Compiled, edited and constructed by Russell Dames... Updated every Sunday at 2 p.m.
Volume 8 © BahamasUncensored.com 2010
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
PLP AND FNM
We carry a short note
below ‘In Passing’ of a response that the Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham
gave to the Bahamian students in Jamaica to a request that was made of
him from the students worried about Hurricane Tomas bearing down on Jamaica.
The PLP, when it was in power and a storm was coming onto Kingston, sent
a Bahamasair jet over to collect the students, bring them home, and carry
them back to Jamaica. That is the PLP’s standard. It appears
that the Prime Minister remembered.
He sent a message to the students: “Only the PLP does that kind of stuff. I don’t do that. When I send my citizens to Jamaica, I expect that the Jamaican government will protect my citizens.” That’s a great answer! It tells you once again the kind of person that you are dealing with.
You will remember the first response of the FNM’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, no less a person than Brent Symonette, the Deputy Prime Minister, when the 9 Nassau Market vendors were arrested and detained for 15 hours without having an opportunity to talk to their families or to contact a Bahamian official. His answer was to lecture the vendors on how they should not sell counterfeit goods. This from someone whose wealth came from running rum in a previous generation.
It was only after the PLP got involved that suddenly the Bahamas Government intervened and supplied its government lawyers to the vendors to assist with their cases. Now you can’t blink without a press release coming from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the progress of the vendors' cases.
These two examples are clear examples of how the PLP differs from the FNM. The PLP loves and supports people. The FNM loves hills and dales and buildings. The PLP tries to make sure that everyone is working; the FNM has a Prime Minister who fires the people from ZNS and then says that they are ungrateful because they were unhappy that they had been fired.
What is developing in the country now is a hatred for Hubert Ingraham amongst the people that is beginning to know no bounds. You have this silly fellow who is still clinging on to his propaganda mantra that he is strong and decisive, but more and more his comments are coming off as simple, cold hearted, mean-spirited nastiness.
We agree with Joette Penn who, in commenting on Mr. Ingraham’s latest attack on Perry Christie as being unmanly because the PLP attacked the reappointment of the Parliamentary Commissioner, said that Mr. Ingraham seems to have a preoccupation with Perry Christie. It comes off as pathological, in other words as a special form of madness.
The radio talk shows are often a good barometer of public opinion and it was interesting to hear the commentary from the audience this week to the government’s decision to allow the dredging inside the Exuma Land and Sea Park. There is consternation that this should be allowed to happen and many think it was allowed to happen because a rich man was able to corrupt the Bahamian officials.
We hope that the PLP takes note because if, as we expect, they win the next election, there is a lesson here in this and that is the ability to do what most people think is right and keep the country on even keel without building up all of this hatred. The era of hatred and nastiness will not be easy to dissipate because there are so many bitter people who want revenge against the FNM for what they have done over the past five years. There will also be those who will be angry that their prize has been taken away from them and you wouldn’t expect Hubert Ingraham to go gently into the good night. He himself will be very bitter about being tossed out again. He is remorseless and has no regrets about the way he has simply run the country into the ground.
Hubert Ingraham’s ministers remain clueless on what to do and they simply follow him blindly. The latest is Zhivargo Laing about whom we wrote some weeks ago who has reportedly called for the tape of Bran (the dissident FNM MP) McCartney’s appearance on Love 97 on Thursday 4th November. The Minister it seems is particularly interested in the fact that Mr. McCartney said that he opposes the sale of the national telephone company BTC as proposed by the FNM.
OH, well!
There is a difference between the PLP and the FNM and we encourage the FNM to keep it up because the end is nigh.
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 6th November 2010 up to midnight: 120,672.
Number of hits for the month of November up to Saturday 6th November 2010 up to midnight: 91,393.
Number of hits for the year 2010 up to Saturday 6th November 2010 up to midnight: 6,980,059.
PLP
CALLS FOR FNM TO CARE ON CRIME
The Progressive Liberal Party through its National
Chairman Bradley B. Roberts Sunday issued a statement entitled ’FNM
Government continues to bury head in the sand as Crime & Disrespect
for Law & Order run Rampant & Out of Control‘.
“The PLP continues to note with alarm the fact
that the inept, hapless and hopeless FNM government continues to bury its
head in the sand as crime and disrespect for law and order run rampant
and out of control.
“Policemen have been attacked in front of the
Courts, the Courts have been broken into and ransacked, and there has been
a brazen robbery at a Police Station. Within 48 hours, we have experienced
the shooting of a prominent businessman in Fox Hill, the raping of a Nun
and the shooting of a businesswoman in Grand Bahama. Last week, the
maximum security wing of the prison was without electricity and without
a generator. Also, we saw in the midst of rush hour traffic a confrontation
that could have had tragic consequences.
“Right under our noses, we are experiencing degeneration
and breakdown in every arena in which citizens have a right to expect national
security to be heightened. We in the PLP note that while law abiding citizens
are being held hostage, and while disintegration and breakdown of national
security proliferates, the Minister of National Security’s priority was
a trip to China at the expense of the same citizens who are being held
hostage.
“We are saddened that too many Bahamians are
throwing their hands up in exasperation. Too many Bahamians are asking,
“What can we do?”
“We call for the immediate restoration of law
and order. We believe that it is possible to restore law and order in a
country as small as The Bahamas and on an Island as small as New Providence.
“We the people must declare, “Enough is enough”.
“Those who broke into the Supreme Court and the
Magistrates Court must immediately be brought to trial. The Attorney General’s
office has had enough time to prepare a Voluntary Bill of Indictment. Those
trials should take place without further delay.
“Those who initiated the melee that resulted
in the injury of a policeman in Bank Lane should be tried without delay.
No preliminary enquiry. They must immediately be tried. We Bahamians must
declare no one will get away with an attack on our seat of justice, the
Courts. And, no one will get away with attacking policemen, especially
while they are on duty!
“We call for the establishment of a special regime
to deal with those in illegal possession of firearms and ammunition. Their
trials should be expedited and they should be severely penalized.
“We call upon the FNM to reinstate the decision
to establish a remand centre near to the Fox Hill Prison. (The design was
finalized and the foundation laid during the Christie Administration using
Prison labour) We believe that only those on remand who will be tried
on the day in question need to come to the Courts. The racing convoy from
the Prison to Bank Lane and back every day is an accident waiting to happen.
We have now experienced the danger of having all of those on remand seated
in an open bus in Bank Lane. The remand centre near to the prison can and
ought to deal with remands without endangering the public.
“We call for the immediate implementation of
the electronic bracelet system to monitor people out on bail. We believe
that there should be no bail for people charged with murder. Why should
be continue to tolerate the situation whereby people out on bail for murder
commit another murder?
“And, we again call for the resignation of the
incompetent Minister of National Security. It is simply shameful that while
law and order collapses and goes to wrack and ruin on his watch, he trots
off on a joy ride to China. Enough is enough. He is obviously incompetent.
It is irresponsible to leave him in charge of this vital area that has
collapsed on his watch. He should do the right thing and resign; immediately.
“These suggestions can and ought to be implemented
without delay. We are sure that we will see an immediate and positive result.
“We call upon the Prime Minister to show caring
and courage. Act now before it is too late!”
THE
CATHOLIC PRIEST
The Catholic Church in The Bahamas had up to now
been scandal free. While the other churches in the country, including
the Anglican Church, have had one problem after the next with one church
or the other having their clergy being up before the courts, none of that
happened with the Catholic Church, despite the slew of bad news in other
countries about the church.
All of that ended within the last month with a series
of salacious headlines, stories and commentaries arising out of the inquest
into the death of a woman Nicola Gibson, whose mother is distraught and
wants answer as to how she died. She died in a fire on 21st July
2006 and the jury in the Coroner's Inquest was unable to say what happened
when it returned its verdict last week. The verdict was an open verdict.
That means that they have no cause that they can assign. The Jury
and the Coroner William Campbell said that they thought that the police
work on the matter was not thorough; that instead of concentrating on how
the woman died, they concentrated on her affair with a Catholic priest.
In the press, though, the church has come under
scrutiny again for how it deals with the issue of the sexuality of its
priests. The priest, Fr. David Cooper, admitted in court and in the
newspapers that he had an intimate relationship with the woman and that
he was in the process of cutting it off. It appears that this may
have led to her being mentally unstable about it.
Fr. Cooper says on the night of Ms. Gibson’s death,
he remembers only that he had some souse at her home in her bedroom and
he does not remember anything until he woke up in the hospital and had
been told that he had to be rescued from a fire that took place in the
rectory where he lived. He says he did not remember driving himself home.
No doubt, the role of celibacy in all this is a
topic of discussion, but even in the Anglican Church where priests are
married there are still problems of fidelity and sexual faithfulness raised.
So the question is human nature and its frailty. The whole thing
is simply unfortunate and it provided no answers for the distraught mother
of the dead woman, and no doubt for a priest who has to reckon with it
for the rest of his life.
PLP
VOTERS REGISTRATION DRIVE
The Progressive Liberal Party led by its Leader Perry Christie and Deputy
Leader Philip Davis along with Party Chair Bradley Roberts staged a march
to the Parliamentary Commissioner’s office to start the ball rolling in
the drive to register voters for the next general election.
For the first time, the PLP answered the charge
by the FNM that they were late in drawing up the boundaries, which resulted
in a botched job by the Parliamentary Commissioner in the 2007 General
Election. Deputy leader Davis and Mr. Christie both said that as
the 2007 election drew nigh, voters had still not turned up to register
and so they had to take additional measures to get people to come and register,
thus the delay in drawing the boundaries. This is because the Constituencies
Commission waits until the number of voters has been determined before
dividing the boundaries more or less equally.
Mr. Christie’s and Mr. Davis’ comments came in response
to a cowardly attack by the Prime Minister who waited until he was away
in China and out of sight to launch a personal attack on Mr. Christie calling
Mr. Christie unmanly and cowardly because of a statement issued in early
October by the PLP about the Parliamentary Commissioner. Mr. Christie
issued no statement about the Parliamentary Commissioner. The Party
statement was issued in early October and was not carried by most of the
press but this time the press was chomping at the bit led by Mr. Ingraham’s
personal amanuensis at the Nassau Guardian Candia Dames to find out if
the PLP had any response to Mr. Ingraham’s talk about Mr. Christie being
unmanly for attacking the Parliamentary Commissioner.
Mr. Christie for his part called the statement of
Mr. Ingraham asinine. From Barbados, Mr. Ingraham insisted that the
issue of Parliamentary Commissioner never came up in conversations with
Mr. Christie whom he said talks to him about everything. He said
he is not wedded to Parliamentary Commissioner Bethel and if the PLP had
problems with Mr. Bethel they could have let him know and he could deal
with it. We don’t believe him, but there it is. What was in
fact curious, though, was that in his press statement, Mr. Ingraham said
that he would be happy to fight the next election on the old register.
We would be happy if he went one step further and fought the next election
on the old boundaries. Andrew
Burrows of PLP Media supplied the video link.
Tribune photo/Felipe Major
NO
NEW REGISTER …NO NEW BOUNDARIES
Progressive Liberal Party news release of 3rd November,
2010:
PLP responds to PM Ingraham's response to
Oct 6th 2010 Press statement -
“The PLP notes with great alarm the Government’s
intention to retain the services of discredited Errol Bethel as Parliamentary
Commissioner.
“The PLP is not surprised by the response
of the master of deception, the Prime Minister. Nothing that this
Houdini says can detract or distract from the statements of the Election
Court, all made post May 2, 2007, in respect of the Voter Register and
the Parliamentary Commissioner. Since 2007, this inept and arrogant FNM
government has done nothing to bring into effect the recommendations of
the Election Court in respect of the Register. In any other democratic
country, the findings of the Election Court would have resulted in the
implementation of the recommendations made by the PLP (outlined in the
PLP’s Press Release of October 6th 2010).
“We are surprised that the Press has chosen to
publish the Prime Minister’s response to the PLP’s Press Release, without
having first given the courtesy of publishing the PLP’s October 6th, 2010
Release which was delivered to the Press on the same date. Fairness demands
that the PLP’s Release is brought fully to the attention of the public.
“The FNM should note that the PLP will use every
resource available to encourage Bahamians to register to vote and to ensure
that non Bahamians and other ineligible voters are not on the new Register.
Bahamians are waiting to exercise their right to vote and to vote the FNM
out of office using a fair and untainted electoral process. Bahamians are
crying out to be released from the burden of this arrogant and inept FNM
government who has imposed upon us and our children record crime, record
unemployment, record public debt, record misery index, too many Bahamians
losing their homes, dangerously low foreign reserves, increases in the
cost of electricity and other utilities, shocking lack of concern for the
environment and assiduous catering to the privileged few and decimating
the middle class while shielding the Parliamentary Commissioner.
“We direct the Prime Minister’s attention to
the result of the elections for members of the House of Representatives
in the United States. This is a precursor of what is to happen to him and
his FNM government when he builds up the courage to call a General Election
in The Bahamas.”
RYAN
PINDER ON THE NEW BUSINESS LICENCE ACT
Ryan Pinder MP attended the Business Licence Town Hall
meeting Tuesday 2nd November hosted by Zhivargo Laing, the Minister of
State for Finance and shared his observations:
“Zhivargo Laing had a hard time that night.
Business owners and professional accountants had a difficult time with
the new business licence regime on a number of levels, and Laing turned
many in attendance off with his arrogance. Whenever faced with a
question - he responded, ‘We did the analysis and for the most part people
are not paying more under this regime than they did before’. This
was an unsuitable answer as many in attendance saw this as an opportunity
to correct some of the inequities of the prior and current legislation.
“Much debate was had on the low margin versus
high margin businesses and the inequities in how the business licences
regime treated them. There was resistance by the Petroleum Association
because of the volatility in oil prices.
“Terence Bethel (an accountant) had some very
strong observations and comments. For instance, he made note that
the definition of ‘turnover’ was very misleading in that it used the word
“accruing”. His question was; do businesses now have to include accounts
receivable in their turnover? This was the same point I raised in
the House of Assembly. Zhivargo Laing, I think, did not understand
the question, as his answer was, include in turnover whatever you include
in turnover. Essentially, if you are on the accrual basis of accounting,
you should include receivables in turnover. This was not his position
in response to me in the House. I agree with the observations in
that the definition of turnover can be rather confusing and the Ministry
of Finance should certainly issue some guidance on this.
“Mosko Construction had a representative there
and apparently the top construction companies are appealing to the FNM
administration to adjust the taxes as the large construction companies
do pay more under this new regime. Zhivargo Laing could not commit
on changes or a time frame. It will be interesting to observe how
this might change in the upcoming weeks.
“Overall, the more Zhivargo speaks in public,
the better it is for the PLP. I left him answering questions at 8:30.”
NO
ZNS RADIO AND NOW ITS BACK
The Progressive Liberal Party issued strong statements
on the fact that with a hurricane bearing down on the country, particularly
the southern Bahamas, there was no radio station in Nassau that had a signal
that could reach the southern Bahamas. This was because ZNS 1540,
the national voice of the country, has been off the air in the southern
Bahamas for about two months following the theft of 1300 dollars worth
of copper wire from the transmitting station in south New Providence.
The PLP statements of 2nd November follow:
“Family Islands without Public Radio Service
since September 7th 2010
“The public will recall that ZNS AM1540 went
off air on September 7th of this year following the theft of copper wire
from its South Beach tower. The copper was said to be valued at some $1,314
dollars.
“The management of The Broadcasting Corporation
later announced that AM1540 would return to service on October 7th 2010.
To this date, this promise has not been fulfilled.
“Subsequently members of parliament for MICAL
the Hon. V. Alfred Gray and the Hon. Picewell Forbes MP for South Andros
both expressed serious concerns in the House of Assembly that their constituencies
were out of contact with the capital. They made strong pleas to the minister
responsible for broadcasting Tommy Turnquest to bring an immediate solution
to this problem as we are still within the Hurricane season.
“Minister Tommy Turnquest responded and said
that the corporation had incurred some difficulties and gave an undertaking
that radio AM1540 would be operational by November the 1st. This date has
also come and gone and many family island residents continue to be in the
dark.
“It is absolutely unbelievable and incredible
that the FNM Government is not able to resolve an issue that’s only $1,300
in value. How can the Bahamian public depend on Hubert Ingraham and the
FNM to solve more substantial issues when a simple problem such as this
is taking months to be resolve?”
“… As stated in an earlier statement, the public
will recall that ZNS AM1540 went off air on September 7th of this year
following the theft of copper wire from its South Beach tower. The copper
was said to be valued at some $1,314 dollars.
“ZNS AM1540 is indeed the communication link
for our southern Bahama Islands to New Providence and the Central Government
Services. 1540 provides those islands with critical instructions, life
saving directions, and vital notifications.
“As we go about our duties preparing this statement
for release, we in the PLP are very concerned about our brothers and sisters
living in the Southern Bahamas. Those islands are directly in the predicted
path of uncertainty of Tropical Storm Tomas, which is forecast to strengthen
possibly back to the level of a hurricane by Wednesday.
“We demand that the Government get of their hands
and do whatever is necessary to get ZNS AM1540 up and running within the
next 24 hours. This Government must demonstrate a better interest in the
life of ordinary Bahamians.
“It is stomach-turning to live in a country the
size of ours where you can literally hear your brothers cry from the north
to south, yet the people who carelessly use the ‘Trust’ to describe their
agenda continue to turn a deaf ear and a blind eye to the cries and needs
of our people. However, they can find plenty of time to take luxury helicopter
rides with billionaires to survey our precious sea parks, so as to grant
demolition orders. This heartless Hubert Ingraham led Government can rush
like desperate prostitutes to sign an agreement to construct a 7 mile highway
here in Nassau, at $10,000,000.00 per mile. They found millions to give
to some of the riches Bahamians to construct a private container port.
But for our less fortunate brothers and sisters in the south, this heartless
government say wait for $1300.00.
“Information is paramount when it comes to hurricane
preparedness Minister Tommy Turnquest; a storm is threatening our brothers
and sisters in the south. Find a way to fix the problem, and fix it now.
The Bahamian public cannot depend on Hubert Ingraham and the FNM to solve
any issues if it does not involve people of special interest Shame! Shame!”
[Michael Moss, the Chairman of the Broadcasting Corporation later
announced in Nassau Guardian story 3rd November that 1540 will be back
on the air on Tuesday 9th November. He said the delay was due to
another attempt by thieves to steal copper wire from the transmitting station.—Editor]
THE
DEMISE OF CITY MARKETS - A GOOD COMPANY
The announcement last week reported on this site
that the Bahamas Supermarkets aka City Markets was being sold after just
three years in the hands of the Trinidadian Group Neal & Massey pleased
almost no one.
The Bahamian shareholders who were led into this
bad deal by a prominent banker of the Fidelity Bank are sore as hell.
They have lost their shirts and taken a bath. Some had put in five
million dollars, others 1.8 million, some 2.5 million. With the sale,
their shares become next to useless and they will not be able to recoup
their money.
The question is did Neal & Massey know what
they were doing? Did the banker know what he was doing when he put
the deal together? It seems in retrospect that they were simply in
over their heads. In the process, they risked the jobs of 800 people
who may still not have jobs at the end of the day. The collapse has
been stunning. It is almost as if something was being hidden from
them when they bought it. If we had a business school in this country
then it would be a case study in what not to do in buying a business.
Now what? Will the government approve Ben
Frisch, the owner of Bahamas Food services to buy this shop? Chances
are they will. Mr. Frisch was said to have been annoyed at the PLP
because he did not get the sale of his Bahamas Food Services to Cisco approved
on his timetable and allegedly now supports the FNM because of it.
Will all the jobs be saved? Chances are not. He will probably
simply shut down the losing stores, reduce the business to its essence
and ditch the debt and the staff. We worry about the employees’ pension
fund and whether or not the fund will be repaid the losses that they have
incurred when they loaned money to the investors in this project.
The Securities Commission ought to do a thorough investigation.
We erroneously reported last week that Craig and
his brother Brent Symonette were behind the new deal, but we now understand
that Craig Symonette and the heirs of the Milo Butler family are amongst
the Bahamian investors who lost millions of dollars in this bad deal.
It is simply sad all around. The investors, the employees, the country
have taken a bath on this one and no one knows exactly what happens next.
The proof is in the store for the moment, with bare shelves and sad faced
employees.
WHAT
HAPPENED IN THE US ELECTIONS
In so many ways, what happened to Barack Obama in
the US mid-term elections held on 2nd November looks like what happened
to Perry Christie under the PLP in 2007. He just did not seem to
get his message out, hit his stride and the machine that got him elected
in 2008 just seemed to collapse. It also says something about the
nature of the voters and his opponents. They simply opposed everything,
chopped his hand off at every turn then blamed him for the very things
that they helped to create before he got there.
Mr. Obama at the end still did not seem to get it.
