Sir Godfrey PLP slight a disgrace

EDITOR, The Tribune.

IT WAS disgraceful to listen to the PLP in the House of Assembly saying they somehow just forgot to give Sir Godfrey Kelly the honours he deserved in death. I don’t buy their apology. I think it was a deliberate slight.

Sir Godfrey was a member of the United Bahamian Party and later the Free National Movement. He was a former MP and served in the first Cabinet of The Bahamas as minister of education. He died last week at the age of 93.

The PLP cannot move on from the past. It is still obsessed with denigrating anyone who was from the old United Bahamian Party or early Free National Movement.

The PLP cannot accept that Bahamians of various skin colours, religions and belief systems contributed to the development of this country over the decades. The PLP has created this false historical narrative that “they” created the modern Bahamas, and anyone who was opposed to them was a wrongdoer.

Sir Godfrey had a distinguished career of achievements and service. He, Godfrey, was an avid sailor, competing in the 1960, 1964, 1968 and 1972 Summer Olympics.

Sir Godfrey practised law for 66 years and served in many capacities over the many years, including at the Bahamas Bar Association; as elected representative to Parliament for the Cat Island constituency in l956, 1962 and l967; and as minister of education. He also served in the Senate.

Sir Godfrey and the late Sir Harold Christie were founders of the Cat Island Regatta.

Sir Godfrey was bestowed a knighthood in Queen Elizabeth’s 2020 New Year’s Honours.

The PLP demonstrated their nastiness and pettiness when Sir Godfrey was knighted. Rather than be gracious to a man in his 90s, that party attacked Sir Godfrey.

In a December 30, 2019 interview in The Nassau Guardian, Philip Davis, then the leader of the opposition and now the prime minister, said he was “appalled” that Kelly was recommended by the then FNM administration for a knighthood.

Davis questioned whether Kelly’s knighthood was “an effort to rewrite history or is it just awarding persons who would’ve perpetrated ideologies and policies and philosophies that treated the majority of our Bahamian people as second-class citizens?”

Sir Godfrey served his country. He was successful and gave back to the community. He came forward to help develop The Bahamas. He was an Olympian. He was a philanthropist. He evolved with the times as our country advanced through independence.

The Davis attack on Sir Godfrey when he was knighted is why I do not believe PLP claims that they somehow forgot to honour Sir Godfrey at his death.

As a former Cabinet minister Sir Godfrey should receive an official funeral by the state if his family so desired.

After Sir Godfrey and his family were slighted by him not being offered this honour, Davis and Fred Mitchell were in the House of Assembly on Wednesday attempting to apologise.

Pettiness is unbecoming of men elected to high office. The PLP acted disgracefully to Sir Godfrey. This is a mean-spirited government. Bahamians should take note.

MARTHA S GREENE

Nassau,

February 17, 2022.

Comments

hrysippus says...

Thank you, Ms, Greene, Well said.

Posted 19 February 2022, 9:25 a.m. Suggest removal

tribanon says...

> Davis questioned whether Kelly’s knighthood was “an effort to rewrite history or is it just awarding persons who would’ve perpetrated ideologies and policies and philosophies that treated the majority of our Bahamian people as second-class citizens?”

And today Davis treats the majority of the Bahamian people as ***third or fourth-class*** citizens.

Posted 20 February 2022, 10:20 a.m. Suggest removal

BONEFISH says...

Disgraceful. The late Sir Godfrey Kelly should have been awarded a state Funeral Despite what some people may think, he made numerous contributions to the development of the Bahamas. He was the first and foremost a cabinet minister.

Posted 20 February 2022, 10:52 a.m. Suggest removal

Flowing says...

Can you list those contributions?

Posted 21 February 2022, 10:06 a.m. Suggest removal

tribanon says...

You, like me, must be old enough to remember when many of us were not allowed to go to the Savory Theatre on downtown Bay Street. I too don't recollect Godfrey Kelly loudly speaking out about the many injustices like that before majority rule.

Posted 22 February 2022, 10:57 a.m. Suggest removal

themessenger says...

Didn't your mamma teach you not to break wind through your mouth?

Obviously you didn't know the man!

Posted 22 February 2022, 12:31 p.m. Suggest removal

tribanon says...

My knowledge of him goes all the way back to when Marvin Pinder was a partner in his law firm. You probably don't even know most of the businesses he owned.

Posted 22 February 2022, 9:06 p.m. Suggest removal

tribanon says...

"Savory" should of course be "Savoy" in my post above.

Posted 23 February 2022, 8:19 a.m. Suggest removal

moncurcool says...

Well said.

Only the PLP believes the Bahamas came into existence after 1967 and that Pindling built the country.

How could you say you forgot to give an individual who was a Cabinet Minister a state funeral? They didn't forget. Davis words as opposition leader about Kelly clearly showed what the PLP thought. Utter disgrace.

Posted 21 February 2022, 3:13 p.m. Suggest removal

tribanon says...

You need to read up on your Bahamian history, in particular what the Bahamas was like for a lot of Bahamians before 'majority rule'. Sadly though, a great number of older Bahamians now have good reason to believe they and their families are worse off today than they would have been had majority rule not come about. And that's because of the very cruel nature of today's elitist political ruling class, whether they be of the FNM or PLP persuasion.

Posted 24 February 2022, 11:02 a.m. Suggest removal

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