Hopefully,  you already know that I am a raving fan of the U.S. Virgin Islands Governer – Gov. John deJongh, Jr.   He is the brightest hope that the Territory has had in recent memory.  I paid close attention to his State of the Union address last month to make sure my respect and esteem for him was correctly placed.  It is!  The initiatives that he began three years ago are creating a new and vibrant economy and future for the Virgin Islands.  His address was before a packed at house of the Legislature with all of his government officials in attendance.  His opening comments of, “Tonight, although we may not be out of the woods yet, I believe that we are on the right path,” deJongh said.  “If we persevere together, we will overcome these challenges and we will see a better tomorrow in the days, months and years to come.” His words have been put into action before all of our eyes.  He has created one of the most open governments I have seen since I arrived in the Caribbean in 1975.

He inherited a monumental debt three years ago.  His first job was to reduce that debt.  However, the impact of the global economic meltdown stripped the Virgin Islands of any of their reserves.  They now have a monthly deficit of $25 million.  Can you imagine?  Gov. deJongh said, “To put this in perspective, $234 million is almost half of the cost of salaries and benefits of our government workers for a full year.” The Legislature has now passed an initiative to borrow up to $250 million, plus they are changing their financial priorities which are allowing them to free up funds for critical government projects.  Because of this all layoffs have been avoided.

One of Gov. deJongh’s key initiatives is education.  Turning their failed education system around takes hard work,  but after three years, the picture is a bit different, he said. “Today, all of our public high schools are accredited,” the governor said. “Today, we are compliant with federal regulations and spending all available federal funds. And this year, we have come close to tripling the number of schools that are meeting their AYP goals.” He is still very concerned about the high rate of school drop-outs within the Virgin Island’s schools.

You may have no idea what the energy issues are in the Caribbean.  The are enormous.  Gov. deJongh said to the audience,  “After years of false starts, the V.I. government is finally moving ahead with a solution to address the territory’s energy crisis–a proposal for two waste-to-energy plants to help manage the territory’s waste issues and cut WAPA’s dependence on oil.  But, don’t look upon this as our sole approach to the issue of alternative energy.” He also presented his ideas about creating a “clean energy industry” in the U.S. Virgin Islands, which includes the evolution of green jobs, capturing landfill gases for energy and cutting the government’s power bills. Cleaner air and water, and a green government were presented alongside plans to keep promoting local capital projects, taking advantage of federal stimulus funds, strengthening tax incentives for businesses and making the territory a hub for technology and emergency-response management within the Caribbean.

There was much more to his address that needs to be considered.  But, one of the key points Gov. deJongh made as he concluded his remarks was to urge the community to set anything aside that would stymie the territory’s progress, such as pettiness, partisanship, ill will and self-interest.
“Every act of pettiness, of meanness, of nay-saying and of disrespect diminishes not just the actor, but the audience,” the governor said. “We can and must rise above this. We cannot back into the future, but we must look forward boldly and with confidence. We must turn and face the future even as we carry with us the best of the past. We must not wallow in the past, in past wrongs or slights, or even past injustices. We must turn and face the future working every day to make it better.”

Gov. John deJongh is one of THE key leaders in the Caribbean!  He is transforming the Virgin Islands into the center piece of those who love the Caribbean as much as I do.  Until next time…fair winds!