Penn, Turnbull urged to yield to Skelton on constitutional talks
Commentator Claude Skelton Cline has argued that opposition legislators Marlon Penn and Melvin ‘Mitch’ Turnbull should step aside to allow Territorial At-Large member Ronnie Skelton to take the lead on constitutional matters within the National Democratic Party (NDP), citing what he described as the urgency of national interest over internal party positioning.
Appearing on his Honestly Speaking programme, Skelton Cline said the territory faces a narrow window to assemble what he termed “the very best team” to represent Virgin Islanders in upcoming constitutional review discussions with the United Kingdom, and warned that continued division within the opposition undermines that effort.
According to Skelton Cline, the immediate issue is not party leadership or succession within the NDP, but who is best placed to engage meaningfully on constitutional reform at this stage. He said the focus should be on competence and experience rather than ambition, noting that the matter before the territory requires unity, not divisiveness.
“The member of the Eighth [District] and the member of the second [District] need to come together and give way to the senior member [Skelton] in advancing this matter,” Skelton Cline stated.
He argued that Skelton brings the necessary gravitas and consistency to the table, describing him as best suited to collaborate with the government on constitutional negotiations. “Right now, he’s the best person to help the government address the constitutional matters that’s in front of us,” Skelton Cline said.
Decide on internal leadership later
While acknowledging that the NDP may later decide on its internal leadership through a convention or other process, Skelton Cline maintained that such decisions should come after the constitutional engagement.
“Once you all cross the bridge that’s in front of you that facilitates and seeks to advance the interests of the Virgin Islands, then you all can decide whatever you want to do as a party,” he stated.
Skelton expressed concern about the level of political fragmentation in the territory, noting that the absence of a unified opposition limits meaningful choice for voters. He also pointed to public frustration, recounting an unsolicited encounter with a senior citizen who expressed disappointment in the NDP’s inability to organise itself effectively.
Skelton Cline stressed that his comments were directed at the national interest rather than partisan loyalty, warning that failure to act cohesively on constitutional reform risks further disadvantaging the territory. “My business, our business, the country’s business is this matter of constitutional review,” he said.
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Yes. Everybody must yield to my uncle even though he does nothing.
Judging from what I see from the House of Assembly, Myron is far better than others on constitutional and debating and understanding the legislation that come forward. He also the only trained lawyer if all the elected officials. But right, his mother and father ain’t from here so let’s keep him out. SMH something is wrong with us.
CSC is calling other people power hungry but every time he comes on the radio he is bringing down everybody to lift up his uncle. His uncle left the NDP because he lost elections to Myron. He went back to NDP because he lost the opposition leader post. He refused to support the vote of no confidence because he was not the opposition leader, your other uncle and his best friend the Bishop is out there badmouthing Marlon for leadership in favour of your uncle and yet CSC has the nerve to be calling other people power hungry? Does the Skelton-Cline clan think that we BVI people stupid?
Even if you send natalio and Skelton and the virgin islands elite club they are all handicapped, they will have to take legal interpretation from the attorney general or who ever legally trained person within their midst, and will walk away regretting bad legal advise. On the other hand Myron walwyn is legally trained and versatile on legal and legislative semantics, but how long will the black people of tortola think they are white British men and women? They heckle the other Caribbean islands and call them down island third world country, as though they are celebrating that england is developed which is our metropolis or mother country, because for all I know tortola and the other Caribbean islands are the same infrastructure leaving out Puerto Rico and Guadeloupe and Martinique and Barbados, the onliest difference is we spend USD currency. It’s like the house slave that assume if his master have a fever he to got to fake one to show love for master, on one hand we talking about colonialism and independence and we hate all the black race in the BVI except the white people living among us, all the white people living on these cays islands like camano and all the white enclaved development has not dare to suffer any cynicism towards them from the local natives BVI people, but the black ones even if they born in BVI and commit to building the BVI they are alienated and called down island people, as a matter a fact the same Claude Skelton cline is occasionally told to go back to Detroit,he Claude should internalize how the feels and empathize with Myron circumstances, Myron sin and crime is that he has become a modeled citizen educated by the state and made strides academically and is driven by nationalism and patriotism to help build the BVI, the land that bequeathed all that he is today because of education and discipline that he adhered to, am sure the hardship and alienation Claude suffer in Detroit brought him back with a sense of nationalism that drove him to be politically active, you all are doing an injustice to Myron, and the older guys who spent their young days waltzing around the country in oblivion of these very same constitutional matters is suddenly now interested in constitutional matters? Youth is on Myron side and one day he will be vindicated.
Just keep m** m** Walwyn out of the talks or else locals will get zero
You sound so stupid.
I have purposely not comment on articles with his name in the title for sometime because quite frankly I am sick of hearing what you have to say Claude. You have worn out your welcome with me.
You want Ronnie to lead simple. Just say it, admit your predudicial thought process, and get it out the way. You are not fooling anyone.
Memo to you: A lot of folks are not buying the Ronnie line. They have moved on. Let it be.
Now, back to my DO NOT COMMENT ON CLAUDE SKELTONS DIATRIBE POLICY.
Every week he is on the radio begging for his uncle Ronnie to lead. Just for their own benefit while pretending to be analytical and not bias in his choice. Your uncle is useless boss. He is over the hill and the BVi gone long past him. Get away from here with stupid entitlement nonsense. We up to you all this time around. And they calling other people power hungry. Set of sick headed people.