ST. JOHN’S, Antigua, CNC – Prime Minister Gaston Browne has named an 11-member Cabinet, reminding the ministers that while they had been successful at the April 30 general election, “your success at the polls has earned you the trust of the people and that confidence and trust collectively is not a gift to be enjoyed or, for that matter, a trust to be betrayed”.
The swearing-in ceremony was overshadowed by the death of a long-standing front-line member of the ruling Antigua and Barbuda Labor Party (ABLP), Mary Clare Hurst, following a period of illness.
Hurst, who had served as leader of Government Business in the Senate, was also the chairman of the Antigua and Barbuda Port Authority.
For the first time, elected officials swore an oath of allegiance to the country, setting aside a more than 40-year tradition of pledging loyalty to the British sovereign in the former colony.
Prime Minister Browne spoke in a somber tone when he addressed the newly installed.
Cabinet members noted that the new Cabinet reflected an emphasis on continuity of the government’s socio-economic policies.
He recalled that following last Thursday’s general election, when the ABLP won by a 15-2 majority for a fourth consecutive term in office, he had pledged to be transparent and open with the public.
“Today, I stand before you, my colleagues, to say that the pledge is now ours. Not mine alone, Ours. We have the choice to rise together, honoring our people’s trust, or to fall individually or collectively by betraying their trust. The only viable, sustainable option is to honor our people’s trust and work unrelentingly to empower them. The mandate we have received is not ordinary. It is not routine. It is transformational,” Browne said.
“Take this country higher; move us forward; do not fail us; we must not fail them; failure is not an option. We cannot fail our people under any circumstances, no matter the myriad.
challenges we are sure to face,” he added.
The following is the list of the new Cabinet members.
Gaston Browne – Prime Minister
Sir Steadroy “Cutie” Benjamin – Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs
E.P Chet Greene – Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Immigration
Maria Vanessa Browne – Minister of Housing and Works
Michael Joseph -Minister for Health, Wellness, Environment, and Civil Service Affairs
Dwayne George – Minister for Sports and the Creative Industries,
Charles “Max” Fernandez – Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Transportation, and Investment
Melford Nicholas – Minister of Information, Communication Technologies, Utilities, and Energy
Daryll Matthew – Minister of Education, Science and Technology
Anthony Smith Jr. – Minister of Agriculture, Lands, and the Blue Economy
Rawdon Turner – Minister of Social and Urban Transformation.
Randy St. Clair, Baltimore – Minister of State (Agriculture),
Michael Freeland – Minister of State (Tourism),
Kiz Johnson, Minister of State (Social and Urban Transformation).
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