Compiled, edited and constructed by Russell Dames... Updated every Sunday at 2 p.m.
Volume 7 © BahamasUncensored.com 2009
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
THE ART OF SWEETHEARTING
Tiger, tiger, burning bright
In the forests of the night
What mortal hand or eye
Dare frame they fearful symmetry
-- William Blake
It has been a week of great entertainment provided by the super athlete Tiger Woods. When you look at his history, those of us in the Americas, North America in particular, in the orbit of the United States of America, Tiger Woods has been entertaining us since he was two years old. That was his first appearance on a show called the Mike Douglas Show, the show that long preceded Oprah in the 4 pm time slot. He has provided great entertainment on the golf course, as he progressed from his teenage years, as an amateur golfer and then as an adult. He has made a billion dollars on golf. His face is everywhere you go. He is a hero to young black kids who did not see golf on their horizon. To mixed race kids, he is a god. He speaks to their identity and to their challenges. He expresses his entire heritage.
He has made 90 per cent of his money, the one billion dollars, away from the golf course by a carefully crafted image of wholesomeness, gentility and beauty. He is surrounded by beautiful things, a beautiful wife, beautiful children and a beautiful yacht. He lives behind a gate. He travels on private planes and boats. We never get to see him interact with us in real life because his income puts him out of our reach. What we see of him is a carefully designed image, which keeps the money coming.
It is not hard to be cynical about it. No one is arguing that he is not really all of those things, but let’s face it; wholesome, talented, beautiful and rich he might be, the picture just can’t be as true as the television portrays. In private, we are told he tells good dirty jokes and cusses like a man-of-war sailor. Anyone who argues that the picture is as perfect as it seems is just being silly and is deceiving themselves.
The problem is that once the public image is crafted, even though we all know in our heart of hearts it is not true, we want it to be true and we don’t want to hear about imperfections and being human. We want our kids to have a real live hero after whom they can pattern their behaviour. That too is unreal. The fact is there is a dark side to everyone.
Michael Jordan for example was an excellent basketball player. They are saying that he was the best in the world and has not been surpassed. He is rich. He has everything as well. But Michael Jordan has a bad reputation in The Bahamas for being cheap at the casino. He does not tip which many find real chinchy for a rich guy with such a great TV image. Plus, he is a really big gambler, which some people find morally reprehensible. But he is Michael Jordan.
So we tend then to set up this image, and the player buys into it as well that you can be as perfect as you appear on TV. The fact is that Tiger is 34 years old. He is in at the height of his game, his career, his power, his sexual drive is at the top of its game, and there are women all around. This is a man with money. He can have whatever and whomever he wants. He is like other young men his age, never mind all the stuff that you see on TV. Bill Clinton, the former US president fell into the same issue. He explained in his book that he did it because he could. So you are Tiger, 34 years old and they keep coming at you from every side. The flame at home has died because of the children and the passage of time. Not an excuse, but it happens. Some argue that for men monogamy is a false or artificial construct in any event.
In The Bahamas, the people who provide this kind of entertainment for us are our politicians. We denounce those who are single politicians as not being fit to lead. You must have the wife, the family at your side. But the thing about us is at the same time, we know, dare we say we expect that the politicians and preachers will also have a sweetheart or sweethearts on the side, and we expect that if our leaders are going to keep sweethearts, that they know how to “keep sweetheart” as we say. In other words, you have to know how to keep the other woman out of your wife’s business and “don’t get ketch”.
One of our national heroes, god rest him, who shall at this point remain nameless, told one of the up and coming members of the PLP’s National Committee for Positive Action (NCPA) as he was teaching him to drive a motorcar, that when your wife cannot satisfy you, you ought to get another woman and set her up just like the wife and keep the other woman in the same manner, setting aside a day for her. But never let that interfere with the wife’s business.
Many wives seemed to accommodate that stuff, at least in the old school. We don’t want to speak too much for what happens today.
There is another story of one of the courtesans of a well-known senior politician (now retired) in The Bahamas. The politician is said to have been so distraught because he had been dumped by the courtesan for another fellow that he threatened the woman to take his own life. He lay down in the road to allow the next car to come along to run over him. Whereupon, so the story goes, the courtesan called the wife and said, “You need to come down here and get your husband, he is making a fool of himself in the road.” The wife came and got him.
Now that is a pattern of behaviour that we do not defend. But the point we make here is that in The Bahamas, such an event as Tiger now faces would probably draw a line or two in the down market rag The Punch and then we would move on to the next bit of entertainment. You also would not in The Bahamas have a friend like Jesper Parnevik, the golfer buddy trashing you in public because you got caught. He is really not a friend. Tiger has a lot more riding on this, and that is to earn plenty more money. He has got to patch up his image to keep the money rolling in. The talk is that the wife and he are negotiating some additional money for her to stay and the ad companies say they are going to stick with him. We’ll see. He simply needs to win another golf tournament and all will be forgiven. We wish him and his family luck!
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 28th November, 2009 up to midnight: 165,580.
Number of hits for the month of November up to Monday 30th November 2009 up to midnight: 729,832.
SHANE
GOES AFTER NIB WITH A HATCHET
Shane Gibson, the MP for Golden Gates for the Progressive
Liberal Party was stinging in the House of Assembly on Wednesday 2nd December.
The government proposed several routine transfer of land bills from the
government to the National Insurance Board. This is part of Hubert
Ingraham’s attempt to show how efficient he is by putting the property
of the NIB on to the NIB’s books that belongs there. Yeah, you know
it. The PLP didn’t do it or so he says. We don’t know if it’s
even important. But that is not what he got in return. In return,
Mr. Gibson made a series of allegations about waste and corruption at the
NIB. His allegations are that there has been the most wasteful spending
by the NIB to cronies of the Free National Movement. Click
here for his full statement.
The Prime Minister replied that he would not respond
immediately. He is the Minister for National Insurance. He
said that National Insurance people were hearing him and he wanted them
to investigate and reply forthwith. This is typical of his biggetyness.
The NIB director did respond by saying that it was not so. Again,
we say to the NIB director that it is better to have his PR office answer
than to get in the middle of a row with politicians. The website
bahamaspress made even more pointed allegations against NIB. We await
the Prime Minister’s answers.
 |
CHARLES
MAYNARD TO THE HEAD OF THE CLASS
To paraphrase the late Cecil Wallace Whitfield: “You used to call me the
class clown on your website, well what do you call me now?” To that,
we say, “Go to the head of the class!” The Cabinet Office announced
that the new Minister of Youth Sports and Culture is the old Minister of
State for Culture Charles Maynard, aka Charlsie to his family and friends.
In the scheme of things, good for him. That was a quick rise and
obviously, he has pleased the boss.
Now it is time to fulfil all those promises that
were made to the arts community that were broken by the FNM government.
Now it is time to fix the issues of youth development. Now it is
time to deliver to the community festivals that which they have asked for
and been promised. We shall see whether words become deeds.
Question though, what do the others think of this meteoric rise?
You know Charles Maynard was twinned with Phenton Neymour. Word is
that the Prime Minister is very disappointed in Mr. Neymour's performance
and wanted to can him from the cabinet all together. Both of them
came out of the PLP and ultimately from Dr. Bernard Nottage’s stable.
Maybe we should hear a word or to from Dr. Nottage on what he thinks of
those boys made good.
Mr. Maynard had answers for the press to all the
questions and here is what the Nassau Guardian reported on Wednesday 1st
December:
"I see it as a challenge in terms of the kind
of work that the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture means to this country
especially in these times when we have a lot of the social ills.
"The youth programs, cultural programs and
sports programs really play an integral part in the whole formula to start
to improve the way Bahamians socialize with each other. So that alone causes
me to sit down and realize that some heavy weight will rest on my shoulders
but I think I'm prepared for it.
"For the last two and a half years I've been
a part of that ministry. I've been working with the senior officers within
the ministry and so I feel confident — with their focus and their abilities
and what I bring to the table with my management skills — that we're going
to do some great things.”
But former Minister Neville Wisdom of the PLP
had this warning: "The ministry will need more than just photo opportunities
and press statements. It requires work. It will be interesting to see whether
the minister is prepared to resume the program for at-risk young men and
design a program for at-risk young women.
"[And we need a vision in sports] That is
crucial because the national sporting initiatives seem to be focused on
recreational sports. Then in the area of culture, I'd like to see what
new innovations and creativity he is able to have on our culture as it
appears that all of the initiatives over the last two and a half years
have been initiated by the former government with the exception of the
self starters program."
Charles Maynard file photo
VANDERPOOL
TAKES HIS FIRST TRIP TO RAGGED IS?
At the FNM convention, Vincent Vanderpool Wallace, the Minister of Tourism
was squeezed in just before the Deputy Prime Minister Brent Symonette spoke
who himself was given ten minutes to speak and then suffered the indignity
of being drowned out by the welcome fanfare for Hubert Ingraham, the Prime
Minister. You could hardly understand what Mr. Vanderpool Wallace
was saying because he was talking a mile a minute. He said he had
no apology for it; the delegates would simply have to understand what he
was saying as fast as he talked...
Transfer that now to remote Ragged Island where
a bevy of government ministers and mandarins descended on Monday 30th November
to say that with the help of the EU, they were going to pave the road,
fix a new dock at Gun Point, Ragged Island instead of the ecologically
unwise course of re-dredging the channel to the existing dock, and that
they were putting up a 12 million dollar Defence Force base that the FNMs
in Long Island thought was going there.
The Minister of Tourism was there as well and this must have been his first
trip to Ragged Island because he had plenty to say about it. From
what he said, it looks like his whole Ministry might be moving there.
Believe that, you believe anything! Here is what he had to say to
the “crowd” gathered there (all 70 of them) as reported by the Nassau Guardian
on Wednesday 2nd December:
“I promise to highlight Ragged Island as a local
tourism destination once resurfacing of the Duncan Town Airport runway
is completed in the next eight months.
“Since the government has decided to upgrade
infrastructure at Ragged Island's main port of entry, it is now time for
the international spotlight to be placed on the tiny island once the resurfacing
is complete.
"Certainly the people in The Ministry of Tourism
now have no excuse whatsoever, in terms of what we begin to do particularly
in promoting aviation throughout The Bahamas, in making sure that we now
focus a great deal more attention on delivering more people here to Ragged
Island.
"When we talk about the islands of The Bahamas,
it's places like Ragged Island that give people an understanding of the
scope of what we have in terms of assets. But there is no question whatsoever
that one of the fastest ways we can get growth and development is to make
sure our docks and airports are in great shape…
“The focus on Ragged Island and its potential
in the tourism market is part of a bigger picture in broadening destination
choices here in The Bahamas.
"There is no other country in this region that
has the assets that we have here in The Bahamas for development and we
are just beginning to realize it. But what is critically important is making
sure you have the air transportation that is going to be in place.
"Air transportation is the infrastructure for
an archipelago like the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. The only way you get
air transportation working is making sure structures such as airports are
in place, so that we can make certain that people who want to take advantage
of what we have to offer (can do so)."
“I am particularly proud of the recent launch
of the capital works on Ragged Island.
"It is very important for me, personally to see
these kinds of developments because for the longest period of time what
has happened in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas is that so much of the
time, energy and effort have been focused on the development of Nassau
and Paradise Island, as opposed to the rest of The Bahamas."
Minister of Tourism Vincent Vanderpool Wallace stands (second
from right) in Ragged Island as Agriculture Minister Larry Cartwright speaks
in this Tribune photo
COMMONAGE
SHOULD BE REGULARIZED
Tax and corporate lawyer Ryan Pinder who is also Vice Chairman of the Progressive
Liberal Party is proposing that government give consideration to regularizing
commonage land. Commonage land is land that exists in the Family
Islands that came under the ownership of the Crown by virtue of an act
in 1896. The lands were probably lands taken over by slave communities
when freedom took place and the lands were abandoned by their owners.
The Commonage lands are controlled by Committees
that can give you, usually someone connected by family ties to the settlement,
the right to occupy but it does not give you the fee simple or right to
sell the land. This causes issues relating to development because
you cannot raise a mortgage on the land. Mr. Pinder suggested that
there is a way to deal with this. Here is what he said in his own
words before the Committee investigating the disposition of all publicly
held lands appointed by the House on 20th July 2009. The Committee
is chaired by Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell and the appearance was on 30 November:
"Today in an era where we in The Bahamas are
looking for opportunities for economic expansion — looking for ways to
leverage our Family Islands and provide economic opportunities to Bahamians
in the Family Islands — those who farm commonage land are just unable to
participate in that vision.
"The utility of farming on these lands
has been reduced. The land suffers from a lack of nutrients due to continued
farming of the same land over generations and the economic viability of
traditional in-ground farming is limited. Furthermore, the need to diversify
and the use of the land are required for economic expansion in the Family
Islands.
“The viability of economic expansion depends
largely on capital infusion in these respective businesses.
"Unless the Family Island Bahamians can pledge
to secure the funding specifically with the property that they possess
they will be forever limited in their ability to participate in the expansion
of the national economy.
"If a farmer of commonage land would like to
expand into modern era farming with technology, such as hydroponics, and
they need a loan to capitalize this business venture, he has no land to
secure that funding and he is also taking a business risk in putting infrastructure
on land he does not own. Likewise, if a Family Island Bahamian would like
to develop land he is currently farming, he cannot solicit investors for
capital as they will not own anything. These inherent restrictions on commonage
property are hindering economic development and success in the Family Islands.
"We have witnessed an exodus from the Family
Islands to Nassau for the promise of jobs and earnings. This population
influx has put tremendous earnings (sic.) on our society. We need to promote
policies that will make the Family Islands more economically viable, policies
that will relieve pressures on Nassau and empowering Bahamians of the Family
Islands is a way to do this. This will give Bahamians the economic ability
to develop the islands and be self-sustaining.
"Bahamians will be able to utilize the asset
in order to develop more modern ways of farming, promote entrepreneurship
and empower Bahamians."
Attorney Ryan Pinder shown in testimony before the Lands Committee
in this Nassau Guardian photo by Anthony Grant Jr.
A
WEDDING OF ALL WEDDINGS IN EXUMA
The niece of Granville Ferguson, the Exuma entrepreneur Tercita Ferguson
was married to Philip Munroe, son of PLP Stalwart Councillor Munroe.
Tanya McCartney Managing Director of RBC FINCO and a former Senator attended
the wedding as did Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill and Ivan Ferguson, the
island’s administrator. A fine time was had by all. There was
a 40 member wedding party. It was Exuma’s royal wedding as described
by MC David Wallace, former West End and Bimini MP. The wedding took
place on Saturday 28th November. Reverend Ivan Clarke officiated
assisted by Rev. Lynden Clarke. Please click
here for a photo essay.
Photos/Dennis Fountain
AIDS
DAY IN THE BAHAMAS NO MEDS
Tuesday 1st December was World Aids Day. In The Bahamas, there was
the usual church service and a review of the facts and figures with regard
to the disease. There is some progress to report, but the facts are
still grim. Too many people are dying from the disease.
Dr. Perry Gomez, the doctor who leads the fight
in The Bahamas, provided a review of the stats to the press. One
matter he did not touch is that the fact that patients who are public patients
report that there are continual shortages of Aids medication at public
facilities. This is a matter that must be addressed by the Minister
of Health.
Here is what Dr. Gomez had to say in his own words
as reported in the Nassau Guardian Wednesday 2nd December:
“Greater focus must now be turned to prevention
in the fight to reduce numbers.
“In addition to prevention more needs to be done
when it comes to people at greatest risk.
"[The Pan American Health Organization has reviewed
the programmes of The Bahamas] They of course spoke about the positive
things we have done, but we also more importantly identified gaps in the
program that we need to address more diligently. We have to do much more
in prevention.
“Many Bahamians with HIV/AIDS are receiving treatment,
which in my view placed a dent in the epidemic, with reduced numbers of
deaths and an almost complete elimination of mother-to-child transmission.
“Transmission from infected mother to child is
only seen in pregnant women who do not go to the clinic for treatment.
"Our response to that is we have to do more to
get people in, make sure all pregnant women come to clinic...and look into
the reasons why people don't come. The investment mustn't all be in treatment
because we can't keep up with that, because the cost of treatment is so
high. We must balance treatment with prevention so the country can afford
it in the long run.
“All countries are being urged to increase prevention
as a UNAIDS policy or mandate.
"In particular for us we have not done as good
a job in the area of prevention in people at greatest risks.
“At risk groups are considered to be men who
have sex with men, commercial sex workers, drug users, migrants and youth.
"Prevention must not be generalized. It must
now be specific to the group you are targeting and so there is a need to
know more about each group. The program can now plan and adjust for those
kinds of things.
“It was only in recent weeks through a survey
conducted two years ago that there is data available on men who have sex
with men.
“Local officials have not been able to tap into
the category of commercial sex workers whose test results, when calculated,
could drive the number of reported cases in The Bahamas even higher.
“There were 6,103 cases of AIDS reported over
the past 20 years. And of those cases, just over 4,000 people died from
the disease — more than 66 percent of those diagnosed.
“In 2008, there were 2,078 people living with
AIDS, according to health officials. There were 5,387 people living with
HIV.
“Between January and December of 2008, 263 new
HIV cases were reported, compared to 287 cases in 2007. The highest number
of reported HIV cases was in 1994 at 657, according to the data.
