Which party will win the 2015 General Elections?

 

But the big question is: “Which party or group of parties will be successful in leading the Federation for the next five years?”

 

 

One may question the use of the term group of parties, but it simply speaks to Team Unity, the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP) and the Nevis Reformation Party (NRP). While Team Unity is a coalition of the People’s Action Movement (PAM), the Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM) and the newly-founded People’s Labour Party (PLP), the SKNLP had already collaborated with the NRP since 2010 when the Hon. Patrice Nisbett was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs and Labour and, more recently, their public statements on the political platform of working together according to the signed agreement termed Contract for Progress.

 

Apart from the platforms of public political and town hall meetings, every day one can hear various candidates and supporters on talk shows canvassing for their respective party. On these shows, aired especially on certain notable radio stations on both islands, the hosts unabashedly make it known to their audience the party to which they are affiliated. This is not to say that one should be annoyed with them, because, most, if not all, are neither practising journalists nor were trained in that noble profession.

 

Many people were optimistic that the General Elections would be held either in mid or late January, but Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas has set the date for Monday, February 16, 2015 following an emergency Parliamentary meeting, where the Constituency boundaries have been changed in a process that Members of the Opposition claimed to be unfair. The matter has since reached the Courts in favour of the Government, but the Opposition has appealed and the nation now awaits judgment from the Privy Council, which is slated for Wednesday (Feb. 11).  

 

Nomination Day was Friday (Feb. 6) and the SKNLP, the NRP and Team Unity had fielded a full slate of candidates; but what about the National Integrity Party (NIP)?

 

Earlier in their campaign, everyone had known the names of Team Unity’s candidates for Constituencies One to Five and Seven to 11, but it was not until Thursday, January 22, 2015 they had announced that Vernon Connor is the man to contest against Prime Minister and Leader of the SKNLP, the Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas in Constituency Number Six. 

 

And as for the NIP, some political pundits were of the view that it would contest the General Elections as a “spoiler party”, which was recently confirmed by its Leader Glenroy Blanchette. They claimed that it would be a spoiler party because its three members are former PAM candidates and they still have some loyal constituents in Constituencies One, Two and Three. But a press release disseminated to the media on Nomination Day stated that after careful consideration and consultation with supporters, the candidates had decided not to contest the General Elections. And because of the increasing tension at this time, NIP’s Leader is calling on the contesting political parties and their supporters to let peace prevail.  “We therefore call on all political parties to refrain from creating an atmosphere which is not conducive to our traditional values of love and respect for others. We urge all voters to refrain from committing acts of violence but to exercise their franchise as it is their constitutional right so to do. This nation belongs to all of us regardless of which political party wins the elections. Let us continue to build our nation for posterity.” 

 

 

Without a shadow of a doubt, the most dominant political party in the Federation is the SKNLP, dating back to the days of the short-lived Democratic Party, the People’s Progressive Movement and the United National Movement. The strength of this party has its genesis in the Labour Movement – The Workers League – organised by Thomas Manchester in 1932, which was rechristened the St. Kitts and Nevis Trades and Labour Union (SKNTLU) in 1940 under the leadership of Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw. And out of the bowels of the SKNTLU emerged the St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla Labour Party which was renamed the SKNLP after Anguilla seceded.

 

Research has shown that from June 1937 to October 1952 the Workers’ League had dominated the Legislative Council Elections and the one held in November 1957, in which candidates of the Workers’ League contested under the umbrella of the Labour Party, victory was gained in all five Electoral Districts in St. Kitts but it lost to Independents in both Nevis and Anguilla. And in 1961 the Districts in St. Kitts had increased by two and, again, Labour won all but lost in Anguilla.

 

Under Bradshaw’s leadership, the Labour Party sought to bring a change for the nation’s economic development by recouping sugar lands owned by the wealthy. At the time, and prior to and even after that, sugar was ‘king’ and its production had dominated the lives of the islands’ inhabitants. This move of government’s ownership of the sugar factory and lands upon which cane was planted did not go down well with the wealthy. And a major decision, according to reports, was the Bradshaw Government’s intention to impose a raise in electricity rates which led to a large protest march on November 20, 1964. The march was led by William ‘Billy’ Herbert and Courtney Dickenson, who were joined by Dr. Kennedy Simmonds, Michael Powell and Richard Caines. Following that march, the nation had seen the emergence of the People’s Action Movement on January 15, 1965, which is said in some quarters was establishment by the families and supporters of former estate owners; the bourgeois.

