HE Governor Alistair Harrison
It is just one week since the resignation of the Hon. Walcott Richardson as a Minister in the Anguilla United Movement Government of Chief Minister the Hon. Hubert Hughes, and the appointment of the Hon. Jerome Roberts of the Anguilla Progressive Party to succeed him as Minister of Home Affairs. A notable difference, however, is that Mr. Roberts, the erstwhile Adviser to the Chief Minister, lacks the portfolios of Labour and Immigration previously assigned to Mr. Richardson as part of that former Minister’s other duties.
On February 6, after the first allegations against Mr. Richardson, and his subsequent charges, arrest and bail, the Governor’s Office announced that, acting under Section 27 (1) of the Constitution, the Governor, in accordance with the advice of the Chief Minster, had re-assigned responsibility for Labour and Immigration matters from Mr. Richardson to Chief Minister Hughes.
Mr. Richardson’s letter of resignation to the Chief Minister was dated February 20, but the announcement was made the following morning by Mr. Richardson on public radio. His resignation reportedly followed two additional allegations against him, his arrest and bail, as well as calls for him to step down pending the outcome of the alleged charges.
His letter of resignation, and the statement he made on radio, came the day after the printing and publishing of The Anguillian and are now published below for the national record.
Dear Chief Minister,
It is with a sense of Integrity to my Office and my commitment to your Administration and to my Colleagues that I hereby tender my resignation as Minister of Home Affairs and the affiliated portfolios.
I have expressed to you that as I proceed to defend my character and my reputation in these matters that have been brought against me, I think that it acts as a distraction to the hard work that this Administration is doing should [I] continue as a Minister.
In the premises I am grateful that you have chosen to accept my resignation.
Yours sincerely
Walcott Richardson
The statement read by Mr. Richardson afterwards was as follows:
Fellow Anguillians, it is with a deep sense of regret, and a desire to affirm the integrity of the Office I hold on behalf of the people of Anguilla, that I feel in the current circumstances it is right for me to tender my resignation as Minister of Home Affairs at this time.
The Chief Minister has accepted my resignation as a Minister in the interest of good governance.
I wish to assure the people of Anguilla that I would never bring the Integrity of my Office which I hold on behalf of the People of this Country into disrepute. However, I think that it is appropriate that while I defend my reputation against the allegations raised against me, that these circumstances do not act as a distraction to the intense work of stabilizing this Country which our Administration is engaged.
This Government came to power at a most delicate period for our Island. The government was saddled with a debt, we were at our borrowing limit, the previous government left not a cent in reserves, visitor numbers were down, and there were calls from the FCO to cut back on the number of civil servants. Despite the difficulties in the last few years, this government has turned around a deficit budget and we are beginning to see investment coming back to the Island. The signing of the most recent MOU for Malliouhana is a reflection of this. I would not wish anything to distract from this Government’s commitment to bringing prosperity back to the people of Anguilla.
I wish to assure the Constituency of West End that although I have taken this step in the interest of the Country as a whole, that my commitment to them is unwavering, and that I will continue to represent their interests and shoulder my responsibilities to them as their Elected Representative.
I wish to thank my immediate family and friends for their support and I trust that the People of Anguilla will understand and appreciate my decision.
Thank you and mayGod bless Anguilla.
The Minister’s resignation came as the ruling AUM Government celebrated its third anniversary following its election to office on February 15, 2010.
On the same day of Mr. Richardson’s resignation announcement, and statement, February 21, was the swearing in at 3.00 pm of the Hon. Jerome Roberts, as Minister of Home Affairs, by His Excellency Governor Alistair Harrison in the Executive Council’s Chambers. Those present were Chief Minister Hughes; Attorney General, James Wood; Parliamentary Secretary and First Nominated Member, Haydn Hughes; Steve McCready Chief of Staff of the Governor’s Office; Press Officer, Kim Cutler; and media representatives from Radio Anguilla, ATV Channel 3 and The Anguillian.
Governor Harrison said he had signed a note to the Hon. Walcott Richardson revoking his appointment as a Minister on the advice of the Chief Minister in accordance with section 25 (4b) of the Constitution. He signed a note to the Hon. Jerome Roberts, also on the advice of the Chief Minister, appointing him as a Minister in accordance with section 24 (2) of the Constitution – and a second note setting out in more detail his portfolio. He invited Mr. Roberts to take the two oaths – of allegiance and of due execution of office.
