Colonialist CoI aiming to suspend VI constitution & impose direct rule– Thomas C. Famous
Appearing as a guest of the ‘Honestly Speaking’ show of July 1, 2021, on ZBVI 780 AM, Mr Famous said the CoI under sole commissioner Gary R. Hickinbottom is also using old slavery tactics to paint Virgin Islands' politicians as all corrupt, to justify their need for the UK to step in and impose direct rule.
UK's play is to divide & conquer - Famous
“I'm saying to all people, do not get sidetracked because you don't like NDP, do not get sidetracked because you don't like VIP… their play on this is divide and conquer, look at the big picture,” Mr Famous said in a plea to the people of the Virgin Islands (VI).
“If you want to continue the success of our islands, you have to stand up against the CoI because this CoI is colonialism redefined. I'm hoping and praying that all people understand this message,” he said.
According to Mr Famous, part of the reason for the CoI is that the UK is looking to impose public registers of beneficial ownership, same-sex marriages and UK citizens having voting rights.
“Once they whip us… and our own people are condemning us and they suspend the constitution, then they can now without having to go to parliament... impose same-sex marriage, that their citizens can vote and they can go one step further, they can impose that their citizen can run for parliament in this country,” he said.
Global Britain mandate will be imposed
He said other impositions will come such as public registers of beneficial ownership, “that’s the end game of what’s going on here, they don’t care about who is in power,” he said.
Famous said regarding old slavery tactics, once direct rule has been imposed on the VI, the territory will be used as an example to other OTs, just as defiant slaves were made an example of during slavery and colonialism.
“Play ball and this is going to be you next. Remember the British play the long games, they cannot come down here and send their ship into Road Town with guns and say that we are going to kill you,” he said.
CoI tarnishing reputations
Mr Famous continued that the CoI has started a domino effect to tarnish the reputation of persons and then divide the territory.
“When we as black Caribbean people keep our money within our own economic circles and our people are able to progress from working class to middle class to expand, it’s a problem,” he said.
Mr Famous, in a sound warning to the people of the VI, said: “Do not be fooled by big words and fancy speaking English people, they mean us no good.”
Does the UK really care for the VI?
The words of Mr Famous strengthens sentiments expressed by many in the Virgin Islands who remember that the territory was abandoned as a bird sanctuary by the British but the people toiled to establish the VI as one of the jewels of the Caribbean.
Many remember too that when hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated the Virgin Islands in 2017, the UK only offered the VI a loan guarantee that made it almost impossible for the VI to significantly borrow for rebuilding without violating the Protocols for Effective Financial Management.
Additionally, when the global pandemic struck, the VI Government requested financial assistance from the UK for persons made unemployed or made to work reduced hours; however, the UK told the VI to use its own money as it had sufficient.
On top of all of that, the UK found it convenient to call a Commission of Inquiry into governance in the VI in the height of the pandemic when its own [UK] government has been dodging a CoI into its handling of the pandemic, citing it as being an ill-opportune time.
There now continues to be growing concerns about the motives of the CoI.
Influential clergyman, Bishop John I. Cline, has said any attempts of a UK takeover will meet stiff resistance.
Many in the Virgin Islands believe while there are many areas that need to be improved in government, there have been significant strides made by the territory in its young democracy and the UK's role should be to help the VI to improve on governance rather than set the territory back on its road to achieving more self-autonomy.
Additionally, the UK in its commitment to the United Nations should help the VI to achieve independence; however, many past and current legislators, as well as political pundits, have agreed that the UK has not been fulfilling that responsibility.
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41 Responses to “Colonialist CoI aiming to suspend VI constitution & impose direct rule– Thomas C. Famous”
Believe it or not our leaders help to put us in this position
No, I think the British specialty is to make false promises to we the people, and then divide and conquer. Like they did to the Indians sects. In a way, that is what they are trying here. They promise to help us get good governance (which I admit we need).
