The Bahamian people know from hard and bitter experience the disaster the Opposition was in office from 2002 to 2007. The Christie government kept very few of its promises, sold off Bahamian patrimony and land, produced nearly a scandal-a-month, and borrowed approximately $800 million with little to show.
Their record in office was one of the worst of any Bahamian government since independence as they:
* Nearly wrecked BTC with the Bluewater scheme
* Let the courts and judicial buildings run down
* Through shameful neglect let infant mortality rise
* Abandoned a solemn promise on National Health Insurance
* Failed students, parents and teachers by not building a single new school in five years
* Abandoned straw vendors by failing to build a new Straw Market
* Killed The Bahamas Games
* Wrecked B.E.C. and sent it into the red
* Virtually gave away 10 thousand acres of prime land in Mayaguana to non-Bahamians
* Slowed down expansion of the National Park System
* Abandoned athletes over a new National Stadium and other promises
* Let Accident & Emergency rooms at PMH and Rand run down
* Failed to pay PLP bills to ZNS and Bahamasair
* Didn’t think enough of Bahamians to have us offered shares in various public and private entities
* Left The Bahamas less clean, less green and anything but pristine than they met the country
* Failed to respond to Police requests for many more cars, CCTV, electronic monitoring bracelets and other critical equipment
* Nearly destroyed financial services sector by not negotiating a single Tax Information Exchange Agreement
* Failed to further Bahamianize the Court of Appeal
Today the same crew who held us back for five years have demonstrated again, this time through their irresponsible, undemocratic and shameful conduct in Opposition why they are unfit to govern.
New details are continuing to come out about the demonstration downtown last week to oppose the new partnership to transform BTC. The Minister of National Security has revealed the presence of a host of violent criminals who were involved in the PLP paid-for event which threatened the House of Assembly.
Overrunning a police barrier is a criminal offence. Yet senior PLPs stood by as the unruly crowd tried to overrun the police barriers erected to maintain law and order. The PLP has yet to condemn actions which threatened domestic security.
The right to demonstrate is protected by the rule of law. But there is no right to disobey the rule of law as one pleases, and to threaten the precincts of the House of Assembly. Rights come with responsibility.
The cavalier attitude the leadership of the Opposition has taken on mob behaviour bordering on illegal conduct as well as the use of criminals in a demonstration, show why they are unfit to govern. One senior PLP even went so far as to say who cares if some of the demonstrators were paid. This is democracy PLP style!
This is also typical behaviour by the Opposition. Let’s not forget what sore losers they are. They refused to admit defeat in 2007 when they stalled in accepting the country’s judgement on their miserable five years in office. They stirred up confusion, encouraged false hopes and riled up their supporters.
A self-entitled and self-absorbed PLP believes that rules and traditions are to be followed by others, but that they can trample on them when it suits their political and personal interests.
Today, the Opposition is trying to take credit for the FNM’s accomplishments of the past five years. They have also voted against the new four-lane Gateway Road Project which will be an impressive entryway to a transformed New Providence and what will be a revitalized City of Nassau. In essence they voted against revitalizing the nation’s capital island and city.
The project will link to the ambitious road corridor and network project which is reducing congestion. The Opposition voted against a project that will transport millions of tourists to Baha Mar and Atlantis. They voted against a project that will give residents of many neighbourhoods better water pressure and cleaner water. The PLP voted against progress.
In office and in Opposition, the PLP is a disaster waiting to happen. They are unfit to lead. They are unfit to govern The Bahamas.
By Free National Movement
