Tag: general

My Morning Paper – December 05, 2024 – The Speaker, the Mace and the Heroic Glass of Water

Yesterday, the Free National Movement (FNM) staged a protest that had been anticipated for weeks. The Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), true to form, dismissed it as unnecessary noise. Yet, what unfolded in the House of Assembly was beyond anyone’s imagination—a spectacle where tensions boiled over, and chaos reigned supreme.

If not for a humble glass of water, we might have witnessed an unprecedented assault on the Speaker of the House, Patricia Deveaux. Let’s raise our glasses to this unsung hero—the object that “saved” the Speaker from harm.

This incident can be broken down into two separate incidences; one that highlights the questions surrounding the professional aptitude and perceived biased of the Speaker in managing the House’s proceedings and the other that addresses the issue Mace incidence.

The Speaker’s professional aptitude and perceived bias:

“Speaker: I feared for my life” – The Nassau Guardian

Excerpt from this article;

“Speaker of the House of Assembly Patricia Deveaux said yesterday she feared for her life and was “assaulted” and “almost hit” when Free National Movement (FNM) Deputy Leader Shanendon Cartwright grabbed the mace sitting in front of her and hurled it out of the House of Assembly’s window.

Deputy Speaker Sylvanus Petty received “a blow to the head” during the incident, prompting him to go to the hospital and a police officer was hurt in the leg, she said.

“This is a dark day in this political arena that we call politics,” said Deveaux when the House of Assembly resumed after a 15-minute recess following the chaotic event.

 “For the first time in my life, when I took the oath of office, I felt challenged and I was in fear for my life. I will review the tapes and I will apprise the country later of my findings, but during today’s event I was assaulted, I was almost hit. Thank God for a glass of water in the front of me.”

At this moment we will all stand and raise our glasses for the glass of water that “saved” the Speaker from being assaulted, let us move on.

First, as the Speaker speaks to feeling challenged, I would just like to suggest that The Speaker has been “challenged” from the very moment that she was named as Speaker of The House; whether this challenge is mentally or professionally, I leave this up to the reader.

It simply amazes me the manner in which the “facts” are coming together concerning this matter in the House of Assembly yesterday and the manner in which the Progressive Liberal Party Members of Parliament and it’s supporters wish now to paint them as a planned act of aggression of the Free National Movement (FNM) toward the Speaker of The House.

Let me just say, as it pertains to the accusation of the actions being planned, I would think that they were just as well planned as the formers Commissioners of Police (CoP) address to the nation the other night and it this is the case then the Free National Movement (FNM) may want to be better at pre-planning.

My opinion of yesterday’s events are formed from this report of events leading up to the moment.

The Hon. Michael Pintard sent a letter to the Speaker last week to speak.  She said she received it five (5) minutes too late.  He begged her to accommodate him and the House adjourned while he was on his feet.

Yesterday, Pintard said he sent a letter a day in advance along with his script but did not get an answer.

After the Prime Minister spoke, he requested to speak and the Speaker again ignored him. He kept asking if he would get an opportunity to speak.  She never gave him an answer.

The Hon. Michael Pintard found out they were going to adjourn the House after the Hon. Wayne Munroe spoke.

This is what I have been reliably informed led up to the events yesterday.

If these are the actual facts then it would appear that the Speaker is running the House of Assembly like it is her private space but is because of her “challenged” mental and/or professionally capacity or at “someone’s” instruction?

The Mace Incident:

 Cartwright’s removal of the mace has been painted by the PLP as an aggressive act, but its historical symbolism suggests otherwise. The mace represents the authority of the Speaker. By removing it, the Opposition effectively called for an end to the Speaker’s oversight—a procedural move rather than an attack.

The Speaker’s reaction—claiming fear for her life—rings hollow against the backdrop of events. If her actions in the House were fair and just, why would such an outburst even occur? Instead, her tenure has been marked by accusations of bias, overreach, and suppression of opposition voices. Yesterday’s dramatic events reflect deeper cracks in the PLP’s governance style.

To compare, imagine a referee in a football game who consistently favors one team. Eventually, the players on the other side will refuse to play along. Removing the “mace” is akin to walking off the field—not an act of aggression, but a rejection of perceived unfairness.

The PLP’s response to this incident reveals their inherent flaw: an inability to self-reflect. Instead of addressing grievances, they double down, painting the Opposition as aggressors. This tactic may rally their base, but it leaves the country divided and distrustful.

