‘This Governor is a big liar’- Caller on Hot Seat show
Many in the Virgin Islands are of the opinion that the Governor, due to the Order in Council giving him the power to suspend the local constitution and return the Virgin Islands under colonialism in this 21st Century, is putting pressure on the Unity Government to carry out his policies and wishes even when they are not deemed to be in the best interest of the Virgin Islands.
Unpopular Rankin
Many are also upset that Governor Rankin has not sent home or caused the Police Commissioner, who is also a UK national, to be charged for ‘Breach of Trust’ for the controversial Police in Paradise video, which could potentially harm the reputation of the VI, a tourism and financial services jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, they have argued that it is a case of double standards and hypocrisy that local Najan Christopher was charged by police for carrying out her duties when she wrote a letter indicating that her boss at the time, ex-Premier Hon Andrew A. Fahie (R1), was immune from arrest.
According to Governor Rankin at a press conference on October 19, 2022, no ‘Breach of Trust’ was committed by Mr Collins and the National Security Council (NSC) found an apology by the Commissioner to be sufficient.
CoP Collins also sits on the NSC.
‘The Governor was caught in a lie’- Caller
Reporter Zan Lewis was in the process of asking the Governor if Ms Christopher was also given the same privileges as the Police Commissioner, when Mr Rankin cut him off for asking too many questions.
Earlier, Mr Lewis was fielding questions about the Order in Council when he was told by moderator Nia Douglas that he was not allowed anymore.
Before the start of the press conference, Douglas had told reporters they were only allowed two questions per media house.
According to a caller to the Hot Seat on ZBVI 780 AM with Julian Gordon and E. Walwyn Brewley on October 19, 2022, he was happy with the type of questions Zan Lewis was able to put to the Governor and chided the moderator for preventing Mr Lewis from further probing.
Moderator has done ‘a great disservice’ to VI
“The Governor was caught in a lie from which he was unable to get away from… Mr Lewis continued to press him and press him until he was forced to tell the truth but just before he was able to say anything else a young lady stepped forward and said to Mr Zan no, no, no, please let someone else ask a question now.
“Tonight, I would like to say to that lady, miss please stay out of the business of the people of the Virgin Islands. We're dealing with a very serious situation here. We know well that this governor tells a lot of lies in carrying out his functions. He was sent here by people who tell lies, they have been telling lies over one thousand years and they have ruined many a country, many a country,” the caller stated.
The caller; however, did not point out where exactly he thought the Governor was not being completely honest with the people of the Virgin Islands in his response to questions posed by Mr Lewis.
He was; however, adamant that the moderator of the press conference had done a great disservice to the people of the territory.
“So gentlemen…if you could possibly repeat that that young lady has done a great disservice to the people of the Virgin Islands when we were just getting to the truth of this whole episode and fiasco of the CoI report which as you well know, gentleman and people of the Virgin Islands, not only contain some good recommendations but the governor, this governor, was handed a piece of paper in from the United Kingdom with the listing of things that we have already settled many years ago, laws that were passed in the House of Assembly of the Virgin Islands and laws to which the governor, the British governor, assented to and yet and yet now they want us to change those things,” the caller stated.
Stern warning to Unity Gov’t
The same caller listed that the UK wants to change the laws of the Virgin Islands to redefine who a Virgin Islander is, who has the right of abode in the territory, who can get preference for jobs and even to make homosexuality and same sex-marriages legal in the VI.
He said the Virgin Islands will not allow it and sent a stern warning to the Unity Government of Premier and Minister of Finance Dr the Hon Natalio Wheatley (R7).
“They want us to change all of this and we are not going to do it, no matter what, we’re not going to do it and if this so-called Unity Government think that they are boss over us and they go ahead and enter into all kinds of random information with this governor, who’s a big liar, they have another thing coming.
“They’re cutting short the time and their careers in politics in the Virgin Islands if they were to enter into any kind of arrangement whereby we are going to change our laws to suit these people, these bunch of liars,” the caller stated.
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32 Responses to “‘This Governor is a big liar’- Caller on Hot Seat show”
We support the governor. Enough with this nonsense.
The lies of Columbus saw us loose our knowledge of self, we went from true Americans to west-Indian. We started calling fellow Americans from around the Caribbean basin of Central America, we saw them as island man or island people.
