Two days after the Electoral and Boundaries Commission (EBC) stoutly defended the integrity of the electoral process and openly dismissed allegations of discrepancies on the preliminary voters’ list of just over 256,990 people, Barbados TODAY investigations have revealed over 500 irregularities, the majority of which affect four constituencies in St Michael.

These are St Michael South, currently held by Prime Minister Freundel Stuart, St Michael North East which is held by Barbados Labour Party (BLP) leader Mia Mottley, St Michael West Central in which the Democratic Labour Party’s (DLP’s) James Paul is the incumbent and the City of Bridgetown where the BLP’s Jeffrey Bostic is seeking his second straight term.

However, errors were also identified  in 27 of the 30 constituencies across the island.

In all 592 cases found, voters had the same address and the same house number but ended up in different constituencies.

[caption id="attachment_237073" align="aligncenter" width="567"] In all 592 cases found, voters had the same address and the same house number but ended up in different constituencies.[/caption]

For instance, in one of 50 discrepancies which have been linked to the Prime Minister’s constituency, four members of the Haynes family all reside at #15, Old Quarry Road, Bayville, St Michael. However, according to the preliminary voters’ list released on April 30, three members of that household are down to cast their ballots at polling station BA3 in the City of Bridgetown and one in St Michael South at polling station UA1.

The same situation has occurred at #22 Rochampton Road, Grazettes, St Michael with the Maynard family, with two members of that household slated to vote at polling station KB1 in St Michael North East, where 40 discrepancies were spotted, and the other at DB1 in St Michael North where the BLP’s Ronald Toppin is the incumbent.

With that said, the majority of the discrepancies have been identified in St Michael West Central (77) where Paul defeated the BLP’s Ian Gooding Edghill by193 votes in the last election, and The City (69) where Bostic scrapped home just ahead of Patrick Todd by 124 votes. Over 30 errors were also identified in St James Central which the BLP’s Kerry Symmonds won by 68 votes.

When presented with the data this afternoon, Chief Electoral Officer Angela Taylor admitted that there were problems which the Commission was seeking to resolve by the time the final voters’ list is released just ahead of the May 24 poll.

“In terms of the challenges, we have identified more than 60 to 75 per cent of them to our updating unit. So a good 75 per cent of these things have already been picked up and are in the updating unit to be completed,” she told Barbados TODAY, while revealing that one candidate had submitted a list for investigation this week.

“Some are West Central, some are North East and some are St Michael North, so the list of the corrections have come in and it is in the updating unit for those to be updated and the other registering officers have some to investigate, but they are all going to be right in the register of electors that is going to be published on May 18,” she said.

Asked to explain the errors, the elections supervisor said: “It is a bit of us, and a bit of the information given by the persons when registering.

“We had a few of these cases last election that were rectified and we have a situation again where we have to tidy them up,” she added.

However, in defence of the integrity of the voters’ list, she was adamant that the incidence of error was miniscule – less than one per cent on a list that contained 257,995 registrants – which she felt was “not worth frightening the entire Barbados public over”.

Taylor was also quick to assure that there was nothing political about the situation.

“We are working with a computer, we are working with humans. I don’t want to talk too much, but we got this,” Taylor said, even though a spokesman for one of the minority political parties who first alerted Barbados TODAY to the errors said he was concerned that such discrepancies, if not rectified in time, could skew the eventual election result, particularly in those marginal areas where incumbents had barely scrapped home last election with a razor thin advantage.

He was also concerned that the EBC was attempting to sweep the issue under the carpet after its chairman, John Haynes, in a clear-the-air news conference at the EBC’s Warrens, St Michael office on Wednesday, said he was “greatly disturbed” at “misinformation” and “mischief” being circulated in relation to the registration of voters.

Earlier, the BLP had complained that
the preliminary list released by the EBC on May 2 was riddled with errors.

BLP Mobilization Manager Lucille Moe told reporters last week that most of the concerns revolved around people who had either changed their addresses in the past, or had requested changes to their addresses.

Moe claimed that there were cases where people who had changed their addresses prior to the 2013 election appeared at their old addresses on this year’s preliminary list.

There were also charges that hundreds of people who registered this year were missing from the list.

