The Free National Movement (FNM) government and the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) have turned a blind eye to what is going on at Bell Island - in the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park - and turned their backs on the Bahamian people ...all for a few helicopter rides, $1m, and who knows what else...

CALL TO MONITOR ISLAND DREDGING


By MEGAN REYNOLDS
Tribune Staff Reporter
mreynolds@tribunemedia.net


DREDGING around Bell Island must be monitored with urgency to limit the destruction it is causing in the Exuma Cays Land and Sea Park, Senator Jerome Fitzgerald said in a press conference yesterday.

The PLP candidate for Marathon, the seat currently held by Environment Minister Earl Deveaux, cried shame on the FNM government for approving the development in the world's oldest land and sea park.

He also criticised the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) for failing to prevent the development from going ahead.

Dredging is now well underway, and Mr Fitzgerald said 13 acres, or 600,000 sq ft, of sea bed have been excavated from Conch Cut south of Bell Island, to make way for the inland marina, and destroyed the habitat of hundreds of conch.

Measures taken to limit the environmental impact, such as silt curtains, are inadequate, he said, and should be monitored.

"Silt can be seen spilling onto the nearby coral and vegetation lining the sea bed," the senator said. "And there appears not to be a full-time on-site environmental manager. Yet neither the government, nor the National Trust, is taking any action to correct it."

Mr Fitzgerald called on the government to ensure the dredging and excavation is done in accordance with requirements set out by the BNT and the Bahamas Environmental, Science and Technology (BEST) Commission.

An application from Islands of Discovery Ltd, the Aga Khan, to excavate over 12 acres of land and sea bed at the 349 acre island was approved in September last year.

Environmental Minister Earl Deveaux was ridiculed for accepting a free ride in the Aga Khan's helicopter from Nassau to Abaco, and then to Exuma, to do a survey of Bell Island while the planning application was before his ministry.

Conservationists criticised the Bahamas National Trust for allowing the development in the park, and Tribune sources alleged the BNT accepted a $1m donation from the Aga Khan.

"The FNM government and the BNT have turned a blind eye to what is going on at Bell Island and turned their backs on the Bahamian people, all for a few helicopter rides, $1m, and who knows what else," Mr Fitzgerald said before a group of reporters and party supporters at the PLP headquarters in Farrington Road yesterday.

"The FNM has talked about the importance of eco-tourism but instead of preserving treasures like Bell Island for Bahamians, they are allowing foreigners to destroy it."

Images of the 30ft cliff from the inland excavation, and of silt spreading from the dredging of a 14ft channel leading into the yacht basin being excavated from a natural salt pond were shown in a short video featuring interviews with local tour guide Wayde Nixon and activist Terry Bain.

Mr Bain, spokesman for the Save the Exuma Park (STEP) Committee, said the endangered Bahama Duck frequented the salt pond, and that photographs of the birds at the site had been ignored by authorities.

The 176 square mile park established in 1958 has been guarded by the BNT since 1964 and is a strictly no-take zone.

"We believe it is a criminal action for a minister to approve development in a national park in the same way that it is a criminal act to take anything from the park," said Mr Bain.

By putting the environment under threat, Mr Fitzgerald said the development also threatened the livelihood of locals who rely on the park to maintain healthy stocks of fish and conch.

"Bahamians are working on the Bell Island project, but whatever work they are doing is short-term," Mr Fitzgerald said.

However, former PLP MP for Exuma George Smith told The Tribune Prince Karim Aga Khan has been a great benefactor to the local community in Black Point by creating jobs for people of all ages and abilities, and leaving the dredged sand landfill for them to collect. He also pledged to fund the development of a health clinic in Black Point and a new hospital in George Town, Mr Smith said.

"Although some people might not like the dredging, we have to look at the bigger picture," Mr Smith said. "The Aga Khan is not a villain, he's a great benefactor. He has employed a reasonable workforce and he's endeavouring to employ people from Black Point."

But whatever his good deeds may be, they cannot erase the environmental damage, said Mr Fitzgerald. "I don't care how much he spends, or what he donates; no amount of millions of dollars can mitigate the destruction," he said. "There is no way the government should have considered approving this."

Environmental activist Sam Duncombe agreed the damage cannot be undone. She said: "The National Trust should have put rules and regulations in place a long time ago, to warn anybody who owns land in the park what they can and cannot do, and I think the fact that they have failed to do that in 50 years is disgusting. If we can't protect the world's oldest national marine park, then we have failed miserably."

Calls to Gail Lockhart Charles and Co, representing the Aga Khan, were not returned before press time.

October 07, 2011

tribune242

Caribbean Blog International

We do not know what to do with the large number of undocumented Haitians who reside in shantytowns ...especially in New Providence

Eliminate shantytowns

thenassauguardian editorial

Haiti is in a state of crisis. It is an occupied country that was devastated by a massive earthquake. This calamity added to the misery of a people who are from the poorest country in the hemisphere.

