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ARE WE WITNESSING THE EROSION OF OUR FRAGILE DEMOCRACY? – The Anguillian Newspaper – The Weekly Independent Paper of Anguilla

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Word has reached The Anguillian that many senior public officers are troubled by the level of micro-management they are currently experiencing. Reports suggest that Her Excellency the Governor is at the core of this heightened level of micro-management, and involvement in what would generally be regarded as minutiae now appears to be the norm. What appears to be even more alarming is the suggestion that this level of micro-management extends to matters that should normally command the attention of Executive Council. Whether a matter receives the collective attention of Executive Council appears to be determined by Her Excellency rather than by our elected ministers.

It appears that it is time to revisit the question raised in the Editorial published in The Anguillian of 13th December 2019 – Is Anguilla a true Democracy? It came shortly after the 2019 amendments to Anguilla’s constitution, and it appears the content might be even more significant today than it was in 2019. The editorial is reprinted in full below:

“Is Anguilla a True Democracy?

The recent Constitutional negotiations and the steady announcement of new candidates expected to vie for elected office in 2020 has brought into sharp focus, the need for a greater awareness of the Governance structure under which elected officials are required to operate. This has led me to wonder, how many of the persons seeking elected office have a real appreciation of the governance structure that will frame their decisions and actions, if elected.

A constitutional amendment now affords us the right to refer to our Leader of Government Business as Premier rather than Chief Minister. Sadly, no greater autonomy has been bestowed on our elected officials with that change in title. Significant authority continues to remain with the Governor, an appointed rather than an elected official. In such circumstances, can our governance structure be truly described as democratic? In many respects, our governance structure cannot be properly described as a ‘government of the people, by the people, for the people.’

This is glaring when we consider the two constitutional provisions set out below, which appear to accord veto power to the Governor, in respect of executive and legislative matters.

“Governor’s reserved executive power

29. (1) In any case where the Governor is required by the last foregoing section to consult with the Executive Council, he may act otherwise than in accordance with the advice given him by the Council if in his opinion it would be inexpedient in the interests of public order or public faith to act in accordance with that advice:

Provided that he shall not so act against the advice of the Council without first obtaining the approval of a Secretary of State.

(2) Whenever the Governor acts otherwise than in accordance with the advice given to him by the Executive Council, any member of the Council may require that there be recorded in the minutes the grounds of any advice or opinion which he may have given on the question, and the Governor shall as soon as is practicable forward a copy of the resulting entry in the minutes to a Secretary of State.

Governor’s legislative reserved power

56. (1) If the Governor considers that it is expedient in the interests of public order or public faith (which expressions shall, without prejudice to their generality, include the responsibility of Anguilla as a territory within the Commonwealth and all matters pertaining to the creation or abolition of any public office or to the salary or other conditions of service of any public officer) that any Bill introduced or motion proposed in the Assembly should have effect, then, if the Assembly fail to pass the Bill or to carry the motion within such time and in such form as the Governor thinks reasonable and expedient, the Governor, acting in his discretion, may, at any time that he thinks fit, and notwithstanding any provision of this Constitution or of any other law in force in Anguilla or of any rules of procedure of the Assembly declare that the Bill or motion shall have effect as if it had been passed or carried by the Assembly either in the form in which it was introduced or proposed or with such amendments as the Governor thinks fit which have been moved or proposed in the Assembly or any Committee thereof; and the Bill or the motion shall be deemed thereupon to have been so passed or carried, and the provisions of this Constitution, and in particular the provisions relating to assent to Bills and disallowance of laws, shall have effect accordingly:

Provided that the Governor shall not exercise his powers under this subsection without prior written instructions from a Secretary of State, unless in his judgment the matter is so urgent that it is necessary for him to do so before having consulted a Secretary of State.

(2) The Governor shall forthwith report to a Secretary of State every case in which he makes any such declaration and the reasons therefor.

(3) If any member of the Assembly objects to any declaration made under this section, he
may, within fourteen days of the making thereof, submit to the Governor a statement in writing of his reasons for so objecting, and a copy of the statement shall (if furnished by the member) be forwarded by the Governor as soon as is practicable to a Secretary of State.

