BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – IN life, Dr. Simeon Daniel was honoured by educator, historian and author Washington ‘Washie’ Archibald through a book he published - The Legacy of Simeon Daniel, First Premier of Nevis. And in death, he remembers him as an astute, humble man and an inspiration.
The Honourable Dr. Daniel – affectionately known as ‘Sim’ - came to the end of his 77-year existence on May 27, 2012; an event which saddened many across the length and breadth of the Federation and also the Caribbean.
Archibald – who spoke openly with this publication – said he knew Dr. Daniel for many years and his death had had a “very strong impact” on his friends, relatives and the many acquaintances he build up over the many years he served in public office.
The historian expressed that in spite of his passing, the life that Dr. Daniel led and his love for his people and country dictated his actions and were instrumental in shaping his plans for the island and people of Nevis.
Archibald’s view – as is the view of many – is that Dr. Daniel was the “Father of Modern Nevis” and because of his foresight, he was successful in laying the infrastructural, educational and financial foundation for which Nevis now sits.
“Mr. Daniel – I believe – can claim to be the Father of the Modern Nevis. It’s amazing how one humble man could have taken the island of Nevis into modern living with so much humility, no grandstanding, just cool and quiet. Mr. Daniel, in his term of office as Nevis Premier, put a touch of modernisation on the Nevis landscape…
“Nevis had bad roads, potholes deep, could hold in a swimming pool, the electricity system was pretty bad…People built their houses, put plumbing in their houses and they had to go and catch water by a water pipe in order to fulfill their domestic obligations.”
Education
Nevis’ first Premier – as Archibald explained – was responsible for modernising the Nevis Education System. He said one of the major transitions was the institution of a Sixth Form element to the education system. This, he said, meant that students on Nevis would no longer have to travel to St. Kitts to receive that level of education.
“Children had to come to St. Kitts to go to the Sixth Form. After the Charlestown Secondary School and the Gingerland Senior School were put down, Mr. Daniel – although he did not get to go to the Charlestown Secondary School when it was built - he modernised the school, gave it the dignity of a good school. He added a Sixth Form College to it so that Nevisians can compete among themselves as Nevis scholars, and Nevisians don’t have to come down to St. Kitts any longer. That has been stopped for many years now.
“Mr. Daniel was Minister of Education and he totally modernised the Nevis Education System. Although St. Kitts and Nevis had a Minister of Education, it seems as if Nevis had launched out on her own and had her own Nevis Education System.”
He said Daniel was also instrumental in providing opportunities for Nevisians to receive degree-level education.
“He brought in folks from abroad. He brought in a university from Miami to give Nevis people a chance to get a first degree. It was something unheard of in St. Kitts. That was the vision of the man when it came to education and as a result of his educational policy. Nevis had the highest per capita university graduates in the Caribbean…It puts other islands to shame. Nevis is a better educated country than many other countries in the Caribbean and this is due to the vision and the good sense of Simeon Daniel.”
Banking and Finance, Land
The Honourable Dr. Daniel’s scope was not restricted to education but also extended to the financial and banking sector, land distribution and the hotel industry.
“Mr. Daniel personally went across the world trying to promote the development of a Nevis Bank. And, it was his idea, his perception that Nevis needed its own hotel in the Caribbean, a five-star hotel which is second to none anywhere in the world. It is in Nevis and it was Sim Daniel who brought that Five Star Hotel to Nevis.
“So he touched the hotel industry, he touched the banking and financial industry, he touched the land distribution industry and he touched the education industry. As a result of that, Nevis is now a modern country.
“All the facilities that you can find anywhere, Nevis has them to boast of and it has a number of young people who can look at Nevis as the source of whatever future they hope to enjoy. Young people could go to college at the age of 18 and graduate at the age of 22, get their Masters degree before they are 25. This is a tremendous achievement by the people of Nevis led by Dr. Simeon Daniel.”
Washie’s personal experience
Describing Dr. Daniel’s love for his country as “fantastic”, Archibald recounts that when he was operating Project Strong, he was approached by Dr. Daniel with the idea of establishing a sister entity on Nevis. Archibald told this publication that one of the things that stuck out must in his mind about Daniel’s proposition is that he was not in office, yet he offered to donate land to this cause.
“He heard about what I was doing down here with the youth in Project Strong. He called me and we chatted and he said he wanted me to come to Nevis to set up a Project Strong there…I was just getting involved in Project Strong in St. Kitts and it would have been impossible for me to go to Nevis. But he wanted to donate some land, he wasn’t Premier, he had no office in Nevis but he wanted to donate some land and help and to help with the development of our youth initiative because he saw that the youth in Nevis were beginning to go astray. And he wanted to try something that he thought was successful in St. Kitts.
“This was the kind of man he was, he was kind. You didn’t have to ask him to do you kindness. He went out his way and so people liked him and they gathered around him and it was always good to be talking to him. Because, even thought he was Premier and ex-Premier, and a very brilliant lawyer, he never talked down to anybody. He was friendly with everybody and he was a good man to everybody.”
Inspiration for the book
Although he knew Dr. Daniel for many years – preceding his terms in public office – Archibald said he – from an objective perspective – stood back and observed Daniel’s vicissitudes, the ups and down of his political career and how he was “forced into oblivion…when he lost his seat”.
“Nobody called him as a past Premier to ask his advice, to consult with him. I think he felt a little dejected, a little left out and I decided to write the book. I told him that I would write the book and that is how the book came about. I felt that he deserved some record by some objective observer and I felt that a Kittitian would be the best.”
Archibald explained that politics had made Dr. Daniel “very bitter because he couldn’t understand that he was so popular in Nevis, he was a hero and then he plummeted from hero to almost zero in the eyes of the people of Nevis because of the politics, both in his party and in the opposing party”.
“In his latter years however, he regained some of that love which he consistently showed to his people. And after the book was published which I did for him – in some small measure – it was able to rekindle some of the Nevisian love for him both in Nevis and overseas.”
The Honourable Dr. Simeon ‘Sim’ Daniel would be buried today and he would be accorded a State Funeral.
