Governor Carriere speaking to media about appointment of new Financial Secretary on April 8, 2016
Says comments have been “unpleasant and divisive…The appointment of civil servants should never be politicized…”
Anyone following the varying discussions that have surfaced before and after the selection of the new Financial Secretary of Montserrat; and who do not wish to blindly follow or accept what they have been hearing would still be waiting for more.
The Governor at the special press conference to announce the selection but not the appointment of a Financial Secretary following the departure of John Skerritt OBE, had expressed frustration and disappointment at what she wondered, “whether this was an attempt to force my hand, to intimidate me or to undermine any of the candidates or the Montserratians who are involved in the selection process.”
She said she chaired a selection board, deviating from that sort of “old practice and we’ve made sure that Montserratians have been involved in the selection process. I chaired the board, there were three others on the board; they were all Montserratians and very expert and experienced.”
In her lamentation of the comments and discussions, “I have to say I’ve heard what was said in the public and a lot of it was unpleasant and divisive…I was hearing allot of these things – going through the whole decision making process…”
The Governor said she kept focusing on Montserrat’s needs and in response to a lot of what she heard in the public also reflected on, “what I really feel strongly that we don’t need in Montserrat, which is to perpetuate an insider outsider approach to what should be an objective merit based decision,” adding, “I’m disappointed that this recruitment has been the subject of political debate while it was under way. The appointment of civil servants should never be politicized…”
Her lamentation moved her to wonder if the discussions were in an effort, “to compromise a competency based fair selection process that should actually be the norm in Montserrat,” wondering other things. “Or, did it reflect a call for exercising personality based preference in filling our key positions, or general resistance to change even when that change benefits us?” announcing further how she reflected on the fact, that everything we do here in Montserrat, especially the way we conduct public business sends a message about Montserrat’s international reputation.“
She said, “We need to ensure that, that there remains a message that says we’re welcoming a place and that we are a place that practice good governance and follows rules of fairness and transparency,” echoing the cry from these quarters in Montserrat.
In closing her opening remarks the Governor concluded: “Change is inevitable, change is a constant and it’s all around us. If we’re not open to change then we can’t move ahead.”
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