You can either put him as non-accompanying now, and sponsor him later or not at all, or put him as accompanying now, and not use the visa, in which case you make it harder for him to be sponsored later on if you change your mind.
At 17, lots of young people get hard of hearing. They think they know all there is to know about life, and what they want, and they are not willing to listen to anyone. Has anyone sat down and discussed with him what it will mean if he does not go with his father? What arrangements will be made for his care? Many parents leave children in the hands of relatives when they emigrate, and regret the decision. On the other hand, many parents take their children abroad only to find that they fall in with the wrong crowd, or become disruptive to the family peace and cause issues inside the home. He is 17, maybe he should be treated like the man he feels he is, and given options with relevant consequences and told to make a decision.
His options should be clearly explained to him, and some of those options might include emphasizing the fact that he is of an age where he can strike out on his own. If he comes to Canada, it should be with the idea of pursuing meaningful paths, not coming to Canada just to say he is in "farrin". He should be presented with options for work or school as being the only routes by which he will be a meaningful member of the family in Canada. Otherwise, he should be presented with options for the same thing in Jamaica: school, or work. Other than these, if he feels to go out and do whatever he feels like doing and no-one must talk to him, let him go with the understanding that no-one is going to be responsible for him, as he is soon to be a legal adult.
I realize I might sound cold, but too many children nowadays "mad" their parents with their antics because they feel there are no consequences to their actions. I think if a 17-year old won't listen, well, "who cyaan hear haffi feel". Sometimes the only way to smarten them up is to present them with some cold hard facts, some cold hard choices, and then they can take it from there. A little dose of reality never hurt anyone.