There he was saying after the loss, how he didn’t do enough, that the voters
did not seem to understand, that he hopes that the two sides can work together.
Work together for what? It seems to us that he needs a good dose
of reality and to get with the programme or face extinction in two years
time. Let us be clear though, we still think that he is a remarkable
man and we think he has the talent to whip these ingrates at the next poll.
FOX
HILL VISITS PASTOR RICK DEAN
When Rick Dean was a very young man, he was a sportscaster
at the Broadcasting Corporation of The Bahamas. He put that all aside
and renewed himself in the best way. His parents were and are Church
of God Christians. They prayed for it. They could not be happier
today as he leads the Church at the top of the hill next to the St. Augustine’s
Monastery to the west. The new church is full and is building a modern
presence atop the hill. Thriving with lots of young people and the
promise of redemption for the saved soul and those in need of it.
The Fox Hill Branch of the PLP visited the church as part of its monthly
church visitations on Sunday 31st October led by Branch chair Charlene
Marshall and Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell. The photo show the group
that visited the church.
GOVERNOR
GENERAL’S LONDON INVESTITURE
Sir Arthur Foulkes, the Governor General has had
another knighthood bestowed upon him by the Queen. He is now a Grand
Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St George (GCMG). The investiture
took place in London on Tuesday 2nd November. High Commissioner Paul
Farquharson held a reception for Sir Arthur and he attended church with
Bahamian students in London. Also in London to receive a CBE (Commander
of the British Empire) was Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham’s pal Alphonso
‘Bugaloo’ Elliott.
PANCAP
HONOUR FOR DR. PERRY GOMEZ ON AIDS HELP
The Pan Caribbean Partnership Against HIV and AIDS
(PANCAP) held its Tenth Annual General Meeting under the theme “Reflection
and Renewal” at the Sonesta Maho Beach Resort in St. Maarten in the Dutch
Caribbean 31 October to 2 November 2010. The conference was addressed
by Kofi Anan, the former Secretary General of the United Nations, Dr. Dencil
Douglas, the lead Prime Minister in Caricom on HIV and AIDS and outgoing
Secretary General of Caricom Edwin Carrington. At the conference,
the lead physician in the fight against AIDS in The Bahamas Dr. Perry Gomez
was honoured by PANCAP for his work in The Bahamas and the region.
Photo/Pancap Media
TWO
MORE VENDORS SENTENCED…TWO REMAIN
The following statements were issued by the Progressive
Liberal Party’s spokesman on Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell MP Fox Hill
on the sentencing of two additional Nassau Market Vendors Gayle and Roshandra
Rolle. They were both sentenced to time served:
Gayle Rolle: 5th November 2010
"Nassau Market Vendor Gayle Rolle was sentenced
to time served and three years supervised probation yesterday 4th November.
She was also ordered to compensate Coach and Luis Vuitton for business
losses occasioned by the offence of trafficking the alleged counterfeit
goods. The sentencing took place yesterday. The repayment is
to commence in January 2011 with ten percent of the gross receipts of her
income to go toward repaying the amount ordered repaid.
"Marva Ferguson’s trial also scheduled for yesterday
was delayed until Tuesday 9th November at 5 p.m. Her sister Marvette is
to be tried the same day before a different judge on Tuesday 9th November
at 1 p.m.
"Roshandra Rolle goes to court today at 1 p.m.
for trial.
"The PLP continues to monitor the progress of
these cases and continues to urge The Bahamas government to exercise greater
vigilance and care in seeing that these matters are resolved speedily."
Roshandra Rolle: 6th November 2010
"Roshandra Rolle Sentenced To Time Served
"A federal judge in New York sentenced Roshandra
Rolle to time served for the offence of trafficking in counterfeit goods
yesterday 5th November. She is the seventh of nine Bahamian vendors
to be sentenced as a result of a series of nine arrests beginning on 18th
September of vendors from the Nassau Market. Ms. Rolle also got three
years supervised release and was ordered out of the country within 24 hours.
She and Gayle Rolle were expected back in The Bahamas on Saturday 6th November.
An order of restitution was made to Gucci and Louis Vuitton for their alleged
losses but no amount was set, no beginning date for repayment and no percentage
of her gross income was set as in the previous case of Gayle Rolle’s sentence.
"The PLP is pleased that these cases are winding
to an end. The other cases of Marva and Marvette Ferguson will be
heard on 9th November. The PLP continues to urge the government to
ensure that the rights of the remaining defendants are protected."
WHAT
EXACTLY DID INGRAHAM DO IN CHINA?
Last week, we wrote a comment on the Prime Minister’s
trip to China; you know the one where he was supposed to read the riot
act to the Chinese government about the workers at the Bahamar project.
We said last week, we did not think that he got anything out of it at all.
The Tribune did a speculative story about some special concessions being
made by the Chinese on training and on additional Bahamian contractors,
but there has been nothing official from the government. We think
they got a big fat nothing and that the deal will have to go ahead as it
is with maybe some minor tweaking for public relations sake. It is
a real pity that this man still thinks he can fool the Bahamian people
with simple propaganda. The fact is this deal needs to be approved
to get some fresh money into this town. It is as simple as that,
or face social revolt as unemployment starts to climb to dangerously high
levels.
THE
STATE FUNERAL FOR DAVID THOMPSON
Fred Mitchell Opposition spokesman for Foreign Affairs
for the Progressive Liberal Party meets the new Prime Minister of Barbados
Freundel Stuart at Illaro Court, the official home of the Barbadian Prime
Minister, following the funeral services for the late Prime Minister David
Thompson on Wednesday 3rd November in Bridgetown.
Photo/Samantha Rock
ARAWAK
HOMES WINS $500,000 DAMAGES
Senior Justice Anita Allen awarded damages amounting
to nearly half a million dollars to Arawak Homes as a result of a trespass
by Dennis Dean on land owned by Arawak Homes in Pinewood Gardens.
As this saga unfolds, more and more questions are being asked about the
role that Carl Bethel the FNM Chairman is playing in this attack against
Arawak Homes and whether or not the position he holds as an attorney is
in fact ethically sound. The Wilsons of Arawak Homes themselves would
be entitled to sue the Prime Minister for his remarks made in the House
of Assembly, save that they were made in a cowardly fashion in the House
and therefore no action can be taken against him. You may click
here for the press statement issued by Arawak Homes.
BUSINESSMAN
DEREK DAVIS SHOT AND IN HOSPITAL
On Saturday evening 6th November around 7 p.m. two
armed men entered the premises of the Village Convenience store in Fox
Hill, hooded and masked and went to its owner Derek Davis and demanded
money. They got the money, but they also shot him as they were leaving.
Fortunately, he is resting comfortably in hospital. This is part
of the escalation of crime under the FNM that they seem not be concerned
about. At some point, the FNM must take the blame for this because
they are doing absolutely nothing.
Fred Mitchell Fox Hill MP issued this statement:
“I was distressed to learn last night in the
middle of the National Youth Choir's concert that my friend Derek Davis,
a prominent businessman in Fox Hill was injured in a daring robbery at
his shop at around 8 p.m. last evening.
“I have spoken to him in hospital and to his
family to express my concern and to wish them well in the circumstances.
I am convinced that more can be done by the authorities to avoid this kind
of thing. I have an outstanding request with the police for a meeting
with community leaders to discuss what to do. I have almost given
up on the political authorities. The request was made more than a
month ago to the police for the meeting in the hope of starting special
initiatives in our Fox Hill community given the complaints which I got
from residents about the amount of daily gunfire and the threats and intimidation
they suffer as they walk along the streets.
“One hopes now in these circumstances that the
request will be honoured and that some further actions will be taken so
that there is not some greater tragedy that ensues. This applies
not only to Fox Hill proper but also to that area known as Congo Town along
Step Street where there continues to be criminal violence against the person.
I urge all residents to continue to exercise the greatest diligence in
their own protection.”
Mr. Davis' shooting was also one of the subjects
of a PLP release on crime Sunday
afternoon.
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Pierre Dupuch, the former MP and Minister, who has been intervening
in the press on one subject or the other for the past two months, is back
again this week. He says that he was out of town celebrating the
50th anniversary of his graduation from St. Johns University in Minnesota.
He writes about his concerns on “fronting” versus Bahamian investments
in a genuine form; he has a go at the Bahamas National Trust and Senate
President Lynn Holowesko and he has praise for Ministry of Tourism's official
greeter Vernal Sands at the Lynden Pindling International Airport:
I should apologize for taking so long in answering
a question I posed in my last article. I was not ducking; I was in Minnesota
at a reception marking 50 years since I graduated from St. John's University
having majored in economics.
I promised I'd tell you how we can make $400,000,000.00
by convincing each visitor to spend $100.00 on Bahamian products rather
than those bought from China, Japan or some other place. I said how a beautiful
building is built by using a number of small 8" X 16" cement blocks, placed
one at a time, following a plan.
But before building this structure and after
the plan is drawn, we must clear the land. To build a Nation the same steps
should be followed.
Until the Government ... whichever one is in
power ... outlaws "fronting" it is a waste of time trying to build a nation.
The game of "fronting" is like a metastasized cancer spreading over our
country sucking the very economic life out of this land.
And what do I mean? The company is really owned
by a foreign operation and thus the profits leave and go to the head office
which is outside the country. Tourist money in; tourist money out. How
does that help The Bahamas?
Eventually, it kills in an industry its creativity,
imagination, self-pride and ingenuity - all the qualities needed by the
masons to place the blocks and build the nation.
And how does this happen? A young person, all
bright eyed and bushy tailed, comes home well qualified, ready to go! He/she
comes up with a good idea, imaginative and creative, makes up a business
plan, goes to the bank with it, borrows money and opens shop.
It grows as expected. In the first year the sales
don't quite cover the expenses so the business loses money. That's expected.
Most new businesses lose money for the first several years. That's built
into the plan. But then it starts to make money. Some of those profits
now have to go back into paying for the predicted previous losses. So before
any business can get well established it takes at least five years.
But looming in the darkness is the fronter, the
person who would sell his mother for five dollars and not even give her
50% of the proceeds, a person with a heart full of greed and a head full
of rocks. No imagination. No self pride. No creativity. He now sees the
profit. The outside company he brings in changes the whole dynamics of
business. In its country, it can write off losses as income tax deductions;
it can keep its prices unreasonably low because his losses are really costing
him no money; they're written off as tax deductions.
The Bahamian, on the other hand, can't write
off his losses. There is no income tax in The Bahamas. His whole business
plan is now shot; he can't hold out against unfair odds; he folds. The
outsider, now with a monopoly, raises his prices and rapes the Bahamian
people. More money gone!!
So a country loses its young people who have
creativity, imagination, integrity, and replaces them with "fronters",
the people who have greed in their hearts and rocks in their heads. And
we ask, "What happened?"
This has to be stopped if we want to build a
strong economy, and a prosperous nation.
But people say this does not happen. It does,
ya know. Everyday.
I'll give you a real case. There was a young
man who had an idea. He created it, nurtured it, put it on the market and
was tremendously successful. A large international company, fronted for
by some very well known people in this country, approached this young man
and asked to buy his business. He said no; he had created it for his family
and that's the way he wanted to keep it.
The large international company said, "fine,
we'll run you out of business." And they started. They first upped the
price of the product in other countries, dropped the price here and within
a short time ran the local person who had the imagination, creativity,
and integrity, out of business.
This large international company fronted by two
well known, very wealthy men from The Bahamas, built a factory, but soon
realized that by importing it, rather than manufacturing it here, a larger
profit could be made. So they closed the plant, fired the workers raised
the price to the public and started importing the item. Greed come ...
money gone!
Off to the bank went the air-headed fronters;
off to the unemployment line went the Bahamian workers; out of the country
went our money.
And we want to know what's wrong? And we often
wonder why so many young Bahamians who excel in University come back here
and fade away?
This didn't just happen. It's been a cancer for
a long time that has now metastasized and is eating away at the very bones
of this society.
Tourism and the environment
A nation whose main industry is tourism has as
its greatest asset its environment. And probably the Minister of Environment
should be considered the most powerful, influential Minister in the Cabinet.
The tourist who visits our shores wants to see
The Bahamas in the raw. When I was Minister of Agriculture I was approached
by an "investor" who wanted to build a huge inland aquarium. Of course,
as a tradeoff, he wanted the Botanical Gardens. I told him that we live
in an aquarium. When I want to see fish or coral formations, I simply put
on a pair of goggles and jump overboard. I have a choice of 700 rocks to
live on and jump from into one of the most gorgeous aquariums in the world.
Some of our leaders saw this many years ago and
established the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park, the first and then the only
sea park in the world. Anyone who fished there would be arrested; a park
warden was hired. It was special. It was indeed an environmental asset,
to be protected by whatever Government was in power for future generations,
children yet unborn.
It could be used to attract tourists to The Bahamas.
It could be one thing that the tourist could spend a part of that $100.00
that I spoke of which put together could amount to $400,000,000.00 in foreign
investment. Showing tourists the park could create more entrepreneurship
for our people.
When Earl Deveaux was made Minister of the Environment
I was happy. Mr. Deveaux had been Director of Agriculture when I was Minister
and he spent many hours telling me about the importance of the environment.
I spent many hours helping to convince him to get involved in politics.
Recently, this same man gave the developers of
Bell Island permission to dredge a channel through the Sea Park, and thus,
in my opinion, destroying it. Mr. Deveaux knows that the sediment caused
by the dredging will settle on the reefs within at least a mile and kill
them.
Mr. Deveaux should know that the Exuma Cays Land
and Sea Park and Bell Island are protected by law. But law doesnt seem
to make much difference these days.
All that Mr. Deveaux spoke to me about the environment
was hot air. He should be called the Minister of Environmental Destruction.
Mr. Deveaux, you should be ashamed of yourself. You should resign.
And by the way, Mr. Deveaux, if you were serious
about resigning, you would have presented your resignation to the Governor
General and copied the Prime Minister. It is obvious that people like Earl
Deveaux must think that the Bahamian people are stupid.
Did you let one helicopter ride make you so dizzy
that you would do this to your people, Mr. Deveaux? But, of course, you
said that it would take more than a helicopter ride to make you decide.
Maybe you would be good enough to tell us what was enough? It does not
seem to be common sense that made you decide to allow the destruction in
our National Park. What was it, Mr. Deveaux?
If I recall, Mrs. Lynn Holowesko, President of
the Senate, was one of those who, with her friends, pushed for and created
the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park. I heard narry a word from them. No guts,
eh?
And then there is Pericles Maillis, the great
environmentalist. His mouth lately seems to be twisted in all directions.
So, his opinion wouldn't count anyway.
I suppose most of them subscribe to the saying
"principle don't put bread on my table." And we're surprised at what is
going on around us?
Now you know. And now that you know, you have
to do something about it!!!!
There's more to come. Stay tuned!
A Bahamian handshake makes the visitors smile!
Often times we criticize, and that is good so
long as you can give alternatives.
But there is also a time for praise, as long
as it is genuine.
Two weeks ago my wife and I went to Minnesota
to mark my 50th year after graduation from St. John's University. Since
we have not flown in the same plane for more than forty years, I had a
long wait at the airport here.
My wife's flight was called and the people lined
up to board. And then out of nowhere came this Bahamian man, well dressed,
well mannered and polite. He greeted each passenger, told them good bye,
wished them god speed, and said he hoped they had enjoyed being with us
as much as we had enjoyed having them. He invited each to return as he
shook their hands and said farewell.
Even the grouchy ones smiled. I was proud. The
man's name, I believe, was Mr. Sands. I understand that the Ministry of
Tourism introduced this program.
Pierre V.L. Dupuch
October 29, 2010
Professor Gilbert Morris, writing from the Turks and Caicos Islands takes up the gauntlet against the assertions made by Anthony Hall a TCI exile who claimed that the Chinese are trying to put the squeeze on The Bahamas. He also looks at the Bahamar project and its viability. Please click here for Professor Morris’ contribution.
Forrester Carroll is exercised about Erin Ferguson and Citizens Review,
begging the question how a bright young man seems unable to rise above
bitterness and vituperation.
I’ve watched the young host of ‘Citizen’s Review’, which is aired weekly
on JCN television but, sadly, I am not very impressed. Given his
background, with which I am very well acquainted, I rather expected more
substance and less rhetorical nonsense from him. He is, after all
and I dare anyone to deny it, one of our nation’s finest sons. He
is among many others who, collectively, are poised to assume control and
management of the country’s affairs in time. I am not suggesting
that all of what this young man says, during his show, is nonsense, but
what I am suggesting, however, is that some of his political viewpoints,
as expressed during the episodes I’ve seen, seem very bizarre and very
unlikely a proposition that could fly.
For instance, he suggests a total discarding
of all that is aged in our political system (both in the PLP and FNM),
which is not very likely to happen. Things are just not done the
way he seems to want them done. What I have not gotten from this
young man is that if both the PLP and the FNM go off the scene entirely
today, what are his alternatives for governance? I do not get from
him what course of action he would take to bring solutions to all the problems
he keeps talking about. Real youthful solutions are missing from
his weekly conversations. Certainly if he and others are fully prepared
to see the old ideas go off the scene then he and any of his peers who
think like him, must then have alternative solutions. If they do
have these solutions, shouldn’t we know what they are so that we can vet
them for substance? One should not just say break down the house
without having alternative plans, in place, for the rebuilding of a better
one.
My impression, at the outset, was that the title
of his program (Citizen’s Review) implied exactly what form his weekly
discussions would take. I didn’t think that it would be another “Orthland
Bodie” type show, lacking only the ability of the public to call in.
I thought his show would be one where current issues, and their effect
(positive or negative) on the general population, are reviewed, discussed
fully and alternative solutions put forth, but from what I’ve seen to date,
it is not that kind of show. The mission seems to be to bash the
current political system, its leaders and the parties they represent (without
exception); regurgitating his criticisms of the same on a weekly basis.
He complains and condemns (certainly on all the shows that I’ve watched
and listened to) but has never, that I have heard, offered any new ideas
from his supposed reservoir of youthful alternatives for a new direction
for our country.
Listening to this fine young man, with his distorted
viewpoints, reinforces my belief that young people today are too much in
a hurry to grow up and take over. Their egos are getting in the way
and sapping all their logic and common sense. Thirteen years I’ve
watched my little sapodilla tree grow (from a small plant) and as much
as I love to eat ripe dillies it did not rush its growth, for my sake,
but took it’s own sweet time to grow and mature, over these thirteen years,
and finally it appears that it will give me a crop of dillies (not even
a bumper crop) this year. It took its’ time to grow into maturity
(not come up overnight like Jack and the Bean Stalk) so that it could produce
and nurture its offspring (fruit) this year. It didn’t fast track
its growing processes just because its master wanted to eat some dillies.
The habits of nature affect humankind in the same way. We shouldn’t
expect to be any earthly good before we have passed, in an orderly fashion,
through the various stages of life, in our development. We will not
be able to cope in handling the challenges of leadership otherwise, and
some take more time than others. We must bide the time to mature
and then prepare ourselves to tolerate the years of understudy needed to
acquire the necessary experience for the task ahead. This takes time,
and time is the only teaching method by which experience is gained.
Experience cannot be garnered from reading books or sitting in a classroom;
it is achieved on the job and over time. So take some steps back,
young man (young people) and take another practical and intelligent look
within; you will soon realize that transition is always gradual, orderly
and resolute; not suddenly and without warning, as most young people, (certainly
in our country) seem to want these days.
Last week, Master Ferguson made a bold irrational
statement (which I must admit was the impetus for this article) to the
effect that there was not one good idea, to be found, floating around in
the PLP. Now he knows that this assertion of his has no merit and
I don’t believe that he himself believes what he said. In fact, if
the young man would be fair and honest he would admit that the only good
ideas (for the development and advancement of our country) emerging from
any of the political parties within the last fourteen years, have come
from the PLP, whether we agreed or disagreed with it’s developmental approach,
during its five-year stint at governance. Given the fact that we
all agree that, for the foreseeable future, the country is stuck with tourism
and banking, as our two main sources for employment and income, Perry Christie
and the PLP are the ones who have advanced the only real ideas for improving
our chances at being successful in these sectors. I know there might
be those who are tired of hearing this repeated but Christie’s ‘Anchor
projects idea’ was a master plan which, if allowed to expand, could have
provided and sustained the jobs and business opportunities needed for the
thousands of high school graduates projected to leave our educational institutions
during the next fifty years. Billion-dollar investment projects,
never heard of before in our country’s history, such as the Albany, Bah
Mar, Ginn, Bakers Bay, the I Group, The Rum Cay development project and
others, were all designed with the potential to absorb all Bahamians looking
for employment and or business opportunities. In fact, Christie actually
predicted, very realistically in my view, that we would have had full employment,
at the rate we were advancing, by the end of 2008.
