The Government is irresponsibly rushing through important legislation to fundamentally change Barbados. One includes a Bill to give the Minister absolute control over the National Insurance Scheme in the National Insurance and Social Security (Amendment) Act, 2023.
Currently, the Minister’s role is to establish the offices and let them run. The Minister cannot legally meddle but is consulted and gives approvals. Section 11 of the current Act follows.
Section 11: “The Minister shall, by order under section 2 of the Civil Establishment Act, establish the offices which shall constitute the offices on the Board’s establishment, which offices shall for all purposes be deemed to be offices in the public service Staff.”
RUBBER STAMPS.
To control and direct a useless rubber-stamp Board, a replacement provision follows.
Section 11Y (1): “The Minister may give general directions to the Board with respect to the performance of its functions, powers and duties under this Act or any other enactment; and the Board SHALL ACT in accordance with those directions.” (Emphasis mine.)
This is clever deceptive language, but the next sub-section ensures that no member of the Board is deceived, and that all members understand that they are only rubber stamps.
Section 11Y(2): “Subject to this section, the Board shall not be subject to the CONTROL or DIRECTION of ANY OTHER person or Service.” (Emphasis mine.)
After the Government has recklessly pillaged our National Insurance pension fund, our Senators must know that passing that amendment is certainly not in the public’s best interest.
CORRUPTION AND BRIBERY.
Next is the Integrity in Public Life Bill (2023) that will legalise corruption and bribery in Barbados. Section 32.4 notes that once a person has retired from public life for five years, then he cannot be investigated for corruption. It should be noted that bribery normally happens at the start of a construction project.
In the private sector, it can take over a decade for evidence of corruption to be uncovered by responsible junior staff. In the public sector, the Auditor General may not report findings of corruption until seven years. Therefore, a five-year limit is a farce.
THE DISTRACTION.
The Barbados media chose not to concentrate on any of the important aspects of the Bills, but instead magnified what they were likely instructed to. To distract people from giving the Minister absolute control of the NIS, they magnified the new requirements for receiving a pension. To distract people from making bribery and corruption legal, they focused on the issue of judges not captured in the Integrity bill.
WHY COMPLAIN?
By following the worst possible advice in 2018, the Government backed itself into an economic corner. Their only options are to engage in: unsustainable borrowing, raising taxes, cutting back on Government services, and delaying paying pensions for as long as possible. Raising the requirements to get a pension is obviously in line with that type of governing.
We all knew that this was their manner of governing when we chose them to manage the national economy – while knowingly rejecting the way of prosperity. So, why complain about what we knowingly voted for? What the people did not vote for was to give the Government absolute legal control of the NIS, and to legalise corruption and bribery in Barbados.
SICK OUT.
There is a call for a Sick Out this Wednesday. If the proposed Sick Out is to protest criminalising parents in the Child Protection Bill, or legalising corruption and bribery in the Integrity Bill, or giving the Minister absolute control over the NIS, then count me in. If it is to protest the new requirements to qualify for a pension, then that is what we specifically voted for – so count me out.
https://downtobrasstacks.castos.com/episodes/brasstacks-aug-01st-2023
https://downtobrasstacks.castos.com/episodes/brasstacks-jul-30th-2023
The FACT of the matter is that a people ALWAYS get EXACTLY what they deserve.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A bit of BU philosophy….
Bajans are ALL generally inclined to be a set of mendicant, low-minded, materialistic brass bowls, whose characters are actually perfectly represented by their elected politicians.
Grenville seems to be expecting that somehow, episodes of wisdom can evolve from within such a hopeless mixture of idiocy.
To be fair, given that Bajan brass bowls of today are essentially the remnants of 15 generations of chattel slavery, where heartless demons systematically sought to destroy ANY signs of manhood, wisdom, leadership or even self-respect among Blacks, the REAL surprise (miracle really) is that ANYONE survived that 500 year ordeal.
