The UWP government (2016 to 2021) was massively out-voted for mishandling the country's economy and for low political morality, to put it in a nutshell. Within the UWP's mishandling of almost all the key economic and social sectors, its performance on the St Jude Reconstruction Project (SJRP) would have chalked up the strongest public resentment, second only to the overall stench of corruption which overpowered the country. 

The first red flag of the UWP handling of St Jude was Chastanet's decision to place matters of St Jude reconstruction in the lap of Guy Joseph, by-passing his Minister of Health, Mary Isaac.  

In fact, St Jude was one of the many big budget public projects placed in the charge of Guy Joseph, the then MP for Casters South East, who Chastanet appointed 'economic development minister'. Together with the portfolios of Housing, Urban Renewal, Transport and Civil Aviation, Guy Joseph had a hand in virtually everything in the government relating to physical development. 

A minibus operator and executive member of the umbrella body for the drivers, Joseph was, prior to the general elections of 2011 (when he first won his seat) not known for any credentials or experience in anything related to building construction, civil engineering or public administration. But he took on the arrogance of a 'chief cook and bottle washer', so to speak, in the administration of Allan Chastanet. And Chastanet, who had a terrible record on his handling of government projects seemed quite happy to lie low in favour of Guy who was always the one front-and-centre on the SJRP. 

What followed was a chain of missteps on the SJRP that amounted to further delays and great cost. By the end of the Chastanet-Guy St Jude circus, the people of Saint Lucia, particularly those of Vieux Fort and neighbouring communities saw no real progress on their main medical institution.

One would vividly recall that the Chastanet Administration's first order of business on St Jude was a "technical audit". Nothing wrong with a new government seeking to assess for itself the state of an unfinished inherited building project. But Guy Joseph himself disclosed in September 2016 that the audit would cost taxpayers a ridiculous sum of "nearly $800,000" and should be completed by the end of the same month. Most of this money should have gone towards continuing construction. Joseph then announced that the project was at a “standstill” phase following his decision to end construction works there momentarily to undertake the technical audit. 

By then Chastanet, Guy and other ranking UWP members had intensified a blame game against the former SLP Administration. The "standstill" on the SJRP continued for three years, taking us to 2019. 

All this time the Chastanet Administration had been planning the construction of a new hospital on the same site - to be facilitated by the demolition of the existing buildings that were made possible with taxpayers’ money and international and local donors -- not least the patriotic Saint Lucians. In November 2019 Guy Joseph has confirmed that two of the buildings at the St. Jude Reconstruction Site would be demolished, a heart-breaking action later telecast to show the back-hoes and tractors in full assault on two of the buildings on the reconstruction site complex to make way for a monstrosity, later nicknamed 'The Box' by the SLP. 

Bear in mind that Guy Joseph had stated some two years earlier (as recorded in an article in the Star, Online, October 1, 2017) that “If St. Jude is going to be demolished, I don’t want to be a part of it.” 

Indeed, Guy Joseph in another over-ambitious update had once promised completion of a new St Jude as early as mid-2020. Then in June 2020, Joseph boasted that contractors were on schedule to deliver the project in 18 months. By then, it would appear that the UWP was already in a panic   

Guy Joseph himself read the writing on the wall when he appeared to succumb to his own guilt. On that occasion he proclaimed in Kweyol, "If we can't deliver St Jude we are not supposed to be re-elected." 

And so it was said, so it was done. The people kicked Guy Joseph and the bungling UWP out of office. Then the campaign of revenge started. The UWP's behaviour has been that of a sore loser of a poker game in the Wild West. 

Chastanet and Guy just can't bring themselves to admit that their policy for St Jude reconstruction was overcooked -- too many wild, complicated ingredients, too much ignorance of financial implications, too much infusion of patronage politics and, above all, too much administrative stuttering on a project that should have earned natural continuity after the SLP Government demitted office. 

So Chastanet and Guy Joseph, and their Party faithful seem to be on a mission to keep the SJRP unfinished as one of their sparse election campaign tactics. They are shooting down any progressive development, such as the timely $201M loan from the Saudi Fund for Development in August 2023 to push the project to completion.  While all people of goodwill are counting down to a completion date that seems sooner than later, sore losers in the UWP have questioned the genuine intentions of the Saudis on this important social project. Senior members of the Party opted to speculate on the intentions of the Saudis, rather than welcome the financial boost for the SJRP. Lenard Montoute speculated on the adequacy of the loan, while Dominic Fedee wondered whether the Saudis were after Saint Lucia passports in exchange.

In October 2023, the Flambeaus announced ‘Operation Rescue Saint Lucia’, which they opened with a rag-tag, inconsequential march. Authorities did not trust the intentions of the UWP and kept them well away from the project compound.

Last week,the UWP tried another stunt to have its leader gain access to the project site - which he did. It may be the beginning of a slight change in tactic by the opposition, as progress on the project becomes more pronounced. Now that the work is apparently approaching the stage of 'finishes', the opposition wants to 'identify' to salvage its dreadful image in public opinion. 

They will not succeed. Too much ground has been lost.