Jeevan Robinson
Sunday, March 2, 2014
If national pride could be measured by some scientific instrument, then Montserratians around the world would create a red alert for the swelling of pride that fills the heart of every national, resident and our friends at this time.
Congratulations are being offered from every conceivable domain to the Montserrat debating team aka Team Montserrat, for being crowned Champions of the 2014 Leeward Islands Debating Competition (LIDC).
The effort that was expended by the debaters, staff sponsors, researchers and all others concerned with supporting Team Montserrat, paid off in a most magnificent way, as the trophy was hoisted by the home team on the soil where this intellectual sparring tournament began some 42 years ago.
Team leader, Tiffanie Skerritt, and her second speaker, Trichelle Spencer, debated against St Kitts in the finals on the evening of Sunday March 2nd. They opposed the moot in what was the 6th debate of the competition. The moot stated, "Voting in national elections should be the right of resident citizens only."
Listening to the debates on all four evenings of this fiercely contested competition, it was very clear that what was on display was a fine example of teamwork, disciplined preparation and intellectual confidence from the debaters.
Team Montserrat comprised of Leader, Tiffanie Skerritt, Carlton Braithwaite, Christum Weekes, Sharese Allen, Trichelle Spencer and Vanice Tuitt. Staff Sponsor from the Montserrat Community College, Dr. Samuel Joseph, supported them also. All these admirable individuals worked together to continue what has become for Montserrat, a rich tradition of excellence in these Leeward Islands Debating Competitions. They can happily call themselves and respond to the term when called upon, as Champions.
Team leader, Tiffanie Skerritt stands out particularly, as she was judged Best Speaker each time, over the course of three individual debates she participated in. Also, she walked away with the coveted Overall Best Speaker of the Competition. A marvellous individual achievement on her part.
It was on Montserrat in 1972, that a local academic and visionary in the person of Dr George Irish, conceived and worked to make a reality the first ever LIDC event. From its inception only with Montserrat, Antigua and St Kitts, this prestigious event has expanded to include a total of 7 islands, which also now includes Anguilla, Nevis, St Maarten, and the British Virgin Islands (BVI).
This year sees Montserrat hosting the competition for the 9th time in its glorified 42-year history. This year’s victory also makes it the 8th time that Montserrat has emerged victorious in the overall competition.
LIDC is not only a meeting of some of the brightest minds across the Eastern Caribbean, but also it is an opportunity to form lasting friendships and build relationships of note for the future. For out of this competition have emerged some of the Eastern Caribbean’s top intellectuals who today work in various fields of expertise across the region and internationally.
Mr Franklyn Michael, a man whom I have the utmost esteem towards, delivered what many consider to be a stellar address on the opening night of the competition. What he stated in a nutshell is that beyond the primary objective of intellectual sparring, LIDC presented an opportunity also for the youths taking part to gain experience and grow in other ways; deciding what it is they wish to become in life and the type of contributions they would prefer to make to the progress of their communities. One would hope that this message was heeded.
The topics that were debated over the 4 days of LIDC included: There should be term limits for Caribbean Prime Ministers; CARICOM is justified in its quest for reparations from slavery; The Caribbean Diaspora builds societies abroad and so has little value for the region; A college education is becoming less important to the success of Caribbean youths; and Blacklisting Caribbean financial centres is a modern form of colonialism.
All debaters who emerged victorious on each night of the competition demonstrated that the art of winning the debate is to present a cohesive and logical argument, backed by sound and reputable authoritative sources to convince all listening, and the judges particularly that the justifications they presented were worthy arguments in defence of, or against the moot being debated. Their rebuttals, in many instances, flowed and were executed with punch.
In the end, it was Team Montserrat that had the firepower to see the effort through to the end, and for this they must be commended and celebrated nationally. They have now written themselves into the history of this storied competition. Well done to Team Montserrat on a great accomplishment all around!
Jeevan Robinson is Founder & Editor-in-Chief of MNI Alive: Global Caribbean Media. He can be reached at jeevan@mnialive.com
