By SANCHESKA BROWN
Tribune Staff Reporter
sbrown@tribunemedia.net
HOUSE Speaker Kendal Major criticised the recent shootings of police officers, saying the Bahamas has become a country where no one is safe and where we “eat our own”.
He said leaders must set a better example and the entire nation must come together to “stop the madness” of crime and violence.
Addressing Parliamentarians in the House of Assembly yesterday, the Speaker said crime will continue to destroy the nation unless the leaders come together and be the change they are asking to see.
“The recent shooting of Garden Hills born and bred Sergeant Andrew Sweeting brought mixed emotions. I visited him yesterday in hospital and was comforted by his tenacity, but more importantly by the grace that God extended his life. He sends his best wishes to all, but on the other hand we must ask ourselves in this country, what would it take to stop the madness?”
“Animals are born with no conscience, no will, no objectivity or intelligence, so they are accustomed to kill their own and eat their young.
“Yet we as intelligent human beings, members of the human race, who throw away the gift of life and the rule of law, and yet we too are eating our own,” he said.
“The madness must stop and the experiences of Superintendent Clayton Fernander and now Sergeant Sweeting demonstrates to us that we are all vulnerable and it will continue until we say enough is enough. So my appeal is and will always be to firstly the leaders.
“We will always be seen as we are, in the seat of power. We must become the change we seek and that change must come from our lips in debate and from our hearts to affect change. The children are watching and our actions are speaking much louder than our words. We must come together.”
Mr Major’s comments came one day after Deputy Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis told members of the media that “no one is safe” from crime.
Mr Davis’ personal aide, Sergeant Andrew Sweeting, was shot in front of a residence behind Prince Charles Shopping Centre, early Monday morning.
Sweeting was shot in the lower abdomen and left palm, during an armed robbery by two assailants.
Police have confirmed they are questioning three men in connection with the shooting. The men, ages 23, 36 and 18, all of Nassau Village were taken into custody around noon on Monday.
They are also on the hunt for another suspect, 20-year-old Ervin Moxey, aka “Hot Boy”, of Nassau Village. Moxey is described as being of dark brown complexion, of slim build and about 5’9” tall.
Mr Sweeting is expected to make a full recovery. Investigations continue.
Comments
Bahamianpride 10 years, 10 months ago
Poor people think different from people with resources all they can see is I'm broke & sufferring & u have.. the world & economy of the bahamas has changed creating more have nots.. Many bahamians have Not shared in the prosperity that foreigners & the ruling class has.. Now u have a group of young men mostly from single parent homes with the mentality that I will take what's mine... they feel u don't care about us so f you I'm gonna get mine with this gun..its a matter of dignity expressed through crime..
Bahamianpride 10 years, 10 months ago
The cannabalism started with politicians selling out there own for the advancement of themselves, family, & cronnies...we have created this type of society from top down...
lazybor 10 years, 10 months ago
good morning politicians!
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TalRussell 10 years, 10 months ago
Mr. Speaker with all due respect, shouldn't you first curtail the feisty hot heads in the House of Assembly, before venturing across Bahamaland's archipelago with your opinions on crime?
ThisIsOurs 10 years, 10 months ago
But what he and both Brave Davis fail to realize is that both officers were (dressed as) "ordinary citizens" when they were shot. Nothing made these men "special" other than who they knew, which the robbers could not have known.
It's the 50+ murders and who knows how many other Causing Harm's that they should have been raising the alarm about. But they were too busy pounding the desks agreeing to how well Urban Renewal was working.
Good morning politicians indeed. You are one of us
hj 10 years, 10 months ago
well said
concernedcitizen 10 years, 10 months ago
well put ,,
TalRussell 10 years, 10 months ago
The DPM and Speaker have joined in with their other PLP colleagues to become Bahamaland's "official spokespersons" billboards to scare the hell out of tourism. One minute they are critical of the US embassy when they issue Travel Alerts on their website and the second any major crime happens, they are running to the media. Don't they know that when they speak it is picked up by the international media? This government is in dire need of hiring a take charge PR director. I really mean it. The opposition has not put even a dent into this government but they sure as hell have self-inflicted more than the natives my be willing to wait until 2017, to make a decision about who they really want to govern their Bahamaland? Of course we "internally" cannot ignore serious crime problems. But so does 90% of the rest of the world's nations. What has been sadly lacking in the international media is government who has been talking about all the good and beauty in our Bahamaland. Comrades 99+ % of natives are NOT involved in committing crimes. If the PLP cabinet wants to see what unsafe is really like, go visit Jamaica?
dahasamo 10 years, 9 months ago
I thought the need for a PR director was the main point of the According to Me column last week???
