A great silence has fallen over the country as the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie has ‘pulled the rabbit out of the hat’ but many of the silent voices are beginning to ask the same question; is the ‘rabbit’ still alive?

“Baha Mar agreement, but PM gives few details” – The Nassau Guardian

Excerpt from this article; “Prime Minister Perry Christie announced last night that the government and the Export-Import Bank of China have signed an agreement that was approved by the Supreme Court yesterday afternoon that will see the derailed Baha Mar project sold and opened before the end of the 2016/2017 winter season.

Christie said under the new deal, former employees and unsecured creditors will be paid a ‘significant part, and possibly all’ of the outstanding money owed to them.

However, Christie’s announcement, which he hailed as a ‘signal achievement for the Bahamas’, requiring a ‘herculean’ effort’, was void of a named buyer, the cost to complete Baha Mar, what concessions the government had to conceded to facilitate the deal, and how many employees will be engaged.”

Indeed, the news that Baha Mar will soon be open, again, is great news; barring the fact that a buyer has yet to be identified, there are speculations by the Progressive Liberal Party government that there is a ‘list’ of interested parties.

So yes, we fall to the feet of the Prime Minister, then raise and give him the highest honors for finally correcting a serious problem that only he and his government had needlessly  created through their sheer ineptitude and incompetence.

Then there are those of us that wonder just how long has the Prime Minister had this ‘rabbit’ in his hat and has allowed the Bahamian people that were depending on Baha Mar; remember over 2000 were sent home when the property was closed as it went into receivership, to suffer from the lack of employment until the ‘right time’…..#ELECTION2017

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is within their nature.

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It all began back in late 2012 with strange rumblings at the public landfill.  It was said at the time that two top Progressive Liberal Party Member of Parliament were locked in a ‘silent war’ over contracts to control the landfill and then there was the introduction of Stellar Waste and the Waste-To-Energy proposal and a letter of intent (LOI) , now we are here.

“Something stinks – There were two LOI’s – DMP’s name was on the first contract” – The National Review; The Nassau Guardian.

Excerpt from this article; “Something stinks and it is not the New Providence Landfill that has been at the center of plans by Stellar Water To Energy (Bahamas) for a $600 million waste-energy plant.

The letter of intent (LOI) for Stellar that was reportedly the one referenced by Minister of State for Finance Michael Halkitis when he wrote the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) on May 26, 2014 about the planned project, contains a line for the signature of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Works Philip Brave Davis.

But six weeks later, Renward Wells, then parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Works, signed another similar drafted LOI, which has a space for his signature, not Davis’ signature.

This  discovery made by National Review in its ongoing investigation into the years long controversy raised the most critical question yet in this debacle : Why was the new LOI made up and why did it suddenly provide for Wells’ signature and not the deputy prime ministers’?”

If we all remember well, Renward Wells refused to say if he had signed the LOI at someone’s behest, even after being fired from the position as parliamentary secretary and even after leaving the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and joining the Free National Movement (FNM), strange but even more strange is the Deputy Prime Minister’s name being taken out of the entire situation even after the ‘cold war’ being waged over the city dump had become common knowledge but then this is not the first time that the deputy prime minister’s name has miraculously disappeared from documents that could possibly cast him in a negative light.

It was the height of the “Toggie and Bobo” affair, when there was the introduction of certain affidavits; one set with the name of the deputy prime minister and another set without.

“Rollins: Affidavit shows DPM Davis coached ‘criminals” – The Nassau Guardian (March 18^th 2016)

Excerpt from this article; “In a move that that fuelled contentious debate that spanned two meetings of the House of Assembly, Fort Charlotte MP Dr. Andre Rollins attempted to table affidavits, one which he claimed names Deputy Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis as someone who ‘coached’ two individuals who the government calls ‘criminals’.

The affidavits were in relation to the alleged murder plot outlined by billionaire Lyford Cay resident Louis Bacon and several members of Save the Bays against wealth fashion designer Peter Nygard and lawyer Keod Smith.

