The Free National Movement (FNM) is calling on the Progressive Liberal Party-led (PLP) government to account for shifts in airport funding announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation Chester Cooper during the Exuma Business Outlook on Thursday last week.
Member of Parliament for East Grand Bahama Kwasi Thompson said in a statement released yesterday that the shuffling of money provided by the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) from the redevelopment of the Exuma airport and North Eleuthera airport, to fund the redevelopment of the Grand Bahama International Airport, “exposes a pattern of mismanagement and mistrust” from the government.
During the Exuma Outlook, Cooper said the funding for the redevelopment of Exuma’s George Town International Airport and the North Eleuthera International Airport are “now fully funded otherwise”.
Thompson lambasted Cooper for not disclosing what he meant when he said the two airports that SFD funding is being shifted away from are “funded otherwise”.
“Once again, Bahamians are watching a familiar show from the Davis administration, starring Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper and his ever-shifting promises,” said Thompson.
“Last week, during the Exuma Business Outlook, Mr. Cooper announced that the government has officially reallocated funds from the Saudi Fund for Development, originally meant for family island airports in North Eleuthera and George Town, Exuma, to fund the reconstruction of the Grand Bahama International Airport. He assured that ‘new funding sources’ will now cover those family island airports, but he never said who, what, or where those funds are coming from.
“Bahamians deserve the facts, not another episode of trust us, details to come.”
Thompson said he is concerned that these kinds of pronouncements, that lack details and often involve millions of dollars, could amount to hidden public debt in the form of public-private partnerships (PPP).
He said the government’s missing information is leading to a collapse of its credibility.
“Will the Bahamian people be saddled yet again with hundreds of millions in hidden ‘off the book’ loans dressed up as so-called public-private partnerships? While this government brags about fiscal success, it has been hiding untold millions of dollars in debt from the Bahamian people,” Thompson claimed.
“This is the reason why they have to keep these deals a secret. The Davis/Cooper administration knows that they are hiding public debt from the Bahamian people.”
He added: “It all points to the same troubling truth. This government’s credibility is collapsing under the weight of its own contradictions. You cannot build airports on broken promises, and you cannot rebuild trust with half-truths.”
Thompson spoke to the urgency of a new airport for Grand Bahama, which he said is tied to the redevelopment of the Grand Lucayan resort. He called for details on redevelopment of Grand Bahama’s airport.
“The redevelopment of the Grand Bahama International Airport is tied directly to the long-stalled Grand Lucayan project, another symbol of misplaced optimism and missing information,” said Thompson.
“We were told both would anchor Grand Bahama’s economic revival, yet we’ve seen more press releases than progress.
“And worse, still no $120 million in the bank. When will demolition begin? When will construction start? Who are the partners in this new deal? When will Grand Bahama have its new airport? Was $121 million received? When will the renovation start on the hotel? When will the hotel be fully turned over?”
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