Caswell Franklyn Speaks – Teachers Charged for Obeying the Law

Consequent upon the suspension and charging of two teachers for contesting the January 19, 2022 elections, there has been much comment about the matter, most of which was misinformed. I would therefore like to share the results of my research, in the hope that it would bring about some level of understanding in the public domain.

Those two teachers have been charged as having committed misconduct of a serious nature between January 3 and 19, 2022, when as public officers participated in the 2022 General Elections as Democratic Labour Party parliamentary candidates contrary to General Orders 3.18.1 and in contravention of paragraph 2 (h) of the Code of Discipline.

Even though made in 1970 the General Orders for the Public Service had no legislative basis until 2007 when subsections 33.(1), (2) & (3) of the Public Service Act corrected that long outstanding oversight. They state:

33. (1) The Minister may make administrative orders to give effect to any provisions of the Codes or any other provisions of this Act.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), the General Orders are from the 31st December, 2007 deemed to have been made under subsection (1) and shall remain in force until revoked by an instrument in writing by the Minister under this Act.

(3) Where any provision of the the General Orders is inconsistent or in conflict with a Code or any regulation made under this Act, the Code or regulation shall prevail and the General Order shall to the extent of the inconsistency, be invalid.

The General Orders are merely administrative rules made by the Minister with responsibility for the Public Service and because they have finally been incorporated into Public Service Act, public officers can now be legally charged for breaching those orders. Bear in mind that the General Orders are subsidiary legislation and must therefore conform to the parent legislation and that neither the subsidiary nor the parent legislation can conflict with the Constitution.

Prior to November 30, 1966 there was an absolute prohibition against all public officers and employees contesting elections for the House of Assembly. That changed at Independence when the Constitution (the supreme law of the land) removed that restriction on all but three categories of public servant. The 1966 Constitution at section 44 provided that no person shall be qualified to be elected as a member of the House of Assembly who holds or is acting in the office of a Judge, the Director of Public Prosecution or the Auditor-General. It is remarkable that even with the lifting of those restrictions by the Constitution, public officers and public service managers continue to be misguided by the former rules to this day.

In 1974 Government, mindful of section 44 of the Constitution, saw the need to restrict other public workers from contesting parliamentary elections and made an amendment to the Constitution to achieve such. That amendment was inserted as section 44. (2) which states, among other things:

Without prejudice to the provisions of subsection (1) (b), Parliament may provide that subject to such exceptions and limitations as Parliament may prescribe, a person shall not be qualified to be elected as a member of the House of Assembly if

(a) he holds or is acting in any office and or appointment prescribed by Parliament either individually or by reference to a class of office or appointment.

The original section 44 of the Constitution has been re-numbered section 44. (1).

Effective January 1, 1975, the date of the commencement of the 1974 Constitution (Amendment) Act, Parliament took the power onto itself to set out, by ordinary legislation, which other public servants could not participate in parliamentary elections. To date Parliament has not passed any such law. So as far as the Constitution of Barbados is concerned, there are only three holders of public office that cannot contest parliamentary elections, namely: Judge, Director of Public Prosecutions and Auditor-General.

The General Orders were first made in 1970 by the Rt. Excellent Errol Barrow and revised in 1997 by Prime Minister Owen Arthur. I think that we all can agree that neither Errol Barrow nor Owen Arthur was Parliament and therefore could not make any rules to override a provision of the Constitution. It is therefore my view that the teachers, who contested the elections, did nothing more than exercise their constitutional rights.

See Relevant Link inserted by Blogmaster: General Orders (Public Service)

98 thoughts on “Caswell Franklyn Speaks – Teachers Charged for Obeying the Law


  1. The blogmaster continues to be boggled by the refusal of the President to reappoint Caswell to the Upper House. Here is a man who single handedly was the most strident voice of the Opposition for three and a half years. This observation is made against a background of the BLP winning a second 30-0 win at the polls. One would have thought now more than ever a straight shooter like Caswell should have been an automatic selection by the President. Instead what do we have?

    The price of a democracy is eternal vigilance.


  2. The decision of our Supreme Leader to remove the rebellious senator from the Senate was spot on. He has dishonoured the day of the Republic. Instead of paying tribute to our Supreme Leader, he ran out of the chamber. What a national disgrace. The senator represents all the doom and gloom on our island: a welfare state undermined and eaten away by unionists, feared by international investors because our employees work half as much as in the other pepper islands.

    As for the two rebel DLP teachers, their punishment is only logical. The law of this country, that is the will of the leader, clearly orders punishment. Those who rebel against it betray democracy and the rule of law and everything else that is sacred, especially our Supreme Leader.


  3. It is time to offer the former senator an ambassadorship so that we can finally get rid of him and so that our island can finally be at peace again.

    I therefore recommend that party and state finally open an embassy in Moscow and send the former senator there. He will not get a return flight so quickly. LOL.


  4. @ David, @PLT
    There was a time when the country was very appreciative of citizens like Caswell.
    All of that changed since the 1976 elections when a new style of politics took over.
    2. The President went the safe way and appointed Drakes instead. Caswell still has a voice and his credibility is intact. That’s the important thing.


  5. The blogmaster continues to be boggled by the refusal of the President to reappoint Caswell
    ~~~~~~~~~~~
    Bushie is boggled that you seem to miss the fact that the whole point of the unnecessary election farce was to get Caswell and Atherley (who was smart Enuff to listen to Caswell) out of the House and Senate.
    This was not done by someone who cares about QUALITY people, but by those of Enuff’s ilk who measure success by 30-loves.

    Besides, it is clear that the GG (like most of the women put into positions of influence) is merely a mouth piece of the supreme law maker and decider.
    What did the AG say about the charges against the teachers again…? that it was not a political call…?!?
    LOL haha ha oh shiiiiite!!
    Only in Brassbadus.
    Anyway, they right to dis Caswell. He is much too valuable for this shiite place…. and too committed …

    BTW
    ..those shiite teachers don’t have a UNION…???!!!
    They want Caswell to come and lead THAT too…?
    #hopeless


  6. @peterlawrence
    I dare ro correct you and say he is an international treasure.

