Refica Attwood, former Executive Director of the Wallings Nature Reserve, is clapping back hard at the Cabinet and accusing several Ministers of trying to tarnish her name and reputation.
On Wednesday, September 28, the Executive discussed the removal of signage and other paraphernalia from the trails of the Nature Reserve by the former caretakers, of whom Attwood was a principal.
The Cabinet said it wants the signs returned since Attwood’s company, the Wallings Nature Reserve Inc., has relinquished control of the National Parks site.
Reportedly, Minister of Agriculture Samantha Marshall has said those signs were contributed by corporate sponsors and, therefore, they ought to be returned. But Attwood strongly denies this.
Attwood, 34, is also irate because of comments made by Government Spokesperson Lionel “Max” Hurst, who told reporters the signs had been sponsored by corporate Antigua, including the West Indies Oil Company Ltd.
In an impassioned Facebook post, she says her outfit received little support from local entities, but enjoyed the backing of international agencies and organizations.
Meanwhile, Attwood says that returning the signage does not make much sense, since the markers are inscribed with the company’s logo and contact numbers.
An angry Attwood says the incompetency of the Gaston Browne Administration shows its members’ level of intelligence.
She notes that donations and sponsorship can be viewed on the company’s website, which details the sums given and how they were disbursed, since the organization’s operations have always been transparent.
Attwood is calling on nationals and residents to make the right choice, come Election Day, in order to stop this type of abuse by those in charge of running the country’s affairs.
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Ummm. Dear govt. Instead you guys go tear down a beautiful strong minded woman .
How we gonna tear down the giant African snails pandemic we got ya.
Sincerely
Fedup
Why does the ABLP consistently pick on black people who are doing positive things. It is apparent that Gaston Browne don’t like black people
@ Simore. Gaston is that you pretending to be Simore. You should take some of your own advice because you are the most crude, callous, rude politician in the world.
Furthermore, it always seems that you like to attack black people who trying to be positive.
What about the Parham boys and the lady by Country Pond. Yet, the project at Long Bay still building on the beach. Why? You know why!
A wanda. A who them want gee wallins…..Antiguans carn….get nothing in a dem own contrry when dem carn get dem way dem le pan people….. Good Lord …. when humpty….Dumpty go up signal….hill me hope she roll Dung and buss she a*&….
You are an AGRESSIVE Person seeking support. Be nice and things will workout. I listened to your recording and You are very DISRESPECTFUL.
@ HORACE J SIMON
Spot on: must be GB saying the young lady is DISRESPECTFUL, if not him then its one of the USEFUL IDIOT.
AND COMING FROM THE MOST DISRESPECTFUL MAN IN ANTIGUA.
GASTON AND ABLP DO NOT LIKE LOCAL BLACK ANTIGUANS, LIKE SAY HE WHITE AND NAR COME FROM NO WAY LAKA MESELF.
PEOPLE, GET RID A DEM. DEM SMELL AN ENRICHMENT SCHEME.
Perhaps she’s “aggressive” because she is passionate about preserving the natural beauty of Antigua and Barbuda. Doing years of difficult work and not being appreciated would make anyone “disrespectful”
So wait… Nobody see the nonsense ah happen yah?
You tek it pon yourself to occupy Crown land and then have a problem when government say them want fu put rules in place so that somebady can account fu the money you ah collect in the name of non-for-profit organization?
Ah just so teefiness start. Me ah ask you now, how much money you get pay ah month time from Wallings? You say you never collect payment, but somebady say you lie.
@ Carter
She occupy crown land and doing a dam good service for the nation, but GASTON TEK UP CROWN LAND AND FLIP IT FOR NEXT TO NOTHING FOR HIM AND HIS CHILDREN AND WOMEN BUT NOTHING WRONG WID DAT, YOU EVIL WICKED ABLP STONE HEARTED SUPPORTERS.
IS GASTON ‘god’? HE WILL BE BROUGHT LOW LIKE NEBUCHADNEZZAR AND EAT GRASS, MARK MY WORD. SUCH UTTER CONTEMPT FOR POOR BLACK ANTIGUANS.
The people is the government the ones is parliament work for us . Government lands is our lands
This is beyonddddddddd me, the ABLP administration nvr knew it was crown land years ago when she started, when she was pleading for help and donations, when she bled, sweat and tears up and down getting shit done. When malicious Pple uproot the planted trees and she tek time plant them back, when she ride she donkey and put down all them signs, when she use weed weed cutter and cutlass chop bush. But alllllllll of a sudden when it’s flourishing and getting recognized internationally it’s crown land right. Samantha Marshall running agriculture ministry for how long and she ass couldn’t come up with nothing sensible and close to what Refica have done but wanna tear down Pple. Gaston and the ABLP ministry carnnn see poor Pple do nun and flourishing and applaud them he haffu get piece of the cake if not all and that is the problem here. Talking about put back sign if ya build ya house on somebody land and the owner come back for the land wa you do? Lef ya house NUHHHHH u move ya house right. So tek up all ya sign them cause is u put them down #Shedamright
Free your mind….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqEcGSF2wxA
Everytime persons speak the truth they like to say you trying to make “my government look bad, “if the people in Parliament will do our work properly, they will look good but too much hypocrisy, victimisation in this party once you are not a puppet for them.These people only care about themselves in power not the population.
