The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Deputy Chief Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

FORMER Bahamas Bar Association President Elsworth Johnson has suggested that the country’s judicial system is heavily saturated by “political interference” as he vowed, over the coming days, to disclose the “irregularities” present in this branch of government.

The Free National Movement’s (FNM) new candidate for Yamacraw went on to insist that political involvement has resulted in disrespect of not only this system but of judges, who are regarded as the highest and most distinguished officers of the court.

Meanwhile, FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis used his time before a raucous crowd of supporters to hit out at Prime Minister Perry Christie, branding him the “master of disaster” whose pronouncements on Baha Mar should not be believed or trusted.

The comments came during the official ratification of Mr Johnson at the party’s headquarters on Mackey Street last night.

“I have decided not to be silenced and idle when the very human dignity of the person is under threat,” Mr Johnson said. “Wait a second, you hear what they saying about judges? You hear how they cuss out Justice (Indra) Charles? Listen to me: once a judge acted honourably and there is nothing about their person that would cause them not to be able to serve, how in the hell you could tell the judge or threaten the judge?”

“Why do I say this you may ask? It is when the very organisation responsible for ensuring equality and fairness for all before the law is it not feared, the judicial system, then what is the ordinary average man that that organisation is designated to protect to think? It is a serious concern of mine and I know that my party will facilitate the desires that I espouse. At a time when we should be celebrating thousands of young people graduating from high school and university we are instead proudly highlighting the number of young men that are being incarcerated. There is much work to be done. There is no time for carnival. All the tiny winy going on on around here must be stopped.”

He also said: “You call a magistrate down in Mayaguana and say we got it wrong (and) this one got it right so this is how you do it? You got to think I’m stupid.

“Now we have the issue of who will be the next Attorney General and I want to say it publicly. The bench is in a tizzy. Lawyers are in a tizzy. The selection of judges in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas should always be as far as possible insulated from political interference. We are going to prove some things in the coming days. We’re going to go and address and to disclose the irregularities in the judicial system.”

Mr Johnson told supporters that the Royal Bahamas Police Force that he once knew no longer exists. Instead he suggested that the organisation was also under the influence of politics.

“There was a time when the older officers dreamed of a Police Staff Association because it was intended to ensure the dignity of the officers. Now they got the Chairman of the Staff Association walking the street. I want to say to the police department that your job should always be insulated from political interference, but if you want your rights to be ensured, the FNM is prepared to speak on your behalf.

“I want to speak directly to the prison officers and we know that we have a gang problem and we are going to have to deal with that. But we understand the difficulties that you face. We are prepared to address your issues. Come with the FNM.

“I want to say to my colleagues who are in the Attorney General’s office that you deserve to be treated with dignity and the respect that you deserve and judges are not to be disrespected. Attorney General’s office, come with the FNM.”

The official announcement that Mr Johnson was the FNM’s newest candidate came shortly after he tendered his resignation as Bar Association president. In a letter to the Bar Association, Mr Johnson said after much prayer and consideration, he made the decision to resign from the post effective Tuesday, February 7, 2017 at 5pm.

“I take this opportunity through you to express profound gratitude to the distinguished members of Bar Council and members of the Outer and Inner Bar,” the letter read. “My services to the Bar were enriched by the unselfish support of our members by way of their kind advice, support and constructive criticism.

“I also wish to thank members of the judiciary,led by the Hon Sir Hartman Longley, Chief Justice, for their kind guidance and support of the Bar during my tenure. I have truly been blessed by God to have had the opportunity to serve the Commonwealth of the Bahamas through such a distinguished Association. I remain committed to the philosophy and guiding principles of the Bar and it is my intention to continue to provide service to the Bar.”

For his part, Dr Minnis said the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) in a single term have nearly destroyed the economy of the country. He said the Christie administration has refused to tell the truth on Baha Mar, resulting in the government’s failure to make public the sealed resort documents or table its heads of agreement in Parliament.

He said: “We now know that there is no final signed deal for Baha Mar. Christie and the PLP misled the Bahamian people about this deal. They thought they could use smoke and mirrors to confuse us.

“Don’t trust whatever you hear about Baha Mar from Christie or (Attorney General) Allyson Maynard Gibson, whose family is supposed to have stores in the resort. Don’t forget the many times Christie told us that Baha Mar was about to open. It hasn’t happened yet. They are saying Baha Mar will be opened in stages. Now where you think they got that from? Any so-called opening you see soon will be a public relations stunt. Don’t forget the many times he told us a deal for a new owner was just around the corner.

“Listen very carefully to this: the people who supposed to be buying Baha Mar said they won’t sign a deal until the construction is completed. So, who is paying the many hundreds of millions needed to complete the construction? Will the government of the Bahamas pay - or guarantee the hundreds of millions to complete Baha Mar? Is this where our VAT money is going to?

“Perry Christie is the master of disaster. The PLP are the masters of disasters. Christie and the PLP have, in a single term, nearly destroyed our economy. We are now at junk bond status with one credit rating agency because of the lack of financial discipline by the PLP, and because of the mess the PLP made of Baha Mar. Every time the PLP touched the Baha Mar project, they created even more of a disaster. Year after year they did not tell the truth about Baha Mar. They had all kinds of side letters to one head of agreement dealing with Baha Mar. These letters didn’t see the light of day until the FNM tabled them in the House of Assembly,” Dr Minnis also said.