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Fired By CITCO, Jenkins Says Council Coming After His Pvt. Venture
posted (March 22, 2019)

In May of last year we spoke to Cecil Jenkins when he was fired by the City Council where he had been working for 12 years.  

He alleged wrongful dismissal and the case is presently before the Labour Commissioner - but in the 10 months since, Jenkins hasn’t had a job. And, on top of that, his political ambitions were derailed when he lost in the UDP convention for Lake I late last year.

So, now he’s trying to start up a food business on Mahogany Street, where he’s had a stall - he says for 10 years - running small businesses on and off.  He recently put on new sheets of plywood to start up again - only to face a stop order from the city council.  We went to the stall today to find the stop order tacked unto the humble structure - he told us why:…

Cecil Jenkins Sr. - Facing Citco Stop Order
"So this mid-morning, now the city planner came by and tell me that ih have a stop order for me. I ask ah for why because I already spoke to the city engineer and he has no such problem with the building, he knows that I am only doing repairing to the plywood. She said well the council say there is a procedure and a new implementation that they want a standard type of building on these reserves. I ask ah what type of standard, ih say they no longer want plywood, they want the siding wood. She then told me I have to seize everything and take of this plywood and I must now replace it with siding. I tell ah well of course, I wouldn't mind do so as long as you provide the material because I was exhausted with finances. Now I'm here trying to survive and now they are messing with my living now, so what next must I do? Why are they trying to target me for everything that I do? Am I a problem to them? I just no the get the sense."

Jules Vasquez
"But standards are standards and you worked at the city council. Now if they say it's siding, it's siding - are there other buildings here that are plywood?"

Cecil Jenkins Sr.
"Jules you could walk this Mahogany Street from the boulevard to the complex and you count how much plywood building structure is on the Mahogany reserve. So I don't know why they are singling me out when everybody else on the Mahogany Street have this type of structure on the reserve."

Jules Vasquez
"The city council fired you almost a year ago and how are you handling that in terms of are you working?"

Cecil Jenkins Sr.
"Jules it’s been an uphill, I no see the downhill yet because every day I try sacrifice myself to do something to make things work out for me and my family. I no the jump around and here and there hollering PUDP, I am F-A-M-I-L-Y because I have to live. Now they are trying to make me no live Jules, I no know what they want me to resort to."

Jules Vasquez
"So what will you do now?"

Cecil Jenkins Sr.
"Good question Jules. I will operate my business because I have to live and by any means necessary, my business will operate because I have to make my family live."

We’ll wait and see if the council goes to enforce the stop order.

Jenkins says he was about to apply for a trade license.  

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