Foreign Affairs Minister, Francine Baron said the country must do all in its power to ensure transparency, secure the Citizenship By Investment (CBI) Programs from misuse by nefarious characters and protect Dominica from reputational damage.
She made that remark while representing Prime Minister, Roosevelt Skerrit at the 5th official meeting of the Citizenship By Investment Programmes Association (CIPA), meeting held at the Fort Young Hotel on Thursday.
“I believe that all of us are aware of the critical importance of maintaining the integrity of our programs and ensuring that we have a transparent and rigorous process of due diligence in respect of each and every applicant,” she said. “We are also aware that we must do all in our power to secure our programs from misuse by nefarious characters and to protect our country from the reputational damage that can be caused merely by a single mishandled application.”
According to Baron, this is why in addition to upholding the country’s comprehensive due diligence processes, “we have found it necessary to collaborate amongst ourselves so that we can share information and best practices to further strengthen our investment programs.”
She pointed out that the OECS is no stranger to cooperation and collaboration.
“As among other things we share a common monetary system and court system,” Baron explained. “The cumulative effect of our programs is the economic prosperity of our individual countries and our region, hence with a cooperative approach we all benefit.”
“If one of us fails, we all fail,” she said.
Baron noted that a negative fallout for any the five countries involved in the CBI Program will have a ripple effect.
“Besides the reputational damage, we must also take into consideration the resulting effect on the fortunes of our central bank, our obligations to the OECS and the impact on our economy,” she stated.
Baron applauded the participating island’s efforts to work together, “for there can be no better shield than the one we raise in unison.”
In the face of those who act outside the law and who seek to destroy confidence in the programs, she said, “we must continue to demonstrate that our countries are not safe havens for criminals and that our programs cannot be used as a means of avoiding justice.”
“The message must be clear, the Caribbean Citizenship By Investment System is not open to abuse,” Baron stressed.
Over the next two day of the meeting, Baron hopes that participants will aim to work constructively together, “as we are equally driven by our commitment to our nations, seeking mutual success and in particular exploring methods to safeguard the reputation of our region.”
Ms. Baron, yes there is a problem with transparency with the CBI program. But here is the problem:-
1) To give full transparency would kill the program as the last thing that CBI passport holders want is for their names to be bandied about as they buy our passports to escape that very thing;
2) If accounts for CBI sales are released, then point 1) above will be brought into the fray which won’t be good. Therefore, please do not release accounts.
Regarding the troubling matter of diplomatic appointments, yes Dominicans need to know who their diplomats are. But if these diplomats are members of the new Dominica Secret Service (wink, wink), then Dr. Skerrit can refuse to release their names for reasons of NATIONAL SECURITY.
So the solution, Ms. Baron, is that all diplomatic CBI’s are to be enrolled as members of the Dominica Secret Service! Problem solved!
Miss Baron said the program is not open to abuse-she was telling non-Nationals DA is not a haven for criminals. So true Miss Baron we already have too many local ones more so in high places.
Their is an international yearly event called bloopers of the year.So for 2016-DA bloopers Francine Baron takes the 1st,2nd,3rd and all the consolation prizes. Clean sweep just as Medard said b4 the last election.
He said he was envious of keith Mitchel in Grenada. Who took all the seats in his come back election victory.
She got plenty guts. Too too much guts. Transparency…joke of the century.
I see the EXPRESIDENT is an agent too?!
Yes, Whitco is on the official govt. approved list.
” Baron noted that a negative fallout for any the five countries involved in the CBI Program will have a ripple effect”
This is why the other Caricom GOVT are very concern about the Dominica CBI program as it will cause a negative rippling effect on other Caricom CBI program.
Due to Lack of Transparency on the finance, inadequate vetting of person’s
You are a lawyer but everything time your open your mouth you expose the DLP.
Francine Baron literally told Dominicans while addressing parliament it is not for them to know who their diplomats are around the World. Can you imagine that ! One of the critical functions of a consulate and diplomat mission overseas is to represent the interest of its citizens. Can you imagine you are in Spain, Dubai or Italy you get into a problem and you do not have access to your ambassador because the Foreign Minister withholds that information from you based on her claim that this should not be public knowledge. Is this a real country? Or better said are the inhabitants on island real people to have such nonsense told to them?
I think the Foreign Minister thinks we are foreign to the affairs taking place around us. She talks bout transparency yet still she holds back information to the parliament on the list of our ambassadors saying its in the interest of State Security. The head of the Cabal a few weeks ago said he does not want the other islands to know what Dominica is doing and going ref. The CBI program for fear they may copy or run in front to do the same but today you calling for collaboration and togetherness. How does the minister explain NG, and Corello and the Nigerian Diplomat to her colleagues. How does the Minister explain the issuance of citizenship and passports to people who do not even know where Dominica is much less to set foot on the island. I think Dominica corrupt politicians are in head dip and they are now grabbing at anything to save their behind.
