NASSAU, The Bahamas — Prime Minister Perry Gladstone Christie formally introduced the co-chairs of the Urban Renewal 2.0 Commission at the Ministry of Works and Urban Development launch at the Paul H. Farquharson Conference Centre, Wednesday, July 11, 2012.
They are former Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia “Mother” Pratt and former Free National Movement Member of Parliament Algernon Allen.
Prime Minister Christie said, “When we contemplated leadership from the Commissioner point of view, those persons who would be between the politicians and the people executing the programme, we wanted a male and female, and we wanted people with credibility.”
He said, “Cynthia ‘Mother’ Pratt continues to live in her community. She is renowned for her understanding of the streets; she has now become the author of her own story, which is a moving story of coming from absolute poverty.”
The Prime Minister said that Mrs. Pratt, who has become a minister of religion, will bring a tremendous amount of reasoning and experience to the job.
He explained that there were a number of candidates up for consideration for Mrs. Pratt’s male counterpart.
“We really wanted to demonstrate that if we could find someone who has been exposed to public life, who has had the experience of dealing with the inner city, who has had the experience of dealing with the young people and who has a personality capable of adaptation, being able to adjust to circumstances that are changing.”
Prime Minister Christie said, “We concluded that Algernon Allen would be such a person.”
He explained that what really clinched the deal was the fact that Mr. Allen gave a large financial contribution in the name of his now deceased mother during the 2002-2007 urban renewal programme, to purchase instruments for children, so that they would be able to take part in a band.
“He is going to be a wonderful addition with Mother Pratt, and I feel that when he commences, I am going to be titillated as he moves about the country doing this work.”
The Prime Minister explained that for urban renewal 2.0 to work, the problems in the inner cities such as homes existing without bathrooms must be fixed now.
He said that he told Commissioner of Police Ellison Greenslade that the programme would not work if politics is brought into it. “So I am going to demonstrate my commitment to the programme by creating it but stepping back.”
Prime Minister Christie said he will let the police officers and others involved in the programme become its face and leading figures.
He also said, “I argue today, to this very moment, that the Government of The Bahamas do not by the policies it has implemented, know what is happening in the communities.
“The strategies, the policies, do not embrace knowledge of what is happening, and therefore if you do not have public policy being informed properly and accurately, it is not relevant to what is happening. So we have to become relevant.”
The Prime Minister said urban renewal would enable the people in charge of a district (police officers, social workers, environmental workers, health workers and others) to go to every home and make an assessment of every home in that district.
He said if they do that as well as apprise the relevant ministries, public policy would then be informed and the right decisions can be made for the people of The Bahamas.
Caption:
Commissioner of Police Ellison Greenslade (sitting far right) is joined by the senior command of the Force during the Ministry of Works and Urban Development launch of the Urban Renewal 2.0 Commission at the Paul H. Farquharson Centre. Also pictured in the front row from left: Assistant Commissioner of Police Glenn Miller; Assistant Commissioner of Police Hulan Hanna and Deputy Commissioner of Police Quinn McCartney. (BIS Photo/Peter Ramsay)