The Bahamas will always have difficulties managing the flow of people from Haiti. We are between Haiti (the poorest country in the hemisphere) and the United States (the richest country in the hemisphere). Haitians come here hoping to get to the U.S. Many stay permanently.

This logical migratory flow has caused a problem in The Bahamas and our policymakers have no solution to it. We do not know what to do with the large number of undocumented Haitians who reside in shantytowns especially in New Providence.

We have previously written about the shantytown problem. This was after the Mackey Yard fire destroyed more than 100 homes. When these events occur many revert to simplistic emotionalism. The response and discourse surrounding the tragedy usually is limited to disaster relief.

The Bahamas, however, must seriously address the shantytown issue before a catastrophe occurs. Government officials speculate that 500 to 700 people lived at the Fire Trail Road site where a fire occurred earlier this year. A fast moving fire could easily consume all the residences of one of these shantytowns. Thousands live in some of these communities.

In 2009, then Minister of State for Immigration Branville McCartney said that 37 shantytowns had been identified in New Providence alone. Two of the biggest shantytowns in the country are in Abaco Pigeon Pea and the Mud.

Our failure to make the tough decisions and remove these unauthorized communities could contribute to a mass tragedy.

All who reside in this country should abide by the local building code and follow town planning guidelines. These laws exist to maintain safety. Haitians, or any other group of migrants, should not be allowed to live in violation of laws all Bahamians and residents should follow.

The goal of the government should be to eliminate shantytowns in The Bahamas. If we do not, one day soon we will be writing about a mass tragedy on one of our islands.

Such a day can be prevented if the state acts decisively.

The ‘silly season’

The political ‘silly season’ has begun.

A general election must be called by May 2012, which in political campaign terms is right around the corner.

The major parties have kicked into high gear, ratifying candidates, and using the broadcast media and world wide web to get their messages out.

The politics of personal destruction reigns supreme in this political culture. And while it did not start yesterday and is not particular to The Bahamas, it’s a culture that a maturing electorate is growing tired of.

There are many issues facing our country, and the Bahamian people deserve to hear how each party plans to address these issues.

We have already broken our murder count for the year; our public education students continue to perform poorly; our healthcare system is stretched; and the illegal immigration problem is still largely out of control.

There is also the pressing issues of job creation. It should not be good enough for a political party to reveal its strategy for the country in a ‘manifesto’ or ‘plan’ released days before the election

Voters should have the opportunity to carefully consider what positions the different political parties take on substantive issues, within a reasonable time, before marking their X.

Local politicians need to spend less time on personal attacks and more time addressing the real issues.

It is time for a new type of politics, one that focuses on urgent national priorities rather than narrow interests; and one that helps to hold our elected officials more accountable for the many promises made from the rally podia.

Voters want politicians with ideas and energy, who have thought deeply about the issues and are committed to making a change for the better, even if it means making tough unpopular decisions.

Oct 08, 2011

thenassauguardian editorial

The Free National Movement (FNM) administration just lacked a holistic, creative social vision ...and they failed to see how their economic choices and challenges could actually work for them not against them in the effort to build a stronger, better Bahamas

Ingranomics Part 2

By Ian G. Strachan

Last week we noted that although the Ingraham administration steered us through a treacherous period in world economic history it has not completely come up smelling like roses.  There have been some unpleasant consequences to the administration’s choices and there were, in my view, many missed opportunities.

CULTURE AND INDUSTRY

The FNM’s investments in tourism infrastructure (the harbor dredging, the port move and the new airport terminal), are largely making way for anticipated tourism growth in the medium to long-term. That’s not necessarily a foolish or irresponsible choice to make.

The problem is such investments won’t yield the desired results unless you seriously address some of the reasons The Bahamas is no longer a hot ticket.

We are facing ever diminishing returns in tourism.  Despite the millions who come here on cruise ships, what we really need are stopover visitors and this is where we’ve been dead in the water.  We have had more cruise ship visitors than stopover visitors since the mid 80s.

We are a far more expensive destination than many competitors south of us and that’s not about to change.  But where we are also losing is that we are culturally far less interesting.  Not enough of an investment has been made to actually make The Bahamas a more distinct and attractive destination.  Beaches, casinos and sunshine can be found all over the globe and for a lot less than in Nassau.  Are we going to be offering “1 flies-1 flies free” deals and cruise ship tax rebates for the rest of the decade?

Many of us believe that the answer lies in the marriage of tourism and cultural and artistic expression.  Yet the government of The Bahamas refuses or is unable to act in a manner that encourages wider cultural entrepreneurship – entrepreneurship that can maximize local and tourist markets.  And to be fair, the private sector is even less interested in investing than the government.

Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on your perspective, Junkanoo is a Christmas festival not a spring festival like Mardi Gras or Trinidad or Rio Carnival.  The western world is just not going to travel heavily to be in another country on Christmas night or New Year’s Day.  So what does that leave here in the capital?

The Fry (Arawak Cay) is the best attraction in Nassau, outside of Atlantis’ casino, restaurants, clubs and water attractions.  It features local food, live music and atmosphere (at affordable prices, prices which no hotel can match).

