It took a victim of financial crime at the status of Usain Bolt to finally shake things up within the financial market. All eyes are on the current Minister of Finance Dr. Nigel Clarke as it is obvious this cannot be swept under the rug like all the other “lesser” which has plagued the island.
Laws that would’ve been debated in front of ministers and would typically be drawn out for years without a viable decision are now being drawn up in ours and will be within the framework of the jurisdiction most likely this year.
I have to commend Mr. Clarke for his decisiveness, but it took a moment like this for the Financial Minister to act. He should’ve smelled the filth brewing up in the financial sector from a mile away, years ago as well. The fact that he spoke about the perpetrators of all the major financial crimes of the last 30 years not being brought to justice, shows us that he indeed knows what he is talking about.
It’s easy to start digging up the past in times of crisis and connecting the dots but why didn’t he and others never make the requisite changes before? We need to stop waiting on moments of an anomaly to make the big change.
The financial industry has been for the most part unregulated for a long time. Institutions that have been given the power to oversee the market and ensure that firms are complying with the rules and regulations of the land have failed us.
It’s a shame that it took a man of Usain Bolt’s status for them to get up from their coffers and make a change. It’s utterly pathetic and it’s not a good look for Jamaica internationally right now which wants to attract foreign investors.
As a country that relies heavily on foreign investment, we should’ve had better oversight of what has been going on in the financial industry.
I am hoping that this moment is not just for show and actual laws and regulations are put in place. Let’s hope for a better Jamaica.
