The Flip Side Of Philip Pierre’s Counterfeit Coin

Despite his attempt to couch his assessment and veiled advice to continue with this Government based on observed voting behaviour and lessons to be drawn therefrom, he is simply being intellectually dishonest and an opportunistic wagonist trying to sound pragmatic. He presents a biased view and interpretation of a set of economic and social indicators to promote a deeply false narrative and impression of the performance of the Philip J. Pierre Administration, which has failed dismally based on any serious assessment of leadership and governance over the past four and a half years.

We strongly disagree with the arguments advanced by Mr. Andrew and, on the basis of our lived experience under this repressive, increasingly autocratic regime, are convinced that we must change direction and save our country from the tyranny of Labour. Here are some reasons why thousands of Saint Lucians, and growing, will choose progress as they arrive at the crossroads on December 1st.

1. Under the current administration, there has been a steady erosion of our democracy based on the conduct of the Speaker in sittings of the House and in the political infiltration of the institutions of the state. This has undermined their independence and the trust and confidence of the people in them.

2. We have witnessed a complete disregard for the principles of good governance based on the established tenets of transparency and accountability. This is most apparent with the management of our Citizenship by Investment Programme, where upwards of US$1.6 billion has not been accounted for.

3. This government has flagrantly violated the laws of Saint Lucia and has refused to table in the House of Parliament reports that are legally required on the Citizenship by Investment Programme, the National Lotteries Authority and other programmes.

4. This government has operated in secrecy and has yet to release the contents of the deal with Global Ports Holding, which now has control over two of our ports of entry for thirty to forty years.

5. Although the Saint Lucia Labour Party campaigned vociferously on the subject of corruption, they have dismissed and failed to investigate glaring concerns and allegations of corruption directed at their own members (despite having appointed a Special Prosecutor). As a result, Philip J. Pierre and the Saint Lucia Labour Party have lost the moral authority to speak on corruption and crime.

6. The Philip J. Pierre Government has chosen to borrow over two hundred million dollars from the Saudi Government in an ill-advised attempt to revert to an eighty-year-old structure to house the Saint Jude Hospital simply to oppose the approach to health care development that was being pursued by the Allen Chastanet-led United Workers Party Government. This has proven to be a bad and costly decision that has significantly increased our national debt stock and debt-to-GDP ratio.

7. Despite introducing a Health and Security Levy, citizen security has declined steadily, with homicides reaching record levels year over year.

8. After over four years of this Philip J. Pierre Administration, there has been no progress at our international airport. The Hewanorra International Airport project, which was adequately financed by a blended financing approach involving the Taiwanese Export-Import Bank and a local syndicate loan, remains stalled.

9. Although world oil prices have been trending downwards and have averaged less than US$70.00 a barrel, this Philip J. Pierre Administration has not passed on any of the savings to the consumers of Saint Lucia. Instead, they have kept fuel priced artificially high, with excise taxes on fuel averaging over four dollars a gallon, allowing the Government to rake in over ninety million dollars in this year alone, for example, while it gloats and seeks applause for making refunds to pensioners on the backs of vehicle owners who have had to pay excessively high fuel prices, higher than all other Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States countries.

The above reasons and many more provide ample justification for Saint Lucians to remove this failed Government from office and to reject the hypocritical advice of Mr. Andrew and other so-called concerned citizens like him who are quite selective when they break their silence.

The people know his kind and will choose progress over the partisan cabal of the Saint Lucia Labour Party by voting for change and a return to civility and decency in Government.