Opposition failed miserably after elections, Walwyn concedes
Opposition lawmaker Myron Walwyn has admitted that the divided political landscape following the 2023 general elections played a significant role in the Opposition’s failure to secure governance.
Speaking at a recent press conference, acknowledged that factionalism cost them the election and stressed the need for unity.
“The elections of 2019 and 2023 were clear indications that we failed to rise to the occasion. Particularly in 2023, based on the results, we saw that the intent of the electorate was to put a new government in place,” Walwyn stated. “While the people did their utmost as a collective, we failed miserably because of the various factions that existed.”
Walwyn pointed out that the Opposition won a majority of seats in 2023 but could not form a government because of internal divisions. In a pointed reference to former Deputy Premier Lorna Smith’s move to switch allegiance immediately after the elections,
Walwyn said: “Following that election, we were all seeking to blame one person for crossing the floor. While I was disappointed about those actions, it was not merely one person that caused the Virgin Islands Party to return to power. Collectively, we all had a part to play.”
According to Walwyn, the ruling VIP has shown that they “can’t govern to save their lives”. However, he conceded that the VIP has a structure in place that works, and said this helped to position them to form the new government.
“If we really want to form the next government, we have to get together because the PVIM and the NDP pretty much attract the same people,” Walwyn said. “Sometimes we are talking to the very same candidates to be able to run for election.”
Walwyn, Turnbull, and Mather announced yesterday that they were in the early stages of an alliance. He said this was “grounded in unity and a commitment to serving the people” with integrity and purpose. Turnbull echoed the sentiment, noting that division has weakened the Opposition for too long.
“For the past eight years, spanning two election cycles, it has become painfully clear that the separation of the two key political forces, the National Democratic Party and the Progressive Virgin Islands Movement, has not served in the best interest of our people.”
According to Walwyn, the new alliance is a direct response to the public’s demand for a more unified Opposition. While the leaders of the NDP and PVIM have not formally joined the alliance, Walwyn insisted that there is an understanding among Opposition members that unity is necessary.
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All along they were blaming Fraser…Fraser gone Lorna came back and they still cant get together…It’s a civil war of the uncivilized.
Lorna a run tings now
While vip secretly tear at the skins of each other. Set of hypocrites.
VIP members are a bunch of crabs clawing at each other throats but the Premier thinks he is safe.
Power power hungry look his face and blood shot eyes
Poor you. Did you even read the story to see the sense that the man is speaking?
Myron is always on the news, but hardly in his district.
Every single day I see myron through our district so I don’t know what lie you making up now. Try again
You dirty dog, I see Myron everywhere/everyday in the District. So stop the damn lying.
Myron is doing a magnificent job in District 6. A far better job than Aloe Vera Maduro.
And you 3 Stooges just made the division worse while claiming to want unity! Your actions speak louder than your words sir! You will never be Premier of this country!
Sounds like you playing God to me
I applaud these guys for making a move, let’s see how it goes. The issue you guys have is that you think Ronnie was ordained to be Premier because he served with Dr. Smith and is a senior politician. We always here the young people are the future but whenever they step forward they are told wait their turn and that they are rude. It takes balls to make moves and these guys have made a move. Let’s see who else will find their balls and move.
So fu**y man bringing back all his candidates from 2019 thing to tell the king
Same result he will get except this time he will be by himself.
Honesty is the best policy. It’s time politicians practice it. Thank you Hon Walwyn for speaking the truth about the Opposition. All need to repent.
“because of internal divisions”
I have lost all respect for you. Why did you not wait to ensure the divisions were properly thought out before you had the press conference.
You had no need to rush with this conference.
You have compounded the situation. It has made you appear as though you want to lead the NDP. Make no mistake, you have shoot yourself in the foot. That was a poor decision on your part. Waiting until a few more weeks would have done you more good than harm.
Bad decision Mr. Walwyn
Wait you say? What if they waited a few months and Sowande announced elections in November, for March 2026, which he can and will do if he catches them with their pants down. Then what? You would’ve been the same one asking why they didn’t plan earlier. I guess you are one that agree with Festival Committee planning in June for August. Excellent!
Go on JTV news and listen to Claude interview with Kathy Richards.
That was not the plan with Skelton and Penn
They had discussions on Tuesday to come together but the three men went ahead and formed this alliance
Penm said he would willingly give up if the convention did not vote him
But the process needed to take place . They did not allow this yo happen
Deceptive move
Structures were in place – Power Play to control the narrative
I don’t think you know what you’re talking about.
It has been 7 years since Skelton and Penn have been at the head of these two parties. In 7 years nothing was done to bring the parties together after losing two elections. In 7 years none of those two parties had any kind of proper political structure.
