Asot Michael - Biography

ASOT ANTHONY MICHAEL Born in Guadeloupe, French West Indies, on December 1969 into a politically active family. My grandfather, Asot Michael, whose name I am proud to bear, died of a heart attack the previous year, the day after his Redcliffe Street property was burnt down by anti-government persons in the 1968 riots. Indeed, you would recall that my late father, Patrick Michael, was an essential pillar supporting the Antigua Labour Party during its darkest hours in the early 1970’s. He sacrificed his business to ensure the survival of the Labour Party The Michael generation before him, comprising brothers Mitchell, Asot and Maurice, was even more involved in the socio-political life of Antigua and Barbuda, not by serving in any government position, but by assisting meaningfully, and in a very philanthropic manner, in the social and economic transformation of this country.

Education:

Secondary School - St. Joseph’s Academy, St. John’s, Antigua (1982-1986) High School Diploma 1986. Cambridge - ‘O’ Level GCE.Certificate (1985-1986) Passed. Six (6) Subjects.

Barry University (1986-1989) BS Degree Graduated in May 1989 with Honors in Business Administration with a double major in Economics and Finance. Deans list twice and Presidents list once.

University of Miami 1990-1991 - MBA Degree from U.M. Graduate School of Business. Dean’s list.

Academic Accomplishment:

Who’s who among International Students in American Universities and colleges.

United States Achievements Academy National Award Winner for high Scholastic achievement. Delta Mu Delta National Honor Society in Business Administration.

Professional Experience:

1992-1994 - Worked for Asot’s Arcade as Managing Director (Retail Store & Casino) Managing Director of Patrick A. Michael Co. Ltd (Real Estate Development & Investment Co).

1995-1997 Special Administrative Assistant to the Hon. Lester B. Bird Prime Minister Office, St. John’s Antigua.

1997-2000 Chief of Staff in the Office of the Prime Minister. Government of Antigua and Barbuda.

March 1999 - Appointed a Government Senator in the Upper House of Parliament in Antigua and Barbuda. Appointed Minister of State in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Public Works, Communications, Insurance, Energy & St. John’s Development Corporation.

January 2001 appointed a full Minister of Government with responsibility for Public Works, Communications, Insurance and St. John’s Development.

January 2001-June 2003 Appointed and served as Minister of State with responsibility for the Ministry of Finance.

May 1999 - June 2003 Appointed and served as Leader of Government Business in the Senate. Upper House of Parliament of Antigua and Barbuda.

Political Carrer:

To many persons, therefore, my joining the Antigua Labour Party, to help carry forward the vision and the mission of its founding fathers, was inevitable. What was not so predictable, however, is the multi-sided scenario that has unfolded.

I am cognizant of the unease suffered by some persons over my decision to enter elective politics by contesting a seat in the democratically elected House of Representatives of our country. This is a thorny issue, but my forthrightness requires me to deal with it in an open and straightforward manner. I cannot ignore it. No one has yet meaningfully questioned my ability, qualifications or prospects of making a significant contribution as an elected Representative of the people. Sadly, however, my critics, even colleagues, have questioned whether a “white”, wealthy, young man should aspire to political power in Antigua and Barbuda.

They wish to exclude me from that essential part of our country’s life which our Constitution keeps open to all who meet the qualifications set down therein. This is a matter of deep regret for me personally, and the hundreds of “nonblack” families who over many generations have settled in Antigua and made this beautiful country their home. Indeed, to persons such as myself, and others of my generation, this is the only home we know. We are proud Antiguans, ready, willing and able to make a contribution to the development of this country. My family is not “white” in the historical, sociopolitical sense in which that word has always been used to denote a firstworld, European or North American person who dictated the life of Antigua and Barbuda for all of those years prior to our Independence.

We are Lebanese, from a poor, simple, peasant village located high in the mountains, where hard work, love of God, family, and fellow man dictate one’s daily life and hope for the future of one’s children. My great grandparents were poor peasants who emigrated to the West a hundred years ago, worked hard and educated their children so that future generations would not have to work as physically hard as their parents and grandparents did. They too had a dream. They succeeded in business. Their success was attributable to the honest, straightforward, caring way in which they treated customers and employees, and to their kindness and philanthropy to their church, their schools, and to their fellow man. They died in peace with their conscience and their God. They had fulfilled their dream.

