In the midst of a hectic campaign for re-election, Minister of Agriculture, Food, Fisheries and Water Resource Management Dr David Estwick has been thrown into a state of mourning.

Estwick is grieving the death yesterday of his mother, Ernesta Bowman, who was said to be in her 80s.

Her death comes at the height of campaigning by Estwick’s Democratic Labour Party (DLP) for a third straight term in office, with general elections due here next Thursday.

However, the firebrand politician was still present on stage for tonight’s DLP manifesto launch at Oistins, Christ Church.

Estwick lost his father early in his life and his brother Tyrone Estwick, a former Minister of Education and Culture and attorney at law, died on June 5, 2010.

The post Estwick’s mother passes away appeared first on Barbados Today.

Independent candidate Leroy McClean has appealed to voters in St John to elect him come May 24, while insisting that he is “the best person” to carry on late Prime Minister and National Hero Errol Barrow’s legacy in that rural riding.

The former Barrow protégé’ and Wakefield Tenantry resident recently lost his bid to carry the incumbent Democratic Labour Party’s (DLP) banner in St John, which has been a stronghold of the DLP since 1958 when Barrow was first elected its representative.

However, McClean, who remains a card-carrying member of the DLP despite going independent, remains hopeful that he will be given the nod by voters in next week’s highly anticipated poll.

“Given my vast and varied experience and my commitment to serving the people of Barbados, I am the best person to carry on the Barrow legacy through strong, effective representation for the people of St John. I therefore humbly ask you to vote for Leroy McClean on May 24, 2018,” he said in an election circular in which he formally introduced himself to constituents.

McClean, an ex-Consul General to Toronto and former chairman of the Barbados Investment and Development Corporation, also outlined plans for the establishment of an agro-processing facility in St John, which he said had the potential to become the bread basket of Barbados.

“In return for the millions of dollars spent by Government to compensate the CLICO policyholders and investors, the CLICO plantations should be acquired by the Government. Under proper management, these plantations could be brought back into full production to help to significantly reduce our massive food import bill,” he said.

McClean, whose slogan for the May 24 election is Vote Leroy McClean - The Best Choice - From St John for St John, is also promising that if elected, he will give urgent attention to several matters, including road rehabilitation.

He also plans to construct a new multi-purpose facility at Gall Hill to house a community centre, library and provide space for small businesses.

Such a facility, he said, would provide opportunities for the development of an entrepreneurial class in St John and transform Gall Hill into a mini town centre.

Without giving any idea of funding, the independent candidate also said he would relocate the St John Primary School “as a matter of priority to allow for expansion of the physical plant for better teaching facilities and room for recreational and extracurricular activities”.

With respect to public transportation, he said “this could be remedied through pressure to have a better equipped and more efficient Transport Board operation and the issuing of more public service vehicle permits to service St John”.

McClean also suggested that in addition to the existing routes, there should be a cross-country service to make it easier for school children and other commuters to get to west coast.

“Since much of St John falls within Zone 1 or part of the area designated as a national park, this restricts the extent to which there could be housing and commercial development in the parish. There must therefore be a comprehensive survey of the parish to determine what land is available for additional housing,” he contended.

Also contesting the St John seat are George Pilgrim of the DLP, Charles Griffith of the Barbados Labour Party, Cherone Martindale of Solutions Barbados, Hudson Griffith of the United Progressive Party and Derek Went of the Barbados Integrity Movement.

The post McClean looking to take forward Barrow’s legacy in St John appeared first on Barbados Today.

What began this morning as a scenic tour of the east coast by 33 cruise passengers very nearly ended up in disaster, with only the skill and poise of the tour bus driver preventing a repeat of the 2007 Joe’s River, St Joseph catastrophe.

[caption id="attachment_237789" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Several visitors praised the valiant efforts of both the driver and the tour guide.[/caption]

A split-second decision by Foster & Ince Cruise Services driver Hampden Clarke to crash the out-of-control bus into a wall at Cleaver’s Hill, St Joseph may well have saved the lives of the 31 adults and two children – an infant and an eight-year-old.

The incident occurred about 10:45 this morning as the Carnival Cruise Line passengers were on a tour coordinated by Foster & Ince Cruise Services.

The company’s Chief Executive Officer Martin Ince has since confirmed that the brakes failed and Clarke, who has been a tour bus driver with the company for close to 12 years, “used his experience and he actually went into one of the walls and stopped the bus”.

[caption id="attachment_237788" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Driver Hampden Clarke and tour guide Allison Trotman-Edwards were visibly shaken, as the reality of the potentially deadly event hit them.[/caption]

The driver’s composure and ability and the diligence of tour guide Allison Trotman-Edwards were hailed by the passengers, most of whom escaped with minor scrapes and scratches, although two of them, a 38-year-old and a 70-year-old, both females, had to be taken to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by ambulance.

When Barbados TODAY arrived at the scene about two hours after the crash, both Clarke and Trotman-Edwards had lost their composure and visibly shaken, as the reality of the potentially deadly event hit them. As a result, neither would comment on the accident.

