Member of Parliament for St. Anne’s Brent Symonette tendered his resignation as minister of financial services, trade and industry and immigration, effective July 1, 2019. 

Cabinet Office made the announcement of Mr. Symonette’s resignation yesterday and indicated that Yamacraw Member of Parliament Elsworth Johnson will take on Mr. Symonette’s responsibilities as the new minister, effective July 1, 2019.  

Mr. Johnson is a former president of the Bahamas Bar Association and former minister of state in the Office of the Attorney General and Ministry of Legal Affairs.

Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis said, “I thank Mr. Brent Symonette for his service to the country over many years. While he will no longer serve in Cabinet, his constituents in St. Anne’s will continue to have an MP who cares about them.”

While Mr. Symonette has not revealed exactly why he resigned, the government has been under severe criticism in recent times over a number of contracts that companies in which Mr. Symonette is a shareholder would have received.

Among them are the new General Post Office at The Town Center Mall and a number of contracts that have been awarded to Bahamas Hot Mix, including one for the resurfacing of runways at the Lynden Pindling International Airport.

Last week, it was revealed that Bahamas Hot Mix received three separate contracts for the laying of water mains in Long Island.

Detractors of Mr. Symonette believed that he was conflicted in several matters as a Cabinet minister. 

However, Opposition Leader Philip Davis welcomes the announcement of Mr. Symonette’s resignation. 

“It is long overdue. He is emblematic of conflict of interest and self-dealing in the government. There are others who need to follow him,” Mr. Davis said. 

“Unfortunately, for him and Prime Minister Minnis, the conflicts will not be resolved by simply stepping away from the government, he will remain in the House and will continue to be an influence on the body politic.” 

Mr. Davis added that there must be a complete and thorough investigation and report of all that Mr. Symonette has accumulated since his latest venture into the government and determine whether he can account for the Bahamians on the issue of self-dealing.

Mr. Davis said the country should not be distracted by Mr. Symonette’s resignation because “the light now shines fully on the prime minister who led a government full of self-dealing and conflicts of interest.”

The Progressive Liberal Party plans to fully address this matter at a press conference on Tuesday. 

The Bahama Journal made several phones calls to Mr. Symonette and Mr. Johnson for a response, but the calls were unanswered up to press time.