by Howard Campbell
SOUTH FLORIDA – Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness is calling for increased collaboration between the Jamaican government and the South Florida Diaspora.
According to Holness, with a 120-minute flight separating Jamaica from South Florida, Jamaicans here should be more engaged by Jamaica’s ministers and agencies.
“We should be an extension of Jamaica, we ought to be Kingston 21. There are a lot of Jamaicans here who can help with technical assistance, philanthropy, business investments and other developmental investments to help Jamaica develop,” Holness said.
The veteran South Florida administrator made the observations less than one week after Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness visited Fort Lauderdale and addressed the Jamaican-American Bar Association.
It was the first official visit by a Jamaican PM to the region in over 10 years.
The Prime Minister spoke about improving relations with the Diaspora, saying he hoped its involvement would go beyond remittances, which ranks second only to tourism as Jamaica’s highest earner of foreign exchange.
Holness was particularly struck by the Prime Minister’s support of Jamaicans abroad running for public office back home. He believes the Jamaican government should go even further in this area, with six seats in Jamaica’s Parliament occupied by Diaspora representatives.
Three of these seats would be held by persons from the United States, which is home to the largest number of Jamaican immigrants. There would be one seat each for a member from Canada, the United Kingdom and the Caribbean and Latin America.
“When you tie your Diaspora to your economy, they ought to have a say in policy making. I am more likely to stay connected because I will have more say in the direction of the country,” Holness stated.
The matter of an overseas presence in the Jamaican House has been subject of debate for some time. While such a move has strong support in the US, UK and Canada, legislators in Jamaica are largely on the fence.
Several Jamaican Members of Parliament have had to renounce their allegiance to the United States to run for office.
Holness is in a strong position to lobby for representation. His constituency, which includes the communities of Lauderhill, Lauderdale Lakes, Plantation and Tamarac, has over 200,000 of the 300,000 Jamaicans who live in South Florida.
He has been involved in Jamaica Diaspora conferences and events since the organization was formed over 15 years ago.
