In a nationally-televised address that was sprinkled with optimistic lines while carrying a theme of economic uncertainty, Prime Minister Perry Christie last night advised Bahamians to exercise greater prudence in their fiscal affairs “until the grey clouds have given way to clearer skies.”
Mr. Christie’s speech came less than three hours before U.S. President George Bush confirmed in a televised speech of his own that the war he had vowed to carryout if Saddam Hussein and his sons did not flee Iraq had started.
Prime Minister Christie – like much of the rest of the world – was undoubtedly not surprised by Mr. Bush’s announcement.
“The quest for peace has now given way to the drumbeat of war,” said Mr. Christie, who spoke from the Cabinet Office in downtown Nassau in the presence of a few Cabinet Ministers, other government officials and members of the media.
He had spent the day huddled with his closest advisers crafting the much-anticipated speech that intended to reassure Bahamians that “in the end, all will be well.”
“Be of good courage…Keep the faith,” Mr. Christie urged.
He said, “We are all in this together and together we will continue our forward march. This is a trying time for us and for all the world. But we have been through trying times before and just as we did before we are going to come through this one just alright.”
Mr. Christie said his government’s optimism in the face of global tension and uncertainty is anchored in the fact that the underlying fundamentals of the Bahamian economy continue to be sound.
“This fact, coupled with the prudent conservation of our fiscal resources and careful control over public expenditure in times of difficulty will, I am convinced, help us to weather the approaching storm,” he said.
But he candidly advised Bahamians that this is not the time for reckless or unnecessary spending on things that “you can do without or things you do not really need to have right now.”
“Should there be a reduction in tourism business for a protracted period and should there be, on top of that, increases in the price of oil, Bahamians will find that the cost of living will rise all around, placing new stresses upon their paycheques and personal savings,” the prime minister said. His speech also carried a message of national security readiness. And he urged Bahamians to be patient and understanding as “these are not normal times in which we live.”
“The times are extraordinary,” Mr. Christie said. “And in extraordinary times, extraordinary measures are required.”
He said all of the country’s security and law enforcement agencies, including the Royal Bahamas Police Force, The Royal Bahamas Defence Force, the Departments of Customs and Immigration, together with the Department of Civil Aviation, the Airport Authority and the Port Authority are all on heightened alert and in a co-ordinated state of readiness for any contingency that may arise.
“Our intelligence-gathering capabilities have been strengthened,” he said. “Undercover human surveillance and other technically sophisticated surveillance systems are now in place at key security-sensitive locations; mobile patrols have been increased; and special security measures too sensitive to mention have been introduced at our airports and ports and in and around their perimeters.”
Evidence of these increased security measures were evident this morning at the Nassau International Airport.
Vehicles headed to the airport were stopped by armed police officers carrying medal detectors.
The increased security created a bit of a traffic stall at roundabouts in the area, the morning after Mr. Christie asked Bahamians to be patient.
“Let us realize and appreciate that the inconveniences we must now endure are for a larger and necessary purpose,” he said.
By Candia Dames, The Bahama Journal
