BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – JUST days after the announcement of the election date, representatives from the Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM) and the Nevis Reformation Party (NRP) are already questioning the other’s ability to lead the people of Nevis.
SKNVibes spoke to Hon. Hensley Daniel, Deputy Premier of Nevis, and Hon. Mark Brantley, Leader of the Federal Opposition, on Friday (Jan. 8), shortly after Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas revealed the election would be held on January 25. Both men are the Deputy Political Leaders of their respective parties (CCM for Brantley and NRP for Daniel).
The CCM won two out of the three Nevisian Parliamentary seats in the 2004 general election. However, in the 2006 local election, the NRP won three of the five district seats, ending CCM’s 14-year rule.
Despite that result, Brantley said his party was “extremely confident” it would retain its federal seats, labelling the NRP “a failure at government”.
“The NRP is not capable of stepping up to the federal stage. We have heard nothing by way of a federal platform; they have not spoken to any federal issue. We’ve heard nothing from them on crime, nothing from them on education and nothing from them on security.
“They’re treating this like it is a local election, and it is a federal one with very serious issues concerning and impacting the people. Based on its own record, the NRP is not ready for the bigger stage. The people of Nevis should invest in a CCM government, which is leadership they know they can trust,” Brantley declared.
The Opposition Leader said the January 25 election would be a “watershed moment” in national history because of the many issues facing St. Kitts-Nevis. He identified crime, the education system, national debt and the economy as areas his party would provide meaningful recommendations in the upcoming weeks.
Daniel said the NRP had already made significant progress in matters concerning education, youth development, healthcare and crime. According to the Deputy Premier, an NRP victory would mean sustained improvement in those areas and many more.
“The Nevisian people will move forward with the NRP government and work towards enhanced progress in health, education and crime. Nevis has done extremely well in the social arena. We are a leader in the Caribbean in the development of our young people,” he boasted.
“The local people endorse our campaign and will continue to support our projects and programmes. The opposition has not been able to do a thing. They have never lifted a finger. We not only have a superior record in government, but we have the tempo of the Nevisian people.”
Eleven Parliamentary seats are up for grabs in the election, which is exactly two weeks away. The ruling St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party won seven of the eight Parliamentary seats on St. Kitts in 2004, while opposition the People’s Action Movement secured one.
