Caption: Dr Godwin Friday
KINGSTOWN – The New Democratic Party (NDP) stormed to an almost total landslide victory in Thursday’s general election, with preliminary results showing that the party had won 14 of the 15 seats in the Parliament.
In the process, the NDP prevented the Caribbean’s longest serving Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves, from fulfilling his dream of leading his Unity Labour Party (ULP) to an unprecedented sixth consecutive victory at the polls in St Vincent and the Grenadines.
Gonsalves, 79, is the only successful ULP candidate in the election that saw the demise of his son and Finance Minister Camillo Gonsalves as well as the Agriculture Minister, Saboto Scofield Caesar, both of whom were once regarded as possible leaders of the party.
Prime Minister designate, Dr Godwin Friday, speaking on the state-owned NBC Radio, said that he would keep with the tradition and allow Friday to be a public holiday “so that people can come together and recuperate from a long campaign and at the same time celebrate it as well.”
He said there will also be a celebration at Heritage Square “and share in this common experience and hopefully they can resolve ourselves to go forward as one people.
“The election is behind us now and I want to see this country come together and we put ourselves and our backs to the wheel and quickly work to build St. Vincent and the Grenadines for all of us.”
Friday, 66, who comfortably won his Northern Grenadines seat, said “that has been my campaign message and that is what I believe and that is how I intend to govern and tomorrow we start that process.”
He said, “(At) some later date, not too far down the road we will have the members of Cabinet sworn in.”
Friday said he intends being sworn in on Friday, adding “that’s my plan, but I am preempting here now because I haven’t contacted the Governor General as yet. I think the expectation is that will happen sooner rather than later because, you do not want to have a vacuum when it comes to governance and I intend to do so and will notify the Governor General tomorrow morning bright and early and …that can be done tomorrow afternoon.”
Friday said he has not spoken to Gonsalves, saying that he expected him to call and concede and “wish me well,” adding, “that’s up to him.
“Its an awesome responsibility to be prime minister of a country… I am coming to it, there’s a lot of hope, expectation and desire to make a difference and I intend to do so and every opportunity I get to benefit from persons with experience, persons of goodwill, I will do so because it is for the country, but to answer your question, we have not heard from the former prime minister.”
Asked what he was looking forward to most as he assumes the leadership of the government, Friday, an attorney, replied “we campaigned on certain things… we put forward a platform to the people of this country and we intend to honour that.
“So I want to start immediately to honour my people, we had a 60 day plan …but honestly what I look forward to most, I really look forward to serving the people of this country and try to make St. Vincent and the Grenadines better.”
He said he has no intention of diminishing or second guessing anybody’s desire towards public service, adding “ I assume everyone gets into it and they want to do it for the common good.
“Sometimes we succeed, sometimes we do not, sometimes some people do not even try. I am going to try and I am going to do my very best to deliver to the people of the country, the promises that we have made, the commitments we have made to them, but most of all to always have their interest first and from day one that’s what we are going to do.
“I look forward to doing that and we want to use as many different sources of support that we have and the biggest source of that is the people themselves
“Its a humbling experience, it has never happened to me before but I am going to do my very best. I am a very quick learner and I am pretty sure we can get up to speed very quickly,” Friday said.
“The people have spoken, they have spoken very clearly… and it is a humbling experience,” he said.
Friday will become the seventh head of government in this Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country, and among the successful NDP candidates is the president of Cricket West Indies, Dr. Kishore Shallow, who easily defeated the Tourism Minister Carlos James in the North Leeward constituency.
Barbados-based regional political pollster and analyst, Peter Wickham said that there had been an average five per cent swing away from the ULP, noting also that the party had been experiencing dwindling support since the last two general elections.
Former NDP chairman, Dr Linton Lewis, said the party had “skillfully” avoided a number of issues during the campaign, including the NDP’s breaking relationship with Taiwan in preference to China and the controversial Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme that would allow for foreign investors to receive citizenship of the island in return for making a substantial investment in the island’s socio-economic development.
“The time for a change is a very powerful slogan especially when you have been in office for 25 years,” Linton added.
Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness, who in September led his Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) to an unprecedented third consecutive term in office, extended “warm congratulations” saying “this is an important moment for the Vincentian people, who have participated in a peaceful and democratic process to shape the future of their nation.
“I wish Dr Friday every success as he undertakes the responsibility of national leadership, and I pray God’s guidance and wisdom upon him in the work ahead.
“Jamaica values its close friendship with St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and we look forward to strengthening our cooperation as we continue to build a more resilient and prosperous Caribbean region together,” Holness said, adding ”may this new chapter bring hope, unity, and progress for all Vincentians at home and across the diaspora.”
St Lucia’s Opposition Leader, Allen Chastanet, who is hoping to win the government in the December 1 general election, also extended congratulations to Friday, saying “this victory is a testament to your perseverance, your integrity and the trust the people have placed in your leadership.
“May your tenure be guided by wisdom, progress and an unwavering commitment to the people you now serve,” he added.
Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, in a statement said that she wanted to congratulate the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines “where a resounding democratic mandate was given to the New Democratic Party and Dr Godwin Friday.
“I commend the citizens of St Vincent and the Grenadines for upholding the highest ideals of democracy.”
During the campaign for the election, Prime Minister Gonsalves had criticised the ruling United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago for sending activists and others to campaign alongside the NDP, an accusation Persad-Bissessar denied. (CMC)
