The evening of Saturday, June 13th, saw another political meeting in North Side, by the Anguilla Progressive Movement (APM) in support of its Valley North Constituency candidate, Mr. Courtney Morton, who is running against the incumbent Hon. McNeil Rogers in the upcoming national elections. A prayer of invocation was offered by Pastor Victor Brooks of World Harvest Assembly.
The theme of Saturday night’s rally was “Call a Spade a Spade”, and by this slogan the various APM candidates sought to scrutinize the performance of the AUF administration. Candidate Jerome Roberts of District 2, for instance, called out the administration, lamenting that, in calling a spade a spade, the empty promises of the AUF that have not been fulfilled over the past five years must be taken in account. “They have given us water to carry in a basket,” he said.
Still campaigning on the mantra “Change Can’t Wait”, APM Leader, Dr. Ellis Lorenzo Webster, touted: “It is time to wake up and realize that we have played with politics for too long. We must break the chains that hold us down.”
In making reference to the rival AUF, he noted: “This administration has failed us miserably. I know that some people are cynical and disenchanted, and they feel like politics has let them down, but you have to give the APM a chance. Everyone in my team could be elsewhere doing something else, but they have come here to give you that opportunity to allow them to represent you.”
In taking the stage, Mr. Courtney Morton used an extract from his biography to introduce himself. He said: “I have spent a lifetime in banking, sports, culture and community involvement. The values of hard work, fairness, love and respect, were instilled in me by my grandparents at a very young age, as well as by my extended family. The community in which I grew up has a general ethos which is: ‘one for all and all for one’. This is the foundation of my campaign as I seek to graduate to representational politics.”
Against the backdrop of Peter Tosh’s reggae rhythm, “Walk and Don’t Look Back”, an enthusiastic crowd of Valley North supporters rallied on stage around Morton: “Good night, Valley North!” he shouted. “Last weekend, in Stoney Ground, my opponent Mr. Rogers spoke about family.” Turning to the crowd behind him, he exclaimed: “Tonight, you are looking at the Valley North APM family!”
He then went on to claim: “There is nothing wrong with calling a spade a spade. Some things have to be exposed.” However, without focusing much upon criticizing the work of his opponent, for Valley North, he proceeded to speak about his North Side family who raised him: “Tonight I want to tell the youths and remind the seniors of this community, about who Courtney Morton really is.”
He reflected: “My mother passed away when I was only three. I was raised by my grandparents up the hill. Because of their ages at the time, I had every chance to fall by the wayside. But I am a child that was raised by this community. Because of this I have come to realize that every child must have the same protection, especially in today’s societies where communities don’t function as they used to.”
Mr. Morton went on to speak about children who make mistakes and get in trouble with the law. He noted: “Unfortunately, the kids that make mistakes are those who are criminalized with little or no alternative. One of the APM’s initiatives that I would be proud to champion is the Dispute Alternative Resolution which involves the expounding of records that relate to non-violent marijuana.”
Mr. Morton expressed this as one of his main aims should he get elected to office — moving towards the decriminalization and modernization of the criminal code. He stated: “Ladies and gentlemen, I care about the youth in Valley North. The APM team care about the youth in Anguilla. I care about family; I care about the youth. It is time to give our troubled youth a second chance in life.”
It is apparent that due to Mr. Morton’s upbringing, he is running on a platform as an advocate that favours the family, and as a mediator for delinquent youth who, if left to themselves, run the risk of becoming hardened criminals.
As is customary, Morton’s APM teammates took the stage — all speaking on his behalf. While many of them critically reviewed the functioning of the AUF administration, they also sought to boost Mr. Morton’s popularity as an upcoming political representative and to solicit the support of the Valley North constituency.
- Staff Reporter, James R. Harrigan
