The FNM must choose, save us or keep him – THE DEATH OF OUR TOURISM LIFEBLOOD

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While men, women and children and being shoot, jookup, heldup, stabb up and MURDERED all over the country Jughead and Papa are celebrating in song, "WE GAT THIS". Who will save us from the terror to come?

A Letter to ‘Da’ Editor

On a typical beautiful Bahamian Sunday morning, with many locals worshiping, the President of the Bahamas Christian Council preaching to his congregation at Cousin McPhee Church, Carmichael Road, and Youth Minister, Hon. Charles T Maynard, preparing for the Annual Youth Parade, plans were being finalized for the assault on our number one Industry,Tourism.

Already impacted by the several violent incidents on Paradise Island, Sol Kerzner, earlier, summonsed the national leadership to Atlantis to express his fears and displeasure with the gradual damage being done to the peaceful and tranquil reputation of the Bahamas, in the international market; crime and the fear of crime was affecting his business.

Just recently, the Hon.Tommy Orville Turnquest, Minister of National Security, in defense of the carnage, record rise in gun related killings, murders, home invasions, sexual assaults and burglaries, remarked that all was well and that he has everything in hand and under control.

It is agreed that the fear of crime within our communities is off the chart; productivity on the job, the quality of life at homes are negatively impacted. We appear to be in a battle zone, defenseless.

The gunmen introduced United States smash and grab techniques, displaying precision and fearlessness as they assaulted the hallowed heritage of World Famous Bay Street and the special Tourist trap, John Bull flagship store. Rightly so, everyone ran for their lives as the economic terrorists laid waste to the security detail at the store; it was a horror experience of a lifetime being visited on American and other international shoppers. The World was to have ended yesterday, not today, and certainly not in the wonderful, friendly and welcoming Nassau, Bahamas. Hell was about to visit them and shake their vacation expectations to the rafters; it was, back to the ships every one, the natives have guns and are attacking the tourist spots.

The very efficient, charming and well trained staff at John Bull, called on their local survival skills and ran, ducking, diving and hiding, anywhere; it was every woman for themselves and for the few men, chivalry was not the order of the day.

The Police came in record time, ready to do battle, however, the masked invaders had done their high yield job and vanished into the palm trees; we must catch these brazen and deadly bandits. I am convinced that we will.

The damage has been done and the fallout will cause the Ministry of Tourism to refocus their campaign to all out damage control, again. The US Embassy must be horrified at this new crime assault on a central favorite of visiting American citizens, in broad daylight, with CCTV cameras about and police patrols in place. What will be their reaction? This is a threat to the safety of their citizens and the Minister of National Security and the Hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs can be called on the carpet.

Surely we must not blame Minister Tommy Orville Turnquest for the attack on John Bull; he could not be held responsible for smudgy leadership and withholding regular maintenance at the former fire gutted World Famous Straw Market.

In the Westminster system of governance, it is expected without fail, that a cabinet minister cannot and must not be permitted to serve when it is obvious to all, to include the public being served and who pays the Ministers salary and ensures the perks, cannot be relieved of the ineffective leadership. The general public have long lost confidence in this Minister of National Security.

Apparently, this FNM Government is more concerned about the lingering political fallout from the removal of Hon. Tommy Orville Turnquest as the Minister of National Security, than the damage his uninspiring leadership is causing. Who can comfort those women recently pistol whipped and shot and what about the recent slaughter of the government employee, yes, and the attack on the judge, banks, the court building, the prisoner on work detail shooting, the infamous Barefoot Bandit international embarrassment and drug related skirmishes.

There is more, but will the Prime Minister remain indecisive, out of character or make the change, now. The failure of the Tourism business to and in the Bahamas, rests on the shoulders of the FNM Government and the Rt. Hon. Prime Minister.

The restoration of confidence can often take a lifetime and so it is in the Tourism and Travel business. No matter who survives the upcoming General Elections, the Tourism Golden Egg is fast fading and the future appears dim. Crime is killing Paradise, Bah Mar, Nassau and spreading.

The FNM must choose, save us or keep him.

Signed,

Concerned Bahamian

3 COMMENTS

  1. Turn up the lights in here baby. Extra bright, I want y’all to see this, well, if isn’t Tommy trying to convince us that there were plain clothes police officers out there on Bay Street when the Daring Day Light robbery occurred. What else do you expect for him to say? In fact I almost expected him to say that, no one can prove whether or not if this is indeed true or not, unless you know each police officer on the force, which is highly unlikely. In any event there still should have been police officers out there wearing their uniforms and visible to the public. If some of them had on the uniform, we wouldn’t have to be here guessing if they were out there or not and maybe that robbery could have been prevented, because those robbers may have been afraid to carry out their plans.

  2. Turn up the lights in here baby. Extra bright, I want y’all to see this, well, if isn’t Tommy trying to convince us that there were plain clothes police officers out there on Bay Street when the Daring Day Light robbery occurred. What else do you expect for him to say? In fact I almost expected him to say that, no one can prove whether or not if this is indeed true or not, unless you know each police officer on the force, which is highly unlikely. In any event there still should have been police officers out there wearing their uniforms and visible to the public. If some of them had on the uniform, we wouldn’t have to be here guessing if they were out there or not and maybe that robbery could have been prevented, because those robbers may have been afraid to carry out their plans.

  3. What this government thinking? Everybody getting bail, some of them even surprised when they get it, because they didn’t even ask for it and given the nature of their crimes they didn‘t thought it was possible. Criminals all about wearing these electronic bracelets like it the latest fashion and shooting at people or getting killed in place where they shouldn’t have been. I don’t blame Sol for calling them in to find out what’s going on. Those other Bay Street merchants need to met with them as well and see if they could apply some pressure on this government to see if they could get them to do any better. Soon we can’t even market this place, who will want to spend their monies and risk their life to come to the wild, wild , west?

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