Bousquet’s criminal logic

If any of us had doubts that Bousquet was uneducated, then listening to him on Sunday at Doddy's launching should enlighten us. No educated person would indulge in the criminal logic that the man carrying the honour of St. Lucia’s Foreign Minister pursued yesterday. It is however noteworthy that he seems to be gradually "stripping himself" of the Foreign Affairs portfolio by default and it is no wonder that his constituents are already perceiving him as just a "part time" foreign minister with his main office in Choiseul.

An important question is: Why should Tucker in these hard times deprive the NIC purse of much-needed income and proceed to rent a lavish office at the Bay Walk Mall when he has - for all intents and purposes -  relocated his Foreign Affairs Office to the Hughlan St. Rose House in Reunion in Choiseul giving the impression that he is operating as a part-time minister?

I am sure you heard his double-talk about increased efficiency as a basis for renting those offices and that leads me to another question: What is efficient about renting an office for $114,000 a month and choosing to operate part time in a remote, hidden corner in Reunion, Choiseul? In a previous session of parliament, Tucker pleaded with Choiseulians to be patient with him because, according to him, the job of foreign minister was taxing and important. All of a sudden that has changed. Today, his overseas missions take him only as far as Choiseul/Saltibus and back. All of a sudden, Choiseul/Saltibus has become the "World of Foreign Affairs" for Tucker.

If he no longer wishes to be Foreign Minister, then he should be honest about it. Why should he receive a $10,000 salary and operate part time in a job which he deems so critical to the development of st. Lucia? And as if to say that Bay Walk was not enough, he is further imposing an additional economic burden on the taxpayers of this country. If he is honest and has a conscience and feels that he does not deserve the esteemed positions he holds, then he should do justice to himself and the taxpayers by simply resigning. But again it goes to show his dishonesty with the people of St. Lucia.

Bousquet displayed the audacity of a criminal when he said the UWP was strongest ever and will win 14 seats next election. This was not only wishful thinking, but intellectual fraud. It is noteworthy that elections have not even been called and the UWP (or is it former UWP?) has already lost its safest seat. Their margin is now 10-7 and with the overwhelming problems that they bring to this country, I would not be surprised if the situation gets much worse in the coming days; for I can't see Spider co-habiting much longer with Tucker, Chastanet and Richard. Further, the UWP has no "social mind" and an implosion may well be imminent, whether it be before or after the General Elections.In fact, most of the Ministers are self-imploding with anger and we can't have a regime of angry, disorganised and desperate pseudo-politicians in charge of our country.

Even the indefatigable Pro-UWP Juke Bois snubbed profusely at Tucker's criminal logic that the Pseudo-Flambeaus will win more seats. Just short of calling Tucker a mad man, Juke Bois "calcimayed" him for his stupidity. Juke Bois hosts a Talk Show programme and he is very much aware of the writing on the wall. In addition, he is also aware that not even the "free" PR afforded to this bunch of jokers is having an impact.

Tucker at best is a daydreamer who spends a lot of his time doing wishful thinking. I have no doubt that he is very much aware of his own position in Choiseul/Saltibus where Lorne is riding on a wave of support perhaps in the order of a double-digit margin. Tucker's own Blog has overwhelming evidence in that regard, where every online poll – albeit unscientific – has pointed to Bousquet’s dwindling support. Even the Social Transformation Officer recently trounced him in a Man of the Year contest.

A popular school of thought in Choiseul/Saltibus is Tucker stole the last elections from Dr Joseph and he probably believes he will repeat this crime again; but in the words of President Obama “not this time, not now”. No criminal plan in 2006 will be repeated in 2011 or 2012.

Did UWPees clash with Choiseul Church?

The reports are conflicting but a story is emerging. The UWP was attempting to mobilize a motorcade to the Attorney General’s Rally while the Church was mobilizing the Catholic community for the “March for Christ” to celebrate 100 years since the Catholic Church was built. The two events more or less coincided.

The Church had secured the services of DOTCOM Sounds for the purpose of sound reinforcement and Public Address; the UWP had its own sound system.

The March for Christ was due to being at 2 pm at Victoria; and it was around the same time that the UWP motorcade started.

