Doug Wheatley believes there should be a public holiday to celebrate the return of the Legislative Council to the Virgin Islands more than 65 years ago. Photo: VINO/File

Culture Minister Hon Myron V. Walwyn has been pushing Territory Day and has even suggested a name change to Virgin Islands Day, however, Doug Wheatley is hoping that the Minister will also put emphasis on what is more significant to the territory and lobby for a public hiliday to celebrate the return of the Legislative Council to the VI. Photo: VINO/File

Mr Wheatley made the suggestion during his show, Speak out BVI, aired on ZBVI 780 AM on July 5, 2016.

According to Wheatley, Territory Day is important but it is not as significant as when the Legislative Council was returned to the VI, which was symbolic of a return of power to the people by the United Kingdom.

“Although I think it [Territory Day] is an important occasion I don’t think it is the most important occasion for us in the Virgin Islands. Over the years we have built it up and we have added different things to make it a worthwhile occasion, but I think that we are missing the point that Territory Day really is not as important as we want to make it out to be.”

Making mention of the referendum recently in Britain to leave the European Union, Mr Wheatley said referenda are very important when there is need to change the direction that a Government is going. “Something earth shattering needs to be accomplished; you use a referendum for that purpose. We just saw it in the UK. But there were other referenda in Europe.”

Mr Wheatley said other European nations have used referenda to effect change, however, the organisers of the Great March in the Virgin Islands in 1949 hadn’t the opportunity to use such a tool, since the referenda act for the Virgin Islands came into effect in 2002.

“The creative minds of the Great March organisers used the technique of the petition, signed by 1500 people. It was presented from ‘we the people.’”

The talk show host, who is versed in Virgin Islands history, said the significance is that the key change that took place in the life of the Virgin Islands came as a result of the intervention of 1500 people signing a petition and sending it to London.

“It was we the people, through our efforts, that brought about the restoration of the Legislative Council to these islands. That was no [small] feat, and I don’t think that over the years it has been acknowledged as the earth moving thing that it was. I don't know if it was because of the persons that were involved, but we can’t look at the persons who were involved. Let us look at the magnitude of what was accomplished and that was our finest hour back in 1949, when we the people stood together and made the demand on the British Government to have our Legislative Council returned to us.”

“That day, whether you want to use the day of the march, or the day when the new constitution was given to us in November 1950, ought to be a holiday,” Mr Wheatley continued.

Stubborn Walwyn?

Mr Wheatley said he knows that Hon Walwyn has been pushing Territory Day and has even suggested a name change to Virgin Islands Day but is hoping that he will also put emphasis on what is more significant to the territory.

The social commentator even suggested the public holiday could be called BVI Day or Virgin Islands Day.

“Minister Walwyn is not a shy person; he makes his suggestions and he follows them up and that sort of thing… I sometimes think that over the many years that we’ve had a Legislative Council, if some of our elected persons were a little more agile perhaps a lot more could have been done in a number of different areas, but that did not happen. Here comes Minister Walwyn, and as I said he is not shy, and when he leans his head in one way he doesn’t turn it away easily,” Mr Wheatley said.