TalRussell 10 years, 10 months ago
Pretty damn shocking when the Speaker of the House of Assembly thinks he is making a positive contribution to the crime debate, when he begins to equate his fellow citizens, who for whatever reason have willingly or unwillingly turned to crime as their solution, with that of animals that are born with no conscience, no will, no objectivity or intelligence, accustomed to kill their own and eat their young. What has gone wrong in the heads of this new PLP administration? And, he's ranked among the supposedly more intelligent of the group of elected MP's, on both sides of the House? Good lord almighty, can't wait to read in The Tribune, what the stupid one's have to say next?
Bahamianpride 10 years, 10 months ago
Tal: I'm typing from a cell phone in the middle of new jersey, what the speaker does not realize is this is the new world of information & technology.. the world is reading
TalRussell 10 years, 10 months ago
Maybe it's just me but I don't understand why the speaker and his colleagues, or any native, would be so eager to run to the media with the sole effort to trash their own Bahamaland? Don't you find it as scarey, when elected officials and their paid spokespersons, are approaching crime issues with a defeatist attitude? Although you might not know it from what you ready and hear on a daily basis, Bahamaland remains one of the best and safest places on the globe to live and work. Yes, we need to address skyrocketing crime, and locally natives, residents and visitors should be made aware how to move around as safe as possible, but this recklessness when you fail in your elective or appointed responsibility, to lead and not to use it as an opportunity to further scare the laving hell out of folks.
aloethree 10 years, 10 months ago
I agree tal, why are the leaders and the media trashing the country? Yea there is crime here and it can happen anywhere in the world, but the issues we have here are petty and can be stopped in days.
TalRussell 10 years, 10 months ago
Comrade Aloethree we both know the media can be expected to be culpable in playing into this "KillaBahamalnd " meme. They want to increase their readership, listeners and viewers, by dramatizing every instance of violence as an apocalyptic event/ That we as a nation have gone beyond hopes of ever recovering from. Not so with the Government of the Day or their Appointees. The are expected to lead, to seek solutions, not to feel defeated, by the small percentage of thugs responsible for evoking such fear. They must NEVER be allowed to dictate Bahamalnd's Rule of Law. Yes, even if they have to be killed to put a stop to their criminal ways.
hj 10 years, 10 months ago
@TalRussell.......Well this comes from a party that last year was putting posters all over Nassau,informing everyone,including tourists,how many murders we have in the Bahamas. Does this answer your question?
maryann 10 years, 10 months ago
They were so desperate for power until they were willing to sacrifice country and its people just to accomplish their dreams.
Bahamianpride 10 years, 10 months ago
HJ: That's some serious madness...What were they thinking or not thinking? I could only imagine what went through the mind of Tourist when they read those Billboards. They came to the Bahamas as a vacation destination to escape negativity and relax, After reading things like that they probably felt like they just entered Compton California...
concernedcitizen 10 years, 10 months ago
the truth, as sad as it is ,we are running a homocide rate six and a half times greater then the U/S ,,THE u/s is 4 per 100,000 ours is 27 per 100,000 ,,jamaica is about 40 per 100,000 ,,still you don,t get in the house and claim we are eating ourselves ,or put up billboards ,,
TalRussell 10 years, 10 months ago
To the deep dismay of the Hubert regime the PLP got their bread nicely covered with tasty voters beacon during the 2012 general elections, but I'm already sensing that unless they change their miss-steps and do it pretty darn soon, there bread may not even be buttered come the next general elections. That's, if they don't suffer burnt toasted by the natives before 2017? The Speaker's equating natives with animals ain't exactly the kind of PR the PM needs about right about now. Hopefully this just a poor choice of words, or has the speaker now become Bahamaland's cook woman Paula Deen?
concernedcitizen 10 years, 10 months ago
i don,t know Tals ,the Fnm is pretty beat down and as much as i lkie Doc Minnis i don,t see the charisma there to carry it ,plus Baha mar will be coming on line and if it succeeds or not the first 4 to 10 yrs they will pump money into it ,,,,,
nationbuilder 10 years, 10 months ago
How come "no one is safe" because the DPM's police got shot, but before dat, crime was down? suk teet man
concernedcitizen 10 years, 10 months ago
Shooting someone now that doesn,t die is causing harm not attempted murder ,,so what now is attempted murder ,,if you shoot them ,they are declared clinically dead ,but by some divine intervention spring back to life in the casket
USAhelp 10 years, 10 months ago
When tourist go to Jamaica they never leave the resorts. This will not help the local business. Same thing gonna happen to Nassau. Paradise Island Baha mar.
