Campaigning for the 2015 general election in Anguilla is in top gear as the still unannounced date, early in the New Year, approaches. The three political parties, the Anguilla United Front, the Anguilla United Movement and the DOVE Party, as well as the two Independent Candidates, are dealing with a number of issues and outlining their plans for the island.
Some, or all of those plans, will be published in The Anguillian – as they are announced – for the information of the general public as well as for the national record.
The following is an excerpt from an address delivered by Mr Othlyn Vanterpool, the AUF candidate for District 1, Island Harbour. He was speaking at a public meeting held by his party at Stoney Ground on Saturday night, October 4:
“What would an AUF Government do?
“An AUF Government would stop blaming and complaining, get up and begin to fix the problem.
“Cap Juluca’s problems must be addressed and an AUF Gov’t will address those problems. We will fix Cap Juluca.
“You may ask, what are some of the other plans for Anguilla? What else would an AUF Gov’t do?
“The AUF’s main focus is on job creation. We must get our people back to work. The AUF did it before – we can do it again. The Anguilla dream is still reachable. It is all about you.
• “We will provide incentives for businesses to generate new and additional permanent jobs in the economy. We want our people to be job creators and business owners. It’s all about you. It is good to work for others, but it is better and more rewarding to be the creator of jobs.
• “[We will] work with partners to provide increased funding, business and technical consultancy and support services to small and medium size tourism ventures, wholly owned or joint ventures by belongers of Anguilla. We must support our own.
• “[We will] promote and facilitate our youth to venture into innovative tourism business to fill gaps in current product and service offering. Our people must fill these gaps. It’s all about you.
• “[We will] ensure that qualified belongers, who deserve to be appointed, are not passed over in favor of a non-belongers. We must not overlook our people, once they are qualified.
• “[We will] develop a system of wage application to different categories of labour, including minimum wage levels for the lowest paid and least skilled jobs. It is time we fix this wage impasse.
• “[We will] develop and implement an unemployment benefits and retrenchment system under Social Security. You work for years and when you become unemployed you get nothing. We must fix that.
Sports
• “The AUF will continue emphasis on searching out and developing talent in various fields of sports, from cricket to football, athletics to tennis, cycling to body-building and in between. It is about you the people. Your talents must be developed.
• “We will develop sporting and other facilities that meet international standards, promote sports tourism [and] repeal the Interim Stabilization Levy as it relates to our workers.
• “AUF will treat our civil servants and other workers with respect. We will not do like our present ministers and abuse our teachers and other workers.
• “We will pay back the money owed to civil servants. It is their money and they must have it. The same way our present Chief got approval of $40,000 for his telephone calls, the civil servants too must get their money.
“We will continue to roll out our plans for Anguilla’s recovery going forward.”
