To the Editor,

According to Antigua News Room, a member of the public has written an open letter raising questions about the integrity of Michael Freeland, who intends to contest the upcoming General Election as a candidate for the Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party (ABLP) in St Georges.

The letter, signed by Yvonne James, states that she required considerable time before finding the courage to write. She argues that public office demands not only competence, but unimpeachable integrity and transparency.

"It is difficult to ignore the unresolved questions surrounding the well-known Customs auction funds resulting in his removal from the list of potential candidates to contest on behalf of the ABLP in St Johns Rural East," James writes. She notes that the matter ultimately led to Mr. Freeland's resignation from the Senate on 31st December 2017. While acknowledging that the funds in question were eventually repaid, she contends that the circumstances giving rise to the situation were never fully clarified to the public's satisfaction.

James frames the issue as one of public trust rather than legality alone. She argues that elections are, at their core, a test of confidence, and that voters must be assured that those seeking to represent them are willing and able to provide clear, consistent, and credible explanations when concerns arise. In Mr. Freeland's case, she writes, significant gaps remain in the public narrative.

She further questions whether the ABLP has sufficiently considered the reputational implications of his candidacy in a constituency she describes as being surrounded by Christians, the majority of whom are Seventh Day Adventists. James asserts that political parties bear a responsibility not only to their supporters, but to the broader democratic process, to ensure their candidates reflect the highest standards of public life.

"This is not a matter of personal attack, but of principle," she writes. "If the electorate in St Georges is to maintain confidence in its institutions, there must be a consistent expectation that those who seek public office are held to rigorous standards of disclosure and accountability."

James concludes by calling on Mr. Freeland to provide a full and transparent account of the circumstances that led to the funds being stolen and his subsequent resignation, stating that only then can voters in St Georges make a properly informed decision at the polls.

Yvonne James