Dominicans are no strangers to disappointment. For over two decades, we have watched Skerrit build a dynasty of dependency, secrecy, and unaccountable spending. But if the United Workers Party believes that Thomson Fontaine is the antidote to Skerritism, they have either run out of ideas or they think we have run out of memory.
Because what Fontaine represents is not hope. It is not leadership. It is not even loyalty to Dominica. What he represents is everything wrong with politics, just wearing a different tie.
A Fugitive Politician Who Forgot His People.
Fontaine’s defenders love to flash his “global experience” like a trophy, boasting about his work in South Sudan. But what they do not say is that while Dominicans were grappling with joblessness, poor healthcare, and political intimidation, their so-called leader was living abroad, dodging court dates tied to violent protests and destruction right here on our soil.
Let us not sugarcoat it, Thomson Fontaine fled. He skipped court after being charged for inciting unrest in 2017 and only returned years later, in handcuffs, arrested at the airport like a wanted man.
- He was not here during the pandemic.
- He was not here during the disasters.
- He was not here for our people.
He only came back when the law dragged him back!
A History Of Halting Progress.
It is also worth reminding the public that past party leader Lennox Linton and Fontaine in May of 2024, in one of the most shameful betrayals of Dominica’s future happened, this is when they stated live on-air that necessary actions WILL BE ( NOT SHOULD BE) taken by the United Workers Party to defame the country and to halt the construction of the international airport.
Let that sink in. The United Workers Party and their leader, Fontaine, are promising to stop the very project that every credible economic study has ever confirmed is critical for any hope of unlocking Dominica’s potential in tourism, trade, and foreign investment. An international airport is not a luxury. Airports bring tourism. Tourism brings jobs, Jobs bring hope, foreign exchange, investment, and opportunity.
And yet, “Dr.” Fontaine, who holds a PhD in economics, is leading the charge to kill the international airport, despite knowing and admitting that the airport is an “economic game-changer.” How can Fontaine, a man trained in economics, oppose the very kind of infrastructure that he and other economists agree could drive our national progress?
This is not economics, it is his ego! It is hypocrisy of the highest order! Fontaine’s agenda has nothing to do with development and everything to do with vengeance. Just like the Dominica Labour Party halting the United Workers Party’s original airport plans decades ago, they now will return the favour and cancel the Dominica Labour Party’s airport, not because it is wrong for Dominica, but to even the score, move the project somewhere else, slap their name on it, and claim victory. And in the meantime, Dominica is set back another 25 years before we see the start of a third international airport.
This is not poor judgment; it is economic hypocrisy. And now Fontaine wants us to believe he’s the man to move us forward?
Driven by Desperation, Not Duty: Fontaine’s South Sudan Escape.
Some still believe Fontaine’s stint in South Sudan adds prestige to his resume, proof of his global competence. But the more realistic and frankly, more damning interpretation is far simpler: Fontaine did not go to South Sudan to serve a cause; he went there because no one else was hiring.
Even one of his countrymen put it bluntly: “It comes across more as desperation on Thompson’s side looking for employment… in this civil war‑ravaged, escalating‑violence to the brink of famine country.” And they are not wrong.
South Sudan is one of the most fragile nations on Earth, ravaged by decades of civil war, economic collapse, ethnic violence, and famine. In 2023–2025 alone, the country witnessed multiple ceasefire violations, mass internal displacement, ongoing armed clashes, and widespread hunger that pushed millions to the brink of starvation. The very transitional government that Fontaine was advising was accused of stalling peace agreements and failing to deliver basic public services.
This was the environment that Fontaine entered as a so-called peace and economic advisor. And what did he accomplish? Absolutely nothing that changed the headlines!
Despite his role as Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategy in the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission in South Sudan, the peace process failed, and violence and instability continued to worsen. Humanitarian crises deepened. Political rivalries remained unresolved. The government stagnated. Fontaine’s name was never mentioned in connection with any meaningful achievement or breakthrough. Not one!
Let us be honest, if he could not influence outcomes in a country where he was being paid, backed by international donors, and sitting in high-level meetings, how is he supposed to fix Dominica, where he does not even show up half the time?
Fontaine’s going to South Sudan was never about “diplomacy” or “public service.” This was about opportunity. About Fontaine finding a place to shelter his political brand and cash a foreign paycheck while his homeland burned with frustration.
And now that the world can see that South Sudan did not get any more stable, any more peaceful, or any more prosperous under Fontaine’s watch, he was fired, and then, and only then, wanted to return to Dominica and sell us the same broken dreams and promises.
Let us call it for what it is: Fontaine did not help fix South Sudan, and he will not fix Dominica either.
The Skerrit-Fontaine Mirror.
Let us compare: Skerrit may be autocratic, secretive, and addicted to showbiz spending, but at least he is here. At least when there is a storm, a flood, a crisis, he is on the ground (even if it is just for the camera). Fontaine? He is in Juba. He is at a conference. He is making speeches to foreigners about peace while his country crumbles at home and his people drown in silence.
Fontaine claims to be better than Skerrit, but look at the record:
Roosevelt Skerrit
- Uses government power to maintain control.
- Overpays foreign artists for festivals.
- Stalls transparency and hides audits.
- Cancalled the Untied Workers Partys plan for an international Airport.
