By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s (BCCEC) chairman said yesterday’s Blackbeard’s Cay verdict was telling investors: “Follow the law, not what the Government tells you.”

Responding after Supreme Court Justice Stephen Isaacs found the Government had failed to follow its own statutory processes and international obligations, and not provided the $8 million project’s developers with the proper permits, Robert Myers said the ruling could ultimately benefit the Bahamas.

He explained that it showed the Bahamas followed “the rule of law”, something that would give certainty and predictability to international investors.

“The message is: Follow the law, not necessarily what the Government tells you,” Mr Myers told Tribune Business.

“The Government is bound to follow the law, just as the developer is, the country is and the public is. You have to recognise that if you haven’t followed the law, you are going to have problems. It’s important for the Government and developers to recognise that.”

Mr Myers said the statutory permitting and approval processes were there for a reason: To have “a process that is fair and equitable”.

“There’s a process that needs to be followed to make sure all the requirements that are met. It’s important for the Government and business community to see the law being upheld,” the BCCEC chairman added.

“It’s important for the country and the citizens in it. It’s all part of enforcing the rule of law, enforcing it fairly and equitably across citizens and the Government. The Government is not above it.

“One of the fundamental principles is the Government is not above it, and must be held to it.”

Mr Myers, praising Justice Isaacs for his verdict, said it would likely benefit the Bahamas as it showed this nation was “stable” and followed the law.

“If the rule of law is not enforced fairly and equitably, that’s when you open a Pandora’s Box,” he told Tribune Business. ‘The message is clear: Follow the rule of law.”

Arguing that ignorance was no excuse, Mr Myers added that all developers and their attorneys had “a fundamental responsibility to make sure they abide by and follow the laws of the land regardless of what the Government says”.