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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020
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Med closure Activists voice fears over Club a ‘unique situation’ developer EIA ‘loopholes’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
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CTIVISTS yesterday voiced “shock” that newly-tabled regulations to safeguard the Bahamian environment contain multiple “loopholes” that will allow “inappropriate development projects to slip through”. Sam Duncombe, reEarth’s president, told Tribune Business that yesterday’s House of Assembly tabling of regulations governing Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) conduct and practices was both “a shock and a slap in the face” as it appeared that much of the environmental community’s recommendations
• Slam regulations tabling as ‘slap in the face’ • Tabled version ‘horrid mistake’ • Bonds cut from 50% to 5% of project value
SAM DUNCOMBE
ROMAULD FERREIRA
never made it into the final version. The EIA regulations’ tabling brings them into effect, but Ms Duncombe said she was hoping they are
“a horrible mistake” that will be “yanked” and ultimately revised. She added that, in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian’s devastation and the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic, it was vital that the EIA regulations be “as robust as possible” to ensure all developers “dot the ‘i’s’ and cross the ‘t’s’”. Mrs Duncombe was backed by fellow environmentalist, Casuarina McKinney-Lambert, the Bahamas Reef Environment Educational Foundation (BREEF) executive director, who told this newspaper it was “incredibly frustrating that this important piece
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QC says ‘pay to play’ undercuts rule of law By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A PROMINENT QC yesterday charged “there’s no sense in having the rule of law if you have to pay to play” as he seeks the Privy Council’s go-ahead for an appeal involving an Abaco marina project. Fred Smith QC, the Callenders & Co attorney and partner, told Tribune Business the outcome of his approach to the highest court in the Bahamian judicial system was “pivotal” for the ability of Family Island activists to challenge “deeppocketed developers” and the government. Speaking out as his client, Responsible Development for Abaco (RDA), seeks the Privy Council’s permission to appeal a Court of Appeal verdict requiring it
• Activists seek Privy Council ‘go’ to fight $250k security • Smith: ‘Pivotal’ to battle ‘deep pocketed developers’ • Filings say constitutional rights to courts being denied
FRED SMITH QC to pay $250,000 as “security for costs” to the government and the Abaco Club, Mr Smith said success was critical to enabling “grassroots organisations to have their day in court”.
Bahamians told: Be more scam ‘savvy and sceptical’
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
BAHAMIANS were yesterday urged to become “more savvy and sceptical” to prevent themselves becoming victims of an “uptick” in financial scams as criminals seek to exploit the COVID19 pandemic. Kendrick Christie, pictured, the Crowe Bahamas accountant and partner, and a past president of the local Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) chapter, told Tribune Business that too
many persons “tend to just put our guard down” when get-rich-quick schemes are presented to them. He warned Bahamians to be especially cautious if something appears too good to be true, and said alarm bells should be triggered by any investment-related scheme offering huge rates of return; requiring them to find other persons to invest in it; or levying penalty fees for the withdrawal of their funds. Mr Christie said these were classic signs of a
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Out Island resorts eye COVID testing savings
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
FAMILY Island hotels are exploring how they can “pool resources” to substantially lower the costs associated with testing staff, vendors and suppliers regularly for COVID-19. Kerry Fountain, the Bahamas Out Island Promotion Board’s (BOIPB) executive director, told Tribune Business that it was working out how its 30-plus member properties can exploit “economies of scale” by buying the rapid COVID-19
testing kits in bulk from the supplier. Revealing that the Board has identified the BinaxNOW test produced by the healthcare firm, Abbott, as a potential candidate, Mr Fountain said The Bahamas’ safe tourism re-opening from October 15 onwards depends on creating a “safe bubble” for the entire guest experience - not just the “Vacation in Place” in the hotels. This, he explained, meant it was critical to also test staff at dive, scuba and
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Arguing that the future conduct of such public interest litigation in The Bahamas was at stake, he added of the case: “This is of pivotal importance to grassroots organisations that are simply insisting on being consulted before Cabinet secretly enters into agreements with foreign developers at the expense of local communities. “I wish I could drill it into the heads of the people in Nassau that the Family Islands are not colonies of Nassau, and that we must respect the locals. Every island is different, and it is disrespectful for Cabinet and the National Economic
Council (NEC) to continue to impose development on Family Island communities without consultation. “This is important because if we’re successful it will prevent the deep financial pockets of the developer from denying Family Island grassroots organisations their day in court. There’s no sense in having rule of law if you have to pay to play. It’s far too expensive for Family Island communities to fight both the government and the rich foreign developer.” RDA’s submissions seeking the Privy Council’s
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DIONISIO D’AGUILAR
DARRIN WOODS
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
However, Darrin Woods, the Bahamas Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers Union’s (BHCAWU) president, told this newspaper he was seeking an urgent meeting with the prime minister to call on the government to do whatever is necessary to prevent San Salvador’s economy from “imploding”. Arguing that at least two members of every household on the island either worked at Club Med or in companies that provided supplies/ services to it, Mr Woods urged the government to establish “makeshift” medical facilities on the island of sufficient size and quality to allay the resort chain’s fears about an inability to cope with a COVID-19 outbreak among guests, staff and residents. The union chief, when asked whether Club Med will pay the resort’s 160-180 staff their due severance and termination pay, said the BHCAWU was in the process of beginning those discussions with the operator after being informed of its decision on Monday. “It’s devastating for the economy of San Salvador for it to be that long,” Mr D’Aguilar told Tribune Business yesterday of Club Med’s move. “December 2021 is, as you can imagine, an exceptionally long time. It’s 15 months, and Club Med is the single
A CABINET minister yesterday said Club Med’s decision to close its San Salvador property until December 2021 is not indicative of the COVID19 re-opening prospects for other Family Island resorts. Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation, told Tribune Business that the Columbus Isle property represented a “special situation” that was not reflective of other Out Island hotels due to its reliance on longhaul European visitors for the vast majority of its customer base. Acknowledging that Club Med’s decision will be “devastating” for San Salvador, given that its major employer and source of economic activity will have been closed for 21 months since the pandemic started, Mr D’Aguilar pledged that the government is “exploring all its options” for mitigating the inevitable fall-out for the island’s residents. He provided no details, but argued that there was little the Minnis administration could have done to “remove the significant obstacles” that resulted in Club Med ranking its Columbus Isle property “low” when it came to determining which locations it can re-open safely amid COVID-19.
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