The Tribune

By MALCOLM STRACHAN

With all we have gone through since the start of the pandemic, the least we should hope for is that we emerge wiser from it. This is especially true when it comes to what we expect from government.

Too many times, we have seen governments kick the can down the road, so when we are affected by external shocks, we are left scrambling. This mindset has become woven into the DNA of how governments operate and how the electorate holds them to account.

We see this daily – and the average Bahamian just shrugs their shoulders and accepts that it’s just the way it is in The Bahamas. This relaxed, passive nature may be what endears tourists to island life, but for those of us who feel it at home, it leads to extreme wastage, stunted development and a steadily reducing quality of life.

Two major catastrophic occurrences in the past year-and-a-half have exposed our failings - as Hurricane Dorian and the COVID-19 pandemic have nearly led to the total collapse of our economy and highlighted incredible vulnerabilities in our healthcare system and wealth distribution.

In September 2019, when Dorian struck, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) - the agency formed to serve as our eyes and ears in such instances - came under intense scrutiny for what many have concluded to be a departure from its mandate. Formed to assist the country in preparing for such national emergencies, it was strikingly clear the agency was out of its depth ahead of and in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian. Despite a coordinating body since being created in the formation of the Ministry of Disaster Preparedness, Management and Reconstruction, there is a prevailing sense the government is still flying by the seat of its pants and hoping for a quiet hurricane season.

As the 2021 hurricane season begins in less than a month, a number of questions remain about how much more resilient we’ve become since Dorian.

There have been some announcements regarding climate resilience, but nothing has been done that has moved the needle or make Bahamians feel any less fearful with hurricane season upon us. Beyond a climate resilient hospital in Grand Bahama and a shelter being constructed on Abaco, there isn’t much Bahamians can point to and appreciate that would indicate the government has placed a major focus on climate resilience.

One thing we know for sure is storms are not going to decrease in number, nor intensity. In fact, as a result of climate change, predictions are being made by climate researchers that Dorian – one of the strongest storms to ever hit the Atlantic Ocean – may have only been the tip of the iceberg.

In the face of extreme adversity, the Minnis administration has no choice but to walk and chew its gum at the same time, as Mother Nature has had us on the ropes for nearly the entire duration of this term.

Just six months after Dorian came the pandemic, sapping the income streams of families. Now, almost 14 months later, we are hoping for signs of life to continue as some promising indicators exist. Thousands of hospitality employees and merchants are elated as a result of the government’s decision to reduce measures for vaccinated travellers coming into the country. Additionally, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently announced that, once measures allowing cruises to sail safely are met, they too can resume regular operation – a positive sign for merchants on Bay Street, dubbed a ghost town by Tourism Minister Dionisio D’Aguilar.

Still frustrated by vaccine hesitancy among Bahamians, D’Aguilar is hoping rising numbers of cases do not become a deterrent to an economic resurgence. Certainly, there is no underestimating those concerns, but he should also be equally worried about the government’s ability to acquire new vaccines while we wait on the next 67,200 doses being supplied through the COVAX facility.

It is our hope Health Minister Renward Wells’ recent appeal to the US to help us in acquiring vaccines is successful - as it may be what stands between us in a public health crisis of epic proportions. If COVID-19 - a natural disaster in its own right - were to collide with another storm anywhere near the magnitude of Dorian, is there a plan in place?

When St Vincent recently suffered its own disaster with the eruption of La Soufriere, one of the fears during the evacuation was a COVID outbreak with people crowded together in shelters – have we learned from their situation should we face a similar need from a hurricane?

These are the kinds of conversations we would like to see our government having. The existential threat of the climate crisis and a global health pandemic are our two greatest dangers globally and in The Bahamas.

As citizens, and as a Christian nation, what we have been taught to do in times of despair is hope and pray for the best outcome. While we want those we elect to chart the course to also seek wisdom from the higher source, we also need to see they’re not only thinking about such threats, but also learning from lessons of the past. That said, the Bahamian people are unable to find comfort when our collision course with climate change and our sensitivity to external shocks is so sparsely present in policy conversations, particularly for a country in a hurricane belt.

While we get a reprieve from hurricane season six months of the year, our penchant to pretend such danger doesn’t exist and fail to mitigate against the level of disaster we already know is possible is scary – perhaps even scarier than COVID-19.

The government has to be able to address both of these issues. With less than 30 days until the 2021 hurricane season begins, the last thing it should want is to have no choice in the matter.