Swearing-In Ceremony for Newly Appointed Cabinet Ministers.

and gentlemen please join me now as we welcome into the andrews ballroom cabinet ministers elect please give a round of applause to the candidate to the cabinet elect accompanied by their spouses in some instances [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] you may be seated so so distinguished guests ladies and gentlemen please welcome the honorable i chester cooper member of parliament for exuma the zuma keys on ragged island and minister of tourism investments under aviation and the deputy prime minister of the commonwealth of the bahamas accompanied by his wife mr cecile cooper [Applause] thank you please be seated foreign to a very special guest please welcome the honorable phillip edward davis qc member of parliament for cat island rumpke and san salvador constituency prime minister of the commonwealth of the bahamas accompanied by his wife first lady anne-marie davis please welcome prime minister and mrs davis [Music] [Applause] so you may be seated ladies and gentlemen please welcome their excellencies the most honorable sir cornelius alvin smith order of the nation knight grand cross of the most distinguished order of st george the governor general of the commonwealth of the bahamas and lady clara smith [Music] [Music] wow [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] kindly remained standing for the rendition of the national anthem of the commonwealth of the bahamas by the royal bahamas police force band following the national anthem the reverend dr william thompson senior pastor at faith united baptist church nassau new providence will offer prayers ladies and gentlemen the national anthem of the commonwealth of the bahamas [Music] so [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] may we pray god our father you have made us and made this day of celebration that we have come together as a people to say thank you for what you have done i present to you father god members of the recovery cabinet that you may breathe afresh on them with your wisdom your knowledge your understanding cover them with grace that they may know that you are god in charge of everything and as long as they will keep their hand in your hand they would lead this people around we pray father god over our dear prime minister and his family that you would bless him and envision him to lead this country in this season we cover the government we cover every aspect of government in this country now god bless the proceedings today that we who be a part of them will be able to rejoice in the years to come to know that we were here during this great time of celebration we present to you now these cabinet ministers elect to be sworn in today in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit amen thank you very much reverend dr thompson you may be seated excellencies i am pleased to extend warm welcome to our distinguished guests on your behalf today we are gathered here being the third of such presentation swearing-in exercises since the general elections of this they passed your excellency following the last general elections you wrote to and invited the honorable prime minister to form a cabinet this afternoon's ceremony is held pursuant to article 73 ii with states subject to the provisions of paragraph three of the article the ministers other than the prime minister shall be such persons as the governor general acting in accordance with the advice of the prime minister shall appoint from among senators and the members of the house of assembly excellency in this regard and acting on the instructions from the secretary to the cabinet the prime minister advised you sir to appoint nine ministers today two of whom are honorable senators and seven persons elected from the honorable house of assembly excellencies on your behalf i am pleased to thank the number of distinguished guests who accepted your kind invitation among our distinguished guests we are pleased to welcome sir brian marie the chief justice of the commonwealth of the bahamas we welcome you sir we're also pleased to have with us today sir michael who heads the court of appeal welcome sir we're delighted to have with us today members of the religious denominations heads of the various diplomatic corps and international corps secretary to the cabinet commissioner of police commodore of the royal bahamas defense force honorable members of parliament elect permanent secretaries government officials including directors and heads of department executives of the progressive liberal party members of the media and i am pleased to recognize those persons viewing this program live via our national television station and our social media platforms family friends supporters one and all ladies and gentlemen welcome we're delighted to have you here and give yourselves a good round of applause we certainly hope you enjoy this afternoon's proceedings should it pleases your excellency i am pleased and honored to proceed with the swearing-in of honorable ministers at this time distinguished guests ladies and gentlemen it is my pleasure to invite senator the honorable leo ryan pinder to step forward and to take the oath as attorney general and minister of legal affairs your excellency we invite you to proceed to the table all right queen elizabeth ii for heirs and successors according to law all right leo ryan minder being appointed minister you swear to the best of my judgment at all times when so required freely give my counsel and advice to the governor general or any other person for the time being lawfully performing the functions of that office the good management and the public affairs of the bahamas i'd be furthest aware that i will not on any account at any time whatsoever advice opinion or vote of any particular minister or