BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - PRIME MINISTER of St. Kitts and Nevis, the Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas is insisting that the country’s constituency boundaries ought to be changed before the next General Elections which are constitutionally due sometime this year, and the Opposition has threatened court action to thwart any attempt in doing so.
Earlier this week, the Opposition revealed intentions to challenge the proposed second Report of the Constituency Boundaries Commission headed by Peter Jenkins and directed their lawyers to inform Prime Minister and Jenkins of possible court action.
While speaking on his weekly radio programme, ‘Ask the Prime Minister’, Dr. Douglas spoke of his intention to address the boundaries issue.
“CARICOM has spoken out on this...Opposition politicians always want CARICOM, the OAS and the Commonwealth of Nations to speak out. Well, they have spoken out and they have said that with reference to elections, St. Kitts and Nevis needs to equalise our constituencies and adjust our boundaries. Most importantly listeners, our Constitution says that this is what we have to do.”
He added that the constituencies, as they are, are not good for democracy in the Federation and it was a matter to not play around, while indicating that it is never too late to do what is right.
“These haphazard constituency sizes are not good for our democracy I remind you listeners, and this is too an important of a matter to us and for us to play with anymore. The IMF said that St. Kitts and Nevis was performing superbly, anti-Government politicians said the IMF does not understand economics. The Government slashed the country’s debt in half, they said the debt had not gone downat all, yet they can predict the country would be debt free by 2020,” the Prime Minister said.
He was also hopeful that the Opposition would accede in the best interest of the country.
“The Constitution says equalize the constituency sizes. They, the opposing politicians, they say that equalizing the constituencies would be a bad thing. Let us hope for one the anti-Government politicians will do what is in the best interest of all, the best interest of our country, the best interest for our democracy.”
