EDITOR, The Tribune.
I am offended when an agency like the Royal Bahamas Defence Force uses straight-up public relations releases to pat themselves on the back that they can defend our borders and resources, fishing sector. Reality is they can’t.
Their charge under law is precisely to defend our sovereignty but over the past we have been grossly embarrassed that sailing sloops from Haiti carrying in some cases hundreds could sail quietly through the night the length of The Bahamas to the door of the Defence Force Base and not be seen.
There seems to be growing evidence that the RBDF relies now on the public - private yachting and fishing boats to give the RBDF intel as to where the Dominican fishing boats are and where the Haitian sailing sloops are.
To me, the RBDF has to be very close to impotency in their charge.
Yes, we have OPBAT but surely we, the RBDF must have control have total sight of intrusions from our southern waters and from Dominican Republic if not why not and if falling then what are we going to do about it? New leadership?
Slick public relations releases are not the way…Bahamians on cruise boats sailing close to our southern waters have been calling into the RBDF intel - sorry Minister, sorry Prime Minister, this is beyond acceptable that the RBDF cannot create appropriate surveillance before a Haitian sailing sloop passes and heads to safety around Nassau with the RBDF totally blind to it and its occurrence…
Many are talking - how can this happen? I agree but the serious issue what is going to happen to stop it? We spent $240m on boats and new harbours!
W THOMPSON
Nassau,
July 16, 2018.
Comments
Economist 5 years, 8 months ago
The RBDF is a joke. No one takes them seriously because they don't take their job seriously.
Perhaps we should consider abolishing the RBDF as the only thing they do is run multi-million dollar vessels up on reefs and cost the Country millions in salaries and expenses.
We need a real RBDF, not these hacks.
Porcupine 5 years, 8 months ago
Until we focus on the idea of "getting a job done" and get away form this emphasis on who gets the job, we can rally go nowhere. Having a job is quite a different than doing a job. We seem unable to make this distinction.
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