Attorney Henry Shillingford doesn’t think Dominica should be engaged at this stage in a hunt for a new head of state.
President Nicholas Liverpool’s second term ends next year and it’s thought that he could leave before then because of ill health.
The Sun newspaper has published a list of five individuals it says are being considered for the position, with Integrity Commission Chairman Julian Johnson and ROSS University professor Dr Gerald Grell said to be the two front runners.
But Shillingford says the country should have a different priority, because “Dominica as a sovereign state is invalid”.
“In today’s world 65 thousand people do not have the human resources to operate a valid state,” Henry told DNO, referring to the island’s small population.
He says the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), with its one currency and one court has far too many parliamentarians, compared to the rest of the world.
Shillingford says the six islands with a combined population of 625,000 have 120 parliamentarians, compared to Trinidad and Tobago which has 1.5 million people and 42 MPs.
He argues that in England’s case that country’s over 60 million people are represented by 600 parliamentarians.
Refuting the argument of separate islands requiring the level of representation existing in the sub-region, the attorney points to Indonesia which has “over 5000 islands, 200 million people – one government”.
“We are the most over-represented place on earth, what do we need all these politicians for,” he queried.
According to the attorney each prime minister’s office costs about $5 million a year, and each governor general/president’s office about $3 million annually.
He says the islands could avoid those costs by having one head of government and one head of state.
“None of these states raise from their tax base any money to do a capital project, all capital projects are grants or loans. In other words, all monies raised by the state goes to paying recurrent costs, which is paying for guys’ jobs,” Henry said in support of his position.
The outspoken attorney says his argument is more a case of being pragmatic than wanting to advance the case of political integration in the OECS.
Meanwhile the search continues for a successor for President Nicholas Liverpool.
I almost never drop responses, but after looking at through a few of
And, if you are posting at
the remarks on this page Dominica invalid – Shillingford | Dominica News Online.
I do have a few questions for you if you tend not to mind.
Is it simply me or do a few of the remarks look like
they are coming from brain dead folks?
additional sites, I’d like to keep up with you. Would you list of every one of all your public pages like your twitter feed, Facebook page
or linkedin profile?
That is a positive suggestion Mr. Shillingford. I suggest you copy your letter/concern or even prepare a paper for all the heads of government, the OECS Secretary general Lyn Ishmael and Sir Dwight venor, suggest to the Kiwanis club to use that subject as the topic for their next debate and start the discussion rolling. Even if we dont see it in our life time Mr. Shillingford, you will have initiated a debate that will truly be in the interests of the OECS union. I SUPPORT THE IDEA.
My Brother, with you 100%… i hope you’ve already started writing the language of that Referendum… the only problem is Skerro already building the Palace so that might be a problem
mr shillingford, this is the best i have heard coming from you, deep and profound…… but they will not listen, business as usual. NEXT PRESIDENT
Please someone educate me. I thought that Dominica had a constitution that designate it as a “Republic” which means that The Queen is no longer the head of our country. To me a president is nothing more than a substitute for the king/queen. I just might be wrong about this.
I for one never like to listen to that man, really he disgusts me but this time, he is making a lot of sense. we do not need a President, to me this president especially is like a paper tiger, just there eating tax payers money, i have to wake up in the morning and go to work to pay taxes for mister to just sit down and have a good time and travel first class? boy we dont need any president, but on the other hand…… the malice already being prepared for the nex one!!! woy.. lets see who going there. look we going to send a non-public servant to live in England on our head again…
injustice and unfair Well-loved. Like or Dislike: 21 1April 16, 2012
I always wonder about that president position. And I am glad someone else think the same. What is really the significance of a president. What is his/her job? I never here of the president doing anything’ or invlove in anything. The prime minister who does everything, runs the country, make all decisions so what really is the purpose of a president. can someone tell me? Cause all I know is a bunch of OLD Retired Men just sitting there making a steady income. need an explanation
Henry has a valid point, whether or not you like the man personally. With regards to Antigua’s development, we cannot ignore its terrain and a free military base and airstrip during World War II.
Dominica was never this lucky. Our rugged terrain deters investment because of high cost of construction, a small population and a lack of proper air access to the island. Until we solve these problems, we will continue moving around in circles.
