The Tribune

By DANA SMITH

dsmith@tribunemedia.net

FNM Yamacraw candidate and Labour and Social Development Minister Dion Foulkes said the opposition is the party of "self-entitlement" and its members use politics to pursue their own economic interests.

Speaking in the Senate on Monday, Mr Foulkes also branded PLP leader Perry Christie as indecisive.

"He can't say no to foreign interests... and he can't say no to his own special interests when they want to make a killing at the expense of the Bahamian people," he said.

When the PLP talk about taking care of Bahamians, they really mean "taking care of their own special interest group," Mr Foulkes said. "They want to transfer wealth into their pockets."

Conversely, the FNM believes that "whenever possible we should make it possible for thousands of Bahamians to get a piece of the pie," Mr Foulkes said.

He said that is why the FNM made it possible for Bahamians to be the owners of the Arawak Port Development and buy shares in Cable Bahamas, the Heineken Brewery, and the Bank of the Bahamas.

"When the FNM government privatised BTC, we didn't do a secret Bluewater deal to benefit the few," Mr Foulkes said.

"We didn't give the whole thing to one group of special interests with no track record so they could strip the country's assets and make a bundle.

"We entered into an agreement with a reputable international group of communications providers and we made arrangements for the Bahamian public to be owners."

The PLP kept at least 15 development agreements secret, he said - including the heads of agreement for Baha Mar. Refusing to bring those agreements to Parliament, they "kept Bahamians in the dark."

Mr Foulkes said the PLP did this because the agreements put foreigners first and the interests of the Bahamian people last.

"It is the sad legacy of the PLP that they are the party of self-entitlement. They believe that they are more entitled to political power and economic advancement than others. The Bahamians that they put first are fellow PLPs," he said.