The opposition’s agitation that the Skerrit-led administration must account for $1 billion unreported money is taking a new turn. Opposition leader Lennox Linton announced that $1 billion Citizenship by Investment (CBI) fund was mismanaged by the government and not captured in the 2019/2020 budget presented by Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit.
The president of the United Workers Party (UWP), Senator Isaac Baptiste, supported Linton by saying the latter “rightfully observed, noticed and reported and queried the amount” realized from the sales of Dominican passports is not consistent with what it should have been.
“Official information released by the Government of Dominica in the Official Gazette suggests that the amount of money reported [in the 2019/20 national budget] is inconsistent with what should have been collected based on the numbers of the passports issued and we asked for an explanation,” Baptiste said.
Pursuant to this, Linton in his capacity as the chairman for the Public Accounts Committee wrote to Financial Secretary Rosamund Edwards asking for detailed information concerning CBI’s revenues from passport sales. Linton is asking Edwards to supply concrete details to three main requests which are –
- Total number of citizenships – with proofs – approved by the Dominican government within the last three years.
- Proofs of the actual amounts paid for citizenships by approved applicants.
- Receipts, disbursements and year-end balances for all special funds, trust funds, escrow accounts and all other funds/accounts related to CBI.
Prime Minister and Finance Minister Skerrit dismissed Linton as being overzealous and without proper knowledge of how the national budget is prepared. He said the opposition leader is only being mischevious because his allegation that $1 billion is unreported lacks objective analysis and forensic proofs. He called Linton ignorant when it comes to government finances.
“It speaks to his [Hon. Lennox Linton’s] inability to understand how government functions, and how the budget process is,” PM Skerrit said. “The problem with Mr. Linton is that he doesn’t know that he doesn’t know and therefore he does not seek advice from anybody who may know something and who may be able to intelligently and objectively advise him on the matter. So, he relies on people who do not know and he relies on himself who is ignorant of the processes.”
The prime minister went on to say that the “allegation of over 1 billion dollars missing, is untrue, this is a blatant lie.” He said that the government has a “sterling record” of financial transparency to the general public, adding that “we can show and we can point to you how we have spent our resources.”
Hotel developer and CEO of the recently reopened Jungle Bay Resort and Spa (renovated with CBI funds), Sam Raphael, supported PM Skerrit by saying Linton’s idea of a mission $1 billion is false, wrong and misleading.
This article is copyright © 2019 DOM767
Hahaha – ok thats a next level DIS on Lennox – trying to score on a serious defense that our PM has. I mean the kinda things coming out that man’s game is really all over the place. You would think he would use his intelligence or at least the combined intelligence of the UWP. But then again he is the only one playing all by himself on the court. Lennox are you serious that the PM just stole $1 Billion dollars. You think he would just hide it?
My point exactly, Where is a Prime Minister going to Hide $1 Billion. in his bank accounts. I fink When Linton talks, the rest of them just follow, always echoing what their star player does. Always nothing original, no original moves.