The Clifton Review

The Clifton Review is a bi-weekly column that examines the question of the Clifton project along with the evolution of the war between two billionaires, the links to unsavory characters, the use of the courts for personal agendas, the involvement of a political party, and the attacks on the Government of The Bahamas.

We covered the start of this war with articles describing the battle over easement rights, the mysterious burning of a home, the blocks to rebuilding, and countless questionable court filings. This series of articles asks the needed questions and presents the arguments in full.

By P.J. Malone

“All political actions have consequences!” These were the words of admonishment from the most Reverent Bishop Drexel W. Gomez (retired Archbishop of the Provence of the West Indies). These words were a part of his recent sermon given at St. Agnes Anglican Church in The Bahamas.  This highly respected cleric of the Anglican Communion around the world warned, “If you listen to the wrong voice, you will destroy this country!” Bishop Gomez was cautioning the leaders of The Bahamas to not go down the road of Rwanda.

The new Government’s recent actions against the previous Government’s Members of Parliament and Senators have frightened many individuals who recognize the signs that lead to tyranny when they see it.

Former Government officials have been accosted by the police, handcuffed and dragged in for questioning. Some were let go without charges; others were arrested and taken before the courts to be charged with what many feel are bogus charges.

Several individuals have expressed that it smacks of injustice, and the entire affair is simply a political witch-hunt under the guise of an investigation into corruption.

The main objection people have to the entire affair, and what makes this new Government’s actions look suspicious, is the process being used against these former politicians. These former statesmen appear to be harassed by the police, dragged in, handcuffed and are being treated as guilty until proven innocent.

Bishop Gomez told a chilling cautionary tale of how the genocide in Rwanda began with political domination. Here is his cautionary tale:

“Ten years ago, I attended a meeting of the Global South Anglican Bishops in Rwanda, a country that had experienced one of the most serious genocides in history—in a Black country in Africa. A country that was literally torn apart by political domination that led to the most brutal and savage destruction of human life, a genocide with black upon black between the Tutsi and Hutu, the two tribes in the nation.

“The destruction took place because one group felt they had been oppressed by the other group, and they destroyed one another in a vicious, vicious way.

“Along with the other bishops, I attended a Museum in Kigali, the capital city of Rwanda. In the museum they had painted pictures of the slaughter that took place to be a perpetual reminder to the nation of the evils that had taken place.

“To be in that museum was a chilling experience. It spoke about reality. It was not something theoretical.

“This is what happened to that country because they allowed politics to take over their lives.

“They went through and are continuing to experience a process of reconciliation, but as long as that nation lives, the horror of that genocide will remain with them.

“I mention this not to be an alarmist, but simply to say that we must learn from history. The domination that led to this brutal carnage was like a cancer: it started small and progressed aggressively until savagery powered the brutal response.

“The Rwanda experience was definitely the product of political domination that ignored the universally accepted democratic norms and the respect for basic human rights and human dignity for every person, irrespective of tribe, race, gender, religion or politics.

“What I saw in Rwanda created in me a lasting impression. I will never forget the experience of visiting that Museum.

“So while I do not wish to appear to be an alarmist, I feel compelled to warn the nation of The Bahamas, my beloved country, whom I love so much, and for whom I am willing to labour.

“I wish to warn all Bahamians that all political actions have consequences and the manner in which we engage in these actions can negatively impact our growth and development as a sovereign nation under God.”

A word to the wise…