    @Bushi
    yip. We all saw the nurse pressure getting too hot and the common sense overriding lawyers being too problemaric.


  7. @ Bush Tea
    On reflection, not putting Caswell in the Senate could empower him more. Many are seeing him as a martyr.
    They are saying he should have been placed there as a genuine voice.
    It’s very difficult to silence a citizen, who has made the AG look like a legal dummy on no less than seven occasions.’


    • Do not agree William. The fact the establishment (president) looked over the only person who was an ‘independent’ voice tells us the degree to which the system is compromised. Why should we be satisfied with this state of affairs? This is not how an effective democratic system should function. The president should have been glad to select Caswell like persons to serve in the Senate. Another person should have been Kammie Holder given our focus on environment and renewables. These are two men with a rich record of serving the public.


  8. The AG is among the Gov’t’s “senior” Ministers and his compensation when compared to the “junior” Ministers reflects that – the PM is sending a message to the other Ministers “all of us are equal but some are more equal than others” what else can the other Ministers be but junior when the PM explicitly names Ministers “senior” and then compensates them for that title.

    The writer Lawrence J Peter came up with the concept of “The Peter Principle” in which he deduced that “In a hierarchy, every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence.” The proviso was that each employee was once competent until they reach that other stage. Lawrence J Peter never met the AG or else he would have added a caveat to his conclusion and admit that there are some exceptions to the rule and no matter how you slice it some people are rewarded for their decades long incompetence.

    Ladies and Gentlemen, I present the long serving AG


  9. no matter how you slice it some people are never competent but are rewarded for their decades long incompetence


  10. The statement ” It is therefore my view that the teachers, who contested the elections, did nothing more than exercise their constitutional rights.” Clearly shows me that Caswell is blowing hot air.
    Nothing to see here.

  11. Magnificent a.k.a Magno – Yu Heard Formula: C₂₁H₃₀O₂ IUPAC ID: (−)-(6aR,10aR)-6,6,9-trimethyl- 3-pentyl-6a,7,8,10a-tetrahydro- 6H-benzo[c]chromen-1-ol on said:

    Caswell is being colded out for a reason. The nurses strikes was deemed reckless and showed him as a threat.


  12. Punch and drunk

    All said and done the issue now stems around a dishevelled and improperly placed Republic thrown into a political environment where rules and constitutional issues are being challenged daily all heading for the law courts
    What a distasteful and disgraceful state of affairs
    Yes indeed the whole country is punched drunk
    The punch of feeling the weight of govt hot and sweaty policies whilst driving a cart before thinking of where the horse should be positioned
    This is all Mia fault
    In any other country where the principles of Democracy stands steadfast this PM would have been given a vote of No confidence
    Speaking of living in a world of the absurd this is what the Republic of Barbados has become


  13. “This is all Mia fault
    In any other country where the principles of Democracy stands steadfast this PM would have been given a vote of No confidence”

    Collapse of the Republic of Barbados may give DLP a foothold but is self defeating.
    In an age of populism misinformation hype on social media stirring up raggedy lumpenproletariat is achieved with political self-serving campaigns of smears and lies.


  14. The real challenge for this country now is being built within a Parliament having no opposition
    Instead the country has been handed a Parliament having a figure head called a President and a PM gladly boasting of a 30 love win which as fate would have it means policies all rubber stamped on arrival to the people
    Couldn’t ask for worse as onward and upward we go speaking about democracy
    😊


    • The real challenge is that the electorate has no choice from the political opposition available. The electorate will have to be its own voice because it is a situation created by them.


  15. 30 love win was a 30 love loss and a total rejection of DLP
    They need to own it or remain in the wilderness as tribal outcasts


    • Why is Toni Moore who ostensibly is the voice of labour in the House not speaking to these kinds of matters? One must assume this is the reason the president didn’t appoint a trade union representative to the Senate.

      What about the army of lawyers whose education was paid for by taxpayers and many specializing in labour law? Where are their voices? What about NGOs that should be interested in Justice?

      Why must it be left to Caswell?


  16. The real challenge is steering the path forwards navigating all the problems that were envisioned when the election was called such as the economy


  17. “Why must it be left to Caswell?”

    They breached their terms of employment.
    Once again Caswell is grandstanding for self promotion running to media with his opinion that the laws should be changed.


    • You obviously have not read what Caswell wrote. Again to have constructive engagement participants have to be able to suppressed biases and examine what is proposed dispassionately.


  18. @ David April 13, 2022 4:26 AM
    (Unquote):
    Do not agree William. The fact the establishment (president) looked over the only person who was an ‘independent’ voice tells us the degree to which the system is compromised. Why should we be satisfied with this state of affairs? This is not how an effective democratic system should function. The president should have been glad to select Caswell like persons to serve in the Senate. Another person should have been Kammie Holder given our focus on environment and renewables. These are two men with a rich record of serving the public.
    (Unquote).
    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    Couldn’t agree with you more, Blogmaster!

    Even the lawyer Tricia Watson, the FTC advocate, would have been a ‘solid’ choice to speak on the People’s behalf.

    That would have been a real fillip to the people’s democracy much needed in the fledgling republic still without its own pampers for a Constitution.

    The country needs genuine voices of Opposition to speak up for the nation’s interests; not those ‘manufactured’ by any ruling political administration to sing in some make-believe choir of rubberstamping kings and queens called Canute(s).


  19. @ David
    Why are we making such a strenuous argument , to have a party , that is considered to have wrecked the economy and burdened us with a “ lost decade” in our parliament.
    This is pure hypocrisy. The DLP has no divine right to any seat anywhere.
    This party has been completely rejected by the electorate on two successive occasions.
    The DLP must now seek to convince the electorate that it deserves that honor.
    Mottley was dead wrong to talk shite and try shite in trying to give them a place. It was an affront to the people.
    The DLP bounced back from two and the. BLP bounced back from three.
    Gimme a break.!