Rollins claimed he was tabling a ‘doctored’ affidavit, as well as the unredacted version of the affidavit, which repeatedly mentions Davis.”

It is indeed very interesting, yes that is the word, interesting the way in which duplicate documents continue to be ‘unearth’ in ‘deals’ that the Progressive Liberal Party has had dealing with the name of the Deputy Prime Minister, maybe he would like to explain this to the rest of us.

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is within their nature.

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I am at a cross-road of emotion because I do not know whether to laugh, cry, feel deeply insulted or just greatly disappointed in the Minister of Labor’s, Shane Gibson, recent response to the situation at Sandals.

“Gibson: Job fair very suspicious – Minister questions Sandals’ motive” – The Nassau Guardian

Excerpt from this article; “Minister of Labor Shane Gibson said yesterday it is ‘very suspicious’ of Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort to host a job fair beginning Monday, a week after make more than 600 workers redundant, as the hotel closed for renovations.

‘Sandals said to the public and to us that u had no choice and said their lawyers advised them the only way to deal with employees was to terminate them, giving the impression that if they did not have to terminate them, they wouldn’t,” Gibson told The Guardian.

‘Well if they didn’t have a choice and they terminated them, why would they turn around to those good employees and say reapply for your job?

‘Why not bring back the employees?”

Minister this is the very same question that I asked of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) in 2012, when they ‘terminated’ many government employees and asked them to reapply for their jobs; so for Minister Gibson to now say, “I was trying to be as open and objective as I could be about this, is disingenuous at best because he is quite familiar with the ’purging process’; the question is what is his government prepared to do about it?

If this government can and has already done this very same thing its very own citizens, what will Minister Gibson now do since he has already come out and said “…….there are labor laws in place and the government cannot start a precedent of dictating to private business owners how to conduct their affairs’, not even if it is in the best interest of Bahamians?

Is this what was learned from the ‘teachable moment’ of Baha Mar?

But since this government has already shown that it is fully prepared to do this to their own, how can they reasonably expect or demand better from others?

As just as a matter of information, I am at this cross roads becasue I find it utterly, insulting, humorous, laughable and disappointing that the minister would make such a statement and act as if he is lost as to what is happenng here, thereby questioning the intelligence of the Bahamian people.

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is within their nature.

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There is a saying that you must remember your lie and stick to it; I think that the government is in desperate need of counseling on perpetrating lies; they tell a lot but just cannot seem to keep up with them from day to day.

Each time that the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) government has failed the people of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas through their sheer incompetence and ineptitude and have had their shortcomings highlighted, they have accused others of playing ‘politics’, this is a shameless act perpetrated by a government that has mastered the art of playing politics with the lives of the Bahamian people.

“Gibson: FNM is exploiting cuts – Party ‘trying to play politics over Sandals job losses’ – The Tribune

Excerpt from this article; “The Free National Movement (FNM) is attempting to make the termination of more than 600 Sandal Royal Bahamian employees political despite sending thousands to the unemployment line when the party was last in office, Labor Minister Shane Gibson has told The Tribune.

While the opposition plays ‘political games’ with the lives of the redundant workers, Mr. Gibson said the government is trying to get many of them as possible rehired by the hotel.

During an interview yesterday, Mr. Gibson called the situation ‘unfortunate’ as an industrial agreement was not in place at the time of the redundancies.

Asked to respond to criticism that the Christie administration was blindsided by Sandals’ decision, the minister said there were labor laws in place and the government cannot start a precedent of dictating to private sector business owners how to conduct their affairs.”

Clearly Minister Gibson has forgotten the entire Baha Mar Saga and why that $3.5bn property is sitting unopened on Cable Beach but we will get back to that.

Let us begin with the minister’s claim of the situation being ‘unfortunate’ and ask yourself while it is unfortunate was it avoidable?  And remember that you are dealing with a person, in Minister Gibson that ‘cut his political teeth’ dealing with unions and labor issues.

