Prayers were rendered by a Minister of religion who recited verses from the Book of Malachi. The Cabinet then held a discussion about the state of our country’s roads and about the provision of potable water to households, hotels, businesses and institutions. The Minister of APUA confirmed that the provision of potable water has reached more than 12 million gallons daily—7 million from Reverse Osmosis (R/O), and the remaining from stored water, accumulated in the dams, reservoirs, and aquifers. The Cabinet then agreed to receive a report from the Ministry of Works.
1. The Cabinet invited a six-person delegation from the Ministry of Works, led by its Director and Permanent Secretary, who provided Cabinet with their plan for fixing the roads throughout the country especially in the many communities where age and rains have created many potholes. They provided a strategic plan to repair the roads and drains beginning in nine separate neighborhoods. The contractors will lay 100 feet by 18 feet of concrete surfaces daily until all community roads are complete. Pre-formed drains and sidewalks will be added at the sides to lengthen the life of the roads. Cabinet was informed that many households have failed to include soakways on their property to take run off from cesspits; as a consequence, overflow from cesspits run into the streets and gutters undermining the surface and the longevity of many roads. A night crew will also be at work from 6pm to 2am daily except on weekends. The Ministry of Works will have to employ approximately 40 new workers, purchase new trucks, backhoes, earth movers, and become a large producer of concrete for the new concrete-road-roll-out slabs that are intended to last more than 20 years.
2. The Cabinet invited the Chair, Deputy Chair of Antigua & Barbuda Electoral Commission (ABEC), the Supervisor of Elections and 3 other officials of the Commission to its meeting in order to further discussions on the renewal of cards and re-registration. ABEC reported that a meeting was held with officials of the main opposition political party who expressed a preference for re-registration. While the process of renewal or re-registration is likely to be very much the same, the re-registration will require documentation by the elector to prove residency and eligibility. The Cabinet agreed that intervention by the Parliament will very likely be required, since large sums of money would have to be voted-on to purchase new blank cards and new equipment since the existing equipment from 2014 is now 10 years old. The Cabinet also examined the issue of boundary changes for the 16 constituencies in Antigua. It was agreed that boundary changes, if they are to achieve greater equality among the constituencies, must take place following re-registration and the number of electors in each constituency is known. The two major political parties are therefore in agreement on the way forward.
3. The Cabinet invited to its meeting officials from the Financial Services Regulatory Commission (FSRC), the Inland Revenue Department (IRD), the Organization for National Drug and Money Laundering Policy (ONDCP), and lawyers from the Ministry of Legal Affairs. Jointly, the team is acting to remove Antigua and Barbuda from the European Union’s (EU) Non-compliant list to the Fully-Compliant list. Implementation of certain laws and regulations requires consultations with stakeholders. Primary among the consideration, to meet the legal threshold, is the issue of ‘Beneficial Ownership’. The Cabinet was reminded how difficult it often is to find Beneficial Ownership when complex ownership structures define many corporations. Everyone has to be made to understand the urgency of being removed from the blacklist, the team agreed. Several deadlines must be met and cooperation amongst the agencies is extremely important
4. An invitation was extended to the Comptroller of Customs, the Deputy Comptroller, the I.T. specialist, and several Customs officials who have responsibility to discourage fraudulent activities that would deprive the Customs and Excise Division of much needed revenue. Emphasis is therefore placed upon forms that are used by brokers to clear goods, especially when waivers of duties, the ABST, the Revenue Recovery Charge (RRC), and the Environmental Levy are sought. The new forms will soon be implemented in April 2024 and will include a QR Code, generated by computers; they will cost $20.00 and will require the original signature of the Minister of Finance or someone acting for him in his absence. This will allow for an audit trail that will generate checks and balances to enable this procedure.
5. The Cabinet learned of the death of our eldest centenarian, Ms. Gladys Hodge, who was 106 years old. She last lived in the St. John’s City East constituency and was a great friend of Minister Melford Nicholas.
ii. The Cabinet also learned of the death of the United Nations (UN) official whose untimely death caused great distress among the UN staff and the government officials with whom he has been working. Condolences are expressed to his family as well.
iii. The Cabinet approved holding a memorial service in honour of Dr. Patrick Lewis, former Ambassador to the United States and the United Nations, who died in mid-January. He has been buried beside his daughter in Guadeloupe–the birth place of his widow, Mrs. Michelle Lewis. The memorial service will be held at the Spring Garden Moravian Church on Sunday 17th March at 9am, during the regular service. The Governor General will read the first lesson, the Prime Minister will read the second lesson, and a reflection on his life will likely be read by his son. His family will journey from Virginia, where he last taught at Hampton University.
6. The Cabinet took note of Sir Andy Roberts who, exactly 50 years ago, became the first Antiguan and Barbudan to play on the West Indies Cricket team. In this regard, the Cabinet applauded the pioneer gateway which he opened for many Antiguan and Barbudan cricketers to follow. Cabinet celebrates Sir Andy’s 50th Anniversary.
