Court reins in St Kitts PM plans

Dear Editor,

 

It seems as if the justice system has caught up with St. Kitts/Nevis Prime Minister, Dr. Denzil Douglas who has been delaying a no confidence motion for two years and has been stalling elections in order to gerrymander the constituencies to win the next general elections. He has been in power for four terms —twenty years— and wants to serve yet another five-year term.

Caribbean politicians and commentators have been crying shame on Douglas for the past two years, but he continued to ignore his critics until last week when he received the Report from the Chairman of the Boun-daries Com-mission which was favourable to him.

Hours after he received the Report he announced February 16, as the date of election, but the following day an application was made to the High Court to delay the implementation of the report until it has been ventilated by the Court. The judge granted an interim Order to the Opposition, but varied it two days later on the ground that  it was made after the proclamation was gazetted.

The opposition ap-pealed Justice Marlene Carter’s order, seeking to reinstate the injunction blocking the Report. The Appellate Court convened a teleconference hearing and listened to arguments from lawyers representing the opposition party, the government (including the Prime Minister and the Attorney General) as well as the Boundaries Com-mission.

At the end of the hearing the Court ruled that “justice of the case merits the grant of an interim injunction pending the hearing and determination of the appeal.”

The appeal will be heard expeditiously on February 9 in St. Vincent – the next sitting of the Court of Appeal. The injunction extends to and also binds the Electoral Commission and the Supervisor of elections from making any use whatsoever of the proposed new boundaries.

A no confidence motion was filed against Douglas’ administration after his deputy Prime Minister and another senior minister quit his party, but he stalled the Motion by dissolving Parliament stating that he was awaiting the report from the Boundaries Com-mission and hurriedly announced the election date in anticipation that he would win because of the new boundaries.

However the Court intervened and Douglas cannot have his own way in the February 16 elections. Political commentators feel that once the elections are conducted on the existing boundaries, Douglas’ Labour Party will lose the elections because the electorate is fed up with him and want a new leader in Dr. Timothy Harris, a former strongman of the St. Kitts/Nevis Labour Party.

 

Yours faithfully,
Oscar Ramjeet