The Tribune

ALTHOUGH Prime Minister Christie is desperate that his government not be seen to be influencing the gambling vote, he himself – with every recent pronouncement – has made it clear that he fears a “no” vote. He obviously sees far more difficulty in closing web shops than in regulating them.

Only this week PLP party chairman Bradley Roberts, who criticised FNM leader Hubert Minnis for flip-flopping on his position on gambling, was himself forced to turn a somersault. “Big, Bad Brad” was made eat humble pie, beat his breast with several mea culpas and admit that he misspoke. He had announced that his party was urging Bahamians to vote “yes” on referendum day. “I used the wrong words,” he said – it was only his personal view. The official view, he said, is that Bahamians of whatever political hue should follow their own conscience.

However, with every statement, Mr Christie, is emphasising what a “no” vote would mean to the country.

On today’s front page he points out that Bahamians are likely to face more taxes should they say no to legalising web shop gaming. He has made it clear he expects web shop owners to foot most of the expenses in creating a regulated gaming business for the Bahamas. Does this mean that they will also write off the expenses of the referendum?

As the storm rages as to whether to drive gambling further underground, or open the Pandora’s box and regulate it, pastors are at each others collars, dismissing as “renegades” those who propose voting “yes” to legalise and regulate man’s weakness.

However, they all agree that gambling to excess can lead to a number of evils that will destroy not only a family, but a society. However, how to solve it is where they divide. Not only do they divide, but in disagreeing some have unfortunately abandoned their Christian charity.

There are the practical ones among them who believe it would be better to regulate the sub-culture that has been allowed to grow, fester and take hold of our society for more than half a century than to suppress it. These realists, for example, would find it preferable to have a gambling debt settled in a court of law than down a dark alley at knife point. This can only be done if gambling were legalised and regulated.

“Sadly,” said Catholic Archbishop Patrick Pinder in a letter to his flock, “if the numbers is driven underground again, Bahamians will continue to patronise such operations.”

Said the Archbishop: “Despite the fact that there have been laws against gambling since the Bahamas was a British colony, the numbers business flourished for generations as an immensely lucrative underground enterprises. Now in the 21st century it mushrooms boldly and even more lucratively through technology-heavy web shops, which are pretty much left to carry on with little interference from the forces of law and order. It has now spread to many of the Family Islands.”

Gambling and drugs have destroyed the moral fibre of our Bahamian people. Gone are the days when Bahamians knew that from the days of the Garden of Eden God decreed that man would only succeed by the sweat of his brow. Today’s generation no longer believe in this edict. To them life should come on a silver platter. Some of them see no reason to work for their living if they can steal from others. During the drug years our young people were told by no less a person than this country’s first prime minister that no longer would they be “drawers of water and hewers of wood.” It is true that they were not to be slaves, but by the same token this was not a signal to become lazy parasite on our society. Our work ethic was destroyed.

Gambling to many is perceived as another easy way to climb out of poverty.

“First of all,” said the Archbishop, “we must acknowledge that many, many Bahamians nowadays are playing the numbers, some, perhaps, out of desperation. They mistakenly look to gaming for the miracle of ‘luck’ to rescue them from certain deep and persistent gaps in their lives. This is especially the case for those at the lower end of the socio-economic spectrum, who are sorely tried by poverty, joblessness and a lack of marketable skills. Unfortunately, when people come to believe in the ‘easy solutions’, such as winning the numbers, the virtues of planning, hard work, saving, personal discipline and various forms of community cooperation that can lead to more lasting solutions are undermined.”

Whichever vote wins — yes or no to gambling – it is up to churchmen to remind their flock that God gave them the gift of free will. Government cannot exercise it for them. They will have to make their own decisions. It is for their pastors to help them understand the evils of gambling and it is up to parishioners to exercise their will to avoid it, regardless of the outcome of the January 28 vote.

As we have said before this vote is a choice of opting for the lesser of two evils. Is it better to have the evil out in the open, with strict laws to govern it, or is it better to try to stamp it out knowing that for the addicted it will burrow itself deeper into the bowls of society and continue to function unregulated?

“To be or not to be,” said a doubting Hamlet. This is the question that Bahamians will have to answer on Referendum Day — January 28. We hope that they will sincerely follow their own conscience and do what they think best for their country.