Reuben Meade was sworn in as the new premier of Montserrat less than nine months after coming out of retirement to lead his newly formed United Alliance (UA) to victory in the recent general election. Following his swearing-in by Governor Sarah Tucker, Meade stated, “We no longer have supporters. This is not United Alliance versus the rest; this is Montserrat versus the rest. We will work together to develop this country for us, our children, and grandchildren.”
At 70, Meade previously served as Montserrat’s first premier from 2010 to 2014 and has held the position of chief minister twice between 1991 and 2010. He pledged to create an inclusive administration.
“We promise you to be a government of the people. Your government. You will never hear us saying my government. It is your government. We pledge to serve you honestly and with compassion,” he said.
He said part of his job will be to continue training the members of the UA as they each continue their growth in their political life.
“I am extremely proud of their development over the past six months,” he said, adding that he is confident “they are ready to serve you, the people.
“As a consequence we will have a rotating deputy premier allowing each of them to gather the experience they need to serve you, the people of Montserrat,” he said.
The first person to be sworn in as Deputy Premier is Veronica Dorsette Hector, who is also the Minister of Infrastructure, Labour, Transport, Energy and Ecclesiastical Affairs.
The UA won five of the nine seats in the Legislative Assembly followed by the People’s Democratic Movement (PDM) with three seats and the outgoing Movement for Change and Prosperity (CMAP) winning one seat. Two other uncontested seats that of the Attorney General and the Financial Secretary, will make up the 11-member Legislative Assembly
Meade told the ceremony that the government is all about growth and development and that “we don’t want to be speaking to you, we want you also to be speaking with us”.
He said among the first tasks of the government will be to prepare for the annual budget, telling public servants who were present at the ceremony “we have a lot of work to do.
“We are at the beginning of a budget cycle and we must prepare ourselves for that budget cycle. So starting on Monday my colleagues and I will be visiting each and every ministry together,” he said, adding this will be followed by a meeting with all senior public servants in a retreat on Tuesday “for us to be able to go over whatever plans and policies that are in place…
“We will be working as a team, not just the Cabinet colleagues, but you the civil servants,” he added.
Earlier, Governor Ticker told Meade and the other UA members that the people of Montserrat had elected them as their government “and I look forward to working with you, supporting you for the continued betterment of Montserrat”.
She told Paul Lewis, who was sworn in as Opposition Leader, that he too had been elected by the people and that he should take forward his role for the betterment of the volcano-ravaged island.
“To all the candidates that put themselves forward and ran tough campaigns, my congratulations. It is a credit to Montserrat that so many people have so much passion for the island and its people that they are willing to step forward and stand for election to lead and support the country,” she added.