I will always ask what is the purpose of the President?
Dominica way too small to be having a ceremonial President. This is a direct drain on the resources of the country.
It is high time to change that Constitution.
Mr Shillingford, kudos to you for pointing out the glaring fact that these small population countries would be better managed in a federation or as the OECS, as it is. With just water as the only natural resouce and a marginally educated majority, alot can be achieved if they can pool their meagre resources and bring some quality life to the masses. Overpresented! You hit the nail on its head! And by whom? – poorly educated and poorly trained politicians, who seem more self-serving and proudly reveling in their failure to evoke enough national pride in our people to bring about a (pick a season/color) revolution in that part of the world.
OH Henry ! Do you want also beat the ears of the Président ?
There are facts and there are facts. Henry is posing some very favourable arguments. Some disagree, many agree; and all we can do is just talk, talk, and more talk. So I will add my penny ha’penny. Nothing can materialize from these arguments unless The Government of Dominica changes/amends the current constitution!
To effect this change we need to bring this to the forefront as a major element in the next general election. Dominica is still a democratic country, and a referendum, however it is allowed within the current constitution, can still be a major force in steering the Nation with the will of the people.
So, therefore, political individuals seeking election can have a specific component on their Ticket; for example:
(a) – When I am elected I will champion legislation for eliminating the position of President. (And list reasons)
Till then all we can do is just talk! And as Dominicans we can do that so well. Call me Crazy if you want but that’s the truth – plain and simple.
Crazy you missing the point of the lawyer. Its not this president or the next one. The point is that the Dominica and the other OECS governments should agree to have one government. That making a lot of sense. We just have to work out the proper format. Most of the things are already in place. That makes some sense if we truly want to be integrated
Let the people decide as to what direction the country should take. I am all for change.
I am happy that this president nonsense and foolishness in poor and struggling economies like ours is generating so much debate.At least Dominicans eyes are beginning to open on this one.
The Role of The President
The functions of the President are prescribed by the Constitution.
As the ceremonial Head of the State, the President is, as it were, the embodiment of the State, the esteemed non-party representative of the nation as a whole. He has to carry through many ceremonial duties, including visits to various institutions and parts of the country, and attendance at many functions where a symbol of unity is required to be displayed. When Heads of other States or distinguished representatives of other countries visit this country, he receives and entertains them. There is also the conferring of honours and the hosting of social functions, which are attended by people of all walks of life.
The most important political act of a President is undoubtedly that of the appointment of a Prime Minister.
Source: http://presidentoffice.gov.dm
I am not for that president thing,unless i can see dor myself this person is working in anf for the interest of the country. I have not known many presidents,but to this day i have been asking the question. Do we really require a president?
let dominicans vote on it ,let this president be the last one.
aaaaaaaaaay
allu Francisco telemarque sot. trying to sound smart. what a jack-in-the-box (doh want DNO to censor me.) ha
boss i wonder who u be.
Perhaps we should ask Her Majesty the Queen if She could make us Her 17th Commonwealth Realm.
It’s a shame that Dominica didn’t become a Realm but went straight to become a Republic. We’re the odd one in the OECS!
A brain on ganga = madman!!!
Dominica does not need a president. What is a president’s annual salary? What does his/her benefits/allowandes amount to?
Give me/us a list of the things that he /she does.How many poor people could be employed with this salary and other bemnefits etc.?
DOMINICA DOES NOT NEED A PRESIDENT. IT’S A SIN AND A WASTE TO SEE SO MANY POOR people struggling and a man/woman just sitting on his butt doing virtually nothing and living like a king. A WASTE!
Well maybe Henry is on to something. What if the Secretary General of the OECS is made the head of state of the union and all the seven states are saved the cost of seven heads of state and governors general?
Small population. Big Big Govt. Ministers and advisers for so. President as ‘Head of State’ without power. Power is vested in the Leader of the Party in Govt. What really is the purpose, work of the President? The PM or other Cabinet members could not be sanctioned by the President (Head of State) for engaging in illegal or corrupt acts.
With all those Ministers and advisers, the economy is in serious decline, the country is not making money, unemployment on the rise, crimes escalating, standard of living getting worse and the country is in a begging state dependent amost totally on aid from foreign countries.
