News

Press Statement from Former Premier – Dr. The Hon. Rufus Ewing

Published

6 years ago

December 15, 2017

#TurksandCaicos, December 15, 2017 – Providenciales – Three months after the passage of the major Hurricanes Irma and Maria, Former Premier Dr. The Hon. Rufus Ewing states:

“I cannot understand why we have to wait so long for our children to get into permanent classrooms and public officers to get back to Grand Turk or into their healthy workplaces while the Government takes the bureaucratic route of first going to the House of Assembly for a Supplementary budget when a contingency warrant using the Excess Expenditure provision of the Constitution could have been approved the day after the hurricane on a case by case assessment basis.”

He further stated:

“…the Government is either weak, incompetent or is ignorant of the authority and power that they have legally and constitutionally.”

Read full article below.

It has now been over 90 days since the passage of the two devastating hurricanes Irma and Maria, and while the Turks and Caicos Islands is open for business in our main economic sector of tourism mainly on the Island of Providenciales, the rest of the Turks and Caicos Islands remains unrecovered, both in the public sector and private sector.

The pace of recovery in these islands is unacceptably slow as measured by the return to normalcy of essential and public services particularly in the harder hit islands of our capital Grand Turk and the islands of South Caicos and Salt Cay. Also unacceptably slow is the slow pace at which our residents are struggling to return to normalcy as they seek shelter with a water proof roof over their heads.

What could have or should have been done speed up the recovery process? Much more could have been done to allow our people to face the Christmas with hope and a peace of mind, but I would only focus on one action at this time.

I know all too well that within the framework of the Turks and Caicos Constitution, executive action from cabinet is derived from the consensus of all members of cabinet both elected and non-elected. But despite these actions requiring the approval of the Governor, His Excellency must approve unless there is violation of governance principles or the matter is one which is the absolute responsibility of the Governor such as internal security, defense, foreign affairs and the public service.

The execution of policies with financial implications that fall outside of the absolute responsibility of the Governor is the prerogative of the elected government. Hence the hands of the government are not tied where there is an urgent need to execute policies of public good for which a government was elected.

The exception to this rule was when there was a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) who had powers to veto the decision of cabinet members and prevent expenditure on policies that he thought were not in the best financial interest of the Government. Several clear examples of his disregard for the best interest and social good of our people can be referenced during his tenure in office. But there is no more CFO! And there no longer exists a need for hands to be tied where our duly elected government has the emergent need to execute policies such as returning to normalcy essential and public services after two devastating hurricanes. If such is the case, then the Government is either weak, incompetent or is ignorant of the authority and power that they have legally and constitutionally.

In fact, the access to the contingency fund (emergency fund) for the purpose of recovery of the islands, in particular essential and public services rests solely in the hands of the Minister of Finance and not even Cabinet. Section 118 (1) of the Turks and Caicos Constitution and Section 7 of the Public Finance Management states “The Minister (Finance), if he or she is satisfied that there is an urgent and unforeseen need for expenditure for which no provision has been made by an Appropriation Ordinance or a Supplementary Appropriation Ordinance may, by a Contingencies Warrant under his or her hand and in anticipation of the grant of an appropriation by the Legislature, authorize an advance from the Consolidated Fund to meet that need and shall forthwith report his or her action to the Cabinet.” Even though section 118 (2) of the Constitution requires the Minister to obtain the approval of the Governor, this provision is rarely invoked and if it was and refused, the matter should be brought to cabinet.

Therefore, the question to be asked is

Whether the emergency repairs to schools, clinics, government offices and clean up programs to remove hazards and public health threats among others are truly considered by this government to be an emergency?

If they are considered emergency, then a Contingency Warrant should have been issued to access funds from the Consolidated Fund to expedite recovery of these islands without having to obtain cabinet approval or much less await a sitting of the House of Assembly.

If the argument why this was not done was that the Governor refused the approval of the warrant by the Minister of Finance, then this matter should have been brought before Cabinet for consensus and approval.

If the argument was that an insufficient amount was budgeted in the Contingency Fund and a supplementary budget is necessary, then again, this argument does not hold water as Section 117 of the Constitution allows for Excess Expenditure. This is expenditure above and beyond what was budgeted.

Given all of these provisions in the Constitution and the Public Finance Management Ordinance to effect policies with financial implications, I am still baffled as to why damaged government schools, clinics and offices where children and civil servants are displaced have not been touched and why major cleanup of hazardous debris posing public health threats have not been cleaned up. I cannot understand why we have to wait so long for our children to get into permanent classrooms and public officers to get back to Grand Turk or into their healthy workplaces while the Government takes the bureaucratic route of first going to the House of Assembly for a Supplementary Warrant when a contingency warrant using the Excess Expenditure provision of the Constitution could have been approved the day after the hurricane on a case by case assessment basis.

