Posted by Bahama Journal on January 29, 2002 at 16:08:50:
Referendum Date: February 27
By Felicity Delancy
Bahamian voters will endorse or reject proposed
amendments to the Constitution of the Bahamas by
referendum on Wednesday, February 27, 2002, it was
announced by Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham Sunday.
Citizens must register to vote no later than February 16
in order to vote on the referendum. However, Mr.
Ingraham advises that after this date, the populace can
still register to vote in the general elections. The
present figure of registered voters is just over 127,000 -
just 2,000 short of the total number of registered voters
for the 1997 general elections.
The public will be required to answer whether they wish
to end gender discrimination, make the teaching service
commission and the position of Parliamentary
Commissioner an entrenched provision of the
constitution, remove political representation and judicial
presence from the boundaries commission, increase the
age of retirement of judges, and allow the spouse of a
Bahamian right to citizenship only after 5 years of
marriage, but have the right to engage in gainful
occupation.
Prime Minister Ingraham said, "The inequality between
men and women in the constitution was virtually
cancerous - all through the body". Therefore, 9 articles
had to be amended just to create gender equality.
He explained that 28 years ago, it was not taboo for the
constitution to make more provisions for the rights of
men than women. Today, the constitution as it is, does
not sit in compliance with standards of the United
nations, Mr. Ingraham said.
"We had to take two bites out of article ten so as to
separate the issues," he said. The first was to ensure
that all citizens are equal, and that husbands and wives
of Bahamian citizens are treated equally. The second
was to specify that right to citizenship would only be
granted to a husband or wife of a Bahamian citizen after
5 years. In the meantime, they will have the right to live
and work in the Bahamas.
By voting "yes" to the entrenching of the teaching
service commission and the position of Parliamentary
commissioner, they cannot be removed in the future
without a referendum.
Mr. Ingraham said that an independent boundaries
commission is the desire of both the FNM and the PLP.
In reference to the proposed increased age of retirement
for judges, the Prime Minister said that many good
judges were lost because of the stipulated retirement
age.
"The referendum will be conducted under the same rules
and regulations put in place by our predecessors in
office. They created the rules to cause to be passed in
Parliament a constitutional referendum act in 1977, and
in 1980, produced rules for the conduct of a
referendum," Mr. Ingraham said.
As a backbencher with the PLP, the Prime Minister says
he supported the rules then, as did Perry Christie, who
was a Minister then. He added that Paul Adderly, who
served as Attorney General at that time, was responsible
for drafting the rules for the conduct of a referendum.
However, instead of the rules being attached to the
ballot, they will be published in one daily newspaper,
and posted at the polling stations to "reduce the
bulkiness of the ballot".
The hours of voting will be similar to that of a general
election, and the same rules apply. Employers, by law,
will be required to give an
Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham meets with members of
the press on Sunday at his first weekly press briefing on
the referendum (Photo by Peter Ramsay)
employee two hour off to vote, plus their lunch hour, bar
rooms must be closed, and public schools will be closed
on that day.
"The referendum will be under the care and direction of
the Parliamentary Commissioner - the same person who
deals with the conduct of general elections," Mr.
Ingraham said.
He added that he expects that either a Parliamentary
commissioner would have been appointed, pursuant to
the constitution, or someone would be appointed to act
pursuant to the constitution.
"I expect that the constitutional amendment, creating the
post of the parliamentary commissioner, would have
become law before this date," he said.
The parliamentary commissioner will be appointed by the
Governor General, acting on the advice of the Prime
Minister, after consultation with the leader of the
opposition.
A program of public meetings will begin. The
government has invited the opposition to suggest the
names of persons who can become a part of a national
committee to help to organize events so as to inform
citizens of the process, the Prime Minister said.
The amendments to the constitution, which did not need
a referendum, have all been passed in the House of
Assembly and the Senate.
"Notwithstanding all the noise in the marketplace, the
amendments to the constitution are being made by the
agreement of the same two political parties that agreed
the constitution in the first place - the FNM and the
PLP," said Prime Minister Ingraham.
"The amendments to the Constitution that we are
proposing now have been agreed to in full by members
of the PLP and the FNM. The Progressive Liberal Party
voted for each and every amendment proposed. The vote
in the House of Assembly on all ten constitutional bills
was unanimous as far as the Free National Movement
and the Progressive Liberal Party is concerned. "One
minority member voted no to one of the bills," the Prime
Minister said.
Amendments to the Constitution to create the post of a
Parliamentary Commissioner, a teaching service
commission, the post of Director of Public Prosecution,
and to outline the functions of the office of the Attorney
General, have all passed through the House of Assembly
and the Senate, and it is "only a matter for the
government to decide when it comes into effect" the
Prime Minister said.
He added that the creation of a teaching service
commission is "now on the verge of being a
Constitutional reality". These amendments are 4 of 31
articles that may be amended by the Parliament without
reference to a referendum. Prime Minister said he would
be very disappointed if the Bahamian populace did not
vote yes to these much needed amendments to the
constitution, but added that he would accept the will of
the people, and be satisfied that he had done his best in
nine and a half years.