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  • 6 hours ago
At the handing over of six new fire tenders to the Fire Service today, the Prime Minister dedicated the moment to her late mother who saved members of her family when their home was destroyed by fire several years ago.

Juhel Browne reports.
Transcript
00:00So they opened the station and never staffed it, never put these, what we needed here.
00:06I thank God today that you have given me a chance here in my constituency of Penal Superior
00:12to stand as your Prime Minister, could make it happen, and we could put this fire tender here for you.
00:18Prime Minister Kamala Passat-Besessa, she highlighted one of the six new fire tenders
00:22which the government handed over to the fire service during a ceremony at the Penal Fire Station.
00:27For the Prime Minister, the event was a personal one, as she recalled her family's home in Penal
00:33having been destroyed by fire in the mid-1980s while she was doing final law exams in Barbados
00:39and her husband was pursuing his medical practice in Superior.
00:43All the adults in the family were at work, and as I told you, I was in Barbados, I was
00:48writing the final law exams there.
00:52My mother was babysitting with the children when a fire broke out suddenly,
00:59and within minutes the entire house was consumed by that fire.
01:05My mother, Ma, as we called her, she tried her best and gathered all the children, including my baby son,
01:13Chris.
01:14And thank God, everyone escaped with their lives, but nothing else survived.
01:22We lost everything.
01:24The Prime Minister recalled the inspirational words of her mother
01:27as she said her family rebelled slowly with the help of relatives and friends.
01:31So as MP, you will forgive me if I dedicate this moment to my beloved late mother, Rita Passat,
01:41whose strength taught me not only how to rebuild, but why we must ensure others are protected.
01:47To you, Ma, I thank you for the love and strength you gave me.
01:51Prime Minister Passat-Basasa said no firefighting resources reached her family's home in time
01:56and said it was not their fault, as that is how it was then.
02:00The Prime Minister said she made a promise when she entered public life
02:03that under her watch, no rural community would face that kind of neglect again.
02:08Jewel Brown, TV6 News.
02:10Very smart man.
02:11The Prime Minister of Sarge
02:12is over at the end of the morning and on Sunday and said it is a very big day
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