Remarks by

Rt. Hon. Hubert A. Ingraham

Member of Parliament for North Abaco

FNM Rally

Freeport, Grand Bahama

18^th August, 2003

Hello, Grand Bahama.

It’s been a while; but I haven’t forgotten you. And, I can’t. You have been good to me. And, you have been good to our Party. For that and more I remain grateful.

This city of Freeport suffered much for its political beliefs. On August 19, 1992 your deliverance from the governing party’s strangle-hold was finally achieved. It had been a long struggle for you; and many did not live to see the momentous day: Garnet Levarity, one of this Party’s first two Grand Bahama MPs, had passed on, as had our founding Leader, Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield. And now the PLP is back, large and in charge.

And so, it is a bitter sweet anniversary we observe tomorrow – the 11^th anniversary of that glorious day when the Bahamian people rose up and kicked the non-performing, incompetent and corrupt PLP from office and ushered in a decade of growth and development under the capable leadership of our Party, the Free National Movement. Sweet because the 19^th August, 1992 held so much promise for a better and brighter future for all Bahamians; and bitter because, nine and a half years after such a resounding victory, we in the FNM failed, last year, to convince the majority of Bahamians that their future was safer, more secure, and better with us than with the PLP.

Many Bahamians who were unsure of, or disgruntled with, our leadership last year took a gamble with the PLP. They know now that the gamble was reckless and that the consequences are serious. Sixteen months after handing election victory to the PLP many wish that they could vote again. They, like us, will have to wait for nearly four more years before they have the privilege and the pleasure of putting the PLP out of office again.

Anyway, I’ve not come to find out or tell you why we lost. We are all in the FNM boat together in opposition to the PLP. Frankly, it no longer matters why we lost - what matters now is for us to win again.

And we deserve to win again - and God willing, win we will.

Tomorrow, August 19, is still a time for celebration. We have a proud legacy to celebrate.

For nearly ten years, it was our privilege and honour to preside over and attend to the rebirth, revitalization and indeed, resuscitation of Freeport’s economy which, as you well know was in bad shape in 1992. And on our watch, Freeport grew and prospered. Even PLPs must acknowledge this as true.

We accomplished much during our two consecutive terms in Office.

We made The Bahamas better for all its citizens - more democratic - we got rid of victimization; we introduced fairness into Governmental decision-making; we strengthened the economy - created 40,000 new jobs, reduced unemployment to its lowest level in our history; created hundreds of new opportunities for small business persons and entrepreneurs; improved our infrastructure - completed the electrification of the Family Islands, built and paved Family Island roads some of which had been neglected for 30 years. We made better quality education and health care services available to increased numbers of Bahamians closer to where they lived whether on New Providence or on our Family Islands. That is what we celebrate today.

FNMs everywhere can be proud of the job we did. Go anywhere in The Bahamas or outside, hold your head up high and say to the world "we did good - a lot of good". No FNM anywhere need be ashamed of the FNM’s two terms in Government.

We achieved all we did by working hard, very hard - 24/7 as they say. We didn’t say often enough or loud enough how much we were doing to benefit the people. We believed that the people would see improvements in their everyday lives and recognize that it was our efforts which had helped cause the improvements.

Sometimes, doing the right thing is not enough. I believe we made it look too easy; so easy that some of our people did not appreciate the tremendous effort we were making on their behalf; and, so easy that some of those fellas in that other Party decided they could do an even better job than we did with half the effort. They sold that ‘bill of goods’ to the Bahamian people.

I must hand it to the PLP, they were very good salesmen. The problem is they don’t offer any after sale service. And so today, many Bahamians who voted for ‘help and hope’ are hopeless; without any shred of hope that this PLP Government can or will deliver on its many promises.

They promised nearly everything, but the sky, during the campaign just like a bad used car salesman; said they had an easy, sure-footed solution for every problem confronting us - including the fallout for the Bahamian economy from the slowing global economy and from the changed environment in which we must now offer international financial services. They said all their solutions were blowing in on a ‘fresh wind’.

And thousands of Bahamians bought their ‘bill of goods’. Some of our traditional supporters, and many who joined us for the first time in 1992 or in 1997, decided that the PLP promises sounded good. They left us high and dry in 2002. Some said they were tired of the FNM. They decided that our serious approach to Government was boring; others found our sense of responsibility dull. Our Leader didn’t dance quite like that other Leader. They were game for some fresh wind. Now they, and all the rest of us, know that the wind was, well, anything but fresh.

