UPP says PM Browne must take responsibility for threat to access to US visas

The United Progressive Party (UPP) is calling Prime Minister Gaston Browne into account for the imminent threat to Antiguans’ and Barbudans’ access to United States’ visas.

Instead of the prime minister attempting to lay blame for this possible scenario, he should take responsibility for the underlying cause: that is, the compromised status of the Citizenship by Investment (CIP) programme and the porous state of Antigua and Barbuda’s borders. 

These – and not the UPP – comprise the perceived threat to the security of the United States.

It was not the UPP who systematically altered or eliminated the checks and balances that were incorporated into the CIP’s original design.

It was not on the UPP’s watch that passports were being manufactured in St. Vincent & The Grenadines – outside the purview of the Citizenship by Investment Unit – a situation initially denied by Prime Minister Browne, himself. Nor has the UPP contributed to the stalling of this matter in the courts.

It was not the UPP that allowed persons whose interests were inimical to good governance and transparency and to the United States’ security interests to receive Antigua and Barbuda passports – including an individual trading in contraband on the Dark Web and a Chinese national wanted in his home country for alleged bank fraud.