    • @William

      You always get emotional about these matters. If society is unable to toss up alternatives then the next best thing is to advocate for change from within the established structures.

      You understand?


  20. @ 555dubstreetApril 13, 2022 5:31 AM
    (Quote):
    Collapse of the Republic of Barbados may give DLP a foothold but is self defeating.
    In an age of populism misinformation hype on social media stirring up raggedy lumpenproletariat is achieved with political self-serving campaigns of smears and lies.
    (Unquote).
    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    Do you mean like those “smears and lies” still concealed in that BIG RED BAG which has now been jettisoned like jetsam during a flight over the Atlantic Ocean?

    Do you see, now, KiKI, how easy it is in the new republic to go after low-hanging fruits of political revenge while the real architect of the concocted fiscal mismanagement and destruction of the Bajan economy is highly recommended to be a senior advisor at the World Bank to small open developing economies like Barbadoes?


    • A situation such as Caswell raised after his review of the general orders should have evoked a reply from the relevant PS or civil servant by now. If the matter is so clearcut, even if it is not. This is the way we (citizens) allow ourselves to be treated by those we pay their salaries.


  21. “Do you see, now, KiKI, how easy it is in the new republic to go after low-hanging fruits of political revenge while the real architect of the concocted fiscal mismanagement and destruction of the Bajan economy is highly recommended to be a senior advisor at the World Bank to small open developing economies like Barbadoes?”

    There are winners and losers in politics and the winners narratives override the losers. A part of being in power is to weaken opposition voices, but their suggestions are often taken on board if deemed useful.


  22. @ David
    William…You always get emotional about these matters.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    Boss, watch where the other four fingers are pointing…
    William is right.
    Just because the BLP has been using their 30-0 position to do shiite DOES NOT automatically suggest a need for the DLP.

    Least you forget, it has been the EXTREME ‘pissiness’, arrogance, incompetence, and downright IDIOCY of the DLP – expertly characterized here on BU by ac, that has us in this current position.
    Bushie always smiles when Enuff comes here to brag about their 61-0 ‘victories’. Shiite ma!!! If those elections were contested between the DLP and 30 of the green monkeys currently reaping our crops, the damn result would have been 61-0 to the monkeys.
    Have you REALLY checked out some of the BLP MPs?…… a good monkey would have probably beaten some of them too…

    It is OBVIOUS that what we REALLY need is a process to SELECT the 30 MOST COMPETENT persons to form the Board of Directors to run this country. Any association of this process with political jackasses completely misses the whole point.


    • @Bush Tea

      You need to read with understanding. The blogmaster is advocating change from within which is always desirable in any entity to ensure sustainability anyway. You prefer the blogmaster to support so-called fringe parties who can’t field 10 candidates or present a compelling message to guard their deposits at election time? You must be aware that BU was used as a platform by all of them with blogmaster’s support. Besides Grenville who seem to be a glutton for punishment what have you observed?

      The DLP is only a name, it is made up of Barbadians who walk next to us, went to sand schools and universities, are family etc, they are not monsters from outter space. At some point we have to find a way to impress on new membership that for its survival and the quality of government in Barbados the DLP must undergo change. You prefer to start a new party with people adopting same mindsets and philosophy to what exists within the duopoly?

      The blogmaster prefers to be pragmatic above idealistic.


  23. “A situation such as Caswell raised after his review of the general orders should have evoked a reply from the relevant PS or civil servant by now.”

    watch the case, formal charges were made, that is the forum arguments will be made, not blogs and media


    • Why must some of you be simple minded. Do you expect the comment was about a reply being posted to the blog. See comment above, if you don’t have anything constructive to add to the discussion …


  24. “If those elections were contested between the DLP and 30 of the green monkeys currently reaping our crops, the damn result would have been 61-0 to the monkeys.
    Have you REALLY checked out some of the BLP MPs?…… a good monkey would have probably beaten some of them too…”

    lol

    “form the Board of Directors to run this country”

    a competent country should oversee that…or the country will sink FURTHER AND FURTHER downward…

    not UK…they have indulged these nuisances for far too long and got kicked to the curb by them in the end…….not that they cared, it suited their purposes just fine…


  25. William…it’s unbelievable where it’s all headed….


  26. @ David
    Name a significant successful organization anywhere… that gets its leadership selected by ‘natural processes of internal change’.
    EFFECTIVE Leaders are HEAD HUNTED, SPECIALLY prepared, Refined, Exposed and Tested…. BEFORE being handed the damn keys…

    It is no wonder we are where we are… using a social club approach to run a billion-dollar (indebted) economic mess.


    • @Bush Tea

      In our syste of government this is why citizens have to be active and vigilant by presenting and selecting themselves for the positions. The buck stops with us.


  27. @ WURA
    Don’t mind the bull shit. The rejection of the BLP is imminent as well. Quite frankly both parties are in a state of nothingness but they are being propped up by the same slave master but in another form .
    Like you said : they don’t know what’s coming at them.
    Peace


  28. Bush Tea u are heading down the road of slander with comments such as those being emitted from your lying mouth stating that
    IDIOCY of the DLP – expertly characterized here on BU by ac, that has us in this current position.
    Xx
    What a bowl of crock
    Where on the electorate ballot was any mention of ac
    The public bought the lies and empty promises out of which are buildings demolish and parks and gardens


  29. Notice they are back to calling me racist again, give them another month and they will swear am working with the racists and sleeping with them too……..

    i have come to the conclusion….years now, that it’s only certain people who are deserving of certain information will get it… and i made sure to have access to the target audience…let the other feel it as they deserve…


  30. Wait angela cox …YOU is ac???!!!
    Well fluff Bushie’s fluff!!!!… WHO would have guessed!!! LOL

    Well one positive out of that is that we now know that there is only ONE idiot rather than TWO that we have to worry about…

    Why not go ahead and sue Bushie’s ass for slander… If you win you can have the whacker.
    You can select the Judge that you want on BU.
    Bushie is choosing Caswell for his defense….


