Former USVI gubernatorial candidate lands BVIHSA chairmanship
Former US Virgin Islands (USVI) gubernatorial candidate, Moleto Smith Jr, has been appointed as the newest chairman of the BVI Health Services Authority (BVIHSA).
The revelation was made through the order paper for today’s emergency meeting of the House of Assembly (HOA).
Smith Jr’s appointment is being retroactively approved in the HOA after becoming effective from July 15, 2021.
He is contracted to serve in the post for three years.
Health Minister Carvin Malone is expected to move the motion for the appointment today.
The BVI Health Services Authority Act allows for Malone to recommend the appointment of Smith Jr to Cabinet, after consultation with the Opposition Leader.
The appointment was granted approval by the House and this will be ratified today.
Smith Jr, who twice ran unsuccessfully for the post of USVI Governor, has a number of close associations in the BVI and most recently served as the Executive Director at the St Thomas East End Medical Center Corp, USVI.
He reportedly also held several high-level positions in various other USVI government agencies and organizations.
The BVIHSA was most recently chaired by Dr Joel Stevens, a former member of the Board of Directors of the Authority and president of the medical staff at Providence Hospital in the United States.
Stevens served from May 2019 for a two-year period.
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Congratulations, Moleto!
What are Mr. M. Smith’s qualifications for this position? There is nothing about his medical degrees, residency or any qualifications as a medical doctor.
It is important to understand, Doctors do not always make the best Business Managers or Healthcare Administrators. This man’s qualifications as an administrator in the field are beyond question. The HSA is fortunate to receive his expertise. We hope it will benefit from his presence.
They never makes good administrators. Doctors need to stay being foctors and leave the business part of healthcare to other professionals.
I must commend the government on this move. Wise choice, please continue to bring in expats for the top tier positions in government. You are learning. Now the hospital can be run efficiently. Keep up the good work sir, contract the speech writers also from outside you have my support. Next please consider a minister of finance from down island. We will support that move. While at it I highly recommend someone again from outside to be education minister. That ministry needs an efficient vaccine not yet available in tortola.
He has BVI Roots, do your research.
Seriously?
he still aint born here
@ stripes you should be ashamed of yourself. I actually did the research would you be kind enough to enlighten the readers. If his great grand ma auntie 7 times removed is tolan I will accept the lineage. Just as Branston is a belonged of the bvi even though he has no roots. Why don’t you all VIP supporters get real. Please change name from strupes to stupid. Strupes.
Very good choice
Nothing ain’t going on for him where he spent decades so now want to run back and claim BVI? Where he was when we were struggling to rebuild this country after 2017?
Moleto “who”?
Sigh..
They never makes good administrators. Doctors need to stay being foctors and leave the business part of healthcare to other professionals.
THIS is an excellent choice!
Remember, his sister Dr. Marcella Nuñez-Smith,a Yale University Medical School Professor, is one of the Federal COVID Czars, appointed by Dr. Fauci, to administer information to the current President of the United States!
This appointment could not have come at a better time for the BVI!
Talk about having FIRST HAND information, regarding the latest protocols of Good Science, with regards to COVID!!!
You trying to throw shade, but you failed. According to his resume he was working in health longer before Biden appointed his family to a federal czar position.
Why do some of us only choose to through shade on our own?
I know him personally for over 25 years. He’s one of the most humble but real persons I’ve ever met. He’s doing this because he was asked to assist.
This man isn’t doing this for the money. I’m certain he currently makes much more than 10x the kind of money this appointment will pay.
And for the record, he’s the CEO of the largest and most successful primary care operation on St. Thomas, with over 110 employees and 25 doctors. So whoever it was that said he’s only coming here because he has nothing going on is gravely mistaken.
This man is closely connected to the BVI and has been for several generations — Smith, Robinson, Greaves, Hodge, Todman. He’s the president of the oldest BVI organization that has given tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships to BVIslander students to attend college.
And yes, he was in Road Town when the 2017 floods occurred on August Monday. After the 2017 hurricane, he and his group organized the donation of tens of thousands of dollars in medical supplies to the hospital. He and his group even came up before schools reopened to donate thousands of dollars worth of school supplies to several of the primary schools on Tortola. He has also been connected to the rebuild of the hospital from its beginning in 2007.
This is an excellent appointment of one of our own! I for one am very glad that one of our own of his caliber is contributing to the country.
Thank you Moleto!
Sounds like he has the best resume. The only thing that I could see as an issue is the USA healthcare model & the BVI is not the same. Here we do community healthcare not for profit while they’re all about for profit & drugs. They also don’t do preventative medicine much there. As long as he can navigate that difference this could be great.