Established October 1895 New fire station, legislation overhaul coming PAGE 2 Thursday December 17, 2020 $1 VAT Inclusive Education programme needed ahead of COVID-19 vaccine A DETAILED education programme is needed on the COVID-19 vaccine, before it is presented to the Barbadian public. Chairman of Committees, Dr. Sonia Browne, suggested the above, whilst speaking at the level of Parliament recently. “It is OK to tell the Barbadian public to take the vaccine, don’t mind the rumours, it is for your own good, but we have to spend a lot of time on education. It cannot be only governmental policy.We have to co-ordinate well with the players, the medical professionals, so that we have an educational system in place before we bring the information Bathsheba resident, Tricia Gill, had the honour of cutting the ribbon, officially opening the newly rebuilt Joes River Pedestrian to the public,” Dr. Browne, Bridge. To her right are Attorney General Dale Marshall, MP for St. Joseph and Chairman of the Tourism Development Corporation, who is a family physician, Martin Ince. commented. “There are people that have fears of vaccination, real fears, basically because they don’t understand it and we need to address it. I have had big men crawl under my office table to BRIDGE REOPENS avoid an injection, big men faint away in my chair to avoid THE Joes River Pedestrian an injection. So it is not as Bridge has not been simple as saying the vaccine operational for the past will be here soon, you have to 15 years, but thankfully take it, make it mandatory.I’ve it was recently rebuilt seen things on Facebook saying and officially reopened make it mandatory, but it’s a yesterday. lot more than that,” she added. The reopening saw Attorney “Even the simple vaccines General Dale Marshall, MP for that we have been giving for St. Joseph, along with those years, it is not as bad as it was, who had made the rebuilding say ten years ago, but up to now possible, including Joe it is challenging (to have some Brooker’s Building Limited and people take it) and parents several residents come together cannot tell you why either. for the historic event. One Other than the obvious of the co-ordinators of the allergies, which aren’t common, initiative, Edward Ince, stated they cannot tell you why they that the pedestrian bridge do not want the vaccine. Some represented an important are for religious reasons, but link between Cattlewash and you are usually able to turn Bathsheba, and facilitated them over,” the St. Philip North economic and cultural activity Member of Parliament further for both locals and visitors. commented. “People working in the area She therefore stressed, “So had to walk up the hill, let us take the vaccine a little including students from the more seriously than just saying Alleyne School and hikers had it is coming, you have to take it. to climb the rocks to travel Barbadians are smart. We did from the East Coast side not educate them for no good to Bathsheba,” said the reason. They are smart and co-ordinator. they just need the information and I believe most people will BRIDGE on Page 3 The newly rebuilt Joes River Pedestrian Bridge. be on board.” (RSM) 2 • Thursday December 17, 2020 The Barbados Advocate The proud new members of the Barbados Fire Service with Minister of Home Affairs, Wilfred Abrahams (front row, fifth from left); and Chief Fire Officer, Errol Maynard (fifth from right). New fire station, legislation overhaul coming THE assurance was Barbados Fire Prevention given that a new fire and Code Enforcement station is still on the Unit, the Fire Service cards and will be a Administration headquar- reality in the “very ters and the Emergency near future”. Ambulance Service. It came from Minister “It is anticipated that of Home Affairs, Wilfred this will provide a frame- Abrahams, as he ad- work for closer collabor- dressed the closing cere- ation and working rela- mony of the Barbados Fire tionship between the Academy Auxiliary Fire Emergency Ambulance Officers Recruit Class #39 Service and the BFS. It at the Samuel Jackman therefore makes strategic Prescod Institute of sense to have these two Technology yesterday entities housed together morning. and working together. Minister of Home Affairs, Wilfred Abrahams, presents He stated that the new Such an arrangement will Rashawn Payne with the Best at Practical Award. fire service headquarters benefit both personnel of complex will be con- the Service and the public shorter response times Minister Abrahams structed at Prince Road, of Barbados as it provides from medical and trauma noted it will also allow the The Most Outstanding Recruit Award was presented The Pine, St. Michael and an opportunity for a calls and routine joint re- sharing of resources to Dylan Scantlebury. is expected to house the greater range of training, sponses to assist the pub- such as a central dispatch