“There was a slight decline last year in the
number of reported cases of full-blown AIDS. There were 185 AIDS cases
reported, down 36 cases from 2007 when 221 cases were reported.
“The highest number of reported AIDS cases was
recorded in 1997 at 387.”
TESTIMONY
BEFORE THE LAND COMMITTEE
The House Select Committee headed by Fred Mitchell MP reconvened for public
testimony on Monday 30th November. It heard from four witnesses.
They were Permanent Secretary Ronald Thompson, Deputy Permanent Secretary
Chris Russell, Real Estate Agent Andre Lee, who listed the parcels of land
at Forbes Hill, Exuma that are the subject of controversy; and Ryan Pinder,
Attorney at law and Vice Chair of the Progressive Liberal Party.
Mr. Mitchell is pictured in action during a committee hearing in this Nassau
Guardian photo by Anthony Grant Jr.
The two public servants defended their involvement
in land transactions that saw their relatives benefit from the decision
to grant tracts of crown land.
Mr. Thompson said that his son and brother received
tracts of land in Deep Creek, Eleuthera. The approval came within
four to six months. He did not agree that this was fast tracked.
He said that he disclosed to the former Prime Minister Perry Christie who
was responsible for land the fact of his own investment in the project
and his son’s involvement. He did not think it was improper for him
to be involved in advising the grant of land to an investment in which
he has an interest.
Mr. Russell quite incredulously claimed that he
did not know of his wife’s application for crown land.
Broker Lee said that the money he made off the sale
of the Forbes Hill land, a commission of some $25,000 on each parcel, was
the quickest money he had ever made. He said he did not know the
sellers of the land save for Derek Rutherford who introduced him to the
other owners.
Here is what the two public servants had to say,
in part, in their own words:
RONALD THOMPSON’S EVIDENCE
"I do not think that the application by my son Sherridan Dwayne Thompson
and my brother Rodney William Thompson for crown land in South Eleuthera
was fast- tracked.
"I was the Permanent Secretary at the time of
the application’s approval. Is served from 2002 to 2008.
"The application for crown land for farming
in Eleuthera went through the proper procedure.
"The application was initially submitted for
25 acres, but during the procedural process the amount requested was reduced
by Undersecretary Audley Greaves to 15 acres.
"At the time the application was submitted my
brother did not have the resources needed for the venture, so I invested
in the initiative. The former prime minister was aware of my involvement
in the enterprise.
"Farming is still ongoing on the property with
mangoes, citrus, avocados, coconuts etc. being grown. There was a time
when there was also a pig farm but the investment was not very profitable,
especially when the feed cost was factored in.
"Over the period of time I invested up to $50,000
in the farming venture with no returns.
"The application for the land was made to the
Office of the Prime Minister and then sent on to the Department of Lands
and Surveys for evaluation. The application ended up in the office of the
permanent secretary. I received it and dealt with it as I would have any
other application.
"It was three to four months between the
application and the signing of the lease.
"An application for approval could take from
four to six months and four to six years in some cases. Some applications
have been pending for more than six years. It depends on the information
made available at the time the application is submitted.
"I would not say so. It was not fast tracked.
All of the information was at hand when the application was submitted.
"I don't see that I being the permanent secretary
precludes them from applying.
"The approval provided for 15 acres of land for
lease for 21 years with an option to renew.
"I think so. I don't think [public servants]
they are any different from anybody else in The Bahamas. They should be
entitled to apply and their application should be considered on its merit."
"Those in the hierarchy of the public service
— permanent secretaries, undersecretaries, etc. — should also be allowed
to do the same.
"It seems to me that there needs to be a policy
developed that will clearly set out the parameters under which someone
can receive crown land whether for lease or for grant. Many persons apply
for land for the construction of residences and that raises some concerns
also.
"Some of the areas that are applied for happen
to be along a roadway because that is accessible to all of the utilities
that are required to build a house. For policy consideration, there should
be a question of whether areas should not be identified suitable for housing
and made available to one of the development agencies like the Department
of Housing where the infrastructure is put in and persons can then apply
and benefit from the application. In the absence of that, you will have
problems with the orderly development of a settlement or an area, which
I think should be our long-term goal...
"If the crown land policy is to contain elements
of empowering individuals through the lease or the grant of crown land,
it seems to me that they need to also be provided with that assistance
to enable them to actually benefit from the land. I go back to the cost
of land preparation for farming. There is no point in someone applying
for five acres to do a substantial farming project if they do not have
the wherewithal to prepare the land, put in the systems that are necessary
to make it work."
Tribune photo of PS Ronald Thompson/Tim Clarke
CHRISTOPHER RUSSELL’S EVIDENCE
"We [my wife and I] applied privately, there was no collaboration.
“I was senior forest officer at the time, but
I had no idea my wife had applied for one acre of crown land in Blackwood,
Abaco.
"She was offered the land by a letter of offer
in which she paid for the land - she has a receipt - but there was never
a grant issued to her because the land was never surveyed.
“The letter was issued to my wife and it would
have given a general idea as to where the land would be located.
She received the letter in 2000 and nine years later the land has still
not been surveyed.
“During the regular course of work while processing
the applications, I discovered that my wife, Christine, had applied for
the land.
“Upon discovering this I never inquired what
happened to my application.
"The policy was that any Bahamian could apply
for crown land whether you worked there or not. There was never a policy
that said because you are employed with Lands and Surveys you ought not
to apply for crown land. There was never a policy written or inferred to
that effect.
“She intends to build a retirement home. I had
plans to do the same thing.
[When asked if both of them had received the grants, would they
still have built separate retirement homes]:
“Why not?
[As if they were still together as a married couple]
“Yes!
“The procedures for applicants who apply for
crown land is compounded by the problem that the system is very antiquated.
"Everything is paperwork. An application is paper
and it has to be placed in a registry, then the director would give a directive
to deal with the application, it goes in a file, the file comes to you
and so this process of application creates challenges for the land manager
in terms of processing the application, because it is so voluminous in
terms of the amount of persons who have been applying and so what you find
is that you have to actually go into the file individually to find these
applications, and it is up to the land manager to create a system as to
how he is going to process these applications.
“The former director attempted to solve the problem
by putting in a database system to manage the inflow of information coming
in and to make it easier for land managers to actually process the applications.
"That helped significantly."
Tribune photo of DPS Christopher Russell/Tim Clarke
NEW
MINISTER BANNISTER TAKES HIS SEAT
Desmond Bannister is the new Minister of Education
and he spent his first official day on the job celebrating with students
from a cross-section of public and private schools on Tuesday 1st December.
All we say to him is, “My son you had better pray!” Education has never
been more challenged. The tenure of the previous minister was marked
by one controversy after another. There are also programmes that
were started that the leader of those programmes has now been displaced
on the altar of politics. The Ministry of Education seemed a slippery
place. Once again, pray. Governor General His Excellency Arthur
D Hanna shares a moment with Desmond Bannister, the new Minister of Education
at the Christmas service of the Ministry at the Church of God of Prophecy
on East Street on Wednesday 2nd December.
Internet photo
C.B.
MOSS LAMENTS LACK OF SUPPORT
We happen to think that the Rev. C.B. Moss is a good man. He is a
hard worker, but in politics, he got a bad break. He has a good image
but politics being a fortuitous business, which is to say it is often the
luck of the draw, you often don’t get to where you want to get. The
Rev. Moss (shown at the microphone in this Tribune photo above) wants to
be in the House of Assembly. He wanted the PLP’s nomination, but
this was not given to him. He ran as an independent.
Following the election, Rev. Moss seemed to have
a good relationship with the Free National Movement, although he got no
political post. He was offered a position, which he now has on the
Clifton Heritage Authority that oversees the land that he fought so hard
to protect. He now heads another Non Governmental Organization (NGO)
called Bahamas Against Crime. He is at it with his usual aplomb;
he is to be applauded. One thing though, it is easy in the circumstances
of all that has happened to him to become bitter and for that bitterness
to show. He has to be careful that he is not approaching that and
in the process alienating unnecessarily his friends in the cause.
Bahamas Against Crime held a rally last Sunday 29th
November to raise the issue of crime. Quite frankly, the Bahamian
people are all rallied out and maybe even all prayed out. What they
want to see is action. Rev. Moss condemned all politicians because
they did not show up to the rally. That cannot be correct.
Some may have wanted to be there and could not make it. These are
busy times. Nevertheless, the warnings by him to the country are
worth reading. Here is what he said in his own words on crime following
the rally as reported by The Tribune on Thursday 3rd December:
“The Bahamas suffered a national shame because
of the very little support at the rally.
“The rally was designed to present residents
with an opportunity to make several powerful statements, including:
* sending a message to the criminals-that the people of the Bahamas will
not stand by idly while they destroy society
* sending a message to the government that Bahamians are demanding a strong,
effective and immediate response to the crime crisis
"Unfortunately, the rally was very poorly attended
and a very powerful message was indeed sent, albeit the opposite of the
message that should have been sent. Bahamians by their absence said that
they were not yet ready to take a stance against the scourge of crime.
Indeed, the rally was a mirror placed before the people, reflecting their
unbelievable apathy, or worse, in the face of this national crisis. We
were weighed in the balances by this event, and found wanting. Put bluntly,
it was a national disgrace.
“While no sector of society can escape this dreadful
embarrassment, leaders in the political and religious sectors should be
most ashamed, for they above all are obligated to preserve the security
and well-being of the public.
"With the exception of Paul Moss and Rodney Moncur,
no other political personality saw it fit to attend, while Reverends William
Cleare, Charles Lewis, Wilfred Adderley, William Thompson and CB Moss were
the only ministers in attendance.
“Corporate, civic and other leaders were all
absent, however the greatest shame must be borne by members of the public,
for the brunt of the crime and mayhem is being inflicted upon them and
their families.
"While it is true that many persons were unable
to attend for very valid reasons, the proverbial question, 'Where were
the others?' could be asked. Where indeed were the tens of thousands?
“Bahamas Against Crime will give Bahamians another
opportunity in a few months to say, "enough is enough"
"We are only saddened that another 30 or 40 murders,
along with hundreds of rapes, robberies, assaults and other serious crimes
would have been endured by a people already suffering immensely.”
Photo/Carvel Francis
REMEMBERING
JACK KENNEDY
A reader of this column sent us copies of photos
of the visit of the only sitting US President to come to The Bahamas, John
F. Kennedy. Mr. Kennedy visited The Bahamas with John Diefenbaker,
then Prime Minister of Canada and Harold Macmillan, then Prime Minister
of the United Kingdom, for talks amongst the countries. They stayed
at Lyford Cay. As a memorial, they each planted a tree at the corner
of Blake Road and the Western Road.
Thanks for the photos of the President who was assassinated
on 22nd November 1963. The airport road, known at the time of his
visit as the Inter Field Road, was then renamed in his honour. Enjoy
the photos of the inspection of the guard at the then Nassau International
Airport. Colchester Whyms was the Commissioner of Police. Lawrence
Glinton, later a Senator and Peter Bethell of the Ministry of Works are
pictured with the late President.
Photo above from Bahama Life Magazine Dec. '63 / Photographer Jarvis
Darville (Jarvis Studios)... Photos below originally published by The Tribune...
INTERIORS
STUDIO ‘IN SEASON’ OPENS
Shawna Strachan is an interior decorator extraordinaire. She
has decorated the homes and offices of the up and coming in the society
and the arrived for years. Now she has a new project of her own,
launched out with her very own office and studio. To mark the occasion
she invited friends, family, and civic officials to see the building and
cut the ceremonial ribbon on Saturday 5th December 2009. The business
is called ‘In Season’ and a walk around the interior shows that she is
in touch. There to mark the occasion were Tommy Turnquest, Minister
of National Security; Loretta Butler Turner, Minister of State for Social
Services; and Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill.
From left: Mr. Mitchell, Neil Strachan, husband of the owner
of In Season; Mrs. Strachan; their daughter Cai; Patrice Ellis, wife of
their Pastor, Bishop Neil Ellis of Mt. Tabor; Mrs. Butler Turner and Mr.
Turnquest. Photo/ Donald Knowles
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Forrester Carroll on former Minister of Education, now FNM Chairman
Carl Bethel
Carl Bethel-that dethroned, erstwhile, Minister
of Education, attempted sometime last week, on his blog, during a
dialogue session with some critics, to assassinate the PLP’s record on
its Grand Bahama area achievements, or the lack thereof, within the last
20 years (from November 1989 to the present).
Carl was obviously suffering from a temporary
amnesic attack, when he opened up the discussion and made those baseless
charges. What else could account for the fact that he had obviously
forgotten the one arithmetical thing he should have remembered, and that
is that his Free National Movement party, and not the PLP governed the
country for 13 of those 20 years, he referred to. But, notwithstanding
his irrational rationale, let us take a close-up look at his accusations
and see if they can withstand the acid test of his argument.
The FNM came to power in 1992 and met the Lucayan
Beach strip bustling with activity. The Lucayan Beach Hotel was being
operated by the Malaysians, in conjunction with the Bahamas Hotel Corp;
the Atlantik Beach Hotel was being operated by a European conglomerate
and the Holiday Inn was in full swing, being managed by an American operator.
These represented three different operations and operators, together employing
an estimated 2500- 3000 persons, most of whom were Bahamians. What
resulted, under Carl Bethel’s FNM Administration - between 1992-2002 -
was plainly a disservice to the people of Freeport and Grand Bahama.
The FNM, in their haste to relieve the Hotel
Corporation of the responsibility of funding, to a great extent, the Lucayan
Beach Hotel operations, acquiesced to the sale of the three operations
on the strip, to one single undesirable buyer, in my view (Hutchison Whampoa
a Chinese Government company), putting almost all of those 3000 Bahamians
on the unemployment lines. The Hotels were closed down, ultimately,
and the Atlantik Beach imploded. This was the time when Ingraham
came to Freeport to meet with those disgruntled 1500 employees of the Holiday
Inn and made his now infamous statement to them; “…while I am standing,
you are hired; when I take my seat you are fired” unquote; he took his
seat, and they were all fired; the damn Dictator.
The FNM had much to say about the Royal Oasis
Hotel, as well, and would wish not to accept blame for that fiasco, but
the truth of the matter is that, it was Hubert Ingraham who approved the
Buddemier group’s take over of the property, in spite of the PLP and others
giving him good advice as to that group’s inability to operate at the standard
we have come to expect in the country. We reminded Ingraham, as well,
about the group’s shady business dealings in the past which, by the way,
had become kitchen table talk in most households in Grand Bahama, at the
time. The FNM government was also advised that the group did not
have the financial, wherewithal to make a sustained, meaningful success
of the management of the property. All that sound advice did not
matter to Hubert and he did what he always does, ignored all and gave the
group his government’s approval. The rest, of course, is history.
The first hurricanes that came that did a little
damage to the buildings and what did the suckers do? They grabbed
the insurance money, left town, overnight, and haven’t been heard from
or seen since. All the employees were left stuck and stranded, unpaid
and unemployed, thanks to Carl Bethel’s/ Hubert Ingraham’s, Free National
Movement government. The PLP came to office, thank God, and found
the money, eventually, to pay part of what was owing to most of the employees;
the FNM followed suit, and paid them the remainder, when they came to power
in 2007. But, just as a reminder, it was the FNM’s dirt that the
PLP tried to clean up. The fact of the matter is that it is the FNM
government, contrary to what Carl Bethel attempted to imply, which created
problems for us in Grand Bahama. They did not help us, in agreeing
to all those lousy hotel buy-outs and other deals.
Forrester J Carroll J P
You may click here for
Mr. Carroll's full letter to the Editor.
IN PASSING
Armed Robberies
The Trib reported in its Saturday edition 5th December that there have
been 532 armed robberies in The Bahamas this year for the first three quarters
of the year, and 500 within the last quarter. They described the
stat as alarming.
Police Report To Fox Hill
The Police responsible for policing the community of Fox Hill have
held their second meeting in the community in recent weeks. The meetings
are part of an effort for Assistant Commissioner Shenendoah Evans and area
Assistant Superintendent Esmilla Davis with Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell to
create teamwork between the police and the community.
Bahamas A Member Of IMO
The Bahamas has been re-elected to the Council of the International
Maritime Organization (IMO). This UN body is responsible for regulating
global shipping.
Anglican Bishop To Be Consecrated
Cornell Moss, the Anglican Archdeacon who served as the rector of Ascension
Church in Freeport, is on his way to Guyana for his consecration as Bishop
of Guyana. He is the third Bahamian to have been nominated for a
post in the Caribbean. The other two were Drexel Gomez in Barbados
and Donald Knowles in Antigua.
The consecration will take place in Georgetown, Guyana on Tuesday
8th December. A delegation of Bahamians will travel there for the
event including Deputy Leader of the PLP Philip Davis MP and Fred Mitchell
MP Fox Hill.
Carl Doesn’t Show In The House
Car Bethel MP has lost his Honourable title now that he is no longer
Minister of Education. On 30th November, he served his last day and
is now the Chairman of the Free National Movement by itself. He did
not show in the House on Wednesday 2nd December to take his seat on the
backbench. The talk is that he has a brand new 2010 car to ride around
in and the salary of a Minister to match, all courtesy of the “White Knights”.
Shane Gibson Predicts His Most Difficult Year
Golden Gates MP Shane Gibson on Wednesday 2nd December in the House
of Assembly told his constituents that that they ought to brace themselves
for the most vicious attack that is to be carried out against him.
He described it as the most “vicious ever launched against an MP in this
Bahamas. I expect next year to be the most challenging year in the
history of my representation,” he added. He did not elaborate.
Tax Exchange Agreements
The Bahamas has signed three more tax exchange information agreements
(TIEA). This is to meet the government’s promise to get us off the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) gray list
of non-co-operating countries. This is adversely affecting our financial
services sector. The government has been dragging its feet on the
matter. They need to sign 12 to get off the list and they promise
to do so before the end of the year. The new three are the Netherlands,
China are Argentina.
Allyson Meets with Chinese Women's Federation Head
Upon recently becoming president of the International Women's Forum,
Senator Allyson Maynard Gibson met with Madame Chen Zhili the chairwoman
of the All China Women's Federation.
Neko C. Grant I MP
The way he speaks shows that he gets easily offended. Can’t take
the chafing of public life. He exploded in the House of Assembly
last week on Wednesday 2nd December because he was reminded of his promise
to the MP for Fox Hill Fred Mitchell. Obie Wilchcombe made a statement
during the week about the taxi line in Freeport. Here is the
Minister’s response: “Mr. Wilchcombe, I suppose seeks to create mischief.
My controller, prior to the introduction of the system, met with the leadership
of the union four times. On November 20, I met with the leadership
of the union for over an hour at the Office of the Prime Minister in Freeport,
Grand Bahama. I will not be directed by Mr. Wilchcombe.” Well
you may not but we’ll see who is right. Sheeesh!
Second Security Screening Gone
Minister of Tourism Vincent Vanderpool Wallace presided over the occasion
marking the removal of the second screening machine at the Lynden Pindling
International Airport. US authorities demanded the two screenings
and a third just before you entered the plane. Tourists and residents
were annoyed at it. The Minister said it was the single most annoying
thing for him. Anyway, it is now gone, so lets hope things go well
at the airport. What was strange though is that you have a Government
Minister cutting the ribbon but a foreigner running the airport.
This is 2009 in The Bahamas, what happened to The Bahamas for Bahamians?
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
INGRAHAM’S LINE OF POLITICAL
ATTACK
The hottest political news of the week was the story of the possibility
of a bye-election in New Providence for the seat Elizabeth now held by
the PLP’s Malcolm Adderley. The PLP has a tenuous hold on the seat.
Mr. Adderley does not participate in the caucus of the PLP and does not
adhere to the party whip, but he has not resigned from the PLP. Mr.
Adderley does not attend the PLP’s branch meetings for the area.
Mr. Adderley attended one public rally of the PLP last year, but when called
upon to speak, declined any substantive comment. At the PLP’s recent
convention, he stayed well back in the hall.
The description just given could be added to the other easily verifiable facts. In his maiden speech in the House of Assembly, he spoke out, saying that some people [read Perry Christie] thought that he would not survive, that they had left him up a creek without a paddle, but he indicated that he had in fact survived. With that, he accepted from the Ingraham Government the continued Chairmanship of the Gaming Board and he continues to hold it to the consternation of PLPs to this day.
Mr. Adderley’s friends have been saying that he was hard done by during the time the PLP was in government. They say former Prime Minister Perry Christie promised to make him the Attorney General and then reneged on the promise. They say this was the first of a series of humiliations and embarrassments for which he has not forgiven the PLP leadership. Mr. Adderley’s friends also say that the nomination process in 2007 for Mr. Adderley was particularly humiliating, when he was made to justify in front of whom he considered lesser mortals his nomination and was only given it at the very end.
On the other side of the equation, Mr. Christie’s people say that it was only because of Mr. Christie that Mr. Adderley remains where he is. They argue that Mr. Christie fought the Elizabeth branch in 2007 and the Candidates Committee to allow Mr. Adderley to run again. They argue that Mr. Adderley is ungrateful to Mr. Christie, who also asked his friends to go and support Mr. Adderley’s campaign with actual bodies and with their personal money.
Will we ever know the true story?
V.S. Naipaul says: “the world is what it is”. Here is where we are. The press says that Mr. Adderley is about to take the position of a Judge of the Supreme Court. He is sixty-four years old, one year away from the mandatory retirement age of a Judge. This is the age beyond which the Prime Minister has to agree for the extension to 67. Presumably, if Mr. Adderley has been promised that job, he will get iron clad promises from Mr. Ingraham that he will not welch on the deal like he did to Ruby Nottage whom he promised would get the extension then did not give it to her as a result of political pressure.
If Mr. Adderley accepted the job of a judge, he would have to step down from Parliament, creating a bye-election in the Elizabeth seat. The PLP, according to the press, was on high alert to get its troops moving there to hold onto a seat that they barely won in 2007, but that should, in the face of all the difficulties facing the FNM and the economy, continue to be a PLP seat. The press says that Ryan Pinder, the son of a former representative for the area when it was called Malcolm Creek, is to get the nod. There are others who are reportedly working or interested in the area, including Craig Butler, the Party's Treasurer; and Myles Laroda, the Party’s branch Chairman. They are there even though there is a sitting PLP MP, even if only nominally so.
It was the rumour of a potential candidate working an area that was the pretext for another disgruntled PLP, Kenyatta Gibson, to leave the PLP in a huff and in acrimony and then to cross the floor to become an FNM.
This is dangerous ground.
It does not make sense to many that Mr. Adderley would leave for a job that cannot provide him with long-term financial security at this stage of his life. You have to have five years to get a full pension as a judge. Even if he gets the extension of time until 67, he will not have had the full five years. But maybe the calculation is that he will be booted up to the Court of Appeal after that and then he will get the full five years. Who knows?
He is over 55 and would, if he stepped down today, be able to collect his gratuity and pension under the Parliamentary Pensions Act, but he does not have two terms or eight years, so one wonders about the financial sense of that. In any event, even if he were to get the full pension, it would only amount to two thirds of his parliamentary salary of $28,000 per year.
The problem is Mr. Adderley aint doing any talking. The rumour has been going around for weeks in the political community. One had him taking a diplomatic appointment.
When he was asked by the press about it, the Tribune reported in its Thursday 10th December edition: “PLP MP Malcolm Adderley refused last night to deny reports that he will be resigning from his seat in the House of Assembly and taking up a post as a new Supreme Court Justice early in the New Year.
“When contacted by The Tribune yesterday, Mr. Adderley seemed more concerned with the source of the information. ‘I want to know where that started from. When I get to the bottom of it I will call you.’”
There are two schools of thought in the PLP about this. One is that a hard line should have been taken a long time ago with Mr. Adderley, telling him to fish or cut bait and if he did not then order him out of the boat. Another group said that nothing should be done to push him or to alienate him further from the PLP; that in time he would come around, particularly since his family connections are PLP and they are important benefactors of the PLP. All the signs are that the latter strategy has not worked, and the PLP appears now left off balance over it.
Ever since Mr. Adderley’s appointment to Chairman of the Gaming Board and Kenyatta Gibson’s departure, the rumours have also abounded of other PLP MPs whom Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham was approaching bearing gifts. The FNM seems to have been probing for what they perceive to be weak links in the PLP’s chain, suggesting offers of diplomatic jobs abroad to one and then a high profile job in the media to another. Mischief afoot! So far, it has remained that: only rumour.
What we say, however, is that there is no substitute for integrity in public life. By this, we do not mean moral perfection, but simply that you can be trusted and that your word means what it means. This must apply and occur to Mr. Adderley who was a revolutionary at the Bar, who was a fighter for the oppressed and the poor and is known a man of principle. We think that he should say it aint so and that if he is contemplating it; don’t do it. Whatever it is, in two years; it can be fixed.
Politics is also a fortuitous business. Some would argue largely opportunistic. So you should not be surprised at anything that happens. What we know is that you look at Barbados where a man left his party, then in Opposition, to join the Party of Owen Arthur, then Prime Minister, on the promise of a Cabinet post, which he got. Things looked bleak at the time for his old party, but in the next General Election, he and the Party he joined got a ‘cut behind’. Now he is out and Owen Arthur is no longer Prime Minister.
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 5th December 2009 up to midnight: 155,961.
CHRISTIE
ON MALCOLM ADDERLEY
This is quite a situation. In chess, one of
the parties would be saying “check”. No one it appears can now say,
“Checkmate”. The question being asked is whether or not the PLP has
been too tenuous in dealing with this matter of the future of Malcolm Adderley
in the PLP. Quite frankly, it is a tangle and that is why it remains
where it is. No one wants Mr. Adderley to leave the PLP and that
is what Perry Christie, the Leader of the PLP seemed to say to The Tribune
in his statement published on Friday 11th December in his own words:
“No, I’ve had no discussions with Mr. Adderley
and no-one on my side has indicated to me any discussions that they might
have had that would suggest Mr. Adderley has been offered a job and has
accepted a job. Like everything else, you would expect that with
the code that exists on our side that notice would be given and information
exchanged, and we have not had any such notice.
“I would be surprised if Mr. Adderley opted to
leave the party and resign from his seat in Elizabeth.
“Yes, on the basis of what I know of Mr. Adderley
I would be considerably surprised because he is the kind of person who
would speak upfront to any issue that impacts him. And I think he
is always concerned about his reputation and people's understanding of
his integrity.
“We have a Member of Parliament and from time
to time we have to remind them [people who are vying for the Elizabeth
nomination] that there is a sitting Member of Parliament in Elizabeth because
people, as you approach the general election, apply for seats and until
such times as we know Mr. Adderley’s position we want to be able to respect
it sufficiently.”
INGRAHAM
STUNNED BY SHIP’S WARNING
Oasis is supposed to be largest ship afloat.
The Government spent 44 million to dredge the harbour to allow it to come
here. It has the capacity for 5900 passengers. It will soon
be joined by another with the capacity for 5600 passengers. It is
18 stories high. That is one picture. The city of Nassau was
teeming with tourists from the ship. That was Friday 11th December.
Only thing is they did not spend any money, and at the official ceremony
to mark the occasion, the Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham was stung by a
criticism by the ship’s representative that they have told the passengers
to stick close to town because of the crime situation. The Tribune
did not report that this was said but Mr. Ingraham was apparently quite
embarrassed by it. No doubt the cruise ship rep was thinking back
to the robbery of the 18 tourists from another cruise ship while on a walking
tour of Nassau on 20th November (click here for story below). The
government had better get its act together and quickly. Taxi drivers
report that they made no money from Oasis. The passengers did not
spend anything in the stores either. So what then is the point?
WARNING:
CAR SMASHING AT STOP SIGNS
This is a late warning that has come to us
from an authoritative source on the latest tactics by criminal gangs in
Nassau. Read and be careful. Drivers are warned of attacks
by youngsters on Shirley Street:
“Dear friends
“A problem on Shirley St. last night which
I will describe so you know what occurred. If you want to pass it
on to friends please feel free but please delete our names for privacy’s
sake. In addition, there is no need to phone or email to commiserate
otherwise we will spend all day dealing with the incident and repeating
it!
“Driver was driving west on Shirley St.
at 8 pm with a passenger who had arrived in Nassau for the first time that
morning. As he approached Kemp Rd/ Fowler St., the light changed
to red and while he sat there waiting for it to change, he saw a young
boy about 14 years old or so standing next to the car with ‘an evil look
on his face’. He shouted, ‘What you doing boy?’ at which the boy
ducked down, and seemed to disappear. Then the driver heard the sound
of hissing and realized it was the sound of air coming out of a tyre, knew
the situation was dangerous, put his foot on the accelerator and drove
round into Fowler St. as far as the old stadium.
“When he got out the car, he saw that a
hole had been slashed in the tyre. Even worse, the boy was running
towards him with a knife with two others around the same age. He jumped
back in the car as one threw a large rock at the back window, [which fortunately
didn’t break] and drove into the gas station on the corner of Bay St.
“Apparently the attendants there are well
aware of the exploits of these kids and even know what they look like.
The police were called but he also had to go down to Central Police Station
to make a statement. It was quite a frightening experience.
This was not late at night, plus there was quite
a lot of traffic on the road who could be witnesses, but this did not deter
these feral boys. Please take care.”
COB
PRESIDENT RETIRING
President of the College of Bahamas Janyne Hodder is to retire from her
post effective June 2010, leaving the College to begin a search for a new
leader after three and a half years. Ms. Hodder, who used to be married
to Patrick Rahming, the architect, and started out her career in teaching
in The Bahamas in 1971 living in Bain Town, will return to Canada upon
her retirement in June 2010. Franklyn Wilson, the Chairman of the
College at the time of her recruitment said that she would be difficult
to replace. T. Baswell Donaldson, who now heads the Board, was full
of praise for her. She was widely expected to stay on until the College
reached university status and the speculation is that because the FNM government
does not support the change to university status, she has decided to move
on. Here is what she said in her own words as reported in The Tribune
of 9th December:
“I want to spend more time with my family, in
particular my two-year-old grandson, and enter a new stage in my life with
my husband.
“This has not been an easy decision to make.
I have been torn between a sense of duty and knowledge of the great debt
I owe this country for having welcomed me 40 years ago and taught me all
the skills I have later used to build a career, and the desire to grow
tomatoes full-time and walk my grandson in the park.
“I have total confidence that in the fullness
of time the government will adopt the necessary legislation by which the
College will achieve the university status.
“It was on Monday that I informed Chairman Donaldson
that I would be exercising my option to offer six months’ notice of resignation
as President of the College. I revealed my decision to the College
Council on Tuesday 8th December during the annual Christmas luncheon.
“If I were to be scared about what UTEB (the
union of lecturers at COB) said about me I wouldn’t be here now -- because
four years ago I spent ten days in the fire stove. So no, you don't
do this job if you're frightened what people are going to say about you."
“Dozens [are capable from COB of succeeding me]...we
have a fabulous team here.
“[My advice to my successor] To love The Bahamas,
to have faith in it, to believe in it. To think everyday about the
seven-year-old kid that's on his way to school and to say to yourself it's
my job to make sure he doesn't choose a handgun and a kilo of coke to make
a living, but that he chooses a university education.
“This country is at a crossroads, it's going
through tremendous challenges. You have to believe that all of those
children out there that there'll have a chance at getting a university
education.
“They're not all going to be doctors, or engineers
or lawyers, but they need to have an education to be good citizens, to
support their communities and this country and its future.”
Retiring COB President Janyne Hodder is pictured at a news conference
with COB Chairman Baswell Donaldson in this Internet photo
MITCHELL
VISITS BAHAMIAN STUDENTS IN BARBADOS
Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill and the Opposition
spokesman on Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and the Public Service paid
a call on the Bahamian Students Association in Barbados at the Cave Hill
Campus of the University of the West Indies. The Association is headed
by Stephan Rolle, the son of attorney Wallace Rolle. Several of the
students are enrolled in the medical programme in Barbados and have problems
with their fees. The government does not at present provide any support
for them as it does for the medical students at Mona in Jamaica and at
St. Augustine’s in Trinidad. Mr. Mitchell promised to follow up on
the issue. The visit took place on Wednesday 9th December.
NEVILLE
WISDOM ATTACKS FNM ON JR. JUNKANOO
“Under the FNM Government our most beloved Junior Junkanoo Parade is going
to the dogs.”
That is the opening paragraph in a statement
issued by Neville Wisdom, the Minister of Culture in the PLP from 2002
to 2007. Mr. Wisdom expressed regret and consternation over the apparent
collapse of Junior Junkanoo. The parade was poorly supported and
poorly attended this year. Mr. Wisdom placed this squarely at the
feet of the FNM government
Here is the rest of Mr. Wisdom’s full statement issued on 9th December:
“Under the FNM Government only a few Junior and
Senior Schools are scheduled to participate in this year’s parade; further,
we have been informed that not one New Providence based high school will
participate in this year’s cultural competition.
“Is this because of poor planning by this FNM
Government?
“So while the Prime Minister promotes the former
Jr. Minister of Culture, whose record in office has been poor, and transfers
his Sr. Minister Desmond Bannister, the reality is that neither of them
has demonstrated an ability to do anything substantive relating to the
Ministry Of Youth, Sports, and Culture.
“I offer a few examples: The National Youth Service
Program in Andros has been cancelled! Carifesta has been cancelled! The
CAC Youth Games was a disaster; the live broadcast of Junior Junkanoo has
been cancelled and ticket sales, I am advised, are very poor! In the meanwhile,
our children are fighting and hacking each other on and off school grounds.
“The programs utilized by the PLP Government
to assist in the development of boys at risk have been destroyed by the
Hubert Ingraham FNM Government. I am obliged to ask the Government if this
is the reason why there will be no live broadcast of our most beloved Junior
Junkanoo parade on ZNS television?
“We again call on this Government to immediately
re-launch the cancelled National Youth Service program in North Andros.
“We also demand that the Government restore our
most beloved Junior Junkanoo parade to its past glory!”
WHATEVER
WILL WE DO ABOUT EILEEN CARRON?
PLP Chairman Bradley Roberts launched a full-scale attack on Reginald Ferguson,
the outgoing Commissioner of Police. It should not be a surprise
to anyone. The PLP did not support the appointment of Mr. Ferguson
and in just this side of a lie, the Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham first
promised that he would not appoint him and then changed his mind.
