The Tribune

By MALCOLM STRACHAN

MUCH of the government’s first year in office can be characterised as a series of post-election mudslinging and moving of goal posts on key initiatives which the Bahamian people had hopes of seeing materialise sooner rather than later. However, as we know, electioneering leads to many promises, and in some cases, a large majority have been left unfulfilled.

While some may be hard-pressed to give the government credit on crime, there has certainly been visible efforts on their part leading to fewer murders thus far. Still, as we have seen, with the Minnis administration having a real taste of getting into the nitty gritty of governance, they have done much to temper expectations by blaming the PLP’s lack of fiscal responsibility for its inability to hit the ground running with initiatives previously touted on the campaign trail.

Nonetheless, the electorate, which suffered five years of the disastrous former administration, had high hopes that there was an imminent turning of the tide. Perhaps this is unrealistic for a vast majority of the assurances the government gave the Bahamian people. However, issues of selective transparency and accountability have caused some damage to the government’s credibility with the Bahamian people.

As has been noted by many supporters of the government, as well as some in government, including the prime minister – they have only completed the first year. With that defence no longer having applicability as of last week, the government has reached the “put up or shut up” stage of this term. This is the year the Bahamian people are supposed to begin seeing and feeling the results of their decision to vote out the PLP and make the FNM the government.

While we are not suggesting the second year does not have its fair share of potential for the government to fulfil its campaign promises, we do acknowledge there are a great number of Bahamians who are reluctant to believe that after the first year. Given this reality, the government has no choice but to deliver. Else, they run the risk of the Bahamian people becoming disengaged and the pendulum swings to another convenient party in 2022 when the citizenry takes another, “anyone but them approach”.

The Bahamian people must see a positive change in our way of life that is far from subtle. The feeling that things are better must be undeniably pervasive throughout all layers of society. To that end, one may argue Prime Minister Minnis’ confidence that the government is doing great can be tempered a bit. Such posturing makes him seem disconnected and insecure whereby he has to prop himself up. On the other hand, he may very well have valid reasons as to why he feels the government is doing a great job, which indicates there is a disparity between what they are working on, and how it is communicated to the wider public.

In this business, self-given accolades don’t give you anything but good memories to reminisce on. Without a doubt, governments earn their stripes by bettering the lives of the citizenry. Clearly, with the government doing a subpar job in the area of communication, it would be prudent to not only focus on execution, but also making the Bahamian people are aware of it.

Moreover, the prime minister knows full well what was promised to the Bahamian people, and equally so, he must understand there are no more excuses that we care to hear.

The electorate suffered under the last administration, which also started off with broken promises. After the first 100 days of the Progressive Liberal Party’s last term in office, it was not too long before their PRs stunt left an entire populace feeling insulted.

With zero items on the PLP’s list being achieved in the first 365 days - much less the first 100 - we had been duped. Though we are not painting today’s government with the same brush, we know all too well the possibility of a government promising one thing and doing something else.

Absolutely, the Bahamian people need something that can be felt throughout our communities. While there may be unwaveringly blind support for the government, there are still many who have become less trusting over the course of the past year.

Bahamians, particularly millennials - who have exhibited during the last election that party politics is on its way out - are a great indicator that governments will have to work much harder to secure a base. In today’s current political climate and with information becoming so accessible and shareable, it is tremendously hard for a government to maintain a narrative that it doesn’t have the proof to support.

The government has to show evidence to the Bahamian people who voted them in - and the ones that doubted them - that they were right all along. They have to prove to the Bahamian people that it is, in fact, the people’s time - all people.

Excuses and goals sliding into the third year of this term will not go well for the government. Certainly, the time is now to push feverishly towards bettering the lives of our brothers and sisters across the nation. That being said, we hope that Cabinet is calling plays from a playbook and knows exactly how they intend to execute their plan.

Regular Bahamian people, as well as pundits, will be asking harder questions to which precise and detailed answers will be expected. Undoubtedly, if the government can recreate its message and tactically refine its communications strategy, both them and the Bahamian people would be far better off.

Indeed, it has become quite evident the government – at least the majority of those in government – believe they are poised to deliver their end of the bargain. Certainly, the prime minister’s introduction of a delivery unit indicates this much. However, without the proper approach – planning down to the fine details, inclusive of goals and timelines – much will be lost in translation. On top of that, a delivery unit created to track a government’s progress that does not deliver would be a strange case of irony and the epitome of wasted resources.

The ball is in the government’s court. You told us we would see the change after having been forced to take bitter medicine. Now, that we’re here – no more excuses, time to deliver. You have our undivided attention, for now.