Opposition MP St. Clair Leacock says the next general elections are especially important because Vincentians will be voting on behalf of their great-grandchildren.
The Central Kingstown MP, who is also a vice president of the New Democratic Party (NDP), said the polls will also be Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves’ “one last trick”.
Leacock noted that for the first time since coming to office in March 2001, the Unity Labour Party is entering an election without a deputy leader on the ticket.
Speaking at an NDP campaign event in Town Hill, he said this is so because the prime minister is hoping to slip his son, East Kingstown MP, Camillo Gonslaves, into the premiership via the back door.
Leacock noted that St. Vincent and the Grenadines attained independence in 1979.
“Let’s fast forward to where we are here and now, 2025… we heard the acting Prime Minister [Montgomery] Daniel … saying to a nation that we could not repair the schools in St. Vincent and the Grenadines because we didn’t get a loan from Saudi Arabia.”
Daniel, speaking on NBC Radio in August, said that the government had allocated EC$4 million to the repair of the nation’s schools ahead of their opening on Sept. 1.
He said that the basic repairs had been done and that any major work would be undertaken when a delayed loan from Saudi Arabia is received.
“I want you to think about that and chew on that; look where Saudi Arabia is; look where St. Vincent is,” Leacock said.
“2025, and we can’t repair our schools because we didn’t get a loan from Saudi Arabia. Can you imagine that? … they have no sense of decency or self-respect as a nation state. You can’t even fix your own goddamn schools. You want to depend on the so-called capitalist citadels of the world to do the most basic things for you,” he said.
“It tells you a hell of a lot of the successful failure that my good friends spoke about earlier tonight,” he said, referring to a term that another speaker had used to describe the Unity Labour Party administration.
Leacock noted that the government approved in Parliament on Aug. 7, EC$98 million in loans to repair houses damaged by Hurricane Beryl on July 1, 2024, road repairs and continued work on the new port under construction in Kingstown.
“… the government of St. Vincent didn’t have one, one, $1 million to put up for themselves to do $100 million worth of work.
“And you are asking for another five to 10 years of government to do what?” Leacock said.
“Before that, the same Saudi Arabians were going to give them a drawdown of $48 million and they said, ‘You can get the 48 if you bring three.’ They went and borrowed the three to get the 48.
“… and Ralph and his sons have the audacity to ask for an extension of life, for an overblown, expired, no good government? Give me a break! Give me a break!”
Leacock said this means that the next general elections are different from any previous polls.
He said the difference is that the election in 1951, 1969, and 1979, “you were voting for yourselves, your own well-being, for a better quality of life for you as a person.
“In this 2025, you are voting, believe it or not, for your great-grandchildren; not yourself, not yourself, not even for your grandchildren — your great-grandchildren.”
Leacock noted that Camillo Gonsalves has asked Vincentians to give the prime minister another term in office.
“… he have his son telling you, ‘I don’t believe we should change. Keep daddy dey. Fu we pupa ha’ more energy than we.’
“A big, hardback, 50-something-year-old man telling you that his 80-something-year-old, going 90, pupa ha’ more energy than he and the rest of the cabinet put together. Well, God help St. Vincent and the Grenadines.”
Leacock, however, said this was not what the younger Gonsalves wanted to set up Vincentians to believe.
“… this is what this election about: It’s Ralph’s one last trick,” Leacock said.
“He knows that he cannot present Camillo to lead the party into this election. He knows that. it’s the first time he’s going into an election without a deputy prime minister,” said Leacock, who is a vice-president of the NDP.
“But he hopes that he can get there by some magic, that he’ll spend a year or two and slip in Camillo in the back door, because Camillo became a solicitor general, and he (PM) didn’t know. He became an ambassador, and he (PM) didn’t know.
“But he came into the Parliament and he became a minister of finance because he gave it to him, and now he wants to give him his final accolade: that of prime minister.”
Leacock said that the younger Gonsavles holds no post in the ULP.
“… not president, not deputy, not chairman, not treasurer, not committee member. Nothing! But you want to be the first prime minister of the country, never, ever having run a political party.
“What the ass happened to St. Vincent the Grenadines? We deaf in one ears and blind in the other? That’s what the election is about,” Leacock said, adding that it was time for a change.
“Time for a new St. Vincent and the Grenadines, time for people who can solve this country’s problem; time for a dream team. Time for a Dr. [Godwin] Friday,” he said, referring to the opposition leader.
“And time to make a sacrifice for your great-grandchildren, your grandchildren and yourself; time to be self-respecting. St. Vincent expects and deserves nothing better.”
