unitedstatesembassy

Minister of National Security Wayne Munroe was noticeably absent in the House of Assembly on Wednesday as Prime Minister Philip Davis addressed the New York indictment of three officers accused of transporting cocaine into the United States–two officers are high-ranking.

Minister of Labour Pia Glover Rolle stood in his stead as leader of Government Business.

Munroe said the public should not be alarmed at his absence. He is attending a CARICOM Securities Ministers meeting in St Kitts.

He also denied authorizing the shipment of tons of cocaine shipment from South America through the Bahamas to the United States.

“I have not received $2million. I have not been asked to accommodate any wrongdoing. I have not offered to accommodate any wrongdoing, and I state that categorically,” he told The Tribune.

This comes after Chief Superintendent Elvis Curtis was arrested and indicted for cocaine and firearm transport to the United States, implicating a politician in the scheme.

According to the indictment “In exchange for $2million USD, a high-ranking Bahamian politician, whom Curtis named, would authorize the assistance and involvement of Bahamian law enforcement officials –– including armed RBPF officers –– in facilitating and ensuring cocaine shipments…”

Munroe joins Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper in denying any role in the scheme.

“Such allegations demand thorough investigation, and no stone will be left unturned in seeking the truth,” Prime Minister Philip Davis said in the House of Assembly on Wednesday.

He said his Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell had recommended sending a diplomatic note to US officials requesting more information about the allegation about the politician’s involvement.

It is not known if the public will be privy to the information if it is divulged.

“I know that in some of these law enforcement matters, information is given to you on the basis that you do not disclose it,” Munroe said.

Presidential hopeful and Florida Governor Ron Desantis’ recent military comment about “levelling” the Bahamas appeared to be no more than an analogy gone wrong.

While at a campaign event in Iowa on Sunday, he expressed unwavering support for Israel as it battles Hamas, describing the daily life of Israelis living under constant rocket attacks from Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Palestine.

However, in an analogy, he used the Bahamas as an example based on the country’s proximity to Florida.

He stated, “What are you supposed to do? I mean, I used to say even when they (Hamas)would just fire the normal rockets because they’ve been firing these rockets for years and years. And I thought to myself, like, if the Bahamas were firing rockets into Fort Lauderdale, like, we would not accept that for, like, one minute. I mean, we would just level it. We would never be willing to live like that as Americans,” DeSantis said.

The comment, reported by the Nassau Guardian and shared on social media caught some Bahamians by surprise, with many expressing shock since the thought of the Bahamas at war with the USA is an unconceivable notion.

But Desantis seemed no ill-intent. The hypothetical scenario was perhaps used to woo his GOP base where the Florida governor, who was praised as the face of the post-Trump-era Republican Party is now struggling to revive his flailing campaign with a hardline support for Isreal.

“What rockets we have though?… Ain’t nobody on his run,” a Bahamian citizen posted to social media. “How [did] we get in this?”

Darcy Moss asked, “We gat rockets eh?”

James Tivy added, “What a buffoon.” How many rockets do the Bahamas have? I’d guess none.”

One American citizen stated on Reddit, “Great, so we know now [that] you’re advertising that you’re unfit for president.”

Another stated, “I’m trying to imagine a hostile Bahamas. I’m also trying to imagine a world where Ron controls military equipment.”

“Life in Florida is never boring,” another stated.

Some Bahamians understood that it was just an analogy.

Scott Lowe said, “[He is] clearly trying to justify Isreal’s actions against Hamas by using a metaphor and not making threatening comments about the Bahamas specifically.”

And Citizens for Better Commonwealth of the Bahamas posted, “[I am ]highly doubtful that this was said in this context. But let’s be honest, if they did fire rockets at the Bahamas (hypothetically speaking) wouldn’t we want our government to do the same?”

The Bahamas and the USA share a strong diplomatic, historical, and economic tie, closer than any other country in the region.

The US Embassy in Nassau expressed “regret” for Desantis’ comment.

The spotlight has shone on Pastor of Mt Tabor Bishop Neil Ellis who lambasted Prime Minister Hubert Minnis from his church’s pulpit on Sunday, railing against his handling of the COVID-19 while accusing him of “acting like a god” and one who “does not believe in God.”

Ellis spoke up against the continued lockdowns and restrictive measures implemented to prevent the spread of the virus.

But the part of Ellis’ speech that caught the most heat was accusations that Minnis was not a follower of Jesus, which he later denied that he referenced the prime minister.

