ALP Rejects Cabinet Sub Committee for WPP Probe

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Politics

Wednesday, 11 July 2012 02:30

By Everton Barnes

Antigua St. John’s - The opposition Antigua Labour Party (ALP) has rejected as “farcical” the government’s appointment of an inter-Cabinet committee to look into a call for a public inquiry into the Wadadli Power Plant (WPP) controversy.

ALP Chairman, Gaston Browne said he received a response from acting Prime Minister Harold Lovell, to a letter he penned to Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer, requesting that the government mounts either an independent investigation or a commission of inquiry into the controversial purchase of Chinese-built and financed power plant.

Speaking on the ALP’s radio programme, Insight, Browne said the government appears to be softening in its stance regarding the issue as it has replied formally to his letter, something it had not done in the past.

However, the ALP Chairman described the appointment of the committee that comprises Labour Minister Senator Dr. Errol Cort, Education Minister Dr. Jacqui Quinn-Leandro and Lovell as, perhaps, a delaying tactic, but that the desire of the ALP is for a full inquiry.

“I believe that there is unanimity for the request for an inquiry and if the government fails to satisfy our request for an inquiry, then it does so at its own peril,” he stated.

He said much is at stake for the United Progressive Party (UPP) Administration as its own reputation is on the line.

“The reality is the UPP has everything to lose, including their integrity and support of the electorate. This issue now transcends the argument of new and old, but now it is at the heart of the governing principles of transparency and accountability. Now, if the UPP fails to be transparent and to account to the nation with some independent mechanism, preferably a commission of inquiry, they will confirm to the nation that they indeed have something to hide. This will then crystallize the fact that we are not only being governed by an incompetent government, but we are also being governed by a corrupt one,” Browne stated.

Browne said the letter from Lovell has been turned over to ALP’s Political Leader Lester Bird and other party officials. He is also urging party supporters to “ready” themselves for what is likely to be a series of protest actions against the government on the issue.

The ALP chairman also called on his colleagues to unite around this issue, noting that this was not a time for competition.

“Competition will come at another time, perhaps later this year when we have our convention, but this is a time to seize the opportunity that would be created by the UPP’s blundering of this issue,” he urged.

Programme host and parliamentarian, Steadroy “Cutie” Benjamin, himself an attorney, said the setting up of the committee is “farcical in the extreme”.

“What absolute foolishness! To do what? Just to put their thoughts together and to toe the line,” he declared.



Benjamin also had strong words for two political analysts, Arvel Grant and Peter Wickham, for statements made on Observer Radio’s Big Issues programme where they commended the government for releasing documents about the WPP with four critical pages missing, calling it an example of a transparent government. He accused them of seeking to distort the truth and for having little regard for the intelligence of Antiguans and Barbudans.

Bird added his voice to the discussion, saying that it is inconceivable that the committee would return with a recommendation contrary to that stated publicly by Spencer.

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