Some of the participants claimed that they were disturbed by the blaring of loud music and expletives coming from the supporters, who were lead by District rep Rufus Bousquet while they were praying and getting ready for the March.

There are reports certain members of the church hierarchy and organizers of the March were very concerned about the interference and its implications for discipline in the society.

 
If the story is true, then it was a sad day for Choiseul. It was the day when Rufus Bousquet and his team were a vexation to the spirit of the Roman Catholic faith. It is also a part of the unfolding story of the moral decay of our society championed by the Flambeau government.

Incidentally, while the Tucker and his motorcade were disturbing the spiritual peace led by the Catholic Church, Lorne took the day off the trail to peacefully lime and "chill out" in silence with his constituents prior to joining the March for Christ later in the evening.

Musa Questions Timing of Airport Beautification Project

Comrade Moses “Musa” Jn Baptiste made a dynamic presentation to the House of Parliament this week. He was simply inspiring to watch; another demonstration of the awesome talent which exist within the Labour camp.

Throughout his enthralling performance, Comrade Musa made it clear to the house that he was not against the airport development project, but he however questioned its timing; “why attempt to raise $378 000 000 to beautify an airport when so many St. Lucians still suffer from the effects of hurricane Tomas?”

Many homes and farms remain inaccessible after hurricane Tomas; several people are still homeless. Despite the current situation, the current UWP administration #1 priority remains their election agenda, as indicated by PM King in a television interview a few days ago. Closer to home, we see the same practice, carrying over from the heart of the UWP, taking place in Choiseul – a Bruce Tucker Stand for Choiseul/Saltibus while we continue to be denied a proper medical facility, and the people of Saltibus continue to suffer the effects of Tomas.

Click play button below to listen to an excerpt from Musa’s contribution.

It is better to be late than never

This is an article penned by a university student on the state affairs in Choiseul/Saltibus and St. Lucia generally. It is a very profound message, thoroughly grounded in research and analysis and may well represent the position of the youth of this country. It makes interesting reading and I have published it unedited. Enjoy!

On Wednesday January 26, 2011, our External Affairs Minister, Rufus George Bousquet indicated during the 7:00 pm news broadcast of HTS and DBS that he had received a sum of money from the Moroccan Government and had deposited that money in a bank account of the Choiseul Village Council. He indicated further that he did not deposit the money in the Government’s Consolidated Fund because “monies disappear quickly from the Consolidated Fund”.

It seems to me that our External Affairs Minister cares nothing about upholding the provisions of our Constitution and the Finance Act and its attendant Regulations. According to our Constitution and our Finance Act the External Affairs Minister is duty bound and obligated to cause all monies he receives on the account of the State of St.Lucia to be deposited in the country’s Consolidated Fund. THIS IS NOT HIS CHOICE TO MAKE.

Chapter IV, Section 77 of the Constitution stipulates as follows:-

“All revenues or other moneys raised or received by Saint Lucia (not being revenues or other moneys that are payable, by or under any law for the time being in force in Saint Lucia, into some other fund established for specific purpose) shall be paid into and form a Consolidated Fund”

Chapter 15.01, Finance (Administration) Act, Section 7 (1) (2) stipulates as follows:

(1)    Subject to the Constitution and except as otherwise provided in this Act, all revenues and other monies raised or received for the purposes of the Government, not being revenue or other monies which are payable by or under any enactment into some other fund established for a specific purpose, shall be paid into and form part of the Consolidated Fund.

(2)    For the purposes of subsection (1), monies raised or received include monies received by way of a grant, donation, gift or other like method.

From the above it is pellicudly clear that Minister Bousquet’s bullish and arrogant announcement regarding funds from the Moroccan Government is indeed a most serious and damaging act and this has untold negative consequences for the financial management reputation of St.Lucia. 

The other interesting issue about Minister Bousquet’s announcement is “which bank account he caused the funds to be deposited into”. Is it the same bank account which was opened by the Accountant General for the Choiseul Village Council for the sole purpose of depositing funds and processing payments for small works projects under the Special Programme for Councils?  If this is the case or a new bank account was opened there is more trouble “in the camp” because this is what Chapter 15.01 of the Revised Laws, Finance (Administration) Act, Section 33 (1) (2) stipulates:

(1)    All sums accounted for in the Consolidated Fund shall be kept with such banks as the Accountant General shall determine.

