Free National Movement (FNM) Leader Dr. Hubert Minnis said yesterday the public should not have to pay for an "opinion poll" if the upcoming gambling referendum would not bring about a constitutional change, as Prime Minister Perry Christie has asserted. Christie noted on Monday that the government does not need a referendum to change the law on gambling, but is holding the vote to get public opinion on the issue. He said he is getting legal advice on the referendum and will make the findings public. " . . .Because there is nothing to do with amending the constitution; this is not a constitutional referendum," he said.
"I'm advised legally that all of the prerequisites that go into organizing a constitutional referendum do not apply, and so when I get the legal opinion I will publish it so people will see that all this is, is a government seeking an indication of the opinion of people." Those comments sparked harsh criticism from the opposition. Minnis insisted that if the gambling referendum -- set for December 3 -- is really an opinion poll Bahamian taxpayers should not have to pay for it. "The prime minister... admitted that it is not a constitutional referendum and I'm sure he's seeking his legal opinions, [but] if it is not a constitutional referendum then the question I'm sure he is asking all his lawyers and the Office of the Attorney General [is] how are we going to pay for this?" Minnis told The Nassau Guardian.
"He can't ask us to pay, at least he shouldn't ask us to pay. Why should we pay for an opinion poll? We pay for constitutional referendums." The FNM leader also accused the prime minister of flip-flopping. Christie told reporters on numerous occasions that he was awaiting a report from UK-based consultants on how to proceed with the referendum and how web shops and a national lottery could operate in The Bahamas. When asked on Tuesday whether he will make the report public, Christie said there was no physical report, but the "three or four pages of advice you get from time to time". Minnis said the government should arrange a meeting between the consultants and the Opposition.
"The Opposition, the parliamentarians we can meet with this group that presented these so called four of five pages -- we can ask our own questions," he said. "...He told us there was a report and now all of a sudden there is no report. We want to see it ourselves and we want to ask our own questions, and all information that he has available to him we want released." Minnis again challenged the government's decision to hold a referendum this year. He said he appealed to the prime minister ahead of the released referendum date last week to give the Bahamian electorate more time to learn the facts. He said the Christie administration should be focusing on more important issues such as local farmers on the Family Islands, who have lost their crops due to Hurricane Sandy, others who have lost their homes and Bahamians, who cannot pay their electricity bills.
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