The corruption tag

Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Leader Philip Brave Davis said he does not believe Bahamians view the PLP as any more corrupt than they view the Free National Movement (FNM), adding that despite a perception some may have there is no evidence that anyone in his party is indeed corrupt.

“The only thing you have against the PLP are the allegations,” Davis told National Review.

“Nothing has been proven, and like I say, what is the reality? And if you take a poll of the Bahamian people, you would find that they don’t hold us to be any more corrupt than the FNM, or the PLP any less corrupt than the FNM. They see all parties as corrupt. That is because again they [link] the persons who are part of the party who are corrupt to the organization.

“I don’t say that the FNM is corrupt; I say persons in the FNM are corrupt.

“I have not had any incidents that have come to me where I can say there is any evidence of any official of the PLP being corrupt. Now, I’ve heard chatter, but I’ve had no proof of it.”

Davis made the comment in response to our observation that Jamaican social development practitioner, Maureen Webber, who was hired by the PLP in the wake of its 2017 election defeat, concluded that a key reason for the loss was the widespread perception voters held that the PLP is corrupt.

In light of the party’s work in interviewing candidate hopefuls and preparing for the next election, we asked Davis whether he thinks the party has been able to sanitize its image in the last three plus years.

He said the fact that more than 200 people have applied for PLP nominations demonstrates that the party has regained trust.

But he rejected any suggestion that the PLP is the party of corruption.

“There may be individuals around who may have that perception of [the PLP] being corrupt, which infects the party,” he said.

“The truth of the matter is that for years on end, the party has been labeled as corrupt and there isn’t any real pushback from that perception, and so yes, the perception is there, but what is the reality?

“Have we been able to pinpoint anyone, any circumstance of the PLP being corrupt? And so, let’s identify some instances of it…The challenge has been that the FNM has always been the darling of the media, and so they’re really loath to point out [wrongdoing].”

Davis said the FNM has largely been responsible for the propaganda pushed that the PLP is a group of corrupt individuals.

Clearly referencing the charges brought against three former PLP parliamentarians after the 2017 election, Davis said the FNM “conjured up cases”.

In the lead up to the election, FNM Leader Dr. Hubert Minnis repeatedly pledged that his administration would deal with wrongdoers.

Charges were brought against former ministers Shane Gibson and Kenred Dorsett and former PLP Senator Frank Smith.

Both Gibson and Smith have been acquitted. Dorsett’s case has not yet been heard.

Referring to the matters already heard, the PLP leader said, “You say that this fellow is corrupt, you brought the case, you spent millions of dollars on high-powered QCs out of London to demonstrate what you say, that he is corrupt and it’s proven not to be. The charges never should have been brought and we also have to be careful about what I call victor’s justice.

“We could have charged couple people in 2002 and in 2012. I can say in respect of all of them, there’s some documentary evidence that required explanation, but why charge a political opponent; because that only fuels cynicism in your body politic and it undermines a whole concept of a democracy.

“People become cynical. It leaves that void; that’s where you have these autocratic or authoritarian [leaders], despots and dictators get elected.”

There has been no recent case of any prominent PLP being convicted on bribery charges, but in 2016, Fred Ramsey, a former FNM candidate, was convicted on multiple bribery related charges in relation to a Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) deal.

In 2017, the FNM was tremendously successful in slapping the corruption label on the PLP, however. 

The FNM promised legislation to strengthen the anti-corruption regime.  Several months after getting elected, it tabled the Integrity Commission Bill, intended to do just that, but there has been no movement on that bill three years on.

Upon coming to office, the FNM also claimed it would pursue cases of misfeasance against former PLPs. In the 2017/2018 budget debate, minister after minister made jaw-dropping revelations regarding what they characterized as significant wastage of the people’s money.

The corruption theme resonated against the PLP long after the election.

It will no doubt be a theme the FNM adopts ahead of the next election.

Voters appear to have more tolerance for incompetent governance than they do for governance in which taxpayer dollars are “stolen” — never mind that there has been no convictions.

That pervasive perception will be hard for the PLP to overcome as it seeks reelection.

This is why the party must present a team of candidates who are scandal free and of the highest integrity.

It will be difficult for the party to move beyond the view that its leadership will condone wrongdoing.

Webber concluded in her report that the failure to address “wrongdoing” of Cabinet ministers was a major reason the PLP lost. 

Even in cases where there was no proven corruption, the behavior and judgement of some PLPs in positions of power were questionable. 

In 2017 when he had an opportunity to condemn his then Cabinet colleague Jerome Fitzgerald for using his position to try to get contracts for his (Fitzgerald’s) family from Sarkis Izmirlian, then the developer of Baha Mar, Davis instead publicly stated his support for Fitzgerald.

“He’s our candidate for Marathon and we expect him to win his seat,” the then deputy prime minister declared when approached by reporters on April 21, 2017.

In politics, perception is reality. What voters perceive is happening, really is happening in their minds. They vote based on that.

For the PLP, the corruption tag remains its most significant hurdle.

The post The corruption tag appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

source https://thenassauguardian.com/the-corruption-tag/