BU posted the blog Former Owen Arthur Bagman in a Jam earlier this month. Today local media reported that the police has taken a man into custody for questioning. The latest development follows and earlier report that a key person of interest in the car scam investigation was allowed to leave the island. BU cannot confirm or deny if the person taken into custody today is the bagman (Rodney Wilkinson) of former Prime Minister Owen Arthur.
Of interest to BU is why the sudden interest to prosecute the individual at the centre of the car scam involving Globe and Nassco at this time. BU has been made to understand this is not the first time financial institutions in Barbados have been ‘taken’ by this prominent individual. Also BU is interested to know why all the supporting actors who colluded with the prominent individual have been allowed to go free. Yes, we want to see ‘nailed’ the big fish BUT all those players at the financial institutions, government licensing authority and the third party entity that supplies financial institutions with the service of searches of bills of exchanges need to be investigated and prosecuted as well. As prominent as the former bagman is he was not able to perpetuate fraud by his lonesome. There obviously has been deep collusion between several players to have been able to perpetrate a scam of this magnitude.
A reaction to the unravelling car scam Minister of Transportation and Works (MTW) Michael Lashley announced on the weekend that a shake up at the Barbados Licensing Authority is in the offing. To quote a local newspaper, “Lashley explained that he was shocked to discover that all a person needed to license a vehicle in Barbados for use on the road for a year was a cover note from an insurance company, which usually provided insurance coverage for one month”.
He went to assure Barbadians in the same report, “I have made it clear that that is not good enough and I will be meeting very shortly with the chief licensing officer and the staff of the Barbados Licensing Authority to bring an end to this dangerous situation”. If Lashley’s reported reaction was not so serious it would have evoked a hilarious reaction from the BU househould. Does ANYBODY believe Minister Lashley read he did not know the process for licensing a vehicle in Barbados? What about the public servants/technocrats who work in the MTW? This is all one big black eye for our hardworking public officers, police, law makers, DPP, politicians and others.
We wait to observe the outcome of the case which is not a first for the bag man.
The blogmaster invites you to join the discussion.