NASSAU| Today (Friday 12th December 2025) was a sad day for the Royal Bahamas Defence Force as they laid to rest one of their own: Demeris Armbrister. Just a few days earlier, he’d been in a car crash on Harrold Road and died on the scene.
But, as the fallen marine was being laid to rest, an even greater travesty was unfolding as hundreds of cars lining east and west (and surrounding areas) along John F Kennedy Drive were gridlocked for hours as the busy holiday season kicked in.
For miles (with no notice to the public, mind you) the area was impassable, bumper to bumper, with no visible signs of traffic controls in place to manage the malaise.
For some time now, traffic officials see it as “SEXY” to have the assistance of the RBPF speed cops chasing around a funeral cortege, and sometimes a wedding convoy, while the public sits and suffers in hour long traffic jams and gridlock all across New Providence (particularly on weekends).
In this recent semi-military funeral by the RBDF not even a flyer notice was circulated to alert the general public to avoid the JFK corridor as several motor traffic cops escorted the family of the deceased from home to the church to the graveyard and then home. SOMETHING GATS TO BE WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE!
Imagine that: Taxpayers are paying millions upon millions to furnish and retrofit the ROYAL BAHAMAS POLICE with sufficient traffic cops and working assets (vehicles and motorbikes) all to be left in the chaos (on the absolute SH**^Y end of the stick) with a complete abuse of those assets against the very people who funds them. SOMETHING MUST BE DONE!
In other words, why would the ROYAL BAHAMAS POLICE FORCE grant permission to allow major traffic disruptions for an event for this marine and not put in place a solution to cause diversions and a steady traffic flow as a result of their approvals of such a parade? WHAT IS THIS?
Get this: Whenever there is a major road race (walkathon) or cycling race in the country (particularly on BIG SUNDAY MORNINGS) proper traffic management and smooth traffic flows are fully enforced and meticulously designed to accommodate the corporations and people in the upper echelons of society who participate in these events. How come, then, such measures are ignored or abandoned to the annoyance and discomfort of the general public in the case of the funeral on Friday? This behaviour of decision making by leaders in the RBPF cannot continue.
Police have a civic duty to this society to upkeep LAW AND ORDER, preventing chaos and disruptions especially when it affects the citizens who foot the bill!
This piss-poor level of traffic management must change in this country! Police cannot approve a parade and then allow all hell to break loose leaving the motoring public kicked to the curb and abandoned in the streets (with engines running hot and running out of gas) filled with mayhem!
And we know better – so PLEASE DO BETTER!
We at BP will be watching!
