The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

Over in the USA many are questioning the mental and physical condition of President Joe Biden as the 46th President of that nation, to hold elective office. It does not appear to matter that he defeated former President Donald Trump in the Electoral Collage and by popular vote. Here in The Bahamas we have seldom, if ever, publicly questioned the the mental or physical abilities of our leaders, especially those who become Prime Minister.

Times may well be changing where we may start to do so. There is much speculation that the current PM may call a snap election within weeks or months in an attempt to catch the New PLP and other opposition forces off guard. I am not one of Dr Minnis’ advisors and most of my other habits are good. It is my opinion that he’d be foolish to call general elections anytime soon. Here are some of the reasons. The economy and crime are the two biggest outstanding issues.

Yes, we have seen fits and starts in a resurgent economy but it’s still anemic and could be wiped out again if Dr Minnis as the Competent Authority abruptly shuts down the country again. Unemployment continues to hover around 30-40% despite what the Minister of Labour and the Director of Labour have been saying without presenting a shred of empirical evidence. Bahamians are quick to ascribe blame to sitting politicians and it will be no different with Dr. Minnis and his people in the FNM administration. He and they will be blamed for the massive unemployment and bread lines.

The advent of the pandemic could not have been stopped by the PM or anyone else. His reaction and so-called solutions to combat the same, however, are his babies and he owns them, like it or not. A lot of Bahamians will directly blame him for the whipsaw curfews and knee jerked lock downs. Within the past year and a half Bahamians, by and large, have been pauperized. Minnis will be blamed for this.

Infrastructure here in New Providence is terrible and an indictment on the administration generally and the Minister of Works in particular. Governmental buildings are crumbling and pot holes abound on the majority of our streets. I often wonder if there are road crews that travel around New Providence on a regular basis checking out streets? Traffic lights are often malfunctioning. Power outages are frequent. The parliamentary buildings are atrocious. The other day a large portion of the ceiling in the Senate crashed to the floor. The House itself is outdated and the environment leaves much to be desired.

The economy in Grand Bahama generally, but Freeport in particular, has yet to see any meaningful economic activity in almost five years of the Minnis led administration. Mind you the FNM commands all of the electoral seats in Grand Bahama and some refer to it as ‘FNM country’ for what it is worth. The other Family Islands, except for Eleuthera; Exuma and Long Island, are all still under the economic radar.

Crime and the fear of crime is literally killing Bahamians, especially in the capital. According to no less a person than the Minister of National Security, the Hon. Marvin Dames (FNM-Mount Moriah) homicides are up by 68% this year compared to last year. The FNM campaigned and came to office charging the Christie led PLP with unabated crime. Now the shoe is on the other foot and I am sure that the bunions and corns are hurting.

Minnis also campaigned for the reintroduction of capital punishment. In fact, he gratuitously offered to act as hangman for any convicted murderer once all of his/her legal appeals would have been exhausted. Since elections, the now incumbent PM has yet to fix his mouth to comment, extensively, on crime; the fear of crime and punishment. This phenomenon must be addressed before calling general elections or it will be yet another big and rusty nail in the FNM’s cloth political casket.

Minnis and his people will have to divest themselves of the Lucayan albatross before coming to the people. Almost 100 million dollars have been injected into that project with very little to see on the ground. Few Bahamians know what is being paid to those who purport to manage that facility.

There are two proposed government subdivisions here in New Providence. According to the PM ‘policy makers’ and others will determine who qualifies and who will actually get a home or duplex therein. This is a scheme ripe for potential corruption and cronyism, especially with elections just around the corner. Until these subdivisions are up and running, at the least with complete infrastructure, the PM should hold off on ringing the bell. Mind you, it may well make very little difference if he does it now or later, but he has to buy political time.

Several promises were made by Minnis and his people while in opposition not the least of which were a fixed electoral date; term limitations and, of course, an Ombudsman. We have yet to see them. Multiple “unknown” have been awarded under the Emergency Powers Act by the Competent Authority (a one man band if ever there were one) that have yet to see the light of day. Our national debt is almost 10 billion dollars and our annual servicing of the same is almost 600 million dollars. The Bahamas is, in my opinion, broke or close to insolvency. Not yet a “failed state” but getting there.

Again, I say, that Dr Minnis would be very foolish and politically inept to try to call snap general elections before cleaning up the mess that he and his team either generated or allowed to creep up on them. I note vicious and possibly untruthful ads on the internet about the Hon Philip ‘Brave’ Davis, QC (PLP-Cat Island). Those ads will not, in my opinion, be enough to discourage right thinking Bahamians from voting PLP in the next general elections, snapped or otherwise. Hold back, Dr Minnis, if you wish to avoid a wipe out.

ORTLAND H BODIE, Jr

Nassau,

July 13, 2021.