AG says anti-corruption agency probe corruption allegations under last Government

Attorney General Dale Marshall has warned that a day of reckoning is coming in the law courts of Barbados, as investigations have resumed into allegations of corruption under the last Democratic Labour Party (DLP) administration.

Marshall made the announcement on the campaign trail in St Philip on Thursday night, while highlighting the steps his government has taken to reduce crime on the island.

“In the last three and a half years we have brought in investigators to carry out detailed investigations into the alleged corruption that existed in the last administration. COVID stopped a lot of that work but that work has restarted and the Prime Minister has said what ain’t catch you ain’t pass you yet. A day of reckoning is coming in the law courts of this island,” he said.

He noted that the investigations are being carried out by the specialised Anti-Corruption Agency which was established by the current government.

He told supporters of the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) at the Emerald City car park that the Prevention of Corruption Act, the Whistleblower Protection Act are helping to address corruption.

“One of the biggest problems we’ve had in rooting out corruption has been the fact that people have been afraid to come forward,” he said.

Turning to the matter of crime, Marshall pointed to the latest statistics from the Barbados Police Service which show a 24  per cent reduction in serious crime in 2021 compared to the previous year.

“Serious crime in Barbados is down by almost a quarter and gun-enabled crime is down by 34 per cent. Those are the facts. Those are the numbers. And we didn’t get to this place because we were wishing and praying. We got to this place because we asked the police force to give up an extra day of leave; we got to this place because we’ve invested in our communities; we got to this place because we’ve been moving guns off the streets one by one, bit by bit.

“We have invested more money in (the Barbados Police Service) since we came to government than the last administration did in the last ten years that they were in office. If you go back to our Covenant of Hope, it said the first claim on public resources would be citizens’ safety and security,” Marshall said.

The Attorney General also dismissed criticisms from political opponents that the Mottley administration has not done enough to address the island’s crime problem.

“When we came to government guns and other things, contraband, were coming through the ports like mad and we said it had to stop. And we invested millions of dollars in a new scanner to try to stem the inflow of guns and contraband and it has been working,” he stated. (BT)