Parliamentary debate on the government’s package of E-commerce Bills yesterday took a back seat again as Prime Minister Perry Christie defended what some members of the Official Opposition believed were harsh and shocking comments, he made during a religious conference with hundreds of foreigners Tuesday.
Mr. Christie pointed out that it was his responsibility to assure the group that although The Bahamas is gripped with fear, the government is making a massive effort to remove such evils.
“My intentions were honourable and the results were good,” he said. “Those persons attending the conference will go back and cause thousands of people to visit The Bahamas, simply because we didn’t fudge or hide – but came straight out and said what our country’s problem is.”
While addressing some delegates attending the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship’s leadership conference at the Atlantis Resort, Mr. Christie appealed to the group to pray for The Bahamas and the grip that crime has on Bahamians.
“I ask the churches as you assemble here in prayer, in meditation and reflection, to pray for our nation, to pray for our region,” Mr. Christie said Tuesday.
But these were comments that shocked the Leader of the Official Opposition Alvin Smith and left others wondering just how appropriate Mr. Christie’s comments were to a group of tourists.
Speaking in the House of Assembly yesterday, Mr. Smith indicated that he was very much disturbed by the prime minister’s address. “I would wish that the Prime Minister would refrain from demonstrating signs of panic and hopelessness and lead the way in a collective effort of solving crime,” Mr. Smith said.
“He is conveying the impression that we do not have the capacity to manage crime in The Bahamas,” he added. “He is alarming these people, frightening them. Relative to previous numbers, although crime is high, in my view, The Bahamas is still a very safe place to be.”
But according to the prime minister, having read the local dailies, the religious leaders were people who needed the reassurance that all is not lost in The Bahamas.
“These people arrived to a country gripped with fear,” he said. “They wanted to be assured that this little limited experience of killings is not a daily, all-the-time experience in our country. And the future of our country and our region depends on our success at communicating with people outside of The Bahamas and inside, that this is safe and secure country. As prime minister then, I ought not to have allowed them to return to the United States without hearing that we are resolved to removing the evils of this country.”
Mr. Christie said that long gone are the days when it is taboo to talk to tourists about issues like crime and AIDS.
“The taboo about speaking the truth is old fashioned,” he said.
“The world is open. People know what is happening in our country. We need only explain it. And so, I gave them both the pretty picture and the big picture of a few young men who are holding our country hostage, a situation the government will not let happen. I made a major effort then to simply broaden the base of our tourism image to people who have money.”
By Macushla Pinder, The Bahama Journal
