The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor A LEADING businessman yesterday said there was "no Christ way on God's green earth" that the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) would be able to fully compensate every business affected by the New Providence Road Improvement Project (NPRIP) if they won the Government, arguing that all political parties were "selling a dream". Dionisio D'Aguilar, president of the Superwash laundromat chain, which has seen sales at its five locations affected by the roadworks plummet by up to 40 per cent, also described the FNM government's compensation proposals as "smoke and mirrors", saying they needed to be "more concrete and meaningful". Mr D'Aguilar, a former Bahamas Chamber of Commerce president, was speaking to Tribune Business after both the Ingraham administration and main Opposition party appeared to start competing with each other in a dash to compensate Bahamian-owned businesses heavily impacted by the past three years' roadworks on New Providence for their multi-million dollar losses. Many, like the Superwash owner, are viewing the proposals as a naked political ploy designed to win election votes, although any help would be welcomed by those entrepreneurs and companies still struggling to remain open,. Mr D'Aguilar suggested to Tribune Business that the Government grant incentives to impacted businesses such as National Insurance Board (NIB) contribution 'holidays', along with Business Licence credits worth several thousand dollars - especially if a company had multiple affected locations. Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, addressing the House of Assembly on Monday, had indicated that the Government was eyeing Business Licence fee and real property tax rebates for impacted businesses, subject to the results of a survey designed to assess their total roadworks-related losses. In response, Mr D'Aguilar told Tribune Business: "That's smoke and mirrors. That's not going to be meaningful; that's not concrete. They're vague generalisations. It's too late now if you're out of business." He pointed out that real property tax rebates would not benefit companies renting/leasing their premises, instead going to their landlords, while Business Licence fee concessions would be of little use to those firms that had already closed down. Calling for the Government to provide "something more concrete", the former Chamber president suggested: "If you have businesses operating in four affected corridors, and where you have paid Business Licence fees, give a $5,000-$10,000 credit a year to them, or do the same with NIB contributions." And, with the Government likely to have to raise taxes in the near future to pay down the $4.25 billion national debt and cover all its infrastructure borrowings, Mr D'Aguilar said businesses in the worst-affected corridors, such as Robinson Road and Prince Charles Drive, be exempted from such increases. The Prime Minister hinted, too, that the Government may provide grant assistance to businesses impacted by the New Providence Road Improvement Project, similar to what was offered by the Jump Start programme, which gave a maximum of $7,500 to budding entrepreneurs. Pointing out that all political parties were guilty of making promises they were unlikely to be able to keep, especially given the relatively empty Public Treasury, Mr D'Aguilar then switched his fire to the PLP, who had pledged that the collective multi-million dollar losses sustained via the roadworks would be paid back in full if the party wins the 2012 general election. "I read that this morning," he told Tribune Business, "and I said to myself that there is no Christ way on God's green earth that Perry Christie is going to compensate every businessman for every loss incurred doing these roadworks," Mr D'Aguilar told Tribune Business. "I'll believe it when I see it." Adding that he took such political promises "with an enormous grain of salt", he said: "I don't care what side of the political divide you're on, they're going to sell you a dream to get your vote. "Where are they [the PLP] going to get that money? I can't imagine we're all going to line up and get a cash payout from the Bahamas government. I think that that is political pandering once again. There's just no way, I don't believe it for a minute, and have got to see it to believe it." Mr D'Aguilar also questioned how any government, PLP or FNM, would be able to devise "a formula" for calculating the roadworks-related losses suffered by all impacted businesses. There would be a natural tendency to exaggerate the level of losses, and wrap up those incurred via other factors with those that were roadworks-related. Other questions related to what was to be done for those impacted companies no longer in business, and whether firms unaffected by the roadworks might try to dive in, too. "We've incurred heavy losses, don't get me wrong, but I don't believe the politicians right now," Mr D'Aguilar said. "They're going to sell you the dream that you're going to get paid, and if he [Perry Christie] delivers, to God be the Glory. "We ain't getting no cash from any Bahamas government, that's for sure. I don't care who's running it..... I think some irresponsible promises are being made right now."