parliamentary secretary that i will not accept the authority directly or indirectly reveal the business or proceedings of the cabinet or the nature or contents of any documents communicated to me as a minister or any matter coming to my knowledge in my capacity as such that in all things i will be a true and faithful minister with this [Applause] presenting you with this instrument thank you ladies and gentlemen please give another round of applause to our new attorney general and minister of legal affairs senator the honorable leo ryan pinder [Applause] it is my pleasure to invite to the podium at this time to the desk the honourable frederick ordly mitchell minister of foreign affairs and minister for the public service hi uh frederick mitchell who swear that i will be faithful and bear true allegiance to your majesty queen elizabeth iii successes according to law hi lovely mitchell being appointed minister to be swear that i will the best of my judgment at all times and so required to freely give my counsel advice to the governor general or any other person by being lawfully performing the functions of that office good management of the capital such extensions may be required in a good manner affairs directly or indirectly reveal the business or proceedings of the capitol while the nature or contents of any documents are communicated to me as minister or any matter coming to my knowledge in my capacity such that in all things right okay yes foreign so uh [Applause] thank you very much excellency thank you very much minister it is my pleasure to invite the honorable glennis hannah martin and his excellency to administer the oath [Applause] honourable glennis hannah martin is being sworn in as minister of education technical and vocational training [Applause] i glennis margaret elaine hannah martin being appointed minister do swell that i will to the best of my judgment at all times when so required freely give my counsel and advice to the governor general or any other person for the time being lawfully performing the functions of that office for the good management of the public affairs of the bahamas and i do further swear that i will not on any account at any time whatsoever disclose the council advice opinion or vote of any particular minister or parliamentary secretary and that i will not except with the authority of the cabinet and to such extent as may be required for the good management of the affairs of the bahamas directly or indirectly reveal the business or proceedings of the cabinet or the nature or contents of any documents communicated to me as minister or any matter coming to my knowledge in my capacity as such and that in all things i will be a true and faithful minister so help me god [Applause] [Music] this is foreign so sincerest congratulations to your minister okay so so um [Applause] police i [Applause] all right nice [Applause] once again minister of education and technical and vocational training the honorable glennis margaret elaine hannah martin [Applause] the honorable alfred michael says qc minister of works and utilities [Applause] so i offered michael sears being appointed minister do swear that i will to the best of my judgment at all times been so required freely give my counsel and advice to the governor general or any other person for the time being lawfully performing the functions of that office for the good management of the public affairs of the bahamas and i do further swear that i will not on any account at any time whatsoever disclose the council advice opinion or vote of any particular minister or parliamentary secretary and that i will not accept with the authority of the cabinet and to such extent as may be required for the good management of the affairs of the bahamas directly or in directly reveal the business or proceedings of the cabinet or the nature or contents of any documents communicated to me as minister or any matter coming to my knowledge in my capacity as such and that in all things i will be a true and faithful minister so help me god so so congratulations so so so i invite you to give the minister of works and utilities the honorable alfred michael says another round of applause thank you the minister of health and wellness is the honorable michael r davo minister davod thank you i michael ronaldo do swear that i will be faithful to be a true allegiance to a majesty the queen elizabeth ii her heirs and successes according to law so help me god i michael ronaldo being appointed minister do swear that i will to the best of my judgment at all times when so required freely give my counsel and advice to the governor general or any other person for the time being lawfully performing the function of that office for the good management the public affairs of the bahamas and i do further swear that i will not on any account at any time whatsoever disclose the council advice opinion or vote of any particular minister or parliamentary secretary and that i will not accept for the good management of the affairs of the bahamas directly or indirectly reveal the business or proceedings of the cabinet or the nature or contents of any document communicated to me as minister or any matter coming to my knowledge in any capacity as such and that i in all things i will be true and a faithful minister so help me god [Applause] so time isn't so much so so we invite minister sisters to come up are they nearby the sisters ministers sister minister davo sisters ah okay wonderful please join minister for the photo shoot please [Applause] may i take this opportunity to once again remind you to please place your phones your mobile devices in the off position or mute thank you very much so your excellency i am pleased to invite senator the honorable michael bryan alketes minister halkidis is being appointed as minister of economic