As the election campaign heats up here in Anguilla and politicians prepare for the election that is constitutionally due early in 2015, most of them are making reference to the leader of the Anguilla Revolution of 1967, Mr. James Ronald Webster. It is no secret that this is occurring as means of finding favour with the electorate. The truth is, most of them could not care about Mr. Webster’s wellbeing during any other period of time.
As a very young boy growing up during the early days of the Anguilla Revolution, I remember Mr. Webster frequenting our yard to meet with my father, Mr. Collins Hodge, and other members of the leadership team almost daily. So over the years I have grown to admire Mr. Webster’s strength of character and love for Anguilla and its people. Mr. Webster is by no means a perfect man and, as such, he made many mistakes along the way. What I believe and know is, that during the darkest days of the Anguilla Revolution, when the leadership and rebels risked death or prison, Mr. Webster stood up and took responsibility as the leader of the Anguilla Revolution.
Today, Mr. Webster is in his very senior golden years of life and he is all but ignored and abandoned by the political leaders of Anguilla. Yes, in 2010 his birthday was made a public holiday here in Anguilla, thanks to Mr. Yanchie Richardson of NorthSide who put up a strong lobby for a number of years to make it happen.
The Civil Society Group, of which I was a part, sent the attached letter to the current Government of Anguilla on two occasions, once to the Honourable Chief Minister, Mr. Hubert Hughes, and later to the Honourable Minister of Home Affairs, Mr. Jerome Roberts, to which there was not even an acknowledgment. The details of the letter were also discussed with the current Chief Minister, Mr. Hughes in person, but he just brushed it aside.
Meanwhile, the Anguilla United Front (AUF) and the Anguilla United Movement (AUM) both agreed to a huge pension and gratuity for themselves. Our last retiring Chief Minister, Mr. Osbourne Fleming, receives a pension of $11, 640.00 per month and will receive this every month for the rest of his life. Additionally, he received a lump sum gratuity of $582,000.00 when he retired. Our last retired Minister of Finance, Mr. Victor Banks, receives a pension of $9,640.00 per month and will also receive this every month for the rest of his life. He also got a lump sum gratuity of $496,000.00 when he lost the last election. Meanwhile, the leader of the Anguilla Revolution and Father of the Nation, Mr. James Ronald Webster, receives a pension of $1,010.00 per month. He will receive this every month for the rest of his life unless the Government of Anguilla rectifies this injustice. Our current politicians, who got into politics when their lives were not at risk, have all taken care of themselves financially. What about taking care of our revolutionary leader, Mr. James Ronald Webster?
The poor treatment of Mr. James Ronald Webster is a crying shame. The exploitation of his name for political favour is also a crying shame. The day that Mr. Webster eventually dies we, no doubt, will all be in mourning and will attend the state funeral that will be attended by dignitaries who will come in from all over the world. The question is, why isn’t Mr. James Ronald Webster shown more love, care and respect now? Have we lost our soul as a nation?
Mr. James Ronald Webster deserves better. Let us give him his flowers while he is alive.
