Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace... The Free National Movement (FNM) new Man and Standard bearer in the Fort Charlotte constituency

Source: Vanderpool-Wallace a front-runner in Fort Charlotte constituency bid
By KRYSTEL ROLLE
Guardian Staff Reporter
krystel@nasguard.com

Minister of Tourism and Aviation Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace is reportedly considering running in the Fort Charlotte constituency during the next general election.

The constituency is currently held by former Education Minister and Attorney General Alfred Sears.   Sears has been the MP for that constituency since 2002.

A Source within the Free National Movement has revealed to The Nassau Guardian that Vanderpool-Wallace is one of the front runners in the race to get the party’s nomination.

“He will most likely be chosen as the candidate for that area,” the party source said.

When asked about the possibility of him running in the Fort Charlotte constituency, without outrightly denying it Vanderpool-Wallace told The Nassau Guardian that he has not “made any official declarations.”

He mentioned, however, that his mother lives in the constituency and he often visits the area.

Vanderpool-Wallace has never ran for a constituency seat. Before moving into front line politics he served as director general in the Ministry of Tourism for 12 years. He has had a long and distinguished career in tourism in both the public and private sector of The Bahamas and in the region.

Vanderpool- Wallace also served as secretary general of the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO). He has also served as chairman of the Management Committee of the Bahamas Tourism Training Center, as a director of both the Central Bank of The Bahamas and the Bank of The Bahamas, and as chairman of the Hotel Corporation of The Bahamas.

Vanderpool-Wallace was appointed to the Senate in 2008. He has served as the tourism minister since then, taking over from Neko Grant (now Minister of Public Works).

Sir Michael Barnett, now chief justice was the last FNM candidate in the Fort Charlotte constituency during the 2007 elections. He lost that bid to Sears.

It is unknown whether Sears will be seeking re-election in the area.

11/29/2010

thenassauguardian

Justice Anita Allen is absolutely deserving of her promotion to President of the Court of Appeal

This Time, Every One Got it Right
The Bahama Journal Editorial



Like others who would like to be on the right side of things for as long as this is humanly possible; we say without cant or equivocation that, [and here, however this wonderful thing was done] the fact now remains that, all who had to weigh in on the decision to have Justice Anita Allen elevated to the high post of President of the Court of Appeal, have all gotten this one -- this time around-- quite right.

We too congratulate this fine jurist, who in a life-time of dedicated service has also been wife and mother – and confidante par excellence to some whose path she crossed.

We also thank her husband, the Hon. Algernon S.P.B. Allen for the part that he has clearly played –as husband and as life-long friend to his ‘Nita’.

Yet again, we insist, this good friend of ours is a jolly good fellow; and a nation-builder in his own right; and so today, we wish the Allen and Bethel families as we weigh in with deserved kudos to Senior Justice Allen on her assumption of her new post.

She is absolutely deserving of this promotion.

For her part, Justice Allen indicated that, she was humbled as well as uplifted by the outpouring of congratulations and by the confidence placed in her by the appointment.

And she stated - "I assure the Prime Minister and the people of the Bahamas who seek justice before the Court of Appeal that my colleagues and I will dispense justice in accordance with the highest judicial standards…”

And ever gracious, Justice Allen thanked her predecessor in office by noting that; "I offer my thanks to my predecessor in office, Dame Joan Sawyer who has given long service to the judiciary. I congratulate her for her efforts in cultivating the relationship between the Bahamas and the Privy Council and for enhancing the delivery of justice in the Court of Appeal through computerization and other innovations…"

As the new president also suggested, “Let me state emphatically that the collegiality and necessary interaction between the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal must be restored and nurtured. There must never be an appearance of an adversarial stance between the two courts… they must be complementary to each other while exercising separate jurisdictions."

In addition, she indicated that, "I believe the establishment of a judicial council or judicial studies abroad which has as its function the provision of judicial education is also timely and will improve the quality of justice in our Bahama land.

"We already have a cadre of judges, retired judges, registrars and magistrates who are trained at the Commonwealth Judicial Education Institute in Halifax, Canada, and who can assist in the development and implementation of judicial education programmes."