“Gibson blasts Sandals as 600 lose their jobs” – the Tribune, 16^th August 2016

Excerpt from this article; “Labour Minister Shane Gibson said his ministry was given very little notice by Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort of its decision to make more than 600 employees redundant yesterday so it could conduct renovations.

However, Mr. Gibson’s suggestion was denied by a source connected with Sandals who told The Tribune that high-ranking officials of the resort informed Prime Minister Perry Christie of the intention to make employees redundant.

‘It was with deep disappointment that the Minister of labour received a letter from Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort, informing us that the contracts of more than 600 employees would be terminated today as a result of Sandals’ closure,” Mr. Gibson said during a communication in the House of Assembly yesterday.

‘My ministry first learned of the closure on Tuesday, August 1, with the rest of the country when information was leaked to the media and printed in the local newspapers.  I requested a meeting with officials from Sandals on August 3.

‘We met with Chief Executive Officer of Sandals Resorts International Adam Stewart as well as members of the executive and legal teams.  During that meeting, we asked them to consider laying employees off instead of making then redundant.  They told us that they would consider this suggestion and get back to us within 24 hours.  However, after not hearing from them, my ministry wrote Sandals a letter in August 4, requesting the resort’s lastest position and further details on the porposed closure. ‘Sandals has yet to respond to my ministry,’ Mr. Gibson added, ‘Instead resort representatives wrote the attorney general and copied the Ministry of Labour on Friday, August 12, informing us of their decision.”

Theoretically, what Sandals has done is against the law, theoretically Ministry Gibson knows exactly what they are doing and have done and theoretically he could have and should have acted against such a course of action being able to come to pass but he has not but yet wishes only now to offer excuses for his ineptitude; this within itself is just as much as a slap in the face as Sandals, days after firing 600 person, then posting in the dailies that they are about to have a job fair; isn’t anyone serious anymore? And how do people get away with such blatant acts against the Bahamian people with such a ‘labor friendly’ government of the people in charge?  This is utter madness.

Now we will a wait for the minister to have these people rehired why he also finds jobs for the 5,000 misplaced by the ineptitude of his government’s action at Baha Mar.

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is their nature.

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“Smith wants PM to stay – Deputy Speaker says Christie best to lead PLP into election” – The Nassau Guardian

Excerpt from this article; “Deputy Speaker Dion Smith said yesterday that although Prime Minister Perry Christie has made some mistakes and some ‘unpopular decisions’, he is among the ‘new generation of leaders’ who have asked Christie to stay on as leader of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP)

‘His keen insight and focus [have] gone a long way in steering our country out of treacherous waters’ said Smith” 

While I respect Mr. Smiths opinion I caution him on over reaching with the “His keen insight statement…”, someone just may question your motive or mental state but never the less we have a ‘new generation leader’ coming out in support of the present leader of that party, the Hon. Perry Christie but why would any ‘new generation leader’ put themselves on the line like this for the Prime Minister?

In my opinion, one the greatest mistakes made by the Prime Minister has been his deafening silence on issues of dire national importance; one being the situation at Sandals right now, where over 600 employees have been terminated; yes people they have been fired no amount of ‘spin’ changes this fact. 

Then there is the Rubis matter; where Prime Minister Christie’s ‘favorite son’; Marathon Member of Parliament, Jerome Fitzgerald, seems to have been ‘protected by the Prime Ministers silence and/or inability to take control of the situation, which has brought us to this.

“Rubis Report is complete but still under review” – The Tribune

Excerpt from this article; “The independent review commissioned by the government into the delayed release of a report on the ramifications of the 2012 Rubis gas leak in the Marathon constituency has been completed – but is still under review.

Attorney General Allyson Maynard-Gibson confirmed yesterday that the report conducted by retired Justice Joseph Strachan was under review by her office but did not provide a timeframe for its release to the public.