affairs and leader of government business in the senate minister halkidis i michael brian halkidis do swear that i will be faithful and bear true allegiance to her majesty queen elizabeth queen elizabeth ii her heirs and successes according to law so help me god i michael brian halpitas being appointed minister to swear that i will to the best of my judgment at all times when so required freely give my counsel and advice to the governor general or any other person for the time being lawfully performing the functions of that office for the good management of the public affairs of the bahamas and i do further swear that i will not on any account at any time whatsoever disclose the council advice opinion or vote of any particular minister or parliamentary secretary secretary and that i will not accept with the authority of the cabinet under such extent as maybe as may be required for the good management of the affairs of the bahamas directly or indirectly reveal the business or proceedings of the cabinet or the nature or contents of any documents communicated to me as minister or any matter coming to my knowledge in my capacity as such and that in all things i will be a true and faithful minister so help me god [Applause] okay so congratulations to success so yes you can give minister hakidos another round of applause [Applause] i am pleased to advise that the minister of agriculture marine resources and family island affairs the honorable clay glenford sweden [Applause] i today grantford sweden being appointed minister do swear that i will do the best of my judgment at all times was so required freely give my counsel and advice to the governor general or any other person for the time being lawfully performing the functions of that office for the good management of the public affairs of the bahamas and i do further swear that i will not on any account at any time whatsoever disclose the council advice opinion or vote of any particular minister or parliamentary secretary and that i will not accept with the authority of the cabinet and to such extent as may be required the good management of the affairs of the bahamas directly or indirectly reveal the business or proceedings of the cabinet or the nature of contents of any documents communicated to me as minister or any matter coming to my knowledge my capacity as such and that in all things i will be a true and faithful minister so help me god [Applause] so um so so to human sincerest congratulations so now okay [Applause] [Applause] thank you very much excellency thank you minister our eighth minister for today is the minister of national security the honorable wayne r monroe qc [Applause] i wayne roosevelt monroe do swear that i will faithfully and bear true allegiance to her majesty queen elizabeth ii her heirs and successors according to law so help me god i wayne roosevelt monroe being appointed minister do swear that i will to the best of my judgment at all times when so required freely give my counsel and advice to the governor general or any other person for the time being lawfully performing the functions of that office for the good management of the public affairs of the bahamas and i do further swear that i will not on any account at any time whatsoever disclose the council advice opinion or vote of any particular minister or parliamentary secretary and that i will not accept with the authority of the cabinet until the extent as may be required for the good management of the affairs of the bahamas directly or indirectly reveal the business or proceedings of the cabinet or the nature or contents of any documents communicated to me as minister or any matter coming to my attend to my knowledge in my capacity as such and that in all things i will be a true and faithful minister so help me god [Applause] [Applause] okay so oh so congratulations sure so much so [Applause] your excellency i am pleased to invite the honorable jomo shaka kambal to step forward minister of state for legal affairs minister campbell do swear that i will be faithful and bear true allegiance to our majesty queen elizabeth ii our heirs and successors according to the law so help me god i jumbo campbell being appointed minister to swear that i will do to the best of my judgment at all times when so required freely give my counsel an advice to the governor general or any other person for the time being lawfully performing the functions of that office for the good management of the public affairs of the bahamas and i do further smell that i will not on any account at any time whatsoever disclose the council advice opinion or vote of any particular minister or parliamentary secretary and that i will not accept with the authority of the cabinet and to such extent as may be required for the good management of the affairs of the bahamas directly or indirectly we feel reveal the business or proceedings of the cabinet or the nature or contents of any documents communicated to me as minister by any model coming to my knowledge in my capacity as such and that in all things i will be a true and faithful minister so help me god [Applause] [Applause] so so so serious congratulations and best wishes to your minister so so so so thank you on such occasions it is always a pleasure to be entertained by the royal bahamas police force band and it is my pleasure now to invite the band to provide us with an item [Music] um oh [Music] [Music] foreign [Music] um [Music] [Music] oh [Music] there i go [Music] me [Music] oh [Music] is [Applause] still [Music] okay [Music] [Music] there's a lot of energy from the band and i'm sure you can do a little better than that let's give the find a round of applause [Applause] distinguished guests ladies and gentlemen it is my singular honor to invite the honorable prime minister to bring remarks at this time please