Thomson Fontaine
- Used protests to incite chaos, then vanished.
- Overcommits to foreign governments while ignoring his party.
- Skipped court dates and hid abroad.
- That when elected necessary actions WILL BE taken to defame the country and to halt the construction of the international airport.
Skerrit may be untrustworthy, but Fontaine is unavailable! And in a country where every single day matters for struggling families, absentee leadership is betrayal.
Just Like In South Sudan: Fontaine Hides, He Does Not Lead!
This behaviour is part of a consistent pattern. Just like in South Sudan, where Fontaine took on a high-profile role advising a government drowning in violence and dysfunction, he disappeared when things got hard. South Sudan remains plagued by tribal warfare, economic collapse, and political stagnation. Fontaine was supposed to help fix it. But like in Dominica, he made no measurable impact there, either.
Instead, he sat in boardrooms while our country burned. When the peace process faltered, did he take responsibility? No. Instead, he now wants to return to Dominica to rebrand himself as a political messiah, all while violence in South Sudan continues to spiral out of control.
Just like in Dominica, he hid from accountability, blamed the system, and ran away when real work was needed. In both countries, Fontaine’s behaviour followed the same formula:
- Step into a role of responsibility.
- Say the right words.
- Accomplish nothing.
- Blame the system when it fails.
- Flee.
When Leaders Surrender Democracy Because They Can Not Win.
One of the most dangerous betrayals in modern Dominican politics came not from the ruling party, but from the opposition itself. In the lead-up to the December 2022 snap general election, the United Workers Party, with the full support and approval of Thomson Fontaine, made a deliberate and disgraceful decision: they told Dominicans not to vote!
Not because of hard evidence of widespread election fraud. Not because international observers declared the process illegitimate. But because they knew they would lose.
Rather than standing up and fighting for our people, Fontaine and the United Workers Party quit; they folded. They painted the decision as a principled “boycott,” when in reality it was a political white flag, a surrender disguised as strategy.
Fontaine was not taking a moral stand. He was avoiding defeat. And worse yet, he asked our people of Dominica to give up their most sacred democratic right simply because he had nothing to offer and no hope of winning.
How is that any different from a dictator suppressing votes? Fontaine did not steal ballots; he convinced our people to throw them away!
Fontaine and the United Workers Party did not boycott the election out of principle. They ducked out of the fight because they were not prepared to face the tour people or the ruling party. And when confronted with criticism about abandoning voters? They again hid behind press releases, slogans, and vague accusations of “rigging”, never presenting any evidence, never owning up to their failure.
Straight Out Of Trump’s Playbook, But With Even Less Courage.
It appears that Fontaine and the United Workers Party have taken a page straight out of Donald Trump’s playbook, a playbook soaked in denial, conspiracy, and a dangerous contempt for democracy.
Like Trump, Fontaine and the United Workers Party cried foul before the first vote was even cast. Like Trump, they cast doubt on the electoral process not with evidence, but with excuses and ego. But unlike Trump, who at least had the gall to run. Fontaine and his party did not even bother to show up on election day. They skipped the election and called it a protest.
They told Dominicans that the system is rigged, that voting does not matter, and that it is better to stay home. Sound familiar? It should. It is the same tactic used by political strongmen around the world who, when facing likely defeat, claim the system is corrupt, not because they can prove it, but because they can not bear to lose.
But here is what makes Fontaine’s version worse: he gave up without even trying! Trump, for all his authoritarian and racist nonsense, actually campaigned. Fontaine? He waved the white flag before nominations even closed.
That is not resistance. That is being cowardly dressed up in rhetoric. That is a slap in the face to every Dominican who still believes change is possible through democratic means. Fontaine and the United Workers Party did not take a principled stand. They did not challenge the results. They did not present evidence of systemic fraud. They just quit, and then asked the people to quit with them.
To follow Trump’s lead is bad enough. But to do it without the fight, without the facts, and the backbone? That is not just shameful, it is embarrassing!
A Man With No Plan, No Presence, And No Pressure.
Fontaine’s most consistent talent is making excuses. He has no viable economic blueprint for Dominica. He speaks in vague terms and foreign examples. His media appearances lack passion. His political leadership lacks structure. His public presence is as thin as his record of results.
His recent arrest in April 2025, his second brush with Dominican law, only reinforces what many Dominicans already feel: that this man courts controversy, not credibility. He wants to lead Dominica, but will not even stand still long enough to face its people. And that, for someone who talks about law, order, and reform, he has spent more time in court than in communities.
Dominica Needs More Than A Passport Politician.
It is time to stop worshiping degrees, international contracts, and foreign experience as if they automatically translate to leadership. Fontaine “may” know economics, but knowing something and caring about it are not the same.
The truth is that Dominica needs a new political culture, not recycled figures from failed protests and broken promises. We need leaders with roots here. Leaders who stay. Leaders who fight in the rain, in the street, in the courts, and in Parliament, not just on Zoom or between job contracts in Africa.
Let us end the myth that “Dr.” Thomson Fontaine is the future. He is a relic of a broken past, a man who abandoned our country, only to come back out of desperation for work, in cuffs and contradiction.
If the United Workers Party wants to survive, it must first clean house. And that begins with acknowledging that Fontaine is not a solution to Skerrit; he is just another problem, dressed in a different suit and tie!
Team DRP