LABOUR's greed and corruption must come to and end says PAM

Basseterre,St.Kitts (November 1st 2008):-St.Kitts-Nevis’ main opposition party the People’s Action Movement (P.A.M.) contends that the people of St. Kitts have been negatively affected by an unprecedented level of corruption over the last thirteen years.  Never before in our history has a government engaged in the kind of schemes designed to oppress our people and to cause them untold suffering such as is being experienced by the population at this time, while at the same time enriching those in power.
 
The present electricity crisis is only the latest in a series of problems brought about by the greed and corrupt practices of the ruling clique..  Before the “purchase” of the defective and unreliable generators, against the advice of the professional, technical team which made up the tenders board, we have had the giveaway of acres of land at the airport, the turnover of dozens of acres to a Jonathan “Stevia” Chin whom the government cannot find, the provision of hundreds of acres at Kittitian Hill to a company which apparently cannot even pay its Social Security contributions, the siphoning off of several other hundreds of acres at La Vallee – combined with the disappearance of millions of dollars – and the seizing of the Angelus Resort to turn over to friends of the government, without adequate compensation to the investors in the property..
 
Our government awarded the contract to supply diesel generators to a company which sent in the most expensive bid and which provided the least reliable generators which has been borne out by our experience with them over the last nine years.  So in addition to the most costly expenditure at the time of purchase, that corrupt decision has cost the country additional tens of millions of dollars for repairs, rental of generators, recruitment of foreign consultants and losses of appliances and foodstuff.  We challenge anyone to give a rational explanation for such recklessness if they want to rule out corruption.
 
This excessive display of greed and corruption has caused inconvenience and distress to more than just householders and business places.  It has brought disruption, stress and loss of income to the farmers who were displaced to make way for the illusory Kittitian Hill project.  It has caused mounting increases in the national debt because of the Houdini- like outlays of moneys at La Vallee, and it has embroiled us in litigation with United States investors and the United States State Department who are trying to recover the investments of its citizens in the Angelus project.
 
The greed and corruption of this government must be brought to an end.