BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – PRIME MINISTER Dr. the Hon. Denzil Douglas has categorically said there is “no need” for Nevis to secede from the Federation.
“I don’t think there’s any need for secession because the two governments - the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) and Federal Government – have been attempting to meet the specific challenges we are facing this time. Our Cabinets have been meeting; there have been various meetings between the various ministries where they share information and collaborate as much as possible.”
Added the Prime Minister, “I do not think it is good for us, especially at this particular time when countries around the world are facing such serious challenges. We cannot be further fragmented into separate entities.”
Douglas made the statement in response to a caller on his weekly “Ask the PM” radio show, who asked him to address accusations that the Federal Government was more partial to St. Kitts than Nevis. The caller was particularly concerned about the equitable distribution of aid and development opportunities.
Trying to allay the caller’s uneasiness, Douglas said the notion that the Federal Government does not lend sufficient support for Nevis’ development is “untrue”. He further stated that wherever the Federal Government had a constitutional responsibility to assist the NIA, it had never shied away from doing so.
Douglas highlighted two developments which he said underscored the credibility of his claims – a $3.4M IMF loan given to the Federation earlier this year and Premier Joseph Parry’s recent visit to Taiwan.
“All the IMF funds received by the Federation have been used entirely for Nevis. This is because the impact of Hurricane Omar, which resulted in the temporary closure of the Four Season Hotel and the dismissal of several hundred workers, caused a very serious setback there.
“And only recently Premier Parry was in Taiwan to discuss development programmes in Nevis. They were able to negotiate directly with the Taiwanese government on how to assist Nevis. The NIA took that trip by themselves, not as part of any delegation I was leading,” Douglas stressed.
“[The relationship] has been tense in the past. We are very conscious of our shared past and the difficulties we have had,” he admitted. “It is developing; we are trying to make it work. But I believe no one member of the Federation has any undue advantage over the other.”