More than a year since it was ordered, Mrs. Maynard-Gibson told The Tribune that once checked by her office, the document would then be sent to Cabinet for further review.”

At least this time the Attorney General is acknowledging the existence of a report but a year after it was commissioned by her, her office is now going to review a report ‘investigating’ why her office withheld the first report from the public for over a year?  The first report being the one that detailed the hazardous conditions that the persons of the Rubis Marathon area were living under and possible ways to deal with it.

Mr. Prime Minister, surely you must address such issues if you are indeed the right man for the job and as Mr. Smith would put it ‘best to lead the PLP into election”.

Such an endorsement by ‘new generation’ leader, Dion Smith, makes one question his judgment but as he put is when asked for a possible mistake that Prime Minister Perry Christie has made he says, “As an example, maybe he [Prime Minister Perry Christie] made the mistake by not giving me more power, allowing me to do more to represent the new generation of leaders in this country,” Smith said, maybe this is why a ‘new generation leader’ would do such a thing.

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is their nature.

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There is a lot of talk behind closed doors by persons within the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), that secretly support Alfred Sears in his leadership bid.  They support his vision, as he suggests that the country [under the governance of the present Progressive Liberal Party] is on the wrong path and that to bring about positive change within the country a vision must be realized for the way forward, again suggesting that the present government is not on the right path or just does not have the best interest of the country at heart.

The question is will Mr. Sears be able to get enough people to openly support him and thereby gather enough support, stopping all of these ‘darkened back rooms whispers’, before the PLP holds its convention in November, if it indeed holds one.

“Sears: I will win” – The Nassau Guardian (08.15.2016)

Excerpt from this article; “A week after announcing that he intends to challenge Prime Minister Perry Christie at the Progressive Liberal Party’s (PLP) November convention, PLP Fort Charlotte candidate Alfred Sears yesterday made a definite statement” ‘I will win’.

‘I know if I can stand on conviction, first of all I prepare myself, and I am comfortable that I have the ability to advocate effectively on behalf of any course that I pursue,’ said Sears who was on The Guardian Radio talk show ‘Q&A’ with host Quincy Parker.’

In May of this year, Alfred Sears wrote an opinion piece in one of the morning dailies under the heading, “Sears: Abolish monarchy, limit PM’s powers”, from this moment the ‘whispers’ began; a talk of new leadership, new vision and a new direction not just for the country but also for the Progressive Liberal Party.

Excerpt from this article; “Insisting that the Progressive Liberal Party is best suited for  the Bahamas to address the myriad [of] national challenges, former Attorney General and PLP candidate of Fort Charlotte yesterday presented a package of recommendations to foster a ‘safe’ cohesive’ and economically robust Bahamas.”

As Mr. Sears ‘supporters’ continue to ‘speak in stained hisses and coughing sibilants’, seemingly afraid of their own shadows, there is a theory taking root overshadowing the message that his supporters seem so afraid to share; this theory and not their message, is that ‘Sears for Leader’ is nothing more than an election ploy perpetrated by a the PLP to attempt to show that democracy is still alive and well within the PLP and to also boost Mr. Sear’s appeal within the Fort Charlotte consistency, since he has not been involved in frontline politics for some time.

The problem with such a political strategy is that it plays on the very emotions of those, within the PLP and out of the organization, that seek a new direction and new vision and direction for the political organization.

If this is indeed the case, then Mr. Sears along with the others that would be a part of such a shameless fraud on the people of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas and the Fort Charlotte consistency should be highly condemned.

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is their nature.

END

“Police question two over the release of controversial song” – The Nassau Guardian

Excerpt from this article; “Police have two men in custody in relation to the release of an expletive-filled about Prime Minister Perry Christie, his family and others, head of the Central Detective Unit (CDU) Chief Superintendent Clayton Fernander said yesterday.

Pressed on whether the production of the song was a criminal offense, Fernander said: “We are working closely with the AG’s (Attorney General’s) Office and then whatever offenses – libel, defamation – we are going to look at all of that.  There are laws against that.”