Now, many Bahamians who bought the PLPs line are screaming "sell now"!

You know how the song puts it: "look what you get, when you tired of what you got"!

Pineridge got tired of CA, so now they got Ann Percentie. Ain’t that something!?

Now, she throwing her weight around. Well, you know, like the old people say: if you don’t listen, you’ll feel. And we are feeling the PLP now - not their full weight yet - more coming.

I’ve come to tell you that we have got to make them a one term government. The Good Lord promises not to put more on us than we can bear; but in this case we put them on ourselves. And its gonna take you to move them.

We need a working Government; not a talking government.

We need a Government of action; not a Government of Commissions.

We need a focused Government; not one that’s here, there and everywhere except for when its time to be working for us.

When I hear them talking and promising I am reminded of the song: "my girl friend promised to give me some ting; all she doing is promising; ....all you doing is promising gal".

You know and I know Perry Christie is a promising man; a talking man; a dancing man; but Perry Christie ain’t no ‘doing’ man; and Perry Christie ain’t no action man.

Daily, more and more Bahamians are coming to believe that once is indeed enough for the PLP.

The FNM job is to make even more Bahamians believe this. Once is enough.

We do not need, but we have, today, an inept, incompetent, unfocused, rudderless government.

Take the 200% increase in the cost of a cruising permits for pleasure craft - from $100 to $300. A prime example of an ill-conceived and poorly executed plan. No amount of preening and repositioning about the Government’s intention to protect Bahamian marine life can cover the ineptitude of this Government in this matter. If this is how they propose to protect our marine environment, heaven help us.

This unannounced, summary increase in the cost of a cruising permit was signed into law by none other than Perry Gladstone Christie - Minister of Finance and Prime Minister.

When I saw it I spoke immediately to the Minister of Tourism, the Hon. Obie Wilchombe. I told him what I thought of so hefty an increase without discussion or notice. I told him what I thought the ill-conceived hefty increase would do to tourism in Bimini, West End, Freeport, Abaco, the Berries, Exuma and elsewhere. He understood. We went straight to the PM to report what I had said. Later that day or on another day he told me that the increase had been revisited and that it had been decided to suspend the new increased tax on pleasure boats. He said the new position had been conveyed to The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism offices in Florida and from them to other concerned and interested parties.

Days later, in the wee hours of the morning, the Government’s position was again amended so that the original 200% increase would go into effect but only for boats over 35 ft in length. Tourism, having advised the boat clubs and marinas that the increase had been suspended on one day had to turn around and tell them that in fact the increase had in fact gone into effect but only for some boats. The fallout from the clumsy handling of this ill-advised decision is still being felt. And, the economic cost will be felt by many Bahamians for a long time. You understand, our reputation as a destination for pleasure boats has taken a big hit. I hear some people talking about the damage the boaters do to our environment. No one loves our environment, particularly our marine environment more than I, a fisherman. But protecting the environment does not mean gauging our tourists. Protecting the environment must involve education; regulation; enforcement and surveillance. And yes, someone has to pay for all this but it can’t all be heaped upon unsuspecting guests whom we invite and entice to our shores through million dollar Ad campaigns. How much more expensive and uncompetitive do we wish to make our tourism product?

The mishandling of the cruise permit hike is but one of the many reasons that this inept, incompetent, unfocussed and rudderless government must be restricted to a single term in office.

Did you notice that they took twelve months to review the seat belt law only to determine that it is in fact a good law with no need of any amendment? Remember they said it was a counter-productive law. The fines were too high. It was gonna cause trouble for public transportation - all kind of nonsense. Now 12 months later, everything is OK.

Now, lo and behold even after 12 months and even after they announced that they found the seat-belt law acceptable, the Taxi Union objects and they announce a further suspension of the seat-belt law for another month. What is this - doll house!

This is what we get when we get tired of what we had!

The Bahamas got tired of the FNM, so now they got the PLP.

The people said they didn’t want Tommy; so now they got Perry.

