BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – A call for unity made by Prime Minister Dr. the Hon. Denzil L. Douglas, as the Federation seeks to deal with the crime wave it is experiencing, has received the seal of approval from some quarters while being criticised in others.
On Wednesday, March 4, 2009, following the murder of two young men which took place in broad daylight, the Prime Minister hosted a press conference and outlined a plan to deal with the crime surge. He said that the plan was to have taken immediate effect and called upon the nation to tackle the problem with a unified front.
Washington ‘Washie’ Archibald, in an interview with SKNVibes.com, said he understands the Prime Minister’s request for unity but explained that he must lead by example.
Giving what some may consider “unconventional” advice, Archibald suggested that PM Douglas should invite those members of Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition to join his Cabinet. This, he explained, would be a true display of unity.
“If the Prime Minister wants unity, he should put Shawn Richards in the Cabinet. That is a show of unity. Put the Nevis fellows in the Cabinet and have one Cabinet with 11 people and that will be unity. How can you want unity and you still have the place divided up.
“You are the government (and) you are keeping secrets and the opposition doesn’t know what you are doing. What kind of unity is that? He wants unity? Well, he needs to unite the people! All the people who won seats, put them in one Cabinet and say let’s have a united Cabinet. That is what we call unity. Can you think of anything more unifying than that?”
Archibald explained that PM Douglas cannot call for unity when he displays this degree of division.
“Unify the government and the opposition and put them in one camp because elections coming up soon. Bring these diverse political elements into one cabinet and consider the problems in a united cabinet system. As a matter of fact, the thing is so serious, abolish the opposition and invite the opposition to join him in the Cabinet.”
The social commentator opined that having seen an overwhelming display of unity from the powers that be, others in the Federation would be more inclined to emulate.
