The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

In short order, 2022 would have rolled out and many of us will be greeting 2023 with great expectations and open arms, as we should.

On average, 2022 was a good year for large numbers of Bahamians and residents, legal and illegal. The national economy is out of the pits and and there are any number of viable employment opportunities. Money is, once again, flowing like milk and honey. Junkanoo is back and the optimistic mood of the nation, collectively can almost be felt; see and touch by all and sundry. There is, however, much more work to be done going into 2023.

An aggressive schedule of National Priority Projects should be conceptualised and strategically implemented starting in 2023 and continued with urgency over the next year or two. Such projects should include a form of National Youth Service; a National Health Insurance Scheme; liberalisation of Crown Land; establishment of a ‘real’ Small Business Development Fund and a semblance of local government to New Providence. Last, but not least, we must divest ourselves of the Grand Lucaya over in Grand Bahama and get the Freeport International Airport up and running in the shortest possible time.

The above is not exhaustive, but that might be a good starting point for the Davis administration in 2023. The state of our younger people is a challenge of the highest order to the stability and sustainability of The Bahamas. There is simply too much avoidable and senseless crime of all types. Our collective fuses are short. At the drop of a hat people are brutally injured or setting into Eternity. The consequences of ‘the law’ means little or nothing to the majority of the alleged perpetrators. Capital punishment has been thrown aside and life in jail is simply a few years and you are released.

Crime will never be eradicated. It is useless for anyone to talk about ‘new’ strategies. That is like putting new wine into old bottles. What we should concentrate on is the eradication and suppression of crime to the irreducible minimum. Draconian and harsh punishment must be meted out in proportion to the crime of which one would have been convicted and exhausted all legal appeals. This never ending cuddling of the known and potential criminal hardcore must cease and desist sooner rather than later.

The Bahamas owes it to this present evil and mostly wicked generation to rescue and rehabilitate them where possible. If that proves impossible, throw the books at them after due process. The nation is bigger than any one individual and/or societal sector. Saturation patrols seem to be an effective tool and should be deployed even further as we go into 2023. Yes, there will be shrill cries of objection by the so-called human rights elements, but do they have a better plan? If they have one, speak now, I invite you, or forever hold your peace.

National Health is critical to the health and well being of Bahamians. I do not advocate ‘socialised’ medicine but the onslaught of the Dorian and the pandemic which together jacked up insurance premiums and wiped out next to nothing savings accounts, have demonstrated, vividly the necessity of a national affordable and comprehensive National Health Care Scheme along the lines of NIB. Some will protest, bogusly, that such a scheme, for want of a better terminology, would be akin to an additional taxation on the people of The Bahamas.

I beg to differ. As our population ages and people live longer all sorts of routine medical challenges will arise. Dental and vision come readily to mind. Serious operations and transplant issues. It is a good thing to have private medical insurance if you are able to afford it, but I submit that a large percentage of Bahamians have little or no insurance coverage due to reasons often beyond their control or choice. As a nation, we are in no position to leave a single Bahamian behind who may be in need of genuine medical attention on a state subsidized basis.

The Island of Grand Bahama is unique and a not so hidden national treasure. For whatever reasons successive administrations have, seemingly, adopted a hands off approach to that island, especially the City of Freeport and the surrounding areas. Some say that Grand Bahama is best suited as an industrial enclave as opposed to a dynamic mixture of industrial and touristic based hybrid economy. The essential ‘magic city’ was obliged to die the death of a thousand cuts by a dull and rusty blade.

Unless and until the Freeport International Airport, better, bigger and more eye pleasing is opened over in Grand Bahama and we divest ourselves of Grand Lucaya, we will continue to bark at the Moon and suck teeth and/or dentures. The island of Grand Bahama is wide open for residential and second home exploitation by Bahamians and legal residents. People are able to purchase land and abandoned residential sites all over Freeport itself and the surrounding areas for a pittance compared to a tiny piece of real estate here in New Providence.

The application process and the actual obtaining of a small piece of Crown Land is ridiculous and a sad indictment on all administrations to date. It is almost as if the unwashed Bahamians are consigned to be, forever, landless in a land which is repleted with milk and honey with endless Crown Land. This is dead wrong and is almost criminal, with all due respects. Bahamians are subjected to a nebulous application process which could take until The Rapture, often without a mere acknowledgement. This liberalisation of Crown Land is critical as a national policy project.

Data from around the world would seem to suggest that small to medium sized businesses generate more than 50% of economic activity and employ close to 75% of the work force. May I suggest that the same things apply here in The Bahamas? We have access to all sorts of international business and funding organizations which appear to be eager to ‘invest’ in this sector of the economy. In 2023 the administration and the private sector must and should take a closer look at this potential economic vehicle.

National Priority Projects must be recognised and developed in 2023 like it or lump it. This never ending back and forth about who was right or wrong while in office is passé and we, as a people, must move on in 2023. In conclusion, Happy New Year and an even better, bigger and more prosperous year.

ORTLAND H BODIE, Jr

Nassau,

December 29, 2022.