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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
Nassau, Bahamas - Dr. Minnis, Leader of the Free National Movement (FNM), issued the following statement on "the Prime Minister’s silence on the new Chinese Deal to give away Crown land and fishing rights to his Chinese allies":
“The country demands answers and silence is all they get from the embattled Prime Minister Christie. As the drip, drip, drip of details of his secret deal with his Chinese allies turns into a gushing geyser of scandalous information revealing more and more details of his scheme. How can anyone call themselves a leader yet fail to address the nefarious activities of his Ambassador to China and Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries as they hatch their scheme to negotiate away our Crown land and fishing rights to his Chinese allies? Are the people to believe the embattled Prime Minister knew nothing of this deal or is it the opposite as we have seen his fingerprints all over every aspect of this secret deal on Baha Mar as the details have leaked out.”
“The embattled Prime Minister needs to realize that silence is not a sound strategy in the face of growing outrage towards his failed leadership and secret deal. If he had simply followed our calls for transparency and accountability the country would be far better off and Bahamians would be much better informed of the details involved in Prime Minster Christie’s secret Baha Mar deal. I think it’s fair to say that if this Government had put into practice transparency and accountability much of the ill-conceived ideas associated with his secret deal – like selling out our Crown land and fisheries to his Chinese allies – would never have been considered because the people would not stand for it.”
“Clearly the time has come for the embattled Prime Minister to answer the many questions the Bahamian people have – he could start by coming clean on what he knew about this secret deal and when he knew it. Did he sign off on the proposed deal before Minister Gray sent an approval letter to the Ambassador to China or was this done under the leader’s nose as he stood oblivious to what his own Cabinet Member was doing? And if he suggested he knew nothing of these activities then why sit silent as the people learn his PLP Government was preparing to negotiate away 20,000 acres of Crown land as well as our fishing rights? To most, his silence
shows he was complicit in this arrangement. So the Bahamian people are left to wonder is the embattled Prime Minister so out of touch and out of the loop in his own party that he allows such nefarious activities to take place under his watch, or did he knowingly allow – if not encourage – his Minister to reach out to our Ambassador to China to pursue this give away of our sacred land and treasures? Neither answer is acceptable to the people, but they do deserve to know the truth of their elected Prime Minister.”
“The FNM believes we should be investing in the Bahamian people not encouraging these giveaways to foreigners. But that is the difference between our parties. The PLP believes in helping themselves at the peoples’ expense, while the FNM believes we are the servant of the people. The Bahamian people need leadership that will put their interest over any foreign entities and the FNM will stand united with the people to deliver that leadership after the upcoming elections.”
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