It is a sad day when the Attorney General of Barbados makes a statement that is so easily proven to be inaccurate – about such an important issue as the Barbados connections to the VECO bribery scandal.
As some of our readers have noticed, a few of us at Barbados Free Press have been treading lightly around Attorney General Dale Marshall because, frankly, we met him a few years back and liked him. We viewed Dale as a lawyer who was basically hardworking and honest and who always acted with the best interests of his clients at heart. Once we even heard of him working for free to help someone who needed a hand but couldn’t afford a lawyer any more than she could afford food for her little ones. (Can’t say too much more about this or Mr. Marshall might get a clue about who we are.)
I guess that was then.
When Dale entered politics we wondered how long he would last – him being an honest type and all that.
Now we’re wondering if Dale won’t do just fine in politics as he seems to be fitting in real well with his contemporaries.
Unfortunately.
Was Dale Marshall Thinking Of A U.S. Hamburger Chain When He Briefed The Media?
In today’s Nation News, Attorney General Dale Marshall tells Barbados that VECO USA can keep the prison contract because VECO company officials have assured him that they never offered one of the accused, Pete Kott, a job as warden at Dodds in exchange for his support of a proposed gas pipeline and a tax bill.
Said Attorney General Marshall…
“I have been assured by Veco that they have always understood that the appointment of any individual to work in the Civil Service in Barbados was a matter for the Government of Barbados.
“They have assured me they never made any representation to any individual that they could or would be posted to Barbados to work as a prison warden or any post in the Government of Barbados,” (See The Nation News Veco USA To Keep Prison Contract)
So VECO says they never did it and that is good enough for Dale Marshall.
I guess the Attorney General of Barbados never spoke to the U.S. FBI about this. I guess he never read any of the hundred online news articles that indicate TAPE RECORDINGS EXIST of the accused and VECO officials discussing the matter of the Barbados warden’s post for the accused.
I guess the Attorney General of Barbados never even read The Nation News article Alaskans Know Of Barbados where Tony Best again repeats that tape recordings exist of the discussion between the accused and VECO officials about the warden’s job in Barbados…
Contained in the indictment against the former lawmakers are transcripts of telephone conversations between the elected officials and Veco executives. In one of them Kott is heard explicitly linking his support of the pipeline and the version of the PPT that VECO wanted approved to the job in Barbados.
“You’ll get your gas line, the governor gets his bill and I’ll get my job in Barbados,” he was heard telling company executives in a teleconference.
… from the Nation News (link here)
That’s Pretty Poor Dale
Dale, you have to correct this right away. You are relatively new with the bunch of thieves that you work with and I hope that you had nothing to do with any of the nonsense that we all know is happening at the prison construction site. You would be wise to not put your reputation on the line to defend corrupt VECO and corrupt officials in Barbados.
Unless, of course, you are already in way too deep.
In which case I say “another good man corrupted by a system that has no rules”.
Damned shame.
29 Comments
May 26, 2007 at 6:52 pm
” Dale, you have to correct this right away. You are relatively new with the bunch of thieves that you work with and I hope that you had nothing to do with any of the nonsense that we all know ……..”
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BFP,
Really….?
Is this not the same Dale Marshall who sat on the NHC board during the Al Barrack contract fiasco…?
Is this not the same Dale Marshall who partnered George Payne while the latter presided as Minister of Housing….?
Is this the same Dale Marshall who is yet to utter a word about the Warrens Building / Al Barrack fiasco…..?
Or does the word….INNOCENT now assumes a different meaning…?
May 26, 2007 at 7:22 pm
if indeed it has continued to be a situation where individuals dare accept bribes before the general development of our beloved country, then they should be punished accordingly. I try to strike a balance in my replies as much as it is feasable, but on a matter such as bribery in a country as renouned as Barbados, it places me in a situation where my individual character feels threatened by the implications of such occurences. For those responsible, seek the lord for your sins. Now about striking that balance i must indeed conclude by acknowledging that governments before this one has benn involved in scandals of similar capacity…and so one may make reference to the formation of gated societies and a hte major payout that was speculated back i the early 1990s. when i say A i must say B.
May 26, 2007 at 7:51 pm
Which executives of VECO did you recently meet with Mr Marshall?
Name them!
Are they or were they on the same board of directors as Bill J. Allen the CEO or Rick Smith the VP of Community and Government Affairs who have both pleaded GUILTY to a number of serious criminal charges and face between 9 and 11 years in prison?
Exactly how many cells will be built at Dodds and justify the latest quoted cost of BDS$292 million.
Also please list ALL other prisons that either VECO or Commonwealth Construction have built around the World?
Which other comapnies tendered for the contract?
May 26, 2007 at 8:11 pm
Dale probably had a meeting with them in Jail.
May 26, 2007 at 8:27 pm
What other project is/was VECO or associated companies working on in Barbados?
May 26, 2007 at 8:36 pm
Why do you all target the polititians all the time? Look around Barbados and all the Government offices. If you want to get anything done (in reasonable time) today you are expected to spread a little joy, or wait till the cows come home.