Of course, God SPECIFICALLY promised that, not only can his original chosen people NEVER be destroyed by the demons of this world, but that a small core of the ORIGINAL BLACK SPIRIT OF WISDOM, MANHOOD and GODLINESS will always be preserved…. the preverbal diamond among the chaff…
Our world is therefore unfolding EXACTLY as intended, and on schedule.
That persons such as Grenville and Caswell are commissioned to clearly point out our obvious idiocy as a country, is exactly as the prophets of old have always been commissioned to do…
…and we KNOW that the hoards of brass bowls will continue merrily on their path to chaos and hopelessness behind their demonic masters.
The few, but PRECIOUS diamonds however, who emerge from the cauldron, will be a prize well worth all of the pain and anguish of the birthing process…called ‘Life on Earth’.
@Bush Tea
Are you referring to the society that is responsible for producing both you and Grenville?
Are you referring to the society that is responsible for producing both you and Grenville?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
…and Caswell and David King…?
SPECIFICALLY! yes.
Therefore a reasonable conclusion can be considered that required attributes to be good citizens exist in the citizenry (latent?). We have argued in this place that for so many reasons our leaders seem timid to represent at this juncture- a contradiction we must admit.
Yours is NOT a logical conclusion Boss.
The fact that a few good apples happen to exists in a barrel of rotten brass bowls, speaks to the miracle of their existence – not to the potential for more of the brass bowl rotten fruit to be cured.
WE have adopted an idiotic system of ‘democracy’ where ‘wisdom’ is determined by a poll. The majority decides.
What kind of government would you expect?
Which class of citizens would you expect to be harassed?
LOL
Everyone agrees that the two most meaningful voices in our last shiite Parliament were Atherley and Caswell.
How did we redress THAT situation boss…?
@Bush Tea
The text book will state that it is up to those who are burdened with leadership to find ways to bring the followers along.
Further – a keen observer of the Barbados landscape and beyond notes the rise of influencers, a social media creation. Leaders have to be careful of being manipulated and boxed into fighting causes by those pursuing narrow self interest. Another topic in itself.
The text book will state that it is up to those who are burdened with leadership to find ways to bring the followers along.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ok…
So when the ‘leaders’ are clearly dishonest, bribe-taking, vindictive, demons – elected by the misguided brass bowls….
WHERE EXACTLY would you expect such leaders to “bring the followers along” to…?
Boss
What you call ‘Leaders’ are merely reflections of the general masses of clueless BBs. who are selected because the voters can see THEIR OWN characteristics in the popular candidates.
REAL LEADERS are those with a clear vision of the situation, a good dose of wisdom, and a passionate LOVE for truth, justice and rightness.
Who in Barbados would vote for such an outlier?
Would you vote for some brass bowl who
DON’T make false promises;
DON’T hand out bribes;
DON’T condescend to known bribe masters and gangsters and
DON’T kowtow to those with money…?
If you said ‘Yes’, that makes 7 votes…..
@Bush Tea
The comment was about those names you mentioned, Caswell, Atherley et al.
After these lowcrawling nobody politicians who lie to get votes, lie to be elected….run scams and tricks to rob the people……lie to the people every day for 5 years, polluted the minds of the population with political poison for 100 years that have so destabilized the social environment……most corrupt minded can only protect and defend the same corrupt trash…..so .who they want to blame when all the evil crimes against the populace perpetrated by evil politicians nonstop are now EXPOSED EVERYWHERE…and this is just the beginning.
Hold up a bit @David, leaders whether Grantley, his son many years later, Kennedy, de Gaulle, Eric Williams or whomever have always had “… to be careful of being manipulated and boxed into fighting causes by those pursuing narrow self interest.”
Focus on narrow interests have been the cause of wars – and as they say, rumors of wars – always.
Surely, social media’s ability to tap directly into citizens has massively influenced decisions and constrains leaders into perplexing decisions unlike ever before!