Mr. Roberts pointed out the deficiencies of Mr. Ferguson. He was
condemned as fouling up the investigation into the drug haul by the Royal
Bahamas Defence force in 1992 on the vessel Lorequin. Just this year
a Judge of the Supreme Court ruled that Mr. Ferguson had pressured a witness
into perjuring herself.
There would seem to be ample evidence of Mr. Ferguson's
lack of fitness to lead the Force. But The Tribune’s publisher Eileen
Carron is busy making up defences for the Free National Movement, no matter
how perverse or illogical. In doing so, she has been seeking to meet
Bradley Roberts the PLP’s Chair every time he makes a statement.
Fortunately for the PLP Mr. Roberts is having the time of his life.
As Martin Luther King Jr. said, it really does not matter any more.
He has seen the mountaintop. He has been an effective counter weight
to the utter foolishness spewed out by Eileen Carron. Whatever are
we to do about her?
You may click
here for the full statement on Mr. Ferguson by Mr. Roberts and a follow
up statement on the appointment
of Ellison Greenslade as the Acting Commissioner of Police and another
on
the appointment of Mr. Ferguson as Director of the Financial Intelligence
Unit which we also oppose.
In the case of Mr. Greenslade, the FNM defenders
like Eileen Carron mean to make it impossible for him to succeed.
The man they want is Marvin Dames as head of the Force but for some reason
feel compelled to put Mr. Greenslade now in place. But they keep
setting up these high expectations; expectations which cannot possibly
be met. They want the country to think that the crime problem, which
they have made worse, will be solved by a single policeman. It cannot
be.
Fortunately for Mr. Greenslade, a man fully qualified
and competent to do the job, the FNMs on the Force are tired of Mr. Ferguson
and pushed for his departure. Mr. Greenslade therefore comes with
their goodwill and with ours and most of the PLP and we think the country.
We wish him luck. As for Eileen Carron who warned Mr. Greenslade
that he should stay clear of politicians, we say to him steer clear of
the wicked widow on Shirley Street.
A
WORD ABOUT THIS COLUMN
Each week there is an increasing demand from readers
of this column for there to be a daily version of this column. Sadly,
that is not possible. The column itself is now 11 years old, having
started on 4th December 1998. It was started because of censorship
by Oswald Brown, the then Managing Editor of the Nassau Guardian.
The column has succeeded beyond anyone’s imagination.
A comment was made by then practicing attorney Michael
Barnett in 1998, now Sir Michael and now Chief Justice, that no one would
read the column on the web. Newspapers were king. At one time,
we were the only source of pro PLP news on the web. Today there are
many competitors and some imitators. Let a thousand voices contend.
We are certainly flattered and proud of the demand for more and there is
now an attempt being made to see how this can be accommodated but for now,
it simply is not physically possible to do so.
One thing, however, is that this column is not strictly
speaking a news site. It provides information to be sure but it is
more analytical and depends on the regular press and other sites for the
public information on which we comment. It is like the difference
between the New York Times and Time Magazine. Our very best goes
out to all who continue to read and to contribute to his column.
We hope that it continues to be a source of information to you.
THE
NEW JUNGLE OPENS
The New Jungle Club is now open for business.
Refurbished by an investment by a group of young Fox Hillians. One
family member of the group is Warren Davis also known as 'Dancer'; the
official ribbon cutting took place on Friday 11th December with a grand
celebration. Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill did the honours and then
there was Junkanoo until the wee hours of the morning. ‘The Jungle’,
as the place is affectionately known, is a Fox Hill landmark owned by the
Derek Davis family in Fox Hill and has been the centre of the cultural
life of the community particularly round the time of the Fox Hill Festival
when it hosts matinee dances for the young and young at heart.
Photos/ Fox Hill PLP
MORE
PHOTOS FROM GUYANA
Bishop Cornell Moss, formerly the rector of Ascension
Church in Freeport, Grand Bahama has been consecrated bishop of Guyana.
That took place on Tuesday 8th December. He is being enthroned as
we upload this site. We present photos of the consecration on Tuesday
by Peter Ramsay. Bishop Moss lies prostrate; Canon Warren Rolle and
Dean Patrick Adderley among their peers in witness; MPs Fred Mitchell and
Philip Davis among the congregants.
MITCHELL
AND DAVIS WITH GUYANA’S PRESIDENT
Philip ‘Brave’ Davis MP, Deputy Leader of the Progressive
Liberal Party and Fred Mitchell MP, Opposition Spokesman on Foreign Affairs
paid a courtesy call on the President of Guyana Barrat Jagdeo following
the consecration of the new Anglican Bishop of Guyana, Bahamian Cornell
Moss, at his office on Tuesday 8th December at Georgetown, Guyana.
Photo/Peter Ramsay
CONGRATULATIONS
TO DR. CARYN A.P. ALBURY
Congratulations to Dr. Caryn A.P. Albury, MBChB,
DFFP, MRCOG on achieving membership to the Royal College of Obstetricians
and Gynaecologists. The Admission Ceremony involving an international
group of over eighty medical doctors was held on November 27 at the College
in London. Dr. Albury’s parents, Mr. Basil H. Albury and Justice
Cheryl A.P. Albury attended the ceremony.
A former Head Girl at St. Andrew's School, Dr. Albury
is a graduate of the University of Bristol School of Medicine. She
is currently working in the National Health Service in the UK and, as part
of her postgraduate training, has worked in several hospitals in the Southwest
Region. Dr. Albury now works as a Specialist Registrar in Obstetrics
and Gynaecology at Gloucester Royal Hospital.
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Forrester Carroll Decries The Govt’s Snub Of Bishop Cornell Moss
Archdeacon Cornell Moss, Anglican Priest in charge of the parish at “Church
of Ascension” here in Freeport was, in ceremonies held this week (8th to
13th December 2009), enthroned as Bishop of the Anglican community in the
Republic of Guyana. I congratulate Bishop Moss on his achievement
to this high office, in the Anglican faith, and I wish him very well in
his new calling to higher service to God, within the soul-saving ministry.
Let me state unequivocally, without reservation
and or fear of contradiction, that I think it’s a bloody shame and disgrace
that the government of The Bahamas did not see it fit to send an envoy
to deliver congratulatory remarks and to represent the peoples of the Commonwealth
of The Bahamas. The nation, without excuse, should have been in celebration
with Bishop and Mrs. Moss, on the Bishop’s enthronement to this high-coveted
office, on foreign soil.
When, pray tell me, would it ever happen again
that a member of our country’s small population be elected, from among
all the aspirants in the region, to such a high office where he or she
would be called upon to lead a congregation that, in all probability, would
more than double the population of The Bahamas; when Mr. Ingraham; when
Mr. Symonette?
This was an occasion where protocol dictates,
in my view, that the Bahamian people ought to have been, officially, well
represented. I am proud of and do congratulate the official opposition,
PLP, for ensuring it’s representation, in the persons of the shadow minister
of foreign affairs, the Hon. Frederick Mitchell and the party’s Deputy
Leader and member of parliament for Cat Island Mr. Philip ‘Brave’ Davis.
120 proud Bahamians, (including my wife who claims to be of the Baptist
following, by the way), attended the ceremonies, to give support to a very
humble, generous, and deserving son of the soil. History will record
the shame and disgrace on this Administration for its boycott of this most
historic occasion in the life of our nation. It is said, somewhere,
that we should give honour where honour is due and Bishop and Mrs. Moss
certainly deserve the nation’s highest honour for they are, indeed, national
treasures.
But, to his (dis?)credit, Ingraham is consistent
in behaving badly and has racked up, for himself, a sorry record of disregard
and disdain for Bahamians, generally, but especially those of colour.
We should not forget that he (Ingraham) has the mind of a dictator and
dictators regard themselves, only, as important in the country; all others
are just pawns to be used, as they wish, in their games of governance.
I, again, submit that this is a childhood scar on Ingraham’s DNA with which
he will be burdened for the rest of his miserable life. He is so
accustomed to treating people like dirt that, in his conduct of the affairs
of the nation, it is no big deal to him when he spits and urinates all
over the accomplishments of our sons and daughters.
I know of at least four cases where persons,
who thought they had developed a close friendship with this Hubert Ingraham
and thought that they were allies with him, but who found out, the hard
way, that he could not be relied upon; that their friendship with him was
a one-way street; that he is selfish and self-cantered and that he has
little or no regard for the long term buddy system. They found out,
the hard way, that after taking him in, from the cold, when he was out
in the political wilderness and helping him to achieve his present status,
that he kicked all of them in their behinds.
The four persons I am referring to are individuals
who stuck with this man, through thick and thin, and followed him blindly,
when the PLP was obliged to expel him from the party for committing “political
treason”. He had no Job at the time and he had no practice.
He allegedly walked around with patches in his behind but they, like in
the story of the Good Samaritan depicted in the Holy Book, took him in,
poured oil on his wounds (figuratively speaking), set him on their own
donkeys (again, figuratively speaking) and took him to an inn where they
paid to have him cared for.
Like the story of the proverbial snake, however,
after making an agreement with the man, that in exchange for taking him
(the snake) safely across the river, he (the snake) promised that he would
not bite him (the man). Just as soon as he (the snake) was safely
across and out of danger, though, the snake bit him. “Why did you
do that? “, the man asked, “you promised not bite me.” The snake
replied, “What can I tell you, I am a snake and that’s what snakes do -
they bite.” Ingraham bit all four of these friends of his in their
behinds. He betrayed them, just as the snake in the story did.
These four gentlemen openly tell their sad stories
of disappointment to whoever would listen. They tell of being rebuffed
in their hour of need by the man whom they say they assisted, financially,
on a weekly basis, during his years in the political wilderness.
But, they say, now that he is where he wants to be, he has no more need
of them and so he has discarded them like his dirty, filthy, smelly clothes.
Sound typical?
History will record our nation’s disgraceful
display of disdain for the high honour bestowed on this son of our soil,
by a foreign country, when this government chose to boycott that historical
event. Shame on you, Hubert Ingraham; shame on you Brent Symonette; shame
on you FNM government; shame, shame, shame.
Forrester J Carroll J P
Bahamas Tourism down but not out
The sixteenth Annual World Travel Awards were
held recently in London and what was patently clear was that The Bahamas
was not the hottest destination in the Caribbean, a lofty position that
we as Bahamians had all but taken for granted for far too long.
Jamaica celebrated a “Sweet 16” by winning an
outstanding 16 awards. For the third consecutive year, Jamaica was recognized
as Leading Caribbean Destination, World’s Leading Cruise Destination and
Caribbean’s Leading Cruise Destination. While questions are being asked
in some international quarters about whether it is truly “better in the
Bahamas”, Jamaica was honoured for its “Once you go, you know” campaign,
in a new category, Caribbean’s Leading Marketing Campaign.
The Jamaica Tourist Board was awarded Caribbean’s
Leading Tourist Board for the third year in a row. It is clear that Jamaica
is a hot destination, a lofty position the Bahamas held for an extended
period of time.
Jamaica’s Director of Tourism John Lynch said,
“We’re thrilled to be honoured again with some of the industry’s top awards.
This recognition acknowledges the success of our efforts in navigating
the economic crisis and proves that Jamaica, with its unrivalled offerings,
attractions and easy access, is an ideal destination that caters to all
travellers.”
Many of Jamaica’s resorts and travel partners
were also recognized, further illustrating the destination’s outstanding
tourism product.
Trafalgar Travel, a travel agency based in Jamaica,
was also honoured as the Caribbean’s Leading Travel Agency for the third
consecutive year.
Editor, I am quick to point out that there is
nothing Jamaica has in terms of natural geography, natural beauty and resources,
access, skill sets and other intellectual capital that the Bahamas does
not have. A credible argument can be made that the tourism goose that laid
the golden egg was taken for granted and we probably expected to remain
at number one in perpetuity as an entitlement.
What is constant is change and we must apply
the principle of “Kaizen”, or continuous improvement to our tourism product.
The Bahamas was the undisputed Heavyweight Champion of tourism before and
we can reclaim that crown.
I challenge all tourism stakeholders (all 305,000
of us Bahamians) to cut and paste this article in a prominent location
in your office or home as a reminder of our dethronement and to motivate
us to place all hands on deck and all shoulders to the wheel to reclaim
our coveted position as the number one tourist destination in the Caribbean.
Bahamians, our national pride and way of life are at stake.
Yes, Bahamas tourism is down, temporarily, but
certainly not out.
Elcott Coleby
BILLY
SAUNDERS AT HIS RACIST BEST (Breaking News)
Montagu Gardens was the scene of yet another example
of the inveterate racism of William ‘Billy’ Saunders, the owner of the
Majestic Tours company who has been before the courts for threatening to
kill a black professional who lived in his area, who someone had to intervene
to stop him from getting a cut behind when he attacked a black man parked
on the side of the road leading into High Vista near to the home of the
late Charles Johnson.
We have reported his antics on this site.
The latest is at the Montagu Gardens on Friday 11th December when he sought
to sully the name of Lynden Pindling by saying in front of a group of PLPs
that Pindling ruined the country and introduced racism into the country.
When they asked him to desist, he said, “Don’t talk to me, you nigger”.
Whereupon he was about to get a slap, but the man was restrained.
Billy Saunders was dragged out of the club shouting, “Come Outside you
(....ing) Nigger”.
Observers say that it was only through the grace
of God that he is still alive today. The Ministry of Tourism ought
to condemn this man and his behaviour and his licence to operate in the
country should be put at risk.
MELANIE
GRIFFIN - SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT
In a Bahamas where the revisionists of the FNM are
always trying to rewrite history, it is important to get the facts straight.
It is important for Bahamians today, and those who will come tomorrow to
know what really happened. In this cause, we present an intervention
by Melanie Griffin MP, former Minister of Social Services and Community
Development. Mrs. Griffin was speaking in the House of Assembly in
response to comments by the now Minister of State for Finance Zhivargo
Laing about what happened in Grand Bahama in the aftermath of Hurricanes
Frances, Jeanne and Wilma under the PLP.
Said Mrs. Griffin, "...it is important to ...ensure
that the truth prevails and that our democracy is not compromised by those
who in my view mislead." Please click
here for the full intervention by Melanie Griffin MP in the House of Assembly
on 2nd December, 2009.
IN PASSING
Greenslade Appointed
The Government announced last week that Ellison Greenslade, the Acting
Deputy Commissioner of Police is now to act as Commissioner of Police consequent
upon the pre-retirement leave of Reginald Ferguson, who is to retire on
4th January 2009. No word on who is to be the new Commissioner.
The Police Staff Association that has been howling against Mr. Ferguson
announced that it was pleased by the appointment. Bradley Roberts,
Chairman of the PLP denounced the appointment of Reginald Ferguson as Commissioner
once again and said that he did not deserve the fix up job of Director
of the Financial Intelligence Unit that the government is giving him.
Successor To Archbishop Gomez
Dr. John Holder, after nine years as Bishop of Barbados has been elected
Archbishop of the West Indies. He succeeds Drexel Gomez who retired
as Archbishop last year. The election was a surprise. He defeated
the Bishop of Jamaica who may have lost because he would have had only
two years to serve in the job. The hand of Bishop Gomez is seen behind
the new election.
Berlin Pratt Dies
Former Secretary General of the Progressive Liberal Party and former
Senator for the PLP died on 10th December following a long battle with
prostate cancer. Party Chairman Bradley Roberts extended condolences
on behalf of the PLP. We also extend our condolences. Mr. Pratt
was also a trustee of the party.
Bahamas International Film Festival Opens
Kudos to Leslie Vanderpool for her hard work and determination.
The sixth Bahamas International Film Festival opened on Friday 11th December.
Actor Johnny Depp who has a home in the Exuma is one of the honourees of
the festival. Taking place from December 10-17, the festival will
showcase 68 films from 26 countries, including 38 features of which several
are world or international premieres, and nearly all Bahamian premieres.
Sir Sean Connery, the former James Bond actor, who lives at Lyford Cay
in The Bahamas, is the patron of the event.
Auditor General’s Comments On Allowances
A story appeared in the Nassau Guardian of 7th December saying that
MPs had one week to get their information to the Auditor General about
the use of their allowances from the government now set at $1500 per month
each. The Auditor General should be careful how he appears to be
issuing threats to MPs. They have not audited these allowances since
they began and suddenly now have popped up talking about an audit of MPs.
The allowance does not begin to cover expenses for Members of Parliament.
Nevertheless, there should and must be an accounting. The point here
is that the Auditor General has been known to make findings of fact without
giving notice that he has made such a finding to the person against whom
he proposes to make an adverse finding. It appears that he may be
on that same frolic and should be advised against it. An audit is
really a picture of what exists on a particular day and often the way the
Auditor General has reported in the past, it gives the impression of malfeasance
where there is in fact none and he does nothing to correct the misinformation.
