{"id":128958,"date":"2014-12-07T22:35:13","date_gmt":"2014-12-08T02:35:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/?p=128958"},"modified":"2014-12-08T00:15:34","modified_gmt":"2014-12-08T04:15:34","slug":"screams-of-a-nation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/features\/commentary\/screams-of-a-nation\/","title":{"rendered":"COMMENTARY: Screams of A Nation"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"JeffersThe plight of the nation will rest heavily on the consciences of some members of the Diaspora, as well as indigenous Dominicans who relinquish their votes to the DLP in exchange for airplane tickets, money and other handouts financed on the backs of tax payers. The wrathful repercussions could be significantly mitigated should these citizens choose to do the moral thing by voting on principles rather than emotions to depose this incumbent government on December 8th. In the unlikely event of a victory by the DLP, how could one possibly be at peace with oneself knowing that he\/she allowed bribery to influence their decision, hence affording Skerrit to perpetuate five more years in office?<\/p>\n

Arguably, this election promises to be the most crucial one for as long as I can possibly remember; thus, we have but one opportunity to make it right. However, after careful evaluation of both parties’ stances on the issues – along with their road map for propelling the country forward, I am confident that you will soon concede that our leadership is desperately in need of CHANGE. When the total number of electorates exceeds the population, well, let us just say it has a pungent smell. But when illegalities like bribery, threats and coercion are resorted to in an attempt to circumvent the elections, it is adequate indication that CHANGE is indeed imperative. The mere act of accepting gifts of free travel tickets is in and of itself bad; what is even worse, however, is feeling obligated to surrender your votes as ransom for these unconstitutional and unlawful favors offered by The PM. Dominicans are inherently suffering economically. You are therefore doing the local citizens and the country an utter injustice by altering the course of the elections. After the damage is done, you will all return to your respective countries, leaving them to wallow in their misery. This is Indeed an atrocity.<\/p>\n

The power of the people is greater than the people in power; therefore, the fate of our country rests heavily on our hands this election. The incumbent government has failed the people miserably. Dominica, therefore, should be approaching the dawn of a new day politically as the mantle is expected to change hands in a few days. I presume those who dare to contravene this are largely Skerrit, his cronies, and tribalists of the DLP. They will deny this since they are the ones who are benefiting from the government as they become wealthier and wealthier literally sucking the blood from the nation. Fifteen years is a very long time and there is little development to show for it. As such, we are charged with the responsibility of changing the leadership of this country if there is ever a chance of resuscitating her. Handouts are basically enabling and a country cannot continue under such circumstances. Without a strong vibrant economy providing equal employment opportunities to ALL (not just some), there is nowhere else to go but continue on this downward trajectory.<\/p>\n

The time has come for CHANGE; hence, it is incumbent on US to ensure that the winds of change are headed in the right direction. The world is looking to see if WE as a people can save our country from ruins. Fortunately, we are blessed with a passionate, vibrant and energetic Team Dominica, ready willing and able to assume the arduous task of nation rebuilding. They represent a group of 21 highly educated and experienced professionals – with a viable plan to move the country out of this virtually stagnated position. Lead by Mr. Lennox Linton, the group, the United Workers Party (UWP) is fortified with individuals – each of whom essentially holds advanced degrees in the fields of Engineering, Economics, Law and Business. Never before have we assembled such a well-rounded collection of talented and skilled technocrats in the annals of Dominican politics. Realistically, the economic damage perpetrated on this country by Roosevelt Skerrit’s DLP will require some time to undo; it is my belief, however, that given the opportunity, Team Dominica can make significant progress toward accomplishing this goal in their first term.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, November 28, 2014, The United Workers Party launched their long anticipated MANIFESTO to Dominicans. Contained therein is the blueprint for a massive project to restore, reconstruct and revitalize a rapidly debilitating country. Among many other proposals presented was the creation of 5,000 jobs in three years – an excellent way to jumpstart the economy and begin the challenging recovery process ahead. This would also significantly assist in eradicating the recently cultivated culture of dependency and reliance on government, propagated by the current administration. Conceivably, tremendous work will be necessary to exalt Dominicans’ dignity, morale and self-worth back to the level which we once knew. This, we can accomplish, however, through the combined efforts of Team Dominica and the citizens of this beautiful country. During the campaign we witnessed the PM’s blatant flaunting of almost $1,000,000 to famous entertainers from other countries, while most citizens continue to suffer economically. In fact, upwards of $32,000,000 was amassed within a thirty- two day period on campaign expenditures – incredible! One has to wonder whether Mr. Skerrit even cares about the welfare of the citizens. When the star struck epidemic finally diminishes, the reality of the crippling issues we are faced with will reemerge, however. Then and only then we will do the right thing and elect the United Workers Party into office on December 8, 2014.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The plight of the nation will rest heavily on the consciences of some members of the Diaspora, as well as indigenous Dominicans who relinquish their votes to the DLP in exchange for airplane tickets, money and other handouts financed on…","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":128959,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_cbd_carousel_blocks":"[]","footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-128958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-commentary"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCOMMENTARY: Screams of A Nation - Dominica News Online<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/features\/commentary\/screams-of-a-nation\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"COMMENTARY: Screams of A Nation - 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