The Tribune

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Deputy Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

THE government has not yet taken legal custody and possession of the old Phil’s Food Services building at Gladstone Road where the General Post Office is to be relocated, Transport and Local Government Minister Frankie Campbell said yesterday.

He explained this as the reason for government officials being unable to give answers concerning the cost of the scope of works to ready the building to suit the needs of the post office. He said it is illegal for government officials to enter the property because the government does not own it.

Press Secretary Anthony Newbold announced nearly a month ago Cabinet’s decision to relocate the institution. Since then neither Mr Campbell nor Works Minister Desmond Bannister have been able to give details on what is expected.

“I would have said earlier it is impossible to do a costing until you can enter the property,” Mr Campbell told reporters outside Cabinet yesterday. “It is illegal to enter the property until we would have taken custody and possession of the property. That has not yet been done. As soon as that is done (the) Ministry of Works personnel are on standby to go and visit the site, inspect the site, along with the post office staff to layout/map out what changes need to be made (and) what adjustments need to be made.

“It is only then that we’ll be in a position to give a costing, but know that the post office issue is a matter or priority for our ministry. It’s a matter or priority for the government.”

He was also asked to respond to the Bahamas Insurance Brokers Association’s proposal for the government to institute either a payroll or gasoline tax to fund the establishment and operation of an agency to provide compensation to victims of accidents caused by uninsured and untraced drivers.

The suggestion came in response to the volume of traffic accidents and numerous traffic fatalities in recent months.

He said: “The government hasn’t considered or responded to the proposals, but the government is equally concerned about the road traffic fatalities. You would have seen how busy I’ve been. I have been on Bahamas at Sunrise. I have visited schools. I have launched a road safety programme with 48 excited enthusiastic young persons from government primary schools. We are working feverishly to get the public to understand that it is better to arrive safely than not to arrive at all.

“We are working to get them to understand that driving distracted (or) driving under the influence of any mind-altering substance, racing around speeding is only going to end in tragedy, tragedy that we don’t know. We are concerned that for the first time in a very long time traffic fatalities, the number is keeping pace with homicide numbers.”

Mr Campbell continued: “We are doing everything in our power to educate the public, to inform the public. We’ve resorted to seeking the assistance of the kids because it appears that the adults are not getting the message and so we hope that all of these efforts combined with the efforts of the insurers association and any other stakeholder concerning Bahamians from anywhere will result in reducing these numbers.”

He said the government planned to meet with BIBA again on their recommendations.

BIBA last week also proposed a legal institution to be named the Motorist Victims Compensation Agency, which would be funded by revenue from either a gasoline or payroll tax, which they said could raise $1m per month.

It also suggested another means of funding this new institution could be through auctioning seized vehicles. This funding mechanism, BIBA said, must be through involuntary contribution by all adults and will not be retroactive.