“I laid out what I perceive to be the issues, and they will be dealt with” – Prime Minister Davis regarding the energy crisis that The Bahamas is currently experiencing.

I find this statement very troubling because then one must question if the prime minister is addressing the truth or the truth as he perceives it?  This differentiation could be a problem.

That word matters.

Because there is a difference between describing what you perceive to be the problem and acknowledging what citizens are actually experiencing.

Bahamians do not have to perceive a blackout.

They know when the lights go off.

They know when the food in the refrigerator spoils.

They know when a business cannot operate.

They know when elderly people, children and vulnerable residents are left without air conditioning in extreme heat.

They know when generators become necessities rather than conveniences.

And they certainly know when the electricity disappears while the government is telling them that the system is being transformed.

With this statement, Prime Minister Davis seems to be telling the country that he does not see things as being as bad as the people experiencing them claim that they are because he apparently perceives the blackouts as a minor setback to the citizens that actually suffer through the, each and every day.

The country has been dealing with repeated outages across New Providence and the Family Islands. In June, Energy Minister JoBeth Coleby-Davis acknowledged that officials had underestimated the severity of the outages. Earlier that month, she had maintained that BPL had sufficient generation capacity for the summer.

And then came more outages.

By August, Grand Cay residents had endured prolonged interruptions, while other islands and communities continued experiencing unreliable electricity. The crisis became serious enough for the Prime Minister to address the nation on August 17.

The lack of empathy by the prime minister in light of all of this was totally unacceptable.

And, in a moment of almost perfect political symbolism, some residents were actually experiencing another outage while the Prime Minister was explaining the country’s electricity crisis.

You really couldn’t script it.

The lights were out.

The Prime Minister was talking about why the lights were out.

One would have figured that after the power went off seconds into the national address by Prime Minister Davis, that he would be more empathic toward the citizens of The Bahamas that elected him to his second consecutive term, but this does not seem to be the case.

“PM on BPL Crisis ‘The buck stops here’” – The Tribune

Excerpt from this article; “PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis yesterday defended Energy Minister JoBeth Coleby-Davis amid questions over her relative silence amid ongoing controversy at Bahamas Power and Light (BPL), declaring that “the bucks stops here”.

Mr Davis made the comments after touring schools with Education minister Chester Cooper, where he was questioned about the fallout from BPL’s allegations of overtime abuse, its unions’ work to rule mandate, and the silence of the minister responsible for the electricity provider.

Mr Davis said: “The buck stops here, and that’s the answer you’ll give to those who are concerned about whether she is quiet or not.”

The prime minister also declined to comment on whether members of BPL’s management would be held responsible for the alleged abuse of overtime hours.

But he said he was not concerned about the work-to-rule action.

“I gave a national address on the subject matter. I laid out what I perceive to be the issues and they’ll be dealt with,” the prime minister.

So, now we have Prime Minister Davis telling us that “THE BUCK STOPS HERE” [with him], and it is a good thing that he finally realizes this but the question is exactly what does he perceive it to be and why when questioned about the state of the power crisis here then refuse to answer any questions?

Is it time for him to actually begin to show true leadership and do what it actually takes no matter the fall out or does he perceive this to be what he counted on to get elected and then re-elected – “likeability”?

Right now, only time will tell but how but more must the citizens of The Bahamas suffer while he shows us exactly what this means?

The Commonwealth of The Bahamas deserves better.

END