"The light that comes from wisdom never goes out"
Kudos to Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley for hosting regular press conferences ever since he was appointed premier last May. At sessions held every few weeks — often flanked by …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Press conferences a big step toward transparency”
Over the next year, the Constitutional Review Commission will work to produce a report advising the House of Assembly on the way forward toward a stronger Constitution. But first, they …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Please weigh in on Constitution”
This month brought good and bad news as Governor John Rankin and Premier Dr. Natalio “Sowande” Wheatley both reported on the first three months of the ongoing Commission of Inquiry …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Government, governor must collaborate on reform promises”
The recent Commission of Inquiry reported finding evidence that the Premier’s Office under former Premier Andrew Fahie may have obstructed government auditors investigating Covid-19 assistance programmes. A new law is …
Our first draft of this editorial praised legislators for passing a bill last month to finally make the Register of Interests public, thereby promoting the sort of government transparency that …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Open the interests register with no restrictions”
We applaud the specific deadlines in the reform proposal agreed this month by the Virgin Islands and United Kingdom governments. The targets are ambitious, but they represent exactly the sort …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Coming reports and audits must be published quickly”
Kudos to Premier Andrew Fahie for holding regular press conferences in recent months, and to opposition members for hosting similar sessions fairly frequently as well. We hope this practice will …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Keep the press conferences coming”
For all the talk about transparency that has come out of the Governor’s Office in recent years, we were disappointed by Governor John Rankin’s decision not to release the Commission …
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: The annual deliberations of the Standing Finance Committee should be open to the public. Unfortunately, our pleas have fallen on deaf …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Once again, SFC meetings should be public”
Commissioner Sir Gary Hickinbottom put elected officials’ claims to be “champions of transparency” to the test last week, suggesting that they should have no objection to his Commission of Inquiry …
After the Commission of Inquiry was announced in January, Premier Andrew Fahie and other leaders promised that the government would assist investigators by providing requested information as transparently as possible. …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Government must respond fully to COI requests”
Premier Andrew Fahie said again on May 20 that he believes all hearings before the Commission of Inquiry should be broadcast live for transparency’s sake, but the COI responded the …
Continue reading “Premier, COI contradict each other on hearings”
Kudos to the House of Assembly for making steady progress in recent weeks on a raft of legislation designed to improve governance in the territory. We hope to see all …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Governance bills a test of leaders’ promises”
The affordable housing project at Joes Hill could significantly benefit a segment of the Virgin Islands community that is often overlooked and marginalised. But to make it work, government leaders …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Affordable home project must be fair, transparent”
Dear Premier Andrew Fahie: We noticed that you went on a media blitz in recent days, giving interviews on talk shows broadcast on the radio and on Facebook. We were …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: An open letter to Premier Andrew Fahie”
The success of the ongoing commission of inquiry depends heavily on the trust and support of the Virgin Islands community. For this reason, we are glad that COI members have …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Presence, transparency will win trust for COI”
The BVI Electricity Corporation owes the public an explanation. Starting in late 2019, the utility used a highly unusual tender process to choose a contractor to build a multimillion-dollar solar …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: BVIEC owes explanation on Anegada solar contract”
Shortly after the 2019 election, the government gave two communications consultants from abroad one-year contracts worth a total of $176,000, according to a document provided to the opposition in the …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Why hire communications consultants from abroad?”
The ritual was familiar to any Virgin Islands journalist. Before awarding a major contract in past years, the BVI Electricity Corporation typically would call a press conference where BVIEC officials …
Continue reading “With no sealed bids, tender process for Anegada solar was highly unusual”
We were encouraged to hear Premier Andrew Fahie say last month that his government plans to turn its attention to governance reforms starting at this week’s House of Assembly meeting. …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Now, governance reform is more urgent than ever”
With a monumental task to complete in only six months, the commission of inquiry must devise a tightly focused strategy for shining its powerful spotlight into the dark corners of …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Inquiry will need a tightly focused strategy”
Monday was a dark day for the Virgin Islands, with the United Kingdom flexing its colonial muscle and announcing a wide-ranging corruption inquiry in the territory. However, we are sad …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Unfortunately, the corruption inquiry is needed”
If leaders in the new government proceed with their predecessors’ plan to expand the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport, they must turn over a new leaf by being fully transparent …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Before airport expansion, transparency needed”
On March 17, Premier Andrew Fahie and Deputy Premier Carvin Malone promised to keep the public informed about the coronavirus pandemic by holding weekly press conferences on the topic and …
Continue reading “EDITORIAL: Press conferences needed as Covid questions go unanswered”
Premier Andrew Fahie called for greater transparency in government as he reported April 16 on planned measures that would establish a legally binding ministerial code of conduct. “The ministerial code …
