If it's a question of believing either government's data, or Moody's, I know which side I'd choose. Government has been trying to fool us for so long that they think they can pull the wool over the eyes of true fiscal experts.

Rein in spending?!?!?!? Government needs to rein in its stealing.

If the PLP would only steal what's left over after all expenses were paid it wouldn't be so bad, as at least we would have a balanced budget. But, by taking their share first as well as on top of all issued contracts, there is always a deficit left. Perhaps they are getting kick backs on borrowings as well???

BOB - Response letter Annual Report 2012
To the Central Bank of the Bahamas

last paragraph..."we are satisfied that the Bank is 'In-Control' with no material reservations.'"

http://www.tribune242.com/news/2014/dec…

Where is the consultant George Marlette's Report on BoB?

How can this Bank in default of International CB's standards still compete with the other Banks following the Rules? Unfair competition affecting the other four who spend money to advertise, compete and pay salaries. Heads must be de-risked for this fiasco.

Government is even setting to do more damage and make a worse situation worse. They are now charging a $100 late fee on business license plus interest on what is due. This is not just a simple 'ok just pay it' as it seem. Some businesses are not making a profit. Some have been operating in the red for several years. So they scrap up some money to bring their national insurance up-to-date. Then they have to renew their garbage collection contract and pay their property taxes. Then when they get to bus license the government slaps a $100 fine on them plus interest. So there is definitely no incentive for these businesses who are losing money to try fight it out. So as they close down governmet revenue will also go down. Unemployment will go up and so will crime. So the national debt will increase and so will deficit spending. This government has its shoes on backwards because it is definitely walking in the wrong direction

The "chickens are coming home to roost" as all savvy Bahamians knew they would. Anyone who voted PLP at the last election cannot complain.

FNM would be no different than PLP as we have seen time and time again. In fact, a FNM government led by Minnis as PM would be tyranny and anarchy at its worse for the Bahamian people. The DNA under McCartney is a non-starter for too many reasons to elaborate on here. If a reputable competent independent candidate is running in your constituency come the next election, you would be wise to vote for him or her. Otherwise it would be better to just stay at home and not vote at all. We need to take our country back from the type of politics practiced by the PLP and FNM alike; the politicians of yesterday are all about themselves and their elitist political friends and business cronies.....they could not care less about the Bahamian people!

Can't disagree. There are plenty of honest and intelligent Bahamians who don't put themselves forward for public office for fear of being tainted by the corrupt political system in The Bahamas. If any of these talented individuals is brave enough to put their name forward as an "independent" then constituents should give them every support. The current political elite is a cancer draining the lifeblood from this country.

All of those who pushed for rather than against government's introduction of VAT should hang their heads in shame when reading this one paragraph in a recent article written by Richard Coulson and published in The Tribune:

"The rating agencies will not be blind that VAT was originally sold to the Bahamian public as a direct application against debt increase, only to learn that that the proceeds are swallowed into the Consolidated Fund, where, since dollars are fungible, they simply pay for whatever increased expenses the politicians approve. In their talks with the private sector, the analysts will not find many citizens claiming VAT has improved public services, reduced public inefficiencies or lowered import duties to reduce his food bill - quite the contrary, as every lower-income shopper finds the necessities of life have become a struggle to economise, or do without."

The idiots like John Rolle, Gowan Bowe and others who made the government's case for introducing VAT turned a blind eye to the simple fact that giving a spendthrift corrupt incompetent government more money to spend would naturally induce more government spending and enable more government borrowing. It's common sense that just like you don't give an alcoholic more alcohol to drink, you don't give a corrupt irresponsible government that can't control spending more money to spend. Rolle, Bowe and others like them should have been insisting on tangible evidence of reform in the government's wasteful spending habits for at least a year or two before even considering throwing their support behind any system of new taxation. By not insisting on the VAT revenue being appropriately ring-fenced or earmarked only for paying down the level of our national debt, our country's finances are now in an even worse position than they were before the introduction of VAT. Thank you John Rolle, Gowan Bowe and others like you for helping our government royally shaft all honest hardworking Bahamian taxpayers!! And to think John Rolle went on to become Governor of The Central Bank; a definite quid pro quo from a corrupt government for his efforts in securing more tax dollars for our government to wastefully spend or allow to be squandered by egregious instances of outright fraud!!!

