On Tuesday 10th May, 2023, Members of the House of Assembly passionately expressed their concerns about the recent slew of gun violence on the island, particularly in the wake of Sunday night’s murder of the late Garmon Greenaway, and two other shooting incidents that occurred one week prior.

Thirty-five-year-old Garmon, a Customs Officer in the Anguilla Public Service, was killed in the vicinity of his residence on Sunday night. During the House of Assembly sitting on Tuesday, Members of Parliament commented on the tragedy.
While the Honorable Acting Premier, Mr. Kenneth Hodge, had otherwise issued a message to the community to “show a collective and concerted effort in removing guns from our streets”, he said in the House that he remembered Garmon as a very helpful young man.

“Today, we mourn the loss of young Garmon Greenaway,” the Acting Premier said soberly. “He was a young Customs Officer who was a very pleasant chap, Madam Speaker. I knew him quite well, as a very helpful individual. We extend to his family our sincere condolences.”

The Honourable Minister of Education and Social Development, Ms. DeeAnn Kentish-Rogers, observed that Garmon’s murder shows disregard for human life and requested prayers for his mourning family.
“In a moment like this where people are suffering so greatly from the inhumane, awful manner in which disregard for human life was demonstrated, I would encourage all of us to remember to pray for the family who now grieve, she said.”
Opposition Leader, Mrs. Cora Richardson-Hodge, said that action needs to be taken now in revisiting the laws against guns.

“The time has come for us, Madam Speaker, to revisit our laws. We need to look at the situation with which we are faced in this country. We need to be forward thinking,: she said. “If we do not take action today, where will we be tomorrow? Do we want to get to the stage where we have shootings in our grocery stores, (Heaven forbid); or in our schools? (Heaven forbid).”

“Crimes of this kind occur in other countries,” she lamented. “But let us not think that they would only happen off-shore, figuring that Anguilla will not be impacted. We are a global village. We must think globally, for our young people are exposed to everything that happens in the world.”

“There is a lot of work to be done in this country, Madam Speaker. And while we do nor cast any blame on any individual, group or organization, I support any initiative that is taken to come together to help us identify and address the difficulties that we are facing on this island and put a stop to gun crime,” Mrs. Richardson-Hodge said.

“We need to bring a certain recognition to our people that lives matter,” she continued. “Our young people need to be aware of this. They need to know that lives matter. It is not simply enough to commit a horrendous act and drive off and go to sleep at night. That is not where we want to be as a people.”
Also weighing in on the plaintive pleas was Parliamentary Secretary, Merrick Richardson, who suggested that a committee be formed to address the tide of gun violence.

“I am going to beg of this House that we form a committee for addressing gun violence,” he said. “We need to determine how illegal guns are being imported; how they are being accessed so easily and, more importantly, what is the reason for their importation, Madam Speaker.”

“I am not going to be silly in standing here and thinking that a committee would be the only solution to the problem, Madam Speaker. Solving this gun problem is going to take the entire community. It is going to take an entire island to start to get to the bottom of this plight. The entire island needs to get on board,” Mr. Richardson said.

The National Commercial Bank of Anguilla (NCBA) has formally launched its Small and Medium-size Enterprise (SME) Loan campaign.
The launch, on Tuesday night, May 9th, 2023, took place at the Anguilla Music Academy. It followed five weeks of training in SME business financial literacy, and the NCBA CEO, Mrs. Sharmaine Vaughan, was excited to introduce the loan product at the tail-end of the training exercises.
Following a prayer by Mrs. Samantha Derrick, a disclaimer was presented by the CEO relative to the nature of the loan package, which provided a list of conditions which the Bank would not be liable for.
“This evening we are very happy to present our small business loan product,” the CEO said, as she formally opened the event. “This product is very much needed for our small and medium-sized business segment of customers.”
Mrs. Vaughan provided some context regarding the economic environment in which the loan programme would be executed.
She said because Anguilla had gone through some severe economic shocks, it is more reason that the Bank should cater to the needs of small and medium-sized businesses.
She noted that the failure of the two legacy banks in 2016 – National Bank of Anguilla and Caribbean Commercial Bank, had made a significant impact on the local economy. She observed that this impact still continues because the adverse debt levels still exist.
In addition, she mentioned that Hurricane Irma in 2017 also had a crucial impact on Anguilla’s economy, and, a more pronounced economic drawback came as a result of COVID-19, when the economy came to a virtual halt.
She said the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war also continues to impact the island.
“When you look at the disruption of the supply chain and the levels of inflation that affect us today, we see that economies, in general, are being impacted,” she said.
According to the Bank CEO, as a result of all these adversities we are experiencing an increased cost of living, and in particular she referred to the resent SME sessions. She said that the factor of the cost of living was evident in the discussions during the sessions.
She said the sessions dealt heavily with the importance of SME’s.
“When we look at global numbers in terms of World Bank 2022, SMEs represent 90% of all businesses globally. In the Caribbean region, according to CDB, a 2021 report stated that SMEs represent 70% to 85% of all Caribbean businesses,” Mrs. Vaughan said. “This is a significant sector which represents 50% of our employment numbers. So, SMEs constitute a sector that requires the necessary support and assistance for its continued growth and survival.”
“How do we plan to assist the SME’s so that they can grow?” she said. “We start with Financial Management Training. We have just come out of a five-week training programme where we have equipped small business owners and medium-sized business owners with the tools required to run their businesses successfully.”
The CEO promised that the Bank will continue to run similar training sessions, provide one-on-one advice, and mentor small and medium-sized business owners on an on-going basis. She projected that in another three months a similar workshop will be held.
During the launch, the CEO introduced the five presenters who facilitated the workshop sessions. They had been drawn from the Bank’s executive staff members.
Certificates were issued to those graduates who participated in the Financial Literacy Workshops for Small and Medium-sized businesses, and a few of the graduates were given the opportunity to testify how the training benefitted them.

Anguillian cyclists and supporters were in the neighbouring island of French St. Martin for the Grand Prix Sound Master Bicycle Race on Sunday 7th May, 2023.

A total of 28 cyclists in the open access category took part in this grueling cycling challenge. The race was a 7 lap circuit race of 10 kilometers, amounting to a total of 70 kilometers and a total elevation of 642 meters.

The weight of the Anguillian contingency was felt as Delroy Carty secured 1st place, followed by fellow Anguillian Daren Carty in 2nd place.

Several up-and-coming cyclists from Anguilla did extremely well with Carvin Proctor placing 11th, Anguilla Cycling Association (ACA) President, Terone Hodge-Carty, placing 12th, Allyndel Sylvester placing 13th and Zuri Wilkes placing 15th.

Public Relations Officer Derick Carty gave kudos to those Anguillian cyclists who competed in the difficult race and to those who completed it.

The ACA has extended special thanks to all the supporting members, the Government of Anguilla and Mr. Roy Romney, the owner of the Excellence 2 Ferry.

“To our sponsors, we cannot thank you enough, as we look forward in partnering with in future cycling endeavors,” the ACA said.

The next cycle races are scheduled for Sunday 14th May, 2023 in South Hill for the South Hill Community Fun Relay Race; and the Anguilla Day Race on Sunday21st May, 2023.

Persons seeking more information can visit the ACA Instagram and Facebook platforms at “anguillacycling”.