Reparations or Rwanda?
When in doubt, review the documents.
By August 26, 2008, Shelley Moorhead was one week into his peaceful hunger strike on the steps of Government House on St. Croix. He was protesting the fact that his organization, the African-Caribbean Reparations and Resettlement Alliance (ACRRA), had not received $35,000 that had been appropriated to the group for their activities at that time.
On that date, Governor John P. deJongh, Jr., issued a letter to Moorhead and, after expressing concern about Moorhead’s “health and well-being,” went on to explain that while the funds for ACRRA had been appropriated that they would not be released because of the “difficult financial circumstances” the Territory found itself in during that time.
He went on to recommend that Moorhead raise his own funds, and used as an example, a recent trip his wife, Cecile, had taken with eleven students to Rwanda. “They did not request or utilize government monies, but rather fundraised to achieve their goals,” deJongh wrote. (Page two, letter attached)
Documents have since been released that directly contradict the Governor’s assertion that public funds were not used for these and subsequent activities related to the Rwanda initiative and show that funds have been distributed from the Virgin Islands Lottery, apparently without Lottery board approval, well in excess of $140,000.
The “Rwanda Project” document attached below shows requests to and disbursements from the VI Lottery dating back to March, 2008, relative to this initiative as well as requisitions and cancelled checks showing when and to whom payments were made. Specifically requestors were Barbara Young, on behalf of both the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands and in her capacity as the Teacher Club Advisor of the World Religion Club at Eudora Kean High School; Cecile deJongh, on behalf of the Children and Family Council, Leadership in Action Program, (Page 5), requesting a monthly contribution of $10,000 for ten months; and a request from Shaun Pennington, St. Croix Source, on behalf of the Rwanda Project, USVI (page 25.)
Young, deJongh and Pennington are also listed on the Pennington letter as president, vice president and secretary respectively of the Rwanda Project, USVI.
All this had occurred before Moorhead sent a letter in September, 2009, to the Governor still trying to receive the now $62,000 appropriated to ACRRA – funds he has not yet received.
Is this an appropriate (or legal) use of Lottery funds? Was their disbursement correctly authorized? In this environment of fiscal confinement, is this a responsible use of public funds? Can duly authorized Legislative appropriations be summarily withheld in favor of other “projects”?
Draw your own conclusions.
When in doubt, review the documents.
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I am watching the rebroadcast of Cecile DeJongh with Anne Golden on Ch 6. IF one were to replace the word “Rwanda” with the words “Virgin Islands”, one would not know that there was an ocean that separates the two. SHAME on Cecile! How can she poise her neglect on tv for the children in the same needs right here in our territory. I do think the children of Rwanda need attention, don’t get me wrong. But, our children right here are growing up and killing each other because they lack the same love and guidance Cecile is so generously offering with our Lottery Fund monies.
The Day time first lady cecil has NO SHAME that why I dont feel sorry for her.
i hear prescod and the delegate aren’t strangers either.
The two of them are in everything, maybe they will also be going to jail together
How did Marion Prescott do busines with the Gov’t without a business license for over a year? Don’t you need to show your license in order for the contracts to be signed?
Another oversight?
As far as I am concerned, Cecile DeJongh is lacking a “Shame Box” or her’s has been permenantly damage.
Question: Have the DeJongh’s ever given us the indication that they care about the welfare of the children of the VI?
They have no use for our public schools. Hence, the fact that their children attend a predominantly white and one of the most expensive private schools in the Caribbean, Antilles School. DeJongh is a board member at this school.
Cecile’s child sex offender billionare boss has also donated heavily to this institution.
They lie about helping the special need children of the Territory. Services for these children, under the DeJongh Adminstration are terribly lacking.
Yes. I do believe in charitable efforts, But how about facilitating those efforts at home? Why not help those children suffering in your own backyard?
Have the DeJongh’s ever heard the phrase, “Charity begins at home”?