How can we expand or duplicate what’s best about the Fry?  What would it cost to do so?

Let’s look at the FNM’s track record. They rejected Carifesta twice.  They show contempt (like the PLP before them) for the run-down shell of a National Performing Arts Centre (which could be the year round home of the National Dance Company, Children’s Choir, Youth Choir, Youth Orchestra, Police and Defence Force bands and a National Theatre Company).

They have made a ghost out of the Junkanoo Museum.  They don’t seem to know what to do with Shakespeare in Paradise.  And they generally refuse to facilitate cultural workers in a sustained and comprehensive way in the tourist zones.

As a result, Nassau remains a dull, run-down, expensive place to visit.  We absorb all sorts of tax breaks for resort development.

In this period why couldn’t we have been bold and taken some risks in an effort to improve The Bahamas as a cultural destination?  Hotels aren’t destinations.  Cities, towns and countries are, but we settle for a country where the only thing people come for is to walk around in Atlantis.  And soon Baha Mar, I suppose.

But outside of the jobs these enclaves create, aren’t we losing out on opportunities to truly maximize the tourist dollars spent on the island?

NUMBERS

Ingraham also flirted with legalizing numbers and then backed off, promising a referendum if he is re-elected.  This is leading from behind, which is not his style.

The Bahamian government is broke and the numbers business is a quarter to half a billion dollar enterprise that goes untaxed and unregulated.

The government has a right and a responsibility to tax the daylights out of this business, to bring it into the light of public scrutiny and to use the money it gains to help build the country and strengthen the social fabric.

Ingraham should have used this recession to regulate numbers.

Instead, a magistrate has confiscated nearly $1 million and fined businessman Craig Flowers $10,000.

By now Ingraham could have collected as much in taxes for numbers as he got in the BTC sale.  He should also have taxed alcohol more heavily as well.

TAXATION

I said earlier that if you are going to risk being voted out over something unpopular, you better make sure that the change you’re introducing is worth it all.

I’m sorry but Ingraham could have left the roads bumpy, focused exclusively on fixing the eastern district water problem, and tackled a real problem instead of going through all this madness with the roads all at once.

What he should have done, again under the cover of the economic crisis, is address our regressive and unethical system of taxation that burdens the poor and middle class and lets the rich and their companies get away with all their cash.

Ingraham should have been the man to introduce income tax.  It’s the perfect time to do so.  The pressure from the U.S. is leading us in that direction anyway.  Would he lose this election if he did so?  He may lose it over unfinished roads.

What I guarantee you though, is that the PLP would not have repealed it afterward.  The government needs revenue.  We have thousands of people on pension in the civil service who have contributed nothing to it but feel entitled.

The bubble will burst eventually.  NIB is already automatically removing a percentage of my salary before it hits my bank account.

I may never make a claim at NIB but I accept that my contribution helps those who need support more than I do.  Income tax is doable.

And thereby we can reduce these ridiculous customs duties that hamper the growth of Bahamian businesses because you are being taxed before you sell anything.  I reject the argument that the government can’t handle income tax.  It can and so can our people.

DOWNSIZING?

I could talk about the fact that after downsizing ZNS, it is still operating at the same quality level as before, or about the FNM’s refusal to touch Bahamasair despite the fact there are homegrown airlines who can pick up the slack.

But instead I wish to raise the question of right sizing the civil service.  I don’t think this has to mean sending hundreds of people home and creating a social and economic crisis.  I mean actually moving people from posts where they are under-performing or are really redundant and re-training them to help plug holes elsewhere in the system.  I’ll give just a few examples.

I once interviewed Loretta Butler-Turner, Minister of State for Social Development, and she told me that the nation could use another 150 social workers.  As you might imagine the social worker does crucial work that is essential to public health, public safety, crime prevention and the overall wellbeing of the society.  Why not re-deploy and re-train some of your civil servants to fill this need?

Our schools are overcrowded.  Every classroom could use a teacher’s aid.  And what about the problem of truancy?  Or the need for environmental health inspectors to check homes and businesses, particularly given the occurrences of dengue.

There were creative options available to the government that would allow it to shift the public service work force to meet the greatest needs.  We need park wardens and after school mentors for our teenagers; we need these in every community.

The FNM just lacked a holistic, creative social vision and they failed to see how their economic choices and challenges could actually work for them not against them in the effort to build a stronger, better country.

They took the unemployed and had them cleaning the streets.  And sure, that met a need, because New Providence is filthy.  But in the same way, there were other serious needs that could have been met, not just with new hires but by properly utilizing the people you already have employed.

So overall, I’ll describe Ingranomics as an orthodox approach, lacking in innovation or experimentation.  Ingraham played it safe, which can be a comfort in these unstable times.  But sometimes you can play it so safe that you get fired by the people anyway, because the times demand more daring.  We’ll see what happens.

Oct 03, 2011

thenassauguardian

Will Branville McCartney one day abandon the Democratic National Alliance (DNA) and return to the Free National Movement (FNM)?

