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Chair of the Monetary Council of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves. (IWN file photo)
Chair of the Monetary Council of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves. (IWN file photo)
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Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves has dismissed the New Democratic Party’s (NDP) announcement that opposition lawmakers will not co-operate with his government on anything, except the next general elections, constitutionally due in December 2015.

MP for Central Kingstown, St. Clair Leacock, a vice-president of the NDP announced the suspension of co-operation during his party’s “Ring De Bell” rally in Kingstown on Thursday.

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“Frankly, they are just being foolish; they are not thinking at all,” Gonsalves told I-Witness News on Saturday.

“So, basically, what they are out for is political war. But, we in the government, we are not interested in political war; we are interested in the good governance of the country in the interest of the people. And we will hold out, as we have always been doing, the hand of co-operation to the opposition,” Gonsalves said.

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He, however, accused the opposition of being unable to suspend co-operation.

“You can’t suspend or stop co-operation which you have not been giving,” Gonsalves said.

“From the 27th of July 2007, when they stopped co-operating on the constitutional review process, the NDP has stopped co-operating on anything,” Gonsalves told I-Witness News.

NDP supporters held their "Ring De Bell" protest march in Kingstown on Thursday. (Click for more photos)
NDP supporters held their “Ring De Bell” protest march in Kingstown on Thursday. (Click for more photos)

He said the position announced by the opposition will not affect his party’s legislative agenda.

“There is no legislation, normally in the House that you need the support of the opposition. … We have 13 [Members] and they have nine. And because it is a unicameral House, and because of the way the Constitution is fashioned, the only things that senators and the attorney general can’t vote on is if there is a matter relating [to a vote of] no-confidence.

“But everything else, all the bills, including money bills, the Appropriation Bill, the moving of the Estimates, all you need is simple majority in the House,” Gonsalves told I-Witness News.

“So, if things which come to the House, which are eminently reasonable, … and they say they are not supporting, that will tell you where they are,” Gonsalves said.

“We saw how they functioned in relation to the [Christmas Eve] disaster. They could have said the disaster in 2010, because it was on the eve of the elections they play their politics.

“But the disaster in April 2011 and the Christmas Eve disaster, they did their own thing and they opposed everything that we did,” Gonsalves said.

He noted that the opposition was offended when, after the Christmas disaster, he said all soldiers must “report for duty”.

“You heard how they treated that as though I was asking them somehow to go to the place called hell. The men were just visceral in their rejection.

“Since the 27th of July 2007, the fellows have not co-operated with us on really anything. … The fact that they may vote on the same side as us in a bill, it doesn’t mean that that is co-operation. But the way they now state their position that the only thing they are co-operating — which I understand to mean supporting — on is when I call the election is a ridiculous position for the opposition to take.

“So all they are concerned about is to oppose, to expose and to depose. They don’t want to co-operate and to involve in anything to propose. It’s just naked quest for power. And people see that for what it is,” Gonsalves said.

He further said the opposition has outlined its position “at a time when the lord bishop of the Anglican Church and other people are calling for reconciliation in the aftermath of the NDP disrupting the funeral for Lynch”.

Some persons booed Gonsalves when was called to deliver a tribute at the July 19 funeral of E.G. Lynch, a former NDP radio talk show host.

7 replies on “NDP ‘interested in political war’ — PM Gonsalves”

  1. Urlan Alexander says:

    The PM stated that Opposition has stopped cooperating since 2007. He further stated that the govt has 13 members in the HOA and the Opposition has 9. That has been a Gonsalves strategy from day one to use their majority in the house to out vote the Opposition. So what is new comrade? What are your government plans for Agriculture? What about the crime? How are you curtailing rape? What is be being done about the sordid state of the health service in SVG? Any plans within the horizon to give tourism a boost? Is it true that the Argyle stone crusher is now the cash cow for the boys? Did the AIDC lend money to a
    company to buy trucks and the said company now lease the said trucks back to the airport>

  2. Urlan Alexander says:

    “….all they are concerned about is to oppose, to expose and to depose. They don’t want to co-operate and to involve in anything to propose. …”” Gonsalves said. That was exactly your position in 1998 comrade when the ULP lost 8/7 So to use that now with such negative overtone is completely hypocritical.

  3. Maybe Mr Leacock got caught up in the moment and was carried away by emotion. The statement that the opposition will not co-operate with the government is tantamount to being irresponsible. The NDP represents almost half of the electorate and has a mandate to perform in the best interest of these people. That would mean co-operating with the government on matters beneficial to the people, and opposing things considered detrimental. They can’t simply oppose for the sake of opposition. If there was to be a repeat of the December disaster last year, am I to believe that the NDP would not support nor co-operate with the government in efforts to rehabilitate. Overgrown political ambitions sometimes lead to poor political strategy. Desperation is truly a bitch.

  4. Peter binose says:

    I think that Gonsalves should be more careful what he says, because he may well incite some people to become political warriors, “political war”.

    When he sowed the seed and said he expected trouble at Lynch’s funeral, that’s what he got.

  5. Why doesn’t “Head Chief” Peter Binose of the” internet crazies” gather all the other “crazies,” and all the disgruntled members of the Now Defunct Party (NDP) and “TRY A THING” as we say in Vincy land. Try Nu… We waiting. “Yo think is so easy to move in…” Oh! I didn’t think so.
    Eustace’s motto is “Oppose everything from the ULP Government, regardless”… I made this remark in a comment on IWN some time back in June of this year, and now through their own admission of guilt, we get to understand more that we thought we knew. (‘Them never like we’)
    I wonder how many of us remember what “Useless” being so upset, said after ULP won in the last election. ‘We will make this Government nonfunctional, make no mistake about that’. Well it should have been “try to make…” They’ll try a little harder now by not cooperating… “Ha! Ha! Ha! me belly ah bust”! Sore losers on all fronts.

  6. Peter Binose says:

    Who said they would make the country ungovernable? That’s many times worse than saying they will not cooperate.

    One is a Marxist revolutionary statement the other is a political comment.

  7. Stupidly Binose is Ahim Useless who said so! Is your BOSS Ahim Useless who said “we will make the country ungovernable”…and who he calls upon to do so. “A BUNCH AH CRAZY PEOPLE”… and dem trek to the Internet and the streets, and even in Parliament “TO TRY A THING”… it aint work then, and it aint working now or never!
    CRAZYNESS IS CRASNESS! Ha! Ha! Ha! ‘Oh Lawd me belly ah bust!’
    But now you see for yourself how dem self destruct…’Dem ha fa rename de Party the “NOW DEFUNCT PARTY”. The lineup for the next election will be:
    Ahim Useless
    St Declareless leCockless
    Darneless Comingsless
    Giddiness Frydeless
    Ventless Fredreckless
    Torrentless Ollieveless
    Roiledless Matterless
    Nyderless Steepless
    Lintonless Clueless.
    Good luck Fellersless on, your next champagne (oh so sorry, campaign!) Oh Lawd me belly ah bust!

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