ST. JOHN’S, Antigua--Prime Minister Gaston Browne delivered a warning last month that any government legislator who defied him by failing to support a contentious piece of legislation before Parliament would be fired. Tuesday, September 13, he followed through on that threat by axing Senator Wigley George.
George, a trade unionist, got his letter as he sat in the Senate Tuesday.
He had been among Antigua Labour Party (ALP)-appointed Senators who rejected the Statutory Corporations General Provisions Bill when it was first debated on August 15, expressing concern about Clause 7 which states that the Cabinet may, if it considers it in the best interest of public administration, transfer an employee on secondment from one statutory corporation to another, or to the public service. The Bill was sent back to the Lower House for review, at which time Browne urged Senators to toe the line.
But Tuesday, when a motion to pass or reject the clause went before the House, George signalled that he would again reject it. He explained that while he had no problem with government employees being moved, he could not support that happening without consent.
“The problem we have ... is the fact that you can take someone from a corporation to a non-established position. The Lower House made a partial move by adding consultation [but – Ed.] it is consultation without consent,” George said, according to a report in the Daily Observer newspaper.
Shortly after, as he sat in the Senate session, George received a revocation of appointment letter.
The correspondence dated September 13 and signed by the Prime Minister stated in part: “As you may recall, the Cabinet of Antigua and Barbuda held consultations with the Government-appointed Senators regarding the division which took place in the Senate on the Statutory Corporations Bill. Your defiance in the face of the understanding reached leaves me no choice but to withdraw your appointment immediately.”
George, who is President of the Antigua Trades and Labour Union (AT&LU) which is aligned with the ruling ALP, has the backing of not only that body but the Antigua Barbuda Workers Union (ABWU) as well.
According to the Daily Observer, ABWU Deputy General Secretary Chester Hughes unreservedly pledged his union’s support for the trade unionist.
“The Antigua and Barbuda Workers Union stands side by side with Wigley George on this issue, without reservation. We find it a victimising act – an act we will not tolerate,” Hughes warned, adding, “It could well begin a spate of actions which the Prime Minister would regret in this country.”
AT&LU General Secretary Hugh Joseph said a decision would be made on the next step at an executive meeting of the union.
“But I can tell you that the membership is already calling saying that we need to call out the workers,” he said. ~ Caribbean360 ~
