SHAME! Shipping Registry locked out for days, Landlady says 1-year unpaid rent due
Word reaching our news desk is that a government department, the Shipping Registry that occupied the third floor in the Cutlass Tower, a privately owned Building in Road Town, owes the Landlady Ms Patsy C. Lake unpaid rent from September 2017 to date.
Word is that Ms Lake made numerous efforts to communicate with the Premier’s Office on the matter but nothing has been done. The Premier’s Office is the Ministry under which the Shipping Registry falls, and the Landlord said she spoke to Premier and Minister of Finance himself, Dr the Hon D. Orlando Smith (AL), however, to date Friday, November 2, 2018 nothing has happened, not even a response to letters sent according to someone familiar with the matter.
It is the understanding of our newsroom that the Landlady then changed the lock on the door of the third floor in the Cutlass Tower a few days ago shutting the government department out of the office. Reports are that after the action, an Officer from the Premier’s Office at the Assistant Secretary rank made attempts to fix the issue after some year plus of no action by government to negotiate. It is believed the Landlady’s Attorney is now also involved in the dispute.
Pay up after a year
The Government owes the Landlady thousands of dollars over the one year plus period according to a source in the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry of Finance is also renting office space in the Building.
An inquiry made to the Acting Permanent Secretary at the Premier’s Office, Ms Dawn J. Smith, was not immediately responded to, however, it is unclear when and how the matter will be resolved. The NDP Administration is known to have left the county in financial shambles, as per answers to questions in the House of Assembly.
Power cut at another gov’t building
Meanwhile, it is our understanding that the power was cut to the Multi-Purpose Sports Complex, another government-run facility for lack of electricity bill payment. A check made yesterday Thursday, November 1, 2018, confirmed that the power was still off but it is unclear for how long and when the matter will be resolved.
This is not the first time that the building run by the Recreational Trust, a statutory body under the Ministry of Education and Culture is facing such an issue over the past 6 years. An inquiry to the Executive Director of the Trust, Mr Stephen Payne was not responded to up to publication time.
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36 Responses to “SHAME! Shipping Registry locked out for days, Landlady says 1-year unpaid rent due”
This Govt makes me sick to my stomach. Vote Richard Branson for premier he’ll turn this place around
Reason is that you cannot owe the government a penny.
What a shame indeed.
You just can't win with Patsy. SMH