By Sir Hugh and Lady Claudette Rawlins

The passing of relatives, including George Washington Archibald, and of close personal and family friends, in the recent past has given us reflective pause. In the course of a week, four such lives were celebrated. The lives of two of our dear friends, His Honour Mr. Eustace John and Mrs. Telca Francis were celebrated in St. Kitts and Nevis. They both leave indelible footprints in the sands of time and bid us to plant ours therein or to emulate their endeavours to create our own.

Mrs. Francis was an incredibly energetic and focused business-woman who never really retired. She was generous with her store, time, advice, experience and ideas. We here express gratitude for the fellowship and sage advice which she shared with us on many occasions, as well as for her friendship and loving kindness over the years. Claudette particularly enjoyed the tours of her gardens and the invaluable horticultural commentaries. Her passing leaves a void in our hearts and we will miss her dearly. However, we shall cherish the fond memories. We can only imagine what her passing means to Mr. Ben Francis (husband) and Reg (Son-Regiwell Francis). We pray that they will be strengthened and comforted by the eternal God as they mourn and that the pain of their loss will recede with time to be replaced by the memories of their shared life experiences and of her outstanding service.

His Honour Mr. John (or Sir John as he was affectionately known by everyone in his formative years) was a consummate and outstanding public servant during his sixty years of service. It may be recalled that he was sworn in as Deputy Governor-General some twenty-three years ago at the High Court in Basseterre in a dignified ceremony presided over by the Hon. Justice Velma Hylton. He retired but three months prior to his passing. His knowledge and understanding of every aspect of the public service were phenomenal and he shared it generously with anyone who sought his advice, as well as with others whom he thought needed the benefit of it.

Although Sir John was Hugh’s senior by some years (but almost shared birthdates) they became friends from very early years as they grew up in Gingerland. Even as a youngster Sir John’s stature was imposing and his presence was larger than life. Yet, he had a gentle, kindly and endearing personality, which drew people to him. His presence as well as his distinctive voice and talent made him an outstanding actor from his school years. He later became a renowned dramatist and founded the St. Kitts Dramatic Society. He produced plays particularly during the various summer festivals, including the annual Arts Festivals which were sponsored by Deputy Chief Minister/Premier, the Hon. C.A. Paul Southwell, as he then was. Those who featured in his productions included Cromwell Bowry, Walter Simmonds, Claudina Bagnall and Theodora Archibald, as they then were, Agnes Farrell, Leroy Nelson, Andrea Bowry and Dalia Warner, whom he subsequently wed. He was a dramatist par excellence.

By a stroke of fortune, when in 1968 a schoolboy Hugh worked during the summer at the Basseterre Post Office Sir John was a senior Officer there. Sir John casted him in that summer’s production and continued thereafter to encourage his forays into the dramatic arts. Incidentally, during the year before Sir John had won the Statehood Playwriting Competition in which Mr. Howard Byron placed second and Hugh third. Hugh realized that notwithstanding his kindly nature, Sir John brought a seriousness of purpose and firmness to his endeavour. He recalls that when during an early practice session it became obvious that he did not know his lines, Sir John calmly said “OK, take your exit now and let the practice session continue”. Hugh was duly chastised and never repeated that error again. He had occasion to joke about it with Mrs. John when they were teachers at the Sandy Point High School during the 1970s.

It was Sir John’s distinctive voice and his acquired knowledge of broadcasting that thrusted him into the vanguard, which, with the seeds planted by Karney Osbourne, Sylvester Joseph and others, saw ZIZ radio and television become a daily staple particularly for the people of the Colony, Associated State and Federation.

We are eternally thankful for the bonds of friendship which we both shared with His Honour and Mrs. John and the times we spent together. Notwithstanding their obvious health issues, at their insistence Hugh spent almost the entire day 17 April 2017 with them. The uplifting conversations and fellowship then and in past times which were shared by both of us will ever be etched in our memories. So too will our visits with the Francis family.

Our hope is that his Honour’s sterling services, both social and in the various public offices, and Mrs. Francis’ untiring business and social endeavours have been or will be chronicled for posterity and to guide others. We also hope that the stability of His Honour’s years as Deputy Governor-General has been noted and will be fittingly honoured. May Mrs. John, as well as His Honour’s progeny and relatives draw solace from the endeavours and achievements of his illustrious life.

As His Honour and Mrs. Francis have departed this mortal realm and have been transformed to immortality, may God grant them peace and rest eternal and let His light perpetual shine upon them.

By: Thinking Citizen

I listened the other day to Senator Nigel Carty’s contribution in the National Assembly to the debate on the amendment to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) Bill. Senator Carty was brilliant, relevant and no less so was Dr. Denzil Douglas as they both exposed for the world wide world to see the hypocrisy, ambivalence, wickedness and bad-mindedness of the members of the Team Unity Government.

Team Unity’s wicked and evil governing strategy consists of two stages. First, Team Unity does a load of wicked and evil and selfish deeds and when those deeds become public and are debated on the streets, Team Unity sends out its corps of Spin-doctors, Liars and Propagandists to convey the false and erroneous message that everything is fine for the Team Unity Government is Open, Transparent, Accountable, Honest, Decent and Upright.

The worst Spin-doctor in Team Unity is the leader of Team Unity. When he tries to spin, it makes him look stupid and childish. He is much better off sticking to his Accounting and to the usual practice of telling lies.

