Prime Minister Hon Ms. Mia Amor Mottley QC MP.

Government Headquarters

Bay Street, St. Michael

May 14, 2019

 

Dear Hon. Prime Minister ‘

Please accept this 2^nd letter only by email 

Hon. Prime Minister, With no responses to date I am again requesting your intervention in obtaining an urgent remedy pertaining to an illegally placed private road across, within, and along a watercourse in which both the preparations to place and the placing, were illegally calculated projects, purposely carried-out by a seemingly wealthy British Expat in contravention of “The Prevention Of Floods Act Cap 235”.

Please be reminded by my shorter version of the circumstances, outline below.

I apologize if the tone of my letter seems to be xenophobic, My concerns are due to an illegally placed private road that effectively resulted into creating flooding situations that cause damage and continues to pose floods  risk to my household.

Hon. Prime Minister, I reiterate, my property adjacent to that vital part of the watercourse, never ever flooded from an overflow of the watercourse, during the years 1978-2002 of my familiarity with the area. I reside here since 1982. The clarity of the facts, as to how Clarke’s Road Residential Area become a flooding area, happened In 2002, when British ex-pat, Pat Brayshaw, commissioned the services of heavy duty equipment to illegally levelled a very vital part of the watercourse defined banks, and cut a road across the watercourse bed, to her lot on the North. Months later, further illegal calculated changes were made to the watercourse, by building up a boulders wall, out to the land mark in the middle, along the watercourse bed, and backfilled. That process clearly narrowed the watercourse, blocked the original exit of that straight part of the watercourse, and provided an increase of built up level land within the watercourse to formed a yard-cum-private road.

The boulders wall along the middle of the watercourse bed, become the new North bank to give favourable protection to the British Ex-pat side of the watercourse. while the cut-out from the south bank become a road across the watercourse bed, above my home. Such illegal calculated altering of the watercourse were acknowledged by Officers of the Drainage Unit, as an “encroachment” that will certainly cause flooding. The first flooding did happened months later when flood flow leak from the cut-out South bank, the narrowed watercourse obstructs  and redirected spread flooding over my adjacent property on the south, caused erosion damage to my open backyard, front-yard, and made Clarke’s Road the new watercourse.

Hon. Prime Minister, Complaining to the Drainage Unit for over a year, was a waste of time. As an Officers said, Drainage is not equipped with the necessary equipment to removed the boulders and remedy the watercourse. In 2004 the responsibilities of “The Prevention Of Floods Act cap 235”, resides with the CTO of MTW, who happened to be CTO Mr. Frank Thornhill, ( up to his retirement ) who had the power to execute, or authorised an Officer to execute flood works to remedying such an illegal created flooding situation.(as stated above) Deputy CTO. Mr. Philip Tudor who certainly would have acted as MTW CTO would have also held those responsibilities. Both Top Technical Officers acknowledged my complaints and pleas by officially verbally stating that it is illegal to placing a private road across and within a watercourse. they pledged to removed the boulders, and remedy the watercourse. But obvious prolonged inactions to remedying, and what followed, showed otherwise.

While the two Top Technical Officers prolonged what seems to be concerted inactions to rectify the flooding situation. The broken, and narrowed watercourse was severely altered and made worse, Due to an obvious bias process, carried-out when laying pipes for BWA, by Arthur’s Construction. Mr. Arthur purposely placed the pipes into a part of my backyard that was damage by recurring flooding from 2003. Mr. Arthur clearly reposition the watercourse, into that part of my backyard, and made it appeared as the original watercourse, aiming at my home, and Clarke’s Road Residential Area. Mr. Arthur told me I can’t tell BWA where to lay pipes. After I had a conversation about property conversion with the Barbados Ombudsman, and then Mr. Arthur, he said all he can do is to ask BWA to build a protection wall for me.

Hon. Prime Minister, The illegally created flooding Situations were clearly the results of contravening a law, that MTW CTO held the responsibility to justly rectify. The two top Technical Officers concertedly, prolonged inaction to remedying the said flooding situation, to the extent where obvious lack of attention from them, to the destruction of the watercourse was all right, as long as the illegal private road remained. My observation was confirmed when I asked MP for St. James Central, Hon Kerrie Symmonds to intervened, His effort only went as far as to set up a meeting at the watercourse site, without his present, both Top Technical Officers or others MTW Officers were unavailable for the meeting which turned out to be an exercise in futility. Base on the fact that MTW is responsible for watercourses, also to rectify after BWA completed a task.

