Last Updated on March 7, 2023, 3:11 AM AST by Anthony Morris
A prominent member of the Concerned Citizens Movement, Alexis Jeffers, who served as the former Deputy Premier of Nevis during the Political party’s 2017-22 tenure in the Nevis Island Assembly, recently took to his social media account to call out the opposition, NRP on their failure to function as a fitting opposition and continuing their unwarranted attacks on the CCM.
Notably, The NRP has 2 out of five elected members in the Nevis Island Assembly after the recently held local assembly elections. The former NIA member and CCM Politician believe that the people of Nevis “dodged a bullet” on December 12, 2022. In line with this, Jeffers stated, “The fact that the NRP ran a campaign of “change” without a manifesto suggests that they had no plans and no prescription to advance the Island of Nevis.
This is why the politician believes that the NRP attacked the CCM government, telling the people of Nevis that nothing was happening. During the local assembly’s sitting, the Nevis Reformation Party leader continued to say the same things.
Meanwhile, Alexis Jeffers noted that she had two hours to respond to the budget in February and to provide a prescription and could only speak for 45 mins. Jeffers asserted that she was a complete failure on the biggest stage presented to her. Here, the former Deputy Premier noted that NRP leader Janice Daniel-Hodge believes she can run the island of Nevis from a textbook, but this is what we get when someone proves to be a “failed experiment.”
Alexis Jeffers further addressed the leader of the NRP, saying that she continues to belittle herself when she references the Ocean Reef case, which was appealed and won by the NIA. Jeffers asserted that it is strange how many crimes are committed by the NRP to prove as they claim “the CCM committed a crime.”
Here, Jeffers noted that the only crime the CCM committed in the Ocean Reef matter was to defend an unjust default judgement against the NIA for US$79 Million, which the NIA won. Alexis Jeffers took the opportunity to take the issue into context. He observed that the leader of the NRP keeps insisting that the NIA has to consult the Attorney General to enter into a contractual arrangement and other Legal matters.
However, Jeffers noted that this leader needs to realize that since 1983 there has not been a single change to the constitution of the Federation of St Christopher and Nevis. We have had changes in Prime Ministers in 1995, 2015 and 2022. We changed the Premier in 1993, 2006, 2013, and 2017 and a new Premier in 2022. We have seen a change in the governing party in 1995, 2015 and 2022 at the Federal level. And at the local level in 1993, 2006 and 2013.
With this, Alexis Jeffers noted that At no point in these changes have we seen a shift in the authority and legal standing of either the leader or the party which manages the affairs of the Federation of St Christopher and Nevis or the Island of Nevis. In line with this, why do the NRP continue to suggest to the people of Nevis that the NIA have no legal standing?
Alexis Jeffers claims that this type of argument is akin to the idea used by the NRP recently that they had two good cases when they filed their election petitions late. Most importantly, they deliberately refused to follow the court’s rules. They had proof, they say, but they needed to file their cases correctly.
He also used the opportunity to extend his heartfelt support to the leader of the Concerned Citizens Movement and Premier of Nevis, Mark Brantley. Alexis Jeffers wrote that he would continue to have tremendous respect for the leader of the CCM and the Island of Nevis, the Hon. Mark Brantley. He is a man who calls it as he sees it, and I have to respect him even more because he makes sure he gets it right. Perhaps not all the time, but when it matters, he does.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
