Desks pounded as Minister Robinson Adds to Argument over process

By Dana Malcolm

Staff Writer 

#TurksandCaicos, February 7, 2023 – As reactions surrounding the PRC holder-led lawsuit against the Immigration Department over non-approval of TCI status applications continue to pour in, Jamell Robinson, Minister of Physical Planning and Infrastructure Development seemed to address the issue in the House of Assembly in January.

Without mentioning the scuffle which former Chief Minister Oswald Skippings has already responded to directly, Robinson, while debating the New Agricultural Regulations Bill said:

“Given the recent headlines in the public domain– I’ll take the opportunity to make some parallels about bills in the past as well as this bill.

“Now as with everything, there is an application process, like I would have said in this house of the assembly when I was sitting across there [in the opposition] an application does not guarantee an outcome… We were talking about amendments to the TCI Status bill back then. So when you see certain headlines about an outcome being challenged when you were allowed to apply it is in my mind– they call that frivolous and vexatious.”

Using the farming bill, which also allows applications as an example, the minister described the processes as straightforward, maintaining that if the benchmark was not met then an application simply could not be approved.

“If you don’t meet the criteria of those assigned to oversee the process and make a determination on your behalf dog eat your rice,” he said, garnering a round of soft laughter from the other members of the House before continuing “so as it is with the farmers this bill so as it is with every other process that is open and transparent and easy to follow. I support this bill and I support all the other institutions to accept applications and register an outcome” he ended to a resounding pounding of desks.