Lawsuit heats up! Gov't served!
The case, filed a few weeks ago via the Law firm Hunte & Co in Claude O. Skelton-Cline vs The Attorney General, seeks in the first instance a Judicial Review.
A few days ago the Attorney General, the Government’s Chief Legal Advisor, was served with the legal papers on behalf of the Government of the Virgin Islands over the case.
According to our newsroom’s National Democratic Party (NDP) senior sources close to the situation, Mr Skelton-Cline in his Judicial Review is seeking an answer on the process and decision by the NDP Cabinet to deny him a contract resumption after the BVI Ports Authority Board via a resolution had approved his contract renewal to continue at the Ports as its Managing Director.
As of March 1, 2016 the details of the case had not been uploaded at the High Court Registry where cases are made public once they do not involve minors or highly sensitive national security matters.
When we broke the story a few weeks ago on this case, the same NDP source told our newsroom that a few members of the NDP tried to reach out to Mr Skelton-Cline to see how the matter could have been resolved, but it is reported that the Communications and Works Minister Hon Mark H. Vanterpool (R4), who was away at the time, allegedly had no interest in the matter.
A date for the case is expected to be announced tomorrow, as the Ports Development Project corruption scandal saga continues.
The Ports Project, on which both Mr Skelton-Cline and Minister Vanterpool presided over, started off costing $35M, however, the Minister for Communications and Works told the public that the cost as of January 2016 was some $82.9M USD and still incomplete- an almost $50M overrun.
Background
Mr Skelton-Cline contested the 2011 general elections with the National Democratic Party (NDP) in District Two. He lost to former Legislator J. Alvin Christopher in a four-way race. Mr Christopher earned 423 votes to Skelton-Cline’s 339.
Following his election defeat, he was hired on a close to $100,000 a year contract as a consultant with the Ministry of Communications and Works where he had special over-sight of the NDP Administration’s plan to expand the cruise ship pier project.
In 2013 he was appointed as Managing Director of the BVI Ports Authority on a three-year contract that ended last year December 2015. According to an NDP source, he requested a renewal before the June 8, 2015 general elections after the Ports Board had already advanced an early recommendation for such a renewal.
However, he was reportedly told by Communications and Works Minister Hon. Mark H. Vanterpool (R4) and reportedly by other Cabinet Ministers also to wait until after the 2015 elections.
To date, his contract has not been renewed and he is now unemployed, even after his NDP party won the elections in a landslide.
Recently, the subject Minister Vanterpool said Mr Skelton-Cline did a good job in executing the Tortola Pier Project but “his assignment is over…time to move on.”
This is not the first time a former Managing Director of the BVI Ports Authority will be engaged in a legal battle with the Government of the Virgin Islands. Another former Managing Director had sued and won over her unfair dismissal. Our newsroom will be the first to bring you more details once the legal papers become available.
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52 Responses to “Lawsuit heats up! Gov't served!”
or not vote. ...
The law states, the Port Board with CLaude Skeiton cronies can approve his contract and that's final.. If that was the case he will have his job today,so the Lawyers is just as stupid as him because the bucks don't stop with the port cor***t board..Sue That..We will find out who is suing Claude Skelton Cline soon, stay tune people..
As usual NDP M***ters gone with the money in the millions but the people are happy because they can feel & touch what piece of the $83 million has done. If they want to feel the rest of the millions they have to feel the NDP'S fat pockets. What a shame!
Is he being blackmailed?
Darling, it is Huge,of course!
Poor fella..he is toast on the political scene forever,in these parts.
Maybe a position in China is anticipated.
The elected government and some of the people they put in place cannot be trusted. When you don't move like government's puppets then you are useless, and they want to get rid of you. I say it's time to clean up the government...
NDP back in and they will continue to do what they want to do..No thoughts of the people and how they will suffer because of their actions. They are all about filling their pockets .....sad so sad
Why Claude thinks he is special, and that his contract had to be renewed is beyond me. Many civil servants were sent home without reason or explanation. Claude wants more, he did not get enough. This lawsuit is shameful. I don't know why his uncle don't tell him to go sit down.