But truly social media can also be used by leadership to reshape erroneous data points as well.
Yes, yes it’s very difficult but it’s what we have wrougjt so fight we must.
@Dee Word
Your view is known to the blog, nothing new under the sun.
That’s not the point @David.
There are many new things under this sun today.
The issue for us is how we handle the various reheated issues: do we let history be the guide for our actions (therefore we proceed with understanding) or do we push forward uncertainly.
Mia’s “all is mine’ behavior is well practiced from Barrow and Owen before her AND she does it better and with greater success than both of them COMBINED.
But jumping up and down saying that means diddly squat … unless of course we have learned also and can oppose her better and with greater success.
Social media influencers have taken the concept of the “emperor’s new clothes” to amazing heights (or depths, really) but both leaders and other citizens must be able to respond just as forcibly to let everyone clearly see just how naked the Mia’s, Biden’s Putin’s and others truly are.
How many times must we see the female actress fall and cry I can’t get up before we understand how that ploy simply sets up a moment of suspenseful violence … it’s never NEW, yet it works everytime.
We love that type of political suspense even more.
Ya know I like to read.
Trinidad & Tobago
9. In the exercise and performance of its functions, powers
and duties under this or any other written law the Board shall
act in accordance with any general directions of the Government,
given to it by the Minister; but subject to this section, the Board
shall, when exercising and performing its functions, powers and
duties, be subject to the control or direction of no other person
or authority.
St. Lucia
The Minister may give to the Board such general directions
with regard to the Board’s functions under this Act as appear to
him or her to be requisite in the public interest and the Board
shall give effect to any such directions.
Grenada
The Minister may give to the Board such general written
directions with regard to the Board’s functions under this Law as appear to
him to be requisite in the public interest and the Board shall give effect to any
such directions.
The more pertinent concern is the ability of the Board to vote independently on matters given its composition.
So now Barbados measures itself by what countries such as Trinidad and St Lucia does?
No wonder our crime rates, government bribery, and general levels of unproductively are of little concern to government.
There was a time when Barbados would have set high standards to the envy of even much larger countries…
….guess we have had Enuff of such visionary leadership.
@BT
Barbados was the model island others would copy, one of the reasons we earned the label scrapping above our weight class.
From one who fully trusted that her service and contribution would gain her reliable returns, this new move in the “Republic” exemplifies the urgency that was pursued to break with the restraints that were in place prior to that decision.
Can we now not see that Barbadians are now in the same boat as most of the other countries in the world fighting for their very survival against a New World Order which seeks to subjugate all humanity black, white, and any other colour under the sun?
Can we now not see that Barbadians are now in the same boat as most of the other countries in the world fighting for their very survival against a New World Order which seeks to subjugate all humanity black, white, and any other colour under the sun?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We were ALWAYS in that boat Eva,
We just relocated to a lower deck.
@ David
Bushie was referring to those of Grenville’s ilk too.
Everyone KNOWS that he is one of the most intelligent sons of the soil…. de man bright as shiite, and is a top engineer.
No one doubts his honesty or commitment to helping the less fortunate…
How many voted for his solutions?
Face it Boss….
The lunatics are in charge…
Unless you are on the spiritual lifeboat, your donkey is grass.
Bushie
Are you there?
One thing’s for sure..Grenville gets his headings down pat..
…the bottomline is, only corrupt minded slaves love corrupt minded politicians…that’s their crutch…not everyone is that disabled.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/CvfDcTVgBCm/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Niger minister of interior(MINAT) beaten in the streets of Niger!.is Africa getting ready to stand and defend our freedom?! What is the best method? This way or dialogues? One thing is for sure it’s time for us as Black people at home and abroad to Stand up for our RACE and Our Rights as People. to live and be free and have all the amenities to facilitate that vision even if it will take a revolution #Changebeginswithus.
