BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER Hon. Sam Condor has expressed his solidarity with the comments made by the former Minister of National Security, Hon. Dwyer Astaphan, about the philosophy and ideals of the Labour Party.
In an exclusive interview with SKNVibes, the Deputy PM said he agreed unequivocally with Astaphan’s statement that the Labour Party is about “ideas, ideals and principles”.
At a press conference held last month, Astaphan expounded about the fundamental principles of Labour, stating, “It is the cornerstone covenant of Labour, which is that the rank and file, the ordinary folks, must always be included, enlightened, embraced and empowered, directly and through their elected representatives. The Labour Party’s leadership is morally and philosophically bound to respect, not reject, to energise, not marginalise and to include, not exclude, its rank and file and those persons who represent them.”
However, Condor stressed he would not comment publicly on the accusations levelled by Astaphan against Prime Minister the Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas.
“I am not going to come out and make any public statement. Astaphan has my solidarity in what he said about the essence and spirit of the Labour Party. I support his philosophies about the party but I will not comment on his accusations against the Prime Minister,” Condor said.
He further stated that he was not at liberty whether to reveal Astaphan had garnered support from any of his former Cabinet colleagues.
In response to whether or not Douglas had been an effective leader for the Labour Party, Condor said the answer was obvious.
“You can see what’s happening in regards to overall development and growth of the country. The Labour Party has done much to enhance the quality of life and standard of living for the people of the Federation. In terms of education, we have never had better results in regional examinations and our tourism product and healthcare services have been expanded and diversified. The country is moving forward in leaps and bounds,” Condor declared.
He noted that March would mark his 20th anniversary as a Parliamentarian and expressed confidence that Labour would claim victory in the upcoming general elections.