Those colonial set ups, that ceremonial position of President, coupled with Big Govt., Big salaries for inefficiencies with nothing to show, must be revisited. The majority will always suffer the brunt of that wastage of tax payers hard earned money.
DNO should CONDUCT A POLL On this issue. Would be interesting to see the results.
I would vote for no president at all. Not in poor island states like ours. That is a rip off. Look at the type of people who are vying for presidency. They already have.
I am throwing my scarcastic support behind Alix Boyd Knight- Dominica really deserve some one like her to compliment Roosevelt
In reality if Alix Boyd knight becomes Prez she will be less powerful than she is now. A president is basically a quiet robot of the PM. In her present post she gets to obstruct and derail the opposition, if she becomes prez that will be one less problem for the opposition
I always wonder about that president position. And I am glad someone else think the same. What is really the significance of a president. What is his/her job? I never here of the president doing anything’ or invlove in anything. The prime minister who does everything, runs the country, make all decisions so what really is the purpose of a president. can someone tell me? Cause all I know is a bunch of OLD Retired Men just sitting there making a steady income. need an explanation.
Today The Sun says and everyone runs with it.
Tomorrow the Sun has to unsay, and we would have reached nowhere.
say, say, say, unsay, unsay, unsay, true, untrue. smh.
“In today’s world 65 thousand people do not have the human resources to operate a valid state,” Henry told DNO, referring to the island’s small population.” (Shillingford).
I wonder if Shillingford is in his right mind?
Something seems wrong with this guy; there are nations in the world with less than sixty-five thousand people, which are more progressive than Dominica!
The people are much wealthier , and enjoy a higher standard of living than we will ever experience in Shillingford’s Dominica.
Perhaps this guy should do himself a favor by doing some research on the subjects that he wants to babble about before he starts talking nonsense!
Someone need to introduce him to a very small place such as Luxemburg: there are other places I can draw to his attention, nonetheless I might be wasting my time, since the mind of this guy seems to clouded.
Some of us Dominicans wake up high on all sorts of ridiculous substance, and talk crap in order to try to get some recognition after finding ourselves on the path of self-destruction.
The fact is once we take that ride on the river of no return, no amount of rubbish we spew will gain us any form of recognition.
Time for a change, since the Rastaman, and Dread era did not enter the twenty-first century!
Who in Dominica is listening to that man, and the crap he is spewing?
I do not believe even he is listing to the nonsense that come out of his mouth.
I would hope that we still maintain an asylum in Dominica, if not it is time we build one!
You know something like a mad house.
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
Oh be quiet. Nothing you have said disputes the man’s argument.
Dude you are such a baboon. Really foolish with your nonsensical rants!
Did you read what he said
He said 65000 people cannot maintain the amount of politicians we have
He questions the necessity for a president when the president has no clear duties
BTW just so you know
Luxemburg has a population of over 500,000
source – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luxembourg
Okay Winston, the population of Luxemburg must have grown since the last time I was there, and that was about 1976 however, if we forget about the population of Luxemburg, that still does not validate the nonsense that Shillingford is talking.
In that case he might be assuming that we cannot function as a nation of only sixty-five thousand people, the head count does not matter, that has nothing to do with development and prosperity, or how effective a government runs the affairs of the people.
So, let us make comparisons between Antigua, and Dominica. The last time I check, there was less than a hundred thousand people on the island of Antigua, as a matter of fact, between 1970, and 1989, more than twenty-eight thousand native born Antiguan left Antigua for greener pastures, they were replaced by Dominicans.
I do not believe there is a hundred thousand people residing in Antigua as of today, I might be wrong I do not know.
My point is prior to that vast migration, there was never a hundred thousand people residing on that island, yet, Antigua was; and still is a more highly developed place than Dominica
So much so, Antigua have always had a Governor, whereas we always had an administrator, ever wonder why if you are aware of that arrangement?
The statement that sixty-five thousand people cannot support all the politicians may have made sense if he said there are too many government ministers in the country, I for one do not believe that we need more than five actual ministries anyway!
