The Tribune

By KHRISNA VIRGIL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

LONG Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner yesterday accused the government of “rank victimisation and cronyism” as emergency service vehicles in her constituency remain without a nearby source of fuel, placing the lives of residents in a “precarious” position before the arrival of Tropical Storm Erika.

According to the Free National Movement MP this is because the government, without notice, pulled the contract from a

company that provided fuel to government emergency and essential services on the island for around 50 years.

She said it was the government’s intention to have Sun Oil in Long Island take on the contract; however the agreement has not been signed.

While she admitted that the initial contract was signed with a well-known FNM supporter, she said her concern was that Sun Oil’s location on the island is an inconvenience for residents.

As Bahamians are making preparations for the adverse weather conditions the storm is expected to bring, Mrs Butler-Turner said she was informed by the island’s administrator that the service vehicles on the island were without fuel.

She said this forced the closure of the clinic at the southern end of the island because the doctors and nurses did not have fuel for their government vehicles.

Despite calling the Ministry of Finance to inquire about the situation, Mrs Butler-Turner said she has been unable to speak with any officials. Therefore, officials on the island have been instructed to use constituency funding to procure the fuel that is needed.

“The Christie administration has decided that all fuel procurement is to be done by Sun Oil, which is a major benefactor of the PLP,” she said.

“The challenge is that Sun Oil is so far removed from the northern settlements (that) in some instances you would have to use between a quarter tank or half tank to get to it. So they actually have to burn an enormous amount of gas to get out there. Where is the sense in that?

“This reeks of cronyism and victimisation. Here were are, a storm is on the way and the essential services on the island can’t be prepared.”

She continued to blast the government saying while the lives of Bahamians are being placed at risk, a few elitists continue to get rich.

“For lives to be at risk all because the government decided that all the money should do to Sun is just ridiculous. Now we are giving them all of the contracts.

“This shows total disregard for the lives of Bahamians. I view this as a move to centralise the power on the island taking it back from local government,” Mrs Butler-Turner said.