‘Don’t fall for it’

PM cautions Bajans not to let scare tactics distract them

Prime Minister Mia Mottley is urging Barbadians not to be deceived by political tactics being used to instil fear and/or confusion by the Democratic Labour Party (DLP).

She contended that Barbados was on an upward trajectory following the COVID-19 pandemic and some people wanted to distort this progression to paint a different picture.

Noting that the current administration had many achievements under its belt, Mottley said it was important for Barbadians to remain focused and not be distracted by efforts to mislead the nation.

She was speaking during the annual general meeting of the Barbados Labour Party’s (BLP) St Michael South branch on Sunday, at the Graydon Sealy School, St Michael.

The Prime Minister said the DLP was responsible for a lot of the public misconceptions and misinformation surrounding the transition into a republic state, the recent budget, the Trident identification cards, the nationality of the Governor of the Central Bank and a debt restructuring programme the party said would occur earlier this year.

“We have people using the technology for nefarious purposes, anonymously, hiding like cowards and sending things out with the pure intention of causing fake news to cause panic . . . ,” the Prime Minister said.

“You must be able to understand the difference between advocating on behalf of a class and taking action on your own behalf . . . . I need Barbados to settle, I need Barbados to stay focused.”

Mottley said the fake news was being used as a means to a political end. She said that if Barbadians paid close attention, they would realise that the tactics being used now were similar to those used back in 2021 when former DLP candidate for St Lucy Verla De Peiza was battling Reverend Guy Hewitt for the party’s presidency.

“What you are also facing is increased activity, not because we [Barbados] have an election around the corner but because there is an [internal] election around the corner. The election around the corner is in George Street [DLP headquarters], not in the country of Barbados,” she said.

Speaking about last week’s controversy involving claims that the Government was trying to establish gender neutral bathrooms in schools, the Prime Minister dismissed it as another tactic to mislead the public.

“We are carrying along and having people make all kinds of fake assertions . . . . How can you introduce gender-neutral bathrooms in secret? If that was the intention of the Minister [of Education], first of all she would have had to tell Cabinet and she couldn’t get past there,” Mottley said

“But secondly, she would have to tell the Chief Education Officer and the chief would have to tell the education officers and the education officers would have had to tell the principals and the principals would have had to tell the teachers and the teachers would have had to tell the children . . . .”

She also implored media workers to fact check before carrying reports.
(SZB)