Both The Nassau Guardian and The Tribune ran front page stories about comments by Mr. Shane Gibson (PLP) Minister of Labour that he intends to “expose” opposition MP’s that have real property tax arrears because of recent allegations, and subsequent confession, that the government consultant for their VAT implementation team had dodged paying his for a decade.
At first blush I agreed, that he should expose them for their hypocrisy, if it exists, but he must also expose members of his party.
But I thought about it a little more, and remembered there is law that instructs each Member of Parliament to declare their financial position including assets and liabilities.
If they were doing this, all these things would be self evident, assuming they would be honest.
What really is sad is that a PLP faithful had to be embarrassed for the government to take notice and admit there is a huge problem with collection of property taxes as mandated by law.
Had the tax bureaucracy and MP’s been doing their jobs, surely these folks would be brought before the courts if they do not attempt an agreement to pay?
Most times I read the political diatribe from MP’s, I remember the following quote from Henry Hazlitt’s, Is Politics Insoluble:
“So while we may doubt that a truly “ideal” government will ever be designed, or “scientific” political institutions ever developed, we need not abandon the effort to improve them. But we must be prepared for setbacks and discouragements for as far as we can see.”
Download a PDF copy from the Foundation of Economic Education (FEE), here…
If Mr. Gibson, and other politicians, were able to separate governance from their political party the country might be able to resolve some of these long outstanding matters.
How can the tax authorities prosecute private individuals when they do not hold themselves to the standards of the laws they pass?
In the final, if the MP’s completed their valuations as the law requires maybe Parliament can get on with governance instead of these distractions?
So yes Mr. Gibson, expose the tax dodgers, expose them all.
Source: Weblog Bahamas
