By Ron Daniel
I have been following politics now intensely across the Caribbean for more than 10 years. I have watched and seen how politicians promise and do not come through; how they inspire you on the campaign trail and then make you angry that you voted for them; how they are humble enough to beg for your vote and then lose their humility as soon as they get power; how they start to do things in the community only when they are interested in politics and how they sponsor everything or start to tell you hello just to get a vote. I have seen how only when they get into politics they find it convenient to attend church, ride on a bus, paint a bus stop, give people a lift in their vehicles or start to purchase fans and filing cabinets for some institution or another.
I have also seen how they are so self-centered that the main people they look after when they get power is themselves, and how they do all sorts of deals under the table to enrich themselves. I have seen how people who were over their heads in debt before they got into power were now filled with money, land and houses. On the other hand though, I have also watched Hensley Edmeston Daniel since July 20, 2006 and seen how more and more he has exceeded everyone's expectations. Hensley’s three years in office has been personified by his prodigious charity, his profound commitment, his pure concern, his profuse compassion and his principled character.
Hensley’s foray into elective politics came in March of 2000 when he would have resigned from the Civil Service to contest the Federal Elections against the late Malcom Guishard. However, Hensley’s life has long been one of selfless sacrificial service to the people of Nevis. In fact, when Hensley was just 18 he joined the St John’s Community Improvement Club (SJCIC) and worked in the service of the community of St Johns. By the time he was 20 he was President of the group and taught evening classes for more than 10 years, free of charge, for those people who wanted to obtain subjects that they would have failed during high school. Hensley would have also taught a variety of subjects as a teacher at the high school level including French, Spanish, English and Geography. It is instructive that he would teach at school from 8:00 to 3:30 then hop on a bus to Brown Pasture to teach there for free until late at nights.
Spurred on by an intense desire to continue to serve his fellowmen, Hensley left the teaching profession after 11 years to pursue a degree in Social Work at the UWI in Jamaica and returned to lead the Youth and Community Services Department in Nevis. While there, he would have implemented anti-poverty programmes for youth, women and the aged, organized youth in business awards, developed a new Welfare Benefits Programme for women and children and basically spearheaded the transformation of the Social Services Department. His commitment to Social Work was not an 8-hour job but one where he made himself available to serve people at all hours of the day, every single day for no extra pay.
He made a connection to what the bible referred to as “the least of these” and was able to work with them to raise them from the gutter-most to the uttermost. For some, he was not a Director of Community Affairs but their guidance counsellor, lawyer, father, mother, friend and brother. Hensley would have also given yeoman service to various community groups serving in different positions with the Nevis Special Olympics, the Nevis Renal Society, the Nevis Amateur Athletic Association, the Nevis Domino Association, the SJCIC and the Nevis Youth Council inter alia. Hensley is no stranger to service; his life is the epitome of it.
Those who knew Hensley breathed a sigh of relief when he was elected, not merely because the CCM was ousted but because they knew they had a servant in him. His commitment to selfless service and hard work has characterized his three years in office. Hensley has been at the forefront of implementing programmes such as the Homework Assistance Programme; piloting duty free legislation that would allow young small businessmen to gain duty free concessions; forming the Nevis Peer Unit, which is a group of young teens in Nevis formed to affect positive change among their peers; the Nevis Pearls, which is a group formed for young girls to engender self-esteem and self-worth; the Empowering Men for Change programme, which is a programme aimed at training at-risk youths in various skills; the Youth Skills Programme; Bikes not Bombs project, which encourages young men to get involved in biking instead of anti-social behaviour; sending off 17 young men and women to Trinidad for training; making it mandatory for young people to sit on statutory boards in Nevis; reinvigorating the Seniour Citizens Programme; Initiating the Reading Starts with Us Programme; ensuring that teenage mothers can return to school inter alia.
He has successfully negotiated to get an ambulance, garbage truck and Ultra-Sound donated while also purchasing a tire baler for use at the Landfill and another new ambulance. His time as a Minister has also seen a dramatic improvement of services at Solid Waste; a new Drag Racing Strip; new roads in Cox, Bath Village, Cole Hill, Chicken Stone, Bailey Yard and Cane Garden; new houses at Cherry Gardens and the New Environmental Works Division to keep Nevis looking green and clean. Throughout his three years of service, Hensley has handled his various ministries with equanimity that is unparalleled in the history of government in Nevis.
I have had the unique opportunity to be able to observe Hensley over these three years and have been nothing short of amazed how he seems to make time to deal with everybody, from Dabby to the Dean of a University, how he handles himself with such a common humility and his inexorable commitment to keep improving his ministry and the lives of his constituents. I have been around when he has defended the fact that he has allowed people who support CCM to remain working, or get assistance from government in one way, shape or form. Hensley’s reasons have always been that the poor and disposed in our land for him should not be met with bi-partisan politics but with love and concern, whether they are blue, green or in-between.
It was the late great Indian spiritual leader Mahatma Ghandi who said, “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.” Hensley Daniel has lost himself in the service of others his entire life. His service to his community, his country and his countrymen has transcended politics as usual. This humble son of Cox is more than just a politician. He is a social worker, an educator, a youth advocate, a community activist, a health promoter, a children and women’s rights activist, and a civic leader, but, first and foremost, Hensley Edmeston Daniel is a servant of the people.