We second this motion; and yet again –as we learn from recent media reports - “New Court of Appeal President Anita Allen called her appointment to the head of the Bahamas' appellate court the "culmination and exclamation point of a lifelong love and passion for the law."

Here we can also note that, “Judge Allen, formerly a senior justice of the Supreme Court, was sworn in [this Friday past] as the new president of the Bahamas Court of Appeal at a brief ceremony at Government House attended by about 300 guests.

As Judge Allen so rightly stated – “There are defining moments in one's life, and certainly, today is one of them for me. It is the culmination and exclamation point of a lifelong love of and passion for the law…"

How very beautiful; and here we repeat for deserved emphasis, ““There are defining moments in one's life, and certainly, today is one of them for me. It is the culmination and exclamation point of a lifelong love of and passion for the law…"

And indeed, there are those defining moments in every life; where some taken do lead to a life of service; grounded in love for a nation and its people.

By the same token, there are times in life when once embarked on the wrong road – the word everywhere blares out the words, No Exit.

Evidently, the moral in the tale – as illuminated in Justice Allen’s poignant words is that, we should all take time to know better than better how the time one has been allotted will be spent.

Therefore, you must be ever so careful once this choice of path ahead confronts and begs for decision.

Anita Allen took a road that has led to the pinnacle of success in her vocation; and so today, we attest and affirm that, we are in fullest agreement with the nation’s Chief when he says that, Justice Anita Allen was "well qualified and suited to be elevated to the Court of Appeal."

Yes and of course, yes – this fine Bahamian is eminently qualified for the post that is now hers.

November 29th, 2010

The Bahama Journal Editorial

Bahamas Blog International

The history of the Baha Mar project

The history of the 1,000 acre Baha Mar project

BY LARRY SMITH

Nassau, N.P., The Bahamas: AFTER years of manoeuvering over the 1,000-acre Baha Mar project on Cable Beach, the Ingraham government (in its own words) has finally made sweet lemonade from the sour fruit left on the table by the Christie administration.

In April 2005 the newly formed Baha Mar Development Company (owned by a Lyford Cay-based property developer named Sarkis Izmirlian) bought three aging hotels on the Cable Beach strip with a $200 million loan from the Bank of Nova Scotia.

The venerable Nassau Beach was subsequently closed, while the Crystal Palace and Cable Beach Hotels were renovated and re-branded.

That same year Baha Mar concluded an agreement with the Christie administration for a $1 billion-plus development, including several hotels, a casino, retail village, convention centre, expanded golf course, and beach and pool amenities.   Ironically, had the project got underway when it was supposed to, it would have opened in the midst of the Great Recession - with potentially devastating consequences.

Side agreements to the 2005 agreement included deferred taxes that could later be paid in instalments, a $20 million marketing contribution from the Ministry of Tourism, and a commitment to upgrade the airport and other infrastructure.

There was also an agreement to transfer to the developer hundreds of acres of both Crown and government land on Cable Beach worth an estimated $150 million.

However, Baha Mar proved unable to raise $400 million in capital, show evidence of further financing, produce detailed plans, or attract world class partners by the agreement's stated deadline of October 2006.

With an election approaching, the Christie government scrambled to revive the project.   And by early 2007 it had been reorganised as a joint venture with Harrah's Entertainment.   The planned capital spent more than doubled to $2.6 billion (along with more than a quarter billion dollars in government concessions) and promoters were hailing the project as unprecedented in scope and character.

The revised project included a larger casino, double the meeting room space, and 1200 more hotel rooms.

But despite "vigorous negotiations" a deal could not be finalised before May 2007.   And when the electoral dust had settled, Perry Christie was replaced as prime minister by Hubert Ingraham, who immediately launched a review of the project.

Although the new government eventually decided it would abide by the 2005 terms, Baha Mar insisted on further negotiations, according to the prime minister.   And by February 2008 he unveiled a supplemental Heads of Agreement that trimmed some of the concessions given three years earlier.

