Dr. Kenny Anthony Elected Deputy House Speaker

On Tuesday, the Saint Lucia House of Assembly appointed former Prime Minister Dr. Kenny Anthony as its Deputy Speaker. Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre announced Anthony’s nomination, while Castries South MP Dr. Ernest Hilaire rose to second it. The nomination of the Constitutional Lawyer by profession attracted enthusiastic desk thumping from government MPs. When House Speaker Claudius Francis asked whether other nominees existed, Castries Central MP Richard Frederick eventually rose to nominate opposition leader and Micoud South MP Allen Chastanet. “Mr. Speaker, I wish to nominate the member for Micoud South to be the Deputy Speaker,” Frederick said. “You can’t nominate the leader of the opposition, who also happend to be the member for Micoud South,” House Speaker Claudius Francis responded. Francis later declared Dr. Kenny Anthony, the MP for Vieux Fort South, elected unopposed as Deputy Speaker. Earlier, Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre stressed his administration’s commitment to following the constitution. Pierre recalled that the previous Allen Chastanet Government operated for five years without a Deputy Speaker. “We promised the electorate that when in Government we would ensure that there was a Deputy Speaker,” Pierre told the House. He said his administration kept its promise, with Mikcoud North MP...