However, Haynes expressed surprise at the claims, pointing out that the EBC had met with the media and all political parties to examine “all of what can be the possible issues pertaining to elections”, including voters’ registration, transfers and claims, to ensure they were aware of the process.

“So we are very amazed now by the kind of propaganda that is being put out there to discredit anything that the [EBC does],” he said, while lauding the work of the EBC’s management and staff and the 30 officers who carry out investigation under “some very trying circumstances”.

The EBC boss told reporters the electoral department remained “objective at all times” to ensure that the country maintained “the reputation for fair and transparent elections at all times”, adding that St Kitts was contemplating copying the Barbados model.

In fact, he said the country continued to be held in high esteem in the Caribbean as well as internationally.

“We intend to maintain our integrity throughout the world because this commission and this country has never had to ask for any observer missions to come in and see how we conduct our elections. So we have to make sure that we maintain that and we cannot have any agency or any person pull down the good name of the process or anything that is happening in this country,” Haynes insisted.

kaymarjordan@barbadostoday.bb

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The Barbados Labour Party (BLP) manifesto, which was officially unveiled last night, is being described by Minister of Finance Chris Sinckler as a “fudged proposal” and a recipe for “the economic meltdown of Barbados”.

“If the country wants to see what an economic meltdown is then they should vote for this plan because this will meltdown not only our economy and society but their lives as well,” Sinckler warned.

In a launch filled with pomp and flare before a massive crowd at Kingsland, Christ Church, the BLP rolled out a seven-tier plan, which hinges the country’s economic recovery on debt re-profiling. It was also revealed that a BLP Government would replace the road tax with a tax on fuel, while pushing the development of a green economy though incentives such as duty-free concessions on public service vehicles which run on renewable energy. The party also showed the math behind some of its more ambitious promises such as the restoration of free tertiary education, removal of the National Social Responsibility Levy (NSRL) and the increase of non-contributory pensions for $155 to $225 per week.

However, Sinckler told Barbados TODAY the BLP’s plan was fraught with contradictions, adding that his opponents were embarking on an ill-conceived mission to please everyone at the risk of destroying the country. The minister argued that replacing the road tax with a tax on fuel would push up the cost of doing business, therefore, raising the cost of living.

“We are now hearing of this fudged proposal to abolish the road tax and put a tax on fuel. We don’t know how that is going to work because they clearly have not thought out what they are doing. Road tax now attracts a fixed amount per weight of the vehicle and size of the engine. If you then apply a tax at a percentage rate that would be on the value of what you would spend in fuel, this means that this can go to any level,” Sinckler warned, adding he was confident the business community would share his perspective.

“It would really be interesting to hear the business community on this because this would surely increase the cost of doing business. A substantial part of commerce in Barbados is transportation. What about all those vehicles that are freighting? What about all those vehicles that are doing public transport? What about the Transport Board buses? In this day and age no business person can carry that cost, it is going to be passed on to the consumer,” Sinckler added.

Referencing BLP leader Mia Mottley’s bold declaration that she was not afraid to go the International Monetary Fund (IMF) if necessary, Sinckler contended that there was no way the IMF would entertain Barbados’ debt restructuring programme if it included “lofty giveaways” such as a living allowance for civil servants and increases in the non-contributory pensions.

“What is most the laughable thing of all that Mottley said is that she would go to the IMF [if necessary]. Does anybody in Barbados believe that the IMF in its traditional austerity mode for programmes of adjustment, stabilization and fiscal consolidation, would allow a BLP Government to implement a programme with all of these giveaways? It is laughable and this proposal is the most ridiculous thing since we have been doing business in Barbados,” Sinckler stressed.

Also weighing in on the BLP manifesto was political newcomers Solutions Barbados, which slammed the document as “rubbish and an insult to the intelligence of Barbadians”.

In a release from the party’s candidate for Christ Church East, Scott Weatherhead, the fledgling party called on the bankers’ association “and other intellectually astute finance professionals to respond to this rubbish with the intensity and ferocity that it deserves”.

Solutions Barbados, which had accused the BLP of plagiarizing some of its ideas, argued that the BLP’s plan was not supported by sound financial logic.

Weatherhead said the plan would cost approximately $948 million, with capital costs in the order of $392.6 million, while the annual cost “to maintain these ridiculous proposed economic policies” was placed at $555.45 million.