It would seem that the Attorney General’s office will throw its full weight behind this case, as they should, because the song while it speaks to a deep sense of frustration with the present government clearly defames the character of certain members of the government, most notably the Prime Minister and his entire family but this case seems to highlight the manner in which law/justice is unevenly dished out in this country; because while the Attorney General and the police force now seek to find a case against the persons responsible for this song; where is the justice from the Attorney General’s office for the Marathons constituency against the persons within the Attorney General’s office that were instrumental in concealing the fact that persons health and lives were at risk in that area?

My point?

At least can we get the semblance of evenly applied justice in the country and wasn’t this matter turned over to a ‘private’ entity for review?

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is within their nature.

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“Sears has bad timing – Fitzgerald says leadership bid should come after election” – The Nassau Guardian (08.10.2016)

Excerpt from this article; “Attorney Alfred Sears’ bid for leader of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) would be best suited after the general election, according to Marathon MP Jerome Fitzgerald, who says that Sears’ chances of beating Prime Minister Christie at the PLP’s national convention in November are ‘very unlikely’.

Fitzgerald noted Sears is a well respected PLP who has demonstrated his commitment to the organization’s values, but said ‘that at the end of the day, timing is everything in life, and I just question his timing at this point because…the reality is that he has been out of politics for a number of years, he is not a member of Parliament, and will be asking those of us, who are members of Parliament, to support him over the prime minister, who is a member of parliament.”

Last weekend the Progressive Liberal Party’s candidate for Fort Charlotte, Alfred Sears, confirmed that he intends to challenge PLP Leader, Perry Christie for the leadership position of that party.  Mr. Sears promised a campaign not focused on personalities but rather said; “It will focus on a new vision in terms of how to turn our economy around, how to inspire our people, how to give young people within The Bahamas hope for the future’, indicating that the present governing Progressive Liberal Party government has failed the people in these key areas. Ever since he  made this announcement other members of the PLP party, ministers Obie Wilchcombe, Leslie Miller, Jerome Fitzgerald and others, have come out expressing their ‘gloom and doom predictions’ of Mr. Sears leadership bid against their failed leader.

Most of the persons that speak to the certain demise of Mr. Sears are all ‘veterans’ of the party, all except Jerome Fitzgerald, who is still seen as one of the ‘younger’ members of the party and a link in Mr. Christies’ ‘bridge to the future’; a bridge that has long since been abandoned by a leader who still would like to see himself as the only reason why the Progressive Liberal Party is not in turmoil and oddly enough Minister Fitzgerald agrees with these sentiments.  Oddly enough, Jerome Fitzgerald feels that Prime Minister Perry Christie is the ‘glue’ holding that party together and if he were to leave it would all fall into chaos and disorder, this in itself is a reason to bring in a new and younger leader with new vision to this party.

The other reason for speaking to Mr. Sear’s demise, if he were to confront Christie on the floor of the convention for leader, is the fact that he is not an member of parliament and has not been in active politics for the past few years but then shouldn’t that give him a better perspective as he speaks to his ‘concerns about the current direction of the country’.

It seems clear that the Progressive Liberal Party’s commitment to progression is not genuine, as they attempt to silently ‘cut down’ a younger member of the party with views of taking the party in a ‘new direction’ and maybe this is what this party needs; to be revamped and purged.

As a side note, as Minister Fitzgerald speaks to timing being everything in life, what was his thinking and rationale behind the timing of the release of the Rubis report, which he was forced to admit actually existed?

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is their nature.

END

“There is no parliamentary sovereignty in the Bahamas, there was never and there never can be no such thing under a written constitution.  It had been ancient practice, first to subject the ordinary person to the vexations of the King.”

Gilbert Morris

They say that absolute power corrupts, if this is the case then does the perception of absolute power drive you to madness?

“All MP’s should be outraged – Mitchell, Speaker again blast ruling in email case.” – The Nassau Guardian.