  31. @David, you speak and so too your great mentor @BushTea in absolute terms that brook no parsing when clearly that can’t work.

    It is simply inaccurate to assert so absolutely that all or most good leadership does NOT occur from ‘internal change’ and thus is not derived in a process of natural selection. Leadership is NEVER that cut and dried.

    Of course a process of being refined, exposed and tested is crucial but to suggest that that itself is some dependent external force does not gel with reality.

    In the corporate world Microsoft, GE and Apple readily spring to mind of top leaders who evolved through the organization.

    Let me be CLEAR … YES the CEOs currently like Nadella and Cook beat out stiff competition and had to display their skills to rise to the top job but the fact is that they were internal candidates with long years at the company.

    So I would say in my own ‘absolute’ terms that there can be definitive and purposeful INTERNAL leadership progression where the best fit for an organization can be found … OBVIOUSLY it will still come down to properly ‘headhunting’ at the ORIGINAL selection be it 10, 20 or 30 years prior . Thus bosses who pick their ‘mentees’ well will NOT have to seek external candidates to fill their top jobs.

    In politics that’s even more stark … although some modern examples have turned that on its head.

    Secondly, we should be already clear in our minds
    that “the system is compromised.” And any satisfaction of that is the ‘comfort zone’ of life to which we adapt..

    Yes the president could have selected Franklyn again but she choose others … nothing wrong with that.

    Being a former Senator Mr Franklyn STILL has a big megaphone to be heard and be a substantive voice for Bajans .. in fact all logic suggests that his megaphone can NOW be even louder sans those encumbrances of the Senate chamber.

    This is 2022 where INFLUENCERS via alternative media platforms command more supporters and elicit more direct action than ANY senator anywhere …thus I do NOT share the concerns re opposition abilities NOR (in this case) a need for internal progression and change.

    Lata.


  32. I here listening to Brasstacks.

    We definitely need whistleblowers to expose some of the employers in Barbados.

    Allegedly about 25 young girls working in an establishment and having to clean toilets on a daily basis.


  33. Steupsss
    Yet another set of lukewarm dribbles…
    Can we have a simple SPECIFIC position from you….”
    eg.
    Are you saying that any jackass can be an effective leader?
    or…
    That effective leadership is a highly specialized and sought-after quality?
    or is it…
    That you just don’t know..?


  34. After reading 33.(1), (2) & (3) of the Public Service Act please take a look at 3.18.1 of the General Orders.

    Mr. Shepherd was not charged with breaking 3.18.1 (d) when he was elected the Assistant General Secretary of the DLP in 2018. Now the current charges do not cite (a),(b), (d) AND (e) which is nonsense. It should be all.or none.

    The same thing should apply to any other public servant who is in breech. The Chief Education Officer and the Ministry of the Public Service are picking and choosing which strengthens the discrimination argument.

    Both of these gentlemen applied for leave and were denied. Their applications tell me they knew what they what they had to do but they wanted to eat their cake and have it. They continued canvassing and went back to work to try and break their absence.

    Mr. Shepherd even put off attending a meeting he was summoned to at the Ministry of Education. There is more than one breach here.

    Why was this allowed to happen? Because the BLP and the DLP have done this FOR DECADES. Then the politicians those public servants supported during elections feel they are above the law. It is easy to understand but it hurts when those affiliated people are promoted for their support.

    We say the young people are lawless but public service in Babados has been rotten to the core FOR DECADES through the actions of successive governments.

    The unsuccessful move to appoint an 18yo saw the appointment of the 47yo lawyer to the Senate in his place. This proves it was always about one great 18yo hope and hardly about the youth. There are several other brilliant young people.

    Aren’t there?


  35. I hinted at that recently, but the post was removed, although i did not call any names…


  36. BT
    YOU ASK Are you saying that any jackass can be an effective leader?
    Q. IS THAT NOT WHAT IS ATTEMPTED HERE ON BU?

    ONE OF THE THINGS I LEARNED EARLY IN LIFE IS THAT WE LIVE IN A WORLD OF DUMMIES AND THAT THE MEDIOCRE REIGNS AND TRIES TO REIN IN ALL WHOSE ABILITIES AND INTELLECT IS SUPERIOR TO THEIRS

    ONE WAY TO COUNTER SUCH IS LOOK OVER YOUR GLASSES AND SMILE AS YOU MOCK AND IGNORE


  37. RE William SkinnerApril 13, 2022 8:52 AM
    The rejection of the BLP is imminent as well. Quite frankly both parties are in a state of nothingness but they are being propped up by the same slave master but in another form . INDEED

    they don’t know what’s coming at them. ITS THE ONE WORLD WIDE GOVERNMENT THAT HAS BEE SOUGHT BY SOME ELITES FOR YEARS NOW
    BUT THEY ARE NOT GOING TO LIKE WHO WILL BE IN CHARGE
    ITS GOING TO BE ANTICHRIST
    IT HAS BEEN IN PROCESS OF BEING SET UP VERY GRADUALLY AND SECRETLY AND SUBTILY BUT YUH CAN HIDE AND BUY LAND BUT YUH CAHN HIDE AND WUK UM


  38. @Bush TeaApril 12, 2022 10:50 PM

    “The aim of the election was to wipe out the rebel senator.”

    Indeed. At least someone here can think clearly.

    Long live our Supreme Leader. Let us joyfully walk the path to leader democracy!


  39. If the rebel senator had run for a seat, he would have won it and we would have an Opposition.

    Imagine him on a campaign platform tearing holes in the government’s folly.


  40. Critcal you clearly do not live here.There is a huge difference between grandstanding and winning a seat in Barbados.I cannot think of any constituency Mr Franklyn could have possibly won any seat for any of the third parties and i believe that knowing this he opted not to run.This is my view.I gone.


  41. @LorenzoApril 13, 2022 7:02 PM

    The rebel senator is a massive obstacle to investment by foreign financiers and is approximately as unpopular with our people as Putin is in Ukraine.


