The Tribune

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Tribune Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

THE People’s Republic of China, where COVID-19 originated, has been declared an “infected” place for six months - making it official policy to prohibit non-Bahamian citizens from entering The Bahamas if they have been to that country within the last 20 days.

The order was made public as Finance Minister Peter Turnquest told Parliament the virus poses an immediate threat to not only citizens but the Bahamian economy’s performance.

While there have been no reported or confirmed cases of the new coronavirus in The Bahamas, the government is continuing to prepare for a possible local outbreak with officials processing a $4m contingency fund application for the Ministry of Health, Mr Turnquest further announced.

Health Minister Dr Duane Sands tabled the order, under the Quarantine Act, in the House of Assembly yesterday.

It gives the health minister authority to declare any place outside The Bahamas an infected place for a period of limited duration.

Since January 11, the Bahamas has been denying entry to non-residents who visited China. Returning residents are being quarantined for an incubation period of 14 days.

According to Dr Sands yesterday, the government can at any time return to Parliament to amend this order if the need arises. Otherwise, he suggested the order will come to an end in June.

“I think we have to look at the existing legislation that allows us to do what we have done,” Dr Sands told reporters yesterday at Parliament. “So the Quarantine Act of The Bahamas has specific language. I would refer you to that act to determine what are the powers vested in the minister, what are the powers vested in the chief medical officer.

“This act is more than 100 years old and so there are certain things that need to be done in order to make our current policy legal hence the language. Now we have said six months, but we can some back to this honourable House in a week and make a change.

“This is the policy that we have put in place - the immigration policy - so anybody who has been within the confines of the People’s Republic of China within the last 20 days, non-Bahamian, no citizen, no resident will be denied entry,” he also said. Bahamians will be quarantined.

“It is in place now. We have said six months. If we have to go longer, we will extend it. If we decide to change that policy then we have to come back and change it in law,” Dr Sands said. 

When he spoke at Parliament yesterday, Mr Turnquest said the virus posed a number of downside risks to the macroeconomic landscape, both globally and domestically.

“…The current global outbreak of the coronavirus is creating an immediate threat to the safety of our citizens and the near term performance of our economy,” Mr Turnquest said.

The number of confirmed worldwide COVID-19 cases stood at 94,250 up to press time. Of this number, 80,270 cases are in mainland China.

Globally, there have been 3,214 deaths with 51,026 recovered cases.

“…The novel coronavirus poses a number of downside risks to the macroeconomic landscape, both globally and domestically. Given the serious health impact of the virus on individuals, and the understandable concerns of people everywhere, this outbreak poses serious potential risks to global travel,” Mr Turnquest said. 

“This is of particular importance to The Bahamas as our economic livelihood is heavily dependent on both trade and travel.”

Recognising this threat, the minister said Ministry of Finance officials were already beginning to develop plans to address a potential economic fallout.

“In line with the efforts of a number of other governments and regulatory bodies, this administration is taking precautionary measures to protect its citizens and its borders from this outbreak.

“While the threat of the virus reaching our waters is effectively being managed, we will continue to exercise an abundance of caution to ensure that we mitigate this growing risk.”

Mr Turnquest’s comments were a part of his mid-year budget statement on the six months ending December 31, 2019 and follow the supplementary budget, which was triggered by the need to revise revenue and expenditure estimates after Hurricane Dorian.

He said based on the performance to date, officials were confident in their projections for a positive future outlook despite the impact of Dorian.

“Our fiscal indicators remain sound; our cash flow is steady and our revenue enhancement measures are demonstrating success at reducing leakage,” Mr Turnquest said.