Opposition Leader Criticized for Allegations Against Homeless Charity Founder in Barbados

Opposition Leader Ralph Thorne has come under heavy fire with a call for his resignation after claiming that the State pays half a million dollars a year to the founder of the island’s main homeless charity “to sing lullabies and read bedtime stories”.

During Wednesday morning’s debate on the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure in the House of Assembly, Thorne accused the Mia Mottley administration of paying the money to the “gentleman” who runs the organisation – later identified as the Alliance to End Homelessness (BAEH).

The BAEH runs a shelter from its Spry Street headquarters.

“I left here yesterday, learning, and this is not to be facetious, that $500 000 yearly is now being paid to a gentleman, who has been campaigning in St Michael East,” Thorne told the House as it took up the budget appropriation for the Ministry of Labour, Social Security and the Third Sector.

“I will be specific,” the Christ Church South MP said. “I will target the area. I will identify everything. Let truth be told, that he, through his organisation is paid $500 000 every year to sing lullabies and read bedtime stories to the homeless. That is not right.”

But in a strongly-worded rebuke, an emotional Kemar Saffrey, the BAEH’s president, described Thorne’s remarks as degrading to homeless people and called for him to resign as both Opposition Leader and MP for Christ Church South.

In a stout defence of his organisation’s work, Saffrey contended that the alliance has been a refuge for the homeless for the past 15 years, only having received funding from the government during the past two years.

He maintained that the BAEH’s finances are in compliance with official requirements and are available for public scrutiny through the ministry.

“With the opposition leader saying what he said in Parliament. . . that I am singing lullabies and reading bedtime stories to the homeless, I find it offensive,” he told Barbados TODAY. “How can you use your position to degrade homeless people and to attack…? People have been given shelter on a nightly basis to help with their situation…then you are stating that the position that I am taking is to sing lullabies and read bedtime stories is disrespectful.

“I believe the opposition leader should take the time to remove himself from being opposition leader and also remove himself as an MP. He himself has stated that he has neglected his constituents. I have about six people including a woman and children from his constituency that have found themselves homeless and that could not be assisted by Mr Thorne. I tried to reach him and was unsuccessful and they were unsuccessful too. Yet I ended up assisting them.”