  42. Mia lies are resurfacing in that the World Bank thinking about Sinckler is different to the lies MiA told about Sinckler during the 1o years the blp was in the wilderness
    No and Mia influence did not help Chris get the job which is another glorious lie being told by the blp foot soldiers
    Truth no matter how many times it is crushed to the ground rises from the ashes


  43. Constitutionally, the elections were null void and of no effect.

    The two of them participated in a sham like the other 112 or whatever.

    All 112 should be locked up.


  44. LOL, u shifting de posts to better score ur goals @Bush Tea!

    I am saying very CLEARLY that your argument that good and efrective leaders MUST be ‘headhunted’ and all that is wrong.

    Asking if “any jackass can be an effective leader” is absurdly nonsensical.

    Just as asserting that “effective leadership is a highly specialized and sought-after quality” is absurdly OBVIOUS.

    What I know is that neither of those had anything much to do with what u posted earlier … so as I said if u now want to actually move the ‘goals’ to accommodate your earlier stuff that’s all good… as u clearly are not trying to be serious.

    I was crystal clear this morning.


  45. @David re “You misrepresented the blogmaster.”

    I think not senor. I did discuss you and @BushTea in one post and mixed you two together re arguments you both had separately made but I also identified ur argument and in what way I disagreed .

    So I plead innocent to any misrepresentation.


  46. Ugly People’s Boring Chat
    Information Age raised peoples consciousnesses worldwide but Bajan bloggers believe Barbados is behind
    It’s people will have to go against their nature to overthrow Government which will never happen conundrum


  47. Dribbler
    What Bushie ACTUALLY said was that ..
    “EFFECTIVE Leaders are HEAD HUNTED, SPECIALLY prepared, Refined, Exposed and Tested…. BEFORE being handed the damn keys…
    What YOU said …that Bushie said… was …
    “that good and effective leaders MUST be ‘headhunted’
    ~~~~~~~~~~
    See if you can figure out the subtle difference. If you can’t, lets just call it a day….

    For your guidance, “head hunting, leadership training, refinement and exposure” has been the tried and proven methodologies for identifying and preparing effective leaders. Perhaps YOU can outline YOUR alternative approach, since we agree that there are ALWAYS exceptions to such rules.
    Perhaps the lukewarm approach would be to run a popularity contest among known shiite-talkers and hope for the best…..
    Oh wait!!! that is what we do now…!!!


  48. @ Caswell
    Boss
    Wuh you could as well come back to BU and tek some lashes (as is your wont).
    Yuh senate days are behind you so yuh could even lose the three-piece suit.

    BTW
    What run in what St Thomas what??!
    The amount of people dat you cuss over the years, even Bushie would win a seat before you.
    Mind you…
    Your role is to cuss brass bowls and expose their hypocrisy – not to win any shiite seats… To do what? Make Bushie need to wash you in bad words now..?


  49. @Lorenzo @Tron

    You seem to think candidates can only win a seat being totally partisan and such a slave to the party that they sleep in a blanket made from party colors. Maybe I live in another Barbados but in the Barbados I live, genuinely principled people will get support to win seats.

    I have two better and much more important positions for Caswell. Head of Constitution Rewrite Panel followed by CEO of Obsolete Laws Ministry responsible for repealing or amending old laws to bring them inline with the new lean mean constitution created by the panel.


  50. @ Hants
    “Allegedly about 25 young girls working in an establishment and having to clean toilets on a daily basis.”

    A few weeks ago, I warned that employers will use this period to exploit cashiers and other workers, especially those in the retail industry by making them execute tasks that do not fall under their work description.
    I was referring specifically , to one of our major retailers ,( Bynoe of Emerald City) implying that cashiers will be asked to multiply task.
    The employers realise that with the major trade union being a bit off key these days, they can do as they like. They are following a trend in the USA of employing workers under the guise they would be doing one thing and then making them do three and four people work.


  51. The company names of these creeps should be made public, exploitation and discrimination are crimes…that garner INTERNATIONAL ATTENTION…btw,…i had something to say about Bynoe some time back, only to learn later that it’s the WHOLE FAMILY that is notorious….they learned those tactics well from their masters….


  52. @Critical AnalyzerApril 14, 2022 2:27 AM

    The rebel senator scares off foreign investors and should therefore not hold any position at all, apart from the post of ambassador in Moscow.

    On the question of loyalty, I disagree here. Loyalty to the Supreme Leader is rewarded by the people in elections because the people and our Supreme Leader are one. Anyone who deviates from the official party line has no integrity, but is disloyal.


  53. Lorenzo, if I were interested in contesting a seat in the House of Assembly, I would have accepted the offers to run for St. Thomas that I received from both BLP & DLP.

    Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

    IT SHOWS HOW STUPID OVER 90 PERCENT OF THE VOTERS ON THE 2X3 ISLAND ARE.

    THEY WILL CONTINUE TO BE USED AS INSIGNIFICANT PAWNS FOR THEIR VOTES WHILST CATCHING HELL DAY TO DAY AND THEN CRYING ABOUT IT.


  54. Mr Franklyn i was speaking about now in your psrty under Bishop Atherley in response to Critical.Your point about winning in St Thomas under the bees or dees might very well be true.Therefore it is obvious that you have to be with the bees or dees to have a chance of winning a seat at the moment.As for Baje the only braindead jackass is you.Bajans are generally politically sstute and know who they want to lead them without input from you .I gone.


  55. .As for Baje the only braindead jackass is you.Bajans are generally politically sstute and know who they want to lead them without input from you .I gone.

    Xxxxxxxxx

    DON’T WORRY ABOUT ME FAR FROM THE ACTION ON THE 2 X3 ISLAND.

    YOUR BLP WHO REFUSED TO HELP THE STRIKING NURSES MADE A BLATANT ATTEMPT TO BRIBE CASWELL WITH A PICK IN ST THOMAS.

