INDEPENDENCE MESSAGE
November, 2021
Hon. Lennox Linton
Parliamentary Opposition Leader
My Nature Island Brothers and Sisters:
As we slip deeper and deeper into the disgraces of a failed independent state where control of the economy and social service delivery system has been surrendered to foreigners, we call again on the citizens of this land to stand up and save our country.
We cannot afford to continue sleepwalking behind leaders who are hell bent on using our own resources to take us back into the dark days of colonialism for their personal gain. We must wake up and change course. And changing course is not the responsibility of those leaders who have plotted and schemed with foreign interests to get us into this most unfortunate position. Changing course is the collective responsibility of the citizens of Dominica standing firm for God and country.
When we celebrated the independence milestone last year, the Covid 19 pandemic had severely injured an economy that was already brought to its knees by leadership incompetence… and with billions of dollars of the people’s money under private control in overseas bank accounts, government, under instructions from its foreign masters, had refused to provide an adequate package of financial assistance for citizens who have lost their jobs, their businesses, their means of livelihood. But the government was taking care of its own at the expense of suffering Dominicans. In the grip of the Covid economic crisis, over 65 thousand dollars per month of poor people’s money to rent a mansion for the Prime Minister while government cried broke.
One year later, the government of this “independent” country under tighter control of foreign masters, continues to deprive our “independent” people of their own money to assist them in times of need.
As we noted in last year’s independence message:
“There is no bigger mockery of our independence 42 years later than this cruel hand-over of Dominica’s financial resources to foreign controllers of the ruling party, who don’t share our values and don’t believe in the ethos of our society – our values and norms.
“The sale of our passports, the proud emblem of citizenship, the very element within our national revenue stream intended to improve our quality of life, is being used to cripple the character of our nation and cast the darkest clouds over our Nature Island space”.
So, aren’t we tired yet? Haven’t we had enough meaningless independence celebrations in increasing dependency, hypocrisy and self-hate?
In the four-year period ending June 30th, 2020, under the Citizenship by Investment program, Dominica received 5.4 billion dollars from the sale of its passports to 23,794 persons around the world. This money belongs to the people of Dominica and accordingly the Constitution, the supreme law of Dominica, requires it to be deposited in and spent from the consolidated fund of Dominica. But of the 5.4 billion dollars of the people’s money – 5,400 million dollars – only 1.2 billion was placed in the consolidated fund. 4.2 billion – 4,200 million is in private accounts outside of Dominica, an ATM for leaders of the ruling party and the foreign friends who control them.
While Dominicans are now being enslaved with their own money to the will of foreign masters, Dominica is demanding reparations for the injustice of slavery which was abolished 187 years ago.
We asked the question last year and we ask it again:
What is this “independence” that we are asked to celebrate with pride?
“In this day and age impoverished citizens yearning for a better life are being enslaved by ruling party puppets of their passport selling masters behind the bars of need for food, clothing, and shelter assistance provided by the State, while foreigners are allowed to plunder hundreds of millions from the public purse with impunity.
“With our own passport money, foreign friends of the regime are deciding who sits in parliament for a political party that has failed the people miserably in government for 20 years; how many hundreds of millions will be spent to buy elections and defeat the will of the people.
“The slave masters are deciding, all by themselves, how much of our passport money will come into Dominica and how much they will keep overseas; which foreign contractors will, without competitive bid or public tender, receive hundreds of millions of dollars from our passport sales to build public facilities and build out the economic infrastructure.
“The slave masters, insisting that Dominican lives do not matter, ensure that local contractors, service providers and born Dominicans in general suffer, deliberately deprived of opportunities funded by the sale of their passports to earn a living from using their talents and skills in the development of their own country”.
This year, in the signature disgrace of our life and times, Mohammed Abdullah aka Anthony Haiden, a Lebanese national, signed off on International Airport and other arrangements that give him exclusive control over more than seventy five percent of Dominica’s national income and all of Dominica’s major infrastructure projects.
“This is no longer an economy for the people of Dominica; it is emerging as a modern-day slave plantation organized by ruling party puppets of Haiden and other foreign masters for their wealth creation benefit.
“The Independence to run our own affairs that we gleefully embraced on November 3rd, 1978, is working wonders for the multi-billion-dollar benefit of the foreign friends of the ruling party regime. It is not working for the farmers, the hucksters, the seafarers, the fishermen, the nurses, the teachers, the police officers, the public officers, the doctors, the lawyers, the business men and women, the shop keepers, the disappearing middle class, the clerks, the carpenters, the masons, the electricians, the plumbers, the rich, the poor, the unemployed, the youth, the single parents, the elderly, the leaders of church…
“The nature island people of Dominica from all walks of life, know and understand that in the last 20 years we have been reversing into the dark ages where our ancestors fought against the odds for our freedom… for a Dominica for Dominicans… for lives that matter.