Saboto must take a close look at what Ralph has in mind. He made sure that Camillo will have no one to challenge him, if Sabot is not elected. I notice he has James on his radar also. But Mr. One man vote may not get reelected in North Leeward. Farmers and other folks noticed what he did to the bread-winners of the constituency. The NDP must and should get its members to go-knocking on every door in their constituencies. They must and have to listen to the people to see what their needs are and give them some idea how the NDP intends to address these needs.
Don’t let Friday do all the talking. Many previous PM believed they had all the answers and some members had other ideas. This is where they should put all their suggestions together and vote to see which are appropriate and can work. The airport in Bequia is doing nothing for the island and its economy. A port to welcome tourist boats with close to 1200 passengers can do a lot more businesses in the Grenadines.
This election will be very close because Ralph is dancing with those Shakers and there are many of them dancing with him and don’t care about crime, poverty, health care for them and their children and grandchildren.
Ask the people if they are better off now that they were 5 or 10 years ago. A dialog with the people is the only road for the NDP to win the election. I also believe the NDP should also checkout Saboto to see if he will move over, since he’s not being seriously considered to replace Ralph.
As a citizen of this great nation of Saint Vincent & the Grenadines, I am tired of hearing Sinclair Leacock complain. He is like an angry child who lost his marbles in a game. He says that the younger Gonsalves hold no portfolio yet wants to be first servant to the people. Stop whining and do something to stop them from being in servants to the people for a 6th term.
Mr. Leacock needed to retired 2 elections ago and get a younger person who can identify with the generation of today. Babyboomers have no clue what gen z and gen alpha is about. He is out of time and out of step and instead of addressing the issues focuses on the ULP and their inadequacies, ineffective and inefficiency, focus on the people and the changing demographics.
Mind you I am saying this to critique the NDP and to spur them to do better.
Most thoughtful Vincentians, especially those who have lived in wealthy overseas nations like America, the United Kingdom, and Canada, nations deeply indebted to national and international lenders, are well aware of how limited our tiny economy has always been and how dependent we are on overseas lenders for our very survival.
The NDP has no viable plan whatsoever to reduce, let alone eliminate, our national debt level and transform us into a wealthy, fully employed people. None.
A country that believes selling its citizenship to shady overseas characters to balance its budget is a country with no integrity and no sense of nationalism.
Well said Major!
MP Leacock could not have made it any clearer to the Vincentian electorates why we must rid ourselves of this bad-minded and evil ULP regime and its heartless bunch of crooks from government.
The ULP bandits and their supporters have eaten quite a lot from the Vincentian treasury for the last twenty-five years while ensuring that the rest of us go hungry.
GET RID AH DEM!!!
A man mentioned that the ULP’s south winward candidate is reachable at any hr of day or night. This is important.How important can be debated. Are these older heads in the NDP who have long passed their prime mentally and physically ,really up to the task? That’s a very pertinent question. One might argue that the pm is old too but ,the pm has proven time and again that he’s still able to so the job. I’m getting mire positive energy from the pm rhan I get from Leacock and Cummings. Cummi gs has a lot of negative energy. Dr Friday, this coming elections are yours to win. Be wise.
Was dis place given to aryo family by the Almighty? only ar yo alone entitled ? In my opinion ar yo a blight on the place, no moral, integrity nothing whatso ever, in my opinion aryo want fo send mo people mental home and to them grave., ” and suffer and dead and get 3 fo 10? and people loose job, house and everything and sick dead. aryo really tink people dotish eh.
Eustace became pm,didn’t he? Was he the leader of the NDP when he became pm?
C.Ben-David David I do not always want to get involved in a political debates, however, when I hear ignorance I have to break that rule and get involved.
The author said that the NDP has no strategic plan in place to govern much less to eliminate the national debt. Let me ask this moron in the first place what was the national when the Ulp came to power, and what is it today?
Granted there were some projects for example, the Airport and the pier. Let’s be reasonable here If you were to exclude the loans that was used for development it still does add up to being one of the most indebted nation in the Caribbean. C.Ben-David do you know Haiti is our competitor?
C.Ben-David which is an alias is a real person lives the town of layou. He spoke about selling passports. Is it not true to say that passports are sold under the ULP? however, the funds do not hit the treasury. If this was not the case what accounts for the hundreds of passports that were issued to foreigners? How about the destruction of agriculture as we once know it? Is this not a reason to open your eyes?
There is an.old adage that goes like this fools talk but fools are not the only ones listening. ” What C.Ben-David envisage is a dynasty, keep the ULP in power forever and that will be the solution to our ills. It’s wise to change the government occasionally, the benefits of it debatable but recommended.
The NDP was in power and they messed up and deserved to be kicked out for bad governance.The ULP time has come and it’s time to show them the door. This is the behavior of well informed and rightful thinking citizens to change the government when they have overstayed their welcome. The time has come Vincentians. Let’s work together for a better SVG.