Turks and Caicos, July 18, 2025 – It seems like ages ago now, but not so long ago, the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) looked to the British with hope. And, unlike his predecessors, former Governor Gordon Wetherell justified that hope. He showed the political courage and moral fortitude to trigger the suspension of the TCI Constitution — ending the “political amorality and immaturity and general administrative incompetence” that prevailed under the local rule of Premier Michael Misick.

Wetherell appointed the 2009 Commission of Inquiry, which laid bare the “endemic corruption” of Misick and his cronies. This led to their removal from power and set in motion the investigations that ultimately resulted in their arrests. TCIslanders hoped that, with both constitutional authority and moral duty, Wetherell’s successors would hold these crooks to account. Alas, things fell apart.

Simply put, successive governors stood by as the so-called SIPT trials dragged on for more than a decade, costing TCI taxpayers a mercantile $100 million and counting. Frankly, this legal process has proven as dilatory, incompetent, and feckless as the Commission of Inquiry was swift, competent, and damning. It’s as if we’re living the postcolonial follies and venal administrative hijinks V.S. Naipaul skewered in A Bend in the River.

If anyone had told long-suffering TCIslanders at the outset that:

• The British would take more than a decade — and tens of millions of our money — to prosecute Misick and his cronies;
• Most defendants would get off with suspended sentences and court-ordered restitution amounting to only a laughable fraction of what they stole;

We would have said: Don’t bother, man. Spare us the farce, and the bill.

Frankly, justice has not merely been delayed; it has been “drastically” discounted, both literally and figuratively. Of course, Misick and his cronies did what any shameless defendants would: they weaponized every procedural trick, orchestrating endless delays while expert British judges and prosecutors indulged their charade — probably too busy tallying billable hours to notice the sabotage.

We were bewildered and dismayed in equal measure as we watched all defendants make a mockery of the judicial process. I mean, it was like watching a matador tease a blind bull. Yet that paled in comparison with our bewilderment and dismay when Floyd Hall and Clayton Greene were sentenced in October 2023. The TCI’s own Chief Justice declared she was handing down “drastically reduced” sentences because of Hall’s poor health and “significant delays in prosecution.” Their mockery — and the willingness of TCI judges to indulge it — seemed completely lost on her.

Meanwhile, chief crook Misick’s trial concluded recently. Yet, insultingly, the judge is delaying his verdict until October — a timeline that would be untenable in any functioning democracy. Even juries in America routinely hear cases that are far more complex and have no difficulty rendering verdicts within days.

No doubt, everyone expects a guilty verdict. More to the point, after the limp slaps on the wrist for Hall and Greene, everyone expects Misick to get a suspended sentence. After all, with all due respect to the medical profession, why wouldn’t Misick ape Trump by having his doctor declare that (like Hall) he too is in such “poor health” it would be inhumane to make him serve a single day in prison? What’s more, he’ll probably be required to forfeit only a fraction of the hundreds of millions he bragged about looting while premier.

Then, to top it off, everyone expects his automatic appeal to drag out until at least the winter of 2026. Like I said, a complete farce.

Incidentally, former minister Lillian Boyce stands as the moral center of this legal farce. Because she was the only crony with the conscience and integrity to plead guilty, thereby sparing TCIslanders the expense and national embarrassment of a criminal trial.

Boyce’s plea made her a witness for the prosecution whose testimony guaranteed guilty verdicts for any other crony foolish enough to risk trial. Even so, it took five years after the SIPT trials began in December 2015, and 12 years after the Commission of Inquiry’s indictments, for the prosecutors to strike this plea bargain.

That said, it’s arguable that the legions of expatriate judges, “special” prosecutors, and defense lawyers all had vested interests in dragging out these trials. After all, the judges and prosecutors collected exorbitant salaries, while the defense lawyers pocketed hefty legal fees.

Sure, defense lawyers usually rake in the big bucks in criminal cases. But special prosecutor Andrew Mitchell is giving them a run for their money. After all, reports are that he’s still billing the TCI government over £3,000 per day — plus luxury living and travel expenses. No British lawyer ever benefited so handsomely from any criminal case. And this, while the local government struggles to deliver basic public services.

This isn’t just a legal boondoggle; it’s a cynical transfer of wealth from one set of opportunists (our crooked politicians) to another (British hired guns). “Attorneys and investigators in the case are becoming extremely wealthy off the backs of the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands.”

But the supreme miscarriage of justice is how the British left long-suffering TCIslanders holding the bag for this costly farce. You’d never know it, but the British retained responsibility for good governance through the appointed governor.                                                                                                                                                      The point is that their man in Turks and Caicos presided over many of the corrupt practices at issue during these trials. Indeed, that’s why Misick’s infamous defense — that the governor signed off on everything — was more than self-serving; it was an indictment of the constitutional colonialism the British lording over “Overseas Territories” represents.

Thus, the British compounded their failure to deliver justice in these SIPT trials by forcing TCI taxpayers to bear the costs. And this, despite a formal submission to the British government making clear that responsibility for funding these prosecutions belongs to the UK, not the TCI.

That submission echoed arguments I made years earlier: the UK’s own failures of oversight, governance, and administrative responsibility made these prosecutions necessary in the first place. In effect, we’re being robbed twice — first, by Misick and his cronies treating our treasury like their slush fund, and then by the British forcing us to foot the bill for prosecutions designed to fail.

This harkens back to the most insidious form of colonial grift — injustice for us, profits for them. A farce so perverse, even Naipaul would have struggled to satirize it.