Unlike the PLP in 2002 when the FNM came to office it knew its mind for it had a mind to know. We knew where we wanted to take The Bahamas. We set it all out in Manifesto ‘92. I was intimately involved in the preparation of our plan of action. So I knew it. I can’t say the same thing about Mr. Christie and his Party’s Manifesto. The PLP, on the other hand, didn’t have a clue as to what to do when they came to office. And so the Prime Minister has appointed more advisory Commissions and Committees since coming to office than have been appointed by any Prime Minister in the history of The Bahamas — and the late Sir Lynden Pindling was Prime Minister for 26 years, and I for nine and a half years - to advise his Government of what to do and when and how. They have an advisory group for nearly every conceivable issue! They call it consultation. We know what it is. It’s procrastination. It’s put off making a decision to see if the problem will sought itself out.

Of course, a major problem is that the Government doesn’t seem to be able to act on advice coming from the many advisory commissions and committees. I can’t believe that each and every one of those groups are telling them to just wait, don’t make any decisions and time will take case of everything. I don’t believe that.

They named a special committee to advise them on CSME and FTAA, then they invited my good friend Owen Arthur down to talk about the CSME and they still can’t give the Bahamian people a straight answer on their Government’s position on trade associations and single markets. In fact, the last I heard, the PM told the Press that his position on the CSME was the same as mine; so either all his advisors are telling him "just stick to the FNM line and you’ll be OK", or he’s listened to what all those advisors have to say, and he’s accepted that our way - the FNM way - is the best way, but he’s reluctant (or ashamed) to admit it.

Of course, when I told CARICOM that The Bahamas could never agree to any trade agreement that included the free movement of labour, the PLP and their friends in the media called me ‘ill-names’; said I shouldn’t have gone down to Jamaica and told CARICOM what our position was in such clear, unmistakable and precise terms.

And when, in July 2001, I repeated my Government’s position in Nassau at the last CARICOM Heads of Government Meeting hosted in The Bahamas, they still thought I was being too blunt. Well, in my opinion, The Bahamas can only have one position on the free movement of labour. It really doesn’t matter how many advisors you have, nor how many special committees and commissions you appoint to study the matter, our people will not accept the free movement of regional labour into our market place irrespective of the way you dress it up or decorate it, so lets say that and move on to areas where we can cooperate with the region. Consultation Christie style ain’t gonna change the facts, so why the pretense? Why not simply say no to free movement of labour from Haiti, Jamaica, Guyana, Belize, Barbados and the OECS. And no to a single CARICOM currency. No one million times!

You know, I do find it curious that when the governing party find it convenient, they maintain that positions taken by the FNM are firm and to be honoured by them. In the matter of the Caribbean Court of Justice, the governing party is bound, according to the travelling Minister of Foreign Affairs, by the position taken by me - that is The Bahamas will continue for the foreseeable future to maintain the Privy Council in London as its final Court of Appeal but that The Bahamas would contribute to the cost of the establishment of the Caribbean Court of Justice and be involved in the identification of its personnel so that should The Bahamas at some point in the future wish to join the Court, there would be no barrier - either financial or philosophical because our people would have been exposed to the Court. The Foreign Minister has been quoted in the Press as saying: "when a Prime Minister speaks he speaks for the country and so unless Cabinet formally revokes it ... it is expected that we would participate as he said we would".

Well, I said no to free movement of labour as well; has Cabinet revoked that position? If so, why weren’t the Bahamian people told?

I am a straight shooter. I don’t believe in beating around the bush - pretending to support one thing, then switching my mind to suit the wind. Of course, that’s the PLP way. Remember the amendments to the Constitution?

I believe those in a position of leadership must lead. Consult sometimes, yes. Take advice, yes. But for God’s sake, have a mind of your own and seek to do the right thing, and accept the consequences of your action.

You know the Prime Minister has hired a carriage full of special advisors - very expensive ones at that - one on the public service - Mr. Smith, one to organize his office - Senator Whylly; one for the media - Mr. Dillet, one for crime - Dr. Rahming, one for the environment - Dr. Marshall, and another one for Town Planning. He must believe that these advisors will take the blame when his Government fails and that he’ll come through smelling like roses. In the meantime, he is finding jobs for the boys.

And boy, are the boys back in! Yes, the PLP boys are back; back with a vengeance, back with spite; yes, back in full force. Not only can you see they are back; you can feel it. Bahamian businessmen feel it; international investors feel it; work permit holders feel it; and civil servants feel it.

See what you get when you tired of what you got!? You get the PLP!

