BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – FORMER Senior Minister of the Labour Administration, Hon. Dr. Timothy Harris has refuted the allegation made last night (Apr. 11) by Senator Richard ‘Ricky’ Skerritt on the colour of his attire at the recently held press conference by the elected Members of the Federal Parliament.
“Since when the colour of somebody’s shirt at a meeting becomes significant? Since when could Ricky Skerritt, a former advocate for the leadership of PAM, come now to talk about somebody being PAM? Ricky, in nature, is an opportunist,” Dr. Harris said.
Speaking on the platform of the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party’s Public Meeting held last night in Mansion Village, Senator Skerritt told the large gathering that on his return home from a funeral, he felt sad and brokenhearted after viewing a photograph sent by a friend.
“When I got home from the funeral, comrades and friends, a friend of mine sent me a photograph of the six musketeers who were in the press conference on Tuesday. And comrades and friends, it was really sad to see a gentleman who has sat in Cabinet for so many years, a gentleman who has represented this constituency for so many years, sitting down next to the Leader of PAM with both of them dressed in gold and yellow. Comrades and friends it broke my heart.
“The Honourable Sam Condor did not wear his gold and yellow yet. They tell he said that he has it but he can’t bring himself to put it on yet. But the Representative for Number Seven who Labour has worked so hard for and who his people has supported him so well, in his quest, in his anxiety, in his rush to become the Leader of PAM he had to put on his gold and yellow in that press conference. You mean he couldn’t even put on white. He couldn’t even put on blue to support CCM. He had to go and put on the yellow and gold just to prove to the PAM people that he ready to lead them?
“Comrades and friends, maybe I am one of those who been in denial. Maybe I’ve been quietly hoping that I will wake up out of a dream. Maybe I have been saying that this is a bad dream that gon end sometime. Well it ended today when I saw that picture, because the reality is that the Representative for Number Seven has gone. He has gone!
“Comrades and friends, where has he gone to and why? Who has he joined? Which party has he joined? Has he joined the PAM party really? Can you believe that? Comrades and friends, it is frightening how people can be enticed, enticed away from a movement; a movement that means so much for the people of this constituency, a movement called the Labour Movement that means so much to the people of St. Kitts and Nevis. A movement that has lifted up people, that has worked to improve the lives of every generation from generation to generation.”
Continuing in his response, Dr Harris said that Senator Skerritt’s utterances are trivial and he does not want to give credence to those little foolish things people are saying.
“I believe that the country now wants to hear issues. What we need really, instead of people picking up these little foolish things which ministers are saying, hold them to account for the issues affecting the country. This election can’t be about somebody in a black shirt or somebody is saying…This is thrash really for a man to go on the platform to talk about how he see somebody in a coloured shirt and the shirt looks like PAM. I was attired in an orange shirt!
“Let us not take the reporting to the public to the level of nastiness to which the Douglas Administration has been doing. Let us get the public to focus on the issues. Let us ask Ricky why is it he is not paying attention to filling our hotel rooms? What is the master plan to ensure that Sugar Bay can go back to a full hotel in terms of its allocations of its rooms? What is the master plan to ensure that Bird Rock Beach Hotel can return to full hotel occupancy and not being forced to carve out some of its room to a student population? Let us ask him when we will see a revitalised plan for Tourism so that the OTI Hotel will be in a good position? These are the significant issues affecting peoples’ lives. The colour of one shirt is material and you must lift the level of debate within the country.”
The former Cabinet Member stressed that the Federation is in a state of crisis.
“This is a country in an economic crisis…a national debt which is still one of the highest in the world; that is a serious matter. It is a consequence of the high national debt we are told we have VAT. We are told that is why we have the highest electricity rates in the history of St. Kitts and Nevis. These are the serious issues Timothy Harris wants to focus and the country want to focus.
“The country wants to know how Premier Amory, after a few days of getting into office, removed the fuel surcharge and it took the Douglas Administration right up until an election is coming to recognise that we want relief.
“Let us as residence and citizens lift the debate from trivial. It is trivial to talk about shirt and colour and those kinds of silliness when the country is in a political crisis, when this person has the worst record in calling a vote of no confidence. No other country in CARICOM has that record.
“And I think we have a responsibility now for the good of the country to have the conversation being about real issues. They are looking into foolishness, and at the end of the day that doesn’t change the price of saltfish, chicken, milk and flour, all of which the prices have increased significantly. I want to focus on the issues of the day that are hurting people and propose solutions to these things.”
Dr. Harris is of the view that the media should hold government officials accountable for the state of the economy.
“The media and the people of this country have to bring the government, in my view, to account for the state of the economy. Look at S.L. Horsford’s Annual Report for this year, the last one available, and it tells you that that company, one of the largest public limited companies in the country, has had a miserable year in which it lost 50 percent of its profits compared to the prior year.
“Look at the Chairman’s Report in which he outlined that the country is in a year of challenge and he does not see 2013 as any less challenging than 2012. He pointed out the fact that the VAT, high electricity cost…those things were undermining the ability of citizens in the country to have purchasing power. And as a result of it, by and large, the company was suffering because of the same policies of the Douglas Administration."
