subject: Ralph Gonsalves Says No To Development [print this page] Ralph Gonsalves Says No To Development Ralph Gonsalves Says No To Development
Ralph Gonsalves has been the Prime Minister of St. Vincent and Grenadines for the last nine years. The country has changed considerably over the years. It would have been better if we could speak like proud Vincentians and say how much Comrade Ralph has done for our country. But when it comes to speaking about development and progress, no citizen of SVG would stick out his neck and say something positive. They have hardly seen any development work happening in the country during the rule of this Prime Minister. He blamed the previous government, and sometimes world events that other countries overcame easily, as reasons for the breakdown of the economic machinery in St. Vincent and Grenadines. The country can only look back with a fond remembrance about the country it was and how things have become in the present.
Things started to move downhill since Ralph Gonsalves got elected for his second term as the Prime Minister. Repeated allegations of sexual assault and rape were leveled against him. He lost his control over his own government. His political cronies took advantage of his weak character and personal traits. They went on the rampage, crippling the law and order system. They silenced protesting voices with a deft shot from guns. The political adversaries of Comrade Ralph either kept quiet or decided to work against him, but on the sly. Ralph assumed almost dictatorial powers. He trapped anyone who wanted to speak out against his rule. Critics and liberal thinkers found themselves at the receiving end of many legal hassles. It was as if the whole of St. Vincent and Grenadines went and disappeared under his thumb!
Let me share an incident that happened lately. There are two St. Vincent and Grenadines flights that go to St. Lucia, our neighboring OECS country. But the authorities back in SVG are yet to approve permission for a St. Lucia flight that they want to bring to Kingstown. This has prompted the Tourism Minister of St. Lucia to issue an ultimatum. He has asked the Ralph Gonsalves government to approve their flight at the earliest possible. If they failed to do it, the Tourism Minister has threatened to cancel the SVG flights to their country. He has also expressed surprised that SVG was waiting out the decision when tourism happens to be their prime revenue earner! What a foreign minister of another country could understand about SVG, the Prime Minister of SVG refuses to see!
This is how the situation is in St. Vincent and Grenadines. The Prime Minister of the country has decided that he will continue to be look away from progress. His political agenda is to terrorize and bully the people into submission. He violates the regulations of the country like every other criminal in the country. Because of his patronage, the country is infested by criminals and thugs. The citizens are scared of investing in business and commerce. The lack of infrastructure adds to their woes. The citizens are thankful that they have the opportunity to vote Ralph out of office this December!