However, one Bathsheba, St Joseph resident told Barbados TODAY had it not been for the manner in which Clarke handled the situation, the vehicle might well have plunged over the cliff into the sea below.

In addition, several of the visitors praised the valiant efforts of both the driver and the tour guide.

“We were coming down that hill, we got a little fast and it seemed even faster. The tour guide said something and the bus driver said we have no brakes and as we come around the curb it was way too fast. Then the tour guide got up and went behind the driver and he went into the wall to keep us from going down the hill,” Brandon Lewis, one of the shaken passengers, recounted.

“The biggest thing for me was making sure we didn’t spin and the bus did not turn over. The driver did an excellent job of taking us into the wall and slowing us down” Lewis added.

For Lauren Glover of Virginia in the United States, this was the second near-death experience on this trip.

Glover said she feared she would have drowned yesterday when her mask failed while snorkelling in St Lucia yesterday. She was saved by her husband who pulled her out of the water.

Yet again, she was grateful that her life was spared, this time because of the quick action of a skilful driver.

“He is a good bus driver and the tour guide calmly settled every one down. It was not as terrible a day as it could have been,” she said.

Even before Clarke crashed the tour bus into the wall, Amaal Alleyne, who was at the Bathsheba home where she has lived for two years, knew that something was wrong.

Alleyne is used to the traffic going down the hill, and she said by the sound of the vehicle “careening down the hill” she could tell there were problems.

“We hear buses come down the hill every day and I knew that one sounded too fast, and when I looked out my window I saw it careening down the hill and I heard it crash. I just threw on my slippers and rushed over . . . to see if everyone was okay. I couldn’t believe the bus was still standing. I thought for sure it was going to flip over,” she said.

Another resident, Edison Mayers, was among the first to respond to the incident.

He told Barbados TODAY despite fearing the worst he sprang into action in an attempt to get the passengers out of the bus.

“I had to go inside and get a ripping iron and try to open up the door . . . . I did what I could. My first response was to get everybody out because everybody was just piling up,” Mayers said. “I was scared.”

However, everyone was thankful that their worst fears were not realized, not least among them, Glover.

In fact, she was in high spirits and was anxious to continue her adventure on the seven-day cruise. And even though she had felt for a moment that she was about to die, she figured their was no place better to meet her end.

“It has been an adventurous time but it has still been a beautiful time,” Glover told Barbados TODAY.

“I thought that if I were to go that it would be a really pretty place to go. But I knew the bus was going to crash. It could have been a lot worse,” she stressed.

On Sunday, July 29, 2007, six people were killed and 37 injured when the Barbados Transport Co-Operative Society coach in which they were travelling careened down the slope and crashed into a wall at Joe’s River. The group were on the way to the Party Monarch finals on the east coast.

It was one of the worst traffic accidents in the history of the island.

The post Hero driver appeared first on Barbados Today.

Police are trying to identify an elderly male who is presently at the Hastings Police Station.

The man was found wandering outside a residence along Reece Road, Brittons Hill, St Michael around one o’clock this morning.

Police say the man is disoriented and does not remember his name, age, address, family, or any contact details.

He is five feet, eight inches tall and of slim build. He is wearing a light blue shirt, long black pants and wears spectacles.

Anyone who can identify this man is asked to contact the Hastings Police Station at 430-7612 or 430- 7608; Police Emergency at 211 or Police Public Relations Officer Acting Inspector Rodney Inniss at 836 0976.

The post Police seek public’s help in identifying elderly man appeared first on Barbados Today.

Police report that the elderly man who was found wandering along Reece Road, Brittons Hill, St Michael in the wee hours of this morning has been reunited with his family.

The post Update: Police locate family of elderly man appeared first on Barbados Today.

The Ministry of Education has advised principals and other members of the public that all public nursery, primary and secondary schools and tertiary institutions will close early at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, May 23.

This closure is to allow personnel from the Electoral and Boundaries Commission to undertake the necessary preparations for the General Elections, which will be held on Thursday, May 24.

The Ministry has also advised the principals of all private nursery, primary and secondary schools that are being used as polling stations to also close at 1 p.m. on the same day.

All schools will be closed on Election Day.

The Ministry thanks the public for its cooperation. (BGIS)

The post Early closure of schools on eve of General Elections appeared first on Barbados Today.

