Sidney Sweeting, DDS
The recent beating of a woman who was conducting a segway tour on Prince George dock was very disturbing and has a lot of Bahamians wondering what kind of people are being recruited to "serve and protect us." It has been reported that police officials will immediately start an investigation into the matter. I hope that the Press will follow this all the way through and that the punishment of those policemen involved in this dastardly act will be appropriately punished and not just demoted or transferred to another department.
A couple of weeks ago I was approached by a gentleman who requested my permission to sell phone cards in front of my office, off the street. I was happy to do so and gave him written permission to present with his appication for a permit. He was told by a food vendor, who also sells phone cards in another areea, that she did not want him in front of my office – informed him that she had a friend who is an inspector on the force and she would see that he was removed. Two days later two inpectors did show up and asked him to move. Just a coincidence, of course. I have followed through with this because I saw it as a clear case of harassment.
I called the department that issues the phone card permits and was told by the inspector that they did not want too many in one area and I informed him that there was no one else on Collins Avenue selling cards, he is off the street and is quiet and unobstrusive. We are hoping that he will have his permit by Monday.
I feel that the most disturbing part of this issue is that with the country being ravaged with crime two senior police officers could find the time to harrass a phone card seller whose permit is ready and will be colleected as soon as the business licence receipt is presented. All this while, we have learned, most sellers on the streets do not have a permit.
“Goon squads” abound in multiple forms, in a few ministries, Immigration, Customs, Police, and certainly more than a few goons surround some elected officials.
Their actual “authority” is derived from legislation, derived from our Constitution, all of which outline difinitive proceedures and actions to be taken. In the case of “political goons” there is no authority period.
Unfortunately authority has been subjugated under “power” which results in these abuses which are becoming more frequent.
Case in point, Bahamas Customs becoming the “enforcer” for N.I.B.
I’m not sure if we should be more concerned that Government itself seems to have no faith in the officers of N.I.B. to act under their own auspices to enforce or the Courts to act in the last resort, which would be the lawful recourse, but Bahamas Customs has no legal jurisdiction to collect for any entity but Customs, and even they must prosecute via the courts if their own lawful options fail.
Bully tactics are unlawful.
But, it takes an educated citizen to stand up to the unlawful, to politely say “No” to the offending bully.
Citizens like that are pitifully in short supply.
“The road to hell is paved in good intentions” directly addresses what we are seeing today, if the face of economic adversity and reaction from Government.
Everyone doing it does not make it lawful, just as none observing the law make it forgivable.
In thinking about this a bit more, I should add that there is the individual acting arbitrarily, unlawfully, but also the systemic top down exercise of “power” well outside of authority.
Each and every political office and Civil service position or posting has clearly defined authority and proceedures to follow, but that have been systematically disregarded to the point that few can even fathom their legal roles.
Hence, the position we are in in our country.
Dr. Sweeting this may be a part of a goon squad that you might pass every day and don`t realise it, I have personally seen two inspectors one male and one female harassing drivers of “nicer vehicles” and vendors in the area from Harbor Bay to the Paradise Island bridge. They usually start their racket after rush hour that morning I guess to “hustle” lunch money who knows.