Dense Shillingford, the CEO of the Macoucherie Estate Limited staged a one-man protest this morning, Tuesday, October 29, 2019, at the Macoucherie River bypass for 8 months of rent that is allegedly owed to him by the government.
Since the collapse of the Macoucherie bridge during Tropical Erika in August 2015, vehicular traffic has been going through the estate utilizing the almost 100-year-old bridge and a bailey bridge. The bailey bridge collapsed in early 2017 and a bypass was built to assist with the flow of traffic. The groundbreaking ceremony was held just before Hurricane Maria for construction of the new Macoucherie bridge to built by the Chinese. Two years later and the bridge is still under construction with a deadline for completion.
Every time it rains heavily, vehicles can not pass on the bypass and the old bridge helps to ease up the traffic. So today, Shillingford used it to his advantage and blocked the old bridge with his tractor, seriously disrupting traffic going north and south of the Macoucherie River.
The Minister for Public Works, Hon. Collin McIntyre, via a phone call, promised to meet Shillingford’s demand for payment for the 8 months owed to him. Shillingford warned that if he is not compensated promptly and adequately, he will block the bridge again until the government of Dominica pays.
So, we are viewing Dominic’s resilient, and reliency at it,s very best.
Since we are first in everything.
We must also be the first in not paying the debts the government Roosevelt Skerrit owes to his creditors.
Dense please leave our PM alone he pay you over half a million dollars already, the new bridge will be completed before the next election, so no more money for you. next time you try that Linton strategy we will make Carbon arrest you.
Respect Dense. My new role model.
Yes, and while you are at it, pay out the rent that you owe to the people that you are renting from on behalf of the Petite Savanne people, and their monthly stipends also.
Did Mr. Shillingford have a permit from chief Carbon? I doubt it. Labourites and Tony Astaphan applauded the arrest and harassment of the Salisbury people for blocking the road to protest and draw attention to the lack of accessible farm roads and bad village roads. What have you to say now? Carbon who operates as the chief enforcer for the Labour regime harasses the UWP but he got egg on his face in this one. This is a lesson to patriots that they have power to stand up for getting what is right in the country.
Jonathan
Stop being irrational and making sarcastic comparisons that are not appropriate. You all just jump at anything negative without any analysis. Blocking the public road cannot be compared to Mr. Shillingford’s bridge on his private property.
I hope that you all will allow people to block roads and mash up private property at any excuse if or when your party takes over. Time is such an equalizer!
If the government owes the man they should pay. This bridge is an alternative to the bypass and is important. I agree that if people perceive that money is being spent unnecessarily they have a right to demand pay if they are owed.
That does not, however justify a comparison with unlawful behaviour which endangers the lives of ordinary citizens who are not part of your quarrel.
Barbara I believe its you who is being irrational with that red pair of spectacles on. If you not happy about Dense’ action then get Dr.Smell-e-Deek and his ton-ton machete to arrest Dense and we shall see the end result. And by the way, yes, time is such an equalizer. Remember your words because time is NOT of the side of the said Dr.Smell-e-Deek and people like you. How long? NOT long!
I notice that most posters are getting excited about this story on Dense behalf, but in fact the bridge and the road to get to it and exit from it is a public right of way. It is part of the original west coast road before the Le Blanc Highway was constructed in the 1960s. The bridge belongs to the state.
That is how one got to Salisbury and Colihaut in the “old days”. The road through the Macoucherie estate yard and along the land to join the present highway is in law a public right of way. In law it is still registered as a public road. In that list, even some non-motorable roads are still listed as public, such as the Chemin Letang track to Grand Fond from Laudat and the track from Soufriere to Tete Morne. If this thing was taken to court, it is probable that the government could easily win their case.
Right of way does not automatically confer ownership. The fact is that the govt. has a contractual obligation to pay mr. Shillingford for the public use of this section of road.
Pay the toll to pass on the bridge! Dense is 100% right in this situation.
Dense, this is T affaire for you to do a big man like you come on man.Thats where we use to pass before I don’t think Grayson would block the road.
That quality construction ended up in the sea after the first serious test as did all the other bridges along the west coast that were constructed by the Chinese! Food for thought.
About three weeks ago skerrit was on new beating his chest about how by the following week all persons the government owes would be paid by the following week amid all the cookout money and so on! Mr shillingford did they forget about you! I support you sir, protest for what belongs to you. Until you are paid the bridges on your property should be blocked.
