Gov’t to address non-appointment of fire officers

Blackmoore said there are many fire officers in non-appointed positions
Blackmoore said there are many fire officers in non-appointed positions

Minister for National Security, Rayburn Blackmoore has said the government of Dominica will address the issue of non-appointed fire officers on the island during this financial year.

According to him a number of fire officers, who have been placed in temporary positions, have not yet been appointed over the past nine years.

“We have to ensure that we take care of those who take care of us and in doing so the condition of work that you operate under is critical,” he stated at a handing over ceremony of two ambulances from the government. We have to ensure that those of you who have been around for a while, can go to your respective banks and contract loans to build your houses, to send your children to school and care for yourself.”

He added, “I am so happy having been advised by the permanent secretary and the acting fire chief, at the time, that the issue of so many persons in temporary positions, not been appointed actually being addressed. I want to make reference to the number of acting positions that of course have to be addressed going forward.”

Meantime Blackmoore said the improvement to the fire house in Portsmouth will be done.

“I am aware of some of the conditions of work that you currently work under and we met several months ago in the same location, and during this financial year we will ensure that the requisite improvement that needs to be done at the building down in Portsmouth to house your officers, will be done,” he revealed.

Copyright 2012 Dominica News Online, DURAVISION INC. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.

Disclaimer: The comments posted do not necessarily reflect the views of DominicaNewsOnline.com and its parent company or any individual staff member. All comments are posted subject to approval by DominicaNewsOnline.com. We never censor based on political or ideological points of view, but we do try to maintain a sensible balance between free speech and responsible moderating.

We will delete comments that:

  • contain any material which violates or infringes the rights of any person, are defamatory or harassing or are purely ad hominem attacks
  • a reasonable person would consider abusive or profane
  • contain material which violates or encourages others to violate any applicable law
  • promote prejudice or prejudicial hatred of any kind
  • refer to people arrested or charged with a crime as though they had been found guilty
  • contain links to "chain letters", pornographic or obscene movies or graphic images
  • are off-topic and/or excessively long

See our full comment/user policy/agreement.

24 Comments

  1. AH LICK IT TWICE
    October 5, 2015

    nowadays the people who get the promotions are not the hard workers and brilliant thinkers but the party hacks who have nothing to contribute to any governmental department…. they just make a call and they get appointed in positions when they are not recommended by heads of department but by ministers… establishment is a FAKE institution run by political mucheborden that say, yes yes to anything a minister request, without question.

  2. Yo Sort Y cochon
    October 3, 2015

    “We have to ensure that we take care of those who take care of us and in doing so the condition of work that you operate under is critical,” he stated at a handing over ceremony of two ambulances from the government. We have to ensure that those of you who have been around for a while, can go to your respective banks and contract loans to build your houses, to send your children to school and care for yourself.”
    This very interesting boy! Are they boyz-nous ? like crazy Tees, the bishop etc .

  3. Dominica's pride
    October 2, 2015

    I wonder about the qualified teachers who have been in the system for years; still being paid as unqualified teachers ….(though in some cases they’re more qualified than the principals)!!!
    Dominica eh…rewarding the mediocre and demotivating the performers!???

    I feel your pain fire officers.

  4. grell
    October 2, 2015

    Blackmoore continue to show the incompetence of this wasted government Nine years dude should keep your mouth shut.

    • indira Ghandi
      October 2, 2015

      Well these firemen have patience.
      Is people like Blackmore that should be acting. All those incompetent ministers are appointed straight awAy and they have those hard working teachers and firemen acting. Nonsense.
      Instead of all those ministers and all those u necessary diaspora ministers getting many thousands of dollars for no work done.,the country would benefit if we employ a few more fireofficers.

      • ex fire officer
        October 4, 2015

        is not patience, when your chief and your PM is high school mates and good buddies, what do you expect?

  5. whyknott
    October 2, 2015

    Boss talk..talk and more talk. two words that must come out of this minister’s mouth whenever he speaks are requisite and moving forward…..

  6. real talk
    October 2, 2015

    The government can’t be blame directly for this, there are people in position who are responsible for promoting and they are not doing it so therefore the higher heads has to take the responsibility of doing it. (Trying to keep a black man down.)
    Whereas there are people in the police force who has never gotten a promotion ( more than 15 years service) and they are more than capable/ qualified of performing their duties and they are not being promoted and officers who are fresh in the police force are being promoted.

    Politicks they playing

  7. jonathan st jean
    October 2, 2015

    This pronouncement by Mr Blackmoore makes me want to laugh.You see I’ve heard of Hollywood, Bollywood so this must be Labourwood(public servants made to act)I don’t believe the Minister when he made his empty offer.When the late Dr Eric Williams of T&T was in office,he had his ministers give him a signed,but undated letter of resignation.It worked to keep them in line and loyal to him.Mr Skerritt is doing the same thing by keeping all those actors,acting.So as not to lose favor with the government they have to be actors,some for as many as 9 years.
    Where is the Civil Service Association in all of this.It has lost its teeth and can’t fight effectively for and on behalf of its members. The members in turn because they are actors who fear losing their acting positions can’t or won’t stand up and be counted to fight for themselves. The actors guild (CSA) is defanged.Who is Prince Machiavelli? It must be Mr Skerritt. Woe be onto those whose eyes are not open.

