It has been over hundreds of years past, and under varying constitutional arrangements, that the Colonial Office did not find it opportune to appoint a female Governor to Anguilla — now we have one. You wonder is this a good omen — or is it the difference in dealing with British Overseas Territories by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) as compared to the old Colonial Office of Sir Winston Churchill and Sir Allan Lenox-Boyd in times gone by.
Times have changed! It now seems that the emergence and acceptance of human rights coupled with gender politics is leading to a brave new world and is leveling the playing field in human relations. Anguilla’s concern is about our interaction with HMG, but they have already made up their minds. For a long time now our relationship with UK has not been a burning issue. HMG have come to grips with the fact that imperialism is dead and the type of colonialism, that only Hughes (the Elder) talks about, is over. For them their destiny lies with the European Union and because of their membership there are some benefits that accrue to us because of our status. But in an earlier broadcast “the Sheriff” puts it their way. He says: “Britain wants us for some reason and they are not telling us why.” Poor fellow! What a pity!
Both the Opposition Leader, Ed Milliband, and the Prime Minister David Cameron are more concerned with what Chancellor Angela Merkel does in Germany than with what the hundred and sixty thousand people in the BOT’s have to say. Hughes (the Elder) Independence swan song is but an echo of the past and his old fashion concepts of colonialism belong in an earlier century. But if he is listening critically he would detect a change in general British political thought. Politics in Britain has from time immemorial been male dominated, and now the PM and the Leader of the Opposition find a fifty percent female component of the House of Commons compatible with their way of thinking. However, Hughes (the Elder), because of his slow learning thought process, stubbornly hangs on to his
Antediluvian concept of colonialism and fails to maximixe the benefits of a working partnership with Britain. The rumour mill says he is not going to run again. True, or false, he shouldn’t because he has reached the level of his own incompetence. Meanwhile, we need to get on with shaping this country. In other words, “the time has come for them to go”. It is Anguillians that put them in and it is Anguillians who need to take them out. It only takes a vote correctly marked to do it.
But why did the Foreign and Commonwealth Office send us a female Governor this time? Are they saying that because the CM had political operational issues with nearly all the male Governors they have sent so far, they should try a female this time? Perhaps he knows how to talk to a lady? But better still, according to the paper, she is immediately off the mark because her Office is sponsoring a short program for prison officials in the U K. This could be the omen for future operations.
Not always do we have to receive money — the raw cash. Sometimes “moneyworth” serves a better purpose. After all, training costs money and invariably the other benefits derived from its exposure is invaluable. And what is needed, in almost all areas of our endeavour, is the proper development of our human resources. For us this is crucial and critical and is an area where the CM has failed to act or tell the truth about, mainly because he cannot assess its impact on the bulk of the population in terms of social growth. And because he is such a “Johnny-come-lately” to the old world charm of independence, he misses the fact that at this point in time we lack the industry and the personnel for that status. He thinks we are a “mature nation”. We are not! He therefore is not seeking the stuff of reality and modernity but is immersed in the superficiality of dead ideas and has muddled the reality of now. We need a partner to help us develop over the long term. Anguilla on its own does not possess the capability to do it. That outlook, in the back of our minds could be a progressive and practicable approach to advancement. So it would not be right to write down what the CM says because what he says is oft times misleading, impractical, and mostly untrue. We know that it is more productive to teach a man how to fish than to give him a fish. That concept must have significant influence on our status if we are not intellectually dishonest. We need more than talk. We must find solutions.
Times have changed even if incrementally. The British are looking at the BOT relationship through a different prisim. It is no longer a master and servant approach — it has become a people on people inter-action influenced by tenets of the UK, EU and UN Human Rights Charters. Hughes (the Elder) should know this, but he keeps us in the dark. Seldom does he tell us publicly what transpires on his sojourns to London. But it is known that at a most recent meeting of Chief Ministers and the Minister from the FCO, it was decided that in the future such a meeting would become a standardized intergovernmental Ministerial forum. This is in fact a quantum leap from the Hughes pre- “wind of change” concept of colonialism. Under these conditions there is no relay of information. It is a direct Minister-to-Minister encounter. It is an opportunity to speak up or otherwise hold your peace and further promote the partnership. This could become a damper against us going to international forums and shouting meaninglessly: “Let my people go!” We should be asking if they are going hungry what can we do to help them? To grandstand is to waste time, and it is nice to hear a good speech then wait for the next.
With an enhanced communication set-up in London, and the presence of a new female Governor here, chances for improved governance have increased. What is left for us to do is to find a more amicable group of Ministers that understand how to work the modern relationship and maximize its benefits. If we continue to do the same old thing we will get the same old results with Anguilla being the loser.
We have an idea of how much the British are willing to give financially so it would not help to cuss them like Hughes has been doing. We should behave more like Sir Emile did, that is, keep cool and ask them again and see what happens. They have already told us that they are willing to give technical assistance that maybe our pressure point. Nothing is more necessary to a nation’s growth and prosperity than the quality of its human stock.
So what provides the confidence to believe in the existing relationship? First the new Governor can bring forward a new dialogue; secondly the perspective of an in-coming new team that understands the difference between discussion and argument; and, third, reliance on the British to do as they say and to practice what they preach. If the function of the new Joint Ministerial Council is successfully carried out, in good faith, its operation could throw a wrench into the CM’s bad faith. Because in the light of heightened ministerial interaction not many conscientious persons would be convinced by his tautology.
If the proponents of “status change” seek it for its own sake then we are only spinning our wheels. So let us all run and call one another names not knowing what to do if we got elected. The question is, are we voting for people based on their personality or on their capabilities? We want people who understand situations and can help to upgrade our living standards — not just anybody who was born here. Believers say Amen! And pray that this is a good Omen!