In addition Christie’s idea to change the operational
regime, at The Lynden Pindling airport, and seeking twenty-first century
standards by turning its operations over to a private concern was, indeed,
innovative and futuristic. The re-location of the Port of Nassau
to Clifton and the re-development of downtown Nassau, including the entire
waterfront, proposals were all projects in keeping with Christie’s and
the PLP’s vision for a twenty-first century Bahamas.
What is the FNM’s vision? And since you are the
one with nothing good to say about the PLP’s ideas, or lack of them, what
are your plans, Master Ferguson? Let’s hear your ideas instead of
your bashing, for a change. You should be scolding the visionless
FNM for destroying all that was built up under the PLP. The fact
that they have taken it on as a deliberate five-year demolition project
(destroying the Bahamian economy that is) should be reason enough for “Citizen’s
Review” to take them on as a five-year monitoring project, instead of bashing
the PLP. At the very least, you should be giving Christie credit
for having a vision even if you disagree with aspects of that vision.
National Health Insurance is another futuristic social program that you
should be giving Christie and the PLP credit for. I ask again, where
is the FNM’s vision for the advancement of the country and our people?
That is what you should be asking, Master Ferguson, and don’t forget that
Christie and the PLP only governed the country for five of the last fourteen
years. Compare what the PLP did in those five years to what the FNM
has broken down in the last forty-two months and a clear enough picture
should begin to emerge for even you to recognize.
The show (Citizen’s Review) has become monotonous
sir, and unless you find your way it will be off air, I predict, very soon
for lack of viewers, if not for lack of sponsors. You, unlike most
of your peers, have a golden opportunity to become a “change agent” in
this country but instead you waste time, episode after episode, bashing
everything and everyone who disagrees with you. No one knows what
you are about; you condemn the PLP, Christie, the FNM and Ingraham but
you provide no alternatives, no ideas of your own for our advancement.
Any old fool can criticize but, if you are focused and intelligent, when
you condemn you should offer your alternative plans, simultaneously, for
the public’s consideration.
I hope that I am not portrayed as being against
the general advancement of our youth, but rather that I am against the
impatience in our youth who seem hell bent on taking over everything in
as short a time as possible, before passing through the embryonic stages
of their lives. Look around, young people. There are stages
to maturity and those stages are never all of a sudden, but gradual and
over time.
Forrester J. Carroll J.P.
Freeport, Grand Bahama
IN PASSING
PLP Candidates On The Radio Today
PLP Candidates Dr. Danny Johnson, Carmichael; Dr. Kendal Major, Garden
Hills; and Mr. Jerome Gomez, Killarney will be guests on Parliament Street,
Island 102.9 FM, on Sunday 7th November from 4 - 6 p.m. Hosts are
Stephen Gay and Patty Roker.
The Sleeper Hurricane
Tomas In The Bahamas
The last time we had a hurricane this late in the season was Hurricane
Michelle, which struck New Providence on 5th November. Now we have
Tomas that killed 14 people in St. Lucia and caused untold additional misery
in Haiti. Inagua in The Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos were in
its path. Footnote to history: in Barbados, at the instance of Bahamian
students in Jamaica, Fred Mitchell Opposition spokesman on Foreign Affairs
asked the Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham whether or not he proposed to
airlift the Bahamian students out of harm’s way. His reply: “tell
them that only the PLP does stuff like that. When I send my people
to Jamaica I expect the Jamaican government to protect my people”.
Good answer, Prime Minister. Mr. Mitchell says it was communicated
just as he said it.
Sylvia Larimore Crawford Dies
She was a cultural icon in her own right, a very sophisticated lady
who believed in herself and in Cat Island. You did not always agree
with her, but somehow you liked the way she carried herself and how sure
she was of herself. We lost a good person in Sylvia Larimore Crawford
and received the news of her death on Monday 1st November with sadness.
Mrs. Larimore Crawford spent her last years in Cat Island and together
with people like Eris Moncur and Pamela Poitier fought for Cat Island and
its cultural heritage and identity. R.I.P.
Apologies On Barbados Visit
Last week on this site, we announced that former Prime Minister Perry
Christie would lead a delegation by the PLP to the funeral of the former
Prime Minister David Thompson of Barbados, accompanied by Picewell Forbes
MP and Fred Mitchell MP. In the end, only Mr. Mitchell went.
We apologise for the error.
The SG and the Former Prime Minister Of Barbados At The Funeral
Former Prime Minister of Barbados Owen Arthur and Secretary General
of Caricom Edwin Carrington have a quiet talk at Illaro Court, the home
of the Barbados Prime Minister following the funeral service for the late
Prime Minister of Barbados David Thompson on Wednesday 3rd November.
Photo/Samantha Rock
The $120 Whore
The Nassau Guardian led with a story on Tuesday 2nd November about
the arrest and trial of a Jamaican woman for selling her sexual services
to a man. The man apparently did not like what he got for the $120
price. She refused to do certain things. He got upset and complained.
Thereupon said the press, he was beat up by the woman and her other female
co-workers. He complained to the police and they arrested her and
charged her before the courts. She was fined 200 dollars and despite
her excuse that she was doing this to feed her children, the magistrate
ordered her deported. That’s what you get from fooling with a $120
whore. Problem is, what about the man; is the receiver not just as
guilty as the thief?
Exuma Business Outlook Photo
The Exuma Business Outlook Seminar took place in Exuma on Wednesday
27th October. We reported last week on the comments of Chester Cooper,
CEO of British American Financial. Also at the seminar was MP for
Exuma Anthony Moss, who is shown in this photo with Fred Mitchell MP and
Photo/The Counsellors Ltd.
Is KFC To Close?
This past week, those "jonesing" for KFC chicken in The Bahamas may
have had to do without. The Kentucky Fried Chicken franchise appears
to be in some trouble here. After years of making healthy profits,
the business is now unionized to the point of pricing itself out of the
market and is foundering. KFC suffered a strike in the face of workers
demanding through their union higher wages and benefits in the midst of
a recession. It appears that the company’s owner George Myers is
faced with hard choices: close the business down or close some stores down
and shrink the business down to its essence in order to save it and save
some jobs. Hard choices but these are hard time in The Bahamas.
As Bermuda House Opens… Former Premier Back In Cabinet
Last week, we reported that Paula Cox is the new Premier of Bermuda,
succeeding Ewart Brown, who has retired from the House of Assembly.
Ms. Cox was sworn in and the new House had its official opening on Thursday
4th November by the Governor, complete with the speech from the Throne.
What is interesting is that former Premier Dame Jennifer Smith who first
led the PLP to victory in 1998 in Bermuda and who was ousted by Ewart Brown
is now back in the cabinet as the Minister of Education.
Pam Bridgewater Is New US Ambassador To Jamaica
We consider Pamela Bridgewater a friend of The Bahamas and the region
and we take this opportunity welcome her back to the region. She
once served as Deputy Chief of Mission to The Bahamas and left many friends
here. She is now Ambassador to Jamaica and she presented her credentials
not the Governor General there in the past week. The photo shows
Mrs. Bridgewater (now newly married) in her first press conference vowing
to fight corruption.
We Were Right About Voices Bahamian
The PLP will reportedly soon be taking official action with regard
to the abuse by the website Voices Bahamian. Last week, we wrote
extensively about the new atmosphere of nastiness and hostility that is
engendered by a number of sites that appear to have no responsibility for
their behaviour even though some of it is clearly criminal. Steps
will shortly be taken to deal with the individuals or individuals behind
it we hope.
The Maurice Glinton Judgment
Last week we got it wrong in the case that Maurice Glinton, the Freeport
attorney
brought against the Prime Minister for taking his name off the list to
be submitted to the Governor General for the honour of Queen’s Counsel.
Our criticism was that the judgment did not offer a solution but was merely
declaratory and that it was not simply enough for people to go to court
to get the jurisprudence of the country advanced. In fact, the Judge
did order at paragraph 90 of the judgment the following: “I order that
the recommendation of the applicant by the AG be dealt with according to
law viz. section 15(3) of the Act, the applicant’s application must be
transmitted to the Governor General by the Prime Minister.” We think
that this is a significant order. No word on whether the Prime Minister
intends to appeal the ruling. You may click
here for the full ruling.
Closed Season For Grouper
The Department of Marine Resources has announced that there will be
closed season for grouper from 1st December 2010 to 28th February 2011
in a seven square mile area surrounding High Cay off the coast of Central
Andros. There will be a closed season for the entire Bahamas from
1st January 2011 to 28th February 2011.
PM of Trinidad In Trouble For her Mouth
It seems that the new PM of Trinidad and Tobago just does not know
what to say. First, she went to the Heads of Government meeting in
July in Jamaica and said that Trinidad was not prepared to be the ATM for
the Caribbean. That went down like a dull thud. Then the hurricane
struck St. Lucia and the eastern Caribbean last week killing 14 people,
and she said that she would not send aid to the region unless there was
some benefit to Trinidad and Tobago. Oh boy!
US Acts To Devalue Its Currency
It appears that the US has gotten tired of begging the Chinese to revalue
the Yuan to improve the terms of trade in favour of the US. So now
the US Federal reserve, their version of the Central Bank, has said that
it will pump 600 billion additional dollars into the system by issuing
bonds to that amount. “Clueless” screamed the German Finance Minister.
The Chinese are upset. What this means say the finance ministers
is a currency war is beginning which can only hurt world trade.
Latrae at Government House
He is always or at least most times in grown up clothes, so it is hard
to imagine that he is still after all a kid. 16 years old and has
to report to school every day in school uniform. We are talking abut
Latrae Rahming who is a student at Temple Christian and who is the leader
of the youth arm of the PLPs advisory group. Came to fame after being
forced out of the Young Liberals because he dared to speak up for minority
rights. The photo was taken during a visit to Government House to
pay a courtesy call on Deputy to the Governor General Sir William Allen.
Latrae is seated at the far left.
Photo/Rodney Moncur
Daylight Saving Time Ends, Thank God
The silliness of playing with the time has come to an end until next
spring. They say that doing this saves electricity. Foolishness.
It simply disturbs your sleep rhythm with no compensating benefits.
Anyway at 2 a.m. Sunday morning all clocks in the country went back one
hour to Eastern Standard Time.
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
THE PLP’S TELECOMMUNICATIONS
POLICY
The PLP has a real chance of becoming the next government of this
country. It is not as assured as most think, but it is at least fifty-fifty.
To us, the policy mix is going to be important and the image issue that
the Leader of the PLP is engaged and more than just a visitor to funerals
and events or confining himself to being a studied bystander to the policy
development and initiatives of his colleagues, occasionally exercising
veto power. The PLP must also show that they are prepared to govern
from day one. The country is looking for that signal.
The kind of sacrifice we are talking about is evinced in the way that Arawak Homes and its principals dealt with the issue of illegal encroachment on their land. The tide has turned a bit for them, despite the Prime Minister’s craven misuse of his bully pulpit in order to attack the Wilsons, but the fact is that the principals of Arawak Homes realized that notwithstanding their strict legal rights, this thing had the potential to do damage to the larger PLP cause.
We think that something that could demonstrate the readiness of the party for governing is a comprehensive telecommunications policy. The party has been silent on the merger of SRG trading as Indigo and its proposed merger with Cable Bahamas. This is clearly anti-competitive and the party should weigh in on it. But who is there watching that issue for the PLP?
We think that the initiative by the PLP Chair Bradley Roberts on the sale of the telephone company BTC was an outstanding effort well researched and should put a nail in the coffin of the Cable and Wireless sale. But there must be institutional support from the PLP, so that it does not appear that this is his personal fight. Indeed, the PLP's lawyers should be looking around at legal avenues to block the sale of the property. It is travesty what Hubert Ingraham proposes to do.
Our suggestion goes further with regard to the sale of BTC. We believe and hope that the PLP accepts the following changes to its present position on the telecommunications sector and in particular on BTC:
We hope that this becomes official PLP policy. Our point
is that the wealth accumulated in BTC should be transferred to Bahamians
as private individuals; not to foreign entities. We believe that
this outlined position will help with it. The local capital firms
can help to find the finance for this deal. The PLP must be ready
to implement this as soon as it takes office within 30 days, but they ought
to announce it now.
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 13th November 2010 at midnight: 128,706.
Number of hits for the month of November up to Saturday 13th November
2010 at midnight: 232,186.
Number of hits for the year 2010 up to Saturday 13th November 2010
at midnight: 7,120,852.
INGRAHAM'S
HO HUM PRESS CONFERENCE
The best way to characterise the Prime Minister's
press conference of Sunday afternoon at the Hilton British Colonial is
ho hum. He announced that he managed to get the Bahamian contractors’
content in Bahamar up from 200 million to 400 million. That is not
what it seems.
The fact is Mr. Ingraham has been misstating this
deal from the start and the original 100 million dollar figure that he
was quoting was only for the initial works. Bahamians were always
going to get more of the contract than the 100 million. So no big
accomplishment there.
He was not able to announce anything new on the
Bahamar construction work permit issue. So the fact is his trip was
one big flop.
The other bits of news: he says that he is running
again for Prime Minister. No surprise there. He has been playing
a false coyness for months now, but this is a man who lied to the Bahamian
public about two terms or ten years and simply can get enough; can’t stop
jonesing for power. Poor Tommy Turnquest.
Mr. Ingraham, of course, had to throw a brickbat
at Perry Christie, the PLP’s leader, saying that Mr. Christie could not
look him in the face at a function for Mother Pratt last week. This
man has a deep psychological problem in that he cannot utter a sentence
without this preoccupation with Perry Christie. Perry Christie is
going to beat him in the next election.
He also announced that Anita Allen would be the
new President of the Court of Appeal, replacing Dame Joan Sawyer.
Anita Allen is the wife of former FNM Minister Algernon Allen and is now
a Senior Justice on the Supreme Court.
BRADLEY
ROBERTS ON THE TELEPHONE COMPANY
PLP Chairman Bradley Roberts gave an excellent and well researched presentation
on Wednesday 10th November at the Bahamas Communications and Public Officers
Hall. He talked about the sale of the telephone company BTC.
He believes that the government is about to give a profitable company away
to Cable and Wireless for a song.
Mr. Roberts’ address was carried live on TV and
Radio. ZNS refused to carry it, refusing to take Mr. Roberts’ money
on the grounds that the PLP owes ZNS money and until Mr. Roberts was able
to give a commitment to pay the PLP’s bill, he would not be given coverage
and they would not accept his money. Curiously, there was only one
report in the major press of the speech, a story that appeared on page
three of the Nassau Guardian.
Here is Mr. Roberts take on the situation:
“I have painfully come to the conclusion that
Hubert Ingraham has the major portion on the Press under his control.
The story… paints a very clear picture. My speech at the PLP Town
Meeting this past Thursday was well researched yet; there has been no coverage
by the Tribune. I released my speech to the media before 6:00 p.m.
on Thursday. The Guardian considered my speech to be of little or
no interest and carried a few lines inside of it (on) Friday.
“My agent paid for an ad promoting the Town Meeting
to appear in the Tribune this past Wednesday and the ad was not carried
and as mentioned Eileen Dupuch Carron’s Tribune has not carried the story.
The recent PLP very important statement on BEC was suppressed by the Press.
We are indeed in very serious trouble when portions of the Press suppress
important news from the Bahamian Public. No wonder why the Bahamas
is on a sharp decline due to massive mismanagement by Hubert Ingraham and
the FNM. The Tribune motto of ‘being Bound to swear to the Dogmas
of No Master’ is a big shameless joke. The Nassau Guardian has no
motto.”
We agree with Mr. Roberts on this. It is a
pattern of behaviour that we have spoken about from time to time.
The only way to combat this is to have your own media and for the PLP as
a party to try to shift information dissemination preferences into its
own arena. The other way is by public meetings. We think
the speech is well worth reading and so we provide the
link to the address and to the
video link provided by Andrew Burrows of PLP media.
We encourage you to read and inwardly digest the
suggestion at the comment of the week, which says that the PLP ought to
formally change its position and adopt the position that BTC will not be
sold to Cable and Wireless and that it will be sold through a management
buyout and thereafter in tranches to Bahamians only.
THE
CHINESE RESOLUTION IS COMING
You will remember some weeks ago before the Prime
Minister Hubert Ingraham made his trek to China, he tabled a resolution
that was to be debated in the House of Assembly on the matter of the Bahamar
project and the 8000 work permits that were requested by the developer
on Bahamar. Mr. Ingraham’s starting point was that if the PLP did
not
support it then he was not going to support it. That of course changed
when it became clear that the PLP was not going to support it. Then
Mr. Ingraham adopted the PLP's position by saying that when he went to
China he would be telling the Chinese no deal unless the labour proportions
of Bahamian to foreign changed and there was no full opening of the rooms
that they proposed in a manner that would flood the market. The latter
was an argument that he adopted to help protect his benefactors at Paradise
Island.
We actually thought the idea of the resolution was
all dead but now comes the news that Mr. Ingraham intends to organize a
two-day debate on Wednesday and Thursday 17th and 18th November to debate
the Bahamar resolution in the House of Assembly. What can he say?
He has already used his personal amanuensis at the Nassau Guardian to announce
that he wants the deal changed from a 200 million dollar Bahamian component
to a 500 million dollars one and that the deal is to be done in phases.
He held a press conference as we went to upload Sunday afternoon (see
report above). Do the deal and let’s get on with it. Money
needs to flow in this town again.
SUSPENSION
OF TRIAL BY JURY IN THE TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS
The unelected interim government in the Turks &
Caicos Islands has announced the suspension of trial by jury. Fred
Mitchell MP, the PLP’s Opposition Spokesman on Foreign Affairs issued the
following statement on the matter:
“The PLP is deeply concerned about the decision
by the unelected and unrepresentative interim government dominated by British
government appointees to suspend trial by jury in the Turks and Caicos
Islands. This has added to the feeling of disquiet and unrest in
the Turks and Caicos Islands about the future of their democracy.
“The British have suspended the Turks and Caicos
Islands democracy; there is no representative Assembly; they are unable
to say when democracy will be restored; they have now suspended trials
by jury; and there is a deep suspicion that the constitutional reforms
which the British propose will deny the rights of the native Turks and
Caicos Islanders to run their country in favour of an expanded franchise
that will allow expatriates to vote and outnumber the local islanders.
“These matters should be of concern to
all freedom loving Bahamians. It is happening right on our doorstep.
The PLP renews the call for The Bahamas government to become more engaged
in this issue and to report to the Bahamian people what practical steps
can be taken to urge the return to full democracy in the Turks and Caicos
Islands.”
THE
NEW TURKISH AMBASSADOR
Inci Tumay is the new Turkish Ambassador to The
Bahamas. She is non-resident and serves the country out of Cuba.
She presented her credentials to the Deputy to the Governor General Sir
William Allen on Thursday 11th November at Government House. Present
for the occasion was the Honorary Consul for Turkey in The Bahamas Lowell
Mortimer OBE. A reception was hosted by Mr. Mortimer at the Balmoral
Club and the community at large attended with those from the diplomatic
community including US Ambassador Nicole Avant and her husband Ted.
Former Prime Minister and now Leader of the Opposition Perry Christie attended
along with Fred Mitchell MP, the Opposition spokesman on Foreign Affairs.
DESECRATING
A GRAVEYARD
Well in these days and times, it appears that not
even the dead are safe. Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill received a
call on the evening of Wednesday 10th November that someone was smashing
the headstones in the graveyard of St. Anne’s Cemetery on the Eastern Road.
16 headstones were toppled. The police are investigating the matter.
Mr. Mitchell reminded the public that desecrating a grave is an offence
as is damaging property. He is shown with Anglican Assistant Curate
at St. Anne’s, Rev. Fr. Hugh Bartlett.
Photo/Tim Clarke
NDP
/ WORKERS PARTY MERGER
Some things would really be amusing if they and
the people involved were not so serious. There was an announcement
last week signed in Likkety Split (as someone said where ice cream and
gummy bears are sold) that the Workers Party and the National Democratic
Party (NDP) have agreed to an alliance.
The sarcasm can begin here: zero plus zero equals
zero). But as we said these are serious people.
Rodney Moncur who has been a band of one and has
been PLP then FNM and then Workers Party again was there to witness the
signing by his chairman. Renward Wells who was PLP now NDP was there
to sign as well. The most prominent of them Latore Mackey was not
seen in the pictures.
Ethric Bowe who was PLP up to a few weeks ago now
says that this NDP and Workers Party alliance is the greatest thing since
sliced bread. Paul Moss was nowhere to be seen, but he after being
a candidate for Leader of the PLP last year, is now NDP.
The one we find inexplicable is Lynden Nairn, the
economist. Why would he be involved with NDP? We thought he
was PLP as well. But who knows what happens in the hearts of men and each
one has a choice to make. The point is we think that the PLP is poised
to win state power again and all of these men with one possible exception
should have some role to play in any future government of the PLP.
But the things you feel you have to do and sometimes have to do to get
attention.
