THIS is a little more on the story of our Citizenship by Investment Programme, the greatest affront that has so far been wreaked on our nation. Now that we’ve found ourselves with this Programme, the argument seems to be centred on “how to build a better mousetrap” and fix perceived flaws in its make-up rather than to take the bull by the horns and revoke this infamous piece of legislation. An alternative, of course, would be to require residency similar to the provisions of our naturalization laws.
Not only is this CIP demeaning to us as a people, but the regional side effects are now beginning to rear their heads. In the midst of calls for there to be a level playing field amongst those who see nothing wrong in the sale of their identities, we were heartened to hear the comment from the Prime Minister of St. Vincent who has previously said no to this calumny. This time, St. Vincent’s Prime Minister is quoted as saying that this scheme can only be a “race to the bottom”.
Without putting words into the Prime Minister Gonsalves’ mouth, the thought which that expression brings to mind is that the regional competition to sell our passports is one which will see us rapidly move from engaging in that activity from the comfort of expensive high-class hotel rooms, to peddling our wares on street corners.
We devalue ourselves in response to the lure of instant cash and couldn’t be bothered about the after effects, yet we lecture others who engage in illicit activity to the same effect. And even when that activity happens to be one where the issue of legalization rears its head, such as is the case with marijuana, we need a referendum to help us decide on a way forward. No referendum needed for destroying our pride in ourselves with the sale of our passports however, and so we race to the bottom.
Recently an editorial in one of our regional papers raised the issue of what is to happen with freedom of travel within the region when persons holding those passports turn up at each other’s shores; now, the matter has arisen at the recently concluded Caricom Heads of Government meeting in Guyana. With Caricom having previously delivered a legal opinion suggesting that all citizens must be treated equally, the Prime Minister of Antigua relies on this opinion, while the Prime Minister of St. Vincent rejects it. Only time will tell what effect this matter will have on our already fragile regional unity, but Prime Minister Gonsalves can rest assured that the entire army from Fond Gens Libre – Valley of the Free (Slaves) – is fully mobilized and ready and willing to defend his position.
While Prime Minister Gonsalves has described this new “industry” as a “race to the bottom”, the Prime Minister of St. Kitts & Nevis is on record indicating that we must collaborate with each other so that the individual island’s schemes do not result in that “race to the bottom”. It seems that we all know exactly what we are doing, with the Prime Minister of Antigua, having reduced that country’s residency requirements from 35 days every five years to 5 days over the same period, indicating that it shouldn’t appear that Antigua is engaged in what is simply “the vulgar sale of passports”. He might as well have removed that country’s residency requirement entirely, as there is none whatsoever for St. Lucia or for St. Kitts.
And as we continue to talk about fixing the mechanics of St. Lucia’s CIP, it might be of interest to note that while this country’s scheme currently puts a limit of 500 on the number of passports which can be sold in any given year, that number is markedly different for St. Kitts. According to that country’s Prime Minister, the number of passports sold over the last ten years has moved from 6 in 2005 to 19 in 2006, … to1092 in 2011, 1758 in 2012, 2044 in 2013, 2329 in 2014 and finally to 2296 in 2015. According to the Kittitian Prime Minister, the total number of passports sold by this scheme up to 2015 amounts to 10,777. St. Kitts’ population in 2014 – 54,944 according to the World Bank.
The rate of approximately 2,300 passports sold a year achieved by St. Kitts for the years 2014 and 2015 means sale of 44 passports a week, or 9 passports a day, or 1 passport every hour of every working day on average. There will be days when the number is lower, and days when the number is higher, but all of these new passport holders will have to presumably undergo these vaunted “due diligence” checks, each in one hour, to ensure that they are true and honest citizens not just of the passport selling country, but of Caricom. Just who is fooling whom?
For St. Lucia, at 500 passports a year and four firms conducting due diligence, an applicant has to be processed every two working days. Grenada, however, indicates that its due diligence checks will take 60 days.
With four Chinese nationals carrying St. Kitts passports currently on Interpol’s most wanted list for fraud, the latest passport revocation by St. Kitts is that of passports issued to two US nationals, husband and wife, where the husband has been charged with fraud in the US. According to a statement released by the St. Kitts government, their “application was processed after appropriate due diligence checks by a highly reputable, internationally renowned due diligence service provider found no evidence of impropriety or illegal activity”. There we have our best indication of what those famous words “due diligence” mean for passport buyers – once there is no public record of corruption or illegal activity, you’re cleared to buy the passport. No background checks, no references required, apparently.
