PAM’s Deputy Political Leader cries foul on billboards removal;
Accuses Government of Fascist conduct…

By Stanford Conway
Editor-in-Chief-SKNVibes.com

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – DEPUTY POLITICAL LEADER of the People’s Action Movement (PAM) Eugene Hamilton is accusing the government of Fascist conduct and a violator of natural justice.

Hamilton’s comments came in the wake of the removal of a number of political billboards his party had mounted on public property throughout St. Kitts.

“If you walk through East Basseterre and look at a number of public properties, including lamp posts, you will still see posters pasted and billboards mounted since the 2004 Elections by Dr. Asim Martin, the Labour Party’s Representative for Constituency One.

“The same can be said of Cayon…and in Tabernacle and Molineux, Constituency Seven, Timothy Harris has placed banners across the streets as recent as last year. In St. Paul’s, Constituency Six, the Prime Minister also has billboards mounted.

“If nothing is wrong with that giving the same political message, then why should they remove those mounted by the People’s Action Movement? In view of all of this, the conduct of the government in removing mounted billboards by the People’s Action Movement is contrary to natural justice and, in my view, this is Fascist conduct,” Hamilton said.

A release from the PAM’s Secretariat noted the government stated that it would remove billboards and “what we want to tell the Prime Minister that even in Zimbabwe change has come. 

This act of repression will do nothing except speed the Wind of Change and the extent of change”.

~~Adz:Left~~ The release also stated that the PAM is doing and has done nothing in violation of the law, adding “Independence is the most appropriate time to stand up for the rights of the people for freedom and justice”.
 
Information reaching SKNVibes, and confirmed by executives of the PAM, state that employees of the Public Works Department, accompanied by officers of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force, were today (Sep. 17) seen removing billboards mounted by the PAM on public property. 

This media house also learnt that the exercise commenced in Cayon and, at the time of receiving the information, billboards in Sandy Point were already dismounted.

A press release from the Cabinet Secretariat, dated September 16, 2008 and headlined “Beautification of St Kitts and Nevis for The Silver Jubilee Independence Celebrations”, reads, “The National Independence Committee (NIC) is in the process of beautifying the Federation in celebration of the Silver Jubilee of our Independence.  The Public Works Department, the Department of Physical Planning & Environment and the Parks and Beaches Unit are collaborating with the NIC in this regard.”

It further states that the NIC is concerned about the erecting of a number of political and commercial billboards on government property without even seeking authorisation from the authority.

“The island’s political parties, including the governing Labour Party, have always honoured the tradition of not erecting any political billboard until elections have been announced. In violation of this tradition, a number of political billboards began being erected several months ago and is continuing,” it added.

The release informed that in keeping with the Silver Jubilee commemoration and also with the tradition of non-mounting of billboards until an election is called, “unauthorised billboards without the appropriate trademark identification will be removed from government property”.

The release also stated that the government wishes this period [Silver Jubilee Celebrations] to be free of political rancour and division, and is asking all citizens to cooperate.