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Anguilla United Front Outraged Over Copying of 2010 Manifesto Programme
Initiatives
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admin on 02/03/2010 20:07:00 Etc/GMT+1


(The Valley, Anguilla.  February 3, 2010) The Anguilla United Front Party on
Tuesday, February 2, 2010, launched its “2010 – 2015 & Beyond Manifesto at
its meeting in George Hill, the constituency represented by Party/Team leader
the Hon. Victor F. Banks.  At the launching of this manifesto, candidates/team
members were part of the signing process which was their way of affirming to the
Anguillian voters that should they be given the opportunity to continue to
provide stability, continuity and visionary leadership for Anguilla on February
16, 2010, this is the basis on which their performance would have to be judged.
The Manifesto which outlines the vision, principal strategic objectives and
programme priorities for various sectors of the Anguillian economy was launched
after months of committed preparation.  The process began at the September 26,
2009 Anguilla United Front Convention.  During the convention the 2005 Manifesto
was critiqued by delegates at the convention.  A manifesto committee including
all seven candidates was formed at the end of this convention and it is that
committee that had the responsibility for creating the final document that was
launched on February 2, 2010.
Party Chairman Mr. Fritz Smith in recognizing the sacrifices made by members of
the Manifesto Committee especially during the Christmas Holiday Season offered
sincerest thanks to all and went on to say that he was “greatly troubled by
the fact that the Anguilla United Movement’s Draft Manifesto that was
available for download as of February 2, 2010 in some respects reflected a copy
of the hard work invested by members of the Anguilla United Front and especially
the Manifesto Committee”.  He went on to say that “we are well aware that
parts of our manifesto inadvertently got in the hands of some members of the AUF
group and that some parts of our manifesto was critiqued in their blogs and
since this information would be later made public, giving the Anguillian voter
the opportunity to compare and contrast parties, we expected that they would use
the information to seek to develop their own manifesto and if possible out do
that of the Anguilla United Front.  Imitation may be the best form of flattery
but in this case integrity is all that matters”.
Party/Team Leader the Honourable Victor F. Banks expressing his outrage stated,
“that this act was tantamount to stealing the formula or ingredients that go
into making a product.  The Anguilla United Front’s manifesto is the formula
for the programmes and plans of our party to provide for the wellbeing of our
people.  This extracting of chunks of information by the AUF from the tourism
section of the Anguilla United Front Manifesto and placing it into their
document represents not just a lack of integrity but a lack of vision,
intellectual capacity and ability on the part of the AUM candidates to provide
for the wellbeing of the Anguillian community at this stage of Anguilla’s
development.  It represents a bankruptcy of ideas and a barrenness of vision. 
It represents a place where Anguilla cannot afford to be.”
Mr. Banks further stated that “Anguilla in 2010 needs to continue to have
visionary leadership, stability and continuity.  Anguilla needs a strong team
that brings to the table diverse perspectives, requisite training and experience
as well as identifiable capabilities.  Anguilla cannot afford five years of
experimentation.  Since the plans and programmes of the Anguilla United Front
have been found worthy of copy it would make more sense for the Anguillian
public to simply employ the architects of the plan to execute and oversee the
implementation of that plan.  We really do not feel flattered by this copying of
our manifesto; we feel saddened at the emptiness of character, the gross
limitations in leadership, and the lack of ability and preparedness evidenced by
this act on the part of the AUM leadership and membership”.
Mr. Banks reiterated that “after the campaigning is over it will take a
combination of vision, skill, intellect, commitment and dedication to stabilize,
adjust and grow the Anguillian economy whilst focusing on social reconstruction,
environmental management, healthcare improvements, infrastructural development
and the development of our human resources”.  Mr. Banks concluded by saying
that “as truth continues to be revealed he hopes that the Anguillian voters
will seize the opportunities presented by rejecting the lies already spoken or
will be spoken, as well as the lies now written by opposition platforms,
accepting instead the truth and hope presented by the Anguilla United Front”.