Lady go read your Proverbs; wheel and come back the use of the word Transparency is the bad omen for the DLP Administration.
DNO be the first to be daring. Run a opinion polls on CBI voting from Dubai, Malaysia, Lanka with, China, Monaco, Panama ,wherever passports are sold.
Lets find out whether born Dominicans are in agreement with people who don’t even know how to spell Dominica being given the right to vote in Loubier or Grand Fond. People voting in constituencies the name they can’t even spell like fone cola is, Morneau wachette. Lets see how far a people are willing to sacrifice their country for one man and his party.
Linton, why don’t you want to see our country and our region do well. Are you so desperate for power you want to break everything?
Jealousy makes you nasty. Terribly sad that the opposition cannot bear to see our success. Thank God that we have the current Government otherwise if the opposition was in power, everything would be broken
to you all, you bite the hand that feeds you cos you so power hungry, you don’t care about dem people you care about the power. Long live da Government. Long live the Prime Minister.
If the program was really transparent my dear, would you be there telling us that? We should be able to go on some government website to see the amount of passports sold, cost of each, amount paid to the passport hucksters, amounts reaching the Treasury and how the money is being used. We should be able to access this information freely, so dont come on here and try to pull wool over our eyes. I’m so disappointed in this lady, used to think so highly of her…this government taints every one they come in contact with.
Allu doh tired come and try to fool the public. Tell that to the Coordinator who allows due diligence for Applicants which are 98% incomplete to be approved. The point is how can it ever be when a person who was employed worked by the rule of law to ensure transparency, accuracy, proper due diligence and her contract was not renewed? Westay la. Why didn’t you all renew the Contract of the one employee who wanted to do it right and have the department run effectively and efficiently with integrity? She was a senior and the Eaminer below her (the one the Coordinator put there) gave her blose like old clothes. Even asking her who put her there? Then boom white powder on her desk.
you are promoting transparency Francine but you don’t even want us to know who our diplomatic representatives are? You are joking, are you not? Next time think before you talk.
All them HATERS are there to do is CRITICIZE and WRITE negative comments on anything good happening in the country. They criticize but none comes with an alternative by which they can do better. Just there to oppose for opposing sake.
but francine you were not transpartent at all in parliament!!!!
So why when the Government – in this instance- OPPOSITION in Parliament ask of you information that is of much concern to us all you refuse? Please explain what do you mean by “TANSPARENCY”. Is there another meaning which state ” is none of their DAMN BUSINESS?” .
Please come again and explain what you mean by transparency
so is Dominican going to sell passport forever? skerritt already say that passport selling is the only export we have. what a big failure on his part.
Did she really say these things or DNO lying on the lady?
Lawd have MORCY on me poor soul this christmas season tan 
Always Assertive!
Skerrit and his gang saying one thing and doing another
De PM must make De effort to attend a forum like this among we De people.
If De forum was in Dubai, Quatar, Malaysia or Monaco he would be grinning riding in Rolls Royce.
So he send guard dogs to bark at De citizens.
De same citizens you looking to get support from.
Why isn’t any of you talking about corallo?
I should assume that he didn’t have a Dominica diplomatic passport to flash
Or perhaps some brilliant minds figured something amiss with his false diplomatic appointment.
All you making all Dominicans pass like fools.
There are people who were considering getting a Dominica passport to facilitate their crookedness. ……..corallo sell out De scene! !!!!
You have to work extremely hard to remove that stigma on our head in De international passport selling market.
Your salesperson/marketing agent is Roosevelt Skerrit! !!!!!
De onus is on him to clean De dirt he facilitated on us!!!
Dog come crying to me!
Roosevelt Skerrit will cry one day(again)…
My granny always told me, two types of professionals she does not trust, are politicians and lawyers. Incidentally Baron is a lawyer and a politician. When she stresses that the Government is transparent and in addition, the country has a comprehensive and diligence process, can she also explain to us, why she refused to correctly answer Mr. Linton’s question, in the parliament, concerning the holders of Dominica’s Diplomatic passports. In fact, the answer she gave, according to him, was to a certain extent, it is none of our business. If she really believes there is transparency in the passport sales business, then why are so many crooks and vagabonds holding Dominica’s passports.
Francine, the country, is the land of Dominica period! Therefore, the country has no power to ensure or be transparent. Nevertheless, there must be transparency in in every deal, every arrangement, every bill paid by the government, and to whom, and for what!
