EDITOR, The Tribune.

THE current government has announced its desire to win the next general election; however, it continues to renominate lackluster MPs and cabinet ministers, many of whom oversee crumbling infrastructure, unchecked crime, and economic paralysis. The opposition, true to form, mirrors this parade of recycled faces. We must confront a harsh truth: continuing to vote for the same failures while expecting different results is not hope; it is a national delusion. When the ringmaster promises revival but recruits the same clowns, the circus only becomes more chaotic. Our survival demands that we reevaluate not just our politics, but also our collective mental health. How much longer will we applaud the very performers who have burned the tent?

We have become a nation in peril, a symbolic boiling pot. For 50 years, we have been like frogs simmering in a pot of political deceit. They call us the Caribbean’s “wealthiest” nation, but this is a cruel illusion. We have become a stage where starvation exists amid plenty. While grocery shelves overflow, Bahamians are forced to empty their wallets for basic necessities. Wealth that doesn’t feed our children is not true wealth, it is merely theater.

Recycling clowns will lead to recycled failures. The same politicians whose previous terms saw schools’ decay, hospitals neglect patients, and young talent flee continue to strut back onto the stage. New thinkers are silenced unless they pledge allegiance to broken systems. Governance has become a circus act presenting applause lines instead of real solutions.

Tribal loyalty has devolved into national suicide. We’ve been trained to wave party flags like cheerleaders in a game we cannot win. “Red” or “Yellow” victories amount to losses for everyone as our communities’ crumble and our futures are auctioned off. Our infrastructure has become mere scenery for the circus. Mega-projects are not progress; they are glittery distractions from decay. Ports built for cruise ships and resorts staffed by exploited Bahamians are nothing more than economic colonialism, not real development.

Our education system has become nothing more than a way to train performers instead of builders. Schools are prioritising athletes over engineers and service workers over scientists. Foreign labor floods our market, ensuring wages stay suppressed and ambition remains shackled. This isn’t mere neglect; we must call it by its true name: systematic disempowerment. We must pay attention to the brain drain occurring as the best minds escape a circus run by clowns. They leave to build nations that reward intellect, while ours continues to peddle broken dreams.

No more applause for failure. We need a revolution. This upcoming election is not about choosing lesser evils; it’s about dismantling the circus. Voting Bahamians must reject the zombie politicians. These performers have had their chance, and their “experience” is a record of decay. We need candidates with proven competence beyond the political realm—engineers, teachers, and entrepreneurs, not just party puppets.

It’s time to discard the tribal flags and vote for policies, not circus colors. If candidates cannot outline plans to break our dependency on foreign labor, establish Bahamian tech hubs, or overhaul education, they are part of the farce. Education should be about liberation, not servitude. Ten engineers can build more than a hundred athletes. We must demand free STEM education, vocational training, and curricula focused on sovereignty instead of servitude. We need to fire ministers who treat schools as talent agencies for foreign resorts.

Bahamians must take ownership of the stage. Tax foreign investors to fund Bahamian startups. Ban non-critical foreign labor that leaves our people in menial roles when they long for dignity. We need to build foundations, not facades. Our infrastructure should serve our economy by developing solar grids for energy independence and ports for Bahamian exporters, not just for tourist imports.

It’s time to leave the Big Top. They call us frogs in a boiling pot, but frogs can jump, and lions can devour ringmasters. For fifty years, we’ve tolerated a circus that uses the same tricks, the same clowns, and the same decline. Now, we must storm the stage.

In this election, we demand leaders who see Bahamians as architects, not mere audience members. We deserve a country where groceries are affordable because wages reflect and honour our labour. We envision a future where our children choose to stay because here, minds are cultivated, not caged.

Our final act must be a roar. Register to vote, and encourage someone who is not registered to do the same. Challenge every candidate who comes to your door. If their solution is “more circus,” show them the exit.

Our lives—and our children’s birthright—depend on it.

A Citizen Walking Out of the Circus.

RABBI COMMON SENSE

Freeport, Grand Bahama

June 29, 2025.