The Tribune

FORMER Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham last night called on Prime Minister Perry Christie to “immediately retire” Parliamentary Commissioner Sherlyn Hall for the “chaos” at the advanced polls yesterday morning that caused the country “great international embarrassment” and discouraged Bahamians from voting.

Addressing a crowd of Free National Movement supporters at the carnival grounds of the Queen Elizabeth Sports Centre, the former Prime Minister also accused members of the Christie administration of borrowing millions of dollars from the Bank of the Bahamas and not paying it back, causing the bank to “end up with loans of $100m, that had to be taken off their books”.

Mr Ingraham also questioned how the Office of the Prime Minister was able to go over budget by $54m in less than a year, without Parliamentary approval.

The advanced poll for the general election got off to a chaotic and late start on Wednesday. Despite a public notice indicating there would be two separate polling stations, thousands of voters slated to cast an early vote in New Providence crammed into Kendal G L Isaacs National Gymnasium, many of them waiting for hours.

Voting was scheduled to take place from 8am to 6pm, but did not get started until around 9.20am.

The Thomas A Robinson National Stadium had been named as the second site, but was not used.

Prime Minister Perry Christie told reporters that he was “disappointed” that the process did not run smoothly, but there was no word from Parliamentary Commissioner Sherlyn Hall on what went wrong.

Mr Ingraham urged Mr Christie at the FNM’s mass rally not to let his “ambition to become a three-time Prime Minister” cloud his judgment on the matter.

“The Bahamas today is embarrassed in the presence of the international community by the chaos at the advance polls today. Such chaos that hasn’t happened in the Bahamas since 1987. When Perry Christie won the election for the PLP the last time, they won the election with an organized election,” Mr Ingraham said Wednesday night.

“The people in every island and community of this country who wanted to vote early because they were going away, were able to do so. This time they decide you have to come to Nassau or go to Grand Bahama or if you could not make it on election day, you would not vote. People were told there would be two polling stations, one at the stadium and one at the Kendal Isaacs gym. The polling stations were scheduled to open at 8am this morning, the ballot box didn’t come until nearly 9am and voting didn’t start until nearly 10am. It took one of my daughters nearly four hours to vote today.

“It is said that the minister responsible for elections, Dr Bernard Nottage, told reporters that he had no comment as he is a politician. The Prime Minister who is reasonable as the guardian of our country remained silent until late this afternoon. Now the government was warned well in advance that the parliamentary commissioner was not up to the task and not a fit and proper person to conduct an election but they took no advice. I, a three-time Prime Minister, call upon the sitting two-time Prime Minister to cause a parliamentary commissioner to be appointed forthwith. The current holder of that post has reached retirement age. He is on contract and that contract expires in a matter of days I am told. There are qualified persons that can conduct this election. It is not too late for action to be taken. Perry Christie, you cannot allow your ambition to serve as long as I did in office to cloud your judgment on this matter.”

Mr Ingraham also accused PLP ministers and Members of Parliament of “keeping their hands in the cookie jar and bleeding the country dry.”

“On their watch, the Bank of the Bahamas ended up with loans of 100 million dollars that had to be taken off their books. Loans in respect to which some members of the cabinet and members of Parliament on the PLP side and other politically exposed persons got and didn’t pay back and this previously money-making financial centre could not find buyers for its last public offering resulting in the Bahamas government having to spend $50 million of your money to put in the bank with its capital,” Mr Ingraham claimed.

“The Office of the Prime Minster was allocated $17 million in this year’s budget 2016/2017 for the 12-month period July 1, 2016 to June 31, 2017. By what legal authority was the office of the prime minister allowed to spend $71 million, an additional $54 million, prior to the end of December, without parliamentary approval?”

The former Prime Minister also blasted the PLP’s “free electricity promise” challenging them to connect the people now instead of after the general election.

He also sought to clarify what he called the “misconception” that he endorsed Prime Minister Perry Christie.

“I said on ZNS, some time ago, that Perry Christie was the best man to lead the PLP but they twisted my words and carried that to say, that I said Perry Christie was the best man to lead the country and there were even some FNM’s that were gullible enough to believe the nonsense,” Mr Ingraham said.

“I am FNM , I am red.”