Some people say we are not “white” because we are Arab. Others say we certainly don’t behave like the original white people, the Colonial English. We did not inherit the ethic of the colonizer. We are certainly not the descendants of slave owners. We succeeded the English and Scottish merchants because we had success over them. We outperformed them in business. We are proud of that. Let not that success be turned into a negative mark against me by my rivals. Let not my kindness and generosity to others be used by jealous persons to criticize and malign me for doing what I have been taught to be an honourable and Christian duty.

ASOT MICHAEL – POLITICAL PROFILE

Every now and then, the political landscape in our island democracies is visited by a rare breed of politician who epitomizes the spirit of service above self, who devotedly places his possessions at the disposal of those in need, who “walks with kings but never loses the common touch”, and who gets things done by “keeping his head about him” even as others are “losing theirs and blaming it on him”.

Since March 2004, the blessing of that extraordinary brand of political representation has been in the hands of the people of the St Peter’s constituency.

“I give thanks and praise for my beloved constituents with whom I have been privileged to develop a personal bond built on a solid foundation of love and mutual respect for each other that transcends narrow, partisan politics”.

In all he does in politics and government, Asot Michael operates with a passion for excellence, a hunger for results and an uncommon love for people, their well being and progress.

“I have always been that way… Politics has always been in my blood I grew up in a family where my parents and grandparents were always looking out for people and wanting to see them succeed as well as they could. My father Patrick Michael sacrificed his business in support of the ALP during its darkest days in the 1970’s. And the Michael generation before him was even more involved in the socio-political life of Antigua and Barbuda.

“So I guess as far as it concerns politics and working with people, I have just been living the values I picked up from my family… Then there were all the valuable little lessons I learned from some of the best politicians in Antigua and Barbuda like Papa VC Bird, Lester Bird and Tim Hector. But I think the most important thing is that I really enjoy what I do…”

Indeed, to see him leading a convoy of trucks through every street in the constituency personally delivering Christmas and New Year goodies to every family is to be up close with a politician in peace and harmony with his purpose.

And when he rises in Parliament to articulate concerns about the good and just governance of Antigua and Barbuda, it is crystal clear that the darling of St Peter’s is not just in tune with his people development mission but also destined to ensure it succeeds.

“The people of this country know that they were better off under the ALP and it is their money the UPP has recklessly taxed out of them to create the UPP version of heaven on earth – the fattening of big government from the sweat and toil of poor people

“So the people who came first with Labour have actually ended up last under the UPP and we have to change that… We have to return to the good old days of people doing well instead of catching hell”.

As a Minister of Government he demonstrated critical competencies and emerged as one of the most successful government negotiators on major investment projects and assistance programmes. With his excellent people skills he was able to build a valuable network of political and business leaders from around the world which remains a reliable resource for translating global contacts into advantages for Antigua and Barbuda.

Apart from the simple truth that he is a caring, down-to-earth people’s person, his rapidly growing army of fans around Antigua and Barbuda admires the fact that Asot has distinguished himself as a man who gets the job done in the public interest regardless of the difficulties encountered in the process.

Others make excuses, Asot makes it happen. Added to that, since people will always place their trust and confidence in those who commit themselves and their own resources, and work hard with sincerity of purpose for the greater good, there is really no electoral challenge to fear:

“Actually, I anxiously look ahead to the upcoming general election when the people of Pares, Parham Town, Vernon’s, Gunthropes, Lindsay, Paynters and Fitches Creek will give the failed candidacy of Joanne Massiah the rejection it deserves

“For more than four years, the sidewalks were over grown; there were Cassie trees to be cut in Paynters East; street lights were needed; open sewerage was running from the bath rooms on the Basketball Court in Parham; there were no lights on the court – they even wickedly cut the electricity on the courts in Pares and Parham; the roads were in total disrepair; and the UPP Candidate was conspicuously missing in action

“The people of the constituency were mercilessly victimized left, right and centre… They were the first to be sent home from Public Works and the Antigua Port Authority… and Candidate Massiah was nowhere to be found in the constituency…

“Today, she is all over trying to catch votes. But Miss Massiah can rest assured that the people of the St Peters Constituency will never forget the wicked victimization that the UPP administration meted out to them for voting their labour party candidate to represent them in Parliament”.