Without prior consultation, a favoured term when they either do not know what to do, or do not choose to do what they know must be done, they chose not to make any budgetary provisions to honour the contractual commitment to pay civil servants their $100 per month raise in July. Within days they had second thoughts, however. They said they would pay civil servants their raises in December. Somehow between July and December they’re gonna find the money. Well, I’ll tell you where the money they gonna find in December will come from - it will come from the same source and place that the money would have come from in July - it’s coming from Government borrowing. And, its not gonna make any difference to the Government’s bottom line at the end of the financial year in June next year whether the payments were made between July and December or in December.

But while they say money is tight and they couldn’t budget to pay civil servants monies legally due and payable to them, they budgeted to pay Lady Pindling, widow of the late Sir Lynden Pindling, a half a million dollars.

Laws are sometimes interpreted to mean what was not intended. And that is precisely what the Government is doing in this case on the payment to our deceased Prime Minister’s widow. The law, though admitting to the interpretation the Government is now putting forward, intended this consequence. And Prime Minister Christie knows this.

Prime Minister Christie knows that retrospective payment of a pension to Sir Lynden was not intended by the Prime Minister’s Pension Act. Sir Lynden knew that also.

Therefore, Mr. Christie did not speak forthrightly when he said that we, or more particularly, I withheld the payment due to Sir Lynden.

If, as the PLP says, my predecessor should be paid his pension for a period of five years commencing on August 19, 1992, prior to the passage of the Prime Minister’s Pension Act in June, 1997, then should he have been paid $50,000 a year as an MP and Leader of the Opposition? Morally, I don’t think that would be right and that is why I do not receive any remuneration as an MP - after all, I am being paid my full PM’s and MP’s salary as a Pension. Should the position in respect of Sir Lynden be different? To receive and accept payment again would in my view be obscene. I repeat, I receive no pay as an MP. I receive my PM’s pension instead.

Let me say that again. I do not receive the $28,000 per annum paid to Members of Parliament, notwithstanding what has been reported in the press or broadcast on the radio. To do so, in my view, would be double-dipping. The law says I’m entitled to it, but it wouldn’t be right for me to accept it, so it will not be paid to me or my survivors.

If we accept that pension payments are legally due to my predecessor, which I do not, I find it morally repugnant, that he should also keep the $250,000 salary received by him for the period August, 1992 to July, 1997 deducted therefrom?

If the Government feels legally obliged to make the payment to Sir Lynden’s widow, then I think made to Sir Lynden should be deducted therefrom.

I assert, and the Prime Minister knows this to be the truth, that it was never intended for my predecessor in office to receive anymore in pension payments than he did.

Following upon his second consecutive defeat at the polls, Sir Lynden expressed to me his desire to retire from front-line politics. And following upon discussions, a Prime Minister’s Pension Bill was agreed. It was clearly understood and agreed that the Bill would come into force upon his retirement from Parliament. This was understood by Sir Lynden, myself and my Cabinet colleagues.

This was also clearly understood by Perry Gladstone Christie who participated actively, I might say, in one of the discussions I held with Sir Lynden. Subsequent to the election in 2002, Mr. Christie spoke to me about the request from lawyers (as he called them) to apply the Act retrospectively and make pension payments to Sir Lynden’s widow as though the PM’s Pension Act was in effect on the day Sir Lynden’s party lost the election in 1992. Suffice it to say, no such law was on our Statute books when the FNM won the election in 1992.

I gave the PM my views. They did not differ from his. Neither of us was of the opinion that any monies was payable. He did say he would ask the AG for an opinion. The Government’s decision to make pension payments to Sir Lynden’s widow for a period extending 5 years before the Prime Minister’s Pension Bill became law will result in an unintended consequence of the law. This payment would be in addition to the widows’ pension payments she now receives. Clearly payments in respect of my predecessor’s retirement was not intended to be paid in respect of the years prior to the passage of the law; clearly I could not , did not and was not authorised by my colleagues to agree pension payments in respect of any retrospective period. Neither Sir Lynden nor Mr. Christie made any such request. And I spoke with both of them on numerous occasions between June, 1997 when the Act was passed and May, 2002 when the PLP came to office.

Sir Lynden knew this; he never asserted any such claim during his lifetime; nor did Mr. Christie on his behalf; just as I, who have legal entitlement to my Parliamentary salary, have never and will never make such a claim. Would it therefore be right for my widow, or children or grand children to make a claim for five years salary from the House of Assembly and for a future FNM Government to make such a payment? Absolutely not. As to the allegation that I forced Sir Lynden to retire from Parliament, that is a bogus/trumped up charge. Sir Lynden’s resignation was a part of the deal I made with him. And Perry Christie was a willing and eager supporter of the deal. And all of you know why.

