TCI News
TCI Governor visits Haitians held at South Dock Road detention centre
#Providenciales, August 14, 2019 – Turks and Caicos – It takes the new TCI Governor to give the public access and insight into the detention center at South Dock road where a new group of Haitian migrants took up residence on Monday, following a successful interception.
In another of his regular reports at Instagram, His Excellency Nigel Dakin gives imagery to his visit of the site in Providenciales and speaks about what interpreters told him some of the most recent human smuggling victims had to say about their life in Haiti.
The Governor penned: “They describe their existence in Haiti as sub-human. I don’t doubt it. Some described their crossing as terrifying, forgetting the nausea and rough seas there was a fear of being thrown overboard if the ship risked capsize to reduce chronic overloading. They knew the waters were patrolled by sharks.”
The empathy for the group, whom he assured would be repatriated to Haiti within three days, did not sway the fact that the attempt at an illegal entry is a violation, not to be tolerated.
“I didn’t need to say it because at this point in their sad journey, they knew it – but I said it anyway – that they had paid criminals to, at best, place them in captivity – preventing them from legally migrating – and at worst, they’d put their lives in serious jeopardy while selling themselves into a life of exploitation. They’d basically been had, by conmen.”
The Governor told the illegal migrants that he saw them as victims and shared, “…the mistake they’d made was to take their chance making criminals wealthy on the back of their desperation. They nodded. They said they’d take this message back to Haiti.”
The mission, explained the governor is to get to the root of this issue of smuggling and the Instagram post informed that the National Security Strategy will focus on the people on the sloops as well as the facilitators, captains, money flows and the people in the Turks and Caicos Islands who “generate the pull factors here including employment.”
The latest group included 40 males and 12 females; mostly men in their twenties said the governor and some of the females were as young as 15 years old and many had left their children back in Haiti to make the voyage.
There was thanks to the staff at the South Dock Road Detention Center; their jobs characterized as “super emotional issue, super stressful, super important. I found them strong of purpose and human in approach.”
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TCIG knew from April that fuel factor could surge almost 80%; Minister says $500 cost-of-living payment was part of Government’s response
PROVIDENCIALES — The Turks and Caicos Government knew months before July’s shocking electricity bills that consumers faced a potentially massive increase in the fuel factor.
Minister of Information Technology and Energy E. Jay Saunders revealed Friday that Pelican Energy warned his Ministry in April that generation fuel costs were projected to rise from $3.09 per gallon in May to $4.79 in June and July.
That translated into a projected fuel factor jump from about 17.5 cents to 31 cents per kilowatt-hour — an increase of almost 80%.
Saunders said he personally advised Cabinet of the projected increase and presented options for cushioning the impact.
He characterised Government’s $500 cost-of-living payment as its “initial response” to rising fuel costs, before a separate fuel-factor subsidy was approved.
Cabinet records show Government agreed on June 24 to provide funding to mitigate the fuel-factor impact, with the relief programme approved July 8.
Eligible residential customers — those averaging less than $1,500 monthly over the previous three bills — are capped at 22 cents per kWh from July through October.
Pelican confirmed Friday that Government’s contribution was already applied to July bills, meaning the bills now triggering widespread public outrage would have been even higher without the subsidy.
Saunders did not disclose the programme’s total cost.
His admission that Government knew since April, however, raises another question amid the backlash: why were consumers not directly warned by Government about the scale of the approaching increase?
PROVIDENCIALES — New commercial Crown Land applications are facing a six-month pause as the Turks and Caicos Islands Government takes inventory of its holdings.
During Cabinet meetings held July 15 and 16, an immediate six-month moratorium was approved on the acceptance, processing
and approval of new applications for commercial Crown Land grants, leases and allocations.
The pause will remain in place pending completion of the Crown Land Inventory Review. Cabinet’s summary did not state what prompted the review or indicate whether availability of commercial Crown Land is a concern.
The two-day meeting also advanced major consumer legislation. Cabinet approved the National Fair Competition Policy 2026 and drafting instructions for a Fair Competition Ordinance, moving TCI toward stronger consumer protection and fair competition rules.
In Grand Turk, Cabinet approved rezoning land in the North West Suburbs from low-density to medium-density residential use to facilitate a new apartment development.
Cabinet also advanced fisheries reforms, water legislation allowing private and public-private investment, minerals legislation and appointments across tourism, health and finance.
Progress toward establishing a TCI Credit Union was also noted.
PROVIDENCIALES — Major development projects outside Providenciales received Cabinet attention on July 8, with Government approving agreements connected to the redevelopment of Dellis Cay and a resort development in North Caicos.
Cabinet approved a Development Agreement between the Turks and Caicos Islands Government, Desarrollos Hotelco DC Ltd. and
Desarrollos Hotelco Astoria Ltd. for the redevelopment of Dellis Cay.
The long-discussed private island development sits between Providenciales and North Caicos and its return to Cabinet signals another step toward redevelopment.
Cabinet also approved amendments to an agreement involving SPR LND Ltd. (Royal Reef) and TCIG Development Agreement for a resort/hotel development in North Caicos.
Other decisions included approval of the First Supplementary Appropriation Bill 2026 for onward transmission and the appointment of Cindy Ewing as Chair of the Invest TCI Board, effective August 1 for three years.
Cabinet also noted consultation outcomes concerning changes to business licensing, approved professional membership expenses for qualifying Telecommunications Commission staff and approved advice relating to the Interim Clinical and Estates Services PPP.
The July 8 meeting was chaired by Acting Governor Anya Williams.
Photo Credit: Royal Reef (Keith)
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