Ten TIEAs Signed
Despite all their frantic activity and the promise to sign 12 Tax Information
Exchange (TIEAs) before the end of the year, the Government will not meet
the deadline that they set. Some countries are simply not ready to
sign. The FNM has been frantically trying to find someone to sign
in response to pressure from the PLP that they have been dragging their
feet. Ten have now been signed as of last week. This is the
new international standard of transparency that will cause The Bahamas
if they sign a minimum of 12 TIEAs to get off the gray list of the Organization
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Some banks have
left the jurisdiction because we have not complied. Now the news
is that a new standard is being developed. Everyone will have to
join a group called the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information
in order to qualify as a co-operating country. The Bahamas has signed
ten of the TIEAs: France (G20), Belgium, the Netherlands, China (G20),
Argentina (G20), New Zealand, the US (G20), the UK (G20), San Marino and
Monaco.
Broward County Man Guilty, Sidney Says No
Josephus Eggelletion pleaded guilty to money laundering in a Florida
courtroom last week. He is the Broward Country Commissioner with
whom former PLP treasurer Sidney Cambridge was charged with money laundering.
Mr. Cambridge has vigorously denied the allegations. He is seeking
an arrangement with the U.S. to be able to plead and leave the jurisdiction
on bail rather than face extradition and be detained.
Subdivision Bill Withdrawn
The government was forced last week to withdraw the Subdivision Bill
that they were trying to ram through Parliament. The PLP opposed
the legislation as too bureaucratic and too expensive. The Bahamas
Real Estate Association also weighed in. Then the government came
with 26 pages of amendments to the bill that they had, giving the PLP one
day to read them. The PLP objected. There was a further delay.
When the House met on Thursday 10th December after the delay, the government
announced that it was abandoning the bill and will come back in January
with a new bill.
The House To Be Prorogued
The Prime Minister announced in the House of Assembly on Thursday 10th
December that he intends to prorogue the House of Assembly at the end of
January. He asked all Committees appointed to complete their work
by then or the Committees will die. He is wrong because the House
has given the Committees power to meet during the recess. Nevertheless,
since that is his view the Committees had better complete their work.
Right now, Glenys Hanna Martin PLP MP has one looking into the child abuse
claims in Eight Mile Rock, Grand Bahama; Dr. Bernard Nottage MP PLP, has
one looking into crime; and Fred Mitchell MP PLP heads one looking into
the disposition of all publicly held lands. The PLP has complained
that the Committees are not given the resources to do their work.
Threat Of Industrial Action At Bahamasair
The Bahamasair employees are threatening industrial action because
the airline refuses to pay the raises due according to their contract.
The interim president of the Union says that he does not agree with strike
action now. He has the title but does not have the support of the
staff. The Managing Director Henry Woods say that the strike would
be ill advised. The real president of the Union Nelerine Harding
says that Bahamasair must pay. We will wait and see.
Customs Officers Dismissed
The Cabinet Office has announced that nine customs officers have been
dismissed from the public services as a result of the ongoing purge of
the service by the FNM. Others have been retired in the public interest.
Save Montagu
Dianne Philips is head of the NGO looking into the matter of the redevelopment
of the Montagu Foreshore. Loretta Butler Turner FNM has been working
as the MP for the area to help. Problem is that all the plans want
to do is move the Montagu Fish and Vegetable Vendors and prevent them from
making a living where they now do on the pretext that they are a nuisance
and that it is unsanitary. The fact is that plans were drawn up a
long time ago to redevelop this area and are in the Ministry of Works to
do so. There is no need for a new plan. Secondly if the government
of Mr. Ingraham had not been so slow and bloody minded they would have
bought the vacant land at the Montagu Foreshore and created a larger park
to accommodate all the uses of the park. Now the Vendors will have
to suffer because they are on the wrong side politically.
Stevie S Given A Further Four Years
The Court of Appeal has upped the sentence of one year given to Stevie
S, (Lemuel Stephen Smith) the entertainer, for sleeping with an underage
girl. The court said that the one-year sentence given on 30th April
by Freeport Judge Vera Watkins was unduly lenient for the offence.
The Court of Appeal gave its ruling on Wednesday 9th December.
Tribune photo/Tim Clarke
Janyne Hodder’s Quote Of The Week
We thought that this quote from outgoing President of the College of
The Bahamas Jayne Hodder is to be commended. Ms. Hodder will leave
the College in June next year. As for what advice she would give
to her successor, Mrs. Hodder said: “To love The Bahamas, to have faith
in it, to believe in it. To think every day about the seven-year-old
kid that's on his way to school and to say to yourself it's my job to make
sure he doesn’t choose a handgun and a kilo of coke to make a living, but
that he chooses a university education.”
Justice Rhonda Bain Robbed
It has gotten to this on the FNM’s watch. A minister of the government
was murdered on their watch, one of their own ministers. They tried
to blame it on the PLP but it turned out that it was one of their own supporters.
Now Justice Rhonda Bain was robbed allegedly at gunpoint in broad day light
outside an ATM in one of the most popular shopping areas of New Providence.
This happened on Saturday 5th December.
Condolences to Elliott Lockhart
The news was announced today that Elliott B. Lockhart, attorney and
former Justice of the Supreme Court, has lost a son, Adele, who was reportedly
a university student in Florida. Our condolences.
What Chris Blackwell Said About Nassau
Chris Blackwell, the Englishman who went native in Jamaica and used
to have a studio here in Nassau called Compass Point, together with two
boutique hotel properties, had something to say about Nassau. We
think it is interesting. Not sure quite what to make of it, but you
be the Judge. Mr. Blackwell is widely credited with introducing Bob
Marley to the world through the record label he founded, Island Records,
which he later sold. Island is celebrating 50 years as company.
The comment was reported in Caribbean Beat Magazine, the flight magazine
of Caribbean Airlines. Mr. Blackwell, “I put together a studio in
Nassau because Nassau is like a blank canvas. It has little or no
character to it, but it’s a very good place to go and work, if you have
done all your creativity where you live.” Hmmmm!
New C.O.P.
Being such a small country like The Bahamas, rumours will travel.
Bradley Sands is the Inspector who heads the police staff association.
Frederick Sands is the inspector who guards the Prime Minister. They
are brothers. So it did not take long to put two and two together
and make five. The talk amongst police is that Reginald Ferguson’s
fate as Commissioner was sealed once he crossed Bradley Sands, the brother
of the PM’s bodyguard. Bradley Sands ran a public campaign for the
Commissioner’s removal. Word is also that soon, Bradley Sands is
to be promoted to Assistant Superintendent and out of the ranks for the
Staff Association.
PLP objects to Reg, FNM Gets Nasty
Bradley Roberts, the Chairman of the PLP, denounced Reginald Ferguson
last week as he was going out of the Commissioner’s door. (Click
here for the full statement) The FNM did not like it and in their
defence said the reason that Mr. Roberts denounced Mr. Ferguson was because
he brought charges of rape against Mr. Roberts. Mr. Roberts
rejected that saying that the virtual complainant in the matter withdrew
the charges. Now we know where the FNM is headed, the PLP should
get its nasty files ready if they are not already.
No to FIU appointment
PLP Chairman Bradley Roberts denounced the appointment of Reginald
Ferguson, the outgoing Commissioner of Police to the appointment of Director
of the Financial Intelligence Unit. Mr. Roberts said that Mr. Ferguson
had been condemned by the Commission of Inquiry looking into the Lorequin
drug haul. He said that a Judge of the Supreme Court had concluded
that Mr. Ferguson pressured a witness to give false testimony.
Turnquest Attacks The Press
Well what a difference a couple of years as Minister make. Now
the problem of crime is The Tribune’s fault. Tommy Turnquest said
that the press concentrates on bad headlines, which is exacerbating the
crime problem. There is a novel proposition. Mr. Turnquest
has had an interesting time of it over the last months as Minister of National
Security. He said he does not want to be the scapegoat for crime.
Now it’s the Tribune’s fault. What next? He made his statements
in the Tribune of Wednesday 9th December.
Dames Ivy's New Book
Former Governor General Dame Ivy Dumont is to release her memoirs early
next year. The book is called ‘From Roses To Mount Fitzwilliam’.
Roses is the settlement in Long Island in the southern Bahamas where she
was born. Mt. Fitzwilliam is the place where Government House is
located and where she lived in the official residence for three years as
Governor General. Here is what the Nassau Guardian writes of the
new work:
“The stuff of ‘From Roses to Mount Fitzwilliam’,
Dame Ivy's soon-to-be released memoir that recounts the development of
a young nation through the life of one of its most well-known daughters,
these vignettes add a front porch, story-time quality to a volume of significant
historical, educational and political import.
“With candour and warmth, Dame Ivy Dumont nee
Turnquest, 79, tells the story of a young girl who grew up the eldest of
13 siblings in rural Long Island, and journeyed across several lifetimes
to the nation's highest post. She retires not once, but five times,
before quietly returning to the home she and husband of 58 years, Reginald
Dumont, made for their two children Cheddi and Edda at 209 Farrington Road
in 1964.”
Cheryl Albury's Fate
Justice Cheryl Albury is to suffer the ignominy of having been turned
down by the Prime Minister for the extension to her post as Judge of the
Court, while seeing lesser mortals fixed up by the FNM government.
The decision could only be spiteful and political. Under our constitution,
when you reach 65 as a Judge you have to ask the Prime Minister for an
extension. It is normally granted, but Hubert Ingraham is a spiteful
individual and because he thinks the Judge does not support his party,
he would not grant the extension. There is a special place in hell
reserved for people like that.
High Rock Beer Apologizes
There was a lighthouse built in the small settlement of Grand Bahama
called High Rock by a local minister Rev. Cecil Kemp, Pastor of Lighthouse
Chapel. The owner of the new beer James Sands called the beer ‘High
Rock’ and thought that the lighthouse was emblematic of the settlement
and put it in his logo for the new beer. Bad idea. The preacher
objected and threatened through his lawyer Constance McDonald to sue.
She said that this was a religious symbol. The owner of the beer
backed down and with Fred Smith, the nuisance lawyer at his side, issued
a mea culpa. Mr. Sands is now back to the drawing broad with a new
design for High Rock beer. Of course there is no basis in law to
enforce the objection, but the owner’s response is simply good public relations.
You don’t want the church fighting against your new beer before the people
have even started to drink it. The press conference took place on
Thursday 10th December.
Allyson & Chinese Women's Leader
Last week, we carried a note in 'In Passing' about Senator Allyson
Maynard Gibson, now president of the International Women's Forum meeting
with Madame Chen Zhili the chairwoman of the All China Women's Federation.
At the meeting, Senator Gibson was presented with a gift by Madame Zhili,
who is also Vice Chair of the Standing Committee of the National People's
Congress.
The Police Get Their Man It Appears
Dekota Von Lockhart, 21 years old, for whom there was an outstanding
arrest warrant on a drug charge has been arrested and charged with
robbing those 18 tourists from the cruise ship on 20th November.
He pleaded guilty to receiving some of the goods of the tourists.
He was also sentenced to six months for the drug charge. He also
pleaded guilty to possession of shotgun with intent to endanger the life
of one of the tourists. Incredible! The police are hunting
for his accomplice. He was arraigned on 10th December before Magistrate
Roger Gomez.
Tribune photo/Tim Clarke
Ingraham Boasting
At the FNM’s party on Friday 11th December, Hubert Ingraham, the Prime
Minister was boasting “Malcolm gone!”
The Ingraham Law Firm
When Perry Christie became Prime Minister, he gave up his law practice,
including taking his name off the marquee of the firm Christie Davis and
Co. He gave other lawyers in the Cabinet three months to wind up
their affairs and become inactive. The now Prime Minister may have
some questions to answer about his own practice. You may remember
that the figures came out just before the last election that while being
“retired” he made hundreds of thousands of dollars off property transactions
as a lawyer while Perry Christie was Prime Minister, even while promoting
the idea that the PLP was selling the country out from under us.
Mr. Ingraham reportedly still has a law firm. Rhonda Bain, the now
Judge, used to run it up until she became a judge. Who else is in
the firm, which still carries his name? A younger lawyer has now
been hired to run the practice but who actually runs it? Mr. Ingraham
needs to let us know what the truth is on this matter. The code of
conduct clearly intends that a sole practitioner as Mr. Ingraham was should
give up his practice. What say ye Prime Minister. Inquiring
minds want to know.
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
WHO ARE THESE
PEOPLE AND WHAT DO THEY BELIEVE?
The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce run now by upwardly mobile young
black men and women held its annual mix and mingle at the Sandals Resort
on Tuesday 15th December. Mix and Mingle was an understatement.
It was a huge event. The Bahamian song says: “Is this a party or
what?” No fault there really. Except to make the observation
that the party last Tuesday was a long way from the sedate atmosphere of
the business crowd in old days descended from Abaco and Bay Street and
their senior employees who would meet in their red, green or plaid jackets
to have drink or two, say Merry Christmas and go home somewhere on the
Eastern Road.
Here was an atmosphere where the brightest, the best, the upwardly mobile, the up and coming, the leaders to be and of today were gathered in full thrall: beautiful women, smart looking men, mainly in their thirties, exchanging cards and furtively looking at their Blackberrys. To add to their excitement the marketing department of BTC, the phone company, was there making it easier for those who did not have a Blackberry to get one. Such is life in The Bahamas today.
The question is, where was the PLP in all of this? Politics and business go hand in hand and on the face of it, if that group represented the upwardly mobile, the PLP ought to have been there front and centre. This is all the more so in the face of the Greenburg Quinlan report, much reviled in PLP establishment circles, because it points out that of one third of the people in the last general election who identified themselves as affiliated to neither party, the PLP lost that group by 12 percentage points. Why would that be, when the group that most benefits from the nationalistic policies of the PLP is the very group that was now relishing the good time at the Chamber’s Mix and Mingle?
Social parties, it turns out, are quite important to the ‘feel good’ factor of the voter. The FNM began their campaign in 2007 with massive block parties on Easter Monday and the party never stopped until the night of the election when they had the biggest party of all, the victory party at the FNM’s Headquarters on Mackey Street.
One informant tells us that with the generation that runs the country today, those 20 and 30 somethings in the Mix and Mingle room, you can see their best work on a Friday night where the bright people get to mix and mingle at the Green Parrot. The talk is like: “Pass me the Grey Goose (that’s an up market vodka); my wife and I are getting a Rhodesian Ridgeback (that’s a dog); my new Bavarian Motor Works gets in today (that’s a BMW car for the uninitiated); do you like my Philippe Patek (well, we assume you know that’s a watch that most of us cannot afford)”. That’s the night at the Green Parrot. Try it sometime. The feeling is quite an uplift. This is the modern Bahamas and that is where we are going.
Don’t talk public policy at the Green Parrot, you will find them yawning in a minute someone said. But start talking about who ‘tief and who sleeping with whom and you get their attention. Admittedly a bit cynical and perhaps over the top, but you get the point.
Compare and contrast that to what the same 20 and 30 somethings of their time were doing forty years ago. Their heads it seems now, but perhaps the memory fades, were into politics and nation building. Would the country go into independence? Would the black majority rule government succeed in deepening the democracy and empowering the masses? Ronnie’s Rebel Room was replacing Doubloon as the place of choice for night life. There, the now iconic Ronnie Butler performed with his band and in his own place. There was Al Collie who had his own band at the Loews’ Hotel at Paradise Island. Mr. Collie was later able to parlay that into a fortune where he now sits pretty as a rich man, opening last week a ten million dollar nightclub for the new generation of party goers.
So looking around the Chamber’s Mix and Mingle, the PLP would have been, should have been asking themselves how many of the people in that room were PLPs. The last General Election showed that if you take the southern corridor where the new homes were built in New Providence alone, the PLP lost all of the seats except Shane Gibson’s seat Golden Gates. The PLP lost them by a close margin, less than 100 votes. What was the cause and has it gotten any better since the last election?
It should have, because the economy has gone south, so this same group gathered at the Chamber’s Mix and Mingle ought to know that under the management of the FNM their future has been imperilled. They have lost their economic footing and worse is to come. One by one people have been laid off under the FNM and the young college graduate now takes a year to find a job. Yet inside the ballroom the report is, the feel is, that this not a PLP crowd. The question is, if that is so, then why not? What can the PLP do to win hearts and minds?
What, for example, with Atlantis workers now laid off in masses would cause those people to continue to support the Free National Movement? Or not to support the PLP? In everything that we can see around that has to do with the government, there is failure. They have practiced and refined the art of rebranding into a science. The most recent was the signing of the contract to rebuild the straw market on a site that they said was not fit for it, and at a cost that on a square footage basis is simply not as cost effective for the investment as that the PLP proposed to make at the site. We report below on PLP Chairman Bradley Roberts’ analysis of how the public has been hoodwinked and shortchanged.
The stop review and cancel express is still on a roll. Policies are being decided by one man. The policies are being made up as they go along and the Bahamian people are being hurt. The banking sector is imperilled by the inaction of the government, but it appears that the group that is most adversely affected by the bad policies of the FNM still seems to support them. Or are we wrong?
On Saturday 19th December, there was an event called Rotate; seems that it is led by six young Bahamian men and when you go to their website, the photographer Sharad L appears to be at its front and centre. We will report on the event next week, but again that is where the younger upwardly mobile set seem to want to be. The site is thisistheclick.com. Bernadette Christie, wife of the PLP’s leader who was featured in Sharad’s last show in jeans on a motorbike, was scheduled to be a guest of Chef Petty at Rotate at Collins House. Good for her.
