Talk show host Claude Skelton Cline has raised sharp questions about the government’s decision to effectively pause parts of the economy to accommodate the massive Uber Soca Cruise that visited the territory this week, suggesting the move reflects worrying priorities of the government.
Speaking on his Honestly Speaking radio show this week, Skelton Cline questioned why schools and government services needed to pause, saying the Virgin Islands does not “have the luxury” to put essential operations on hold after the difficulties of the last several years. “I don’t know the wisdom,” he added. “But I’m open to hearing.”
He added: “I am not sure of the wisdom of shutting down the economy, particularly in times like these,” he said. “One could argue that the soca cruise can serve as some stimuli in another area, but I don’t know why the rest of the economy could not continue at the same time. I don’t know why we couldn’t walk and chew gum at the same time.”
Walwyn’s criticism not well-timed?
Skelton Cline also took aim at Opposition Leader Myron Walwyn, who’s critique of the government flooded national airwaves and social platforms on the same day residents marched against the removal of Acting Commissioner of Police Jacqueline Vanterpool. Skelton Cline said Walwyn’s comments could have been better timed.
“My only concern was that it was being done on the same day of the march,” he said. “All of our energies and efforts should have been expended toward addressing this matter with the UK relative to our democracy.”
He argued that the Vanterpool controversy should have served as a rallying point for the broader question of whether the Virgin Islands truly operates under a democratic system or whether “colonisation is still ruling the day.”
‘We must become a strategic people’
Skelton Cline urged the public and political leaders to approach the current times with caution and long-term thinking.
“We have to be more strategic. We have to exercise more wisdom during this very critical time,” he said. “This cannot be business as usual.”
While acknowledging that residents will ultimately have their say at the ballot box by mid-2027, he insisted that the present crisis demands unity, discipline, and deliberate communication.
“We’re gonna have to watch for the wisdom behind our words. We’re gonna have to watch our tone, antenna, and temperament,” he said. “Claude Skelton Cline comes to this desk as often as I possibly can to not bring heat, but to bring light… to help provoke us to think about who we are and where we are.”
He concluded by urging Virgin Islanders to keep their attention fixed on the “bigger picture” of democratic rights and constitutional power, even as major events like the Uber Soca Cruise cause dissent within the community.
