Barbadians are not happy with Government’s habit of acting without consulting the public who elected it.
That was the assessment of Opposition Leader Ralph Thorne during his Reply to the 2025 Financial Statement and Budgetary Proposals delivered by Minister in the Ministry of Finance Ryan Straughn on Monday in the House of Assembly.
Thorne suggested that the Government’s actions in the controversy surrounding the Holetown project, were at odds with Barbadian historical interests.
“I’ve accused him (Minister Straughn) of being the hardest-working member of this Government,” he said.
“Maybe he is so steeped in his labours that he stands unaware as to what is happening in Holetown – that the people of this country are in rebellion against Holetown development. That is the area of settlement by the British, and that is a celebrated place. For the British, that is a sacred place. And this Government has taken a position against the wishes of the people of this country – not only the English but Barbadians as well.”
“I used to go to something called Holetown Festival back in the ’80s and ’90s when life around here was so beautiful and peaceful. Hundreds of people would spend that weekend at the Holetown Festival. It really was a wholesome activity. Nobody went down there and fought. Nobody went down there and killed anybody and received an excuse to make a lock-up down there so you could kill people and go home and sleep. And that adds to the sacredness of the place. To the consciousness of many Barbadians, Holetown is an oasis – a place of peace, a place where the visitor met the locals and lived peacefully.”
Thorne was referencing the Barbadians and visitors who publicly protested the Government’s plans to sell the Holetown Civic Centre to make way for a new tourism development.
However, on March 7 Senior Minister Dr William Duguid countered claims in the House that the Government withheld information about the controversial project, explaining that discussions about the redevelopment had been ongoing for nearly three years.
Delivering a Ministerial Statement, Duguid addressed the growing concerns regarding the Government’s redevelopment plans for the Holetown area, home to several critical public facilities, including the police station, public library, and magistrate’s court.
He also explained the process which led to the Insurance Corporation of Barbados Limited’s (ICBL) winning bid to develop a 100-room five-star hotel along the beach-front at Holetown, and how the developer would also be responsible for the construction of a $40 million Civic Centre at nearby Trents, in St James.
Thorne warned that the Government’s handling of the Holetown issue could have significant political consequences albeit ones that may benefit his political interests.
“The mention of Holetown and the fact of the controversy at Holetown could cost this Government dearly. It could,” he cautioned.