    WHAT DOES IT SAY ABOUT YOUR PARTY WHO CONTINUE TO TREAT THE MASSES AS FOOLS.

    HAPPY NEVER VOTED AND NO PARTY TO ANYONE POLITICAL TRICKERY.


  56. @ BAJE April 14, 2022 5:23 PM

    Who cares about the chatter from before the election??? The fact is that our Supreme Leader won the election without the rebel senator and can now dispose of him on the rubbish heap.

    As for the work-shy nurses, they have already been replaced by hard-working, righteous African nurses. I therefore strongly support our Supreme Leader’s programme to replace 80000 work-shy locals with foreigners.

    You should have no illusions. People, leader and party are one.


  57. @Tron April 14, 2022 6:23 PM

    Keep the nurses names out your mouth. You would never keep going to work if you were not paid for months and had to beg people for money like a dog to pay rent, bills, bus fare and food every day.

    What do you have to say to the nurses that never went on strike but still were not being paid?

    Why did your Supreme Leader who pick up she foot and run fast to the Belle Pumping Station with the press in a purely PR move not do the same at the hospital to support the nurses too? Your Supreme Leader does not care.

    Let me hear you Tron.


  58. @Critical AnalyzerApril 15, 2022 8:40 AM

    The difference is quite simple: pumping stations are not organised in unions on our island, but nurses are.

    Therefore, our Supreme Leader had very good reasons to take care of the pumping stations first.


  59. This EXPLAINS so much…lol

    “A high court judge is quoted in today’s Nation , while sentencing an accused man who beat up another man with a club that was dealing with his woman. Justice Carlise Greaves told the man “If every man in Barbados was beaten for dealing with another man’s woman, a lot of men would be walking around limping.”


  60. Apply discipline fairly
    Recently this newspaper reported that Pedro Shepherd and Alwyn Babb were charged and suspended for allegedly breaching certain sections of the Code of Conduct and Ethics of the Public Service Act by running as candidates in the January General Election.
    Section 9(2) of the Code of Conduct and Ethics found in the Second Schedule of the Public Service Act (the “Code of Conduct”) states: “Officers shall comply with restrictions on their political activities in accordance with this Act or Regulations.”
    Pursuant to Regulation 3.18.1 of the General Orders of the Public Service, officers and employees are forbidden from participating actively in politics, including: “(a) being adopted as a parliamentary candidate; (b) canvassing on behalf of any party or candidate for election to the House of Assembly .
    . . . (e) speaking at political meetings.”
    However, an exception is made in Regulation 3.18.2 which allows casual employees to participate in politics once they comply with certain conditions. Section 24 (e) of the Code of Conduct also prohibits civil servants from giving broadcasts on subjects “that may properly be regarded as of a political nature”, unless they obtain the prior permission of the minister concerned.
    General prohibition
    On the one hand, there is a general prohibition preventing all public service employees (except casual employees) from engaging in any kind of active politics. On the other hand, public servants may participate in political broadcasts or discussions if they obtain the prior permission of the minister concerned. Should it be implied (based on Section 24 (e)) that the prior permission of the minister can also be obtained to engage in the other forms of political activity mentioned in Regulation 3.18.1 of the General Orders?
    And since an exception is made for casual employees to participate in politics, is this a discriminatory provision, as was recently proposed by Dennis De Peiza, general secretary of the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados, while appearing on a recent Nation Facebook live with Colville Mounsey to discuss the issue. Does the provision breach the employee’s fundamental right of freedom of association provided by the Constitution, as was also suggested on the broadcast?
    My primary concern is the fairness of the charges against these two individuals.
    This newspaper reported that they were charged
    with misconduct of a serious nature which, pursuant to Section 2 of the Code of Discipline, means conduct that warrants dismissal.
    Result in dismissal
    However, Section 26 (b) of the Code prescribes which breaches of the Public Service Act constitute misconduct of a serious nature. The breach of Section 9 (participating in political activities) is not mentioned. How could these employees have reasonably known that the offence could result in their dismissal, and would it be fair to dismiss them in these circumstances when sufficient case law exist that suggests otherwise?
    Were the charges subsumed under the very general wording of Section 2 (h) of the Code of Discipline which deems any breach of the Public Service laws, rules or regulations serious misconduct? Furthermore, Section 2(h) appears to run contrary to Section 1(b) of the Code of Discipline, which requires each case to be decided on its own merits and circumstances, so that a charge under Section 2(h) cannot automatically be held to be serious or to warrant dismissal.
    Additionally, the recent decision of the High Court in the case of Wilbert Lynch et al vs the Attorney General et al established that public servants cannot be automatically dismissed for committing misconduct of a serious nature. Rather, the elements of natural justice must be applied to each case, including giving the employees the opportunity to be heard before any decision is made.
    Finally, it has been suggested that other civil servants participated in the recent elections by canvassing on behalf of candidates, yet they have not been charged. If this is accurate, then there is glaring inequity in how disciplinary measures were applied against only Mr Babb and Mr Shepherd, which in my mind makes the charges inherently unfair.
    Interestingly, if either of them was employed prior to December 2007, they may fall outside the application of the Code of Conduct.

    Michelle M. Russell is an attorney with a passion for employment law and labour matters, and also a social activist. Email mrussell. ja@gmail.com.

