UK has no business in VI’s Belongership matters — Skelton Cline
Talk show host Claude Skelton Cline has called for a pause in the BVI’s ongoing constitutional negotiations with the United Kingdom, arguing that the current power imbalance prevents fair dialogue.
Speaking on his radio programme Honestly Speaking, Skelton Cline asserted that “we have no business in this season negotiating our constitution,” as the conditions under which the talks are taking place are inherently unequal. He likened the situation to “negotiating with a gun to your head,” stating, “all you can do when a gun [is] to your head is to surrender.”
Skelton Cline used the 2007 Constitution to highlight what he views as structural imbalances that continue to impede the territory’s political maturity. “It is a living document… not static… [and] in some areas, our Constitution is silent, given the colonial residue,” he stated.
He said the UK continues to exercise control in ways that contradict the BVI’s aspirations for self-determination, especially on matters like belongership and the management of Crown land. “The United Kingdom has no business in our business about belongership; land, that we still designate ‘Crown land’ and not the Virgin Islands land,” he argued.
Skelton Cline also criticised what he described as an uneven power structure within the local Cabinet, especially when the Governor is absent. He explained that the Constitution allows the Governor to appoint someone to act in his place, but this has caused tension among elected officials when the acting role is filled by the Deputy Governor. “The current occupant of the deputy governor, David Archer, is now vested with the authority of the UK’s appointed governor,” he noted.
This situation has created division within the Cabinet, with some ministers refusing to attend meetings when the Deputy Governor presides. “What we cannot afford to do is constantly be seen to fighting amongst ourselves at the expense of not being able to conduct the people’s business,” Skelton Cline warned.
He further contended that too many Virgin Islanders are ‘fast asleep’ and are in need of an awakening. “This is going to sound awkward in some of your ears,” Skelton Cline said. “I need the United Kingdom to continue to overreach into the rights of the people of the Virgin Islands so as to trigger us to a new awakening hope.”
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The bvinews officially changes its name to the bvicoscnews.
These leaders want Colonial Values back with them at the top.
Look at our minimal wage.
Cheap labour for our elites.
And Toddlers playing politics all day in the House of Play.
You do make me frown and curse you out many ah day.
But today, on that your comment, i stand with you.
Peace up.
go back to Detroit you sacrilegious scammer!
Tortola seer is at it again you should be charging a fee because seems like you knows everything.
u mean the same UK that launched coi and found that yall had fast track schemes for belongership only to take the money and not speed up the process?
the same UK that found that we were breaking our own laws in having people live here for 30 plus years with criminal incidents only to tell them they still have to wait?
the same UK that found out that yall gave a convicted criminal (for serious offence) nationality in the bvi cuz yall felt “sorry” for them?
when theres smoke…….there fire!
anytime you see politicians or Mr Cline making noise over something they dont agree with always think that something foul is hiding nearby that they dont want you messing with!
but hey independence!
I grew up in a yard with quite a few dogs and I always observe that it is always the small dogs that usually start a fight but always the first one to run under house….
Why does this man get any airtime at all? Is he forgetting that the BVI is in fact BRITISH. It can look towards independence when there is no more suspicion. And that starts with the Business of Interests being properly managed and accessible for all to see.
Why all these stories. Talk radio is NOT NEWS.
Not even going to read this article.
After just readingjust the head lines, it has my support.
Dammn! We can’t do anything for ourselves without their oversight?
Enough is enough man.
Colonoalism, UK colonialism must go yesterday!!!
BVI News need to stop approving so many English people and pro English comments and give local commentary a greater chance of expression.
As, this Tortola not UK.
They allow only those comments of those, and you can tell. They usually know who and when and you can see the comments receiving 40-50 and more thumbs up per comment. That is so sheepish, and they don’t seem to recognize that people noice that.
I guess we have more English people here in the bvi than locals? How much English people you know who never grew up here can come and type we kinda dialect so ezy? Ignorance is truly bliss. Y’all can be presented facts that our own people are corrupted and are doing us wrong time after time and will still point to someone else to blame other than your own.
But yea enjoy the life of supermarkets raising there prices every other week. Enjoy not having running water after 6pm for decades. Enjoy seeing you tax money being handed out to friends, family, fake fishers , fake farmers ,fake students, bank of Asia, parties etc etc while you struggle to make ends meet. Enjoy driving on bumpy roads like you in Afghanistan while you pay taxes and costs at dmv only to mash up your suspension, tires etc every couple months. Enjoy the fact that minors are getting their hands on guns and drugs while your politicians talk about using barges to patrol the borders of our country. Enjoy being blasted in the news by USA whenever the catch someone being human trafficked from bvi to usvi only got the people them to point at Tortola as their greatest asset in getting trafficked
Sometimes I wishes Andrew Fahie had get thru with some actual kartels so y’all can pay for your own ignorance and backwards thinking. While your family and friends getting gunned down and caught up in the drug trade and Andrew Fahie will be on the news in your face saying he don’t know why this happening and he trying to fix it. Clowns mehson
I pray the next generation of youths ain so ignorant and won’t back down or close their eyes when our politicians are doing us wrong blatantly!
Claude, just a reminder, we are a territory under the UK and the do have a say in what our immigration laws are. They should know about anyone wanting to take up belonger status in any of their territory. While you and others may not agree with this it their right.
It mind boggling how so many people want rights in this country but don’t want to follow the rules. Every year our fellow Caribbean immigrants celebrate their countries independence, they brag about it but yet here they are demanding belonger status back into a system the left willingly many years ago. Some are even in the UK with this same demand.
Just a reminder to the anti UK bloggers USD dropping steady while euro currency rises. But yes independence
BVI will prevent people with many generations of ancestors and mad people find other means. Even though I believe the price tag in pretty high.
Most are happy with their free access to the UK and British passports that get visa free access to the US. But don’t want any Brits in the British Virgin Islands. You think there might be some Brits a little pissed off with that?