What a hell hole of a country we live in! A young man, troubling no-one, is not safe in his own home. Nassau is one of the most dangerous places on earth and I don't care if the murder rate has dropped a little over the last few months. This is not a safe place to live! Condolences to all those affected by this tragedy.

The report will be delivered sometime after May 2017 just like the reports on Rubis, The Nolle Prosequi, bamsi, loi etc etc etc.

PLP = Government by concealment.

It's time to man the lifeboats - the S.S. Bahamas is going down. Don't expect the PM and his crew to go down with the ship though.

"Oh great" thinks Halkitis....this will buy us time to get past the election before the sh#t really hits the fan!

Let's get a few things straight:

1. China has no interest in the well being of The Bahamas.
2. Left to its own devices, China would leave Baha Mar to rot just as it has done with many unfinished Chinese projects around the world and within its own country.
3. The Christie administration has completely mismanaged the project allowing itself to become compromised to the Chinese.
4. The one investor who had the vision and energy for this project and who had the heart for The Bahamas has been kicked off the job due to the duplicity of this PLP administration.
5. The only way for the construction to be re-started is for the government to pay China to do so either directly or in concessions (immediate or long term)
6. Bahamians will be saddled with the cost of 5. above and will likely have to pay this back over a generation.
7. There is no "world class" buyer out there - let's get real. In the current economic climate, no "world class" operator would touch Baha Mar with a barge pole!
8. If there is a potential buyer out there, it is likely to be a Chinese entity who will be offered various concessions both from China and the PLP.
9. The government knows that it cannot release details of said prospective purchaser or the details of any deal because it would be the death knell for the PLP's election prospects.
10. So everything is sealed in typical PLP fashion and the nation is asked to trust Christie!!!

Make no mistake, the PLP's mismanagement of the Baha Mar project has likely cost the country several billion dollars and it is ordinary, hard working Bahamians who will end up picking up the tab over the next 20 years. What a disgrace!

Banker, like everyone else I am eager to see Baha Mar open for business as soon a s possible; however, I wouldn't bet a cent on the resort opening anytime in 2017. The PLP knows this deadline is unrealistic but all they want is for the electorate to see workers on the site so they can call the general election. Unfortunately a lot of people are going to be disappointed when this target date is not met. It is unfair of the PM to continue to get people's hopes up but he is so desperate to cling to power.

My sober assessment is that this whole exercise was a PLP political stunt timed to take the focus off the news of the rating downgrade and aimed at fooling the electorate that the resort is moving forward (just in time for the general election). In reality nothing has changed. The government (or we the people) are likely paying for construction to begin (in the form of current and future concessions) and the "World Class" operator has not yet been identified or, if they have, their credentials are suspect. I would so love to be wrong.

Christie was "not specific regarding the development’s opening date, only saying that its doors were expected to open no later than the end of winter 2017."

Every Baha Mar timeline the Prime Minister has hitherto promised has proven to be unreliable and so Bahamians should treat this opening date "with a grain of salt". Even if a genuine World Class operator were to be secured, a year-end 2017 opening date seems ridiculously optimistic. So we wait on the revelation of this World Class owner / operator with wonderment in the knowledge that no such operator would purchase Baha Mar for anything less than a substantial discount on its book value. We also know that the Chinese are not prepared to accept anything less than 100 cents in the dollar. Therefore, my friends I ask the question: who will be making up the difference? You've guessed it: you and me and the generation to come. That's probably why the Prime Minister was looking so miserable in making the big announcement. He knows what he's had to give away and it ain't pretty. Or maybe I've just gotten too cynical in my old age. Maybe I should just trust the PM like the AG says. I can trust her too, right?

A few things to reflect on:

1. The construction is unlikely to be completed by Dec 2017. CCA have history of missing deadlines and so it would be niaive to expect this latest deadline to be met.

2. The new owners are going to have to start from scratch with the business plan and the economic environment is much worse than when the original plan was established.

3. Where are the guests going to come from in this depressed world economy?

4. How much of the Nation's family silverware has the government sold off in order to persuade the Chinese to resume construction?

Given all of the above, I think the Bahamian public should be measured in any celebration of this new deal.

Banker, it is as clear as day that the ordinary tax payer will end up compensating the Bahamian creditors. Once the extent if the "deal" is revealed after the general election, I suspect we will find that Christie sold out Bahamians yet again in order to try and save his political skin. I would love to be wrong but he has history. Also, you can tell a lot from his body language at the press conference. He does not look like a man that has much to celebrate. Also, the timing of the announcement to negate the bad news of the downgrade is classic PLP. As I say, I would love to be wrong on all of this but we are dealing here with a PLP political party that exists on deceiving the gullible.