Loretta Butler-Turner in the House of Assembly.
By KHRISNA VIRGIL
Tribune Staff Reporter
kvirgil@tribunemedia.net
FOX HILL MP Fred Mitchell lambasted Long Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner while visiting her constituency, suggesting to residents that the island has not flourished under her representation because of its MP’s attitude toward the government.
However, the former Free National Movement (FNM) deputy leader shot back at Mr Mitchell saying that his comments were actually a “vile and disgraceful” declaration that the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) has victimised Long Island residents for years.
Mrs Butler-Turner said Prime Minister Perry Christie should fire the “undemocratic, vicious and petty” minister of foreign affairs and immigration for this blatant admission.
Mr Mitchell was in Long Island on Saturday where he held meetings with residents. A video clip of his statements was circulated to the media by a representative government agency, Bahamas Information Services.
“I don’t know if you noticed, but your representative Loretta Butler-Turner has been a lot in the press talking about this and that,” Mr Mitchell said.
“What I found is her remarks tend to be very aggressive and sometime crude particularly when it comes to dealing with the prime minister she seems to have some kind of issue with him.
“But not withstanding the fact that you are an opposition MP I believe if you have the right attitude I believe you can get a lot of things done because I believe everybody wants to see better for Long Island.”
He continued: “My mother used to tell me when I was a youngster that you can get more with a dab of honey than with a bag of bile and so it seems to me that things could be better actually if the representative applied herself more to the tasks at hand in this constituency.”
Mr Mitchell went on to criticise the FNM, saying the party has chosen to side with Baha Mar developer Sarkis Izmirlian rather than unite with the government who is working in the best interest of Bahamians.
“There are times when you should be standing with the government together to make sure that a project succeeds but instead they (the opposition) has been in the newspaper and on the television attacking the government and siding with the developer.
“I think it is very important for us to make that point that on the particular issue of Baha Mar we ought to be together and we ought to be as one in trying to get this project finished and to get the people back to work.”
In a press statement yesterday, Mrs Butler Turner criticised Mr Mitchell for using BIS to circulate PLP propaganda, adding that she has worked tirelessly to get the government to make changes in Long Island. However, she said her requests have fallen on deaf ears.
She said: “Mr Mitchell has used BIS to circulate PLP political propaganda, another abuse of his office. This is reminiscent of his days at ZNS when he used the state broadcast media as a PLP propaganda tool and an instrument of victimisation against the PLP’s opponents and the opposition.
“In the narrative excerpt from his weekend remarks, Mr Mitchell suggests that the people of Long Island are being denied certain benefits and that Long Island isn’t progressing because I have stood up against the incompetence, poor governance and abuse of power by the PLP.
“I have worked tirelessly to get the current PLP government to improve the quality of life of Long Islanders, including for basic services and major capital projects like a new international airport. These requests have fallen on deaf ears because of victimisation by the PLP, to which Mr Mitchell has now admitted.
“The unconscionable victimisation of Long Island has absolutely nothing to do with my political activities, as Mr Mitchell so hypocritically suggests. The people of Long Island know full well that those who did not support the PLP in Long Island have always been victimised by the PLP whenever they were in power. That is their concept of governance.”
Mrs Butler-Turner said the FNM nor the people of Long Island will be intimidated by victimisers.
Comments
TruePeople 9 years, 4 months ago
“My mother used to tell me when I was a youngster that you can get more with a dab of honey than with a bag of bile"
Bey why you ein listen to yuh ma bey?!
TalRussell 9 years, 4 months ago
Comrade "Dutchess" Loretta, should have been in a position to have said; the FNM nor the people of Long Island will be intimidated by victimizes - cuz as the sittin House MP Long Island, here is the list of my accomplishments for Long Islanders.
I also challenge the honourable "Duchess" for Long Island, to provide this Tribune newspaper with a complete list of all requests she has made "in wrtin" to the PLP government since the 2012 General, on behalf of her constituents, that were rejected by PM Christie?
