Madam Moderator, President of the Bahamas Christian Council, the officers and members of the Council, Reverend gentlemen and ladies, the Honourable Prime Minister, Perry Christie and Honourable Members of the Cabinet, Honourable Members of Parliament, Honourable Senators, Leaders of the political parties present, former Members of Parliament, Lady Pindling, Stalwart Councillors, distinguished ladies and gentlemen and those joining us live via Radio Bahamas.

Welcome to all of you to this Ecumenical Service to celebrate and commemorate the 36th Anniversary of Majority Rule Day.  It is so fitting for us to be in historic Rawson Square - which truly reflects the birth of our struggles.  On this day - some 36 years ago – the Progressive Liberal Party along with the parliamentary support of Alvin Braynen and Randol Fawkes - began the march to create a new kind of Bahamas.  That march was indeed not only historic but also symbolic for it represented a culmination of historic events that laid the foundation for the freeing of the Bahamian spirit.  No Bahamian could truly have imagined just what this political development meant for The Bahamas.

The great men and women who gave their lives to achieve Majority Rule and those who laboured to create this modern and beautiful Commonwealth must be remembered and memoralised by those of us present who are now reaping the enormous benefits.

Madam Moderator, this Year 2003, is an historic one for The Bahamas.  On Sunday, the 12th January, we will celebrate and commemorate the 45th anniversary of the General Strike, which too represented a seminal event in the shaping of the politics of our decolonization in The Bahamas.  We will also mark the 30th anniversary of our political independence; and the 50th anniversary of the formation of the Progressive Liberal Party - all truly distinguished historical and political milestones in our national life that deserve to be celebrated in a non-partisan way and without which our march to a free, fair and open democracy may have taken different turns.

The symbolism then that Majority Rule offers deserves national prominence.  And therefore, we in the Progressive Liberal Party are inviting all Bahamians to join us in determining a proper memoralisation to mark this historic day for posterity.

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, I extend a warm welcome to all of you and I trust that your hearts are open to receive the blessings that will flow.