by Kevon Browne
St. Kitts and Nevis (WINN) – Ahead of the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party’s (SKNLP) Annual National Conference one month from today, on November 28, social media was abuzz with the candidates for the next leader of the almost 90-year-old party.
The Rt. Hon. Dr Denzil L. Douglas, the current opposition leader in St. Kitts and Nevis, confirmed that he would not seek re-election last week (October 22).
The three officials of the party’s National Executive vying for the leadership role are Hon. Dr Geoffrey Hanley, Member of Parliament for St Christopher 1 (East Basseterre), Mr Konris Maynard, former Member of Parliament and Caretaker of St. Christopher 3 (West Basseterre) and Dr Terrance Drew, Party Chairman and Caretaker, St. Christopher 8.
During an interview on “The Narrative” on CaribUpdate, Konris Maynard says he has the progressive vision to lead the party.
“Firstly, I believe that I offer an excellent blend of embracing the history of our party, which is now heading into its 90th year, year and also the vision, progressive vision for the future. I am steeped in the history of the St. Kitts-Nevis Labor Party. I remember hearing the stories of my own grandfather was a cane cutter who would be first in line at the public meetings of our first national hero Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw. And since then, my family lineage has been kept within the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party, and so I am a product of the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party. It is in my DNA; it is in my roots.”
Against the Unity administration, the SKNLP lost two consecutive elections. Maynard expressed that since the loss in 2015, the party has been restructuring, securing new resources and is on the cusp of transitioning to a new leader of the party.
According to Maynard, their loss in the last elections resulted from restrictions imposed on their campaigning ability.
“But added to that, the last election was a peculiar election. We, for the first time in our history, were really restricted by law to really campaign in the way that we would prefer to campaign. The government then utilise its power under the guise of COVID to institute a state of emergency, and so we had an election where the government can be out in their numbers, they can be visiting persons, they can be delivering things, and we are restricted to a room with 25 people. So it would not be a fair gauge to say that it was a complete rejection by the electorate, but they were just using, or they were voting on the information that they had at the time, which was lopsided in favour of the government.”
Maynard expressed that the Party is confident that the combination of SKNLP’s restructuring and the current administration’s performance will give them an “excellent chance going forward.”
“Because we will be able to offer that vision that the people need to see their way out of the quagmire we find ourselves in with an incompetent government, no vision of leadership, concerned only about enriching themselves and the people around them. So I think people are getting a very clear and concise view of the type of leadership that this government offers. When [the] St. Kitts and Nevis Labor Party is able to provide its new slate and its new vision going forward, we believe that we will have a very strong case to be made.”
When countered on the claims of poor leadership from previous SKNLP administrations, Maynard rejected the claims suggesting the party could stand on their record, citing accomplishments made during Dr Douglas’s 20 years as prime minister.
You can listen to the full interview here:
