ALL POLITICS IS LOCAL

cialis buy sildenafil times;”>This phrase was made popular by the late Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, buy cialis purchase Thomas “Tip” O’Neil, Jr. (1912-1994) he was the hard, rough and tumble Congressman from Massachusetts.  In 2012, this powerful lesson was demonstrated to former FNM cabinet Ministers, the Honorable Tommy Turnquest, Honorable Carl Bethel, and Honorable Dion Foulkes.  These three former Ministers were born into political families.  They all forgot this cardinal principle of politics that all politics is local, and today they are all on the outside looking in. 

 Today I hope to remind the PLP MP’S and Senators from Grand Bahama of this very thing.   The island of Grand Bahama requires your full attention.  Unemployment and youth unemployment remains at unacceptable levels.  Capital projects have seemingly stalled and anyone paying attention to the budget debate will hear the same projects being announced year after year while a hopeless opposition says nothing.  These are the projects:  new school for west Grand Bahama, fishing hole road cause way, the Smith’s Point seawall, and the continued upgrade to the Rand Memorial hospital, all unrealized.  Electricity costs are a deterrent to economic growth, and finally, the question of the Hawksbill Creek Agreement concessions.  You have to ask the question, will they fall away, or, will they further be extended; a timely decision is required up or down.  What is in the agreement to benefit the local population?  It just seems that this is not a high priority for this government. 

The patience of the Grand Bahama residents has worn thin to the point where they have stopped talking.  To any politician this is never a good signal.  In just fifteen (15) months what will you as leader say to the people who for a short time will become the captains of your fate?  That is, I should have, I could have, I did not know.  It will seem that the PLP has surrendered the second city to the opposition.  It is tommy-rot to form a government and not have an MP presence in the second city.  The PLP government is playing with fire and underestimating the ability of the leader of the opposition Dr. Hubert Minnis and his deputy Peter Turnquest to galvanize his party into a cohesive fighting machine.  There is credible evidence that Dr. Minnis will roll out his first group of candidates in late December; his second grouping in January; and the final slate in March 2016.  Once that happens the train would have left the station.  The Christie administration will have to fight all of 2016 to finish its political agenda. 

The island of Grand Bahama can be viewed as a relief valve that can relieve the pressure of the densely populated city Nassau.  Imagine moving 1500 families to Grand Bahama.  The answer to the myriad of problems that confront us lies within Grand Bahama, yet we foolishly ignore our second city. 

Brian Seymour