We thought of this passage from the Anglican rite
of marriage as a thought to pass on to these newlyweds the NDP and the
Workers Party: “It is to be honourable among all men: and therefore is
not by any to be enterprised nor taken in hand, unadvisedly, lightly, or
wantonly…but reverently, discreetly, advisedly, soberly and in the fear
of God.”
Photo from Rodney Moncur's Facebook page
CFAL
WEEKLY MARKET RECAP
You may click
here for the weekly market recap from Colina Financial.
STAN
BURNSIDE’S CARTOONS
Stan Burnside, the Guardian’s cartoonist, in our
view captured the flavour of the time: the Prime Minister’s political troubles
and those of his Minister of National Security.
THE
CITY MARKETS STORY
Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill issued the following
statement on City Markets which was published in The Tribune Friday 12th
November:
“I am forced once again to raise the matter of City
Markets. I became a refugee shopper at Supervalue yesterday 9th November.
The reason is that the shop shelves are bare in City Markets at Harbour
Bay. I am told that it is the same at Rosetta Street. There
was simply nothing in the store: no lettuce, no tomatoes, no razors and
the list goes on. It appears that the owners have simply abandoned
the store and have no further interest in the business.
“It has been reported and not refuted by the company
that the agreement for sale that they announced on 5th November (Guy Fawkes
Day) has fallen away. The company had provided no explanation for
what now?
“This is sad but not surprising. The values
of loyalty, faithfulness, long service and consistency are not values that
are a part of the business and civic culture of The Bahamas any longer
it appears. Having promised people that they would not abandon them
and this market, it appears that the Neal and Massey group are going to
throw in the towel. All the prominent people who touted this deal are nowhere
to be heard or seen. They appear to be standing in the tall grass
out of sight.
“The loss of the business because it is an old model
is one for the Business School Case Studies. But if the company fails
the case study will not be able to describe the impact of this matter on
the human beings in this country: the employees said to number nearly 800
and the small shareholders who depended on a City Markets dividend to augment
their pensions. This is a tragedy for all sorts of reasons. I use
these emotive words because I do not want the true character of the human
impact of this on the employees and shareholders of Bahamas Supermarkets
to be minimized. The employees are sad and devastated and feel
used and misused and without protectors. The shareholders small and large
are bitter and furious and feel duped.
“The question must be asked: whoever structured
this deal: did they know what they were doing? Were they in over
their heads from the start? What are the civic and criminal liabilities
in this if any?
“Beyond venting on the issue of the tragedy
in the aggregate there is not much one can do but for the employees there
is something that can be done. I am forced therefore as a representative
and on behalf of my Fox Hill constituents to ask publicly once again: what
is the Ministry of Labour doing in this situation? Are they prepared
to intervene at this stage to find out what will be done to protect workers
in this situation or are they simply going to stand by and wait for the
trade dispute to be filed if the doors have close and the severance money
goes and if the company puts itself into liquidation and the accountants
and l lawyers collect the spoils?
“The owners of the company have a moral obligation
to speak up.
“I again call on the Minister of Labour to act and
do his job.
[Since this statement, the Nassau Guardian reported on Wednesday
10th November that Senator Jerome Fitzgerald and Mark Finlayson, son of
Sir Garret Finlayson, have signed on to buy the establishment. We
think they are courageous in the circumstances and wish them well in this
enterprise.—Editor]
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Forrester Carroll on the proposed airport road...
It look's like a corrupt, crooked deal if ever I heard of or seen one.
The cost of road building in the Bahamas used to run around one hundred
thousand dollars ($100,000.00) per mile, depending on where and on which
Island, in the country, the road was being constructed and, of course,
the scope of work ordered. When the PLP government did the Tonique
Darling Highway the cost to the Bahamian Taxpayers was in the tens of thousands
of dollars per mile; not tens of millions and Bahamians performed the work
themselves. Hubert Ingraham is now about to construct a stretch,
from Nassau’s International Airport to seven miles away, at a cost exceeding
ten million dollars ($10,000,000.00) per mile and the Chinese (who work
for about 20% of what Bahamians would work for) will perform the work.
The questions I have for Hubert Ingraham are (1) are there crooks in your
government, mister, who will be benefiting from kickbacks in this contract?
(2) What are the names of those rascals who will be dividing up the spoils?
(3) What part, if any, are you and Zhivargo Laing playing in this road
contract deal?
You say the PLP are being deceptive about the
“per mile” average cost? Well let’s see what factual information
we do have and then try and calculate the rest. Hubert Ingraham proposes
to construct a four lane highway from Nassau’s Airport 7 miles to the downtown
area. The total cost when complete, Ingraham says, will be $71 million
dollars. Using simple arithmetic, we divided the $71 million by the
digit 7 and we got our answer of $10,142,857.00 for each mile. But
(you say) it’s a four lane highway which, in effect, will be four lanes
at seven miles each. I’ll concede and give you that rationale, as
well, to assist you in reducing your cost per mile, on paper, and maybe-just
maybe-you will succeed in getting a few blind fools to believe you (we
maintain that the cost per mile to tax payers is as I calculated the figures
above). And so now we have four lanes at seven miles each, running side
by side, which gives us twenty-eight miles, according to you. So now when
we divide the $71 million by the digits 28, the cost per unit (mile) will
still calculate to a whopping $2,535,714.00.
I maintain, as does the PLP, that the highway
is still only seven miles long, mind you, with the only added difference
being that it is a four lane highway, instead of a dual, which makes it
twice as wide as a dual and should cost slightly more per mile. However,
we maintain that the FNM’s figures are still outrageously high, in terms
of cost per mile, for road building in the Bahamas. It has never cost us
nearly as much as this before, not even for roads built in the far flung
Family Islands, under the most extreme and difficult conditions.
I am advised that, nowadays, the going rate per
mile for four lane highways constructed under the most extreme conditions
and using the best materials money can buy and employing the latest technology,
shouldn’t cost in excess of $300,000.00-$450,000.00 at the very most. So
the challenge for the FNM and Hubert Ingraham (and we had better throw
Zhivargo Laing in the mix as well since he tries to explain away all the
FNM’s problems whether he knows anything about them or not) is to explain
to the Bahamian taxpayers how they arrived at a mile costing us $10,142,857.00;
that is their challenge.
We need to guard the taxpayers’ resources
from the FNM again. I say again because the last time (in 2002), when they
smelled the rat of losing they started, months before D-Day, and by the
time the PLP came to office the Treasury was absolutely broke. They have
been let loose again and don’t let anyone fool you guys; they are descending
upon us from the highest level.
If the government insists that the cost, of the
road per broad mile (four lanes across), isn’t what we quantified it to
be, then we ask them to show us where we have gone wrong in our calculations.
The crooks know who they are, though, and I hope
they know as well that time ain’t long now.
Forrester J. Carroll J.P.
Freeport, Grand Bahama
IN PASSING
Vincent Peet’s New Grandson
Vincent Peet the MP for North Andros is now a grandfather for the first
time. Proud is he of the fact and displayed the picture of the new
infant on his Facebook page. The boy’s name is Charles Vincent Leopard.
Congratulations
URCA Issues A Notice On Indigo
The Utilities Regulation Competition Authority (URCA) has issued a
notice that it has opened an in depth investigation into the merger plans
of SRG trading as Indigo, which has a voice telecommunications licence
and Cable Bahamas. We think this is the right thing to do.
Fred Mitchell MP was amongst those who wrote URCA objecting to the merger
on the grounds that it was not in the public interest. The investigation
is for ninety days.
Remembrance Day
Today is celebrated as Remembrance Sunday. There was a special
service for veterans of the First and Second World Wars at the Christ Church
Cathedral this morning followed by the traditional laying of the wreaths
at the Cenotaph in Garden Of Remembrance behind the Supreme Court on Parliament
Street. Today we also remember the four sailors who perished on the
HMBS Flamingo on 10th May 1980 when the ship was struck by Cuban missiles
from MIGS flying overhead. As usual, Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham
did not attend the service.
Mother Pratt Is Ordained Associate Pastor
Cynthia Pratt MP for St. Cecilia and former Deputy Leader of the Progressive
Liberal Party was ordained a minister of religion on Sunday 7th November
at her church in the Grove. She is to become its Associate Pastor.
Mother Pratt announced last year that she would not be running again for
political office. In the exercise of becoming a religious pastor,
she joins the former PLP representative for South Eleuthera James Moultrie
and the former MP for Centreville Anthony Roberts.
Bahamas Declines Carifta Games
There was not much fuss in the country but some flack on the web about
a report that St. Kitts and Nevis had turned down the opportunity to host
the Carifta games following a decision of the Bahamas government to decline
hosting the games on the grounds of cost. Now let’s see. The
games are the feeder for the youngsters to get the training in international
competition, which eventually leads to the Tonique Darlings of this world
and Usain Bolts. The web is saying that for the first time the games
are going to be cancelled because no one is willing to host them.
No wonder the younger people in this country and region think that there
is simply no future here or place for them.
Rodney Moncur Attacks The US Ambassador
The leader of the Workers Party Rodney Moncur has attacked the US Ambassador
for what he claims is discrimination against the Bahamian Royal Bahamas
Defence Force officers who guard the facilities in and around her home.
Nicole Avant is the Ambassador. Mr. Moncur claims that as a result
of complaints from relatives of the RBDF officers, he wrote a letter to
the Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs complaining that
the Ambassador has stopped the Defence Force officers from using the internal
bathrooms on her compound and were forcing them to use porta-johns.
The problem is from the US side Mr. Moncur's facts are not correct and
they told him the facts. They say that the permanent facilities are
under reconstruction and during this period, the porta-johns are being
used. But the scuttlebutt is that the internal facilities have been
abused by some RBDF officers and left in a nasty state. Mr. Moncur
did not leave it there but suggested that the distinction is being made
at a time when there is an African American Ambassador and when the white
Ambassadors were here, it did not happen. Friends of the Ambassador
said that crossed the line: what does race have to do with it? The
facts are say her friends that it was the Ambassador who initiated the
improvements to the facilities. Both the Bahamas Government and the
RBDF have been in on the picture and reportedly have no complaints about
the issue. Some say that the whole controversy is manufactured and
is some senses an attack on the security of the ambassador. From
our point of view, the RBDF is a disciplined force and disciplined forces
have to have the discipline to exercise forbearance in the circumstances
of war. Can we go to war with a crew complaining about restrooms?
Toriano Johnson - A Bahamian In Toronto
Charles Johnson is an insurance executive and his wife Eunice is a
businesswoman. They have a son Toriano who it seems just the other
day was running around in short pants but today is a salesman at Xerox
in Canada. From Toronto where he now lives, the younger Mr. Johnson
in a promotion video posted by YouTube talked about his work and how he
enjoys what he does. Click
here to hear what he has to say.
Update On Derek Davis
Last week we reported on this site the robbery of Derek Davis in the
middle of the shopping hour on a Saturday night 6th November at his establishment
in Fox Hill. No one has been arrested for the crime. He was
shot. Fortunately for him, the bullet did not enter the chest cavity
and spared any vital organs. He was discharged the next morning.
Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill immediately convened a meeting with the police
to speak to them about increased activity in the area. A service
of thanksgiving was held at St. Anne’s Church Sunday morning for Mr. Davis
and his family.
Arawak Homes Sticking To First Principles
Arawak Homes has been in the press during the past week urging people
who have disputes over land with them to come in and seek compromises on
the issue. As the legal issues become clear, it is also clear that
the government was complicit in what has transpired. There were failures
all around. We continue to say that Arawak Homes is not a charity.
It has a mortgage on property that it must pay and discharge. No
one can expect them to simply give away their land.
Vernice Moultrie Cooper Dies
When Sir Sidney Poitier, the film star and icon and former Bahamian
Ambassador, was a little boy, he wrote in his book Life Beyond Measure
that Vernice Moultrie was one girl that he had his eye on. She was
not interested he said and would not look his way. But in these last
years, they became fast friends and renewed acquaintances and spoke often.
Dame Marguerite Pindling in her book credited Vernice Moultrie Cooper with
helping her with learning the social graces and the etiquette of being
the wife of a Prime Minister. In her own right, she worked for years at
the Bahamas Telecommunications Corporation, telephone company and predecessor
to BTC but as a civic leader she was one of the organizers of the first
Miss Bahamas Beauty pageant Committee. She was married to Clifford
Cooper, who was once FNM secretary general, but she herself was PLP.
Well, all of that is now history and finite. Mrs. Cooper died on
Thursday 11th November at Doctors Hospital after a brief illness.
Mrs. Cooper’s funeral has been set for Friday at 11 a.m. at the Church
of the Holy Cross where she was a founding member and a memorial service
on Wednesday 17th at 7 p.m. also at Holy Cross.
Tim Donaldson To Retire
Commonwealth Bank has announced that its Chairman T. Baswell Donaldson,
the former Central Bank Governor, Senator and Ambassador, is to retire
as Chairman of the bank. The bank enjoyed unprecedented growth under
his leadership.
Who Is This Group To Whom Ed Fields Has Sent Out Invites?
WE THE PEOPLE is a new group to which Ed Fields, the son-in-law of
Sir Orville Turnquest and the brother-in-law of the Minister of National
Security Tommy Turnquest is sending out invitations to a launch at Paradise
Island. No one knows what this is about but the initiative is said
to be one that will be transformative. Speculation is that this is
something being started and bankrolled by the Paradise Island people like
the Tea Party movement in the United States to sabotage the major parties
but really to siphon the votes from the PLP and toward the FNM.
American Bridge Calls For Investigation
Bahamian employees are complaining that their rights have been abridged
by American Bridge the construction company working out of Paradise Island.
They say that toes, feet, hands have been crushed and compensation is an
issue. Minister of Labour; get to work here!
T & T's Manning in Spy Allegations
The now Prime Minister of Trinidad Kamala Bicessar Persaud has accused
the former Prime Minister Patrick Manning of presiding over a wire tapping
and bugging scandal in which he allowed the Security and intelligence Agency
(SIA) of Trinidad and Tobago to tap the phones of herself as then Opposition
leader and scores of other politicians and civic leaders including the
President of the Republic Max Richards and one of his former Ministers
Colin Imbert. She has disbanded the unit and has reported the matter
to Parliament. Mr. Manning was not allowed to respond to the allegations
in Parliament so he called a press conference and denied any knowledge
of the tapping of telephones of politicians. Instead he accused the
now Prime Minister of dismantling the security apparatus of Trinidad and
Tobago by getting rid of the intelligence agencies because she is seeking
to pay back her money benefactors who were drug traffickers.
Stay tuned here. There are lessons for The Bahamas given who our
Prime Minister is.
Fishermen Complain
Bahamian fishermen are complaining about the lack of action by the
government on protecting their condos for catching crawfish. It appears
that after decades of use, there is no law governing the rights of those
who put down the condos which are artificial reefs made to attract crawfish.
The result is a high degree of theft by others. The fishermen are
incensed that the Royal Bahamas Defence Force is not doing an effective
job in stopping poachers in our waters.
Ian Strachan Does It Again
Writing in his column of last week the College of The Bahamas lecturer
was calling down a pox on both political houses in an article in which
he argued that Peter was no better than Paul. While his stuff is
always well written, the answer to this kind of criticism is so obvious.
This is what we have: FNM and PLP. It is certainly not perfect but
it is what we have. So while the lecturers and professors reinvent
the wheel, the voters get to choose and let us hope that they choose the
PLP this time around and maybe just maybe with the help of Dr. Strachan
the PLP will do better. Until then it would be like us saying that
both COB and UWI are useless so let's tell the kids to go to the States.
New COB President
The Government has side stepped appointing a Bahamian to the post of
President of the College of The Bahamas by appointing an American Dr. Betsy
Vogel-Boze who is now serving as a Dean at Kent State University in Ohio.
She is to take up her post on 1st January 2011.
William Holowesko Dies
He was the spouse of the President of the Senate Lynn Holowesko nee
Pyfrom. He was a campaigner for the UBP in the old Stafford Sands
days. He started a firm that specialised in title insurance and in
title research. He was one tough guy, but when he qualified to be
called to the bar, he was not yet a Bahamian citizen and the then Attorney
General Paul Adderley moved and did block his call to the Bar. Later
he was granted citizenship when the FNM came to power and he was qualified
to practice here. In his later years, he mellowed as illness took
him over. He and his wife produced a really smart and successful
group of children including one that runs the Templeton Company here in
Nassau. William Holowesko died at his home in Lyford Cay at the age
of 77 on Friday 12th November. His funeral is set for 4 p.m. on Tuesday
St. Paul’s, Lyford Cay.
The Parliamentarians Lose Again To The Preachers
This time it was a softball game and this time the preachers were again
successful. They won 18 to 16 over the parliamentarians.
The game was more evenly matched than the Basketball game that they had.
A great time was had by all.
Photos/Derek Smith
Congratulations to Wallace Rolle On His 50th
His son Stefan saw to every detail. His wife Crystal and all
his friends gathered at his home in Skyline Drive to wish him happy birthday.
50 is an important milestone. Happy birthday to attorney and former PLP
candidate Wallace Rolle.
Bulla Hanna Turns 62
He is looking quite frail but still up to his wonderful sense of humour
as he celebrate his birthday at the home of George Wilson, the former PLP
secretary general and Thomas Robinson, the track star at Wilson Bay
in South Beach. Brenville ‘Bulla’ Hanna congratulations.
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
HUBERT CARRYING THE BALL
FOR KERZNER
Things get curiouser and curiouser as they say. The Bahamar
resolution that engendered all the public commentary and controversy is
now history with the Parliament unanimously approving it on Thursday 18th
November.
You could not actually believe the words you were hearing during the debate coming from the FNM. The same people who were badmouthing the development were suddenly getting up on their feet and praising it to the high heavens. Charles Maynard even thanked the Izmeralian family for their tenacity in seeing the deal through. Now there’s a switch!
The Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham claimed paternity of the deal, a deal which he said before he did not believe in and which he had no faith in, was now his deal and could not in his words have happened with the support of the Chinese if the government did not support it.
We do not care really about all the horse dead and cow fat. The deal is long overdue. One thing operating on the mind of the Prime Minister and his FNM friends and colleagues is that the time is running out to use the money. The China Export Import bank had notified the lenders and the Government that if the money was not spent by the end of the year, then the money would be lost. Given that this is literally the only game in town, Mr. Ingraham had to put up or shut up.
Then there is the issue of employment. The Prime Minister had to admit in his press conference that he has no other option to put some new money into this economy and get people working.
Hubert Ingraham is an interesting guy. He can turn on a dime. Dr Bernard Nottage speaking in the House of Assembly as he put the PLP's position on Wednesday 17th November described the FNM’s approach to the Bahamar project as bi-polar. We agree and we could have used some less charitable expressions. You have simply never seen such flip flopping in all your life.
For the most part, though, the debate was measured and settled. Even Hubert Ingraham did not blow his stack this time including all the unnecessary invective aimed at Perry Christie, the former Prime Minister and Opposition leader. It is like this man has some preoccupation with Perry Christie, which Perry Christie has described as paranoid.
The only ones who did not get the cue to change the script were the FNMs members for Kennedy and Golden Isles Kenyatta Gibson and Charles Maynard respectively. Mr. Gibson accused the PLP of selling out the birthright of the country because they agreed to the Cable Beach land deal with Bahamar. The fact is that he got his ire misdirected since the deal is actually Mr. Ingraham's deal and the only reason that the Chinese Export Import bank is involved and has the potential to claim by foreclosure Bahamian land is because Mr. Ingraham scuttled the first PLP deal. Now that Mr. Gibson voted to approve the deal in the House of Assembly, one hopes he accepts by deduction of his own reasoning that he too has sold out the birthright of the country. But then again he was part of the original ‘selling out of the birthright’ since he was PLP when the original deal was approved. Such are the vagaries of Bahamian politics. Nevertheless, the Speaker and Mr. Gibson insisted that it was right for Mr. Gibson to accuse the PLP of selling out the birthright of the country. No word on whether they now agree that it is Mr. Ingraham who by extension has now done so and also Mr. Gibson. The argument is pure bunk but you know anything in politics goes.
Charles Maynard, the Golden Isles member is in class of his own. In fact, in a remarkable admission, he embraced the name ‘class clown’ imposed upon him by Shane Gibson, the PLP's Golden Gates MP. He then proceeded to try to pump up his arguments by saying that the Prime Minister improved the development and increased the take of Bahamian contractors from 200 million to 400 million. There is no evidence of such a thing. It is pure propaganda.