That is what transparency means.
Since we are on the subject of the sale of Dominica passports, can you disclose to the nation, how many hundreds, or thousands of Dominica passports has this Labor Party government sold? That also means transparency! Everything is done in secret in Dominica.
Right now one can assume the amount of people who have bought Dominica citizenship might exceed those of us who are born Dominicans. Do you believe if two hundred thousand of them decides to head home to Dominica and vote; you and Skerrit will ever have a chance to play government again? It is not impossible for your citizenry through the sale of passports to take the country you know.
It is doubtful that Antigua and St. Kitts for example would want to risk the integrity of their citizenship programmes by going into sea with Dominica, which has been undercutting them and who’s leader stands accused of selling diplomatic passports to the likes of Francesco Corallo, an individual with strong links to organised crime i.e. the maffia.
I would expect them to keep their slates clean and look after their own countries’ interests first. I’m sorry, but that is how I see it.
How can the program be up and running if the necessary measures to ensure transparency are not functional as yet?? That makes not one ounce of sense. God help us.
Listen lady, you really think Timothy Harris and Allen Chastenet trust Roosevelt Skerrit? Come again please.
Tjebe fort who give a rat a…………. if they don’t trust our PM? who trust them anyway? your inferiority complex is glaring!!!!!!
Francine, you are wrong and you know it. A negative effect will not always affect all OECS members. Remember when Antigua had visa free access to the EU (Schengen countries) and Dominica had not? They look at each country individually. You only have to look at Jamaica that also has a Caricom passport but their citizens can not freely travel to the E.U. or even the U.K. Skerrit just wants to stitch up al our like he did in Dubai and make an exclusive arrangement with Dr. Dakroury and Alick Lawrence is the director of his company. You are screwing your own people that paid your government to be an agent. The truth I believe is that the other OECS countries with a citizenship programme want to distance themselves from us to avoid contamination. There is noting for say St. Kitts, Antigua, St. Lucia and Grenada to join forces and leave us out. Right now Alick Lawrence is the most powerful man in Dominica and not Roosevelt Skerrit, who has been outmanoeuvred
You see, that’s how stupid these people are, talking nonsense. What does the sale of Dominica passports and the corruption in Dominica have to do with the EOC states?
People like Francine believe that only they the politicians in Dominica knows everything, and has the answer for the problems of all of the Caribbean, or the world for that matter.
However, when we look around the world, and compare what we see to what we have in Dominica, only an no ambition person would not realize that we are in no position to reference Dominica to any other place on earth. They give people the idea that Dominica is better off than all the rest.
One man told me he lived all his life in Dominica, believing our people lived in paradise until he left the island for the first time and visited Martinique.
The guy told me when he landed and look around him, all he could say is ” Wa de f… me a see ya.” But you see it help him shed his brainwashing that all was perfect in Dominica under…
You question the Government but after Storm Erika, it was the Government and the success of the citizenship programme that saved Dominica!
BUT DNO ALLU COULDNT TELL ME PIZZA HURT CLOSING DOWN? From y\’all I does get all my news… Dominicans (Laborats) Making all my little chill out places close down! \”Breezy Mart, Crazy kokounuts, Rituals, Subway, And now pizza hut?! I know I missing a few just can\’t remember them right now… Man Dominicans really something else, So all you cannot have nice things down here huh…?! That\’s why all you fleeing to white man country like refuguee! SSMf
Cooperative approach and your passport is the cheapest!!
Francine Baron, “Got to Hell….Got to Hell…Go to hell…..Its non of our damn business what you think….”
One by one, it appears Supremo under the advice of the Arab looking within the corrupt Labour Party to come on DNO and publicity make a fool of themselves. The more you all talk the more you expose you deceitfulness, lies and corruption. You all are robbing us Dominicans big time and we civil servants in dire need of a raise, proper and good governance like Dr. Francis Severin lectured on. I am yet to hear a lecture from Skerrit that is credible, well researched apart from pulling people down and not accounting for states finances to us Dominicans. But within the civil service we know who is who, especially that clown, the Director Audit. A great disgrace and disappointment. The more he opens his mouth on Matt the more he displays his dirty assets to the public.
So Madam Francine, or whatever position you hold, please get lost and leave us alone in our suffering and…
If everyone have to come on board to defend it, then clearly something is wrong with it. Logic 101.
All we know is that the defenders are the direct beneficiaries of the CBI.
How much does a passport sell for ? what is the agent take? and what is government take ?
Be transparent
How many have sold?
More than 40% of voting Dominicans are now CBI holders. You will never get accounts as if you do, there will be a revolution
Loll