What do we want for ourselves, our children?

26.OCT.07

Independence message by the leader of SVG Green Party-Ivan O’Neal

Fellow Vincentians at home and abroad, on the 27th October 2007, St. Vincent and the Grenadines will celebrate 28 years of independence. But where is the inspiration for our people? What do we want for ourselves and our children? We want wealth, good health and to be stable financially. Do we have that? No! To give you a chance, a new government needs a chance.{{more}}

Twenty three years of NDP and ULP economic blundering have left SVG more dependent than before October 1979. They are enslaved with a mentality of dependence on foreign aid. They have begged and borrowed so much and for so long that now Vincentians are paying the price with social decay in our communities. The SVG economy has been torn apart and is in such an embarrassing state that 2 years ago after the Tsunami earthquake in Asia, we could not even donate one dollar to feed hungry, orphaned victims of that disaster. The pride of the SVG nation has been badly damaged by both NDP and ULP governments.

We celebrate independence, but what can we really do for ourselves? One cannot even buy a pencil in SVG which says ‘Made in SVG’. Virtually everything has to be spoon-fed to our nation via imports and foreign aid. We have taken 28 years to reach a state of overwhelming poverty, poor education and high unemployment. How will we emerge over the next 28 years?

The NDP and ULP governments: are they dedicated to this country or to themselves? They should remember that government is for everyone, not just for the ruling party. We need to overcome conflicts in our communities. We need to overcome the social unrest, which has impacted on the economic and social development in SVG.

The last 23 years has seen us be independent, only to be freed into a prison of devastating social and economic decay. We have a pandemic of poverty, a cancer of crime and a virus of violence against women. People are without jobs, without hope and without money to properly feed their families. And how is the ULP regime helping us out of this despair? They bludgeon us with tax after tax after tax. And as they spend the money and increase national debt beyond record amounts, we can only expect record more tax.

We have independence on paper, but our people want independence as individuals, and that’s only natural. However, a major breakthrough that will be long remembered in our history is due soon. SVG needs change; you need change! People want money in their pocket and an end to their hardship. People need to see a light at the end of the tunnel.

Integrity and good economic intelligence are needed. A new government is desired: one that can properly respond to our needs. The burning desire to build a nation, where no one is oppressed and where opportunities abound for our people to reach the highest points of their creative and productive abilities remains as strong as ever. A SVG Green party government will make the important difference to benefit all our people. We ask of you to give SVG Green party the opportunity.

My fellow Vincentians: God bless – a true independence awaits.

Ivan O’Neal BSc(Hons), MSc, MBA, Leader and Co-founder of SVG Green Party