Deconstructing DNA

By ADRIAN GIBSON

ajbahama@hotmail.com




THE upcoming election cycle is setting up to be a sulfurously partisan and venomous affair, a true soap opera featuring politically shrewd operators, mountains of dollars and, moreover, seems to be one that will leave grown men whimpering. That said, unless I am grossly underestimating the so-called backlash against the major parties—and I doubt that I am—anyone who honestly thinks that the Democratic National Alliance (DNA) will win the next election within a year of its formation is a bonafide citizen of fantasy land!

Whilst the DNA could very well capture a few seats (this is also up for debate), unless they are using some kind of Jedi mind trick, it would be fairly neurotic to believe that they could win a majority of seats as a political upstart, particularly in our political culture—where voters are fickle and vacillate as regards their choices—and in the face of the evidence of what has already happened, locally and abroad, relative to new political entities.

From the ground up

The history of party politics in the Bahamas is illustrative of the challenges facing the DNA. The PLP was founded in 1953 and did not win the government until 1967, which ended in a tie that was broken when Sir Randol Fawkes and Alvin Braynen joined the party, and after the party had arduously toiled in the political vineyard for more than a decade.

Likewise, the FNM was formed in 1971 and wandered the political wilderness for 21 years before becoming the government in 1992. To be frank, this was the state of affairs involving both the PLP and the FNM, taking both parties years to amass a strong base. Moreover, the FNM, at the time of its formation, was seeking to become the alternative to the governing PLP and, even as the second major party, it took the organization more than two decades before winning the general election. The DNA is today the third alternative, fighting against two political powerhouses with built-in support bases.

A new era?

Having said that, will the 2012 electoral cycle be representative of a new political era?

As a young, educated Bahamian I’m still waiting to hear the DNA enunciate a lucid, forward-thinking national plan that goes beyond the generic rhetoric and populist grandstanding of its leader, Branville McCartney.

Moreover, whilst the DNA has nominated a few superb candidates—for example, McCartney, Randy Butler, Chris Mortimer, Wayne Munroe, Roscoe Thompson—the party has selected a few standard bearers that have left me, and countless others, scratching our heads and reacting with a collective smirk.

In this hyper-partisan environment, the ground is apparently being loosened under DNA leader Bran McCartney as the governing FNM has neither announced a slate of candidates nor an election date, presumably a strategic move to allow for all the flair concerning the DNA to fizzle-out by election day. Indeed, the DNA’s summer momentum appears to have died down.

Quite honestly, although Mr McCartney is seeking to become the dragon-slayer who defeats two political titans—Hubert Ingraham and Perry Christie—whilst effecting a new generation of leadership, he must remember that Prime Minister Ingraham is, admittedly, a legislative technician and a political virtuoso and also that both gentlemen are towering political figures and therefore will not be easily dispatched.

If there’s something that the DNA can be credited for, it’s for reinvigorating the masses, especially young people, and jumpstarting an election cycle where certain panicky, high-minded politicians have already climbed off of their pedestals with the hope of saving their own hides in their respective constituencies. Indeed, Mr McCartney and the DNA are amassing a large following, however Mr McCartney must be careful not to be consumed by youthful egomania, become enclosed in a cocoon of self-adulation and hero worship or become another short term nuisance—that is, a self-seeking, bloviating vacuity.

Thus far, the DNA has effectively created an us (DNA) versus them (FNM/PLP) atmosphere amongst the electorate, taking on an anti-establishment posture that has been well received.

I’m informed that in this election cycle, the leaders of both major political parties intend to politically emasculate Bran McCartney and put him in a clown suit.

Frankly, whilst the general consensus is that Mr McCartney’s DNA will attract more FNM voters as opposed to PLPs, it is my belief that political tacticians must not take comfort in that as both traditional PLP and FNM voters have expressed an interest in the party but, even more, the youth vote is where the DNA has built its strongest base. No one should dare ignore the strength and likely turnout of young voters this election cycle!

Mr McCartney was once on the fast track to becoming the face of the FNM. There are many persons who would argue that he “severed” his ties with the FNM because he wanted to be the alpha male in a Hubert Ingraham-led FNM and, when he couldn’t, he left in a huff.

Political titanic

Will McCartney one day abandon the DNA and return to the FNM? Is his tarrying with the DNA a strategic move just to prove his leadership and organizational skills to the internal machinery and hierarchy of the FNM, with hopes of being invited to lead the party—an Ingraham-esque type of invitation (circa 1990)—in a post Ingraham era?

Is Bran another Icarus? Will he be yet another man, another forlorn third party leader who had a dream and flew too close to the political sun only to have his wings burnt/melt away as he falls to his political death? Is the DNA a political titanic?

Many voters are seeing a vote for the DNA as a protest, as a way of expressing their discontent with both major parties, a dissatisfaction that is, admittedly, being voluminously echoed in some quarters of the archipelago. That said, this general election, what will the size of the electorate’s swing toward to the DNA be? And, could there be sufficient migration of independents and party supporters from both of the major parties to propel the DNA into the seat of government or, at the very least, win a few seats?

