Dear Editor,
I wish to comment on an article by Neil Hartnell printed in The Tribune's business section on Friday, May 26. It was entitled, "Gov't urged: 'Come clean' on country's fiscal position". In it, Mr. Rick Lowe, whom the Tribune has called a 'fiscal hawk', suggested an across-the-board five to 10 percent spending cut in all government ministries and departments as a starting point to get the economy growing again. He suggested slashing recurrent spending by five to 10 percent in the upcoming budget. This is excellent advice, though implementing it would have consequences.
The state of our economy is one of the country's major concerns at the present time. Sadly, what the FNM inherited is a nation knocking on death's door, or to quote another wise sage, Leandra Esfakis, "a country somewhere between Emergency and ICU, morally destabilized, gasping from dump fumes and hemorrhaging at the treasury". I couldn't have described it better.
What I would like to comment on are the consequences that may arise while repairing our ailing economy, the needed steps that must be taken and how they may affect each and every one of us.
No doubt, Minister of Finance Peter Turnquest and his team have some ideas on how to rein in the excessive spending and get a handle on our overwhelming financial issues. The fiscal audits ordered in the various ministries are indeed a great first step to find out where and how the public's money is being spent or wasted.
These are tough times that require some tough decisions if The Bahamas is to come out with its head held high at the end of the day. I look forward to seeing Mr. Turnquest implement a plan of action to tackle this financial crisis. What concerns me, however, is that we must all realize that, in order to get a handle on these issues plaguing us, we must be prepared to make some sacrifices. We must realize that, at least for the time being, we cannot all have what we may want. We must be prepared to compromise!
There is no such thing as a free lunch. If our economy could be fixed so that we are out of the near-junk bond status, lower the unemployment rate, decrease poverty and crime (as a result of job creation) and improve educational and health facilities, etc. we would all be fed, happy and healthy with a roof over our heads. The sad truth is, however, that this cannot happen all at once. There is no overnight cure. It took us years to dig our way into this PLP hole. We cannot expect to dig our way out anytime soon. The FNM has a daunting task ahead of it. It needs to be tackled with much forethought, insight and, most importantly, patience.
The needed, prudent fiscal decisions are going to be tough to make and will impact all of us in one way or another.
So, I wish to remind the Bahamian public that, at the end of the day, we should all be prepared to sacrifice something to enable the healing of our economy. Encourage our government to take the necessary steps to get our economy back on the road in a positive direction; even if it means having to wait or do away with something else, maybe another program that you may feel is important. Don't complain or object to sensible strategies being introduced if, in the long run, we will come out ahead. Look at the big picture.
To quote an ancient proverb, "The poison leaves bit by bit, not all at once. Be patient. You are healing".
The government must prioritize. We are not all going to be happy during this process of healing. Please be prepared to ride it out. Let our leaders show their strengths and get The Bahamas back to a place that we can once again be proud of. If done correctly, we will all benefit. We WILL see the light at the end of the tunnel!
- BT
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