The Tribune

ABSOLUTE scandal!

Obviously, National Security Minister Dr Bernard Nottage did not realise the Pandora’s box he opened this weekend with the announcement that the January 28 gambling referendum has cost the Bahamian tax payer about $5 million, especially as Prime Minister Christie — who is also Finance Minister — had some weeks earlier estimated a cost in the region of $1 million plus.

Dr Nottage, the minister responsible for elections, should know the cost, but so should Mr Christie, who is supposed to be the watchman of the country’s purse.

One million dollars for two misleading questions, a poor voter turnout and a referendum for which Bahamians were ill prepared was a sufficient disgrace, but $5 million! — no, something has got to be wrong. If nothing else, an immediate investigation is needed. Independent auditors should be called in – and by independent we mean with no filial or friendship attachments to anyone in government.

Government says it must raise taxes — in the form of VAT — to meet the fiscal deficit at the end of the year and start paying down the more than $5 billion national debt. But why should the country have to pay for government’s folly? It seems that rather than setting an example of thrift, this government is spending as if there is no tomorrow. But what is worse legislators expect Bahamians to tighten their belts to foot the bills.

The referendum, held during the first month into this government’s second term, was to get the public’s opinion on whether to have a national lottery the proceeds of which would benefit the country, or discontinue web shop gambling altogether.

Instead of asking a straightforward question as to whether web shops should be closed and all local gambling discontinued, the question was: “Do you support the taxation and regulation of web shop gaming?”

Their answer was “no” – they did not want gambling in any form. But there was no clear question to which they could give a clear answer. And so when they voted “no” to this question, the wily politicians interpreted it to mean, ‘yes, we want web shop gaming, but we don’t want it taxed or regulated’. This was a trick question. The voters were not given a question by which they could express their true opinion.

If they had voted “yes”, then their answer would have been interpreted to mean that they wanted the web shops, but they wanted them taxed and regulation.

So no matter which way they voted, the web shops would still be with us — as they are now.

Did government pay a large chunk of this $5 million to consultants who worded this question to get the answer government and web shop owners wanted?

However, the heartbreaker came when Constitutional Committee chairman Sean McWeeney informed government that no referendum was needed. By an act of parliament, parliamentarians could have simply amended the law.

“They can get rid of this problem by simply editing section 50 of the Lotteries and Gaming Act. The only restriction they need to keep in place is that you are an adult. If you change or get rid of section 50 entirely, it opens the flood gates,” he said.

However, Mr McWeeney did not think the referendum was a waste of time because it let government know where Bahamians stood on the issue. In our opinion, because of a convoluted question, it did not even do that.

Mr Christie acknowledged that government could have legalised gambling regardless of the people’s feelings, but he believed it a “noble act” to consult them. At a cost of $5 million when government is raising taxes to pay bills? We think not.

We think that an objective investigation of this government’s spending is long overdue. There seems no thought on the part of MPs to try to cut costs.

For example Bahamians should be privy to what its foreign service is costing.

They should be told, for example, why Ed Bethel, appointed High Commissioner to the UK, was put up in £20,000 a month accommodations in Knightsbridge while he awaited the completion of renovations on the official high commissioner’s residence and office. Did no one think that it would have been a saving on the public purse if he had stayed in his own home in Nassau until the official London residence was ready?

In Washington, for example, we have an ambassador in the person of Dr Eugene Newry with his staff. For the first time, a consular officer – Paulette Zonicle — and a press officer Oswald Brown have been added to that staff. What are these expenses and can they be justified?

Elliston Rahming, who the US government refused to accredit as the Bahamas’ Washington ambassador, was transferred to the UN in New York, where at Bahamas House there is a full consular staff. The tourism and maritime staff are also accommodated in this building. What are these costs?

Randy Rolle is the Consul General for Atlanta with his staff. And Calsey Johnson is the High Commissioner for Canada. Ricardo Treco is the consul for Florida; Alma Adams for Cuba, Godfrey Rolle for Haiti and Picewell Forbes is the Caricom Ambassador.

The Bahamian people are entitled to know the full costs of all of these missions and whether we are spending more than this small country can afford — particularly in view of our colossal debt.

Foreign Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell has now announced that he plans to spend most of next year abroad on business for the Bahamas. There is much talk about these trips. Bahamians should be given the breakdown of the cost and whether the returns to this country justify such extensive travel and obviously such heavy expenditure.

It would also be interesting to know who will be filling his vacant chair at the Ministry in his absence.

Bahamian taxpayers are entitled to this information — after all it is their money that is making all of this possible.