(4) Any declaration made under this section other than a declaration relating to a Bill may be revoked by a Secretary of State and the Governor shall forthwith cause notice of the revocation to be published by notice in the Official Gazette; and from the date of such publication any motion that is deemed to have been carried by virtue of the declaration shall cease to have effect and the provisions of section 16(1) of the Interpretation Act 1978 shall apply to the revocation as they apply to the repeal of an Act of Parliament.”

Clearly, persons appointed to serve as Governor in Anguilla are clothed with significant discretion in relation to Executive and Legislative matters and possess the authority to overrule decisions of elected officials. Do our political aspirants have a clear understanding of the playing field they will be playing on? Do they have a game strategy that will allow them to engage, on that playing field, in a manner that will successfully deny the Governor the use of his reserved powers?

The statement ‘Knowledge is power’ should not be treated as trite. Our elected representatives must make every effort to use our flawed democratic system to serve the best interests of Anguilla’s populace. One can only hope that all political aspirants are actively garnering unto themselves, the knowledge necessary to successfully utilise the Constitution to deliver any mandate handed to them by the populace.”

Based on observations over the past two years, many persons question whether our elected ministers are in fact equipped to ensure that they are allowed to assume the authority the electorate anticipated it was bestowing on them when they elected them to office. Has Anguilla been subjected to greater oversight without such a declaration having been publicly made?



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MEMBERS PLEASED WITH REBUILDING PROGRESS OF THE SHIMEI SDA CHURCH BUILDING IN LONG BAY

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Men at work
L-R: Lester Jules, Earnest Fleming and Howard Simon

The Pastor and members of the Shimei Seventh-day Adventist Church say they are excited with the progress of the rebuilding of the church building in Long Bay.

The latest development was the casting of the floor “jollification” style on Sunday 26th February, 2023. Work on “pouring the floor” started early in the morning when the truck rolled on the property to ‘shoot’ the concrete.

Workmen from the Mount Fortune and New Life churches in the east had traveled to the west to participate in the work. They were accompanied by the church sisters who cooked and distributed a delicious Sunday meal.

Pastor Lester Jules is the Pastor assigned to the Shimei Ministry, as well as the Jireh Ministry in South Hill. He shared with The Anguillian his feelings about the casting of the floor:

“We have registered good progress with the pouring of the floor,” he said. “This work spells excitement, hope, and great expectations, as we continue on this worthwhile project for the Lord. We were joined by members from the other districts who came down to assist us, and indeed we are thankful for all the help we can get.”

“The effort was crowned with a very tasty lunch provided by the women of the Mount Fortune Church. Indeed, we thank them immensely,” Pastor Jules said. “We remain resolute and committed to having this church project completed for the work of Christ in the not too distant future.”

Pastor Howard Simon is in charge of the churches in East End. He is the Coordinator of the building project, and one of his duties is to ensure that there is adequate manpower for the work.

He told the Anguillian Newspaper he is eager to see the Shimei church completed.

“Pastor Jules marshaled his troops,” he said, “and we from Mount Fortune and New Life joined forces with them to make the work easier. It was a wonderful experience. We had a tremendous time. We had a lot of folks down there engaged in the casting of the floor. The ladies from Mount Fortune provided a sumptuous lunch for us, and we thank them wholeheartedly.”

“We had gone down there before as a team to work with the Chief Contractor, Brother Earnest Fleming, on some other preparatory work for the floor pouring. All in all, Sunday’s work was quite rewarding and our united efforts proved to be a great success.

Remarkably, the Shimei Ministry was the first Seventh-day Adventist church established in Anguilla in the early 1930s, but the body of believers had no building of their own in which to worship. Services were held in Edmond Hodge’s home – one of the members – before a little shelter was built, which was occupied for a number of years.
Since then, a building was dedicated in 1987. The new building, now in progress, promises to be a magnificent edifice when it is completed. This 11,935 square-foot structure will replace that 1987 building which was destroyed by Hurricane Irma in 2017.



