The Antiguan Customs department may not have one honest Customs Agent! Bribery is rampant and has been for many years. And sadly, everyone knows it! Putting $100 xcd in a pile of documents before handing them to the agent works well for some Syrian businessmen in St. Johns according to one eye witness.

Last I heard Mr. Brown was in charge of Customs. He like many other Antiguan men who reached positions of power, likes to make special arrangements for women who he takes a fancy to. He promises them personal help in getting their refund due from the government for Customs overcharges. My understanding is you never get one dime returned, and Mr. Brown may have ulterior (or maybe its posterior) motives.

The system at deep water harbor is so chaotic and dysfunctional, it is often impossible to get shorted items without paying for the entire manifest twice. Business owners go through a maze of bureaucracy to get a shipment in, and are subject to abuse of power by the officers who work there. An honest business person may find it impossible to continue to do business without capitulating to the corrupt culture at the harbor!

Not only do Antiguans pay a premium for imported goods because of the “extra”duty going in corrupt officers pockets, they pay increased prices because an officer can set item value on a whim.

One such case involved the importation of “close out” cell phone cases with a wholesale cost of 50 cents U.S.. Those cases went to the public the first time around for $5 ec. This covered import duties and shipping costs and provided a small profit. The next shipment of cases arrived and the customs officer refused to allow them to be valued at the documented cost! His explanation was, “that is too cheap”. After the merchant paid the “new” duty based now on a wholesale cost of $2 U.S. (the value set arbitrarily by the officer), and all his costs, he ended up scraping the cases at a loss. Antiguans are denied the benefit of bargains because their own Customs Agency has a history of inflating prices at will!

The routine of Customs corruption is known by most all Antiguans. Yet nothing is done, nor has been done, to eliminate it. Although a simple undercover operation carried out by Scotland Yard, or an outside agency available for exactly this type of law enforcement work, could easily provide many names of corrupt officers, it does not happen! I challenge someone in power to do undercover “sting” at the deep water harbor! If five or more Officers are not found to be taking bribes I will make a full apology to the entire department!

And what about the Ministry Customs falls under? Widespread corruption continues and the Ministry does nothing! Why?

One answer may be the same as the answer to the question about prosecution in the case of the Medical Benefits Scheme. I am not aware one person going to jail after a massive scandel involving many well know Antiguans. Hundreds of thousands of government dollars were misused, misdirected, and simply stolen from the Medical Scheme! It took the action of an honest American doctor to put light on that case and the corrupt locals in charge!

Antiguans seem to be big on complaining about the other guy who was in power, but when it comes to action, and prosecution, apparently they fear what goes around comes around. No one goes to jail! No one is indicted! The practice of using one’s power for personal aggrandizement. or plain illicit gain, is just accepted by the people of this nation! Acceptance seems to be the answer!

It is near impossible to operate a legitimate business in Antigua, if it depends on importing goods for resale through the harbor bureaucracy and corrupt officers. How can a legitimate retailer compete with those who have learned to make pay offs to get their goods through? In addition, legitimate retailers report massive losses of the goods stored at the harbor waiting for customs clearance! Boxes and their contents just disappear.

This story will come as no surprise to most Antiguan residents. That is the real shame of it all. It is like an elephant in the room and no one is talking about it. It’s time to put some light on Antiguan Customs officers, their respective leaders, and the elected Ministers in charge!

“The Truth Shall Set You Free”

Mokenman