Elected reps need to stop fighting each other

Deputy Premier Julian Fraser.

Deputy Premier Julian Fraser stated that elected leaders should not take offence to the utterances made in House of Assembly sittings, as unity is needed to fight critical issues the territory faces.

“I hope we don’t find ourselves being offended by what others say in this House, especially when the things others say are true. We need to grow past that stage or else we can never work together. If we can’t work together, these Virgin Islands will never be for the better,” Fraser told elected leaders this week while debating the Immigration and Passport (Amendment) Bill.

While the Opposition maintains that the bill is being amended because of errors the VIP administration made, Fraser said the real issue is the British Nationality Act which currently dictates how elected leaders can make immigration laws.

And he maintains that the territory will not advance if leaders continue to blame each other while ignoring the pressure of colonial rule bearing down on the BVI.

“I don’t care what you think, we’re talking about something we have no control of. This is governed by the British Nationality Act and until we get a hold of that, we’re going to continue talking like this,” Fraser said.

Fraser’s call for unity comes amid jabs elected leaders have thrown at each other in recent weeks when discussing issues related to ancestral ties, the UK’s new report on crime-fighting agencies, and the formation of the Opposition Alliance. But Fraser said offence and a lack of trust are preventing the territory from advancing to the next stage.

He also said leaders should come to a common position of working towards the liberation of the Virgin Islands.

“In a few weeks, we will be debating the Constitutional Review Commission’s report and if we can’t debate that report in unison, we’re already defeated. We just debated the new report on law enforcement agencies and we didn’t do it in unison one hundred per cent,” Fraser stated.

He continued: “The fight we have on our hands isn’t inside this house and I want people to understand that. It’s not in this country, it’s beyond us and if we can’t hold a single head, we’re already defeated.”

Members of the public as well as elected leaders frequently call for unity among political leaders. However this has proven difficult because local politicians disagree on policy, government priorities and generally accuse each other of wanting power more than the advancement of the BVI.