PM ‘MUST TAKE LEAD ON WELLS’

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie is abandoning his duties as leader of the country by letting Bamboo Town MP Renward Wells address the nation on the $650 million letter-of-intent he signed with a waste-to-energy company instead of doing so himself, Free National Movement Chairman Darron Cash said yesterday.

Mr Cash’s comments came in response to The Tribune report of Mr Christie saying Ministry of Works Parliamentary Secretary Renward Wells will speak on the controversy before the House of Assembly breaks for the summer.

Since the controversy broke over two months ago, both Mr Christie and Deputy Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis have repeatedly promised that the matter would be addressed, attracting strong criticism when they failed to publicly address it in the expected time frame.  

Mr Cash, during a press conference yesterday, said: “In view of where the country is right now it is time to remind the Bahamian people about what we need. This is a time when the country could use a heavy dose of prime ministerial leadership. This is a time when Prime Minister Christie could take advantage of an opportunity to re-inspire confidence in his government after the Bahamian people have been consistently losing faith and confidence in his administration.

“This is the time when a strong prime minister would stand up and speak directly to the Bahamian people in a way that reminds them of why they expressed confidence in him during the election.

“Unfortunately, if the daily newspapers are to be believed, and I have every reason to accept what they have reported, the Prime Minister is coming forward with what could only be described as a gross act of prime ministerial cowardice, disgraceful lack of leadership and quite frankly a dereliction of duty.

“The announcement was that Prime Minister Perry Christie will have Renward Wells, parliamentary secretary, speak to the Bahamian people about the fiasco that has come to be known as the stellar waste-to-management scheme and the letter of intent that was signed by Wells.

“The suggestion that Renward Wells ought to be the person who accounts to the Bahamian people is purely disgraceful because this is the duty of the Prime Minister. It is the Prime Minister who has, from day one, waffled and wavered, meandered, obfuscated in any way possible when he has been asked to give an accounting as to what happened. He has not done so. He is the one who demanded an investigation and it is now time for him as Prime Minister to give an account to the Bahamian people.

“It is not the expectation of the Bahamian people that Renward Wells, who works for the Prime Minister and was appointed by the Prime Minister, that he is the one that ought to account. It is the duty of the Prime Minister to account. It would be nothing more than prime ministerial cowardice if Christie seeks to wash himself of the matter by putting Wells in front of the camera and that is a matter that needed to be highlighted because we cannot permit the Prime Minister Perry Christie to get away with this kind of dereliction of duty.”

Mr Cash claimed that Mr Christie’s handling of the Wells’ controversy reinforces perceptions of his shortcomings as leader.

Comments

Well_mudda_take_sic says...

This little weasel Cash is one of the main reasons why many will not be supporting the FNM in the next general election notwithstanding their unhappiness with the PLP. Throw in Minnis and LBT and it's not too difficult to understand why the PLP feel they can get away with just about anything these days!

Posted 27 September 2014, 4:34 p.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

Whatever shoe fits him, he is spot on with his comments

Posted 28 September 2014, 8:10 p.m. Suggest removal

TalRussell says...

Posted 27 September 2014, 5:01 p.m. Suggest removal

Altalk says...

My Lord errytime I see Darron cash I'm reminded of our Illegal Immigrant problem...lol they could have chosen a better file photo bol

Posted 28 September 2014, 12:07 a.m. Suggest removal

Cobalt says...

Never mind how the man looks!! Did you hear the gist of his argument??? He's absolutely right!! A part of the problem that we face here in our country is that too many of our citizens are concerned with abstract nonsense rather than critical matters that require our attention!! Perry Christie, as usual, is ducking and dodging his responsibility as PM, and rather than demanding accountability from him, people are focused on their personal disposition towards Darron Cash!! SMH

Posted 28 September 2014, 6:25 p.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

Exactly. Bahamians are too caught up with how things "look". On every way, this is why we can have people in million dollar homes with no electricity. Darren Cash is spot on.

Posted 28 September 2014, 8:12 p.m. Suggest removal

John says...

Darron Cash gonna be prime minister one day..it wont be by my vote but he will be

Posted 28 September 2014, 12:10 a.m. Suggest removal

John says...

not

Posted 28 September 2014, 7:13 a.m. Suggest removal

proudloudandfnm says...

Well done Darron. Keep the pressure up... Hope to see you in leadership one day....

Posted 28 September 2014, 11:41 a.m. Suggest removal

TalRussell says...

Comrade Daron is auditioning for a renewal of his job as Chairman. But there is one problem, the red party's leadership is too damn chicken-face off against their membership and have refused to call their red party's convention, as is so mandated by the red party's constitution. How can you trust politicians with your government to be enforcing the laws of Bahamaland - when they have no respect for the laws governing they owns pary? Not sure how deep the connection runs with Daron's Mackey Street Headquarters and those of his red colleagues with their newly opened Papalookaville, Abaco Headquarters?