Nobody on the Government side responded fittingly to the arguments put forward by the Senator Carty and the former Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas. For the most part, the arguments or rather the non-arguments put forward by the Government side in its defence consisted of the recitation of a list of perceived financial regularities committed by the by the Douglas Administration. It was rather like “Good morning Peter” “Cabbage, Ma’am”.

During the entire debate in the House, the members on the Government side chose to lap their tails at the very valid, relevant and forceful points made by Senator Carty and our former prime Minister. The members on the Government side raised two basic points in their defence namely (I) That the Labour Government headed by Dr. Douglas, for some 19 or 20 years provided no funding for the Public Accounts (the PAC) and (II) Since the PAC was dormant and did not function during that long period when the Labour Party members in the House are devoid of any moral authority to make recommendation concerning the scope and function of the Public Accounts Committee under consideration.

Team Unity argues that the absence or the lack of any specific provision in the National Budget in respect of the PAC prevented its operation or prevented it from exercising its proper functions, duties and responsibilities.

I remember at least two (2) persons, the Hon. Joseph N. France and the Hon. Frederick Parris who were sitting members of the PAC during the 1970s although no specific provision for funding had been included in the Estimates or the National Budget. Something is certainly wrong with this argument presented by Team Unity.

The second point, the one raised by Team Unity about the lack of any moral authority to speak on the part of the members of the Labour Party is clearly a big joke.

If I have been a silent witness to four (4) different murders and have said nothing to the Police or to the family of the murdered person, that does not mean that because I said nothing or did nothing I have the moral authority to say what I see or know in the case of any murder or murders in the future.

The motive of the Labour Party opposition in the House is to make the PAC a much wider operating Committee. The members of Government were concerned with restricting the scope and functions of the PAC as much as possible.

The Government of nine blind mice is clearly living in the distant past.

By: Thinking Citizen

A certain government created and historic and most disturbing situation. That government created a situation in which there were both a Governor-General and an Acting Governor-General sitting in office at the same time. That Government was the Team Unity Government.

The most disgusting aspect of the whole sordid affair was the fact that Team Unity tried to pin the blame for its own incompetence on Her Majesty the Queen. But Team Unity was simply wasting its time for Her Majesty was neither for Attorney General nor Prime Minister in St.Kitts-Nevis.

The same Team Unity Government allowed an overseas investor to fund a project for Steam Cell Research at the JNF General Hospital in St.Kitts.

However, soon afterwards when news of the Research Project leaked out CMO Dr. Patrick Martin went to the hospital and shut down the Project.

There was lots of talk in St.Kitts concerning what had been happening at the Hospital. The Senior Minister in the Ministry of Health confirmed that Stem Cell Research had indeed been carried out at the Hospital but a few days later, the Junior Minister in the same Ministry of Health went on the radio and contradicted the Senior Minister of Health by saying that no Stem Cell Research had ever been carried out at the Hospital.

From Health we go to Education. The old Basseterre High School on Victoria Road has been shut down and abandoned by Team Unity. It was shut down for narrow political reasons and not for any valid health reasons.

In order to justify its action, Team Unity is claiming that a Team of Experts from NIOSH in Washington D.C had recommended that the Basseterre High School was contaminated beyond measure and was no longer safe to be used as a school.

Others have been saying that three teams of experts from overseas including NIOSH had studied the problem at the School and none of the teams had recommend that the School be abandoned.

Government has never been to publish the NIOSH Report in the local newspapers or make copies for distribution to local organisations or businesses. Clearly something is wrong. If government had been interpreting the NIOSH Report correctly then the Government should not have been afraid to make the Report public for all interested persons to see and read.

Certain persons in St.Kitts and Nevis who have been trained in health and related fields have remarked that the Government is willfully misinterpreting the NIOSH Report and that is why Government is afraid to make the Report available for public scrutiny.

The Government is hell-bent on putting down the new Basseterre High School on the Basseterre Valley Aquifer. The Government’s advisors have acknowledged that there are certain risks involved in putting down the building on that site but they say that certain safe-guards can be built into the system that can mitigate the risks or protect the water in the Aquifer from becoming contaminated completely.

Other experts disagree with that assessment of the situation and cite the case of other countries in the world where such safeguards have been used and were not able to provide the level of protection desired or required.

It is the opinion of close political observers that the Team Unity Government not only indulges in lies but supports public officials who tell lies as well.

Mr. Junie Hodge, the current superintendent of Prisons announced that he conducted a one-month prison lock-down shortly after his appointments as Superintendent.

As a result of that lock-down, the Superintendent said numerous contraband items were found in the cells of prisoners in jail. The contraband items were put on public display.

The immediate former Prison Superintendent responded to that announcement by stating that what the present Superintendent was saying was not true as he himself had collected the very same items when he was serving as Superintendent and had put the items into a safe and secure container in a secure office,.

In spite of the correction that was made by the former Superintendent of Prisons, the Prime Minister made no attempt to have Mr. Junie Hodge withdraw his false and erroneous report.

In every country in the world people expect their Government to be Honest, Decent, Truthful and Upright. Our people in the Federation of St.Kitts and Nevis expect our Government to be no different. However, our Government short-changes us not by being Honest, Decent, Truthful and Upright but by simply announcing that it is committed to all those virtues and values.