PM: Resort has suffered ‘temporary setbacks’

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie has said while there are “temporary setbacks” concerning the $3.5bn Baha Mar resort, this country still has several other factors that will augur well for continued improvement in all economic indicators and sustained growth over the medium-term.

This comes as Supreme Court Justice Ian Winder yesterday approved the Crown’s request to adjourn the government’s winding-up petition of Baha Mar until February 1, 2016.

The Crown’s lawyer Loren Klein made the request, saying it was due to new developments since the stalled Cable Beach mega resort went into receivership.

A source close to the matter said attorneys would return to court in two weeks to settle an amended order.

The well-placed source added: “The receivers and liquidators are having discussions about a division of labour between receivers on the one hand and liquidators on the other and (are) in discussions with the government about who will fund the provisional liquidators. So that’s where the situation is.”

Meanwhile Mr Christie’s brief comments about Baha Mar came during a speech he made at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) Business Forum in Malta yesterday.

“Our economy,” he said, “has for many years been reliant on tourism and financial services. Along with the rest of the world, the Bahamas is recovering from a deep recession but continues to see improvement in its overall fiscal position as a result of the successful implementation of VAT in January of this year.

“Additionally, the country has been able to attract over $5 billion dollars in foreign direct investments over the past several years and continues to experience positive economic growth from investment-led projects supporting sustained activity in the construction sector as well as visitor stopovers generating higher levels of hotel occupancy and hotel rooms revenue.”

He added: “Although temporary setbacks are being experienced with Baha Mar, a $3.5 billion resort development and the largest single-phase development project ever undertaken in the Caribbean with the capacity to generate 5,000 jobs, the realisation of touristic developments on the drawing board and in the ground, as well as investments in agriculture, energy, gaming sports and culture, augur well for continued improvement in all of our economic indicators and sustained economic growth over the medium-term.”

However, Free National Movement Deputy Leader Peter Turnquest yesterday questioned why the government would push for the adjournment of the winding up petition to February 1.

Mr Turnquest said: “The only reasons for them to do this is if they believe the receivers can bring it into completion or that there is a legitimate expectation that the rumoured interests by suitors makes them confident that one of them will come through to buy the project.

“We can only assume that the government is aware of information that we may not have that gives it some kind of favourable view that this thing will find a resolution.”

He added that the government has done poorly with ensuring there is transparency when it comes to Baha Mar.

“There are too many unanswered questions. We went through a very tumultuous time over Baha Mar and then all of a sudden everything has gone quiet and everyone is happy.

“But there continues to be an appetite for more information. When can we expect completion among other things?

“We, as a country, have put a lot of stock into this venture so certainly we need to know,” Mr Turnquest added.

Last week, Mr Christie said “things are good” with Baha Mar as he revealed that representatives from a leading resort in this hemisphere arrived in the country to put their interests forward to the Export Import Bank of China regarding the unopened resort.

At the time, Mr Christie said he and EXIM Bank officials have been in continued talks over the $3.5bn hotel with pointed discussions on finding employment for the more than 2,000 workers who were made redundant last month.

The nation’s leader further said he has put forward a proposition of his preparedness to work with the bank in finding the workers’ employment on the basis that stakeholders would reimburse the government of the Bahamas.

Comments

Honestman says...

This was the route that was supposed to provide a quicker solution than Chapter 11 ! Not seeing much haste.

Posted 26 November 2015, 1:55 p.m. Suggest removal

TruePeople says...

QUOTE: the country has been able to attract over $5 billion dollars in foreign direct investments over the past several years and continues to experience positive economic growth

What that statement, because 3.5 Bill (More Than Half) is Bahamar..... positive growth indeed......o_0

Posted 26 November 2015, 2:07 p.m. Suggest removal

banker says...

Christie is embarrassing to the Bahamas. We have an idiot at the mic.

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2015…

Posted 26 November 2015, 2:57 p.m. Suggest removal

Reality_Check says...

Christie is like Bozo the Clown, except for his Pinocchio nose; just one Jokey Leader as KB would say!

Posted 26 November 2015, 6:18 p.m. Suggest removal

TalRussell says...

In case it slipped your memories, taxpayers have one third of the $3.5 Billion invested in financing. Baha Mar. The amount taxpayers are out of pocket is an astounding $1.3 Billion.
Comrades I hate interrupt your delight to entertain red readers but someone really needs interrupt you with the facts.surrounding who sign the very agreements which allowed the Baha Mar
project to proceeded with NO official oversight.
Would you welcome a Commission of Inquiry with a mandate to publicly disclose to the public, ALL Baha Mar agreements from day one. To protect that ALL be disclosed, we will bring in outsiders to sit as members of the COI.

Posted 26 November 2015, 8:26 p.m. Suggest removal

ForeignObserver says...

Tal, would you like to give a rough accounting of the $1.3 billion you claim has been invested by the Bahamian people? How much of that is future benefits if the project were to be successful??

Posted 27 November 2015, 5:59 a.m. Suggest removal

Sickened says...

I would love to have a commission of inquiry on this, from the very beginning, including searching bank account for kick backs. I'm sure that we would see many 'reds' and 'yellows', past and present, marched off to Fox Hill... where they belong.

Posted 27 November 2015, 8:39 a.m. Suggest removal

sealice says...

you need to get over your "red self" most the people that contribute here could give a schit whether we're red, yellow, white, blue or black... we're all Bahamians and your boys is schitting all over everyone every step of the way!

Posted 27 November 2015, 10:52 a.m. Suggest removal

Emac says...

Tal, Tal, Tal...You are always grasping at straws. The situation here is Not who initially sign what agreement or who didn't do this or that at the beginning. The hardcore fact is that if the government had not sided with the Chinese and interfered with the affairs of real business people, Bahamar would not be in the mess it is today. Now you can run around the mulberry bush as much as you like. When you done get tired from running, reality will still dictate that your prime minister with he saggy mouth is really responsible for this debacle.

Posted 27 November 2015, 7:02 a.m. Suggest removal

TalRussell says...

Comrade Emac, if it is not the objective of the Commission of Inquiry (COI) hearings to be fair and balanced as it is possible to make it - then why bother?
Is it not essential that the COI hearings are to be open to the public and to dig into all dealings, regardless of red or yellow?
You keep calling for transparency but not if it also has to involve taking a trip back in the red party's Baha Mar time machine.
You can't be believer that any search into possible government corruption could ever be trusted if done by a government cabinet minister? Same can be said when the opposition investigates the actions of government.

Posted 27 November 2015, 12:54 p.m. Suggest removal

sealice says...

I wonder if all the people in Malta think he's as much of an idiot as we do?

Posted 27 November 2015, 10:49 a.m. Suggest removal

Honestman says...

Only if they talk to him!

Posted 27 November 2015, 12:12 p.m. Suggest removal

BMW says...

Thats our inelligent looking PM again, well mudda sic he look jokey eh!!!!!!!

Posted 27 November 2015, 8:25 p.m. Suggest removal

BMW says...

Malta should keep him but they have some sense!

Posted 27 November 2015, 8:26 p.m. Suggest removal

ThisIsOurs says...

He's now floating a Chinese airline as a possible buyer. If any of these buyers were sold on the prospects, Christie's office wouldn't keep leaking details about new buyers.

Posted 28 November 2015, 2:42 a.m. Suggest removal

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