“Since Barbados’ sovereign debt is somewhere around $14 billion and its bond rating is now Caa3 or junk status, what lender in their right mind, except perhaps the IMF, would re-profile Barbados’ debt in such a way as to free up $555.45 million per year in Government expenditure through reduced loan payments? In addition to this, where will the $392.6 million for new capital works projects come from?” Weatherhead questioned.

colvillemounsey@barbadostoday.bb

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Economist Michael Howard has poured cold water on the manifesto launched last night by the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) as nothing more than a “pie in the sky thing”.

Howard, a retired professor of economics at the Cave Hill campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI), said the BLP failed to address several critical issues in the document, including the country’s foreign reserves, which stood at 6.9 weeks of import cover as at the end of March.

“I don’t think there has been any solutions put forward to solve the reserves, to say how we are going to increase the level of our reserves and bring them back into equilibrium,” Howard told Barbados TODAY.

“The reserves, that is the first problem. I think that is the most important problem the BLP manifesto has not addressed,” he stressed.

The BLP last night promised that should it win the May 24 general election it would abolish the onerous National Social Responsibility Levy, reduce the Value Added Tax (VAT) from 17.5 per cent back to 15 per cent, replace the road tax with “a small tax on fuel”, increase non-contributory pension from $155 to $225 per week, and remove tuition fees for Barbadians attending UWI.

In the 70-page document dubbed, The People’s Manifesto, the Mia Mottley-led party promised to properly manage Barbados’ resources, “end wastage and cut out corruption”, which it said would result in more cash in hand to address priority issues.

“We will re-profile our existing debt to free up substantial cash flow over the short term. We will further simplify the tax system, tighten loopholes, and enhance compliance,” it said.

“The BLP will remove the taxes that are strangling the economy, build investor confidence and encourage private sector investment. These policies will grow our economy, and by extension, our revenues,” the document said, adding that “every year, the Government spends more than $500 million making interest payments”.

However, Howard recommended that the BLP returns to the drawing board to come up with answers to issues such as the size of the public service - which continues to account for a large portion of Government’s expenditure in the form of wages and salaries  and transfers and subsidies.

“I always ask the question, how are we going to continue to pay the public servants and at the same time reduce taxation? What I find in the BLP’s manifesto is that they are saying they [are going] to reduce taxation – road tax and VAT and take off the NSRL, but they are not saying where the money is going to come from to pay the public servants,” he insisted.

The BLP also told the large gathering at Kingsland, Christ Church last night, it would bank on investment and increased spend to help grow the economy, a pledge Howard described as an illusion.

“You need to say that we are going to have a certain amount of money from taxation because if you reduce taxation, tell me how much is going to be left to help finance the public sector wage bill. If you tell me you are going to get money from there [investments] that is not really definite. You can’t make your plans on what is possible sometime in the future, you have to make your plan on something that is definite,” he said.

In relation to the BLP’s plan to increase non-contributory pension, the economist said this was not well thought out since this could have a devastating impact on the National Insurance Scheme (NIS).

“It means you have to look for something like $900 a month to pay people their non-contributory pension and it also means that you have to increase the contributory pension because the non-contributory are indexed to the contributory . . . We are talking about putting the NIS under severe pressure. So I think these things are not well thought out,” Howard concluded.

marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb

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Minister of Transport and Works Michael Lashley is dismissing the Barbados Labour Party’s (BLP) manifesto proposal to abolish road taxes as another fake promise.

When the BLP launched its manifesto in Kingsland, Christ Church last night, its economic advisor Dr Clyde Mascoll announced that the party would replace the road tax with a small levy on petrol.

However, Lashley was not at all impressed, questioning how the Mia Mottley-led BLP would achieve the proposed road tax plan and its replacement.

“How are they going to get it done? But of course it’s another fake promise,” Lashley said.

“We have to wait and see. It’s like an election gimmick as far as I am concerned,” Lashley added, stating that the BLP should instead look to further strengthen the Road Traffic Act to ensure road users pay the tax.

When Mascoll addressed the party faithful last night, he said in the spirit of equity, commercial vehicles which are more than average users of the roads would be required to pay more under the BLP’s petrol proposal.

“We currently have something called a road tax. Do you know that road tax for a commercial vehicle is only $400 while those of you who have bigger vehicles have to pay $900 and all sort of thing? That has to change because the tax does not make sense,” Mascoll said.

