OBA: Charity charging charity is ‘unbecoming’

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Anti-gang charity CARTEL charging another charity for use of White’s Island while leasing it for free is “unbecoming,” according to OBA MP Mark Pettingill.

“There may be a valid reason why the lease was granted to Pastor [Leroy] Bean’s charity, but surely charging another charity for use of White’s Island is not it,” Mr Pettingill said.

It was revealed in Friday’s edition of The Royal Gazette that former Deputy Premier Derrick Burgess granted CARTEL (Challenging and Reclaiming the True Essence of Life) a lease for the Island as Minister of Public Works.

Leases of public land 21 years or longer must be tabled in the House of Assembly, but CARTEL’s lease was for one day shy of 21 years.

The Bermuda Amateur Swimming Association (BASA), which has operated children’s camps on the island for years, is now being charges $10 a child to use the island.

Bermuda Rowing Association, another charity that uses White’s Island, has not been charged for the usage.

Mr Pettingill, the Shadow Minister of Public Works, said: “One cannot get through the report without thinking of people working the system in ways that put the public good behind other interests.

“The image of Pastor Bean telling BASA representatives they must pay $10 per child each week for use of White’s Island is unbecoming.

“The fact that the Bermuda Swimming Association gets $25,000 a year from Government to support its operations only further twists this situation in the wrong direction. An OBA Government will not operate like this.”

Mr Pettingill also said that it remains unclear how CARTEL is using the Island, and the OBA look forward to hearing more about how the property is being put to use.

According to a Ministry of Government Estates spokesman, the lease for the Island was for the charity’s use as “a facility for adventure training activities for the betterment of the people of Bermuda.”

Along with heading CARTEL, Mr Bean is the chairman of the Progressive Labour Party’s Hamilton East Branch, and is the party’s candidate for St George’s South.

Neither Pastor Leroy Bean, nor other representatives of CARTEL, could be reached for comment this week.

Useful websites: www.basa.bm, www.oba.bm, www.plp.bm

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