Prime Minister Owen Arthur delivered the country from the suspense which it has been griped for weeks by announcing January 15, 2008 as the day Barbadians will go to the polls. Nomination Day will be December 31, 2007. In a much heralded press conference which was used by the media to boost advertising revenue, Arthur rang the bell to announce the upcoming general election loudly.
For most Barbadians who have not become completely apathetic, this general election will be one of the most interesting since Independence in 1966. Many factors have interacted to ensure that this will be the case:
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Many people still have a question mark about the ability of Leader of the Opposition David Thompson to lead Barbados
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What about the ‘tiredness factor’ which many blame on a third term government
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Let us not forget the significant overruns on major government projects at a time when the escalating cost of living is impacting many ordinary Barbadians
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Barbadians had to endure the embarrassing situation of the Mascoll/Thompson conflict which almost caused the country to implode and by extension threatened to rock the political stability of Barbados. How will they response given what they have had to endure?
Although the points above are by no means exhaustive, they provide a snapshot view of the many factors at play that will make this a most interesting general election.
We anticipate that the nature of the upcoming campaign will trigger, and we use the Prime Minister’s parlance, muscular debate and commentary. In anticipation of this, Barbados Underground will flip the switch that will moderate all comments from January 1, 2008.
Jerome Hinds WRITES :
The BLP suppoter , De Bumble Bee….is not allowing her BLP colleagues to go the way of PAKISTAN.
She is asking some tough questions.
Check her comments below & on the BLP blog.
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DE BUMBLE BEE // December 27, 2007 at 2:08 pm
q // December 27, 2007 at 8:17 am
As for the bumble bee I have been following your comments and whilst you may be a DIE HARD BEE as you say, you are certainly not a BLP supporter.
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DE BUMBLE BEE WRITES :
That is it…..Q you believe that we BLP supporters should RASCALISE politics !
If our leader , OWEN said something wrong….let us get him to APOLOGISE !
And if you insist he ain’t say nothing WRONG…..then why the words NO LONGER appear in the speech on BLP TV ?
” No DLP gov’t ever again ” line ?
Follow the speech below :
http://blp.org.bb/blptv/speeches
I hope you following the EVENTS in PAKISTAN ?
The president SUSPENDED the CONSTITUTION recently !
Today supporters of the PRESIDENT assasinated Benazir Bhutto the OPPOSITION leader !
In Barbados we BLP party & party leader tried to SUSPEND the CONSTITUTION !
On the 16th DECEMBER 2007 our party LEADER , OWEN ARTHUR , told the country that he is DETERMINED & MOTIVATED ” to keep the DEMS out of office FOREVER ” !
If we BLP people do not REPENT !
Come the 15th of Jan 2008 Bajans gine mek we pay for……..SUCH STUPID COMMENTS !
When I listened to Farley on the call in show today I wanted to get in my car and drive around this island and observe all the development sites that he referred to listening to him, it left me with the impression that every 200 yards we would have been seeing another piece of land with HARDWOOD HOUSES being erected but the reality of this is very much different to this, it is not the case, there is total inaction on the matter of delivering of homes for Barbadians but what we do have is a lot of fancy talk and lip service with no follow up action, so typical of Farley and his clan of crooks.
Meanwhile as the former minister of Housing and Lands what measures has he taken to remove the barrier across the road at COLONY CLUB??
ZERO ZERO ZERO
Thats the former minister for you plenty hot air once again and no action.
Observing wrote on December 27, 2007 at 8:08 am
He’s at it again.
“I must also thank the Democratic Labour Party for it because by their absence from Parliament in the last few weeks, we were able to do six weeks’ work in two days.”
This was “a wonderful achievement” which underscored “what could happen … when the Labour Party is allowed to dominate Parliament”, Arthur said.
Nation Newspaper, December 27.
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I was just about to post that extract but Observing beat me to it.
It is important to note that Owen is not repentant in his stance to undemocratically see that there is a one party state in Barbados, and that the BLP dominates parliament.
My question is does this man have a malfunctioning brain? Does he realize what he is saying or is he deliberately committing political suicide.
It is of course written some where in classical literature that WHOM THE GOD’S WILL DESTROY THEY FIRST MAKE MAD .
