The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Opposition’s deputy leader yesterday branded Prime Minister Perry Christie’s address to a Jamaican investment conference as a classic example of failing to “practice what you preach”.

K P Turnquest told Tribune Business that Mr Christie’s speech to the Jamaica Stock Exchange’s Regional Investments and Capital Markets Conference was “inconsistent” with the Government’s actions in the Bahamas.

Agreeing that several statements effectively amounted to ‘gross hypocrisy’, Mr Turnquest described Mr Christie’s address as “a brilliant piece of prose”.

He told Tribune Business:

“There are many inconsistencies with words versus actions.

“In looking at it, it’s quite interesting that once the Prime Minister leaves the island, he becomes the guardian of transparency and accountability, but doesn’t seem to practice the same virtues at home.

“Even when he’s talking about initiatives, and that they need to be done, it’s not consistent with the policies he’s advancing.”

Mr Turnquest’s comments are likely to strike a chord with many in the private sector, who have privately told Tribune Business that Mr Christie’s Jamaican address appears to be describing an ‘ideal world’ that is far from the current Bahamian reality.

The speech, which was clearly written for an international, non-Bahamian audience, contained a number of ‘eye openers’ that will likely be seized upon by Mr Christie and the Government’s political opponents, together with their private sector critics.

For instance, the address devoted a lengthy section to ‘good governance’, tying this concept extensively to the Government’s management of the public finances.

“The management of public finances is another area where good governance is of paramount importance,” Mr Christie’s speech read.

“Fiscal consolidation is vital for countries in the region to avoid inflation, while maintaining fiscal and monetary stability and finding resources for public service administration, developmental needs and social welfare expenditure.

“Transparency and accountability, economic management through improved management of public resources through reforms covering public sector institutions, and low levels of corruption, are other core elements of good governance necessary for meaningful economic development.”

While many in the Bahamian business community will doubtless agree with these objectives, they will also be quick to point out that the Christie administration has come nowhere near on delivering on its ‘transparency and accountability’ promises.

And, where the public finances are concerned, the Government has yet to deliver on its February 2015 pledge to issue a ‘White Paper’ for consultations on whether the Bahamas should implement some type of ‘fiscal rules’ or Fiscal Responsibilities legislation.

That was supposed to be released by the summer of 2015, with recommendations submitted to the Cabinet by year-end, yet neither goal was achieved.

The Government, too, has been less than transparent with how its ‘revenue windfall’ from the new Value-Added Tax (VAT) has been spent.

Yet the Prime Minister said in Jamaica: “Good governance will be an important determinant of the pace and character of economic development in the next decade.

“The preservation of the rule of law, protection of property rights, safeguarding of human and fundamental rights, an efficient and independent justice, the eradication of waste, prudence in public expenditure and a zero tolerance of bribery and corruption are among the facets of good governance that must prevail in the region if our economies are to grow and we are to correctly position the Caribbean in the international arena.”

Bahamian eyebrows will also likely be raised over Mr Christie’s pledge that his government is “committed to building an economic environment in which free enterprise can flourish”, with many believing this has yet to take effect - the Business Licence concerns raised this week but the latest example.

The Prime Minister’s address focused heavily on education and equipping the workforce with the necessary skills to compete in the global economy.

“No nation will realise its full economic potential with a workforce that does not have the requisite skills and education to be productive contributors to development and to be engaged as full participants in society,” he said

“Fundamental to the positioning of the Caribbean must be an emphasis on a workforce that is, both in fact and perception, an excellent value – appropriately educated, skilled for their functions, healthy and functioning in a safe environment.”

On the education front, he added: “According to research by the Caribbean Examinations Council, in 2009 only two-thirds of candidates in Caribbean Secondary Examinations achieved satisfactory grades in an overall 36 subjects.

“We cannot be satisfied that these levels of performance will position our workforce for the challenges we contend with across the Caribbean today, though we know our task is greater, as we must also prepare our youth for the challenges of tomorrow.

“The implications are not just economic but social, as a citizenry unprepared to be productive becomes the recruiting ground for much of the violence, criminality and social maladjustment that plague so many of our territories.”

Few would disagree with the Prime Minister, but the Government was undertaken precious few real reforms to make these objectives a reality, in a sign that the ‘talk’ and plans are not being backed up by execution.