there was this incident when you had showered such praises’,” Gonsalves reported.

“I said, ‘Yes, and those praises still remain, because the persons who interacted with me on that Tuesday, the 14th [of April] were neither the protocol nor the security of the state of Barbados. That is, the Government of Barbados’, Gonsalves said.

“They [airport officials] came subsequently and, to tell you the truth, I didn’t take it as any big thing,” the Vincentian leader added.

Gonsalves said he came off the plane “casually”, not wearing a jacket. He said his Cabinet colleagues later joked that it was probably because he was “so casual” and had lost so much weight that the security at the airport could not recognize him.

Gonsalves said he was travelling alone, as he often does when taking trips across the region. He also pointed out that contrary to media reports, the flight landed earlier rather than later than scheduled. “But the important point, the protocol officers were not there. And sometimes that happens because, I suspect, [of their] co-ordination with LIAT.”

Gonsalves said when he did not see the protocol officer, he proceeded to the passenger seating area of Gate 9 rather than go to the VIP lounge, as he only had one hour between connections. He said there were two women on duty at the screening station.

“If any of them had recognized me, they would have said to me, as they have done before, ‘Prime Minister, just walk around the actual security screening’, because they know that . . . the protocol for screening is not applied to the head of state or head of government.”

Gonsalves said when none of the ladies indicated an exemption to him. He placed his bag to be screened and he went through the metal detector, which beeped. He said one of the women told him, ‘Sir, it beeped’. “I said, ‘Yes. It’s my shoe. There is something on it.”

Gonsalves had previously said he had an implant in the sole of one of his shoes because one of his legs is slightly longer than the other.

Still relating the experience, he continued: “She says, ‘Well, you have to go through and take off your shoe’. “I said, ‘no, that protocol does not apply to me. I am the Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines’.”

Here, the Prime Minister (backing) is in conversation with security and other officers.

The Vincentian leader said reports suggesting that he was arrogant in his response were “clearly a contrivance by somebody”.

“I always like to be fair to persons. Around that area, you have a noise, a din, and I spoke softly, not aggressively or anything to the lady. So I give her the benefit of the doubt and I went and get my coffee.” Gonsalves said that when he was about to pay for the drink, an officer from a private security firm told the vendor not to accept the money, as Gonsalves had not been screened.

“So I smiled, sipped my coffee, and told him, ‘Don’t create a diplomatic incident. I am the Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines.” Gonsalves said that the male security officer did not touch him or say anything else but began to use his telecoms equipment.

The Vincentian leader said he then went and sat down and the protocol and other officials from the Government of Barbados arrived shortly after.

“There was no altercation; I behaved quite cool and calm and that is the end of that story. I didn’t think then and I don’t think now that it was significant . . .,” he said.

“I want to emphasize again, it wasn’t a significant matter. I don’t feel in any way put out. I was in no way embarrassed; nothing of any of those feelings. I just took it in my strides as a mature traveller going about my business, wanting to get home; simple, straightforward,” he said.

The burglary case against Nation journalist Timothy McDonald Slinger has been adjourned until June 17.

Slinger reappeared before acting Magistrate Alliston Seale in the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court today, where he pleaded not guilty to the offence two weeks ago.

Nation journalist Timothy McDonald Slinger

Slinger, 62, resides at Bartletts Tenantry Road, Sargeant’s Village, Christ Church.

He is charged with entering De Diva Hype Bar sometime between March 10 and April 15 and stealing liquor worth $2,361 belonging to Jacqueline Proverbs.

The items included 139 beers, 15 bottles of brandy, 12 bottles of whiskey, four bottles of vodka, 13 bottles of wine and two bottles of Irish whiskey.

On the last occasion, one of Slinger’s attorneys, Ralph Thorne Q.C., told the court that the matter arose out of a dispute between landlord, Gay “Doc” Brome, and his tenant who was in arrears, and Slinger was assisting him.

The senior lawyer also said he expected the matter to be settled.

However, when he returned to court today, Thorne said the complainant could not be found so there had been no resolution to the matter. He therefore asked the court’s assistance in summoning the woman.

Thorne also mentioned that the employment of the accused was “now in peril” due to the “baseless complaint” of the woman, against whom he said he was in the process of bringing a matter for “malicious prosecution”.

Sergeant Neville Reid assured the court that he would make efforts to find the complainant.

Slinger continues on $5,000 bail.

Andrew Pilgrim Q.C. and Ezra Alleyne also appeared on Slinger’s behalf on the last occasion.

Don Winfield Harper, 27, of Richmond Gap, St Michael, is also charged with the same offence.

Today’s crippling six-hour strike by drivers employed by the state-run Transport Board took many by surprise.

Among the hundreds of commuters left stranded were scores of school children, included several who were down to write CXC and CAPE examinations this morning.

However, instead of putting off the exams, the Ministry of Education announced that students would be allowed to write the exams at the nearest exam centre closest to them.

Though cognizant of the impact the strike was having on the school system, the President of the Transport Division Neville Kirton pointed out that the workers were eager to walk off the job since yesterday.

However, he said they had decided to give way to primary school students sitting their Common Entrance examinations.

At issue was a recent decision of the Board to hire a clerical officer for three months on contract.

The employment of the officer, who is alleged to be a relative of a top official at the Board, was deemed to be a slap in the face of former employees who were recently sent home and whose retrenchment is still the subject of discussions between the Board and the workers’ bargaining agent at the level of the Labour Department.

The angry workers had also leveled claims that that the Board had gone ahead and outsourced chartered services, in breach of an earlier agreement to give preference to recently laid off Transport Board employees to operate these services.

Off the job: Transport Board workers standing outside the Weymouth office this morning.

Also participating in today’s work stoppage, were mechanics and other workers employed by UCAL, who are demanding that the Transport Board meets outstanding commitments made to them.

The protest action, which lasted from 5 a.m. to just after 11 a.m. today, was fully endorsed by the Barbados Workers Union, bargaining agent for the workers.

Members of the Opposition Barbados Labour Party, namely BLP Leader Mia Mottley, Shadow Minister of Transport Trevor Prescod and St Michael South East MP Santia Bradshaw, who is Leader of Opposition Business in the House of Assembly, came out in a show of solidarity with the workers.

Opposition Leader Mia Mottley (second from left) and Leader of Opposition Business in the House of Assembly Santia Bradshow in conversation with two striking workers.

From early this morning, there was not the usual hustle and bustle within the precincts of the main terminal building at Fairchild Street, which resembled a ghost town. The same was also true for the Princess Alice Terminal, close to the Cheapside Market in the City, and the Speightstown Terminal, in the north of the island, where stranded passengers were forced to make alternative travel arrangements in order to get to their destinations on time. The majority of the blue and yellow omni-buses remained stationary for half of the day, except in one instance where a driver was allowed to respond to a mass casualty situation at Maxwell, Christ Church. Earlier in the day, dialysis patients were also transported to the state-run Queen Elizabeth Hospital for treatment.

These school children were left to find alternate transportation to school.

The crippling strike by drivers took officials completely off guard.

General Manager Sandra Forde, who arrived at the Board’s Weymouth headquarters just after 9:15 this morning, revealed,  in a brief  statement to reporters, that official correspondence had been dispatched to the President of the Transport Board Division, Neville Kirton, inviting him to a meeting to discuss outstanding grievances.

Those talks were scheduled for 11 a.m. today, she said. Therefore, the General Manager expressed surprise over today’s strike action by the group of Transport Board employees.

nevilleclarke@barbadostoday.bb