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Basseterre, St. Kitts – April 5, 2025 — In a searing commentary that has sent shockwaves across the Federation and the wider Eastern Caribbean, prominent attorney and social commentator Dwyer Astaphan has unleashed a blistering critique of Prime Minister Dr. Terrance Drew’s administration and its legal advisors over their “ill-advised” and “reckless” handling of the MSR Media lawsuit. Astaphan also rang the funeral bell for what he calls the imminent demise of the St. Kitts and Nevis Citizenship by Investment (CBI) Programme.

Astaphan’s commentary, delivered with fiery passion and surgical precision, paints a dire picture of what he describes as years of incompetence, greed, and mismanagement surrounding the Federation’s CBI scheme — an economic pillar now teetering on collapse under global pressure and domestic neglect.

“Greetings, it may be time to take out our funeral clothes in the Eastern Caribbean,” Astaphan declared. “Because the cold hand of death may now be touching the CBI programs of Antigua, Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia, and St. Kitts and Nevis.”

At the heart of his tirade was an explosive revelation: the European Union is on the brink of introducing legislation to revoke visa-free access to its 28-member bloc for holders of economic citizenships — a move that would gut the attractiveness and marketability of regional CBI programs. This, compounded by mounting pressure from the United States, could be the final nail in the coffin for St. Kitts and Nevis’ once-celebrated economic citizenship platform.

Astaphan, a former government minister, accused successive administrations — including those of Dr. Denzil Douglas and Dr. Timothy Harris — of allowing foreign marketing agents and shady developers to bleed billions from the country while ignoring repeated warnings from global powers.

But it was his critique of the current administration that struck the loudest chord.

“Why are we where we are?” Astaphan¹han asked pointedly. “Why is the burden on the Drew government so heavy? Because the money that should’ve lifted this country to the next level has ⁷ùvanished into the pockets of foreign bloodsuckers and their local enablers.”

He tore into the Galaxy Jail Project, calling it the “straw that broke the camel’s back,” and insinuated that many of the profits made may have come through illegal means. Without naming names, he demanded reparations from those who profited and urged them to “finance homes for the poor” in a bid for redemption.

Astaphan didn’t stop there.

He accused the Drew administration’s legal team of gross negligence in the MSR Media lawsuit — a case which, if mishandled, could result in millions in damages against the government and further tarnish the country’s international reputation.

“The Prime Minister and his advisors have failed spectacularly,” Astaphan asserted. “It is a trainwreck of poor legal strategy and political arrogance. And the people of this nation will pay the price.”

While PM Drew and his cabinet have remained tight-lipped in the face of this escalating criticism, sources close to Government Headquarters indicate a flurry of internal meetings and damage control as they brace for backlash — both local and international.

The CBI Programme, once the crown jewel of St. Kitts and Nevis’ economic engine, now stands at a crossroads. And if Astaphan’s stark warning proves accurate, its eulogy may be read far sooner than the government anticipates.

As the veteran commentator quipped grimly:

“Somebody please call Pastor Connor to do the last rites over our CBI.”

The nation now watches with bated breath — and perhaps, funeral clothes at the ready.

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