The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune

Prime Minister, God graced you with another birthday.

You are in the hallowed realm of being a septuagenarian political leader. Of course, some express that you should carry your “old you know what”. But Bernie Sanders just gave us a stellar example of the Ronnie Butler popular song, “age ain’t nuttin but a number”.

Sanders at 74 years, was the most energetic and exciting candidate in the recent US Presidential primary campaign and commanded the youth vote. Now don’t let that get you forward thinking with grand plans, as I have assured “your Bernie” that she will not be sitting in a rocking chair waiting for you to come home from parliamentary meetings.

Bahamian politics has evolved into a nasty and vicious game since your entry in 1977. I hope it’s not a reflection of who we are now as a people. The offensive lyrics against you and your family by a sick mind was indeed a low level in Bahamian public discourse. Listening to some of the apologists of pure filth reminded me of the words of the Bahama Journal columnist, Rough Cut, who said, “freedom of speech is one hell of a thing. It surely is as any fool with time on his hands and spit in his mouth can spew anything, any damned view he wishes”. Mommy, your greatest defender, would have an answer for them in Psalm 35, “Plead my cause O Lord with them that strive with me: Fight against them that fight against me. Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: Let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt”.

As your 40 plus years in public life winds down, you can be proud of the commitment you have made to the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and the development of the Bahamas. Equally as important is that you operated at senior levels of power for so long a period, without bringing any shame or scandal to your family, your party and your country. Your children and their children will always be able to walk confidently in our Bahamas with their heads held high knowing that their daddy in public life acted with integrity, respect and honour. That’s the only legacy that should concern you. The political stuff created by you and those before you will be dissected and debated for generations.

As this election season quickly approaches, you know the things you have to fix. Pushing National Health Insurance through forcefully is a positive development. Many political leaders had to manoeuvre through landmines placed by powerful lobby groups against expanded health coverage. President Obama had a tough time forging a consensus with the US insurance industry on his health plans, accusing them of smoke and mirror studies to support their positions. Obama claimed that “they submit these phony studies as a prescription and say take one of these and call us in a decade. Well not this time”. President Lyndon B Johnson, who won medicare over fierce opposition in 1965, was a tough, foul-mouthed Texan. His position was, “Don’t ever argue with me about health. I’ll go a hundred million or a billion on health or education. I don’t argue about that any more than I argue about Lady Bird (wife) buying flour. You got to have flour and coffee in your house. Education and health. I’ll spend the goddamn money. I may cut back some tanks. But not on health”.

PM, you are in good company.

The two major election issues are jobs and crime. Baha Mar and Sandals were temporary interruptions in job growth that will both be fixed. Excuse the ignorance expressed in the community on your government’s posture toward the Baha Mar developer’s strategy to save his investment. The negotiation of project Heads of Agreement with the Bahamas Government is already a tedious, frustrating and expensive process. It would be a nightmare for government analysts, policy makers, bankers and investors to have to review the implications of Chapter 11 scenarios on Bahamas domiciled investments. To allow any developer of substantial Bahamian property a right to invoke Chapter 11 provisions, the minute they run into problems, would be a fundamental flaw in Bahamas Government public policy.

Notwithstanding the recent employment shocks in the hotel sector, historical analysis shows that there is no Bahamian government stronger on job creation than PLP governments that you have lead. If the Bahamas Chamber Of Commerce in biblical expression removed the “beam from thine own eye and you will see clearly”, they would embrace your government for both its jobs and crime initiatives. The Free National Movement (FNM) government presided over a strong economy during their tenure in office from 1997 to 2002. They created 18,055 jobs. Your PLP administration took control of the ship of state in 2002 and by 2007 had created 18,530 jobs. In this see-saw power struggle, the FNM again seized the keys to economic direction in 2007-2012, presiding over a severe contraction in job creation as the economy lost 10,840 jobs. The people of the Bahamas elevated you to power again in May, 2012, and even in these tough times, the employed labour force grew from 160,650 to 188,360 persons by May, 2016. Clearly, this represents 27,710 jobs created in the economy, irrespective of the Baha Mar debacle. Creating jobs is a function of creativity, salesmanship and market confidence.

For fair-minded Bahamians who determine judgment on objective data, the country’s crime statistics are encouraging. I heard B J (Nottage) sing on the national news forecast. The last time BJ sang was days long ago, when he mesmerised young women with his James Brown rendition of “Please, Please Please”. Today, he is visibly a happier man. Overall crime has decreased by 29 per cent since you assumed office in May, 2012. There is an abatement in the vexing issue of daily murders. There are 25 less this year than same period in 2015. July 2015 was bloody, recording 14 murders. July 2016 there were none. In August 2015, there were 11 murders, so far there are two in this current month. In business, if such reductions in costs were being recorded, profitability would be improved and stock prices would increase. BJ’s stock along with his police force team should go up. Progress in curbing crime is being achieved.

PM, you have been around long enough to know that there are many who could care less about positive statistical data you spout. Their agenda is simply to take you and your government out. But there are others who are truly concerned about the direction of their country and give credence to positive achievements of your government. Nassau Guardian satirist, Sideburns, very effectively captured this revealing view in his August 15 rendering. He portrayed a cartoon character reading Nassau Guardian headlines of murder filled months and the same character acknowledging no murder in the month of July, “not a peep, no praise, yinna wrong for dat”. The rancid odour of that Englishman’s contrived views, relative to you and your party, still lingers Prime Minister. Almost weekly, there is a partisan ad nauseum regurgitation of skewed opinion pieces that sound so much like him.

Leadership in tough times can be lonely. People who praised you yesterday will burn you at the stake today. Sometimes you are not sure in which direction to tread with all of the competing voices in your head. Mahatma Gandhi said, “whenever you are in doubt and troubled on what to do, apply the following test: Recall the face of the poorest and weakest man you may have seen and ask yourself if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him. Do that and your heart will always be at peace.” Take Gandhi’s advice and let the historians debate your legacy. Enjoy your birthday. Now let’s go win an election.

GARY CHRISTIE

Nassau

August 21, 2016