Fort Charlotte MP Dr. Andre Rollins slammed the government's $3.8 million Stronger Bahamas initiative, charging that the only people who would argue that the country is stronger are those who are "paid to spin the facts to promote propaganda". In an interview with The Nassau Guardian, Rollins also suggested the Christie administration is abusing tax dollars to give itself an advantage over other political parties ahead of the next general election.
Prime Minister Perry Christie introduced the Stronger Bahamas initiative on May 27 during his budget communication in the House of Assembly. Christie said the government is building a safer, prosperous and more modern Bahamas.Rollins said the campaign developed out of a "misguided view" to improve the perception of the government, which he said has failed to strengthen the country.
"I do believe it is a political campaign," he said. "I don't believe there is any way that point can be disputed. However, the only persons who would argue that we are living in a stronger Bahamas are partisan politicians or public relations specialists who are either detached from reality or prepared to ignore the truth because they are paid to spin the facts in order to promote propaganda.
"If you ask the man or woman on the street if they feel things are getting better in our country or if they feel The Bahamas is getting stronger, I am willing to bet that the vast majority of them would tell you that in their eyes things are getting worse. There is more crime and fewer jobs; that's not a stronger Bahamas. A stronger Bahamas would, in effect, be associated with crime numbers going down significantly and jobs increasing significantly."
According to the Stronger Bahamas website, the initiative "represents a new vision for the country." It says, "The program is designed to raise public awareness of the actions being taken and the progress being made against the country's three most pressing policy challenges: reducing crime and improving the justice system; creating jobs and stimulating the economy, and improving education and modernizing social programs."
The site adds that through feedback from the public, the government has learned "that we are not doing very well at telling the public about what we are doing to improve the lives of ordinary Bahamians".
The government allocated the $3.8 million to the Office of the Prime Minister for "advertisement and media supplements". Minister of State for Finance Michael Halkitis said the money would be used to help fund Stronger Bahamas. Rollins, who has been critical of the government on several occasions, said the money would be better spent on actually improving the lives of Bahamians instead of telling Bahamians how the government is improving their lives.
"That $3.8 million would be better spent trying to reduce crime, create jobs or support social services to help the poor," he said.
Rollins argued that if the government is spending money on such a campaign, it should also provide similar funding to other political parties.
"[The government should be] providing an equal playing field using taxpayer dollars to give political parties equal opportunity to be able to promote their messages," he said. "I think, in the absence of those kinds of conditions, we should not be using taxpayer dollars to the advantage of one political party over all others."
Though he is firm in his belief that things are no better today that they were before the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) won the election in 2012, Rollins said it appears "things are heading in the right direction, but it is premature to conclude that we are stronger".
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