The Tribune

By RIEL MAJOR

Tribune Staff Reporter

rmajor@tribunemedia.net

SENATE Vice President Dr Mildred Hall-Watson slammed Pineridge MP Frederick McAlpine during her contribution yesterday for attempting “to demean, disrespect and embarrass the Free National Movement.”

In the Senate, Dr Mildred Hall-Watson said that sadly Rev McAlpine’s attempts have backfired and he “shamed himself.”

She said: “Your attempt to embarrass the government did not work. You isolated yourself and. . .the residents of Pineridge who elected you with FNM votes and embarrassed yourself. We will not allow our power to be diluted by others for their own personal ambitions. It is the people’s time and in time the people of Pineridge will deal with it.

“The major tenet of this individual’s profession is to teach love to one another,” she said, referring to Mr McAlpine’s vocation as a minister of religion.

“Instead comments were made in a negative manner about skin colour, name recognition as a negative and that truly is unfortunate. One of the comments made during that debate (in the House of Assembly) I will not discuss here anymore, but I will say that each individual is responsible for their own comments, their own actions, their own attitudes and their own behaviour.”

Earlier this month, Mr McAlpine criticised the Free National Movement during his contribution to the 2019/2020 budget debate. At the time, he claimed he has been victimised by his party and excluded from all FNM meetings in Grand Bahama. Mr McAlpine claimed since voting against the increase in value added tax (VAT) last year, the FNM has excluded him.

He said the government talks about being “transparent and accountable”, however he was not invited to the Grand Bahama parliamentary caucus meetings. He had said earlier this month: “Now if they do this to their own people, what do you think they would do to you, the people who they claim ‘it’s the people’s time?’ Don’t get mad with me, all I’m doing is being transparent and accountable to the people of Pineridge. I think the word here is victimisation.

“There’s more that I could say but this is just chapter one I’m dealing with; another time and another place, God spares life. I’ve got to keep moving.”