'Buckle down & get serious' about VI's management- Cromwell Smith
Speaking on his program on Thursday, November 27, 2025, he stated that all the progress made over the years in leadership and development is at risk.
"It seems to me that Great Britain is moving to take us backwards," Smith remarked, adding, "The areas where we used to develop ourselves are now under threat, and we're losing the ability to recruit the personnel we need in various positions."
Great Britain to control our ports & other authorities
He reflected on the fact that the territory had started recruiting its commissioners of police.
"It looks to me now like they’re trying to remove our ability to have a Chief of Police. Not only that, but to take control of our ports and other authorities, bringing in outside management from Great Britain, particularly to take over these things," he stated.
The territory's autonomy being threatened & curtailed
Smith emphasised the importance of Virgin Islanders understanding the current situation. "When our commission hires the Police Commissioner and recommends her for a permanent position, the Governor can choose to ignore that recommendation and import someone from Great Britain to fill that role. This is serious."
He expressed that he feels the territory's autonomy is being threatened and curtailed.
"We need to really buckle down and get serious about the management of our country," he continued. "We can no longer sit back and say it’s not time for us to take control or that we need to wait another ten years. By the time we decide to take control of the Virgin Islands, it will likely already be in someone else's hands."
Smith concluded, "It will be under British control, and I don't know how many of us want to be in that situation."
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17 Responses to “'Buckle down & get serious' about VI's management- Cromwell Smith”
HIDDEN MINISTERIAL SALARY RISES
MINIMUM WAGE REDUCTIONS
NO TRADE COMMISSION
NO WHISTLEBLOWER ACT
NO FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
NO REFERENDUM
NO GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT FOR 8 YEARS
NO ADMINSTRATION BUILDING
NO ACCESSIBLE ARCHIVES
NO TOWN LIBRARY
DECREPIT ROADS
LIMITED WATER
FAILING ELECTRICTY
SUBSTANDARD COMMUNICATIONS
LOST $MILLIONS
HONOURED CRIMINAL PREMIER IN PRISON
Wake up it not the UK doing this.
Management is not the same as leadership. They are different sides to the same coin. Nonetheless, in addition to effective management, principled, visionary, effective, strong etc, leadership.
H.L. Stoutt had with him some persons who were not the strongest soldiers, but they were faithful, honest, with a strong love for country and their people. And he had a vision for this country and when the leader is a doer and thinks futuristically, the other Ministers excel as well as they feed off of that energy. We have to stop playing politics and personal bull shiggidy with this country or we will lose it. And for those of you who thinks UK should ride in here and take over this country, all I have to say is all of you probably have UK passports. So go to the UK because that is the place for you. No UK takeover in this country. We have come too far. We have worked too hard without UK's help and now these young people are steadfastly destroying the grounds gained and our massive successes and taking us backwards. Let us think and look carefully and save our country, please, before it is too late. The next Government has to be serious, not desperate, not overly hungry for power, but a quiet worker who day by day we will see the gains of his hardwork. God is with us.
Indeed, the team is green with limited public sector governing experience. Experience has to be earned in time. We are confusing education, higher education, etc., with experience. The Greatest Gen , early Boomer, etc, leaders ran their leg of growth, development, etc, relatively well. However , there was one chink in the armour, ie, lack of effective succession planning, along with other long -term national development planning. The BVI is being governed by the seat of its pants, on the fly, etc., if you will. It seems that the right hand does not knowi what the left is doing. Other commentators have suggested that the BVI needs to operate from a codified national development plan, which should have been voted on, approved by voters. It is chaotic,unproductive , costly, foolhardy, for every government coming to power to develop its own national development plan. Where have the experience leaders gone?
As noted earlier, poor succession planning in regards to national leaders put the BVI in this unenviable situation.How can it be fix inhouse? A strong cadre of strong,,experienced, effective, unselfish, public-interest focused, country first, second, third, etc., leaders need to emerge.l urgently. In addition to this cadre of leaders, unity, group effort, shedding meritorious manumission, crab-in- bucket syndrome, appeasement, self-discrimination, dependency , political patronage,etc.; planning, organizing, etc must be part of the urgent transformation.