Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance K. Peter Turnquest on Sunday, July 2, said the country can only be successful if there’s united purpose and effort.
He said, “You know, we cannot be successful unless we all work together, and as I said, on whatever side of the divide, we are one people, we are one nation and we can only be successful if we all do our part, we all share in the work, and we all support one another.”
Deputy Prime Minister Turnquest was addressing the 44th Independence Anniversary Celebration Church Service at Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Eight Mile Rock, Grand Bahama.
Independence celebrations this year are held under the theme, ‘Toward the Rising Sun, One God, One People, One Bahamas.’
“I’m confident our Bahamas will be better, that we will recover from the challenges facing us today. I’m confident that over the next five years, you will see positive growth. You will see positive development in our country and on our island,” said Mr. Turnquest.
Giving God thanks was fitting, he said, as He has blessed The Bahamas with development and progress which began with Majority Rule in 1967 through to independence in 1973, and through to today.
Stating that being a leader or politician is challenging and not as glorified as some may think, the deputy prime minister congratulated all those who were victorious in both the general and local government elections, and he admonished those who won in local government to serve the people who elected them “dispassionately and without partisanship.”
He said, “Indeed, we as a people continue to be a model in the world for a peaceful and fair electoral process, despite our little hiccups, which we, over the next five years hope to overcome. We have demonstrated once again that we are one of the best little nations in the world.
“The progress we have made as a country could only have been with divine aid. We acknowledge as a government that we have all failed over the years, to as the saying goes, ‘make the wealth more common,’ and as a result, we still have a long and difficult way to go. We know though that with assistance from the Most High, perseverance, wisdom and a true spirit of cooperation and selflessness, we can still achieve much for our country and our people.”
Mr. Turnquest continued, “The government of The Bahamas, under the leadership of Dr. the Hon. Hubert Alexander Minnis, and our colleagues are committed to charting this new step in our development as a nation. We recognize that the Bahamian citizen has evolved, with educational standards comparable to any country in the developing world, and I’m not saying we’re the best, we still have things to do, but comparable to most in the world and an exposed population to demand more than just rhetoric today. Bahamians want action and no place is this more critical than right here in Grand Bahama, where we have suffered long.”
Moving forward with development for the country and the island, he said, it is important that there is cooperation and communication between the stakeholders and residents.
“We realize that unless the vision is shared by all, our efforts will be in vain and the work that much harder to achieve,” Mr. Turnquest said.
“Ladies and gentlemen, our best days as a country, as an island, are before us. On May 10, 2017, you have spoken loud and clear, giving the government led by our prime minister, a clear mandate to make the necessary changes to put our economy and country on the correct path to responsible growth. You have asked us to be honourable, incorruptible, accountable and transparent.
“Today, I can confirm that the wheels are in motion to exactly that and I know that we will produce positive results in the short and medium term for our people.”