I am now reminded of what Pascal said sometime ago:

Fellow FNMs,

Do not despair. Do not lose faith. Do not lose heart. Better times lie in wait for Bahamaland. The progress achieved during two consecutive terms in Government by the FNM will not be lost. Much of what we achieved cannot be reversed. The people will not allow it. The freedom of the airwaves will not permit the spiteful control of information exercised by the PLP before 1992. The deepening of democracy; the institution of elected local government, will rein in PLP efforts to manipulate Family Island residents.

The FNM was the best Government Freeport ever had - some people don’t like good treatment.

More monies spent by the Grand Bahama Port Authority in Freeport than in history of the relationship between the Port and Government.

Ask St. George if he wants to say; but as you know, the Port supports Governments!

Day after day, all over The Bahamas, people are coming to see the PLP Government for what they are - rudderless, directionless and leaderless.

Eleven years ago, before Hutchison and Our Lucaya; before the container terminal; before Bradford Marine and the Ship Care Facility; before Polymers International; before Eric Christiansen and Pelican Bay/Lucaya Village Marina; before Freeport had a bench of the Supreme Court and Local Government; before Freeport enjoyed private radio stations - before 100 JAMZ, Cool ‘96 and Mix 102 came across your airwaves; before Freeport delighted in state-of-the-art educational institutions - the St. Georges and Jack Hayward High Schools and Gymnasiums, and the Hugh Campbell and Maurice Moore Primary Schools’ or its state-of-the-art Mondo track; before Grand Bahama Electric and Bahamian citizens; before Freeport (and indeed the entire Bahamas) could hear the nightly national news at the same time as Nassau, you Grand Bahama gave sustenance to the FNM; you gave us inspiration and support; and you paved the way for our national victory.

We will forever be grateful and we shall never forget. We brought you Deliverance in 1992 and we shall liberate you again from the PLP in 2007. I tell you dat!

That is our message to Grand Bahama and the Berries just as it is our message to Long Island, to Cat Island and to San Salvador; to MICAL, to Exuma, to Andros and to New Providence. The FNM shall always be loyal to you. We have only your interest at heart. We want better for you.

We left our mark on Bahamaland. Here in Grand Bahama, we did more economically, socially and politically, for Freeport in 9 ½ years than the PLP did in 26 years! Look around as I used to say; it was all about you - from the Lucaya strip to the Mall, to the airport, to the harbour.

We made life better for you in the provision of services. No longer do you, or any Family Island resident, have to go to Nassau to get a passport. You and they can now do so right in your own neighbourhood. And, no longer do Bahamians living abroad have to go to Nassau to get a passport or wait months for the processing of their passport through an Embassy which had to forward it to Nassau. Now they can get their passports issued by the Consular Officer in Washington, D.C.; Ottawa, Canada; London, England or Miami, Florida.

And the same obtains for many other government services such as police certificates, now available on all of our Family Islands.

Here in Freeport, the recording of deeds and documents, the hearing of criminal and civil cases in the Supreme Court; the grant of liquor, shop and restaurant licences; the issuance of taxi and jitney plates; and the obtaining of a licence from the Port Authority to go into business can all be had without prior or subsequent reference to the Prime Minister in Nassau.

We left a number of things in the pipeline for Freeport: a professional and thoughtful plan for the further phased expansion and development of the Rand Hospital commencing with a new Accident and Emergency facility and an expanded pediatric ward; additional operating theatres; new wards and an administration block.

We left similar plans in place for the Princess Margaret Hospital and Sandilands Rehabilitation Hospital in New Providence. I expect that a part of the plan for Sandilands will commence in the coming months with the construction of a new child and adolescent facility - a critical and urgently needed facility.

We left plans for another high school as your two new schools are now inadequate to meet demand; they will now have between 1400 and 1500 students; and we got the commitment of the Port Authority to contribute $3 million toward the construction of the school. Edward St. George reconfirmed that commitment to me in a letter dated 28^th April, 2003. Of course, I now hear that you need two new high schools instead of one!

And, we left the new casino at Our Lucaya nearly completed - this alone will provide some 300 new jobs. You know that it is taking a long time to get the casino open. A good part of the delay is due to the PLP. Like they say, don’t blame me, I voted FNM!

The expansion at the airport and at the container terminal were all left in train by us.