“As we reflect carefully on the necessity of ensuring that our lives in Dominica matter, the United Workers Party calls on all Dominicans to stand for right and save our country. It’s a collective national responsibility that commits us to:
- Bring an immediate end to the anti-Dominica national policy that places foreign interests above Dominican interests. Stop the relegation of Dominicans to second class citizens in Dominica increasingly unable to own land, residential/commercial property and industry while foreigners selling Dominican passports are buying up Dominica’s prime real estate
- Build a new economic framework, driven by the private, public, cooperative and civil society sectors for the development of the growth engines – Agriculture, Water, Tourism, Renewable Energy, Manufacturing, Construction, Information Communication Technology, Culture
“Far from addressing these fundamental requirements of change, the ruling party is relentlessly destroying Dominica’s independence and leading Dominicans back into enslavement”.
Against this clear and present danger, we must stand resolute in the conviction that the dream of independence – the hope for freedom, happiness, truth, righteousness, justice and human dignity – will be relentlessly pursued and never abandoned in our Nature Island to the world.
They are the truth that a lot of people don’t want to hear, you guys in Dominica are so blinded by this regime that all the ills that they do it will seems normal to you, does anyone wants to hear the truth these days, why should he paint a pretty picture when the reality in Dominica is grim. truth be told, say it as it is, Dominicans are the most backwards, under educated, retarded, stupid, ignorant dumb set of people in the Caribbean.
“As we slip deeper and deeper into the disgraces of a failed independent state where control of the economy and social service delivery system has been surrendered to foreigners, we call again on the citizens of this land to stand up and save our country.” You had be at Hello!
It is indeed “Time For Change” In order to change the so labeled “failed independent state”, we must have better options. Same ole rhetoric. Slave master, puppet master, clear and present danger, enslaved with their own money. Foreign masters, passport money, $65,000 a month palace, while the people suffer. Oh nah nah yay! Dice Again!
Come on Dominica and Dominicans deserve better all around. The opposition parties need to step up. Give us a viable option.
#OLD767
Exactly and UWP is definitely not It!! Neither is the APP!!
All his thing is corruption, corruption , when the Algerzera bombshell exposed you what was it.? The $400, 000 you were even elected. Wicked.
Oh Lennox, that is not how you wish Dominica Happy Birthday. Get it over with or say nothing. The same BS all the time. Is that how you wish your wife Happy Birthday by talking all that crap. How has Dominica failed? Tell me how? Everybody I talk to talk about the monumental progress that Dominica has made and here you are talking nonsense all because you are not the PM of Dominica. Your message should read, “Averting the disgraces of a failed Opposition Leader”. That sounds better, plenty better.
@ds, I am not going to say anything, you have said it all for me. Way to go!
You blind loyalist of the most currupt p.m in the history of the eastern Caribbean..take for example..since covid st kitss government has given its people about 8million as financial sopport but in Dominica the people get none..fools hate constructive criticism…your p.m have cause havoc on all the people…one day you will feel it..some way..some day
This is the Independence message of a political leader?? The disgrace is your message. I couldn’t even get past the first paragraph. I have no words.
Wee Papa same old same old. Really,Really Really! Is that your independence address to the nation, no wonder no one is listening to the same old boring political rhetoric. I think you are politically bankrupt. Help help father send help for the UWP.
Here we go again with message which will not resonate with the masses. Another message which only serves to excite the Blue Blues and Blessings of Dominica, but lacks real impact, and demonstrates that its producer is out of touch with the real situation.
The government is beatable, but we cannot win with this. Continue this ignorance and resist internal change and the DLP will be here for ever. Let’s go. Bring on your ignorance about begging at Skerrit table and singing for supper. All I will say I am a professional who live in the US.
The picture painted by Lennox Linton the Leader of the UWP Opposition is very depressing for our country and leadership that should and could do much more to raise the standard of living of our citizens.. It is very sad to learn that a criminal mob is running the country and enriching themselves while the people suffer.especially during this Pandemic..Linton makes an appeal for the many hiders in the bushes to wake up and participate in Dominica democracy before it is too late
Whoooooaaa….well done…… HOW GREAT!
This is an honourable UWP’s TEAM message, obviously a well written article that ALL DOMINICANS from all works of life to endure and take our Country and Government back from this Failed incompetent immnature Visionless LABOUR Skerrit and this dishonorable Labour Team, headed by this failed incompetent Labour Party Government and its obvious IMMATURE VISIONLESS INCOMPETENT LABOUR PRIME MINISTER and his questionable LABOUR GOVERNMENT we need the HELL OUT of OUR GOVERNMENT”
Our PEOPLE, our YOUTH, OUR Suffering, Struggling Unemployed PEOPLE and Families need that uplifted dignity of decent Trusted Professional, MATURED Experienced Commited mature leadership/politicians to take back our Government, our people and our NATURE ISLE of COUNTRY DOMINICA. Isle of Beauty and More of meaningful Socio-Economic Development Concept that will elevate our PEOPLE and FAMILIES and Country to one of Develop. No more”Isle of Failure, Isle of Deceptive RED…
No thoughtful, rational person can seriously refute the arguments posited by Mr. Lennox Linton. They are all factual assertions.
