The completion of the runway refurbishment at the Mayaguana Airport and the return of regularly scheduled Bahamasair flights there after a five year absence are significant milestones for the residents of that Island and signal the resurgence of the Mayaguana economy.

The facts are that this runway refurbishment which was well underway when the PLP demitted office in 2007 and the heavy hand of Hubert Ingraham and the FNM brought the I-Group Project to a grinding halt and the elimination of over 80 jobs. The People of Mayaguana suffered at the hands of the FNM for five long years as nothing was done to improve the quality of their lives or build their economy. The 5,000 acres of land giveaway by the FNM in a fee simple deal replaced the joint venture which provided the formula and formed the program for the future development of Mayaguana and by extension the southeastern Bahamas generally.

Further, the agreement to provide the island with potable water was scrapped by the FNM and other basic infrastructural needs such as repairs to the roads were also neglected by the former government.

The tragic aviation incident on the 4th April 2013 at the Mayaguana Airport will live on in infamy as a very sad reminder of the severe price that was paid for political short sightedness and spite.

Thankfully this nightmare is now behind the people of Mayaguana. The PLP congratulates the Government of The Bahamas on this major accomplishment.

The staff of Le Air and its principal, Captain Larry Brown, are to be commended for a job well done in standing in the gap and keeping Mayaguana connected to the rest of The Bahamas for the past five years.  

The PLP further invite all Mayaguanians of goodwill to place their full and unreserved support behind the efforts of this government and its major partner, the I-Group, to improve their quality of life. The airport terminal will be refurbished by the second half of this year; the road works are progressing well and potable water and a new dock are in the pipeline for Mayaguana.

I encourage Mayaguanians to urge the I-Group to deliver on its contractual obligations to the government and the people of Mayaguana. As the ground work is being laid for the economic resurgence of Mayaguana, I also encourage Bahamians residing in Mayaguana and all interested persons to take advantage of tax concessions and access to crown land to take advantage of all available economic opportunities on that island.