Not even the greatest Labour spin doctors can spin their way out of this one. After falsely boasting about the tremendous progress the country has made, these enemies of the truth have to now cower in shame and eat their own words. Examine all the countries that are grossly underdeveloped. They have one thing in common. They are all hopelessly corrupt. Corruption is at the heart of Dominica and Haiti’s backwardness and huge economic problems. The more corrupt, the poorer the country. Dominica is the second poorest country in the Caribbean, just barely above Haiti in the bottom position.
Dense Shillingford should not hold the country hostage for 8 months rent… When we come back in power we taking the whole damn estate from him… Who vex bust.
Massa days done… We Labourites fed up of crooks like you trying to milk the country of its scarce resources.
We coming so you better look out. You not doing nothing with it, we have foreign investors that want it… Yes Macoucherie Estate will soon be available for real investors not lazy crooked Freedom ites
He been selling all the damn land already. If he could have sold the plant he would have done it…
@ Bawie for Laba; Sac-way sot come and get it. You, Dr. Smell-e-deek, Shanks and any other person who think they have a right to what is not theirs just come in and see what will happen. If you all think is Dense alone that will be waiting just come and try.
Here we go, they finally admitted it: the country’s scarce resources must only be milked by labour supporters. But we knew that before: Sam, Nassief, McIntyre and of course all red clinic members and DLP voters in general.
I have never met formally Mr. Shillingford, but he is absolutely correct with his actions. He has rejected a visit to the red clinic. A change is coming!!
Millions on hotels nothing on infrastructure. With this and the recent collapse of the Bridge over the Hampstead river…It’s time we get our priorities right.
It is obvious, Roosevelt Skerrit runs things in Dominica!
So with all this cash dlp sharing all over the place they can’t pay all the country debt? Maybe they forgot to pay for 8 months.
Mean while we have a recycle of pie in the sky promises by the modarh. That is my observation.
Boy be careful Elizabeth Xavier now; she might wheal her two edge sword Roosevelt gave to her to chop-up people on you and have you beheaded eh!
The government should designate that bridge as public domain, and the next time Dense pulls a stunt like this they should throw his behind in jail.
For his own land throw him in jail? That will make Dominica a fully fledged dictatorship. What about just paying the man regularly for the use of his property. Simple!
I don’t agree with what dense did. To hold a country hostage like that. Preventing people from conducting business . I dont support any political team .IF YOU OWE,PAY UP. Need I remind you guys the land DOESNT belong to dense . It’s the SHILLINGFORDS LAND . I understand dense is demanding his money . Also HE NEED TO PAY PPL THEIR MONEY TOO. WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND ….M.F ..HE KNOWS
Yeah, the Government should designate your house on your own land as public domain and kick you out.
When they designate your house as public use, don’t complain.
Skerrit said under his leadership as PM that his government has the best track record on paying debts owed
De emperor is wearing no clothes….. some senior clown has been laughing for almost 20 yrs for a business place to not pay taxes owed to the state
A bridge that was damaged during tropical storm Erica in 2015.
Remember the $18 million bridge built in Roseau?
Lost in de election trance!!!!
De true face of Roosevelt Skerrit Prime Minister
Skerrit warned Dominicans that leadership is everything…He is correct because he is as distant from leadership and a leader, as the north is from the south..
The man has nothing which resembles a leader, or leadership in him. So he is correct in punishing you all….Punish them MISLEADER Skerrit. The states money is for “Cool Out””,and to take people abroad to clap!!
Wicked leader!!!
Skerrit:
Whey is di money?
Whey is di money?
Whey is di money?
While we waste money taking political campaigns and Labourites all over the Caribbean to talk politics the real development of Dominica suffers! Labour ka twavay!
The Truth needs to be told, boldly. This failed Labour Corrupt Governemnt must Go, with this failed leader Skerrit to get them out of our government. Last minute these clowns are pledging to do “this and that”, as they continue to bury their political hatchet to the ground of never return. After this election Skerrit must never be seen to be called Prime Minister again. His new name is this Odd Minister who has failed our people and our nature isle with all kind of talk and promises as our people are unemployed. Report to Skerrit’s corrupted, Red Clinic, reducing our people to beggars rather than finding jobs for them. Please share the word far and wide, East-West, North-South and Skerrit and his failed lazy incompetent Labour government must get the hell out of our government. Skerrit, You failed us. You know nothing of development, but to have families come to you for handouts. Shame on you Skerrit.
We look forward to decent Hon. Lennox Linton & his highly professional UWP Team.
Excellent response. Mr. Shillingford is to be commended for his extreme forbearance and refusal to be trampled upon any longer.
