None for Football!

63

This country’s Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Dr Gonsalves, recently engaged in a rather interesting and perhaps most disturbing comment in the House of Assembly while the Parliamentarians were discussing the Value Added Tax–VAT–scheduled to be introduced here in May 2007.
Dr Gonsalves’ comments came during the Parliamentary discussions in the House on Monday 2nd October 2006 while Senator StClaire Leacock was addressing the matter of the VAT.
His interjection seemed to suggest that the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance was saying, “Ah wouldn’t give any money for football then, since ah goin’ contain mehself”. Later on he stated, “None for football”.
This is actually what transpired in what should otherwise be considered the hallowed halls of this country’s Parliament. Of course as one pays closer attention to what was said by the Prime Minister and the manner in which he said it, one can only feel sorry, dejected and decidedly saddened.
His faux pas in the House earlier in the week came as the rest of St Vincent and the Grenadines was celebrating the team’s success in Jamaica and awaiting their arrival back home later that very day.
The Prime Minister’s timing was particularly poor.

Serious Business
This is not a joking matter. A Prime Minister is expected to be possessive of a strong sense of propriety and we seem to find that in relatively short supply when one examines the aforementioned comments.
There is a sense in which what has been stated in the House can be interpreted as lacking any real sensitivity to what is happening in sport generally and football in particular in St Vincent and the Grenadines.
Dr Gonsalves must have known that the entire country was on an emotional high following the successes, first, of Earl ‘Ole’ George Daniel, and secondly, Vincy Heat, the national football team, in placing second in Group D of this year’s Digicel Cup Tournament, ensuring that highly ranked Jamaica was left in the dust.