As for Speaker Deveaux, her claim of being “saved” by a glass of water has become a symbol—not of her victimhood, but of a moment when politics reached the height of absurdity. It’s a sobering reminder that theatrics cannot substitute for leadership.

Let us raise our metaphorical glasses—not to the glass of water, but to the hope that reason, fairness, and true democratic principles will one day prevail in the House of Assembly.

The speaker need not be in “fear for her life” if she knows that what she is doing is right and fair but it seems that this has not been her agenda from day one, she has been nothing but a ‘bully” especially to the Opposition Leader and why should he or anyone else tolerate such treatment any longer?

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

END

My Morning Paper – October 23, 2024 – Just the Facts Please…..

I have always said in The Bahamas that when it comes to politics, there are two sets of “facts”; the actual facts and there are Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) facts and what I have come to find out is that these two sets of facts do not assimilate.

In a statement in the Nassau Guardian this morning , in reference to the recent Baha Mar ruling, the PLP Chairman is quoted as saying;” Baha Mar developer Sarkis Izmirlian of “seeking to tell a narrative which does not line up with the facts”.

When the chairman talks about the facts not lining up, exactly whose facts is he referring to?

It would appear that they lined up for Justice Andrew Borrok of the Supreme Court of the state of New York but that is beside the point I guess.

 “Mitchell slams Izmirlian, Pintard and Baha Mar ruling.” – The Nassau Guardian

Excerpt form this article; “Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Chairman and Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell yesterday accused former Baha Mar developer Sarkis Izmirlian of “seeking to tell a narrative which does not line up with the facts”.

Mitchell was responding to a significant New York court judgment finding that Izmirlian lost his Baha Mar project a decade ago as a result of fraud and breaches committed by China Construction America (CCA).

Mitchell’s claim was made notwithstanding the fact that Justice Andrew Borrok of the Supreme Court of the State of New York said in his ruling that credible evidence indicated that Izmirlian acted “honorably and commercially reasonably” in seeking to have the multi-billion-development completed.

The judge awarded Izmirlian’s BML Properties Limited $1.6 billion against China Construction America as a result of the fraud and breaches.

Mitchell also lashed out at Opposition Leader Michael Pintard who on Sunday called for an investigation into the inferences in the ruling that Bahamian government officials had colluded with CCA to push Izmirlian out.

“We’re concerned about the leader of the opposition, who jumps on a judgment, comments written by a judge in the United States,” said Mitchell in a video recording that was widely circulated yesterday.

“When is the leader of the opposition going to support Bahamians and support The Bahamas?”

“Support Bahamians and support The Bahamas” on what exactly, Mr. Mitchell?

Here, we have the chairman of the Progressive Liberal Party attempting to attack the Leader of the Opposition Free National Movement (FNM) with the old line of being “anti-Bahamian”.  He did this when the New Day, Old Way Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) went to “war” with the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA), at that time every one that disagreed with the PLP government was seen as being “anti-Bahamian”.

Another instance occurred when Bahamians protested over issues like inadequate electricity and poor infrastructure in islands such as Andros and Eleuthera. The government’s response was to dismiss some of these criticisms as lacking in national loyalty, framing critics as opposing progress and nation-building efforts.

This has been a recurring theme in the PLP’s narrative whenever they face public discontent or organized opposition to their policies, so this has been established let us move on.

It is simply amazing that the chairman of the New Day, Old Way PLP government seeks to attack the leader of the opposition and the BML Properties Limited over the recent Baha Mar ruling when it was the findings of the Supreme Court of the State of New York  that stated; “In addition to the court ruling in favor of the Izmirlian family for the sum of $1.6 billion, the judgment referenced evidence of troubling allegations about the direct involvement and active support of officials in the then-PLP administration when Prime Minister [Philip] Davis served as deputy leader,” so herein is where the issue comes in.

It would appear that the court ruling condemns the PLP administration for what amounts to collusion; in acting in concert with the contractor CCA to gain ownership of Baha Mar but I am sure that the New Day, Old way government does not see it that way but interestingly enough again Prime Minister Davis and Chairman of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) do not seem to be on the same page as it pertains to this issue.  We have the Prime Minister instructing the Attorney General to review the matter; while the Chairman Mitchell suggests that there really is nothing to review.

So what’s worse here? A government that can’t govern or one that hides its failures behind accusations of treason and lies? Calling criticism “unpatriotic” is the real betrayal. It’s the last refuge of a failed administration, desperate to distract from the truth that they’re not doing their jobs. And the truth is, Bahamians are suffering, the government is failing, and that is fact.

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

END