Parliament debate ends in arrests

Opposition MP Shanendon Cartwright shocked The Bahamas yesterday by throwing the ceremonial mace out the window of Parliament. This dramatic gesture came during a heated debate over the US indicting several high-ranking officials from the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) and Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF). Prosecutors accuse them of being part of a sprawling cocaine trafficking conspiracy.

Cartwright reportedly threw the mace to register his disgust and dismay. But this act sparked a commotion between opposition and government MPs, requiring police intervention to restore order.

Bahamians are key players in drug trafficking

Alas, Bahamians facilitating the drug trade from Latin America is the modern-day equivalent of Englishmen facilitating the slave trade from Africa. The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York alleges that, since 2021, drug traffickers have funneled tons of cocaine through The Bahamas into the United States. Further, that this operation thrived with the “support and protection of corrupt Bahamian government officials,” including senior members of the RBPF.

The indictment paints a damning picture: Bahamian officials provided traffickers with sensitive law enforcement information, shielded them from investigations, and orchestrated logistics for massive cocaine shipments. Accordingly, Chief Superintendent Elvis Nathaniel Curtis and Chief Petty Officer Darrin Alexander Roker were arrested in Florida a few days ago.

A national shame (still)

As a Bahamian, I can attest that this Parliamentary spectacle only compounded the national shame caused by this criminal indictment. After all, it’s bad enough that complicity in this drug trade tarnished the legacy of our first prime minister, Lynden Oscar Pindling (LOP). But this US indictment gives the impression that he left behind institutionalized corruption, making drug trafficking as Bahamian as Junkanoo.

LOP made history on “Black Tuesday” (April 27th, 1965) when, as opposition leader, he threw this same ceremonial mace out the window of Parliament. He was protesting the inequities of British colonial rule. So it’s notable that Cartwright emulated his act. But the damning irony is that he wasn’t protesting external oppression but internal rot — namely, the very corruption that plagued LOP’s premiership.

I say lock ‘em up and throw away the key! Unsurprisingly, the commissioner of police resigned — no doubt hoping that saves his hide. But you know it’s only a matter of time before plea deals have the arrested officers ratting out Bahamian politicians. Perhaps the presumption of guilt by association is what triggered MP Cartwright to send the ceremonial mace flying.