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
It’s ironic that mr. Telemaque picked the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg to demonstrate how a small nation can prosper on its own. On the contrary Luxembourg has benefitted enormously from pooling resources, uniting with other nations with a common interests as far back as 1948, first as a member of Benelux, (Belgium, The Netherlands & Luxembourg) on a supranational basis,the ECSC (European Coal & Steel Community), which it joined in 1951 (under the Benelux aegis)with W.Germany, France and Italy,subsequently the EEC and today as one of the oldest members of the EU. Combined with an advantageous tax regime it is exactly this commitment to economic, judicial and political integretation that allowed Luxembourg to attain a level of prosperity, it would never have been able to do on its own.
In 1976 when francisco claims to have visited luxembourg its population was 361,000 people. So his bigoted argument is totally useless and out of place.
Mr. Telemacque, as a RastaWOMan, I am highly offended by your comment: “Time for a change, since the Rastaman, and Dread era did not enter the twenty-first century!”
Normally, you seem to have intelligent (if not balanced/objective) views on subjects pertaining to nationhood. However, this one, for all the VALID points Mr. Shillingford made, seems to evoke what seems like a personal attack from you.
Why should his religion be a point in your comment? Do you attack other contributors based on their religious beliefs?
I’m not sure if you have some inner dislike/hatred for Rastas, but I hope by reading the other comments, in which most people (I’m sure Rasta and non-Rasta alike) agree that Mr. Shillingford makes several good points, you will reconsider your position.
Also, I am sure within Dominica and the Caribbean (the world, really) you will find many people who do not share the values, goals, dreams that you would consider to be representative of the “21st century”. Would you find it constructive to extend your comment to the Catholics, Kalinagos, Youth, non-Middle Eastern?! I hope in the future you will refrain from targeting any groups of people as I am sure you aware of how damaging stereo-typing can be! It is that attitude (intolerance, tribalistic) that is actually backwards. And, it is most frightening to any nation’s development when the “educated/intelligent” amongst us fall victim to such base tendencies.
You should apologize.
Sometimes I apologize when it becomes necessary, in this case I said nothing that I need to apologize for, all I can say is that I wish you did not take it as personal, since it is not my intention to offend you or even my biological brothers and sisters who themselves are so called Rastaman and Woman.
Now do not be surprise if I tell you my late sister Barbara, who passed in February of this year, died with dredge, or Rasta Woman hair on her head you see!
And if you go to New Jersey right now you will find one of my brothers, and a sister with Rasta, and Raster woman hair on their head, they however, does not consider been Raster’s a religion, because it is not!
And by the way my sister, the dead Rasta, was in the seventies!
So, I am not knocking it because I don’t know, if you go in Wesley right now most of the Rasta’s you see the mention my name to them and see how they react just say (Son), all who hold up a hand might be my Nice’s and Nephews!
Do not take it personal, it may have came out wrong the way I said it, but it was not intended to be personal, and surely I have no cause to attack Shillingford see, ( cause him is big attorney eh, an I doth have monny to pay in court oui)!
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah!
I must give you some credit though for seeing past politics.
indeed my business is not to play politics, and I always try to be fair in anything I say or do, you have discovered that; you seem to be a very keen reader unlike many, that is a very good trait you possess!
Have a happy day now.
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
wow ………wow again…. omg I wish dominica had a few more people like you….you comment is like brain food…
Stop talking garbage your fool.Respect Mr Shillingford and his belief if you want people to take you seriously. Did you understood what you read? Or maybe someone read it to you? Call someone else to read it over for you and stop your foolishness.
Luxembourg
Population: 511,000
Seats in Government: 60
How rude are you!!!!!! I don’t know Henry Shillingford personally, but he has stated his opinion and made points which seem quite logical to me. You acuse him of not doing enough research but in a further text you admit your comparisons to Luxemburg was not accurate and had not been researched by you since 1976! Your comments about nonsence, being high on substances and building an asylum just shows you in a bad light and comes across as personal and petty – as you can see the majority of readers don’t agree with you.
shutup jackass
You seem hung up on the ‘invalid’ part of the statement.
You should try looking at the point that is being made otherwise.
From experience, it may be that the writer chose that phrase to headline the story when that really was not the gist of Mr. Shillingford’s point.
But the gist is clear if you get past the initial statement and take in what he says following…
1 + 1 = 2
PRESIDENT + IN DOMINICA = EATING TAX PAYERS MONEY .