There has been another ugly stabbing incident involving secondary school students.
This afternoon emergency responders, including ambulance and police, were summoned to the Daryll Jordan Secondary School in St Lucy after an altercation between students turned bloody around midday during the school’s lunch break, leaving five males injured.
Police Public Relations Officer Acting Inspector Rodney Inniss confirmed the incident which remains under investigation.
He explained that three of the five victims were transported to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by ambulance while the other two sought private medical attention.
Barbados TODAY understands that the altercation stemmed from a dispute between the students, which started yesterday.
“This whole thing started from the school bus yesterday. The students were quarreling and it continued today. One student slapped the other with a rock in his face and then the fight started.
“When this happened a whole gang came and as a result some students were stabbed,” one source indicated, adding that a number of weapons, involving scissors, metal and pieces of wood were confiscated.
Earlier this year, a similar incident occurred on a school bus, involving students from Daryll Jordan and Frederick Smith.
Two weeks before that, a disturbing video was circulating online showing a male student from Grantley Adams Memorial School setting fire to the hair of an unsuspecting female student, who was on her mobile phone at a bus stop a stone’s throw away from the Blackman’s, St Joseph school.
Another student quickly extinguished the fire and the affected pupil escaped injury.
However, the alleged perpetrator was later charged and sent off to the Government Industrial School following the incident which drew sharp condemnation from the President of the Barbados National Council of Parent Teachers Association Shone Gibbs, who described the video as “extremely disturbing” and nothing to laugh about.
Last November, two teenagers were also arrested and charged in connection with an altercation at the Ellerslie Secondary School, which resulted in a 16-year-old male receiving several cutlass wounds to his right hand in what has been a series of worrying incidents that have prompted calls by both the Barbados Union of Teachers and the Barbados Secondary Teachers’ Union for a comprehensive plan to be put in place to combat such incidents.
Back in 2016, at the height of concerns by teachers about a spate of violent incidents in schools, Minister of Education Ronald Jones had announced plans to establish a broad-based committee to investigate violence in schools, including student-on-student violence and student-on-teacher violence.
Jones had also said the committee would investigate any cases of teacher-on-student violence “if that exists” and would provide recommendations on how to resolve the issue and enhance security at schools.
However, since then little has been said and no noticeable plan has been put in place by the Jones-led ministry which is opposed to having metal detectors in school. (AGB)

The post Five injured in stabbing incident at Daryll Jordan appeared first on Barbados Today.

Six weeks after 61-year-old Bonita Morgan, the director of resource mobilization and development at the Barbados-based Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), lost a lengthy battle with cancer, family, friends, co-workers and local and regional tourism officials gathered at St Patrick’s Roman Catholic Cathedral on Jemmotts Lane, St Michael this morning for a memorial service in celebration of her life.

However, while there was much to celebrate about Morgan’s life, the service was more solemn than celebrating, although there were moments of laughter, particularly when Jean Holder, the former CTO secretary general, spoke of the exchange that they had on the day she walked into his office to advise him that she was pregnant with her third child, and when her younger sister, Marissa, described their many adventures – the ones where mischief was involved, always instigated by Marissa.

[caption id="attachment_237881" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Bonita’s daughter Ayanna Morgan displaying a portrait of her mum as she and her brother Jonathan exit the church.[/caption]

There was no casket – her body was cremated and the ashes kept in an urn - neither were there floral arrangements in the church which she adopted as her own many years ago, and to which she dedicated years of her life, including as a member of the choir, which she changed dramatically, and was a volunteer in its major activities.

The moments of laughter notwithstanding, Morgan was presented as a woman of strength, a servant of God and a pillar of Caribbean tourism, a person who provided comfort and care and added perspective to the lives of everyone around her, yet found time to enjoy music and a game of tennis.

Her first-born, Johnathan, described Morgan as a versatile mum who did well to calm his nerves when he took his examination as a college student.

“I like to think of mum as an incredibly well-rounded individual. She was very well spoken, very intelligent and athletic . . . . She was always a loving and laughing individual.

“She was also very calming and caring to myself. I was always a person who would get very nervous with exams and she would always tell me, ‘take your time, you are doing your best’, and it allowed me to not give up, and it helped me achieve what I have achieved today,” Jonathan said.

“She was also very musically inclined from when she first picked up the acoustic guitar at the age of nine in Trinidad. She also joined the choir and she had piano and steel pan [abilities] as well.”

What impressed him most, Jonathan said, was his mum’s ability to remain mentally strong and of good cheer, even during the most difficult periods of her illness.

“A strong theme that came from mum was divine intervention. There were so many instances that pointed us to that phrase. Her illness and need of care drove me to be with her. Mum’s faith stayed with her and sustained her through her journey. While many may say she had a lot of life left to live, I would say she lived a very full life,” he said.

CTO Secretary General Hugh Riley told mourners Morgan had all the characteristics of a well-rounded person whose death has left a void in regional tourism.

“Bonita Morgan was beautiful, thoughtful, honest, trustworthy, confident, talented, caring, dedicated and professional. She was a truly remarkable woman,” Riley said, as he listed the many areas through which his former colleague impacted the lives of Caribbean nationals.

He spoke of Morgan’s drive to develop the region’s human resources, her work at the organization’s scholarship foundation, which funds post-secondary education for Caribbean nationals pursuing tourism-related and language programmes, and her success in introducing certification programmes to the sector.

“She trained trainers, taught teachers, designed curricula and piloted the teaching of tourism in primary and secondary schools throughout the Caribbean. She earned the highest respect across the Caribbean,” the secretary general said, adding that it was impossible to place a monetary value on all she had done for the region.

In a brief sermon the officiating priest, Vibert Stephens, encouraged the congregation to think of Morgan’s death as a moment of gratitude, while instructing that “death doesn’t have the final say”.

