US Ambassador to Jamaica, Donald Tapia Apologizes for Inappropriate Tweets

The United States' Ambassador to Jamaica, Donald Tapia has apologized for the inappropriate tweets made from his official Twitter handled directed to several Jamaicans.

The controversial tweets, made on Wednesday, prompted a phone call between the US Ambassador, Donald Tapia, and Jamaica’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Kamina Johnson Smith.

In a post on Twitter, Minister Johnson Smith said Mr Tapia was aware the engagement was inappropriate for a diplomatic representative and has assured her there would not be a recurrence.

Ambassador Tapia on Thursday went on a local news program where he apologized for the incident and gave an explanation of what happened.

"To the people that were involved on Twitter, I have to apologize to them very deeply. That is not the way that I react. I've always said that I am a here as your guest and guests don't talk or act in that manner," he said.

Tapia said that his device was not hacked and that the tweets were not authored by him, but one of his assistants. He, however, took full responsibility for the incident.

The assistant responsible for the tweets was not fired but instead ordered to leave Jamaica and return to the United States sooner than planned.

The tweets, which were deleted on Wednesday, were responses to criticism regarding Tapia's statements about Jamaica using a Chinese firm to build out a 5G network.

One diplomat from the Chinese Embassy on the island, Mr. Xia Shaowu, condemned the tweets, saying they were shameful and unacceptable. Mr Xia said that if he had done anything half as bad as that, his headquarters or capital would have him on a flight the next day.