(CMR) The House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands on Thursday approved a vote of no-confidence against Premier Andrew Fahie following his arrest in Miami on drug charges last week.
After a lengthy debate, members of the House of Assembly unanimously voted in favor of the motion to remove Andrew Fahie as Premier of the Virgin Islands, BVI News reported.
The motion was passed 10-1 with Carvin Malone being absent and Neville ‘Sheep’ Smith acting as Speaker, thereby being unable to vote on the motion. Ordinarily, 13 elected members make up the House of Assembly.
Dr. Natalio Wheatley is now expected to be sworn in as Premier once approval is granted by Governor John Rankin.
Dr. Wheatley said that a new Cabinet is expected to be sworn in shortly for work to commence on reforming the Virgin Islands for greater transparency and accountability.
He said, “It is my hope that this day will be remembered as the day we began a new era of democratic governance.”
Governor John Rankin told the BBC he had revoked Mr. Fahie's mandate following the no-confidence vote.
Mr. Rankin said he would join the new premier in pledging to “work together in partnership to improve governance.”
There have been numerous activities in the BVI this week due to the arrest of Fahie. The Speaker of the House of Assemble Julian Willock was reportedly forced to resign on Tuesday.
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