Prime Minister Phillip Davis has described his Social Companies and City Renewal Minister, Obediah Hercules Wilchcombe, as “a real patriot, a visionary chief, and a cherished buddy” following his loss of life on the Rand Memorial Hospital in Grand Bahama as we speak.
He mentioned ‘Obie’, as he was popularly identified, had for the previous two years “served with nice distinction as Member of Parliament for West Grand Bahama and Bimini and Minister of Social Companies and City Renewal”. He was lately appointed to tackle the extra portfolio of Data and Broadcasting.
“Obie’s premature passing may be very surprising and really unhappy. Despite the fact that he has achieved a lot in his a few years of public service, he nonetheless had a lot extra to supply,” Davis mentioned of his senior minister, who was born on November 4, 1958. The reason for loss of life has not been disclosed.
In 1975, Wilchcombe began his profession as a journalist with the Broadcasting Company of The Bahamas and Davis mentioned “we keep in mind properly his many inventions, resembling being the primary to report a narrative, not from behind a desk, however strolling and speaking to the digicam.”
“This private contact mirrored the simple, intimate type with which he addressed everybody. Over 25 years, he rose by way of the ranks, holding numerous positions, together with Deputy Director of Information, Information Director, and Assistant Normal Supervisor,” he mentioned.
Davis mentioned he was “resolute and brave in his reporting and his defence of the Fourth Property”.
“He’s maybe the one journalist within the nation to have been despatched to jail for refusing to disclose his sources, an episode that continued to traumatize him a few years later,” he mentioned.
Wilchcombe had refused to disclose from whom he obtained a letter that was handed to him from a condemned inmate who, on the identical night that the letter was obtained, dedicated suicide.
Davis mentioned that though he formally started his political profession in 1994, his political roots ran a lot deeper,” noting that Obie had “lower his enamel writing speeches for the Father of the Nation, Sir Lynden Pindling”.
He mentioned, politically, Obie held many senior workplaces, each inside the ruling Progressive Liberal Social gathering (PLP) and inside the authorities.
“He’ll seemingly be remembered most for his two stints as Minister of Tourism, the place his visionary initiatives, such because the introduction of sports activities, non secular, and African-American tourism considerably enhanced the tourism product of The Bahamas,” he mentioned.
“His contribution to the event of the movie business was exemplary, and the success of this coverage was evident when two of the highest three movies of 2006 had been shot in our lovely nation.”
“He was humorous and considerate, with an incredible sense of our place in historical past. His articulate discourse and considerate insights had been profound and sometimes shocked the conscience of the Progressive Liberal Social gathering, resulting in significant deliberations and impactful resolutions.”
“His favorite phrase, ‘One Love’, exemplified his worldview, symbolising unity, compassion, and a deep love for humanity,” Davis mentioned.
Wilchcombe is a former president of the Grand Bahama Basketball Affiliation and the Commonwealth American Soccer League (CAFL).
