Father Sebastian Campbell says: Be real with the numbers business ...It is here to stay ...Effectively tax the number houses

 Priest: Tax Web Shops

  by Rogan Smith




A leading clergyman is suggesting the government tax the illegal number houses as a way of generating revenue and offsetting the impending value added tax (VAT).

The government has announced plans to introduce VAT on July 1, 2014 as a means of broadening the country’s tax base.

The Bahamas will apply a 15 per cent VAT to a broad range of goods and services.

In the past, many Bahamians have suggested the government tax the web shops, which are raking in millions of dollars annually.

“Be real with the numbers business. It is here to stay. Effectively tax the number houses,” said Father Sebastian Campbell, rector at St. Gregory’s Anglican Church.

“Research has already shown that this is an oasis of wealth sitting in our midst. Governments sometimes must make hard and unpopular decisions for the good of the country; go for it. It is common knowledge that many involved in the numbers business voted against the referendum in January. By so doing they guarantee greater gains for themselves.”

In January, the Christie administration held a referendum to give Bahamians an a chance to vote to regularise the numbers industry.

The majority of Bahamians rejected the referendum. A legal battle has ensued since then with the government taking steps to shut down the numbers racket and the attorneys for the web shop operators attempting to keep it open.

“In January, please be honest and admit, we had an opinion poll, it was loaded with flaws. I urge the government to do the most appropriate thing, lead. The resource is here; let’s tax it for the common good. As parliament goes into the debate of gaming now is the time to level the playing field. Do not give away rights to foreigners that Bahamians don’t have in their own country,” he said.

“This is a hot button topic; it is not prudent to do it near an election, therefore now is the time. We have no luxury in waiting for this one. By 2017 Bahamians would have experienced the results and government would have had time to tweak and show the public the benefit of the new regime.”

Father Campbell said The Bahamas’ financial system must be overhauled, as is it is “totally inadequate and not real to the times.”

In fact, he said it is “miraculous” that Bahamians have survived so long without radically overhauling its tax structure.

He also suggested the government make improvements in the area of tax collection. Millions of dollars, he said, are alleged to be outstanding.

“We must confess our failure to successfully achieve maximum results in tax collection. VAT, mind you, is said not to be a progressive form of taxation, I am no tax expert, but I’ve heard the cry from friends in the region that have it,” he said.

“Income tax is said to be more progressive and will cause those who have more to carry a greater portion of the burden as opposed to a VAT, where all men will be equal in contribution. Bahamians ought to also beware that some countries in our region have both VAT and income tax. Yet remember, too, The Bahamas is an archipelago. We have to repeat maybe some 60 plus times that which regional countries might only have to do once.”

Father Campbell also called on his colleagues within the church to prepare their congregations and the nation as a whole for this reality.

“This is where leadership is warranted now in our development. It is not the duty of only the government and politicians in educating our people and to give leadership. The church must assist in leading the way and not get in the way of this necessary, progressive, albeit radical move. It might be a good gesture for government to launch its plan education programme with the church,” he said.

VAT has been implemented in 140 countries around the world.

November 06. 2013

The Bahama Journal

Caribbean Blog International

Bahamas Christian Council applauds decision not to legalise the numbers business

Christian Council applauds decision not to legalise the numbers business
By ALISON LOWE
Tribune Staff Reporter
alowe@tribunemedia.net:


THE Bahamas Christian Council expressed its pleasure yesterday at the government's decision not to legalise the numbers business at this time.

In a statement issued after the government announced it had shelved plans to legalise the numbers business despite initial assessments determining that it could bring $30 million to $40 million in revenue into the public treasury annually, the BCC said the decision is "a good step" and one "in the right direction."

The church organisation also stressed that "fundamental long-term changes" are needed if the country is to get through its present economic predicament, which Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham has indicated to be quite dire, with the government having difficulty finding the money to fund essential services.

Referring to the gambling question, the Bahamas Christian Council (BCC) held that a country addicted to gambling and "all the social ills that are inextricably tied to it" condemns its people and generations to come to a society "void of creativity and productivity."

Evil

As an "instrument created by God", government should "secure each person and their property, equality of justice between individuals, and constrain the forces of evil in civil society," the BCC said.

Suggesting that the legalisation of the numbers business would encourage more Bahamians to gamble - although it is widely recognised that thousands of Bahamians from all areas of society do so at present, and generally with impunity - the BCC said that "laws shape society" and "human beings generally follow the laws that are set in a society."

The government stated over the weekend that it has encountered strong opinions on both sides of the debate for and against the legalisation of numbers and would put off further consideration of the issue until a referendum can be held after the next general election. The prime minister met with the BCC last month to discuss the possibility of legalising the numbers business.

Speaking to the country's financial situation, the BCC said: "There are some fundamental long-term changes that are required. These adjustments may not be considered favourable in the short-term but are critical to our overall long-term well-being and sustainability."

"The Bahamas Christian Council pledges our support to the government to assist with the sensitising of our people to the need for such measures to be implemented.