In a previous article on this scheme, a number of reasons for St. Lucia not continuing with this Programme were offered, and a brief recap might be helpful. Principal among these was that the sale of our nationality without the normal residency requirement debases us. Former Prime Minister Anthony put it much more eloquently when he indicated at that meeting in Monaco that “Truth be told, I firmly believe that citizenship should always be a statement of national pride and an expression of national sovereignty”. And then, he introduced the scheme which offers that citizenship for sale.
Then there is the question of the message being sent to our youth when the government is the principal proponent of a scheme where great wealth can be accumulated with no associated productive activity. If this new found wealth is to go to the construction of hotels, how will this impact our existing hotel plant, as already we see the concessions being afforded new luxury hotels which are not available to existing hotels? If that money is to be spent on real estate, how will this impact the price of land and the cost of construction?
And it would be helpful if persons would cease to refer to those buying passports as investors in “our” CIP. They are not investing in anything; they are simply buying a passport for their convenience, could not care less about us, and quite possibly intend to recover the cost of that passport a few years on. More on that in the next article.
Next week, A “Developer’s Guide” – Part 1, the first of a four-part discussion on development now that “money” from the sale of passports is freely available.
People with lots of degrees but lacking in critical thinking ability put the rest of us and our lives in the toilet. Then they piss in our eyes and call it rain.
You hit the nail on the head. Excellent article.
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I wanted to use some portions of this great article to inform the Negro Black Pete Josie who has championed the sale of our Passports by the Chastanet Crime Family, to any criminal willing to buy him a half-a-“Poban” of wom blanc avec Fe-lie-lom under the CDC Block DS. Unfortunately for some unknown reason, the Voice does not permit copying, although printing articles are fine with them, so just as soon as I have compiled articles, I will publish a book called “The Voice of the People”, then I expect to be sued so I can repay the Voice for their great service of keeping us informed.
SOM: you fooling no body.
CASTRIES, Saint Lucia –Thursday, March 31, 2016
22nd March, 2016
Dear Sir / Madame,
You will recall that in my letter of December 16, 2015, I raised grave concerns about the validity and circumstances surrounding the ambassadorial appointment of Dr. Walid Juffali and the undeniable harm it was causing to St. Lucia’s reputation.
At that time, I also warned that it could not have come at a worse time for the Citizenship by Investment Programme and invited your support in calling on the Government to appoint an independent and autonomous Board representative of civil society; that annual financials of the CIP should be presented to Parliament and that legislative provision be made to permit the application of CIP funds for be use toward debt reduction or capital expenditure and NOT recurrent expenditure.
Since then, Dr. Juffali’s diplomatic immunity has been rejected by the British High Court and his ex-wife is seeking a judicial review of his appointment in the St. Lucian Courts, bringing suit against the Prime Minister and the Attorney-General.
This untenable situation continues to wreak havoc on St Lucia’s reputation on the international and diplomatic stages. In light of these latest developments, we ask again, why is the Government hell-bent on continuing to protect Dr. Juffali to the detriment of St. Lucia’s reputation?
In addition, the alleged architect of Dr. Juffali’s appointment, Dr. Ernest Hilaire has since been declared as the St. Lucia Labour Party’s candidate for Castries South for the next General
Elections while he remains Chairman of the CIP. It is now beyond doubt or speculation that the Labour Party is in control of the programme and as such it loses all credibility of being independent and free from political interference. This should be unacceptable to all right thinking St. Lucians who care about their country and its international reputation.
The Prime Minister recently announced that it had engaged a lobbying firm to work with the US Government on the issues surrounding the IMPACS matter.
We now know that the marketing company, granted an exclusive license to market the CIP in the Middle East and Africa, on the recommendation of the CIP Board and approved by the Prime Minister, Arton Capital, not only proposed the hiring of the Washington lobbying firm to the Government, but is also meeting the costs to the tune of US$150,000.
It is concerning to the United Workers Party, and it should be to all St. Lucians, that in his announcement of the appointment of the lobbying firm the prime Minister did not mention this arrangement with Arton Capital. The question must be asked: Why did the Prime Minister fail and or refused to advise the St. Lucian public of Arton Capital’s generosity.