The point here is that the PLP must be there and viable at these events, actively seeking to recruit to the cause. There can be no coyness about this. There must be an active attempt to find out what this group wants and lead them to it or offer it to them. That is where we are at. Our country cannot afford another five years of Hubert Ingraham. He has mashed up the middle class, defamed the country and its people, destroyed the public service and insulted the national patrimony. The PLP’s job now is to win the favour of the people. When there is another Chamber of Commerce Mix and Mingle there should not then be a question of who are these people and what do they believe?
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 12th December 2009 up to midnight: 158,246.
UNEMPLOYMENT
IS UP
The figures released by the Department of Statistics
on Friday 18th December show that unemployment has risen from 14.2
percent in May 1992 to 14.6 percent in New Providence today. It was
12.1 percent in February 2009. It has risen from 16.9 percent in
May 1992 for Grand Bahama and is now at 18.1. It was 14.6 percent
in February 2009. That tells only part of the story. The misery
index has increased exponentially.
Interesting point to consider. When Hubert
Ingraham first came to office in 1992, unemployment in New Providence stood
then at 14.2 per cent. Sir Lynden Pindling’s government was struggling
from the effects of the Gulf War. Mr. Ingraham argued when he came
to office that the Gulf War was not an excuse; that it was Pindling.
So now what is his excuse? Ingraham ought to go, if his logic is
correct.
US
CRITICAL OF BAHAMIAN VOTE
Despite the nice smiles and all the nice things
we say about each other, the fact is when there is a disagreement on policy,
the United States has not been shy to speak. The most recent example
is the slap in the face the FNM government got from the new US Ambassador
Nicole Avant published on Saturday 19th December who said that her government
is unhappy about a decision of The Bahamas government to abstain on a human
rights vote last month that condemned Iran, North Korea and Burma at the
United Nations.
It serves the FNM right, having attacked the PLP
when the PLP was the government for standing up in the national interest
for the Bahamian position and then the FNM seeking to get brownie points
by seeming to be more pro American than the PLP. As it stands, the
government has a right to vote the way it wants and the argument is a Caricom
wide one; that our countries stay out of the condemnatory resolutions that
are the stock in trade of the US and the other developed countries.
Perry Christie changed the policy when the PLP was in power at the request
of then Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. The FNM has now changed
back to the original Caricom position.
MITCHELL:
2009 A HORRIBLE YEAR
With every MP of the PLP struggling to get their
constituents some relief or even a simple gift this Christmas, Fred Mitchell
MP for Fox Hill set out his Christmas Message which is to be heard on ZNS
TV and Radio on Christmas Day. Mr. Mitchell said that he would rather
put this year behind him, describing it in the words of Queen Elizabeth
II in 1992 as “annus horribilis” or a horrible year.
 Christmas
Message from
Fred Mitchell MP 15th December, 2009 "When I spoke at the lighting of the Christmas
Tree in honour of Fox Hill elder Pastor David Johnson, I recalled an expression
that the Queen used in 1992 to describe a particularly bad year for her:
annus horribilis.
|
LIKE
A DRUNKEN SAILOR
Wonderful! Wonderful! Copenhagen - Danny Kaye singing in the
movie Hans Christian Andersen
When folk in The Bahamas woke up to their morning
newspapers on Monday 14th December, they saw their Prime Minister on the
front page heading off to wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen. There he was
joining the other leaders in the region and the world to save the planet
from climate change in the midst of what our Met Office has said is the
hottest December on record.
Mr. Ingraham told the assembled delegates in wonderful,
wonderful Copenhagen that if the sea rose one and a half feet, eighty percent
of The Bahamas would be under water. He even said that in his lifetime
he had seen the sea come closer to his home in Coopers Town. That’s
great scientific evidence of climate change.
But you would have thought this guy was high on
something, he was talking like a drunken sailor as he sat at his airport
conference on Sunday last. Candia Dames of The Guardian captured
his every word. He has plenty to say on any and everything.
He would let us know whether he was running for office in 2010. He
would not renew the permit of Hannes Babak of the Grand Bahama Port Authority.
Fred Smith’s case against him was a “flam”. He was going to raise
taxes on the banks next year. He would address a crime strategy when
he got back and he will confirm the new Commissioner of Police on 4th January.
That’s great; the murderers will wait until he gets back from wonderful,
wonderful Copenhagen. He will give a comprehensive address on crime
sometime in the New Year.
What a mouthful. We can imagine when he gets
back from wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen; he will be even fuller of himself
than when he left, particularly since he met the Queen of Denmark while
he was in wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen.
BIS photo
JACK
HAYWARD AND INGRAHAM IN A TIFF
It
was really great entertainment this past week to see Jack Hayward and Hubert
Ingraham at loggerheads and picnicking on one another. They deserve
each other. The problem, Mr. Ingraham talking like a drunken sailor
as he left for wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen, said was that Sir Jack’s
main man Hannes Babak would not be getting his work permit renewed.
Mr. Ingraham said that he told Sir Jack that the work permit was given
to deal with some specific issues and one of them was to sell the Port
Authority to someone who could move it forward. He had until the
end of the year to do so. Once the permit expired, it would not be
renewed. Of course, Jack Hayward who has more money than sense thought
that meant nothing to him. After all, he paid for Mr. Ingraham to
be where he is by his generous contributions and his open support of the
Free National Movement in the last General Election. So, ‘you pays
your penny and you takes your choice’. What Sir Jack got was
pig in a poke. Mr. Ingraham said that he did not give a hoot about
whether Jack was unhappy or not, Mr. Babak was to go.
It was left to the hapless Zhivargo Laing, the Minister
of State who did not get to go with the Prime Minister to wonderful, wonderful
Copenhagen, to stumble and bumble about to try and make some sense of what
was going on. He is still smarting over the fact that Charles Maynard
got promoted to a full Minister over him who has been long and suffering
in the vineyard. Poor ZNS TV news was lost as well. They were
made to give a grovelling apology at the start of their newscast in Freeport
on Friday 18th December, because they got it wrong when they said his work
permit would not be renewed. The station said that the work permit
would expire and Mr. Babak would not get a new one. Oh well, what’s
the difference, but that is the way ZNS is run these days, under political
direction. We await the words of the dear Prime Minister, who is
now also the Minister of Immigration, once he gets back from wonderful,
wonderful Copenhagen.
Sir Jack had some other startling news. He
said that he had sold his shares in the company, fifty percent of the Port
to a company the name of which he did not disclose. The Tribune ferreted
out that it is an unknown company called Mid Atlantic Projects. This
was a company, which, according to its spokesman Joe Rosetti, its senior
managing director, was put together for the sole purpose of buying the
South Riding Point oil facility (that effort failed) and what they are
really interested in is the LNG licence to run LNG to the states from Grand
Bahama. He said that it was early days yet and they had to do the
due diligence before the sale could go through.
One small thing, the government would have to approve
the sale. And even if it were approved, which is unlikely, how with
a one quarter share are they going to control a company with Hutchison
and the St. Georges against them? (Sir Jack and the St. Georges own
fifty percent and Hutchison fifty percent of the development company.)
This is something that Mr. Ingraham has already said that he won’t do.
But Sir Jack surprised his own investors by his startling announcement
and certainly caught the government off guard. He claimed that a
letter was written to the Prime Minister on 4th December, but he is not
sure that it got to him before he left for wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen.
The strangest thing of all, Edison Key, who left
the PLP in anger because of alleged delays for certain requests of Mr.
Christie, was the one who introduced the matter to Mr. Ingraham.
This, according to how Sir Jack tells it. He said that Mr. Key told
the Prime Minister about the deal in Abaco when they toured the Wilson
City facility last week. Mr. Key is pushing the deal, saying that
it will be good for Grand Bahama. What will Mr. Ingraham now say?
This company has no track record and it does not
even have money from what anyone knows. But Sir Jack says that they
will be doing a fantastic job. He compares this to the lousy job
that he says his now partners Hutchison Whampoa are doing for Freeport.
He said that he will not sell his shares to Hutchison. He says they
are not promoting the hotel in Freeport with its 2500 rooms, spending less
on promoting than a nearby 250 room hotel. He says that if Hannes
Babak can’t stay at the head of the Port in Freeport nothing will happen
because Hannes is doing a wonderful job and it will be a hot time in Freeport
if Babak can't stay.
What great fun we are all having with this soap
opera. The best part was that Sir Jack said that we should not ask
Fred Smith what he thinks of the deal. Fred Smith is the nuisance
lawyer who took Sir Jack’s property away from him with an ex parte order
for two years. Sir Jack says Fred Smith is off to Mt. Everest in
the Himalayas to think. That was not nice. Our friend Forrester
Carroll in Freeport summed it all up in a letter to the editor below.
This is funny, except that it means serious business for Grand Bahama.
It means nothing will happen for people there and while Jack and the others
are entertaining one another with petty tactics, the city is going downhill.
To add to it all, Jack Hayward is soon off on a cruise for four months
to contemplate his fate on the high seas, no doubt as Fred Smith contemplates
his in the Himalayas.
PLP
SLAMS FNM ON THE STRAW MARKET
The contract to build the straw market has been signed again.
This time the cost is 11.9 million dollars, almost one million dollars
over the cost that Mr. Ingraham said he could build it for and not a penny
more. Bradley Roberts served as the Minister of Works for the PLP
and signed the last contract for 23 million, which if the stop, review
and cancel express had not been in operation would have been finished in
August 2008. Now two years after the General Election and eight years
after the straw market fire, Mr. Stop, Review and Cancel has signed a contract
with one of the Bay Street Boy firms to rebuild the market. We think
that the PLP's response to the signing is a most comprehensive and important
one and anyone who wants to know the truth ought to read it in its entirety.
The PLP slammed the process and their release follows:
“The Hubert Ingraham FNM Government yesterday
signed an $11.2 Million Contract with Cavalier Construction Company for
a one storey Straw Market which the Government boldly told Bahamians would
cost $10 Million and not a penny more. One gets dizzy with the many statements
by FNM Ministers as to why the contract by the PLP was cancelled. PM Ingraham
said the Contractor did not have the experience to execute the contract
yet the same Contractor is heavily involved in the $400 million dollar
expansion at LPIA. The Contractor was not qualified in 2007 and suddenly
became qualified in 2009. Then Minister Earl Deveaux said it was the wrong
location and wanted vendors to relocate to an aborted location on Prince
George Dock etc and etc.
Cost
“The Government lamented on the cost of
the Straw Market under the PLP as being too expensive. The Progressive
Liberal Party charges the FNM Government with over expenditure for a warehouse
– open plan type structure which they intend to layout furnishings for
the vendors at a ridiculous cost of $ 305.00 per square foot. The cost
is 2.5 times higher than the project cost under the PLP.
Site Development Value
“Further the design is an insult to the
historical importance of the site and an insult to its value. Real Estate
professionals should acknowledge that the site is being underdeveloped
based on its worth.
“Sale of this property including the value
of its infrastructure, the foundation and general services suggests that
the site is worth in sale $6-7 Million dollars. It is a measure of thumb
that any development investment that is not four times the worth of the
site value or purchase is a gross abuse of the site value is considered
underdevelopment.
“For a site that is the one last of its
kind, waterfront etc. on Down Town Bay Street that is held in the public
domain, and will not provide any returns is surely an abuse of the public
asset.
“The expected sum that the vendors will
have to pay to at least maintain the facility will exceed the proposed
sum under the PLP at $75.00 per month or there will be a cost required
by the people to assist with its annual costs.
Selected Bid
“The Bid by Cavalier Construction is also
interesting. In the previous tender under the PLP their Bid was in the
area of $ 37Million suggesting a cost of $ 205.00 per square foot which
bid was rejected based on the selected bid of Wosely Dominion Construction
@ $ 120.00 per square foot.
“Today Cavalier’s Bid has gone up $ 100.00
per square foot for a described open plan with no internal structure for
a building described as an open plan which is no more that a steel framed
structure that is five (5) times smaller than the previous design.
Farce
“The FNM Government had told the Bahamian
People that they would build a Straw Market at a cost of $ 10 Million and
not a penny more. Immediately the FNM Government was advised that it could
not be done. However to meet this end and premature statements they caused
a revision of the design with an Architect who placed next to last in the
National competition that the FNM Government first set up in 2001.
“To meet this political end, the original
design was drastically revised and the final product was indifferent to
the scope of the previous plan that was programmed by a great number of
persons. The reduced scope to meet this political end is as follows based
on the recent tender: Size was reduced; Vendor numbers reduced; Activities
reduced; Services reduced; Design Efficiency and Character reduced.
“Part II will deal with the cost to the
Tax Payers for various Professional Fees and the repairs to the Tent and
the pain and suffering inflicted on vendors who would have been occupying
The Straw Market more than eighteen months ago if the FNM had not cancelled
the legally executed contract by the PLP government for a project expertly
considered by all relevant stake holders."
IN
PRAISE OF THE BAHAMAS FILM FESTIVAL
Nassau can be a pretty boring town and The Bahamas
in general pretty provincial. It is, after all, a small country with
a small population. How does that relate to Leslie Vanderpool and
her Bahamas International Film Festival (BIFF)? Congratulations to
her for her contribution to nation building, deepening the democracy and
making Nassau a more interesting town in December. How does she do
it? We are told that she works all year long just on this project.
This year Ms. Vanderpool got Sean Connery, the former
James Bond actor, to be the patron of the festival. She got Johnny
Depp to show up and accept an award from the Festival. This year
Bahamians seemed to take it in more than ever before. We are told
that she is a bit down hearted that the resources are not there from the
government to support it, but nevertheless with the help of the private
sector she has in our view done an excellent job.
What really gave the Festival a lift however was
the fact that it started off with the showing of a film called Children
Of God by Bahamas’ Kareem Mortimer, one of the great grandsons of U.J.
Mortimer of the Best Ever Candy Kitchen. The film is described in
the Bahamian press as the Bahamian Brokeback Mountain; the latter film
was banned in The Bahamas because the morality police thought that it was
too sensitive for our ears to hear and our dear eyes to see. Not
so this film, which is even more frank and direct, and hits right at home
contrasting the dysfunctions of both a Christian marriage and the attack
on taboo sexual practices. The film was first rate. It was
courageous of the director to write, film it and to show it. The
film played to packed audiences.
Bahamians also got a chance to see the work of Gavin
McKinney who has been involved in underwater filmmaking since he was 18
years old. He is Bahamian and has worked on the underwater scenes
in the Bond films and in the movie The Abyss. He was honoured by
the Festival. Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell and Deputy Prime Minister
Brent Symonette were there to congratulate Mr. McKinney. Good job
to Ms. Vanderpool and here’s to next year’s Festival.
BIFF photo, from left: Fred Mitchell, Gavin McKinney, Brent Symonette
FNMS
DEFEND URBAN RENEWAL
There has been quite a lot of back and forth in
the press about the Urban Renewal Programme over the past weeks since the
PLP’s National General Convention in October of this year. At that
convention, former Superintendent of Police Keith Bell blasted the FNM
for scrapping Urban Renewal and the assistance it gave the police in fighting
crime. Mr. Bell was personally vilified by FNM National Security
Minister Tommy Turnquest for his troubles. But the crime statistics
tell a story that the FNM cannot refute. They have even tried to
say through their various spokesmen, including the outgoing Commissioner
of Police Reginald Ferguson, that there was no evidence that Urban Renewal
affected the crime statistics. That was a particular low even for
the FNM.
This past week, however, the FNM has a new tack.
It seemed they were trying to play the sympathy card with various
individuals, all FNMs who work for the Urban Renewal Programme saying how
much their work is suffering because of the back and forth. They
seemed to be blaming the PLP for putting out the message that the Urban
Renewal programme is scrapped and thus they are having a hard time getting
the communities to continue working with them. One person who seemed
particularly wounded is Ella Lewis who was the FNM candidate for Parliament
in the General Election against Perry Christie, the Leader of the PLP and
the founder of the Urban Renewal Programme. It was quite ironic that
the FNM would appoint an FNM ideologue like her to head a programme that
they intended to scrap and change, and appoint to it the person that tried
to unseat the founder of the programme. She should lose her sense
of injury.
The fact is the programme is a shadow of what it
used to be and does not provide the assistance that it used to provide.
They can complain as they might, the fact is Urban Renewal was scrapped
by the FNM and the crime statistics show us that whatever they are doing,
it just isn’t working. The report on Urban Renewal appeared in The
Tribune.
HUBERT
WANTS PLP SUPPORT ON CHINESE LABOUR
The news is that the deal to complete the Bahamar
development on Cable Beach is shortly to become operative. The Chinese
Export Import Bank is to provide the money for the project to go ahead
and will become an equity partner in the arrangement. This has some
people in The Bahamas quite nervous because it will mean that the Government
of China will own a facility in The Bahamas and one that is crucial to
our economic development. Some think that the PLP ought to object
most vigorously to it. The din about this is sure to become more
loud as the project gets closer and the issues related to the labour force
become clear.
Right now, there are some 200 Chinese workers at
the site of the new national stadium being built by the Chinese government
at Oakes Field. The Chinese Ambassador was moved in an interview
with the press last week to say that the fact that Chinese labour is here
should not be a cause for concern. They are returning home, he said,
when they are finished. Further, he argued that the Chinese government
needs to supply employment for its people and the rates are cheaper than
in The Bahamas and so they are able to make the contribution to the development
of The Bahamas because of the cheap labour. But 200 will pale in
comparison to the 4000 workers from China that are rumoured to be needed
and required as part of the support for the Bahamar project.