"There is high expectation by the Bahamian public about the Baha Mar project," Ingraham acknowledged in March, 2008 during passage of a parliamentary resolution to authorise the transfer of public lands to the developer.   "We will do all we can to facilitate it, but I do not want to oversell it."

March 2009 was the new deadline set for the government's conditions to be met so that the deal could be finalised.   But long before that could happen, Harrah's got cold feet due to the economic downturn and pulled out of the partnership, putting the whole project in jeopardy.   Unable to obtain regular financing in the capital markets, Baha Mar turned to the cash-rich Chinese government to save the development.

Earlier this year, China's Export-Import Bank agreed to arrange $2.5 billion in financing, and Beijing's state-owned construction corporation signed on to build the project, which will feature six hotels and add 3,500 hotel rooms and condos to the country's current inventory of 15,000 - more than half of which in Nassau.

Following the prime minister's recent trip to China to firm up the details of the construction arrangements, the House of Assembly unanimously passed a government-sponsored resolution to approve the project, including the unprecedented issuance of up to 8,150 work permits for non-Bahamian construction workers.

After talks with the Chinese, Ingraham was able to announce that he had doubled the share of business for Bahamian subcontractors, with more than construction 4,000 jobs now on offer, and that some $8 million would be spent on training programmes for Bahamian workers.

"We put down some benchmarks, like the $400 million in Bahamian contracts, and said if they accepted our terms we would approve the project by the end of November," the prime minister told me.

"We always disclose the terms of deals - not like the PLP when they signed the 2005 Baha Mar Heads of Agreement with a confidentiality clause, and contemporaneously issued side letters containing larger exemptions from taxes and committing even more public money in violation of the (phase three) deal they had agreed with Kerzner two years earlier."

In fact, this last point has proven to be the only remaining fly in the Cable Beach lemonade.

The prime minister does not accept that the current Baha Mar deal violates the guarantees to Atlantis developer Sol Kerzner that no subsequent investor would get more favourable terms.   Kerzner's complaint focused on the ratio of Bahamian to non-Bahamian construction workers, presumably because Baha Mar will benefit from a cheaper, more skilled, and more productive labour force.

"Among the many requirements that the government imposed (on us) was a strict rule that at least 70 per cent of the total construction labour force would be Bahamian.   However, this new (Baha Mar) deal will constitute a complete reversal of (that) standard," Kerzner said angrily.

The prime minister's response is that "the government will review Kerzner's claim and seek to resolve all issues."

The question of whether the Bahamas can accommodate thousands of new hotel rooms opening at the same time is another issue for Atlantis.

"The reason is that the tourism infrastructure needs to catch up to additional demand.

"Airlift is not going to grow and develop in one day just because another 3,000 luxury rooms are opened.   And I think that is very critical...and not easily done," Managing Director George Markantonis told The Tribune recently.

The Baha Mar project will get underway before the end of this year, with contracts awarded to Bahamian firms.   The China State Construction & Engineering Company should begin work by the spring, and the project could be substantially completed by 2014.

In response to market concerns, Baha Mar has agreed to stagger the opening of the new hotels over a five-month period stretching into 2015, and close the Crystal Palace Hotel during renovations.

According to the Chinese, the project relies on being developed, marketed and operated as a single phase "to induce demand that would not otherwise exist for a series of standalone hotels."

They point out that the Hyatt, Morgan's and Rosewood hotel companies are investing $62 million of their own money into the project, and note that the airport will be redeveloped by the time Baha Mar opens.   Expectations are that the tourism market will have rebounded by then.

Another issue that has received somewhat less attention in the media is the provision of water and power for such a massive project being built and brought on stream at one time.   As we all know, these commodities are relatively scarce on New Providence these days, and there are fears that our infrastructure will be further strained in the short-term.

In fact, BEC will need to generate an additional 25 megawatts of electricity to accommodate the projected power demand for Baha Mar.

And the developer is supposed to cover the cost of a new BEC substation, as well as build a central sewerage system, and a reverse osmosis plant for potable water.

