St. Anne's MP Hubert Chipman said yesterday that he found it "disgraceful and appalling" that Prime Minister Perry Christie was absent when members of the House of Assembly voted on the Value Added Tax (VAT) Bill on Wednesday night.
"When I look at the whole thing, the record will show that he did not vote for VAT, he was absent," Chipman told The Guardian.
"He is putting a tax on the Bahamian people that he didn't even vote for. I find that disgraceful and appalling.
"While he might say he had the majority, he abdicated his responsibility as the minister of finance.
"What are you saying to the Bahamian people?"
On Wednesday evening, Christie traveled to Las Vegas with Tourism Minister Obie Wilchcombe for the opening of a hotel and casino.
The VAT Bill passed with 22 yes votes, eight no votes and six absent.
The opposition voted against the bill.
Chipman said he found it amazing that MPs were debating the most important piece of legislation in the Ministry of Finance and the minister of finance had "abdicated his responsibility and left".
"What is this? What is he doing?" he asked.
Noting that Christie's birthday was yesterday, Chipman asked, "Is this his birthday gift to the Bahamian people, VAT?"
The government will implement VAT on January 1, 2015 at a rate of 7.5 percent.
The imposition of VAT is expected to generate an additional $300 million annually, according to government estimates.
The bill was tabled on July 23 and debate began on Tuesday afternoon.
FNM Deputy Leader Loretta Butler-Turner and Democratic National Alliance (DNA) Deputy Leader Christopher Mortimer said Christie's absence was a "crying shame".
"As important as this issue was, as central as it was to them talking about reform, the prime minister did not even show up to vote for this bill," Mortimer said. "That, my friend, is a crying shame.
"If you are the prime minister of a country, if you say that it is absolutely important that this has to happen to fix our ailing economy, then the buck stops with you and you should be there for that vote.
"It is not sufficient to castigate members of the opposition [parties] or castigate opposition within your own party and then not do the honorable thing and show up to record your vote for history.
"He has not done that. I cry shame on the members of Parliament who sat in that House and voted yes. They deserve to lose their seats in 2017."
The DNA does not support VAT.
Butler-Turner said she thought it important that Leader of Opposition Business Neko Grant asked for a division on the vote.
"History would have recorded that as important as this shift is as being a cornerstone for reformation and financial tax shift in The Bahamas, the minister of finance saw fit to not be in the country for that vote along with six members for the governing side," she said.
"It certainly speaks to the lack of regard, I feel, and contempt and arrogance that the prime minister has toward the Bahamian people."
The Long Island MP added that the debate was rushed, stating that there has been no focused attention on the legislation.
"I have never ever seen the governing side, or any side for that matter, fight amongst its own the way I have seen over the last two days," she said.
"There is something inherently wrong with this."
She was referring to criticism from Marco City MP Greg Moss, who voted against the bill and Fort Charlotte MP Andre Rollins about the bill.
Moss said VAT will "savage" Bahamians, that it is a regressive tax and that it is not in line with the philosophy of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP).
Though Rollins voted in favor of the bill, he highlighted the plight of many young Bahamians who remain unemployed.

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