Senate President Williams-Grant challenges new senators on representation and service as Senate opens

President of the Senate Alincia Williams-Grant called on the newly appointed senators to embrace their roles as advocates for Antiguans and Barbudans and urged greater efforts toward female representation in both houses of parliament, as she was re-elected to the presidency of the Senate for a fourth consecutive term today.

Williams-Grant, who began as among the youngest persons ever appointed to the position and is now its longest-serving occupant, said the role remained a “humbling opportunity and a privilege.”

She paid particular tribute to the two youngest senators, Shaquan O’Neil and Jonathan Wehner who came through the ranks of the National Youth Parliament Association of Antigua and Barbuda (NYPAAB), describing the moment as personally moving.

“As a child, we hear the youth are the future of tomorrow. They are present now. They have a voice. They have a contribution to make,” she said.

“My heart is overwhelmed. I’m almost tearful to see Shaquan and Jonathan here as the product of our outreach programme here at Parliament, our Youth Parliament,” she said.

Senator Williams-Grant said the sight of the two young men celebrating each other’s swearing-in captured exactly the spirit the institution hoped to cultivate.

“When Shaquan was announced, when his name was called to take the oath, Jonathan was pounding the table for his fellow youth parliamentarian and it was reciprocated. When Jonathan was going up, Shaquan was cheering him on,” she said.

“Enjoy it. I know it might not happen again. But it’s good because what we need is a collective effort — a collective effort to bring to focus all of the issues that affect people of Antigua and Barbuda,” she added.

Senator Williams-Grant also singled out Ramona Small, who helped establish the NYPAAB, and who continues to advise its members.

“This mechanism of the Youth Parliament — she saw it as a tool [for young people to grow] when she was in the seat as clerk, and she has continued to serve them,” Williams-Grant said.
Extending her youth focus to the vacant Barbuda Council Senate seat,

Williams-Grant expressed hope that the council would appoint a young woman to fill it.

“I know Barbuda, and I know firsthand that we have very effective and positive young women in Barbuda who can contribute in this house,” she said.

In that regard, the Senate President noted out the current state of female representation in the legislature, noting that women hold only two of 17 seats in the lower house and seven of 17 in the Senate.

She challenged women of the Senate and the Lower House to treat the issue as a national rather than partisan matter.

She congratulated and noted the rapid rise of former senator Kiz Johnson, now a minister of state in the ministry of Social and Urban Transformation, on her transition from the Senate to the House of Representatives.

Meanwhile, she also urged all senators to familiarise themselves with the standing orders of the Senate and reminded them that the presiding officer is the final arbiter in all proceedings.

She remarked that it is her intention to seek support for the Senate being adequately staffed, resourced, and funded, noting persistent public confusion between the roles of the legislature and the executive.

Senate Vice President Philip Shoul, in brief congratulatory remarks, also singled out the two young senators and encouraged them to make their mark.

“It is your time to shine. Make a difference in Antigua and Barbuda,” he said, also pledging to be fair to both sides of the chamber when presiding and appealed for senators to maintain collegial relations beyond the floor of the house, regardless of the vigour of their debates.