Photo: Newly appointed Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr. Bernicia Nisbett with former Deputy Speaker now Government Minister, the Hon. Akilah Byron-Nisbett at Tuesday’s swearing in ceremony.
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, July 08, 2020 (Press Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister) — The newest Senator in the National Assembly, Dr. Bernicia Nisbett, who was sworn in earlier today (Tuesday, July 07), said she is deeply humbled by the opportunity presented to her to serve the people of St. Kitts and Nevis at the national level.
Dr. Nisbett currently serves as the District Medical Officer responsible for the communities stretching from Parson’s village to Newton Ground. Now, the young medical professional has answered the call to serve the people of St. Kitts and Nevis in a different capacity.
She was sworn in as Senator and the next Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly during a ceremony at Government House. That ceremony was attended by His Excellency the Governor General, Sir S.W. Tapley Seaton; Prime Minister Dr. the Honourable Timothy Harris; Deputy Prime Minister, the Honourable Shawn Richards; Minister of Youth, the Honourable Jonel Powell and Minister of Health, the Honourable Akilah Byron-Nisbett.
Giving remarks during that brief ceremony, Dr. Nisbett revealed that it was seeing the Honourable Akilah Byron-Nisbett as a young woman gracefully serving then as Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, that motivated her to become active in the democratic life of St. Kitts and Nevis.
“If you had asked me five years ago or maybe 10 years ago ‘would you see yourself in National Assembly,’ I would have told you no because that wasn’t my aspiration. But when I saw the Honourable Akilah Byron, the moment she got into Parliament, I started admiring her and she just gave me this zest, this motivation and aspiration to say ‘if Akilah can do it and she’s young and a female then I can do it too,” Dr. Nisbett said.
Speaking to the media after the ceremony, Minister Byron Nisbett said she is particularly pleased that more young persons, particularly young women, are answering the call to serve their country in this capacity.
The minister said, “It is indeed a pleasure to have another young person who has stepped forward and offered herself up for service to our country. Being able to see her put herself forward in this way is something that should be encouraged by other young persons as well.”
The Honourable Minister of Health, ICT, Entertainment, Entrepreneurship and Talent Development said she was honoured to hear that her own stint then as Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly was the driving force behind Dr. Nisbett’s decision to present herself for service at this level.
“I must say that I felt a little bit humbled that she would have indicated that her motivation to say yes to service would have come from seeing me in the same role that she would now be in and I am honoured and pleased that this was a motivation for her. I am hopeful that she too would become motivation for other young women to also take a leading role within the realms of politics and within the realms of our National Assembly, and so I just want to encourage her to continue to be true to herself, true to her God and do whatever she can to continue to be of service to this country,” Minister Byron-Nisbett added.
Dr. Bernicia Nisbett concluded that as a medical doctor, she has always been passionate about serving and helping people, and “taking this opportunity would help me to serve St. Kitts in a wider capacity.”
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