If the DNA wins a handful of seats, it would change the political calculus of Bahamian politics. Will the world of local politics be reset? And, if the DNA loses all seats in the next election, will the party promptly disband and become yet another doomed political experiment?

Sooner or later, the political gates will be unlocked and the electoral machinery of the parties will come charging through. Although it’s highly unlikely that the election will have a miraculous ending in favour of the DNA, it would be a colossal misjudgment to underestimate the potential impact of the DNA in the upcoming general elections.

Time will tell…

Published: October 8^th, 2011 in column Young Man’s View in The Tribune’s ‘The Big T’
 
Caribbean Blog International

Hubert Ingraham should have invested not in roads but in the future of our youth... ... infrastructure work has not acted as a major stimulus to the economy... We are still experiencing almost zero growth

Ingranomics Part 1

By Ian G. Strachan

Last week we looked at some of the positives of the FNM’s term in office.  It’s time now to look at the flip side. What did they get wrong; where did they blow a golden opportunity and what damage have their decisions caused?

 

PLAYING IT BY THE BOOK

You’ve heard it many times but the world has been grappling with a global economic meltdown.  The USA, our biggest trading partner, has 14 million people unemployed and eight million people who can only find part time work.  In one year alone (2008-2009), U.S. unemployment increased by a mind-blowing 60 percent, from around nine to 14 million.  As the USA goes so do we.

The Ingraham administration weathered this crisis and it has been weathered largely through government borrowing and a concomitant refusal to adopt serious austerity measures. The result is a scary level of national debt which is costing us roughly $300 million a year to service (almost 40 times what we are spending this year in the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources).

Now the orthodox economic approach, as I understand it, is that when your economy makes a downward turn--which all economies naturally do--governments must increase their spending to stave off unemployment and to keep money flowing.

Governments normally spend on infrastructure in times like these, so that when the economy rebounds, private business can more easily and effectively do its thing and the citizenry generally can enjoy a good quality of life (in so far as infrastructure lends itself to that).  Governments also have to figure out where to cut taxes as an incentive or to ease pressure and where to increase taxes and or tighten tax collection so they can continue to do their work despite the lean times. (NIB has been more diligent about collection, for instance, and this year we saw a reduction in the prime rate.)

Few governments in the world run on a surplus; they mostly run on a deficit and borrow to make up the difference.  A developing island nation like ours, with a little, one dimensional economy, but with citizens who have First World expectations, has had serious pressure placed on it these last four years.  Ingraham had no choice but to increase borrowing to maintain the bubble we live in and avert disaster; there was simply no other option.

The question voters must ask is, did we borrow money for projects that put us on the best possible footing going forward as a country?  Did we use this economic crisis as an opportunity to set our house in order and do some things we didn’t previously have the will to do?  Did our government also do everything in its power to increase its revenue base (a challenge in lean times) while at the same time being sure not to burden the small man with more taxes at a moment when he was least able to sustain it?

 

STIMULUS?

The FNM’s heavy emphasis on infrastructure, (and the kinds of infrastructural work chosen), has not eased the level of frustration and suffering in the country; in fact it has increased it for many.

First of all, infrastructure work has not acted as a major stimulus to the economy.  We are still experiencing almost zero growth.  These massive projects have not put a whole lot of money into the Bahamian economy.  One, the work has been done for the most part by foreign firms and two, most of the materials needed are imported, which means more money leaving than staying.  Three, they haven’t employed anywhere near the necessary number of Bahamians (even temporarily) to significantly ease the hardship in the society.  We needed to employ 7-10,000 to truly lift ourselves out of the doldrums and it just hasn’t happened.

One project that could have employed that many people in the short and long term is Baha Mar, but the deal cut with China ensures that much of the money spent will go right back where it came from and most of the temporary jobs too.  It was just a lousy deal and Parliament never should have agreed to it.  The PLP will argue that the FNM’s stopped, review and cancel policy stalled projects like Baha Mar and caused our economic slowdown.  I don’t buy it.

But whereas the FNM may argue that they invested the millions they borrowed in infrastructural improvements that will stand the test of time (they hope) and did not frit it away on nebulous programs/schemes that might have questionable long term benefits to the country, their approach was unimaginative, overly conservative and made life worse for Bahamians in the short to medium term.  The Ingraham administration demonstrated an unwillingness or inability to innovate or experiment. (The humble Self Starter Programme was the riskiest innovation they attempted in my view, but I would love to be corrected.)

The road works caused a number of homegrown businesses to die and displaced others.  It also made it difficult for businesses all over the island to deliver goods and services and made it difficult for employees to get to and from work.  And this has been going on for two and a half years.  I can’t begin to imagine how much that has cost individuals and businesses in time and money.  And the FNM government has been unable to convince anybody that they intend to make amends in some way during their term in office.

In the final analysis I can’t name one industry that the Bahamian government has helped to experience major growth through its powers to borrow, invest and to incentivize with tax breaks, so much that thousands of new, permanent jobs were created.  No, forget thousands, even hundreds.  Fishing?  Farming?  Light manufacturing?  Have we simply resigned ourselves to more decades of low productivity in these areas?  There’s nothing we can do to get things going in these sectors?