(2)    A public or official account shall not be opened at any bank without the prior written authority and direction of the Accountant General.

Further, Finance Regulation 113 gives the following additional reason as to why the Minister has committed a most egregious act and this is what it stipulates:

(1)    Bank accounts shall not be opened or operated except with the approval of the Accountant General.

(2)    The Accountant General shall issue instructions as may be necessary for the opening and operation of bank accounts.

(3)    The authority to operate a bank account shall be granted only to an accounting officer.

The most troubling, disturbing and dangerous issue about this whole development is that a whole week has passed since the External Affairs Minister made his statement. However none of the three (3) public authorities (Minister of Finance, Director of Finance and Accountant General) on matters of the Consolidated Fund has made any statement to reassure donor and lending institutions and countries, that this not an official Government Practice in St.Lucia.

Having said that, the question is does any of them have the moral authority to make such a statement? I think not.  The Taiwanese Government has indulged in the practice of channeling grant funds away from the Consolidated Fund and directly to Parliamentarians and these parliamentarians have channeled these funds through various towns and village councils.  There is no indication that any of these public authorities has attempted to stop the practice. In fact, the PM and Minister for Finance has vigorously defended that illegal practice.

Further, there is a very senior Treasury Department employee who has been the Chairman of a Village Council for quite a number of years, through which Taiwanese Funds have been channeled. The Accountant General has remained silent on the matter. Consequently, it will be hypocritical and an expression of “double standards” if the Accountant General was to act only in this case. The Accountant General will have to act against most if not all towns and village councils, including many other Government Ministries, chief among them will be the Ministry of Agriculture. However, Accountant General is duty-bound to act and must act now. It is better to be late than never! 

THE NEW PSALM 23

"Stephenson King is de shepherd I did not want; he leadeth me beside inflated food and gas prices. He restoreth my faith in the SLP; he guideth me to the path of unemployment for his party's sake. Yea, when I walk through the streets of Castries, I am always afraid, for violent crime is all around me. Yet, he anointeth my income with taxes & my expenses runneth over. He has never anointed my table with food. My blessings for SLP runneth over. Surely goodness and praises shall be bestowed upon SLP all of their life and they will retain the leadership of this country and dwell in the house of Assembly fore ever. Amen"

Submitted to the POWERHOUSE by email

POWERHOUSE WEEKLY EDITORIAL: A legacy we will live to regret

It is clear that Bruce Tucker is destroying the moral fabric of one of the most “un-spoilt” constituencies in St. Lucia - if not the most unspoilt! And in the process he may well be a factor in the recent and sudden explosion of crime and violence in that constituency. Already police are reporting a record spike in criminal activity in Choiseul.

One would have thought that the bestowal of the honorable position of District Representative on him by the people would have brought out a measure of respect and discipline from him; but how wrong we are.

In the first place, Tucker is getting a "ton of money" on behalf of the people of the Choiseul/Saltibus constituency - especially after the passage of Tomas - from sources all over the world. Some of that money are reported and some are not; but to what extent do we benefit from it? It is estimated that ¾ of those monies ends in corruption or corrupt projects, benefiting the circle of hacks around him and bribing young men and women for votes among other things. The rest goes towards campaign financing and into his pocket or personal bank accounts. Pundits have reckoned that since his return to Government as foreign minister, he has accumulated millions which are deposited on his various accounts using his various identities so that they can’t be tracked by the Integrity commission and the law.

Tucker is heartless; in the second place, he has stockpiled heaps of emergency food and supplies received on behalf of ravaged and vulnerable constituents in his office for political gain while there are still hundreds of victims - especially the elderly and the disabled – who desperately hunger for those supplies.

