{"id":138094,"date":"2015-05-02T14:01:05","date_gmt":"2015-05-02T18:01:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/?p=138094"},"modified":"2015-07-05T14:27:26","modified_gmt":"2015-07-05T18:27:26","slug":"commentary-a-begging-policy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dominicanewsonline.com\/news\/homepage\/features\/commentary\/commentary-a-begging-policy\/","title":{"rendered":"COMMENTARY: A Begging Policy"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"J.J.
J.J. Joseph<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Roosevelt Skerrit’s one-man administration continues to be hell bent on precariously sustaining an entire nation on an inherently mendicant policy of governance. This formula effectually ensures imminent economic disaster hence significant anguish to an already languishing society. And, with the recent suspension of the notorious Red Clinic (Skerro’s epicenter of his begging propagation), one can only vicariously feel the pain of the ‘cold turkey’ effect of abruptly yanking away the bread basket of his predominantly less fortunate supporters. Realistically, these DLP supporters had grown to know no other means of livelihood than to look forward to a seat on the sixth floor to plead their case for a weekly stipend.\u00a0 \u00a0This is much like suddenly depriving an addict of his drug supply which had previously fulfilled his addiction. What an abysmal situation, given the rapid deterioration (in fact, now virtually derelict) of a once booming banana industry, which, prior to his reign, rendered the nation virtually self-sufficient.<\/p>\n

Retrospectively, farming was the absolute backbone of our economy – a mere nostalgia most would give anything to recapture; long gone are those days, however. Today, a culture of begging has pervaded the nation – beginning with a dormant, unproductive and inept government – whose focus appears to be disempowerment of its citizens through total reliance on endowments, rather than a willingness to provide gainful employment. But, why would Roosevelt Skerrit foster industriousness when such independence would be totally diametric to his aims and objectives – which seem to be guided by his fundamental dictatorial principles of suppression and control of the masses? Additionally, how productive can we conceivably expect a prime minister to be when his paradigm for the country’s sustainability is a dependence on his sugar daddies’ extended hands? Come on people, let’s be real!<\/p>\n

Manifestations of our de facto PM’s apathy for the welfare and development of our country were palpable when he blatantly refused to attend the Summit of the Americas for heads of state, in Panama City earlier this month, citing concerns about wear and tear on his body. One can easily deduce that such deterioration could appropriately be attributed to the many countries he has traveled to in recent times, soliciting handouts and negotiating patrons for purchase of Dominican citizenship at an embarrassing rock bottom price of $200,000. Notably, these passport proceeds and ‘grants\/gifts’, by the way, have as good a chance of making it to the nation’s treasury as Air Force 1 touching down at the Douglas- Charles Airport in Melville Hall. Countries in the likes of China, Venezuela, Morocco and Malaysia, which Skerro has covered within a short period, are by no means a stone’s throw from each other; as such, therein lies the potential for wear and tear.<\/p>\n

But, when a politician who assumes a position of leadership deliberately removes himself from a Summit of such scope and magnitude, where the focus is ‘to foster discussions on a variety of issues affecting the Western Hemisphere’, it begs the question as to where his priorities really lie. One’s expectation is that a PM who is concerned about restoring a severely fragmented economy (his own doings – by the way) would make an urgent or emergent effort to attend this high-level diplomatic apex – but, alas! Clearly, Roosevelt Skerrit has not demonstrated a willingness to orient himself with the fundamentals of Democracy as it relates to good governance, through less corruption and more transparency. Instead, he has exhibited innate manipulative, opaque and chameleonic abilities – such as altering his title to president, prime minister or premier, depending on the circumstance.<\/p>\n

Undoubtedly, the deplorable state of our economy, coupled with deteriorated infrastructure and high unemployment, will inevitably present significant challenges to the next government at the very least. In fact, the complete reparation process may possibly require generations to take Dominica back to the place where we once were in terms of economic viability and vibrancy. Most importantly, however, is the likelihood that the psychological – as well as impaired self-esteem created by extended periods of disempowerment may potentially be irreparable. It is imperative, though, to make it abundantly clear that I am in no way ‘painting with a broad brush’ by suggesting that the begging epidemic has affected everyone, because it has not. However, most objective-thinking Dominicans will agree that a substantial portion of our indigenous proletarians have been contaminated by Roosevelt Skerrit’s permeated model of dependency. The question then becomes, how can we possibly castigate the internet baby for ‘wanting it now’ when such a mentality, sadly, is a bi-product of their very own prime minister’s examples?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

DISCLAIMER The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of Dominica News Online or Duravision Inc. Additionally, DNO provides an open forum for all political views once they meet the publishing and editorial standards of this website. Publishing space has also been directly offered to the various political parties and continues to be available to all those who wish to utilize it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Roosevelt Skerrit’s one-man administration continues to be hell bent on precariously sustaining an entire nation on an inherently mendicant policy of governance. This formula effectually ensures imminent economic disaster hence significant anguish to an already languishing society. 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