The Prime Minister himself is reportedly so skittish
over the deal that he has decided that he will not take the decision on
his own; rather he will go to the House of Assembly and seek the permission
of the House in order to proceed, a bid for partisan support. That
must be a joke of course, but we will see if he does it and we will see
if the PLP can support it.
NO
DIVIDEND FROM FINCO
If you needed any evidence that the economy of The
Bahamas was in deep trouble then you could not get better evidence than
the decision announced by the Finance Corporation of The Bahamas trade
named RBC Finco that this year for the first time in its history it will
not give its 4,000 plus Bahamian shareholders a dividend from the profits.
The announcement was published in the Nassau Guardian on 18th December.
It is stunning and astounding. As recently as two weeks ago officials
at the bank were confident that a dividend would be paid on 28th December.
It is not to be. The company has decided to retain the earnings as
a bulwark against the problems which it anticipates for next year.
That is a big blow. The profit last year was 14,455,888 million;
this year it is 4,562,631 million. They expect it to get worse next
year as the amount of people in default rise.
The bank does not foresee any job losses in
2010 despite the difficult conditions. Its assets grew to $907.9
million which represents a 13.5 percent increase from $800.1 million in
2008. There is apparently a strong demand for homes. Loan Loss
Provisions totaled $15.1 million in 2009 and $5.3 million in 2008.
Finco provisions 40 percent of all non-performing loans or 1.3 percent
of the total portfolio which ever is the highest. Its Tier 1 Capital
Ratio stands at 18.53 percent and its total Capital Ratio/Tier 2 stood
at 19.78 percent. Non performing loans as a percentage of the entire
portfolio were 8.09 percent in 2009 and 4.09 in 2008.
Ross McDonald, chairman of RBC FINCO and Head of
Caribbean banking for RBC, said: "I think the message is that in these
economic times the board feels the most prudent course of action is not
to pay a dividend at this stage.
"We are living in the worst economic conditions
in anyone's memory and our shareholders and stakeholders should know this
is a decision not taken lightly.
"But we believe it is in the best interests of
the bank and of the shareholders.
"It is a prudent measure and one which is consistent
with Central Bank guidelines.
"I would say that 2010 will be roughly the same
as 2009, in that it will be a difficult year. RBC Finco will be concentrating
on adopting the right approach, we have the best efficiency in the business,
and we will strive to help our customers through. ”
Finco issued the following statement:
"The Bahamas over recent months as a result of
the current economic environment. This weakening has triggered an increase
in non-performing loans by 124.0% and the bank has simultaneously increased
loan loss provisions to guard against any potential loss that may result.
"Having considered the financial results and
the current levels of loan arrears in the banking system, RBC FINCO's Board
of Directors have decided not to declare a dividend from the results of
the fourth quarter of 2009.
"The Bank's capital ratios remain strong, being
well within regulatory requirements, and its provisioning policy is consistent,
conservative and robust.
"Delinquency management continues to be a priority
for the bank and various initiatives have been introduced to assist customers
experiencing difficulties maintaining their loans."
HIGGS
AND C.B. RESPOND TO CLIFTON CRITCISM
When you throw a rock at a pack of stray dogs and
one of them hollers, you know which one you hit. We posted on this
site a letter from Richard Coulson criticizing the development of the Clifton
Heritage site. Jacinta Higgs, the FNM Senator who heads the programme,
did not like it. She claimed that she did not read it and did not
have the time to talk to Mr. Coulson but had a long letter in the 17th
December edition of The Guardian saying what she has done and what she
plans to do. She has, according to Mr. Coulson, never responded to
him.
Rev. C.B. Moss not to be outdone had his own reply
saying that if Mr. Coulson’s suggestion about the Bahamas National Trust
had been adopted, the Clifton site would now be a land development.
Ouch! Mr. Coulson however was undaunted and we print his reply below:
“I have had many favourable responses to my recent
column about Clifton Heritage National Park.
“All accepted my basic premise that this lovely
and dramatic piece of property is not being successfully exploited under
the Clifton Heritage Authority and is wasting the Government’s money.
“However, I have had no response from the Chairperson
of the Authority’s Board, Sen. Dr. Jacinta Higgs, the responsible Minister,
or any other Board member or executive involved in overseeing or administering
the Park's activities.
“Dr. Higgs (whom I tried to meet) is doubtless
a well-meaning, energetic person, and her staff do the best they can with
limited resources and guidance.
“That being said, after more than two years of
operation under the present Government, the Park is far from fulfilling
its function of bringing local history, culture and ecology to Bahamians
and tourists.
“I certainly do not have all the answers for
making the Park come alive, but I did make one suggestion - that it be
merged with The Bahamas National Trust, so that the Trust, with its imaginative
and experienced leadership and its long list of devoted members, would
take over all responsibility for the Park.
“This would relieve a Government body of an expensive
task which it should never have undertaken in the first place and which
it is ill-equipped to carry forward.
“I would very much hope that an open debate could
be held about the feasibility of this suggestion.”
RICHARD COULSON
Nassau
PLPS
VISIT CHINESE AMBASSADOR
Members of the Progressive Liberal Party's Committee
on Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade recently visited with the Chinese
Ambassador to The Bahamas. Under the Chairmanship of Fred Mitchell
MP, the Party Spokesman on Foreign Affairs and former Foreign Minister,
the Committee is charged with informing the Party's leadership on policies
matters within its portfolio.
Photos show Foreign Affairs & Foreign Trade Committee of the
PLP visiting with Chinese Ambassador
BISHOP
CORNELL MOSS ENTHRONED - PHOTOS
On Tuesday 8th December, Bahamian Cornell Moss was
enthroned as the new Anglican Bishop of Guyana (see
photo of the week, above). We here
present a photo essay of the event by Peter Ramsay.
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Forrester Carroll Tells Freeport Story on the Hayward / Ingraham
Tiff
Make no mistake about it, Sir Jack Hayward, in
an interview with the Tribune’s business reporter, threw down the gauntlet
and the question now is; will Hubert Ingraham bend his very fragile knees
to pick it up? Does he, even, have the guts to pick it up and engage Sir
Jack?
In the Business Section of the Tribune’s 15th
December 2009 edition Sir Jack Hayward, owner of the Grand Bahama Port
Authority, responded to a number of questions put to him by the Tribune’s
Business reporter. The questions cantered on the government’s decision,
as indicated by Hubert Ingraham at a press conference held before leaving
on another unaffordable, unnecessary trip abroad, not to renew the work
permit of Bahamian permanent resident holder since 1996, Mr. Hannes Babak,
the Chairman of the Grand Bahama Port Authority. Sir Jack was asked to
comment on what Ingraham had to say about his government’s denial of the
Chairman’s work permit; “If that happens,” Sir Jack said, “Freeport will
not move forward…if that’s the case, there’s no forward progress; if that’s
the case we won’t be going forward,” unquote. Further, in response to the
reporter pressing him, Sir Jack reiterated, “All I can say is that there’s
no progress in Freeport, and it will be hot here…there will be no progress
in Freeport without Hannes Babak, who is doing a tremendous job.”
Sir Jack went on to lambaste Hutchison Whampoa
for-according to him-“the bloody awful” job in promoting its Our Lucaya
hotel property and for pursuing a “land banking” policy in Freeport. The
reporter inferred that the reason for Ingraham’s refusal to renew Babak’s
work permit was in an effort to pressure and ultimately convince Sir Jack
to dispose of his interest, in the Port Group Ltd, to Hutchison Whampoa.
Sir Jack’s position, that he will never sell his shares, at any price,
to the Chinese government (Hutchison Whampoa) remains firm, to his credit.
The Hutchison Whampoa people are land hoarders and Hubert Ingraham seems
to be the only one who doesn’t want to see that. My sources tell me-and
they are very reliable-that Ingraham is extremely annoyed at Babak for
not delivering on his request to him (Babak) to sit down with Sir Jack
and convince him to sell to Whampoa. For Babak’s lack of effort, in that
regard I am convinced, his (Babak’s) work permit is being denied further
renewals. It cannot be right, that a government of the Bahamas would act
as a go between two private parties-a mediator/ negotiator if you will-in
the sale of their private property, to the extent that Hubert Ingraham
has been conducting himself in this case.
This prompts me to ask a simple question; are
there benefits accruing to Ingraham himself, personally, if a deal is struck
between the duos? If not, why exactly then, is he so interested in personally
making sure that Whampoa acquires Sir Jack’s shares? The record will
show that Ingraham has favoured Whampoa in past dealings, one of which
is the lousy deal he made with them in the Container Port project, where
it is alleged that the Government’s take is only twenty-five cents per
container in and the same out, totalling fifty cents per container, while
in other Jurisdictions they pay the governments eight to ten times that
much. In addition, in the same transaction, it is alleged that, Ingraham
gave Whampoa $3 from the departure tax of each passenger leaving the Freeport
Harbour. How do you like that for a sweet deal? There is certainly something
stinking here and it is not the chicken farm.
Sir Jack, during the interview, accused the Chinese
of pursuing a “land banking” policy: one where they acquire land and hold
onto it for future use by their grand and great grand children. He opined
that, that is not the kind of policy we should allow to be practiced here
in Freeport and indeed, ought not to be tolerated in the Bahamas, period.
I wrote recently and warned about the proliferation of Chinese investment
dollars, being allowed in the country. I made the case of how, when they
invest, it is always for their own benefit and at great expense to the
welfare of the host country and its people. Allow me to reiterate that
Chinese investments, benefit no one but the Chinese themselves, lets not
kid ourselves; and if we think otherwise, I am prepared to wager that we
will live long enough to regret it. Hell, they hardly ever trade, in business,
with enterprises other than those owned by their kind.
I applaud Sir Jack for sticking to his guns and
at the same time I condemn Hubert Ingraham and his FNM government for the
insulting and shoddy way in which they have been handling Sir Jack and
more particularly Mr. Babak, in this whole work permit affair. Sir Jack
is one of the largest, if not the largest, investors in our country and
he should not be treated so shabbily by the Bahamas Government. In
accordance with the policy of successive governments, including Ingraham’s,
any major investor doing business in the Bahamas was/ is entitled to his/her
top executives, to be given work permits. They have, to date, been allowed
by successive governments, to access work permits with little or no formalities-no
questions asked-baring, of course, any overriding matter of national interest,
such as bad criminal backgrounds etc. In these cases, permits to work in
the Bahamas would be denied, and rightfully so, but for no other reason.
Why, then, is Babak’s permit being denied?
Hubert Ingraham, are you acting in the country’s
overriding national best interest, in denying the approval of this permit,
or is this a personal vendetta being, intentionally, played out in the
media to embarrass these two gentlemen? Has Babak committed some criminal
offence, for which his permit should rightfully be denied or are you pandering
to Fred Smith? Which is it, Mr. Hubert Ingraham?
In a follow-up article, on the same subject,
appearing in Tribune Business on the 16th December, Sir Jack continued
his assault on those who, over the past months, have contributed to making
his usually reclusive lifestyle, a living nightmare. When asked by
the reporter what he expected the response would be, from the St. Georges,
to the revelations of his agreeing to sell to this new group, Sir Jack
responded; “Don’t ask Fred Smith,” being very sarcastic of course, and
then he suggested they ask the St. Georges. He furthered; “I think Fred
Smith is off to the Himalayas on Thursday to do some deep thinking on Mt.
Everest,” unquote; again being very facetious. Indeed, Fred Smith
appears to have been the cause of many of Sir Jack’s and Babak’s headaches
over these past months. Freeport, in my view, has been the worse off due
to this ongoing feud. It may be that some deep thinking might be good therapy
for Mr. Smith, at this time, as he readies himself for the next round of
talks/negotiations.
In closing I shall be remiss if I fail again,
in the strongest possible terms, to condemn Hubert Ingraham’s FNM government,
for the way, in which, this matter is being handled. Sir Jack is
no fly-by-night investor and should not be treated, as such, by a government
which touts itself as being “Investor friendly.” Someone asked, at a function,
the other night, if I have changed my mind about the Port Authority and
have now come down on the side of Sir Jack and Mr. Babak; my response?
I would like to think that, unlike many in this community, I have always
come down on the side of “Right” whether it’s in the Port Authority’s favour
or not; or whether it is for or against Sir Jack and or Mr. Babak. Unlike
many of those, making the loudest noises, I have no axe to grind and no
legal fees to protect and collect, so there.
Forrester J Carroll J.P
Freeport, Grand Bahama
18th December 2009
IN PASSING
Kudos To Rionda Godet
Rionda Godet, daughter of former Customs Controller Edison Deleveaux
and former attorney with Atlantis, is now a farmer. She has a hydroponics
operation operating under the trade name Ridge Farms. Mrs. Godet
who is the wife of Dion Godet, the golfer, markets jams, hot sauce and
other specialty items. Congratulations! Do well!
Ingraham Denies He Is Stunned By Oasis Comment
Ingraham told an untruth when as he was departing for wonderful Copenhagen
last week, he said that contrary to what we reported on this site
last week that he was not surprised at the warning of the ship’s captain
on Oasis that tourists should stick close to the ship because of crime.
Well if he was not surprised, he ought to have been embarrassed and ashamed.
But of course, he knows no shame.
Ingraham and 2010
Hubert Ingraham, talking like a drunken sailor, as he left for wonderful,
wonderful Copenhagen, says that he will let the country know at the end
of 2010 whether he will be running again for Prime Minister. Spare
us the agony and go now! We all know that he is going to run again,
the power is too sweet and he should, so he could get another cut you-know-what
from the PLP.
It Is Now 81 Murders For The Year
The murder count in The Bahamas is the highest ever with now 81 murders
for the year in The Bahamas. The previous high was in 2000, again
under the FNM.
Hotel Corporation Employees Given Final Notices
We have learned that Sir Baltron Bethel and the entire staff of the
Hotel Corporation of The Bahamas, the state corporation that holds all
the rights to run casinos in The Bahamas and that was implemented by the
late Sir Lynden Pindling’s government to move the hotel sector in
times of crisis, have been given their walking tickets. This is preliminary
to the announced plans of the Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham to destroy
the Corporation and repeal its mandate. It’s all part of the plan
to destroy the Pindling legacy. A special place in hell is reserved
for Hubert Ingraham.
Customs Officers Can Resign
Talking like a drunken sailor as he left for wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen,
Hubert Ingraham, Prime Minister, said that the customs officers fired by
the Public Service Commission could resign before the firing became effective
and that was alright by him. PLP Public Service spokesman Fred Mitchell
pointed out that he has no power in the matter unless he admits that he
interferes with the Public Service Commission and tells them what to do.
Island FM Cancels Deal With Cable
Charles Carter’s Island FM Radio station will officially sever its
ties with Cable Bahamas at the end of the month. The two companies
have been co-operating, with Mr. Carter’s station doing the news and public
affairs content for the Cable Bahamas Channel 12 and Cable providing the
studio, equipment and airtime. The proposition has become unaffordable
for Island FM and they notified Cable Bahamas that they would no longer
be able to sustain it past 31st December. Reports are the news staff
are to be laid off as a result of the changes. Star 106, the radio
station owned by the Nassau Guardian using the licence of Ken Perigord
is to take up where Island FM left off.
Turner Is New Judge
Bernard Turner, former Director of Public Prosecutions has taken the
oath of office to become a Judge of the Supreme Court at Government House
in an oath administered by Governor General Arthur Hanna.
Ingraham Pronounces On Fred Smith Lawsuit
Hubert Ingraham, the Prime Minister, talking like a drunken sailor
as he left for wonderful, wonderful Copenhagen, violated the norms of legal
practice and perhaps the law in the country by commenting on an active
case. Mr. Ingraham told Fred Smith, the man whom he just made Queen’s
Counsel, that he should not “flam” (Bahamian for “fool”) his clients that
they have a case against the government to stop the Bahamas Electricity
Corporation plant up in Wilson City, Abaco. Mr. Smith got leave to
pursue judicial review but no injunction to stop it. He has gone
to the Court of Appeal to appeal that part of the lower judge’s ruling
and to seek an injunction. Well, as for the Prime Minister it takes
one ‘flammer’ to know another. And both ‘flammers’ deserve each other.
The QC Travesty Continues
Collin Callender, Fred Smith (both of the same firm); Emerick Knowles,
brother of former FNM Minister James Knowles deceased; Philip Dunkley,
a favourite son of FNM big wig Sir Geoffrey Johnstone were all formally
ushered into the Inner Bar of the Bahamas as Queen’s Counsel on Thursday
17th December. This is part of the group that led to the lawsuit
against the Prime Minister for failing to appoint anyone from a non Bay
Street firm. The ceremony went ahead and no one mentioned it.
Save that Henry Bostwick did say that he thought a more transparent way
of approaching it ought to be implemented. Nevertheless, the new
QCs were all merry and misty eyed as they accepted their long wigs and
silk gowns. Looked like a scene from a Gilbert and Sullivan play
in the hottest December on record in The Bahamas. Curious thing though,
the only person these people forgot to thank was the one who really gave
it to them, Hubert Ingraham. That is the thing that should worry
them, it is not a sign of achievement from their profession (Colin Callender
said he was third generation QC) but a political award given by the Prime
Minister because of their connections; or so many argue.
