Skip NavBird And Walter Political Feud
From the mid sixties to 2004, the political landscape in Antigua was a playground for a bitter political rivalry between father, brothers, and sons of the Bird and Walter families. The feud between George Walter and VC Bird was a continuation of the trade and labor union wars they fought in the sixties that resulted in the birth of two political parties.
Apparently, both men had dreams and aspirations of becoming the first Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, so in the battle for political power in the country, things got personal between them. In 1971 VC Bird and the ALP surprisingly lost the first national election in Antigua to George Walter and the PLM in a historic election that changed the hands of power and paved the way for the beginning of the Progressive Labor Movement era.
George Walter Administration
The PLM and George Walter governed Antigua for five years and accomplished quite allot but the progress was short-lived, It was a turbulent landscape to navigate amidst the many snares and booby traps left by VC Bird and the ALP. George Walter lost his bid for reelection in 1976, and with no credible opposition to challenge them, ALP and the Bird family wielded unchecked political power in Antigua for decades and used it to enrich themselves.
When Baldwin Spencer and the UPP took office in 2004, they inherited a bankrupt economy and a country burdened with unpaid Internal and external expenditures, but things didn't get any better during the eight years tenure of Baldwin Spencer and the UPP. The political corruption and ill-conceived government policies that stifled the country's economic progress continued unabated and became even more prosaic and antiquated.
After electing VC Bird, Lester Bird, Baldwin Spencer, and Gaston Brown to administer the political and legal affairs of Antigua and Barbuda, there's not much to show, or be proud of today, the country remains economically stagnant and unproductive without and variable industry or necessary technical infrastructure to address the future.
The political system and government institutions that emerged post-Antigua's independence have failed and the politicians betrayed the trust of the people. While the status quo might have benefited a select few in the inner circles of government, the progress and prosperity promised and expected post-independence is yet to materialize.