Sad but true.

We can't borrow ourselves out of junk bond status as our dumb corrupt government would like to think can be done. By introducing VAT, all our government has done is dig a much deeper hole in which the international lending and rating agencies will bury our country. Just look at what happened to Venezuela after successive corrupt governments (the most corrupt one having been led by Chavez, now deceased) decided to borrow willy-nilly against proven oil reserves and then nationalize the assets of the major U.S. oil companies located in Venezuela. The U.S. government and the international lending and rating agencies controlled by the U.S. government eventually came down on the people of Venezuela like a ton of bricks to make them pay dearly for foolishly electing and supporting tyrannical dictators who borrowed like crazy from the rich developed nations to give to the down trodden non-productive poor Venezuelan people (alla Robin Hood) until the U.S. government decided the hole the Venezuelan government had dug for Venezuelans was deep enough to bury Venezuela and teach Venezuelans an important lesson. Most Venezuelans today are without food, potable water, soap, tooth-paste and, yes, toilette paper. The few Bahamians who support Fweddy Boy Mitchell poking Uncle Sam in the eye (and Perry "Vomit" Christie's cozy relationship with the corrupt mainland Chinese elements he has foolishly allowed into our country) had better wake up to the harsh reality that lies ahead for us when the sleeping giant dragon to the north of us has had enough and decides to breath fire on us like it has done on the disrespectful and ungrateful Venezuelans.

VAT was suppose to be a tax that replaced customs duties, stamp tax etc. In its true form vat would not have had the stagnating impact it is having now. But your greedy government, after seeing the potential of VAT, decided to keep the customs duties and stamp tax in addition to VAt. Pure double taxation. To them they say it as more quick, easy money and they bragged on how much they were collecting. But because there was no real growth in the economy, it started to feed on itself. So now you have a shrinking or declining economy and government, in their ignorance or greed, or both, continue to double tax. money is being yanked out of the economy before it can exchange hands, before there is any chance for growth. Almost 20% unemployment and 30,000 persons on welfare, no potential for growth unless the leakages are slowed down and new money is injected into the lame economy.

Force out the PLP (Plunder Loot and Pillage) party by any and all means and make them pay it ALL back.

We can't borrow ourselves out of junk bond status as our dumb corrupt government would like to think can be done. By introducing VAT, all our government has done is dig a much deeper hole in which the international lending and rating agencies will bury our country. Just look at what happened to Venezuela after successive corrupt governments (the most corrupt one having been led by Chavez, now deceased) decided to borrow willy-nilly against proven oil reserves and then nationalize the assets of the major U.S. oil companies located in Venezuela. The U.S. government and the international lending and rating agencies controlled by the U.S. government eventually came down on the people of Venezuela like a ton of bricks to make them pay dearly for foolishly electing and supporting tyrannical dictators who borrowed like crazy from the rich developed nations to give to the down trodden non-productive poor Venezuelan people (alla Robin Hood) until the U.S. government decided the hole the Venezuelan government had dug for Venezuelans was deep enough to bury Venezuela and teach Venezuelans an important lesson. Most Venezuelans today are without food, potable water, soap, tooth-paste and, yes, toilette paper. The few Bahamians who support Fweddy Boy Mitchell poking Uncle Sam in the eye (and Perry "Vomit" Christie's cozy relationship with the corrupt mainland Chinese elements he has foolishly allowed into our country) had better wake up to the harsh reality that lies ahead for us when the sleeping giant dragon to the north of us has had enough and decides to breath fire on us like it has done on the disrespectful and ungrateful Venezuelans.