By RASHAD ROLLE
Tribune Senior Reporter
rrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE Ministry of Health has rejected a company’s request to hold the Christmas Carnival event this year, according to Press Secretary Clint Watson.
This decision comes even though operators of the event brought their equipment into the country and have already set up many of the attractions, with one representative telling reporters yesterday it cost “a lot” to bring and set everything up.
Joseph Alberts, manager and coordinator of Midways by McCafferty Enterprises, said his company will now “talk to other people in the political platform” in hope the government will change its decision.
He claims health officials never came to the site to inspect the area.
“I don’t know what it cost (to bring everything in and set up) but the boats are expensive,” he said.
“Mr McCafferty who owns the carnival, he handles all the expenses, but I know a ship ain’t cheap. But we’re gonna work on it and see if… we invited (health officials) to come out and look at it and see how they like how safe it is and maybe they will reconsider…no one ever came to look at it.”
The rejection of the event proved controversial on social media yesterday, with many confused about how the operators were allowed to enter the country and set up without securing approval to host the event.
During a press conference at the Office of the Prime Minister yesterday, Mr Watson explained that while the operators were legally able to enter the country and set up, they never had official approval from the Ministry of Health, something he said should have been obtained first.
He said: “If you express a concern, you wanna come and so forth we say these are the approvals that are required, you can go and get approvals from various things. Included in that was, of course, the health protocol that will be required from the Ministry of Health. I think that was the final approval they were waiting on. It’s not a matter of ‘we’re here and we’re hoping that this happens’. The agreement that is made every year is that you come into the country, you make your request to come in, we tell you the approvals that will be necessary… but at the end of the day all of the approvals have to be in place.”
He added: “They never had approval from the Ministry of health, that’s what they were waiting on.. . .Let me explain it a different way, you can come to the country and say I want to come to try and set up shop to do something particular.
“You’re not breaking the law by doing that. Particularly if you follow the customs requirements, approvals to get a particular facility, you can do that.
“. . .Those agencies are not going to say ‘where’s your health approval’. . .My thing is at the end of the day, what needed to be sourced first was that health approval before taking everything else. . .”
Mr Watson said the health advisory committee which has been meeting since the start of the pandemic to give approvals to events found several reasons not to approve the carnival.
“Social distancing is a key tool in mitigating (the) spread of the virus,” he said. “As the holiday carnival is usually categorised as an event where people associate in close quarters, the Ministry of Health was not adequately satisfied that people from separate households will remain three to six feet apart from each other.
“The carnival falls into the same category as concerts and other large events. Two main groups, that being children aged 11 years and younger, and younger adults have been identified as vulnerable groups who could be negatively impacted. Specifically, children aged 11 years and younger do not have access to any vaccines against COVID-19 in The Bahamas which leaves them susceptible to contracting the virus and spreading it. For younger adults, they’ve been identified by data as being the largest group of individuals who have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus across all three waves.”
Health officials were also not satisfied that carnival organisers would consistently enforce rules.
“The fact of the matter is the risk outweighs any benefit envisioned,” Mr Watson said. “During the application process, the responsiveness and behaviour of the persons associated with the request for approval has been less than ideal as emails have gone unanswered and the illusion made in the press that the Ministry of Health and Wellness does not have any jurisdiction on the holding of the carnival has given rise to concern of the level of regard for this ministry that is required for the ministry to have confidence that it can help organisers manage and guide this event safely.”
Mr Watson said while organisers did not say how many are expected to attend the event, officials anticipate that “it will exceed numbers seen as high risk for concerts and other outdoor activities.”
He said: “Recently, requests submitted to the Ministry of Health and Wellness for events of this scale have not been approved and approving at this stage will reflect a significant deviation from the ministry’s standards for approving these types of requests.”
Mr Alberts recently told reporters that Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis gave the company permission to host its event. Former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis has since pounced on that claim to say Mr Davis is at odds with Health Minister Dr Michael Darville.
