BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS – February 16th2017 – With an economy continuing to fail, increasing unemployment, high food prices, deterioration in healthcare, inadequate water supply, decrease in exports to the United States, rampant crime and growing dissatisfaction with the two-year-old Timothy Harris-led Team Unity Administration, the Labour Party’s caretaker for St. Christopher 8, Dr. Terrance Drew is in agreement with popular local calypsonian Unexpected that “salt is in the gasoline” and the “Maxi not moving.”
Dr. Drew noted that under the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP) Administration, the Federation experienced five, six and seven percent growth in GDP coming out of the 2008 international financial and economic recession and led the countries of the OECS, CARICOM and Latin America.
He scoffed at Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris’ recent statements that the economy was “growing by leaps and bounds” in the face of central bank statistics which show the St. Kitts and Nevis economy was decelerating or contracting.
“It is the incompetence of this Team Unity Government that is the salt in the Cabinet. It is clear that this government has failed. The economy has fallen off a cliff and continues to drop at an astounding rate and has dropped to three percent of GDP in 2016 with Antigua and Barbuda, which was behind us several years ago and has now passed us to become the leading economy in the ECCU and the region at 4.5 percent of GDP, yet Prime Minister Harris in his usual style tries to mislead us,” said Dr. Drew.
He said Dr. Harris claim of millions of dollars in surplus over the past two years on several accounts cannot be trusted considering that he has begged and borrowed money from the Bolivians Republic of Venezuela at a time when the Venexualan econmy is in the doldrums as a result of the significant drop in oil prices on the world market.
“At a time of severe economic hardship and social challenges in Venezuela, could you imagine a heartless Prime Minister Harris initially received US$16 million from President Nicholas Nicholas Maduro and later begged more money for lending by the Development Bank. He approached Venezuela another time and the Venezuelan Government refused. Dr. Harris did not even understand the economic challenges faced by the Government of Venezuela and its people,” said Dr. Drew.
He said the borrowing of EC$50 million from the St. Christopher and Nevis Social Security Board is not testimony to a government with millions and millions of dollars in surplus.
Dr. Drew said the Auditor’s Report paint a totally different picture to the millions of dollars in surplus claim by Dr. Harris.
“Instead of a surplus, there is a stark deficit of millions that the country recorded under this Prime Minister and Minister of Finance,” said Dr. Drew, who noted that he has been referring to Dr. Harris as an “emperor without clothes” but with the increasing deception, he is now “Dr. Harris is an emperor without skin.”
He highlighted another area of the Team Unity Government’s incompetence where for the second consecutive year water rationing has been reintroduced in some areas even before the dry season starts.
“Residents have to be rushing home to get a shower” said Dr. Drew who pointed out that on taking office in early 2015, the Team Unity Government stopped a contract by the Bead company to drill for water.
He said the incompetence of the Minister of Infrastructure Hon. Ian Patches Liburd will soon result in residents taking a bath from a cup of water.
The healthcare system has deteriorated and has become dysfunctional and is laid up in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the J. N. France General Hospital with two Ministers of Health who lack the capacity for a recovery.
“They keep administering the wrong solutions for adequate and sustainable healthcare,” said Dr. Drew who praised the work of the hardworking healthcare professionals including the doctors, nurses, cooks, maids, Emergency technicians for their dedication to ensure there is some level of healthcare in St. Kitts and Nevis.
He lamented the incompetence of the Team Unity Government in its approach to proper healthcare which has resulted in the resignation of scores of nurses.
“Scores of nurses have resigned and are planning to resign from the hospitals and community clinics. Several of them are the most experienced and senior nurses who are needed to drive the healthcare system and guide the young nurses entering the profession,” said Dr. Drew, a Cuban-trained physician and U.S. trained internist.
He pointed out that as a result of the attitude to the local nursing profession scores of nurses have resigned and instead of attracting new local persons to the profession, the Team Unity Government has had to import nurses from the Philippines.
Dr. Drew called for the development of the local nursing fraternity “to provide good, stable and secure jobs for our people.”
He said the Day Care Mental Health Center – a project of the former Labour Administration and completed by the Team Unity Government remains closed although it was officially opened one month ago.
Dr. Drew insists that both health ministers should resign as a result of what he claims is the recent “corrupt stem cell scandal” at the J. N. France General Hospital.