 

In the 1966 General Elections, Labour had a landslide victory, winning all seven Districts in St. Kitts while the PAM won one of the two Districts in Nevis and the lone District in Anguilla. Bradshaw was then sworn in as Chief Minister and in February the following year became the first Premier of St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla, which in the same year became an Associated State of Britain.

 

Another political party, NRP, emerged on the scene in 1970 and contested the May 1971 General Elections and won one of the two Electoral Districts on that island. The PAM took the other District while Labour again dominated those on St. Kitts. Anguilla, in this same year, broke away from the union.

 

In the December 1975 Elections, Labour again dominated in St. Kitts and the NRP took both Districts in Nevis. However, Bradshaw died of prostate cancer on May 23, 1978 and he was succeeded by his Deputy, Caleb Azariah Paul Southwell, who died on May 18, 1979 while chairing a meeting of the West Indies Associated States Council of Ministers in Castries, St. Lucia.

 

Following Southwell’s death, it was said that the Labour Party fell into a leadership crisis and the position of Premier was given to Lee Moore. On February 18 the following year, General Elections were held and while the SKNLP won four seats in St. Kitts (West Basseterre, Old Road/Sandy Point, Sandy Point/Dieppe Bay and Saddlers/Molineaux), the PAM captured three (East and Central Basseterre and Cayon), and the NRP under Simeon Daniel won the two on Nevis. The PAM and the NRP formed a coalition, making Dr. Kennedy Simmonds Premier and Daniel Minister of Finance. And under this Administration, St. Kitts and Nevis gained Independence from Great Britain on September 19, 1983 making Dr. Simmonds the Federation’s first Prime Minister and Daniel Nevis’ first Premier. However, in the June 24, 1984 General Elections a seat each was added to those in St. Kitts and Nevis and the coalition was dissolved. The PAM had won six seats on St. Kitts (Constituencies One, Two, Four, Five, Seven and Eight) against the SKNLP two (Constituencies Three and Six) and the NRP had won all three on Nevis.

 

The nation then saw the emergence of another political party on Nevis in 1987, the CCM, under the leadership of Vance Amory. This party contested the March 21, 1989 General Elections and won one seat against the NRP’s two, while the PAM had a repeat performance as in the previous General Elections. 

 

Meanwhile, the baton of leadership in the SKNLP was passed on to Dr. Denzil Douglas after winning his seat in that elections and, in ascending to Parliament, he was appointed Leader of Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition and soon thereafter elected Leader of the SKNLP. 

 

But trouble was brewing!

Trouble emerged after the results of the November 29, 1993 General Elections were announced. The incumbent PAM had won four seats and the SKNLP in opposition tallied the same amount, while the CCM took two and the NRP one on Nevis. The CCM refused to form a coalition with the PAM and the stalemate went unresolved. However, the PAM remained in office after Dr. Simmonds was sworn-in by the Governor General and this led to civil disturbance with Dr. Douglas leading his supporters down Church Street to the Government Headquarters, where it is being said that they were armed with “bottles and stones”.

 

Some 19 months later, the nation again went to the polls and the SKNLP won seven seats against the PAM’s one, while the CCM took two and the NRP one on Nevis. These changes saw Dr. Douglas as Prime Minister of the Federation and Vance Amory as Nevis’ Premier. 

 

The SKNLP won all eight seats in 2000 General Elections and the CCM retained two. 

 

In 2004 the nation saw the emergence of another political party on St. Kitts – the United National Empowerment Party (UNEP) – under the leadership of renowned Attorney-at-Law Dr. Henry Browne. This party contested the October 25, 2004 General Elections but was unsuccessful in gaining a seat. The SKNLP won seven seats, losing Constituency Number Five to the PAM and the CCM had a repeat performance. However, in the 2010 General Elections in which the UNEP boycotted, the SKNLP had lost another seat. The PAM laid claim to Constituencies Five and Eight. 

 

Research has shown that the SKNLP has been the most dominant party on St. Kitts and the CCM, since its emergence in the political arena, has been dominant in Federal Elections and also that island’s Local Elections following victories in 1992, 1997, 2002 and 2013.   

