Court of Appeal
29 October 2010 | Still in Antigua
The Eastern Caribbean Appeals Court in Castries, St Lucia ruled this week that Antigua and Barbuda's prime minister and two other ruling-party lawmakers were properly elected last year, thus ending attempts to call fresh elections.
The Court overturned an Antigua High Court judge's decision earlier this year voiding the March 2009 election results in three constituencies, including Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer's St. John (near Jolly Harbor) district. Losing three seats would have left Spencer's governing coalition tied with the opposition in Parliament. Last year's election gave Spencer's party nine of Parliament's 17 seats, down from 12 in the previous assembly. The Barbuda People's Movement, which is allied with Spencer, also won a seat, while the opposition Labor Party got seven. (There are many unhappy campers lurking around Antigua)
The country has been struggling with a tremendous budget gap worsened by a drastic drop in tourism and the collapse of R. Allen Stanford's Antigua-based (ponzi scheme) bank empire. The Texas financier helped fund the government and was the country's largest private employer until U.S. authorities nailed the crook for defrauding investors with his offshore bank. May he rot away for stealing innocent people's money.