After three separate delays,
public wrangling with the lead contractor and a rumor mill, which has spawned
weeks of media and public speculation
and uncertainty, the future of the 3.5 billion dollar Baha Mar property has been
revealed. The highly touted developed tapped by this Christie administration as
the savior of the country’s economy has found itself floundering amid rough
economic seas of its own as hotel developer Sarkis Izmirlian announced plans to
file for voluntary bankruptcy.
According to published reports, the
company’s board of directors has determined that the Chapter 11 filing is the
best path to provide the company with a viable capital structure to complete
the project citing the financial consequences of the repeated delays by the
general contractor, and the resulting loss of revenue as major factors in that
decision.
The announcement though disturbing
confirms the many rumors about the projects viability and further exposes the
Christie cabinet as fundamentally dishonest. Following the initial delays PM
Perry Christie, the country’s chief executive officer dismissed concerns about
the reported financial troubles facing the property and instead continued to
publicly tout the economic impact that the property would eventually have on
the country. His confidence in the property’s viability would later turn to
outright ignorance about the future of development. Then according to Mr.
Christie he received what he said was encouraging news about the development
even going so far as to suspend the budget debate. Could this have been the
news Mr. Christie seemed so jubilant about?
The Democratic National Alliance
finds it difficult to believe that the PM, who by his own admission has been
intimately involved in the property’s ongoing development, was not also
intimately aware of the financial troubles that now beset the company. That
said, his decision not to honestly communicate those facts to the public is
both callous and insensitive.
Even as employees of the company –
many of them skilled workers – were reassigned to do menial tasks such as
cleanups at the property and later in various communities with Urban renewal,
the PM remained silent. Even as the lives of those workers remained unsettled
the PM as well as the Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe continued to sidestep
questions about the project rather than come clean with the public about the
severity of the challenges facing the company. Doing so would have allowed the
two thousand employees – many of whom left full time positions elsewhere – to
make an informed decision about continuing to wait it out as a member of the
BAHANATION or to search for other employment opportunities.
Over the next 30 days the hotel’s
developers will make application to the local Supreme Court to have its Chapter
11 undertaking approved. Commendably,
the company is reportedly making arrangements to ensure that its primary
financial obligation: PAYROLL – to the tune of some 30 million dollars over the
next month – is met.
While Baha Mar’s Chapter 11 filing
has serious direct implications for its employees, it will also have far-reaching
and long-term economic implications for this government’s plans for projected economic
growth. The DNA has long advised against putting all of the country’s hopes of
economic growth in the hands of any one foreign direct investment.
As it did with the botched Ginn
Development in West Grand Bahama, this Christie led government based its entire
job creation strategy on the developer’s ability to open this resort. After
putting all of its proverbial eggs in one basket the government was then
confronted with the decision to
COME CLEAN
about its missteps or LIE: in true PLP fashion, this administration chose the
latter. Now as a result, the Bahamas is primed to face the economic backlash
from international ratings agencies such as the IMF, Moody’s, and Standard and
Poor’s who have all undoubtedly been closely monitoring the Baha Mar situation
and by extension the country’s economic standing as well.
While no one could have foreseen or
foreshadowed the challenges that led to these current circumstances, the
failure of the property to open within its specified time frame has caused
significant embarrassment to the entire nation. Moving forward all involved
parties must do the honorable thing and present all of the relevant facts to
the public. Bahamians must no longer be kept in the dark on matters of national
importance; instead this administration must work towards an honest and
collaborative relationship with the property’s developer and encourage
transparent and open dialogue now and into the future.
Branville McCartney
DNA Leader