“We are abolishing the road tax. However we can’t be irresponsible, so what we are going to do is shift the tax towards the business community. Those people who use the road most should pay most. It is called equity and justice. We are going to transfer the road tax to a small tax on fuel so those that are on the road all day with heavy vehicles would pay proportionally,” he added, evoking sustained applause from the massive crowd.

The BLP economist further explained that the manifesto pledges were the product of two years of research, and all of its costs had been accounted for.

However, Lashley suggested that the BLP should instead be looking to further strengthen the Road Traffic Act to ensure road users pay the tax.

“That is what the ministry is doing at this time. We are basically looking at a very strong strategic plan to ensure that there is strict compliance with the law,” he added.

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Barbadians have been warned not to be fooled by the crowds, free food, music, and “$100 bills wrapped in red shirts”.

That was the admonishment of Democratic Labour Party (DLP) St Philip South incumbent Adriel Brathwaite, clearly hinting that the main opposition Barbados Labour Party (BLP) was trying to use money and other inducements to lure people to vote for the party.

Brathwaite, who is facing off against the BLP’s Indar Weir, said the DLP had “put country first”, defying suggestions that it was going to bring an election Budget before going to the polls.

Lambasting the BLP, Brathwaite said people should not be misled by the “rent-a-crowd” tactics of that political party. He argued that when the free food and party music was done, the “rent-a-crowd” also disappeared.

The Attorney General also launched an attack on some trade union leaders whom he accused of stopping just short of telling union members which political party they should vote for.

In fact, he said it was strange that unions would attack an administration that had protected workers’ jobs and introduced the most “employee friendly” legislation to secure workers’ rights than any other administration.

He cited the safety and health at work laws, the Minimum Wage Act, and the Employment Rights Act as examples of the legislative protection that the Freundel Stuart administration introduced to protect workers.

During his presentation at Rices, St Philip, Brathwaite called out the Barbados Private Sector Association and in particular its chairman Charles Herbert, whom he accused of being an advisor to the BLP. In this connection, the political incumbent questioned the position taken by Herbert against the Freundel Stuart administration during his tenure as head of the private sector.

“We have put the country first,” Brathwaite insisted, as he encouraged Barbadians to give the DLP another chance in Government.

“Now is not the time to give the Government over to one person”, suggesting that the BLP was now Mia Mottley’s party and that she had become the ultimate leader with no room for dissent in the party.

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If there is one area that incumbent Democratic Labour Party (DLP) candidate for St George South Dr Esther Byer Suckoo would give the Freundel Stuart administration a failing grade, it is communication.

Addressing a political meeting in Licorish Village last night in support of St Michael East candidate Nicolas Alleyne, she admitted that when it came to disclosing plans and initiatives over the past ten years, Government had simply not spoken enough.

“We had no time to talk, we were too busy working,” the St George South candidate said, while contending that actions speak longer than words.

“It has been a very difficult ten years for Barbados, but we have delivered.

“If it is one thing I would say is that we were so focused on getting the job done, getting Barbados on the right track, that I will give this Government one failing grade - [it is that] we did not blow our own horn, we did not tell enough of what we were doing,” she said.

“We were so busy with our heads down looking at the job at hand, and by all reports we did it well, that we did not tell enough of our plans. That allowed people to come in and give you the impression that we were doing
nothing and that nothing was happening, [but] when you are busy working, you have no time for talking,” Byer Suckoo stressed.

In a wide ranging speech, the Minister of Labour and Social Security touched on Government’s achievements in housing, international business and youth development, while claiming that most of the promises that the Opposition Barbados Labour Party was now making had already been implemented.

“Last night we reminded you of our plans in housing. Persons on the 20-year programme were able to get the papers to their homes. Our Minister [of International Business Donville] Inniss was telling us what is going on in international business. Even against the odds, he was able to ensure that the international business sector stayed afloat. That was not an easy task.

“Again I don’t think we have been talking enough because I hear people making all these grand promises about what they will do for the youth of Barbados.

“I sat and I listened and I said, ‘we are already doing that’. All of the different promises are what the Democratic Labour Party has been doing [but] we just haven’t been telling you all.”

Byer Suckoo also sought to set the record straight about the DLP’s plans for the young people in Barbados.