Asked if Mr Davis gave the carnival approval, Mr Watson said: “Absolute nonsense. The Prime Minister has never spoken about this issue, neither has he been involved in this issue. An operator says they got approval from somebody and a national leader in our country then says the Prime Minister and Minister of Health are on different pages? How can you take that based on what somebody has said outside of your country? The Prime Minister does not approve carnivals coming into the country.”
Yesterday, Dr Minnis said the Davis administration has still failed to clearly explain how the operator got permission to bring in its equipment and set them up.
“Obviously approval had to be given,” he said. “Approval had to be given for them to come through customs, ship their things, ship their supplies and equipment into the country (and) obtain temporary work permits for assistance.”
Dr Minnis said under his administration, people would typically apply to the Ministry of Finance first. He suggested the government may now be on the hook for thousands of dollars.
“The procedure under us was that an application to the Ministry of Finance would subsequently be referred to the Ministry of Health,” he said. “Health would then send their opinion to my office, whether approval or not. That was then taken to Cabinet. Cabinet was informed and then we would approve it and I would come forward as the spokesman for Cabinet, but all agencies were involved.
“We want to know where the initial application went to? Who is in charge of finance? The Prime Minister.”
Comments
TalRussell 2 years, 4 months ago
Latest news that sometin' is goin' on with management atop hill at the Guardian's all talkie radio station over sackin' their intended co-host Anthon Thompson's hiring to co-host alongside Comrade Juan.
Could be a shift why de station's management is now looking brung aboard to express an even more carnival-like talkie atmosphere to sit alongside Juan. cause management is now lookin' closely at engaging the even more popoular talkie host Ortland H. Bodie Jr as de show's permanent co-host and everything else like this and that why full Carnival programming soon come studio atop de hill, ― Yes?
stillwaters 2 years, 4 months ago
Eyewitness News, through ambush questioning, got the carnival owner to speak the truth about his permission to open his carnival. Nobody told the poor fellow that it was a secret....so now he's paying the price of calling the PM's name. Now Clint, who once called out every lie the FNM uttered......is sent out to lie himself. When are we ever going to get to this government actually governing????
sheeprunner12 2 years, 4 months ago
This is not over ........... Carnival will find a way to open (if Brave is mixed up in this)
TigerB 2 years, 4 months ago
Strike One!
TalRussell 2 years, 4 months ago
A surprising Christmas 2021 start which at bare minimum, there's expectation for a full confession by someone in higher authority, and other than the premier's unofficial spokesman Anthon Thompson, must forthwith step forward frankly explain, exactly how a foreigner operator went about uninterrupted importing millions of dollars whilst clearing customs and setting up shop on a in full view site is owned and maintained by de UK Colony's government and everything else like this and that over de erection of a Ferris wheel, standing at 50 foots tall and features 16-three passenger seats and 5,000 light bulbs that would've been obvious to even someone official has but a one eyeball sighted eye?
Also thinking, how 83 workers got to clear immigration ― Yes?
themessenger 2 years, 4 months ago
Simple solution for Brave & Darville dem, gie da man he money (donation) back and tell him carry his ass.
ThisIsOurs 2 years, 4 months ago
sounds like a good ole shakedown from those mafia real life movies. Where the meat packers have to pay to operate or get shut down and worse. "Sounds like". quacks like it too
LastManStanding 2 years, 4 months ago
Exactly what I thought following this story. Sounds like someone needs a "full belly" in order to grant the approval. There is no way that they shipped rides here without having approval, those shipping fees were probably in the six figure range.
John 2 years, 4 months ago
Meanwhile the details on the Omicron virus is that It does not cause breathing problems like the other strains. Most persons admitted for Omnicron do not require oxygen. The average stay for a patient admitted with Omnicron is 2 days compared to 8 days with the other strains. Patients are usually treated with steroids and are released shortly thereafter because when they are admitted, they have already passed the critical stage of the viral attack. And most patients who are hospitalized with Omnicron were admitted for other ailments. It was only through routine testing and treatment of the other illnesses that they were discovered to have Omnicron. It is also believed that patients who have the Omnicron and recovered will now have natural immunity to all the other strains of Covid-19. This is yet to be confirmed.
realfreethinker 2 years, 4 months ago
What is the reason for not approving the carnival? There are no scientific reasons for not holding the carnival. I thought the new day gov was on the side of opening up the economy. New day same shit.
bahamianson 2 years, 4 months ago
Lol
whogothere 2 years, 4 months ago
Just make it a vax only event - because they work...eh..right?
