Penn denies removing previous BVIHSA chair

Eighth District Representative Marlon Penn has denied claims that he was solely responsible for removing Moleto Smith as Chairman of the BVI Health Services Authority (BVIHSA) back in 2023.

Penn’s denial follows accusations from Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley, who suggested in the House of Assembly that Penn was guilty of removing Smith just as Opposition members accused the government of attempting to remove the current BVIHSA Chairman. Addressing the issue on the Talking Points show recently, Penn insisted that the decision to remove Smith was a collective one made by the Cabinet, not an individual action.

“I didn’t remove Moleto Smith. The Cabinet removed Moleto Smith, which the Premier, [Kye] Rymer, and the Minister of Education were part of in that process,” Penn explained. He added that the Cabinet unanimously agreed to the decision, suggesting there was consensus on Smith’s removal back then. Penn’s comments follow confirmed reports that Health Minister Vincent Wheatley asked current Chairman Ron Potter to resign via a WhatsApp message.

Sacking Smith was collaborative

Penn stressed that the removal of Smith as Chairman was done in collaboration with others. He explained that there were discussions and evaluations before the final decision. The former Health Minister also indicated that he could not disclose details due to the confidentiality of Cabinet proceedings. However, he maintained that the decision was not his alone. “It went through Cabinet in flying colours,” he added.