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Dual citizens, Trafigura, Camp lands and security
Franklin Johnston
Friday, December 03, 2010
Franklin Johnston
Friday, December 03, 2010
Jamaicans who are US citizens swear loyalty to the American republic. Jamaicans who are UK citizens swear allegiance to the Queen, as do two billion citizens of the UK, Kenya, Canada and 54 Commonwealth countries. That's why we can vote and run for elected office even if we just came off the plane in London. One queen makes us Jamaican or British. So those who like politics but don't want to be murdered go to Canada and the UK to run for office. Shame on us! The queen is a nice old lady and she doesn't impact my psyche or effort. I am my own man! Do I choose the queen or our corrupt politics? A no-brainer!
The Australian PM was born in the UK. The American president has to be born in America - a major difference between US and Commonwealth citizens. Mr Seaga had to give up US citizenship to be MP as our queen is not their head of state. Many of ours in the UK and Canada are mayors, councillors, MPs, Knights, Lords - as Bill Morris. Diane Abbott ran for Labour leader, but sadly we missed out on having a future British PM.
Caricom nations had great British politicians as T&T's Lord Constantine of cricket fame, and India has had British MPs since the 19th century. Any proposal on dual citizens must be well crafted to ensure we do not lose. The more we pull away from the powerful, the more we are marginalised and our anti-social conduct makes it worse. Nuff said!
If Bruce (left) and Portia will not uplift this nation, soon we will feel the pent-up anger of 200 years.
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If Bruce (left) and Portia will not uplift this nation, soon we will feel the pent-up anger of 200 years.
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If Bruce (left) and Portia will not uplift this nation, soon we will feel the pent-up anger of 200 years.
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But even the Commonwealth is not level for us and we know why. A Barbados driver's licence is valid in the UK, but ours is not. We get a rough ride in everything, even in Caricom. Border control does not ask a Bahamian how long he is staying - their income per capita is higher than the British. Law-abiding success opens doors; "badmanism" closes them!
The news that Jamaicans in UK prisons are to be sent home is a blow we can't avoid. We said deportees did no crime here, so let them be. We will eat those words! Prisoners will arrive as returning residents and when the first flight lands we will learn wisdom. The UK has their DNA, iris, prints - all biometrics, so new names and passports won't work. They are our citizens till death. The British protect their own, so must we! Lord deliver us!
The news that Jamaicans in UK prisons are to be sent home is a blow we can't avoid. We said deportees did no crime here, so let them be. We will eat those words! Prisoners will arrive as returning residents and when the first flight lands we will learn wisdom. The UK has their DNA, iris, prints - all biometrics, so new names and passports won't work. They are our citizens till death. The British protect their own, so must we! Lord deliver us!
We go to the UK and Canada, settle and enter politics but no one comes here to do the same. Why? We are the "happiest" country, have "friendly" people, sun, sand, sea, no problem. They love our island but don't want "dark" to catch them here. With all our supposed freedom, "Out of many one" etc, few foreigners want to live here. They retire to Barbados. One million Brits retire to Spain, creating many jobs. Why not here? Truth is, things here are not what they seem as many of us harbour resentment to class, riches and shade. We fool ourselves, not them. They know we live a lie. We are a ticking bomb! If Bruce and Portia will not educate and uplift this nation, soon we will all feel the pent-up anger of 200 years. Selah!
Trafigura
This is the PNP's "sore foot". It's gangrenous, so they must amputate. A party of the left as the PNP should never accept foreign funding. A party which can't support itself from within the nation is illegitimate, and the PNP's failure to expel those involved shames us all. Trafigura shows how far it has strayed from its values. The mercenaries must go or forget 2012. PNP leaders must dissociate from the wrongs and return to core values. Law is not the final judge in politics. Honesty and courage count and electors must not vote for those involved in Trafigura. My submission to the ECJ was that only Jamaican firms and citizens should make donations to a candidate or party. Non-citizens and foreign firms should be prohibited. The diaspora must donate through a bank to prevent money laundering, and an entity which gets the most of its income from abroad - donations, grants, aid - should not donate. The penalties must be severe. If we need foreign money to elect our rulers, then become a US state "an' dun"! The PNP must repent. A party gives us the MPs who make our laws and must not accept foreign funds. Look at Caricom; a foreign Lord controls banking, telecoms, etc, and has tax-free status in one while a rich "Yankee" used political donations to control another nation, down to its cricket! Foreign money and politics must not mix! An MP must win the seat on local support! In 2012 do not vote for any party or candidates who get foreign donations. Check them out.
Up Park Camp
Why is the JDF to be moved? Camp is our patrimony, is this right? What is the justification? What is the security case? The business case? PM Golding, show us the studies. Is this move and the billion-dollar price tag a hunch? I hope all investors now see that JDX was just a morality tale to con you out of interest to spend on ego trips. Just check what the national debt has now soared to, if you need confirmation. God help us!
What's the security case? Is moving the JDF best for our security?
What's the security case? Is moving the JDF best for our security?
Consider this:
* Relocating the forces to the western perimeter of the city means longer response times and the JDF loses the ability to operate virally across uptown, mid-town and downtown.
* Relocating the forces to the western perimeter of the city means longer response times and the JDF loses the ability to operate virally across uptown, mid-town and downtown.
* Caymanas is a polar location. The JDF will have narrow ingress and egress - a 30-degree aperture, but Camp has 360 degrees so it has access to the city from all compass points.
* It is easy for adversaries to block access, "kettle" troops in Caymanas and monitor troop movements. But troops at Camp can deploy N, S, E and West at will.
* A smaller Eastern Command at Camp and a shift of the centre of gravity to a larger Western Command in Cornwall would give room for new facilities, a modern prison, and protect Mike Henry's Middlesex projects, using WestCom and, or EastCom - think again.
What's the business case? Show us the land use plans for Camp. Is housing the best use?
* Why have more migration to Kingston to compound our municipal problems?
* Show us the social and environment impact studies. Will we see a Bruce ego trip in concrete and steel? Lands to developers to pour more sewage into the harbour? My God!
Advent, mortality, mom
November 28 was Advent Sunday. The glare of the first snow was bright so I put on dark glasses. I went through Gloria, Sanctus, Agnus Dei and Kyrie shivering. I felt good. After my usual call to my almost century-old mom, I was 13 years old again as she said, "Keep warm, don't cycle in the snow." And in caring tones, as if not to hurt my feelings, she said, "They say you are my son and a good person, but I really don't remember you." I am shocked, speechless, tearful. "Life is a bitch"!
Dr Franklin Johnston is an international project manager with Teape-Johnston Consultants currently on assignment in the UK.
franklinjohnston@hotmail.com