COMMENTARY: BY OSWALD T. BROWN
WASHINGTON, D.C., March 28, 2021 – I contemplated long and hard before reaching the decision to put my pride in storage and write this commentary, but I suspect that the very serious financial problems I am experiencing and recent developments resulting from back rent that I owe my landlord are already fodder for the gossip mill in The Bahamas.
During the four-plus years that I was Press, Cultural Affairs and Information Manager at the Embassy of The Bahamas here in D.C., my rent was paid by the Embassy, but after the change of government in The Bahamas in May of 2017, my diplomatic status was not renewed. As a naturalized American citizen since 1982 — when I previously lived in D.C. for 21 years — rather than return to The Bahamas I established THE BROWN AGENCY LLC, a public relations company, and my online publication BAHAMAS CHRONICLE, which has a huge following in The Bahamas, especially in Grand Bahama, as well as among Bahamians and nationals of other CARICOM-member countries in the diaspora across the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
When my diplomatic tenure at the Embassy ended, I submitted a proposal to the Free National Movement Government (FNM) to continue doing what I did at the Embassy on a contractual basis through my PR company. I personally presented that proposal, which was seeking a remuneration of $4,000 a month, to Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis when I was in Nassau in November of 2017 promoting my novel WOES OF LIFE. After I did not get a response for several months, I reduced the monthly stipend I seeking to $2,000 a month, and I was subsequently told by Ambassador Sidney Collie that it had been approved.
This was confirmed by Attorney General Carl Bethel, who said the approved proposal had been forwarded to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. That was more than two years ago. Given the gravity of my current situation, I made a personal appeal in a letter last week to Minister of Foreign Affairs Darren A. Henfield to look into the matter for me, but as was the case with previous correspondence, I have not yet received a response.
Surely, with the new administration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris having restored good governance to one of the world’s most powerful countries, it makes good diplomatic sense that as one of the United States’ closest neighbours, the government of The Bahamas should want to demonstrate among the political elite in Washington, D.C., that although we are a country small in size, we have a stable government that has historically maintained close relations with the United States.
Given my experience as a veteran journalist, I am again appealing to Foreign Affairs Minister Henfield to implement the terms of the proposal I submitted. We currently have a very effective and capable Ambassador in His Excellency Sidney Collie, and I have reason to believe that he would welcome the contributions I can make diplomatically.
Meanwhile, because of the accumulated back rent that I owe, my landlord filed a lawsuit in D.C. Superior Court Landlord/Tenant Court and a virtual hearing of my case was held on Wednesday, March 17. The Court ruled in favour of my landlord, but granted a stay of its judgment until June 1, 2021, which means that no eviction action can be taken until after this date.
I have launched a vigorous campaign among the candidates who have been ratified to run in the upcoming general election to assist in promoting their campaigns and, hopefully, I shall be able to “put my financial house in order” before June 1. At the very least, I hope I can pay my monthly rent on time as well as make some sort of payment on my back rent to demonstrate that an effort is being made to reduce the amount of back rent owed.
The truth of the matter is that I would have been evicted before the moratorium placed on evictions by the D.C. Government because of the COVID-19 pandemic if it were not for the consistent financial support I have received over the past two years from Sir Franklyn Wilson; R.H. Culmer, CEO of Jarol Investments Ltd. and CHANCES GAMES in Freeport; and the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA), thanks to my “sister” Sarah St. George.
I have also received generous financial support from Philip “Brave” Davis, leader of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP); Anthony Ferguson, President of Colina Financial Advisors (CFAL); Craig Flowers, owner of FML Webshops; and Felix Stubbs, who has been a very close and dear friend from he was General Manger of IBM Bahamas, the principal sponsor of the Bahamas National Spelling Bee when I introduced the Scripps National Spelling Bee to The Bahamas in 1998 while I was editor of The Nassau Guardian.
My efforts to at least pay my monthly rent on time was dealt a “big blow” last December when the Ministry of Tourism decided to discontinue the year-long contractual agreement I had to assist in promoting The Bahamas for a fee of $1,000 a month. I still don’t understand why the powers-that-be in Ministry of Tourism reached that decision, given the fact that I thought I was doing an excellent job promoting The Bahamas as one of the world’s leading tourist destinations.
Meanwhile, I have continued to cover Embassy-related events as well as promote The Bahamas as a premier tourist destination without monetary compensation because I love the country of my birth with the passion of a true Androsian.
Clearly, choosing to live at 1000 M Street, S.W. when I moved back to Washington, D.C., from The Bahamas to become Press, Cultural Affairs and Information Manager at the Embassy in 2013 was by design because I am a die-hard Washington Nationals baseball fan. I live just six blocks from Washington Nationals Stadium, and before the COVID-19 pandemic, I frequently attended Nationals games, especially during our World Series Championship year in 2019.
Some people have suggested that I should I find a cheaper place to stay, but finding a cheaper place to stay in D.C. in a “safe” neighbourhood is extremely difficult; besides, my monthly rent of $2,853 includes all utilities. Even more important to me is the fact that my apartment complex is only a half-block from the Safeway Supermarket where I do my grocery shopping and within walking distance of a CVS pharmacy, where I go to get my monthly prescribed medications filled. What makes this all the more important is that I have a disability because of two hip replacement operations (in 2012 and 2013) and I use a stand-up walker to do my shopping. What I plan to do, however, is apply to the management of my apartment complex to move to a cheaper one-bedroom apartment, rather than remain in the corner two-bedroom apartment I now occupy.
Of course, I have appealed for assistance from a number of friends and acquaintances that I consider to be financially in the position to assist, but by their lack of response, apparently they are not. So, as I noted in the opening paragraph of this commentary, I have placed my pride in storage, and I am now making a public appeal for assistance. My Royal Bank of Canada account number is: 05285-735-231-3.