Morgan’s ashes were to be scattered over the Caribbean Sea.

anmargboyce@barbadostoday.bb

The post Woman of strength appeared first on Barbados Today.

Minister of Industry, International Business, Commerce and Small Business Development Donville Inniss is sending a strong message to those who engage in predatory pricing that the days of “dumping of goods in Barbados” will soon be over.

Inniss today warned that his ministry had begun an investigation into allegations of predatory pricing here.

And while he declined to elaborate when pressed by Barbados TODAY, the minister warned that the practice stood to significantly damage the local manufacturing sector if not addressed.

“We cannot realistically expect our local manufacturers to make significant investments in plant and equipment and then turn a blind eye when there may be others who may be dumping in our midst, helping to drive the cost down,” he told the official opening of the 2018 Barbados Manufacturers’ Exhibition (BMEX) at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.

“That is why my ministry has embarked on thorough investigations into allegations of dumping of competitive products here in Barbados that undermines our manufacturing sector wherever possible,” Inniss added.

His comments came against the backdrop of allegations made on Tuesday night by Barbados Labour Party leader Mia Mottley that cement giant Trinidad Cement Limited and its Barbados-based subsidiary Arawak Cement Limited had filed legal action against the Government of Barbados, accusing it of contravening the rules governing the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Single Market and Economy by granting the Mark Maloney-led Rock Hard Cement a reduction in the Common External Tariff, from 60 per cent to five per cent.

Since the entry of Rock Hard Cement into the local market in November 2015, Maloney has taken credit for driving down the price of cement by at least 30 per cent.

Today’s opening of BMEX also heard from President of the Barbados Manufacturers’ Association (BMA) Robert Noel, who said whoever forms the next Government after next week’s general election must treat the manufacturing sector with the same level of importance as that given to the tourism and the financial services sector.

“I implore whichever party forms the next Government to give greater consideration to the needs of the local manufacturing sector, to provide it with the support it needs to grow and to see its importance in the same way which it sees tourism and financial services sectors,” Noel said.

“Our manufacturing sector creates jobs for countless Barbadians and utilizes local resources wherever possible to add value to the products created. The sector also brings in critical foreign exchange, which we are so desperately in need of,” he explained.

Inniss said he was aware that the sector continued to face a number of challenges and was therefore in need of a new vision, while he expressed the wish that the sector would contribute in excess of $600 million annually to the economy through exports.

The manufacturing sector is estimated to contribute approximately four per cent of the island gross domestic product, just over $40 million annually.

“This reality speaks to the need and responsibility of the Government, private sector entities and business support organizations like the BMA to continue to work in unison to deepen, strengthen and re-double our efforts towards repositioning the manufacturing sector on the most elevated path of prominence and prosperity, to the benefit of all Barbadians,” Inniss said.

The post Predator pricing must end, Inniss says appeared first on Barbados Today.

Barbadians who pay land tax will not be required to pay the Value Added Tax (VAT) on their properties if the Bajan Free Party (BFP) has any say in the formulation of Government policy following next week’s general election.

BFP leader Alex Mitchell, whose party is a member of the Coalition of United Parties (CUP) contesting the May 24 poll, today said it was unfair to have people pay both taxes and a CUP Government would abolish the VAT for those who pay the land tax.

“The Government has them paying a land tax and VAT at the same time. Once you have a deed and land tax bill to match, the VAT is supposed to be eliminated. It was only supposed to be in for 18 months, but they have it as part of the fabric of Barbados,” Mitchell said.

“My plan for Barbados is the fact that we will then have clear titles for the land, the banks will stay, people will get a deed for the land. Once you get a deed for the land it will be recorded on your name, not in a lawyers’ office on a desk or in a draw,” he added.

Mitchell, who will contest the St Michael South seat against Prime Minister Freundel Stuart of the Democratic Labour Party, Kirk Humphrey of the Barbados Labour Party (BLP), Paul Gibson of Solutions Barbados and Sandra Corbin of the United Progressive Party, complained Barbadians were too heavily taxed.

This, he said, contributed to the faltering economy, and unless the situation improves soon, commercial banks could leave the jurisdiction before the end of this year, complicating the island’s foreign exchange problems.

Mitchell also dismissed recent concerns raised by Prime Minister Freundel Stuart and Owen Arthur, the country’s former leader, about tax waivers to the father of BLP leader Mia Mottley, arguing that the DLP administration was also guilty of granting tax waivers. Both Stuart and Arthur had given the impression that Mottley might have approved the waiver for her dad, Elliott Mottley, who at an emotional news conference this week made it clear that his daughter had never acted as Minister of Finance, therefore, she had nothing to do with waivers he might have received.

Meantime, Mitchell said any administration to which his party belongs would construct 30,000 new homes capable of withstanding major hurricanes, predicting a fierce storm could strike the island anytime in the near future.

“Once you do that, what are you going to have masons, plumbers, architects, carpenters, well diggers, everybody will be working. That is what we need, people to be working,” he said, adding that this would also encourage more foreign direct investment.

