At the end of the day, the Hawksbill Creek agreement has not been honored by Any Government administration, nor the Shareholders of the Grand Bahama Port Authority.
H.A.I. allowed the sale of 50% to Hutchinson Whampoa, while also allowing the sale of Freeport Power to Southern Electric(Then Marebuni, Mirant, Emera)
Shareholders pocketed the money.
While the land-banking strategy has ben popular over the last few decades by foreign and Bahamians alike, incurring real property tax on undeveloped land is inevitable across the country for Bahamians and foreigners alike, thanks again to Ingraham and Laing signing the EU-EPA trade agreement, Just as WTO accession is the driver behind VAT, via their import tax reduction rules.
Everyone knows the PLP just bump into stuff in the dark.
As to the 7.5% (granted to Government in exchange for smiling on the NYSE listing of the Port Authority, (since reverse share split and de-listed),maybe it never made it to the treasury.
A litany of what can go wrong in a county without accountability and ethics.

"During the FNM years, part of their political strategy was to seek to destroy the reputation of the PLP and so effective were they that even some of our own youngsters have adopted uncritically their narrative,” he said. “The bits about corruption and incompetence were part of their propaganda which is simply false".
Well, that statement just blew your credibility down the toilet!
If the PLP is a drawbridge, it is one that is up for those out of favor, down for those in favor,
and rickety to the point of untrustworthy and condemnable!
Cross that bridge at your own peril!
As for the Journalists, if any fault is evident (in general terms) it is their lack of aggressive investigation skills, and laziness in learning their subject matter.

That and Pinder making asinine statements on VAT, Mudda take sic.
Arrogance is always costly, least often to the arrogant,
Most often on those subject to their policies.

Sorry to hear about this, The Home Furniture Store has ben around a long time, and has helped innumerable Bahamians with financing Furniture and appliances Decades before the commercial banks started lending Bahamians money.
Whether An Alarm company Employee or staff member, or just thieves off the street,
it speaks to Society in general.
Learned from the top down,
hard to unlearn or stop.

The FNM and PLP have been kicking the fiscal can down the road for decades,
PLP got holding the bag by the IMF.
What is really afoot is the window into the internal economy that VAT accountability will provide. The one area in which the Government is almost completely blind.
Who has what, where, and how much they making.
In other words, VAT will Generate the required database for instituting Income tax.
Not that the money collected will be safeguarded any better than the N.I.B. funds,
long since depleted by borrowing, nor will Government shushing and crony contracts and waste end.
Also in the VAT bill are the harsh persecutory penalties to be used against any who challenge
the Government, if history teaches us anything.
Intended to enforce payment, which doesn't happen in any other respect.
Wake up and find your current account cleaned out and then go try prove you didn't owe.
Ever tried to explain simple accounting to any Government dept when tying to get paid by them?
Like trying to tell the Ton Ton Macoute that kindness works better than terror.......

Cowards travel in packs,
Honor among thieves vanishes,
When politics is at play.

OK, Private sector, do something about it.
What will your strategy be?
Lethargic complacency as usual?
VAT, and other taxes and tax increases to follow are geared for one thing:
Appropriate as much private money as possible, skim off the top, and make you do the work.
Serfs under penal rule.
Government needs to learn the lesson that A happy cow gives milk,
A pissed on/pissed off Cow dries up!

Lead by example Mr. Davis,
earn your colleagues respect and support.

Nero Fiddles,
While rome burns.
Please Take the matches away from him!
Aside an occasional bright spark quickly extinguished,
We really do elect trash.
Working to the lowest common denominator is well known but
making them leadership..........

Ya know, if the Government would just admit to their total incompetence and Negligence,
yes negligence in tax collection across the board over the last 40 years they might actually get some assistance from the private sector (AKA remedial help reading and returning to the rules !)
But nooooo, what we have to deal with and pay dearly for is the pinnacle of arrogance personified at every level of Government who's sole valid claim to expertise could only be in Bovine scatology!
So are they now going to claim that the Bond is only for foreigners?
or will it like the travel ban only be for transients?
Isn't that like every single damn tourist?
How stupid to you thin......nevermind.