I have been accused of taking land & giving to white people- Hon Pickering
Speaking during the continuation of the Second Sitting of the Second Session of the Third House of Assembly today, October 31, 2016, Hon Pickering said, “Land is such a sacred issue you get beat up left right and centre for land, for stuff you don’t even know anything about. I’ve been accused of thieving people land, taking people land, giving it to white people all kinds of story…”
He further said he has also been accused of creating a land situation in Josiah’s Bay. “I met my grandfather who has been there since 1978 and a number of people down there fighting…I have been accused of taking the land from the people them. I say help us Jesus.”
Hon Pickering was addressing the issues of land and its worthiness for agriculture in the territory as he made his contribution to the debate on the motion allowing Government to borrow $1.5M to “move forward” with the Greenhouses in Paraquita Bay.
Residents blame politicians for land issues
It was back in May of last year that several persons were very candid about the situation they face in the Josiah’s Bay community as it relates to land ownership.
“We can’t let the politicians come and do as they like at Josiah’s Bay. We have to tell them what we want. They don’t care about us all, what they care about is the money,” said a resident of Josiah’s Bay during a meeting held at the East End/Long Look Community Centre to discuss a development plan for Josiah’s Bay on May 5, 2015.
At that meeting, there were no mincing of words and smooth plastering of the issues relating to the lands and properties owned by residents of Josiah’s Bay as they straight talked about their concerns when they met with Chief Planning Officer of the Town and Country Department of the Government of the Virgin Islands, Mr Gregory W. Adams at that meeting.
Hon Pickering or no other government Minister was present at the meeting at the time.
Meanwhile, in this continuing session, Opposition Leader Hon Julian Fraser RA (R3) will be asking Hon Pickering if he is selling out the concessionary rights of Prickly Pear Island, taking it from a local and giving to a non-local.
56 Responses to “I have been accused of taking land & giving to white people- Hon Pickering”
What about leasing and leave it remain the property of the BVI. If that is true this man is taking advantage because he see they do not care a damn about us .But this time we will fight for our land.
Harry boy i aint sure bout d leasing either , because if they ( gov ) lease to locals they give them /we 25 years ; but the white man dem get 99 years and then they renew it before it expires .
Them same lease lands are being sold from one white man to the next whicknI think is wrong . If government rent you land and you leaving the territory then a NEW lease should be sorted out with the government ;it is the same --it dem letting happen when these businesses are sold and employees are sold also ( modern day slavery) New owners / new business / new rules , then le me get my severance pay and begin a new with mynnew boss
Them NDP boys got we for fools
But there will be an UPRISING for all the UNJUST that is being put on poor people
I have lived here for 30 years. I am white and I suffer racial prejudice every day here in the BVI. We are talking about apartheid type prejudice but it is a constant irritant especially when I have to deal with mid-ranking civil servants. The more senior civil servants are not so bad, and the juniors are mostly fine. Whilst the prejudice against down islanders might not be racist, it is prejudice never the less and it is very sad.
Let's not pretend that "white people" haven't intentionally segregated themselves on the island. None of your children attend the public schools and they all populate private schools in an effort to 'escape' co-mingling with blacks. In fact, attendance to those schools ensures the only blacks your children come into contact with on a regular basis are white washed.
I don't see that as racial prejudice on the side of blacks at all. How many blacks have you spoken to? How many do you know as personal friends? The answer is probably very few because you, yourself are segregated from the wider communities on the island by choice. It is a natural reaction for us to view you as different as you have removed yourself from the very community that you claim is ostracizing you.
Please calm down. We aren't planning to enslave you all just because you're a minority.
How about looking at the individual and his character, and not wave the hand.
We will cease to stop talk about "white and black" people when white people stop hating us and stop discriminating against us and stop trying to isolate us and stop thinking that they are superior and we are inferior. The day that stop, the day we stop juxtaposing the two colours.
they tried to give 131 acres of beachfront land to a white guy on Anegada, signed the letter of intent. A word in the previous governor's ear put a stop to this!
Maybe that is why they had the topic hot, hot about big airport on Anegada. You think any of those men we are giving and leasing land to would have leased any black man an acre? People, wake up. One befriended a local man on the Southern Cays, he sold him an acre, man moved the bound post to claim more. Now, the people want to land lock the black people. This is the nature of those people. Everywhere they go, they making trouble, segregate themselves because they always think them better with their non-melaninated skin. Why we let them to these shores bothers me. If they did it in the past, they will do it again -- enslave us. It will come to a head one day. They ran left it and they will run again. Don't frigg us up, man. We believe also that the Minister of Natural Resources is not dealing in the best interest of the Virgin Islands people. We will fix him next four years like a sheep without a pasture. Not in this country, we say. Our ancestors died to give us this land and we are not handing it over without a fight.
Doc take the lead fire him or you all will be fired unless your entire ndp team don't care about we as a country
Ralph was asleep but he balls is bigger than yours cause he did it when it had to be done
If you have a toothache, do you go to a mechanic? If your jeep breaks down, do you go to dentist? Struuppees!
Seriously imagine the governor made a remark about black men. Imagine the uproar. Imagine Farrage bemoaned all the dark men crossing the border. There would be outrage. I find his comments as offensive as this post.
Not all white people are bad. Some stood for justice with Martin Luther, but we got a lot of prejudice white people in this lil Tola. They envious, begrudgeous and wicked. They want our land because we owned 60 percent of it at one time. Between the white surveyors, the white realtors, the half-white Ministers and half-white locals, they are hell bent on taking our land. Let one come and ask me to sell them a piece. I bet they would never pass back when I tell them the answer and give them a price. We need a good shaking up in this place, Labour, Immigration, Natural Resources. Do not enslave our people again, please. We are surrounded by them on the outer islands. This is not good at all. Who don't hear going feel. The money they got under the table will not be able to withstand the anger that would boil in the people.