Hamilton debunks Douglas’ statement on Romig Phipps
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – SYDNEY OSBORNE, a spokesperson for the People’s Action Movement (PAM) claims that Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas has been lying to the people of St. Kitts and Nevis.
Osborne made this statement yesterday (Nov. 26) while as a member of the panel on Winn FM’s weekly ‘Inside the News’ programme hosted by veteran journalist Clive Bacchus.
“The Prime Minister seems to be getting away with a lot of things in this country, and Eugene Hamilton highlighted the matter about this $9M which came from Social Security to Romig Phipps, and he knows that isn’t the case. And these are the things which one can’t understand that we have a Prime Minister who lie, and I use the word lie to the people in this country,” Osborne said.
This pronouncement came in the wake of statements made by Dr. Douglas on Tuesday (Nov. 22) during his weekly radio programme ‘Ask the PM’ on ZIZ radio.
In response to a caller, who had asked why the Social Security report on the Beacon Heights saga presented to Cabinet by Deputy Prime Minister Sam Condor was not made public, Dr. Douglas gave his reasons for not doing so and referred to a $9M contract offered to the late Romig Phipps by the PAM’s administration to construct a number of houses for the people of the Federation.
“There was a time in this country when Social Security monies were being used to do a housing development project under the previous administration. The persons who were involved at that time, I believe Mr. Richard Caines, former Junior Minister in the Ministry of Finance, was supposed to be the Chairman of the Board. I believe that the Minister at that time who was responsible for Social Security was then the Hon. Michael Powell, who was the Deputy Prime Minister at that time. They had taken up millions of dollars from Social Security and they had put it into the hands of a man called Romig Phipps, who was supposed to be a master contractor, to build a number of homes for the benefit of the people of St. Kitts and Nevis. If my memory serves me right it would have been $9M from Social Security.”
The PM said Phipps knew nothing about construction and the house that he built were destroyed and had to be refurbished by the Labour government after they took office in 1995.
“Who was Romig Phipps? Romig Phipps had not even built a fowl coop up to that time when he received $9M of Social Security money to build houses for people. As far as I know, he has never built a fish trap net before. He had never even build a dog house, but he was given $9M of Social Security money to build houses for people of St. Kitts and Nevis. We all know what happened to those houses. Many of those house were destroyed by hurricane, had to be refurbished by the Labour government when it took office back in 1995 after the hurricane of ’96, ’98 etc.”
Dr. Douglas said that while a Member of Parliament, he had demanded statements from the then PAM administration and the Social Security, but no one responded.
“I remember I was in Parliament. I demanded a statement from the Social Security at that time, I demanded a statement from the government at that time on what was in fact a scandal that was being put on the people of St. Kitts and Nevis when Romig Phipps, who had never ever, ever had any ideas at all in building houses, who had never built a fowl coop yet, who had never built a doghouse yet, was given $9M…may his soul rest in peace.
“But I think the facts have to be brought to the people. Nine million dollars of social Security were taken up to build houses for people. Not one word came from the government of that day, not one word came from Social Security as a statement. Today, the Minister of Social Security has made a national broadcast, the Board has issued statements on this matter in the press, but people who think that they can wind on the government over what they perceive in their minds to be some kind of scandal or some kind of irregularity are still asking for more information. And the people have a right to ask for information, but the people also must analyse the information that has been given to them.”
He declared that the Social Security under his administration is a sound institution, its viability has nothing to do with the CONTEC situation and people are trying to drag the matter into a picture because of their own political agenda.
“I want them to compare what is happening here with what happened under the Simmonds administration when he took $9M and gave it to a man called Romig Phipps to build houses for people, when Romig Phipps had never ever built a doghouse in his life, had never built a trap to catch fish in the sea and had never ever built a fowl coop,” he reiterated.
However, during yesterday ‘Inside the News’ programme, Eugene Hamilton, Deputy Leader of the PAM and Parliamentary Representative of Constituency Eight, called in and debunked Dr. Douglas’ statements.
“When you look back at the history of this thing with Romig Phipps, it was played politically. But the information was that Romit Phipps obtained no funding whatsoever from the Social Security to construct those houses. It was a project that involved overseas funding. The role of the government in it was to establish that if these houses not delivered, you can take them so that they can be distributed to needy persons in the Federation,” Hamilton said.
He proclaimed that the Labour Spokesman carried an article at that time, which implicated Constance Mitcham who was the then Chairperson of the Social Security.
“…And the Prime Minister well knows that Constance Mitcham took the matter to court. There were two matters; the first one, she got $45 000 awarded and then the firm of Dublin and Johnson, representing the Labour Spokesman, conceded the next case and said let us not go to trial, we just make it up and add another $20 000.
“And Constance Mitcham obtained $65 000 because of that same statement. But poor Mr. Phipps is dead and the Prime Minister will go on the airwaves and make a statement like that.”
In an effort to convince listeners why he claimed the PM lies to the nation, Osborne noted a number of past statements allegedly made by Dr. Douglas.
“The same Prime Minister said that if Eugene Hamilton was in charge of Social Security after the last election, there will be a revolution. That was the word he used…a revolution. I hope the young people are listening and they know what a revolution is in this country. But he got away with it. No police arrested him and took him over and booked him for that kind of statement being made.
“The same Prime Minister spoke about the public debt you know what. I’m not going to use the word here today, but it’s up at nearly $3B now…but nobody is questioning that. The LaValle Golf Course and Club, over $200M spent on that, nothing to show for it. But nobody is questioning him, pounding him as far as that particular matter is concerned. Two hundred million dollars we are talking about down there.”
He also referred to a female caller to the programme who questioned the PM’s involvement with Lex Consultancy and called on the people of St. Kitts and Nevis to “shut down the country”.
“Lex Consultancy…that’s the saga that’s going on…nothing. I want to say to the people of this country, it is time for us to forget about our fear, time to forget that you are gonna lose your job, it is time for us really to stand up. It is time for the people of St. Kitts to no longer be eunuchs in the country of our birth. It is time for us to stand up. We must shut down this country of ours and let the government of the day understand that we cannot take what is happening to St. Kitts and Nevis anymore. And this is what we say from time to time.
“Yes, it comes from a political party, but you just examine what is happening in St. Kitts and Nevis at this time and see whether or not you can’t agree with what we are saying.”