Last week, a random survey by the PowerHouse identified scores of households along the Saltibus-Piaye ridge who were desperately in need for post-Tomas emergency help but were not cared for. There is evidence that some of the food supplies, now being distributed, are no longer fit for human consumption because they have expired. Reliable reports reaching the PowerHouse indicate that some of the rice is infected with mites and that the canned foodstuffs have turned watery; and Tucker is rushing to distribute them from the back of his vehicle to unsuspecting Saltibus residents. The PowerHouse calls on the health authorities to investigate that matter.

Meanwhile, the poor and the vulnerable have been left to wallow in poverty while the food and emergency supplies - which form part of Tucker’s campaign strategy - are left to rotten away. The youth are left stranded with occasional handouts of free Taiwanese “red envelop” bluff money but no sustainable youth employment projects. That probably explains the recent and sudden explosion in crime and violence, for when the youth can’t get free money, they resort to stealing.

This week Tucker got busy in the Saltibus area only after his failed attempts to have Saltibus removed from the Choiseul constituency. So there he was in the area on Wednesday and Thursday this week busy distributing infected supplies which some of the recipients claimed were unworthy of consumption. We will seek to obtain samples which we will submit to the health authorities for analysis.

My worst fear however lies in a warning sounded by the Chamber president, Chester Hinkson. In his address to the Chamber this week, he warned that the nation is sitting on a ticking time bomb of “a decaying society” coupled with “youth unemployment”. If we do not address those problems with a sense of urgency and instead choose to engage the youth in drug-baron type “Good Samaritanism” and block culture, then we should not be surprised when that time bomb blows our society away into pieces.

There is no doubt that Tucker is inimical to our interest, tradition and values; and for the rest of his time in office, we must keep a close eye on him. Failure to do so may leave us with a legacy we will live to regret.

Bousquet scared and on the defensive

We publish Bousquet's Blog latest feature presentation. Naturally, it is saturated with bluffs, lies and the usual "flashing mirrors" stuff which will not surprise you. I will not bother to dissect it as there is nothing to dissect as the article has no substance; just an improvement in the English. The article is titled:

"Is "Character assassination" a campaign strategy for Labour?"

 The simple response to it was emailed to me by blogger and it is so apt:

“. . . nobody is assassinating Bousquet's character; he has assassinated it himself. And just in case, any of the things said about him is false, then he should emulate Lorne and seek resort in a court of law. But I suspect he and the law are enemies.” Email from Anonymous

“Reports/rumours reaching this blog suggests that the campaign strategy for labour is to try to assassinate Bousquet's character up to the next general elections. Their aim is to tell Choiseulians how much of a criminal that Bousquet is. We also learnt that this plan was orchestrated by the top brass of their campaign team. We at this blog are not in a position to prove or disprove these reports.

  Is this all labour has to fight Rufus with for the upcoming elections? Wow! This will not work.  There is nothing new that can be said about the man that we don't know. Rufus will be campaigning strictly on  his "RECORD OF PERFORMANCE" which labour cannot touch.
 It will be interesting  for Choiseulians to  hear what it is  that the Labour's candidate can bring to the table that Bousquet have not brought. Bousquet's performance in the constituency have surpassed every politician that has represented this district over the years. We dare the other side disprove this claim. Bousquet will, after the next election take Choiseul to a higher level... especially in the economic sphere. Keep your eyes peeled.

 Bousquet's campaign will not be dragged down in to  a mud slinging and smearing contest. No way! Bousquet has shown his worth  and will maintain a standard, and the people will make the right choice.

  We have also learnt that the labour's  campaign team has a team of lawyers on the ground monitoring Choiseulians to have them face the courts if anyone speaks about the alleged mishap that the labour candidate had with a female. Is this aiming at silencing us Choiseulians?  Are we going back to the communist days? What is there to lose, that fear must be instilled in potential voters?

   Choiseulians, except during the 1997 elections campaign, have never known intimidation and this time around they will stand up.

Bousquet's campaign has always been clean and simple... never searched for big guns to assist and never went around dishing cash to get votes. This is what makes his campaign stand above the other side's... simple and local people doing simple things to achieve success.
 Let's hope good sense prevails and both side demonsrate a sense competitiveness,reponsibility and respect for each other.”

posted by Logix at 6:25 AM on Feb 2, 2011