Only when they heard the three members were meeting is when they started to get agitated because they want to keep their so called leadership positions. The three legislators said they spoke to the others and I believe them. They did.
What they probably didn’t tell the others was that they were doing a press conference which I can’t blame them for. If they already spoke to the others about joining up and they wouldn’t listen or do anything then do what you have do.
You are talking about some meeting last week that the two leaders had? What happen to the last 7 years? I am sure they only had that meeting because those three legislators had a press conference. That’s to show how reactive and slow they are, we ain’t got no time with that. Form up. I support Myron, Mitch and Mather sorry.
Sowande would have never called an election in no few weeks or months. Keep up with what’s going on.
So let me get this, you are mad because Myron and others did not wait until things got sorted out after nothing was sorted out for 7 years? No efforts were made to bring the two teams together in 7 years expect when its minutes to election and they should have waited. When they wait and lose election again you would then blame all of them for doing nothing. Myron and the others are right. Stop waiting on other people to do what you got to do.
The deception is really John Cline who don’t have the facts. He don’t care about the facts. Did he say he is supposed to be running with the NDP? Did he say he was at the NDP meeting two nights ago trying to secure a spot on the at large team? Do we expect to believe he is objective when he got an ulterior motive. Watch and see if he end up on the NDP banner.
Mitch, Mather and Myron right. I support them.
Here is why:
Marlon grab hold of NDP since 2019 after the general elections. He never held a convention for leadership for those 7 years. He called himself the leader without a process. What has happened in those 7 years? NDP is hardly functional. They should have won the last election or got more seats. Marlon is not a leader and the people around him know that but they fraid to say it.
Lorna can’t be trusted. Look at what she diid election night. She never would have won if she didn’t run with a team and the first chance she got she betrayed them. In the last opposition press conference she made it a point to say she is independent. Hmmmm
Ronnie is an old man. It’s time to give the younger generation a chance. He keep saying he ain’t running again. Every ejection he say this. No body have time for indecisive leadership. And from what we see in the assembly it’s these same three who join together carrying the weight.
That’s my two cents. They will be haters but still push on gentlemen
If the alliance members spoke to them about joining up with them to form one thing and they don’t want to come go without them. They just vex because these guys made a move.
Lorna is older
Sometimes it is good to give your opinions without bashing anybody. First of all, Lorna is much older than Ronnie, but Ronnie is picked on because the people of this country knows he can fix the sh## happening in this country with one hand tied behind his back. So you are not a Ronnie fan. Who cares. All over the world there are experienced, older people running things, but in this country persons prefer to look at age and not ability. Age cannot be the main deciding factor when choosing a Government.
So, secondly, the young people do have a chance. Are you not looking around? They are running the Government. They are the Heads of Departments in the Civil Service in the private sector. They are the Permanent Secretaries, etc. Looks to me like this young Government would have done well with some seasoned advice onboard. Why? They spend $500 million each year. Think about it. They spend over half a billion yearly, and a blind man can see they fell asleep in their economics, math and business management classes. Either that or they are doing nothing and just treading water because people like you will vote for them giving them chances after chances while the country goes to hell in a hand basket.
And BTW Walwyn and Lorna destroyed NDP and now they are at it again, divide and try to conquer. Didn’t work last time, so let’s see if it does now.
Bottom line, we have a beautiful country that many envy, but if these young people, who deserved a chance, don’t sit up and put more emphasis on country and not just travelling and enjoying life at the top, all of you will be out there begging bread like the rest of us. At the end of the day, a Government’s job is to leave the country better than they met it and if you look around, even with your big opinions, you can see that we are not, not better off since they took over. It has been 6 years times $500 million. You do the math and start thinking about where we could be if we had proven management and money skills persons at the helm.
Unfortunately, we’ll all go down with the ship if things don’t change. So carry on hoping that people out here are silly and not seeing and understanding what is right in front of them.
I must be missing something. I listened to the press briefing yesterday. I never heard Mather and the others say that they were forming a party. Did I miss that part?
I heard them say they are forming an alliance to work closer together. What’s wrong with that? Since when working together was a bad thing? Isn’t that what we said we wanted?
BVI people does really confuse me.
Mather is not the saint you all think that he is. He lied. He was already pvim as was Mitch, and Myron ndp. The supporting population expected and demands a coalition of those 2 so do away with this alliance and get you all acts together. Maybe not those in the 6th, but pvim and ndp supporters are not moving from behind their leaders. They better get back, especially Mitch and Mather. Listen well.
We seem to forget that this Opposition, although made up of 3 parties, did not lose the last election! They WON!
It was only power-grab & greed & inability to let the discussion unfold that cause them to lose the government. (Lorna and her brothers).
