PUT OUT

PUTIN

Someone called into Q95’s hot seat radio program last week and opine that PM Skerrit is like Russia’s president Vladimir Putin. The talk show host Matt Peltier (Matt)disagreed with the caller and said that it was a matter of “Chuck and Cheese” or apples to oranges. It is apples to oranges when you compare the magnitude of influence but when it comes to personality traits and behavioral pattern it is just a matter of large oranges to Cuties/Halos(small oranges). Nevertheless both are oranges –sweet, acidic. Skerrit(Putout)/Putin - Corrupt, avaricious and Power Hungry.

Like Putin ,Skerrit’s  mantra is that there could be no power without wealth. It is through wealth that they control all facets of the political system. They are able through wealth to control state owned media and even subjugate privately owned media enterprises. Through wealth they are able to feign democracy under sham elections

In their 20 years of power both men have employed social policies to strengthen their popularity and while their citizens fall for these smoke and mirror policies , the real consequences are seen by  evidence of  economic regression, a severely underperforming economy, where healthcare, education and many other social services are abysmal.

The stagnated Russian economy is a direct result of Putin and his associates’ control of state-owned business ventures such as energy company Rosneft, and the giant gas company Gazprom. Putin serves as the de-facto CEO of these state-owned companies and it is Putin and his inner circle of oligarchs that control the wealth generated from exploration, extraction, production, refining , the sale and distribution of Russia’s natural resources , specifically petroleum, natural gas products. In Dominica 90% of state revenue , is controlled by Skerrit and his passport oligarchs-foreign and domestic. They keep 90 percent for themselves and the remaining 10 percent is used to sow division among the citizenry

Both men claim to preside over a democracy but reserve the right to decide how democracy is carried out by manipulating elections, persecuting and prosecuting opposition politicians and installing fear among the citizenry. Putin altered the Russian constitution to remain in power for as long as he chooses, Skerrit have already declared that “no Law no constitution can prevent him from doing whatever he wants too.” We are just awaiting the day he unilaterally alters the constitution to render himself as executive president for as long as he wants too.

 President Putin’s official salary is a meager $140,000 compared to his dazzling wealth. Certainly, his salary cannot account for the mega yachts, aircrafts, luxury watch collection, hidden offshore accounts , shell companies, his various mansions, plus his 1 billion dollar palace on Black Sea coast near Gelendzhik, Russia. We will see later how Putin was able to acquire this 1 billion dollar mansion. Some Swedish economists have estimated Putin’s net worth to be near $160 Billion.

When Matt told the caller that there was no comparison between Putin and "Putout" he missed the opportunity to tap into that famous article by Matt Peltier himself -an article titled “Million Dollar Assets , $5000 Salary. “ Matt wrote this article when as a journalist he found out that just two years after becoming prime minister ,Skerrit had corruptly amass millions of dollars in assets. In this  “Million Dollar Assets , $5000 Salary “ article there were two parallels between Putin and Put Out. The brazen Kleptacracy and the gag order that Matt Peltier himself have had to endure after publicly speaking out about the Skerrit's overnight wealth. Putin flaunts his affluent lifestyle and  is notorious for silencing his critics be it through incarceration and often enough through assassination.

There is an old Chinese cliché that says” if you take a ride on a hungry tiger you will never be able to dismount that tiger willingly.” Matt’s article was clearly not enough to stop a man so avaricious and power hungry. Shameless apologists and supporters urged him on and so the kleptoracy went into higher gear. Incontrovertible evidence show that he committed the garbage Bin bobol, Fertilizer bobol, and sold diplomatic passports to several crooks even way before the NG Lap Seng ,Francesco, Corallo, Madeuke or Alireza Monfared diplomatic passport scandals became public. With the likes of Putin and Skerrit- enough is never enough but there is only one way it can end - The tiger will eventually have that meal.

Like Putin ,Skerrit’s meager salary cannot account for the mansions that he owns but also take note of the striking similarity with the deceptive procurement of  Skerrit’s mansion in Morne Daniel and Putin’s mansion in Gelendzhik, Russia. The construction and ownership of Putin’s mansion was fronted and covered by his friend who happens to have unlimited access and use of state gas and petroleum resources. The construction and  ownership arrangement of Skerrit’s $25 Million mansion in Morne Daniel is fronted and covered by Skerrit’s friend in Dubai, Anthony Haiden. Anthony Haden has unfettered control of state resources in the form of CBI passport revenues. In fact PM Skerrit has admitted that he and Anthony Haiden have exclusive control of CBI passport revenues in offshore holding arrangements.  

Top Corner -New Const.