Foreign Affairs Minister and St. Paul's MP Chet Greene has reiterated his claim that independent candidate Alan "Spotlight" Weston's campaign is driven by a "white power" agenda, naming individuals he alleges are financing the candidate to secure control of property in English Harbour. According to Antigua.news, Greene made the remarks during a broadcast on WTP FM 93.5, stating he was speaking from a position of privileged information accessible by virtue of his ministerial office.
Greene claimed to have intelligence on meetings held by the independent campaign and said he was prepared to identify the individuals involved. "I want to tell Spotlight, his main funder and backer, Dennis Foe, and others, that every meeting you have, I get information," Greene said during the broadcast, asserting that he receives audio recordings, video clips and direct accounts of campaign meetings on a regular basis.
The Minister repeatedly referred to Weston as "Uncle Tom Spotlight" and alleged the candidate was being financed to advance the commercial ambitions of a private businessman. Greene claimed the goal of the alleged backers was to acquire the National Sailing Academy property in English Harbour for private development.
"Dennis, I declare to you this morning, English Harbour is not for sale," Greene said. "I declare to all those who have been going to locals in English Harbour to buy out their properties, English Harbour and our people are not for sale."
The original allegations were aired during a 23 April broadcast on WTP FM, in which Greene described Weston's campaign as having been encouraged by what he called a "white power" effort within English Harbour, with the principal aim of acquiring the Sailing Academy property to build an expanded restaurant on the site.
"This notion of white power in our community won't be countenanced," Greene said. "We're not going to give up the economy of English Harbour to persons who come to join us and persons who use our resources to make money."
Greene rejected suggestions that he was introducing race into the national conversation, instead accusing the Spotlight campaign of attempting to use reverse psychology to deflect from what he described as its own racial undertones. He pointed to his 12 years as the constituency representative for St. Paul's as evidence that accusations of racism were not previously levelled against him and questioned why such claims were surfacing now.
"What it is you're running from? You're running from the fact that I exposed you, with your racist tendencies, and your racist attempt, to introduce what you call white power, into our national election campaign," Greene told listeners.
The remarks have drawn a public response from Ragan King, a naturalised Antiguan business owner who has operated in English Harbour for 29 years. In a written statement circulated through the Spotlight campaign, King said he was hurt, disappointed and appalled by what he described as racial attacks on white residents over their political preferences.
King said the targeting of individuals in the yachting sector was particularly concerning. "As an economist, I understand the potential negative economic fallout that can occur from these irresponsible statements and racial undertones, and the targeting of individuals in such an important sector as yachting," he said.
King added that the sector is uniquely susceptible to internal and external pressures and requires carefully considered policy and public conduct in a small, tourism-dependent economy. "It is not okay to attack specific groups and individuals in this community without examining their massive historical contributions to events, people, and political parties over the years," he said.
The exchanges come as the Spotlight campaign continues to press a series of accountability questions directed at the National Parks Authority, including queries about audited accounts, the disposal of Crown land within the park and what the campaign describes as a conflict of interest in the Authority's regulatory and commercial roles.
In a 24 April blog post, Weston said Greene's radio remarks represented a deflection from those questions and pledged to continue pressing for documentary answers rather than engage in personal exchanges.
