Pineridge Member of Parliament Frederick McAlpine lambasted Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis’ reaction post Hurricane Dorian and compared that response to the to the response given to the people of Dominica in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017.

Mr. McAlpine, during his contribution on the Disaster Preparedness and Response Amendment 2019 Bill, alluded that Dr. Minnis was more favourable to the island of Dominica than he was to his own people in the aftermath of devastating hurricanes.

The Pineridge MP charged that the perception is that Dr. Minnis visited Dominica after it was hit by Hurricane Maria in September 2017 quicker than he visited parts of Grand Bahama following storm Dorian.

“For the record and I would not be going [here], but the prime minister opened the door on his first notification to the house,” Mr. McAlpine said.

“For the record, there are many out there who feel and felt that the PM showed more passion and compassion for Dominica than he showed for Grand Bahama and Abaco and the Cays.

“Here me out, people are extremely upset that the prime minister went to Dominica faster than he came to East Grand Bahama where Bahamians lives were lost.

“The most destructive part of Grand Bahama took our prime minister over a month to get there.

“I need the country and my colleagues to understand I’m just stating the perception is out there.”

In September 2017, Hurricane Maria decimated Dominica and following such, local police and defence force officers were dispatched to the island to assist with recovery efforts.

Dr. Minnis also announced the government’s pledge to accept Dominican students.

The Pineridge MP questioned why Dominica didn’t reciprocate, adding that Grand Bahama students have been out of school for nearly three months.

“Why isn’t Dominica volunteering to take our people as students? That was the point at the time two and a half years ago,” Mr. McAlpine said.

“[What] Dominica did for us is actually what I proposed we do for them, money and physical assistance. Dominica is a part of CARICOM of which all member states and affiliates, as far as I’m aware of, all pledged to give $100,000 to any catastrophic or natural disaster within the region.

“The Bahamas has done this on many occasions as we too are a part of CARICOM.

“So, those who would have us to believe that there is something special being done by Dominica tend to be somewhat misleading.

“It would have been good to disclose what the other islands throughout the region contributed financially. While we were told about their contribution, we were not told the amount.”

Although McAlpine claimed that Grand Bahama students are still out of school, Minister of Education Jeffrey Lloyd announced on Sunday that both Abaco and Grand Bahama students return to school today.