Attempt made to burn NDP headquarters – Eustace

The firebug that has been moving through the land has taken a turn on the New Democratic Party (NDP).

On Tuesday, it was discovered that some time between late Monday night and early Tuesday morning, Molotov cocktails were thrown at different areas of the NDP headquarters at Richmond Hill.{{more}}

Arnhim Eustace, president of the party, said in a statement that its members were abhorred by what appeared to be an arson attempt on their headquarters, Democrat House.

“Our staff discovered broken fragments of glass, as well as burnt out bottle tops from what appears to be vanilla essence bottles. From the appearances, attempts were made at starting a fire at three different doorways,” said Eustace in the statement.

He said that on discovering what had happened, the executive members of the party were immediately notified, as well as the police.

“The police came and are now conducting their investigations. We await the conduct of these investigations, and a speedy, efficient and professional conclusion that will lead to arrest(s) in this matter.

“At the moment, we make no broad assumptions as to who may want to have our headquarters burnt down. However, we note that the apparent attempt at arson follows a recent history of mysterious fires within the city and surrounding areas – and the fact there has been no significant breakthroughs in any of them,” said Eustace.

The party leader also noted the fact that the arson attempt took place hours after a court ruling in the elections petitions case.

“It might be significant or mere coincidental that the attempt apparently took place hours after a court ruling in the elections petitions case, and our declaration to move forward with the challenge to the results.”

The “mysterious fires” referred to in Eustace’s statements have taken place in the wake of the unrest that has been plaguing this country since the results of the December 9, 2015 general elections.

Following attempts to set fire to the headquarters of the St Vincent Electricity Services (VINLEC) on January 1 and January 4, a fire destroyed thousands of dollars in building materials on Thursday, January 7, at a government storage facility at Arnos Vale.

Other arson attempts have been made on Unity Labour Party (ULP) and government associated structures and buildings. On January 7, at Yambou, a utility pole belonging to VINLEC was set on fire. Days later, on January 12, a bush fire threatened the WE FM 99.9 broadcasting studios at Windy Point, Lower Questelles. This fire also was believed to have been deliberately set.

Also, on two separate occasions, on October 16 2015 and on February 5 2016, the South Leeward constituency office of ULP candidate Jomo Thomas was set on fire.

On Monday, March 7, Questelles resident Ricardo Samuel appeared in court to answer charges in relation to the fire at the constituency office on February 5. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.(LC)