The Virgin Islands is the leading territory in the financial services, the marine industry, and, to a lesser extent, tourism. Thousands of expatriates are employed in these services. There is no doubt they play an important role in the territory’s development. Reports state that more than 800,000 companies are incorporated in the VI — making it one of the largest jurisdictions on the planet in this respect.
Sailing, boating and other forms of marine sports annually attract thousands, who of course generate a significant amount of revenue for the government coupled with import duty and tourism.
Foreigners are some of the main personnel in these revenue-generating industries, and they are also engaged in construction, retail businesses, hotels, and so on. Belongers are also employed in these enterprises, and they dominate the government workforce, where many of them hold senior positions. As expected, priority is given to the belongers.Unfortunately, some of them appear to believe that their status entitles them to do as they please.
While some public officers are efficient, there is cause for alarm about the attitude of others. Some government workers do not return phone calls and take an extremely long time to deal with important matters, even though people depend on their action to conclude their business.
An example
I will give an example. After arriving at a settlement following a mediation, a client was asked to tender her resignation before the settlement agreement could be initiated. The client sent in her resignation the next day, but placed the wrong effective date in the letter. About 12 days later, when I called to enquire about the settlement cheque, I was told that the termination date on the letter was inaccurate since it was not in conformity with the settlement agreement.
I asked the public officer, who was the head of an important government department, why she did not inform the woman or me, her attorney. Her response shocked me: “I was in the process of doing so.” I then asked, “What process? Why didn’t you pick up the phone and call?” The officer knew that the woman was not working and needed the funds urgently.
‘Clock watchers’
It seems to me that some government officials are not concerned about the problems and plights encountered by others, and a few are merely “clock watchers.” They should bear in mind that we live in a competitive world, and high standards are expected if the VI is to continue to flourish.
There is even an apparent lapse in the London Office as well: Two e-mails seeking information were not answered or acknowledged.
Public officers should bear in mind that the VI depends heavily on foreigners for their expertise as well as their investments.
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