OATHS WERE administered yesterday to 32 new Justices of the Peace (JPs) who pledged to serve the public without fear or favour.
The 22 men and ten women – one man was absent – assembled at Government House to take up their new positions with aide-de-camp captain Carlos Lovell swearing them in and Governor General Sir Elliott Belgrave signing off on the appointments.
Afterwards, Sir Elliott wished the new JPs well and gave them instructions, advising them to ensure their names were spelt correctly as they would be bound to spell them that way when they signed documents. He then held a meeting with the nine retired police officers as well as Democratic Labour Party candidate for St Michael East in the 2013 general election, Patrick Tannis, while the others were treated to a tour of Sir Elliott’s office and the state dining room.
Bertie Hinds, a former deputy commissioner of police, told the MIDWEEK NATION that as a gazetted officer, he was a JP until retirement so the position was not new to him, although it did represent a transition.
“This will allow me to continue, although on a lesser scale, looking after law and order. I am already grounded in the law but this is a transition to civilian life. It is still an honour and I feel proud that the powers that be continue to recognise my contribution to this country. I will endeavour to hold the office in high esteem and I will continue to work for the good of this country,” he added.
Entrepreneur Shelly Williams also took her place among the JPs. The wife of prominent businessman Ralph “Bizzy” Williams said it was a great honour to be chosen and she planned to assist Barbados in any way she could.
“It is an honour as a Barbadian and I take this appointment very seriously. A JP holds many different roles so wherever I can fit in and assist, then that will be my next move,” she said.
Tannis said he saw the appointment as a way to continue his community work and would redound especially well for the people of St Michael South East.
“The idea of serving the population has been extended to allow me to give accreditation to documents. In my constituency, I know the people and can easily verify what they need in writing. It will enhance what I can do for St Michael South East and Barbados as a whole,” he said.
Melanie Callender-Forde also said she was honoured. As the personal assistant to Minister of Finance Chris Sinckler, she said the new role would represent another opportunity to serve the public.
“Much of my work is community based so this is another opportunity to serve the community, but from a different standpoint. It is an honour to serve my country and I will help people in whatever manner I can,” she said.
Former senior superintendent of police Morgan Greaves said the appointment meant a lot to him. However, as the former head of the Fraud Squad, he warned he would not be an easy mark for scam artists.
“After I retired, I had many people approaching me as a former JP but I had to refer them. Now I can again be helpful to the community and I am quite familiar with the duties as I have a lot of experience. As the former head of the Fraud Squad, I also know a lot of the fraudulent things people do to get JPs to sign documents so the wool won’t be pulled over my eyes easily,” he said.