Cecile Dejongh chooses to help other children in foreign countries before helping those in her own backyard (VI children). I suppose she’s awaiting recognition from Oprah or Ms. Obama for her “humanitarian efforts”. Little does she realize that both Oprah and Ms. Obama are women of REAL class, integrity and inelligence; giving a helping hand to their surrounding local communities and throughout the world.
I can go on and on, but the bottom line is that Cecile DeJongh is a fraud. Don’t be fooled by the smile and soft spoken voice. She is just as self-serving, greedy and manipulative as her husband.
They never cared about US, they never did…………..
Contact Hannibel Ware about this matter. An IG Report of the First Lady is needed to set the example for the future.
Let’s not lose sight of this foul incident. This is just plain wrong to use Lottery Funds stated for one purpose illegally for another.
The children of Rwanda deserve more help than the children of the Virgin Islands. We do not have starving babies with bulging worm-filled bellies, mother too sick to breast-feed their infants, families without any food to eat, fathers crippled by tribal attacks,and a government that cannot provide for its starving people. What we call poor would be gladly accepted by the people of Rwanda.They have little hope or chances of becoming rich. We can rise to the top, serve as an elected official, or obtain a free education. How many of you could sacrifice living under the U.S. flag to go to Rwanda and assist them to make their future brighter? This is a true test of character. Can you do better than the First Lady?
Cecile is like her husband deWolf. She only cares about her billionaire child sex offender boss, Jeffrey Epstein. Our children don’t seem to matter to her at all. Can’t wait to get rid of both of them.
I care for the children of the Virgin Islands FIRST! and none of us don’t have to sacrifice the U S Flag to live in Rwanda or any place else, what we want is to make the future brighter for our children. If the Day Time First Lady had any character at all she would have stoped them from spending $490,000 on her home, and right now she would have paid the money back, that would be character!
@ Anonymous 10:28am.
Yes, the children and people of Rwanda do deserve and merit humanitarian assistance, but NOT under the pretense of our VI Lottery Monies. The dollars collected from the community by the purchase of lottery tickets is slated to be used in the Virgin Islabds, NOT by any Virgin Islander with “connections”. That is the problem, so were is the cure? We need to hold Cecile DeJongh and all her cronies personally responsible for taking our monies for a use not beneficial to the community.
Can you see the real problem here?
Yes, I do see the problem. Some people call themselves Africans and pretend to care for the less fortunate people living in African countries. They are hypocrites. They are selfish and lack compassion for others. The First Lady should be awarded the Noble Peace Prize for her humanitarian effort.
It’s best you stay “Anonymous”…no sane person would attach their name to such ignorance.
@ Anonymous:
Not on my dollars I used to buy tickets with!
Funny, you seem to think Cecile can buy herself a Peace Prize.
Can’t everyone see what is going on?
Cecile wants to be recognized by two upstanding, excellent women, Ms. Oprah Winfrey and Mrs. Obama. Unfortunately for her (Cecile) she doesn’t realize that these two wonderful women would never associate themselves with the likes of someone like her.
Ms. Oprah and Mrs. Obama wants nothing to do with a theif, liar, self-serving, selfish, weak opportunist. The only Peace Prize Cecile will receive is the one that her conviced child sex offender billionaire boss Jeffrey Epstein buys her.
Good Luck with that one Cecile!
OK, Question:
If Shaun Pennington, or any other person who used VI Lottery Funds to get to Rwanda, purchased land, would that land be considered “ours” because she used our money? Even if she says she bought it with her own money, she was able to do so because the Lottery paid for all her other expenses?
Cecile is the same person this week put a pregnant young lady out of a seat that she told the young lady was hers on the Seaplane, even after being told over and over that there was open seating on the flight, maybe the young lady needed to be from Rwanda for her to care about her.
QUESTION:
Does anyone know of ANYONE who has won a significant amount of money from the lottery?
How is it that we live in such a small community, yet we never hear of anyone winning???
I’d like to know if anyone really wins, or this is just a scam to get people to donate to Rwanda.