30 Pieces of Silver

In the bible, Judas took 30 pieces of silver to betray Jesus. When he realized what he did, he killed himself. Recently, Prime Minister Holness took 30 million dollars from the US government in exchange for Jamaica being “open for business”.

When Prime Minister Holness realizes what he did, will he do the honorable thing?

How does Jamaica benefit from this chump change “gift”? Was the grant used

to counteract China’s interest in Jamaica? Meanwhile, Jamaica’s entrepreneurs are marginalized and production (which is the real wealth of any country) has been reduced to idle status. The only thing that is not standing still is the value of the Jamaican dollar. Should Jamaica not comply with the rules of the IMF or the World Bank, the Zimbabwean money value awaits the nation. This is the real reason why African countries and Jamaica accept such exploitation.

There is an Arab saying: “the dogs keep barking and the caravan keeps moving”. Jamaica’s sovereignty keeps moving and slips away from independence towards neocolonialism. It exchanges one colonial master (the British) to embrace another (the Chinese).

The island moves into the abyss of debt. The Chinese now own the Kingston Harbor, Montego Bay airport and many more key landmarks. This means Asians increase their wealth, while the Chinese caravan continues to move forward. 30 million dollars is not a shot in the arm to stimulate the economy; it is a heroin overdose for the junky.

Written by Janice Maxwell