Although there was understandable shock and dismay when Baha Mar's requirement for such a large foreign labour component first became known, public opinion seems to have quickly moved to accept the inevitable - no doubt fully motivated by the recession.

For example, in June of this year the PLP said it would not involve itself in the decision to allow thousands of Chinese workers into the country and seemed determined to let the government twist in the wind.   But only two months later they were singing a different tune, based on the state of the economy.

And from the sense of jubilation conveyed by the government since the Baha Mar deal was approved, it seems that the studied scepticism of the past few years was aimed not only at getting the best deal possible in a difficult environment, but also at drawing the opposition into a full embrace of the project's current framework in order to minimize the obvious political risks.

As one well-connected insider told me: "I'm sure there was some political thinking involved, but for the most part it was to get a doable deal."

What do you think?


Send comments to

larry@tribunemedia.net


Or visit www.bahamapundit.com

November 24, 2010

tribune242

The issue of crime will dominate public discourse until Bahamians vote for a new government in 2012

The use of deadly force and the crime fight
thenassauguardian editorial

The political parties are piecing together crime platforms for the election campaign, which started when Hubert Ingraham announced on November 7 that he would seek a fourth term as prime minister.   We hope they find advisors who can help them.   The issue of crime will dominate public discourse until Bahamians vote for a new government.   The public will need to hear solutions from both major parties, not just idle talk.

We advocate tough responses to those seeking to disturb the peace.

The Bahamas has drifted too far over the past three decades from being a peaceful set of islands to being islands racked with fear and anxiety.   We will set a third homicide record in four years this year.   And with no measures in place yet to stop the trend, it is likely there will be a fourth homicide record in five years come the end of 2011.

A part of the crime fight is improving the quality of police investigations, case management by prosecutors and increasing the number of criminal courts to hear cases.   The government is working on all these measures.

Another equally significant part of the crime fight is the war on the streets.

Hardened hit men, armed robbers, rapists and armed home invaders exist in The Bahamas.   They have destroyed the lives of so many Bahamians over the past few years.   These crimes have led to much fear and anger.   Honest Bahamians want someone, or some group, to push back in their defense.

Walden Mitchell, on Monday night, shot a police officer; several days before he had shot at and assaulted others.   In an operation then led by the police to capture and arrest Walden Mitchell the police, in the course of their duty, shot and killed Walden Mitchell.

He reportedly sent a message to police that he was armed and ready.

In an editorial earlier this week we commended the police for doing their job.   In doing their job Walden Mitchell was shot.    We called on the police to just do their job.   If as a consequence a criminal is shot, so be it.   Some have misunderstood our position in this regard and we apologize for any misunderstanding.   We are not calling for extra-judicial killings.

Section 103 of the Penal Code allows for the use of deadly force by citizens or law enforcement officers in the capture and detention of someone who has committed a felony.

Section 107 of the Penal Code authorizes the use of deadly force for the protection of self and others in connection with the following crimes: Treason, piracy, murder, manslaughter except manslaughter by negligence, robbery, burglary, housebreaking, arson of a dwelling house or vessel, rape, forcible unnatural crime and dangerous or grievous harm.

When criminals are on the streets of our islands armed with weapons with the intent to harm citizens, police have a legal responsibility to intervene.   In this intervention the law allows officers to use deadly force.   No right-thinking citizen should have a problem with this.   It is the law.

When police use legally appropriate force against criminals, society usually applauds their effort.   Complaints usually only arise when police are unnecessarily and inappropriately heavy-handed in carrying out their mandate.   Police must protect citizens against those disturbing the peace.

The proper use of force by police has an effect.   It lets criminals know that there is an immediate consequence to harming citizens.   It lets criminals know that if you are riding around our neighborhoods armed and searching for an innocent mother to rob, or a hardworking father to molest, police are not afraid to apply the law to you.

The breakdown of the criminal justice system has had consequences in The Bahamas.   Many fear the law less than they used to.   The ongoing reforms hopefully will speed up the prosecution process so that once placed in the system, justice can be meted out in a timely fashion.

We just ask that criminals be found and dealt with appropriately according to due legal process.

