New face on opposition benches

Fri, Jun 1. 2012

Leader of the Opposition Arnhim Eustace has now moved to fill the vacancy on the Opposition benches in Parliament, occasioned by his firing of former Senator Anesia Baptiste. As predicted by many, Mr. Eustace has chosen a seasoned politician, Dr. Linton Lewis, the present Chairman of the opposition New Democratic Party (NDP).{{more}}

The presence of Dr. Lewis as Opposition Senator will no doubt contribute towards strengthening the contribution of the Opposition parliamentarians to Parliamentary discourse. Whatever is lost in the youthful enthusiasm of Ms. Baptiste will be offset, hopefully, by the experience that Dr. Lewis brings.

The Opposition clearly needed some sobriety and a steadying of the ship in the wake of the Anesia Baptiste debacle. That experiment, no doubt done with an eye on the future after the fiery contributions Baptiste made both to the constitutional referendum of November 2009, and the general elections one year later, turned out to be an unhappy one for the NDP, with a regrettable washing of dirty linen in public. At a time when focus should have been on the performance of the ULP administration and economy, attention was diverted to internal party squabbles.

It must now be the hope that the NDP will put that unfortunate diversion to rest and that Dr. Lewis’ presence can restore some stability. He is certainly well placed to do so, being Chairman of the party. There will also be the hope, of not just NDP supporters, but those interested in Parliamentary democracy and good governance, that the new Senator will be able to temper the image of some of his colleagues in Parliament whose behaviour, at times, is definitely unparliamentary. He is definitely well placed to do so.

The new senatorial appointment reinforces the traditional view that parliamentary parties in St. Vincent and the Grenadines continue to hold. That seems to be that the positions of Senators in the House ought to be considered either a stepping stone on the road to such persons successfully contesting a seat in the next elections, or as a reward for faithful service. In an interview with SEARCHLIGHT, Dr. Lewis was under no illusion as to what his appointment forebodes.

“I am hoping that it will not only assist the party to win (the next elections), but it will improve significantly my own chances in the constituency of East St. George,” he said.

Dr. Lewis has made unsuccessful challenges for both the East St. George and neighbouring West St. George constituencies in successive general elections.

As he enters a new phase in a career which has spawned teaching, sport, accountancy and law, we wish Dr. Lewis all the best in this undertaking and look forward to his contribution, not only to his side of the House, but in uplifting the standard of Parliamentary debate and practice. Our country certainly can only benefit in that regard.