West Indies win by four runs
Thanks Commander
Looks as if the WI only got two fans .. me and you.
The similarity in instruction is not surprising. Most were drafted using the same document as their template.
What you have shown is the lack of originality)ideas throughout the region.
THEY CELEBRATE EMANCIPATION DAY EACH YEAR YET STILL STUCK IN MENTAL SLAVERY EVEN THOUGH THE CHAINS AND WHIPS HAVE BEEN REMOVED
Fake emancipation celebration…all part of the long con plot decades old now blowing up in their faces.
Making elaborate scam plans and telling the people nothing.
enjoy
Why do people believe some politicians’ lies even when they have been proven false? And why do so many of the same people peddle conspiracy theories?
Lying and conspiratorial thinking might seem to be two different problems, but they turn out to be related. I study political rhetoric and have tried to understand how populist politicians use language to develop a cult-like following, divide nations, create culture wars and instill hatred. This pattern goes back to antiquity and is seen today in leaders including former President Donald Trump. These leaders are capable of using words and speeches to whip people into such an emotional tempest that they will do things like march on the seat of Congress or invade a neighboring country.
Cognitive linguistics — a branch of linguistics that examines the relationship between language and the mind. Throughout history, speeches by dictators and autocrats have one thing in common: they use dehumanizing metaphors to instill and propagate hatred of others.
It is well-documented that for example words like “reptiles” and “parasites” were used by the Nazi regime to compare outsiders and minorities to animals. Strongmen throughout history have referred to targeted social groups as “rats” or “pests” or “a plague.” And it’s effective regardless of whether the people who hear this language are predisposed to jump to extreme conclusions. Once someone is tuned into these metaphors, their brain actually changes in ways that make them more likely to believe bigger lies, even conspiracy theories.
These metaphors are part of a cognitive process that entraps some people in this kind of thinking while others are unaffected.
Nobody told u was to roam the streets
But that’s wat happens when u lie n cheat
You have no nights and you have no morning
Cause time like a scorpion, stings without warning
Oh [how does it feel] to be on your own
Oh, with no direction home
Oh, like a complete unknown
And I mean, like a rolling stone
Yeah, like a rolling stone
Oh yeah, yeah
[Nobody told you was to roam the street,
But that’s wat happens when u lie n cheat
And you, you have no nights and you have no morning
And, time like a scorpion, stings without
Oh yeah
Oh, to be on your own, but
Oh, no direction home
Oh, like a complete unknown
Oh, like a rolling stone
Gathers no moss like a rolling stone
Gathers no moss, oh yeah
Gathers no moss oh yeah
Oh, how does it…
Ya would think after so many years reality would have seeped in and pretenders would know what’s really happening, instead of their small time pettiness of trying to make Barbados and Caricom political crimes against Black humanity about others who had nothing to do with what black politicians have done to people on the island and across the region…
Guess they will never learn and need a most brutal wakeup call….they just love embarrassment, but there is more than enuff to go around and for an even longer period…what a disgrace, filled with emptiness and nothingness.
Pacha…Karma is in the here and now…i see the arrogant gape toothed smile when getting away with evil…has lost its shine…wiped clean…
Bushie
No! By what makes sense. That’s an upgrade I see in today’s news? Watch muh!
@ Enuff
You are an unusually intelligent Bajan…
By now, you MUST know that Bushie is not your regular brass bowl…
So if you are referring to Moody’s symbolic adjustments, this is best directed at your regular crowd of worshipers.
As Bushie explained before, your new CCB governor is just another BS manufacturer – just like those before him. This approach of measuring ‘performance’ via GDP (dollars) in an inflationary environment may impress John public and even Moody… but NOT stinking Bushie, (and no doubt, not yourself if you have any honesty left in your legal soul).
If Bushie spent $20,000 to survive in 2021, and then spent $25,000 in 2022, this does NOT reflect a 25% growth in the Bushman’s economy …UNLESS INFLATION WAS ZERO, and other factors are considered.
