The less than one-month-old Santa Mall on the Roseau Bayfront which featured an array of Christmas decorations and entrepreneurs is being shut down for what appears to be an outcry due to unfair treatment from the public.
The shimmering elaborate holiday displays which formed part of the ‘Christmas district‘ was organized by Parliamentary Representative for the Roseau Central constituency Mellisa Poponne-Skerrit, who said that it will create opportunities for the business and tourism sector and will bring relief to the many small businesses who have been impacted by the pandemic.
In a Facebook post earlier today, the wife of the Prime Minister announced that she had decided to shut down the Santa Mall on the bayfront completely from today, without going into detail as to why this decision was taken.
Dominica News Online (DNO) has also received a letter sent to the vendors/ entrepreneurs from the Roseau Christmas District Committee informing them of the decision to close the
Santa’s Mall as of Thursday 23rd December.
“It is with great sadness that we write to formally confirm that Santa’s Mall operations are cancelled as of Thursday 23rd December. The Roseau Christmas District Committee extends a sincere apology to all for the inconvenience this has caused for your business operating plan for the season. Even though we have lost Santa’s Mall abruptly, we have gained experience. Every cloud has a silver lining,” the email said.
According to the letter, a percentage of the application fee will be reimbursed to all registered vendors who are asked to contact 1 767 614 7097 to arrange the settlement and provide a receipt for the issuance of reimbursement.
Initially, Mrs Poponne-Skerrit had announced that the mall which operated daily from 9 am to 12 am, was expected to remain open until January 2022.
Many have assumed that this decision was taken due to public reaction that such an event may prolong the pandemic as it opens the door for the virus to spread among participants. DNO has attempted to make contact with the Roseau Central MP to confirm the reason for the closure but this effort proved futile.
However, just yesterday, Mrs Skerrit took to social media, encouraging the public to “bring their family down to the Santa’s mall for a wonderful Christmas shopping experience.” This came hours following a statement from the police which discouraged public gatherings over the holidays even among family members.
Several individual took to social media to express their views:
“I thought it wasn’t supposed to have family gatherings, so bring your family and come where? Allu really serious man? So none of the rules and protocols not for the Christmas mall? So contradicting…hmmm”…
” We can bring d family down to bayfront but we cannot bring the family together on Christmas day. You see that Commonwealth.”….
”For real then, bring my family to Santa mall,and risk getting COVID but can’t go to their homes even I Know their status… Happy Christmas merry new year tan”…
”So Santa’s Mall is Covid free!!! Ok then carry on. Lovely Dominica,” were just some of the comments made by citizens on Poponne-Skerrit’s Facebook post.
From the onset, senior pastor Randy Rodney was one of the many voices who advocated against the staging of such an activity.
“..doh go there, you hear me, don’t go there, why because that’s a source of the transmission of the virus. All they are doing is putting us at risk for them to come back and tell us is we that do it. Is not we that do it, is all you that putting us at risk, stop putting us at risk,” Rodney stated.
While delivering his impassioned speech, he lamented that protocols set by Health Ministry officials are being ignored by the government, which he says sends a double-standard signal to the masses who are asked to abide by the same health protocols stipulated by law.
“They give us restrictions like nobody’s business for the church, they say in the act that there must never be 250 people in one setting… but they opening all kinds of things that have more than 250 people. what is that, is that science or marjee, or are they putting you at risk?” he questioned.
Pastor Rodney questions permission granted to Prime Minister Skerrit’s wife Melissa to hold a super spreader event on the Roseau Bayfront, while churches are restricted to a few people. He asks, what kind of message are we sending out there, when the church has more restrictions than a potential super spreader that is allowed to be operationalized?
“We have too much marjee around us. They didn’t open the church but had everyone on the bus. Now you opening Christmas village to spread the virus then you going to come and tell us what, you have to close the church again. the devil is a liar,” he declared.
“So don’t go on the Bayfront. I don’t care who organizes it and if all you go on the Bayfront before all you come back here go and get a test. And if all you disobey what I am saying to you and you go on the Bayfront and then have to go for a test I want them to charge you twice for the test. doh go on the Bayfront leave their Bayfront for them,” the senior pastor added.
Video of displays being taken down
Letter from Roseau Christmas District
No surprise that this inane initiative, conceived by clueless Melissa, was fraught with massive, potential harm to Dominica. Luckily, the people’s voices against this pending disaster prevailed.
An uneducated, idle mind as Melissa’s always portends disaster. The woman and her ill-advised ambitions remind me of the saying that common sense is not so common.
Dominica is a unique place. Only in Dominica an extremely slow-witted person with no known academic achievement, no known activism or advocacy in the community, no patriotism for her native country (she chose to give birth to her two children in the U.S.) can become a MP. Only in Dominica.
Is it true that two vendors at the Mall tested positive for COVID? In the name of Jesus Melissa and company will vomit the truth
Gucci is even more clueless than that so called husband of hers. In reality though, I’m not surprised. Bony and Clyde springs to mind…
And most of the vendors were her own anyway under the disguise names of Jean Pierre, Baltazar, Harry etc. etc.
The pastor has valid points but his manner of delivery leaves much to be desired. This isn’t how a senior pastor should present his views on a matter of national significance.
@Disappointed, this is a low blow to be focussing on the method of delivery rather than the message and the great results it achieved. You sound rediculous attacking the messenger. Thank God that someone delivered the message and the contents and method of delivery got the desired effect. Your gripe is nothing but sour grapes
How embarrassing.
Sad, but maybe that was the best thing to do since this devil of Corvid-19 will not go away. Lord help us!
Never mind this devil of Covid… I’m much more troubled by that devil in the Financial Center.
One positive stems from this Christmas charade.
To make way for it, the pile of stones with a hole through the middle, which for years posed as Dominica’s concept of sculpture, was demolished.
Another “bling” by Melissa. What policy has she presented to parliament on behalf of the residents of the constituency she represents? All Melissa knows is bling. Recall her claim to Fame was the introduction of half nakedness to carnival in Roseau. The “queen of bling” needs to act like someone who is educated and future oriented and put forward sensible proposals for the development of a modern capital city of Roseau not the wishy-washy projects that we see from her thus far. She organized row-row on the river and now this at a time of the pandemic. She also claimed responsibility for bringing an international gospel artist to Dominca. These activities at this time are grossly irresponsible. Is this all she is capable of? Her portfolio should be that of ‘festivity and nativity’ for which a high level of education are not a requirement.
What are you asking of Melissa, the impossible? Are you seriously expecting anything better? The woman is brainless!
Who the hell is in charge here. A glorified bar maid or qualified health experts. Dominica going to the dogs like this. Dangerous madness this.
Wow, people power is not dead in Dominica after all. Wonderful news. This project
would never have been allowed in the first place if it were anyone other than the PM’s wife.
But wait nuh? Since when all you listen to people? Nice try but come again.
This has got to be the most unprofessional announcement I have ever seen from an official. A one-sentence facebook status to address the public? That’s the standard now? DNO shouldn’t have to be screenshoting this rudeness.
I’m even surprised the post still up. I thought, at least, she would take it down and issue a statement with more class and respect but my expectations were high.
Sounds like a 3rd grader wrote that sentence…..so grammatically wrong…
Melissa is third grader level!