 

 

It is recorded that some of the PAM’s achievements under Dr. Kennedy Simmonds (1980-1995) included: Reduction in the voting age to 18 years; abolition of Personal Income Tax (PAYE); abolition of the Death Tax; purchasing of the sugar lands; introduction of the Schools Meal Programme; introduction of Cable TV; abolition of the British Law of firing unwed pregnant civil servants; introduction of the 13-week maternity leave; introduction of the Dull Season Bonus for sugar workers; completion of the Deep Water Harbour; completion of the Golden Rock Airport (RLB International Airport); the creation of Port Zante; construction of the Kennedy Simmonds Highway; excluding Saturdays from the civil service workdays; introducing modern telephone system through Cable and Wireless; Severance Pay for workers; improved electricity and water services in Nevis; introduction of minimum wage legislation; increased food, livestock and fisheries development; acquisition of Independence; payment for sugar lands; construction of Kim Collins Highway; increased volume and diversity of tourism opportunities; the establishing of the Development Bank; construction of some 300 low-cost houses for low and middle-income families; the establishing of the Citizenship By Investment programme; and the establishing of the College of Further Education.

SKNLP’ Achievements 

 

Achievements under the Dr. Douglas-led Administration from 1995 to present include: Completion and expansion of Port Zante; establishing of the Sugar Industry Diversification Foundation; completion of paved roads around St. Kitts; establishing of the Small Entrepreneur and Enterprise Development (SEED) project; construction of the Silver Jubilee Stadium; construction of the Warner Park Cricket Stadium; Multi-million dollar Kittitian Hill Resort and Golf Course; SIDF’s US$5M funding for renovation of the Ocean Terrace Inn; construction of Saddle Hill Adventure Park; construction of the US$38M Silver Reef development at Frigate Bay with a total number of 90 apartments in nine buildings; construction of the St. Kitts Eco-Park; and the construction of over 3,000 low-income houses.

 

The SKNLP also has a number of projects under construction, which include: The EC$87M Ross University expansion in the West Farm; EC$27M Imperial Bay Golf and Beach Residences at Half Moon Bay/Conaree area; 226-unit Pelican Bay Limited, below Potato Bay in Frigate Bay; US$76M Golden Rock Commercial Park, next to the Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport, that will include a boutique hotel, supermarket, restaurant and bar, amphitheater and meeting rooms; US$180M Koi Resorts and Residences at Half Moon; Park Hyatt St. Kitts; US$40M 246-room hotel/condo Pirate’s Nest in Frigate Bay; Christophe Harbour Marina; and the Dolphinium at Bird Rock Beach Resort.

 

 

It is said that during Bradshaw’s tenure he had not only neglected Anguilla but also Nevis, and that it was not until the Simeon Daniel-led NRP coalition with PAM that the people of Nevis had seen progress. But, it is claimed that the neglect resurfaced after the SKNLP got into office in 1995 under Dr. Douglas. It is also said on a regular basis that Bradshaw had stated that Nevisians would be served “Pepper in their soup and bones in their rice”. However, even though some people claimed it to be true, so far, my research had led me to conclude that there is no documented evidence of when and where this statement was made.

 

While the SKNLP boasts of providing over 3,600 low-income houses for citizens in St. Kitts against some 300 by the PAM when in office, candidates of the latter party claimed that plans were afoot to construct many more but they had lost the 1995 Elections. And that the SKNLP’s success was due to the fact that most of the lands upon which they built those houses were no longer used for the production of sugar.

 

Another contentious issue is the Opposition’s claim of the SKNLP Administration’s paying out of EC$28M from a promised EC$42M to the displaced sugar workers after the closure of the Sugar Industry in 2005. The Opposition wants to know what has been done with the EC$14M and when the displaced workers would be paid their entitlement. So far, there has been no response.

 

The PAM has claimed that when the party had demitted office in 1995 the country had a National Debt of some $200M, and the SKNLP Government had ran it up to the astronomical figure of US$1B (EC$2.7B); an act they claimed to have arisen from the fiscal recklessness and gross mismanagement by Dr. Douglas. The Government has however stated that the debt was caused by a number of factors, including the nearly $500M damage caused by Hurricane Georges on September 21, 1998 and the global economic crisis which started in the USA in July 2007 and adversely affected the Federation from 2008.

 

As a result of the economic crisis, certain measures were implemented by the Government in its debt restructuring programme, including: The passing of the September 2012 St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla National Bank (Vesting of Certain Lands) Bill 2012 in Parliament giving the government the authority to transfer 1200 acres of land to the Bank which was to be sold for the settlement of some of the government’s debt; the imposition of 17 percent VAT; some 86 percent increase in electricity bill; some 60 percent haircut in Government Bonds; and the freezing of salary and wages. These measures, the Opposition claimed, were conditions of the International Monetary Fund.

