Walwyn against election atmosphere in the BVI

While lamenting that there is an unnecessary election atmosphere sweeping across the British Virgin Islands (BVI), Minister of Education and Culture Myron Walwyn said conditions in the territory are not as bad as persons have been claiming.

“Things are not as bad in this territory as we are trying to say it is,” he declared while contributing to the 2017 Budget Debate in the House of Assembly yesterday.

“We are at a good place. We have some difficulties; we have some trials; we have some things that we will have to overcome… Look at the success of this country over the years – and particularly over the past five or six years.”

Walwyn further stated that some persons have been complaining because they are ungrateful, or they have ulterior motives.

“When we act ungrateful, if the master was like man, many of us would have been brought to our knees from ungratefulness, and not being thankful to the master who has blessed this country for so many years.”

“Some of the persons who are creating that level of confusion; they are doing it for political purposes – many of them,” Walwyn further said.

We must listen to the people

The minister, in the meantime, said some concerns are genuine and should be heeded by Government.

“There are many that are also very genuine and we have to listen; we have to listen as a government when people are speaking to us. When the public says something to us, we have to listen as a government. But there are others who you would think they are brand new the way they say certain things.”

Whatever the reason may be, Walwyn does not think they should be causing a politically charged atmosphere in the territory less than two years after the last general election.

“These things are not very helpful to our county at this point in time,” Walwyn said.

He added: “We have not even been two years in office yet. June is going to make two years, and the behaviour in the territory, the temperature, the mood is almost like you are in an election mode. I have never seen a thing like that.”

The National Democratic Party (NDP) government has been facing much criticism since it was elected for a second consecutive term on June 8, 2015.

It won 11 of the seats in the House of Assembly, compared to the two won by the Opposition Virgin Islands Party, which is restructuring after it recently elected a new president and chairman.