| No elections in 2011, Bellingham says | | Print | |
| Tuesday, 21 September 2010 09:03 | |||
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“We want elections to take place as soon is practicable,” Bellingham said on his first visit to the TCI. “But I have concluded that more time is needed. This will be kept under constant review, and I will issue a statement before the end of 2010 on the remaining milestones which will have to be met before elections can take place.” The Foreign Affairs Committee had expressed fears earlier this year that needed reforms and the inquiry into corruption allegations against former Premier Michael Misick and several of his former ministers would not be complete by July 2011. Shortly after being named to his post, Bellingham assured the House of Commons that no one accused of corruption would take part in upcoming elections. During his brief two-day visit to the country, Bellingham said the “vast majority of the (Consultative) Forum and the (Advisory) Council have urged me not have elections in July 2011.” He also noted concerns from many in the business community who he said are going to depend on the future investment. “If we rush it and live to regret it, that would not be doing the people of the TCI a service,” he said. Elections cannot be held until constitutional and electoral reforms are in place, Bellingham said, and he urged the public to take part in the constitutional and reform process, which both political parties refused to take part in. However, the parties formed a joint commission to conduct their own review and released their recommendations Sept. 22. “If the people of the political parties do not engage in the process, then I think they will miss out on a vital opportunity to get their views across,” Bellingham said. But he made it clear that the people of the TCI would not make the final decision on reforms. “Ultimately it will be the U.K. ministers, the foreign secretary and myself who decide on the best way forward,” Bellingham said. “But we want people to join in the process of consultation and make their views clear in a really constructive and sensible way.” While he was here, Bellingham met with political party leaders Doug Parnell and Clayton Greene and several of their key colleagues as well as members of the business community. As the governor and Constitution and Electoral Reform Adviser Kate Sullivan were leaving Providenciales, a group of protestors gathered at the airport, shouting questions at His Excellency the Gov. Gordon Wetherell about how much longer it would be before elections were held. Although the governor will not make that decision, he told protestors that his best guess would be another year. At a press conference Monday, Bellingham stressed that a three-year loan being negotiated for the country has no bearing on how long it will be before elections are held. He stressed elections would occur as soon as possible, certainly not three years. On Sept. 23, the governor issued a statement saying that the three-year loan had nothing to do with when elections would be held. On Wednesday, Parnell and his party condemned Bellingham’s decision, demanding that elections be held in July 2011. Click HERE to read Bellingham's prepared remarks. Click HERE to read Parnell's response. Click HERE to read the governor's statement.
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Elections will not take place in the Turks and Caicos Islands as scheduled in 2011 because more time is needed to accomplish financial and constitutional reforms and to complete an investigation into public corruption, new U.K. Foreign Office Minister Henry Bellingham announced Monday night.Related Articles
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