Advises CFBC graduates to be self-reliant
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – LEGAL luminary Charles L.A. Wilkin, CMG, QC, told a large gathering, which included Prime Minister Denzil Douglas, that he would like the government to repeal Sections 27 and 28 of the Constitution of St. Kitts and Nevis.
Wilkin made this pronouncement, among others, while delivering the Keynote Address at the 22nd Commencement Ceremony of the Clarence Fitzroy Bryant College held at the school’s campus on Burdon Street on Sunday, November 28.
The proposal was made against the background of that section of the Constitution which prevented the late Clarence Fitzroy Bryant from sitting in the House of National Assembly after the Federation gained its independence from Britain.
Reminiscing on his formative years, Wilkin said Bryant was his teacher at the St. Kitts-Nevis Grammar School in the 1960s, his legal colleague in the 1980s and his friend until his "untimely death".
“In the days when he taught and in his early political career when education was not as widely available as it is today, Fitzroy can best be described as an activist for education. His legacy is the education system from which you have benefitted and which is the envy of our region.
“There is one stain on his legacy, and that is Section 27 of the Constitution of St. Kitts and Nevis. That section was put into the Constitution to prevent Fitzroy, although a citizen, from ever sitting in the National Assembly after independence in 1983. I make no apologies for using this occasion to call on the government to repeal Section 27 and Section 28 of the Constitution, and to allow all citizens, other than citizens by investment, the right to hold elective public office,” Wilkin said.
Wilkin told the 213 graduates that Section 28 is relevant to them, because even if they were born in the Federation it prevents them from sitting in the National Assembly once they had taken a second nationality.
He also made a comparison of nationals with dual citizenship and their children who are citizens of the Federation by descent.
“It is so ironic that we are offering our citizenship all over the world while punishing our nationals for taking advantage of a second nationality available to them. The section also creates the absurd possibility that you could go abroad, take a second nationality and have children who will be able to come back and seek elective office while you could not,” he added.
Wilkin charged the graduates to learn and develop the mantra of self-reliance in order to replace dependency on the government, which was unwisely promoted by their parents. He said the process should begin with their understanding of the role that government plays; noting government does not produce wealth but takes taxes from the wealth created by people.
“Government takes in taxes the wealth created by the investment and economic activity of the people. If, therefore, that investment and economic activity decline, government revenue declines accordingly. Government’s role should be, by legislation and policy, to stimulate economic and social conditions which promote investment, entrepreneurship and job creation. Government must also of course provide social services and a social safety net, but it does not directly create the income to do so and can only do its best with what it collects in taxes.
“Self-reliance means that by your innovation, hard work and thrift, you will become entrepreneurs and professionals who will create the wealth and pay the taxes which sustain government. You will then also insist that government spends your taxes responsibly.”
Wilkin explained to the graduates that while self-reliance is one of the many factors that could create change in people’s attitudes, another one of importance is a change in the Federation’s politics.
“You can, at an early age, play a role by persuading your parents and adult family that country really should come above party. What we have now is half of the country supporting the party in power and expecting everything for nothing in return, and the other half expecting to be disadvantaged and hoping that the country fails.
“Like our economics, our politics is unsustainable. As the leaders of the future, you should realise this and, even if you can’t change it now, vow not to be corrupted by it at an early age so that when you can do something about it you will not have fallen into the morass of tribalism.”
Highlighting the fact that debating is a very popular activity in the College, Wilkin noted that it promotes lively and informed discussion on topics of interest, usually without hatred, abuse and vulgarity. He reminded the students that debaters whom they support are not seen as gods and those they oppose are not demonised; therefore, the practice of politics should be no different.
“True application of our national motto would result in civil and responsible debate on and communication of ideas and plans…the primary interest being not power but service,” he added.
