Sir James no longer acting on behalf of Lower Bay School trustee

Former prime minister Sir James Mitchell no longer has power of attorney for a trustee of the Lower Bay School, whose premises a school part-owned by his daughter Sabrina Mitchell, is hoping to use.{{more}}

Sir James on July 19 wrote to Clayton Ollivierre, president of the Bequia Rotary Club, saying that he was acting on behalf of trustee Marie Kingston.

He demanded that the keys to the property be delivered to him or the other trustee — Berton King — within 48 hours, which elapsed on Saturday.

The Rotary Club and Sabrina’s school — Bequia Paradise Primary School — have both shown SEARCHLIGHT 99-year leases they each signed with the trustees.

The trustees say the Club breached the agreement by not paying, for 14 years, the $1 annually that the lease stipulated.

And with the trustees and the Rotary Club each having retained lawyers, the matter seems likely to end up in court.

Louise Mitchell-Joseph, another of Sir James’ daughters and lawyer for the trustees, told SEARCHLIGHT late Monday evening that Sir James had indicated to Kingston that he no longer wanted to act on her behalf.

On July 20, lawyer for the Rotary Club Grahame Bollers wrote to Sir James on behalf of Ollivierre.

“My clients, as legal owners of the property, cannot accede to your request to deliver the keys to their property and wish to warn you that any attempts by you or your servants and/or agents to dispossess them of possession will amount to trespass for which my clients will not hesitate in instituting both civil and criminal proceedings to protect their legal rights,” Bollers wrote.

The letter was copied to Director of Public Prosecutions Colin Williams, Commissioner of Police Keith Miller, and Sergeant Richards of the Bequia Police Station. (KXC)