May 21st, 2013 -- On a rainy and somewhat cool Sunday evening in New York on Sunday, May 19, 2013, Kittitians and Nevisians of various political persuasions congregated in the sacred halls of the Mount Carmel Pentecostal Church on White Plains Road in the Bronx, New York to hear former Labour government ministers, the Honourable Sam Condor and the Honourable Dr. Timothy Harris.
Despite the almost hour and a half late start, both men were greeted warmly upon arrival. Following a prayer and brief opening remarks, by Chairman Mr. Thomas Alva Pemberton, Sam Condor broke the ice and briefly engaged the eager audience.
Sam Condor
After expressing words of appreciation for the opportunity to dialogue with the public, Sam Condor began his mission to connect with the citizens in the Diaspora. The senior parliamentarian touched on the genesis of his support and allegiance to the Labour movement, the array of factors that kept him on as a Labour candidate and the heart wrenching decision he took to leave the government despite his love for the ideologies on which the Labour Movement was founded.
Sam was pellucidly clear that he found absolutely no pleasure in parting ways with the government. In fact, according to Sam, since 2000 he assured the Prime Minister that he would resign as a parliamentarian in defiance of what he thought was a dangerous culture that was burgeoning in the party and the reckless adoption of a political expediency policy that became fair game in order to get things done the Prime Minister's way. Condor continued that getting to the point in his political career where the relationship with himself and Denzil Douglas deteriorated so badly brought him great pain.
The long serving parliamentarian claimed that after the initial sit down he had with the Prime Minister as far back as 2000, he recognized that his dignity, credibility and manhood were at stake. To continue as a parliamentarian in the name of collective responsibility and then quietly bow out without standing against the obvious ills being committed by the Prime Minister was something the former parliamentarian claimed he could not do.
Despite all the meetings and retreats to bring the party together over the years, there was no change in the behavior of the Prime Minister. To Condor's mind, the decision by the Prime Minister to bloat parliament by adding more senators merely for political expediency and to swap land for debt in a supposed attempt to bring down the national debt were essentially the last straw.
Sam Condor stated that he moved on after much inner wrestling and introspection and believes strongly he can serve his constituency and country in a unified capacity with all other interest groups.
He ended by again thanking all in attendance for their warm hospitality and overall support.
Dr. Timothy Harris
Timothy Harris presented as a colossal speaker. He too expressed how pleased he was to see so many of his supporters in New York on the heels of what he deemed was a very successful meeting in Toronto on last Friday, May 17. Doctor Harris spoke about his dismay in having to part ways with the party he grew up acknowledging as the party for the poor. Harris spoke to the fact that he found no pleasure highlighting the wrongs committed under Denzil Douglas.
He admitted to the fact that having been aligned with the Labour government, he too is accountable, but it is in keeping with his stance against the Increase in Senators Bill and Vesting of Certain Lands Bill that he knew he would be parting ways with the Denzil Douglas administration. He apologized to his constituents and the electorate of the federation as a whole and advised that like former Minister Condor, he stayed in the fold of the party he loved hopeful the Prime Minister would change his ways and ultimately reshape the direction of the country.
At various intervals of his presentation, the former senior minister used catch phrases to speak to some of the ways in which Denzil Douglas continues to enrich himself and the various methods he has used to garner public support in a disingenuous manner.
Dr. Harris spoke for instance about the Prime Minister claiming to care about the sharp increase in the cost of electricity and his encouraging the public to march against the high cost of electricity last year Labour Day only to realize an increase some six months later. Dr. Harris suggested that in life and in death, Denzil Douglas "vatting you” as even funeral costs are subject to the 17% VAT implemented shortly after the 2010 general elections.
The experienced parliamentarian enlivened the audience touching on specific aspects of the state of the country such as the consistently increasing deficits, especially in recent years and the high debt to GDP ratio; one of the highest in the world. Dr. Harris suggested that as a result of the debt restructuring government has undergone, the renowned haircut the government has had to take was more like a "mama trim" instead as these policies were some of the hurried measures implemented to clean up the financial mess created years prior.
The parliamentarians share a common view in moving forward as a nation. Unifying now as opposed to when it is politically convenient lets the electorate know these men want to operate above board. Dr. Harris advised listeners of the dire need to strengthen our national institutions, including parliament where decorum has sunken to an all time low. The wholesome new dispensation that should occur in the federation ought to be about serving all the people and not just 50% of the population.
Question & Answer
Unfortunately, the question and answer segment did not allow members of the audience sufficient time to ask their questions in part because of the late start. This aspect of the evening was a lot more heated. Some guests for instance were not pleased with Sam’s response as to his knowledge of Lex Consulting. How could he not know? one lady asked. Sam insisted that like many other things, many decisions were made on matters without his knowledge or his input.
Other questions were asked about Lex Consulting indicating there was genuine concern for how much either parliamentarian knew about this consulting firm.
One gentleman who identified himself as a Mr. Swanston from Nevis asked the parliamentarians about their position regarding a choice of a Nevisian Prime Minister. Dr. Harris declared the best leader would be whomever the elected representatives agree to and that obviously can include one of the successful candidates from Nevis. Some members of the audience seemed to oppose Mr. Swanston's question but he made the point that he wanted the parliamentarians to be honest about how they viewed choosing a Nevisian Prime Minister whenever the time comes to choose.
There was clearly a desire of the individuals in attendance to unearth truth and a better understanding as to how the parliamentarians can help to shape the way forward for the federation.
The national anthem and Vote of Thanks signaled the end of the meeting shortly after 9 PM, at which point, guests used the opportunity to engage in picture taking, eating and hearty mingling.
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