The Tribune

By INIGO 'NAUGHTY' ZENICAZELAYA

Buckle Up

So during his address to the nation this week, Prime Minister Minnis dropped a fiscal bomb; government ministries will have to cut their spending by 10% and no current contracts for workers making in excess of $100,000 will be renewed.

I can’t say that I did not expect this. How many years have Bahamians watched in horror as previous administrations have spent “the people’s money’” like drunken sailors on an all night bender?

In truth, something had to be done. And the Prime Minister’s decision is just a first step in what will hopefully be the right and responsible direction.

Still, for those who depend on jobs from ‘da ministers dem,’ this must hurt. I would imagine those persons – from entry level positions to those with bloated 100k salaries – are feeling “some type of way” right about now.

Based on the commentary I’ve seen on social media, the taxpayers, who have had to foot the bills, are satisfied that we are headed in the best direction.

The only point of contention I am seeing debated and viewed as a negative, in light of the announcements coming out of the Minnis administration, is the decision to cut the number of scholarships awarded to deserving Bahamian students.

During an interview with The Tribune this week, Minister of Education Jeff Lloyd said that hundreds of scholarship applicants will be turned away in the next few weeks while the government looks to recoup $156m in delinquent student loan debt.

This, in a word, is “sad!”

Did the Progressive Liberal Party alone allow this colossal debt to pile up? I find it curious that during the election season their campaign surrogates often spoke about this exact possibility of the FNM cancelling scholarships. Apparently, they knew good and well where the financial bones were buried.

What is also curious is the FNM seeming to backtrack on a key campaign promise of “free” education for Bahamians at university level. Will University of the Bahamas scholarships be affected? Because if they will, that’s not a balk but an actual break with what was expected, and it would be interesting to know the dollar value of bad student loan debts left by the last FNM administration.

I am cautiously optimistic that as soon as possible, the new government will resume awarding grants, loans and scholarships to all qualified Bahamian students. We knew that the country’s finances were in shambles. We also know education is our best chance to right the ship. What we don’t know is whether the FNM can solve these problems creatively and not just tell us what we already knew.

Bahamian pundits often talk about how the youth of this country will have to pay when the marker comes due. Already, we’re seeing that happen. Strap in and buckle up, my friends. As the elders say, “the chickens have come home to roost!”

Spin, Doctor

I must admit, FNMs are the best at creative “spin doctoring”.

Yes, PM Minnis was a qualified, highly recognised doctor before entering political life. Yes, “nil per os” is Latin, a medical term meaning “not by mouth”. So the PM’s “No, N-P-O, No” slip while being interviewed earlier this week can be understood.

However, knowing that we are (sadly) D average as a nation, one would think that the good doctor would refrain from medical terminologies. After all, how many times do we ask our own doctors, during a visit, to please explain it in “layman’s terms”?

Laymen don’t have professional or specialised knowledge in Latin. Instead, when they don’t know what on earth you’re trying to say, laymen (and laywomen, I might add) take to Facebook and mock you “til the cows come home” when it appears to their lay ears you can’t spell a simple word like “No”.

So, this latest verbal “boo boo” by the PM is explicable. This time I will let it slide, simply because the explanation is some good political “spin doctoring” in any event.

But please bear in mind that in the real world, NO spells NO!! At least the last time this layman checked.

The Public Enemies

Dr Minnis’ spelling mishap - as it was viewed- came as a result of him vehemently denying he had conversations with Opposition Leader Philip “Brave” Davis regarding the recent arrests of high profile PLP politicians.

In case you missed it, a few prominent PLP former parliamentarians have been arrested or questioned by police on allegations of various malfeasance or bribery charges in the past few weeks.

Davis has spoken openly about the arrests being the result of a “witch-hunt”, though he neglected to say whether there were any actual ‘witches.’

Then there was a letter “leaked” to the press in which Mr Davis spoke about “abuses of power” and “days of reckoning” and things going and coming around. It had all the hallmarks of a Brian de Palma or Martin Scorsese “mobster flick” script and made for an interesting read.

What it wasn’t, however, was the best way for former Deputy Prime Minister Davis to approach what he obviously views as a vexing situation for the PLP. Though he was clear to point out he was not threatening the new PM, words like “when you set out to dig a grave for your enemy, dig two” sure came across “threatenish”.

When asked whether he planned to meet with Davis to discuss the matter, a visibly anxious Dr. Minnis (like any film character who woke up in bed to find a horse’s cranium inexplicably present) was quick to utter “No-NPO-No”. (Can you blame him? If that scathing letter was addressed to you, you may have misspelled the word “no” too!)

In any case, it is not good for the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader to appear so openly hostile to one another. It wasn’t a good look when then PM Christie and Dr Minnis were unnecessarily vicious with each other and it isn’t a good look now.

The campaign trail is one thing, governing a country is another.