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Dr The Hon Natalio D. Wheatley sworn in as Premier; Hon Lorna G. Smith as Deputy
The ceremony was held at Government House in the presence of Governor John J. Rankin, OBE, other Legislators-Elect, special invitees and the media.
It was also revealed Hon Smith, Hon Kye M. Rymer (R5), Hon Vincent O. Wheatley (R9) and Hon Sharie B. de Castro (AL) will be Ministers of Cabinet while the newly elected Hon Luce D. Hodge-Smith (R4) and Dr the Hon Karl Dawson (R1) will be Junior Ministers.
The portfolios of the Ministers and Junior Ministers, who were all sworn in this evening, were not revealed.
2023 Election peaceful & incident free - Premier
The Premier, in his first speech after being sworn in, thanked the people for voting and for an incident-free and peaceful 2023 elections.
“You painted a beautiful picture of democracy in this territory,” he said while also thanking the local elections team and the Elections Observation Mission team dispatched by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.
“The people of these Virgin Islands believe in democracy. We believe in the people's right to elect their representatives, to represent them in the House of Assembly. We believe in democratic governance because we are people who cherish freedom.”
While acknowledging that voter participation at the polls was lower than in previous elections, the Premier also vowed that his government will work hard in the months and years ahead to regain the confidence of those who decided not to participate in the 2023 General Elections.
“You have my word that we will do everything in our power to make you proud and to boost your confidence in the political system. To all the candidates, successful and unsuccessful who bravely put themselves forward to represent the people, I commend you for putting the country first. We all have a role to play in making the Virgin Islands better and I hope that you will join hands with us to move these islands forward,” he added.
Newly elected VIP Gov't members congratulated
Meanwhile, the Premier congratulated newly elected District 1 Representative, Dr the Hon Karl Dawson and Fourth District Representative Hon Luce D. Hodge-Smith.
Dr Wheatley also said he is very pleased that the Government will be also assisted by Hon Lorna G. Smith OBE, who will serve as Deputy Premier and a Minister.
“Truly we have a Lorna in our corner, she will have a ministerial portfolio,” he said in reference to Mrs Smith’s catchy campaign slogan.
The Premier detailed that when the HoA reconvenes, at the top of the agenda will be local reform, better roads, better infrastructure, better public services, sustainable development, and balanced economic growth that benefits all the people of the VI.
“I look forward to presenting our comprehensive list of priorities in due course. The election campaign was a bruising one and we need reconciliation where politics has deepened divisions among us. I call on everyone to leave the campaign behind us, let us not hold on to past grievances [and] let us move forward as one people,” Premier Dr the Hon Wheatley added while affirming the VIP will be a government for all the people.
It was also announced that the Leader of the Opposition will be sworn in at a later date.
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91 Responses to “Dr The Hon Natalio D. Wheatley sworn in as Premier; Hon Lorna G. Smith as Deputy”
I believe Amen over you. I'm sure many others feel the same way.
The problem is that some believe they are God unto themselves…they stop listening to God long ago.
How about you let God in
The Holy Spirit is lives in me and all of His people. This is why we see evil then address it. Only devils condone evil when they see it.
So please tell us of this destruction you speak of?
2 Thessalonians 1:9
These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power,
Matthew 25:46
These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Source: https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/topics/Eternal-Punishment
Seem like you are all things God and know it all?
You don't have to be all God to see the evils of man just open your eyes. Politics is a dirty game of greed, pride, vanity, low integrity, deception, unGodliness, and many evils.
However I knew they would of won
I smiled non stop when I saw the rally Sunday night to myself while driving.
First attempt and she now controls the country.
She has these Vipers by the cojones.
Brilliant.
A word of advice. Do the peoples work. Put God first in everything you do. Do not get caught up in corruption. Be for all people and not of a certain class.
On a different note… I hear that cl**e losing his plot ????????????
I too believe that is what happened. I can well imagine D2 and D3 members demanding what they don't deserve. I even believe that they may have made similar demands to VIP but were rejected.
I can also imagine D2 and D3 speaking down to Lorna. That coalition would have been toxic. She did well to get out from among them.
Hon. Mr. Rymer, the roads remain a mess, apparently there isn’t a sole in your administration that can understand there’s a difference between "repair" (a good thing), and patch (a lesser good thing). And then there’s the water thing… Or should I say lack of water?
Hon. Mr. Wheatley, you management of Labour and Immigration was nothing less than painful. But as a good politician, you made sure you looked like you were paying attention when you had to mollify stakeholders, then you stood by your useless Labour Commissioner… Maybe your next ministry can put you in charge of something you can manage, like maybe tiddlywinks.
Not real sure what your constituents saw in either of you.
Agreed. Given the state of disrepair of the roads, at least keeping vehicles on the roadways would be a good thing.
Final analysis…
We have to get our independence!
Every tree is known by the fruit it bears.
Mrs. Lorna Smith, now Hon. Deputy Premier, greatly benefited by her association with the NDP Team. Without them she would have loss. Her action has divide the BVI people further. Maybe next general election voter turnout may be lower, because eligible voters are becoming more and more fed up with politicians deception. Hon. Julian Frazer is not without blame. Rough road ahead. Believe it or not.
Righteousness exults a nation, but sin (wickedness) hinders good governance. The BVI not excluded.
We are living in a time more than ever when evil is called good, and good is called evil, in the BVI as is the rest of the world, every action is follow by a reaction, accordingly.
SMARTEST OF US ALL , SO WE ARE WAITING TO HEAR HOW YOU ARE GOING TO POLISH THIS ONE UP ???? ???? ???? PLAYER
And here we are. On the surface, Mr. Fahie’s actions while serving in government seemed comical and asinine. However, I think it is apparent today, he executed a well planned longitudinal plan to create an electorate that would continue to vote against their own interests in order to keep him and his co-conspirators in office. We can look to America and see a similar if not identical strategy being deployed by the Republicans. I think it’s safe to say America is descending into madness and we can assume we will too.
The VI electorate doesn’t seem to understand the Westminster political system. If they did, I do believe we would have garnered much different outcomes on Monday. The treachery involving Julian Fraser and Lorna Smith revealed exactly what politics in the Virgin Islands is really about. Some would say they already knew that and that is why they did not bother to exercise their right to vote. However, have people really considered the bigger looming issue created by their choices?
The very small brain trust that the territory depends on to mitigate the gross errors, incompetence and pure evil of the elected government are overwhelmed, overworked, discouraged and fed-up with having to rescue the territory out of the holes the government continuously digs. How long are they expected to continue in this futile endeavor? Many have sacrificed potential lives elsewhere to remain here and do the good work that needs to be done, but I believe this is a turning point for many of them. What will the territory do if they were to leave en masse?
This is the biggest crisis looming on the horizon as the wounds of Monday start to scab over. Without our front line of defenders, how do we make a case for we DO have the expertise to continue to govern and run the key services of this territory? How do we convince these good people not to leave their territory for greener less tumultuous pastures, and more importantly who will replace them when they are gone?
You made us voters look like fools
therefore some will have a different view as what happens here: our people have to be more careful what they say and how they do what they do
May the great God bless us all as we abstain from evil, so that we as a people can prosper.