This is the same exact thing happening again. They just meet on Tuesday or Wednesday to discuss unifying the 2 parties. This is not a one sit meeting but something that may take a few meetings. But no MMM dem want to power grab and seek attention. They are greedy and afraid that if the other meetings were held that Myron might not get to be head or become Premier. Mather like most young people do not understand or value what more senior persons bring to the table and he jump with the younger optics. Mitch has no morals after swearing up n down that Myron is the worst thing for this country the last 8 years but now he all cozy next to Myron.
This power grab, greed and impatience will be their downfall!
Can’t beat Myron in the 6th right now so he smart and know safe. But the rest are in for a rude awakening! Mitch is done and will lose the 2nd. Mather will finish 6th or 7th in At Large votes. Sandy coming and will lose again. Anything next to Myron is dead on arrival!
This election we will learn the power of the indigenous bloodlines of these Virgin Islands! 1st generation will not be allowed to run this country especially alongside Myron.
Nothing against anyone because they are us, Caribbean, but it don’t have any other country that will allow anyone who is not indigenous to run their country; none.
Mehn GYMS with yuh B$ rhetoric about indigenous nonsense every dang waking minute. Sick of hearing you spew this garbage every single time you get your backside cut! If you want to run your mouth stick to facts and not your low ghetto level tactics JW. Just look at how you and your messed up party have ran the country into the ground.
Cline wants to run – go ahead pal! Wiggy the piggy wanna run – go ahead! Best ayo got is mouth and want to run the country further into the ground. Ronnie wants people to beg him to run – pardna you need to rest your soul now.
I smell FEAR and see it in ayo faces now these man drop kick ayo rassss!!!
Myron, Mitch and Mather I am with you guys!! Ronnie just in a holding pattern, Marlon thinks he holds all power over his party of one (shades of PU leader??). So what should the others do? Sit and wait for the next election and not organize?
Since 2019 when Myron lost and Marlon became defacto leader of the party what has Marlon done for the party?!? Nada. It’s a flop. PVIM scrambled together a team and got MORE votes than the NDP group. Facts. Ronnie fumbles the Vote of No Confidence and has been foot dragging for the past 2 years. Fact. PAC – he has no desire to have that functional. Fact.
So where does that leave the others? Lorna? Rides the fence until she can get the best deal for herself and her interests. Fact.
Mather, Mitch and Myron needed to do something and this is it and a lot of people have the diarrhea. This is a smart move and now they can get 10 other viable candidates together and start organizing to get this weak VIP government out on the streets where they belong!!
No missing funds or hanky panky under Ronnie or Marlon.
You have lots of seconds; anything next to the 6th who wants to be premier will not survive this. He must be think because he gets up and speaks well that he has passed all tests to be Premier. That one test he will never pass. Mitch and Mather had better get in line before Mather becomes a one-termer and Mitch serves his last term and he there too long anyway.
@@lb
I agree with your assessments. The problem many have been witnessing for decades is that just a tiny number of the indigenous population that have or will present themselves to serve country and people.
Frankly speaking, the generation of Sir Faulkner was the last genuine politicians concerned with country and people development.
The generation of Sir Stoutt, Fonseca, ONeal, others and the subsequent following of others were the sell to the highest bidder the lands, property of the indigenous and selling of the country.
It was the Stoutt ONeal generation which attempted to sell out the country whole sale to the Baits family, an evil and chronic South African Apartheid creator and perpetrator. This will not be taught in the schools, but the young ones need to be aware of such historical facts.
The BVI would be, like South Africa, smoldering in the ashes of the death of human rights, indigenous ownership of land and other. Wickham’s would be fenced off and the local population would go into wash, cook and clean only to be locked out at night.
Further, the ones that have been coming forward are not doing so for country and people, but for gaining riches first and foremost, and power.
Indeed, the country has seen only a few true political minds in its history and those existed in the 1940’s and early 1950’s.
Indeed, the prerequisites for politics is a political mind, not the one which seeks an elected office for the sake of accumulating wealth by deception and robbery through legislation and other, as is being the normal modalities of governance the last at least, forty years to. present, primarily by young money seekers, those completely addicted to money and seeing the increasing figures in accounts home and abroad.
WE must encourage and elect better if not genuine political minds with good political hygeine.
Today, the evidence unfolds in the form of neglected educational development, infrastructure, neglected thoughtful investigations and or moves into alternative economic developmental engines, or improving goods and services for the local indigenous population and or visitor.
I MUST SAY IT WAS ENLIGHTENING TO READ YOUR BLOGG NUFF RESPECT •HO USES LB IS A DRAMA QUEEN , WHO USES A SET OF NAMES TO SPREADING RACIST NARRATIVES AND RIDICULING PEOPLE WHO HE HAS A GRUDGE WITH . SO WE HAVE TO EXCUSE THAT NERD