What was laughable was Tommy Turnquest, the Minister of National Security who in seeking answer an assertion by the PLP’s Fred Mitchell in a throwaway line on radio that the Prime Minister did not meet with Chinese Premier Wen Jibao in China, went to great lengths to show that Mr. Ingraham did meet with the Premier. Of course he met with him, at the closing ceremony of the Exposition. Mr. Turnquest claimed that there was a bilateral meeting as well and that in the bilateral he raised the possibility of a visit to The Bahamas. No word on whether he raised Bahamar, of course, which was the real point of Mr. Mitchell’s intervention and of course he did not. But it was funny seeing them scrambling around, issuing what looked like a photoshopped picture of Mr. Ingraham with the Chinese Premier. At the end of the day, who cares whether he met with him or not. The question is: will Bahamar now have the approvals that are necessary to move this deal forward?
Lastly, we simply point out the most remarkable fact of all: the Prime Minister carrying the ball for Sol Kerzner, the grumpy old man who lost his well beloved and brilliant son in 2006, and is also at loose ends as his investment is in deep financial trouble at Atlantis, with them reportedly six months behind on the mortgage and as he sinks ever more into old age and is apparently angry at the world.
Notwithstanding the knighthood just given him by the Bahamian people, Mr. Kerzner attacked the PLP as if the PLP were the government. The statements he made were ill considered and even foolish and beg the question of whether this man is playing with a straight deck. He threatened the jobs of 8000 Bahamians who work at Paradise Island. In fact, he proved why the deal with Bahamar should go ahead because it removes the possibility of one large employer who can threaten the government of The Bahamas because it has too much power in the marketplace.
But when you live the life of the rich and famous, a champagne buzz can cause you to say many things that are simply not wise. We think that the best thing for the PLP to do is simply ignore Sol Kerzner. He is Mr. Ingraham’s baby and Mr. Ingraham was busy telling the public why Massa Sol Kerzner has problems with Perry Christie. We suspected all along that he hated the PLP. Now it is confirmed and what is confirmed also is that he is working with Mr. Ingraham to stop the PLP.
Could it be that in his complaint about the PLP, he is looking around for a pretext to sell Atlantis and then blame the PLP for leaving The Bahamas?
We feel sorry for him, sorry for Mr. Ingraham to have such an albatross around his neck. We think that the PLP ought to be sane and sober and simply move on. It is not worth the time of day.
The fact is, Mr. Kerzner's son Butch signed off on all that is happening with Bahamar. He had no problems with it and he ran the company up to his sad and untimely death in 2006.
But bless you Sol Kerzner in any event and we wish you well. We understand how hard it is, how sorrowful even, when you have everything in the world to lose everything.
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 20th November 2010 up to midnight: 105,272.
Number of hits for the month of November up to Saturday 20th November 2010 up to midnight: 337,458.
Number of hits for the year 2010 up to Saturday 20th November up
to midnight: 7,226,124.
WHAT
SOL KERZNER HAD TO SAY
In the middle of the debate on the Bahamar resolution on Wednesday 17th
November to approve the project for the redevelopment of Cable Beach, the
owner of Paradise Island's Atlantis Development and the largest tourist
project in the country intervened in the debate. No doubt, he got
his courage by the fact that the Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham
had given him a knighthood from the Bahamian people. Otherwise, one
supposes he could be told to mind his business and keep his mouth out of
Bahamian politics.
The intervention was clearly designed to influence
the debate. He said in this statement, which was read by a government
minister Zhivargo Laing in the Parliament (that in itself was remarkable)
that he considered the approval of the Bahamar project to be a breach of
the agreement with Kerzner International his company. He thought
that the concession on land, the sale of the publicly held lands to Bahamar
and the cheap labour from China, gave Bahamar an advantage that he did
not have. He said that the government had agreed not to give anyone
more favoured treatment than Atlantis got.
PLP Leader Perry Christie dismissed Kerzner’s statement,
saying in his debate on Thursday 18th November that the deal he signed
with Bahamar did not exceed that given to Kerzner and in any event, the
deal with Kerzner did not contemplate the concessions on land since Kerzner
was buying no public lands and the bit about the labour content did not
exist when the Bahamar deal was signed by the PLP. Mr. Christie told
the House that if there were an issue of a breach then it ought to have
been settled before the Prime Minister came to the House.
The Prime Minister for his part said that he did
not believe that there was a breach. The resolution was passed unanimously
by the house with 36 members being present, three absent and the Speaker
in the Chair who does not vote unless there is a tie. All PLPs and
FNMs in the House supported the resolution without amendment. There
was also a division to record each vote. Hubert Ingraham simply did
not have the courage to make this decision on his own.
The intervention by Sol Kerzner by press release
was apparently not enough for him. The next day Thursday 18th November,
he held a press conference by phone from London to say that it was the
PLP who was pressuring the Prime Minister to agree to Bahamar and he hoped
that he would not succumb to the pressure.
One has to ask, is Sol Kerzner playing with a full
deck? The PLP has been out of power since 2007. Let’s read
in his own words what he said as reported in the Nassau Guardian Friday
19th November:
“It’s a deal that makes no sense. It’s a deal
that could be harmful to the people of The Bahamas and certainly to future
investors and indeed ourselves... It will be a bloodbath.”
“We have had several agreements with governments
over the time since we first came to Paradise Island and we are surprised
by what appears to be an agreement with the people on Cable Beach and their
Chinese [financiers].”
“It’s a valid agreement that we have.
“And there’s no question that we’ve had — not
that one really needs it, but just to be sure that we weren’t over-reacting
— senior counsel advice in The Bahamas and it’s clear that if the agreement
were breached as outlined that this would clearly be a breach.”
“I don’t want to speculate at this time as to
what we would or wouldn’t do but we did ensure that from a legal standpoint
we understood where we were.”
“I’ve got to say that it’s very disappointing
that the very same government, the PLP, are so overwhelming in support
of breaking the very rule and the agreement that they reached and signed
with us in 2003.
“I don’t think that this is very good for future
investors. I think it’s shocking quite honestly that agreements with government
are violated and this is a clear breach.
“..It’s just very disappointing; what’s being
contemplated here or recommended by the PLP is contrary to what we signed
with them in ‘03.”
“The Baha Mar deal is ill conceived.
“I think that when we acquired Paradise Island
we had 1,100 rooms. We had a workforce of just over 1,000 people. That
was in 1994.
“Kerzner International never would have added
additional phases without certain undertakings from the government.
“Well, obviously I’m very concerned. I flew to
The Bahamas. I met with the prime minister. He understands fully what our
position is and I’m still hopeful that the current administration will
not bend to the PLP’s, what seems to be, their wishes... I’m hopeful that
Prime Minister Ingraham will not succumb to the pressure that the PLP seems
to be putting on him.
“Atlantis is not and has never been up
for sale.
“Kerzner International never indicated it was
moving ahead with a Phase IV.
“In this current economic environment, it seems
to me very odd that anyone would entertain a project as being conceived
or envisioned for Baha Mar.
“I only hope that if anything were to occur that
government would insist on phasing just as we phased all the expansion.
It seems to me pretty ridiculous in this current environment or even if
the economic environment were a lot better to look to come in and double
the number of rooms overnight. It seems to me pretty irresponsible.
“I also believe that one should take into account
the fact that we have approximately 8,000 people working with us and that
if this were to move forward the likelihood is that people’s jobs would
have to be threatened because it’s just impossible, practically impossible,
to double the size of the market.
“So it seems pretty ridiculous to me what these
folks are wanting to move forward and obviously the Chinese are motivated
because they see themselves pushing 8,000 jobs through this development.
“...There’s no way in the world if there wasn’t
that motivation that this project could be financed in this current environment.
“One understands that the industry has got to
grow. But it’s one thing growing reasonably. It’s another thing growing
at a ridiculous pace.
“That’s really rubbish. I’m not talking about
competition. I’m talking about ridiculous plans I mean how on earth does
anyone believe that you could double the number of people coming in, you
can deal with the infrastructure and that the market is able to expand
at that rate?
“I still hold out hope that what’s being contemplated
by Baha Mar will not happen as they have planned with their Chinese financier.”
WHAT
HUBERT INGRAHAM SAID ON LOVE 97
The NASSAU Guardian of Saturday 20th November reported
that Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham said the following in response to Sol
Kerzner’s assertions above:
“I think that we will resolve this issue satisfactorily.
I think so…
“We were always concerned that when we came to
office that there was nothing in the Bahamar deal that would give them
a better deal than Kerzner. I think I can say that the thing that ticked
Kerzner more than anything else was the statement made by Perry Christie
to the effect that Bahamar only wanted to get what Kerzner got. And he
Kerzner was of the view that Bahamar was getting more than him. And
he was very hurt that Christie would make such a statement.”
[Poor baby Sol Kerzner! He was hurt; ah my. The interesting
thing that this does is here is a prime minister speaking for Sol Kerzner.
It tends to confirm the thoughts of many PLPs that Mr. Ingraham is carrying
the ball for Sol Kerzner. This fact was acknowledged by Mr. Ingraham
who said that while he will continue to be a friend of Kerzner he will
deal with every investor fairly. Yeah right! – Editor]
Nassau Guardian photo
RIOT
IN BAIN TOWN
We received a report late yesterday Saturday 20th
November that there was a riot in Bain Town at Hospital Lane following
the shooting by the police of a 19-year-old man who died. The police
claim that in breaking up a dice game, a group of people fled and one of
them, this young man, had a gun. They fired and killed him.
The community was adamant there was no gun and no
gun was found.
As the hearse took the body of the young man, the
police were set upon with rocks and missiles including, some say, gunfire.
We make the point that this place is like a tinderbox and it is important
that the government act to bring some semblance of peace back to the communities
by some active social intervention. We think it largely has to do
with the unemployment and deprivation in the communities and the fact that
the Government is doing nothing to ease the tension.
By late afternoon Bain and Grants Town PLP MP Dr.
Bernard Nottage was on the scene. Here is a
link to a video of the riot. It is reported that two police cars
were burned and a ZNS TV vehicle destroyed.
[In an earlier edition of the site, we reported that Commissioner
of Police Ellison Greenslade as injured in the riot in Bain Town. This
proved to be false. He was not injured, although he was on the scene.
Also, the name of the person killed was reported as Marco Greenslade. That
was incorrect. His name is Sharco Newbold. We apologise for the error.
- Ed.]
VERNICE
MOULTRIE COOPER FUNERAL
The woman who was once as a teenager the apple of
the eye of Bahamian film star and icon Sidney Poitier, Vernice Cooper was
laid to rest in the Western cemetery following a service of thanksgiving
at the Anglican Church of The Holy Cross where she worshipped and of which
she was a founder. Mrs. Cooper was 83 years old when she died.
The funeral took place on Friday 19th November. The film star could
not make it to the funeral but sent these words as a memorial to her:
A FINAL GOODBYE TO A LONG-TIME FRIEND
by Sidney Poitier
When she was 11 years of age, our paths crossed
for the first time. It was in the schoolyard of Western Senior.
Though she, too, was just 11 years old,
her face was always lit by an inner peacefulness and a warm smile.
Clearly, she was destined, by the forces of nature, to become the useful
and productive human being that she was. We are all the better for
having had her pass this way and leave her light behind.
The memory of you, Vernice, will keep our company
until we meet again - and surely, we will. So goodbye for now my
friend.
Peter Ramsay photo
WILL
THE CHINESE WORKERS GO HOME?
Peter Gilcud, the former local basketball standout
and now businessman, is worried about the social impact of the thousands
of Chinese workers who will be coming to The Bahamas and New Providence
in particular. He makes the point that wherever there are men, they
will be looking for women and even now with the 200 or so in the main camp
at the National stadium, the Chinese men can be found wandering around
the Grove in the wee hours looking for what they did not put down.
He asks: is The Bahamas ready for that on a larger scale when the 8,000
will come? Good question! Branville McCartney, the former Minister
for Immigration, put it another way and perhaps gave the answer.
He said in his intervention during the debate on Thursday 18th November
that inevitably some of the 8000 Chinese workers will stay in The Bahamas.
The Prime Minister himself said in his intervention that he cannot stop
a Bahamian woman from marrying one of the Chinese men and thereby those
men claiming a right to stay in The Bahamas.
THE
SECOND COMING FIRST
The FNM in answer to a statement that Fred Mitchell
made on Monday 15th November that the Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham did
not meet with the Chinese Premier while in China called for Mr. Mitchell
to apologise to them. Mr. Mitchell issued a quick response saying
that they would see the second coming first. Here is the full statement:
“The FNM will see the second coming first before
any apology comes from this Member of Parliament for anything that was
said by me on the matter of Bahamar and the Prime Minister who will lead
their party into defeat in the next general election.
“The fact is no matter how they try to pretty
things up and even if they met with the Premier of China, the Prime Minister
came back empty-handed and without any material change in the Bahamar deal.
It is that failure that the FNM should explain to the public and not red
herrings about apologies for a non existent slight.”
THE
LATEST CHAPTER IN THE ARAWAK HOMES SAGA
Lawyers are looking on with bemusement as Carl Bethel
loses case after case against Arawak Homes (see story ‘In Passing’).
It appears that he is seeking to build up political capital with constituents
by taking on Arawak Homes. The only problem is that he keeps on losing.
So the question is whether or not he is allowing
his role as a politician to unreasonably influence what is coming across
as a vendetta against Arawak Homes Limited at the risk of bankrupting at
least one of his clients. Our court correspondent provides the latest
sequence of circumstances:
LAURA
WILLIAMS VICTIMIZED BY THE FNM GOVERNMENT
During the Elizabeth bye-election, Laura Williams,
who is a vociferous PLP, was accused by the Deputy Prime Minister Brent
Symonette of assaulting him. No charges were ever brought.
But the FNM made a huge hullabaloo out of something that was surely
inadvertent or at its highest could be put down to the cut and thrust
of the shoving that was taking place on the scene at the time of the election.
The incident went down in history and well, you thought that was the end
of that.
Now we have learnt that Laura Williams, the very
same woman accused, has lost her stall on which she sold fruits and vegetables
on the edge of the public road, Baillou Hill Road, and the property of
the Supervalue Foodstore on that road. She was asked to move temporarily
for the road to be repaired. There are substantial repairs going
on because of the road improvement of the FNM government. She agreed
and had found a spot to go but left her stall to be collected. The
next morning when she came back to move her stall she found that it had
been dismantled, removed; destroyed. It exists no more. She
claims $3000 worth of damages. Is this comeuppance for what she was
wrongly accused? Inquiring minds want to know.
NDP
LEADERS DEBATE
The National Democratic Party makes up for its lack
of numbers with enthusiasm. They are on the well worn path of providing
members and leaders for the two major parties. One idea that they
have is that of a debate amongst those vying for leadership positions in
the party. They even went to the extent of televising the debate,
which took place on Tuesday 16th November at Workers House. The debate
was hosted by television personality Erin Ferguson. The photos of
the event are from his Facebook page. No word on who won the debate.
CHRISTIAN
CAMPBELL WINS A PRIZE IN POETRY
The U.K. Guardian reported the following about Christian Campbell, Bahamas
Rhodes Scholar and son of Chemical Engineer Chris Campbell and grandson
of former Commissioner James Campbell on 5th November:
Caribbean poet Christian Campbell has won the best
first collection prize at the Aldeburgh poetry festival for his book Running
the Dusk, described by judge Neil Rollinson as “the clear stand-out” among
all the volumes read for the award. Campbell, whose book was also
shortlisted for the Forward prize for best first collection, was presented
with his £3,000 cheque this evening at the Suffolk festival.
The poet said he was “feeling good in the Nina Simone way” after winning
the prize. “I am honoured to be a part of a moment of great energy and
transformation in contemporary poetry in the UK,” he said, adding: “It's
very, very difficult for any young poet, and for any Caribbean poet, to
get this level of recognition.”
Publisher Peepal Tree Press describes the poems
in Running the Dusk as taking the reader to “what the French call l'heure
entre chien et loup, the hour between dog and wolf, to explore ambiguity
and intersection, danger and desire, loss and possibility“. Judge
Jo Shapcott called the collection a “bravura performance”, describing it
as “energetic, fluid and musical and full of loss, hope and imagination”.
Jeremy Poynting, Peepal Tree founding editor, said that Campbell's patience
in waiting until he had a collection he was really comfortable with was
“a model for all young poets”.
A poem from Christian Campbell’s Collection:
I stopped cutting my hair again, just in
time for the cold. Haven't met any other
West Indians yet. I don't have time to miss
a beat. Every dayclean I still swim –
like nothing. Like every Friday, Next Door
must still cuss out her married man and fry fish
CHRISTMAS
TREES ON THEIR WAY
Even though it’s just November the sights and sounds
of Christmas are everywhere as stores stock their shelves with a glittering
array of festive gifts and all of the trappings of Christmas. A sure
sign that Christmas is almost here is that well known Bahamian businessman
Ken Perigord who’s been in the business of marketing Christmas trees for
over 30 years, recently returned from a trip to Higgins Christmas Tree
Farm at Moose River Gold Mines, Middle Musquodoboit outside of Halifax,
Nova Scotia, Canada. The Balsam Fir trees that Ken Perigord purchased
in Canada will be shipped overland from Halifax, Nova Scotia to the port
of St.Johns in Newfoundland, and will then embark in 40 foot refrigerated
containers by Tropical Shipping from St. Johns en route to Nassau.
Mr. Perigord’s shipment of ‘Grade A’ strong, sturdy and very fragrant trees
is due to arrive in Nassau the week of November 23rd, just before the Thansgiving
Day Holiday on November 25th. The trees will be on sale at Ken Perigord’s
Christmas Tree Farm located at the rear of the Shell Gas Station at Plaza
del Sol on Prince Charles Drive. Ken Perigord is shown out in the forest
at Moose River Gold mines inspecting the balsam Fir trees he is shipping
to Nassau.
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Someone writes the Nassau Guardian calling themselves Sean Hepburn
to complain about Fred Mitchell and Fred Mitchell responds:
Looking on the so-called former website of Fred
Mitchell, the PLP MP for Fox Hill, it seemed clear to me that Perry Christie
should know that Fred Mitchell does not support him.
On his website “Bahamas Uncensored” of 14th November, 2010, was
the following: “The PLP has a real chance of becoming the next government
of this country. It is not as assured as most people think, but it is at
least fifty-fifty. To us, the policy mix is going to be important and the
image issue, that the leader of the PLP is engaged and more than just a
visitor to funerals and events, or confining himself to being a studied
bystander to the policy development and initiatives of his colleagues,
occasionally exercising veto power. The PLP must also show that they are
prepared to govern from day one. The country is looking for that signal.”
This is a clear criticism of Christie’s performance
as PLP leader. Mitchell thinks that Christie appears to be disengaged and
is simply a visitor to funerals and events and is not a person of substance.
He is obviously troubled that when the voters compare Christie to Hubert
Ingraham, Christie will be seen as wanting and therefore the PLP’s chance
of winning the next election is in serious jeopardy.
Fred’s criticism of Christie is made more poignant
by Fred’s proposal of a new telecommunications policy which he said should
be supported by the PLP. It is his view that BTC should not be sold to
foreigners. This new policy is a complete contradiction to the decision
of the PLP Cabinet, of which Fred was a member, when it decided to sell
BTC to Bluewater Ventures Limited, foreigners represented by the PLP Deputy
Leader Philip Davis. However, this ‘change of heart’ comes just weeks after
Perry Christie said that one of his greatest regrets was that he did not
sell BTC to Bluewater in May, 2007 just before the general election.
Perry Christie should be wary of Fred and his
allies. He should not be surprised if the next time, Fred’s attack is not
as subtle!
Sean Hepburn
Fred Mitchell responds:
I read with interest your LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
column which led on Wednesday 17th November with the headline MITCHELL’S
CRITICISM OF CHRISTIE AS LEADER. The letter writer purports to be
one Sean Hepburn.
While Mr. Hepburn is entitled to his views, I
am entitled to the truth being reported about me.
I defy The Nassau Guardian or Sean Hepburn to
show where I made any criticism of Mr. Christie’s leadership of the PLP
on bahamasuncensored.com. I read the piece that Mr. Hepburn
your correspondent quoted and I am not quoted at all. Further, having
read the piece myself, which he quotes, the article certainly does not
say what he says. Perhaps he needs to learn his syntax and basic
grammar again. That might aid his comprehension.
Everyone in The Bahamas knows that I am perfectly
capable of saying what I want to say if I want to say it. What I
do not appreciate is people putting words that I never spoke in my mouth.
I am a loyal and disciplined member of the PLP led by Rt. Hon. Perry Christie.
I am not two faced. I am exactly as you see me and hear me.
My suspicion is that the letter is a put up job
by the Free National Movement and its leadership. This suspicion
was aided by the fact that the Prime Minister in the House was promoting
the letter in The Guardian while I was speaking in the House on Wednesday
17th November. Mr. Ingraham asked his leader of House business Tommy Turnquest
to show the letter to the House. Mr. Turnquest in the middle of my address
then raised a copy of the paper in the House turned to the letter’s page.
I am not the brightest man in the room but not the dumbest either.
I smell a rat.
The Guardian owes me an apology and retraction.
