Declaring that he does not need any adoration or titles, opposition leader Philip J. Pierre says that all he lives for is to improve the lives of Saint Lucians. Addressing supporters at the annual general meeting of the Castries East Women’s Organization on Tuesday, Pierre confessed that the job of a politician is a very lonely one, “and the higher you go, the lonelier it becomes.”
The Castries East MP indicated that at times he is left bewildered regarding things detractors say about him. “Like when I read that ‘Philip J. Pierre has done nothing for Marchand. Nothing!’ I say are they speaking about the same Marchand that I know? Are they speaking about the same Castries East that I inherited in 1997? Is it the same place that they’re speaking of?” he said.
Nonetheless, the longtime MP asserted that he has courage, and seeing the young lives he has impacted keeps him going. Pierre said that he has always lived in Castries East and promised that he will remain there no matter his position. “I never left and I will not leave. Sometimes it’s not always nice. I can’t tell you that it’s always rosy and honey. Sometimes it’s rough but I know at the bottom of my heart, all I want to do is to improve the lives of the people of Castries East and by extension the people of Saint Lucia.
“This is all I live for now! I have little more that I want to live for. I have one daughter, she’s a big lady. There’s nothing more I want to do, than if I become prime minister of Saint Lucia, to change the lives of the people of Saint Lucia and the people of Castries East. That is all I live for,” he reiterated.
Stating that he does not need anything more, he continued: “I don’t need any adoration, I don’t need any titles, I don’t need anything. All I want to do is to assist you. All I want to do is to ensure that every child when they get up in the morning, they can go to school and get educated so we can have a better Saint Lucia for the future.”
He reminded the audience of his previous declaration that he is the “most underestimated politician in Saint Lucia.” Pierre said that when he entered politics to go up against Romanus Lansiquot, most people thought he was mad. Likewise, he said that people thought the same when he decided to open his own business.
“Most people thought I was mad but I know that with determination, with commitment, with honesty and with people behind you, you will survive. And in all these ventures I have survived! And my next venture is to win the elections whenever it is called for the SLP, and with your help I will survive!”
The MP added: “So in the midst of all the noise and the confusion, and in the midst of all the speculation, and all the ‘who did this and who did that’ I keep focused. Because if I don’t keep focused, I will not achieve what we must achieve.”
With elections drawing nearer, the SLP recently opened a campaign headquarters in Independence City and unveiled a campaign slogan “Putting You First.”
