The Grenada parliament will be dissolved on Friday paving the way for the next general election, the date for which Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell is expected to announce on Sunday.
But on Thursday, the Parliament held a special sitting in recognition of the 42 years former prime minister Dr. Keith Mitchell represented the constituency of St. George’s North West.
‘This is expected to be the last time that I will be officially here as a parliamentarian, having served in this House for the last 42 years. I felt obliged to answer. The record should show them, in fact, the sentiments that I had on the final session of that service,’ said Mitchell, who entered Parliament in 1984.
‘I’ve served the people of North West St. George’s for 42 years. I am very emotional when I talk over this, Mr Speaker, because there were tough times,’ he said, recalling winning increasingly large shares of the constituency vote over the decades, including more than 90 per cent in 1999.
Mitchell said that his continued support was rooted in his relationship with constituents rather than political office itself.
‘When you love people, and you show your relationship and consistency, not just the power and the position title, it means nothing,’ he said.
Mitchell, the first prime minister in the English-speaking Caribbean to have led his political party to a clean sweep of all the seats in the legislature, delivered what some political commentators described as a farewell, a history lesson and a defense of his political legacy.
Mitchell, who served as prime minister for nearly two decades, used the address recounting the transformation of Grenada’s physical and economic landscape.
He recalled the expansion of electricity into rural communities, saying Grenada moved from approximately 45 per cent electricity coverage in 1984 to about 98 per cent within five years.
He reminded legislators also that Grenada moved from an outdated crossbar telephone system into the digital era at a time when other Caribbean countries were still making the transition, singling out also as another major achievement road development, particularly its impact on rural communities.
For Mitchell, infrastructure was not simply about concrete and buildings even as he pointed to major national projects including the national stadium, the Ministerial Complex, the cruise ship port and the new Parliament building.
Mitchell also reflected on defining challenges such as rebuilding Grenada after Hurricane Ivan, economic reforms, the removal of personal income tax in the 1990s, and the structural adjustment program implemented after his return to office in 2013.
Hurricane Ivan caused damage estimated at more than twice Grenada’s gross domestic product (GDP) while the country later entered another severe fiscal crisis, with public debt reaching roughly 110 per cent of GDP in 2013.
After returning to government in 2013, Mitchell’s administration pursued debt restructuring and an International Monetary Fund (IMF) supported adjustment programme. Mitchell acknowledged that his record was not without mistakes.
‘We all accept the fact that we are not perfect persons, and we all make mistakes. Who I am today was not the person I was in 1984.’
He said he was not being ushed out of politics but was doing so ‘willingly,’ adding ‘no one voted me out.’
‘I expect the next time around I’ll be in the (public) gallery,’ he said.
Prime Minister Mitchell in his remarks commended the former prime minister for his contribution to Grenada’s development and his many years of dedicated public service.
‘Regardless of where we may differ politically, we must acknowledge and respect the tremendous commitment required to dedicate decades of one’s life to public service. Dr The Rt. Honourable Keith Mitchell has served the people of St George Northwest and Grenada for many years, and his contribution to our nation and the wider region is part of our history. On behalf of the Government and people of Grenada, I thank him for his service and extend best wishes to him.’
Prime Minister Mitchell also noted that his predecessor had served for an extended period as the longest-serving prime minister for Grenada adding that this decades-long service came with enormous sacrifice.
He said Dr Mitchell offered himself to serve immediately after the collapse of the left wing People’s Revolutionary Government (PRG) of Maurice Bishop and that his impact helped restore Grenadian parliamentary democracy.