This son of Mami_Wata & Papa_Elegba CHTISTened #Jumbee_Picknee at life’s #crossROAD ❌✝️🏥✝️✝️✝️🎿☠️🏴☠️🤞🏾🙅🏾🙅🏾♂️⚔️⚔️⚔️of SWASTIKA & SQUARE says,
There’s no doubt, that something is amiss and as the saying goes, “there are three(3) sides to a story.”
A…apparently, the young lady and her team did not follow proper protocol to acquire the lands. She is not alone, since, there are many squatters all over the Nation.
B…it’s not apparent, but the proof is in the pudding that this young lady and her team have done an excellent job, in creating, maintaining and advancing an organised GREENSPACE which Our Governments have failed to do over the years. The Botanical Gardens in St. John’s is a prime example.
Now speaking of signs and signage, as progressive as these Government officials and agencies are, WHEN, when, when will the ENTIRE NATION have proper street names and signage?
If someone or a NGO gets funding to accomplish this simple task(street signage) will Our Government be upset too?
Jumbee_Picknee
A sugar mill was destroyed years ago in Hatton I can’t recall hearing anything from the cabinet ,now they talking about put back sign
You know Gaston always spouting about empowerment. This was an opportunity to empower someone that looks like us. She did a wonderful job with wallings and should be commended instead of pushed aside. However she was very disrespectful can’t condone that behavior.
@juju beard: Respect,is a two way street.When the one with the Hitler looking stache disrespected man,woman and pickney. I did not hear you guys complaining about his behavior.
@ juju beard
EXACTLY, I DID NOT HEAR YOU GUYS COMPLAINING ABOUT GASTON’S BEHAVIOUR TO MAN, WOMAN AND PICKNEY, BUT NOW YOU TALKING ABOUT DISRESPECT?
THATS Y I DO NOT LIKE YOU HYPOCRITICAL BIRD PEOPLE.
U GOT TO GO. EVIL ENRICHERS
I cannot believe what I am reading. This outpouring for lack of accountability for money donated. This did not start with the elected officials but the civil servants within the ministry of agriculture, many of whom are not supporters of the ABLP administration. Let me say that it is most likely that I vote against ABLP in the upcoming elections.
Now this was brought to the minister of agriculture by the senior members of her staff. The young lady said on her first interview that she is not going to report to Anyone. So should the government allow her to continue collecting money and use it how she feels, if she feel without being monitored. Government failed to monitor her early but that does not mean that she should not be accountable. When I say government I mean the civil servants mostly. In this case the PS , the director of agriculture and the forestry officer. The lands were not rented or leased to her. Yet she has received hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations from locals and international donors to for use at Wallings and wants to be accountable to no one. I do believe that she started with all good intentions but when the money started flowing a change came about. In Antigua we must stamp out corruption and no promises should be made to anyone who refuses to be accountable. Her interview on Observer radio at the start showed that she was bitter about being accountable. So to avoid accountability she resigned.
The same thing is happening whereby any and everyone can open a go fund me account to scam people. Schools are collecting money from fetes , donations etc and becomes upset when asked to be accountable. I am talking about A Head teacher , asking the accounting teacher to do proper accounting of all funds and the treasurer a teacher behaved upset and was refusing.
We need to stamp out corruption everywhere in society. Lack of accountability is in government, it is in our statutory bodies, it is our sport clubs – collecting donations and sponsorship and don’t keep proper records. Many of our churches and church leaders are living like kings and are unacceptable. So I would offer this young lady a proper paying job and have her running the park if she so desire. Under the umbrella of the environmental department. However, she must be accountable for the past funds which I heard there was even a million dollar donations.
I have so much to say against corruption and advocate for accountability in all walks of life. I know that we are close to election but I will also like to see the politics removed from this problem at Wallings.
So I think that the ministry of agriculture should apply to the court and put a freeze on that account. Refica Attwood in her above statement shows indiscipline and arrogance. Can you imagine the donors hearing the above statement made by her- how shameful. Young lady if no one will hire you hearing this behavior both ABLP and UPP they have to be very careful with you.
On the next hand I believe in redemption so the sooner you learn to be decent and approach this situation in a more mature manner, the better.
I listened to the Big issue on Observer radio a few weeks ago pertaining to to the Minister of agriculture been called UGLY. This time it is repeated by a woman, what say you?
Give me a break about her being coarse. She said some things (that are actually true) that I wouldn’t say but if her mouth was smooth she would be in the parliament with the rest of them. Shameful how this has turned out.
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