The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune. I WAS taken aback after reading in The Nassau Guardian that Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Member of Parliament for Fox Hill Fred Mitchell had told hundreds of opposition supporters that he will work to create 10,000 jobs within the first two years of a PLP administration. I understand that the Fox Hill representative made this promise at his constituency office opening on March 19. According to Mr Mitchell, 34 per cent of the people in this country under 25 are unemployed. To the best of my knowledge, Mitchell never revealed to his audience how he will create 10,000 jobs. If he is able to create that many jobs, that would be nothing short of a miracle, considering the economic state of this country. I hope the PLP and Mitchell aren't pulling the legs of hurting, desperate Bahamians. I would be one of the first enthusiastic supporters to back Mitchell if he would simply tell the nation exactly how he plans to create 10,000 jobs within two years, especially during a recession. Heaven knows that this nation is in dire need of at least 40,000 jobs right now in order to get back to pre-recession employment levels. Few governments in the history of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas have been able to accomplish such a feat in five years when the economy was vibrant, yet Mitchell is saying that he would do this in a mere two years when the economy is bad. Absolutely amazing. I have been listening very carefully to some of the speeches of the candidates of the opposition party, especially the Hon Perry G Christie. I have heard Christie bragging about how healthy and vibrant the economy was under his watch as prime minister between 2002 and 2007. I think Christie has also boasted about the Bahamian economy outpacing the US economy; and that his administration had created 22,000 jobs. Now, I am not going to question the validity of this astounding claim by the Opposition Leader. However, as a Grand Bahamian who has had to endure the hardships of a stagnant recession in the so-called second city of the Bahamas, I am a bit curious as to exactly how many of those much touted 22,000 jobs came to Grand Bahama between 2002 and 2007. I mean, we are talking about 22,000 jobs here. If an American president was to create that many jobs in that short period of time during a recession, he would be ranked right up there with George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. I would like to ask Mr Christie one important question: Are any of these 22,000 jobs in Grand Bahama today? And please don't mention the struggling Ginn Sur Mer development in West End. I think the time has come for the PLP to start being realistic with the Bahamian people, particularly with their avid supporters, about the global recession and its adverse impact on the Bahamian economy. The leadership of the official Opposition has a habit of downplaying the sheer magnitude of the global recession and its negative impact on the Bahamas. It makes no sense comparing the Bahamas with other nations in the region that are doing better than us, as the Opposition leader had done at a recent PLP rally in Freeport. Many of these nations are self-sufficient. In other words, they are not as heavily reliant on the US as we are. When the US sneezes, the Bahamas catches a cold. It's that simple. I look forward to Mitchell and the PLP outlining their plans to the general public regarding the creation of the 10,000 jobs he pledged to create. I would like to know exactly how he intends to do something which has obviously eluded the present government, as well as other governments in the region and around the world. If the PLP wins the government and the Fox Hill incumbent is able to pull a rabbit out of the hat and create 10,000 jobs during this recession; then he should be seriously considered for the Nobel Peace Prize in Economic Sciences. In fact, I think past great economists such as John Stuart Mill, Adam Smith, David Ricardo and Thomas Robert Malthus would have all been eager to have a private audience with the Fox Hill MP if he does what he had promised his constituents at his political event. KEVIN EVANS Freeport, Grand Bahama, March 22, 2012.