The Bahamas is at a crossroad. Some do not seem to realize this.   Either we return to being an orderly society or we become like some other societies and countries that have already gone too far.

11/26/2010

thenassauguardian editorial

Straw vendors need to face reality

It's time for straw vendors to face reality
tribune242 editorial


OVER THE years the politicians - especially PLP politicians -- have mollycoddled straw vendors to the point where they think they are extra special -- and possibly, in some cases, above the law.

In fact they are special -- over the years there have been many hard working, outstanding citizens among them who have produced fine sons and daughters who have become leaders in this country.

However, when it comes to obeying the law and respecting society's rules, they are no more special than any other Bahamian. No matter what they might think, no matter what special concessions they believe the government might owe them for their loyalty, they are not above the law.

As a matter of fact all any government owes its citizens is a duty to create an atmosphere in which they can live, work, play and develop their God-given talents to support themselves and their families. The rest is up to them.

Many of the poor among us believe that because they are poor, the laws should be bent for them. "Man, gimme a break, I's jus a poor man!" This poor man exists under the radar, manipulating the law to the end of his existence. But there is the poor man, who recognises that despite his poverty, he has worth and ability. He rises above his poverty, works hard, develops his talents, aims for the stars and is happy if he reaches the tree tops. At least he has dragged himself up from poverty, and achieved on the right side of society.

However, Mrs Esther Thompson, president of the Straw Business Persons Association -- and a reverend, no less -- on Wednesday urged her members to get their act together, because the war over the straw market "is on." The war is on with whom?

Mrs Thompson, and about a dozen of her followers, were angry at the new rules announced by Works Minister Niko Grant at Wednesday's roof-wetting ceremony for the new straw market.

The object of the rules is to take the new market to a higher standard of excellence from which Bahamian crafted straw work can be sold. Mrs. Thompson seems to think that the vendors have ownership in this new market and are going to run it as they see fit.

Well, we have some startling news for her. The market is owned by the Bahamian people -- it has been built with taxpayer's money. Straw vendors have no monopoly over it. If they want to pay a small rent and move into a stall, willing to obey all the rules of the market, they will be welcomed. If not, then as free citizens they can find their own outlet from which those who wish can continue to flaunt the law by selling counterfeit merchandise, and risk facing their own day in court. Mr Grant announced that only Bahamian goods will be sold in the market. Counterfeit goods -- for which nine Bahamians were arrested in New York in September -- will be strictly prohibited. Vendor licenses will be restricted to Bahamian citizens, and rental charges will range from $200 to $250 a month; $46 to $58 a week or $6.50 to $8.20 a day -- very modest rents when one considers the high rates paid by other Bay Street businesses.

The new policies and guidelines, said Mr Grant, are expected to assist "in the more effective and efficient management of the new Bay Street straw market."

Mrs Thompson declared the vendors' intention to defy the rules -- she was encouraged by her supporters' lusty cheers. She then made this alarming statement:

"Whatever comes through customs, that is what straw vendors are going to sell," she declared. It would seem that the time spent by nine of her members in the hands of the law in New York has not taught her a lesson. The arrested Bahamian vendors with their counterfeit goods, who could have spent years in a federal prison in the US, got off lightly -- only one of them had to make restitution for her illegal purchases. The others are under various lengths of supervised probation. It is questionable as to whether they will be allowed back in the US. Mrs Thompson's declared position on the matter certainly will not help their cause.

The arrested vendors admitted that they knew that the goods they were purchasing -- Gucci, Prada, Dolce, Gaban, Juicy Couture and others, picked up from New York's flee markets -- were not only counterfeit, but illegal. However, according to their skewered thinking - supported by Mrs Thompson-- once they got them through Nassau Customs and paid duty on them, they were somehow sanitised of their illegality and ready for legal sale in what is meant to be Bay Street's straw market.

Mrs Thompson wants to put the onus on the Customs officer to determine whether vendors' goods are legal. This is most unfair. If the goods are illegal, and the vendors purchased them with the full knowledge of their illegality, then they are the only ones guilty of an illegal act. They cannot compromise an innocent customs officer. We hope no other Bahamian reverend tries to make a fool of the law in this fashion.

