Antigua & Barbuda citizens are expressing their disgust with the Gaston Browne Administration after an advertisement by a CIP passport agent went into local circulation yesterday.
Many persons describe the ad as “vulgar,” with one resident likening the sales pitch to “somebody selling bread and cheese.”
In the video, the agent asks: “Do you wanna buy a passport? I’m sure you think this is illegal but selling passports is my job. … This is where I live. My country sells citizenship and I am a citizenship agent. … And the best part is…. it’s legal!”
United Progressive Party Political Leader Harold Lovell is the person who piloted the Citizenship by Investment Bill through Parliament when he served as Minister of Finance.
“The CIP programme is controversial,” he admits. “There are several positives, but one of the negatives is highlighted in this ad. It is vulgar [and] significantly damages our national brand.”
He explains the genesis of the CIP program in Antigua & Barbuda, stating that it was designed along the lines of the St. Kitts initiative, and was intended to generate economic activity by persons whose citizenship is tied to investment ventures.
He cites the development at Nonsuch Bay as a successful example, saying it provides both employment for the people and revenues for the Government.
Lovell is highly critical of the tone of the ad and says it should be pulled down immediately; further, he believes the agent should be investigated to determine whether he is in breach of Section 11 of the _CIP Act._
If he was acting outside the ambit of the Citizenship by Investment Unit, Lovell says, the passport agent should face criminal charges. And if he was, indeed, acting under the Unit’s authority, then the agency, itself, should be held accountable for what he sees as a “very, very serious error” in judgment.
The United States, Canada, Singapore and other countries have programmes to fast-track permanent residency and citizenship, Lovell notes. And they market their programmes with the utmost care, being conscious of their image and how other people view their country. —A REAL News Report
One response to “Local agent provokes disgust with video marketing the ‘selling of passports;’ Lovell says advert damages national brand”
Lovell you are a damm hypo!!! How dare you talk about selling passports? You were the Finance Minister when the government you were apart of decided to sell away, sell away like there was no tomorrow, our valued passport. Now you wanna come here spew filt on the public’s radio and social media? BOSS move yo r*sss-ole!!!