Damage to Pledge a national disgrace

WHO IS RESPONSIBLE for the maintenance of the Independence Arch in The City?It is apparently not the Ministry of Transport and Works; neither is it the National Conservation Commission; the Barbados Port Authority or  Barbados Tourism Investment Inc.So who is going to deal with this disgraceful sight of Barbados’ National Pledge lying on the ground in two pieces?The Independence Arch houses both the National Pledge and National Anthem on separate marble slabs embedded in the arch. It is unknown whether an act of vandalism or the ravages of time is responsible for the Pledge falling from its place and it is also unknown who is going to repair the damage.The disturbing image of the broken tablets lying on the ground was captured by our photographers on Thursday. A check yesterday showed nothing had changed. Calls made to the aforementioned agencies enquiring as to whose duty it was to keep the arch in proper repair were fruitless as almost every agency referred the SATURDAY SUN to a different agency.A vendor selling near the area said  the situation was a serious one as “it was the Pledge”. while a bypasser said he hoped someone did something about it soon as he would “hate to see someone carry away the pieces”.The Independence Arch was built under the Democratic Labour Party in 1987 to mark the island’s 21st anniversary of Independence. The $250 000 triumphal arch on the southern approach to the bridge was similar to a temporary structure erected in 1966 when Barbados gained Independence from Britain.