Is the inaction due to a lack of vision, or lack of ability, a slow learning curve, lack of assertiveness, lack of money or lack of care and concern? As Turks and Caicos Islanders I am sure we all care about the well-being of our people, because generally that’s who we are, a caring people, so it must be because of all of the other reasons. But the inaction cannot be due to lack of money, because one year ago the Government was in a position of fiscal surplus. If there is no longer a fiscal surplus then where has all the money gone? Is it that there was wasted expenditure? But on what? Travel? Nothing was done to show where the money went. Has revenue dropped significantly due to poor fiscal management and failure to find new revenue streams or expand existing revenue streams? Or was it the hurricanes? Historical budgets will show that the majority of government revenue comes in the tourism months November- July/August. So a hurricane occurring in September would impact the government revenue for that month and going forward but not immediately erode months and years of surplus. So the questions are where has the money gone? And why is there much inaction in the recovery of these islands especially Grand Turk, Salt Cay and South Caicos?

Enough excuses, enough is enough! We need real answers and more importantly we need real action!

Press Release: Dr. The Hon. Rufus W. Ewing

Bahamas News

Sister Province/Island Relationship Agreement Signed between Grand Bahama Island and Hunan Province

Published

21 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Deandrea Hamilton

By LLONELLA GILBERT
Bahamas Information Services

NASSAU, The Bahamas — A significant milestone was made in the development of bilateral relations between the Governments of The Bahamas and the People’s Republic of China by the signing of the Sister Province/Island Relationship Agreement between Grand Bahama Island and Hunan Province.

The signing took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. The Hon. Ginger Moxey, Minister for Grand Bahama; the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville, Minister of Health and Wellness; Kingsley Smith, Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama and Joel Lewis, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama represented The Bahamas at the signing.

His Excellency Mao Weiming, Governor of Hunan Provincial People’s Government; Qu Hai, Secretary General of Hunan Provincial People’s Government; Cui Wei, Charge d’Affaires, Embassy of the People’s Republic of China; and Yang Peiran, Interpreter represented the People’s Republic of China.

Minister Moxey explained that in February 2022, she and the former Chinese Ambassador to The Bahamas, Her Excellency Dai Qingli began discussion on the establishment of a province-island relationship between Hunan Province and Grand Bahama Island because of their “immense synergy”.

“Hunan has a vibrant creative industry and its capital city, Changsha is known as the entertainment capital of China, whilst Grand Bahama is poised to become the home of entertainment in ‘Our Bluepoint for Change’.”

She said Hunan Province boasts 11 industrial sectors and Grand Bahama is the industrial capital of The Bahamas. Further, innovation driven development has been a new driving force for Hunan, while Grand Bahama is poised to become the home of innovation for The Bahamas.

Minister Moxey said she is confident that an exchange of knowledge, ideas and culture will happen between the residents of Hunan Province and Grand Bahama.

“There is potential for robust trade in various sectors, opportunities for tourism promotion and intercultural appreciation, exchanges to support performing arts programs on our island, foster growth within the Orange Economy, and tap into China’s innovation, technology and vast expertise.”

She said that the formal signing aligns with the mission of Sister Cities International, which is to promote peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation, one community at a time.

The Minister said, “Through collaborative programs and initiatives, this connection will support the government’s vision to diversity Grand Bahama’s economy to become the Home of Maritime and Logistics, Home of Events and Entertainment and Home of Innovation.”

She noted that in addition to signing the agreement, she looks forward to Grand Bahama residents benefitting from the signing of the Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding between Central South University and University of The Bahamas (UB), which will expand educational and technical cooperation between the two universities. The northern campus of UB is located in Grand Bahama.

His Excellency Mao Weiming said although geographically far apart, China and The Bahamas are friends with mutual respect and understanding as well as sincerity.

He explained that 27 years ago, both countries established diplomatic relations and China and The Bahamas have deepened their cooperation, strengthened their friendship and carried out many activities in the field of economy, trade and people-to-people exchange.

His Excellency recalled that in August 2022, he and Prime Minister and the Minister of Finance the Hon. Philip Davis had a video conference where they both reached a consensus to cooperate in order to usher a new chapter in the relationship between Hunan and The Bahamas.

“Today, we are here to sign a sister-to-sister relationship between Hunan and Grand Bahama. It is [a] concrete move to implement our consensus reached before and also to embark on a new journey of friendly exchanges.”

He added, “By establishing the relationship of sister cities, I believe the two sides will develop further in terms of economic and trade cooperation, people to people exchange, as well as friendship, and we will embrace new opportunities and deliver concrete benefits for the two peoples.”

He explained that Hunan, which is the home town of Chairman Mao, the founder of the People’s Republic of China, has developed very advanced industries of manufacturing, agriculture, education, culture as well as tourism.

His Excellency said he believes that Hunan and Grand Bahama enjoy very broad room for cooperation.

He said, “More efforts should be made to conduct cooperation in the fields of agriculture, tourism, culture, education and the film industry so as to realize a connectivity between our two sides in terms of logistics and the platform cooperation; so as to deliver concrete benefits for the people and to make our due contribution to the bilateral relationship between China and The Bahamas.”

