NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Free National Movement Leader Michael Pintard is less than impressed with the Davis administration’s first year in office, accusing the current administration of only “selecting the low-lying fruits they met ripe for the picking”, instead of taking on more challenging and controversial issues.
“One year into the Davis Administration and already we are witnessing the unfortunate outcomes of a distracted government that is engaged in endless public relations stunts, excessive foreign travel, daily posturing, and delaying serious urgent decisions,” Pintard said.
“We in the FNM have constantly admonished this PLP Government to put down the endless political campaigning and to take up their responsibilities for governance. They have refused to do so and now the entire country must pay for their politicking and grandstanding.”
His assessment was given in a statement released from the Office of the Leader of His Majesty’s Loyal Opposition.
Pintard said “reputational damage” for The Bahamas and “millions of dollars” in losses could have been avoided had the Government heeded the Opposition’s device.
“Under Davis’ stewardship, The Bahamas has been blacklisted despite meeting in place the plan of action to avoid such an outcome. The Bahamas has now been downgraded by Moody’s. There is a spike in the homicide rate, an increase of around 18 percent while government officials boast that their plan is working.”
Pintard continued: “We have unchecked inflation. We have Bahamian taxpayers paying $90 million to Shell to keep BPL from a financial meltdown caused by this government’s inaction and inattention.
“Many of these troubling developments could have been avoided – or at a minimum, they could have been mitigated by a government that was committed to more working and less flossing.”
Earlier this week, Davis sought to allay fears about the effect of the country’s crime rate on the tourism industry, describing it as a “contained issue.”
Minister of National Security Wayne Munroe similarly downplayed the concerns, stating that “It is a crisis, everything is a crisis, you have a health crisis, if you put on 10 pounds that’s a crisis.”
The remarks came just a few days after the Office of the Prime Minister released a statement that defended Davis’ decision to delay the introduction of Bahamas Power and Light’s (BPL) fuel charge hike by several months.
Pintard called that decision “ill-considered meddling”, before calling on the Government to reexamine its priorities.
“We repeat our calls for this government to scale back the foreign trips, to cut down on the events and receptions and the photo-ops, and to get on with the serious business of governance,” he said. “We face a challenging local and global environment that requires leaders with resolve who are prepared to make the tough calls and work for the benefit of the Bahamian people.
“If they are not prepared or able to do so, they should do the honorable thing and step aside in favor of those persons who are prepared to provide better stewardship to our beloved country.”
