Tweet

By Tony Nias,

Anyone paying attention to international news coverage of late will find several examples of public officials taking responsibility for their actions or inactions and stepping aside for the national good. Unfortunately for us here in St. Kitts and Nevis we have a Denzil Douglas.

There has never been a clearer case for a public official to step aside than that of Denzil

Douglas. We can site among other things, Douglas’ disregard for our constitution at every opportunity, his lack of effective leadership skills, dictatorial tendencies, cronyism, or highlight his general mismanagement of our economy. Take your pick, all warrant an immediate resignation.

Today Denzil Douglas leads an administration that is presiding over the loss of our culture, our value systems, our lands, and ultimately our sovereignty. As a result of his poor leadership we are experiencing a period in which we see our nation’s economy in turmoil, our future is under threat. There is the back braking VAT to contend with daily, more and more of our fellow citizens are out of work, factory workers getting laid off, and those who are left must work twice as hard for less. Some have lost their

homes, others struggling with the monthly payments, neither individuals nor businesses can afford the high cost of electricity, parents can’t afford to pay tuition, salaries and wages remain virtually stagnant, failing to keep up with the cost of living, no permanent employment opportunities for young people, poverty on the rise, our middle class disappearing, our government defaulted on its debt, and now we have to give up our lands to get rid of a humongous national debt.

In the face of all these challenges, all this administration relies on as a defence is notion that it is the fault of global economy, Mother Nature. Let us examine that argument;

• This government has been in power for 19 years, and they gave us 17 deficit budgets. Was that the global economy, Mother Nature, or Mismanagement?

The PAM administration left a deficit of around $200 Million which included SSMC and the Nevis debt, This Douglas lead administration managed to take it to $3Billion. Was that the global economy, Mother Nature, or Mismanagement?

• When PAM left office they left the incoming Douglas administration several capital projects;

The South East Peninsula Road, The College of Future Education, The Judicial Complex, New Government Headquarters, The Airport, and Port Zante.

They have not added a major capital project without SIDF since. Was that the global economy, Mother Nature, or mismanagement?

• Other Caribbean nations all operate within the same global economy, none reached a debt

to GDP ratio of 200%, and none had the distinction of being the second most indebted nation in the world. Was that the global economy, Mother Nature, or mismanagement?

• As for Mother Nature, between 1995 and today several other countries in this region had

natural disasters, indeed Antigua, St. Lucia, Haiti, and Dominica all had hurricanes but they never held on to the number 2 spot in the world for indebtedness, nor did they have a debt to GDP ratio of 200%.

Is that the global economy, Mother Nature, or mismanagement?

The verdict is in, Denzil Douglas has been found guilty of gross incompetence and

mismanagement. Let us not forget that this is the same Douglas who ignored warnings after warnings that the level of our national debt is unsustainable, and that one day it will come back to haunt us, bringing pain and suffering to our people. Instead of heeding the warnings from several economists both at home and abroad, instead of heeding the warnings of the IMF, instead of heeding the warnings of the Peoples Action Movement, instead of heeding the warnings of ordinary citizens,

Denzil Douglas gave us his infamous response, “Public Debt Me Arse”, while he continued to spend the people’s money like a drunken sailor, giving out no-bid contracts, sweetheart deals, and consulting fees to friends and family. Now there is pain and suffering which did not have to be. The IMF is now in our house, the IMF run things, which did not have to be. No one said we live in a vacuum, no one said the global economy or natural disasters have no effect on us. But we could have been better prepared to weather the storm; we could have been spared some of the pain. The failure to acknowledge the pain and suffering of our citizens, and the failure to

respond honestly, is a direct result of the broken and dishonest politics that Douglas brought to Church Street, and the incompetence and the failed policies of his administration.

I believe that all governments make a promise to its citizens, one that says it would create the climate that would allow each of us the freedom to pursue our own happiness. Although we acknowledge that government cannot solve all our problems, what it should do is that which we cannot do for ourselves: It should protect us from crime and violence, provide every child a decent education; keep our environment clean and safe; invest in new schools, invest in new roads, and the necessary infrastructure important for our development. Our government should work for us, not

against us. It should help us, not hurt us. It should ensure opportunity not just for the influential and wealthy few, but for all of its citizens.

Over the last 19 years, that’s the promise we expected Denzil Douglas as a leader to keep, but he has failed us. Therefore, we must set a new course; the ship of state must head in a new direction. It is time for a change. Denzil Douglas should take responsibility for the poor state of affairs, he must resign, and step aside for the good of our nation.