Loretta, we shall await to read your long list of rejected projects.
birdiestrachan 9 years, 4 months ago
Mrs: Butler calls a press conference every Sunday, and the FNM TV station is there to accommodate her, She can be seen larger than life sitting in front of a round table. She should tell what the FNM party has done for Long Island after 15 years. Mr: Mitchell should be very careful of Ms Butler Turner because she abuses people by slapping them.
Emac 9 years, 4 months ago
LTB, all u gatta do is slap him right back in he place. But seriously though, people like Fred have no shame. This man attacks anyone who disagrees with anything he or his government does. He goes out of his way to make people who stand against his government look as though they are unpatriotic or do not have the Bahamian people best interest at heart. However, it is he and his government that keeps the Bahamian masses dumb so that they can feed them any bull$hit whenever it is convenient for them. There is an old saying that goes,"hell has no fury as a woman scorned". But that statement needs to be updated to 'hell has no fury as Fred scorned'. Come on Mitchell, stop being a cry baby and letting out your anger whenever anyone disagrees with you. The Bahamas is a democracy ya know? But it is obvious that you are anti democracy ,because your favourite places to unwind are Cuba and China, go figure. Bahamians need to wake up and smell the coffee. Everytime they make major progress in moving this country forward, they keep going back to this evil party and get dragged back into the dark ages. Seems like the Bahamian voters are like a woman who is constantly abused by her money and just keep going back for more cut a$$-Pathetic bunch we are.
Emac 9 years, 4 months ago
abused by her man* I meant
sheeprunner12 9 years, 4 months ago
Fred's view of Long Island is seen through a handful of PLP families that he visits
Truth be told, Fred should come to Long Island and hold a ceremony to honour the PLP founders and then beg their forgiveness for what he and others have done to corrupt and dishonor a party that was birthed to carry out true social transformation ..... but what this present PLP kleptocracy has done is created a PLP that looks more like the UBP
BTW ............... Loretta's (and the FNM) public record is more than enough proof of what she has done for Long Island ............. What "good" has Fred done for Fox Hill????????????
Emac 9 years, 4 months ago
What "good" has Fred done for Fox Hill???????????? He gets them drunk every Fox Hill Day and Emancipation Day and feed them a whole lot of BS.
sheeprunner12 9 years, 4 months ago
That's old school politics ......... that works with the ignorant and poor ....... LBT is a sitting Opposition MP with a $50,000 annual allowance to work with.
Has Fred lifted the standard of living in his constituency for the value that he has gotten as a Cabinet Minister with access to government resources?
Or for that matter ............. has any Cabinet Minister done that??????
Stapedius 9 years, 4 months ago
Two big gals.
Emac 9 years, 4 months ago
KMLL...I can't stop laughing...
John 9 years, 4 months ago
Fred Mitchell anticipates political fallout from Bah Mar and so he is jockeying for leadership position in he party still. He done talking over the head of he prime minister and leader of he party and now he picking fight with who most feel is more powerful persons in the FNM. But when he say that Long Island suffered under the representation of Loretta Butler-Turner (because of her attitude), he admitting that the island was victimized for being FNM. Mitchell will learn that the mindset of Longislanders are different from Fox Hill.
Wideawake 9 years, 4 months ago
All true!
Regardless 9 years, 4 months ago
Not one MP for Long Island has had any business sense since Peter Graham and Donald D'Abenas. Mangrove Bush and Salt Pond have insured that only mouth pieces are elected to parliament to represent them, Whenever the PLP are in power, FNM representation in Long Island use it as an excuse to do absolutely nothing in the constituency. On that, Mitchell has a valid point. If democrats and republicans can get things done for their districts, surely something can be done between FNM representation and a PLP administration, That being said, Long Island now has a PLP senator and he should be stepping up to the plate as well. As to BLT, she needs to stop slapping people, increase her viability beyond her beloved cook outs and start contacting capital markets directly and stop waiting on others to do it.
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