Barbados Fire Station, the acquisition of skills, much lic of Barbados,” he said. centre, maintenance and rescue service that re- not only for its staff, but workshop facilities and sponds to the demands of for other professionals in living quarters. “These the 21st century.” the industry as well as the provisions can only trans- The Minister used the general public, both local late to better and more opportunity to commend and regional.” efficient services to the the BFS for the work car- He congratulated the public at less cost to the ried out and the attempt to newest members to the taxpayers of Barbados.” augment the department Fire Service and congrat- It was also announced through skill sets, which ulated all 23 officers that there will be a com- he said signals the deliber- for sticking to the pro- plete and comprehensive ate intention to assist in gramme, which he said is overhaul of the Fire the provision of pre-hospi- deliberately difficult. “Let Service Act, which is just tal care in Barbados. the same drive propel your shy of 60 years old. “Since “It is already well careers as firefighters and 1961, there has been no known that the Service heroes in Barbados.There large-scale revision of the has the lead in search and is a nobility in this pro- Act or any attempts to rescue as well as the man- fession that must not be modernise and to bring it agement of hazardous ma- taken for granted. I am in line with current prac- terials, which means the aware you are not the first tices in the field. The pro- modern recruits must be EMTs in the field, but you posed overhaul is intended multiskilled and must are the first to receive to allow the BFS to evolve be equipped to perform this training as a critical into a comprehensive fire effectively and completely component of your recruit- management and rescue from the very beginning. ment programme. Much is Chief Fire Officer, Errol Maynard, presents the Most Outstanding in Theory operation, which can de- The Service is also paying therefore expected of you,” Award to Recruits Dylan Scantlebury, Kemar Batson and Stefan Belgrave. liver a modern fire and much attention to training he said. (JH) The Barbados Advocate Thursday December 17, 2020 • 3 More NHC tenants to own units SOME 2,574 National Housing Upgrades being done to electrical networks and sewage systems date, he said critical repair work has Corporation (NHC) terraced units been undertaken; and unsafe and remain to be transferred to qualify- I will be returning to this House to tors to carry out similar work on various unsanitary sewage systems totalling ing tenants under the Government’s amend the relevant legislation to fast- housing estates. Work relating to the 135 wells and septic tanks, in at least transfer of units programme. track this process. Seventeen years since electrical upgrades commenced at 10 housing estates, were identified for That’s according to Minister of this project started is much, much too Ferniehurst [and] Rosemount estates rehabilitation. Housing, Lands and Maintenance, Dr. long. These tenants deserve to have the earlier this month. The Board has indi- “As at October 31 this year, 73 sewage William Duguid. Speaking in the House security of tenure we had promised and cated that approximately 500 units will systems have been rehabilitated at a of Assembly earlier this week, Duguid to exercise their full rights of ownership be upgraded annually over the next five cost of $1,706,475. We still have our chal- said these units are being maintained by like everyone else,” he said. years, but because of the timeline we lenges with the work, Mr. Speaker, be- the NHC, free of charge to tenants, who, He made the point while noting that have set ourselves for the transfer of cause it is painstaking and messy work, he added, are also no longer paying rent the NHC has given a commitment to all units, I have challenged the NHC to much of which has been neglected for for them. His comments came as he said tenants that the units will all be safe double that output,” he stated. years, but we will stay the course and get that concerted efforts are being made and secure prior to being transferred. The minister went on to say that the the job done,” he added. to have the ownership of those units With that in mind, he said that the NHC has made steady progress refur- The minister went on to say that they turned over to the tenants. Government has spent $2.23 million to bishing its wells and sewage systems, in have established a WhatsApp number “I want to assure this Honourable upgrade the electrical work in 313 units an effort, he said, to make the surround- 266-1854, which tenants can use to re- House that this Government plans to in the housing estates at Haynesville, ings more wholesome and safe for the port urgent complaints so that they can ensure that almost 100 per cent of ten- Thorpes and Bagatelle.