Politics

As Mapp Remains Without Abode In St. Thomas, Gittens Signs Resolution To Change Law

ST. CROIX -- Senator Kenneth Gittens, chairman of the Committee on Rules and Judiciary, has signed a resolution that seeks to repeal a provision of the Revised Organic Act of 1954, relative to the official residence of the Virgin Islands Governor. Gittens wants Congress to grant authority to the Virgin Islands Legislature to provide residence for the territory's governors, as the current situation has only exacerbated the problem, Gittens said, adding that the cost of housing the territory's governors,  who have refused to live in Government House or Estate Catherineberg, has only risen over the years. According to Gittens, the aforementioned segment of the Organic Act has caused conflict with previous administrations and continues with the current one. He said it is only fitting and practical that the legislative body, responsible for writing laws specific to the territory, be allowed to dictate the laws that speak to a suitable location for the governor’s residence. "We hav...