‘Float the Barima’ ...Families demand answers, slam systemic failures and unequal payouts

(Kaieteur News) – Relatives of victims missing in the MV Barima sinking and family members of maritime staff criminally charged in connection with the disaster returned to the picket line outside the Office of the President on Tuesday. Protesters criticised systemic injustice, government opacity, and what they termed a slow, reactive state response nearly three months after the vessel went down.

Demonstrators demanded the immediate refloating of the vessel, faster proceedings from the Commission of Inquiry (COI), and true accountability from state authorities, accusing officials of scapegoating low-level workers while offering unequal financial support and poor communication to grieving families. A central point of contention on the picket line was the legal targeting and remand of lower-level Transport and Harbours Department employees, including Goods Superintendent Delon Grandison. Relatives argued that authorities are detaining front-line staff while shielding higher-ranking management responsible for overall safety oversight and maintenance.

Grandison’s mother, Marlene Grandison, maintained her son’s innocence, emphasizing that he was not aboard the vessel when it sank. “He is not supposed to be in prison,” Grandison said, noting her son had completed his daytime shift and was at home when the tragedy occurred at night. “He wasn’t on the boat… He finished working and he came home, and all of a sudden, he ended up in prison. He’s just a goods superintendent.” A relative of missing passengers, Neil and Kenrick Cort echoed these concerns, stating that authorities “jail three men that I would consider at the bottom of the ladder instead of holding those who are accountable, accountable.”