Over the last week I have been told that persons from the AUM and the DOVE party still continue to make their case for the next election by focusing their attention on the last eighteen months of the Anguilla United Front Government of 2000 to 2010. In particular, they find it necessary to try to prove that the AUM Government, in coming to office, met a deficit that they had to dispose of before they could get on with the business of governing. It is my understanding that they quoted several sections from a document showing that there was a recurrent deficit at the end of 2009. That there was a deficit on record has never been questioned. What we are saying is that there was no physical deficit of the amount in question that the incoming Government had to deal with. I have come to the conclusion that many of these persons are either willful or ignorant about the way Government works.
But most of this rhetoric comes from our opponents whose sole aim is to deceive the electorate for their political purposes. Their supporters who have no real understanding of the situation echo these sound bites. Even some qualified professionals fail to understand that the Government accounts in Anguilla operate on a cash basis and not accrual. The way that financial reports are presented by government may therefore be unfamiliar and could be misinterpreted and sometimes intentionally.
Let me therefore reiterate once again that the AUM Government did NOT meet a deficit of $70 million that they had to contend with upon coming to office. The Anguilla United Front Government managed its deficit while it was in office. Similarly, the AUM had to deal with its own deficits also as a result of the global recession when it came to office. That challenge continues because in five years the AUM Government has not been able to find ways to fix the economic situation even while many other islands in the region have long ago begun to experience growth. The AUM has given us four successive years of negative economic growth since coming to office. I therefore suggest that both the AUM and the DOVE party should be talking about these last five years of incompetent leadership. Were it not for the global recession that struck in 2008 they would have absolutely nothing to talk about.
Among the many issues that have characterized the failure of this Government is its inability to negotiate, in the best interests of the people of Anguilla, with investors. This was evident when it made a mess of the Cap Juluca MoU by renegotiating a less favourable arrangement that included giving beach and land resources back to the Developer; when it caused the Government to lose 18 million dollars in transfer fees on the Viceroy Resort; when it created an ongoing hostile relationship with the ownership of the Cuisinart Resort & Golf Course; when it was unable to resolve the issues with the GE Water Production Plant in Crocus Bay; and its ongoing failure to bring any resolution to the Cap Juluca fiasco. These, and the ongoing and regular confrontations with British Governors and the British Government clearly show that this Government, has exhibited poor negotiating skills.
In the case of our sister Overseas Territories the reverse is the case. In their national newspapers, this week, both the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands boast a good working relationship with the British Government. As such they have been able to negotiate extensions on borrowing guidelines as well as improving compliance with their arrangements under the Framework for Fiscal Development. According to both Premiers, this approach has led to positive results in the overall economy. In the regional news, five Independent (formerly British) States in the Caribbean also boast that they have been able to negotiate a second 75 million pound tranche of British Aid over the next five years. On the other hand, our Government spent the last few days, before attending the Joint Ministerial Conference in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, rallying the island into protest about Independence over an administrative issue regarding where our passports should be issued.
It is in the circumstances of this Government’s lack of effective negotiating skills that the people of Anguilla expressed concern and outrage when they learned that our Chief Minister, along with his Ministers and Advisors, were prepared to sign a Letter of Intent (LOI) with a Company in which the following clause appears: “The parties agree that the purchase price of the AXA aerodome assets will be US$1 and other good and valuable consideration as set out below”. In the local idiom this means: “De Chief Minister agree to sell de airport for a US$1.00.”
It is obvious that the phrase “other good and valuable consideration” suggests that there is more involved in the negotiations than US$1.00. But the question is: “What are those other considerations, and how do they affect the people of Anguilla?” And an even more fundamental question: “Who told you, Mr. Chief Minister, that the people of Anguilla will consider the sale of the Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport as a viable option for the development and future operations of that facility?” There have been absolutely no public consultations on such a radical change in the ownership structure of our national airport facilities. No consideration has therefore been given to the views of stakeholders and the people of Anguilla, in general, on this matter.
It will be instructive to point out just a few worrisome clauses and phrases in the draft LOI:
1. The title includes the phrase “privatization in perpetuity” of the airport. (Perpetuity means forever.)
2. The clause that states in part: “Government …. agrees that it is in the best interest of Anguilla to negotiate exclusively with the Lake Estate/Arambys Corporation”. How was this determined?
3. The clause that states in part: “Government agrees to give notice of termination and cancellation to any and all existing concessionaires, lessees, tenants, contractors and fixed based operators (FBO’s) in regards to their existing agreements 180 days after the date of signing this agreement”. What will happen to these Anguillian businesses?
4. The LOI includes the “creation of new sea port facilities for both passenger and cargo movements (as well as) high speed ferry service with routes to St. Martin, St Barths, Statia, Saba and the soon to be developed outer islands of Anguilla.” Who will be operating these businesses?
There are also a number of other clauses having to do with extended waivers of stamp duty; Alien Land Holding Licence fees; and Customs Duty that appear to be very excessive, especially since this Government came to office complaining that the past Government gave away the country. This particular letter of intent speaks to a complete waiver of these fees as well as duty free concessions for fifty years. Furthermore there is no specific reference to ongoing streams of revenue for the Government anywhere in the LOI.
The document in question is a very complex one consisting of a total of seventeen pages. It therefore should require that the Government of Anguilla engage professional expertise to evaluate such an agreement after a transparent process has led to the determination that it is the right way to go — and that the successful company is capable of delivering and managing the project. The Chief Minister’s readiness to sign that letter of intent, without doing the necessary due diligence and carrying out the important public consultations, is a clear indication that he does not understand due process. What is also troubling is that he has completely ignored the interests of the Anguillian stakeholders that he was elected to protect. Neither has there been any thought as to whether what is being proposed is consistent with our island’s tourism product and brand. How can we be certain that he really appreciates the significance of “other good and valuable consideration”?