We are spending eight million out of our 1.9 billion dollar budget on Agriculture and Fisheries. That’s less than one half of one percent.  That is tragic.  Even a man as well meaning and thoughtful as Larry Cartwright can’t make miracles happen with that (especially in a nation where the men scoff at farming and fishing and all want to work a hotel job).  According to Cartwright 76 percent of government land leased to farmers is abandoned and 25,000 acres of available arable land lies dormant waiting for a small farmer to apply.  Well, I guess we’ll keep waiting.

 

DIG UP DIG UP

The FNM could have followed the recommendations of the experts they hired decades ago and created a single, Bahamian-owned bus company through public-private partnership and the economic times would have provided the perfect cover for doing so. This would have reduced traffic congestion, brought greater discipline and order to the society, increased efficiency, created new, permanent jobs, created opportunities for new satellite businesses, lowered the cost of living for many and hopefully increased tax revenue.  All for a fraction of the cost of the road works.

Instead, they chose to do road work and more roadwork.  As such, many believe Ingraham chose to reward his political allies with contracts and pass on the headache of the buses to future governments.  Instead he’s given two thirds of our nation a head ache.  His gamble is that the new roads will be appreciated by May 2012.  But he may very well lose that bet and lose power because of these roads.  I wonder, how much of these road works have been forced on us by these agreements we have made with China or Baha Mar?  The government should publish the Heads of Agreement docs in the papers and on line.

If I am going to risk losing an election over something unpopular, I’m going to at least make sure I lose over something that really will make life better for as many people as possible and will do the most lasting good.  Few think the Big Dig Up will do either.

They could have spent some of those millions in capital works on expanding The College of The Bahamas, which is a major employer and which empowers thousands and can empower even more Bahamians young and old.  Higher education is the most reliable avenue to escaping poverty, yet only 10 percent of Bahamians get a college education.  Expanding the college would create jobs within it and around it, it would allow more money to stay in The Bahamas since more students could attend, and it would ensure that we have a more competitive workforce in this information age.

COB needs more land, more classrooms, better labs, and bigger and better dormitories.  Ingraham should have invested not in roads but in the future of our youth.  He should have bought up the land surrounding the Oakes Field Campus, re-amalgamate BTVI and COB, and develop COB according to a Master Plan.  Instead Ingraham slammed brakes on the college’s growth by cutting its budget in 2009 and 2010, and he continues to ignore, abuse and mismanage BTVI (like the PLP before him).

What he will try to sell us on is that he modernized New Providence.  I suppose he tried in his way, but there are some holes in that one. Big holes. (I think I drove into one last night and almost drowned).

More next week.

Sep 26, 2011

thenassauguardian

Sorry to say, but the majority of our sexual predators - who are boyfriends, uncles, aunts, teachers, fathers, mothers, grand fathers - would never make the sex offenders' list. They are busy roaming our communities with impunity

'No' to public sex offender registry

By NOELLE NICOLLS
Tribune Features Editor
nnicolls@tribunemedia.net



The investigation into the death of 11-year-old Marco Archer, believed to have been sexually abused before he was murdered, triggered widespread calls for a sex offender's registry in the Bahamas.

I am currently taking bets on how long the public outcry will last. The chorus is building right now, but this choir has little stamina, so by the time November rolls around, I bet the sex offender registry will be old news. That is the Bahamian way: To tackle our problems by blowing hot air for a short period of time and then complaining when they fail to be resolved.

I have a cause worth a long term investment by the Bahamian people, but it is not for a sex offender's registry. I believe the call for a Bahamian registry is not rooted in sound thinking. Bahamians are looking desperately for a quick sense of security, no matter how false. The fact of the matter is: there are many more sex offenders roaming these streets than there are behind bars in Fox Hill prison.

Add to the Fox Hill count, those accused offenders being processed through the court system and those convicted offenders having served their time and the scale is still tipped in the favour of those who never get caught and are never prosecuted. Sorry to say, but the majority of our sexual predators - who are boyfriends, uncles, aunts, teachers, fathers, mothers, grand fathers - would never make the sex offenders' list. They are busy roaming our communities with impunity.

And the same people who are outraged provide them with a cloak of protection.

Over 500 incidents of sexual assault were reported in 2010, and the prison has less than 100 sex offenders. Plus it is well known that sexual assault is the most under reported crime. So what kind of security exactly, but a false sense of security, would a register provide?

People say they would know not to let their children play outside if they knew that a sex offender lived down the road. That is a sorry reason. We have already lost that culture and it has nothing to do with sex offenders. The most tangible impact of a public registry would be the enabling of vigilante justice, which would serve no productive purpose but to feed the egos of Bahamians.

Here is a cause worth a long term investment by the Bahamian people.

Join an established organization working in the trenches to protect our children and change public attitudes towards sexual violence and be a part of their proactive workforce. There are so many existing social programmes that could be more effective in their interventions with children if more of these outraged Bahamians gave their time, energy and resources to the actual work. There is a serious need for foot soldiers in the trenches working one-on-one with established social programmes trying to create deep-rooted change.

