The more things change, the more they remain the same. Eight years ago, I penned an article entitled What Do We Want from Governor Scott? I was pondering the same issue in relation to our current Governor who took up her role in January of this year. When I reviewed the article, I realised that much of it is still as applicable today as it was eight years ago.
I then wrote:
Since her arrival, we have observed the efforts made by the Governor to integrate herself in the Anguillian community. She has been observed visiting various communities, shopping in supermarkets, attending church services, carnival and community events and generally familiarising herself with the Anguillian people and the Anguillian way of life…. her efforts at understanding this new community, in which she now lives, must be applauded. I am sure we can think of many examples of Governors who have served in Anguilla but who made no effort whatsoever to know, far less understand, the Anguillian people.
The same is true of Governor Dileeni Daniel- Selvaratnam. Since her arrival, she visited communities, institutions, non-governmental organisations, national and community events — and the list goes on.
My view of what the people of Anguilla want from our Governor has not changed. I wrote at the time:
the people of Anguilla want a Governor who (1) understands their needs and aspirations, and (2) advances the principles of good governance. The approach being taken so far by the Governor is useful in relation to the first requirement. However, the accomplishment of the second will require considerable commitment. For the purposes of this commentary, I have extracted the following excerpt from the website of the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in seeking to explain good governance:
“There is no single and exhaustive definition of “good governance,” nor is there a delimitation of its scope, that commands universal acceptance…. However, there is a significant degree of consensus that good governance relates to political and institutional processes and outcomes that are deemed necessary to achieve the goals of development. It has been said that good governance is the process whereby public institutions conduct public affairs, manage public resources and guarantee the realization of human rights in a manner essentially free of abuse and corruption, and with due regard for the rule of law…. The key question is: are the institutions of governance effectively guaranteeing the right to health, adequate housing, sufficient food, quality education, fair justice and personal security?”
I am of the view that the fact that constitutionally the Governor is vested with Executive Authority for Anguilla on behalf of her Majesty, means that the Governor, her local office and the relevant arms of the British Government are all also “institutions of governance” in relation to Anguilla. The fact that the Governor’s office has always stressed its role in upholding good governance is recognition of that responsibility. However, I believe this must be taken further. Not only should the Governor be concerned with upholding the principles of good governance, but advancing good governance as well. In other words these “institutions of governance”, to which I have referred, should demonstrate a commitment to good governance in more tangible ways than the current oversight mechanism.
Traditionally, the approach of the United Kingdom Government to issues of good governance has been focused on ensuring that the actions of the Government of Anguilla, particularly in relation to financial management, do not result in any contingent liability issues for the United Kingdom Government. It is for this reason, and as part of its oversight mechanism, that the UK Government appointed a UK financial adviser who now sits in the Ministry of Finance and attends all meetings of Executive Council, though not a member. But good governance ought to go much further than that. The question I posed at the time, in relation to Governor Scott, is the same question I will now pose to Governor Daniel-Selvaratnam: what will you, your local office, and the British Government, do to guarantee the right to health, adequate housing, sufficient food, quality education, fair justice and personal security of the Anguillian people? This is what good governance is all about.
Eight years ago, I wrote:
Like the rest of the world, Anguilla has been hard hit by the economic crisis. We are in the throes of an economic meltdown – we have a sluggish economy, rising unemployment, increased taxation, increasing numbers seeking public assistance, a banking sector that is under siege, demands for further slashes in Government expenditure and deteriorating physical and social infrastructure. We have been informed of the efforts made by our Government (also an “institution of governance”) to get us past this crisis. Yet one of the key “institutions of governance” has only seen it fit to offer “technical assistance”. Does this accord with advancing good governance as outlined previously? Absolutely not. Technical assistance has its time and place. I am a proponent of the saying that if you “give a man a fish, you feed him for a day, but if you teach him how to fish, you feed him for life.” However, before you can teach a starving man how to fish, you must first feed him. Similarly, no one teaches a drowning man how to swim. He must first be rescued.
Anguilla is sinking while the good governance watchdogs do nothing but watch. It is abominable that the British Government can give millions of pounds in financial assistance to countries in Africa and other parts of the globe, but for its own Overseas Territory there is no rescue mission, not even a life jacket. The offers of technical assistance at this juncture are akin to sending persons to swim alongside a drowning man, giving directions as to how he can improve his chances of survival. No real results can reasonably be expected from such a strategy. What would be reasonable is for this sort of assistance to follow or accompany a significant injection of funds from the UK Government.
Eight years later, Anguilla is still in the midst of an economic depression. While a controversial resolution was found for the banking crisis, Hurricane Irma and the Covid-19 pandemic have had crippling effects on the economy. It took the ravages of Hurricane Irma for the UK Government to provide the necessary capital injection that Anguilla so desperately needed to build critical infrastructure. But we are still grateful for the assistance.
What is needed now is a reshaping of the relationship between the UK Government and the Government of Anguilla. There must be a true partnership; an embracing of the Anguillian people as UK citizens; a desire to see the Anguillian people thrive as UK citizens thrive; a realisation that building a sustainable future for Anguilla’s children is just as important as building a future for the children of the UK. If Anguilla is to remain a part of the UK family, we must be treated as family, not like a pet kept on a leash and fed occasionally. We must be valued, contributing members of the family unit. We must do our part and carry our weight, but we must also be supported in difficult times and empowered to attain self-sufficiency. With our new Governor, and the recent UK Cabinet reshuffle, let’s see if anything changes or whether eight years from now, I will be writing the same thing.
