BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, October 24th 2009 (PAM Secretariat) – Responding to Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas’ statement that he and his Deputy, the Hon. Shawn Richards, are responsible for holding up the calling of elections, Leader of the People’s Action Movement (PAM) Lindsay Grant said the PM continues to demonstrate his inability to act and speak responsibly.
Grant said he is appalled to hear the lies that the PM continues to peddle, and he is on a deliberate campaign at attempting to hold onto power through the changing of boundaries. He said despite the court’s ruling that elections must be held using the old boundaries, the PM doesn’t seem interested and continues to abuse as well as disrespect the court’s decisions.
Grant, in response to what he labelled as desperate attempts by the PM and his associates in holding on to government, noted that the issue of good governance must imply a scrupulous regard for the resources of the state, good management, probity, efficiency, a lack of corruption, and the timely conduct of the affairs of the state, among others.
“I am very sad to see what this once striving Federation has been reduced to, and to see what has occurred over the past 14-plus years leaves much to be desired and ask the popular question of how long more will we continue like this,” Grant said.
He claimed that it is very distressing to note that none of the mentioned qualities characterizes the Douglas-led administration which continues to see the rapidly growing crime rate, high national debt, broken families, poor health care, unemployment and a broken tourism industry.
He suggested that that negative feature seems to be the primary hallmark of PM Douglas and his administration. “I must be frank and say that is his gross inability to carry out the functions of this beautiful Federation in an acceptable timely and processional manner.”
The PAM Leader stated that because of this the Federation is being operated in a sad, less than systematic, manner and more often than not the Kittitians and Nevisians are the victims. He further stated that the loss of 23 lives for this year leaves more questions than answers.
Grant said that the incompetence of the Government to address crime and unemployment may result in further job losses and more murders. “I am heartbroken as a public official who honestly and genuinely wants to see development and empowerment of our locals so that St. Kitts and Nevis can move forward positively. As such, it hurts me to have to once again address these issues, as I do not want to find me or any member of my party having to respond to the Prime Minister’s continuous gross inaccuracies, thus dwelling on any negative aspects of political life in the Federation.
“However, the continuous inability of government to stem the rampant shooting and crime wave and their refusal to tap in to my party’s offer of assistance in helping them as a Federation to collectively address the problems faced in both crime and unemployment, is a clear indication of the continuing terrible management of this Government since taking office in 1995,” Grant declared.
Grant said that the need for the Labour Government to be dissected would help the people of St. Kitts and Nevis to better understand the price of ‘misrule’ by Dr. Douglas and his administration.
“All within this Federation must realize the critical importance of what we have at stake here. And, therefore, there are two pertinent questions that we must ask ourselves as nationals and residents: can we continue under the Douglas administration or will we continue to allow the blatant deterioration of this Federation? Grant asked.
“I would like to state on record that history can state that at no time during the PAM Administration in the Federation did Kittitians and Nevisisians ever experience such ineptitude, incompetence and downright failure,” he added.
