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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
 For more than four decades, tourism has been this country’s golden goose, attracting millions of tourists to our shores and in that time we have continued to rely heavily on the revenue generated from visitors as a driving force for our economy. Sadly, alleged acts of violence and sexually assault against visitors to our shores threaten to destroy our tourism product altogether.
Just this week, the Canadian government issued yet another travel warning to its citizens visiting the Bahamas. The detailed cautionary warning, listed as current as of Monday June 6, focuses particularly on what it called a high rate of crime in Nassau and references an increase in armed robberies and sexual assaults targeting tourists. What a sad indictment indeed! Not only have Bahamians been terrorized and victimized by the criminal element, now visitors to our once safe and tranquil shores have also become targets.
Many Bahamians will recall that in the run up to the last election, the PLP, then in opposition, outlined countless plans and promises which they said would address crime and the fear of crime. Project safe Bahamas and Urban Renewal 2.0 were touted as the only real solutions to the country’s crime problem. In the years since those declarations however, we have seen crime and the fear of crime grow exponentially. The failure of these initiatives is yet another glaring example of the Christie administration’s lack of focus and follow through on issues of national importance.
This latest crime warning follows countless others issued by the US and UK governments in the past few years; however it appears that such warnings have fallen on deaf ears within the Christie administration. It is clear that in addition to having NO CLUE about how to address the criminal element, this government is equally clueless about how to protect our tourism product.
While in opposition the PLP also made grandiose promises about its plans for tourism much of which hinged on the opening of Bahamar which has sat abandoned for months. Even as the Prime Minister has continued to express optimism about the future of the project, he has offered NO ACTUAL INFORMATION on the way forward for the development or its former employees. Similarly, the tourism product on GBI also continues to suffer. Now with the reported impending sale of that island’s largest resort property, the future of its employees and the island’s overall tourism offerings all hang in the balance. All this while the Prime Minister and the Minister of Tourism REMAIN SILENT!
In the absence of an actual plan for tourism, the country’s natural resources – the sun, sand and sea – coupled with beautiful spirit of the people working within the industry our tourism sector has managed to stay afloat, although just barely. WE ARE NO LONGER THE ONLY OPTION FOR TOURISTS, and with Cuba opening its borders our leaders must begin to think seriously about ways to make the travel experiences to the Bahamas, the best in the world. Considering our country’s very heavy reliance on tourism, we cannot afford for visitors to feel unsafe, nor have their experiences tainted by the scourge of crime.
The DNA calls on the Christie administration to outline the concrete steps which the government will take to ensure the safety of Bahamians and visitors alike. Mr. Christie must also come clean about the future of Bahamar and The Grand Lucayan Hotel in Freeport. The future of our tourism product depends on it.
Branville McCartney
DNA Leader
© Copyright 2016 by thebahamasweekly.com
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