“The Democratic Labour Party believes in our young people. There are people going around offering our young people inducements to support them. We are not about providing for our young people substances so that they will vote and have a feel good. That is not what we are about.

“We are about ensuring that our young people are on a firm footing. We want to set this island on a trajectory that our youth will know that their future is secure. Every ministry in our Government has been focused on our young people,” she stressed.

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It has been the intention of the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) to force the collapse of the Freundel Stuart administration from the first day he was elected to run the country.

What’s more, a Democratic Labour Party (DLP) candidate said, the main opposition enlisted the private sector and union leaders to help them carry out the plot.

The charge was made by the DLP St George North candidate Jepter Ince. Speaking last night at Rices, St Philip in support of St Philip South incumbent Adriel Brathwaite, Ince described Stuart as a “quality leader” who had to stand up to immense pressure during his tenure.

Ince said the private sector and the BLP failed to factor in that the DLP still had the confidence of the people and so their marches in the streets, walkouts from Parliament and other efforts to undermine the Government had failed.

In fact, he contended that Stuart’s decision to “plug the trough” and end the practice of influential private sector operatives having direct access and influence on the Office of the Prime Minister, resulted in a backlash for Stuart.

Ince hinted that for many years, some well-known private sector leaders could walk into the office of this country’s leader and use their positions to influence political decisions.

Against this backdrop, the DLP hopeful who will try to unseat the BLP’s Gline Clarke in St George North, argued that the Dems had kept their focus on maintaining jobs despite efforts to push Government to send home more than 6,000 public officers.

Ince, a former Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, said the DLP would rather see people take home less money than to put thousands of public officers on the breadline and deprive them of an income.

“Where are you going to send 10,000 workers when you send them home?” he asked the moderate crowd in the heart of Brathwaite’s St Philip South constituency.

Ince also launched into some union leaders, whom he said joined with the BLP to try to destroy the Stuart administration. Furthermore, he accused the BLP of doing everything they could to try to force the collapse of the DLP administration through constant unwarranted attacks, marches, and propaganda.

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Just when the people of St Joseph thought the water problems that plagued the rural district in recent years were behind them, they received a stunning reminder this week of their nightmarish experiences.

A year after Member of Parliament Dale Marshall admitted that there was “really a tremendous improvement” after years of persistent water outages that infuriated residents and prompted a protest march outside the Barbados Water Authority (BWA) office, the residents have been experiencing dry taps over the past three days.

[caption id="attachment_237120" align="aligncenter" width="600"] St Joseph residents have been experiencing dry taps over the past three days. When Barbados TODAY visited the area today, four water trucks were making their way through Horse Hill and Branchbury, St Joseph.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_237119" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Many residents voiced concern about the quality of the water, particularly the supply in the tanks. ta[/caption]

“This started the Sunday of Reggae on the Hill. You believe when I went home sweaty and up and come home to find the water off?” one person told Barbados TODAY.

The BWA issued a statement today advising that it was experiencing problems at one of its boreholes which supplies water to the Castle Grant reservoir.

It said maintenance of the borehole was expected “to take a few days” as it had to mobilize heavy equipment to complete the job.

In the meantime, it said, “adjustments will be made in the distribution network to augment the water supply to the Castle Grant area from Apes Hill and Golden Ridge in an effort to minimize disruptions”.

The water company has been supplying the affected areas with water via its tankers, much to the pleasure of the residents who had high praise for the rapid response team.

When Barbados TODAY visited the area about 1 p.m. today, four water trucks were making their way through Horse Hill and Branchbury, St Joseph.

One of the residents in Horse Hill told Barbados TODAY there were “more water tankers than Transport Board buses”, a reference to the problems with the bus service in the area.

“There are like six or seven [water tankers] every day. The men really make sure we have water,” he said.

However, many still voiced concern about the quality of the water, particularly the supply in the tanks that were installed two years ago when the crisis was at its worst.

One woman who has a young child and who owns a business in the area, said she was concerned about their health, particularly because they had not had a proper bath in several days.

Another resident, businessman Anthony Hunte, the owner of Hunte’s Gardens, questioned why the pumps had not been adequately maintained, charging that if not for the rain he might have had to count his losses.

