The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources yesterday brushed off criticism over the four-fold increase in costs for the Potters Cay upgrade, arguing: “The Bahamian people deserve the best.”

Speaking outside the Cabinet Office, V Alfred Gray said the $9 million estimate  for the Ministry of Agriculture’s portion of the project came from the Ministry of Works.

He promised that he would soon hold a press conference to give a comprehensive break down as to how the $9 million will be spent.

Opposition politicians, though, have questioned how the Potter’s Cay’s upgrade costs have increased four-fold from $3.1 million. This came after the Christie administration clarified that while the Ministry of Transport’s works budget had not changed from the projected $3 million, the Ministry of Agriculture’s portion of the Potter’s Cay project was currently pegged at $9 million.

Mr Gray said that plans for his Ministry’s section of the Potter’s Cay redevelopment were currently before Cabinet. “It is before the Cabinet, and the Ministry of Works and Urban Development has estimated the cost,” he added.

“It’s not only stalls; people continue to say stalls, but it’s a redevelopment of the whole of Potter’s Cay - the bathroom area and the administration block. I’m having a press conference to show what we are trying to do, so people get an appreciation for what we are trying to do there.

“It’s going to be a marvellous development, and whenever you do anything good, people are going to criticise.  We are not concerned about the criticism because the Bahamian people deserve the best.”

Mr Gray said that each vendor stall may cost between $45,000-$50,000, although he could not say when construction would start.

“I’m going to have a press conference to show the entirety of the plans and what will be done for the estimated $9 million, and then I suppose they may have a better appreciation for what we are trying to do at Potter’s Cay,” he added.

“The Bahamian people deserve the best at the lowest  possible cost. The Ministry of Works gave an estimate and we will have to revisit that to see if we can find a cheaper way to do it, and that’s up to Cabinet, but the price I am quoting is from the Ministry of Works. They are the government engineers and we rely on them to give us a reasonable price for the jobs that the Government has to do.”