END OF STORY.
you brighten my day
I DO SUPPORT THIS VALID POINT AND I TOO THINK THAT THE CEREMONIAL HEAD OF STATE IS A COMPLETE WASTE OF MONEY.
THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH PERSONALITIES.
IF WE ARE GOING TO HAVE A PRESIDENT, LET IT BE THE REAL THING AND LET US VOTE FOR HIM.
That is what the Dominica Freedom Party recommended back in 1977 before independence. But people shoved it aside and said DFP was against independence. We would have been better off with an elected President.
Even the Kalinago Territory has it right. A seperate election for the chief and another election for the council. The chief then chairs the meetings.
So we could elect a President by popular vote with Dominica as one constituency. And then The President could chair meetings of the House of Assemebly and do the work of the Speaker in a balanced way. Get rid of the Speaker and the President has work to do apart from attending functions. Case solved.
Attorney Shillingford is right regardless what you think of his statement.
Case & point; The founding fathers of the U.S. more than two hundred years ago, wrote in the constitution, that the number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty thousand (30k) people. Domininca’s big government is a key contributor in fleecing the country.
I could not agree more with Mr. Shillingford. The problem is that our politicians are too selfish, narrow-minded and greedy to take him seriously!
WE WANT A GRASSROOTS president no freaking bourgeosie
stick to the solid blackman policy
I never thought this lawyer could reason this way as he always seems to be outspoken for the wrong reasons. I really love his point of view this time around.
replace president with governor general, will bring about the same wasteful spending…reality check…the post doesn’t contribute in any way towards income earning…strictly ceremonial aka…income spending…but who is to decide whether it goes or stays….idk!
You are so correct, Mr. Shillingford !
Good observation, good story; in the not too distant future, this will become an acute problem for us.
This is one of the main reasons why we need to grasp the OECS concept, a unified region with central governance.
I do not always share your point of view, but you are almost sport on with this one.
DNO conduct a poll! should we continie with the office of president or not?
with all due respect i think that the time has come where we review that Presidency. I think we can do without a President. Face it people, our president is a ceremonial President and that speaks for itself. the constitution does not really allow our president to be part of the decision and policy makings in our land, only to append a signature and do not forget the huge salary which goes with the position. Review the sonstitution which deals with that noooooooow!
A president in Dominica from where i sit is a total waste of money. Even in instances when a president has to educate the populace, you hear nothing from him/her. Most are political symbols,and just live in luxury without delivering anything significant to the state.
IN COUNTRIES LIKE OURS HAVING A PRESIDENT IS A WASTE OF MONEY that could be channelled to the poor.
I could not agree more.
i totally agree. we really dont need a president and most times is ppl that already have alot of money and well establish. in my opinion a president does not add anything to dominica.
then who is gonna sit in the president’s palace
we could have Skerrit for both position PM and President
Turn it into an asylum.
Before you all jump down Henrys’ throat bondieu re-read what the man is saying. What is the relevance of the president anyways? ribbon cutting, charging the mayor for rum? giving flowers, souse & punch party, christmas party for a selected few kids? Really what has this man done or any other president besides pump and circumstance.
If we are just going to have another inept tow the line paliamentarian masking as president then we can just rush the process and give Skerrit what he intends making himself president for life, because only a fool will believe he is going through all this 21 million dollar fan fare to house anyone else but himself! then again, we don’t listen when people speak we just hear what we want to in this country so when it happens don’t say nobody said a word. Skerrit will be president, prime minister and he’s already minister of all ministries. Henry is bang on point
So because of all your ramblings that has now made you invalid???
You are supporting some Rasta dude assertion that you are invalid..how preposterous is this man’s statement and yours.
and what is wrong with the rasta dude? last time I checked a rasta was a human being with a chosen lifestyle. You so damn ignorant I wonder who is invalid now?
Being Dominican is a state of mind, irrespective of where you go you consider yourself Dominican… therefore if Dominica was part of the government of the OECS, would this make you (PROF WIKILEAKS) any less Dominican.
This is a topic that requires some debate, but to consider the point of view as total rubbish just qualifies your ignorance.
If Dominica was a company, which was in debt because of too many managers and there was an alternative raised to merge with similar companies in the area and reduce the number of individuals in top management positions, it would definitely be considered.
