A group of the foreign students.
An agent for Lambirds Academy which is behind a major scam in St Lucia has expressed his disappointment with the way the matter is being handled by the Saint Lucian government.
Managing Director of Excellent Int’l Educational Institute of Nepal, Pavel Kumar Shah, has said that his agency is “totally confused about what the government wants.”
Shah said that while some of the victims are being housed at several places, some of them are even starving.
“Some are eating and some are starving. Sometimes food is provided and other times not…government says they will support the students and other times they ask the students to leave,” he explained.
Shah argued the students should be provided with jobs to earn an income, so as to take care of their needs. He said this is important because they stayed should not be returned until the case is finalized.
“As all knows, this is the case should be decide quickly. The government must play the role of parents of students, but I think they are treating our students as step relation,” he said.
But that isn’t all; Shah accused the government of ignoring the students whenever they raise concerns.
“We appeal to all of the related and non-related organizations and the local people to help raise the concerns of our students, so that a quick decision is made,” he further stated.
The agent said he and his colleagues in Nepal have written the International Court of Justice and is now awaiting a response, to determine whether they can pursue legal action against Saint Lucia.
A group of the foreign students told St. Lucia News Online (SNO) recently that groceries provided by the government last only week – equivalent to one meal per day.
The foreigners said Saint Lucians have been donating to the centre, which affords them at least three meals per day. Alternatively, the group has to purchase food with their own money, which is running low.
Four men arrested and charged in connection with the Lambirds Academy scandal were denied bail when they appeared in a Castries Magistrate’s Court on Friday, April 10.
This is the second time Iftekhar Ahmed Shams, Koushal Kumar Batukbhai Chadasama, Ashwin Kanji Patel and Gurjeet Singh Vilkhu were being denied bail.
The men are now represented by Marcus Foster. Leslie Mondesir was their previous attorney. The next court hearing is April 24.
All four are charged with human trafficking in connection with an alleged internet scam at Lambirds Academy that left a group of some 70 foreigners – mainly from Nepal and The Phillipines – stranded in St. Lucia.