Will Bahamians Stand With Sharon Grant-Bethel, or Will we Throw her to the Wolves?

By Sidney Stubbs

Permit me the opportunity to crave your indulgence on a matter of national importance. It would be remissed of me, if I did not remind you that our nation just a few days ago, celebrated it's 37th birthday. We have now been in the business of statecraft and nation building for the past 37 years. The framers of our constitution were adamant that they were laying the groundwork to build a nation for all Bahamians. A nation where Bahamians would collectively come together to build national and private institutions which would be governed by Bahamians. It was the hope of the founding fathers of our nation that our people would be trained over the years to hold positions of authority in The Bahamas. This was supposed to have been a nation where Bahamians had security of tenure in their public and private positions, as long as they were performing their jobs to the acceptable standards required for the position. If they didnot meet those standards, then they should be replaced by Bahamians, and not by foreigners.

How can we build a nation when the leaders of our country donot believe in Bahamians. How can we build a nation when many Bahamians themselves donot believe in the capacity of Bahamians to govern themselves responsibly. Every young nation endures the complications of growing pains in the process of national development. However, what separates the successful nations from those that are not successful, is the amount of time, capital, energy and effort that they put into the development of their citizens. We must do the same for the people of The Bahamas. Our leaders must recommit themselves to the real empowerment of Bahamians. Our quiet revolution will never be complete until the people of The Bahamas become players in our 7 - 13 billion dollar economy.

This brings me to the case of Ms. Sharon Grant-Bethel, a Bahamian who has spent her entire professional life in the service of her country in the Office of the Attorney General of The Bahamas. Now, whatever you may think of Ms. Grant-Bethel, and let me hasten to say that I donot know her personally, what happened to her was wrong, and should not happened to any Bahamians. We should never seek to humiliate any Bahamian in the process of our national development. Bahamians must take personality out of everyday life and politics, and stand with this young lady who in a major way, has positively impacted our criminal justice system. She is a Bahamian, and should not be treated as an interloper or someone who has done something wrong. Stand up for your rights Ms. Grant-Bethel. You are an inheritor of the flames of our quiet revolution, and you have the right as a Bahamian, once qualified, and you are, to hold any position in this Commonwealth of The Bahamas. You should not be displaced by a foreigner. Indeed, no Bahamian should be displaced by a foreigner in the job market in both the public and private sectors in The Bahamas. We know that it is happening everyday in our country, and it should be stopped. It is time that we start putting Bahamians first. Why send our children off to the best institutions of higher learning in the world, only to have them come home and be displaced by foreigners. It is wicked, it is wrong, and it is unBahamian.

Ms. Grant-Bethel is a Bahamian with hopes and dreams like any other Bahamian, and we should not "throw her under the bus", instead we should work to ensure that no Bahamian is displaced in the country of their birth by any foreigner. It should be the right of any Bahamian to feel secured. This sense of security should not only be from crime, but it should also be evident in every area of our economy, including the job market. When a small country like The Bahamas collects over $40 million in work permit fees when our economy is going through one of the worst economic recessions in our history, with many Bahamians being laid off every day, and out of work, it speaks to our character as a nation. We rescue those from other countries, who cannot find employment in their nations, by allowing many companies who conduct business in our nation to bring them in at the expense of Bahamians. This practice must stop. Bahamians are too qualified and too smart to be treated like this.

Ms. Grant-Bethel, I stand with you as a Bahamian, and I call upon like minded Bahamians everywhere to stand with you. Today, it is you, tomorrow, it maybe me or anyother Bahamian. God bless you and continue to "STAND" and be strong.

Ms. Grant-Bethel, I stand with you as a Bahamian, and I call upon like minded Bahamians everywhere to stand with you. Today, it is you, tomorrow, it maybe me or anyother Bahamian. God bless you and continue to "STAND" and be strong.

By Sidney Stubbs
Permit me the opportunity to crave your indulgence on a matter of national importance. It would be remissed of me, if I did not remind you that our nation just a few days ago, celebrated it's 37th birthday. We have now been in the business of statecraft and nation building for the past 37 years. The framers of our constitution were adamant that they were laying the groundwork to build a nation for all Bahamians. A nation where Bahamians would collectively come together to build national and private institutions which would be governed by Bahamians. It was the hope of the founding fathers of our nation that our people would be trained over the years to hold positions of authority in The Bahamas. This was supposed to have been a nation where Bahamians had security of tenure in their public and private positions, as long as they were performing their jobs to the acceptable standards required for the position. If they didnot meet those standards, then they should be replaced by Bahamians, and not by foreigners.

How can we build a nation when the leaders of our country donot believe in Bahamians. How can we build a nation when many Bahamians themselves donot believe in the capacity of Bahamians to govern themselves responsibly. Every young nation endures the complications of growing pains in the process of national development. However, what separates the successful nations from those that are not successful, is the amount of time, capital, energy and effort that they put into the development of their citizens. We must do the same for the people of The Bahamas. Our leaders must recommit themselves to the real empowerment of Bahamians. Our quiet revolution will never be complete until the people of The Bahamas become players in our 7 - 13 billion dollar economy.

This brings me to the case of Ms. Sharon Grant-Bethel, a Bahamian who has spent her entire professional life in the service of her country in the Office of the Attorney General of The Bahamas. Now, whatever you may think of Ms. Grant-Bethel, and let me hasten to say that I donot know her personally, what happened to her was wrong, and should not happened to any Bahamians. We should never seek to humiliate any Bahamian in the process of our national development. Bahamians must take personality out of everyday life and politics, and stand with this young lady who in a major way, has positively impacted our criminal justice system. She is a Bahamian, and should not be treated as an interloper or someone who has done something wrong. Stand up for your rights Ms. Grant-Bethel. You are an inheritor of the flames of our quiet revolution, and you have the right as a Bahamian, once qualified, and you are, to hold any position in this Commonwealth of The Bahamas. You should not be displaced by a foreigner. Indeed, no Bahamian should be displaced by a foreigner in the job market in both the public and private sectors in The Bahamas. We know that it is happening everyday in our country, and it should be stopped. It is time that we start putting Bahamians first. Why send our children off to the best institutions of higher learning in the world, only to have them come home and be displaced by foreigners. It is wicked, it is wrong, and it is unBahamian.

Ms. Grant-Bethel is a Bahamian with hopes and dreams like any other Bahamian, and we should not "throw her under the bus", instead we should work to ensure that no Bahamian is displaced in the country of their birth by any foreigner. It should be the right of any Bahamian to feel secured. This sense of security should not only be from crime, but it should also be evident in every area of our economy, including the job market. When a small country like The Bahamas collects over $40 million in work permit fees when our economy is going through one of the worst economic recessions in our history, with many Bahamians being laid off every day, and out of work, it speaks to our character as a nation. We rescue those from other countries, who cannot find employment in their nations, by allowing many companies who conduct business in our nation to bring them in at the expense of Bahamians. This practice must stop. Bahamians are too qualified and too smart to be treated like this.

Ms. Grant-Bethel, I stand with you as a Bahamian, and I call upon like minded Bahamians everywhere to stand with you. Today, it is you, tomorrow, it maybe me or anyother Bahamian. God bless you and continue to "STAND" and be strong.