Montserrat 411 News

By: Warren Cassell

Citizens and Residents of Montserrat, Good Day, September 8th 2009 is the day designated for us to go to the polls to elect a new Parliament. The process of electing people to serve you in the Parliament of Montserrat is a democratic right of every registered voter on Montserrat. A democratic right which affords you the opportunity to determine who is capable and willing to make the necessary decisions that would affect your life and the life of your children now and in the future. I challenge every registered voter on Montserrat to exercise this right and go to the polls and vote on election Day.

Montserrat is now at a cross roads which requires major change. Change that only you as a registered voter can and must ensure will happen. And remember that this country has seen change before, brought about by you the electorate. Once more the electorate must rise up and answer the call to help bring about that change. And that is why today I come before you to announce my candidacy to contest the 2009 General Elections.

What will you be asked to do on September 8, 2009? You will be asked to select nine persons who will represent you in Parliament. I possess the necessary strategic skills, expertise and foresight to meet the challenges which confront a member of parliament in executing his duties to map out sound policies and sensible plans for Montserrat which are in your best interest. Let me tell you why I have decided to offer myself to serve you in Parliament.

As most of you know, I am a young practicing Lawyer on Montserrat. After completing studies I returned home to work on behalf of my people and play a small part in building a better Montserrat. Over the past eight and a half years my work has allowed me to see some of the injustices and political mishaps occurring on this island. I have spent this time advocating for Human rights, campaigning for better treatment of my fellow citizens of this island, prevented many citizens from having their democratic and consituitional rights trammpled upon, all while highlighting some of these injustices and mishaps and educating you about the laws of Montserrat. Even with facing the risk of being victimized, I fearlessly spoke out against those injustices and made you aware of your rights under the law. Notwithstanding that, I was limited in what I could do about those injustices. I am now asking you to remove those limitations and empower me to make those representations on a higher level – In the Honourable house of Parliament. We’re on a journey today together to move Montserrat forward and that is why this election cannot be about me alone.

We all agree that our representative in Parliament, SHOULD be able to answer the call of negotiating on your behalf at a local, regional and international level. These are skills that as a lawyer I utilize on a daily basis.

Your representative in Parliament SHOULD be able to not only read but understand what he reads.

Your representative in Parliament is faced with several pieces of legislation in a given term. Some of those laws are made up of hundreds of pages.

Your representative SHOULD be able to read a proposed legislation and tell whether it is likely to offend your constitutional rights. Your representative should be able to voice his concerns about the bill without any fear whatsoever. I am able to do that. In fact, I have done that on my Radio program “This is the law!” before I even had a desire to run for Parliament. How much more so if I am elected into office.

There are many people who will say that an independent candidate cannot help us. I totally disagree. Can you imagine if all nine persons from any one party gets into Parliament. Who will be your voice to bring balance to the honourable house?

Who will be there to ask the questions that you want asked?

You WILL need a strong, fearless and determined person in parliament to represent your interest. And that is the only promise I will make – to represent your best interest in the house. Often times Political parties spend a lot of money printing several copies of their manifesto and distributing them. Their manifesto is normally filled with specific promises, whether it is to build a school, hospital or make it easier to grant citizenship to non-nationals. If you examine the manifesto from previous elections very few of the promises are fulfilled.

This election has to be different…A Change…because we are tired of being disaapointed, tired of being let down…tired of hearing promises made and different plans proposed in the heat of a campaign, only to have nothing change when people are elected to the house of Parliament, because what was proposed during campaigning was never in our best interest.

So…I make one promise to you today and that is if given the chance I WILL represent your best interest in Parliament. If supporting the move for a new Hospital is in your best interest, then I will do that. If joining four persons to ensure that we have a functioning Government is in your best interest, then I will do that. Or maybe it is in your best interest that I resign from a ministry so that we get much needed aid…then I will do that. Once your best interest is kept at the forefront everything else will fall into place. I will always be honest with you with every decision I make or policy I support which will be in YOUR BEST INTEREST.

I face this opportunity to be given the chance to represent your best interest in the House of Parliament with great humility and limitless faith in you my brothers and sisters of Montserrat, and it is with this profound humility I ask you to give me that chance to represent YOUR best interest by voting for Warren Cassell on September 8. Thank you and may God bless you.

Audio Version of Mr. Warren Cassell’s Speech

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