Our central problem is a financial one. Because of the same the UK has appointed the CoI to, and yes they did found solid evidence of misconduct of misrepresentation, especially of our finances.
Many of us are being fooled by some, if not all our current political leaders that the UK government, the CoI, and the UK's appointed Governor are the greater evil against better governance, but not so, our own elected politicians are far more detrimental our needed goal for better governance for the people of the BVI.
Even after the facts are being exposed to our people about deliberate mismanagement of our finances, and our top local political leaders has agreed to to fully complied with the CoI recommendations, evidences have being clearly show that our current administration does not intend to keep their word.
Potitically, the BVI is one of many Overseas Territory of the UK. Our present Premier has already agreed to complied with the CoI recommendations, whether we like it our not, he, our Premier is responsible to us for the position we are now in. His approval to fully complied to the full implementation of the CoI recommendations cannot be undone.
Put the blame on those got us in the political message are in, not Governor John.Rankin, not the KK government, not the CoI, but our own selfish political mindset. We are caught by the hook of our own crookedness: greediness against each others right to live and let live.
Former Governor of the British Virgin Islands
Derek Cudmore was a retired British diplomat and a former Governor of the British Virgin Islands.
Career
Cudmore served as Governor of the British Virgin Islands from 1972 to 29 July 1974. He previously served as Administrator of the BVI from January 1971.
We are not afraid...Know your history.
Consequently, the Great March led by Theodolph Faulkner was instrumental in a)restoring the suspended Legislative Council, b) creating a 1950 constitution, c) locals getting the right to vote directly for the first time for council members ( four), d)holding of a general election in 1950, e) establishing of adult suffrage (1954), etc. The colonial power structure sees silence among the majority of the population as license to ride rough shod over the BVI and its people. Another event where organized and supported protest mattered was the Noel Lloyd and Positive Action Movement (PAM) protest over the Kenneth Bates Hill Wickham Cay and Anegada one-sided development.
In that event, a Commission of Enquiry was appointed and the lone commissioner ( Sir Derek Jakeway?) sided with the UK company Kenneth Bates Hill. Does this sound familiar, ie, Sir Gary R. Hickenbottom CoI. In regards to Wickhams Cay and Anegada, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office had different take than Sir Jakeway’s recomendations and the UK loan, not a grant, the BVI approx $6M to buy out the interest of Kenneth Bates HIll.
John Newbern’s Law: People can be divided into three groups: those that make things happen, those who watch things happen , and those who wonder what happen. B.V. Islanders better get in the make things happen mode or find themselves on the outside pitifully looking in and wondering what happened while they were slumbering. Frederick Douglass: “If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” Virgin Islanders must come together, unite, and fight like hell to protect and preserve their homeland, the former place that was only good as a bird sanctuary. Now, there is a robust gentrification movement afoot. Be vigilant. The coat of arms on the BVI ensign reads Vigilate, ie, be vigilant.
Nevertheless, colonialism didn’t totally go away; for example, the hereditary monarch was still the head of state of many former colonies, particularly West Indian colonies. The tentacles of colonialism didn’t withdraw from the smaller West Indian colonies, ie, Anguilla, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Montserrat, Turks Caicos Islands, and BVI. Colonialism is about power, control, abuse of power, etc. The UK and colonialism didn’t take a holiday. It laid low and juked and feinted the BVI into thinking and believing that it did. It lay-waited, waiting for the opportunity to pounce. The BVI took the bait, got comfortable, hot over confident, let its guard down, lost its focus and direction, and got ensnarled.
The political tectonic plates of the BVI and UK have collided. The UK with its unilateral power which was given to it by colonial Gods centuries ago is employing it to the disadvantage of the BVI. Unity is strength and power. Nonetheless, the multi-sectored BVI residents are in disarray, disunited, etc, falling for the UK trump card—-Divide and Rule. It is the UK’s doctrine and golden rule which has been employed throughout its conquest and colonization. If the BVI want to regain any sense of dignity of its manhood/womanhood, stop being sambos, shed the assigned servile role, be warriors and fight for their democratic rights and freedoms, stop playing the inferior role, assume the right to pursue their self-determination status, etc, the people must unite.