Fake polls and reality
We the people gave Minnis and the then opposition FNM a massive victory in May, 2017. We were allured by the many, now bogus, promises made by them plus we were dead tired of brother Christie. Since being elected it is to be admitted that back-to-back events, the hurricanes and now the ongoing pandemic created grave difficulties for the incoming government. It is how it reacted to and dealt with the effects that has now turned many Bahamians off with the PM and his halting administration.
Stay out of trouble for a year - or go to prison
A 21-year-old man who was caught with $20 worth of marijuana must stay out of trouble for a year to avoid spending three months behind bars.
Unvaccinated treated like scapegoats
When the coronavirus began to spread across the world in the first quarter of 2020, we heard the word asymptomatic so frequently that even those who had never known the word before can now comfortably use it in a sentence correctly. That word has fallen into disuse and now unvaccinated is the only word being touted by the media. There is not a news bulletin aired without unvaccinated being mentioned. The unvaccinated are being likened to asymptomatic I presume. The hospitalised are mainly unvaccinated. The dying is unvaccinated.
South Africa
I am deeply disappointed that South African National Congress is failing to tackle the challenges and crises in South Africa. ANC is a political party which is well managed and has strong leadership unlike the Zimbabwean ZANU PF political party. I am urging ANC and its leadership to address the deep issues that is threatening the peace and economic prosperity of South Africa urgently.
Taking flight?
The Minister of Health, the Hon Renward Wells (FNM-Bamboo Town) said the other evening at Holy Trinity Activities Centre that once the PM rings the bell that the FNM party is ready to take flight. I view Wells as a reasonably intelligent individual perhaps not the Einstein that he reputed to be by self-promotion, but a modicum of common sense.
Ban oil drilling
For the first time in over 14 years there are no active foreign oil drilling licenses in Bahamian waters. We applaud the government for refusing to renew Challenger Energy Company’s (aka Bahamas Petroleum Company) licenses because they have failed to pay their basic fees. Yet we are still vulnerable to the risks of oil drilling in our waters from future corporate misadventures. With no possible legal barriers remaining, the time is NOW to lead boldly and ban future drilling for oil while charting a course for a sustainable blue economy.
Reaching immunity
Looking at the latest Bahamian vaccination statistics, we are falling far short of herd immunity, which is also defined by the WHO as “the indirect protection from an infectious disease that happens when a population is immune either through vaccination or immunity developed through previous infection.”
Sovereign Wealth Fund
There has been a lot of chatter in the news and on talk shows about our national treasure and the need for a Sovereign Wealth Fund, and it has become tiresome listening to all the banter around Aragonite.
Early elections - is it best time?
Please permit me to comment on recent news reports concerning the possibility that the Prime Minister may call an early election with some suggesting that it may be held as early as August 2021.
Character references
I just went to Quakoo Street Police station to put in for a character reference. I was shocked and annoyed to hear that all character references must be picked up from Thompson Boulevard due to COVID.
COVID windfall
A private healthcare institution was in The Tribune bragging about its $7m-plus revenue intake from the 100,000 COVID-19 tests it conducted in 2020. When told that her impoverished subjects lacked bread, the 18th century French Queen Mary Antoinette is alleged to have replied that they should be given cake. Sharp-witted Bahamians will immediately wonder why I mentioned Marie Antoinette.
Raise age of consent
I read in The Nassau Guardian that the legal consent age for sexual intercourse is 16. A 16-year-old cannot vote in The Bahamas. One must be at least 18. Engaging in an intimate relationship with the opposite sex is, in my opinion, a far weightier matter than casting your ballot.
Our leaders and foreign investment
It’s now official. None other than Minister of State for Finance Kwasi Thompson (champion of the investment-begging Commercial Enterprises Act) has conceded that The Bahamas actually dwarfs all of its colleagues in the latest UN report on Foreign Direct Investment.
Zimbabwean refugees
It is traumatizing and shocking that the United Kingdom has been falsely convinced by Zimbabwean president Mnangagwa that the human rights situation in Zimbabwe has dramatically improved and therefore asylum seekers can be deported to Zimbabwe.
China’s rise is peaceful and unstoppable
At the recent celebrations for the centennial anniversary of the Communist Party of China attended by 70,000 people and watched by fellow Chinese all over the world, General Secretary Xi Jinping confidently announced that China has fulfilled its first centenary goal of turning China into a moderately prosperous society by putting an end to absolute poverty. This is a historic achievement for a century-old party, who was born in the throes of a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society.