"We would also be very willing to participate in any national discussion to devise a national plan for the long-term sustainability of the Bahamian economy," the BCC said.

The organisation suggested that think-tanks with a diverse membership could also help devise solutions to the country's economic challenges by "coming up with alternative solutions to produce and create wealth in our country."

May 26, 2010

tribune242

Bahamas Blog International

Bishop Laish Boyd Gambles Wrong on Gambling In The Bahamas

By Dennis Dames:


I write in response to the Anglican Church’s position on legalizing the numbers business in The Bahamas that was expressed recently by Bishop Laish Boyd.

The Bishop said that: “By enacting legislation legalizing numbers, the government would be "opening the floodgates" to the lowering of standards and values, and it would be doing so for financial reasons, so that it can make money from the numbers business".

He stated further in a pastoral letter dated May 12 that: "In short, it promotes values that are harmful to the moral fiber of our communities. It would be a mistake to affirm this subculture by legalizing it at a time when there are so many negative influences on the society, and when our community is suffering from a lack of values".

"In matters of this kind the government has the constitutional and moral responsibility to protect the value base of the country".

"Many persons who play numbers regularly become obsessed with finding the right number and wait anxiously to see which number will fall. It becomes a consuming force, often dictating every other area of that person's life. Most Christian moralists agree that the real danger in gambling lies exactly in this kind of excess".

"Persons who can ill afford to are often the biggest users, abusers, and losers," Boyd said. "It forms a false and unreliable foundation upon which to base one's personal finances. It encourages what seems to be a short cut approach to financial security rather than through the principles of Christian or other forms of stewardship”.

"It preys on those who cannot discipline themselves in these areas. Often there is a higher call to the funds used, i.e., persons need to spend that money on more basic and important things, but do not".

"It goes against the principles of Christian stewardship. Life cannot be simply about chance where so many people lose and only a few win. This is what the numbers game typifies. We need to be promoting culture and activities that are based on planning and productivity, purpose and positive advancement. Stewardship calls us to acknowledge what we have, and to build on it constructively and incrementally to accomplish higher goals".

"To argue that such a law cannot be enforced is to recognize that some of the things that we say about ourselves are sadly true; in other words, how can we enforce it by an across the board multi-agency, multi-department effort when too many of our best beloved citizens are lazy, dishonest, unwilling to do a full day's work for a full day's pay, unwilling to stand for principle, too willing to look the other way, too easily bought for a few dollars, and are prepared to accept mediocrity".

"In spite of the widespread acceptance of playing numbers, the Anglican Church opposes it, never mind how many persons see no harm in legalizing it. In spite of how many persons there are who support it, we say that such would be a bad move for the moral fabric of our society and far more devastating in its long-term effects than any monetary or taxation advantage that can be gained in the short-term".

I really don’t understand the Bishop’s logic and sense of reasoning in this instance. How moral is it to have gambling legalized for tourists in The Bahamas, and not for Bahamians?

How moral is it to have an unconstitutional law on our books that sanctions casino gambling for guests of our country, and not for Bahamians?

How moral is it to allow the illegal numbers business in The Bahamas to flourish for decades unabated and virtually unchallenged, and to the point of no return - because of protection and condonation in high places; and to suddenly wake up on day and say it’s immoral to make a wrong right?

This is a secular society Bishop, and the government has a duty to do the right things in the interest of the people and the social order. The time has come to legalize the culture of number buying and gambling generally in The Bahamas. It’s the decent thing to do Bishop and the majority of the Bahamian public agrees with it in my view.

We all need to take responsibility for our actions, and be wise in our daily living. If the man who works all week wants to drink out his pay – that’s his business; if he wants to gamble it out, so be it.

If he wants to spend it all on women – that’s his prerogative. If a woman who works all month wants to buy clothes and shoes with her salary – then let her live with her new attire Bishop.

Yes Bishop, we all will have to account eventually for our deeds; and Jesus Christ did not come here to overthrow the worldly authority. My understanding of Christ’s mission here on earth – is to offer us a better way and eternal life in his name.

He did not come here to tell us what to do or how to live, because free choice is God’s greatest gift to man in my opinion. Therefore, no bishop, priest, rabbi and so on are ethically qualified to dictate to a people on how they should live.

Rather, the sharing and dispersion of the good news of Jesus Christ should be their focus.

If the church in The Bahamas was spiritually, socially and morally effective, we would have a more peaceful, respectable and civilly upright society. We appear to have a nation of mullahs and ayatollahs who want to tell us how to govern our society and life.

The Bishop and other prominent religious leaders in The Bahamas are on the wrong tract as it relates to the work of God; because Jesus Christ has stated that his kingdom is not of this world. Preach and demonstrate the good news of the gospels, and render to Caesar all that’s Caesar’s Bishop.

We the people want to gamble legally in our beloved country and we want our government to facilitate this. Amen.

May 21, 2010

Bahamas Blog International