The BFP leader also had a list of complaints, including that those responsible for the CLICO debacle were never brought to justice, and what he said was total disregard for his party by the Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

“They were calling meetings but were not calling us to let us know about the meetings that they were planning,” he said, adding “I still haven’t received any mail from them at all. They always tell me to come and pick up my mail.

“I am tired of going to them all the time. Every time I need something I got to go to them all the time. Everybody is getting mailings. I am not getting any mailings. Nobody is sending me anything and they know who I am because I write letters to them already and they keep doing what they feel like doing,” he complained.

The post BFP plans to abolish VAT for land taxpayers appeared first on Barbados Today.

Police have made a breakthrough in a series of burglaries in the south of the island, arresting three of the burglars, including a woman, and solving a number of cases in the process.

While Acting Senior Superintendent of Police in charge of the Southern Division Bruce Rowe made no mention of an organized ring when he met with reporters today at his Oistins, Christ Church office, the senior police officer admitted to having a burglary problem in the southern division.

Those arrested had been targeting computers, cell phones and cash, Rowe revealed, and were suspected of being involved in as many as 15 robbery cases.

“We have problems in the southern division with burglaries, but we are working assiduously to clean up some of them,” he told the news conference.

“Within the last two days we have been able to clear up 15 cases where we are in the process of charging three people, including a female, for burglaries, robberies, theft and handling stolen property,” he explained, adding that the targeted areas were Fairholm Gardens, Maxwell Hill, Durants, Silver Sands and as far out as the vicinity of the District ‘C’ police station.

Up to the end of April this year there were 424 burglaries across the island, 331 of which were residential, 72 commercial and 18 involved the use of firearms, the lawman said. There were no comparative figures from 2017.

Of the 424 this year, 161 occurred in the southern district, of which 139 were at private residences, 16 in the commercial sector and six carried out with the aid of weapons.

Rowe advised homeowners and the general public to be vigilant and ensure their homes were secure.

“What we want to take the opportunity to do as well is to encourage the public and homeowners to secure their homes and if they see anything, please call us. You can reach us through the police hotline or you can call any police station. The numbers are easily accessible. We support and we always appreciate the information that is passed on to us and we will work on it to try to bring the situation in this division and in the country at large under control,” the senior police officer said.

The southern divisional commander, who had called in reporters to assist police in having the public identify the stolen property, also appealed to homeowners to share the contents of their closed-circuit television recordings with investigators whenever a crime was committed on or near their premises.

The bulk of the stolen property had already been retrieved by the owners by the time reporters arrived at Oistins Police Station this afternoon, after law enforcement officers got the message out via social media and through word of mouth.

Meantime, the senior police officer said the election campaign has been incident-free, and yesterday’s early voting for police officers and electoral officials went without incident.

“We have systems in place. We are policing the election according to the operational plan of the Force, but I will want to say to you that our policing of the election will not minimize our policing of the country. We still have to police Barbados and we are policing Barbados. Policemen are giving above and beyond what is normal to assist us in policing this country,” Rowe assured.

emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb

The post Burglars caught appeared first on Barbados Today.

There has been another ugly stabbing incident involving secondary school students.

This afternoon emergency responders, including ambulance and police, were summoned to Daryll Jordan Secondary School in St Lucy after an altercation between students turned bloody around midday during the school’s lunch break, leaving five males injured.

Police Public Relations Officer Acting Inspector Rodney Inniss confirmed the incident which remains under investigation.

He explained that three of the five victims were transported to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by ambulance while the other two sought private medical attention.

Barbados TODAY understands that the altercation stemmed from a dispute between the students, which started yesterday.

“This whole thing started from the school bus yesterday. The students were quarrelling and it continued today. One student slapped the other with a rock in his face and then the fight started.

“When this happened a whole gang came and as a result some students were stabbed,” one source indicated, adding that a number of weapons, including scissors, metal and pieces of wood were confiscated.

Earlier this year, a similar incident occurred on a school bus, involving students from Daryll Jordan and Frederick Smith.

Two weeks before that, a disturbing video was circulating online showing a male student from Grantley Adams Memorial School setting fire to the hair of an unsuspecting female student, who was on her mobile phone at a bus stop a stone’s throw away from the Blackman’s, St Joseph school.

Another student quickly extinguished the fire and the affected pupil escaped injury.

However, the alleged perpetrator was later charged and sent to the Government Industrial School following the incident which drew sharp condemnation from the President of the Barbados National Council of Parent Teachers Association Shone Gibbs, who described the video as “extremely disturbing” and nothing to laugh about.

Last November two teenagers were also arrested and charged in connection with an altercation at the Ellerslie Secondary School, which resulted in a 16-year-old male receiving several cutlass wounds to his right hand in what has been a series of worrying incidents that have prompted calls by both the Barbados Union of Teachers and the Barbados Secondary Teachers’ Union for a comprehensive plan to be put in place to combat such incidents.

Back in 2016, at the height of concerns by teachers about a spate of violent incidents in schools, Minister of Education Ronald Jones had announced plans to establish a broad-based committee to investigate violence in schools, including student-on-student violence and student-on-teacher violence.

Jones had also said the committee would investigate any cases of teacher-on-student violence “if that exists” and would provide recommendations on how to resolve the issue and enhance security at schools.

