Following the release of a viral video two days ago that painted an unflattering picture of The Bahamas, the Ministry of Tourism is in damage control mode to asses and contain the situation.

Minister of Tourism Dionisio D’Aguilar announced that the ministry is in damage control mode during a press conference yesterday morning.

Mr. D’Aguilar acknowledged that social media played an integral role in the situation noting that social media has created a platform for people to post anything, be it true or otherwise.

“It’s unfortunate and when I watched it and said ‘good gracious me.’ This is the disadvantage of social media, you cannot control the content and this will happen from time to time.  People will put out fake news about your destination and it’s up to our marketing team to counter that,” he said.

“Rest assured we will respond to that and try to see the penetration. Obviously, in this jurisdiction it’s a lot of traction, but we’ll see whether its gain traction in other areas of the world. Our marketing team will determine how far and wide its travelled and we will put up a message that counters that.”

The video listed five reasons why not to visit New Providence.

The reasons included a claim that it presents a serious threat to tourists in light of recent rapes and muggings, that the water sports industry is not regulated neither is the staff trained and that non-tourist areas should not be visited at night as that is where the most violent crimes occur.

“Of course, we will redouble our marketing efforts to counter such information. We have our problems,” he said.

“But the benefits of travelling to The Bahamas, the enjoyment and the people far outweigh the issue brought in that video.”