EDITOR, The Tribune
I agreed with the PLP when they opposed the sale of majority shares in BTC to a private company. Now, several years on, I must say that my position has completely reversed. We now have two telecoms companies and while I am happy to say that I do not use BTC, I understand that their service and standards have improved exponentially through competition.
And what was the anxiety really all about? What did we really lose – revenue? Hardly, the old BTC was bleeding money just like the rest of the public ‘assets’ that Bahamians think we need to hold on to for sentimental and irrational reasons. Meanwhile they are like so many anchors around our neck, dragging us down to the bottom of the sea.
Hats off to Hubert Ingraham, who knew better. He was always the visionary and 10 steps ahead of the rest of us. I now support the privatisation of as many of our national encumbrances as is feasible. It can only lead to a lightening of the strain on the public purse, better service, quality and standards.
Take for example BahamasAir. It costs us some $20 million a year to run this dinosaur. For what? What does this achieve for us? Nothing at all, I submit. We are an archipelago of nations where at least 30 islands need some form of airlift. That means regular scheduled flights, airports, ground staff etc. have to be in place. Even though many of the flights may be half empty, the plane still has to go, it still has to have a crew and a pilot, the airports have to be staffed every day.
It is virtually impossible for one entity to take on all of this responsibility and make money. So, why not privatise any and all aspects of this mammoth responsibility to companies willing to take it on and which have an interest in making money? If several airlines want to take over specific routes, let them. If someone wants to manage an airport, or several or all, I say wonderful. All these people will have to pay the government to play, meaning an economic shot in the arm for Bahamians, and because they do not have a national treasury to fall back on, you had best believe these companies will work their hardest to ensure standards, efficiency and customer satisfaction.
The same goes for education. It is a well known fact that the D average grade for graduating students is really an F from the public schools, boosted by higher grades from the private institutions. For decades, government has shouldered the responsibility of educating the vast majority of students in this country, in the name of keeping schooling free. But, are they really being educated? Can we call them scholars when they are allowed to leave school functionally illiterate through social promotion?
The government divesting itself of this responsibility need not mean that all students will be charged money for school. If we gave half or even two thirds of the more than $200 million we spend annually on education to have a private, professional company with experience in rehabilitative education programmes to take over these schools, I guarantee you the national average would shoot up within five years. Meanwhile, the public would save $50 to $100 million annually.
So why not? The usual answer is jobs. These private companies will fire people! Perhaps they will initially, but then look again at the BTC example. There are now two thriving companies, both doing their best to succeed, both trying to employ the best and the brightest, which leads young people interested in a telecoms career to try and excel in order to make the big dollars, leading to higher standards all around, higher salaries and more people employed in the sector across the two companies at the end of the day.
The time for small government in The Bahamas has come. The tired, stagnant, slow, decrepit old system by which we have been living has failed us. It is time now to take these anchors from around our necks so we can float to the surface and breathe some fresh air.
ESSY BOOTLE
Nassau,
November 19, 2018.
Comments
Porcupine 5 years, 4 months ago
While I sympathize with your sentiments, I disagree on principle. Owning is different than managing. I have run many businesses which I did not own. I did so in an efficient and profitable manner for those who did own the businesses. I made the owners millions and millions of dollars. If the Bahamian people had owned these companies, they too would have benefited. Maybe even had their taxes lowered. We get confused here about ownership and management. The failure you mention is due to political meddling in management, not ownership. Hire good managers, let them do their jobs, and you will have a profitable company. This is not rocket science. The race for privatization is a race to the bottom for humanity. Do we not see the many many downsides having watched the world's money and resources rush into the hands of the already rich, and getting immensely richer? The confusion between ownership and management is purposeful to encourage all governments to divest themselves of their most valuable assets. The people's assets. Russian oligarchs were created by the wholesale give-away, (privatization) of that country's resources. Private ownership places the greatest emphasis on profits. Fine. But, not profits at all costs. If the wave of privatizations occurring around the world, and the resulting crushing of humanity at their service doesn't concern you, then you have bought into the privatization lies hook, line and sinker. The Bahamas, it seems, has never had a model to be proud of. Many governmental organizations in the U.S. were both profitable and efficient. The U.S. Postal Service comes to mind, where for many decades they provided excellent service, well paying jobs and contributed substantially to business ease, and the economy overall. Only when the "privatization" gurus got wind of the potential for their own greedy little paws did the sabotage of this institution begin. Again, it is not necessary to sell off your assets to have a socially profitable company. All that is needed is honest, technically competent, management given the leeway to do their jobs. I'll let you come to your own conclusions about the true failures of so many institutions in this country. Ownership had noting to do with these failures, management did. That we have so many ins
DDK 5 years, 4 months ago
You both have valid points. Unfortunately, Porcupine, our current Bahamian system of governance is not up to the task of management because each successive government treats The People's assets as its own private property, deriving as much wealth as it can for its own coffers while at the same time allowing the assets of the Country to rot due to lack of maintenance and proactive initiatives. Privatization by the wealthy allows the wealthy to flourish while eliminating the middle class and enslaving the working class. Now that they have discovered the joys of taxation of The People and the gambling houses, the politicians and their civil service are acting like lunatics in a candy store, aided and abetted by the unions, and the situation of governance has drastically deteriorated. The only thing we all seem to be certain of is that the status quo can not be maintained. The answer does seem to lie in some form of social democracy and therein lies the rub - how does the country peacefully go about affecting the needed changes....
Porcupine 5 years, 4 months ago
DDK,
What's so great about peacefully? That's what you and I prefer. But why? A short look at history reveals that in most every major social movement that causes change, blood has been shed, people die for their right to be heard.. So often it seems, nothing can be done without the commitment to do whatever it takes. The state has the power, the police, the bullets, the bombs and the judges on their side. The state is owned by the richest among us. Might makes right. I applaud the people who put their bodies on the line. Too often however, we take up arms against those who are on our side, while the elite have divided and conquered us while they get ever richer. At our expense. As I have said before, the vast majority of Bahamians have more in common with their brothers and sisters in Haiti than they do with the MP's and businessmen in this country. This is a fact. The Haitians whom I know are simply here to create a better life for themselves. The MPs, lawyers, web shop owners and businessmen who should care about the welfare of their fellow countrymen, simply don't give a shit about us. They only seem to care about MORE for themselves. Who, honestly, is the real enemy of the Bahamian people?
DDK 5 years, 4 months ago
Hmmmmm......
Porcupine 5 years, 4 months ago
I like that comment, DDK.
bogart 5 years, 4 months ago
PREACH PORUQPINE...PREACH...,!!!!!....YOU DOING A BETTER JOB THAN MANY OF THE PREACHERS...WHO HAVE A JOB TO DO....BUT LEAVES MUCH WANTING....BUT....CLAIM....TAX EXEMPTIONS....FOR HAVING A CHURCH......BUT SAVE SPACE IN THE FRONT...PEWS....FOR THE POLITICIANS...
sheeprunner12 5 years, 4 months ago
If the public service was a meritocracy with the proper checks and balances ......... as compared to the political cronyism system that it is today ........... then the Govt machinery could work better
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