DLP renews call for AG’s removal

The Democratic Labour Party (DLP) today renewed calls for the sacking of Attorney General Dale Marshall, as the murder rate for 2019 climbed to 29.

Orlando Forde became the latest murder victim on Friday, after he was shot to death by an unknown gunman outside of his Vauxhall, Christ Church home. His death came less than 24 hours after that of Warrick Whitwright of St Philip.

In a statement posted to the DLP’s Facebook page, party president Verla De Peiza accused the Attorney General of failing the country, saying that “history will record him as the worst performing Attorney General Barbados has ever appointed to office”.

“While the Barbados Labour Party was in Opposition they treated crime like a political football whilst giving the former Attorney General Adriel Brathwaite “…a failing grade…” in 2017 following a most egregious act on Kadooment Day. He termed it “our greatest crisis in terms of crime and violence on our streets and crimes of a particularly heinous nature”. There were 19 homicides up until the Spring Garden crime.

“Dale Marshall is now the AG of Barbados. On his watch, there have now been 43 murders: 14 last year and 29 so far this year,” she said.

De Peiza also demanded that Prime Minister Mia Mottley terminate the contract of former Police Commissioner Darwin Dottin, who was brought in as a consultant on crime.

Dottin was sent on administrative leave in 2013 following a recommendation from the Police services Commission that he be retired in the public interest.

“Prime Minister Mia Mottley and her Cabinet have treated the matter of crime in typical BLP fashion: As a platform for catch phrases like ‘not bout hey’ and public relations opportunities in walking through districts,” De Peiza charged.

The DLP said there is a need for an urgent multi-disciplinary task force to tackle the causes and sources of crime, “as a complement to the Royal Barbados Police Force (RBPF) and the Barbados Defence Force (BDF), which essentially treat symptoms but not the causes”.

De Peiza further argued that the country has individuals with the skills and competencies to dig deep into the causal elements.

“It is time to stop playing crime like a political football in our approach and in our personnel appointments. Our children are dying daily, citizens continue to fear for their lives and increasingly we are sensing a desensitizing of many. It is time that people are placed at the centre of the search for solutions to what is obviously a social dilemma,” De Peiza said.