Lawyer Jomo Thomas, in the weekly column Plain Talk, stated that along with a vote of no confidence against the sitting regime, there must be a constitutional motion challenging how the government intends to conduct the next general elections.
The next elections in St Vincent are due by December 2025.
The constituencies to watch are North Windward and Southern Grenadines. North Windward may witness a massive shifting of voters from North Central Windward. But the Southern Grenadines is the constituency where a monumental constitutional travesty is about to occur.
“After Hurricane Beryl, a significant section of the population living on Union Island was forced to move. Most of their homes were severely damaged or destroyed, and many came to live and work on the mainland.”
“Many masons, carpenters, and labourers were enlisted to rebuild and rehabilitate the Southern Grenadines. According to the Supervisor of Elections, they will be allowed to vote there. Interestingly, the election supervisor claims that new voters, particularly young voters, must return to the disaster zone to register to vote.”
Those temporarily resident on the mainland may be compelled to return to the hurricane-ravaged Southern Grenadines to cast their vote, Thomas stated.
“As Justice Gerhardt Wallbank said in the Vaccine Mandate Case, the Constitution remains in full effect even when the government refuses to engage the emergency powers outlined in section 17 of the Constitution. Therefore, how can a government that has never had a chance to win either of the Grenadines’ seats now salivate over the possibility of winning there? Only undemocratic and illegal machinations explain this saga.”
Tomas said in addition to the Representation of the People’s Act, the Constitution, emergency powers, and the Boundaries Commission are all in play here.
“Any notion that only the Representation of the People’s Act governs the situation in the Southern Grenadines is misinformed, ill-advised, unlawful, ultra vires and unconstitutional. It amounts to gerrymandering on the part of the government. The government’s sinister plot is to slow the rehab process so that people may be reluctant to return to the scene of trauma, with the hope that their candidate may just snag a narrow victory. Such a stratagem must not be allowed to stand. Therefore, an urgent appeal should be made to the court to block this assault on our good governance and democratic best practices.”
Thomas, in his column, said as the ULP approaches the next elections, its most important asset is its control of the national purse.
“Its most important asset is its control of the national purse. It does not have a convincing narrative. The disgusting arrogance and pomposity of its leader are increasingly laid bare before the voting public. More are recoiling from a leader and party that have outlived their usefulness,” Thomas said.