He also assured that the transformed airport will be something all Bahamians can be proud of, as did Minister Hanna-Martin as she addressed hundreds of Bahamians who packed tents on the front lawn of the airportﾒs entryway.
“Very shortly, a world renowned international airport firm will assume the day-to-day management of this facility, heralding the redevelopment and revitalization of this facility into a premier world class facility,” Minister Hanna-Martin said.
“Over the next two years, there will be tremendous growth taking place on this acreage with new and modern terminals and increased runway capacity to accommodate an air traffic boomﾅIt is therefore most important that in the midst of these transforming events that we pause today to honour the achievement of a man who has loomed large in the life of the Bahamian people and one who presided over the most transforming era in the development of a modern Bahamas.”
Sir Lyndenﾒs era spanned more than four decades, beginning in the 1960ﾒs with the struggle for Majority Rule.
The former prime minister played a pivotal role in Bahamianizing the workforce, elevating women to full equality to all spheres of society, introducing the national insurance scheme and attaining Independence for The Bahamas on July 10, 1973.
“He dedicated his entire life to the public service and the advancement of Bahamians everywhere,” Minister Hanna-Martin said.
“And so the renaming of the airport is the nationﾒs way of saying, ﾑthank youﾒ. Thank you for the vision and the love that fueled a collective passion of a people. Today is an expression of national gratitude for the human energy expended by a son of the soil, a champion of freedom, social justice and a proponent of excellenceﾅThe renaming of this tangible facility is therefore a celebration of the intangible ﾖ of heart and soul.”
Those were the sentiments Prime Minister Perry Christie drew from as he paid tribute to his friend and mentor.
As has become customary when speaking about the finality of life, he reiterated the importance of memorializing the presence and existence of those who have contributed to the national good.
Quoting an old African proverb, Prime Minister Christie told the crowd “Until lions have their own authors, the story of the hunt will always favour the hunter.”
He also used his platform to make a clear hit at former prime minister and Opposition Leader, Hubert Ingraham, and FNM MPS, who were noticeably absent from the renaming ceremony.
Mr. Ingraham had indicated in the House of Assembly on Wednesday that he would not be attending the event after receiving an invitation only a day prior.
Speaking at the event, Prime Minister Christie said, “This is one of those moments in our life when all Bahamians of whatever racial hue, political stripe, social station should rise above their differences to join hands and hearts in common praise for the father of our nation.”
“ﾅWhen the full measure of Lynden Pindlingﾒs life is taken, when all of his books are balanced, the verdict of history must truly be that all Bahamians were the beneficiaries of the good that Lynden Pindling did for this country irrespective of whether they were for him or against him,” he said.
Sir Lyndenﾒs longtime friend, Governor General Arthur Hanna, also shared in the moment. He said occasions like these remind everyone that the modern Bahamas did not happen by chance but by struggle.
“The importance of this in our national development cannot be understated. The level of ignorance in our country about our history is distressing,” he said. “If we are to be truthful to ourselves, we must not be ashamed to admit that the land of freedom we live in today was not always so.”
Mr. Hanna said his Sir Lynden acted as, cared and carried on as a chief among equals, did not attempt to interfere with ministerial discretions and accepted the consensus of Cabinet even though he may have preferred otherwise.
“The renaming of this airport is our nationﾒs way of consolidating Lynden Pindling in our collective consciousness as a symbol of national aspiration and struggle for a better Bahamas, not only sovereign and free, but a Bahamas where social justice and equal opportunity continue to be the highest ideals of nationhood, things for which he fought,” he said.
By: Macushla N. Pinder, The Bahama Journal
