Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Neville Wisdom was spared promised opposition criticisms yerterday over his handling of the most recent Junkanoo parades when FNM Members of Parliament stormed out of the House of Assembly, refusing to debate the much-talked about Junkanoo report.
Opposition Leader Alvin Smith and two other members walked out of the chamber of the lower house, after several failed attempts to secure pertinent information they requested to proceed with a resolution Mr. Smith drafted condemning Minister Wisdom for what he called reckless spending of public funds.
Also walking out of that debate were Eight Mile Rock MP, Lindy Russell and Lucaya MP Neko Grant. They were accompanied by several members of the Torch Bearers Association, the FNM’s youth arm.
Former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham and Montagu MP Brent Symonette were not in the chamber at the time.
“This government said that it would be accountable, transparent and I am wondering why the Official Opposition cannot get pertinent information relating to the Junkanoo report,” said Mr. Smith, before the walkout.
According to Mr. Smith, he wrote the prime minister a letter last week requesting a copy of contracts between Tower Scaffolding Limited of Canada and the government for the rental of bleachers, along with information relating to the recent parades, but he said he got no response.
These were pieces of information, he said, that should have been tabled in the House of Assembly last week along with a copy of the highly-controversial Junkanoo report. Following Mr. Smith’s comments, Prime Minister Perry Christie pointed out that if the opposition leader is “incapable, unwilling, unable and unprepared to move ahead with his resolution to condemn Minister Wisdom for his handling of the last Junkanoo season, then he should say so.
The prime minister added that as Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, Mr. Smith has the power to request and receive the required information from the Auditor General.
“The prime minister shouldn’t have to do your job nor should he have to have to tell you what your job is,” Mr. Christie said.
“You are chairman of a Public Accounts Committee with wide ranging terms of reference. You said you wanted to condemn the government and we are giving you the opportunity to do so. – in fact the entire day. So, if you are ready to attack, we are ready to defend. That is why we all came here.”
After saying that the opposition was quite prepared and loaded with ammunition, Mr. Smith continued reading a copy of the letter he sent to Mr. Christie, ignoring an admonition from the House Speaker to precede with the resolution. Given an ultimatum to either advance or defer his resolution, Mr. Smith, chose the latter.
“Since the government has refused to provide the official Opposition with requested pertinent information, we will not participate in this charade,” said Mr. Smith, before gathering his documents and leaving.
Opposition Members last week called on Minister Wisdom to resign, after it was revealed that the government lost nearly $1.2 million during the 2002-2003 Junkanoo season.
By Macushla Pinder, The Bahama Journal
