St. Kitts – Nevis’ PM – Douglas Denzil
Basseterre, St. Kitts – Nevis
People’s Action Movement
September 13, 2012
In recent days the Prime Minister and minister of finance the honourable Denzil Douglas has been on a role, making public pronouncements one after the other. Unfortunately for citizens of the Federation this has been a role that seeks to elevate him to the position of spinner-in-chief.
The Prime Minister in an address sort to misinform the nation that the economic mess he and his incompetent Labour administration managed to plunge the nation into, was as a result of the global economic crisis beginning in 2008. Apparently the PM is hoping that the people do not read. Truth be told, in an International Monetary Fund (IMF) Article IV consultation dating back to 2003, that body warned that our national debt as it stood was not sustainable and action was required to address the situation.
Ever since our unfortunate engagement with the IMF, the Prime Minister has described the arrangement as one with “no strings attached.” The PM has even introduced and promoted the term “Home Grown” into the debate on the austerity measures he has, and still must implement. However, at a recent regional economic forum, Prime Minister Douglas seemed to be pleading a case to participants that his hands were tied with respect to things he can and must do, as well as those he cannot do in St. Kitts and Nevis under the watchful eyes and direction of the IMF. Are these measures really “home grown?”
This week, the Prime Minister addressing his cabinet, seemed to be doing a dance and patting himself on the back as he reported that the National Debt is down. In a release from the Prime Minister’s communications unit (CUOPM) captioned “St. Kitts and Nevis Debt to GDP ratio to drop below 100%,” the PM failed to tell the nation about the hefty price tag associated with that reduction. Any reduction in the national debt carries with it among other things, the loss of that much of our lands. In other words Prime Minister Douglas has given away our lands in a debt for land swap arrangement as directed by the IMF. The bottom line, Lands we fought so hard to regain are now forever gone, thanks to our Prime Minister and minister of Finance, the honourable Denzil Douglas and his “Home grown solutions.”
Citizens will not applaud the incompetence of a government that took this nation’s debt to 3 Billion dollars.