KINGSTON, Jamaica, Sep. 17, CMC – The main opposition People’s National Party (PNP) is demanding that the Government immediately table in Parliament the full memorandum of understanding (MOU) governing the admission of Third Country Nationals (TCNs) to Jamaica.
In a statement Thursday, the PNP said the Government’s latest update on the arrangement confirms that it is moving ahead while withholding key details from the Jamaican public.
The party in a joint statement from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and National Security and Peace announced that operating procedures and safeguards had been finalised, but provided no details on the arrangements.
According to the PNP, the Government has not disclosed how many TCNs will enter Jamaica, where they will be housed, how long they will remain, who will finance the programme or how criminal records will be verified.
Opposition spokesman on National Security Fitz Jackson said the Government was asking Jamaicans to trust an agreement that has not been made public and which, he argued, has implications for national security, communities and public services.
“This is not an update. It is an announcement that the Government has decided and the people will be told nothing,” Jackson said.
He also accused the Government of disregarding Parliament and democratic oversight, alleging that similar arrangements elsewhere have involved questions about payments and oversight.
The PNP is calling on the Government to publish the MOU and operating procedures, disclose all funding sources and any benefits to Jamaica, and explain the vetting process for TCNs.
The party is also demanding clarification on what would happen to the TCNs if the threshold of 10 asylum applications that would trigger suspension of the arrangement is reached.
The Opposition said Parliament should debate the agreement before any TCN arrives in Jamaica. “Silence is not governance,” Jackson said.
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