    Source: Nation


  61. Why punish the two teachers?

    I READ WITH GREAT disdain that two of the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) candidates in the January General Election will be facing disciplinary charges.
    To add insult to injury, the powers that be are sending them on six months’ leave with only half of their salary.
    First it was nurses opposing the current regime’s handling of their plight that got their pay docked, now it’s teachers who hold opposing political views and seeking to represent their country at the national level.
    People are fooling themselves that we are not in an oppressive or dictatorial time. Whenever the word dictatorial is used people think of the era of Hitler, Stalin, et al, but there are varying degrees of dictatorship. There are varying degrees of oppression. Things can be done overtly or covertly. Mind games or the silencing of critics are also tools of oppression.
    Democracy is not alive and well in Barbados. In Bim, “who the cat likes he licks, who he dislikes he kicks”.
    As reported by your newspaper, the charges against the two goodly teachers, Alwyn Babb, who ran in St Peter, and former Barbados Union of Teachers president Pedro Shepherd, who ran in St Michael South East, are apparently rooted in General Order 3.18.1 for the Public Service 1970, which states that officers and employees are expressly forbidden to participate actively in politics, including the following: a. Being adopted as a parliamentary candidate; b. Canvassing on behalf of any party or candidate for election to the House of Assembly; c. Acting as agents or subagents for any candidate for election; d. Holding office in party political organisations; and e. Speaking at political meetings.
    A few silly questions I have to ask: Were there no public servants speaking on the platform of the Barbados Labour Party (BLP)? Were there no public servants canvassing for the BLP? Were there no public officers whose voices were used in ads or on the platform? Were there no public servants who were not on their respective jobs but working day in and day out for the BLP? The public needs answers.
    There is a video clip making the rounds that shows a woman speaking on the BLP platform during the January General Election comparing the two political parties to homes. She reportedly worked in the Public Service then and continues to do so now. Is it that one can be a public servant and take part in a General Election but one must belong to the party that wins to avoid sanction?
    As cantankerous and distasteful as the woman sounds, that is not the argument. Are charges being laid against her? Are charges being laid against the many public servants who did the BLP’s bidding publicly? I understand there is one school teacher who was an election agent for a current Government minister. Is she immune to the rules?
    I will be the first to admit that the law which prohibits a large portion of the population – public workers – from being involved in General Elections is archaic and must be revisited. But what is good for the goose must be good for the gander. This constant show of two Barbadoses is disturbing and no administration has perpetuated this more than the current lot.
    Both Babb and Shepherd lost, and by thousands of votes. Their party has no seat in or out of Parliament. Neither pose a political threat to anyone. But someone somewhere believes that they must be punished while others go unpunished.

    – RODERICK P. HARRIS

    Source: Nation


  62. ” Chairman of HOPE Barbados Tony Hoyos, during his address, says the HOPE team is now expanding to townhouses.

    “There are a number of people here who have qualified for loans and we’ve invited them to come and have a sneak peek. From here on out every Saturday we will have show units open to the public. This is about 155 houses we want to build here although we are actually in the design phase now of bringing in some townhouses because those will allow us to increase the density of the area and also allow us to expand the offering,” he said.


  63. Now how many bajans living on next to.nothing salaries can qualify for those homes starting at 300hundred thousand and up
    As usual govt does a good PR job until the poor soul shows up at the bank to have their HOPE dashed away
    The some and mirror shows are over
    Time fuh govt to plant something new


    • You are so quick to criticize. The project highlighted is targeting teachers, policemen, nurses and public workers in a salary range. You didn’t listen to the clip did you.


  64. Not criticisng explaining the realities in the business world
    Getting a mortgage is not easy especially after COVID
    Out of two thousand nine hundred applicants the number given that qualified is twenty nine
    There are additional out of pocket cost related to qualification
    Teachers wages are not that great anyhow two thousand doesn’t go far when all the other household cost are attached
    A recent report that household debt is exceptionally high


  65. @ David
    Have you seen any analysis that verifies the practicality of this HOPE project? … beyond the flowery political rhetoric to which we have become accustomed.
    It certainly must have been done BEFORE committing such significant resources of time, money and hope into such a project.
    Have you any idea why such analyses would NOT be in the public domain?
    Bushie is particularly interested in the financing of the scheme. Based on previous mouthing at the highest levels, and on the general failure to perform then, it is AMAZING that we (well you…) can be so trusting and optimistic…
    But hey … that is your strength.


    • @Bush Tea

      Have not seen the business plan except what is publicly available. The plan to use RE to offset cost so that middle income can afford.


  66. I remember Kerrie Symonds being openly vocal about govt cost in building housing projects
    One now must remember that any thing related to numbers coming from this govt on projects would be hushed
    Govt is now a govt unto itself as Mia said should be the case
    The media yesterday relied on govt to present glowing pictures and not one asked how much it cost to build the houses
    The next four years would pictures and smiles


  67. “The plan to use RE to offset cost so that middle income can afford.”
    ~~~~~~~~~
    That is NOT a plan David. That is an idea…. mostly emotional, instinctive, wishful thinking …driven by good intent.
    You know of course how the road to Hell is paved…

    It would need coherent analysis and to be put in sensible framework to become a PLAN.

    After becoming a plan, there is the matter of proper implementation….. which is of course our Achilles Heel.


  68. Mia continues to fill up the people heads with nuff bull
    Today stating that rent would become a thing of the past while advocating people necessitate to become home owners
    When rubber hits road owning a home is not easy
    Also maintaining a home is not easy especially when income levels are dangerously low and other household commitments are involved
    Mia continues to roll out smoke and mirrors political rhetoric
    Enough evidence is there that shows foreclosures are on the rise
    The kind of HOPE which she advocates is dangerous and misleading
    Facts first


  69. No further action taken in case against teachers who ran in elections

    https://barbadostoday.bb/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Alywn-and-Pedro-730×456.png

    Article by Anesta Henry
    Published on
    May 17, 2022

    Just over a month after two teachers were sent on leave for contesting the January 19 general elections, they say they are still awaiting word from the Ministry of Public Service on what will happen next, and when.

    Teachers Alwyn Babb and Pedro Shepherd, who are away from work on half pay for six months, both responded to the charges laid against them on April 4, within 14 days of receipt of the correspondence as required.

    Babb, who ran on a Democratic Labour Party (DLP) ticket in St Peter, and Shepherd, who flew the DLP flag in the St Michael South East constituency, face disciplinary charges arising out of their participation in the polls as public servants.

    Caswell Franklyn, General Secretary of the Unity Workers Union (UWU) who is representing Babb, told Barbados TODAY he received acknowledgment of his written response from the Ministry of Public Service.

    He said in that response, he outlined that Babb did nothing wrong by contesting the polls and requested that his client’s full salary be reinstated.

