Former St. Lucia Prime Minister Dr. Kenny Anthony has announced that he will retire from active politics and will not contest the next general election in 2026.
The long-serving politician, who currently represents Vieux Fort South for the ruling St. Lucia Labour Party (SLP), also confirmed he will not endorse any candidate to replace him.
Addressing supporters at a public meeting in his constituency on Wednesday night, Anthony, 74, said constituents should take the time to evaluate any potential candidates for themselves. “Assess how they interact with you, how they express their commitment to the St. Lucia Labour Party and how they will campaign to win your confidence and support,” he urged.
“As I say to all who approach me, it is early days and what I have said to you tonight is what I have said to all others, who have approached me,” Anthony added. “No one, none of you can ever say that I have asked you to support X or Y candidate… none of you can testify that I have asked you to ever support any particular candidate.”
Dr. Kenny Anthony, who served as Prime Minister from 1997 to 2006 and again from 2011 to 2016, said his decision was influenced by both age and health considerations. In a reflective and emotional speech set to the backdrop of “By the Rivers of Babylon,” he also made it clear that he wants no titles, monuments, or honours in his name.
“I don’t crave anybody’s goodwill, I don’t crave anybody’s apologies. I don’t want those things not at my age… I seek no monument, I want no building, no roads, no communities named after me. None!” he said. “Those of you who do so… you do so at your own peril.”
Anthony, a former general counsel at the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat and a law lecturer at the University of the West Indies Cave Hill Campus, emphasized that he wanted only to be remembered for the relationship he shared with his constituents. “I only want you to remember me as a good and decent human being,” he said.
He also explained that he declined any position in the current government, saying he did not want his presence to overshadow Prime Minister Phillip J. Pierre. More recently, Anthony served as a member of CARICOM’s Eminent Persons Group (EPG), alongside former prime ministers Bruce Golding of Jamaica and Perry Christie of The Bahamas, working on regional efforts concerning the crisis in Haiti.
“It is enough that you trusted me to represent you,” he concluded.