QCs Fred Smith and Emerick Knowles shown in this Tribune photo
PLP Says It Will Talk To Malcolm
The Tribune reported on Thursday 17th December that a special task
force as been appointed out of the Candidates Committee of the Progressive
Liberal Party to speak to Malcolm Adderley about what he plans to do, given
the reports that he plans to step aside in the early new year to become
a Judge of the Supreme Court and create a bye-election in the Elizabeth
seat. (Click here for
last week’s comment) Good luck to them on that. The response
appears weak and ineffectual to many, but we shall see. Mr. Adderley
refused to comment on the matter publicly. Philip Davis MP is to
head the group to speak to Mr. Adderley.
Dame Ivy’s Book On Sale
Dame Ivy Dumont, the former Governor General and Minister of Education,
officially launched her book at Logos Bookstore in Nassau on Saturday 19th
December. It is called from ‘Roses To Mt. Fitzwilliam’. Roses
is her birthplace in Long Island in the southern Bahamas and Mt. Fitzwilliam
is where Government House, the home of the Governor General, is in Nassau.
Sir Jack’s Quotes Of The Week
On 16th December, The Tribune published part of the running sagas between
the Government of The Bahamas and Sir Jack Hayward, the power centre in
Freeport’s Grand Bahama Port Authority. Sir Jack announced that he
has sold his shares. Well, it turns out, not quite. He has
an agreement for sale with a little known company called Mid Atlantic Project.
But our quote is about Fred Smith now QC, the mercurial nuisance lawyer.
Fred Smith has caused a lot of trouble for Jack Hayward and represents
the other half of the Port, the Edward St. George Estate and Mr. Smith
is believed by Sir Jack to be the one who has sullied his Freeport investment.
Said Sir Jack, “Ask the St Georges, not Fred Smith… I think Fred Smith
is off to the Himalayas on Thursday to do some deep thinking”
Ken Russell In Hospital But No Comment From Him
Minister of Housing Ken Russell was in hospital for three days last
week it appears. The website bahamspress.com says that he had a mild
heart attack. The Tribune reported that the illness was undisclosed
but that he checked himself in after feeling poorly shortly after the Prime
Minister’s departure.
Fred Smith Denied 2007 FNM Nomination, He Says
Brent Symonette, the Deputy Prime Minister and Deputy Leader of the
FNM does not remember it that way, but Fred Smith said that is the way
it happened. He was counsel for the group trying to stop the Baker’s
Bay Development up in Abaco. The elections were coming and he wanted
the nomination for Marco City. He claims he was the favourite, but
that he was told by the party drop the matter with Baker’s Bay or you don’t
get the nomination. He did not drop it and the result, he says, was
that he did not get the nomination for the FNM. That dubious honour
went to Zhivargo Laing who went on to win the seat for the FNM. Well
at least we are spared another clown in the House.
 |
| SEAN MCWEENEY: For people of a certain generation, the enduring and perhaps iconic image is that of the afroed young light-skinned man, head of the “radical” group Unicomm burning the British flag at the ceremonies to mark the birthday of Queen Victoria, once Empire Day, and then Commonwealth Day. He was the radical student who confronted the social policies of Queen's College and for his troubles was expelled by the then headmaster, an Englishman who himself was seen as too liberal. But since that time, he has built on that reputation for honesty, forthrightness, courage and frankness, to be an advisor to a Prime Minister, a party political Chairman at the height of that party’s political problems, a Senator, the Attorney General, and in his retirement to practice as a trust lawyer, an informal advisor to another Prime Minister. For that and for his success as a lawyer, he is now to add to his name the letters Q.C., Queen’s Counsel, signifying that the government and his profession consider him at the top of his game. The picture is worth a thousand words as his family gathered with him on the lawn of the Supreme Court on Monday 21st December following his call to the Inner Bar as a Queen’s Counsel. That is out photo of the week. (more photos below) The photo is by Peter Ramsay. |
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
A WORD TO GREENSLADE
Ellison
Greenslade has taken over as the Acting Commissioner of Police. It
has been a long journey. Chances are he will be confirmed in the
post when the Prime Minister attends the handing over ceremony for the
old Commissioner to the new Commissioner on 4th January. Under the
new law, unless challenged successfully, he will have a five-year term
with the possibility of a second five-year term for a total of ten years.
Mr. Greenslade comes to the post with high expectations from the public and from the police force itself. He is, no doubt, a man of considerable skills. But what you have lurking in the background is that the Free National Movement and their leader do not really want him to head the Force. What they want is Marvin Dames to head the Force and they would rather Mr. Greenslade take a post elsewhere.
Into that mix then he comes and Mr. Greenslade would do well to be careful about how at the start of this job, he takes responsibility for crime and solving crime. He cannot by himself solve the crime problems that face this country. It is beyond any single person's ability. He should therefore be careful about embracing a high profile campaign in the press, which gives the public the impression, the expectation, that he alone can solve crime. It started at the beginning of last week when the news headlines all read that he was going to start an all out attack on crime. That same night there was another murder.
What he can promise to do is his best. What the FNM would like for him to do is to promise the world and take responsibility for something that is mostly of their making. Then three months from now when the crime stats are no better, the public cries for the Commissioner’s head and knowing Hubert Ingraham that would be perfect for him to put who he really wants there.
Just a word at Christmas time to the new Commissioner.
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 19th December 2009 up
to midnight: 135,930.
ANNOUNCING
A PLANNED UPGRADE
This column is about to undergo some changes which
should be fully implemented at the end of January 2010. The column
has been operating on the same platform since 1998 and it is now time to
provide some additional features, which would make the read more comfortable
in light of today's trends. Thank you for those who have continued
to read over the years.
THE
JUNKANOO RESULTS - VALLEY WINS!
In a stunning display of dominance, the venerable
Valley Boys won the 2009 Boxing Day Junkanoo Parade by a margin of 263
points over the second place Superstar Saxons. Valley Boys leader
Winston 'Gus' Cooper seemed to have discovered new sources of Junkanoo
talent as the group seemed far and away above the rest in confidence, numbers
and costume. In a wild, crowd-pleasing move, a group of large, male
Valley dancers performed a series of intricate, highly choreographed displays
usually reserved for younger, women dancers. If any fault could be
found with the Valley's winning performance, the music section was so big
that the horns were long past by the time the drummers could be seen.
Said one long-time Valley Boys fan, "...a bravura performance across the
board; seen nothing like it in forty years; the point spread doesn't even
begin to reflect the overwhelming presentation laid down by the Valley."
The death of performer Michael Jackson and the 2009
Miss Universe Pageant, held in The Bahamas, were overarching themes portrayed
by several groups.
The 2009 Boxing Day Junkanoo Parade results: 'A'
Category - Valley Boys 4209; Superstar Saxons, 3946; One Family, 3791;
Roots, 3605; Prodigal Sons, 3642; Music Makers, 3307. 'B' Category:
One Love Soldiers, 1876; Colours, 1740; Fancy Dancers, 1627. The
Fox Hill Congos did not place this year.
Photos/Peter Ramsay
BAHAMAS
IS DOWNGRADED
On 23rd December Zhivargo Laing, the Minister of
State for Finance announced in the press that the worst of the economic
crisis is over. The next day, Standard and Poor’s, the credit rating
agency, downgraded the long-term sovereign credit rating of The Bahamas
from A- to BBB+. This means it will become more expensive for The
Bahamas to borrow overseas money. The Bahamas is expected to reach
a 50 percent debt to GDP ratio before the end of this crisis. While
this compares favourably to other Caribbean countries, it is worrying for
The Bahamas.
Recently, the Central Bank governor was boasting
about the level of reserves being at 840 million dollars. Of course,
we all know that is because of the money borrowed from overseas by the
government and not because of productivity. The PLP’s chairman Bradley
Roberts slammed the poor economic results. Click
here for his full statement. The worst is not over. 2010
will be worse than 2009 with higher unemployment and more bankruptcies
and liquidations and people losing their homes and businesses. Hubert
Ingraham and his assistant Zhivargo Laing are to blame.
SYMONETTE
RESPONDS
Apparently stung by the fact that the US Ambassador
attacked The Bahamas for its vote at the United Nations against certain
US sponsored resolutions, Brent Symonette, the Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister of Foreign Affairs, finally found his voice. He issued a
statement at midweek saying that The Bahamas’ position had been misrepresented.
He said that there were certain errors in the text offered by the US, which
The Bahamas could not support. Long story.
Fred Mitchell Opposition spokesman on Foreign Affairs
explained that a sovereign country has a right to vote the way it wants
and perceives its best interests. The FNM attacked the PLP when they
were in Opposition for its principled votes at the UN and called the PLP
anti American. Mr. Mitchell asked whether now, in light of the circumstances
of the vote at the UN, the FNM is also anti American.
Brent Symonette, left; Fred Mitchell, right: file photos
BERLIN
PRATT’S FUNERAL
Berlin Pratt, former Secretary General of the PLP,
former Senator was buried following a service at St. John’s Native Baptist
Cathedral where he was a member and officer on Friday 18th December.
Bishop Michael Symonette presided. The service was attended by the
Members of the Cabinet including Acting Prime Minister Brent Symonette.
Perry Christie, Leader of the PLP, spoke at the funeral.
BIS photos/Patrick Hanna
SIR
JACK’S FAMILY IN REVOLT
The soap opera in Freeport continues. Last
week, we reported extensively on Sir Jack Hayward’s plans to sell his shares
in the Port to avoid selling them to the Chinese company Hutchison Whampoa.
He also went up against Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham who announced that
Sir Jack’s man Hannes Babak would not get another work permit to run the
Port. Fred Smith, the nuisance lawyer acting for the St. George Estate,
said that he opposed what Sir Jack was doing. But the great surprise,
well not quite, was that Rick Hayward, the son of Sir Jack who is a Bahamian
as well, spoke from his Scottish retreat to the Nassau Guardian to say
that he, his mum and the other children were opposed to what Sir Jack was
doing and would challenge the decision of the trustees of their trust set
up by Sir Jack to sell the shares. Sir Jack of course ordered his
son locked out of his business premises at Port Lucaya in Freeport where
the younger Hayward has a restaurant, reportedly for non-payment of rent.
This is getting interesting. Freeport continues to suffer.
Rick Hayward/Nassau Guardian photo
MORE
MCWEENEY PICTURES
Sean McWeeney QC was called to the Inner Bar of
The Bahamas on Monday 21st December surrounded by colleagues, family and
friends.
CONGRATULATIONS
TO GEORGE AND SETELLA
George Cox, the country’s pioneering engineer and
his wife Setella celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary at the St. Anselm’s
Catholic Church in Fox Hill on Wednesday 23rd December. Family and
friends attended including their son the artist Jon and their grandson
Xelter, godchildren Fred Mitchell MP and Attorney-at-Law Caryl Lashley.
The photo is by Ingrid Wilson with the couple and Xelter. Monsignor
Preston Moss officiated.
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Junkanoo Tickets - An Exercise In Frustration
Editor,
You would think that a process done each year would
get better with practice. Not so with Junkanoo tickets.
First, faithfully following what turned out to
be misinformation from the Ministry responsible for Culture, I stood and
waited on line with everybody else at the Kendal Isaacs Gym ‘fore day’
in the morning. No tickets went on sale that day. They got
it wrong.
Finally, after several misfires and frustrations
with the ticketing process and now with $200 worth of tickets in hand,
I presented my family and myself at 12.25 Boxing Day morning. No
seats. More correctly, the seats were occupied by ruffians who refused
to move and would not be moved by the Junkanoo officials or the police.
Appeals to higher and higher authorities from the Police, the Junkanoo
Officials and senior Ministry officials produced sympathy, but no results.
Too late at 12.25 you say? I had specifically
numbered and lettered tickets (paid for, mind you). Why should I
have to turn up hours ahead to defend them with my life?
When I myself caused sufficient ruckus for the
ruffians to move, I was told that me and my family couldn’t sit in our
own seats because we had been threatened by the ruffians and the officials
‘…didn’t want any trouble’. Imagine that. We couldn’t sit where
we had paid to sit because of threats from disgruntled ruffians.
We are now, apparently, as a country, prisoners of the lowest common denominator.
Yes, efforts were made to reseat us in various
inferior seats. Yes, there were mouthfuls of well meaning, but ultimately
ineffectual platitudes from various officials. But, bottom line;
a family who played by the rules; a family whose members came from far
and wide at great expense to celebrate the cultural tradition of Junkanoo
together at Christmastime; that family was left standing and seatless and
we mean to seek appropriate redress.
Al Dillette
Forrester Carroll... on Billy Saunders
Well blow me down!!! I was really convinced, until now, that bold,
blatant and bare-faced racism in this country had retreated underground
many years ago. According to a
story appearing on a very popular, weekly-updated, web site, on Sunday
13th December 2009, however, it seems to be very much alive and well.
The story appearing on the website alleges that
on Friday 11th December 2009, at the Montagu Gardens, in Nassau, Mr. William
“Billy” Saunders, the well known owner of the very popular ground transportation
Industry giant, ‘Majestic Tours’, embraced the open forum to blast the
name of Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling. It is suspected that he took the
opportunity to do so, because he was keenly aware that there were a number
of PLP supporters in the place milling about. Reports are that he
accused Sir Lynden of ruining the country and of introducing racism in
The Bahamas.
Now I have never, in my life, met this William
‘Billy’ Saunders, but if, in fact, he did make these asinine assertions;
I can only say to him, Sir!! “Much hatred for black folk doth make thee
mad.”
…I must confess, Mr. Saunders, that in all my
many years living here in this country of my birth, and on this green earth,
Sir, I have never met a white Bahamian, or a white visitor, for that matter,
who was racially intolerant, as you seem to be…
Can I be permitted to say to all the Billy Saunders’
out there? Get over it; Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling’s tenure was the best
thing that ever happened to poor, deprived, black and white Bahamians alike,
back there in 1967; no question about it; and many of my white brothers
and sisters admit this fact.
Forrester J Carroll J.P
Freeport, Grand Bahama
27th December 2009
We have permission from the person threatened by Mr. Saunders to
give his name. It was Kendal ‘Funky’ Demeritte and those of you who
know Mr. Demeritte know that Mr. Saunders is a lucky man indeed to have
survived that night unscathed. But he continues to carry on in this
manner about our country. We think that the FNM as an organisation
ought to repudiate their connections with him and that his public licences
ought to be put at risk for his behaviour. But this country is so
politically correct these days; we expect that no punitive measures will
be taken. You may click here
for Mr. Carroll's full letter to the Editor - Ed.
IN PASSING
Oscar Johnson Sr. Dies
Former PLP MP and later FNM candidate Oscar Johnson Sr. is dead.
He died on Tuesday 22nd December. He was 76 years old. Mr.
Johnson served as the Member of Parliament for Cat Island from 1967 to
1977. His daughter Italia is a former speaker of the House of Assembly
and another, Gladys, is now the Consul General for The Bahamas in Miami.
The Little Timothys Write a Book
Karen Moss Timothy, formerly a comrade at arms with Fred Mitchell when
he had his own political party the Peoples Democratic Force, was in town
on Tuesday 22nd December to market a new book written by her two children.
It is a book of prayers by the two little girls Princess Abigail L. Timothy
and Princess Elenhah L. Timothy. The book is called ‘Princess Prayers’.
Fred Mitchell bought a copy signed by the two little girls and posed for
this picture with their mom and the two girls at Chapter One Bookstore
at the book signing on 22nd December.
GG Sees Smokey Robinson
The famous singer Smokey Robison was in town to visit with Nicole Avant,
the US Ambassador, for the holidays. While in town, he took time
out of his schedule to visit with Governor General Arthur Hanna at Government
House on Thursday 17 December. Smokey presented Mr. Hanna with one
of his Cds ‘Time Flies When You’re Having Fun’.
BIS photo
84 Murders
We are losing count, but the latest is that we are up to 84 murders
for the year 2009. This is an all time record.
Tiger Woods In The Bahamas
They say that Tiger Woods, much reviled for all the sweethearts he
apparently kept or keeps, is in town on his yacht seeking a break from
it all. It’s all a storm in a teacup.
Fox Hill PLP Christmas Party
Executives of the Fox Hill Progressive Liberal Party gathered at the
British Colonial Hotel for their annual Christmas dinner recently.
The hard working branch execs are shown with Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell.
Photo/Miguel Taylor
The Fraser Trial
The trial of Bishop Randy Fraser of Pilgrim Baptist Church for having
sex with a young woman who had come to him for counselling, although over
the age of consent, continued on Monday 21st December. The forensic
evidence was again introduced and so was the record of the phone calls
between himself and the accuser alleged. The reports did not look
encouraging for the Bishop if you read the newspapers. But the lawyer
says that the crown has problems with proof of their forensic evidence
and the question of the phone records. A constitutional motion is
to be moved to challenge the way the crown has been conducting their case.
Rionda Godet at Ridge Farms
Last week, we offered congratulations to Rionda Godet, who is now a
farmer, but got the name of the farm wrong. She has a hydroponics
operation operating under the trade name Ridge Farms and markets jams,
hot sauce and other specialty items. Congratulations again!
