BASSEERRE, St. Kitts – AS the Federation celebrates its 27th year of independence, its people have been called into action to secure the future of this land through the strengthening of its families.
The call was made yesterday, Independence Day (Sept. 19), by Prime Minister of the Federation, Dr. the Hon. Denzil Llewellyn Douglas, in his Independence Address to the nation.
Dr. Douglas reminded the Federation of this year’s theme, “Strengthening Families for Positive Nation Building” and explained that the strength and resilience of the Federation hinges on the strength and resilience of the families contained therein.
“As you reflect on the meaning and implications of this theme, I would like you to see all that I say, not just as an independence day address, but instead as an urgent call to action. What,…I ask, is the ocean but countless drops of water? What is the most magnificent structure but the countless bricks or blocks or planks of wood brought together to create something huge and grand and worthy of admiration?
Similarly…what is a nation but countless families living in a particular geographical space? And it is the feel and nature of each individual family combined with the feel and nature of all other families from one village to the next and from one town to
the other that determines the overall feel, the overall nature, the overall character of a society as a whole”.
Dr. Douglas painted a picture of two nations, one which had the ability to accomplish much through the fortitude of its families while the other, because its families lacked fortitude and moral soundness, was at a disadvantage.
He enquired, “which country will we be?” and advised that if our Federation is to excel and if its future is to be secure, all must do their best, “to ensure that those over whom we have control and those over whom we have influence, our parents, our children, our cousins, our nieces, uncles and aunts, our friends, recognize decency, courtesy, good manners, respect for others and self-respect for self as the first obligation to themselves and their first obligation to the society in which they live. And this demands that we, as individuals ready ourselves that we ready our hearts and our own minds to be the change we want in the world…”
In the New Testament book of Ephesians, as Dr. Douglas explained, both parents and children are instructed to “relate to each other, always, in a spirit of self-control, a spirit of cooperation and a spirit of respect”. He said this is the key to successful families and by extension, the key to a successful nation.
The Prime Minister called on all and sundry to exercise responsibility and to understand and execute their role in strengthening this, our Federation of St. Christopher and Nevis through the fortification of the family unit.
Through this, he explained, “we contribute to the well-bring of this country…In the process we will be making this country the kind of place in which we would wish to grow old and the kind of place where we would want our children and, of course, our grandchildren to be.”
