During a tumultuous victory rally at Clifford Park on 2 May 2002 , Prime Minister Perry Christie told thousands of wildly cheering supporters that he and his Progressive Liberal Party Government “are pledging to involve you, the people, in the governance of the country.”
Today, nearly six months later, a new Bahamian news and lifestyle magazine examines precisely how far that promised inclusion of the people has travelled, and the effect Mr. Christie’s different style of governance is having on the day-to-day running of the country.
Bahamas Sunshine Monthly, in its October 2002 edition looks intimately at how the new PLP administration is building on the work of its precedents, whilst putting in place many of the terms of the PLP’s “Our Plan” campaign credo, underscored by what the magazine describes as Mr. Christie’s “natural flair for the romantic.”
The magazine, which went on sale this week, is published by Bahamas Free Press, and editor-in-chief P. Anthony White says in the maiden issue that the goal of the publication each month is “to recreate and sustain a Bahamian cultural dialogue which has nearly drifted out of existence, but which, day by day, thousands yearn to recapture, and thousands of others, the 18 to 30 new breed, sensibly seek to embrace.”
Through a crisp, review of topical Business and Technology, Finance and Investment, Tourism, Sports, Real Estate, Religion, Cooking, and Culture and Entertainment, the magazine’s October edition pulls together a mosaic of the current scene in The Bahamas, with added regular features such as Town Talk, Lifestyle, and Nostalgia.
Also gracing the October edition is a full-dress dissertation on the rise of Bahamian women over the past four decades, stretching back to 1962 when Ruby-Ann Cooper – who was later to become the Member of Parliament for Exuma – became the first female to register to vote.
Today, the article points out, of a total of 56 members of the Bahamas Legislature – House and Senate – 16 are female and currently the four females serving as Cabinet Ministers are the first allowed in a PLP Cabinet since the late 1960s when Dame Doris Johnson, a Senator, served briefly.
Other standard departments include a list of historical places, schedule of service club meetings and venues, church services, and a comprehensive round-up of restaurants, saloons and places of entertainment across New Providence.
Veteran Bahamian sports journalist Le Roy Pratt, in the first of two parts, traces the genesis of cricket in The Bahamas, citing the roles played by sporting luminaries such as retired Justice Maxwell Thompson, George “Posie” Gardiner, Lionel “Sir Len” Smith, Earl Alleyne, James “Dutty” Ingraham, and Addington “Ding” Cambridge.
Bahamian tourism consultant Brendan Foulkes presents a “Correlation Theory” for the overall planning and development of tourism in The Bahamas, noting that there must be in place a master plan involving the Ministry of Tourism, the hotels and the trade unions, because, Foulkes says, “we cannot continue to grow like Topsy.”
A special feature in the October edition spotlights the mission of Arawak Homes Ltd. in housing today’s Bahamians whilst honouring yesterday’s heroes, such as the case of the recent official opening of the Freddie Munnings Manor in honour of the late Bahamian entertainer, and other housing developments honouring the late Sir Lynden Pindling, Dame Doris Johnson, and Mr. Gerald Bartlett.
The special housing vision of Arawak’s chairman Franklyn Wilson is outlined, and in a separate section of the magazine there is a nostalgic review of the life and the music of Freddie Munnings Sr.
As BaTelCo officially offers 49 per cent of the company’s shares for sale, Bahamas Sunshine Monthly reviews how the launch of the two new services – QuikCell and OnLine DSL – have boosted BaTelCo’s technological and competitive edge, thus rendering the company a more attractive produce for qualified buyers.
“The time has come when The Bahamas needs the availability of a proper news, lifestyle and entertainment magazine to complement the full measure of electronic news and information on tap, and we believe we have come up with just that formula,” Mr. White says.
“We at Bahamas Free Press believe that Bahamas Sunshine Monthly will have just the right mix of all things Bahamian to attract wide readership and support, whilst serving as a timely monthly review of the month that was, together with lively and provocative commentary.
“I might add,” Mr. White said, “that in our often nonconformist and apolitical way, we will exist on every page to inform, entertain, educate, and titillate the whole country, and our visitors, with malice toward none, and with charity to all.”
