By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

FORT Charlotte MP Dr Andre Rollins believes the Christie administration only announced concrete steps to address the Rubis underground fuel leak because of escalating public pressure, adding that for a long time the administration hoped the controversy would just “go away.”

Dr Rollins, a member of the governing Progressive Liberal Party, said while the government’s handling of the matter has been “unacceptable,” its recent expression of “sincere regret” for withholding an independent report on the matter for more than a year is “refreshing” and “commendable,” as is its pledges to take other concrete steps to ensure the environment’s protection.

“I think the government expected that the matter was going to die a very quick death,” he said.

“The fact that both the minister of the environment and the member for Marathon opted not to have anything to say at the first town hall meeting they had was symptomatic of the way government traditionally, in this term, has for the most part sought to deal with these kinds of problems, by remaining silent and just expecting that in time they would blow over. I don’t think they saw it as a growing firestorm. I think they saw it as something that would, as often is the case in this country, subside.”

Dr Rollins said he hopes the change in the way the government is now reacting to the fuel leak will become the “new normal” in the country.

“I think this is uncharted territory for the government,” he said, “to admit wrongdoing on its part, which is refreshing I think, to show that they respect the sensibilities and the intellect of the electorate enough to accept responsibility in what amounts to a dereliction of duty, to be at all times responsible for keeping the Bahamian people informed, particularly on matters relating to public health.”

He said the controversy exemplified a problem facing the PLP, which is a tendency to place private, corporate interests above those of “the people.”

This, he said, is contrary to the party’s philosophical foundation.

Citing events like the Burma Road riots and Black Tuesday, he said: “You found that public interest has been subordinated to public or private interest for a long period in our nation’s history. As a matter of fact, that is what gave birth to the creation of the PLP.

“Sadly, I believe that the PLP has lost touch with the principles and the underpinnings of the movement that gave it its birth. You cannot forget that the party you fought against, that gave rise to your formation, you accused that party of favouring special interests, or the interests of the minority above the interests of the people. You said that was not the kind of Bahamas that we should live in and you have consistently sought to remind the people that the Bahamas is better off today because of the movement that precipitated the formation of the PLP to empower the masses. How can one conclude that the PLP, in 2015, in relation to this Rubis oil spill and its suppression of information important to public health is any different from the blatant disregard shown to the masses by that same UBP that you said was not good for the country?

“I believe that the PLP, and some might call it hubris, some might call it arrogance, some might call it a belief in a divine right to rule, which is that the PLP believes it is immune to any threat of being supplanted or replaced by a new movement that seems more in tune with the realities of Bahamian existence in 2015. It’s one thing to rely on your history, to rely on your reputation, but it’s another thing to have that tested against your modern existence and actions as a party and as a government.”

Asked if he has any lingering concerns about the Rubis matter, he said: “I think it is dangerous, the fact that we have no way of knowing all the details around the levels of toxicity from the time the spill occurred on a week to week, month to month basis. And it’s been more than two years now. There’s no way now of knowing the true extent of which the lives of those people living and working in that community were put under threat by this environmental hazard.”

He added: “I’m not suggesting that we are at a point where all that could be done, has been done. I’m not suggesting that we should be satisfied about how this has played out because there’s no way that it could ever be deemed to be acceptable, what has transpired. It is totally unacceptable. But I’m hoping that the kind of pressure that is causing the government to reorient itself and marshal all its resources to address concerns will cause for there to be lasting, true transparency and accountability.”