Cable examined '04 Harajchi affair
CANDIA DAMES
NG News Editor
thenassauguardian
candia@nasguard.com
The repeated call by some MPs this week for a law to address money in politics appears to be coming too late before the next general election to be taken seriously at this time, but a diplomatic cable that documented the 2004 Mohammed Harajchi controversy also highlights the need for such reform.
The scandal was dug from the grave momentarily in the House of Assembly yesterday evening by Carmichael MP Desmond Bannister, who noted that former Prime Minister Perry Christie never delivered on a promise to provide a full accounting of the contributions Harajchi made to the PLP in the run-up to the 2002 general election.
An American diplomat wrote of the affair in great detail in a cable obtained through WikiLeaks, pointing to the Iranian businessman’s controversial claim to have pumped millions of dollars into the PLP campaign.
As was done in previous cables, the U.S. Embassy official underscored the issue of money in politics in The Bahamas, but did not limit statements to the then ruling PLP.
“Both of The Bahamas' two major political parties live in glass houses when it comes to campaign contributions,” said the cable, which was classified by then U.S. Charge d’ Affaires Robert Witajewski.
“Harajchi claims to have been about putting down explicit quid pro quo markers in return for the contributions. As much as the FNM opposition might like to exploit Harajchi's corruption charges leveled against the Christie government and cast some rocks at the PLP's home, it knows that it too cannot afford close scrutiny of the source — and quid pro quos of — its own party's campaign contributions.”
The cable noted that Harajchi presented documentation of some of his financial contributions to the PLP during a press event held at his multi-million-dollar Paradise Island home on August 11, 2004.
Harajchi denied that his contributions (allegedly $10 million) were designed to gain reinstatement of his bank's operating license, which had been revoked in 2001, the cable pointed out.
It also noted that the PLP issued a statement highlighting Harajchi's confirmation that he received no political favors in exchange for his contributions.
“Prime Minister Christie, who raised Harajchi's pending announcement three times with the charge at an unrelated event, appearing uneasy and preoccupied, and released a press statement on August 12 angrily denying that he or his ministers had accepted improper contributions. The PM specifically denied that he had received $500,000 from Harajchi to renovate his Cable Beach home.
“Christie promised that the PLP would soon give a full and accurate accounting of Harajchi's donations.”
Speaking in the House of Assembly yesterday evening during debate on a bill to amend the Parliamentary Elections Act, Bannister also repeated that Christie promised the accounting on the Harajchi contributions.
“Mr. Speaker, we are still awaiting details on that accounting,” Bannister said. “We are late again, Mr. Speaker.”
The cable added, “Harajchi claimed that he had been approached, either directly or via intermediaries, by ‘90 percent of the (Christie) Cabinet’ for campaign contributions, had helped to refurbish PLP headquarters, and had underwritten several PLP political rallies, among other things.
“Harajchi denied that his generosity was designed to win back the operating license of his bank... Harajchi lost several court appeals to have his license reinstated.”
The cable noted that Harajchi insisted to reporters that Christie reached out to him prior to the 2002 campaign to express his belief that Harajchi's bank license case had been handled badly. Harajchi said he told Christie that he was no longer fighting to get his license restored, but rather to get ‘justice’ and clear his name.
“When asked in a press conference if Christie made him any promises regarding his bank license, Harajchi declined to answer, calling the prime minister ‘an honorable man’ and advising reporters to take the matter up with him directly,” the cable said.
At a press conference, the PLP emphasized that it is neither illegal or improper for political parties in The Bahamas to accept donations from individuals, and highlighted attention on Harajchi's confirmation that he had received no favor or promise in exchange for his financial donation.
In the comment section of the cable, the U.S. Embassy official wrote: “Prime Minister Christie spent the hours before Harajchi's press event at the opening of a disaster preparedness conference sponsored by the Bahamian National Emergency Management Agency.
“During the course of the morning, the PM quietly raised Harajchi's pending press conference three times with the charge as the two sat next to each other and talked. Christie uncharacteristically stayed for the entire event and seemed reluctant to go back to his office where, he knew, reporters would be awaiting his response to Harajchi's allegations.”
The cable noted that after previously leaving the public comments to his ministers, Christie personally turned his guns on Harajchi in an effort to decisively disassociate himself and his party from the businessman.
In the weeks and months that followed, the Harajchi controversy died, as did talk of money in campaigns.
It flared up again several times since then.
According to a criminal complaint filed in 2009 in support of money laundering related charges against Bahamian attorney Sidney Cambridge, then Broward County Commissioner Josephus Eggelletion told an undercover FBI agent that he was going to raise funds for sitting Prime Minister Christie’s 2007 re-election bid.
It was a claim Christie strongly denied.
The PLP leader told The Nassau Guardian just days ago that there ought to be a law to address campaign finances, and expressed regret that he was not able to get to the issue while in office.
Several MPs also raised the issue this week during contribution to the debate in the House of Assembly on the bill to amend the Parliamentary Elections Act.
This issue of campaign finances has been discussed on and off on the national scene for years.
In 2006, former Attorney General Paul Adderley said The Bahamas had been "severely influenced" by money in politics for more than 100 years, and it was time somebody did something about it.
"We're trying to do something about the influence that rich men can have or try to have over politicians. Don't let us fool around with this one in terms of what we're trying to do," said Adderley, who at the time headed the Christie-appointed Constitutional Review Commission.
Adderley's Commission lost its life under the FNM administration, but had recommended that Parliament prescribe controls and limits over donations to political parties, candidates and political campaign expenditure to ensure transparency and accountability in local and national elections.
The need to reform campaign finances is something that officials from both major political parties seem to agree on.
In 2006, former FNM leader and current Minister of National Security Tommy Turnquest said, "I believe we ought to begin steps to move toward some sort of campaign finance reform. I think there ought to be some transparency and accountability with respect to how political parties receive funding."
Jun 30, 2011
thenassauguardian
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