Last Updated on December 2, 2025, 4:55 PM AST by Anthony Morris
Our Community Our Pride Initiative of Marsha Henderson has come under attack once again. This time, the chairman of People’s Labour Party, Dameon Lawrence has accused the Minister of Tourism et al of stealing the idea of her community cleanup initiative.
Notably, this is another attack in what is turning out to be a long series of repeated, baseless attacks on what the people of the country are hailing as a positive campaign for Central Basseterre. The cleanup and Mural Painting initiative, done in partnership with local artists has attained local praise.
At the same time the work has also garnered good word from the tourists visiting the island on cruise ships and other modes of travel. On the other hand, the opposition, through biased media sources has been furthering the propaganda that the Minister’s efforts are an effort of publicity.
The PLP Chairman has asserted that he had, a few months prior to the beginning of the Central Basseterre Cleanup Initiative, made very identical suggestions of a cleanup drive to the country’s Ministry of Health.
The Chairperson has produced an email Dameon Lawrence had sent to Chief Environmental Health Officer Alexander Riley. He asserted that in the email, he had proposed a similar cleanup initiative to that of Minister Henderson to the CEHO.
Further, the PLP Chairman also accused the Parliamentary Representative of Intellectual theft and political mimicry. The story, carried by a famously opposition backed media outlet has also shared the screenshot of the said E-Mail.
The email in question provides no clarifications or details that could have been stolen as was claimed by Lawrence. Minister Henderson’s community cleanup and beautification drive is not patented in her name or in any personality’s name for that matter.
The claim about the Minister stealing the idea of Mr Lawrence does not have aby grounds to stand on mainly because:
Minister Marsha Henderson is not claiming she is doing the “First Ever Community Cleanup and Beautification Drive”. Such initiatives have been taken by various organizations and individuals in their respective communities. Further, such initiatives will continue to be held long in the future.
In the email sent by Dameon Lawrence to the Ministry of Health, the politician has highlighted that much work needs to be done . When the Minister and elected representative of the people is putting in the work for the same end goal, there should be respectful participation and not accusation.
This is not the first instance where the cleanup drive has come under attack, in the last few weeks, the opposition has found many different angles to attack the organization on the matter.
It is important to note that the party had been vehemently opposed to the Minister’s cleanup drive for the last three to four weeks and calling it a political opportunity are suddeny accusing the Minister of having stolen the idea.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
