January 31, 2005
US Snubs Disreputable Bahamas Cabinet Ministers
Adding to the degradation of the Bahamas' international reputation, the US has snubbed disreputable Bahamas Government officials by removing certain privileges normally associated with diplomatic travel.
The US Embassy has informed the Government of The Bahamas that it is taking away Secret Service guard protection for Bahamian Cabinet Ministers while they are on official visits to America.
Now, instead of all Cabinet Ministers being entitled to the special service, only four members of the Bahamian Government will receive such treatment. They are: the Prime Minister, the Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia Pratt, Foreign Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell and Governor General Dame Ivy Dumont.
The rest of the scandal tainted officials in the Bahamian government are on their own when traveling to the United States. They can now be searched indiscriminately and treated like the common thugs and gangsters that many believe they are.
While the US claims that the removal of secret service protection is a cost-cutting measure, diplomatic insiders feel it is a snub and that the action sends a powerful message to PM Christie to clean up his Cabinet and remove scandal tainted Ministers like Bradley Roberts, Neville Wisdom and Leslie Miller.
The US is also believed to have cautioned the PM about his close association with alleged gangsters like Franklyn Wilson and bumbling con artists such as Sydney Stubbs.
The Bahamas' international reputation has suffered tremendously since the PLP took over the government in 2002. The scandal-tainted political party refuses to disclose their finances to the Bahamian public, leading many to believe the party was financed by drug dealers. It did not help when PM Perry Christie dusted off a number of drug-smeared criminals from the previous PLP administration and appointed them to prominent government posts, causing many to describe the "new" PLP government as a criminal organization, more than a government.
Posted by admin at January 31, 2005 10:24 AM