Also if these vendors can spend so much money on these New York trips, bringing back garbage bag loads of illegal goods, then surely they can pay the reasonable rents asked by government to help maintain a first class straw market on Bay Street.

November 26, 2010

tribune242 editorial

Bahamas Blog International

“…carnage unleashed…”

Rough Cut
By Felix F. Bethel
The Bahama Journal



What I am trying to say is that something is dreadfully wrong in this place where the police can apparently get away with killing people who – for whatever reason –cross them.

Something has got to be wrong when the people are afraid of the police. And as far as I am concerned, the people are afraid of the police because of the fact that far too many people have been killed at the hands of the police.

And as far as I am concerned, far too many police officers are allowed to carry guns/ and for sure –as the record attests and confirms – far too many law-abiding citizens are losing confidence in the men and women to whom they should be looking for protection.

Another Thursday and –yet again- one day closer to the time when Jesus will come and put an end to all this damned foolishness.

What I’m trying to say is that I am sick and tired of all the killing; sick and tired of all the lies I am told –day in and day out.

And Lord knows - I am sick and tired of all those fine citizens – who even as they call for justice on behalf of some lost soul- are writhing in the coils of bloody vengeance.

In one telling instance, a fine Christian lady told me that if she ever had the opportunity she would use it wisely; and that she would lynch the man who killed her grandson.

When I tried to explain that this would make her a killer, she dismissed me and all that I had to say, noting that I was too smart for my own good, with all that God-talk in my head and in my mouth.

But since she is still my beloved sister in Christ, my fervent prayers continue for both this woman and her family; and so, even as I note this or that in aid of helping bringing peace to this troubled land that is mine; I tell you that, another Black man is now dead.

Take note that, Sharmoco Newbold is dead; having been wasted – some say- by a police man.

In time, we might all have some idea; some bit of information concerning why he had to die as he did when he bit the dust as he did, this Saturday past.

But in the meanwhile as we await the coming of that day when truth is revealed; take note that, having thought deeply about the matter on today’s agenda, I am prepared to argue that, this land that is ours is an infernal kind of place – an archipelagic necropolis; a place where Death reigns and lurks; triumphant with the results of carnage unleashed.

Having thought deeply about the matter on today’s agenda, I am prepared to argue that, this land that is ours is an infernal kind of place – an archipelagic necropolis; a place where Death lurks and for sure, our land has become –inch by bloody inch - a place where thugs in uniform routinely kill unarmed citizens.

Indeed, today’s exotic-erotic Bahamas is a hellish, messed up kind of place. It is a place where you can get killed for apparently no real reason.

It is a fact that, "The shooting death of 18-year-old Brenton Smith has raised questions as to whether the armed members of the Royal Bahamas Police Force have adequate firearms training to ensure they react properly to high-pressure situations or whether some are "trigger- happy" officers whose first instinct is to pull the trigger.

Now know that, "It was just before 8 pm on a warm summer's evening -- on the cusp of the country's 36th Independence anniversary -- when the 2008 graduate of St Augustine's College walked with a friend through a popular shortcut used by many in the Kemp Road area. The path led to the nearby City Market food store on Village Road.

"He was in a hurry to flag down a jitney before it got dark and warned his friend not to make him late for his younger sister's singing recital. "But he never made it there…"

As I now imagine things – even as Brenton tried to find his way to his sister’s recital, the death angels hovered about in the immediate vicinity of that food-store that had been robbed in that same time as Hector Brenton just happened to be passing by.

The rest of the story is simple enough – Brenton was laid low by police gun-fire.

Today, Brenton Hector Smith is still dead.

The police officer who killed him is alive and well and working as a police officer. And from all that I currently suspect, this officer is armed.

While I have no basis on which to pin a judgment or opinion to the effect that this man is dangerous; I hope that his path and mine never cross.

