FORMER Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis. Photo: Donavan McIntosh/Tribune staff
By RASHAD ROLLE
Tribune Senior Reporter
rrolle@tribunemedia.net
FORMER Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis has defended the agreement his administration struck with Royal Caribbean for the lease of Crown land on Paradise Island.
Press Secretary Clint Watson said last week the Davis administration will not let Royal Caribbean lease seven acres of land for 150 years.
“I agree that the standard lease time is 100 years,” Dr Minnis said in the House of Assembly yesterday. “I accept that and I am certain that RCL would have no problem with reverting rather than 150 to 100 years.”
Toby Smith, a Bahamian entrepreneur who is behind a $2m investment in the Paradise Island Lighthouse & Beach Club, has an ongoing court matter in which he alleges that he has a valid lease for two parcels of land included in RCL’s agreement.
Mr Watson said Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis believes he can bring an amicable solution to the dispute.
Dr Minnis said: “It has always been the government’s policy that we do not sell Crown land to foreigners or give Crown land to foreigners. As a matter of fact we look at the global picture as to the advantage of leasing Crown land to foreign nationals. Rather than one or two individuals benefiting, we look at the global picture to ensure that the nation would benefit.
“With respect to RCL, yes it’s a lease of $140,000 per year (for) 25 years with extension. But the benefit certainly outweighs the lease of the property. RCL would embark on a $55m lease of that particular property and in fact they are even increasing that. There would be many jobs available for Bahamians. All of the investment on the property would be run by Bahamians and RCL would assist Bahamians with funding to ensure they are intimately involved.
“In addition to that there will be 80 Bahamians involved in the construction; excellent salaries. Upon completion of the project there will be an additional 150-200 Bahamians who will be hired at a salary of thirty to forty thousand dollars per annum. Most importantly, RCL presently brings about one million tourists to The Bahamas. With this project the numbers would increase which would benefit all Bahamians, especially those within the hospitality and tourism industry.
“In addition to that, individuals must be mobilised to (the property) by ferry boats. RCL will enter engagement with Bahamians so that Bahamians will be involved and possibly own the ferry boat between the cruise line and the property itself. We know today that the ferry boats that are utilised today may not meet the certification or the standards that will be required by the International Maritime Organisation and, therefore, RCL would ensure that the Bahamians have adequate ferry boats that will meet the certifications and standards. This would create vast entrepreneurship and wealth for Bahamians as opposed to one individual; and I won’t get into that at this particular time but the decision was Bahamians at large would be involved as opposed to one or two individuals.”
Comments
KapunkleUp 2 years, 4 months ago
Any lingering respect I had for this man just vanished. How can he so easily go from 150 to 100 years. Like he mixed up his cake recipe. This shows ZERO thought given to the whole agreement. And to boot, his job creation figures sound like a child's Xmas wish list. All fantasy with ZERO details. Just another incompetent and/or corrupt politician getting caught after the fact.
joeblow 2 years, 4 months ago
... I have always thought Minnis was an idiot. He has not made one decision that causes me to doubt my assessment. And to think, there is so much more we do not know about what he did while in office!
tribanon 2 years, 4 months ago
Pure BS. Minnis truly belongs in prison, not only because of his flagrant personal benefitting from quid pro quo corruption of the very worst kind while he was PM, but also because of the many lives unnecessarily lost as a result of his tyrannical decisions and megalomaniacal policies ruthlessly forced on the Bahamian people in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian and during the Communist China Virus pandemic.
And these purported Paradise Island lease deals, that were instigated by corrupt senior officials of Royal Caribbean bullying and preying on government officials widely known to be very weak minded, foolish and easily corruptible, are about so much more than just the ridiculous 150-year term of the lease. That's just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to all that is so wrong about these purported lease deals that can be justly regarded as void ab initio. When is Davis going to insist that a special commission independent of government be established to fully investigate the circumstances under which these atrociously unjust and one-sided purported lease deals came about?
Minnis, D'Aguilar and 'Dr.' Michael Scott were the key players involved in the negotiations with the corrupt and very greedy Royal Caribbean senior officials who looking to 'steal' from the Bahamian people for virtually nothing in return other than the rewarding of a few corruptible government officials.
FrustratedBusinessman 2 years, 4 months ago
Yeah, either this dude is a sucker at negotiating or he owns shares in Royal Caribbean. Either way, he is selling some big dreams.
SP 2 years, 4 months ago
Agreed, he and the boys had to have gotten something under the table to sell out the country!
The question is, how do we flush this weasel out and hold him accountable? Thank GOD he was removed!!!!
Economist 2 years, 4 months ago
This man is delusional. 150 years?????
20 to a max of 40 years is the norm.
TalRussell 2 years, 4 months ago
Finally we two comrades was in sync over de mutual likes with the Guardian's top talkie host Comrade Juan, for having too over admired those braless bouncing loose watermelons Bubbies on Rihanna and everything else like this and that, got's Juan munchin' live-on-air on ice cubes, ― Yes?
truetruebahamian 2 years, 4 months ago
His actions were indefensible no matter what excuses he tries to manufacture.
stillwaters 2 years, 4 months ago
Seems to me Brave and his ministers are governing by digging up nonsense on Minnis.....every day, their main daily topic is Minnis, Minnis, Minnis......keeping citizens riled up. Is this it? Is this all?? Is this their governing??
tribanon 2 years, 4 months ago
It seems both Davis and Mitchell have forgotten that Minnis made this very same mistake upon becoming PM in May 2017. And look where that got him!
But Mitchell is relentlessly whispering in Davis's ear that he must dig up and make public the more outrageously corrupt shenanigans of the last FNM administration, otherwise a year or so from now Minnis, the great pathological liar, will seek to blame the current government for his very own grave misdeeds committed while he was PM.
birdiestrachan 2 years, 4 months ago
The most honourable. the competent authority made very bad deals for the Bahamas 100 years is too much doc. doc seems not to have any common sense at all. it seems his mind does not work clearly His thought processs. does not work and Pintard will be calling him for advice
If Minnis . did not bury nonsense there would be none. zero to dig up, be careful what you plant.
SP 2 years, 4 months ago
Dr. Minnis is either a 1000% total asshole or he thinks we the people are 1000% total assholes! This is yet another under the table asinine deal. There has to be a huge monetary win-fall hidden somewhere for Minnis and the boys.
This man belongs in prison right along with Pindling, Ingraham, and Christie. 4 assholes that took the electorate for conchs!!!
DWW 2 years, 4 months ago
lol. davis say it bad and yet still good and we going to go ahead. all these PLP supporters quick try to shift focus to minnis when he is inconsequential now. davis says yeah 200 people get one little job now be quiet
The_Oracle 2 years, 4 months ago
The Government cannot grant to one Bahamian, they would then have to grant to many. Favoritism is defacto, but not overt. Imagine that, a Government that becomes an enabler for all Bahamians as opposed to a controller of. Foreigners get what they want, be it land, concessions, or paid for reports, and go about their business happy. Bahamians must beg, endure stalling, see their vision given to others or outright denied without any explanation. And we elect them over and over. Not that any of the other aspirants would be any different. We are, by our own hands victims of our own vises and culture.
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