They were in my view two defining moments in our nation's history: The formation of the Free National Movement in 1971 led by Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield and the liberation of the national airwaves in 1992 by the then Free National Movement government led by Hubert Ingraham. Both events signaled a momentous shift in the Bahamian psyche. The former solidified the two party system and the freedom for an empowered Bahamian electorate to choose between competing political ideologies and determine who was best to govern.

The latter diversified the economy, yes, gave way to exponential growth of a new dynamic media sector, without a doubt.
Yet more significantly both of these historic moments led to a further reconditioning and re-engagement of the minds of the Bahamian people that not only displayed that their voices were justly consequential to the deepening of our democracy but their analysis, criticism and dissenting views were necessary and offered the best opportunity to ensure that our political leaders, our government would be accountable to the people and narrow the execution gap.

In 2015, this has not become any less important. The fact still remains if we want real change and meaningful transformation in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas we must continue to demand from our leaders a non-negotiable need for them to be transparent and accountable to the Bahamian people whom they serve.

As we prepare to close out another year we find ourselves at a very perilous juncture as our nation is inundated with unprecedented crime, hemorrhaging unemployment and a lackluster, stagnant economy.

The national malaise, public disenchantment and frustration have become palpable. You can feel it. You hear it in corporate settings, on talk shows, on the basketball court, in barbershops, at the checkout counter, in grocery stores and on the streets.

The Bahamian people are losing confidence in their government's ability and capacity to adequately solve problems and as such they are left with a longing and weary hope for better days in our commonwealth. There is a constant tendency on the part of the political partisans among us to give biased assessments depending on our politics. However, any reasonable and objective Bahamian, no matter how temporarily engaged they may become, can surely admit that our nation is on the wrong trajectory on many fronts. If that seems to over dramatize the present state of affairs, at a minimum, we ought to concede that we are not fulfilling our greatness as envisioned by our forefathers.

In this present moment we have fallen short in deciphering the magnitude of our greatest challenges and even more concerning, the right solutions. We have for the most part in my view allowed ourselves to be lulled by a superficial assessment of what plagues our communities.

Most disturbing to the Bahamian people is the barrage of debilitating senseless acts of crime and violence that have reached unforeseen and historic levels, and while no country in the world can be totally free of crime it is reasonable and justified for the Bahamian people to expect and be assured of some levels of security and safety for their families which at this time they do not feel.

Our leaders must act. Government must act. It is their duty. The increasing collective voices of the Bahamian people advocating for more accountability from government are not restricted or limited to the fear and exasperation with crime in our country.

The implementation of value-added tax, recent economic downgrades, the projected implementation of National Health Insurance and increased government spending have incited Bahamians more than ever to question where and how their monies are appropriated. It's incumbent on the government of the day to provide those answers and give a full, unfettered accounting of how the Bahamian people's monies are spent.

I will concede that a conversation about government accountability is rarely comfortable for some and unsurprisingly receives a visceral reaction because unapologetic party die-hards naturally take a defensive position when it comes to their political party. However, if we can just take a moment, lay down our political amour and manage our political prejudices we would appreciate the need for each of us as citizens to expect and demand the highest level of accountability from our government regardless of our political affiliation and allegiance. We as citizens are just as responsible for ensuring that this formula of government accountability works.

Governments can unfortunately slip into a mode of complacency and in some instances sheer arrogance when citizens choose not to mandate a full degree of answerability from them. The Bahamian people are the chief auditors of their government's business. In fact, the government's business is the people's business. They are inextricably linked.

We have a patriotic duty as citizens to prod, agitate and demand for full government accountability at every turn.
The authority of having our say, giving our "five cents" is crucial to our democracy and the necessity to interrogate, probe and hold our government into account is as inspiringly democratic as the power to elect them and vote them out.
So if we as Bahamians are decisively timid or reluctant to serve as the conscience for a government elected by us, to serve us, we would consistently be in jeopardy of being served by uninspiring and underachieving governments.

In order for good governance to exist and flourish, accountability must be the cornerstone. In many ways a government will only be as effective and transformative as the commitment of the Bahamian electorate to persistently look over the government's shoulders and pose questions and compel them to account.

The Bahamas is at a crossroad as we are faced with some of the most challenging issues experienced in a generation and maybe even in our 42-year history as an independent nation. There is no denying that both the elected government and all Bahamian citizens have a substantive and shared role to play in the building of our country.

My submission that I have placed before you for your consideration is that there does exist an essential democratic seam at which governance and public engagement must take place.

This integral and vital demand for accountability pushes and encourages those who are elected by the Bahamian people to work diligently to close the widening aforementioned execution gap -- that is the gap between what they boldly promised the Bahamian people and what they actually get done.

o Shanendon E. Cartwright is a graduate of Franklin Pierce University, a marketing, hospitality and corporate development professional and the founder of Vision 21 -- a youth and community development program. Email: shanendoncartwright@gmail.com.

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