However, since then little has been said and no noticeable plan has been put in place by the Jones-led ministry which is opposed to having metal detectors in school.

The post Ugly turn appeared first on Barbados Today.

A longstanding member of the credit union movement is encouraging the more than 190,000 credit union members to vote for the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) in next week’s general election, after the party promised to introduce a suite of relief measures aimed at the credit movement.

In its manifesto released last night, the DLP pledged that should it emerge victorious in the May 24 poll, it will remove the asset tax on cooperatives which it introduced in 2014; re-introduce the income tax deduction for credit union shares and deposits; provide insurance on deposits at cooperatives; and support the establishment of a credit union owned and operated commercial bank.

It also promised to reform the various Central Bank guarantee schemes to include the credit union cooperatives in facilitating small and medium sized enterprise (SME) financing; seek international partnerships for the establishment of a venture capital financing for SMEs through the credit union movement; and incentivize the credit union movement to develop crowdfunding platforms, mobile banking and other financial technology solutions aimed at SMEs.

Ashton Turney, the former president of the Barbados Co-operative and Credit Union League Ltd told Barbados TODAY he fully supported the proposed measures, which he said would help to increase membership.

“I am saying based on this as a former president of my credit union and also the League, I am of the view that the membership of the movement should vote for the DLP so that they can benefit from these measures,” Turney said.

“My view is that these moves will really assist the movement. I am not saying there may not be need for more changes in the future, but at this time they will be very helpful to the movement . . . They should vote for the DLP,” he insisted.

The former Barbados Workers Union Cooperative Credit Union president singled out the pledge to provide protection for credit union deposits, arguing that a number of professionals were refusing to join the movement because there was no such system in place.

Over the years Government has been promising – but has yet to deliver - a deposit insurance fund for the credit union movement - similar to that which commercial banks currently enjoy - which protects every account holder up to $25,000, should the bank fail.

“Any reintroduction of the income tax allowances [and] the provisions for insurance on deposits will cause the credit union movement to grow . . . .You have people who have not joined a credit union because their funds are not secure,” Turney said.

The credit unionist, who is also a past president of the Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions, said if it were up to him the insurance on deposit would be the first measure to be implemented, followed by the restoration of income tax deduction.

Pointing out that credit unions were offering more than the virtual zero per cent interest on deposits currently being offered by commercial banks, Turney said he was pleased with the performance of the credit union movement at this time.

“The banks are even charging to have almost everything. This is not happening in the credit union. We are more user-friendly in terms of getting loans. We have a more listening ear to members,” he said, adding that the DLP should also consider the establishment of a special fund to help credit union members secure mortgages.

“That is an area that members come for assistance. As you know the credit union cannot lend out more than it has. So we would like a facility whereby we can assist the membership with those funds. That is maybe the only thing I can see could be added . . . where credit unions could get funding to assist their membership,” he said.

It was in the 2014/2015 Budget that Government introduced a 0.2 per cent tax on the assets of financial institutions, including credit unions. In 2016, Minister of Finance Chris Sinckler announced the tax would rise to 0.35 per cent in an effort to raise $14.3 million in revenue.

The post Turney wants credit union members to vote for Dems appeared first on Barbados Today.

As far as the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) is concerned, there are only two political parties vying for office on May 24.

And party leader Mia Mottley last night instructed her supporters in Lascelles, St Michael not to be swayed by the intoxicating whispers from the “cousins” of the incumbent Democratic Labour Party (DLP).

It was a clear reference to the fringe parties that have popped up in this year’s general election, including the United Progressive Party and Solutions Barbados, whose leaders are both former card-carrying members of the BLP.

Also contesting next week’s election are the Barbados Integrity Movement, the People’s Democratic Congress and Bajan Free Party, which recently entered the fray.

However, Mottley advised her supporters, “don’t mind the nephews and the nieces that they have on the ballot paper” since “they have not been able to capture the attention of the population”.

“You have made it clear that it is going to come down to the two parties,” she said in reference to her own party and the DLP.

Her position was echoed by the BLP’s St Michael South candidate Kirk Humphrey who questioned why the fringe parties were attacking the BLP throughout their election campaigning.

“I am not in the Government. I am not responsible for taxpayers’ dollars, I didn’t ruin Barbados,” Humphrey said, while pointing the finger at his political opponent Prime Minister Freundel Stuart and the ruling DLP, which has been in office for the past ten years.

Prior to that the BLP held office for 14 years.

However, Humphrey contended that it was the DLP that had brought Barbados “from having the most foreign reserves to zero almost”.

“The BLP ain’t bring Barbados from one of the most prosperous countries to the third most indebted country, . . . but when they are criticizing, why are they criticizing us?” the first-time candidate asked, during his impassioned speech.

He also argued that a vote for the so-called third parties was equivalent to voting for another five years of a DLP administration, while contending that the purpose of the fringe parties, such as the UPP, which is led by former BLP Cabinet minister Lynette Eastmond, was to prevent the BLP from succeeding in next week’s election.

