By AVA TURNQUEST

Tribune Staff Reporter

aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie yesterday blasted FNM leader Dr Hubert Minnis over his inability to contest an early general election.

Mr Christie described Dr Minnis’ recent calls for Cabinet to resign as “silly little interventions”, adding that the entire country knew that the opposition leader was not ready.

“Never ask for something in politics that you can’t handle,” Mr Christie said, “(Dr Minnis) does not have the capacity at this stage to even dream of something like that – that’s the first thing, that’s just a political response by me.”

He said: “Our commitment to govern has been mandated by the people of this country. We are not going to be distracted by silly little interventions from the Leader of the Opposition who is looking for newspaper space, and obviously he is able to get it, God bless him.

“(Dr Minnis) can do that for the next several years as we continue to govern. I will read what he has to say. If you ask me to comment on it, I will comment on what he has to say, but he knows when he says it he’s not ready for it.

Mr Christie added: “It was just in a vacuum, it’s a silly statement to make because everybody in the Bahamas knows he’s not ready for it.

Mr Christie responded to the Opposition leader’s appeal for a general election to be called, at a UNESCO meeting on underwater cultural heritage yesterday.

Earlier this week, Dr Minnis said the Christie administration has a track record of “poor judgment” and is “incapable” of governing the country.

Dr Minnis again criticised the government’s plans to ignore the 2013 gambling referendum and go ahead with the regulation of webshops.

Yesterday, Mr Christie said his government would not be distracted from its mandate, of which they had “covered a lot of ground”.

“We intend to carry out what we were elected to do,” he said, “the economy, we were elected to cause there to be a resurgence in the economy. We are on our way to doing that, I am very optimistic.”

Mr Christie said: “Bahamians will see, feel and touch the improvements that will be taking place in the economy with respect to crime. We are clearly committed toward working and working and working, and putting our hands around the situation of crime because it doesn’t help our economy and it doesn’t help any of the people who are involved in it, and so we have a multi-faceted approach and we are not dismayed.

He added: “We are continuing with resolute commitment to bringing crime under control.”