Ellis said in his sermon on Sunday, “You (PM Minnis) are insulting our intellect and parading on our democracy and sidelining our right of movement and humiliating our business owners and entrepreneurs. Your one-man stand is killing our economy and it sure doesn’t help when the one in the chair does not believe in God.”

But on Monday morning, Ellis told ZNS in an interview, “I will never seek to say who believes or who does not believe in God because only God knows the secret of a man’s heart. So this was definitely not attributed to the prime minister.”

Who is Bishop Neil Ellis?

Ellis is the senior pastor of a megachurch, reported having nearly 7000 members in 2011. He affiliates with renowned preachers and mega international churches, once connected to the Full Gospel Church in New Orleans, then forming an organization of his own called the Global United Fellowship, which boasts of nearly 1400 churches in 42 Countries.

Ellis has since transitioned from the title of “Bishop” to “His Grace.”

He was referred to as Former Prime Minister Perry Christie’s spiritual adviser, during the PLP’s 2012-2017 reign in power. His influence runs deep within the PLP claiming to be a protege of the PLP’s founding father the late Sir Lynden Pindling and a close friend of PLP’s campaign financier Frankie Wilson.

Bishop Ellis made similar spirituality claims of Hubert Ingraham and Perry Christie but denied it too

A 2011 Wikileaks cable shows that Ellis told US Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission Robert Witajewksi in 2003 in a meeting that Hubert Ingraham is “not a man of God,”  even if he does attend church, nor is Perry Christie a “true man of God,” although he was trying to be religious.

When the Nassau Guardian confronted Ellis with the statements in 2011, Ellis denied the statements attributed to him, saying, “I don’t qualify to determine who is a man of God and who is not a man of God.

“…For me to say I think Christie is a pretender would be very hypocritical of me because I’ve always said publicly and I would say again, I believe Perry Christie is one of the greatest humanitarians I’ve ever met.”

Bishop Ellis further rejects claims he told members to ‘vote PLP or leave the church’

Ellis further denied a controversial statement made in 2002 when reports claimed that he told his congregants to vote for the PLP, and if they did not, they should leave his church.

But according to Wikileaks reports, Former US Ambassador Richard Blankenship said Ellis told him that the tape — “which he claims contains selectively edited portions of three different sermons — could easily lead you to believe he had instructed his church how to vote.”

Blankenship continues, “According to Ellis, his comments were taken out of context, and that while he did officially endorse Christie and the PLP from the pulpit on several occasions (doing as he says the Holy Spirit moved him to do), he never tried to tell others how to vote or threatened anyone if they didn’t vote for the PLP.”

Despite his particular political opinions, Ellis says he has respect for all leaders.

Featured picture: The Christian Post

The United States Embassy in Nassau will no longer do business with companies in the Bahamas that use Chinese technology like Huawei and ZTE.

The Tribune reported that its company is one such local business that received a letter from the embassy asking for the manufacture disclosure of the equipment used.

US Embassy Public Affairs Officer Daniel Durazo told the media agency that “the 2019 National Defense Authorisation Act (NDAA) prohibits the US government from entering into contracts with entities (ie companies or service providers) that use telecommunications equipment, systems, or services from Huawei, ZTE, Dahua, Hikvision, Hytera, or their subsidiaries and affiliates.”

What are Huawei and ZTE?

Huawei and ZTE are telecommunication giants in China.

Huawei is a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. It makes networking products and telecommunication systems. Some of its products include 5G networks, wireless broadbands, cloud services and data centers. It operates in more than 170 countries and regions.

ZTE sells smartphones with products sold by AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile in the United States. Its products include 5G networks, big data, and cloud services.

Is the US overly concern?

The United States contends that these Chinese manufactured devices are national security threats as they may contain spying mechanisms.

In 2019, FBI Director Christopher Wray said of Huawei, “It provides the capacity to maliciously modify or steal information and it provides the capacity to conduct undetected espionage,” meaning that Huawei will help China to spy and or attack the U.S.A.

However, these are all allegations since there is no public evidence that shows that Huawei and ZTE will endanger the privacy or security of the United States.

What other countries have banned the Chinese-made  products?

Canada, The United Kingdom, Japan, and India are some countries that have banned the use of Huawei and/or ZTE in their country.

Japan’s government effectively banned China’s Huawei and ZTE from official contracts, while the country’s top three telecom operators planned to do the same. Reports stated that the U.S government had given Tokyo information about the security risks involving the use of Chinese-made equipment.

In 2018, Canadian authorities arrested the founder and CEO of  Huawei after the U.S. government charged her with fraud linked to alleged violations of Iran sanctions. She denies the charges.