Usain Bolt Hits Back at JLP’s Venesha Phillips After SSL Criticism: “Trying to Victim Shame Me”

In an interview with The Fix Podcast, Usain Bolt criticised the government’s inaction after it was revealed that he had been defrauded of US$6.2 million in Stocks & Securities Limited’s (SSL) major fraud scandal.

Following the interview, Jamaica Labour Party member Venesha Phillips questioned if Bolt had received advice from the government when he chose to invest with SSL.

“Did you get advice or directive from Government directly or indirectly regarding making the investment you made and then lost? Was it all privately done? Have you sued the person who managed your affairs?” Phillips asked on Twitter.

Bolt reacted to Phillips’ Twitter/X post on Wednesday, stating that the former People’s National Party councillor is trying to victim-shame him.

“Trying to victim shame me.. don’t be a Syndicate!” Bolt wrote.

In response to Bolt’s statement, Phillips said she was not attempting to victim-shame him. She also highlighted that he had invested a great deal into the investment firm and asked if he had sought advice before making the decision.

One X user suggested that Bolt may have been criticising the government’s regulatory framework for investment firms like SSL, and Phillips said that would be understandable. However, she expressed doubt that that was what the Olympian meant.

“The clip I watched was not giving that. It would be understandable if he raised it in such context. There is an almost complete ignoring of the fact that he made a private investment. I would love for him to recover his money from those who ripped him off though,” Phillips said.

Additionally, Phillips said that the PNP is using Bolt’s plight to push a political narrative while responding to an X user’s comment about showing empathy.