The United Workers Party is very disturbed that the Prime Minister would accept this generosity from Arton Capital at a time when he either had before him an application by Arton Capital to be granted an exclusive marketing contract under the CIP, or he had just awarded such a contract to them.
The United Workers Party notes that Dr. Ernest Hilaire and the Prime Minister chose to announce the launch of the CIP at an event in Monaco organised and sponsored by Arton Capital, one of the applicants for an exclusive marketing contract under the programme.
The Prime Minister would have us believe that Arton Capital’s generosity is an attempt to restore the damage to the country’s reputation resulting from the IMPACS Report and the effect it could have on American investors. The fact of the matter is that the events and the timing of the events that I have referred to raises serious questions and cast serious clouds over the awarding of the contract, and further damaging St. Lucia’s international reputation.
It is clear that the Government, and or the Prime Minister and or Dr. Ernest Hilaire must take responsibility for these difficulties facing St. Lucia at this time.
It was the refusal of the Prime Minister to leave the IMPACS report to the Judiciary that has compromised the speedy conclusion of due process. .
It was Dr. Hilaire’s involvement in the injudicious appointment of Dr.Juffali as a diplomat and the Prime Minister’s refusal to waive his immunity that has tarnished our international reputation.
It is the actions of Dr. Ernest Hilaire and the Prime Minister that now have people asking whether there is a special relationship between them and Arton Capital.
For the reasons given, we are now seeking your support to ask firstly, for Dr. Hilaire’s immediate resignation as Chairman of the CIP.
Secondly, that the Arton Capital contract should be revoked in the interest of transparency or at the very least suspended and that the process for appointing marketing Agents for the CIP be reopened.
Thirdly, that the Government revoke the appointment of Dr. Juffali as a St. Lucia diplomat in relation only to his ex-wife’s claim against him.
The United Workers’ Party once again asks you to support what is right and to speak out on issues of poor governance that are impacting negatively on St. Lucia’s reputation in the regional and international community.
Sincerely,
Allen M. Chastanet
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Did the CHASTANET CRIME FAMILY WRITE THAT LETTER TO THEMSELVES ? Allen should stop playing us for fools.
NY: you may want to entertain yourself some more.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JxvcUsGZrg
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Richard Frederick questioned the academic qualifications of this “Bobbolis” Allen Chastanet who has wasted no time making St. Lucians the laughing stock of the world. You were warned time and time again that Chastanet was an idiot with money who had paid substitutes to take his mid-terms and Finals learning nothing nothing while pretending to be a student.
The people of St. Lucia can brace themselves for not one disaster, but brace yourselves for calamity followed by calamity until you cannot stand it any more and run this Lapoe pirate to walk the plank.
This is the criminal who told you, the builders of the Great Pyramids of North Africa, that you had no history and should forget your labor and wealth being stolen by these Caucasian Pirates in the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, then went on to justify his delusion by telling you the American Civil War was fought against England because of Taxation without Representation
HERE’S IS THE CHASTANET CRIME FAMILY INFORMING YOU, THAT YOU HAVE NO HISTORY:
https://www.facebook.com/284538805083530/videos/vb.284538805083530/445951455608930/?type=2&theater
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This has nothing to do with Chastanet, and everything to do with KENNY ANTHONY. The most sellout, underperforming, Non-talent with talent dude that was ever a pm in the region. When one’s motives are to keep power, then he tries to run a country not to develop it, but to run a constant campaign. Kenny’s first seven years was good, not great, but he was an ok administrator with real policy proposals. Yes his regime suffered from jobs for the boys syndrome and the normal, i nearly said natural inefficiencies of small island illiterate country public services. But yes, his first seven years were ok. But by 2002 Kenny went into straight retard mode. Unable to grow the economy or just straight fed up with trying or never even knowing how to in the first place, and with scandals building up ….roachamel, NCA, Helinites….the bunker mentality his dude and boom! He went into straight media overkill. With supporters, many of whom were part of actually underground cells in St. Lucia planning a coup ala Grenada, Kenny went into guerilla mode, word to Alva Baptiste, with propaganda and media wars against perceived enemies and the media itself. Cutting a long story short, CIP is a naturally evolution of Kenny D. Anthony as a gutterbreeding Passport selling supersayan. Dude was so busy emulating Moduro and shunning Joe Bidden that he forgot that Clinton once slapped a stupid dude with the hand of the “economy”. ITS THE ECONOMY RETARD! Not a freaking social experiment. its always based on what works. and what works is building your economy. Not fake economics. So here comes the passport selling. Whats worst is that it was not even an original thought. Whats worster is that if countries like St. Kitts was prostituting itself, then the CIP legislation introduced by Kenny was some back alley-get-on-your-knees floozyfest with a Saudi Billionnaire as the First John. Oh how he used Lucia that Juffali dude! So there! Kenny sold us out. Chastanet came in, saw the current deal and took it. But it was KENNY ANTHONY, the smartest dude in the room who originally sold st. lucia out! start your PMship with 7 murders a year and end it with 45 a year! MORE FIRE!
