A major rift has emerged in the leadership of the local transportation industry after David “Shakes” Christopher resigned from the National Taxi Union, the main national body for taxi operations, effective immediately.
Christopher, who served as public relations officer, announced his resignation in a press release on Tuesday, May 26. He said he no longer has confidence in NTU president Terry Valcin.
This resignation comes a little more than a year after Valcin addressed accusations from former NTU president Lucien Joseph, who questioned whether Valcin’s term was legitimate. Joseph resigned in 2022 after NTU members voted no confidence in his leadership. The NTU later held its Annual General Meeting and Conference of Delegates in March 2025.
Christopher said he made his decision after careful thought and raised concerns about the organisation’s direction and management. He believes that under Valcin, values like transparency, accountability, unity, and representation have been weakened, making it hard for him to continue in his role.
“This decision has not been made lightly,” Christopher said. “However, I can no longer continue to serve within the organisation due to my complete lack of confidence in the leadership and direction of President Terry Valcin.
“Our hardworking taxi operators deserve far better leadership and representation, especially during these challenging times of global uncertainty. This is a period where unity, vision, advocacy, networking, and strong leadership are critically important for the survival and advancement of taxi operators and their families. Unfortunately, the current leadership is way below par.”
Christopher thanked the members and stakeholders he worked with during his time at the union. He also said he hopes the organisation will move toward a more positive and united future.
Any third-party or user posts, comments, replies, and third-party entries published on the St. Lucia Times website (https://stluciatimes.com) in no way convey the thoughts, sentiments or intents of St. Lucia Times, the author of any said article or post, the website, or the business. St. Lucia Times is not responsible or liable for, and does not endorse, any comments or replies posted by users and third parties, and especially the content therein and whether it is accurate.
St. Lucia Times reserves the right to remove, screen, edit, or reinstate content posted by third parties on this website or any other online platform owned by St. Lucia Times (this includes the said user posts, comments, replies, and third-party entries) at our sole discretion for any reason or no reason, and without notice to you, or any user. For example, we may remove a comment or reply if we believe it violates any part of the St. Lucia Criminal Code, particularly section 313 which pertains to the offence of Libel. Except as required by law, we have no obligation to retain or provide you with copies of any content you as a user may post, or any other post or reply made by any third-party on this website or any other online platform owned by St. Lucia Times. All third-parties and users agree that this is a public forum, and we do not guarantee any confidentiality with respect to any content you as a user may post, or any other post or reply made by any third-party on this website. Any posts made and information disclosed by you is at your own risk.
