By Staff Writer
ROSEAU, Dominica, Jan 19, CMC- Jesma Paul-Victor was sworn in as Opposition Leader on Monday, after reaching an agreement with the other independent opposition legislator, Anthony Charles, and ending 18 months of a stalemate in the Dominica parliament.
“Honestly, I feel good. I think it is a continuation of where we left off in 2024. I know persons have their concerns, they also have their views, but Honourable Charles, and I had our discussions, and today we are seeing the outcome of our discussions,” Mrs Paul-Victor told reporters.
Both Paul-Victor and Charles entered parliament as independent candidates after winning seats in the December 20, 2022, snap general election.
Last year, Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit said that the non-appointment of an opposition leader “is not a crisis” even as he acknowledged that the holder of the post has certain constitutional responsibilities.
In the general election, Skerrit led the ruling Dominica Labour Party (DLP) to a convincing victory, winning 19 of the 21 seats following a boycott by the main opposition political parties.
Paul-Victor and Charles had agreed to a power-sharing arrangement in which they would alternate the position between them. But the accord fell through after Paul-Victor resigned in June 2024.
Charles had earlier told the state-owned DBS Radio that he had decided to throw his support behind Paul Victor, who had previously served for two years, and that a letter with his signature had been sent to the Office of the President, Sylvanie Burton.
“Jesma and I have decided to solve the constitutional crisis that has been going on for a year. We have solved it,” Charles told DBS Radio, adding, “this is not a Jesma and Tony thing.
“This is for the greater good of Dominica. We have solved it. Let’s not talkabout unity, but leave unity and improve our country as best as we can. It’s as simple as that. : Let’s be united and move forward with our country,” he told DBS Radio.
Paul-Victor, who represents the west coast constituency of Salisbury, told reporters on Monday that she “can’t be the leader of the opposition without the support of Mr. Charles and vice versa”.
She said the country is aware of the circumstances that led to the breakdown of the previous arrangement, adding, “We have spoken about this, we have buried the hatchet, we know that things happen in politics, and we are moving forward.
“We have bigger things to deal with, we have issues of the country that we have to address, and we have had a vacuum for a very long time, and we believe we had to take a decision to have a leader of the opposition to have a voice in parliament to deal with issues as the Constitution prescribes”.
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