Maybe we need some whistle blowers. Come on guys (and gals), you all know these facts you list all over the BFP why not come out and do something more than just speculate all the time. Then we will see some real action round this place!
May 26, 2007 at 8:50 pm
Politicians are elected officials, elected to represent the interest of the citizens of a country.
To target Government officers at this stage, could be a witch hunt, that only leads us into dead sand, we must not lose sight of the main objective.
May 26, 2007 at 8:55 pm
Just Asking .. I would love to know the company who will become our strategic partner in the next cash cow – the ethanol plant.
Don’t be surprised if it’s VECO, Mr Marshall thinks they are trustworthy, just very poor estimators.
Prison $100m -> $294m in three years.
May 27, 2007 at 2:50 am
BFP we need a little more clarity.
“In one of them Kott is heard explicitly linking his support of the pipeline and the version of the PPT that VECO wanted approved to the job in Barbados.”
“You’ll get your gas line, the governor gets his bill and I’ll get my job in Barbados,” he was heard telling company executives in a teleconference.”
It is entirely possible that this Pete Knott asked for the job in Barbados but it was never offered to him so Dale Marshall may be telling the truth.
May 27, 2007 at 3:04 am
Hants,
He may be telling the truth…..?
It sounds more like telling tales….!
Mr. Tale Marshall has remained silent on a number of issues that he has intimate knowledge of.
Where were the press conferences / clear the air pronouncements from him on the Barrack issue ?
He needs to tell Barbadians on whose instructions it was to remove Al Barrack as the main contractor and replace him with Everson Elcock for the Warrens Building……!
He needs to tell Barbadians how VECO ended up with the job to build the new prison….!
We need no more TALES from him !
Come to the table…..Mr. Tale Marshall !
May 27, 2007 at 3:07 am
A taxpayer in one of 12 marginal seats
May 26th, 2007 at 7:51 pm
Which executives of VECO did you recently meet with Mr Marshall?
Name them!
Are they or were they on the same board of directors as Bill J. Allen the CEO or Rick Smith the VP of Community and Government Affairs who have both pleaded GUILTY to a number of serious criminal charges and face between 9 and 11 years in prison?
Exactly how many cells will be built at Dodds and justify the latest quoted cost of BDS$292 million.
Also please list ALL other prisons that either VECO or Commonwealth Construction have built around the World?
Which other comapnies tendered for the contract?
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
This wasn’t a tender job, it was BOLT job. But I guess two or more parties could indicate interest.
Wonder how the decision would be made? With the tender process it is usually straightforward. Look at the lowest.
Perhaps the BOLT method throws a spanner in the works and it is no longer a straightforward consideration of whose expression of interest seems to be the lowest.
Commonwealth Construction Canada Ltd. is company #22794 formed 2003-09-05 according to CAIPO. Thanks for the info.
One other question Dale might be able to help us with and one he might feel more comfortable answering.
Is Bill Allen related to Tim Allen?
It just seems like there could be an awful lot of home improvements out of the extra $192Million.
To be fair though, I remember seeing a document on the net some time ago with the new prison listed as having 65o cells. This one appears to have 1250 cells so perhaps there is an explanation.
In addition, the GOB got kind of rushed when the inmates torched Glendairy so they may have been taken an advantage of.
… but Dale isn’t doing himself any favours with this first sortie into the local press about the prison. We may well see more experienced hands put in an appearance.
I am guessing it won’t be too long before we see Ezra’s column addressing the benefits of the BOLT method and the visionaries who came up with it.
Only Ezra could come up with a plausible explanation of what is going on here.
One problem is that it needs to fit in to Clyde Mascoll’s explanation of why local debt is no problem and only foreign debt counts.
Is the $292 Million a foreign debt?
Suspect this might be a challenge for even Ezra and he may have to burn alot of midnight oil.
May 27, 2007 at 3:18 am
Jerome it is important that we deal with the facts and nowhere have I read where VECO officials offered Pete Knott the job in Barbados.
That is why I suggested Mr. Marshall may not be lying.
What is more important is why would a project be allowed a cost overrun of almost 200%. I wonder if the lease cost is based on the final cost of Construction?
BFP is leaving us to assume that because Pete Knott says he will “have his job in Barbados” that it was actually offered by VECO.
What we need is a quote from a VECO official offering the job.
Jerome do you think any of the BLPites will shed more light on this and defend their Attorney General?
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Good morning Hants
Robert bfp here
While you are splitting hairs about which shade of theft is not theft or corruption, on the basis of the fact that charges were laid surrounding the accused’s offer to trade his influence for a position as warden of Barbados’ new jail, I’ll wager that the VECO company officials involved in the conversation didn’t say “OH NO … We can’t give that to you! We never made such a promise!”
There are according to some accounts I read hundreds of hours of taped conversations.
Mr. Marshall is terribly wrong to state that this is all over. There are undoubtedly some very worried people in Barbados right now. How can you even doubt that?
BFP Robert
May 27, 2007 at 4:02 am
BFP check this out.