Did anyone notice or mention the number of bills (10) that were rushed through Parliament as supplements to the Order Paper on December 18th? And does anyone know the impact of these bills on our day to day lives?
WHO PLAYED A BIG ROLE IN CAUSING PRICE OF OUR LAND TO BE SO HIGH ?
Prime Minister Arthur once said that he must sell land to pay our bill (debts), even though it is now one of the famous things he has said publicly and then denied saying. He further stated that it is the citizens of Barbados that have pushed the price up by selling our land to foreign investors.
If you were a foreign investor would spend millions to buy land in Barbados, conduct a feasibility or environmental impact study for a major development like condos, town-houses or a water park unless you first had at least a verbal agreement from our government that you could develop that land for the purpose intended ??? We think not !!!!!
Would could you talk to about getting that verbal permission ?? The Chief Town Planner. But he or she could not operate without submitted architectural drawings and the relevant studies conducted. What about the Minister of Housing ?? Very Unlikely !!!
What about the MINISTER RESPONSIBLE FOR TOWN PLANNING ???? Why of course!! after all this Minister sets policy for the land use in the island and when the rich foreign investors start threatening to take their projects to other islands there is a need to act swiftly.
Mr. Investor, we can now see why you buy our land and almost immediately after it is bought you are able to swiftly start your multi – million dollar projects, causing the value of nearby land to climb steeply out of the reach of our citizens.
Yes we sold our land to you Mr. Investor but you were aided in your decision to purchase our lands by the MINISTER RESPONSIBLE FOR TOWN PLANNING AND HIS LAND USE POLICY OR LACK THEREOF.
WHO IS THIS MINISTER ?? RIGHT HON. OWEN S ARTHUR. FOUND GUILTY !!!
Taan The Action Man
His navel string may not be buried anywhere on this island, but Taan Abed’s love for the people of Barbados is very deep.
After moving to Barbados more than 30 years ago from Damascus, Syria, there was no moving back to the East. Instead, Abed has made his plan to move forward here in the West Indies.
In fact, he has taken up the mantle to become the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) candidate for Christ Church West to run against Barbados Labour Party (BLP) general secretary William Duguid.
The reason to him is clear: “Barbados needs a change for the better.”
“I choose the DLP because of my relationship with Errol Barrow and what he taught me about the DLP and its wants for every Barbadian, so I am here to give my 100 per cent.
“I met him when I was 23 and he was in his [50s ] – 55 or 56. I was a Syrian military officer when I came to Barbados and he came to the airport and picked me up.
“The minute I talked to him we were friends. Then I met him again and I fixed his car. He also knew my uncle very well, where I was also working at the time and we talked [about] those times too.
“We got to know each other very well and he started to visit me. A relationship grew between us and we became very close friends. He taught me the DLP way,” Abed reminisced.
If the decision to be a DLP candidate was clear, then seeking the Christ Church West seat was even more obvious for the mechanical engineer.
“I chose Christ Church West because I am here living in it. I have lived here for 32 years; my wife lived there for over 49 years. In that time, I have seen no representative for the poor people, and the conditions are getting worse.
“The area is diverse – there are very rich and very poor people. But the poor people are suffering and being neglected in housing areas like St Matthias. The roads there are horrible, the health care is awful.
“When you see conditions of people suffering and you are close to them and you speak to them one by one, you see their major concerns. Cost of living is No. 1, and health care is a great concern for the people in Christ Church West. I have to do something about it. I have to help the people and I can.”
Dubbed the “the action man”, a very passionate Abed pledged to be the best representative, promising proper representation across all social, ethnic, religious and political boundaries.
“My priorities are to give the basic human needs of education and religion. I am a firm believer in God and Jesus and I want to bring religion back to our lives. I want it back in the school system.
“The only solution to control crime in this country is through religion and education,” Abed stressed.
So after serving his duty in the Syrian military airforce, where afterwards, in 1995, he migrated to Kuwait, he found his solace in Barbados with a visit to his family.
“Here is where I met my beautiful wife and I have been married for more than 28 years to a beautiful Barbadian woman. And when I married my wife, I married Barbados. I have three children, a daughter and two sons, all of them born and bred right here in Barbados.
“So I want to give back to this country for what it has given me.”