    Shepherd said while it has been weeks since he responded to the charges, he only received correspondence from the Ministry acknowledging receipt.

    “I thought that once we responded in 14 days as the letter said, they would then convene a meeting with the three-man committee as set up by the President [Dame Sandra Mason] to hear whatever it is. I believe that the Ministry of Public Service will just sit on this matter for the six months or even longer,” he said.

    “Maybe after the six months they decide that they may terminate. I don’t know what is the plan. I am just eagerly awaiting the convening of that meeting so that I can hear what their plan is. I know what my plan is. My plan is to return to work either at the end of the six months or before.”

    Meanwhile, Franklyn said he has an attorney-at-law on standby to challenge the actions being taken against Babb, charging that the educators were being punished although they had not been found guilty of anything.

    “I would expect that Mr Babb and Shepherd would have their salaries reinstated post-haste. People have been [barely] surviving on full salaries and it is not easy to survive on half. This nonsense about putting people on half pay while the investigations are going on is really a punishment. I don’t care what they say, it is a punishment and you are inflicting punishment on people before you find them guilty,” the trade unionist contended.

    “You put a man at risk of not paying his mortgage or paying his car loan or whatever during his period. And if you find that he is not guilty, you would have just damaged that man’s credit, you would have just caused problems for him and he would have effectively been punished, and this nonsense has to stop,” Franklyn told Barbados TODAY.

    Babb and Shepherd face several charges including committing misconduct of a serious nature between January 3 and January 19, when they participated in the 2022 General Election, contrary to General Order 3.18.1 of the General Orders for the Public Service 1970 and in contravention of Paragraph 2 (h) of the Code of Discipline in the Public Service, Third Schedule, Public Service Act, Cap. 29; and being absent from the performance of his duties as a teacher without leave or approval.

    However, the UWU boss remained adamant that the two teachers have been wrongfully accused, insisting that the Constitution states that the only public officers prohibited from taking part in elective politics are judges, the Director of Public Prosecutions, and the Auditor General.

    “What is being done to them is contrary to law,” Franklyn said. “The unfortunate thing is that the people who administer the public service don’t read the rules because this rule existed since November 30, 1966 and they continue enforcing rules that went out of force prior to Independence in 1966.

    “Civil servants not running existed up until Independence. The Constitution made provisions that said that only [certain] people can’t contest a general election,” he insisted.
    anestahenry@barbadostoday.bb


  70. Back to school
    Shepherd returns to class, but Babb still in limbo

    by BARRY ALLEYNE barryalleyne@nationnews.com

    ONE TEACHER is happy to be back at work.
    The other, he’s still at home and in limbo.
    It’s been two very different tales for Pedro Shepherd and Alwyn Babb.
    After being away for six months from the job, he’s been doing for more than 34 years, Shepherd said he is glad to be back in the classroom again. The former president of the Barbados Union of Teachers re-entered Wilkie Cumberbatch Primary School in The Pine, St Michael, when the Trinity term started last Monday.
    Shepherd had been placed on halfpay last year, after participating as a candidate in the January 19, 2022 General Election on a Democratic Labour Party (DLP) ticket. He and fellow teacher Babb, also a losing DLP candidate in that poll, were both interdicted.
    All smiles
    Shepherd was charged with breaching General Orders 3.18.1 and Paragraph 2 (H) of the Public Service’s Code of Discipline. He ran in St Michael South East and Babb in St Peter.
    Shepherd was all smiles entering the school gates yesterday.
    “I’m here. It’s good to be back in the environment with the children, doing what I only know how to do. This has been my thing all my life. This is my 35th year, 34th spent here (at Wilkie Cumberbatch) so I’m back home and just glad to be here,” he told the MIDWEEK NATION.
    “I have not yet received the six months half-pay, but I suspect that is a work in progress. I’m assuming the case is over, but I can’t definitely say it’s over. The letter I received was from the President of Barbados (The Most Honourable Dame Sandra Mason) saying that I should be reinstated. But I’m expecting correspondence from the Ministry of Education giving me a definite position, to say that I will be reinstated and will receive my half pay.
    “I’m on the job but still unsure about where I am,
    as to my employer. No one from the Ministry of Education has spoken to me as yet.”
    Shepherd said his students were happy he was back on the compound daily.
    “They would have been seeing me in and out once or twice doing stuff at the school. Those in Reception I’m new to, but the others I would have taught before. I’m getting familiar with the school again, with the students and one or two teachers I would have to familiarise myself with. The feeling is good,” he said.
    However, when contacted yesterday, Babb, a physical education teacher at The Lester Vaughan School, said he had heard nothing from the Ministry of Education relating to when he could resume duties.
    “I am still waiting on official notification, like Pedro, on my return to school,” he said. “I am talking to lawyers and they will inform me what steps are to be taken.”
    He has been off the job for more than a year after being interdicted on April 6, 2022, and found guilty at a hearing in October. His time was extended to last December 21.
    Letter sent
    A letter was sent to the Ministry of Education on March 8 requesting information on the status of both teachers.
    “The ministry is aware of the decision of the then Justice Westmin James in relation to Natalie Murray versus the Attorney General. Kindly note that your clients will receive further correspondence in light of the said decision as soon as is practicable,” was the response Babb received on March 23.
    Shepherd had previously claimed that the charges against him were for speaking at a political meeting at Haggatt Hall, St Michael, and for being absent from Wilkie Cumberbatch on January 12 and 13 without reasonable excuse.
    However, the High Court judge ruled on February 29 that the General Order 3.18:1 banning all public officers from actively participating in politics was unconstitutional.
    Justice James also ordered that all disciplinary proceedings against the public officers who spoke on any political platforms during the 2022 General
    Election should be permanently stayed.
    Shepherd revealed yesterday that a week before the Easter vacation ended, he was called in by Ministry of Education officials, and collected correspondence which stated that he should be reinstated and refunded his six months’ half-pay.


    Source: Nation

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