The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

NEARLY three months after an arson attack destroyed the male dormitory at the Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute in North Andros government officials are still “not ready” to confirm reconstruction details.

When asked to comment on the matter yesterday, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Works Philip “Brave” Davis insisted that he was “not ready to give any update” on the matter. He referred all questions to Arnold Forbes, minister of state for public works.

However when questioned, Mr Forbes subsequently said: “We are working on it. That is the only update at this time.”

When asked about funding to rebuild the dorm, Mr Forbes said: “That is something the prime minister will have to answer.”

Mr Davis last month revealed that the government would incur $3 million in additional costs to rebuild the dormitory due to ordinary inflation, value added tax (VAT) expenses, and the government’s decision to reconfigure the dorm units from single to double occupancy.

“Estimates in hand target the reconstruction cost at around $5.5 million,” Mr Davis told the House of Assembly on March 11.

The outstanding $2.5 million covers the original cost of the structure.

Mr Davis at the time said that the contractor is liable for $2.5 million.

A massive fire gutted the male dormitory at BAMSI on January 15. Following the blaze, officials in the Ministry of Works and Ministry of Agriculture gave mixed answers in the face of questions about the building’s insurance.

Agriculture Minister V Alfred Gray initially told The Tribune that he was unsure if the building was insured, while Ministry of Works Permanent Secretary Colin Higgs was quoted as confirming that the building had insurance coverage.

In February, Mr Davis told parliamentarians that the building was not insured at the time of the fire because the contractor, Audley Hanna of Paradigm Construction, allowed the policy to lapse due to non-payment.

However, two weeks later he backtracked in the House of Assembly. At that time, he told the House that the contractor had never provided proof of all-risk insurance, as required, but only gave the Ministry of Works a price quote for six months’ insurance coverage.

Free National Movement Leader Dr Hubert Minnis has charged that the irresponsible nature of the Christie-led government was to blame for the circumstances at BAMSI. The FNM has called for Mr Davis to resign from Cabinet for “misleading” the House over the dorm’s insurance coverage.

Dr Minnis has said that the idea of BAMSI could work if the project was in better hands.