BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – RESULTANT of the statements made by Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas on the resolution on crime suggested by the St. Kitts-Nevis Chamber of Industry and Commerce and a number of other civil society organisations, legal luminary Charles Wilkin QC said the Chamber would stand by the resolution.
In a release from the Chamber, Wilkin, speaking on behalf of the organisation in absence of its President, Michael Morton, said the civil organisations did not call for the sacking of any civil servant, but stated that they have no confidence in the capability of the Permanent Secretary (PS) of National Security to manage implementation of the government’s crime initiative.
He stressed that they had called for the appointment of a new PS in the Ministry with the capacity and experience to address the current crisis.
Dr. Douglas, during his weekly ‘Ask the Prime Minister’ programme on Tuesday (May 24), said the civil organisations had “overstepped their bounds” by publicly calling for the sacking of a senior civil servant.
“The government welcomes the input and suggestions of all individuals and organisations on this important challenge, even though I must say that these organisations overstepped their bounds in publicly calling for the removal of any permanent secretary in any ministry,” he said.
The PM also said the representatives of the civil organisations “seem to have shown disrespect to the governance that exists in the public service system”, adding that his administration would assume no malice was intended but was simply the result of poor judgment.
In their resolution, the civil organisations had also suggested the appointment of a new Commissioner of Police.
To this suggestion, Dr. Douglas said, “We believe in finding the best possible individual for the position in question, and the person who can best protect the interests of this nation, whether from the Federation or from further afield. So, here again, we see the recommendation that a local not be given the leadership of the police force as yet another instance of poor judgment on the part of these organisations.”
In response, the Chamber’s release noted that the PM knows well that a PS could be replaced in any ministry without being sacked and that “his categorisation in that manner of the resolution is therefore incorrect, misleading and unfortunate”.
“The resolution of the meeting regarding the appointment of a Commissioner of Police had also been twisted in the release issued by the Press Secretary. The exact language of the resolution is ‘the speedy appointment of a new Commissioner of Police from outside with a local understudy,’” Wilkin said.
Wilkin also spoke to the issues of fundamental right of free speech, the right of taxpayers to criticise or comment, and crime as a public interest.
“The Chamber stands by the resolutions referred to. Any person or organisation within the community has the right, in exercise of the fundamental right of free speech to comment within the law on the performance of any public servant, elected or non-elected.
“Public servants are paid out of taxes paid by businesses and individuals, and that too gives all taxpayers the right to criticise or comment within the law on the capability of any public servant…and the escalation of crime is a matter of public interest, as it threatens the entire economy of the country,” Wilkin explained.
He declared that any citizen or organisation could speak freely on any matter of public interest, noting that the Chamber had done so in this particular case and it would continue to speak on this issue whether or not its views are welcome or accepted.
The legal luminary reiterated the Chamber’s commitment to contribute to the crime initiative, for which the government has ultimate responsibility, and to work with the administration to achieve its success.