The PLP will soon be officially opening the new police headquarters constructed on our watch. We decided that it would be named in honour of Grand Bahama born Commissioner of Police, Gerald Bartlett. They’ll also inaugurate the new police living and sporting complex, also left behind by us.

We also left a number of important investment projects "ready to roll" as they say; but I hear the PLP trumpeting all around as if they sought these investors out and introduced them to The Bahamas for the first time.

We look forward to Hutchison putting in the new Air/Sea Port facility we approved some time ago when we approved their purchase of 50% of the land required for the venture. This project has the potential to expand Freeport’s economic base and to create many, many new high paying jobs and new business opportunities for Bahamians.

The PLP used to say that the $4 billion in international investment attracted to our country - to New Providence, Grand Bahama, Abaco, Harbour Island, Exuma, the Berries, and elsewhere around our islands by the FNM was a "sell-out" of our country to foreigners. That’s what they said. The FNM were selling The Bahamas to foreigners.

Well, it wasn’t long after they came to office that they reported that they had approved the sale of more land to foreigners than had been done during any comparable period under the FNM. And, they were proud of this. They were busy looking for plush red carpets to attract more foreigners to buy more Bahamian land. Indeed, they are willing to sell right, left and centre. Their biggest problem is that they can’t find any new reputable and credible investors. That’s why they are so anxious to claim investors attracted by the FNM. And, they are pushing to conclude agreements for projects that are simply not yet ready to move forward. Some of these are well known to us. We looked at them long and hard during our terms in office.

Remember when this ‘do nothing’ Government ran to Parliament in June to announce "all kinds" of new investments in the country which were supposed to release "all kind" of money into the economy, creating new jobs - project after project have turned out to be those left in the pipeline by us - if it had not been for their incompetence, some including Kerzner International’s Phase III development on Paradise Island - would have been in the ground and running for months now.

Anyone heard anything from that film studio out east recently? I know that the $140 million investment project for Abaco hasn’t seen the light of day yet. I fear the same can be said for many of the other rushed announcements on investments, rushed to meet the Budget deadline so that they could manufacture some government revenues. Well time will tell where revenue is and how it compares to projections based on ‘expected’ investments. You know the story about counting your eggs before they hatch.

Fortunately for us, the Phase III Kerzner expansion is real. But that of course is an FNM project. We take ownership of it. We accepted the blame for bringing Sun to The Bahamas during our first year in office. We took the abuse of the PLP for extending the concessions which we granted the Sun projects. We also take credit for the jobs and business opportunities which the investment created and the transformation of our tourism sector which it inspired; and we continue to take proud ownership for Kerzner continuing to meet and to exceed in some areas, development commitments made to my Government beginning in 1993 and elaborated upon since then.

The truth is that countries around the world, just like The Bahamas, need foreign investment and foreign expertise, indeed, many countries owe their development to their ability to attract the capital investment and know-how which they do not have themselves to promote development to the benefit of both the investor and nationals of the country concerned. This is true for The Bahamas, as it is true for the United States of America.

We in the FNM always understood that. And we were good at attracting good, respectable, reliable, capable and well-funded investment to The Bahamas. That’s why we brought Sun/Kerzner to Paradise Island; Sandals and Super Clubs to Cable Beach to Nassau; Hutchison to Grand Bahama and the Four Season’s to Exuma. That’s why we brought Disney to Abaco, and HAL to Little San Salvador. The PLP could not find a record of such worthwhile investments in The Bahamas during any period of their 26 years at the helm of Government; so they were simply jealous and chose to attack international investments brought in during the FNMs watch notwithstanding the importance and the necessity of those investments for the development and advancement of our people.

You see the investment community had confidence in us. We banished the PLP bag-men and we told investors if they encountered difficulties they could turn to one place, one place where the buck stopped.

No, things are not as they used to be. The buck stops nowhere now. Whatever buck-up goes now. That is the way it is now; and that’s the way its gonna be until you change it. Indeed, its difficult nowadays to tell who is in charge of what. Nearly everyone seems to be in charge of everything. An assortment of Ministers appear to believe that they have a deciding authority on investments only beginning with the Prime Minister. One day the Minister of Financial Services and Investments pronounces; then the Minister for Trade and Industry declares; then the Minister of Tourism announces; then the Minister of Public Works pronounces and from the sidelines, the Ambassador for the Environment and the Chairman of BAIC, claim jurisdiction. I don’t think they know who is in charge, small wonder they can’t get decisions made.

