Bahamas: Prime Minister says people to decide on national lottery

"Once the people decide, public policy will govern itself accordingly," Prime Minister Christie told participants in the Ministry of Finance Budget 2012/13 Budget Symposium at the Sheraton Cable Beach, Wednesday, June 27, 2012.

The symposium was geared toward Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Department in the Public Service. The Prime Minister said he met with the Christian Council, which presented significant concerns about the revenue options the Government is considering, which include creating a national lottery and/or the web shop operations, as they currently exist.

"The major parties agreed that they will put it to a referendum; and that is significant because we cannot continue to institutionalize hypocrisy in the governance of The Bahamas," he said. "I do not have the timidity of a politician when it comes to the decision-making that I am just going to put it to the Bahamian people to make a decision. It has significant revenue implications."

The Prime Minister told the senior government officials that no matter their spiritual or religious beliefs, the Government of The Bahamas has agreed to put the issue to a referendum for the Bahamian people to decide. He said there is a system where these operations are paying national insurance and all of the institutional requirements are met, but there is a tendency to act as if they do not exist. "We are going to put a stop to this. The country must decide," Prime Minister Christie said.

The issue of having a referendum on the legalizing of gambling in The Bahamas is something the Prime Minister had promised to look into during his government's first 100 days in office.

The issue can be found on page 169 of the Progressive Liberal Party's Charter for Governance which states that "wit-hin the first 100 days in office a referendum will be held to determine whether Bahamians desire to legalize lotteries."

The Prime Minister noted that there cannot be a system where people are paying national insurance payments and then pretending that this activity does not exist. PM Christie anticipates facing opposition on the issue from the religious community and other stakeholders.

He indicated that if the public votes not to hold a national lottery, it could have some impact on webshops. "Bahamians will make a decision on what they want," said Christie. “If they say they want it, then they have it. If they say they don't want it, then by the majority vote, it will not happen. That means it will remain against the law and it will be rigidly enforced."

And what about the argument that legalizing gambling can negatively affect the family unit? "Our people, obviously, are free today, to do what they want to do, and the reality is they are doing it (gambling) and to what extent, we will find out. I don't know," said the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister noted that as far as the webshops are concerned, the Ministry of Finance has already discussed the issue with webshop owners. "They have to consult to determine the feasibility of this whole exercise, the extent to which revenue can be gained from the exercise," said Christie. "So a necessary function of the officials at the Ministry of Finance was to place themselves in a position to advise the government of The Bahamas."