PHOTO CAPTION

A significant milestone was made in the development of bilateral relations between the Governments of The Bahamas and the People’s Republic of China by the signing of the Sister Province/Island Relationship Agreement between Grand Bahama Island and Hunan Province. The signing took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday, April 23, 2024. Shown from left: Qu Hai, Secretary General of Hunan Provincial People’s Government; Cui Wei, Charge d’Affaires, Embassy of the People’s Republic of China; Yang Peiran, Interpreter H.E. Mao Weiming, Governor of Hunan Provincial People’s Government; the Hon. Ginger Moxey, Minister for Grand Bahama; the Hon. Dr. Michael Darville, Minister of Health and Wellness; Kingsley Smith, Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama and Joel Lewis, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama.

(BIS Photos/Anthon Thompson)

Bahamas News

Nassau Cruise Port Donates Nearly $2 Million Towards Food Security

Published

21 hours ago

April 25, 2024

Deandrea Hamilton

Nassau, Bahamas: The Nassau Cruise Port has donated $1.95 million towards projects that will assist the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources in its aim to increase food security for The Bahamas.

The donation officially occurred at the Ministry’s offices recently, where Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources Hon. Jomo Campbell, Minister of Labour Hon. Pia Glover-Rolle, Permanent Secretary Neil Campbell and Nassau Cruise Port CEO Mike Maura listened to a number of presentations including one for a poultry programme for schools, a chicken broiler production programme, the redevelopment of the Blue Hill Road Farmers Market and an Authentic Bahamian Cultural Concept Store,

Mr. Maura said he was impressed by the presentations.

“I had the privilege to listen to the presentations and review presentations that touched on food security and the need for us to be self-sufficient, which as a Bahamian I support completely. At the Nassau Cruise Port, we get excited about the prospects of offering more authentic food to the millions of visitors that we have each year,” he said.

“And then, in addition to that, we had presentations around the further development of our artisans, which is so important to us as well. The guests visiting our shores are looking for something that really touches The Bahamas and can’t be found somewhere else. The Nassau Cruise Port has made a pledge to BAIC and its affiliates. We will be supporting the projects that were presented and we can’t wait to get started.”

Minister Glover-Rolle, who is also the Member of Parliament for Golden Gates, hailed Nassau Cruise Port as a “great community partner.”

“Thank you for the opportunity to not only present but agreeing to participate. Our Minister of Agriculture has a goal of reducing food imports by 25 percent by the year 2025 and our project in the Golden Gates Community speaks to that,” she said.

“We have a number of backyard farmers, farmers and fishers in our community in Golden Gates. Being able to use the Blue Hill Road Farmers Market, which is going to be dubbed the ‘Fish Fry of the South,’ as a hub for food security but also a hub where artisans and handicraft persons can come and sell their wares is wonderful. So, we are happy that you have agreed to partner with us and we look forward to a partnership and we hope to welcome some of your visitors when this amazing renovation is done.”

Minister Campbell also lauded the Nassau Cruise Port for its efforts.

“I would like to say thank you to the presenters for the presentations that are several steps in the right direction for our country, to Mr. Maura and his board at the Nassau Cruise Port and I would like to say thanks to God for this partnership and bringing us all together as we move forward, upward, together in building a better, brighter, future for The Bahamas,” he said.

Caribbean News

Agriculture Ministry Providing Two Water Trucks to Serve St. Elizabeth and St. Catherine

Published

2 days ago

April 25, 2024

Deandrea Hamilton

#Kingston, Jamaica, April 24, 2024 – The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining is to unveil two more water trucks this week, which will be used to service communities in St. Elizabeth and St. Catherine.

Portfolio Minister, Hon. Floyd Green, made the disclosure during Wednesday’s (April 24) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.

He also informed that of the $90 million earmarked to support farmers being impacted by the current drought, the Ministry will be providing additional support for storage and drip-irrigation systems.

“So, we have targeted about 600 water tanks and about 400 12-millimetre drip irrigation hoses, and that distribution has already started. Additionally, we have earmarked about $8 million to really help with our livestock farmers,” Mr. Green said.

“We know the difficulty that you’re facing now in this time; [it’s] very hard to get the right nutritional support for your animals. As such, we will be providing some hay, and we will [also] provide some trucking of water to you. Again, our livestock farmers, if you are in need, please contact the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) and let us see how we can help in these times,” he further stated.

Mr. Green also encouraged farmers to download the RADA App, so that the Agency can “help guide you, not only in relation to what is happening on the rainfall side, but also in relation to your integrated pest management”.

“We do see some increases of certain types of pests during this time, and it’s important that our farmers are paying attention to that. It’s also important that you’re taking drought management seriously [by undertaking] soil mulching, looking at planting drought-tolerant crops, timely harvesting, implementing land husbandry treatments and contour ditches,” he stated.

Contact: Latonya Linton

Release: JIS

Photo Caption: Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green, speaking during Wednesday’s (April 24) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.

Donald De La Haye Photo