“Hope Over Despair” Message To Mapp Supporters As They Hear “We Can Do Better” At STT Kickoff
Gubernatorial Candidate Kenneth Mapp
Lt. Governor Candidate Dr. Malik Sekou
“We can provide a better life than this for our people,” said gubernatorial candidate Kenneth Mapp at his formal kickoff this morning on St. Thomas. “Hope is dying – but hope is not dead.”
In front of an extremely enthusiastic crowd, and following an impassioned introduction by Juel Malloy, Mapp and his running mate, Dr. Malik Sekou, threw their political stake in the ground and burst through the campaign starting gate.
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From the beginning of the well-crafted address, Mapp was clear that his priorities will focus on crime, education and a return to the quality of life once enjoyed in the Virgin Islands. And he spared no words in placing the responsibility for the current conditions squarely at the feet of the Gov. John deJongh administration.
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And while the criminal epidemic was clearly top of mind, Mapp emphasized that it was not the only issue to be addressed.
“Crime is number one but not the only issue,” he said “Where are all the guns coming from and why is our government so helpless to get them off the street?”
Mapp said the community cannot ignore the connection between rising crime and the current Administration’s failures in education and lack of job creation, including the practice of giving contracts to retirees rather than offering those opportunities to young Virgin Islanders who need access to employment.
“We can provide a better life than this for our people,” he said. “We can return to the values and beliefs that made us great – Hope is dying but hope is not dead.”
Mapp, a former Lt. Governor, said his background as a policemen, labor leader, three-term senator, director of the Public Finance Authority and executive in the private sector provided the experience he needs to act effectively as the Territory’s Chief Executive Officer.
He discussed the “deep seated fear” Virgin Islanders are feeling based on the possibility of losing their land because of the property tax burden and blamed the current Administration for “failing to administer the property tax laws” correctly. He was also critical of the Administration’s approach to the environment, saying it has “advanced the destruction of our islands to advance development;” their failure to address skyrocketing energy costs; and the misuse of public funds on personal projects when there are so many urgent public needs.
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Mapp was sharply critical of the Administration’s apparent lack of awareness of the problems facing Virgin Islanders as they struggle to meet day-to-day obligations.
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Lt. Governor candidate Dr. Malik Sekou said that his experience as an associate professor at the University of the Virgin Islands and a political consultant had given him many opportunities to contribute to the lives of many in the Virgin Islands community. But the current environment of hopelessness and despair he sees today was a determining factor in his decision to run with Mapp.
“I started to ask myself, “Is this your only role?” he said. “What does a patriot do when his beloved homeland is on fire? He stands up with the will of God to shake up the place – and I mean shake up in a good sense.”
He echoed Mapp’s sentiments on crime and said that 180 homicides in 3 years in 8 months and has “successfully broken the record” of criminal activity in the Territory’s history, and said leadership must “understand the cause, the ways to prevent it, and the courage to make the tough decisions to reduce crime on our islands.
“Fighting crime means preventing crime and this means improving education,” Sekou said, adding that alternative approaches including charter and magnet schools, vocational and technical education opportunities and a heightened focus on activities that promote sports, culture and the environment are essential to that improvement.
Mapp concluded by assuring the crowd that he and Sekou were up to the challenge, and warned that while the transformation “won’t be easy,” that there is no other choice at this critical crossroads in Virgin Islands history.
And in line with their consistent message of “hope over despair” Mapp concluded his comments with this promise.
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y the moderation???or r u doing a spell check for salary..lol
Remember let them (wolverine’s) fight amongst themselves we going to
whup him sooner than you think, keep your head on focus, don’t get
caught up in the bantering between camps divided we fall. Wolverines
are pretending to be us. Let them keep the low life politics to themselves, we have a mission. Anybody but John, I know we have our favorites, but stay away from the attacks you will scare people away from your candidate. Blog good stuff about them & their platform would help. Refer them to websites with postive info. on your candidate, but stop the personal attacks to the opposing camps to dewolf. This is serious times requiring your compliance and adherence.
Thank you all for using your good judgment and common sense.
@ Anon from yesterday: I thought a bit before responding to your comment, as I did not want to say too much, ya know?
So, #1: What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, & #2: It’s too late to have a good past.
I have been very considerate to quite a few “leaders” & “role models” in our community, and would like to keep it that way, ok?
Encore!
We have a traffic-light situation.
DeJongh(Red Light)——-Full Stop; do not proceed; accident likely!
Donastorg(Green Light)—–Proceed; you have the Right-a-Way! Go! Go! Go!
Remember Bert is now a Democrat and maybe now the ICM can rebuild to a major player in VI politics as it was under Cyril King. Tell me what did Bert ever do for the ICM party but to destroy it?
de Jongh go pack your bags and leave Bert alone.
won’t be long now