Or has the whole horse and pony show been for nothing?
ThisIsOurs 2 years, 4 months ago
Alberts should not have called the health minister "confused"
John 2 years, 4 months ago
The problem is (at least a part of the problem) is they cannot justify not approving Junkanoo but approving Carnival. Errybody would think Minnis is still the incompetent authority.
bahamianson 2 years, 4 months ago
watson and the plp must answer this debacle. this is just unbelievable. Who is running the country? who is in charge?
TimesUp 2 years, 4 months ago
According to recent acts being passed the overlord of health now seems solely in charge of the country.
licks2 2 years, 4 months ago
Therein is the problem. . .he must first call a "state of emergency" to be able to say who can or cannot freely associate!! I saw this dumb situation coming far back!! According to Article 29 of our consitution only the competent authority ca do so. . .ONLY AFTER GETTING AN EMERGENCY ORDER FROM THE GG!! OTHERWISE, APPROVAL FOR CARNIVAL OPENING IS NOT THE PERVIEW OF MOH!!!
THE GOVERNMENT WILL BE SUED IF THEM PEOPLE CANNOT OPERATE AS APPROVED BY THE RELEVENT AUTHORITY. . .NOT MOH!!
TimesUp 2 years, 4 months ago
Sounds like Clint is sneakily saying that they got approval from the people that always traditionally grant them approval but that this time they should have magically known that they needed approval from the overlord puppet master (who they insulted) in the ministry of health.
How "us" of us! only in the Bahamas where every process, permit, document and request is shrouded in secrecy and our own internal made up rules.
Proguing 2 years, 4 months ago
Well it did not take them long to demonstrate that they are no better than Minnis to lead the country...
licks2 2 years, 4 months ago
This group is not one of "we peoples dem" who Clint them can talk fool around!! Clint is so out of his dept that he did not see where "he let the cat outta da bag" that those people had their approval meetings with the authorities. . .act like they "een on Dr. Darville's run". . .set up their "ting". . .still without dr Darville's "blessing"!!
It is plain as the nose on my face that Clint "WAS IN THE MEETING" and he too as well as Dr, Darville had a problem with their attitudes them!! The man said that his approval was given by the PM and proceeded to "put up he things them" right out in the open where Dr. D them was saying heen gave no approvals for them to "set nuttin up"!
Both Dr. and Clint "sat on they azz" while the people dem set up they things them!! The carnival man went in the press and say they have approvals from the relevent authorities and will be starting they show in a lil bit!! He did not need any approvals from MOH to operate. . .he had approvals from where he needed them from!!
Then come along Dr. and Clint. . ."carnival need approvals from MOH or they can't operate. . .just a few days before the show was scheduled to kick off mind you!!
What a lame two. . .don't they remember that our state of emergency ended 14 November!!! WE HAVE NO COMPETENT AUTHORITY NO MORE!!
THEREFORE, MINISTRY DO NOT DETERMINE WHO CAN OPERATE IN THIS COUNTRY!!
SEE UNNA AT THE CARNIVAL PEEPS!! DR. DARVILLE EEN GAT THE POWER TO STOP THIS ONE. . .CLINT DON'T KNOW ANY BETTER TO TELL HIM BETTER!!!
licks2 2 years, 4 months ago
Bouy oh bouy. . .they lifted the ban on travelers from South Africa to prevent Omicron invading the Bahamas! On the same day. . .carnival can't operate to prevent spread COVID? Which one. . .DELTA or OMICRON???
Junkanoo can't happen so to stop COVID. . .but South Africans can now come and they having the world's worse COVID problem???
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