Head of the Jamaica Diaspora Crime Intervention and Prevention Task Force, Dr. Rupert Francis said his decision to spearhead protests in front of the Jamaican Consulate in Florida was motivated by his love for the country and not because he wants to damage brand Jamaica, which, in his view has already been stained by the high levels of corruption, crime and poverty that currently exist.
Dr. Francis, a retired captain in the Jamaica Defence Force, said there are many in the diaspora who share his concern, and so in addition to the demonstration in Florida, others are slated for New York, Washington DC, Toronto and London. The general consensus is that the Jamaican government has intentionally or negligently failed to effectively address corruption and crime among other things.
“Sometimes I weep when I think of where Jamaica is and they don’t want to tell themselves the truth, because they are okay. They have food to eat, they have a car to drive, but it is not about one person; it is about all of us,” Dr. Francis shared with the Freedom Come Rain newspaper during an interview ahead of the planned protest.
Dr. Francis was criticised by members of the Diaspora after sending a letter to Audrey Marks, Jamaica’s ambassador to the United States, giving notice of a countrywide protest late last year. But he said despite the personal attacks, the group remains confident that they are doing the right thing.
Wilfred Rattigan
“When the letter was written, this now infamous letter, you would have thought that a responsible government and a responsible people would have said, ‘you know, let’s talk; this must be a misunderstanding’, but no. What they did was to send out the attack dogs. They nearly ruined my Facebook, because they knew it was the genesis of everything. They went in, and they did a lot of stuff, and I had to get someone to clean it up,” he stated.
He said there are too much evidence of depravity in the country, but instead of engaging in a dialogue to try and address the issues, he and others are chastised for even daring to speak about them. He is particularly concerned about the youths in the country and views the protest as a call to action.
“The way and the type of killings that are taking place now are almost demonic, and so we need to come together and work together and prevent this. Our young people in particular need our attention, because they are going to be the next generation,” Dr Francis said.
Former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) official, Wilfred Rattigan was looking forward to travelling from Washington DC to Miami when the Freedom Come Rain newspaper spoke with him. He said the protest was a historic moment, which he supported because he shared the same concerns. He noted that despite success in some areas, such as the reduction of the country’s unemployment rate and Jamaica’s success on the stock market, the reality is that many people in the country are suffering.
“Two-thirds of Jamaica will go to bed tonight malnourished. You will also hear that most of the jobs created are minimum-wage jobs, and people will tell you that they cannot afford to feed their families because of inflation. Things are priced out of their reach,” he noted.
The former FBI agent has scoffed at the view posited by some that they are trying to tarnish Jamaica’s reputation. He said it is Prime Minister Andrew Holness who has caused significant damage to the country’s international brand.
“When you have a leader of a country that establishes an anti-corruption agency, and that agency says we cannot verify your statutory declaration, his financial declaration for the last two years, that is a stain on Jamaica,” he insisted.
The prime minister’s 2021 and 2022 statutory declarations are yet to be certified by the Integrity Commission. The publication of the Prime Minister’s income, assets, and liabilities is a requirement under the law.
Rattigan said there are several other troubling issues, including the disappearance of money from the account of sprint icon Usain Bolt. It has been over a year since approximately $2 billion was removed from Bolt’s account at investment firm Stocks and Securities Limited (SSL).
“Those things are what we are protesting about, so how can you say we are damaging brand Jamaica? It has been damaged already,” Rattigan insisted.
