Hardwood + deadwood = Firewood

Boy, Opposition Leader David Thompson ain't letting go of this Hardwood issue.

What was being promoted as a solution to low-income housing in Barbados has turned into a public relations nightmare for Government, and I suspect it may lead to the downfall of the Government Minister caught up in the melee, Clyde Mascoll.

The latest news is that Thompson has given Government a 30-day ultimatum to fully investigate Hardwood Housing Factory Inc., or he will move a no-confidence vote against Minister of State in the Ministry of Finance, Clyde Mascoll.

In a speech last night in Deacons, Thompson painted a litany of charges involving the factory, including reports of sexual abuse, bounced cheques and uncertified employment of non-national workers, and accompanied them with a giant screen slideshow of documents. You can read the full story here.

The Oppostion Democratic Labour Party (DLP) must be loving this. For those of you not familiar with the political scene in Barbados, Clyde Mascoll used to be the Leader of Opposition before he jumped ship to the ruling Barbados Labour Party (BLP)in January last year. Never before in the history of politics in Barbados (or anywhere else as far as I know) has a leader of a political party crossed the floor.

Now the DLP has turned up the heat on Mascoll, who has moved from being Government's most vocal opponent to being its strongest apologist. I'm a bit of a conspiracy theorist, but I always wondered if that was a coincidence. I always had this feeling that Mascoll was being set up, because how could the BLP move from making fun of his looks, his family and his past to welcoming him with open arms? Politicians are strange creatures.

Anyhoo, Mascoll would have to know. He made up a real hard bed so he has to lie in it. It would look really bad if the Prime Minister has to fire him on the eve of an election, that's all I'm saying....

Photo of Clyde Mascoll: www.caribbeannetnews.com