Governor General's throne 'stolen'

As of Saturday, May 26, 2012

By PAUL G TURNQUEST

Chief Reporter

pturnquest@tribunemedia.net

THE historic chair from which the Governor General reads the Speech from the Throne at the opening of each new parliament is missing — believed stolen.

The chair was presented to the Bahamas government by HRH the Duke of Edinburgh– the duke’s name and the presentation date is inscribed on a brass plaque at the back of the chair. The chair was used by Governor General Sir Arthur Foulkes on Wednesday during the opening of parliament in the public square.

Earlier in the day the throne chair, a small table, a drinking glass, and another chair, to be used by Sir Arthur’s wife during the ceremony, was taken by Government House staff to the public square in preparation for the ceremony.

After the ceremony, the throne chair, the table, drinking glass and extra chair were moved to the House of Assembly for safe keeping.

Around 3 o’clock that afternoon a man driving a van arrived at the House. He told the assistant clerk that he had been sent by Government House to collect the throne chair. It is understood that he was informed that there were also a table, drinking glass and another chair that had to be returned to Government House.

The man, who police have yet to identify, was said to be wearing a low-fitted baseball cap – which limited his identification on the closed circuit television cameras mounted in the area.

According to Maurice Tynes, chief clerk at the House of Assembly, he and his staff are still holding out hope that the entire ordeal could be a big “mix up” and the chair is somewhere safe.

“It is a priceless heirloom,” said Mr Tynes. “It is something that is irreplaceable. We hope it’s still just a mix up in communication and it is legitimately somewhere else where it is not supposed to be. We didn’t know it was missing until the next morning (Thursday) when Government House called asking where the chair was. We said it had already been picked up, and that is when we were first made aware that it was missing.”

“The chair itself belongs to the Senate, and was borrowed by Sir Orville Turnquest when he was the Governor General. So the Senate just let it stay up at Government House. But this would be the chair that the Governor General or any member of the Royal Family would sit in if they came to the Senate,” Mr Tynes explained.

“We are hoping the chair turns up undamaged. I would appeal to whoever removed the chair to make themselves known to the police, the House of Assembly or to Government House so that the chair can be returned. It could just be somewhere sitting in someone’s warehouse and they are unaware of it. Our hope is that the police will find out where it is, and it is undamaged.”

A police spokesman also thought that with so many chairs to be delivered after the ceremony, Government House’s possessions could have got mixed up with other chairs and returned to the wrong location.

However, a person close to the situation said that that was what was believed in the beginning. However, because the unknown person came specifically for the chair, erroneously claiming to have been sent by Government House, and having taken nothing but the borrowed furniture from Government House, there was no way that it could have been mixed up with the chairs that were returned to the Ministry of Works.

The only conclusion that could be arrived at, The Tribune was told, was that the throne chair was stolen.

Police are still studying the CCTV cameras in the House and on Bay Street in hopes that what they see will lead them to whoever took the priceless chair.

More like this story

Farmer 12 years, 5 months ago

Wow this would make us the laughing stock of the world if it is true. How does someone steel a priceless Throne? Only in the Bahamas!

notsogullible 12 years, 5 months ago

The slackness that is traditionally known under the PLP, continues ....

des 12 years, 5 months ago

Why is this is a PLP problem? The FNM government was just as slack!

TalRussell 12 years, 5 months ago

Whoever has it I'll pay the shipping charges to return it back to Queen Liz and the Queen in waiting Camilla over in England? Hopefully this is a sign from God that colonialism is really coming to an end for our Bahamaland. Good Lardy me. PM Christie and Comrade Brave don't you dare even think about placing that more ragged than Dowdswell Street bitch pot cake dog's mug of the future Queen Camilla on our currency. Do that and you don't make even two years in office.

242 12 years, 5 months ago

And when thy find e person who steal it. They will be out on bail the next day and steal the CCTV cameras next time.

notsogullible 12 years, 5 months ago

Yep!!! Again, in true PLP fashion!!!!!!!

notsogullible 12 years, 5 months ago

Des, why so defensive?

Concerned 12 years, 5 months ago

Is this one of the accomplishments of the 100 Day Challenge? Because this really isn't the type of achievement I was expecting under a new government. I am crossing my finger that it will turn up somewhere. Come on, what can a person do with a throne? Who can you sell it to? A Lyford Cay resident? On eBay? Melt down the brass plate and sell to the scrap metal dealers? Ship the wood to Haiti as charcoal? You really can't have a throne sitting up in your living room and showing it off to your friends and family when they come over. Either there is a mistake or our criminals are getting dumber and dumber.

Whether temporarily or permanently, please tell me...... HOW DOES A COUNTRY LOSE A THRONE????

notsogullible 12 years, 5 months ago

By putting the PLP in power!!!!!

RUKiddingMe 12 years, 5 months ago

Once again the ubiquitous comment from the town idiot! How is the theft a sign from God? Man, once again you demonstrate your abject ignorance of what is devine and what is merely an act of man. God does not force a criminal to act as he/she does! They do it for their own reasons which have nothing to do with God!

You should employ the wisdom of Abraham Lincoln who said "Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt."

TalRussell 12 years, 5 months ago

Comrade I know it's hard but can you just imagine if the elite FNM boys had been in charge of the cotton fields during slavery, there wouldn't have been any such thing as freedom for the natives. They'd owned more than Kelly Island.

242 12 years, 5 months ago

Obviously you no longer want to be taken seriously. Thanks for clearing that up for everyone.

Livestofish 12 years, 5 months ago

You are an idiot. The Bahamas became a democratic country in 92 .. And do one can tell me that's not the truth

positiveinput 12 years, 5 months ago

SLACKNESS cause I dont know which government building I have went to that didn't require me to sign in and out, at the same time state my purpose of being there. Whether or not the throne is in a safe place that CHIEF CLERK is just a good example of a waste of our tax paying dollars. My goodness the unidentify man came for a throne not in government uniform of any sort and still no license plate, photo id to varify his signature and time of picked up was documented. If he (CHIEF CLERK) still have a job I know for sure I wasted my ONLY vote. I could recall proforming to a function a few christmas ago and just helping out RETURNING furniture to government house that the late prime minister and other mp's sat in i had to sign, date/time a book so judge if I was picking up a THRONE, I may have had to leave my passpost aye lol. For a better Bahamas we need to have a zero tollerance to slackness. Good thing the clerk isn't in a daycare or bank.

Bril 12 years, 5 months ago

Again we hear from the many tribal supporters of the two major parties. The post by 'Positiveinput' is exactly right. It has all to do with slackness in this country. I once saw a police officer at the entrance of the PM's office with his belt undone and his tunic halfway buttoned. Three things crossed my mind. 1. This fella must be hot and needed to catch some air, 2. He was just scurrying back from a rendezvous and couldn't get his gear on quick enough or 3. This officer could simply care less about the office he is meant to protect and could give two hoots about the uniform that represents RBPF. The first two are unlikely as he was inside an air-conditioned building and I doubt he did any scurrying. I really wanted to tell him off about it but I decided not to get into confrontation. But it is these little acts of slackness that create a snowball effect and the much larger cracks can be seen in the public service. In this case a mover who nobody knows comes and picks up the throne and some other things and there is no process for transfer of these items from one official to the next. Dithering idiots.

TalRussell 12 years, 5 months ago

Until I hear they may have found the Governor-General's red velvet throne, don't laugh if my brain had wondered if somehow someone or the other who sees Hubert as royalty may not have snatched it to take to Cooper's Town, Abaco. I'm just saying, cause you know how they all like they elitism of the red color so much. Maybe the police went down to the mailboat?

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