The Crisis Centre had a night of Hope and Healing last week. This annual event was organized long before the dust settled on little Marco's body. It ended up falling in the midst of this great tragedy and still, how many people turned out? The usual committed few. And to think I heard shameful comments last week from Bahamians trying to throw Dr Sandra Dean-Patterson under the bus, director of the Bahamas Crisis Centre.

"Where is Dr. Sandra Patterson or you only speak for females? Come on when something happen to female you are on every radio network," said the person. Not only is the comment inaccurate, because Dr Patterson and the Crisis Centre represent man, woman and child, and this false gender division is based on a myth, but it is also insulting. Dr Patterson and her team are not some-time advocates, who show their faces in the heat of passion.

Every day Dr Patterson works a full-time shift as a government paid mental health worker and then she goes to the Crisis Centre to pull another full time shift as a volunteer counsellor. She does this along with the other professional volunteers in addition to finding time for their legislative advocacy, community outreach and public training.

If the Crisis Centre, a private non-profit organization, is not visible enough for the liking of some, perhaps they should pass by and ask to see their annual budget. There is only so much visibility you can achieve with pennies in the bank. Do they expect the Crisis Centre to advertise on promissory notes? Perhaps they should pass by the average event and see the number of volunteers or participants. There is only so much exposure you can achieve with few hands to carry the message. And despite all of this, the very few committed and consistent volunteers have achieved mammoth accomplishments over the years on behalf of the Bahamian people.

So just to settle that criticism, Bahamians should think more carefully before they draw a name like Dr Patterson or the Crisis Centre to direct their ire towards. The reality is there are advocates who have been working day and night to end sexual violence in the Bahamas and to protect child and adult, male and female victims of sexually based crimes for many.

They do not wait on something tragic to happen to be reactionary and feign outrage. They do not spend the precious time and energy they have shouting from the pulpits about what they do. They dedicate their personal talents and resources to doing the work that everyone else is too busy talking about to do: running the 24-hour hotline; providing free counselling to all victims of abuse and people in need and other mental health services; providing training for law enforcement officers and social workers; outreach in the schools based on their anti-bullying peace campaign and their healthy relationships campaign; organizing conferences and other activities. They work every single day at their advocacy and they are starved for support. Men and women like them are who I align myself with and theirs are the causes I champion. Not the fly-by-night, jump-on-the-bandwagon advocates who feign outrage over the latest crime. As the old people say, empty-barrels make the most noise.

So instead of splitting hairs over the sex offender's registry, here are some of the things I suggest we channel energy towards in a consistent and concerted manner.

More prompt response to missing children. One child advocate told me she thought it was ridiculous, the "nonchalant" attitude of police officers when it comes to missing children. She proposes that the response time for "taking it serious" be reduced to two to three hours, coming from the current speed time of two to three days. In the United States there is the AMBER Alert system. In Jamaica there is the Ananda Alert system, both named after missing children. They are nationwide systems designed to ensure the speedy and safe recovery of missing children, particularly in the case of abducted or kidnapped children.

What system is there to speak of in the Bahamas?

Sexual Abuse Prevention Policies. In 2007 the Crisis Centre hosted a regional conference to end sexual violence. During the conference, the US-based child advocacy non-profit Darkness to Light held a sexual abuse prevention training programme. The programme Stewards of Children educates adults "to prevent, recognize, and react responsibly to child sexual abuse, and motivates them to courageous action." It encourages private and public institutions to enact policies around seven action steps: learning the facts about child abuse; minimizing opportunity for child abuse to occur; talking about child abuse to foster a culture of openness and disclosure; staying alert to be able to recognize warning signs; making a plan to know where to go, who to call and how to react; acting on suspicious behaviour to ensure accountability and getting involved with advocacy organizations and programmes. There are many policies and initiatives we should adopt learning from the Stewards of Children approach.

Mental health programmes for sex offenders. Sources tell me that sex offenders in prison receive virtual no mental health treatment, despite the fact that they get short sentences and almost always are released back into the society. Sexual offenders are notorious repeat offenders and need thorough and structured intervention before re-entry into society. The Bahamian society provides none of these things. Only a short period of rest in an all expense paid hotel courtesy of the public. Unless we are going to lock sex offenders up for life, we need to invest in the best professionals to work with them while incarcerated. And professionals will tell you that it takes "a special kind of person", who is highly trained, to be able to treat a sex offender. Few of those people exist in the Bahamas. Is it worth the expense? If these people are going to be roaming our streets, certainly.

A parole system for sex offenders. The Bahamas needs a parole system to monitor sex offenders released from prison and ensure public safety. In this light, there of course should be a sex offender's registry, but it should be a safety management tool for law enforcement and social workers, not a vigilante enabler for the public.

An enhanced probation programme. No offence to the hard working probation officers, but my sources tell me that the Probation Department is a joke. Understaffed, underfunded and under motivated.