“You will find that the UPP and the other parties are criticizing the BLP because their only function is to take BLP votes, so that the BLP has a difficult time getting into office.

“They are cousins of the Democratic Labour Party so if you decide to vote for the UPP or any of these parties, you are voting for Freundel Stuart,” he emphasized. 

The post Don’t waste your time with any ‘third parties’ – Mia appeared first on Barbados Today.

The Electoral and Boundaries Commission (EBC) has been at the receiving end of yet another legal loss, with the Supreme Court ruling today in favour of 13 more non-nationals seeking to vote here.

Following a six-hour emergency hearing convened this morning before Chief Justice Sir Marston Gibson in Court No. 6 of the Supreme Court, it was decided that the EBC would add 13 of the 14 litigants who brought the latest lawsuit to the final electoral list due out today. Additionally, the court ruled that three persons who were not on the original list of claimants must be added to the voting list before the midnight deadline. 

The issue of the voting rights of Commonwealth citizens resident here rose to prominence after four Commonwealth Caribbean nationals, including St Lucian professor Eddy Ventose, sued the EBC for refusing to add them to the list for the May 24 general election, despite fulfiling the requirements of Sections 7 and 11 of the Representation of the People Act. 

The matter made it all the way to the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ), which on Sunday ruled as illegal, the policy of the electoral management body that only citizens, and permanent residents can vote. Ventose, and five other claimants associated with that matter were registered on Monday. 

However, today, the 14 litigants, who were represented by attorney-at-law Michelle Russell, contended that they also had been omitted from the list, even though they met the criteria and completed the requisite form in the stipulated time period

[caption id="attachment_237913" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Michelle Russell[/caption]

However, in her affidavit, Chief Electoral Officer Angela Taylor explained that her office had not denied the applications of Tara Frater, Keisha Hyde-Porchetta, Dr Yvonne Weekes, Anil Persaud, Janet Monique Caroo, John Redfern, Maria Bullen, Sean Bullen, Michael Thomas, Michelle Reid, Patrica Alfonso-Dass, Richard Boddy and Wendy Claudine Grenade. 

The Chief Electoral Officer claimed that she had submitted a list of names to the Chief Immigration Officer on March 8, 2018 and despite two subsequent follow-ups, it was only two days ago that she received a list of 122 non-nationals who satisfied the residency requirement. She further revealed that while she gave instructions that all persons on the list verified by the immigration department would be eligible vote in the upcoming election, only five of the litigants had been verified.

At this point Sir Marston took an hour-long recess and dispatched marshals to summon the Chief Immigration Officer to have the status of the other nine litigants cleared up. When the hearing resumed at 4:30 p.m. Assistant Chief Immigration Officer Elaine McDonald turned up and clarified the status of the remaining nine claimants, as well as an additional three persons whose claims were ventilated at the last minute.  

Speaking to the media after the ruling, attorney for the EBC Larry Smith, QC, argued that contrary to misconceptions in some quarters, there was never an attempt by the Chief Electoral Officer to disenfranchise eligible voters, rather it was an issue of the duration of the verification process. 

[caption id="attachment_237914" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Larry Smith (QC)[/caption]

“I think that it has been unfortunate that in some quarters some have thought that there has been some attempt to leave people off of the list. Nothing could be further from the truth. From the cooperation of the department today, it is clear that it has always been the intention that eligible [people] who could be verified [should be registered]. There is process to go through to ensure that a person is qualified and it has been shown here that the Chief Electoral Officer has made repeated attempts to get the information,” Smith said. 

However, Russell contended that if Taylor had been forthcoming with the information to her clients the matter might not have ended up in court today. 

“Prior to this action information was not forthcoming. We had written to the Chief Electoral Officer and several of the claimants had written to her personally and she didn’t respond. So it is unfortunate that it has come to this was dealt with amicably so that the same purpose could have been served,” Russell said. 

colvillemounsey@barbadostoday.bb 

The post EBC loses again appeared first on Barbados Today.

Economist Michael Howard has given the thumbs up to the Democratic Labour Party’s (DLP) manifesto, which he says attempts to address the critical issues facing the economy, such as the high fiscal deficit and dwindling foreign reserves.

Commenting on the 56-page document launched in Oistins, Christ Church on Thursday night, along with a single-page economic policies addendum, Howard told Barbados TODAY he was also satisfied that it clearly identified the fundamental economic challenges.

However, of particular interest to him was the section of the document which states that failure by Government to raise at least $500 million from the sale of several state assets will require alternative sources of foreign exchange, such as an International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan, with the conditionalities that come with such a loan.

“This approach seems to suggest that the DLP is prepared to go the IMF if necessary,” Howard pointed out to Barbados TODAY this afternoon.

“It seem to me the DLP will continue the fiscal austerity programme and go to the IMF if absolutely necessary,” he stressed, adding that it was “an appropriate strategy in the context of a high fiscal deficit and low and falling foreign reserves”.

The IMF position articulated in the DLP manifesto is the clearest statement yet from the incumbent party, which has been reluctant to turn to the Washington-headquartered Fund for financial assistance, based on past history with its bitter economic remedies, that it was prepared to do so if it had to.

