Published 22 May 2018
Buckie Got It, St. Kitts and Nevis News Source
By: Media Source
PM Harris dodges question over giving a Diplomatic Passport to Peter Verdee
Basseterre, St. Kitts, May 22, 2018 – Leader of the Opposition and Political Leader of the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP), the Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil L. Douglas, has again called on Prime Minister Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris to resign.
In a radio broadcast on a privately-owned radio station on Tuesday, Dr. Douglas said the stage is now set for Queen’s Counsel, Charles Wilkin, the media and civil society and Harris’ Cabinet colleagues to join with the citizens of the country to call on Dr. Harris “to do the right thing and resign.”
Responding to Dr. Harris’ Open Forum at Tabernacle on Sunday, Dr. Douglas pointed out that the prime minister did not refer to Wilkin’s commentary on the Virdee-St Kitts-Antigua-London Bribe Scandal but instead chose to refer to QC Dr. Henry Browne’s legal opinion which was secured at heavy expenses to the tax payers of St. Kitts and Nevis.
“It’s really because QC Wilkin’s commentary has not taken PM Harris completely off the hook. In fact the questions that QC Wilkin requested Prime Minister Harris to respond to questions for which QC Wilkin by now must have had the answers, since we all know that Virdee is not and never was an economic citizen under the St. Kitts and Nevis Citizenship by Investment Programme,” said Dr. Douglas.
“And one of the questions which Timothy Harris must answer is whether Virdee was granted a St. Kitts and Nevis Diplomatic Passport by the Government, with the full knowledge and consent of Prime Minister Harris, even though Virdee is not and never was a citizen of St. Kitts and Nevis. And by Harris granting him a diplomatic passport does not make him a citizen,” Dr. Douglas said.
The Opposition Leader had revealed this information to the nation in the St. Kitts and Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP) Emergency Press Conference at the Koi Commercial Complex last Monday 14th May and repeated it during the SKNLP Freedom FM Radio Program “Issues” last week Wednesday 16th May.
“In this emerging Harris-Virdee St. Kitts and Nevis Diplomatic Passport Bribery Scandal, the Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis is being asked to answer whether he asked for and received any bribe from Peter Virdee and if so for what purpose; for example for a diplomatic passport to provide a contract for energy services or some other favour?,” Dr. Douglas asked.
He noted that in his capacity as Leader of the Opposition and former Prime Minister, he has said publicly that with this new mood of transparency he do not mind if the government releases the names of all the economic citizens for whom his Cabinet approved diplomatic passports “so that we can see if there are other Virdees lurking in our future and will like the same be done with all the Iranians who acquired citizenship under the Citizenship By Investment Programme of St. Kitts and Nevis.
He said the SKNLP continues to believe and agree with QC Wilkins’ conclusions that Virdee’s ‘allegations create potentially adverse implications for the name of our country.’
“Therefore the country deserves full disclosure on all connections between Virdee and officials here past and present,”
He said as the former PM, he has already disclosed publicly the extent of his relationship with Virdee whom he first met in London about 2010/2011 with consultants of Henley & Partners during a marketing and promotion exercise of the then newly restructured St. Kitts and Nevis Citizenship by Investment Programme and again in 2012 on a visit to India when Virdee, trading as PV Energy Ltd had expressed an interest in being contracted to execute a solar energy project on St. Kitts and Nevis.
“As the former Prime Minister, I have disclosed on Thursday last that no contract was ever signed and no contract was ever executed by me or my then Minister of Energy under the Labour Administration. In fact my Administration was already executing a joint venture – Solar Energy Farm with the Embassy of the Republic of China on Taiwan,” said Dr. Douglas.
“We are strongly of the view that Prime Minister Harris has been given enough time to publicly respond to the QC Wilkin’s questions and those posed to him by me in my capacity as Leader of the Opposition,” said Dr Douglas, who condemned Dr. Harris “for coming to the public last Sunday 20th May in the Open Forum at Tabernacle with hostility and hurling insults and abuse to some of his cabinet colleagues, parliamentarians and several Founding members of his PLP, architects of Team Unity and fair-minded citizens who are simply interested in a decent name and image of our country, and accountability, transparency, openness and integrity for those who serve publicly,” Dr. Douglas said.
“We submit that PM Harris has not answered the questions specifically posed to him, and he has not given full disclosure of his connection and relationship with billionaire/investor and developer Peter Virdee together with his business partner, PM Harris and an Antiguan Minister are all the subjects of an ongoing major Virdee-St. Kitts-Antigua-London Bribe Trial and Scandal,” he said.
Photo 1 – Denzil Douglas
Photo 2 – Timothy Harris
Photo 3 – Peter Virdee
