Nassau, Bahamas - Enclosed are responses by Senator Allyson Gibson to press questions by the Nassau Guardian provided by Senator Gibson to TheBahamasWeekly.com:

These cables have been on the internet for several months now, what do you make of the timing of the minister's decision to raise this matter in Parliament?

The timing of the release and the suspension of the Senate debate was clearly calculated to maximize press coverage of the Wikileaks report and to divert attention from the abysmal record of the FNM.

Dion Foulkes and all members of the Cabinet knew or ought to have known that a full complete and thorough police investigation, a management audit by the Public Service Commission and by the Auditor General  made no adverse findings against Mr. Fred Mitchell. It is not surprising that given the FNM’s abysmal failures, and particularly Dion Foulkes’ abysmal failures as Minister of Labour, it would attempt to divert attention and launch a nasty smear campaign of outright lies and innuendo.

The FNM knows that it is unable to stand on its record. Murder has doubled under the FNM since 2007. There have been 435 murders since 2007. There have been less than 25 people sentenced since 2007. And there are more than 300 people charged with murder out on bail.

To add insult to injury, we have been advised that the electronic monitoring system is not working. People out on bail are not being properly monitored. The monitoring system, instead of assisting the police is facilitating criminal activity. Due to the government’s incompetence the monitoring system is apparently giving criminals an alibi!

One of every 3 young people cannot find a job.

As the FNM cannot stand on its abysmal record, it does what it knows best – launch a campaign of outright lies and innuendo.

Do you believe opposition senators ought to have been stronger in their objection to the cable being tabled by the minister?

I forcefully asked the President of the Senate several times to strike Dion Foulkes’ baseless and offensive words from the record as they were gossip and as Dion Foulkes well knew or ought to have known, there had been an investigation into the matter by the police and the public service. No wrongdoing was found against Mr. Fred Mitchell.

All Opposition Senators were astounded, that the President refused to strike Dion Foulkes’ words from the record or to make him withdraw his baseless, scurrilous and malicious lies. They were clearly beyond the bounds of Parliamentary norms. The Bahamas’ Senate has now been reduced to a receptacle for “gossiping fishwives” and Honourable Senators seen as rumour mongers.

Had not the cable been tabled as you know it would not have had Parliamentary privilege and would likely not have been reported in the media. Could you explain why you requested that Minister Foulkes table the document? 

That facts are that: my request did not make that document available to the media; it was and still is available to the media; the document is widely available on the internet; and is available to millions of people, including the media. Indeed, the Wikileaks cables have been reported by the media.  All words uttered in Parliament attract Parliamentary Privilege. The fact that they might attract parliamentary privilege does not detract from the fact that anyone can access those documents on the internet.

The FNM desperate and weak spin of the events that took place is malicious. The FNM knows that it makes no difference that I asked him to table the document.

Dion Foulkes is the Minister of Labour. His presentation took about 40 minutes. During that presentation yesterday morning he did not present one solution for the record levels of unemployment over which he has presided and which he and his government have heaped upon the backs of Bahamians.

Voters will decide whether Dion Foulkes cares about getting Bahamians jobs or whether he prefers to spread lies and innuendo.