Fred Mitchell MP
Pierre Dupuch Writes On the Exuma Land and Sea Park:
"We certainly do not agree with those who are
calling on the government or the BNT to trap people into owning valuable
and highly taxed land but not allow them reasonable access and use" - Bahamas
National Trust.
Those were the words of wisdom uttered by the
Bahamas National Trust in answer to public objections to permission granted
by Minister Earl Deveaux, the Minister of Environmental Destruction, for
the desecration of the Exuma Land and Sea Park. When I read them my mind
flashed back fifty eight years to a banner which was hung on the wall in
the back of my high school's classroom which read: "It is better to keep
your mouth shut and let people think you're a fool, than to open it and
remove all doubt."
Everyone agrees that neither the government nor
the Bahamas National Trust, or anyone else for that matter, should "trap
people into owning valuable and highly taxed land ..."
In this case, who trapped whom into Bell Island?
The real estate agent - did he not tell the buyer of Bell Island about
the restrictions on the Island and the Exuma Land and Sea Park? I doubt
it. Was it the people at the Bahamas National Trust who failed to advise
the buyer? After all, they had to give their approval for the sale of the
land. I doubt it. Or, alas, did the Government, who had to give permission
for a foreigner to purchase the land, not tell the purchaser of the restrictions?
After all, the Exuma Land and Sea Park did not
just spring up from nowhere. If the folks at the Bahamas National Trust
would care to read the act, the coordinates of the Sea Park were made law
in 1959.
Forgetting the saying "buyers beware," the sale
of Bell Island was not just a land deal where only the real estate company
and the buyer was involved. Four entities had to be involved in the sale
of Bell Island - the buyer, the real estate broker, the government and
the Bahamas National Trust. I cannot believe that at least one of those
entities did not advise the buyer that there were restrictions.
I believe he was advised by all three local entities.
Many years ago I bought land in Gleniston Gardens. I was told before I
bought it that there were certain restrictions. It was at that point that
I had to decide whether or not the restrictions were acceptable to me.
It was at that point I could have said "yes or no" to the purchase. These
restrictions were placed on it by the developer. The restrictions placed
on Bell Island and the Exuma Land and Sea Park were placed there by LAW.
In my last comment about Bell Island and the
Exuma Land and Sea Park I said that Mrs. Lynn Holowesko was President of
the Bahamas National Trust when the Exuma Land and Sea Park was established.
I was wrong. The Sea Park was established in 1959 when Mrs. Holowesko was
still in school. For this I apologize. She was, however, President of the
BNT from 1976 to 1982 and again from 1984 to 1991. During her terms as
President the restrictions about taking ones catch from the Park were rigorously
enforced, and as President she was a staunch defender of the Land and Sea
Park regulations.
Several days ago, Mr. Brensil Rolle said that
the Park should be "managed" better. What is he talking about? A warden
is already there and arrests anybody fishing in the Park. Unfortunately,
the warden doesn't police helicopters flying overhead apparently making
arrangements, in my opinion, to rape the park. It is best that Mr. Rolle
keep his mouth shut!!!
During the course of these articles, someone
wrote to say that the "little man" was not worried about what reef was
being destroyed, or lionfish, or sea cucumbers being taken from the sea
bed; the "little man" was worried about where the next job was coming from.
He was right and he was wrong. In the short run he was right. His first
responsibility is to feed his family. But his responsibility does not stop
there; he must help decide where the children yet unborn, when we're six
feet under and pushing lilies, are going to find employment to feed their
families.
If we allow developers to destroy our most valuable
asset now, which could provide for our yet unborn children, we will have
failed in our second responsibility and that is to leave this a better,
more productive place than we found it.
The Exuma Land and Sea Park is a valuable asset.
It could provide employment for generations to come. Its asset is beauty
that can be packaged and sold many times over and remain to be sold again.
There are only two such assets in the world and beauty is one of them.
To say that dredging over four areas of land,
fifteen feet deep, will not cause damage to the surrounding reef, change
the flow of water in the area and cause erosion is utter hogwash!!!! And
the Minister knows it.
Reasonable access? I am told that Bell Island
is on the edge of the park and that there is deep water on the other side.
Is that not reasonable access?
Or, is access and use not really the story here?
Several years ago I was told that strip mining rock on these islands could
be a multi billion dollar business. I was told that there was a company
which will ... or already has ... made application to mine rock here under
the "guise" of tourism development. Rock mined from fresh water is even
more valuable. I understand further that applications have been made to
mine areas of fresh water in Andros and opening them to the sea, thus destroying
fresh water lenses in Andros.
When you strip mine there is nothing left but
a hole. Do we want to leave our grand children an empty hole, a hole of
despair?
This whole sordid affair begs a number of questions:
1. Who was the public
relations person or firm on the payroll of the Bahamas National Trust when
this "deal" at Bell Island and the Exuma Sea Park was made?
2. What is the name or
names of the companies doing the dredging at Bell Island and the Exuma
Sea Park?
3. Who are the owners
(front room and back room) of these dredging companies?
4. Where does the rock
dredged from these sites go?
5. How many permits have
been applied for and how many granted to do this kind of mining in The
Bahamas?
6. Does the government
benefit financially from any of this?
7. Name the islands and
the locations on the islands that have already or are in the process of
being mined.
8. Who commissioned the
environmental impact study of the Park and who paid for it?
I still smell a rat!!
My advice to Mr. Eric Carey at the Bahamas National
Trust is: Dont be the fall guy ... just duck!!
By the way, what's happened to all these investigative
reporters running around here? Are they too busy looking through keyholes,
finding out who's sleeping with whom, or who's picking up whom in dark
alleys?
Just asking.
By Pierre V.L. Dupuch
November 17, 1010
Forrester Carroll on Fear of Hubert Ingraham...
Fear of Hubert Ingraham of epidemic proportions seems to have gripped the
nation, so much so that few are willing to stand up like men and tell him
about his behind. His cabinet and back benchers, his party councils
and the media, the council of churches, the civil service, the police,
the unions, the Bishops and ordinary street folk as well, are all fearful
of this wanna-be dictator. Their fear of him is so intense, it seems,
that they dare not speak a word except in praise.
Dictators are normally cowards and this one is
no exception. Veiled behind the office of Prime Minister, the House
of Assembly, the police and his bodyguards, Ingraham keeps them all in
check with his cowardly threats. The tactic that he uses is a psychological
one; he shoots his arrows of insults from behind those protections mentioned.
Without these, I believe we would see what kind of miserable coward he
really is. Whether for fear of the possibility of losing their appointed
positions; their civil service jobs; transfers, their contracts and or
their promotions, Bahamians seem content to allow themselves to be emasculated.
Only a coward would do what he has done to poor
Bahamians, civil servants and government corporation workers within the
last forty three months. Only a coward could literally destroy people’s
lives, and careers, by simply dismissing them from their employ, overnight
and without any notice whatsoever.
Tommy Turnquest believed that Ingraham was an
honourable man, who meant what he said, when he told him the night before
the election for leader of the FNM that, he (Ingraham) would not challenge
Tommy for the leadership of that party. The very next morning in
the convention hall, however, Ingraham’s campaign team began handing out
his campaign regalia while the coward was still denying that he intended
to offer against Tommy.
What amazes and baffles me is how Tommy believed
this liar. He began the very same night on the stage to hail Ingraham
as his trustworthy leader. In further disgrace to the Turnquest family
(I am very much a part of the Turnquest clan as my grandmother on my mom’s
side was a Turnquest) he continues to promote this “dog-in-the-manger”
as an honourable, trustworthy person when in fact Tommy knows full well
that the man is a far cry from that.
Branville McCartney resigned from the cabinet
because, as he said, he was being stagnated and that his government was
going in the wrong direction. Yet with the same breath, out of the
other side of his mouth, he declared Ingraham as the best person to lead
the country at this time. It was very obvious to me that the young,
inexperienced minister was running for the tall grass after he realized
that he had made a huge unwise decision (not from ours but from his perspective)
to buck heads with the dictator. You have no fortitude, Bran McCartney;
you are no different from Tommy Turnquest; no fortitude whatsoever.
Civil servants are not usually dismissed from
the willy nilly public service the way they have been, by this prime minister
but even they, out of fear, must have forgotten what their rights were
when they opted to allow Ingraham to push them out. One of the chief
benefits of working in the civil service has always been that one was insulated
against unfair disciplines and or firings and that what Ingraham did to
those senior police officers during 1992-2002, and then again to police,
immigration and customs officers in 2009, could not and would never happen.
General orders provide (as a pre-requisite) that
a case be made against a public sector worker, at the civil service commission
(now the Public Service Commission), after which a full-scale hearing would
take place, where the civil servant would be given the opportunity to defend
him or her self. At the end of the hearing, the commission would
make a determination, based on all the facts, and then hand down it’s ruling
as to whether there was just cause for the worker to be so disciplined
or dismissed.
Ingraham comes along, though, and selects dozens
of top tier career customs, immigration and police officers and tells them
that they’ve been working for far too long and, enough was just enough,
so they must go. They could go, he told them, either voluntarily or involuntarily
and they (being so intimidated) accepted their fate without a fight.
Granted, in some cases, they were probably given generous packages, but
the packages were offered on the condition that these officers cut their
own throats by signing a pre-prepared letter in which the contents certified
that they agreed to the retirement voluntarily and were not being forced
out. They were tricked by the bastard and now, two years later, a
few of them have not received their packages or their pensions.
The officers I refer to were all in their posts,
at the time they were force retired, for forty years and more in some cases,
but none were at compulsory retirement age. In fact, one of the customs
officers was engaged in the service at age seventeen and was only fifty-nine
years old when he was forced out. The compulsory age for retirement, from
the civil service, is sixty-five years for the information of those who
may not know the rules.
My advice to all of them was not to sign those
consent letters and not to go a damn step, no matter what the dictator
offered. Above all it was a matter of principal, but they all gave
in to the dictator. I now say to all remaining senior civil servants,
BEC and BTC workers that this is not the time to “turn your swords into
ploughshares;” that that time will come, no doubt, but it is not now. Fight
the good fight and do not sign any more of those letters no matter what
kind of offer he puts on the table to entice you.
The brute intimidates the media, as well, where
reporters would never dare ask him the very tough follow-up questions.
The clever trick that he uses is to insult them at the beginning of each
news conference, after which he knows that they would be too intimidated
to follow-up with the tough questions. His stinking attitude toward
reporters; ‘Who in the hell are you to question Me‘. This seems to
scare them into handling him with kid gloves. The nation’s Prophets,
Priests and Bishops are all very careful not to be politically incorrect,
as well, when dealing with national issues involving Ingraham’s government.
They speak with such forked tongues that after they would have said what
they said, one would be hard pressed to determine what their positions
are. They just don’t seem to have the fortitude to condemn this man.
They are simply unprepared to ‘rock the boat’ it seems, for fear of losing
favour.
Prophets of old were bold and fearless, even
in the face of having their heads removed from their bodies at the King’s
command, as they condemned the rulers of their day for tyranny. The
so-called Prophets of today, in comparison however, are spineless wimps
and without exception.
Fearful though they may be this time, Mr. Big
Stuff Hubert Ingraham, these Bahamian people are sick and tired of your
behind and will vote your backside out of their parliament. If you
think am joking, ring the bell, you coward.
Forrester J. Carroll J.P.
Freeport, Grand Bahama
IN PASSING
We The People… FNM Fronting Organization?
Last week there was the launch of an organization on Tuesday 16th November
calling itself WE THE PEOPLE, supposedly a non-partisan organization that
champions change. The problem is that the organization is headed
by Ed Fields, who is the very partisan FNM executive of the Kerzner International
team at Paradise Island. The launch, which took place at Paradise
Island and was recorded for television, included the attendance by some
high profile PLP names including the widow of the former Prime Minister
Sir Lynden O. Pindling, Dame Marguerite. But the question people
keep asking is how can an organization headed by Ed Fields as partisan
as he is be non-partisan? We wait to see.
Desmond Bannister Is Wrong
The FNM is forever trying to pull a fast one. In violation of
the agreement made with the PLP on the allocation of speakers in the House
of Assembly during the debate on the Bahamar resolution on Wednesday 17th
November, there were three speakers in between the Leader of the Opposition
and the Prime Minister. Since Tommy Turnquest became Leader of the
House, he has developed this pattern of speaking in between the Prime Minister
and the Leader of the Opposition. That is clearly wrong. But
the point we seek to make here is more substantive, the claim by the Minister
of Education Desmond Bannister one of those three speakers that the PLP
agreed in the first heads of agreement signed with Bahamar in 2005 that
it would grant all work permits required by Bahamar. Mr. Bannister
sought by this selective interpretation to make the case that the PLP did
something that no other government did. Mr. Bannister is wrong and
is not being politically honest. The clause that he quoted must be
seen in its proper context and that is against the backdrop of an agreement
that says the maximum jobs must be provided for Bahamians and so where
the Bahamian skills are not available then the work permits must be granted.
FNMs: always up to some trick.
PLP Women Host Nassau Market Vendors
The Progressive Liberal Party’s Women’s Branch will host a reception
this evening Sunday 21st November at the party’s headquarters on Farrington
Road for the 9 women who were detained in New York from the Nassau Straw
Market. The PLP was involved in the advocacy for their release.
The Reserves
The Central Bank reports that the reserves are now at 905 million dollars
US. This is quite high, perhaps they have never been higher and amount
to three months non-oil imports. Problem is that this is not because
of productivity but simply in part because of the special drawing rights
of The Bahamas at the IMF. The government has not been explaining
this. This could mean that if and when the PLP takes over in 2012,
there will be no more credit left in the system for the PLP to use to boost
the economy or complete its projects.
New Seventh Day Adventist Head
Paul Scavella has been elected the head of the Seventh Day Conference
in The Bahamas succeeding Leonard A. Johnson who now heads the newly constituted
Atlantic Caribbean Union Mission, which includes The Bahamas, the Cayman
Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Danny Clarke who heads
the Cayman Conference lost the vote to Pastor Scavella in The Bahamas to
head the Bahamas Conference.
Glen McPhee at Home In RBDF
Glen McPhee has returned to The Bahamas from Mexico where he earned
his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees. He now works as the Royal Bahamas
Defence Force Training officer. At the time of his departure to Mexico,
Fred Mitchell MP was the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Mexican government
provided the scholarships to Bahamians as part of their campaign for the
secretary generalship of the Organization of American States. The
photo shows Mr. Mitchell at a visit to the Defence force on Tuesday 16th
November with Commodore Roderick Bowe and Mr. McPhee.
Photo/RBDF media
The Holowesko Funeral And Correction
The funeral of the late William Holowesko, the husband of the President
of the Senate Lynn Holowesko, took place at St. Paul’s Catholic Church
in Lyford Cay on Tuesday 16th November. The Archbishop of the Catholic
Church Patrick Pinder presided. The Archbishop was visibly moved
by the death of a man who was listed as his close friend in the printed
obituary. The officialdom turned out in force from the Cabinet led
by the Prime Minister, the Senate and the House of Assembly and the Diplomatic
Corp. We correct a statement made last week when we reported his
death. He was actually given citizenship by the PLP in 1991 and not
after 1992 by the FNM. He was called to the Bar shortly after he
became a citizen. Mr. Holowesko’s citizenship of origin is American.
BIS Photo/Peter Ramsay
Ingraham To Sell BTC
Hubert Ingraham is on a media blitz to sell his decision to the country
on Bahamar at Cable Beach, which will include thousands of Chinese workers.
The House of Assembly approved a resolution on Thursday 18th November.
The next day he was on the radio on Friday 19th November on Wendall Jones’
Love 97. He was asked about the sale of the telephone company BTC
to Cable and Wireless. Mr. Ingraham said that while he heard the
noise in the market he was ignoring it and proposed to conclude the matter
before the end of the month. Our information is that the deal is
to be signed on Tuesday 23rd November.
Charles Maynard “Acting Like A Woman” In Parliament?
Glenys Hanna Martin in speaking in Parliament on Thursday 18th November
said that she was quite frankly irritated by Charles Maynard the Minister
of Culture. She said that when he spoke on the resolution for Bahamar
she expected him to say something about culture and how it would fit into
the general scheme of the development and what opportunities there would
be for musicians. But instead, he said nothing about it. Instead,
he spent his time mocking PLP politicians and clowning around. Indeed,
Mr. Maynard in trying to get back at Shane Gibson for calling him the class
clown said that he accepted that name. So that means we can safely
call him the class clown without causing offence. But what got Mrs.
Hanna Martin is Mr. Maynard's propensity to mimic how he thinks women talk,
a kind of exaggerated lilting of the voice and hand movements, like drag
queens
speak. She said that she thought that this was mimicking women and
that she wanted him to know that women have a place in the Parliament as
well. The PLP thumped their desks loudly and we say amen to that
as well.
Brent Symonette’s New Powers
The scuttlebutt around time is that the Cabinet has now delegated full
authority to Brent Symonette as the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister
for Immigration to grant Permanent Residence to foreigners who apply.
This makes his position even more powerful with the foreigners that come
to the country and who hang around him and his family.
Good Riddance To Joan Sawyer
The Cabinet Office has announced that the President of the Court of
Appeal Dame Joan Sawyer is retiring coming 26th November 2010 when she
reaches the mandatory age of 70. The announcement is full of praise.
We say good riddance to someone who was rude as a Judge to counsel in the
Court in the Court of Appeal and attacked the Leader of the Opposition
from the Bench. Not a moment too soon.
Anita Allen Is The New President Of the Court Of Appeal
In the same announcement that said Dame Joan Sawyer was leaving the
Bench, the Cabinet office said that Anita Allen was retiring as Senior
Justice of the Supreme Court to take up the appointment as the new President
of the Court of Appeal. This will make her the only Bahamian on the
Court of Appeal. We welcome her and repeat our criticism of Dame
Joan who caused complaints from MPs about her conduct of the court.
We expect a court that is fair to counsel, courteous to counsel and respects
the rights of the litigants to a fair hearing. We do not expect a
court that simply latches onto one side and then proceeds to fight the
case for that side to the detriment of the other side’s rights. We
do not expect this to be the case in the new court of appeal under Mrs.
Allen. The new president is married to former MP and Minister Algernon
Allen.
Elma Garraway Retires
Permanent Secretary Elma Garraway to the Ministry of Education will
proceed on pre-retirement leave for a year and then retire from the public
service at the end of the month.
Clint Watson Of ZNS Marries
The report is that Clint Watson, the ZNS reporter and music director
of Shabak, was married yesterday to Nicola Watson at Trinity City of Praise
Church in Nassau on Saturday 20th November. Congratulations.
Carl Squeals Like A Baby
Carl Bethel MP was turned out of the Court of Appeal where he was pursuing
a hopeless appeal on behalf of one of the trespassers on land owned by
Arawak Homes. His complaint was that someone connected with Arawak
Homes, an MP he said, had threatened him. When he was told by the
Judge that the Court of Appeal was not the appropriate forum, he then went
crying like a baby to the Speaker of the House on Thursday 18th November.
The blind, deaf and dumb know no better. His case was quickly heard
there by a very sympathetic Speaker Alvin Smith (after all Mr. Bethel is
FNM) who said that any time a Member of Parliament makes a complaint about
a breach of privilege then he has to take it seriously. So he will
study the complaint by Mr. Bethel that an MP told him that if he continued
to pursue the matter on behalf of his client in court that he will be made
to pay the costs personally. Boy, that must have Carl Bethel, the
MP for Sea Breeze, really shaking in his boots to go to all that trouble.
The Men In Green
Those who have seen the STOP LIKIN MAN series on youtube would know
the scene where all the guys are dressed in red and along comes a guy dressed
in yellow. He asks them the question whether the colour of the day
is actually red so he says he has to go back home and change. These young
Bahamians London decided to do a send up and they all dressed in green.
Photo from the facebook page of Nicholas Mitchell
Elections In St. Vincent
The Parliament has been dissolved in St. Vincent and the Grenadines
by the advice of Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves who is at the end of his
second term in office. Mr. Gonsalves is expected to have a hard time
winning the elections of 13th December against the background of the rape
allegations against him and the loss of a referendum that he called last
year to amend the constitution.
Expect Massive Gerrymandering At 2012
Hubert Ingraham has appointed Charles Maynard, his go to political
hatchet man and Tommy Turnquest to serve on the Constituencies Commission,
the body responsible for drawing the boundaries for the next election.
Our position is that there should be no boundary changes and the election
should be held on the existing boundaries. The indications are however
that the FNM will try massive boundary changes in order to manipulate what
is likely to be a close contest. Mr. Ingraham has identified several
constituencies on his list including Marathon, Fox Hill, Yamacraw and Elizabeth.