Next is to get the Auditor General and the Complaints Commissioners to do a hatchet job on the government. Then they come in and finish off our financial industry.
Only problem is that the Complaints Commissioner is screwed-up in the head and so she has turned instead to attack the British. Which is the only good thing she has done, without knowing why.
Now it’s here at the most impractical time when we have to deal with Covid-19
There is a time and place for everything and for us all to run along NOW and say this is for our best interest is absolutely foolish
Britain is kicking us while we are down.
Sending ships to create drama, exposing large drug bust with opportune timing and sending pictures to UK media houses of internal police pictures of the crime scenes.
All this while the police are under the direct portfolio of the UK governor.
Not to mention those drugs were carted off why they don’t do a COI into where the drugs were shipped out to be destroyed.
Ain’t that something ‘we the people’ should be demanding to see?
We demand to see every thing else now a days except what the UK is really up to!!
The joke is on us.
Former slave masters and human rights abusers at the institutional level. Facts.
We give them a pass because they have us brain washed to believe can do no wrong.
They are hypocritics. Face with their own COI they said their facing Covid and it’s not the time. Well shit a COI during Covid will kill public confidence in their government.
They don’t do it to themselves yet want to do it to us to whom they owe a debt they do not recognize. They act as if we owe them.
No matter how they sweep it under the rug and twist the truth to appear as a saintly as possible
We will not forget and we will be vigilant to their underhanded condescending behavior.
Our people are still brainwashed by these people. They do not care ANYTHING about us or the BVI.
Ayo hate the VIP government so bad that you willing to sell out like the slaves in the big house did to the field slaves.
adverse to steps being taken to stop the rampant pillaging of the resources of the country for the benefit of a few
Please do some research. It is the British who are persecuting our fomer Premier, not the government.
What are the charges?
Was it theft of public funds?
Was it an abuse of power?
No the charges is that he gave a contract to Lehey Clinic in Boston.
10 years of investigation at a cost of $10mill USD to charge a medical doctor with setting up the ability to send patients to an overseas hospital for cardiac and other serius mdical issues.
Nonetheless, it’s myopic to pretend that the institution of colonialism and the institution of slavery were long ago and the slate can be wiped clean with no lingering impacts. That belief is far from the truth. Simply, colonialism was birth to rob far flung places of their resources to build wealth and boost the economies of the home countries of the colonizers. Colonialism was exploitive and extractive, benefitting only the colonizers. The raping of the country(s) of its resources was at the expense of the people, ie, indigenous and others. Further, the infrastructure in the colonies was constructed to facilitate the plantation economy for export, not to benefit the country(s) and its people. In addition to the foregoing, colonialism impacts also included a) political and legal domination, b)racial and cultural superiority, and c)political and economic dependency.
Moreover, resources depleted and opportunities dried up, the colonial countries set adrift the colonies unprepared for independence. Look up and down the Caribbean for evidence and cost of the unpreparedness. Many countries are facing domestic and international challenges to surmount power relationships of former colonizers. And to add cocobay pun top ah yaws, neocolonialism has replaced colonialism as the modern version of colonialism.
Moreover, colonialism bred slavery, brutality and death. Colonialism at its birth and still is about control. Slaves were brutes, heathens, chattel and dangerous people that had to be controlled. “The Barbados Slave Code of 1661 was one of first ratified act on how to control slaves: “An Act for the better ordering and governing of Negroes, was a law passed by colonial English legislature to provide a legal basis for slavery in the Caribbean island of Barbados.” The Act didn’t provide slaves the basic rights provided under English Common Law. Other jurisdictions adopted/adapted codes similar to Barbados’.
The chattel status of slaves provided for a superiority status and attitude among colonizers. They promoted that they matter more. They believed in the corrupted dogma that they had the divine right to rule over slaves/Blacks. They conscripted science to purport that in social Darwinism that racial hierarchy was natural. Virgin Islanders better unite and stay woke for the greater and public good. Failure may result in another stay in subjugation.