Thompson: Stop Greenland now
Publication: Sunday Sun / Section C
Paper Section And Page: 3C
Paper Date: Sun, Dec 17, 2000
OPPOSITION leader David Thompson said yesterday the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) could not be accused of politicising the Mangrove Pond and Greenland landfills.
He said when he toured the Greenland Landfill last year and after getting an insight of the area not from engineers, experts, or consultants but from residents of the area he left convinced that within a week Government would announce that it was withdrawing from the project.
He said in the same way Government, in answer to a parliamentary question, said it was abandoning construction of the St. John polyclinic because it was not a suitable site it could also have come out and made the same announcement about Greenland. The St. John MP felt incineration ought to be an alternative option and the only divide on that was the cost but since then there were other sources of finance available.
Money was becoming available from the divestment of the Barbados National Bank and the Insurance Corporation of Barbados and in addition there were many other financial instruments which could be used to raise the funds including joint private/public initiatives.
Thompson said that when the DLP was in Government, it was told by the Barbados Labour Party that the buck stopped at the minister but now the roles were reversed, whenever the "shoe got tight" they would not accept responsibility but blamed the technocrats.
He was referring to comments by former BLP leader Sir Henry Forde who appealed to Government to reveal all the facts on Greenland and said the public should understand that Government accepted what it considered to be the best professional advice even though sometimes it may prove wrong.
Thompson said Government should seek an independent source to advise it on the pros and cons of incineration versus landfilling. "Letıs abandon Greenland, letıs put a halt to it now," he urged Parliament.