[caption id="attachment_237118" align="aligncenter" width="305"] Businessman Anthony Hunte questioned why the pumps had not been adequately maintained.[/caption]

“In the past when we have had outages we [depended on] tanks because we run the number one garden in the Caribbean and it is very important that we do not lose any of our stock,” Hunte said.

However, Hunte said his business has not been severely impacted by the latest outage because the BWA has helped by sending water tankers when he needs them.

Fed up with years of consistent water outages, residents of St Joseph made their frustration known to the BWA in 2016 by staging a march outside the water company’s offices in The Pine, St Michael, in the hope of spurring the BWA into finding a lasting solution.

However, over the past year the utility company appeared to have had a grip on the situation, until the current outage.

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The Barbados Meteorological Services says a weak low level trough is affecting the island.

Today will be fair to occasionally cloudy and windy with brief scattered showers.

Winds will be ENE to E at 25 to 45 km/h.

Seas will be moderate in open water with swells from 1.5m to 2.0m.

Tonight

A weak low level trough will affect the island.

It will be fair to occasionally cloudy and windy with brief scattered showers.

Winds will be ENE to E at 25 to 45 km/h.

Seas will be moderate in open water with swells from 1.5m to 2.0m.

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Thirty-seven-year-old Jason Omar Harper will appear in the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court today on a charge of illegal possession of firearm.

Harper, of Rockhampton Road, Jackson, St Michael, was arrested on Thursday by members of the Anti-gun & Gangs Unit of the Royal Barbados Police Force and charged with possession of a firearm without a being the holder of a licence to do so.

Around 7:50 p.m. on Thursday, the officers carried out an operation which led to a motor vehicle being stopped at the junction of Reservoir Road and Husbands new Development, St Michael. The vehicle and its occupants were searched and the firearm (a .22 pistol) was found in the possession of the accused.

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We have completed another week in celebration of our nurses for Nurses Week 2018 and May 12 is International Nurses Day, which marks the anniversary of the birth date of Florence Nightingale, the world’s most famous nurse.

To the unsung Nightingales of Barbados, I send a message of good will, as you toil to maintain health care. Your indispensable contribution and the work that you do requires special recognition and acknowledgment. Nurses can be found practicing right across Barbados, in numerous settings of acute care, long-term (rehabilitative) and preventative care; in public and private institutions, in industries and corporate companies.

The theme this year, set by the International Council of Nurses (ICN) is, Nurses: A Voice to lead – Health is a Human Right.

As we continue in the quest to make this theme realized, not just for access, but quality, Barbados Nurses Association (BNA), will continue to advocate to achieve our mandate of: adequate resources for education and continued training, adequate resources for excellent health care delivery, and adequate resources for nurse remuneration.

Having adequate human resources, (Nursing personnel) will alleviate some of the frustrations experienced by patients & clients in having to wait long hours to be attended, which recently resulted in an incident in one of the clinics.

While we sympathize with our clients and patients, BNA wishes to convey that we hold zero tolerance to any assault on nurses.

I urge nurses everywhere, in all settings, to continue to maintain the highest standard in delivery of nursing care, as laid down by the Caribbean Standards of Nursing Practice and the International Council of Nurses, ensuring that this is done with  compassion.

On behalf of the Executive of the Barbados Nurses Association, I wish all nurses of Barbados a productive, fulfilling and enjoyable International Nurses Day, as we thank God for the special gift of nurses and nursing.

C. Joannah Waterman

President

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Members of the Royal Barbados Police Force are reminded that all police officers who are currently on local vacation leave will with immediate effect have their leave curtailed to Wednesday, May 16.

Police officers on local leave during this period are reminded that they must report for duty by 7 a.m. on Wednesday, May 16 at their respective stations / formations / departments.

Police officers are further advised that the curtailment of local leave is to ensure adequacy in manpower, to safely, efficiently and effectively police the upcoming general election which is scheduled for Thursday, May 24.

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Barbados Labour Party (BLP) candidate for Christ Church East Wilfred Abrahams has warned Barbadians that a vote for Solutions Barbados, the Barbados Integrity Movement (BIM), the United Progressive Party (UPP), the People’s Democratic Congress (PDC), or the Bajan Free Party, is essentially a vote for the Democratic Labour Party (DLP).

