Former ZBC and current Peoples Labour Party(PLP) Chairman Douglas Wattley has once again taken to social media to denounce the Team Unity Government(TUG) which he helped to get elected and form the new government in February 2015. Over the past months Wattley along with former Press Secretary to PM Dr Timothy Harris, Clecton Phillip, have used social media extensively to register their disapproval and disdain at the performance of the new government.
Accusing the TUG of mismanagement and corruption, Wattley in a recent blog said it appears that the government has begun to circle the wagons and “have decided to bring the weight of the Government down on our heads. Their strategy is to brand us as upstarts and disgruntled because we did not get what we wanted from the Government”.
The former Permanent Secretary in the Denzil Douglas led administration wrote:
“Consider that in 2009, I tendered my resignation from the Public Service to take effect in 2010 when I would be 48 years old. I was, at that time, a Permanent Secretary in the office of the Prime Minister. I had been PS for thirteen (13) years having made PS at the age of thirty five (35). As is the case with my recent resignation from the ZBC Board, I resigned because I had made a commitment to publicly challenge the former Government. I wanted a change and I was not afraid to put skin in the game.
When I started to speak out, I was the lone voice on the opposition stage. The PAM was barely breathing. The PAM could not even win at hop scotch. And Dr Harris was still with the Labour Party. So you could imagine my surprise when I heard that I am speaking out now because there was something I wanted but did not get.”
Citing tha he has made sacrifices to get TEAM UNITY in power, Wattley claims he gave up his career in the civil service to usher in meaningful change into the body politic:
” I gave up my career to change the Government. What did you sacrifice? At age 48, I had 7 years left to work as PS. I am now 54 so I would still be a Permanent Secretary today.
I sacrificed so that some of you can get what you want.
But you are both greedy and bad minded. I sacrificed so that you can talk smack about people like me. What did you sacrifice? We succeeded in putting Team Unity in power so that you can fill your baskets – and to hell with poor people”, Wattley added.
Wattley stated that he would not help to “raise a dictator” in St.Kitts and Nevis and would not tolerate corruption in a Team Unity government. He concluded that “I am certainly not interested in creating a new planter class. Every mistake can be remedied”