  8. October 1, 2015

    Hello and good evening my people. Well am just amazed as to how things operate in my sweet Dominica . How can someone be a Fire Officer for nine years and be in that posisition temporary. Every Government employee should be in there position for a probation period of about a year and a half to three year and once that probation period is over they should automatically become a full fledge Government employee. In that way if they must be removed they must have an administrative hearing before they can be dismissed . Now based on this article Mr Blackmoore is the Minister of National security therefore he should be concerned about Internal and External threats to our country not the fire department or ambulance services. The ambulance services should be under the jurisdiction of the Fire Chief and not Mr Blackmoore. All I see is the same people going from Government position to Government position but no one is asking about there qualifications to hold that position.

    • Francisco Telemaque
      October 2, 2015

      Tony, they are considered the same as a “none-established” worker, normal probation period the world over as far as I know is maximum nimiety days! Skerrit keep such workers hanging on in order to ensure their votes, nevertheless, they may work for the rest of their life, and die without any security as a government retirement pension.

      But you see; that is Dominica where everything and anything Skerrit slap in the face of these people are absolutely accepted; our people lack the courage to even look at Skerrit in his face when they are speaking to him, they hold their heads looking down to the ground while he levels his size ten feet in their behind!

      I am stating that with no exception, from the most illiterate to the most educated they are like children to Skerrit.

      I do not know when our people are going to realize that our way in Dominica is abnormal. More than 70% of Dominicans believe under Skerrit they are living in heaven, while they are burning in hell and not…

      • Wife of an Officer
        October 2, 2015

        I know exactly what you mean. However, I had the opportunity to be locked in an elevator with him in the financial centre, but because of pure anguish, I could say nothing. His presence to me felt demonic.

    • ex fire officer
      October 4, 2015

      the fire department falls under the Ministry of National Security

  9. sweetpea
    October 1, 2015

    Ok that’s good, I hope there will be appointment if teachers soon.

    • indira Ghandi
      October 2, 2015

      Dominica is just a BIG JOKE. SEE WHO IS MINISTER OF NATIONAL SECURITY.
      SEE WHO IS MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE.THE COUNTRY HAS BEEN Y
      TURNED INTO A BIG BIG JOKE.
      DUMMY NICA.

  10. Francisco Telemaque
    October 1, 2015

    “Minister for National Security, Rayburn Blackmoore has said the government of Dominica will address the issue of non-appointed fire officers on the island during this financial year.”

    Blackmoore, we know why these people have worked for nine years without being appointed. They are politically hand, picked by a politician, and was sent to fire chief who was told by the politician to employ them!

    If they ginned employment via the normal civil service procedures, they may have gone through the public service commission set up specifically to oversee the employment of civil servants. We see that all the time in backward places like Dominica!

  11. Liberty
    October 1, 2015

    What a total disgrace that fire personal have not been Appointed in a NineYear period.
    We have been told that we have never had it so good and now we find out the true state of this governments administration.

  12. October 1, 2015

    Comrade as you know your ex collegue is always keeping it Real. but in my opinion you have to agree, if you listen to your speech you will admit that you kind of make a mess of it. Honestly! comrade spin has its place, and i am afraid you have your reputation to protect, my friend protect and preserve it. The Damage has been done, but we are human. Good luck going forward blessings to you and your family.

  13. Doc. Love
    October 1, 2015

    Maysier quick, quark :lol: .

  14. Free Thinker
    October 1, 2015

    Oh boy, I am tired of these lies, cheap talk and propaganda. Fire officers, take these promises with a pound of salt, in fact its not going to happen. The minister said, “We have to ensure that we take care of those who take care of us” and after nine long years, when conditions were better that could be done. Blackmoore also said that the improvement to the fire house in Portsmouth will be done. We need to ask when, because in this season of cancellations and no duty free and a billion dollar begging spree and a dead economy, you expect these promises to be fulfilled?

    • Shaka zulu
      October 1, 2015

      Put them in the hotel in cabrits. Is a government owned hotel so it ain’t go cost them a cent.

  15. Lucy
    October 1, 2015

    Are the Fire officers are going to made permanent or not Rayburn? That is the question. Quit beating around the bush and cut through the chase man.

  16. ??
    October 1, 2015

    ….. over nine years and only now you all realized that? Well, you can’t blame this on the UWP, lol.

    • Just Me
      October 1, 2015

      nice one. lol

Post a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

:) :-D :wink: :( 8-O :lol: :-| :cry: 8) :-? :-P :-x :?: :oops: :twisted: :mrgreen: more »

 characters available