One of Asot’s main strengths as a politician is his proven ability to define and articulate the next level of advancement for the people he represents. Accordingly, and given the UPP engineered reversals in the welfare of the people since 2004, he is knows better than anyone else there is tremendous work to be done.

Under the incumbent’s leadership, this constituency has led the way in recent years in privately funded facilities for sports, recreation, computer technology and food delivery. Asot has also been exemplary in using his own personal resources in the causes of less burdensome cost of living, proper infrastructure, crime reduction, adequate health care and education throughout the constituency.

His vision is fundamentally about economic transformation capable of generating the opportunities that will allow constituents to do better for themselves, their families and their loved-ones

• Modernization of the physical landscape (residential and commercial properties, infrastructure) throughout the constituency.
• Establishment of a proper foundation for investments in the tourism of the future, particularly in the emerging residential tourism niche market to create a platform for lasting economic and employment opportunities.
• Establishment of model eco villages/communities utilizing renewable energy as a tourist attraction and as an example of the future direction for Antigua and Barbuda and the rest of the region.

The ALP’s candidate for St Peter’s is anxious to move ahead with the party’s plan to modernize local government across Antigua and Barbuda through the creation and introduction of high performance community committees/councils working in collaboration with the Parliamentary Representative to discharge the day to day responsibilities of constituency development.

The principal target areas for the work of the community committees/councils will be economic and business opportunities, safety and security, infrastructure, human development and social affairs.

As Asot humbly seeks the support of the People of St Peter’s for a second term as their Parliamentary Representative, there can be no doubt about the high esteem in which his genuine love for people and his outstanding record of service are held across Antigua and Barbuda.

He has some advice, especially for those who will hear about the UPP plan to buy votes with the promise of economic relief:

Take all the relief

But remember the grief

Whatever you get

Was taken from your pocket

They didn’t send you to school

But they played you for a fool

So welcome the tax break

But remember the heart ache

And say never again

To the UPP tax pain

And just so they know what you are about

When election comes, eat dem out

Drink dem out

And vote dem to hell out

Antigua and Barbuda Election 2013

The Political Leader of the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP), the Honourable Gaston Browne, this afternoon, Tuesday December 17 2013, received Notice from the lead attorney in the Boundaries Appeal case. The East Caribbean Court of Appeals has granted a stay, which prevents the United Progressive Party (UPP) Government from taking the flawed Constituencies Boundaries Report to Parliament on Thursday, December 19 2013, as planned.

                “I am exceedingly pleased that the Court of Appeals has acted, and that it did so with such swiftness. The Courts are again saving our democracy from being trampled underfoot by those who wish to subvert our freedoms,” the Honourable Gaston Browne remarked.

                A flawed Constituencies Boundaries Report has been the subject of litigation going back to March 11 2013, when the first Report by the Boundaries Commission was prevented from being submitted to the Prime Minister and to the Parliament, by application for a High Court Injunction. The Attorney General conceded that the Commission failed to perform according to law, and he promised that the UPP Government would take no action until the matter was fully adjudicated.

                When Justice Cottle rendered a judgment favourable to the Attorney General on December 6 2013, the UPP regime interpreted that moment to mean that it could move forward with the flawed Boundaries Report. The gerrymandering, the elimination of several constituencies, the chopping-up of fourteen constituencies in a bid to engineer an electoral victory, were the marked features of the flawed Boundaries Report, the ABLP noted.

                The Government scheduled a sitting of the Parliament to be held on Thursday, December 19 2013, for the flawed Constituencies Boundaries Report to be debated, adopted and submitted to the Governor General for signature. The ABLP then sought an injunction or stay from the Court of Appeals to prevent the flawed Report from moving forward to adoption. The Appeals Court this afternoon, Tuesday December 17 2013, ruled that the Opposition and the Government are to submit their arguments in writing by next week Tuesday, December 24 2013. A hearing, in Chambers and on paper only, will then take place two Tuesdays following, on January 7 2013; no action can be taken until after the hearing.

                The ABLP Leader has expressed his thankfulness to the many supporters who prayed for such an outcome, in the first instance; and, he has applauded Anthony Astaphan, Samantha Marshall, John Fuller, and the other attorneys who have so skillfully pursued this important item through the Courts. More work remains to be done, the Leader remarked, since the substantive issue will still have to be heard sometime in the future. Many other decisions regarding de-registration of voters and publication of a Register of Electors are still to be decided.