 

In his New Year’s Address to the nation, Dr. Douglas said: “We are number one in economic growth, having achieved in 2013 a growth rate of 3.8 percent, which is higher than in any other OECS country; and having accelerated that pace of growth to achieve an estimated growth rate of 4.6 percent in 2014.” He also said that within three years, the public debt has been reduced by EC$1.1B from 147 percent of GDP to 83 percent of GDP; overall balance of payments surplus of some 7.8 percent of GDP; fiscal performance had achieved a primary surplus of EC$317.1M or 15.2 percent of GDP and an overall surplus on the fiscal account of $252.6M or 12.1 percent of GDP.

 

And with regard to salary and wages freeze, in his 2014 Budget Address, Prime Minister Douglas announced the restoration of increments in January 2014 and a 10 percent increase in salary and wages over the next three years. He noted that a four percent wage increase took immediate effect on January 1, 2014 and would be followed by automatic three percent increases in January 2015 and January 2016. 

The Citizenship by Investment Programme (CIP) and the Sugar Industry Diversification Foundation (SIDF) are also major contentious issues. The Opposition (PAM, CCM and PLP) has claimed that the Government is tight-lipped on the amount of passports sold under the CIP and the monies garnered are also not revealed to the public. These monies, the Opposition said, are within the SIDF and should be placed in the Consolidated Fund. 

 

The Opposition is also claiming that the Government said the SIDF was introduced to assist the displaced sugar workers, but they are using it as a “slush fund” to “enrich family members, friends and cronies of the Labour Party Government”. They further accused Dr. Douglas of selling the nation’s passports to undesirables who are deemed terrorists and money launderers. The Opposition reminded that in 2013 an Iranian named Alizera Moghadam was denied entry into Canada with a St. Kitts-Nevis passport, which he allegedly claimed to have paid US$1M to acquire. It was also reported that his visit to that country was to meet with the Prime Minister. However, in response to this particular issue, the Government said that in January 2013 he was appointed a special envoy for St. Kitts and Nevis to Turkey after acquiring citizenship under the CIP.

 

Also, in response to the SIDF should have been in the Consolidated Fund and that it is being used as a “slush fund”, the Government said that it is a private fund and it is being used to make life better for nationals, citizens and residents in the Federation. The Government had also said monies from the SIDF is being used to invest in national development by investing in the construction of businesses entities, etc., and creating jobs for the unemployed such as the 3000-plus young people engaged in the People Employment Programme, known as PEP.

 

The Opposition further claimed that in continuance of neglect for the people of Nevis, the Federal Government had made it clear that it was not in support of the CCM-led Nevis Island Administration, but rather the NRP. Evidence of this, they claimed, were seen in the obstacles created for payment of civil servants’ salary in April 2014 when the National Bank refused to honour the employees cheques and the recent double salary payment for Christmas.

 

Premier Van Amory had opined that the April 2014 debacle was “tantamount to financial terrorism” and insinuated that the Federal Government was involved on both occasions when civil servants were to be paid (including the double salary). Deputy Premier Mark Brantley had publicly stated that although some EC$1B were collected from the sale of passports, the Federal Government is not interested in the welfare of the people on Nevis and pointed to recent statements made by Dr. Douglas on the political platform and the signing of the “Contract for Progress” between the SKNLP and the NRP.

 

Premier Amory also said that since the CCM took office in January 2013, the NIA had been unable to receive any budgetary assistance from the Federal Government and that nothing goes to the people of Nevis from the sale of passports. And Brantley claimed that during the NRP’s tenure in office, the Federal Government had been providing them with EC$1M on a monthly basis. He however stated that despite that monthly sum, the Federal Government was not concerned with the people of Nevis because they refused guaranteeing a loan for completion of the Geothermal Project on that island.

 

In a recent statement on the political platform however, Prime Minister Douglas said that the SKNLP in coalition with the NRP would win the General Elections...“thus giving us empowerment to do a number of things that we were not able to do before. For example, revisiting our Constitution making the necessary adjustments and changes possibly giving us a new Constitution so that the people of St. Kitts and Nevis will be able to live as one; but at the same time ensuring greater governance rooted in our democracy and making sure that our people can live in harmony and within the ambit of our constitutional reforms”.

 

The London-based Privy Council is scheduled to hand down its judgment tomorrow (Feb. 12) on whether the January 12 Proclamation and the new constituency boundaries were in breach of the Constitution. Handing down of the judgment is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. (2:00 p.m. in St. Kitts and Nevis). This judgment will determine whether the General Elections will be conducted on the old or new boundaries.