give a thunderous round of applause to the honorable phillip edward davis qc prime minister of the commonwealth of the bahamas please be seated your excellency the governor general and mrs smith um first lady the the president of the quarter of people understand why good to see you um mr michael deputy prime minister i tested cooper and mrs cooper my cabinet colleagues recently sworn their wives and families ladies and gentlemen good afternoon you know throughout my tenure both inside and outside of government i have highlighted my belief that producing and enduring progress for our country relies on partnership partnership of the bahamian people in their communities partnership between the people and their government and partnership within government across ministries we take office facing not one enormous crisis but several the severity of the fiscal crisis cannot be overstated and our economic crisis is intertwined with our health crisis these are not distant problems seen only on the evening news these are problems that are present in the daily lives of bahamian families across the country many thousands of bohemians are out of work people can't pay their bills we are losing too many loved ones to the virus bahamian school children are falling behind too many young people can't see a future here i want to be clear we're not here to tinker at the edges of these problems we had to meet them head-on the deputy prime minister and i share a bias in favor of both innovation and action with this in mind i'm honored to introduce you to the first set of ministers who have been sworn in today they are the initial members of a cabinet which will reflect the breadth and depth of the competencies and characteristics of our team experience combined with innovation expertise combined with a willingness to see things are new integrity and a strong sense of purpose they're receiving these appointments because of their determination to get things done our foreign affairs our country's role in international affairs has not been especially clear or prominent in recent times yet during a global pandemic and a time of economic upheaval that transcends borders international cooperation has never been so important we will work with the international partners to increase our supply of covert 19 vaccines and treatments we'll work with international investors to increase faith in our government and economy and we will build international partnerships to fight very urgent climate change battles i've asked and he's been sworn in general fred mitchell to deploy his experience and vast network of international contacts as the minister of foreign affairs we have long recognized that education is the clearest path to success for the bahamian people so the ammo mrs glen assange hannah martin has been appointed to serve as our next minister of education her passionate advocacy for uplifting the bahamian people especially young people is well known no one believes more fiercely in our bahamian children i know she will work all day every day to ensure young bohemians are fully prepared to participate and succeed in our economy and in our national life the ministry of works and utilities combines under one umbrella the various departments and agencies that support the physical infrastructure of the bahamas we are deeply troubled by the fact that agencies such as bpo and the water and sewage corporation have become more associated with the lack of transparency and accountability in procurement and contracting rather than delivering high quality service as minister works the honorable alfred says qc will bring integrity intelligence and efficiency to these critical portfolios [Applause] we take office at a time when our public health system is collapsing under the weight of the covert 19 virus i believe there's no one better to lead us forward than the honourable doctor michael dowell as well as being a distinguished family doctor he is a successful businessman he will focus on saving lives and strengthening our public health capacity in partnership with the medical professionals under the private sector i know he will implement our covert 19 action plan with both urgency and professionalism [Applause] senator the honourable michael halkitus he will bring considerable acumen and aptitude to his new role as minister of economic affairs he will oversee the financial services industry and trade take on the crucial task of improving our country's ease of doing business and direct our country's digitization efforts he will play an important role in helping to stabilize the country's finances in recent months we have highlighted how diversifying our economy can improve the prosperity and security of our country the honourable clay sweden who will serve as minister of agriculture marine resources and family island affairs has intimate first-hand knowledge of his portfolio you know at the age of 23 he was elected to serve in local government in spanish wales the youngest person ever to serve in local government a former fisherman and businessman deputy chairman of bahamas agricultural agricultural and industrial cooperation i think he's ideally positioned to spearhead our administration's agenda in the green and blue economies issues relating to national security have in recent times tended to be viewed in the narrow context of policing but national security should encompass a broader set of concerns will we will secure we will secure our borders we will maintain civil order law and order are essential governmental functions but we are also determined to ensure that the rights of the bahamian people are respected too often in recent years bohemians had reason to believe that the laws were being unfairly and unevenly enforced a democracy cannot be strong when citizens with fewer advantages