BASSTERRE, St. Kitts - "THE Labour Party government that place them in Parliament, the very same people who are Labour supporters who voted for them in the last election and placed them in Parliament, they are now saying that when they are in Parliament they don't need Labour anymore. They don't need the party and its support who placed them there...they don't need them anymore. That's what they are saying to the world, that's what I interpret that to be."
These were some of the statements made by Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas while responding to a question at his monthly press conference on Wednesday (Mar. 6).
Dr. Douglas was asked his opinion on the most recent political scenario with regards to Hon. Dr. Timothy Harris and Hon. Sam Condor attaching their signatures to the letter that was sent to the Governor-General by the Leader of the Opposition requesting that the Motion of No Confidence be tabled and stating that they would be voting against it.
The PM said that it was not a surprise to him that the two Backbenchers are going against the government, as it is something he has been aware of for quite some time, but noted that what was new was the fact that they are now announcing to the world that they have joined forces with the People's Action Movement (PAM).
"The mindset I have today is what I've always had. I don't think you understand that what happened in December was something that has been in the making for years. It's just that it has taken maybe courage or frustration, on some people's part, to eventually come forward But those who are described as my fiercest critics have always been. It's just that maybe you have not been hearing it publicly, but I'm aware that it has always been and so there is nothing new here.
"What is new, however, is that yesterday my former colleagues signed a document that says to the world, says to the Governor, says to the Parliament, says to the Cabinet, says to the people of this country - the world...Harris and Condor 'we are not longer of and with the Labour Party government, we are with the opposition, we are with PAM'.
"That's what they are saying and they have signed on a document that states that 'we are not longer with Labour, we are with PAM'. That is what is significant, but I always knew that! It's just that the people did not know that, so they were told that yesterday (Tuesday)."
Dr. Douglas was asked if he would be "kicking" Harris and Condor off of the government’s Bench, noting that Harris said, while he does not support them, he is still on that Bench.
He responded by saying that Dr. Harris knows the strength of the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party and "continues to hold on to the strings of the Labour Party because he needs to be relevant in the politics if St. Kitts and Nevis".
"If Harris thinks that he is independent, as he has been saying to people in his Constituency during his house-to-house campaigning that he would be an independent candidate, why then does he continue to sit on the government side which is the Labour Party and signing a letter like that yesterday (Tuesday)? There is nothing new in that letter," he explained.
Dr. Douglas reiterated that Harris has clearly spoken out against the Labour Administration, noting that it was nothing new. He declared that what Harris and Condor did was put in writing that they are no longer with the Labour Party and are now with PAM.
"It is very, very clear...because, again, they are reiterating that if the Motion or any other Bill was to come to the Parliament, they will vote with the Opposition, with PAM, against the Labour government," the Prime Minister emphasised.
