At the UN, Ralph Gonsalves warned of foreign plots. The real danger to Vincentian democracy is his rule at home.
By Johnathan Marks (pen name)
Mark Twain once said that “a lie can travel halfway around the world before the truth puts on its shoes.” We have just seen a perfect example of that. Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves stood before the United Nations and declared that democracy in St. Vincent and the Grenadines was under threat from foreign entities and European interests.
It was not only a gross exaggeration — it was a blatant untruth. A lie he has repeated at home and now carried onto the global stage. And in doing so, he has not only misled the international community but also cheapened one of the most important platforms in the world.
The real tragedy is that the Prime Minister could have used his address to highlight the genuine challenges facing small island developing states (SIDS). Crime is escalating. Drug trafficking and transshipment routes threaten stability and security. These are the pressing dangers that undermine communities, corrode trust, and jeopardize the future of our young people. Instead, he chose to invent a foreign bogeyman and present it as fact.
That is not statesmanship. That is self-serving propaganda.
A One-Party State in the Making
The Unity Labour Party (ULP) has been in office for nearly a quarter century and is now openly seeking to stretch its hold to 30 years — six consecutive terms under the same leader. If successful, Dr. Gonsalves would be 85 years old by the end of that sixth term.
Democracy is not just about holding votes every five years. It is about healthy competition, real alternation of power, and equal opportunity for leadership renewal. When one party governs so long under one leader, democracy becomes a hollow ritual.
Bribery Disguised as “Lives to Live”
The so-called Lives to Live program is a case study in how state resources are turned into political leverage. On the eve of elections, thousands line up for galvanized, lumber, cement, and other building materials — millions of dollars in giveaways.
No one denies that people need help. But why does such largesse flow only at election time? This is not empowerment; it is dependency politics. It is not social uplift; it is mass bribery dressed up as welfare.
Threats and Conflicts of Interest
Even more disturbing are the threats from unelected power brokers. When the Prime Minister’s son tells Vincentians to “count their days,” that is not democratic debate. It is intimidation.
Add to this the Attorney General — the state’s top lawyer — who now doubles as a ULP candidate while still in office. That is a glaring conflict of interest. The Attorney General should serve the state, not the ruling party. In any healthy democracy, he would have stepped down the moment he entered partisan politics.
A Draconian Vaccine Mandate
The government’s heavy-handed vaccine mandate led to the dismissal of around 500 teachers, police officers, and civil servants in a country of just over 100,000 people. The human cost has been staggering: families lost homes, parents struggled to feed their children, and professionals were driven into poverty.
For nearly four years they have suffered, and instead of compassion, the government dragged them through the courts. Even the law was turned into a weapon against the people.
Record Crime, Failed Security
Here is the crux of the matter. Under Ralph Gonsalves — who also serves as Minister of National Security — St. Vincent and the Grenadines has recorded some of the highest crime and murder rates in its history.
The same man who stood thousands of miles from Kingstown at the UN warning of phantom foreign hegemonies is the very man who has failed to keep Vincentians safe in their own homes and communities. And nothing erodes democracy faster than fear, violence, and insecurity.
The Real Threat Lies Within
The real threat to democracy in St. Vincent and the Grenadines is not in Washington, Brussels, or London — it is right here in Kingstown. It lies in a government that blurs the line between state and party, that bribes citizens with public resources, that silences dissent through intimidation, that keeps its Attorney General on the campaign trail, that fired 500 public servants without remorse, and that presides over record crime while the Prime Minister doubles as a failed Security Minister.
That is not democracy. That is power without accountability. And unless Vincentians put an end to it, the decline will only deepen.
The Views expressed are not those of Asberth News Network