READ READ READ!

Minister of National Security blames man incarcerated in maximum security facility for ongoing scamming epidemic.  Strange but true. IrieFm news reported :- Dancehall lovers are reacting following a statement made by Security Minister Peter Bunting who bashed Vybz Kartel for his song Reparation, which the Minister says justifies the ills of scamming. According to dancehall fans, Minister Bunting should deal with the problem at hand and not search for a scapegoat. They also express that entertainers should be mindful of their social responsibilities.  Security Minister Peter Bunting made it clear in a recent press conference that incarcerated dancehall deejay ‘Vybz Kartel’ contributes to the ongoing scamming issue that has been a major problem for the Jamaican Government. Bunting quoted Kartel’s lyrics from his single “Reparation” which also features Gaza Slim calling it “an amazing piece of propaganda for scammers.”

I am not a Gaza fanatic and there are some things about Mr.. Palmer mi just dont like. But, I like some of his songs which I find relevant or catching  or entertaining, or all three. But that is me and I am entitled to have my personal opinions and express them just as how Adi has his personal views and is entitled to express them in song. Is either you listen to him songs on the radio or skip them or let the Broadcasting Commission do their job and ban what needs to be banned from the airwaves. And that was exactly what they did to Kartel’s song “Reparation”. But I do not fool myself. Adi appeals to a wide cross section of society, remains a marketable force, is business savvy and is able to create synergies in his approach to the world of entertainment. Mr. Colouring Book has won several awards, has received critical acclaim and most recently has been nominated for a Grammy Award.  This is for a man who has been in jail for over a year now, facing several charges ranging from murder to perverting the course of justice. By the way, some of those charges seem to have either been dropped or going no where.

So I find it disturbing that the Minister of National Security can come out and blame the prisoner/Grammy Nominee for being contributory to the scamming debacle affecting the island. Minister Peter Bunting, who has been in the job for over one year, has conveniently sidestepped the failure of his Cabinet to implement legislation that effectively blankets the activities of scammers. With all the bruhaha about how many are locked up, how many laptops, monies and high end vehicles seized, the charges laid against the apprehended are always lacking substance. And it has been said repeatedly that the current laws  do not capture the criminal genre that the individuals are suspected of being involved in. In April, 2012, Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Crime Glenmore Hinds admitted that “There is in fact a deficiency in our current legislation to seriously impact the activity.” The top cop lamented that charges usually laid against scammers are heavily restricted to the Larceny Act. He said obtaining money by means of false pretence, conspiracy to defraud and money laundering are among the common charges. “These are offences that do not attract significant punishment,” Hinds said. Speaking at a forum concerning the lottery scam  in November 2012, the Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn admitted that there is no criminal charge that specifically refers to scamming. She went further to call for the implementation of an Advance Fee Fraud Act which would help to clamp down on persons involved in the multi-million dollar lottery scam. The Advance Fee Fraud Act is currently used in Nigeria to combat criminal activities which are similar to the lottery scam. So, the current reality, for which Minister Bunting has portfolio responsibility, is automatic bail, investigations placed on the never ending roller coaster called “ongoing” and suspects returning to do what they know best. And he blames Vybz Kartel who has been remaded to a maximum security facility.

When the Minister stated that entertainers should be mindful of their social responsibilities, his polka dotted mind forgot that he is part of an administration that demanded $60 million (nearly usd640,000.00) for sixteen new SUVs for Ministers of Government. This is at a time when the economy is in the tank, IMF discussions are stalled and 80% of the budget is spent on paying debt. Minister Bunting must go back to his text books on civics and social studies and appreciate that, unlike him, Mr. Palmer was not elected by the people and he is a singular private money making business. It is a cold hard fact that Mr. Palmer owes Jamaica no obligation to sing Ring Ding and Religious Choruses and if his songs, as detestable as some may be, find mass appeal, he will always continue to make money. The song “Reparation” can be given deep thought and intellectual reasoning blah blah blah, and be accused of lending legitimacy to a dubious activity. But that is what scamming is, dubious and nothing higher. It aint illegal nor unlawful. Furthermore, Minister Bunting must remember that scamming was born and nurtured during the period 2004-2007 and thereafter took off like an Olympian on crack. Therefore, the PNP, which was in power then and is is in power now, has continued to drag its foot in dealing properly with the problem, just as how the issue of campaign financing has taken a back burner. But again, we are reminded of the hushed talk that several PNP contributors are members of the scamming mafia.  Songs that rebel against the establishment and which exalt ‘antisocial’ dealings are not new. Minister Bunting, should take a break from Nina Simone and Billie Holiday and listen to our local champions like Buju Banton, Gregory Isaacs and others.  Following this erratic outburst, dont be surprised if next week the Minister starts pointing his accusatory finger at Bob Marley’s grave and blame his remains for the flourishing ganja trade and the multitude of Jamaicans who “light up dem spliff”. Our National Heroes like Nanny and Paul Bogle are next, because they will surely be labelled criminal king pins.

Peter Bunting better get with the programme and realise that Jamaica is now kept afloat by hundreds of thousands of Jamaicans who earn a honest bread in the “unofficial sector” in order to put bread on their tables, to send their children to school and to throw dem partner money. Minister, ah want you to note that the majority of hardworking Jamaicans who get up by 3/4 each morning and guh sleep at 11/12 dont have a stable 9-5 job and each lunch at Pegasus Hotel. Suh yuh try get a grip of yuhself. Big up all trying Jamaicans who refuse to take up the gun and naw support nuh war despite the economic and social temptations. Mi ah talk the robot taxi and bus operators who keep Jamaica moving and mek plenty police, nurse and other civil servants reach dem poorly paid work pon time, the cash for gold traders in HWT and other town centers who provide ready money for honest people who want some cash fi guh pay JPS and NWC, bag juice and banana chips sellers who provide the most popular and perhaps only diet many Jamaicans can afford. Finally, big respect to that little old lady who has her stall infront of the school. That old lady may not have a food handlers permit or can read and write, but she ever clean, never yet give the pickney dem bad belly and always have a smile on her face.