Letter: Fellow villager beaming with joy over Carmona's nomination

My heart is beaming with joy and why shouldn't it when someone from my birthplace gets raised by the Lord Above to a position of greatness? Santa Flora is a beautiful place.

 It still maintains its countryside image despite the wealth it produced and still produces at one of the oldest refineries in the Caribbean. 

I was born in Santa Flora. Our new President, Mr (Judge) Anthony Thomas Carmona, is from the same village. As children of the same village he and I are family for better or for worse. Related in that manner, I know he'd remember us when he takes up his plum appointment in paradise and use his increased weight to influence things towards poor people's favour with greater speed than the Partnership has been doing since coming to office. 

The only way he can do that is by reviewing every appointment the departing President made and deciding whom to keep or whom to replace because some of those appointees seem to think their job is to side with the Opposition and attack the government.

But no President should be burdened with having to do a review like that. Government is supposed to be of the people, by the people and for the people. 

The law should stipulate the same way our Prime Ministers and Presidents get elected, the same way a number of other bigwigs should be as well. Our Chief Justice, the DPP, the Independent Senators, the Integrity Commission, all of them should have to face public scrutiny and win an election to get the job. This is a democracy. 

That's how our business should be organized. If not, the rule should be that whoever holding those positions must resign when a new President comes in.

If my review idea is accepted, all the Independent senators and Integrity Commissioners would have their letters of resignation ready and waiting since they are all Max Richards' men and women, not Mr (Judge) Carmona's. 

If that's not the case, Mr (Judge) Carmona should grab the bull by the horns and wring in the necessary changes to make his mark early o'clock, because, frankly speaking, we have too many persons from the old regime still pushing the knobs against the grain we voted for in 2010.

Welcome Mr (Judge) Carmona! Good luck to you!

Candice Bartholomew-Reyes | Block 44, Trou Macaque, Laventille