Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall are likely to attend an indecent clash at the Commonwealth conference in Rwanda next month when Boris Johnson tries to oust Patricia Scotland as secretary general of the Commonwealth.
The UK has been working behind the scenes for almost two years to remove Lady Scotland, claiming it has not modernized the institution, and last week the Prime Minister publicly stated that he supported a rival from Scotland.
Johnson said “the United Kingdom” supported the candidacy of Jamaica’s Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith for her “great experience and support in uniting our unique family of nations and seizing the opportunities that is in front “.
Proponents of her case have been working to make the actual transcript of this statement available online. United Kingdom.
Shadow Secretary of State David Lammy criticized Johnson’s speech, saying “The Commonwealth presidency is supposed to maintain neutrality and confidentiality. No chair has ever done that in history. of the Commonwealth. It’s inappropriate and divisive. “
Scotland, an equally nominated Labor party, would be expected to remain in office if the simple majority of the 54 Commonwealth states did not vote to remove it, and only otherwise would other candidates for the role of Labor Party be considered. administer the 54-member Commonwealth.
Proponents of her case have been working to make the actual transcript of this statement available online.
A source in the Commonwealth said: “Contrary to all the conventions of the Commonwealth, the UK has spent a lot of time and money trying to deposit Scotland. What they don’t seem to notice is that the rest of the Commonwealth you can see what they are doing “.
Elections will be held at the Commonwealth Summit in Kigali from 20 to 26 June.
Regardless of the outcome, Scotland is expected to resign at the next Commonwealth conference, two years from now, when its second four-year term has expired. It is normal, but not the norm, for a general secretary to have a second four-year term.
Johnson’s statement of support for Johnson Smith is likely to guarantee that most major Commonwealth states, such as Australia and Canada, will support Jamaica in appeasing the United Kingdom. Caribbean states are now divided on who to support.
Scotland has done much to support the island states, and will look forward to the support of them, as well as African countries that may feel it was their continent’s turn to provide the next secretary general.
Johnson Smith in her campaign literature does not give a specific reason why Scotland should be eliminated, but focuses on her own considerable experience as a trade lawyer, trade negotiator and minister.
Scotland was born in Dominica and lived and worked in the UK before becoming Attorney General of the Labor government led by Gordon Brown.
In 2021, Caricom, the Caribbean umbrella body of 15 people, took a unified stand in support of Scotland’s end of a second term as secretary general, although some members are known to have opposed it. in Scotland.
Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne, former president of Caricom, called Jamaica’s surprise bid a “monumental mistake”, but Jamaica said it had a right to make its own sovereign decisions.
Scotland’s leadership has been under the microscope since it was revealed that it had evaded the usual competitive bidding requirement by awarding a consultancy contract to a friend’s company.
Scottish sponsors say the audits have given him a good health mark and that his decision to award the contract complied with the procurement procedures at the time.