Brantley was responding to Douglas’ comments, made last week, when he called for calm on Nevis and advised the CCM to wait on Joseph Parry to call the election.
Brantley said that Denzil Douglas when he was in charge of the St. Kitts Nevis Labour Party in 1993 and won four seats, out of eleven, he failed to be patient with then Prime Minister Dr. Kennedy Simmons, whose party, the People’s Action Movement, (PAM), also secured 4 seats but merged with the NRP, to form a new government.
However, those 4 for Labour and the two that CCM won were not amalgamated, because the CCM had said it was not prepared to join with any party in St. Kitts.
Brantley said, “In 1993 when he (Douglas) had four seats out of eleven, he didn’t have anything close to a majority, because four out of eleven leaves seven. PAM had the same four. The same Joseph Parry of the NRP joined with PAM. And he (Douglas) in his own words said that he incited in ’93.”
“That is the same man; (who) in one breath, tells the people of Nevis… that we must take it easy, ‘wait on the skipper,’ Mr. Parry. Be calm. Tek it easy! That’s what his advice is to the people of Nevis,” Mr. Brantley said.
In the Nevis Island Assembly there are five seats with both CCM and NRP now with 2 each. The court ruled that the fifth seat has to be contested for within 90 days, but in order to restore some normalcy on the island and reduce the political tension; CCM has been demanding that the sooner the poll date is known the better for the island. However, what Brantley is charging is that instead of agitating for an early poll, the Prime Minister wants them to sit back and relax and wait until whenever the premier decides.
Flashing back to the riots that were caused in 1993 when Labour and PAM each ended the election on 4 seats, and the Labour party supporters took to the streets to burn buildings, cane fields and engaged in other acts of intimidation and illegal activity, Brantley now sees Douglas’ advice to be calm and take it easy, as hypocrisy. Brantley was however quick to point out that neither he nor his party is supportive of any illegal actions to force an early poll.
Brantley said the Prime Minister was mocking the people of Nevis with the statement he made.
The Appeals Court ruled on Monday 27th August, 2012, that due to massive electoral irregularities, it was necessary to declare the election in the constituency of St. John’s null and void. In that poll, electoral officials declared the winner to have been NRP’s Hensley Daniel, who ran against Brantley of the CCM.