Pier Project was NDP's ticket to return to power - Court told
It was unearthed in Court that the controversial Ports Development Project was treated, as the NDP ticket for their re-election efforts according to information revealed by Skelton-Cline's Attorney Tana'ania Small-Davis of Jamaica.
In January of 2015, the BVI Ports Authority Board passed a resolution recommending that Mr. Skelton-Cline contract be renewed and it was then advanced to the Minister for Communications and Works Hon. Mark H. Vanterpool (R4) for Cabinet blessings.
The former Managing Director was already promised by two government Ministers, one allegedly being Hon. Vanterpool, that his contract will be renewed.
NDP election ticket the Ports Project
Mr. Skelton-Cline was one of the driving forces behind the ports project now referred to as the Tortola Pier Project. However, in 2015 according to information in open court, ministers of the NDP regime wanted to know whether the cruise pier project had progress enough where they could call for general elections.
Attorney Small-Davis also added that the NDP "wanted to know the delivery date of the project in the context of them wishing to call general elections".
Once the Cabinet was satisfied after assurance from the Managing Director, the Project had an extravagant opening ceremony on April 29, 2015, with much fanfare costing taxpayers some $110,000 plus dollars, notwithstanding the true costs of the opening ceremony remains unclear.
Within a week of the ceremony, Premier and President of the NDP, Dr. the Honourable D. Orlando Smith (AL) advised Governor John S. Duncan, OBE to dissolve the House of Assembly and set elections for June 8, 2015.
The snap election caught the Opposition Virgin Islands Party off guard and the NDP won in a landslide with 11 out of 13 seats. According to Skelton-Cline's Attorney, this victory was because of the good works her client had done in delivering the ports facility. She told the court "it was communicated to him that in fact, it was the cruise pier park project that won the elections".
Skelton-Cline left in the cold
Ms. Small-Davis told the court that her client "even though not under contract continued to show up to work until December 7, 2015."
The Court also heard that after the back and forth over the contract and having learnt the request for the renewal was pulled from the Cabinet agenda by Premier Smith , Mr. Skelton -Cline received a phone call from a "Minister" who told him the contract could not be renewed because it wasn't in "the Territory's interest".
In Court, the State did not dispute any of the facts presented by Ms. Small-Davis, however, those facts do not mean that Mr. Skelton-Cline has a valid legal claim against the Government, according to senior Crown Counsel Giselle Jackman-Lumy.
The Crown Speaks
She said that the claimant is no different from any "other applicant seeking the post and it mattered not if he held the post previously".
The Senior Crown Counsel indicated that the arguments might have been stronger if there was no Ports Authority and if Cabinet was the employer.
Jackman-Lumy was up to page 3 of her 13-page argument, and the trial will continue on July 4, 2017.
While this did not form part of the court's record, on April 12, 2016, Governor Duncan told reporter Zan Lewis of ZBVI 780 AM Radio Station that Cabinet had “taken a decision not to renew the contract of Mr. Skelton-Cline.”
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36 Responses to “Pier Project was NDP's ticket to return to power - Court told”
The Pier Park is still a disaster no matter how you cut it. And Cline has been self-important and over-paid for
years. He wasn't qualified then and he isn't qualified now. But his testimony will go a long way towards
audit and investigation.