3RD PRIME MINISTER HARRIS BREAKS SILENCE ON NEVIS LAND GRAB, SSZ & BILLIONAIRE PRIVATE CITY DEBACLE
PLP LEADER TORCHES PM DREW & PREMIER BRANTLEY OVER CONTROVERSIAL SPECIAL SUSTAINABILITY ZONE
Basseterre, St. Kitts — September 16, 2025 (SKN Times) — In what can only be described as a thunderous political broadside, 3rd Prime Minister and People’s Labour Party (PLP) Leader, Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris, shattered his silence on the Nevis land grab scandal, the Special Sustainability Zone (SSZ) legislation, and the unfolding billionaire private city debacle.
Speaking before a sold-out audience at the PLP Heroes Day Brunch at the CUNA Conference Center on Tuesday, Dr. Harris delivered a blistering critique of the Drew administration and Premier Mark Brantley, accusing them of collusion, deception, and betrayal of the Nevisian people.
“Why He Didn’t Tell Mark That?”
Dr. Harris wasted no time tearing into Prime Minister Drew’s sudden attempts to distance himself from the SSZ mess.
“Why he didn’t tell Mark that? Why you brought the law to the federal parliament? If it is Nevis business, why not leave it to the Nevis Assembly?” Harris thundered, pointing out the blatant hypocrisy of Drew’s newfound hands-off approach.
He reminded the audience that the bill was moved by Drew himself, seconded by Premier Brantley, and supported by senior Labour and CCM members alike. “It is in his name,” Harris declared, dismantling Drew’s claim of innocence.
A “Smartness” Gone Wrong
Harris accused Brantley of playing political games by making the SSZ appear like a federal initiative to disguise its true Nevisian roots.
“Mark was doing a smartness. Let it look like it is a federal matter. So when the mess come out, he could say, ‘Well, they ain’t got nothing to do with it.’ But alas, the truth has come out.”
He described the entire scheme as “a bad deal, a betrayal, and a sellout of Nevisian patrimony”.
Lands of the People, Sold to the Highest Bidder
The former Prime Minister passionately defended the historic fight for land ownership, recalling his government’s $408 million buyback of lands from the National Bank after the Douglas land swap disaster.
“Every citizen has a right to a piece of the rock,” Harris proclaimed, contrasting his record of redistributing land for housing and community development with Drew and Brantley’s fire sale to foreign billionaires at bargain prices.
“Now we face a situation where a few people think they have money, and we don’t know value. They will buy up and lock us out. That cannot happen here. No gated community, no displacement of our people.”
Hypocrisy & Deception Laid Bare
Harris openly called Prime Minister Drew a hypocrite and a liar, underscoring his central role in pushing the SSZ Bill through parliament.
“He is very much involved. He brought the bill. He supported it. His ministers and Brantley’s team voted for it. And the bill gave him the right to sign off. He is in the middle of it,” Harris declared to raucous applause.
A Warning to the Nation
Dr. Harris closed with a stark warning about the dangerous path of land dispossession and elite enclaves masquerading as sustainability.
“We must not go back there. Be careful when we are giving away our patrimony. Our land is our survival. Once sold, our people will always be displaced.”
Analysis: A Nation at a Crossroads
Harris’ intervention has blown the lid off what many now call the SSZ fiasco—a project critics say threatens Nevisian sovereignty, transparency, and generational wealth. His fiery rebuke exposed deep fractures within the political establishment and raised urgent questions:
- Who truly benefits from the SSZ?
- Why was the Nevisian public shut out of meaningful consultation?
- And most damningly: why is Prime Minister Drew attempting to wash his hands of a bill he himself moved?
As the scandal deepens, one thing is clear: the hidden agenda behind the SSZ will not remain hidden for long.
Leave a comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.