The New Today July 24th, 2010 Dr. Mitchell: ‘NDC have given me motivation’
THE NEW TODAY - July 24th, 2010
Former Prime Minister, Dr. Keith Mitchell says that the behaviour in office of the current National Democratic Congress (NDC) government is the major motivating factor for him remaining in frontline politics in the country. Dr. Mitchell now serving in Parliament as the island’s Opposition Leader said he is prepared to step away from politics as soon as the Tillman Thomas-led ruling Congress government begins to govern the country.
The Political Leader of the main opposition New National Party (NNP) was speaking in an interview conducted with outspoken Pastor of the St George’s Baptist Church, Stanford Simon. Dr. Mitchell whose 13 year rule came to an end following the July 8, 2008 general election with a 11-4 lost to NDC told Pastor Simon that despite the many attacks launched against him over the years, he feels blessed to have been given an opportunity to run the country for so many years.
“I feel that I have been blessed, extremely blessed. Very few people in their life have had the privilege to be offered the opportunity to lead their country for so long...”, he said. According to Dr. Mitchell, he has been able to sojourn despite all the attacks and character assassinations and the falsehood leveled against him, which he said at times “were very difficult to take”. “I cannot tell you ... sometimes it didn’t get to me to the point where I will ask myself, why am I taking all this, there’s a better life there for me”, he said.
“...I do not regret it because I think the people have given me their endorsement ... so for me I feel very satisfied whatever happens from now on ...I will not regret the contributions and sacrifices made and the endorsement the people give me”, he added. During his 13-year rule, Dr. Mitchell was often dogged by running a government that was stepped in corruption. As Prime Minister, he was accused of accepting a bribe of US$500, 000.00 from imprisoned con man, Eric Resteiner in exchange for a diplomatic position with his New National Party (NNP) regime.
Despite consistent denial, Timothy Bass, the former Chief of Bodyguard of Resteiner, testified in a U.S court that he had personally videotaped the former Grenada leader accepting the money from the fraudster in a briefcase in June 2000 in a luxury villa in St. Moritz, Switzerland.Bass also alleged that Resteiner had informed him that months earlier he had handed over another US$500, 000.00 payment to Mitchell as part of the deal to land the diplomatic job.
Mitchell’s own former Chief Regulator for Offshore banking, Michael Creft had testified on oath before a grand jury trial in the United States that he had collected cash payments for the former Prime Minister from leading executives of some offshore banks that were allowed to operate in the country. In the interview with Pastor Simon, Dr. Mitchell said that the fundamental reason why he is still in politics is because of his passion for doing what he considers to be right. In addition, he said that based on the tremendous pain he sees now being heaped on people unnecessarily by the new government leaders, this tells him that he could not quit politics right now.
“You (only) quit when you see something better happening in the country,” he quipped. “What I’m doing now I’m doing without worrying about what position I will get, five years from now, three years from now, seven years from now. “... I am not worrying about that, but my biggest hope is that the country can rid itself (of) some of the viciousness, hate and spite and victimisation, character assignation and destruction that I see taking place. “...To tell you the truth, if NDC had started governing the country and not trying to hurt people and respecting the services of those who have gone before, accepting that no one is perfect and there are mistakes and that there will always be mistakes and there are serious mistakes being made now, but there were serious plusses and give people credit for their contribution, there will be no motivation for me to be continuing in this politics...
“...But because of what they are tempted to do to my name, what they have done to a lot of the people that I love and what they continue to do, this have given me motivation “In other words NDC have given me motivation for my political involvement now than anything else. Without that behaviour I probably would not have the motivation,” he said. Dr. Mitchell is said to be fine tuning the NNP for general elections expected in the country sometime in 2013.
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