By OSWALD T. BROWN
WASHINGTON, D.C., December 26, 2018 — Congresswoman Maxine Waters, incoming Chairperson of the U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee, and her husband Sidney Williams, former U.S. Ambassador to The Bahamas, were among the thousands of spectators who watched the annual Boxing Day Junkanoo Parade in downtown Nassau on Wednesday morning, December 26.
Congresswoman Waters and Mr. Williams are spending the Christmas holidays in Nassau as house guests of Bahamian businessman Sir Franklyn Wilson and his wife, former Bahamas Senate President Lady Sharon Wilson, with whom they have been very close friends since Mr. Williams’ tenure as U.S. Ambassador to The Bahamas from 1994 to 1998 during the administration of President Bill Clinton.
Ambassador Williams was an extremely popular U.S. envoy during his four years in that position in The Bahamas and he and Congresswoman Waters forged close friendships with a cross-section of Bahamians during that period. Consequently, they frequently visited The Bahamas after Ambassador Williams’ diplomatic appointment ended and were often house guests of Sir Franklyn, who grew up in the impoverished Over-the-Hill area of New Providence, where Nassau is located, and is today one the richest individuals in the country.
A chartered accountant by profession, Sir Franklyn graduated with an Honors Degree in Commerce in 1968 from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and today he chairman of Sunshine Holdings Limited (SHL); Focol Holdings Ltd., a company listed on the Bahamas International Stock Exchange (BISX); Arawak Homes Ltd., a real estate development company that has developed more “affordable houses” than any other company in the history of The Bahamas; Sunshine Insurance (Agents & Brokers); Royal Star Assurance Ltd., one of the largest general insurers in The Bahamas and The Cayman Islands and with the highest AM Best rating of any general insurer in The Bahamas; Sunshine Finance Ltd.; and Jack’s Bay Developers Ltd., a substantial land developer at Eleuthera, Bahamas.
An indication of the close friendship shared by Congresswoman Waters and her husband Sidney with Sir Franklyn and Lady Sharon is that a photo of the Wilsons was prominently displayed in her congressional office when I accompanied former Bahamas Ambassador to the United States Dr. Eugene Newry on a courtesy call to her office in 2015 in my capacity as the then Press, Cultural Affairs and information Manager at the Bahamas Embassy in D.C. for four-plus years.
Congresswoman Waters, a Democrat who represents California’s 43rd Congressional District, was recently named by the Democratic Caucus to serve as the first woman and the first African American chair of the House Financial Services Committee beginning January 3, 2019.
In a recent interview with Stacy M. Brown, NNPA Newswire Correspondent, Congresswoman Waters said she is “ honored to have been selected by my colleagues to be the first Chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee in the 116th Congress.”
“Since 1995, I have served as Ranking Member or Chairwoman of every Subcommittee under the Committee’s jurisdiction, taking on important issues on behalf of consumers, investors, and vulnerable populations,” Waters said.
She added, “As Chairwoman, I will continue to prioritize protecting consumers and investors from abusive financial practices, making sure there are strong safeguards in place to prevent another financial crisis, expanding and supporting affordable housing opportunities, tackling the homelessness crisis, encouraging responsible innovation in financial technology, promoting diversity and inclusion in the financial services sector, conducting appropriate oversight and ensuring that hardworking Americans and small businesses have fair access to the financial system and opportunities to thrive.”