Newsman arrested
Saturday, 26 May 2007
A freelance photographer with the Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation was arrested Friday night and charged with trespassing while on assignment at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
Freedom of the press?
May 27, 2007 at 7:05 am
It seems now Bill Allen has stepped down as CEO, VECO in favour of his daughter, the company has decided to throw more light on the contract details.
See their last week’s Press Release below:-
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Barbados Prison Update
Commonwealth (a VECO company) is pleased to provide an update on the Prison Project in Barbados. The construction of the Prison complex is now in excess of 80% complete and on schedule for completion later this year. The site has enjoyed an excellent safety record with no Loss Time Incidences after more than 500 days of work involving crews up to 500 workers. We are currently projecting the project will be completed on budget.
Commonwealth has a contract to design, construct and own the prison for a period of 25 years after which ownership will transfer to the Government. Under the terms of the contract, Commonwealth will have no involvement in the operation of the Prison. The Government of Barbados will continue to have sole responsibility for the Prison operation, including staffing.
———————————————-
So it’s not a BOLT contract after all, it’s an ECP i.e. Engineering Procurement and Construction.
If they predict they will deliver on budget does this refer to Ms Mottley’s originally stated ” around $ 100 million “, or does it pertain to VECO’s latest figure of $300 million ( Yup, just gone up again ).
Perhaps Mr Marshall will let us know?
May 27, 2007 at 7:53 am
Dale Marshall facilitated the sale of much land to foreigners when he was a lawyer and made a lot of money.
May 27, 2007 at 10:52 am
StraightTalk..
See Rotondo Weich’s website ‘480 cell prison’,
so with a maximum of 1,250 prisoners, is that back to three-to-a-cell?
$292 million – well thats only $608,333 per cell.
Compare that to the Hilton.
$212 million for 354 rooms or $598,887 per room.
Do you think the cells have high definition plasma TV’s and highspeed internet connections?
I think before its too late, we should keep the prisoners at Harrisons Point and convert Dodds into the the Royal St. Dodds Golf and Country Club. It will have to be graded at least 5 star to justify the very high rates we are going to have to charge.
This way it might partially make up for the 25 hotels and more than a 1,000 rooms we have lost over the last 12 years (see Sunday Sun today).
May 27, 2007 at 11:05 am
”Royal St. Dodds Golf and Country Club.”
Hilarious…but sadly, yes appropriate.
Are you aware that you have just ‘coined’ the alternate name for the penal facility.
Whappen to so-and-so? Man, he up at ‘Royal St.Dodds’ for a holiday.
Haha.
May 27, 2007 at 11:12 am
Hants re Freedom of the Press: Yes, I did read the article.
Quite concerning, but with elections so close those that be are trying their best to limit publicity damage it would appear.
This is why I am convinced that elections will be called at any moment, they are just waiting for the ‘right time’.
On your guard.
May 27, 2007 at 11:20 am
Rumple, I’m not so sure. You’re dealing with a sly mongoose and he KNOWS that we’re all waiting with baited breath for the bell ringing. He may be secretly smiling that sneering, smug grin of his and saying, “Wunna all want elections? Dah is why I gine mek wunna wait down to the end of the line.” Makes sense?
May 27, 2007 at 12:52 pm
Did anyone see BAMP’s response to the recognition of NUPW by the Board of the QEH as bargaining agent for the junior doctors?
I will see if I can find the press release on line but I got the impression that BAMP is the only possible LEGAL union for doctors.
May 27, 2007 at 1:53 pm
Thistle, fair enough, we will see.
May 27, 2007 at 3:34 pm
This needs a real investigation not by Marshall saying all is well and that is fine, this needs the FBI or Scotland Yard involvement to get to bottom of this corruption our local and internal methods fail us at times like these.
May 28, 2007 at 12:51 pm
WIV please tell us when our “local and internal methods” have not failed us.
May 29, 2007 at 3:25 pm
BFP: You have shown clearly how you pick and choose who to criticise and how. Who was the NHC Chairman when the Warrens building was started and when the decisions were made to continue desoite engineering advice? Who was Minister of Housing – not his law partner George Payne? Did Dale know about the large contribution made by the contractor Mr. Al Barrack to the BLP for the 1999 general election?
Start there, BFP and I will provide more once you show less fear and favour.
May 29, 2007 at 3:30 pm
I have spoken about this situation where members of cabinet have continued to act in their private law offices even after becoming ministers of the gov’t nothing moreso that Dale Marshall running a law firm while performing or attempting to perform the task of Attorney General this is gross misconduct if there ever was a case of this.
May 29, 2007 at 3:40 pm
Hi Vezlo
If you will write an expose on Mr. Marshall’s activities we would be happy to publish it… or even a series of “difficult” questions for him would be a start.
As far as our method for picking whom we will criticise, it’s an open forum and there is lots of grist for the mill. We just need more grinders.
If your astonishment is that we are only human, we are sorry that you held us in such high regard.
May 30, 2007 at 3:49 am
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