Be wary of COI recommendations, Governor has the power to enforce
Opposition legislator Julian Fraser is warning the territory to pay close attention to the Commission of Inquiry (COI) report because its more than 40 recommendations could potentially have undesirable effects on the BVI, as the governor has the power to enforce them.
Speaking at a press conference held by the Opposition yesterday, Fraser said Governor John Rankin does not need approval from anyone to implement any of the recommendations in the report.
“A simple example could be one like this. If a recommendation comes down that when it comes to security it should be combined into one where Customs, Police and Immigration are one entity, that could be a recommendation. I am not saying it is one. I am just giving an example of what a recommendation could be like. And the governor can follow it. He does not have to follow it but just assume he follows that recommendation. He does not need any approval to implement it. If he decides to implement it, whose responsibility do you think it will be? Would it be local, or would it be him? My money is on him,” the senior legislator said.
Fraser said the report, which has not been yet been released to any member of the House of Assembly or the public, should concern the territory.
“Do we want to regress as a territory? I don’t think so. We must all think about what the consequences will be. Every step back that we make is years going forward that we must live with those consequences. Whether you like the government or do not like the government, it is having nothing to do with who is in government, it has to do with the country,” Fraser said.
Expect anything
He encouraged people to be vigilant, be mindful and expect any anything from those recommendations. He said those recommendations could be things residents do not like and things that are new such as the form of the elected government system. The senior legislator added that he has always been in favour of the previous electoral system where the At-Large representatives had nothing to do with the party that had the winning number of seats.
“Those are things that we must look forward to seeing as what we are going to have to do. The more vigilant we are, the more concerned the governor would be when he decides to follow those recommendations and implement any of them. And for one, despite how I might feel about the government, I feel even stronger about the country itself. I do not want to see us regress in any which way in anything that we have, anything that we do, it must be in advancement,” Fraser said.
The COI report was delivered to the governor a week ago. He has since announced he will take his time to review the document — which is more than 1,000 pages long — and then make a statement on the findings and recommendations.
Governor Rankin had announced that due to the extensive nature of the document, he will not be producing a statement until after the Easter period.
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It is what it is at this point. If a certain premier didn’t wage a public war with the previous governor we would have no COI to consider. But his childishness cost everybody their freedom. c’est la vie
Ok then, now they all with their slavery talk. Set of i**ots.
Um the very idea of a personal fuss between two grown men, one elected & black – the other appointed & white, being accepted as the catalyst for a COI
SAYS A LOT.
In fact it justifies ‘the slavery talk.’
Why do all these politicians say that we will be ‘set back’, ‘we will regress’, it should ‘concern the Territory’?
After all, we would NOT be here in this position if it had not been for the actions of multiple elected parties and officials.
You think the public is so stupid that we are going to buy into your bull$hit rhetoric of how we are going to suffer? We have ‘suffered’ because of YOU, we are in this ‘position’ right now because of YOU.
Not because of what the UK has done. It has been years of abuse, neglect, ineptitude, and greed that has this Territory where it is now!
Stop throwing blame, and spouting fear, when it is YOU that has put us here.
This Territory needs to look in the mirror and know that it is our elected leaders that have put us in the ‘here and now’, and in return we have only empowered them to continue digging our own graves while talking endless conspiracies as to why we are being ‘held back’, and ‘abused’ by the UK. We are always quick to throw blame, yet never pause and wonder whether we had a hand in why we are where we are!
Look at our education system, our infrastructure, our social services to name a few areas. With all that these islands have been gifted with economically we should be a shinning example to all other islands in the Caribbean as to what we should have done. We could of had, and should have a World class infrastructure, a second to none medical and social services, and an education system for all to envy across the region!
But no, here we are, listening to a veteran politician (that has done more for himself than his country) spewing endless $hit, and that we the people need to brace for a hostile takeover of our own islands when he full well knows we (through those we voted in) are the architects of this current rudderless ship.
When will we, as a people, as a Territory, step up and demand better? Until such a time arrives, until leaders with vision step up and put Territory first, how can we ever advance, or even consider taking the necessary steps towards being our own Country when we can’t even manage what we currently have?
VERY well said!
You’re just another fraser hater
My guess is that one of the 40 recommendations will be concerned with Fraser. No wonder he is preparing the ground to get people to ignore it.
Well Said!!!
THAT WAS STRAIGHT TO THE ? POINT . ALL RESPECT TO YOU , AND IF THE PEOPLE CANNOT SEE AND UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU SAID , THEN WE IN TROUBLE BECAUSE ITS SO OBVIOUS ,EVEN STEAVIE WONDER CAN SEE WHAT THESE SET OF PRETENDERS OR BOLDFACED LIARS ARE DOING AND ACTING SO HOLY WITH THEIR DECEPTION
I agree with your post 100%!!
Now they want to fearmonger us, and we ARE NOT BUYING THE BS. If our leaders were real leaders, we would not be at this point. WE are the ones who did nonsense, and put our country in this mess, not the Governor nor the UK!
Let the COI bring forth its recommendations, I for one am waiting to see what they are, and I probably wont be surprised by any of them I am sure.
Years of mismanagement and the people who really have the power, we sat by quietly. Somebody needs to straighten our azzes out.
@Pandora’s Box, Well said I am giving you a million likes.
@shut up, And you are to stupid to understand what’s going on.
Well talk to your opp leader Penn, he said he already agrees with everything he hasn’t seen yet
The COI recommendation might even include guidance that prohibits contracts being awarded to a family member, if a person is elected and his party put him as Minster of Communication and Works for example
How can the recommendations have an undesirable effect when the recommendations are to make this place run more better. The effects would be undesirable to ayo who done use wrong in the past and present.