Antigua’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne has publicly defended ECCB Governor Timothy Antoine regarding a significant EC$22 million residence project, in which a letter allegedly authored by St. Vincent’s prime minister characterises the situation as a ‘scandal.’
Browne, during a radio appearance over the weekend, refuted allegations of corruption and advocated for a more thorough investigation into governance shortcomings instead of attributing personal fault. He remarked that the Monetary Council had been “caught flat-footed” by the escalating expenses of the project.
“There is no evidence that the Governor himself had sought to be excessive, and I don’t know that I have seen any case of corruption or something that will create an issue undermining the Governor’s integrity. However, there is a need for stronger governance and oversight.”
“However, I don’t know that we can escape the responsibility. I mean, one can get that we ought to have known, at the level of the directorship; I don’t know the extent to which they knew how much money was spent. What I can say, though, is that there is no evidence that the governor himself had sought to be excessive.
Meanwhile, TimesCaribbean reported that regional broadcaster Julian Rogers stated the following:
“Blaming Antoine personally is misplaced. The ECCB does not operate at the whim of its governor. Such an expenditure would have undergone board-level approvals, making it a collective decision rather than an individual one. Given Gonsalves’s political weight within the ECCU, his opposition could shape the decision-making process when Antoine’s reappointment is discussed,” Rogers observed.