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ANGLEC ENTHUSED WITH ROLLOUT OF THREE ELECTRIC CARS – The Anguillian Newspaper – The Weekly Independent Paper of Anguilla

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ANGLEC has unveiled three state-of-the-art electric powered cars.

The roll out on Friday afternoon, 24th February, is in keeping with its commitment to “serve you better”, and to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels.
ANGLEC’s CEO, Mr. Sutcliffe Hodge, introduced the two Chevrolet Bolts and one Nissan Leaf to the press, with emphasis placed on ANGLEC’s determination to move away from fossil fuel operated vehicles, to more efficient environmentally friendly vehicles over the course of time.

Mr. Hodge said that due to the impacts that fossil fuels have made on the environment all around the world, there is the need to transition to cleaner sources of energy. He said: “Over the past few decades, there has been much research work done on how to transition fossil fuel-operated automobiles away from fossil fuel to the use of other energies such as hydrogen and electricity, in particular.”

“For ANGLEC, as the supplier of Anguilla’s electricity, it seems almost like a natural relationship,” he said, “whereby ANGLEC should lead the way with Anguilla’s transitioning away from the use of fossil fuel cars towards using electrical vehicles.”

“A couple weeks after taking up my appointment at ANGLEC,” he said, “we started having the conversation about using electrical vehicles, and we decided that it is something that we must do. Now today, we are unveiling three electrical vehicles which ANGLEC has purchased.”

“Starting today,” he continued, “ANGLEC will have branded electrical vehicles on the road which will represent a mobile billboard for us, saying ‘100% fuel-free’. With these cars, we would realise zero emissions and a significant reduction in running costs.”

ANGLEC’s Chief Operations Manager, Mr. Steve Hodge, commended the efforts of the CEO for ANGLEC’s acquiring of the three electrical vehicles.

“I must give kudos to Mr. Hodge as our CEO. Shortly after he joined ANGLEC, the idea of electric vehicles dominated one of the first conversations he had with me. He made sure he would accelerate our acquisition of electrical cars and begin to move away from fossil fuel powered vehicles”, Mr. Steve Hodge said.

“As the Electricity provider for Anguilla, we keep our eyes focused on how our use of electrical vehicles would benefit our customers. These vehicles will give us greater efficiency, helping us cut operating costs in the long run. And naturally, a more efficient ANGLEC ultimately benefits our customers”, he told the press.

The Chief Operations Manager noted that the introduction of the three electric vehicles must be considered as Phase 1 in what will be an ongoing process of significantly reducing ANGLEC’s reliance on fuel-powered vehicles.

He stated that as ANGLEC acquires more electric vehicles, the fossil fuel-operated vehicles will be sold.

The introduction of the electric cars takes ANGLEC’s fleet to thirty-three, including thirty gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles.



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ANGUILLIANS SHOULD ALL KNOW THAT WE HAVE A SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE #1 – The Anguillian Newspaper – The Weekly Independent Paper of Anguilla

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This initiative is now proving to be of great interest to businesses everywhere.
In this series of articles we will be explaining the Special Economic Zone and how it will benefit the economy of Anguilla and all Anguillians

AZUR is the name of Anguilla’s Special Economic Zone, set up by the Chord Group with substantial support from the Government, through a suite of legislation, and offers impressive concessions whilst creating fabulous lifestyle options.

Companies within the Zone are focused on trading globally, not locally, and are designed to facilitate trade on an international basis.

Establishing a business in the Special Economic Zone should be an attractive option for companies who are looking to branch out into different markets. With the right infrastructure supporting them, these businesses can gain access to many opportunities while avoiding the financial costs and restrictions associated with setting up a company in new markets globally.

Businesses searching for low administrative costs, tax benefits, and access to new markets often register their businesses globally, which AZUR makes easy.

With a specialized infrastructure in place, businesses can take advantage of the tax incentives and market opportunities offered by Anguilla without a large physical footprint.

To find out how you could benefit please visit AZURSEZ.com or contact us at info@azursez.com.

Alternatively contact our Zone Manager, Steve Garlick on 264 729 2793 s.garlick@azursez.com

 



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