The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

FNM Deputy Leader Loretta Butler-Turner warned yesterday that the government may have to postpone its scheduled November 6 constitutional referendum because the process of enshrining equal rights for men and women in the Constitution is being compromised by repeated delays in passing the four Bills in Parliament.

However, she stressed that it is more important to get the process right than to keep to a set date for the vote.

Her comments came after Dr Bernard Nottage, Leader of Government Business in the House, announced on Monday that the anticipated parliamentary vote on the Bills has been postponed until further notice. He said the delay will allow the Constitutional Commission to conclude its consultation exercises with various stakeholders, including representatives of the Bahamas Christian Council (BCC) who will meet with the commission to discuss the Bills on September 4. Dr Nottage also said that a member of the opposition had also requested the delay.

Although no date has been set for parliamentarians to vote on the Bills, the next House of Assembly meeting is scheduled for September 3 – 63 days before the scheduled referendum date.  

“I’m beginning to have concerns about whether there will be sufficient time,” Mrs Butler-Turner said when The Tribune asked for comment on the matter. “There seems to be a huge amount of misunderstanding with regards to it. Essentially since we have not passed the Bills, the process will be compromised.”

However, Mrs Butler-Turner said she believes ensuring the process is conducted properly is more important than making sure the referendum date is not postponed.

“It is something I’m hoping we can get right and in an effort to get it right, if the date has to be pushed back, then let’s get it done the right way,” she said. “I don’t know if we should tie ourselves to any particular date, though the government may have been a bit premature setting that date, not realizing the opposition they would attract.

“Without being divisive, I think there are some things the government should’ve done differently in the first instance. That’s why we asked for additional time,” she said, referring to the FNM’s request to the government earlier this month that debate on the Bills be postponed by a week.

“I think the government didn’t anticipate the amount of push back and negativity that they have gotten from this. In any effort, given the constrains we would be put under, they might have to review their date for the referendum. Ultimately, I think it’s important that the language is clear, concise and simple. We have not reached that stage. People are in fact still feeling like they don’t know.”

She added: “With respect to the education process, I don’t think that it has started yet. Discussions on what the government intends to do are ongoing but formalisation of the education process cannot begin until we pass the benchmark of passing the Bills in Parliament.”

Constitutional Commission chairman Sean McWeeney told The Tribune yesterday that the commission is not considering recommending to the government that the referendum date be postponed.

When contacted, Transport and Aviation Minister Glenys Hanna Martin also said she is unaware of any consideration being given to postponing the referendum.

Nonetheless, government officials are sensitive to ensuring its education campaign on the referendum resonates with Bahamians, she said.

Although she said the government has not been caught off guard by the concerns raised over its proposed Bills, Mrs Hanna Martin said concerns about whether the government might bring a Bill that would open the door to same sex marriage was not anticipated. 

She also rejected criticism that the government brought the Bills to Parliament without a proper consultation process.