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Artist, Heather-Dawn Scott and John “Tifase” Howell stating why they oppose the former official residence of Barbados’ first Prime Minister, Errol Barrow being leased to the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Barbados Charity.

Not here so!

Artist Heather-Dawn Scott has added her voice to those who oppose the former official residence of Barbados’ first Prime Minister, Errol Barrow, being leased to the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Barbados Charity.

 

She has even taken it a step further and has placed a banner which carries the message, “Not here so, our mirror image says no” out front the Lot 2, Culloden Farm, St. Michael property. She did so on Wednesday while supported by members of the Pan African Coalition of Organisations (PACO) who were present.

Scott said the banner will be up for “two to three days” but she wanted to ensure it was erected ahead of Errol Barrow Day, which will be celebrated on Thursday [today]. She said she wanted to stimulate discussion and cause Barbadians to think about the built heritage that we have and what we can lose.

 

“This is my response to an article in the paper by Reverend Onkphra Wells and I read and my immediate reaction was that we cannot let this building go to Duke of Edinburgh. It is Errol Barrow’s state home, it is his residence. He chose to live here and to think that we can have the Duke’s flag flying… on his house, it seemed so irreverent to me. It seems like a complete mistake. So I immediately just said I am going to make a banner.”

 

Scott said she has nothing against the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Barbados Charity and described it as a “healthy thing intellectually and physically. It is good especially with children.” However, she is of the view that the property “long ago should have been used as a museum to Barrow or the arts or something Barbadian, not something from Edinburgh”.

 

“For me, it hurts me because it is our loss and to let this building get to this stage and still nothing. It is nothing to do with COVID. COVID is new, this house has been here for too long in this state. I am just hoping that people realise what we have and what we don’t use.”

 

Voicing his support for the placement of the banner, PACO’s John “Tifase” Howell stated he hopes persons walking and driving by “will be able to see and hopefully, it will stir up an educational purpose and people would want to know who is this real Errol Barrow, the younger people, that this sign should be up and honouring him in some special way and for the first time they may be knowing this was the official residence just like Ilaro Court is to the Prime Minister of Barbados right now.”

 

Last week, a resolution was laid in the House of Assembly to lease the property to the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Barbados Charity for 25 years. (MG)

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