There is very little to celebrate for Dominica’s 43rd Independence Anniversary. In fact, foreign economic pirates have been given the ‘All Clear’ by Mr. Skerrit and his parasites to re-colonize Dominica and reduce the indigenous population to beggars.
The people of Grand Bay have a golden opportunity to send an unmistakable message to the ruling elitists that every bona fide boy, girl, man, woman of Dominica must get their fair slice of the CBI pie and the rest of the country’s resources.
As a forty three year old, why does this middle aged nation have to go in supplication to foreign donors, monetary organisations and predatory countries for its survival when we are blessed with so much more than many others?
This 43rd Independence Anniversary, Dominica is rapidly regressing to nothingness instead of progressing to unprecedented heights.
But is on a recycle mode….no international Airport…no geothermal plant…and so may more…Dominica is on a real auto cycle mode….where are the employment opportunities…all are heading overseas….Dominican now is just to wait for a house….lazy thinking…what is exactly going on to stimulate the economy….absolutely nothing…the ruling party is just paving the road gor election….so they will campaign on the Airport project….lazy…this government need to get real….
I fully endorse the sentiments expressed in the message from the Hon. Lennox Linton, leader of the opposition. No punches were pulled in rightly describing the sad state of affairs in Dominca. Let me also add that the foundations of the economy which Skerritt inherited, he’s decimated so that the common folk will come to him on bended knees. His administration allowed Agriculture and the young manufacturing sectors to be neglected. He allowed and orchestrated the departure of ROSS, which was responsible for 30% of GDP. Our youth who get to go overseas to study don’t return because there isn’t any work available except NEP for the majority. Covid-19 has the economy by the throat because the tourists couldn’t come in large numbers. This failed state of affairs is the stuff which will lead to another Haiti in Dominca. There isn’t any happiness except for just a few labour stalwarts. Better must come but it won’t be with this failed leadership. Populism is bad for development.
I guess Lennox Linton doesn’t like foreigners very much.
Why should he? Please answer that question. They are accepted and bought by this present corrupt and extremely evil regime headed by an opened “devil worshiper.” There’s no place on God’s green earth where foreigners have more rights than the citizens. But I’m not worried one bit; because all these BS will soon come to an end. ” By any means possible.” We have had enough…. I dare say we have had too much of this sheeeet. Dominica is for Dominicans. Not for Chinese and Dubai people who have absolutely no regards for our laws and people. Change is coming. Wait for it my beloved Dominicans. Sacrifices may have to be made but we cannot continue to go down this road of uncertainty. Let’s pray for the Honorable Lennox Linton and his family. With God’s we will rejoice sooner than later. We must get some folks packing, from the office they occupy and those foreigners who live among us but look down on us. They too must flee. Dominica needs cleansing.
So many instances of the word ‘foreign’ that this sounded like a Trump address. He may as well have said ‘Dominica First’ or ‘Make Dominica Great Again’. He’s on an endless repeat cycle with his corruption message – one that most Dominicans seem to not care about. He needs to get elected on real issues to real people, and then, once in a position to do something about it, deal with the corruption of the current administration and its cronies.
It just goes to show how shallow this guy is. He ain’t got nothing to offer Dominicans, that’s why he is unelectable. As long as this guy remains leader of the opposition, Skerrit have nothing to worry about.
Shallow? The truth really hurts. Take your head between your legs and face reality. Mr. Linton’s words are irrefutable. 1000% authentic! The truth is like hot coals on your head. Pour some more truth on their heads Mr. Linton.
What do you mean by irrefutable? His words are null and void. Nobody listens. They just don’t resonate. Lennox is like a baby, the more his mother does not breast feed him, the louder he cries but to no avail. Lennox reminds us of one of those story-book children. You are one of his cubs that can’t find any food for his father much to his own detriment. My question to you is, will you finally give up after hearing the 2024 election results? I personally feel for you, IBO. But, you have to accept life for what it is. That is the real truth. The irrefutable truth.
@Forster, Dominicans cannot care about these kinds of messages because they are not real!
Those messages are loud exargeration, they are fictitious squalors, they are dark foolishness, which could never reveal any truth to those who are listening.
These messages should not come from the mind of one who is vying to become the Prime Minister of a country–MOST DEFINITELY, NOT THAT OF OUR DOMINICA!
What does one expect from Ugly Lenny, he has no shame he is a bloody disgrace to Dominica, and mankind ugly Lenny, couldn’t bring himself to wish his followers and Dominicans happy independence day, shameful person propagandist and deception or falsehood is an act to misleads others this is why we Dominicans Labour majorities would never have you ugly Lenny, or anyone else so-called UWP govern or country again!!!!