By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

FREE National Movement Leader Dr Hubert Minnis yesterday called on the Christie administration to reveal whether it has granted “automatic citizenship” to “hundreds of Chinese nationals” as part of the recently announced deal with the Export-Import Bank of China to open the shuttered $3.5 billion Baha Mar resort.

A statement released by Bahamas Information Services yesterday afternoon on behalf of the government said the allegation that citizenships have been offered to secure the deal “is false”.

Dr Minnis also questioned whether the government has provided “over a thousand work permits to Chinese nationals to do work that Bahamians can do” regarding construction work at the resort. He also asked if it has exempted the Chinese from paying value added tax (VAT), hotel and casino taxes “for a specified period of time” as part of the deal.

Dr Minnis also questioned whether or not the government has leased “thousands of acres of Bahamian land at a fire sale price to the Chinese” to further sweeten the deal for CEXIM. He also questioned if this latest deal with the Chinese is a final deal or “just another framework agreement.”

The Killarney MP also dismissed claims by lawyer Wayne Munroe, QC, that the temporary sealing of court documents related to the project is important to prevent the original developer Sarkis Izmirlian from sabotaging the deal, as Dr Minnis called Mr Izmirlian a “very respectable individual” who “would do anything and everything possible” to see to Baha Mar’s completion.

During a press conference at FNM headquarters yesterday afternoon, Dr Minnis challenged the government to reveal the “nature and value” of the “additional tax breaks and concessions” allegedly made in “the secret under the table deal” with the Chinese over Baha Mar.

He also said the “secret deal” is “positive proof” that Mr Christie “is willing to do anything to be re-elected,” even if it means putting the future of our Bahamas “in the hands of a country steeped in a foreign communist ideology and culture.”

“The Bahamian people have every right to see the agreement that you have executed in their name and on their behalf and we (the FNM) will use every legal avenue available to us to expose this evil,” Dr Minnis said.

He added: “The Bahamian people deserve leaders that do not hide behind closed doors, crafting secret deals and keeping the people from finding out what they did.”

Dr Minnis also dismissed assertions by Mr Munroe that the sealing of the documents was a smart move to prevent Mr Izmirlian from sabotaging the deal either directly or through his “cronies.”

“That’s his opinion,” Dr Minnis said in response. “I think Mr Izmirlian is a very respectable individual in our society who has done good, prepared many Bahamians for the future, both in management and caring and getting them prepared not only for Baha Mar but for future developments and resorts within the Bahamas.

“I think he would do anything and everything possible to assist the Bahamian people and to assist the development and completion of Baha Mar, so I totally disagree with (Mr Munroe).”

During a nationally televised address on Monday night, Prime Minister Perry Christie said a deal had been reached between the government and CEXIM to remobilise the stalled resort. Mr Christie said work is to begin in September with the resort expected to open before the end of the 2016/2017winter season.

Under the terms of the agreement announced by Mr Christie, CEXIM has committed to fund all remaining construction costs to complete the project. Additionally, China Construction America (CCA), Baha Mar’s lead general contractor, would resume and complete construction, and then sell the property to a “world class hotel and casino operator.”

However, it was subsequently revealed that the court documents related to the deal have been sealed.

In May, allegations surfaced of a major request for concessions by CCA to jumpstart the stalled mega resort. The allegations were made by radio talk show host Steve McKinney, who claimed that CCA had requested that Mr Izmirlian be removed from the project, a 30-year exclusivity with regards to its casino license, a 30-year VAT exemption, a 25 per cent increase in concessions currently enjoyed by the resort, and the granting of 500 citizenships to Chinese nationals attached to the project in various capacities.

Those allegations were subsequently denied by Mr Christie, who said citizenship in return for foreign investment was a “non-negotiable position” for his government.