Mr. Maynard will do exactly as he is told and has already indicated in
an aside in the House of Assembly to Glenys Hanna Martin what will happen
if she keeps fooling with him. He is especially worried because the
security forces have reportedly told the Prime Minister that the PLP has
the momentum and that Mr. Maynard himself is down by some 13 points in
his constituency against the PLP’s Michael Halkitis. The PLP’s Philip
Davis is the Opposition representative on the Commission.
How Things Have Changed
Arthur Hanna, the former Governor General and Deputy Prime Minister
under the Lynden Pindling administration, tells the story of how in the
early days, there was a strike threatened by the Hotel Workers Union against
Paradise Island. Jim Crosby, whose Resorts International owned P.I.
came to the government and told them that if the strike went ahead they
would close the facilities at the island. Mr. Hanna said that the
government told him go ahead and close it. There was a man named
Donald Fleming who was head of Scotiabank in The Bahamas and spoke out
against the PLP government. It was only a matter of time before he
got a one-way ticket out of the job and the country. How things have
changed. Sol Kerzner, who is the successor to Jim Crosby and whom
Paul Adderley described as corrupter of men, having been accused himself
of bribing the South African government and came here with open arms to
invest and has done well, is able to attack with impunity the Bahamas government
and the opposition PLP that is out of power, but the Prime Minister’s lame
response is, ‘we can work it out’. It must be all those years of
growing up in apartheid Abaco that swung his head around. How things
have changed.
 |
| ANITA ALLEN SUCCEEDS THE GORGON AT THE COURT OF APPEAL - The new President of the Court of Appeal is Anita Allen and she is President of the Court of Appeal with the full support of this column and on the official side both the Government and the Opposition. She replaces a bitter and difficult woman who while being responsible for some innovation on the court, had a reputation for bullying the other judges on the bench and disrespecting lawyers who appeared before her. In fact, someone went so far as to record one of her rants on YouTube (click here). The day Friday 26th November 2010 belonged to Anita Allen who was praised by the Prime Minister and who promised to administer justice without fair or favour. The Leader of the Opposition Perry Christie supported the appointment. Our photo of the week shows the new President of the Court of Appeal after she took the oath of office delivered by Governor General Sir Arthur Foulkes with her husband former Minister Algernon Allen, the Prime Minister, the Governor General and Lady Foulkes and the Leader of the Opposition Perry Christie at Government House on Friday 26th November. BIS photo/Peter Ramsay |
COMMENT OF THE WEEK
INGRAHAM STARTS HIS CAMPAIGN
The conventional wisdom in The Bahamas is that the FNM and Hubert
Ingraham have started their campaign for the next general election.
Their pollsters have told them that the PLP is slunking and are flatfooted.
So Mr. Ingraham has decided to take the plunge and we should not be surprised
with Bahamar up and running on Cable Beach by the springtime if an election
is not called in 2011.
The Prime Minister has been doing his best to damp down the speculation but whatever it is, the fact is we have an active man who is going around on every talk show he can get on and pushing his false message of salvation at the Bahamian public. They are even trying to get people to think that Bahamar is a project that they saved for The Bahamas after the PLP wrecked it. Mind you, the project was stopped reviewed and cancelled by the FNM. The Chinese component was nowhere in sight when the PLP was in power, but Mr. Ingraham is trying to portray himself as the saviour of the project. This from the very man who attacked the project as not being viable and almost sank it when he forced the Harrah’s group to pull out of the project.
Our only thought here today is the fact that the battle is joined. It is as clear as day to see. If the PLP is to win the next general election it had better get cracking: nominees must be put in the field, marketing and opinion research must be done and money must be found. This is not something that will drop in their laps.
Let the campaign begin. Let the PLP win.
Number of hits for the week ending Saturday 27th November up to midnight: 109,793.
Number of hits for the month of November up to Saturday 27th November 2010 up to midnight: 471,557.
Number of hits for the year 2010 up to Saturday 27th November 2010
up to midnight: 7,360,223.
CONFLICT
OF INTEREST AT BROADCASTING CORPORATION
The Progressive Liberal Party has issued a statement
citing the issuance of press release by a BCB Director's company as a “blatant
conflict of interest”.
“On Friday, November 26, 2010 Media Enterprises/Traffic
issued a press statement on behalf of the Broadcasting Corporation of The
Bahamas ("BCB"). The Progressive Liberal Party takes issue with and
has very serious concerns about the company which issued that press statement.
Media Enterprises/Traffic is a company which is owned by Mr. Larry Smith,
the same Larry Smith who serves on the Board of Directors of the Broadcasting
Corporation of The Bahamas.
“This development begs several questions which
the Corporation must answer:
“1. Does the Board of Directors of the BCB believe
that it is appropriate for a press
statement to be issued by a company that is owned by one of its Directors?
“2. Was Media Enterprises contracted by the BCB
to perform such services? If so, what
is the value of such a contract?
“3. If there is such a contract between the BCB
and Media Enterprises,
was the contract awarded pursuant to a competitive
bidding process?
“We believe that whether there is a formal contract
or not between the BCB and Media Enterprises, for Mr. Smith's company to
issue a statement on the BCB's behalf while he is a sitting member of the
Board of Directors is a blatant conflict of interest.
“We call on the BCB's Board of Directors to apologize
to the Bahamian people for this blatant conflict of interest that resulted
from allowing Mr. Larry Smith's company, while Mr. Smith serves as a Director
of the BCB to issue the press statement on the BCB's behalf. We also
call on the BCB to desist from engaging in such conflicts in the future.
“This matter is very similar to the relationship
between the Airport Authority and a company that was partially owned by
Mr. Brent Symonette and family members, which company was contracted to
perform work at Nassau International Airport while Mr. Symonette served
as the Chairman of the Airport Authority which granted the contract.
When The Progressive Liberal Party exposed this blatant conflict of interest,
Prime Minister Ingraham required Mr. Symonette to resign from the board
of the Airport Authority. We therefore call on the Prime Minister
to request Mr. Larry Smith's resignation from the BCB for this blatant
conflict of interest in this matter.”
STRAW
VENDORS HONOURED BY PLP WOMEN
Four of the nine straw vendors came to a special
reception, which was held at PLP headquarters at the Lynden Pindling Centre,
Gambier House on Sunday 21st November. The reception was held to
show the support of the women’s branch of the PLP for the women at the
Nassau market. The nine women were arrested on Saturday 18th September
in New York at the JFK Airport and charged with offences of trafficking
counterfeit goods. All nine were held in prison without bail, but
were eventually released on their own recognizance and then sentenced to
time served with various periods of supervised release.
PLP Mps Fred Mitchell and Alfred Sears were advocates
for the women. The FNM government denied help to the women at first,
and then came in to support them with the assistance of the government’s
lawyer in New York. The women are all now back in Nassau. Special
mention was given to Beryl and Wendell Edgecombe, Bahamians in New York
who assisted in housing the women while they were in New York and once
released from jail and awaiting sentencing. The photos show Fred
Mitchell MP sitting with the vendors at Gambier House. Dame Marguerite
Pindling and Manita Wisdom, Chair of the Women’s Branch of the PLP are
standing at centre.
Photo/Athama Bowe
PLP
YOUNG LIBERALS TO BE RECONSTITUTED
PLP Chairman Bradley Roberts has announced that
he has accepted the resignation of Aarone Sargent as the Chair of the Progressive
Young Liberals, the youth arm of the PLP and that fresh elections will
be held in the second week in January. Mr. Roberts made the announcement
on Sunday 21st November at the Lynden Pindling Centre at Gambier House,
the PLP’s headquarters. He has also announced that Ryan Pinder MP,
Judson Wilmot, NGC Member Carmichael and Athama Bowe are among a group
that is to form a special team of advisors to the Young Liberals.
Members of the group are pictured at Gambier House last Sunday with visiting
MPs Fred Mitchell and Ryan Pinder.
Photo/Athama Bowe
ANSWERS
NEEDED IN BAIN TOWN
As we uploaded last week, reports were coming in
of a riot that took place in Bain Town on Saturday 20th November at about
1 p.m. The riot took place after police followed some men who were
fleeing from a gambling game. The report is that a police reserve
shot an unarmed man in the back and in his head and killed him. The
police argue that they believed that the dead man had drawn a weapon.
The community was incensed and when they started to move the body, then
the commotion started. Among those who had to withdraw was the Commissioner
of Police Ellison Greenslade. We ran a later apology to the
Commissioner who although he insisted he was not hurt; many people say
he was in fact hit by a rock. But given that he insists that he was
not we ran the apology. It turned out also that we gave the wrong
name of the dead man. The man’s name was Shamarco Newbold and not
Marco Greenslade as we originally reported.
What needs to happen now is that answers have to
be given as to why the issue got so out of control. Chief amongst
those who were there on the scene was Rev. C.B. Moss. Rev. Moss thinks
that the situation is quite tense and that the authorities are not paying
attention to the real needs of the community, which is suffering from deprivation
and lack of jobs. Answers are needed.
Dr. B. J. Nottage who is the PLP's representative
for the area was present and is seeking quietly to organize some kind of
community effort to see if they can get to the bottom of what went wrong
and what can be done to resolve the issue. It appears that police
community relations are poor. We have an additional concern
and that is to advise the Commissioner of Police that it is simply not
a good idea for him to be on the front line in these matters. As
much as he might want to be seen to be engaged, that is why he has professional
troops to deal with these matters. He should stay away from these
scenes until calm has been restored. Perry Christie, the Leader of
the Opposition criticized the government’s inaction on crime and social
deprivation. Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham said he supported the
police unequivocally.
PLP
SAYS FNM CLUELESS ON CRIME
The Progressive Liberal Party issued a statement
on 23 November saying that the FNM is clueless on crime. We agree.
Here is the Party’s full statement:
“The FNM has miserably failed the Bahamian people
and visitors alike in introducing any meaningful and comprehensive programme
to appropriately tackle the numerous crime challenges facing The Bahamas.
The PLP has reached the conclusion that the failure of the FNM administration
to be proactive and address The Bahamas’ crime problem has significantly
contributed to the fear of crime and the flagrant disregard for law and
order, especially in New Providence. Under the FNM administration, the
Country has recorded four years of record breaking murder rates. There
are a number of suspicious deaths that occurred for the year that have
yet to be classified.
“The situation is more frightening due to the fact
that in recent times, there have been unprecedented attacks including shootings
and cold-blooded murders perpetrated against innocent women and children.
The FNM administration must be held accountable for this alarming state
of affairs under its current leadership of PM Hubert Alexander Ingraham
and his Minister of National Security, Tommy Turnquest.
“The FNM came to office in 2007 under its banner
‘dedicated to restoring trust in Government’. In its Manifesto, the
FNM stated that it had “a comprehensive plan to reduce crime and better
protect Bahamian families”. To this end the FNM made many promises, none
of which has been fulfilled by the FNM.
“According to the FNM 2007 Manifesto:
1. The FNM said it will “Expand the community policing
programme”.
Not done. Rather, this administration stopped and
cancelled (or as they say “adjusted”) the award winning, internationally
renowned and acclaimed Urban Renewal Programme which was introduced by
the PLP (Christie) administration. This was the most aggressive and comprehensive
programme introduced in recent history to stop crime through community
efforts. However, the Ingraham administration did not stop there. They
also halted programmes endorsed by Church and civic organizations which
they claimed were too expensive – can this compare to the continuous flow
of blood of some of these very same young men on our streets today? Could
more have been and can be done to save our young men and people? The PLP
says a resounding ‘yes’.
2. The FNM said it will “Develop school curricula
with healthy lifestyle initiatives and mentoring programmes to sensitize
our children to the importance of making good choices and avoiding violence
as a means of conflict resolution”.
Not done. On the contrary, sexual exploitation,
abuse and criminal activities have dominated the media regarding incidents
in our schools and/or involving school aged children since 2007. As a matter
of fact, statistics released by the Women’s Crisis Center indicate significant
increases in abuse toward children which is a direct indication of the
FNM’s failure to develop any school or community curricula to promote healthy
lifestyles.
To add to this plight, the constant eruption of
violence in our schools which have resulted in our young men and children
being stabbed has become unbearable. The FNM’s cancellation of the School
Based Policing Initiative is the cause of this state of affairs and demonstrates
a lack of vision of their part.
3. The FNM said it will “Implement programmes designed
to tackle social problems of addiction, domestic violence, and recidivism”.
Not done. Hubert Ingraham’s administration cannot
identify any all-embracing programme that they have introduced since coming
to office in 2007 to address this goal. As a result, the record breaking
murder rates since 2007 has, to a significant extent, been attributed to
an upsurge in domestic violence.
Moreover, the FNM has failed to introduce any comprehensive
initiative to address the large number of persons on bail for murder and
other violent offences who continue to kill and reoffend. This has now
resulted in the rapidly growing trend of retaliatory/revenge killings which
have caused the homicide rate to grow by leaps and bounds.
4. The FNM said it will “Promote non-violent resolution
of conflicts”.
Not done. The likelihood of violence at all public
functions and the recent “disturbance” in Bain Town is evidence of the
FNM’s non-action to fulfill this Manifesto item.
5. The FNM said it will “Ensure that all residential
streets are named and have street signs”.
6. The FNM said it will “Ensure that all buildings
are numbered”.
7. The FNM said it will “Ensure that street lighting
is maintained”.
Not done, not done, not done. Ironically, the FNM
is speaking to the issue of street lighting when it cannot maintain traffic
lights. All over New Providence, the traffic lights are either malfunctioning,
the red and/or green light is blown or the light itself is not working
at all. This has caused many accidents, near fatal crashes and the flagrant
disregard for traffic laws.
8. The FNM said it will “Assist home-owners and
businesses to help prevent crime by reducing import duties on security
equipment, components and supplies”.
Not done. On this point, the cost itself of security
equipment, components and supplies are prohibitive to the average home
and business. It is obvious therefore, that the FNM is only blowing ‘hot
air’.
9. The FNM said it will “Regularly review police
requirements in all communities to ensure that the number of officers assigned
is in accordance with the needs of the community”.
Absolutely not done. How can the FNM review police
requirements in all communities to ensure that the number of officers assigned
is in accordance with the needs of the community if the FNM has instructed
and removed the officers from the communities?? This makes absolutely no
sense and all the FNM has done once again is to seek to mislead the Bahamian
people.
Is this a matter of trust? The PLP contends that
the FNM has miserably failed the Bahamian people and assures the wider
community that it is just a matter of time until the PLP becomes the Government
once again and restores law and order where peace is preserved and the
fear of crime is removed.
MITCHELL
SPEAKS TO FORT CHARLOTTE
Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill spoke to the Fort
Charlotte Branch of the PLP on Tuesday 23rd November. He spoke about
the commitment that the PLP must make to win, the need for fire in the
belly to win. There was a spirited discussion on the question of
what the PLP must do to answer the comments of Hubert Ingraham attacking
the PLP. You may click
here for Mr. Mitchell’s full remarks.
Photo/Ft. Charlotte PLP Media
SEARS
SPEAKS TO FOX HILL
Alfred Sears MP PLP for Ft. Charlotte spoke at the
Fox Hill Branch meeting of the PLP on Wednesday 24th November.
He spoke on a New National Development Strategy. Mr. Sears called
for a number of new initiatives by the PLP in its next term in office.
He said that what is required for example is that students who get into
the College of The Bahamas should not have to pay for their tuition, but
that education at the tertiary level should be free. You may click
here for Mr. Sears’ full remarks.
Photo/Fox Hill PLP Media
POETRY
READING IN NEW YORK
Beryl Edgecombe who heads the Bahamas American Cultural
Association in New York is holding a poetry reading for two Caribbean poets,
Christian Campbell, the Rhodes scholar and award winning Bahamian poet
and Jacinth Henry-Martin of St. Kitts-Nevis. The reading is on Thursday
9th December at St. Francis College in the Callahan Center, 182 Remsen
Street (between Clinton & Court Sts), Brooklyn, NY 11201. We
encourage all in the New York environs to attend.
‘PJ’
BARTLETTE’S WEDDING
Darryl Bartlette Jr. aka P.J. and his wife Samara
nee Munnings were married on Friday 15th October at ‘Stones Throw Away’
at Tropical Gardens, Nassau. As it happens with the wedding of a
young couple, the beautiful people turn out resplendently for the happy
occasion. Amongst them were his aunts, the Williams sisters, as in
Elaine of La Rose and Bamboo Shack, Veronica, the dentist, Sharon, wife
of Rev. Timothy Stuart of Bethel Baptist Church, Ethelyn of California,
Daphne as in Mrs. Malcolm Adderley and Janet. Of course, mom Albertha
of the AG’s office was there and a host of relatives and friends.
Fred Mitchell MP a friend of the family posed in this photo with them.
The groom is shown with his parents Darryl Senior and Albertha.
JULIETTE
BARNWELL ON BAIN TOWN RIOT
We suspect that underlying all of the mayhem that
took place in Bain Town on Saturday 20th November is the fact that police
and community relations are bad. In particular, there is a history
of the police demonizing young males in the community. Juliette Barnwell,
is the retired former Secretary to the Governor General and is a lifelong
resident of Bain Town. She is the daughter of a former representative
for the area the late Dr. C.R. Walker. She is now 76 years old and
Tribune spoke to her. Here is what she said in her own words:
“I wasn’t here Saturday when the shooting occurred,
but see, what I can’t understand, the police are always harassing these
boys.
“I have come home many a day and they (police)
see the crowd over there and they go over there and they search them and
then they leave because they don’t find anything. I don’t think it’s fair
the way they treat them.
“I’m not saying they’re angels you know, but
I mean treat people like human beings.
“To see these young boys, they were all in tears.
I felt that myself. I have never seen so many young persons – mostly the
boys – were crying. They were really crying.
“I can’t understand why he ran, I don’t know,
but even if he ran and he was shot, there must have been a way to shoot
at a body without killing.
“There must have been a better way to shoot.
I don’t think you had to shoot to kill.
“I’m not saying they should not shoot, but there
must be a way to shoot to wound rather than shoot to kill. That could have
been anybody, and then the people have children over there, in the apartments.”
ALLEGATIONS
MADE AGAINST DAME JOAN SAWYER
We have said in this column good riddance to Dame
Joan Sawyer as the President of the Court of Appeal. Good riddance
again. We take some comfort in the words of Anita Allen as she took
the oath of office, that we will to see a court that is not tendentious
during her watch and that it will have a President who does not seize one
side and then never let go.
Lawyers, Members of Parliament, Ministers, and the
Privy Council all complained about the Court of Appeal under Joan Sawyer.
Litigants suffered. Nothing was done. Now, technology may hold
up the case, although as is often typical in The Bahamas, it is too late
to do anything about it. But we provide the link to the YouTube feature
of Dame Joan Sawyer at work in the court. You must listen to this
for yourself. Incredible. It
is in four parts.
JACK
HAYWARD AND HIS CHILDREN IN COURT
As we reported on this site several weeks ago, and
as expected, Sir Jack Hayward has been hauled before the courts by his
children and wife for allegedly frittering away the trust funds that he
set up for them. It is a bitter battle. Here is how the Nassau
Guardian reported the matter on 25th November in a story by Krystel Rolle:
Grand Bahama Port Authority co-owner Sir Jack
Hayward, who is fighting a suit filed against him by his some of his family,
said he feels "disappointed and betrayed" by their actions after appearing
before the Supreme Court yesterday.
Rick Hayward (son), 59, and Susan Heath (daughter),
61, her husband Rodney and eight grandchildren are suing Sir Jack, 87.
They claim he acted illegally by removing their names from various trusts.
They have accused him of “frittering away” their inheritance.
Sir Jack denied those claims yesterday.
After the brief hearing, Sir Jack’s attorney
and the attorney representing his children spent over an hour attempting
to reach an agreement. They were unsuccessful, however.
Asked about his chances of winning the case,
Sir Jack was optimistic.
“Everyone who goes to court thinks they have
a good chance,” said Sir Jack, noting the other side likely has the same
level of confidence.
He added: “I feel very disappointed very betrayed
– betrayed is the word – that they could do this to me.”
Asked how much money his children are seeking,
Sir Jack said he was not sure. Sir Jack set up the trust funds.
He is represented by Richard Millett, QC and
Attorney Andre Feldman. Representing the plaintiffs are Terence Mowschenson,
QC and Nassau-based Attorney Ferron Bethell.
Both sides have agreed to a speedy trial.
Feldman, who made no comment on the merits
of the case, confirmed that the plaintiffs have to file a statement of
claim by end of December with the other side having until the end of January
to file a defense. Weeks after, the plaintiffs are to file a reply in response
to the defense.
In March, Feldman explained, all parties are
scheduled to get together for a case management conference. On April 27,
a pretrial meeting has been scheduled to ensure all parties are ready to
proceed with the May 2 trial. The trial is scheduled to last for 10 working
days.
The case has been fast tracked because the
main witness, Sir Jack, is elderly.
