Elections have consequences, pt. 3

“Elections remind us not only of the rights but the responsibilities of citizenship in a democracy.” – Robert Kennedy

“No part of the education of a politician is more indispensable than the fighting of elections.” – Winston Churchill

“The very foundation of our democracy depends on the integrity of our elections.” – Brad Schneider

“Elections do have consequences, and those we elect and far too often re-elect have forgotten how government works and for whom they work …” – David Pratt

With a year to go before the next general election must be held in The Bahamas, the two major political parties have dramatically accelerated their activities. Some persons speculate that we could have an early election.

In part one of this four-part series, we reviewed the consequences of general elections in The Bahamas during the Pindling and Ingraham-led administrations. Last week, we recounted the failed leadership of the Christie-led administration, particularly during its second, non-consecutive term from 2012 to 2017.

This week, we will consider this – what were the consequences of the 2017 election that returned the Free National Movement (FNM) to government, this time with a new face as the fourth prime Minister of an independent Bahamas?

The people’s time

The FNM’s victory on May 10, 2017, led by Dr. Hubert A. Minnis, truly represented the passing of the political torch. Dr. Minnis is the first Bahamian prime minister who had no direct connection to the five-decade Pindling political epoch.

Sir Lynden had personally and significantly contributed to the political careers and fortunes of his two prime ministerial successors. Both Hubert Ingraham and Perry Christie were part of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and were appointed to the Cabinet by Sir Lynden at various stages of their political careers. The number of years that these three powerful personalities presided over the political panorama totals 50, from 1967 to 2017.

Dr. Minnis had no such connection. He was, therefore, uniquely positioned to chart a new direction for our political culture, to transition that culture away from one of deeply divided political partisanship, steeped in a level of tribalism that is unhelpful and unhealthy for the democratic process. Unfortunately, he missed a golden opportunity to propel our political culture to new heights and in a very different direction.

Early disappointments

Before the ink was dry on the election ballots of May 10, 2017, one of the new administration’s actions was to launch specious speculations and unsubstantiated allegations against several former PLP parliamentarians, charging them with corruption in office.

A former member of Parliament was also detained about a theft probe at a government corporation but was vindicated after police admitted there was no evidence of any wrongdoing. Of the three former parliamentarians charged in court, two were acquitted, one with a condemnation by the court of questionable political interference in the judicial process. The third case has not yet been heard, four years after charges were brought.

Concerning the two that have already been heard, it is clear that the government misjudged not only the veracity of the charges that they brought against them but also the people’s overwhelming disinterest in the government pursuing these matters at enormous time, cost, and distraction from the purpose for which they were given such a massive mandate three years ago.

In summary, one of the new government’s first acts in office was to launch political prosecutions that had nothing to do with the well-being of the people who had just elected them.

Another universally disappointing decision of the new government was its decision to increase value-added taxes by 60 percent in its first year in office, from 7.5 percent under Christie to 12 percent under Minnis. This enormous increase adversely affected many, particularly the poor, and was hypocritical, given that it came from a political party that had opposed implementing a value-added tax at all when it was first enacted by a PLP Government.

Hurricanes and their consequences

Over the past four years, two major hurricanes devastated Ragged Island, Abaco, and Grand Bahama.

Ragged Island had a population of nearly 100 before Hurricane Irma. Following the passage of the hurricane, the government promised to rebuild and restore that island rapidly, but, for a very long time, little was accomplished to enable displaced Ragged Island residents to return to their homes. It was clear that one of the immediate consequences of the FNM’s elections in 2017 was manifested in its inexperience in efficiently managing national disasters.

This government’s inexperience became even more pronounced when, in 2019, Hurricane Dorian devastated Abaco and Grand Bahama, bringing the loss of many lives and extensive property destruction. Although there were reports of hundreds and possibly thousands of deaths from Dorian, the official and final death count has never been fully revealed.

In addition, the rebuilding and restoration process on Abaco has been painfully slow. Abaconians lament that, as we begin yet another hurricane season in little more than two weeks, considerable restoration remains incomplete. Similarly, Grand Bahama has not recovered from the devastation inflicted by Dorian, guided by a government that seems aimlessly and hopelessly lost in its approach to that island’s recovery.

