Honduras ex-president Juan Orlando Hernandez, affectionately known as JOH, is currently in jail facing the consequences for his acts. He stands accused and has been found guilty of smuggling cocaine into the United States and trafficking weapons.
This is undeniably one of the darkest chapters in Honduran history.
Juan Orlando, a product of Honduras, is perhaps the most cunning and intellectually astute figure our nation has ever produced.
“I contributed $2 million to JOH’s political campaign,” confessed a member of the Sinaloa Cartel once led by the infamous El Chapo Guzman.
El Chapo epitomizes the ruthless nature of drug trafficking.
But what happens when a drug trafficker ascends to the presidency?
What becomes of a nation when its leader is utterly loyal to a cartel?
Unfortunately, that’s what my ex-president did. Now, in Hondurans, we bear the consequences of its repercussions.
Every day in Honduras is full of crime because we no longer rule the country.
Drug lords dictate our fate, and sadly, our so-called “leaders” are entirely responsible for it.
I wonder what the necessity was. Isn’t it enough for you to steal the state’s money? Wasn’t it enough when you left the people dying of COVID? Wasn’t it enough when you stole the elections and made us undergo a dictatorship?
Isn’t it enough that your people are killed daily because of the evil you brought to our country?
Isn’t it enough that we must undergo an embarrassment such as having our ex-president facing such charges?
Honduras was scarcely mentioned in international media, but now we are labeled as a narco-state, known as the country that had a ruthless drug lord as president.
What a shame.
What a shame, Mr. President.
My heart aches for my fellow Hondurans and my beloved country.
It pains me deeply that Honduras is only known for its darker aspects.
It pains me that our identity is now synonymous with cocaine.
Honduras is beautiful, boasting the second-greatest coral reefs in the world, but I bet you didn’t know that.
Most people couldn’t pinpoint Honduras on a map.
I feel the anger of everyone. Why must we, one of the poorest countries in the world, have to undergo such atrocities?
May justice be with us. If Juan Orlando is, in fact, guilty of all the charges that he was accused of, may he spend the rest of his days in jail.
May this be a lesson for people whose greed goes beyond a love for their country. May this be a lesson that scares the politicians who are entangled with the narco.
May this be a lesson, I implore.
I don’t want my country hurting anymore because of greedy.
Don’t you realize our agony? Each passing day exacerbates our anguish.
We have a leadership crisis, not only in Honduras but around the world.
We don’t know who to trust; sadly, we don’t even trust our government.
As I finish my thoughts and express my anger, I realize how ashamed I feel. How sad I feel.
My mother, who always says we should talk good about our country, resonates deeply with me. I like to speak good about my country
And I’m very proud of where I come from.
These people don’t define my people. It’s a disease that spreads with politics, power, and money.
But I’m sure many Hondurans love our country and yearn we will be in better hands one day.
That one day, there will be a leader who will protect and fight for us.
I hope that one day, we see that difference in Honduras.
Sitting in my house in the capital, Tegucigalpa, Honduras, I know what is happening here and offer my condolences.
May the odds be in our favor, and may you, Mr. President, pay for what you have brought upon us.
Even though times have never been more challenging at home, I have faith in us and our country. Yes, we are going through difficult times, but we are warriors.
One day, Juan Orlando’s story will be over. He will only be a memory, a certainly ugly one.
But we will overcome it.
In Honduras, we’ve faced challenging years, yet time and again, we’ve united and risen resiliently.
