Last Updated on March 14, 2020, 4:40 AM AST by Anthony Morris
Governor General of St. Kitts and Nevis, His Excellency Sir S.W. Tapley Seaton, GCMG, CVO, QC, JP, LL. D, is expected to appoint a Leader of the Opposition in the St. Kitts and Nevis National Assembly in the wake of the landmark ruling of the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court in the Court of Appeal on March 12, 2020, that Dr. Denzil Douglas vacate his seat with immediate effect in the august body for being in contravention of Section 28 (1a) of the Constitution of the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis.
This announcement was made to the Nation by Attorney General of St. Kitts and Nevis, Hon. Vincent Byron on March 12th following the judgement handed down by Chief Justice, the Hon. Dame Janice M. Pereira, DBE.
The Constitution of St. Christopher and Nevis requires that there shall be a Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly who shall be appointed by the Governor General.
“With the ruling and as Parliament is likely to meet over the next few weeks, the Governor General shall appoint an elected representative to the position of Leader of Opposition who appears likely to command the support of a majority of the representatives who do not support the Government. The power to do so shall be exercised by His Excellency the Governor General in his own deliberate judgement,” the Attorney said.
The elected Members of Parliament for the Opposition are the Hon. Konris Maynard, the Hon. Marcella Liburd and the Hon. Patrice Nisbett, one of whom is likely to be appointed as Leader of the Opposition.
When then Honourable Dr. Denzil Douglas, Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, presented on the National Assembly Election Amendment Bill, 2009, he had this to say:
“The Government, Mr. Speaker, is totally supportive of our people who seek and who appreciate and who enjoy dual citizenship with regard to citizenship of St. Kitts and Nevis and citizenship of another country…the time for fooling around is over. This is a serious country with serious business. The work of the people must be done and today we are in Parliament to do the work of the people. Nobody is going to stop us from doing what we have to do as a government and that is why we are here; we are here to make sure that those who want to be elected must be citizens of St. Kitts and Nevis only.”
As a result of this, the Honourable Shawn Richards, Parliamentary Representative for St. Christopher Five (Sandy Point) since 2005, and Lindsay Grant, who was a candidate in the General Elections of 2010 and now Minister of Government, had to renounce their citizenship of the United States of America in 2009 in order to be eligible both as candidates for the People’s Action Movement in the 2010 General Elections.
The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court in the Court of Appeal overturned the Judgement of Resident High Court Judge His Lordship Justice Trevor Ward Q.C, on February 20, 2019, which concluded that Dr. Douglas was not under any acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state for holding a Dominican diplomatic passport.
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.