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WHITE SUPREMACY ON THE MINDS OF LUCIAN POLITICIANS: With Negroes like Claudius Francis, Guy Joseph, Rigobert, and Mary Isaac as political leaders, Lucians are in for a rough decade.
Today I was listening to the Ex President of the Senate Claudius Francis, express his dismay at why his Religion of White male worship had prevented him from expressing praise by way of applause and other actions.
He cited much that was troubling about the practices of this Religion of White Supremacy. If Claudius Francis had any human dignity and intellect worth acknowledging, he would not be a participant in a religion that worships another man, stripped naked and oozing blood that he, his wife and Jabal drinks to make them white.
Claudius Francis bemoaned his inability to express his heart-felt appreciation of a eulogy that was so well articulated in this church by his friend. However he failed to feel the slightest shame, kneeling and praying to a naked Caucasian as his God and Master. I frequently mention the nature of the deviant practices of the misogynist, socially maladjusted men in the Presbytery, who continue to teach Black People how to behave like Negroes in this religion of white man worship.
Francis is no different than a Black Pete Josie, a Rickets John Wayne, and the other Negroes who have been lobotomized and taught to see Caucasians as their Masters.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWdRsinKm2Y
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If one can listen to Claudius Francis for more than a few seconds, then that person have had brain damage or had damanage down to them via listening to this meaningless lawyer ti papiye’. I however do not want him off the air! He along with jadia and Jade Brown are the reason the labour loss and should remain in their post so that that party can continue to chooose Kenny Anthony as leader….PJP and Hillaire are not running any elections as leaders of any party in st. lucie…..so i guess that TRopical Tee is gonna be there for a minute…i mean 30 years!
How could any sane person look at this UGLY, NASTY, FILTHY, NAKED CAUCASIAN MAN and teach their wives, sons, and daughters to kneel in front of this disgusting FREAK and drink his blood and eat his cock? you prefer the euphemism FLESH, BODY? Last time I checked, the cock/penis was a part of the male anatomy. You Negroes need your heads examined.
Negroes do this for no other reason than to please their Slave Masters. So these insane Negroes go around with a book called Bible they say is THE WORD OF GOD, which tells them:
Titus 2:
9. Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them,
1 Peter 2:
18. Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWdRsinKm2Y
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THE CAUCASIAN CHRISTIAN HATES YOU PEOPLE OF AFRICAN ANCESTRY. BEWARE OF THEIR FAKE AND PHONY GRIN AND THEIR AGENTS LIKE WAYNE, PATRICK ANTHONY, AND LINUS CLOVIS, CALLING THEMSELVES ROMAN CATHOLICS WHILE WORSHIPING A NAKED CAUCASIAN AS GOD ALMIGHTY.
Check This:
Gabby Douglas and Michael Phelps both won gold at the Olympic Games in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil Aug. 9. Douglas and the U.S. women’s gymnastics team won gold in the team final while Phelps earned his 20th gold medal for the 200-meter butterfly final.
Both Olympians caught Twitter’s attention for their reactions during their respective medal ceremonies. As the American national anthem played, Douglas was slammed for not placing her hand over her heart like her teammates while many found joy in Phelp’s laughter at the song.
The celebrated moment for the 20-year-old gymnast quickly turned sour as Twitter went from cheering her on to calling her disrespectful.
Max Johnson demanded the athlete “show some pride and respect” by placing her hand over her heart.
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Now examine the vitriol inflicted on this young African American. they did the same thing to Serena Williams. You must see these Caucasian Christians for what they really are!
http://atlantablackstar.com/2016/08/10/gabby-douglas-a-sorry-american-for-national-anthem-response-but-michael-phelps-laughter-is-so-moving/?utm_content=buffer5b956&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer
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