Arnhim Eustace, Political Leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) has made a big confession.

On Tuesday, September 27, thousands of NDP supporters marched into Kingstown under the guise that they were marching against poverty but Eustace at a political rally on Saturday at the Redemption Sharpes Playing Field confessed that the ulterior motive for staging the march on the eve of the visit of President Chen Shui-Bian of the Republic of China on Taiwan to St.Vincent and the Grenadines was to prove to the Taiwanese the strength of the NDP. {{more}}

“I am going to confess to something here now, not even some of my colleagues would know about.

“I believe that it was important that we show the people of Taiwan, the President and his Party…the NDP strength. We had to show them the NDP strength. We had to show Taiwan and their representatives the strength of the New Democratic Party and that is why the rally was held on Tuesday the day before he came. It was not an accident,” Eustace disclosed.

Eustace said the NDP wanted to demonstrate that St.Vincent and the Grenadines “is not a one Party country, that there is a Party in Opposition that is very strong and could form the next government of St.Vincent and the Grenadines and therefore if the president sees that and he recognized that this is an election period he ain’t going to make no commitment to no airport money”.

The NDP President exclaimed that if the President of Taiwan felt that the NDP was “a weak piece of trash” then there might have been an announcement on monies for the proposed international airport before President Chen left.

“At the airport Gonsalves made the point and told him that when he comes back in 2010 he will land at the new airport…Gonsalves was trying to push the president to make a statement. He ain’t make no statement he simply said this is like an election rally to him.

Eustace said when Dr.Gonsalves in his address at the airport on Wednesday said: “Ah see me friend Eustace laughing over there”, he was laughing at the Prime Minister not with him.

A former Prime Minister and an economist, Eustace said that had President Chen announced specific assistance for the proposed international airport it could have caused political problems for the NDP.

“We had to show our strength to let the president and his people know that while we welcome him here that this is a strong and vibrant Party which is likely to remove Ralph Gonsalves from office,” Eustace remarked.