Political System in the Bahamas - Sutton

Political Systems
The Bahamas, officially known as The Commonwealth of the Bahamas, has a Parliamentary Democracy and Constitutional Monarchy with a Prime Minister serving as the Head of Government. Their form of government resembles that of the United Kingdom and was adopted upon their independence in 1973. The Bicameral Parliament is composed of the House and the Senate (whose powers are limited compared to that of the House). The British Monarch is the formal Head of State but is represented by a Governor-General who is in charge of appointing the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is required to be a member of the House of Assembly. Adult suffrage elects members of the House while the Governer elects the members of the Senate. All Parliament members serve five-year terms unless issues occur or they call for an early election. While the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the United Kingdom has overall judicial power over each island, the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court share some power. All citizens 18 years of age and older can vote.
After Hurricane Dorian destroyed Marsh Harbour, citizens complained that the government was nowhere to be seen. Typically, the government is quick to appear and provide support after a disaster. Citizens began to scold their government and Prime Minister, becoming unpatient with their late response. This is only one example of many issues occurring in this country. A recent poll has revealed that 80% of Bahamians believe government corruption has become a significant problem. The majority of people living in the Carribean agree that corruption is negatively impacting their communities. Corruption deprives a citizen of rights, education, and health while also weakening economic growth. Citizens are being forced to provide sexual favors in exchange for public services - a practice known as sextortion. Economic exploitation is on the high for many migrant workers in agriculture and domestic service industries. Despite corruption, the government has made a strong effort to combat trafficking and comply with international standards to solve this problem. However, the country continues to struggle as homicide and violence rates are soaring and there is no agency to handle government corruption.
Having only been around since 1973, the number of scandals already occurring makes me believe that the government is not doing too well. On the contrary, it was interesting to see that most Bahamians believe their future is bright. They must think that the government is going to work its way out of corruption. Eye Witness News states the truth: “Greater political and electoral integrity is needed, especially in environments where vote-buying, threats of retaliation and the spread of fake news are common occurrences around elections.” The citizens of the Bahamas must be able to trust their government and the government must be reliable and protect their people. After all, I don't think the government structure itself is the issue, but rather the choices made by the people in power.
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