Black Immigrant Daily News

Last week government backbencher Mark Vanterpool once again got permission to retain his seat in the House of Assembly while one of his businesses secures a government contract.

To make that happen, Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley added a new resolution to the HOA order paper on Aug. 11, and it was immediately considered and voted through by members.

Under the Constitution, a member of the House must vacate their seat if they become a party to a government contract without receiving an exemption by a vote of the HOA.

In this case, a company for which Mr. Vanterpool serves as director — Shoreside East Development Limited — aims to rent out property located at Block 2838C Parcel 100 in Lower Estate, Road Town for use by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Labour, according to the resolution.

The proposed two-year contract, which would commence retroactively as of May 1, 2022, had not yet been formally signed as of Aug. 11, the resolution stated.

Dr. Wheatley noted that the ministry has been leasing space from Pusser’s, which Mr. Vanterpool acquired in March 2021.

“He inherited this lease, and he has not been able to move forward in signing a contract for the lease, because it must first come to the House of Assembly so that he can be exempted from vacating his seat,” the premier said.

There was no debate on Aug. 11 before members voted in favour of Mr. Vanterpool’s exemption. They then recessed, planning to return on Sept. 6.

Previous contracts

Mr. Vanterpool has sought similar exemptions in the past, including for Shoreside’s purchase of a building in the Lower Estate area from Maddog Limited on Nov. 3, 2021.

The government had a two-year lease for the third floor of that building dating back to May 11, 2020, and the remainder of the lease was being transferred to Mr. Vanterpool’s company.

The company was also in the process of negotiating with the government to lease additional space in the building.

Then-Premier Andrew Fahie said during a March 10 sitting that the disclosure was a simple matter of transparently abiding by the laws of the territory. There was no further debate before the motion passed.

COI review

The Commission of Inquiry recently drew attention to the exemption process during its investigation.

In hearings last year, COI Counsel Bilal Rawat cited two September 2020 resolutions, one of which exempted Mr. Vanterpool from vacating his seat due to the fact that his company K-Mark Foods, the parent company of One Mart, signed a contract with government to provide food packages to residents in need during the pandemic.

Mr. Vanterpool told the COI that he had been approached by the Department of Disaster Management and invited to supply the packages. He said he was exempted in the case of his contract to provide food packages during the pandemic lockdown, but he was not “regularly exempted” in the case of providing ongoing general food items for government.

The second resolution concerned the transfer of Crown land to Shoreside. In that case, he explained, the Ministry of Health and Social Development was purchasing approximately six acres of property from an individual, a portion of which contained a seabed lease of which four years had expired.

He said the Crown lease had to be transferred to Shoreside to facilitate the purchase of the property.

COI advice

The COI noted in its final report that the exemption option is necessary in a small territory because of “obvious practical difficulties” where a person may want to seek office without being excluded from competing for government business, as explained by Attorney General Dawn Smith.

However, COI Commissioner Sir Gary Hickinbottom also noted the importance of adhering to the provision that such declarations must be made “as soon as practicable” — and under clear guidelines.

The exemption process is now getting additional scrutiny.

Under the post-COI reform framework agreed by the United Kingdom and VI governments, the governor is required to select a suitable reviewer, such as a senior jurist, to review the practice of HOA members contracting with the government, including statutory boards. The completed review must be delivered to the governor and premier by Dec. 31.

Denniston Fraser, former managing director of the BVI Airports Authority, has been appointed to lead the review, Governor John Rankin announced on Aug. 10.

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Black Immigrant Daily News

Jamaica and West Indies players Rovman Powell and Fabian Allen are among 14 overseas players signed by Dubai Capitals for the inaugural edition of the International League T20 (ILT20) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Dubai Capitals is the sister franchise of 2020 IPL runners-up Delhi Capitals.

Among the current signees, Powell is the only one who is part of Delhi Capitals, the franchise partly owned by the GMR Group.

The 29-year-old Powell represented Delhi Capitals in IPL 2022 earlier this year. In 14 matches for the franchise, he made 250 runs as a lower-order batter, at an average of 25 and strike rate of 149.70 in his very first time in the IPL.

Gulf Giants, MI Emirates and Abu Dhabi Knight Riders with Jamaica and West Indies player Andre Russell are the other teams who have announced their overseas roster for the six-team league.

Each team in the ILT20 will consist of 18 players, including four local UAE players and two other players from ICC Associate countries.

The ILT20 will be played in a 34-match format across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, and will take place between January 6 and February 12.

Dubai Capitals squad so far: Rovman Powell, Dushmantha Chameera, Hazratullah Zazai, Fabian Allen, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Sikandar Raza, Niroshan Dickwella, Dasun Shanaka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dan Lawrence, Blessing Muzarabani, Isuru Udana, George Munsey, Fred Klaassen

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Black Immigrant Daily News

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Macqueripe Bay, Chaguaramas. File photo/Jeff K Mayers

A retired prison officer died on Wednesday afternoon after he hit his head on a rock at Macqueripe beach.

Police said retired ASP Noel Phillip was on a fishing trip when the accident occurred.

In a media release on Thursday the Prison Service said Phillip enlisted in 1990 and was well known as a drill instructor at the Prisons Training College. He was promoted to assistant superintendent of prisons last year and was last assigned to the Prisons Training College as an acting superintendent of prisons before he went on pre-retirement leave.

Executive member of the Prison Officers Association Gerard Gordon praised Phillip in a Facebook post and recalled him making his entire batch do push-ups because someone dropped a baton.

Retired Port of Spain Prison Supt Noel Phillip

“Baton Drills in 1998. Instructor Mr. Noel Phillip. He sees someone drop their baton. The penalty for the entire squad is push-ups. Later on after training I asked ‘Why you made us do all those push-ups?’ He laughed and said his target was 200 per session. Even under his guidance he was always a gentleman and an exemplar. Feeling the same way now, as I felt when Mr Gaston Dick passed away. The good ones always leave us.”

The Prison Service extended condolences to Phillip’s family in its release, saying it hoped they are comforted at this time. It added that Phillip served with pride and was a shining example and a mentor to many.

The release said acting Commissioner of Prisons Deopersad Ramoutar was shocked by the news of Phillip’s death, noted Phillip’s love of life and the outdoors and the passion he displayed in his role as a prisons officer.

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