Premier has habit of hiring ‘political’ consultants for party
Opposition Leader Marlon Penn is contending that the Virgin Islands Party (VIP) government has established a record of hiring political consultants to push its party’s agenda, even before entering office.
In a recent interview with JTV’s The Big Story, Penn said the Andrew Fahie-led government previously hired two political consultants – both under the guise of offering strategic advice for the territory – with the first having been contracted an entire month before the VIP government ever took office in February 2019.
According to Penn, the first contract was between a known Grenadian political consultant who worked on the VIP’s most recent election campaign. The contract ran from January to November of 2019 and was valued at $98,000.
The second consultant, who was contracted for $78,000, was a Trinidadian political operative who was hired from June 1, 2019, to May 31, 2020, and was allegedly writing speeches for the Premier, Penn stated.
Penn said there was also Grace Consultants – headed by Claude Skelton Cline – who has reportedly earned more than $300,000 from the public purse.
The Opposition Leader highlighted that the terms of reference, deliverables, and many other details of these contracts – which were requested several times over in the House of Assembly (HOA) – have never been revealed to the public.
Fast-forwarding to present-day when the VIP administration said it would be hiring up to nine political advisers to service government ministers, Penn said the Premier was entrenching this type of behaviour in the public service at a time when the BVI was under a Commission of Inquiry (COI).
“Nothing is wrong with having consultants in government but they have to have clear terms of reference, clear deliverables,” Penn argued.
He added that the hiring of consultants should also have to be based on qualities that the Permanent Secretaries in the respective departments or technical teams do not possess.
The Opposition Leader further contended that the BVI has a very capable public service and the approval of new political ministerial advisers by the government should be seen as nothing more than the hiring of political operatives.
Asked whether his political organisation, the National Democratic Party (NDP), had any similar discussions to hire scriptwriters or advisors for government ministers when they were previously in office, Penn said he knew of none.
He added that any such decision should not be paid through the public purse or borne on the backs of taxpayers as was announced by the government recently.
The notion that the public service was inadequate to address the needs of communicating to the public in a timely and effective manner, Penn argued, was a very poor justification for hiring these political advisers.
Penn said he was not surprised that his former NDP administration was blamed for the need for adding the consultants as this was nothing more than a deflection where the Premier continued to blame others for his missteps.
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All I can say is this is crazy. If all this going on while a COI is effect, what would have happened if there was no COI?
We would end up like Haiti.
Marlon need to go sid-down
sit not sid
Fahie knows he is on the way out so he is going to spend a lot of money and while doing so he will help his friends, Fahie has to be stopped he doesn’t care about the COI or the UK he is doing what he wants and getting away with it.
When you get the NDP back in the same advisors they hired will be fine with you right?
How can I get a political consultancy contract with the government? I am equally capable. Could do with a $120k salary now.
Advise no. 1. Replace all Ministers with the contracted consultants…cause these ministers appear to be useless.
Advise no. 2. Replace all Ministers with the contracted consultants…cause these ministers appear to be useless.
At least learn to spell “advice”?
Isn’t it the same person who sat there and saw his party doing all sorts of crap when they were in power? Wasn’t it his party who did such with the peoples money without consultation namely the seven million for the airline? (where is the money), the pier park expansion project, the high school wall project, the east end long look sewerage project, and so much more, he sat idle doing and saying nothing now you want to talk.
Every country does it. What’s your point Mr. P.?
Political GATEWAY consultant just ask Airport and Port
Ward?
Marlon said the BVI has a very capable public service. The COI says boy stop lying. If we cant trust Marlon to do something as simple as filing a declaration of interest on time despite multiple reminders from the clerk and a phone that has the ability to set reminders these guys should never get another vote again.
They are need further TRAINING
Like we the people have to ask mr hickombott to investigate the governor on this decision on their law. And like he stop listening. He ain’t hear the cries, suffering and vows of the people. Hmmmm!!
Marlon tells no truth.