Found at: http://www.anguillaguide.com/article/articleprint/4605/-1/135/
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Chief Minister: 'NO POLITICS IN CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM' Concern Over Public's Disinterest
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Anguilla’s Chief Minister, the Hon. Osbourne Fleming, has made the point that the need to have in place a well-designed and effective constitution, demands the involvement of everyone and that such participation must be free from all political leanings. He made the statement at the Stoney Ground School Auditorium on Monday evening this week as a fresh round of town hall meetings commenced to consult the public on the constitutional report presented by the Commission to Government and to hear the views of the people.
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L-R: Mr. Victor Banks, CM Fleming, Justice Mitchell
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A disappointing matter, however, was the small number of persons turning up at the consultations such as at Stoney Ground where they could be counted on one hand. “I wish to say that with this exercise, there is no politics,” the Chief Minister declared at the school. “Politics must be out of the picture because this [the constitution] affects the lives of every Anguillian. We have had a wonderful relationship with the members of the House of Assembly – both Government and Opposition and we hope to continue that way.
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L-R: Mr. Evans Rogers, Mr. Hubert Hughes and Mr. Edison Baird
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Mr. Fleming said there was a drive to have the constitutional review completed within a year and that all members of the House would meet with the British contingent in Anguilla in July. He stressed also that all of them would also travel to London when the invitation to do so was received.
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The small number of attendees at the meeting
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The Chief Minister was speaking following a presentation by former Chairman of the Constitutional and Electoral Reform Commission, Justice Don Mitchell, CBE, QC. The retired OECS Judge outlined various aspects of the report and recommendations he and his Commissioners had presented to Governor Andrew George and the Executive Council in August last year. He took the opportunity to express concern that only handful of persons were in attendance, a matter which was affecting the important need for public discussion and involvement in the constitutional process.
Minister of Finance, Victor Banks, stated that the recommendations in the report covered a number of critical areas, which could generate much public debate, such as being a belonger of Anguilla. “Members of the House of Assembly (Government and Opposition) want to take the constitutional process forward with a level of consensus on all the issues,” he stated. “There are issues that we differ on but we have felt that because it is a document for all the people of Anguilla, if we do not have any strong differences, on a particular issue, we would work through some compromise or understanding which would allow it to go forward.”
Mr. Banks went on: “The recommendations that the Commission made are quite comprehensive and those are the recommendations to which we want you to respond. In addition, there may be some other areas of the constitution itself which may not have been covered and everyone should have the opportunity to speak to those issues as well.”
He observed that since the website was now closed, there was a need for some other channel whereby persons could make known their comments as they were not attending the public meetings.
Opposition Member, Edison Baird, said the House of Assembly’s representatives already had very fruitful meetings although there were some matters on which agreement had not been reached. “I would encourage the Anguillian people to come out to these meetings because whether you participate or not, the changes that will be made to the Constitution of Anguilla will directly impact you.
“I also want to point out that the Constitution is really a document that regulates our lives and it is not document that is changed frequently…We also have to bear in mind that the Government of Anguilla alone cannot change the Constitution. We also have to secure the agreement of the British Government to change the Constitution. That is why we are making every effort that when we meet with the British Government in July that we can speak with one voice and if possible present a united front. These changes are very crucial and after these changes would have come into being that we won’t revisit the Constitution for another ten or twelve years.”
He again exhorted members of the public to attend the meetings.
The other Opposition Member, Hubert Hughes, joined the others in expressing disappointment over the small turnout at the meetings. “The Constitution comes from the people and the Constitution determines the life of the people,” he pointed out. “As Justice Mitchell said, we are not talking about sex, calypsos and carnival village; and because we are not talking about those frivolous issues, we can’t get people to come out to these kinds of discussions. That is a dilemma as far as I am concerned.”