believe they are living under a different set of rules than the more privileged as minister of national security noted human rights lawyer and formidable legal expert deanna wayne monroe qc [Applause] will bring balance and fairness to the way that he the way the state interacts with the people at a time when we need to negotiate and renegotiate a variety of complex and multifaceted legal commercial and financial obligations i've invited and he has accepted and he's now been sworn in the senator the honourable leo ryan pinder to act as our nation's attorney general as a renowned tax attorney and as the former minister of financial services he brings valuable expertise to the role of the government's chief legal adviser in particular i'll be asking him to focus on ensuring that our proposals to encourage and support bahamian entrepreneurs business people and investors are translated into effective legislation and to review existing legislation to understand the impact on the business community and make amendments as necessary to support kick-starting our economy and job creation to support the work of the attorney general i've appointed the honourable jomo shaka campbell to serve as minister of state for legal affairs as a litigator with enormous experience in both criminal and civil matters he will be responsible for much of the ordinary business of that office i am confident that these first appointed members of our cabinet team are ready to deliver on the promise of a new day for our bahamas a lot of people are suffering and there is a lot of work to do we're not going to ease and ease into things slowly we're going to move with the urgency that this moment requires may god continue to shine his blessings upon us all and may god continue to bless the commonwealth of the bahamas [Applause] thank you you may be seated ladies and gentlemen his excellency the governor general would have congratulated each of the ministers individually but he wishes to make a few remarks collectively your excellency please receive the governor general of the commonwealth of the bahamas sarcasm [Applause] honorable prime minister ministers of the government distinguished ladies and gentlemen we've just witnessed and participated in that time honored tradition of deepening our democracy arriving at this stage we've had great challenges but i want to first of all collectively on behalf of her majesty queen elizabeth ii and on behalf of the bahamian people offer us in serious congratulations to the ministers who have just been appointed i also want to take this opportunity to say to ministers that there are four guide books that i will recommend the holy bible [Applause] there is a code of conduct by ministers there is a manual for cabinet procedure and lastly the constitution i really believe that if every minister would follow the procedures laid down in those four books we will straightly be guaranteed success i also wish to encourage bahamians everywhere to recognize that the time has come for us to be united [Applause] the differences in politics are to be set aside until the next five years and instead of worrying about tomorrow let us unite ourselves and let us together make a better bahamas i wish god speed to the commonwealth of the bahamas and i wish you all the success that the bahamas needs thank you very much [Applause] we're winding down we're just about complete we should like to ask all of the cabinet ministers if you can just stand to the front we would like to invite the prime minister to please take a photo with all of the cabinet ministers only ban can you play something for me please pan can you play a musical for me please while we do that thank you not yet [Music] [Applause] [Music] down on the ground sorry [Music] [Music] so [Music] foreign [Music] [Music] [Music] so let's see if i can we're going guys [Music] so [Music] so so thank you thank you [Music] thank you very very much thank you very very much [Music] may i take this opportunity to invite you to partake in light refreshments following this ceremony it has been a wonderful and a most pleasant afternoon please let's give our governor general our prime minister the spouses and the new ministers a thunderous round of applause a wonderful afternoon it is my pleasure to invite the reverend dr william thompson to offer closing prayers at this time following prayer we ask that you remain in your places for the rendition of the national anthem of the commonwealth of the bahamas continue to remain in your places for the departure of their excellencies the governor general and lady clara smith followed by the prime minister and lady davis the deputy prime minister and mr cecile and the other cabinet ministers thank you so very much for your participation thank you for your cooperation ladies and gentlemen are closing prayer please stand with sincere hearts we pray that your god would bless these persons who have been elevated to position of cabinet ministers grant them wisdom vision and understanding as they serve this great country we pray o merciful father that you will grant them the grace of peace that they behave a foundation thus entered in your word become a god cause then that this pandemic covert 19 has affected our communities in a devastating way but we are aware oh god that you have brought us out of dire situations before and we are confident you will do it again father god we submit these presidents and indeed this country our prime minister and his team to you now for your keeping for your blessing for your guidance in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit amen [Music] so [Music] please remain in your you

Channel: The Office of the Prime Minister The Bahamas

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Length: 105min 20sec (6320 seconds)

Published: Mon Sep 20 2021