The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

A Grand Bahama businessman yesterday urged the Davis administration not to freeze the island out for the next five years because it elected three Free National Movement (FNM) members.

James Rolle, Dolly Madison’s general manager, told Tribune Business: “Most of the success of any government comes from the representatives actually pushing and agitating the Government to get things done in their constituencies.

“The structure of Freeport is where the Government has, over the past couple of terms, actually put somebody in charge. So I’m hoping that the same thing will happen this time, and that we will have a working crew on the ground that is focusing specifically on revitalising the economy in Grand Bahama.”

Ginger Moxey, the Pineridge MP and former Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) executive, was yesterday appointed minister for Grand Bahama. Mr Rolle, meanwhile, added that reviving Grand Bahama’s moribund economy must be the priority, yet this cannot be accomplished with the island’s main airport in a state of disrepair.

“You need to have a solid, bonafide investor who is going to come in here and work with the hotels, but hotel beds and airlift go together. You can’t fill hotel beds without airlift. So our priority would really be to establish the airport as a place that can accommodate air travel,” Mr Rolle said.

Pedro Rolle, Exuma’s Chamber of Commerce president, said: “My expectation for Exuma, in particular, is that we are an island that is primed for take-off. I think it would a tremendous impact for the economy if the Government released the reins a bit, and allowed locals to control the reins to allow for diversification of investments, and allow local government to really be empowered to make decisions that impact the local economy.”

Pedro Rolle said he wants the Local Government Act to be amended to give Exuma, and other Family Islands, the ability to collect taxes and manage the resulting revenues as they see fit.

He argued that this would go a long way to rebuilding critical infrastructure on the islands, such as roads, as well as providing more reliable Internet services and electricity. “If government invests in infrastructure, you will see a huge difference on the island,” Pedro Rolle added.

Cheryl de Goicoechea, the Long Island Chamber of Commerce president, said she hopes the new government continues to do good things for the island despite its election of an FNM MP. “I would hope that the new government would not look at Long Island as a place where the FNM won their seat, but as a part of the country where everybody deserves a fair chance just like the other islands that voted for them,” she said.

“It would be great if they would continue getting the international airport project on the way, and we also need upgraded medical facilities here on the island. We definitely have a poor standard of medical facilities.”

Asserting that the new government needs to find a way to “boost the economy” in a way that would get incentives to investors, Ms de Goicoechea added: “There are some things that need to be done in a way that can make the island more appealing, but without investors we’re not going to move forward.”

Christopher Cates, the Lumber Shed’s owner/operator on Eleuthera, said: “It’s a feather in our cap that we have a member of parliament who is in the cabinet now. I congratulate Clay Sweeting on a fabulous win, and I wish the new PLP administration on their success. There is a lot to be done and they have their hands full.”

Adding that South Eleuthera, much like Exuma, is “on the cusp” via developments such as Disney Cruise Line’s Lighthouse Point project, Mr Cates said: “I’m excited that we have Mr Sweeting around the table when decisions are made.”