“A lot is going to happen and a lot is at stake. This is not the election to stay home. I have heard people talk about a protest vote and voting for one of the other third parties,” Abrahams told those gathered at the playing field in Parish Land last night for a BLP spot meeting.

“Do not waste your vote! A vote for the third party is a vote for the DLP. A vote for any of the independents is a vote for the DLP. Do not waste your vote on somebody who does not have a chance of getting into Government because they cannot help you when times get tough.”

He said if those candidates were genuine about helping the constituents of Christ Church East, they could work with him after he is elected to be the member of parliament for the area.

“I am not crying down anybody. If the fella from the UPP has your interest at heart, then he will come forward and work with me when I become the MP,” Abrahams said to loud applause.

“If the lady from Solutions Barbados has your interest at heart, then she can step forward when I become the next MP. I am not going to spite anybody. I will take all the help from all the quarters when it comes.”

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The man charged with the shooting death of footballer Sherwin Success has been remanded to HMP Dodds until May 15.

Adijan Younge of Lot 119 Wotton Terrace, Christ Church, appeared before Magistrate Wade Clarke in the District A Magistrates' Court today for the murder of the former national footballer sometime between May 6 and 7, 2017.

Success was fatally shot at Wotton Playing Field not too far from his Kingsland, Christ Church home.

Younge, 37, remained at large until he was brought back to Barbados on Tuesday May 8 after he was held in St Lucia by members of the St Lucia Police Force on May 7.

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The Trinidad-based Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) will hold an emergency hearing on Sunday as a St Lucia-born academic challenges the Electoral and Boundaries Commission (EBC) to have his name included in the electoral list.

President Sir Dennis Byron will head a five-member CCJ panel of judges to hear the matter.

The CCJ is Barbados’ highest court.

Political observers said that this matter has implications not only for the appellant but also for  Commonwealth citizens living in Barbados, who want to be registered to vote in the May 24 general elections.

Professor Eddy Ventose, who has lived in Barbados for several years, is seeking to be included on the Barbados electoral register. He alleges that under the prevailing laws he is qualified and entitled to be registered.

The Court of Appeal earlier this week ruled that Ventose was entitled to be registered to vote but stopped short of compelling the Chief Electoral Officer to do so, instead, ordering the Chief Electoral Officer to determine Professor Ventose’s claim within 24 hours.

Ventose is asking the CCJ to declare that his name should be on the final voters’ list ahead of its publication.

The CCJ said that the request for appeal came to the CCJ late Friday and it responded by scheduling the hearing for this Sunday.

The CCJ said that the hearing will be live streamed and broadcast quality audio and video files will be available for all representatives of the media after the hearing.

Earlier this month, the Court of Appeal paved the way for Commonwealth nationals residing in Barbados for more than three years to be included on the list of voters.

Attorney Gregory Nicholls, who among a group of lawyers representing Ventose and three other Caribbean Community (CARICOM) nationals, said that the Court of Appeal threw out longstanding rules that barred Commonwealth citizens resident here for three years from voting.

He said the appellate court ruled the EBC and Chief Electoral Officer unlawfully refused to register his clients on the electoral list.

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Barbados Labour Party (BLP) candidate for Christ Church South Ralph Thorne, says Barbadians are giving politicians too much power.

Speaking during a BLP spot meeting in Parish Land, Christ Church, last night, Thorne told the scores of people present that they need to play a more active role in governing Barbados.

"I am saying in a very expended way that you seem to have given your politicians too much power and the time has come when that power must be distributed downwards towards you," Thorne said.

"Because unless this happens in Barbados, the infliction that we have faced for the last 30, 40 and 50 years, the infliction of a lack of empowerment will continue to inflict our lives and we will leave nothing but a legacy of a lack of empowerment for generations to come."

Thorne said a local assembly should have the power and administrative authority to write to the Government and to demand the delivery of services and amenities in local communities.

"If a road gets bad you should not be knocking down any minister's door, you should not be knocking down any minister's constituency office begging for a road repair as if you are asking for manna from heaven," he said.

"Take this local administration into your hands and use it, and use it wisely. That is my simple message to you tonight."

Thorne pledged that the BLP would dismantle what the Democratic Labour Party has done to people's lives over the past 10 years.

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The Barbados Labour Party sold 365 units to Barbadians in “good economic times” while the Democratic Labour Party gave away 3885 in tough economic times.

