This Progressive Democratic Alliance is hereby registering its dissatisfaction with and rejection to the pending Turks and Caicos Status Bill that is currently before the House of Assembly. This bill gives a clear indication that the Turks and Caicos is about to start a new thriving industry, an Immigration Status Citizenship Industry. This bill is saying, “whosoever will may come, the doors are wide open and the eyes of the political directorate of the Turks and Caicos are tightly closed”.
Progressive Democratic Alliance leader Oswald Skippings said, “this bill is screaming, come everybody, even those that are stateless, oppressed, dangerous and desperate from anywhere, everywhere and we will give you refuge, prosperity and prominence as we ourselves suffer from poverty and marginalization, and most of all, we will give you political sovereignty over us, because there will be more of you that can vote than of us that can vote, I have to ask what in God’s name has gotten over our elected officials?”
This Status Bill indicates that we are a country that is suffering and dying from the lack of Citizens and that we are craving to enlarge the franchise so that the indigenous makeup of Turks and Caicos Islands would henceforth and forever be a thing of the past.
This bill says that we are desperate to be further diminished and dis-empowered as a people who has already lost everything that we are entitled to, from our constitution, our top ranking civil service jobs, to our menial jobs on the street.
Why is there such a desperate rush to broaden the franchise and thereby take away our franchise as Turks and Caicos Islanders? Don’t we like to belong, don’t we want to belong, don’t we have a right to belong, or are we all under some demonic spell that has us senselessly duped into accepting our national demise? It is so obvious that we are extending the immigration red carpet that is making Turks and Caicos Islanders carpet beggars.
If this government does not have the will nor the skill to produce sensible Immigrations bills that will protect us as a people, there are patriotic others in this country that have the common sense and ability to fashion sensible immigration bills that allow for however many thousands of immigrant workers that are needed to work here to fuel our economy without giving away our birthright. As a developing country, we are definitely in the business of welcoming and helping our less fortunate neighbors and others by offering them much needed jobs but we are not in the business of offering random citizenship or status that would further alienate us, our children and our grandchildren in our own country.
We as a country are offering jobs that would help these expatriate workers, help their families back home and help to build their own country’s economy through tens of millions of dollars in remittances sent through banks, money transfers and individual carriers. While we often get caught up in anthems or cliches like God Bless America and God save our gracious Queen, it’s about time that we reach out to God and ask for his blessings on the Turks and Caicos as we say, “God Save Our Gracious Turks and Caicos,” because nobody has been more gracious than us toward other nations and peoples.
The PDA leader said, “It is a little wonder that we are perceived as being so passive and directionless, while people come from distant lands are not afraid or ashamed to show their patriotism and love for their country, their indigenousness and their culture of their homeland, and I have no problem with that, we as the legitimate custodians at home in our homeland, are too intimidated to cherish and protect ours rights and our heritage here at home for fear of being labeled as anti-foreigners”.
Mr. Skippings continued by saying, “So I appeal to the lawmakers in this country, the politicians for whom we stood in the heat of the sun for up to six hours and voted for to represent us, our interest and that of our country, to show some kind of patriotic loyalty, vision, common sense and intestinal fortitude, to kill these immigrations bills before they kills us as a Turks and Caicos people.