Or to be a tad more charitable, I hope to see him on the Judgment Day – and then only so that I can get an opportunity to get the real story as to how it came to be that Hector Brenton Smith was destroyed -as he was – where he was on that fateful night when a police officer was man enough to kill him. Even now, some of my fellow-Bahamians do verily believe that Hector Brenton Smith was killed in cold blood.

For my part, I just do not know a thing about this.

What I do know is that a Coroner’s Jury did last Thursday – on a Thursday just like this one – did say that it was unanimous in its conclusion that the police officer with the gun had acted in his own self-defense when he apprehended that his life might be at danger; thus that one blast that sent Hector Brenton Smith to thy kingdom come – on a one way ticket to Oblivion. And so, that is how it is done in today’s stinking Bahamas.

I am today so very sorry for my people.

And on the basis of all that I know and believe – based on my faith in a Risen Savior- I am sure that I will see this student of mine on that day when Gabriel gets set to blow his trumpet.

I am also certain that the man who killed him will bow and confess to God Almighty for what he did when he did what he did on that fateful night when he shot the shot that felled the boy who was trying to find his way home through what he thought was a short-cut from one dead end road to another crime-infested street.

Little did Brenton know that the route he took was that one that would take him – in a flash of fire and in the stench of his own shed-blood – to that place where the dead congregate.

And the preacher-man said some days later: dust to dust and ashes to ashes and another young man’s remains were returned to the earth.

The same kind of thing happened for Jermaine Mackey’s family when they had to bury what was left of him in the aftermath of his death by police gun-fire on St. James Road in the Eastern District of this infernal island.

And then, there was that now-notorious case of a young man who was known as Sharky, but whose real name was Deron Bethel – this case being the one where –as he sat in his car and as he tried to get away from what was clearly a bad scene unfolding – he was shot through the heart.

He bled to death.

And even now, his mother grieves for the man-child who emerged – head-first- from her womb. Today this woman is grandchild to her dead son’s child – my God-son –Deron Bethel, Jr.

And still, blessed are the peacemakers.

November 25th, 2010

The Bahama Journal

Bahamas Blog International

The Parliament’s decision to unanimously approve Baha Mar’s request for 8,100 work permits is troubling...

Decision to approve Chinese work permits troubling
BY LYNDEN NAIRN



At the risk of prejudicing my views on this matter, let me remind your readers that “a bird in the hand is better than two in the bush”.

The Parliament’s decision to unanimously approve Baha Mar’s request for 8,100 work permits is troubling because it appears that all of the relevant factors were not considered or even known.

At the outset, I want to make it clear that Baha Mar has the right to invest whatever amount it wishes, wherever it wishes and whenever it wishes within the confines of our laws.

I also believe that consistent with the tenets of our capitalistic economy, Baha Mar has the right to make good and bad business decisions. It is not right, for instance, to deny approval of a Bahamian project on the basis that it would create a glut of room inventories in the marketplace, even though one would expect investors and their financiers to have regard for that possibility.

The labor issue is a significant problem not only because it robs Bahamians of maximizing their benefits from the project, and not only because on its face it puts Atlantis at a disadvantage, but because it represents a business deal that apparently could not be financed if the financier were not afforded certain privileges.

During Atlantis’ multiple phases, the government thought that it was in the best interest of the Bahamian people to require Atlantis’ labor component to be at a certain level. Undoubtedly, that imposition caused Atlantis to engage labor at a higher cost than it would if that condition did not exist.

A few years later, in order to ensure that financing is secured for a project, the government has decided to allow Baha Mar to engage almost three times the number of foreign workers as Atlantis. That circumstance means that Baha Mar is able to construct its facility at a lower cost than Atlantis.

That places Atlantis at a significant competitive disadvantage since the cost of construction drives capital requirements, financing costs, room rates and ultimately profitability. Whatever one’s opinion with respect to Atlantis and Baha Mar, one has to at the very least appreciate that this is a legitimate concern for Atlantis.

Indeed, it really ought to concern all of us since this state of affairs creates uncertainty in the minds of current local and international investors as to whether the government might change the playing field and render their business models not feasible.

