Chairman of the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Bradley Roberts lashed out at the Free National Movement (FNM) and its members yesterday, claiming that the opposition refuses to stand up for Bahamians with regards to Baha Mar.
In a statement, Mr. Roberts said the back and forth between political parties over Baha Mar is distracting Bahamians from the central issue, a national issue, the immediate completion and opening of the $3.5 billion resort.
However, the PLP chairman said the FNM refuses to stand for Bahamians and do what is right for the betterment of the country.
“Minnis and his FNM colleagues say out of one side of their mouths that they want a quick resolution to this matter, but at every turn they seek to sabotage the process, manufacture distractions and division to sow seeds of discord to advance their decidedly narrow political agenda,” he said.
“This is a betrayal of public trust. At all material times the attorney general was appointed by the prime minister to observe and to report to the prime minister, all negotiations between the private parties with a view to protecting the national interests of The Bahamas. The decision to pay Bahamian workers when the developer refused to and threatened to fire them was one such decision as the government will not allow anybody to dangle those Bahamian workers at Baha Mar as a bargaining chip to rubberstamp a foreign court’s decision. No credible government will acquiesce to such tactics. The Bahamas government made the tough decision while pursuing a negotiated settlement.”
Mr. Roberts said the PLP has been working diligently to solve issues with Baha Mar whereas the opposition has chosen to make accusations and confusing claims instead of assisting the country with this now international dilemma.
“In the interest of transparency and to preserve the integrity of the legal process, Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Perry G. Christie went further, removed Mr. Gomez as lead negotiator and legal representative, replacing him with Mr. Simon Peter Knox, QC, a legal consultant,” said Mr. Roberts.
“The record is clear that at all times the government has acted in the best interests of the Bahamian people. The FNM cannot make such claims. They are unable to articulate exactly what the conflict of interest is. How is Attorney General Senator Allyson Maynard-Gibson and her family benefitting financially? There is evidence that her husband, Maxwell Gibson, along with other Bahamian contractors and creditors are losing money big time in this Baha Mar deal; that much is obvious.”
Mr. Roberts says enough is enough and red herring from the FNM will no longer be tolerated.
He extended appreciation for those that have been negatively affected by the Baha Mar debacle and urged the FNM to step up to the plate.
“The shameless waving of red herrings by the leader of the Free National Movement Hubert Minnis to distract the Bahamian people from these salient points and the principle objective of this Baha Mar discussion are unhelpful and fails to put Bahamians first. Minnis is putting the narrow political objectives of the FNM ahead of the national interest,” he said.
“He is not standing up for Bahamians. So far the FNM has failed to stand up for Bahamians. As usual they hide in the tall grasses, throw stones, make no sacrifice and hope that only they will benefit politically from the Baha Mar saga. How have they stood up for Bahamians? This is shameful and disgraceful. In the end the FNM must answer to the Bahamians as to why they refused to stand up for the Bahamian people.”
