St. Kitts and Nevis Nationals Overseas Urged To Challenge Plans by Timothy Harris Government
London, England – Nationals of St Kitts and Nevis residing in the United Kingdom have been urged to challenge the decision of the Timothy Harris-led Team Unity Government to disenfranchise them as the next general elections approaches.
Addressing Kittitians and Nevisians in London, the first of two stops, Political Leader of the St Kitts-Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP) and Leader of the Opposition, the Rt Hon Dr Denzil L Douglas questioned the proposed decision of the coalition to remove the names of qualified voters who are properly registered to vote but currently live overseas and impose a residency requirement.
“Why should you who voted in the last elections in 2015 as you have done in previous years and voted for the party of your choice, and suddenly because the Prime Minister (Dr Timothy Harris) realizes that his support overseas is not as strong as the Labour Party support, is going into the parliament to tell Kittitians and Nevisians in England and around the world that you cannot come home again to vote simply because he believes that he does not have the support that he deserves to have like Labour abroad,” Dr Douglas told nationals in London on Thursday night.
Dr Douglas called on the St Kitts and Nevis nationals to take several measures to prevent their rights to vote being taken away by Dr Harris.
“Talk to your relatives at home. Send letters to the government. Speak to the St Kitts and Nevis High Commissioner here in London and tell him how you feel about the matter, “said Dr Douglas, the former prime minister, who pointed out that this cannot be done in the heat of an election campaign.
Dr Douglas said the way forward is to get the views of Kittitians and Nevisians via a referendum.
Dr Douglas, who is accompanied by the Parliamentary Representative for St Christopher 3 (West Basseterre), Hon Konris Maynard and Dr Terrance Drew, the SKNLP candidate for St Christopher 8, also discussed several other issues of concerns including the skyrocketing cost of living, poor health services, lack of investment, inadequate housing and the state of agriculture.
The Labour Party officials will be in Birmingham at The Hartland Social Club, 62 Aston Church Road, Birmingham, B7 5RX on Friday 18th October at 6:30 p.m.
A similar town hall meeting will take place in Ontario, Canada on October 20 at the Tropicana Community Services, 1385 Huntingwood Drive (off McCowan Road), Scarborough, Ontario. The meeting begins at 6.30 p.m.
Featured speakers will be Dr Douglas, the Hon Konris Maynard, Dr Terrance Drew and His Excellency Steve Wrensford, the St Kitts-Nevis Labour Party candidate for St Christopher 4.