After the oaths, Mr. Roberts said it was a privilege for him “to accept the noble offer to serve the people of Anguilla as Minister with responsibility for Home Affairs.” He saw his ministerial role as another opportunity to continue to serve the people, and thanked the Chief Minister for seeing it fit to appoint him to the position – and the Governor for accepting Chief Minister Hughes’ recommendation.
“I ask of the people of Anguilla and, in particular, those who work within the Ministry of Home Affairs, for us to work together in the interest of developing our island home which we all continue to say that we love so much,” he continued. “Party politics must be out of the door if Anguilla ought to continue to survive and function the way it ought to. Today is indeed historic because it is not just the swearing in of myself, as a Minister, but it is also on the heels of the Barbados general elections. In closing, I want to thank the people of District No. 2 for their continued confidence within me and I will continue to serve them to the best of my capacity.”
Chief Minister Hughes said in part: “This is indeed a very critical moment in the history of Anguilla. To Jerome, I say that if our constitutional situation was correct, he would have been a Minister before. I had been admiring this young man for many years – the role he played in youth development in the eastern end of the island; the role he played in the Church; and, finally, the role he played in ANGLEC…It is a pity that we couldn’t divide him between ANGLEC and the Government of Anguilla because we missed him from ANGLEC, but we cherished his contribution to the Government more.
“He will leave a void in my office because I could hardly survive without him. He kept me on my toes; he reminded me of sessions; he gave me proper advice and I felt very comfortable. I now feel like a bird without wings that he is no longer in my office. My office is depleted of assistance. I have never come in Government and worked so hard without the type of assistance the Chief Minister or political leaderusually has.
“I say to Jerome, you have a very difficult task – a task of survival because whenever a Government is clean, whenever people want to live by the regular standards – that Government is coveted; and that Government does not have an easy task. You have expressed your willingness to choose between what was clean, and what was not clean, and for that you are going to be challenged on many fronts.
“This Government has been struggling for survival from its inception and I only hope the Government will last long enough for you to have some experience as a Minister before the next election. I know that you have to be vigilant and be very cautious – and you can rest assured that I will stand by you, as I stand by the Government and the rest of this country, to ensure that democracy will eventually be a strong characteristic of this society and of our Constitution.
“Don’t think that the road will be easy. The roadhas not been easy for me; the road will not be easy for you. Survival is one of the things you must always be conscious of because there are many threats to the survival of this Government and will affect you as well as everybody else. So be on your guard. The task is not easy. It is not about glamour. It is about service and commitment to country. As long as you continue to go along the way you have gone along before, I think you will make a wonderful Minister. There is a good old saying that ‘power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.’ A person may be a decent, nice person, without power – but the day they get power, they change. I hope that doesn’t happen to you. I know it will not happen to you easily because with your upbringing, and the Church and in the services you have rendered in the society, I think these things would not be part of your downfall.”
The media representatives were given an opportunity to ask questions. Mr. Roberts was asked to comment on why he was not given responsibility for Labour and Immigration matters as part of his ministerial responsibilities, and whether he did not feel ‘short-changed’. He replied:
“If there was one portfolio that I was assigned to, I would graciously accept thatand work in the best interest of Anguilla. The issue as it relates to Immigration and Labour…was something that was shifted a few weeks ago to the Hon. Chief Minister. I think as we move forward… everything will find its rightful place. Needless to say, at this point in time, that the Chief Minister has tremendous experience and knowledge in the field of Immigration and Labour and served in that capacity before. For meto feel that Labour and Immigration is not within my remit today is by no means feeling ‘short-changed’.
“I have taken up the role as Minister of Home Affairs. Probably if I had taken up this role in 2010 and those portfolios were taken away from me, based on the circumstances, I may have felt ‘short-changed’. But I do not feel ‘short-changed’…because what is important is not so much the portfolios, but how as a Government we can work collectively …and efficiently as we move forward.”
Mr. Roberts said he had accepted his appointment as a Minister in the Anguilla United Movement Government as a member of the Anguilla Progressive Party. The only elected member of the APP, he crossed the floor from the Opposition side of the Anguilla House of Assembly to the Government side in June 2010. He was subsequently appointed Adviser to the Chief Minister.
As Minister of Home Affairs, he has responsibility for Fisheries and Marine Resources, Lands and Surveys, Physical Planning, the Environment, Agriculture, Information and Broadcasting and Gender Affairs.
Mr. Roberts met with his Permanent Secretary, Principal Assistant Secretaries and Heads of Department on Monday this week. The meeting was to look at the way forward and to continue the services of the Ministry as before – minus, of course, Labour and Immigration matters.