They will probably pay him in passports now. That’s the official government currency yet.
That bridge is testament to the expression “they don’t make them like they used to”!
I have been over it several times and am amazed that it still holds up. Absent a proper bridge on the highway, and with the constant busting of the concrete bypass, unusable in heavy rain, what is going to happen if something happens to this bridge (God forbid)?
So I suggest that before anybody – Chinese, Dominican, Martian, whomever, starts building the new highway bridge, they get a competent engineer to have a good, long study of the Macoucherie Bridge and design the new bridge with the same principles and materials.
It’s been 4 years already. On the main road from north to south on the west coast. Sad!
And pay the owner, for crying out loud!
5 more years of:
no more bridges?
no airport?
poor or no health centers?
free money?
unaccountable passport funds?
LABOR POWER!
@Bee this is exactly what gonna happen if this Double doctor come back as PM. Not forget longer lines at red clinic and money gram.
HAHAHAHAHAHHA too funny!
Well, It’s the man private property , sorry Peter have to pay for Paul, but you have to pay the man what is due to him for use of his land. Everybody getting cool out but people not being PAID for their work and services.
This government has a solid and dubious track record of owing many local, regional and international entities. Skerrit and his deplorable Apostles continue to embarrass the country and inconvenience the local inhabitants. This country is imploding under the incompetence and machinations of this corrupt aristocracy. They are building multi-million dollar houses, buying most luxurious vehicles, fattening their bank accounts but grudgingly refusing to pay ordinary Dominicans who they owe or give a salary increase to monetarily feprived public servants. Things are rapidly reaching a breaking point. Something has to give. How much longer can the people remain restive with starvation wages; no sustainable jobs; inadequate roads and bridges; widespread discrimination and victimization; ubiquitous discord and disunity; hyperbole, and all the other vices. Not much longer I’m afraid.
You ask “How much longer can the people remain restive with starvation wages”? HOW LONG ?
For as long as they choose. For as long as they can bear. For as long as they choose to remain indifferent to their own very plight. That’s how long.
One can bring a donkey to water but not on your life can you force it to drink. So too with the populace. So Sad
Agreed wholeheartedly!!! When a people remains apathetic and indifferent, politicians frolic. They then take full advantage and take more and more of your rights.
What can one expect of this failed corrupt, incompetent Labour government to hour to decency ad obey commitment that have been decided upon.
Dense Shilingford and his family and his workers team have demonstrated their fundamental Rights to protest on the ineptitude of this failed Odd Minister Skerrit and his questionable failed, immature corrupt Labour Government. Tis failed government under failed childish Skerrit has failed us and as we have been looking at the West Coast for all these years, all Skerrit is engaged in with interests is the occupying of friends just to get at our decent gentlemanly Hon Lennox Linton and his formidable highly professional UWP Team. Skerrit is this damn failure and we need him out of our government that we rebuild our Dominica under the sound, decent leadership of Hon Linton, his Trusted UWP Team, and as Dominicans, wherever we are, what ever village we need proper development and a decent trusted government in office, under Hon. Linton`s leadership.
As my French teacher used to say, “Quel embarrass!”
If this doesn’t highlight the gross ineptitude of this present government, I don’t know what will.
This is crazy!! I thought the Macoucherie Bridge was already rebuilt. Ok let’s say Rome was not built in a day and it is not feasible for Government to do everything at once, but there is what we call prioritization.
Secondly, this is frighteningly dangerous to use this old bridge for constant modern traffic. it is testament to sound civil engineering and construction that it is still operational. We can ask Lennox HoneyChurch for an expose on bridges in Dominica (DNO please republish)
Thirdly, Government must meet its obligations to people who quite obviously is rendering great national service in the use of their property. Pay the man and stop “gaspiye lajan nan peyi a sou amizman”.
Finally, Mr. Shillingford may be really frustrated with the Government to take such drastic measures since this constricts the communication, commercial and emergency life-line of the entire West Coast.
Minister for Public Works, Hon. Collin McIntyre, ALAS pay the man quickly – Today…
With all the money the DLP has going around I would not expect that they are behind on any of their bills as they have stated that they are doing a perfect job.
HAHAHAHAHAHHA too funny!
Just look at this sorry construction Dominicans have to refer to as a BRIDGE! This is what ‘progress’ under Skerrit means! Bridges and roads still damaged since Erika. Let’s hear those seasoned spin doctors of the DLP now! What do you have to say? Is that the progress you are trying to sell us for years now. Let me tell all you, Skerrit and his regime are as incompetent as they come!