St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) must pay the United Nations at least US$2,155 (EC$5,818) to have its voting rights at the General Assembly restored.
SVG is among 15 countries, including the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, that are in arrears in paying their annual contribution to the U.N. regular budget.
The U.N. website says member of the United Nations which is in arrears in the payment of its financial contributions to the organisation shall have no vote in the General Assembly if the amount of its arrears equals or exceeds the amount of the contributions due from it for the preceding two full years.
The General Assembly may, nevertheless, permit such a member to vote if it is satisfied that the failure to pay is due to conditions beyond the control of the member.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has informed the General Assembly of the status of these 15 countries.
He noted in a letter that the General Assembly can permit member states to vote “if it is satisfied that the failure to pay is due to conditions beyond the control of the member”.
The assembly passed a resolution giving five poor and conflict-torn countries on the list the right to vote during the current session, which ends in September.
They are Comoros, Guinea-Bissau, Sao Tome and Principe, Somalia and Yemen.
Venezuela must pay US$3 million to have its voting rights restored, while the Dominican Republic must pay US$2.1 million.
The other countries that have lost their voting rights are Bahrain, Libya, Mali, Marshall Islands and Vanuatu.
Now you can see just how cheap SVG has become under the Unity Labour Party.
Comrade, when Venezuela said do as we do at the UN they actually meant when voting not when paying.
Stop dancing the skank and pay up.
No surprise here. The government needed all the money to pay election bribes and to sink into AIA.
Why is it we always owing somebody? I guess that increases our time in the limelight. Even bad publicity can be beneficial.
Here is how it works – we appeal to the UN, tell them how it is beyond our control as we have no money left and we already owe everybody. The UN pittance is on the bottom of the heap. Again they feel sorry for us, they let us vote. Another rich businessman from a big conglomerate in another country feel so sorry for us, they offer to lend us more money, Interest not due until 2060. We just have to throw in a few acres of crown lands and give them a tax break while they set up a business which will bring prosperity to SVG, by hiring poor Vincentians and paying them 19th century wages. This would make much profits for the business, and the SVG government men would get a cut under the table – tax free.
Our Government men so glad, all their eyes light up. Let’s do it, they chorus, we won’t have to pay it back. We would already be dead when it comes due. We don’t care whose children and grandchildren will have to pay it back. We will just be living high on the hog until we die. Future governments can’t tax or take away what we leave for our children, they safe. Ha ha ha. The joke is on all you Vincentians who want to be honest and pay off debts. Ha ha ha. Who is the better economist now?
the government currently owe millions to the University of the West Indies, Vinlec, NIS, CWSA, Kingstown traders, land owners at Argyle, with money due to LIAT and probably millions to bond owners.
We are on the verge of total collapse and the amount given away as bribes was probably approaching 50 million.
Shame, Shame, you did not get anything, cry baby.
The SVG government should not pay a penny.The UN is no use to us at all.
By the way is it the United Nations, the United States Nations or is it the United Terror Nations? I keep wandering.Hmmmm
Nile, lonely rivers flow to the sea why don’t you join them with your hogwash
This is a red herring: the US has long held funds back only because other countries like SVG refuse to pay the pittance they owe. If ever country paid what they are supposed to pay (based on an agreed upon formula) we wouldn’t have this issue of non-compliance. SVG didn’t pay only because of bureaucratic incompetence, the main reason we are such a shitty little country.
Kenton what is YOUR real purpose for posting this? Are you another Peter Binose or the Peter Binose? This is soooooooooooo petty! U still vex wid de police, fo showing up yo comrade in harm Hamlet Mark?
Come on man “tex off dem blinkers”,ah Vincy we dey!
Oh by the way, permanent member USA owes $654 million dollars…anything “wong wid dat’?
stop blemishing my good name you Richard the Third
This is a red herring: the US has long held funds back only because other countries like SVG refuse to pay the pittance they owe. If ever country paid what they are supposed to pay (based on an agreed upon formula) we wouldnt have this issue of non-compliance. SVG didnt pay only because of bureaucratic incompetence, the main reason we are such a shitty little country.
Yet another example in a long, long list of incompetence, sloth, indifference, etc.
And we are trying to build an international airport — with missed deadlines in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 — to international standards to attract international visitors to our internationally-renowned tourist sites and internationally-maintained black sand beaches!
Give me a flipping break!
No, You give me a Fu*******g break.
Did the government used the UN money to buy lumber and galvanize?… Ah lawd put a hand… But really, you mean to say, Ralph can’t find a paltry $6,000 to pay ban ki moon and tek we name outta white people mouth.
Anyway, this is no big deal, its not like folks running we down to get we vote…all we do at the UN is mek up the numbers and give a speech once in a blue moon…oh yeah and follow slavisly the dictate of whatever policy the white boys come up with.
Come to think about it, f#$k the UN…what have they done for us lately? These f#$kers only know us when we owe them money or when they lump us with other poor arse Nations and cheat us like vagrants.The UN do not grant us any favors unconditionally; they don’t have our interest at heart. I say let ban ki moon go haul yomuddacu– LOL.
You are so wrong, we have earned millions from the UN and from friendships from the UN like North Korea, Iran and all the crap in between. Selling our UN vote in return for support of scum countries, and block voting with ALBA whilst we draw money from PetroCarib as part of the deal.
Look fool if you want to talk Sh***T do it someplace else not here.
So, genius, the iWitness News page is yours? You have the exclusive right to say who should write what where? What are you? Some kind of despot? Keep dreaming and learn to read good stuff. Perhaps after that you might be able to write something worth reading.
Luther “NO VASELINE” Bonadie…have a good day.
The SVG ambassador must have been warned several times about the consequences of not paying. Surely our ambassador should have more money than this as petty cash at the office?
Unless they are skint like all the rest of our Vincentian institutions.
Comrade a few weeks ago before you were re-elected you told us you had plenty of money in hand, $400 million I think was mentioned, where is that? was that a lie?