THE
NASSAU GUARDIAN’S EDITORIAL IS NONSENSE
The Nassau Guardian wrote an editorial on the subject
of crime in The Bahamas. Once again, we are forced to ask; who writes
the nonsense that often appears in its columns? Crime is a matter
for which the FNM and only the FNM has the responsibility in this day and
time. How these FNM supporters at The Nassau Guardian manage to get
the PLP hooked up in everything is simply amazing and that is all you can
say by the stupidity which appeared in the Nassau Guardian:
“The focus of the entire country appears to be
on crime. Bahamians are concerned that we are days away from a third homicide
record in four years. More and more Bahamians are either telling stories
about being victims of crime, or of close friends and relatives being attacked
or robbed.
Hubert Ingraham is seeking a fourth mandate.
If successful, it would mean he would have ruled this archipelago for 20
years. In 1992, few would have dreamed he would attempt this based on his
criticism of Sir Lynden Pindling’s long 25-year stay.
If he is to reach the mark of 20 years as prime
minister, Ingraham has to fight through a crime problem that cannot be
won by executing a well thought out communications strategy. He and the
Free National Movement (FNM) will need successes in 2011.
There appear to be two main problems, on the
response side of the equation, fueling the crime surge in The Bahamas.
On the one hand, the national system of prosecution
has become dysfunctional. When crimes are committed there must be competent
investigations by police, efficient case management by prosecutors and
proper trial management by the judiciary.
Our police have not been producing the best cases,
our prosecutors have prosecuted little and we do not have enough criminal
courts.
The government seems to agree with this analysis.
It has changed leadership at the Royal Bahamas
Police Force and at the Department of Public Prosecutions. It is also providing
the funding and legislative change necessary for more courts to begin hearing
cases.
But for these changes to lead to the desired
results, there must be someone with the strength of will present overseeing
the justice system as a whole to ensure they work. That person would also
need to have the capacity and energy to ensure other necessary reforms
occur.
Both the FNM and the Progressive Liberal Party
(PLP) have a laissez faire attitude towards crime. The parties assume that
the bureaucrats can deal with the problem. The parties must realize they
cannot. Many of the institutions of government left by the British have
not been evolved by our post-Independence leaders.
In fact, through years and years of cronyism,
they have been eroded. Wholesale reform is needed. And a leader, passionate
about the problem and competent enough to fix it, must be found.
The second problem relates the state lack of
willingness to use the necessary type of force when faced with crisis.
On Monday night police shot and killed Walden Mitchell, 38, in the rear
of the Grove Police Station.
Mitchell had gone on a little crime spree of
sorts in the days preceding his death. This included trying to kill a police
officer. Police sourced also said Mitchell sent them a message that he
was armed and ready.
What police did in response was what needed to
be done. Mitchell was found and eliminated. There are others who need to
be found and eliminated.
If the state would use those same officers who
so skillfully eliminated Mitchell to find and eliminate some of the hit
men, armed home invaders and robbers that are wrecking havoc in The Bahamas,
the crime rate would begin to decline.
The state is not as feared as it used to be.
People are rioting in front of police stations and attacking senior police
officers. People are breaking into police stations and courts. Our leaders
must find the courage to sanction what is necessary to push back against
those who only understand force.
The saving grace for Ingraham and the FNM is
that the PLP has no answers to the crime problem and the electorate knows
this. However, voters usually voice their frustrations against incumbents.
If “Papa” is to win his fourth term, maintaining the status quo on the
crime front will not work.
The PLP has the luxury of issuing statements
rambling on and on about the crime problem because it is not in power.
The FNM has to deliver solutions now because it is the government.
[We think that the last paragraph is especially foolish about the
PLP rambling on and on about the crime problem. When the PLP was
in power, the crime rate was not this high, the economy was better and
the Urban Renewal Programme and National Youth service were fully functional
interventions in the social life of the country which were designed as
long term social strategies to deal with crime. Today we have high
unemployment, no Urban Renewal and no National Youth Service, the police
out of the schools and what you have is social decay and a Prime Minister
who is having press conferences while the country is sinking further into
the muck and the mire.---Editor]
BAHAMAS
AND AIDS
We will mark World Aids Day on Wednesday 1st December
2010. The disease has largely become silent and forgotten as it becomes
more and more managed and chronic. But the fact is people are still
dying from it and the disease is still being spread. It appears that
The Bahamas has the highest rate of prevalence for the disease in the Caribbean.
Brent Dean from the Nassau Guardian wrote this story published on 25th
November:
The Bahamas still has the highest HIV adult
prevalence rate in the Caribbean, a region that has the highest HIV prevalence
rate in the world outside of sub-Saharan Africa, according to the UNAIDS
2010 Global Report.
UNAIDS estimated in the report, which was released
on Tuesday, that 240,000 people were living with HIV in the Caribbean in
2009. The figure has remained steady since the late 1990s, said UNAIDS.
The rate of new HIV infections in the region
has slightly declined the past decade with 20,000 new infections being
recorded in 2001 and 17,000 being recorded in 2009.
In The Bahamas there were an estimated 6,600
people living with HIV in 2009. This figure is up from 5,900 recorded in
2001. The UNAIDS figure is an estimate. The range of possible infections
in The Bahamas in 2009 is from 2,600 to 11,000 people, said the report.
Cuba is the country in the region with the lowest
adult HIV prevalence rate recorded in 2009 (0.1 percent).
Aside from sub-Saharan Africa, UNAIDS said the
Caribbean is the only region where the proportion of women and girls living
with HIV (53 percent) is higher than that of men and boys.
Unprotected sex between men and women – especially
paid sex – is thought to be the main mode of HIV transmission in the Caribbean,
the report noted.
Despite the high adult prevalence rate in The
Bahamas, there were positive trends reported. The number of people taking
antiretroviral treatment therapy in the country increased from 1,244 in
September 2007 to 1,506 in December 2009.
In the region, concerns persist surrounding transmission
rates among certain at risk groups. High HIV infection levels have been
reported among female sex workers. This includes rates of: four percent
in the Dominican Republic, nine percent in Jamaica and 27 percent in Guyana.
UNAIDS also reported that one in five men who
have sex with men surveyed in Trinidad and Tobago was living with HIV.
Of this group, one in four said that they regularly had sex with women.
In Jamaica, it was reported that an estimated 32 percent of men who have
sex with men are living with HIV.
PICTET
BANK RECEPTION
Fred Mitchell MP, the Opposition’s spokesman on
Foreign Affairs and Foreign trade joined the executives of Pictet Bank
and Trust in The Bahamas for a reception at the Sheraton Cable Beach and
a discussion ‘Stabilizing an unstable world’. A reception followed,
hosted by Yves Lourdin (second from left), Group Managing Director in The
Bahamas. Also show in the photo, from left: Jean Francois Demole,
partner; M. Lourdin; Mr. Mitchell and Christain Mallet, Chairman.
The reception took place on Monday 22nd November.
Photo/David Knowles
FRED
MITCHELL MP’S SENIORS LUNCHEON
The annual Thanksgiving Day Luncheon for the
Fox Hill seniors was held on Thursday 25th November at the home of Julian
Edgecombe a Fox Hill resident and son of former MP Frank Edgecombe.
During the lunch the family of Mr. Edgecombe senior presented him
with a plaque of appreciation on behalf of the family.
Photo/Dennis Fountain
LETTERS
TO THE EDITOR
Alfred Jarrett former Chair of Bahamas Electricity Corporation and
former Royal Bank of Canada Banker writes answering Hubert Ingraham on
the debt under the PLP and under the FNM:
On November 19th Issues of the Day Mr. Jones
asked the PM to explain what the FNM Government did with the $1.3 billion
borrowed during the past 3-1/2 years. His response was - "look around
you Mr. Jones, the PLP borrowed $800 million with nothing to show for their
5 year term in office".
Let's break this down to explain what the PLP
inherited and did with its debt:-
The National Debt is currently over $4.21 billion,
but the PLP left a National Debt of $2.88 billion (Including $430 million
in foreign currency versus the FNM's current $1.3 billion in foreign currency).
During the PLP's 5-year term - 2002 - 2007 - it contracted to borrow or
refinance $600 million. They met in place a US $125 million debt
contracted by the FNM, which was created to pay off their existing recurrent
debts.
During the FNM's 13-1/2 year tenure, they created over 52% of the
existing National Debt of $4.2 billion. The PLP in 30 years of administration
created under 50% of this debt.
What did the PLP do with its debts?
During the first 25 years, the PLP built the
modern Bahamas.
During Mr. Christie's tenure, the PLP created
a booming economy including major capital works, i.e. major docks, roads,
utilities and infrastructure indicated in its 5 annual capital budgets
approved by Parliament.
Mr. Christie left an incredible GFS deficit of
1.6%. The FNM has over 5% GFS deficit as we speak.
The PLP borrowed within its means; 32% direct
debt to GDP and 37% National Debt to GDP, which was approximately $7.5
billion. The current real GDP under the FNM is $6.7 billion
(as indicated by the IMF, Moody's and the Dept. of Statistics) and has
shown negative growth for three consecutive fiscal years of 1.7%, 4.5%
and a projected .5% for 2010 which is expected to be higher. Also,
at fiscal year end 2010, the Government's direct debt was 50% and the National
Debt was 59%.
It was foolish for Mr. Ingraham to make a comparison
of PLP debts versus FNM debts.
Mr Christie spent 8% - 10% of his revenues on
debt servicing, whereas the FNM is spending 20% in its past and current
budgets.
UNEMPLOYMENT
The last unemployment survey done in the Bahamas
was in October 2009 by the Dept. of Statistics, when it provided data for
Grand Bahama and New Providence of 18.2% and 14.6%, which works out to
15.2% national unemployment rate at that time. The unemployment rate
for the country was 26,000 excluding the 9,000 discouraged workers and
approximately 10,000 part-time workers and excluding kids graduating from
school. The US has 17% unemployment and under employment rate, which
translates to over 14 million people.
Historically, the Bahamas has always had a 5%
to 6% higher unemployment rate than the US, therefore anecdotally The Bahamas’
current unemployment rate is probably in the range of 23%, representing
close to 50,000 persons and a misery index of approx 150,000 Bahamians.
Sadly, because Mr. Ingraham has not done a survey at all to reflect this
pain, it is hard to see how he could present a meaningful Social Services
budget, in light of all this suffering created throughout the country.
I am advised by political sources that Mr. Ingraham
does not want to reflect a 23% unemployment rate in any Central Bank Report
produced in 2010 on its watch. He will use the excuse that he had
to conduct a census in 2010 and therefore could not do a very necessary
unemployment survey involving human suffering.
The Bahamas perhaps is the only country in the
civilized world that has no unemployment statistics for 2010. What
does that say about this ‘Caring Government’?
Alfred Jarrett
Forrester Carroll on Ingraham Running Again...
On the front page of Monday’s (15th Nov) Nassau Guardian it read; “PM TO
RUN AGAIN.” This did not surprise me at all, as I have always
maintained that this man would have to be removed from parliament while
kicking and screaming. I knew that he would never leave voluntarily
as it is not in his kind’s nature to do anything so honourably. We
will have to put a good cut behind on him and send him packing, back to
Pine Ridge, from whence he came. The man doesn’t get it; we don’t
want him around any more, and if he somehow has the impression that we
do, it’s all in your confused mind, you dictator; you are yesterday’s news,
so go in peace. Are you so full of yourself that you fail to see
the handwriting on the wall? The Bahamian people have had enough
of your lying and your abrasiveness.
The reasons Ingraham gave (according to the print media), for staying on, would be laughable if he didn’t seriously believe them himself. “The party needs me, he said; there are a number of things that we had hoped to undertake in this term in office that we have been unable to do largely because of the economic circumstances and conditions, he said; it would not be appropriate, I think, under these circumstances for me, with all this headwind, with all the experience I have…to go, so I consider it my duty to the Bahamas and to my party to carry out” he said. He alone has the contacts, he went further. Have any of you heard as much BULL#*$ in all your lives? I certainly have not.
This person really thinks more highly of himself than he ought. He should get this through his head: you are not worth two bits to us, as prime minister, but on the contrary, you are a millstone (a huge millstone) around our necks of which we yearn to be rid.
Here in FNM country, according to the Freeport News’ front page story of 17th November, the temperature is not lukewarm, as the headlines read (Residents lukewarm on PM’s next bid), but it is hot; hot; hot. Residents (at random) were asked to give their views on Ingraham’s declaration that he intends to remain as leader of the FNM and, to take the party into the next general election campaign. “Hell no,” said one; “He is doing a bunch of crap now…and needs to go,” said another. Yet another felt, “Hubert Ingraham just needs to retire and get a life, his time is up.” The story went on to quote the sentiments of others, whose opinions were quote, “They can’t win any more; once he is competing the FNM is finished” unquote. One Stephanie Jones told the news reporter that, “Ingraham should not seek re-election, but step aside and allow other persons in the party to come to the forefront. With him, he always wants to make decisions and nobody else’s opinion counts. It doesn’t make sense…him doing it again,” she said. Those are the views from constituents who live in what was considered, for a long time, FNM country.
If you can believe this, I even felt a degree of embarrassment for Hubert when at a popular eatery here in Freeport, on the Monday, lunch time, after his Sunday afternoon news conference, I overheard three of his supporters (used to be it now seems), businesspersons, lambasting him for (among other aspects of his news conference) his response to a question put by a reporter concerning the reopening of the Princess Hotel and the Harcourt Group. The trio was decrying his answer which was to the effect; ‘If anyone can find the Harcourt People for me, tell them that I wish to see them‘.
The chief executive of the country (I am sad to say), was asked about the closure of a hotel which he promised to have open almost four years ago and the only response we get is smart ass and stupid? We expected, by now (based on FNM election campaign promises), that the hotel would have been open and if not, at the very least, you would have some sensible answers for the reporters’ questions, as to why not.
We would also have expected, based again on FNM election campaign promises, to have solved the Grand Bahama Port Authority Saga, by now, to the island’s benefit.
We do not expect asinine responses from the one who is supposed to
have all the answers; the one who says, now, that he needs more time to
complete his agenda; that more than ever before, because of the experience
he has in the business, he needs to stay on as his party’s leader.
We do not expect these kinds of responses from the one who purports
to have all the contacts and to whom we (taxpayers) pay a huge salary and
other very liberal perks. We do not expect this bad attitude.
No truth whatever can be found in Hubert Ingraham. A dog in the manger you say? I submit that the man wants to remain so that he can block the hustle of all those who may be desirous, as Bran McCartney is, of becoming possible leader of the party; he is indeed a “Dog in a manger.” When he loses this time, though as he surely will, I guarantee that he will leave, as he did before, because for him it’s either in charge or he’ll not stick around. He cannot endure being in opposition and he will surely desert you, the same people, who he is now pretending and saying that he feels obligated to stick around for.
Finally, it was an act dramatized that even Hollywood would have
difficulty matching; Hubert and Sir Solomon I mean. It was interesting
to see the two of them go at it (at the time of the debate on the Bar Mar
Resolution) pretending to be at odds with each other when, in fact, I am
convinced that Ingraham orchestrated the script. He, no doubt, wrote the
lines for Sir Solomon and had him release it to the media while, simultaneously,
having the boy minister (Laing) read it during the debate in parliament.
Never heard of anything, like it, in all my years of following parliamentary
debates. It was a concocted set-up by director Hubert Ingraham and we,
the people, are not fooled in the least.
Forrester J. Carroll J.P.
Freeport, Grand Bahama
IN PASSING
Pa And The Preacher
Ian Strachan’s fairy tale about a young preacher seeking to get married
was revived on the Dundas Stage, the house that Winston Saunders built,
on Thursday 25th to Saturday 27th November. The play was first performed
in 1990 when he was the age of the kids who are the players in this year’s
performance. It did not get good audiences this time, largely we
suspect because of publicity issues, but also because plays have become
a thing of the past here. What seemed to be the main issue of the
production was the fact that the kids themselves seemed to be unfamiliar
with the format of theatre and what is expected of them. But it was
enjoyable nonetheless to see them giving it a good try and a nice surprise
to see Franklin Camille, the former head boy of Doris Johnson Senior High
in the lead role.
Photo/Peter Ramsay
Carl Bethel’s Phantom 1000
Carl Bethel, the FNM MP for Sea Breeze, is counting like a spirit.
He claims that he has found 1000 people who live in the area who will vote
against the PLP because of the Arawak Homes dispute in which he is serving
as counsel an issue in itself on which ethical issues have been raised.
Click here for last week’s comment on why we think he is misguided.
Mr. Bethel is predicting victory against the PLP’s Hope Strachan.
Only problem he has is that he is an unpopular representative; the swing
is against the FNM in the country, so he will really need a Hail Mary to
get to first base. But at least the phantom numbers that he is dreaming
up and repeating to himself everywhere he goes gives some explanation for
the reason he is going to court and losing all the time and racking up
costs for those same people he says want to oppose the PLP.
Brian Finds His Voice On Financial Services
Never underestimate the capacity of Attorney Brian Moree who Hubert
Ingraham made a Q.C., to be on the right side of an issue. Three
years after everyone else made the point that Hubert Ingraham stupidly
scrapped the Ministry of Financial Services, Mr. Moree has now found his
voice and told The Tribune on Monday 22nd November that there ought
to be a Ministry of Financial Services. Praise the lord!
Correction On Garraway Retirement
Last week, we reported that Elma Garraway, the Permanent Secretary
of the Ministry of Education was set to retire at the end of the month.
Not! The Ministry of Education announced after we uploaded that she
has been asked to stay on for another six months and she has agreed to
do so.
Frederick Gomez Dies
He was the father of Jerome Gomez, the PLP’s candidate for the Killarney
district. When he died at the age of 74 last week, he was a boat
captain and had been ailing with prostate cancer diagnosed in August of
this year. He was a quiet man and certainly looking at him, you would
not have imagined him as the man who served as a police officer and who
was fired from the police force in those heady days between 1962 and 1965
when the PLP was the majority party but that did not represent itself in
the House of Assembly. He was a cause célèbre in his
time because there was a confrontation between one of the Bay Street boys
at a party where he was serving as an officer. He did not allow the
man to get into the party because he was not invited and the man hurled
a racial epithet at him. He gave the man what he was looking for.
The result a charge and dismissal but he was considered a hero by the people.
That is the legend and we choose for his children to believe it and repeat
it. As we say rest in peace. His son Keith remembered the incident
in his tribute to his Dad. He was buried at Woodlawn following
a church service at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. His brother is
the former President of the Bahamas Taxi Cab Union Patrick Gomez.
Layoffs At Morton Salt
Morton Salt announced that because of the more than usual rains in
the last weeks at Inagua, which produces salt from solar evaporation, they
have to lay off fifty percent of their 144 workers for a few weeks.
Lady Naomi Whitfield’s Splendour In Blue
Lady Naomi Whitfield is the widow of the late Sir Cecil Wallace Whitfield,
the legendary Leader of the Opposition and founder of the Free National
Movement. She is seen here in a resplendent evening gown of blue
and we simply thought it was good engaging photo from her Facebook
page, which she posted on 6th November.
Cheryl Bethell Receives The Government’s Case
Reports indicate that the Government filed their affidavits in reply
to Cheryl Bethell in reference to her case against them for denying
her the job as Director of Public Prosecutions. The affidavits in
part say that they had an adverse report from the Security and Intelligence
Branch. The affidavits did not disclose the report nor did it say
what the case was against her or that the case was actually put to her.
The lawyers for Mrs. Bethel should have an interesting case.
Conviction Overturned
The conviction of the young woman who was sentenced to eight months
in prison by Magistrate Derrence Rolle for alleged threats of death on
the Facebook a page has been freed from jail. The conviction was
overturned by the Court of Appeal. This was highlighted on this site.
This is a good result.
Christie On Radio
Perry Christie, the Leader of the Opposition, will be the guest of
Steve McKinney on his radio talk show for two hours on Monday 29th November
from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Mr. Christie will also be the special guest of Dwight
Hart on his radio station in Exuma on Thursday 2nd December. It will
be a live telephone call in show.
Straw Vendor Will Christen Baby
Fred Mitchell MP and Alfred Sears MP will stand as godfathers for the
daughter of Tracey Davis McDonald at a service at Zion Baptist Church East
and Shirley Streets. Mrs. McDonald is one of the vendors who was
arrested in new York and charged with trafficking counterfeit goods.
Mr. Sears and Mr. Mitchell were advocates for their release.
Fred Mitchell Objects To Bar Council On New DPP
The Bar Council sent out a notice to lawyers notifying them of those
who have applied to be called to the Bar. Among them is the new Director
of Public Prosecutions Vinette Graham Allen. Mr. Mitchell has written
a letter of objection. You may click
here for the full letter.
Fred Mitchell Guest Of Controversy TV
Fred Mitchell MP for Fox Hill was the guest for Utah Taylor Rolle’s
Controversy TV on Thursday 25th November. You can usually
see the reruns on the web via youtube.