TalRussell 10 years, 10 months ago
Why wait for Baha Mar's gated resort to open when natives have long been restricted from entering on to "publicly owned" beaches. Slowly, be it a red or gold shirts government, natives are being told where they are welcomed and not welcomed. EVERY inch of sand on the beaches at Lyford are blocked to all but for a few of the privileged and their guests. The greedy privileged in our second city of Freeport also tried putting up gates and padlocking them, thinking they could deny public access to "publicly owned" beaches. You wanna know how Freeporters reacted? By quickly giving them their answer, loud and clear. They cut the damn locks off the gates.That's what they did. NO grain of beach sand is owned by the property owners at Lyford Cay, Paradise Island a Baha Mar, or any other property owner who should decide to "gate-out the natives. But still there are those natives who think they or no native belong mixing with others, except they own kind ... whatever in hell they mean-by, they own kind? You know what. It ain't just the poor foots they don't want walk'in "their" beaches, it's any native who they think are unequal in class to themselves. So, that excludes 99% of all natives. How quickly new-found wealth black natives start to act like whites? Some even worst.
Tarzan 10 years, 9 months ago
Tal: Get a life. You can spend all your days looking for convenient scapegoats but a few gated communities, which by the way exist all over the civilized world, have zero to do with the problems under discussion here, and your recommendation that resort to the destruction of private property (cut down the locks) just adds to the problem. No beaches are gated. Private roads are gated. That is perfectly legal and proper or would you prefer to lose the hundreds of millions in employment and economic contribution that these "gated" resorts contribute to our country. Get over it Tal. This is not the mid 20th century.
concernedcitizen 10 years, 9 months ago
all so it is factual that in places like jamaica etc , the resorts are becoming more and more "closed all inclusive resorts " b/c of the guest having bad and sometimes dangerous encounters w/ the locals ,we are becoming that way to ,,geez we are afraid of our "lil darlins " what do you think mr and mrs smith from peroria would feel on PI w/ a big shiny 357 stuck in their face ..
TalRussell 10 years, 9 months ago
You have every right t foster your own opinions but it was the speaker who said we need to "stop the madness." I was simply responding to other related posts and did not bring up mention of Baha Mar. Still it's funny you fuond time for my comments but not the at all troubled by speakers remark that in our Bahamaland our people; "eat our own?"
concernedcitizen 10 years, 9 months ago
me thinks the speaker spoke too much...............
John 10 years, 9 months ago
YES IT STARTED BACK in the 1970's when Resorts International came to this country and convinced the lame duck government of this country (lame duck in the sense that they were well intentioned but inexperienced) to close down all the night clubs in the town so all the tourists (and selected Bahamians) would have to go to their properties for entertainment. The effort went even further when they excluded Bahamians from the gaming industry and were able to convince Our (Bahamian) government that Bahamians selling straw and craft and souveigners or doing jet ski and parasail business on the beaches was not in the best interest of Tourism. And the effort is still on today to take all the beaches and the beach rights and the rights to own and work in hotels away from Bahamians. Everything being done for the tourist. What other country has done that to the extent which we (Bahamas) did? Shouldn't Bahamians have a right of ownership and a feeling of belongingness so they can welcome our guest with pride and a genuine smile? (Chile is ok for y'all to go shoot up and kill one anudder but don't touch our tourist, Our sacred cow") The foreign investor has convinced us to turn against our own selves (in this cannibalistic sort of way) in the name of tourism and now we wonder why our young people have turned rebellious, and anti-social, and violent and angry and yes raw born killers..SIMPLE LOGIC: If you call me a dog and treat me like a dog long enough then I will start to act like a dog. I will bark like a dog and when I get the opportunity I will bite your arse too! If you don't believe me ask Loretta.....
concernedcitizen 10 years, 9 months ago
when did goverment close down all the night clubs ,,dirty dicks , settlers ,charlies charlies,travellers rest ,waterloo ,shoot ,,King eric them had at least 4 burn down ,,,,,fish fry ,,fish fry ,,hammer heads ,crazy johnnys ,,the zoo and Collies other clubs ...young rich tourist now might want one fire dance show but after that they want slick night clubs ,,,,boss we are a capatalist country anybody w/ money or credit can open whatever they want ,,,,,,Bahamians do own hotels ,check out the Family islands ,Abaco etc ,,,,,,,,,,,what other feasible industries do you suggest that can produce a 6 billion GDP a year that just keeps us a float and is the envy of the region ,,,please list these other industries that you and the foreign bashers keep secretly to yourselves
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