By: Spokesman Newsroom
BASSETERRE, St.Kitts (Monday 7th May) – Earlier today scores of workers from all walks of life flooded the streets of Basseterre for the yearly observance of Labour Day (International Workers’ Day).
Over the years, the worldwide holiday on a local scale has been organised by the St.Kitts-Nevis Trades & Labour Union and the opposition St.Kitts-Nevis Labour Party in highlighting that the social and economic progress of workers in the Federation is credited to both the Union and Labour movements.
Notably, the 2018 Labour Day march is being hailed by organisers, participants and onlookers as being one of the best to date with a noticeably increase of participants including civil servants who are said to be unsatisfied with the poor management of the nation’s affairs under the present government.
Labour Day-observed on the first Monday in May and also commonly known as May Day- largely speaks to the economic and social accomplishments of the working class people.
On the political side of things in addressing labour (work) related matters as it relates to St.Kitts-Nevis, participants of this year’s Labour Day march shouted phrases and carried placards while Party officials gave speeches in dishing out sentiments directed at the low approval ratings of the three year old government.
Addressing the crowd gathered at the Pasty Allers Play Field following the march, Party Leader Dr. Denzil L. Douglas shared his observation that there were “thousands of people marching through the streets of Basseterre shouting to the heavens ‘Coming soon is the fall of the Unity government of Timothy Harris’.”
He added: “Oh how pleased we are, oh how much we thank you. We of the St.Kitts-Nevis Labour movement- the St.Kitts-Nevis Trades & Labour Union and the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party.”
Dr. Douglas, the immediate former Prime Minister, indicated that people are fed up of the current government.
“The people have in fact spoken loudly with their feet. They have spoken very loudly as they came into this play field as they were saying ‘bye bye Timothy, bye bye Unity, your time has come to go’. The people are fed up of this government which has no respect whatsoever for the workers of this country and so our people are now waiting with a bated breath for that day when the election is announced and Labour again will form the government for the people of St.Kitts and Nevis.
He continued: “We believe that the people have had enough, the cost of living is too high, far too high for you and your children to enjoy a quality of life here in St.Kitts and Nevis. All of the support system that Labour had put in place for you the workers and citizens of this country, they have been dismantled by an uncaring coalition government led by Timothy Harris.”