The Bottom line is simply this; Shillingford is talking a whole pile of baloney, and as for those who believe that the Presidential position is a waste of time, I do believe that also.
However, the only way we can get rid of that position, we will have to change the constitution, thus changing from a Republic, State, and renaming a member of the Commonwealth of nations.
In this case we would have to accept a governor appointed by Elizabeth of England, who would automatically become the head of our State once again.
Other than, we would be heading into a state run by dictators as Chavez, and this guy in Lebanon!
Perhaps you like Shillingford, indeed he is human, however, if his comment makes no sense, actually has no value people have the right to speak out and condemn his trash talk!
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
@Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque dey doh tired kokoy you! stop with your ranting. Frankly you are out of touch. Since 1976 you supposedly went to Luxemburg, in 2012 you try to discredit Henry and a simple search stopped you in your track that should have been defeat enough for you, but no you have to make a point of making yourself pass for weezeebe.That’s why you keep getting banned on blogs, you don’t know when to sit down and hush!
1…2..3… 4… 5.. boom he coming back!
Telemaque:
You have a right to disagree with what you read here or elsewhere. But in doing so you ought to show respect for the person with whom you disagree. By resorting to name-calling and base language you are failing to contribute to meaningful discussion.
Instead of your usual rant and rave you should re-read the article and try to identify the gist of Henry Shillingford’s observations. Think before you rant. Please!
Though i respect your view Mr. Shillingford, i totally disagre. I would propose one head of state, i.e a President with no Prime Minister. Then he/she would elect his/her reps as in the case of the U.S. with strict scrutiny from the people or the people could elect the rep, anything different from the 21 const. thingy we have going on now.
This would require a complete overhaul of our constitution…I don’t think it is that easy
Prof, nobody said it was easy but it is not impossible! We have to unite if we are to survive. I looked at Henry’s assertion and a few simple facts support these. The OECS, has a population similar to that of Baltimore in the U.S.A, or Glasgow in the U.K. Can you imagine these cities being governed by 9 different heads of state and 120 parliamentarians spread over 9 parliaments, whilst the people wave 9 different flags and sing 9 national anthems? I was equally surprised to learn that these 9 countries boast a total of 24 airports/aerodromes. No surprise that none of them make any money! As for the fact that we are island states Henry quotes the Indonesian archipelago but one may equally mention a very succesful country like Japan that consists of over 3,000 islands.
Sounds like an invalid statement to me.
Even you yourself seem to be invalid. Re-read please.
Of course Henry Shillingford has a point. A nation of barely 70,000 people that boasts 21 constituencies and MP’s, not to mention a bevy of senators,an entire support apparatus from PS’ down to messengers. We even have our own bureau of standards and regulatory commissions. I’m sure our % spending of the national budget outstrips many a larger, and dare I say more prosperous country. Who is bearing the cost of all this? Clearly not ourselves as we are dependent on donor countries, even to cover our current costs. Can we, in reality claim to be independent and strut our stuff on the world stage like peacocks,oblivious to the pitiful chuckles from the rest of the world? Yes, because of our independe we have a precious vote at the U.N., which we only see as having monetary value and offer to the highest bidder. Time to stop all this grandstanding and come together as the one family we claim to be. We could to start with the OECS as it is tailormade for this. Imagine, we speak one langage, have the same currency, similar, if not identical legislation and institutions. If a much more diversified EU can do so why not we? Or is it that our pride won’t allow us and that we insist that every peacock must strut in its own back yard, however poor that yard may be?Time to get real.
Rally, Rally around the West Indies…You all know of this popular one by David Rudder.
Then if you are history guys you will also have heard of the Federation of the West Indies.
The Federation of the West Indies was a short-lived political union that existed from 3 January 1958 to 31 May 1962. Various islands in the Caribbean that were colonies of the United Kingdom, including Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Jamaica, and the Leeward and Windward Islands, came together to form the Federation, with its capital in Trinidad. The expressed intention of the Federation was to create a political unit that would become independent from Britain as a single state—possibly similar to the European Union EU; however, before that could happen, the Federation collapsed due to internal political conflicts.
How long has Caricom been at this new Union?
So in the mean time should we all call the various island invalid state/failed state…what ???