The hundreds of people assigned to the handful of probation officers in the Department of Corrections cannot possibly fulfil their purpose with any success.

These initiatives along with harsher penalties for sex offenders and people who commit child abuse and better detection and prosecution rates would go further than any sex offender registry. So I encourage Bahamians to get out of the habit of being outraged in the heat of the moment and then fizzling out when it is time to work. I encourage Bahamians to get out of the habit of advocating for the quick and convenient action with a nice-sounding name, and instead advocate for long term measures that get to the root of things.

October 03, 2011

tribune242 editorial Insight

Caribbean Blog International

Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham: ..."government and other institutions are no substitute for personal responsibility and family life."

PM Ingraham calls for volunteers

tribune242 editorial

IN HIS address to the nation last night on crime, Prime Minister Ingraham outlined his government's plans to introduce legislation in Parliament to "further aid in the shared battle we are waging against criminality." (See story page 1).

He also pointed out that "government and other institutions are no substitute for personal responsibility and family life."

To get the whole community involved in an attempt to recapture family and social values, he announced that on November 1 a National Volunteer Register will be launched. At this time members of the community will be invited to volunteer their time to mentor young men and women, assist in community centres with after school programmes and join outreach programmes into urban neighbourhoods to encourage parental and child involvement in school activities. Also needed are volunteers to work with existing youth organisations in their programmes and many other social activities that can help change a society.

He found distressing not only the high murder count, but "what those numbers represent".

"For all of our good fortune as a country," he said, "we have in significant ways lost a sense of ourselves and of what is essential." He quoted one writer as reminding us "that 'what is essential is invisible to the eye'."

He said that Bahamians longed for something more than the outer trappings of material success. They longed for the invisible that the eye cannot see -- community and fellowship; peace and well-being.

"Remember," he said, "when the old people used to tell us that all you have is your good name and your reputation and that you don't leave this Earth with any of your worldly goods."

"Our most precious possessions," he said, "are invisible to the eye like a good conscience or the service we give with no expectation of recognition or reward.

"This crisis of culture and community manifested in an unprecedented level of criminality requires us to deal with essentials invisible to the eye like values, attitudes, social trust and mutual respect.

"We will get the crime numbers down," the Prime Minister promised. "But most crimes are symptoms, not root causes.

"Even as we relentlessly combat the criminals, provide law enforcement and the judiciary with the tools and resources they require and modernize our laws, there is something else as urgent, as essential -- it is urgent and essential that we renew, restore and replenish our sense of community choosing a culture of life over a culture given over to deadly violence."

Mr Ingraham emphasised the fact that "poverty is not an excuse for crime" -- a rack on which many Bahamians today hang their hats as they shrug off all responsibilities.

Using himself as an example of one who fought against the odds of birth and won, he said: "I too grew up poor. A two-parent family is our ideal. I am the child of a single parent and I was raised by my Grandmother.

"Many children from two-parent families get caught up in crime while many children from single-parent households are good citizens and fine young people.

"In the end," he said, "it is the quality of parenting, not the quantity that is essential.

"I grew up," he continued, "in what was then a remote part of Abaco called Cooper's Town. I came up at a time when there were few opportunities for a poor boy like me born to a single parent. The first time I met my father was when I was 11 years old.

"Even though I didn't possess material wealth, I had wealth more everlasting: Mama, who instilled in me a sense of my own worth as belonging to her and as a child of God.

"She schooled me in the knowledge that the land of my birth, The Bahamas we all love, is a land of opportunity for anyone willing to work hard.

"As a boy, never in my wildest dreams could I ever imagine becoming an attorney, Member of Parliament or minister of government let alone prime minister. But having been given this great privilege I have dedicated my public life to providing every Bahamian boy and girl with opportunities I never had.

"This is why," he explained, "I have never stopped working to make sure that every Bahamian child on every island in every settlement in The Bahamas has decent schools and access to higher education. This is why my Government ensures that everyone meeting a certain criteria and academic standards can attend the College of The Bahamas at public expense. And that is why since coming to office in 2007 we increased scholarship funding from $400,000 to $7.75 million. And this does not include bonded scholarships, the All Bahamas Merit Scholarship or Bahamas Commonwealth Scholarships.

"I say to you, young Bahamians: While your country may give you a hand-up, you are not entitled to hand-outs."

"So, even while we have much to improve as a country including the quality of our public education system, young Bahamians, men and women, you have more opportunities than any generation in Bahamian history.

"And so we must not throw up our hands or find easy excuses; instead let us unite to help to restore law and order and civility and community by getting involved."

PM Ingraham pointed out that "unless more of us get involved, none of us is truly safe. In the end community engagement and service will be more effective in combating crime than iron bars and gated communities.

"Our task," he said, "is not only to stop criminals from breaking into our homes and businesses. As urgently we must stop them from wanting to do so in the first place."

And so, Bahamians, the task is ours. We hope that many will take up the Prime Minister's challenge and get actively involved - for our sake and that of the next generation.

October 04, 2011

tribune242 editorial