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Hon. Fraser chides Walwyn on speech writer allegations
This time the rookie Minister once again used the valuable opportunity offered to speak in the House of Assembly on the debate of a Motion of No Confidence to attack the Honourable Julian Fraser RA and the Marketing Manager of Advance Marketing and Professional Services, Mr John E. Leonard, who Walwyn falsely alleged was Hon. Fraser’s speech writer.
Hon. Fraser once again strongly rebuked the Education Minister, through the Speaker of the House, for accusing him of owning a media house and having a speech writer.
On one occasion Walwyn was attempting to justify his reasons for hiring a $96,000 speech writer. “…I am a lawyer by profession, of course I know how to write a speech, do I have the time to write it, no. I have to be out there making sure that the children who are in school, that we are developing policies and that they are working to help those children. I learn that the member for the Third have somebody writing speeches…,” alleged Walwyn.
It was at this juncture that Hon. Fraser interjected, “Madam Speaker, Madam Speaker, Madam Speaker, the Member for the Third has no one that writes his speeches from the time immemorial I write my own speeches so don’t come here with that,” cautioned Hon. Fraser.
But again Hon. Walwyn insisted on casting even more false malicious allegations at the veteran Member for the Third District. “The member read on the news that horses broke their legs because of this, I read on the news, his news site that John Leonard writes his speeches,” alleged the Education Minister.
Hon. Fraser immediately interjected again to put the Minister in order. “Madam Speaker as far as I know I don’t recall anywhere anyone has made such a dumb statement maybe they said that they use themselves as clearing house to get documents out but write my speeches! I don’t think so and besides I don’t own a website, please stop it, stop it.”
The former Minister for Communications and Works strongly warned, “Madam Speaker, at this particular moment I am going to tell you that I am warning the Minister for Education and Culture because I don’t want to get on in this house and I think that it is high time that he stop it. He has been doing it for quite some time and getting away with it and I am telling you Madam speaker in this house, it can get hot up in here if the Minister for Education and Culture don’t stop it,” Hon. Fraser stated emphatically.
Many residents believe that Hon. Walwyn continues to misuse his Parliamentary privileges to cast aspersions on other members and attack one particular media organisation and its staff.
However, remarks given by any Member in the House of Assembly against the ordinary citizens cannot be challenged in the courts of law despite how outrageous and false the information may be.
Myron Walwyn forced to Apologise
Speaker of the House, Hon. Ingrid A. Moses-Scatliffe cautioned that the latter statement of Hon. Fraser should go both ways as she sought to bring the House to order. However, the Education and Culture Minister continued, “If I said something wrong, that is not accurate, I apologize Madam Speaker.”
This caused Hon. Fraser to rise again. “Madam Speaker there you go again. The Minister for Education and Culture knows fully well that he said something that was wrong and not factual.”
Minister Walwyn uses public purse to pay speech writer
Virgin Islands News Online was the first to accurately break the news in May of this year that the Education Minister hired a speech writer, who will be paid from the public purse. The Firm, Barnes PR Public Relations Agency, belongs to former civil servant Sachkia Barnes- a Guyanese national married to a local.
Over a two year period, the firm will rake in some ninety six thousand dollars ($96,000) with $4,000 to be paid each month.
This fee, according to the contract obtained by this news site, does not include the cost to produce additional elements of communications plans or execution of work assigned such as advertising, photography, event planning and management, web design and or video, audio and print productions.
The firm, which is being paid from the government purse, reports directly to the Minister and some of the duties include writing speeches for Minister Walwyn, advising him on public relations strategies, effective communication and marketing, advising the Minister on social media strategies, and providing expertise on image creation, and branding to name a few.
The Public Relations Contract is also to assess and recommend improvements of the Ministry’s crisis communications plans.
In the proposal attached to the petty contract MEC/03P/2012 by the consultant, the firm is expected to “in addition, the position acts as a relationship manager with political, public, media, government and private stakeholders to formulate and implement strategic communications.”
It is also unclear what is the relationship between the Communications Advisor Ms Barnes and the role of the Government Information Officer (GIS) at the Ministry of Education and Culture. Each Ministry has a GIS Officer who sits within Ministries and acts as a media advisor to Ministers of Government and Permanent Secretaries.
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48 Responses to “Hon. Fraser chides Walwyn on speech writer allegations”
Give it a rest for a little while nuh.
With this said, ... Why all the bickering, the insults, no sense of reasoning, lack of the inner want for the real reasoning behind things? This is only dividing a former close Knit Community even further. We can't continue being so quick to disrepect each other. That comes with only negative result. Lets stop looking 4 ft away and look decades ahead as a whole to better all of our futures.
It stabs me in the heart when I hear such filth