Shenia Roberts
Journal Staff Writer

While the two major political parties refuse to budge on implementing campaign finance reform,
a third political party is chastising them for non-performance on the issue and promises the
Bahamian people that they would implement it to restore their confidence in the electorate.
Dr, Veronica McIver, deputy leader of the Coalition of Independents shared a voice message
commenting on the matter and claiming that the PLP and FNM are “both side of the same coin”.
Dr McIver highlighted the fact that both parties have promised to establish legislation for finance
reform in the country and have failed to deliver. She also claimed that the Campaign Finance Bill
was drafted back in the 1980’s by then prime minister, Lynden Pindling and has not been
advanced in the past 40 years.
Additionally she responded to PLP Chairman Fred Mitchell’s comments about their being no
appetite asking, “do you work for yourself or do you work for the people”. She suggested that
Mitchell’s comments were based on the preference of the parties and not the people.
McIver challenged both parties to be transparent and the government to make the necessary
provision for reform. She expressed that campaign finance reform would not only promote
transparency and limit corruption, but it will also level out the playing field for all parties in the
race.
Both the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and Free National Movement (FNM) have promised to
enact legislation for campaign finance reform but have consistently failed over the years to make
headway despite advice from good governance advocates and international bodies like the
Organisation of American States (OAS).
The PLP’s pre-election manifesto included a ‘Blueprint for Change’ where the party promised
campaign finance reform however, in 2022, prime minister Davis said it was not a priority.
Recently, Mr. Davis called out opposition leader Michael Pintard for his silence on matters
concerning the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) and the residents of Grand Bahama. He
went on to ask Pintard whether or not the GBPA made financial contributions to his campaign
and if this was the reason for his impartial position in the matters of the people.
This claim sparked conversation between both parties with both sides claiming that other has
accepted monetary donations from the GBPA for their campaigns in the last decade.
Consequently, Pintard said the FNM is willing to disclose its financial donors if PM Davis and
the PLP are willing to do the same. He made this proposal during a conference with media
saying, “We are willing to lay the list of our donors on the table, Are you willing to lay yours?”
He went on further to suggest the possibility of their donors being presently engaged with the
government through no bid contracts and other projects saying “Are you willing to answer
whether or not most of the major companies that are presently engaged by this government, that
your administration has received contributions from?” In addition to this FNM Chairman
Dr.Duane Sands also responded to these claims saying “Every administration since independence
— PLP and FNM — has willingly accepted campaign contributions from multiple legitimate ethical businesses inclusive of the GBPA with no strings attached. “However, neither of the party
leaders has confirmed or denied any financial ties to the GBPA in the last general elections.
During an interview with another media outlet PM Davis expressed “We don’t have any
campaign financing rules in The Bahamas. People could give their contribution to whichever
party they wish. That’s their free will.”
Similarly, PLP chairman Fred Mitchell commented on the matter saying there is no appetite for
it. Mitchell explained that he feels this may complicate things once the process loses it
anonymity saying” “My own personal view is there is not appetite for campaign finance reform
in this country, because neither side can agree on the terms of disclosure in this country”. This
comes as a surprise to many as Mitchell’s comments seemed to contradict his statement to
Organization of American States (OAS) officials in January, when he said work was “ongoing”
to develop a legal framework to govern campaign finance practices.