Breaking his silence amid ongoing national debate on the controversial gambling issue, FML Group of Companies CEO Craig Flowers said yesterday he would immediately shut down all of his web shops in The Bahamas and send staff home with full benefits if the January 28 referendum fails and the government orders an industry-wide shutdown.
"I would be the first to proceed to all of my stores with the assistance of any of the leaders of the no vote and assure them that each and every one of my stores would be closed immediately without any remorse. There's no doubt about that," said Flowers in an exclusive interview with The Nassau Guardian.
"The only thing that I would require would be suffient time to speak to my staff to assure them that all benefits earned by them while employed with my company, FML, they would all be recognized and paid in full.
"This decision is going to be made by the people of The Bahamas. If the people choose, a message would be sent to all of us. I am going to be the first out to close all of my stores."
Flowers said, "The word would not get off of Perry Gladstone Christie's lips quickly enough before I have every one closed."
He said he has 12 stores in New Providence, one in Grand Bahama and one in Abaco, and just under 400 employees.
Speaking to The Nassau Guardian at his Bay Street office, Flowers also strongly denied that Prime Minister Perry Christie is bringing the referendum as a pay back for numbers bosses who reportedly funded his re-election bid.
In fact, Flowers said his company did not contribute to the Progressive Liberal Party's (PLP) recent re-election campaign and he as a longtime supporter of the PLP only made a small personal donation.
"One would think that if there was any type of funds given to the now prime minister, why would he still go to a referendum? If he cut a deal with any of us, the only thing for him to do is to go ahead and enact that Mr. Flowers has a license and that's done, finished," Flowers said.
"He made a promise to the Bahamian people that he would have a referendum. We don't go around giving funds from our company to any political party. That's not a practice of my company."
But Flowers added, "I've been a member and a supporting member of the PLP as an individual for many, many years and for myself personally I would go in and make my contributions to (PLP secretary general) Barbara Pierre like anyone else to the party.
"Never ever would we (FML Group) go because we know the implications are going to be perceived that there is a special interest for the gaming industry."
Position
Asked if he was disappointed in the referendum process, Flowers said he would have liked to have seen the government take a clearer position on the issue.
"Personally, I would have wanted the government to explain the purpose of the referendum a little clearer to the public at large," he said.
"The government in my mind should have taken a position to say we would welcome, we would welcome the opportunity to take on this challenge, to regulate and to tax this industry because if you give us that mandate we would certainly proceed down the road of regulating and taxing the industry, and I thought that would have been a just position for the government to take, to say please give us this opportunity to regulate because we have half of our citizens running in an out of the stores."
Christie has said repeatedly that the government has 'no horse in the race', but he has also pointed to the detrimental effect a no vote would have.
Flowers also told The Nassau Guardian he would support Bahamians being allowed to gamble in casinos and getting casino licenses.
The casino question is not on the January 28 ballot, but Christie has said if the Constitutional Commission recommends it be addressed he would ensure it is put on the ballot of the constitutional referendum promised later this year.
Asked his position on casinos, Flowers said, "Personally, I was arguing, as a matter of fact, I'm on record of stating I think Bahamians should be given licenses for casinos.
"...The industry is bigger than all of us. I honestly do think that Bahamians should be allowed to play anywhere they go personally.
"The government has its reasons for feeling otherwise and there is an enormous amount of respect from myself for the government on this issue.
"But I honestly do think there is nothing wrong [with Bahamians gambling in casinos]. The argument that was made in the past for Bahamians not to play in casinos is embarrassing, that we don't know how to act, that we're going to break up the people's place.
"We certainly know how to act, we certainly know how to conduct ourselves in the presence of others and I think when that regulation was put in place it was intended to protect us, not so much to restrict us. Today I think we have matured.
"We are able to govern ourselves and protect ourselves and do no more and no less that anyone else does in casinos."
Value
Flowers also told The Nassau Guardian he sees value in the Christian Council's stated concerns about a regulated industry.
"At some points of the Christian Council's arguments when they debate these things and I sit and listen, if I'm not careful, many, many times they are convincing me that what they are saying and what they are doing is correct because we are all Christians and because we have a soul, an inner self. We grew up in a society as children to worship our God, to understand what our Lord Jesus Christ [wants]. That's in all of us here in The Bahamas," he said.
"I went to Sunday school. They made me go. I'm a frequent churchgoing person at St. Agnes Church so I believe in my God.
"I believe in the principles that the church is advocating, but I'm trying to find a way to undo what we sat right here for the past 55 to 60 years and let perpetuate right under our nose.
"We are all responsible and I found it somewhat strange that some of us now want to step back and point fingers because this happened on all of our watch, every one of us, whether we like it or not. How do we undo what we would have allowed to take place over 60 years? It may take us 70 years to undo it, believing [in] closing web shops isn't going to undo it."
Flowers said closing web shops would not kill the strong desire many people have to gamble.
"You'd have to kill the desire of the people for this lust," he said. "This is a lust."
While Flowers said he would be willing to shut down his operation, he noted the difficulty the government would face in trying to completely kill the industry due to the widespread use of technology.
Asked if it is possible to shut down the industry in The Bahamas, Flowers said, "It is possible, but it would have to be by closing down the [Internet]."
Flowers lived and worked in Libya in North Africa for 14 years.
"I know propaganda was critical to the survival of the government there and sometimes the government goes to the extent to contain the flow of information within their boundaries," he said.
"If this government chooses to go that far it can."

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