Few constituencies across Saint Lucia and the Caribbean can boast of having met consistently for three-dozen years, but Saint Lucia’s Castries East can, having hosted its 36th Annual Conference last Sunday, July 7.
It was a very historic date for the ruling Saint Lucia Labour Party’s (SLP): 45 years since its July 2, 1979 General Elections victory (12-5) over the United Workers Party (UWP), 27 years since its May 23, 1997 bashing (16-1) and approaching three years since its massive July 26, 2021 victory (13-4).
Since 2021, SLP Leader and Castries East MP Philip J. Pierre’s administration has delivered election promises monthly in parliament and across all 17 constituencies – more than by any ruling party since independence in 1979.
Successive Labour administrations Pierre served in as Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Party Leader (under Dr Kenny D. Anthony) also demonstrated how any ruling party truly committed to ‘Serving the Poor’ and ‘Helping the Needy’, or with a name including ‘Labour’ or ‘Workers’, can also truly do what it’ll take to deliver what the majority voted for – but it has to be both willing and ready.
Confidence in Government has been restored, economic buoyancy has led to subsidizing ever-rising food and fuel prices, while ensuring every secondary school student island-wide has a laptop – and their Facilities Fee are paid by the government, irrespective of parents’ ability to afford.
Since 2021, the 15-2 parliamentary alliance between the SLP and two Independent former UWP Cabinet Ministers (including a prime minister) has quietly moved Saint Lucia out of the British Privy Council and into the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) – and wasted no time turning statements of government accounts from red to black, while keeping national revenue pastures green.
This administration has paid Public Servants outstanding salary increases, raised monthly pay for government pensioners, restored and increased the Distress Fund and Assistance to Elderly and Most-needy and Vulnerable, launched a very-successful Youth Economy programme that’s propelled youth entrepreneurship and employment beyond any dreams up to 2021 – and appointed the first elected minister with a disability to the newly-created Ministry for Persons with Disabilities.
The list of campaign promises delivered and accounted for in parliament and across communities since the last General Elections is a quiet but quite-remarkable achievement that’s made this Prime Minister and this partnership in-and-by gubernatorial alliance in Saint Lucia, a viable model that still marvels many analysts at home and abroad for its ongoing fulfilment of the SLP’s election campaign pledge to always ‘Put People First’ in its government’s decisions.
The Opposition is so-clueless and without viable topics to attract popular public attention, that, instead of appreciating the fact that the PM and his government did well to ensure national emergency responses were in place for Hurricane Beryl, opted to engage in feeding and deepening the ignorance of those unable or unwilling to see beyond the bubble of their submerged ‘Yellow Submarine’.
But while his jaundiced critics continued spitting in the sky from on high in their Towers of Babble, the government was already undertaking early post-Beryl assessments to better-ready the national emergency agencies (like NEMO and NEMAC) for the other similar hurricanes expected for the rest of this very-early hurricane season.
Still bitter, battered and bruised from the permanent injury of the 2021 break in the cycle of governing parties having been given successive 11-6 majorities in the 17-member national parliament, the SLP’s next natural course should be to ensure it continues to qualify for re-election over the next two years.
However, previous experiences have showed the Saint Lucian electorate has developed an extraordinary ability to deliver, over time, still-unexplained General Election results.
Voters twice delivered a 9-8 majority in 1987, rejecting the then-ruling UWP Leader and Prime Minister Sir John Compton’s rejection of the result as being ‘too close’ for his political comfort, leading to his extraordinary move (after the second similar result) to invite former Opposition Leader Neville Cenac, representing the safe Laborie seat, to ‘Cross the Floor’ — and give the UWP a safer 10-7 majority.
Of course, that extraordinary post-election manoeuvre came from a party formed through a similar post-election Marriage of Convenience in 1964 that defied the popular vote in favour of the SLP through manipulation of parliamentary arithmetic with mathematical consequences for Democracy and acceptance of voters’ freely-expressed will in ‘Free and Fair’ elections.
(In retrospect), the SLP’s alliance with two Independent former UWP ministers was not absolutely necessary, vis-à-vis the SLP’s eventual 13-4 victory.
But the early strategy was wise – including SLP Leader Pierre, unable to vote for himself in the Castries East constituency he represents in parliament, voting for former UWP Prime Minister Stephenson King, the independent candidate for Castries North.
The wisdom of that fruitful SLP decision to create an alliance with independent candidates to keep the UWP from winning was not much unlike last weekend’s French pre-election alliance created by the forces opposed to Marie Le Pen’s ultra-right-wing party being elected.
However, the SLP’s higher level of political wisdom and maturity in and out of government, while established, must not be left to chance or expectation that people will always feel the government is doing good-enough and enough good, in a land where nothing is ever enough for too-many.
The SLP therefore needs to make re-election in 2026 the main plank of its next two years, not only aiming to continue the tremendous progress that will have been achieved by then (alongside unavoidable or unpredictable circumstances), but to also break the series of (four) consecutive one-term administrations selected by an electorate apparently well-schooled and learned in how to effectively handle the two-party system – by only re-electing governments they consider worthy of a second chance.
So, the SLP and its independent partners mustn’t sit on their parliamentary laurels, but continue daily earning re-election until 2026, ensuring its actions and deeds walk-the-talk – and keeping the hapless opposition both leaderless and rudderless.
Tapion hospital needs to orient and provide proper on hand inservice for this particular doctor Dr Benjamin Aylwin. He works at Tapion hospital where my family member was admitted and died 3 days after . He is rude , atrocious , shows no empathy,lies abt the medical diagnosis and don’t treat the emergent symptoms . As per our family meeting which was recorded he lied abt the medical, psychological and mental aspect of the patient. As a medical personnel in the USA of 14 yrs , I have never seen this neglect and malpractice aspects , This was so unethical and u professionalism shown by this doctor . Bed side manner was a bust due to staff stating that he works at both OKEU and TAPION and has not time and will see my family member when he has time . Family meeting that he attended ,he did not disclosed all the diagnosis but lied and gave the impression that the patient is getting better in his words “ strong like a lion”.and hours pt died . He gave no attention to my family, to voice their opinions and advocate for their love ones z, the nurses were not train how to perform nasogastric meds and infact gave meds that were not suppose to be crushed and added it to the nasogastric tube. Nurses needed inservice , because this procedure causes so much pain and pressure that they were not aware that it had to be done slowly. It’s a shame for one private hospital to treat patients in a neglectful way. Money was not the issue with my family the care from Benjamin Aylwin was the issue . He did not include any medical personnel of the patient side in the meeting . He threatened them by saying” I will discharge your mom if it happens “. He is a monster who should not be taking care of unstable and sick patients. He is totally obnoxious and does not care. Family members please stay away from him. I have heard other family members talked abt their family being under his care who wow the does or got worse .please refrain from going to him .I hoping the board look into it,because it will be an ongoing process. Thanks .