Excerpt from this article; “Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell last night suggested that millions of dollars from foreigners were funneled through a local law firm to get a challenge before the court’s against parliamentarians’ unfettered right to free speech.

Minister Mitchell speaks to a parliamentarian’s unfettered right to free speak as he defends the Jerome Fitzgerald in the act of the unconstitutional breach of another citizen’s privacy, just seeming to brush aside the citizens constitutional right to privacy, this callous act within itself should be disturbing to most Bahamians and is a sign of the ministers relentless pursuit of ‘absolute power’ but the question is can anyone in a democracy; any branch of government claim ‘absolute power’ over another branch of government or over its citizenry?  When we allow this to occur have we not then become autocratic in nature?

The Minister and his government has brought unsubstantiated charges against members of the STB’s organization, the claim of them being a political organization with intentions of destabilizing the Bahamas government, then sought to back up these unsubstantiated charges by exposing the private emails and private financial details of this organization, all while seeking to claim parliamentary privilege to violate their constitutional right to privacy and have done so by attempting to declare ‘absolute power’ over the judiciary and the people that they serve and they do this while displaying ‘outrage’ at being told that their ‘powers’ are not absolute and there is a responsibility that comes with the power that they have indeed been afforded and they have now been seen as abusing these powers; indeed these people have gone mad.

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is their nature.

END

About a week after Perry Christie announces that he will stay on as leader of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) because only he can provide the stability that the party needs going into the next general elections.  He also suggests that another reason for him staying on as leader is because he has been approached by several of the younger people in the party and asked to stay on.  Some of the younger members have made it clear that they were not approached and that they were not and are not encouraging Perry Christie to stay, while some of the older members have began to feverously back Mr. Christie as leader and give reasons as to why they feel he is the ‘right man for the job’; then there is Alfred Sears.

“Sears to run for PLP leader – Former MP concerned about current direction of the country” – The Nassau Guardian

Excerpt from this article; “The Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Fort Charlotte candidate Alfred Sears confirmed over the weekend the he intends to run for the leadership position at the party’s convention in November.

‘My campaign will not focus on personalities,’ said Sears in an interview with The Nassau Guardian.

‘It will focus on a new vision in terms of how to turn our economy around, how to inspire our people, how to give young people within the Bahamas hope for the future.

Sears is the first person to announce that he will challenge Prime Minister Perry Christie for leadership.  Christie has been leader of the PLP since 1997 and has vowed to lead his party into the next election.”

If we take this at face value, as some would suggest that former Attorney General, Mr. Alfred Sears is genuine about his leadership run as he has tired of the failed leadership of Perry Christie; then we must make note of the serious indictment that Sears makes against the Progressive Liberal Party’s current leadership when he says that he is ‘concerned about the current direction of the country’, suggesting that the PLP with Perry Christie as leader has failed the people of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, also suggesting that the current leadership lacks the vision to turn the country around and has lied when it said that it has.

Well I am always a cynic as it concerns the PLP and I feel it is indeed merely a distraction, as the other contenders; Deputy Prime Minister, Philip ‘Brave’ Davis and Obie Wilchcombe, Minister of Tourism who both have leadership ambitions have not said a word, to date, concerning Mr. Sears announcement; maybe they are still cowering in the corner, afraid of their own shadows as they have already admitted that they would not dare contest Perry Christie for leadership of the Progressive Liberal Party.

So My conspiracy theory on this announcement is this; Sears is not genuine in his leadership bid but what it would do is solidify Mr. Christie as the leader of the party and bring some sort of democracy to the party, since the last time a convention was held was in 2009 and also it would propel Mr. Sears ratings in Fort Charlotte, as he attempts to take this seat back to the PLP, as the only man ‘brave’ enough to stand up against Mr. Christie.

‘Brave’ stand up!!! At any rate the entire show will be one to watch as it is played out in full pomp and pageantry.

The Progressive Liberal Party fails for one reason, it is their nature.

END