This is a very dangerous matter and should not be brushed over in our effort to cause Baha Mar to happen. Atlantis’ investment is already in the ground — it is what it is. A decision by the government should not be the event that renders it less competitive — not in a capitalistic environment.

Some persons have criticized the agreement between Atlantis and the government. However, it needs to be remembered that businesspersons must seek to guard against the kind of risk that Atlantis faces today. Perhaps one is saying that such a deal is not in the country’s interest. The fact is though that no reasonable government should be afraid to execute such a deal since no reasonable government would wish to jeopardize a major investment project.

That said, I believe that the government has a moral responsibility to not grant a better deal to Baha Mar. Foreign and local investors must be able to trust that the government will ensure that the playing field is level at the time of their investment and after as well.

No investor, local or foreign, would wish to invest in an environment of uncertainty. This situation could jeopardize future investments in The Bahamas.

Indeed, Sir Sol Kerzner has already said that Atlantis phase four is unlikely. Already, therefore, the cost of granting Baha Mar 8,100 permits to construct a $2.6 billion hotel is $1 billion in future investments. The question is how many other projects will be deterred?

Moreover, if Atlantis’ phase four project were to reflect the Bahamian labor component that was imposed on it several years ago, they are likely to have engaged 3,500 Bahamians, the same number that Baha Mar will hire.

I also found it rather revealing that the labor cost allocated to the 3,500 Bahamians that Baha Mar intends to engage is $200 million over four years. That equates to $275 per week inclusive of national insurance and other benefits.

What is equally striking is that having increased the Bahamian component by $200 million, the Chinese labor component remains unchanged. Assuming that information is complete, and frankly there is no reason to believe that the Prime Minister was complete, then it simply means that Bahamians will be given contracts to procure materials. Assuming such materials are required to be sourced in China, then this amendment constitutes nothing.

What is more, if it is true that as the Prime Minister suggests, the additional $200 million is intended to move Baha Mar’s cost closer to Atlantis’, then what is the incremental cost of the Baha Mar development?

Now let’s say that Baha Mar makes the argument that its total development cost was not lowered as a result of the favorable labor allocation. That is quite possibly true, but does that make the government’s situation any better? Perhaps not.

Here is why: It is indisputable that the Chinese government’s decision to provide the financing is based on the excessive work permits and the sale of materials for that project. Therefore, the inducement takes place broadly at the level of financing, not at the level of project development cost.

That makes Atlantis’ argument even more compelling since in that instance the issue is not merely the competitive disadvantage that is driven by development cost, but the entire project. In other words, if in the absence the incremental incentives the Chinese would refuse to finance the project, the government has unwittingly given Baha Mar a financing advantage. Atlantis can therefore argue that the entire project represents an abandonment of the agreement, not just the additional labor and land cost that they incurred. Even commercial banks can argue that this deal places a competitive bar on them that they cannot reach.

I do not seek to carry water for Atlantis, much less commercial banks. I simply believe that it is essential for us to consider the consequences of the decisions we make.

The fact is that this arrangement has far reaching consequences. I only wish that the Christie administration and the Ingraham administration had not messed up Baha Mar’s original plans so badly. They owe Izmirlian, Atlantis and the Bahamian people an apology and even their resignations.

I now wish to consider a related but slightly different matter. Bahamians will recall that during the various construction phases of Atlantis, many persons argued that it was inappropriate to grant Atlantis all the incentives that were given. Undoubtedly, there were smaller investors, Bahamians and others, who felt that their business models were being threatened by the Atlantis subsidies or perhaps they felt that they should have received similar incentives, for whatever reason.

I believe a strong argument can be made by those who were aggrieved. That points to the fact that we need to have clearly defined concessions/incentives in order to create a level playing field and remove uncertainty and arbitrariness from the process. The latter leaves too much room for abuse and under the table dealings. Furthermore, deals should not be made in secret and persons who benefit in any way as lawyers, developers, etc., should not vote in our Parliament on these specific matters.

• Lynden Nairn is a Chartered Accountant, and president of Colina General Insurance.

11/24/2010

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