COVID-19 challenges

Halfway in its tenure, the COVID-19 crisis has provided yet another opportunity to witness the consequences of electing a new FNM government.

The Bahamas was fortunate to have Dr. Duane Sands at the helm of the Ministry of Health at the beginning of the pandemic. It is also singularly unfortunate that he resigned from his ministry because, in his own words, he “exceeded his authority” related to the pandemic.

During Dr. Sands’ tenure as minister of health, which ended in May 2020, the pandemic seemed to be trending in the right direction. Right up to June 30, The Bahamas recorded only 104 positive cases and 11 deaths from COVID-19. Shortly after that, The Bahamas began recording rapidly accelerating COVID-19 losses, further accentuating the razor-thin bench of the FNM government and its lack of capable persons to lead us out of the pandemic. Since Dr. Sands’ resignation, for various reasons The Bahamas has experienced a quantum acceleration in both positive cases and deaths, amounting to 10,862 and 213, respectively, as of May 7, 2021.

The mismanagement of the COVID-19 crisis was further highlighted by the failure of the FNM government to quickly secure sufficient vaccines for our citizens and residents. There were repeated, unfulfilled promises that the vaccines would arrive and equally repeated failures to secure them as promised.

When they finally arrived in The Bahamas in early March, it was a paltry 20,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine, donated by India, for a population of 20 times that number. Although 33,600 more doses arrived at the end of March, it is still woefully inadequate, despite the level of vaccine hesitancy that was not anticipated.

Atlas Magazine, a newsletter for the insurance industry, lists The Bahamas as #137 out of 157 countries regarding vaccine doses administered. Bloomberg says that only eight percent of the population of The Bahamas has had the first dose and that the daily rate of doses administered is just 673.

Update #408 of the COVID-19 Report from the Ministry of Health, dated May 8, 2021, shows that 11 percent of those tested are positive for the virus. To put the severity of this statistic in context, New York City had a rule that, if the positivity rate reached three percent, schools and businesses were mandated to close and other restrictions were immediately put in place.

The economy

We continue to live under the greatest existential threat the world has seen, unlike any other experienced in more than a century. Although vaccines were rapidly developed to decelerate the pace of the pandemic’s expansion, its continued threat remains a source of deep concern for our local economy.

Our economy has experienced an intractable nosedive, with little indication about when and how it will recover. The United States Department of State has issued a “do not travel” advisory to The Bahamas, which could continue to delay a resurgence of the tourism sector.

In addition, The Bahamas government issued a nine-month fiscal snapshot to March 2021, which revealed that the deficit is approaching a historical high of nearly $900 million and an unparalleled national debt of $9.5 billion, representing and a record of 82 percent of gross domestic product.

Economic recovery will be slow. There is no clear path to returning to a pre-pandemic status anytime soon being articulated by the leaders we elected in 2017. This ominous situation is exacerbated by a lack of vision on the part of the political directorate about how to achieve the kind of change we desperately need.

Governance

One of the most telling consequences of the 2017 election is the number of Cabinet ministers who resigned during the past four years. For one reason or another, four ministers have resigned from the government, most of them under a cumulous cloud of contention.

In addition, there have been defections from the governing party by several of its MPs who, for one reason or another, have fallen out of favor with their party or leader. This was also evidenced by the speaker of the House of Assembly.

The Minnis administration is acutely aware that elections have consequences. So are many FNM MPs, and, more importantly, the electorate who were duped into embracing the FNM’s slogan that “it’s the people’s time”.

Conclusion

Life, as we knew it 12 short months ago, has radically changed, following what appears to be a script that could only be concocted in the mind of a Hollywood producer. The pandemic has affected virtually every Bahamian on a personal basis.

If ever there was a time for a government to provide leadership, surely it is now.

Next week, in the final part of this series, we will discuss what is at risk for The Bahamas as voters make their choices in the next general election. And what short and long-term consequences Bahamians must take into consideration when deciding which party will be the most capable and competent to handle any and all consequences that arise.

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source https://thenassauguardian.com/elections-have-consequences-pt-3/