Questions are being asked as to whether Jadia JnPierre's medical bill payment of over $60,000.00 was justified over a former parliamentarian who served with distinction giving dedicated service to his country.

1.
Did the government fail George?
It is customary for kind words and epithets to be bandied
about when someone dies. Even more so when it is a
prominent public figure, with previously un-heretofore
verbalized virtues being extolled ad nauseum. Such was the
case with the passing of former education minister and
parliamentary representative for Micoud North, Louis
George, who died on January 2 after battling a long illness.
Perhaps no one was more effusive than the institution he
served for well over twenty years: the government of St
Lucia.
In a statement on their website, George is lauded for his
contributions to the island.
“Mr. George served his country with commitment and

2. dedication.”
Even when he was on the other side of the spectrum, he
was a pretty stand up guy.
“Between the years May 1997 to December 2001 he held
the post of Leader of the Opposition. In those years, he was
the sole opposition member in Parliament. He handled his
duties with courage, balance and dignity.”
George was multi-talented.
“He was a trained teacher and a trained agriculturalist.”
He was proficient at the job he was elected to do.
“Mr. George has had a distinguished career as a politician
and Minister of Government.”
In fact, prime minster Kenny Anthony shared a personal
connection with George by way of school ties.
“Louis George was of my generation. Like me, he was a
former student of the Vieux Fort Comprehensive
Secondary School, Campus B. We sat on the same school
benches. I remember that he was full of fun, and mischief.
He loved a good laugh. In later years, despite the
challenges of his illness, he maintained his quiet, selfeffacing dignity. I salute him as a former graduate of our
Alma Mater. The people of Micoud North have every
reason to be proud of this son who rose to ministerial

3. ranks,” he said.
Sounds like they held him in high regard, no?
So why wasn’t more done to help him?
In one of his last interviews with DBS’ Onel Sanford-Belle,
George shared his continued struggle with Type 1 diabetes
and its related complications. He lost both legs and had
been receiving dialysis for over twenty years. It was
revealed that most of his treatment had been private and
personally financed, consuming his resources.
Sandford-Belle expressed what was on almost everyone’s
mind.
“A former deputy prime minister. I think basic health care
is something that you earned after twenty years in office.”
“That is St Lucia. I have carried the burden of my medical
condition from day one up to now without an iota of
assistance from the government that I was a part of and the
subsequent governments that have come in. Not one.” he
responded.
George conceded that his service was not voluntary and he
did not feel owed anything. His private care eventually
came to a halt and he was briefly in peril as he waited five
days for the government subsidized treatment.
So why wasn’t he assisted?

4. Shouldn’t a former minister be entitled to some medical
benefits?
According to cabinet secretary Darrel Montrope, public life
isn’t as cushy as we might think.
“People tend to think that the politicians do make money
and they do have a lot of this and that and they have life
easy and stuff like that.That is not the case. The politicians
if they serve their two terms will get their pension in
whatever the amount is at that time. But in terms of other
benefits for medical and stuff like that? Not even as
ministers are they eligible for any of these. They would
have to face these things like any other citizen. So there’s
no specific benefit. At the end of their tenure when they
pass we’ll make a contribution to their burial.”
Sounds a bit archaic but fair enough. How then do you
explain the hullabaloo which broke out when it was
discovered that the prime minister’s press secretary, Jadia
Jn Pierre Emmanuel, had her medical expenses covered to
the tune of
$45,000 by the government after being rushed to Martinque
for emergency care?
At the time the prime minister cited that it was not
groundbreaking. He referenced a police officer who had
received the same courtesy from a previous administration,
unbeknownst to cabinet. They were even more generous in

5. footing a $200,000 bill. It is not a common practice but
what Anthony coined a “special consideration.”
Hmmm. One befitting a long serving member of the
fraternity who is in dire straits perhaps?
“If any and everybody would be able to get, there is no way
we, and I mean we as in the state, will be able to afford it
and provide for it. The administration of the day is going to
make its own calculus as to what are the circumstances
around the incident for them to be able to make that
determination as to I can give support, I can’t give support.
They have to be so very careful because then they certainly
wouldn’t want to open the flood gates.”
Again, fair enough. But according to their press release this
wasn’t just “anyone”. After all “he brought to his
ministerial duties a quiet dignity, a common touch honed
both by his personality and his training, particularly in
teaching.”
In light of that stellar service provided by George which is
not matched by one tenth of Jn Pierre-Emmanuel’s tenure
thus far, doesn’t he qualify for this special consideration
fund?
“Persons like Louis George and other parliamentarians
would know to contact the prime minister and state their
case to right their situation,” Montrope countered.
“Because nobody would know and they’re not supposed to.

6. I’m not supposed to know people’s financial situations. So
if you are in that situation then you make an appeal and
your case will be determined.” Montrope continued.
“Any of the requests that he has made has certainly
received favourable consideration.”
Wait. Is this confirmation that requests were made by
George?
“I’ll get all the information for you but there is no request
that was made that was denied.”
This documentation will be crucial because it is certainly
difficult to get both sides of the story when one party has
departed this life. Montrope was certainly accommodating
but eventually had to rush off to a very important meeting
ironically concerning the burial of George. All the pomp
and circumstance that the deceased minister stated he was
averse to.
But as was peppered throughout their statement he was a
man of dignity and is now about to receive the treatment in
death that he could have used in life.