This assertion came from Minister of Housing Denis Kellman as he was speaking at a Democratic Labour Party meeting in Orange Hill, St James. He gave an account of the housing stock including newly-constructed NHC houses as well as previous units which were given to people who occupied them for 20 years or more.

He listed some of the places conveyances were handed out : “We gave you 30 houses at Bagatelle; 85 at Bayville; 18 in Belleplaine; 106 at Bennets; 5 at Cave Hill; 51 at Church Village; 6 at Colleton in St John; 320 at Deacons Farm; 351 at Eden Lodge; 7 in Farm Garden; 154 at Fernihurst; 148 at Gall Hill; 3 at Gemswick; 234 at Grazettes; 323 at Haynesville; 64 in The Ivy; 68 at Kensington Lodge; 60 in Lammings; 59 in Maynards; 818 in the Pinelands; 70 at Pleasant Hall; 34 at Pondside; 69 at Rosemont; 42 at Sayes Court; 240 at Silver Hill; 36 at St Stephens; 459 at Wildey and 120 at Wotton”.

The St Lucy MP said the DLP administration gave those houses to tenants in order to empower them.

“Can you imagine any other Government giving away 3885 houses in a crisis? And they want you to believe that you should dump us for them? Who sold you 365 units. We are a caring Government. We said instead of offering you them for sale that we would give you them free. We have given those houses free to you the people of Barbados because we care. There are not board houses there are stone. We know what that means to you. You can take the conveyance walk into a bank and tell the banker to use this as collateral,” he pointed out.

Meanwhile he claimed that if re-elected the DLP has plans of developing the NHC-owned land just above the school meals service in Lancaster. He disclosed his vision for the area which would be home to a shopping complex and other commercial entities. (IMC)

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What has he done for you lately? That was the question repeatedly asked by candidate for St Andrew Irene Sandiford Garner to residents of Orange Hill, St James.

She was speaking at a Democratic Labour Party meeting Friday night where accused MP George Payne of doing nothing for the past 27 years.

“When you want to represent people you have to ensure that their lives are better than you found them. If an individual did not work for you at 60, they can’t work for you at 70. You need energy, you need vision, you need intelligence. What has he done for you lately? What has he done?"

She pointed out that when she first contested the seat in 2008 her slogan was “ready to serve”. However, she accused Payne of using the same slogan which made no sense because he should have been serving all along.

“How can you sit in a seat for 27 years and wake up in 2018 telling the good people who repose their confidence in you that you are now ready to serve? What do they do to serve you? What do they do to earn the money that the State pays them? How does your representative pass that hardcourt that is not utilised and ask you for a vote? I am not your MP but I made sure that the Buccaneer works. Why, because I see the value of having those facilities for the youth. It is now refurbished. It now has air-conditioning. It now has 17 computers. I didn’t need to be a MP to do it. I just needed the will to ensure the minister responsible did it.”

The DLP candidate said it wasn’t only Orange Hill that was neglected.

“It burns my heart to know that I grew up in St Andrew and witness the MP allow the centre down there to run to ruins to the point where men were playing dominoes under a light of a lamp with no water borne facilities. It was not a problem for him to see the degradation of Belleplaine and come back to those people every five years asking for support. What type of conscience does that?"

Sandiford Garner also said there was something very telling about the fact that five people are vying to represent St Andrew.

“This constituency has about five people looking to unseat the incumbent, it tells you something is very wrong with that individual. One of them is from right here in Orange Hill. You have a very important decision to make for your future and for your children’s future,” she said.

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Five days after his body was laid to rest in a private ceremony, police late Saturday confirmed the death of 47-year-old David Dacosta King, who was being sought by them for the April 14 killing of his wife Onica.

The 36-year-old Guyanese nail technician was stabbed to death at her Swan Street store in the full view of her children nearly a month ago.

[caption id="attachment_234452" align="alignnone" width="650"] The late Onica King who was recently laid to rest in her native Guyana.[/caption]

Four days later, the body of a male was discovered lodged in the rocks along the inner careenage in an advanced state of decomposition.

That body was later identified by a family member as King's, and, on completion of a postmortem, was handed over to his family.

He was laid to rest in a private ceremony at the Christ Church Parish Church cemetery on Monday after his late wife's body was interred in her native Guyana last week.

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