If, in fact, inflation was 20%, increases in loan interest payments represent another 10%, and outflows to shady suppliers another 10%, then Bushie’s donkey is actually headed directly up shit street….despite the increase GDP.
No doubt you get the drift. But the game you must play REQUIRES that you feed BS to the brass bowls who are headed off to get their fill at Kadooment… good luck to you and Dem.
@Bush Tea
The crux of the matter is that the domestic economy is rebounding because of our over reliance on tourism. Enough said.
@ David
Does it not depend on what we are rebounding to…?
Pre-Covid, we were constructing a STUPID economy that was built on borrowing, selling off state assets, and then depending on clients who were willing to spend some money to enjoy our local assets (you call it tourism, Bushie can’t see any difference from Prostitution).
Additionally, the damn pimps who actually make the profits from the ‘tourism’ are mostly foreign, and keep the profits offshore to a large extent.
Let us say that we are ‘rebounding’ to this situation now.. when inflation is threatening to skyrocket and when food shortages are all but GUARANTEED….
What is the overall analysis that makes our position ‘good news’?
..stop sipping Enuff’s koolaid Boss…
Why bother about wording in the Act?
Section 33 requires the Board to submit an Annual Report on its activities, a financial accounting as reviewed by the AudGen, along with a listing on Investments. And the Minister shall lay such reports before both Houses.
If the Minister willfully ignores this Section how can any other section be enforced?
An employer fails to pay remittances as required, and says they are ‘working on it’. Isn’t this effectively what the NIS Board has done for >15 years.
So the offending employer changes structure, and then announces the claims are against a former entity.
A pappy show.
Take it easy NO.
Don’t go and burst David’s bubble now…
He is optimistic that these promises of change will be different to EVERY previous promise made; every law blatantly disregarded; and ever lie told to us in the past.
The blogmaster need a straw to hold onto in the face of the imminent submergence of the Titanic….
@Bush Tea
The blogmaster is very comfortable navigating the bridge that joins the temporary with the afterlife.
@NO
You have resisted my favorite word/phrase ‘all is a scam’.
Now I see you use the words
‘A pappyshow’
Getting there.
BushTea
Yuh grasping as usual, a walking contradiction. lol. NIS with the Ministerial oversight still alive and kicking. CLICO pensions with its all private board members and their investments where again?
Enuff
“NIS with the Ministerial oversight still alive and kicking. CLICO pensions with its all private board members and their investments where again?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Both are at the same place…
Broke and bankrupt…. with the SAME brass bowl taxpayers propping them up via their taxes and now by for-going hard earned pensions.
The difference is that LP’s donkey is before the Court (at least what we project be a court), while a long list of ‘ministers’ are yet to pay for their equivalent malfeasances and idiotic investments…
But God don’t sleep….
The begging, borrowing dependent fowl is still proud of the permanent beggar status of a fraudulent government….the dependent slavemind is truly going nowhere..
…i would personally cut them loose let them go fend for themselves….no more free money to tief by the billions and brag and boast afterward…..just keep thousands of miles between you and them so they dont sell ya out or tief anything of yours in their upcoming desperation.
Pacha…even better, Commi-con and Press-cut got caught in their petty small island pan african fraud….no surprise, they have no clue about the indepth information available fir REAL PAN AFRIKANISTS taught by REAL Pan Afrikanists like Diop and thousands more they never heard of before…never even saw or read the literature..and no one knows in the Pan Afrikan world who these 2 wannabes are…
..i smacked them with an excerpt they never saw before in their dangerous conniving lives….and even if they had…would hide it from the people…they are now both exposed as the fake pan africanist money hounds they are…….excerpt can be viewed on 789 Whatsapp group.
We must really safeguard the pan afrikan information we have in our posession so it dont fall into the hands of these wicked traitors….stop them so they can never again exploit situations as they do now..
Source: Nation