The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

IN THE April 20 edition of The Tribune newspaper, an interesting story was published under the heading: Money isn't Everything On The Declarations - Sometimes It's About The Plants. This of course was in reference to the financial disclosures of the 133 candidates after Nomination Day on April 17. According to the article, the public eagerly anticipates the publication of the candidates' assets. I believe that this entire process, while it might be necessary for our democracy, is a bit embarrassing to the poorer candidates.

Of the 133 candidates, 56 are reported to be millionaires. However, many of the candidates can either be classified as middle-class or lower-class. The Nassau Guardian covered the same story as The Tribune. The Guardian's heading for the article on the financial disclosures were "Scores of candidates have modest incomes." This is a euphemistic way of saying that many of these candidates are broke.

The article in The Tribune mentioned two candidates who have very little assets. They are Rodney Moncur of the Democratic National Alliance (DNA) and Ali MacIntosh of The Bahamas Constitution Party. MacIntosh, I believe, will be contesting the North Abaco seat against incumbent Prime Minister Hubert A Ingraham, who, by the way is himself a millionaire. Moncur will be running in the Bains Town and Grants Town constituency against Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) incumbent Dr. Bernard Nottage, a multimillionaire.

Amazingly, Moncur declared an income of just $60 per week and a total income of $4,000. According to The Nassau Guardian, he has $200 in his savings account. With regards to the shocking $60 per week, that isn't even enough to buy groceries for one man, let alone for a family of two or more. Sixty dollars cannot even maintain a chiwawa dog. Furthermore, the $4,000 figure is a bit confusing. Does this mean that he only earns $4,000 per annum? If so, Moncur is earning much less than those who work at Burger Kings and MacDonald's. His salary is far below the government's minimum wage of $210 per week; which would add up to $10,920 per annum. If one were to multiply $60 by 52 weeks, you would get a grand total of $3,120. My point is this, Moncur's financial declaration, as reported in The Tribune and The Nassau Guardian, raises more questions than answers. He also listed many fruit trees valued at a whopping $6,170; and his net worth is $326,470.

Concerning MacIntosh; she has no salary, no automobiles, no life insurance and no current accounts. According to The Tribune, she does have $17,400 worth of property and a $9,050 gift for a net worth of $20,562. If she has no salary, does this mean she is unemployed? Another candidate from the DNA party declared that he earns a whopping $67,000 per annum, but only has $1,500 in his savings account. What's more, it was reported in The Nassau Guardian that his net worth is only $4,350. If this candidate and the members of his household are earning a combined weekly salary of $1,288, how is it possible that he only has $1,500 in his savings account? According to the Guardian, his assets are $53,350, but his liabilities are a staggering $49,000. This is likely the reason why he listed his net worth at $4,350. Also, an independent candidate listed his net worth at only $1,441.31. Another candidate declared that he has only $17.14 in his savings accounts, but did not disclose his annual salary. In my view, this particular candidate is just another statistic. Many bankers have bemoaned the fact that the overwhelming majority of working Bahamians don't even have $1,000 in their savings accounts.

While I am glad that average citizens who don't have that many possessions in life can participate in the electoral process, I am still a bit reluctant to cast my ballot for an individual who doesn't even have a job or a thousand dollars in his savings account. Furthermore, if you earn nearly $70,000 annually and have only managed to put away $1,500, how am I supposed to believe that you are fiscally prudent? If you are not fiscally responsible with your own money, why should the Bahamian electorate entrust you with a multi-billion dollar economy? How can you criticise the sitting government for mismanaging the economy when your personal finances appear to be a wreck? If a person is unfaithful in the little things, they will be unfaithful in the big things. The same principle applies to our personal finances. If you have run your own finances aground, chances are you will do the same thing with a multi-billion dollar economy. Moreover, how can an unemployed candidate talk about fixing the unemployment situation in the country when she isn't even gainfully employed?

In summation, many Bahamians have a strong aversion to electing candidates who are financially strapped, because they feel as if these people are really only interested in getting into Parliament in order to improve their financial lot in life. Bahamians are sick and tired of hearing candidates declare their net worth at under $50,000, but five years later it blossoms to over a million or more with no reasonable explanation as to how they became millionaires on their parliamentary salary. In all honestly, I was rooting for one of the candidates with a "modest income." But after reading the articles in the aforementioned dailies, I have backed off from supporting him. I am not satisfied with how he has handled his personal finances. His financial situation leaves too much to be desired. And that goes for many of the candidates who were mentioned in the articles.

KEVIN EVANS

Freeport,

Grand Bahama

April 23, 2012.