By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie said he is surprised that his predecessor, former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, criticised him about the length of time it is taking the Constituencies Commission to release its boundaries report, saying he thought Mr Ingraham was above such “political commentary” at this stage in his life.

Mr Ingraham told The Tribune on Tuesday that under Mr Christie’s watch this was the second time that the Constituencies Commission’s report had been behind schedule, preventing it from reaching Parliament. Under the previous Ingraham administration, the report had been tabled six months before the general election.

Mr Ingraham also told The Nassau Guardian that the commission’s report has only been delivered late under the leadership of Mr Christie, never under his leadership or his predecessor, Sir Lynden Pindling.

Responding yesterday, Mr Christie said he expects the report to be complete by next week.

“I’m surprised that he (Mr Ingraham) wanted to get involved in this because everything he says deserves a response and the point is I thought he had put himself beyond this to speak to national matters and not get caught up in the political commentary but you know, it is what it is,” he said.

Mr Christie also said he was surprised at Mr Ingraham’s criticism of Parliamentary Commissioner Sherlyn Hall, though he noted that Mr Ingraham has expressed such concerns before.

Mr Ingraham views Mr Hall as inexperienced. He also has worries about Mr Hall’s abilities to pull off a general election given the hiccups the Parliamentary Registration Department faced during the June 2016 gender equality referendum.

Regarding Mr Hall, Mr Christie said: “We have to give that public servant every opportunity to demonstrate that he does have that capacity and the work will be done.”

Mr Christie revealed that he “had dinner” with Mr Ingraham Wednesday night at an event honouring George Myers. He said Mr Ingraham “didn’t raise the matter with me (there).”

“The Constituencies Commission must report as quickly as possible,” he added. “My own feeling is it doesn’t appear that they are talking about wide-sweeping changes and therefore the necessary work to be done should not be all that difficult for the parliamentary commission in being able to ensure that people are able to see whether or not there is a new constituency as indicated earlier on. In my case I go from Mackey Street to East Street in part to Collins Avenue and that’s a huge thing the former prime minister gave to us. I think most of that will go back to Mrs (Glenys) Hanna Martin (who represents Englerston). I’m led to believe the work of the commission is continuing and I can only assume that given the time, by next week they will be complete.”

Regarding voter registration, Mr Christie disagreed that the slow registration is related to the work of the Parliamentary Registration Department or the Constituencies Commission.

“To the extent that there is malaise to people registering I don’t know that rests as much with the parliamentary commissioner as with the mind-set of the people themselves,” the prime minister said. “We are making every effort nationwide to add to the resources to enable people to be able to get registered and people have to elect at some stage to determine for themselves whether they want to participate in the election. That is a decision that everyone has to make for themselves and presumably they will do that and get registered.”

Last night, FNM Chairman Sidney Collie chided Mr Christie for “another missed deadline” regarding the boundaries report. Last week, the prime minister said the report might be ready this week.

“Another deadline missed, and more excuses will soon follow,” Mr Collie said in a statement. “The embattled prime minister told the Bahamian people to expect the Boundaries Commission report this week, but yet another (sitting) of Parliament has passed, and still no report.”

He said the government is “desperate to cling to power” and would do anything to protect the status quo even if that means allegedly trying to “rig an election they must call.”

He added: “This government has already tried to intimidate female voters with their dress code tactics . . . and now they are taking steps to prevent the voters from knowing who is running to represent them. The people will not allow the embattled prime minister and his party to run the election in secrecy and in the dark of night just like they have done running this government.

“ . . . Try as they may, this PLP government cannot stop the will of the Bahamian people. When the bell is rung it is the people who will decide their future, and the FNM trusts the people. When they remove the PLP from power this next election, the people will finally have their time and the new FNM government will work every day to serve them.”