Anthony Hall

Ed Forbes

The Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) are at a turning point. Violent crime has taken its roots; illegal immigration is challenging our borders, and our population is growing faster than ever. In this new reality, we need new tools, and one of the most effective could be the creation of a national fingerprint database.

Yes, it’s controversial. But it’s also necessary in order to stay ahead of the curve.

In many countries, fingerprinting is already part of issuing national ID cards, driver’s licenses, and even voter registration. Why? Because biometric databases prevent identity fraud, support public safety, and help governments deliver services more efficiently.

For TCI, the stakes are high. Our law enforcement officers work hard, but without modern tools, they’re fighting an uphill battle. A centralized fingerprint database would allow police to quickly identify suspects, link individuals to crime scenes, and track repeat offenders across islands or aliases.

Currently, investigations are often slowed or stalled, primarily by a lack of reliable identity verification or witnesses reluctant to come forward. That needs to change.

The Immigration Factor

Illegal immigration is another pressing issue. Without proper identity checks, it’s difficult to know who is in the country, what their background is, or whether they pose a threat. A fingerprint database would give authorities a reliable way to verify individuals, even when traditional documents are missing or forged.

This isn’t about targeting any specific group, it’s about fairness and accountability for everyone. We can’t effectively govern or protect our people if we can’t even confirm who they are.

Privacy vs. Public Safety

Some will argue that fingerprinting citizens is an invasion of privacy. But let’s be real, you cannot have total security without giving up some level of privacy. What matters is how the system is designed and protected.

Other countries have shown that it’s possible to maintain strong privacy safeguards. Clear legislation, limited access to data, and independent oversight are key. TCI can and should do the same.

A fingerprint database must not be abused, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be built. In fact, doing nothing is riskier, especially as crime becomes more organized and more violent.

Broader Benefits

Fingerprinting isn’t just for fighting crime. It can help prevent voter fraud, stop people from collecting multiple benefits, and improve how government services are delivered. In emergencies, it can even help identify victims or locate missing persons more quickly.

This system would also support national development. As we attract more investors and visitors, public safety will remain a top concern. A biometric database shows we are serious about stability and order.

What Needs to Happen

We must move beyond only collecting fingerprints when an arrest is made or when applying for a police record. Creating a fingerprint system will require the following:

• Laws authorizing biometric collection for ID cards, licenses, and immigration
• A secure, centralized database linked to law enforcement
•  Public education campaigns to build trust
•  Partnerships for technical and financial support

This won’t happen overnight. But it must happen, because the alternative is falling further behind while crime continues to escalate.

Conclusion

The time for debate is over. We must act now to protect our communities, strengthen our borders, and modernize our systems.

A fingerprint database won’t solve every problem, but it could be a powerful step forward in making TCI safer, stronger, and more secure.

Ed Forbes

Turks and Caicos, June 20, 2025 – When the winds of uncertainty blow, will the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) stand firm, or will we retreat into passivity? As we explore the question of independence, we must confront not just the external hurdles—but our internal fortitude.

True independence is not a ceremonial act. It is a national awakening. It requires leadership with vision, citizens with courage, and a culture that values collective responsibility over comfort.

As Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley once declared, “True leadership is never about comfort. It is about calling, it is about timing, and it is about service.”

Leadership, however, cannot exist in a vacuum. The question is not whether someone will lead—but whether we, the people, are prepared to follow, support, and sacrifice alongside them.

It is easy to speak of sovereignty, but sovereignty without self-determination is merely symbolic. For independence to have meaning, we must first cultivate a society that takes responsibility for charting its own course. That process begins with honest reflection.

The reality is that the United Kingdom, through its appointed governors, serves its own strategic interests, not ours. They are not inherently malevolent, but they are not accountable to the people of TCI. That should not be a controversial observation, but a catalyst for rethinking our future.

Paradoxically, we are among the most educated populations in the Caribbean, yet our civic engagement particularly in politics, remains shallow.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Why is that? Is it fear? Apathy? Or have we grown too comfortable in the margins, preferring silence to confrontation?                                                                                                                                                                  Over the next five years, TCI will undergo a political reckoning. The 2029 election will not simply be a contest between the PNP and PDM. It will be shaped by tone, by national identity, and by a growing divide between rhetoric and results.

We must prepare the next generation not only to vote, but to lead. We need young people to believe that politics is not dirty, but necessary and that public service can still be honorable.

The foundation of any stable society is its ability to care for the most vulnerable. Yet poverty, both visible and hidden, persists in TCI.

It is a major contributor to both violent and white-collar crime. If we are to build a nation worthy of independence, we must address inequality head-on, investing in the sectors that sustain life like; agriculture, fishing, housing, trade schools and public infrastructure.

We must also reform how we engage foreign investors. Do we need more resorts and villas or smarter partnerships that empower our people and preserve our environment?

Key reforms include modernizing public services, establishing a digital identity system, fixing our immigration crisis, and ensuring everyone has a legal address for emergency services. These steps aren’t just administrative, they’re essential for sovereignty. It’s the only way to address our acute demographic challenges.

Premier Hon. Washington Misick has an opportunity to redefine his legacy. With renewed leadership and the political runway to make bold changes, the question is no longer about capacity, but will.

In the words of Goethe: “Property lost, something lost. Honour lost, much lost. Courage lost, everything lost.” We must not wait for leaders to demonstrate courage; they must be inspired by our collective will.

The path to independence is not paved with slogans, it is walked by a people determined to stand tall.

We must begin to chart our own course and create benchmarks. If not, I’m afraid the premises on which we have based our governance, policies and security on, will continue to be challenged, eroded or simply gone.

The million-dollar question is, do we have the mental toughness to do it? The answer lies not in our leaders, but in ourselves.