Now that a week has passed since the Honourable Dee-Ann-Kentish Rogers has re-joined the ranks of the APM, following a three-day term of resignation, the question remains: Should she explain her back-and-forth movement as a Government representative, and should she apologise for it?
The issue was raised on the radio programme, “Just the Facts” on Monday, 11th July when the host, the Honourable Cora Richardson Hodge, reflected on Ms. Kentish Rogers’ compelling speech, on 30th, in the House of Assembly, where she spoke as to why she had decided to cross the floor and join those on the opposition benches.
Mrs. Cora Richardson Hodge alluded to an article in The Anguillian newspaper of 8th July, entitled “A Flip-Flop or What”. In that article, Ms. Kentish-Rogers spoke about how she crossed over to the Opposition; then she stated how she crossed back over again to Government.
“That was her explanation,” Mrs. Richardson-Hodge said, “as to why she was crossing the floor to sit with the Opposition. She said that she had listened to her constituents and they were of the prevailing view that she ought to have resigned from government [in the face of the controversial GST dilemma].
“Then, on Monday, July 4th, she made a statement saying: “‘My participation in Government is based upon the desire to ensure that the people’s voice is given primacy in the decision making process and that other means of economic development is pursued and explored. That is why I have accepted reappointment as a Minister of the Government of Anguilla.
“‘My commitment to championing the cause of every Anguillian, particularly those in Valley South, has remained, and I intend to remain steadfast and find avenues for their voices to be heard in Parliament, in Cabinet and in the Anguillian society.’”
“This is quite interesting,” Mrs. Richardson Hodge said, “because when she announced her resignation on June 30th, it was as a result of listening to her constituents and taking onboard their views. But when she crossed back over to rejoin the Government, that decision was taken based on her desire to ensure her people’s voice is given primacy, as she said, in the decision-making process. So her crossing back was not based on the views of her constituency, but it was based on other views.”
Mrs. Richardson-Hodge invited the comments of her co-host, Mr. Cardigan Connor who said: “When Ms. Kentish-Rogers and Mr. Kyle Hodge voted ‘no’ to GST last year, it was expected that [both of them] would resign then. A number of people had thought that would be the case. But they were prepared to work along with the team on the matter of GST for the good of the people.
“But in this situation, when Ms. Kentish-Rogers went to the people, the general perception was that she should resign from Government if she wanted to represent them. The people said ‘no’ to her being in government, and not just for 48 hours, but for the long haul.
“So when she decided to go back to rejoin Government, the question one must ask is whether she did it on her own or whether she went back to the people again and told them of her decision to return to Government. As a District, there will be a number of questions that her constituents would continue to ask of her.”
He stressed that no one likes the idea of a politician making a ‘flip-flopping’ because there is no surety as to where he or she stands on the issues – here today and not here tomorrow. He said that within time, DeeAnn will have to work it out with her people; she needs to come out to her people and explain her position. “Or her people will be very loud on her in time to come,” Mr. Connor said.
