PM defends state of emergency

Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis yesterday laid out his case for seeking to extend the state of emergency in The Bahamas. 

As he opened debate in the House of Assembly yesterday to extend the state of emergency to January 31, Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis told the public that he has no plans to increase restrictive measures at this time.

“We are not here today to extend a curfew,” he said during debate on a resolution to extend the proclamation of emergency and the accompanying emergency order to January 31.

“We are not here to enforce a lockdown.

“We are not here to announce additional restrictions on any island.

“We are simply here to extend the period under which an emergency power exist.

“It is then up to the government – guided by the advice of the public health team – to determine if restrictions are needed for a period of time in order to prevent sickness and death.”

Minnis added, “The measures we seek to extend today merely allow us to have the legal authority to act in case we need to use certain measures.

“This does not mean that all of these measures are being used at a given time.”

Minnis credited the measures implemented thus far with putting The Bahamas in a position that he claimed is better than that of many other countries.

“Thankfully, the measures we used worked to beat back the virus thus far,” he said.

“Currently, our country is in a better position than many places.”

According to Minister of Health Renward Wells, The Bahamas is flattening the curve with fewer COVID-19 cases reported each day.

Minnis continued, “I am advised by our health officials that because of the emergency public health measures we took approximately three weeks ago, the cases on New Providence appear to be stabilizing.” 

Minnis also suggested that The Bahamas is taking a less extreme approach than some other countries.

“Other countries extend their emergency measures for longer periods at a time,” he said.

“For example, Barbados has extended its state of emergency into March of next year and each jurisdiction follows its own course.”

A state of emergency has existed in The Bahamas since March, days after the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in the country.

Governor General C.A. Smith declared a third state of emergency in The Bahamas Tuesday night, giving the competent authority the ability to have up to another six months of emergency powers.

Many have spoken out against the continued state of emergency, calling it undemocratic given the amount of power it places in the hands of the competent authority, the prime minister. 

However, Minnis said yesterday that critics of emergency powers are “irresponsible, reckless and unreasonable”.

“It is reasonable to debate what restrictions should be in place on what island and for how long,” he said.

“But it is highly irresponsible, reckless and unreasonable to suggest that we should not use emergency powers in the worst emergency in our country’s modern history.

“The position the opposition has taken is baffling and disturbing. It appears from their rhetoric that if they were in office, they would not give themselves the power to act to save lives.”

Over the past several weeks, there has been a significant decline in daily confirmed COVID cases, particularly on New Providence. However, Eleuthera, Exuma and Grand Bahama all saw recent surges.

Restrictive measures, including curfews and weekend lockdowns, were implemented on Eleuthera and Exuma in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.

While Minnis noted yesterday that cases are declining on those islands, he did not announce a relaxation of the measures in place.

“A team from the Ministry of Health will travel to Eleuthera this coming Friday, November 27, to conduct a follow-up assessment of the COVID-19 situation,” he said.

“Restrictions will remain in place for the rest of this week. Next week, based on advice from health officials and their findings, I will announce whether restrictions can be relaxed on mainland Eleuthera.

“I am happy to report that cases are down on mainland Exuma. On Monday past there were three new confirmed cases. Health officials continue to closely monitor COVID-19 developments on the island and will have more to say on Exuma soon.”

Minnis said health officials have advised that restrictive measures should remain the same on Grand Bahama, and also noted that more contact tracing capacity is needed on the island.

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