by Donella Hosten
Francis De Bellotte of Grand Anse Valley, St George, is calling on the authorities to pay him his dues.
De Bellotte said he was an ambulance driver for the General Hospital and worked with Government for about 16 years, and claimed that he was injured on the job due to an accident. He said in 2001 he was given a “thank you letter,” and was subsequently dismissed without being compensated.
According to Mr Francis De Bellotte, he has the documentation from his doctor at the time, indicating that he needed to get a medical done. He said due to lack of assistance and support, he had to seek medical attention on his own accord.
In recent times Mr De Bellotte revealed that upon a visit to the General Hospital to get an X-ray done, he was denied the services. He said he believes this is “very unfair.”
As a result of this, Mr De Bellotte said he was sent to the Ministry of Health, but was unable to get assistance. They then sent him to a social worker, whom Mr De Bellotte said, “just dumped the case.” He said the officials claim they are unaware of his employment at the General Hospital.
It was after this, he decided to stage a one-man protest, which included a placing a placard outside of his home since early December 2016. Mr De Bellotte is hoping that “somebody in authority [can] take up my case and give me what is due to me.”
Hon. Alexandria Noel, Parliamentary Representative for South St George, is aware of the situation, and said “we’ve been doing an investigation to find out more about it… and we anticipate that we should hear something in the next couple of weeks.” The Minister assured that they would do everything to make sure that their constituents are taken care of.
Mr De Bellotte said he has sought advice from a lawyer, but he does not really want the matter to go to court. However, if he does not get satisfaction, he intends to proceed with that route.
