KINGSTON, Jamaica – Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis, Timothy Harris, has hailed Retired Major General Stewart Saunders from Jamaica as an “excellent choice” for National Security Advisor for the Caribbean country.

In a statement today from the St Kitts Government, Harris said Saunders comes to the position “highly qualified and recommended”.

According to the statement, the appointment of Saunders to the post came following a vigorous recruitment process that commenced in November 2016.

Harris noted that in its efforts to fill the post, the St Kitts Government reached out to the wider Caribbean region for support and assistance “and in this regard, we consulted with the Regional Security System (RSS) and the CARICOM Implementation Agency for Crime and Security (IMPACS), as well as with our missions overseas in encouraging suitable, experienced and qualified individuals to apply.”

Following a series of interviews by a selection panel, the retired Major General was identified as the most suitable candidate to fill the position, the St Kitts statement said.

Saunders is a strategic security practitioner and educator with over forty years of experience at the tactical, operational and strategic levels, the statement added.

Saunders was Chief of Defence Staff of the Jamaica Defence Force during much storied Tivoli Gardens incursion in 2010, when at least 73 people were killed by the security forces in an effort to apprehend area don Christopher Coke.