Posted 28 September 2014, 11:49 a.m. Suggest removal

proudloudandfnm says...

I still can't figure how Perry thinks this is ok. Wells to address nation?!?!? The accused to address the nation?!?!? What is the mindset here? Why is the PM so elusive on this? Did Perry in fact order Wells to sign? Did Brave override Perry's plan with Renew? There is something sinister here and we the people deserve to know the facts....

Posted 28 September 2014, 12:40 p.m. Suggest removal

TalRussell says...

Comrade how quickly we all forgets that time when Papa Hubert's senior cabinet minister offered to resign, after flying-for-fee on board that billionaire's luxury 16 seater helicopter But I forget, was it the PM or his minister who did the apologizing? Remember. Papa Hubert later had refuse acept his crown minister's resignation after confessing he too had flown for free along with his family members aboard the same billionaire's helicopter? Oh, yes, even the reds too had their most favorite foreigner billionaire. The shit that would fall from the sky, if PM Christie is ever caught flying for free on board their own favorite billionaire's private jet? All hell had broken loose from the red shirts when the PM just gave another billionaire a free ride in back his Mercedes Benz?

Posted 28 September 2014, 1:02 p.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

No one has forgotten the past. The test in front of us **today** is for the **sitting** PM and he is **failing**

Posted 28 September 2014, 8:15 p.m. Suggest removal

TalRussell says...

Comrade you might just be right will have wait for The Tribune's headlines on Monday. A top secret meeting between Comrade Dr. Andre and Minnis took place today with Grand Bahama as the likely spot. Was leaked it was to develop a plant to block any threat being mounted against Minnis, by Loretta and her Palookaviile friends - out of Palookaville, Abaco? Could it be Minnis has finally wised up, that Palookavile is not the only hideout for planning political strategy against a political enemy.

Posted 28 September 2014, 9:41 p.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

Dr Minnis is not the PM, he is not the one man in the country who has devaluation of the Bahamian dollar under the weight of his signature.

Posted 29 September 2014, 8:33 a.m. Suggest removal

TalRussell says...

Comrade dead on points but it's not as if the PM inherited a debt free, no unemployment, crime free and financial prosperity Bahamaland from the very PM's regime you're defensive for anyone to remind you of who they really are.

Posted 29 September 2014, 10:32 a.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

I don't care what he inherited, two and a half years is about time for him to show us that he's doing something to turn us around and not sinking us deeper. His only interest is a camera. You think this Wells issue is a mistake?? Somebody thought about this and planned it for their gain, the only reason we know about it is because someone spilled the beans. It's his fault, ALL OF IT. Either by design or failure and inability to whip these crooked theivin' renegade ministers into shape. BAMSI? That's his solution? Two buildings and some lime trees at a cost of 20 million?

Posted 30 September 2014, 8:38 a.m. Suggest removal

Reality_Check says...

Cash's biggest problem is his attention span......he jumps from issue du jour to issue du jour more frequently than most Bahamian voters who suffer severe memory loss after only a few days at most. As a result he loses the public interest and ends up talking to himself!

Posted 29 September 2014, 10:35 a.m. Suggest removal

SP says...

Cash is missing the boat again. Why is the focus on Christie or Wells addressing the LOI?

Focus should be on who is involved and the conflict of interest.

Posted 29 September 2014, 10:37 a.m. Suggest removal

proudloudandfnm says...

Cash is spot on. There has been no investigation, no report tabled yet our PM thinks it's ok to allow the accused to speak to the nation? No. Wells has nothing to say until after an investigation is done and the report tabled. WTF is this nonsense? Are we living in the twilight zone?

And Tal please man. If you're gonna compare this group of amateur thieves tot he FNM at least use a real scandal.... ADP would have been a much better one. A ride in a helicopter?!?! Only an ignorant PLP would think a man would sell himself out for a helicopter ride.....

Posted 29 September 2014, 11:54 a.m. Suggest removal

mostsickandtired says...

Listening to Cash and the FNM, you would swear the PLP can do nothing right. Even when they do what they ask, it still wrong. Of course Wells has to speak on this issue. He is not a silent partner, his signature is on the LOI. I want to know and the Bahamas wants to know why he signed on that dotted line.
If this is any indication of how the FNM will run their govt then we have reason to fear. If an FNM MP does something questionable they don't have to come clean with the Bahamian public either?
Cash needs to consider the image he is presenting to the Bahamian people, but then again if he is only campaigning to be FNM chairman, I am sure the PLP haters of the FNM, see nothing wrong or absurd in his actions.
Continue on smartly then.

Posted 29 September 2014, 12:04 p.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

When an employee does something wrong, they are punished and the BOSS sends out the communication on the punishment. If the boss deems appropriate, he might allow the employee to speak but it's never the other way around.

Posted 30 September 2014, 8:41 a.m. Suggest removal

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