For many, it was a time to grade the Christie Administration on its performance.
It was a process kicked off last week by PLP Chairman Raynard Rigby who gave the government an A+.
At the time, he said, ﾓThis 2nd anniversary of electoral victory is but a realization that the PLP is on course and that we will remain steadfast in our mission to create a better Bahamas for Bahamians. We have delivered on many of our promises in just 24 months in office,ﾔ he said.
There are many people who would probably agree with Mr. Rigbyﾴs assessment.
Carson Hepburn, a security officer at Solomon Mines, is one of them.
ﾓI believe that most of their promises that they made in May 2002 have already become reality,ﾔ Mr. Hepburn told the Journal. ﾓThatﾴs why I believe that they deserve an A.ﾔ
But not everyone shares this view.
Adrian Brown, 33, gave the government a near failing grade.
ﾓ I think that the PLP government deserves a C-,ﾔ he said. ﾓMany of the promises that they made had already been put on the drawing board by the FNM government, including things such as the privatization of [the Bahamas Telecommunications Company].ﾔ
Prime Minister Perry Christie, who was a guest on the Love 97 talk show ﾓJones and Companyﾔ Sunday, said that the government is still very much committed to privatization, even though the initial exercise failed to achieve the desired result.
He intimated that a certain level of patience was needed to complete the process.
Patience is precisely what 29-year-old Sheila Wright feels many more Bahamians could use.
She said the government is trying its best to improve the lives of the countryﾴs citizens and residents.
ﾓ I think that the government is trying to get some results and they already have gotten some,ﾔ Ms. Wright said. ﾓI think that there will be a lot more jobs and things will keep getting better.ﾔ
Her message was in line with the tone of the prime minister during this anniversary week.
On Monday, he promised better ﾖ more jobs and unprecedented levels of capital ﾖ during the announcement that Kerzner Internationalﾴs Phase III Atlantis expansion has mushroomed into a $1 billion investment. The project will bring to over $2 billion Kerznerﾴs total investment in The Bahamas, Mr. Christie said.
Still, there are those who persist in calling the Christie Administration a ﾓdo nothing governmentﾔ.
ﾠCharles Williams, a taxi driver, sees little effort being made by the government to fuel economic growth.
ﾓ I think that the Bahamas government deserves an F,ﾔ Mr. Williams said. ﾓThere is no physical evidence that the government has been working. I feel that they are too relaxed. They have promised many things that they have not lived up to.ﾔ
Prime Minister Perry Christie on Sunday maintained that no other government has worked so rapidly in such a short period of time.
ﾓI assert without fear of contradiction that if you took my 24 months and compare it with any government in this history of this country, no government in the history of this country would have done as much, made as many decisions that are as impactful as my government,ﾔ Mr. Christie said.
He recognized that no matter what the government does, there will be about 40 percent of the population who will not give it credit
Kendea Jones, The Bahama Journal
