Castries Central MP Richard Frederick has expressed confidence that whenever Saint Lucians next go to the polls, he will retain his seat in the House of Assembly.
In a Christmas message, Frederick noted that he had served the people of Castries Central, which they elected him to do, and he will continue to serve.
“I have been there and will continue to be there, and I have given you a shoulder to lean on. The time will come pretty soon as per the constitution when I will ask you to judge me on my performance. I am confident that you are very appreciative of my efforts and will continue to provide me with yet another opportunity to continue the good work that I have started,” the Housing and Local Government Minister said.
Frederick, an independent candidate for Castries Central in the 2021 general elections, defeated the incumbent Sarah Flood-Beaubrun of the United Workers Party (UWP), which the electorate voted out of office.
He then joined the cabinet of the Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP), which won the election by a landslide.
Reflecting on Labour’s performance, Frederick declared that Saint Lucia continued to do well this year.
“Saint Lucia is on the right trajectory, and with the help of the Almighty, things will remain that way. From Julien Alfred to Saint Lucia Kings, three consecutive years of economic growth, the youth economy, the best economy in the OECS, lowest unemployment rate on record, introduction of the minimum wage impacting thousands and thousands of people and their families, setting a minimum bar for pensioners which resulted in some cases over 200 percent increase,” the Attorney at Law by profession observed.
Frederick cited other benefits under the SLP administration, including housing and education assistance and reintroducing the laptop programme.
“We are, in fact, doing well,” the Castries Central MP asserted.
Saint Lucia is due for general elections in or before 2026. However, Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre has indicated that there will be no snap poll.
Late last month, Pierre warned Saint Lucians not to be carried away by ‘power-hungry politicians’ who refuse to understand the right of the people to elect the government or remove it when the time comes.
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“I can assure you there are going to be no elections in Saint Lucia anytime soon,” he stated, adding that the trend of the Prime Minister calling elections would continue.
Pierre’s remarks came amid growing opposition UWP calls for a return to the polls, citing government mismanagement of the country’s affairs.
