Prime Minister Philip Davis’s Remarks at the Soft Opening of the John V. Saunders Post Office

Ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon. 

It is a privilege to join you for the soft opening and renaming of the Shirley Street Post Office in honour of Mr. John V. Saunders, a man whose life and work helped shape the institution we celebrate today. 

For generations, the post office has been more than a place where letters are sorted and stamps are sold. 

It has been a lifeline for connecting families and loved ones across the islands, carrying news of hope from shore to shore. 

There was a time in our nation’s history when mail arrived by boat, sometimes only once a month. Then it became twice a month. And over time, through commitment and a vision for growth, a national network emerged, ensuring that every island, every settlement, and every Bahamian could be reached. 

That kind of progress does not happen by accident. It was built by people who believed in the quiet and powerful work of service.

John Saunders was one of those people. 

He gave forty years of his life in service to this institution.

That is, by any measure, a career well spent in one of the most essential institutions in our nation.

And make no mistake about it, after all these years, the post office is still a pillar of our communities. 

It serves an essential function for thousands and thousands of Bahamians. 

Even in this digital age, formal correspondence by mail still plays an important role. As much as technology has evolved, you cannot email someone a package or text them a box. Technology hasn’t gone quite that far yet.

And until it does, our Post Office remains the most accessible means of receiving and sending such packages and correspondence.

The same goes for the Post Office Savings Bank, which many Bahamians use every day.

Given the vital role our post office plays in our nation, it is a bit confusing to hear people, especially those vying for leadership, speak ignorantly about this institution.

There are some who are so disconnected and privileged that they don’t realize people still use the post office. They probably pay for the expensive courier services and live on an island with regular access to commercial banks, so they can’t relate to the struggle.

There are those who look at the post office and see something to be shut down. They see the Post Office Savings Bank as a relic to be done away with. That is a very dangerous oversight for any would-be leader to be guilty of.

When I look at our Post Office, I see something different. I see commitment. I see reliability and enormous untapped potential.

I see potential worth building, worth protecting, and worth fighting for.

And that is why I must speak up in defence of this institution today.

The post office is not simply a building where letters are sorted and stamps are sold. It is a part of our national infrastructure. 

It is the connective tissue of our archipelago that reaches every island, every settlement, and every community across our Commonwealth when no other service does.

And the Post Office Savings Bank is certainly not a relic. 

More than 35,000 Bahamians hold accounts there. New accounts continue to open across the country, including in the Family Islands. There are pensioners, working families, fishermen, farmers, and small business owners who built their financial security through this institution because it was there, serving our people when other options were not. 

Those who speak loosely about dismantling this service should consider the human impact of what they are proposing.

Their plans were made in ignorance of the true value of our post office.

But we know better. 

That is why we are investing and expanding the services on offer.

This administration raised the deposit cap from six thousand dollars to ten thousand. 

We committed to sustaining a five percent interest rate at a time when the commercial banks are offering less than one percent: the same commercial banks that left our islands hanging with no options for banking.

These banks are private institutions. They operate on the basis of profit. 

But the well-being of our people should never be subjected to the whims of a corporation’s shareholders.

I believe the government has a mandate to serve people on every island in our archipelago, not on the basis of profit, but on the basis of need.

And if the banks want to return, they are always welcome to serve alongside the government.

How could you tell “mum” who been saving her pension in the Post Office Savings Bank that you are getting rid of a bank she’s used for countless years?

Try telling our fishermen who return from a hard day’s work to deposit their money in the Post Office Savings Bank that you are putting an end to the 5% interest they’ve been getting on their money, so a commercial bank can come in and offer far less.

The only thing that getting rid of the Post Office Savings Bank would accomplish is the destabilisation of our Family Island communities, the unemployment of ninety-eight workers serving our Family Islands, and the stranding of thousands of unbanked Bahamians with nowhere to go.

So, closure is never an option, which is why we are committed to expanding, modernising, and strengthening the post office to continue to meet the needs of Bahamians on every island.

That is how we will honour the legacy of a lifelong public servant like John Saunders, a man who understood the importance of our Post Office.

Over four decades, he worked his way up to the position of Postmaster General, guiding this institution through years of change. 

His influence extended across the region and his legacy runs through every community this post office has ever reached.

As we name this building in his honour, we are also setting a standard for everyone who will walk through these doors to work, and to everyone who walks through them to be served: a standard of excellence set by John Saunders.  

I extend sincere thanks to the Ministry of Energy and Transport for making today happen and to the staff of the Post Office, past and present, who have served with distinction, in good conditions and difficult ones, with very little fanfare and tremendous dedication.

And to John Saunders, I say: thank you. Your decades of service have set a standard that our people must rise to meet. Over four decades, you demonstrated what it looks like to answer the call to serve and commit to that duty over the course of a career. We are grateful for your service.

We often tend to think of nation-building as something that happens in the Cabinet or in Parliament. But the true work of nation-building happens day by day, through the choices made by public servants who show up and do the work. 

John Saunders did that work for forty years.

Today, we honour him as we re-open a building that will continue serving the Bahamian people for years to come.

Thank you, and may God continue to bless the Commonwealth of the Bahamas.