You will recall that the PLP said we gave out too many work permits, especially in the banking sector. Well today, Central Bank statistics show that more expats are engaged in the banking sector than under the FNM; and some banks are reducing Bahamian staff and others are departing. I know that notwithstanding my efforts, I did not extinguish the PLP corruption at Immigration; it was and remains very entrenched. But, I did make some good progress.

Alas, my dear friends, I am told that crookedness and corruption are back at a new level at Immigration. From the release of illegal immigrants from the Detention Centre to the grant of work permits. Yes, take it from me. The boys are back, and while they won’t talk straight or act straight; plenty of them are getting straight. I don’t put the Prime Minister in that category but he ought to know of whom I speak.

Yes, the PLP promised the Bahamian people a whole heap of things last year; they said that FNM words of economic caution were nonsense; that everything was great and that money was flowing - Big Bad Brad said "9/11 was a one day event"! And they clearly found some deep pockets to support their election campaign.

Now, in office, they have a new story. Now they claim they didn’t know; its all a big surprise; they didn’t understand that the shut down of our tourism industry by the terrorist events in America would have real implications for our revenue; Perry Christie and Bradley Roberts hadn’t been paying close enough attention sitting there in Parliament at the time. They didn’t know, they say, even though they were busy preparing to take over the Government. Too busy plotting to be planning for the people. Easy to tear down and destroy; not so easy to govern and build up.

Now, in office, they’ve been forced to take stock of reality and to take note of what is happening internationally. I guess travelling Fred must be telling them about what is happening around the globe. Notice how this cash-strapped Government can find money to waste on things they want to waste it on? Sometimes I believe I’m the one who can’t see and that money must be growing in their back yards.

Like the FNM, they say they are privatizing BATELCO. Unlike the FNM, they say they didn’t need a strategic partner with expertise, money and bulk-purchasing power. In short, an existing telecommuni- cations provider of repute. They promoted the idea that what they wanted was Bahamian participation in the 49%. We wanted Bahamian participation in the 51%. Well they went to bid. The big telecommunications companies stayed away. They didn’t bid. The one big firm that agreed to participate - Deutsche Telecoms, is in for some 17% of the 49% being offered while a bank is seeking to purchase the remaining balance save and except for a minuscule holding by Bahamians. The other bidders appear to be investors - not telecoms operators - companies and entities which would not have been allowed to bid because they would not have qualified under the FNM bid conditions.

The Government appointed a Committee to analyze the bids. The recommended bidder was to be announced in July. When July came, they said the announcement would be made in September.

To tell you the truth, I am waiting. I would be surprised if the evaluation committee find any of the bids worthy of recommending to the Government. I say no more because I ain’t giving them any more ideas. As they say during boat traffic: "over and out".

You will soon come to realise, if you haven’t done so already, that the governing party is simply staying true to its philosophy. Talk big, lie if you must, and pretend that all is well; if things get really tough, throw a party, the bigger the better, so as to distract the people.

After praising the incompetent Minister of Youth and Sports for throwing away $1.5 million of tax-payers money on Canadian bleachers "because you can’t put a price on culture"; they overspent on Independence celebrations to try and further distract the Bahamian public from the reality that not much is happening in our country. Certainly, we can’t put a price on Independence! So go ahead, spend, spend, spend.

I do not believe that the people of this country elected the PLP to squander money, but it certainly appears that they believe that their election won them access to a private piggy bank.

This do nothing Government is busy trying

This do nothing Government is busy trying to distract us from their idleness by presiding over the opening of countless projects planned, developed and executed on our watch. They are busy reaping what they did not sow, and they are not ashamed to stand and preen before the cameras and to take credit for the work accomplished by us.

Saw someone from Exuma the other day; they told me Exuma has never seen so many Ministers so regularly in all his born days. Every other week, two, three, four or even five, Ministers show-up, accompanied by many officials; having a look around that Five Star Resort the FNM brought in. Oh yes, they know how to reap even though they didn’t sow.

Still the new airport terminal to accommodate the development which opens later this year ain’t start yet.

Oh yes, they know how to talk; can’t beat them at that; the Prime Minister said that he is the best speaker in The Bahamas. All talk and little work are no good. Gat dat.

The list of FNM Accomplishments for which the PLP claim credit now is long:

• the occupation of new office complexes for the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education in New Providence;