Editor,
Bahamians, by and large, are a wonderful and innovative people, bar none. Too often, however, many of us are chronic complainers and perpetual naysayers. This was evident this past Monday, the 17th instant, when the nation was able to witness the absolute political and very desperate stunt by the so-called Opposition forces (or should I phrase it differently)?
With fewer than 300 constituents of the now celebrated Golden Isles constituency eligible to vote in the Advance Poll, the professional preparation and execution of the same by the Parliamentary Registrar, Mr. Harrison Thompson, and his dedicated and hardworking staff at the Parliamentary Registration Department on Harold Road, deserves recognition. As Bahamians, unfortunately, we do not always give credit where it is due, as is the case here.
I submit that it is clear the disruptive tactics employed by the chaotic and callous ‘leadership’ of the FNM and the transitory COI will prove fatal for both of their electoral successes. Bahamians do not seem to mind a little drama, but not antics and abject posturing.
The residents in Golden Isles have been shortchanged for far too long under both administrations. I am a Sir Lynden-motivated supporter of the iconic PLP and make absolutely no apologies for this. It is what it is. It is a constituency where any sensible Bahamian, if able, would wish to work and indeed live. Real estate is available, and market prices are still, at this juncture, affordable.
A major reason, in my opinion, for the ‘underdevelopment’ and stagnant growth of Golden Isles can be laid at the feet of the stark lack of a long-anticipated National Development Plan and the rapid turnover in partisan representatives. Some say one should not speak ‘ill’ of the dead. While I generally subscribe to that position, there are times when we must be brutally honest.
The late MP for Golden Isles, the Hon. Vaughan Miller, was a ‘good’ man and one for all seasons—and obviously, parties. I am sure he meant well, but in my view, he was far too laid-back and did not, ever, advocate a sensible and workable plan of action in that clean, pristine, and progressive constituency. Was he a lazy MP or a visionless cabinet minister?
He was first elected, out of the blue, amid palpable discontent with the Christie-led administration in 2017. Many, both locally and across the nation, had reached the point where Bahamians could not wait to send Brother Christie into permanent retirement and pave the inevitable road for the ascendency of the Rt. Hon. Philip ‘Brave’ Davis, KC, MP. The Minnis interregnum was just that—an interregnum.
The Golden Isles constituency is one of the most diversified in the nation and has often been referred to as a ‘swing constituency,’ as I submit that it is. With the administration holding an unchallenged parliamentary edge in terms of Members of Parliament, even if the FNM and/or, God forbid, the rowdy COI were to secure that seat, it would almost be meaningless since the legislative and administrative levers would still remain with the robust and enlightened PLP.
It is another clear fact that if the FNM were to lose the by-election, as they now appear to be on track to do, the immediate political future, such as it might be, will become cloudy and dark for its putative current leader. My brother Lincoln means well, no doubt, but he’s now Nigel Ferege over in the UK. The independent candidate, Mrs. Butler, is also a good Bahamian, but she will not get her deposit back, unfortunately.
In conclusion, I wish to thank the Parliamentary Commissioner and his stellar team for a job well done in organizing, scrutinizing, and actually conducting the Advance Poll in the professional manner they did on very short notice. The electoral process is in good hands. To God, then, in all things, be the glory.
Ortland H. Bodie, Jr.
Business Consultant & Talk Show Host