“The DLP’s plan is to raise at least $500 million in foreign exchange without incurring any new borrowing. The initiatives to raise these funds have already been announced and are already in train,” the election document states, while pointing to the planned sale of the Barbados National Terminal Company Limited, the Hilton Barbados Resort and the development of a Hyatt Centric Resort for $200 million each.

“Failure to complete these transactions will require alternative sources of foreign exchange, such as an IMF loan with the conditionalities that come with such loans,” it added.

On the last occasion that the island turned to the Fund, the DLP was also in power, but not for very long after it implemented an IMF-approved structural adjustment programme in the early 1990s that called for an across-the-board eight per cent pay cut and other bitter remedies.

Cognizant of the likely political fallout from another IMF austerity programme, the DLP has identified the loss of approximately $200 million in tax revenues from the offshore sector; the need to reduce the high fiscal deficit by at least another $200 million annually; and the boosting of the foreign exchange reserves by at least another $500 million as “the most urgent challenges” facing the economy.

And just as the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) did when it launched its manifesto last week, it indicated that it would be seeking to have the country’s debt reprofiled.

In fact, the DLP document said “Government has already hired an international firm to prepare debt reprofiling proposals for Barbados”, adding that “this is expected to provide annual savings of between $70 million and $100 million”.

Additional plans for tackling the country’s deficit, which stood at about 4.2 per cent of gross domestic product at the end of March this year, include the introduction of a national health insurance scheme that would see the annual transfers to the state-run Queen Elizabeth Hospital reduced by between $70 million and $100 million annually.

Without providing details, the DLP also proposed to introduce a national recycling programme, which it said once fully implemented would reduce the transfers to the Sanitation Service Authority by between $20 million and $30 million annually.

If granted its wish of a third straight term in office in the May 24 election, it also plans to restructure the sugar industry, with a view to reducing by $20 million to $30 million Government’s annual transfers to the Barbados Agricultural Management Company.

Based on two recent studies by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the IMF on state owned enterprises, the DLP also promised that “on full implementation of selected proposals within both reports, transfers and subsidies will be reduced by between $25 million and $35 million annually”.

marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb

The post Economist supports DLP’s ‘IMF if necessary plan’ appeared first on Barbados Today.

Police are investigating a shooting incident which resulted in the injury of one man. This occurred sometime around 5:45 a.m. on today at Risk Road, Fitts Village, St James.

Sylvester Small, 65, was shot in his upper right shoulder.

Police say Small was at his residence standing outside his door when a young man approached him, pointed a firearm in his direction and fired it.

The assailant ran away. The victim was transported to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by ambulance for medical attention.

The post Man, 65, shot and injured in Fitts Village appeared first on Barbados Today.

Police are investigating an accident which occurred about 7:50 p.m. on Friday along Graeme Hall Road, Christ Church.

Peter Thompson, 48, of Orange Cottage, Horse Hill, St Joseph; and Herbert Millar, 62, of #33 Garner Drive, Enterprise, Christ Church, were driving in opposing directions along the road.

The vehicles collided resulting in injuries to both drivers. They were both transported to the QEH by ambulance. Both were listed in stable condition.

The post Two injured in accident along Graeme Hall Road appeared first on Barbados Today.

Police are investigating an altercation on the compound of Daryl Jordan Secondary School, Trents, St Lucy, yesterday which resulted in various bodily injuries to five school boys.

During the lunch period, a group of school boys became involved in a fight in the area of the canteen.

Three of boys were stabbed about their bodies and were transported to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital by ambulance. Two others were treated on the scene.

One of the victims remains hospitalized.

The post Five school boys injured in altercation at Daryl Jordan Secondary appeared first on Barbados Today.

The Barbados Labour Party (BLP) has a history of fighting for the people of Barbados and once elected it will continue to do so.

This assurance came from MP for St George South Dwight Sutherland who was speaking Friday night at a political meeting in Baywoods, St James as he endorsed the candidacy of George Payne for that constituency.

“We fought the Democratic Labour Party. We fought the demons who wanted to finger print citizens and we stood up for you. We were optimistic then in our fight. We didn’t show any fear. We fought the solid waste municipal tax and it was removed," Sutherland said.

“When they brought the plasma gasification plant, we fought that. When they decided they were going to sell the Barbados National Oil Terminal, we fought that. We were optimistic when they decided to sell the Hilton and we fought that too. You here standing tonight have members of this great institution who are prepared to fight, and who are prepared to live in the realm of possibility under Mia Amor Mottley.”

Sutherland said the same way the party has fought for the country so too will Payne fight for St Andrew.

“You the people of St Andrew have to be proud of George Payne if he has to fight in-house for you he would fight. Greenland project is a good example of how he fought for you. He fought against his own to ensure that no landfill was placed in Greenland. George will fight for you.”

He agreed with earlier speaker, MP for St Thomas Cynthia Forde, that the ruling Democratic Labour Party “did not like” rural Barbados.

The post BLP ‘fights for the people’ appeared first on Barbados Today.