Hon Prime Minister, Your Press Secretary, Mr. Roy Morris can state what he envisaged the flooding situation would be, when flood flow arrived at that vital part of the watercourse, due to what he acknowledged at the watercourse site, Other reporter, and Maria Bradshaw of the Nation, and last but not least, the widely read Barbados Underground, all highlighted the unjustified allowing of an illegally placed private road across, within and along a watercourse. that created flooding situations. The more highlighting, the more victimization, and disregarding towards my household, to the extent where the situation is extremely worse, the only path on my property adjacent to the illegal private road, still have dislodged boulders, after complaining to Pat Brayshaw, Drainage Unit and MTW. Further illegal contravening action by Mr. Clarke in removing the watercourse defined banks from the road across the watercourse to upstream where the flooding emerges, the area on the north is now driveway and garden, the south side is almost flatten.

Hon Prime Minister, The obvious continuing disregarding can only be the preconceived notion of MTW, CTO Mr. Thornhill, and Deputy CTO Mr. Tudor, that a blue-collar working class Barbadian,( now an old age pensioner ) can only complaint, Similar notions allowed for not only non responses from MTW, also obvious recklessness and extremely irresponsibility of their duties. The two Top Technical Officers, would have had to concertedly Complicit with Hon. George Hutson, DLP, MP for St. James Central, the PS, and Minister of MTW, vice versa, leading up to the 2013 General Election, to tasked MTW workmen to paved the said illegal private road of the seemingly wealthy British Ex-pat, under the watchful eyes of the Hon. George Hutson. Regardless, of the stated concerns of the two top Technical Officers, pertaining to the illegal placing of the private road that created flooding situations, and the verbal pledged to removed the boulders and remedy the watercourse. The two Top Technical Officers clearly revealed their recklessness of concerted complicity, corrupted actions, and discriminatory favoured to aiding and abetting by authorizing the upkeep, thereby allowing the retention of an illegally placed private road.

After the retirement of CTO Frank Thornhill. CTO Mr. Lovell clearly continued the refusal to comply with regulations of “The prevention Of Floods Act Cap 235” pertaining to his legal responsibility, concerning the illegal altering of the watercourse. Top Technical Officers knowingly continued prolonging the required necessary floods work to remedy a created flooding situation, that resulted from an illegally placed private road. By doing such, Top Technical Officers knowingly continued to discriminated against my household.

Whoever the beneficiaries are concerning the concerted complicity of aiding and abetting a seemingly wealthy British ex-pat to probably placed and certainly retained a private road across, within, and along the watercourse. The cover-up have started, Deputy CTO. Tudor have gone as far as to lied about meeting with me at the watercourse site, in effort to hide his concerted prolonged inactions to remedying an illegally created flooding situations, for the pass 15+ years. Mr. Tudor stated untruth in an email to me, copied to you, and Hon Minister Symmonds, MP for St. Janes Central.

Hon. Prime Minister, The actions of Top Technical Officers, with legal responsibilities for the pass 15+ years, (especially 2008-2018) were clearly “blatantly reckless.” Hon. Prime Minister, You, yourself used “blatantly reckless” many times before, and throughout the 2018 General Election campaign to describe actions of disregarding, complicity, discriminatory treatment, corruption and all the wrongdoings, carried out by Civil Servants, and DLP Politicians, towards Barbadians for reasons. The above case is one such reason, that happened under a previously BLP Government in 2002,and crying out for rectification. With due respect to Hon Minister Duguid. I now plea to you, Hon. Prime Minister to urgently intervene, and ensure a justly remedying is done to this watercourse. If or when you do obtain a remedy for this long overdue created flooding situation. it will certainly be made public. in fairness I shall make this and all monthly letters of pleading, as public as I can, until a remedy is done.

 

Your faithfully

 

Alden Blackman

Resident of Clarke’s Road, St. James.