The lawyer is right all the way and that government is the biggest dominica ever have and it is milking the country but these guys dont care wants they eating well life good cause all they telling themselves is they not living broke hell with the rest
nonesense dominicas present government did not create big government,it has always been that way,what the lawyer is trying to point out,is time to make a change.
Well well Dominicans what a thing.. I proudly support Attorney Henry Shillingford’s statement that the position of president has become redundant and also the positions of many other MPs in Dominica.What are these politicians doing for the poor jobless youths of this country? Nada, zip, zero!! Is like the position of the president is like a white elephant in a poor man’s house…useless!!!…and Dr. Grell wants some of the good time too..
It’s time to make that position null and void. The President is just there as a figure head, he does no work for the country in terms of sourcing finance and other things. Delete the position and save the country a whole lot of money.
Mr.Shillingford has a very good point.
My Stake is that the President has no power, he is just figure as indicated drinking blue label whiskey, Hennessey, brand name wine and champagne. And soon he will enjoy a palace, while the PMH doesn’t have a MRI machine, an up to date drill to perform orthopaedic surgery and a new ECG machine.
i wont say invalid….but yes Henry this time I have to support you…..too many parliamentarians.
Mr. Shillingford you are quite right…..but, do you see that ever happening?…..hmmmmm
Referring to public/fiscal policy and efficiencies in the public sector and justifying use of funds is one thing, but calling Dominica invalid as a sovereign state or not needing a head of state is nothing short of Madness. There is no logic there
Thank you Pedro, my point exactly…
And besides how did he come up with comparing the islands with Trinidad? what is the size of Trinidad vs that of all the islands put together?
Final point, he is basing his opinion on population not on size, what if all Dominicans returns home, we will have a population of over 200k what then will he say? will we still be “INVALID”? What population makes up a valid country/island?
All Dominicans returning home? Be realistic and ask yourself why they left in the first place!
You are definitely correct here Pedro. How can we justify funds/financing your statement for callin an independent sovereigh state as invalid.
Yes, we do have to reduce the size of ministerial positions but alas to call us an invalid state, speaks to the mindset of this individual and I think he is the invalid here.
Shillingford you have some good points but you need to collate these points so that it can become more logical and not invalid.
agreed. And to see all these dominicans endorsing thee statement with thumbs up is hilarious.
We should also remember that in the USA every state has its own laws, own government, own court. Gay marriage is legal in Ny and illegal elsewhere.
Different strokes for different folks.
To compare Dominica to Indonesia which has a completely different history of governance and does not mirror our decolonized plantation societies is a very simplistic view.
the OESCS historically were governed separately throughout slavery and colonization. Additionally the economic power of 5000 islands in Indonesia is much greater than 6 OECS territories joint together. What would we gain if we were governed as one state? Some islands like dominica are underdeveloped while others like St. Lucia and St. Kitts are way ahead. We would just be leeching off these islands.
Granted, a lot has to change in our system of governance. But advocating a single government seems to me an unrealistic solution for now.
You know, give Jack his jacket, de man have a point…
first sensible thing this man has said in his life
you call this sensible
I support his assessment 210%……in a nutshell we basically paying a bunch of guys huge salaries to go ad beg and put the country under more debt…..
makes sense.in fact if we are having a president we should be voting for one ang he should be a working president too. go out there and find things for the country get assistance ect. not just a retired man there drinking wine and whiskey using state money and resources to go to funerals and good times .
Great!!! I love your point!!!
It seems that the more we are poor, the more we want to spend scarce resources foolishly!
support for Dominican and Henry Shillingford. However if we cannot do what Henry says, it is time to change the Constitution and let the people vote for a president who will work for his salary. At the moment the President is who the government favours for one reason or other. After nearly 9 years what has a capable storied Liverpool contributed for his salary and even more we are building a magnificent 27 million dollar house for a President who is unabale to contributes much and whose main function is limited to attend and patronise functions.
I agree 100%. If we are to have a President, then he/she should be a working President (as oppose to a playing one), elected by the people.
Also with such a small population, Dominica has to many Chiefs and not enough Indians. Just imagine that if the numbers were streamlined, the amount of monies the Government would save.
I totally support Henry Shillingford’s statement