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Donated money ‘for only Dorian victims’

DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest.

DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest.

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Deputy Chief Reporter 

krussell@tribunemedia.net

DONOR money received by the government from dozens of entities and neighbouring countries will only be used to assist those affected by deadly Hurricane Dorian, insisted Finance Minister Peter Turnquest yesterday.

According to Mr Turnquest this means the money will not be used to rebuild public infrastructure or as a means to pay for administrative costs.

While pledges and cash donations have been numerous, the National Emergency Management Agency has only physically deposited $2m in the bank, The Tribune was told yesterday.

When he referred to the issue yesterday, the deputy prime minister was adamant that the money would be used for its intended purpose.

He said to run the new Ministry of Disaster Preparedness, Recovery and Reconstruction, funding would be drawn from several places, including dormant accounts.

This as NEMA said yesterday the number of missing persons in the wake of Hurricane Dorian has drastically decreased from 1,300 to 608. After being crossed checked against shelter lists and other records, NEMA said 692 people were declared found.

However, the death toll associated with the storm increased to 54 after remains were found in The Mudd, Abaco, Police Commissioner Anthony Ferguson told The Tribune yesterday.

“Let’s be clear, it’s to fund the services that the ministry will provide,” Mr Turnquest said when he was asked if donations would fund the operations of the newly formed ministry.

“So for instance monies that were donated may be allocated to shelter; maybe designated for reconstruction of infrastructure that is critical to getting people back into those communities, that kind of thing. We are very careful and want to be very careful about how we utilise donor money in particular so I want to be clear about that.

“Donor money is going toward the intended purpose of assisting people, not for public infrastructure not for administrative costs. It is going to the people where it is intended to go, so I just want to be clear about that.

“We will use the loan money. We will use other resources from the other ministries as I spoke about to rebuild infrastructure and to cover the administrative costing.”

As for funding the new ministry, Mr Turnquest told reporters this will be done through a number of budgetary adjustments. But he explained that some of this ministry’s functions will draw from other ministries.

“… This ministry will have to draw on services from other ministries so for instance the Ministry of Works will have an integral part to play. The Ministry of Social Services will have an integral part to play and other areas where there is coordination that would be necessary.

“So a lot of the work that this ministry will do will be coordinating more so than actually doing things themselves, but to the extent that there is budgetary needs for them specifically there are a number of places that we can draw from.

“As you know we are taking funding from the international community through donors as well as through the contingent line of credit that we can draw down on as well as the dormant accounts fund. We are taking some money from that which as you know when we did the legislation was designated towards disaster relief. So we’ll take a combination of different funding sources to make sure the ministry has what it needs to be effective and carry out objectives.”

Mr Turnquest also told reporters that staffing needs for the new ministry would be fulfilled by drawing from the pool of employers currently in the public service.

Regarding the deaths, Health Minister Dr Duane Sands said the ministry intended to give a comprehensive break down on autopsies performed.

He said: “Some of them (were identified). We intend to give a more comprehensive breakdown of the number of persons who have had their autopsies completed, to say how many of them have been identified.

“For instance I believe that there are two persons in Grand Bahama that have not been identified and who remain unidentified and once identified and their autopsy and death certificate completed, their remains are turned over and have been turned over to their families in Abaco the number is less than that but I don’t have the exact number.

“What we would like to be able to do is using sanitised information obviously to protect the identities of those persons and their families to give the public an understanding of that total number, how many have been identified and are left to be identified,” Dr Sands said.

Comments

joeblow 5 years, 3 months ago

If what he is saying is true, then Haitians will be the major beneficiaries of Dorian funds!

Ashinnabash 5 years, 2 months ago

GIVE IT A REST BRO. LET THE MONEY GO TO WHERE IT'S INTENDED. WHETHER HAITIAN OR BAHAMIAN PEOPLE ARE SUFFERING.

joeblow 5 years, 2 months ago

Nope, the money should go where it will do the most good. Remember the amount of money given is limited, those who do not have a legal right to be here should not be allowed to dilute already scarce resources for those who will remain here!!

Topdude 5 years, 2 months ago

No need to worry. The funds from the Restoration and Redevelopment Tax will be sufficient. Even Sic Mudda will agree.

yeahyasee 5 years, 2 months ago

LOL this the 20%? Vell muddo

Topdude 5 years, 2 months ago

What is funny here? I just don’t get it.

stillwaters 5 years, 2 months ago

And remember that the newspapers were reporting pledges and promises.....don't know how much of that was actually given.....May never materialize.

Well_mudda_take_sic 5 years, 2 months ago

Sadly, very few 'true' Bahamians who have lost everything as a result of Hurricane Dorian are likely to derive any significant benefit from the millions and millions of dollars of financial aid and other donations received from and pledged by donors. Our government is just too rife with corruption at all levels. That's the harsh reality.

sealice 5 years, 2 months ago

what a joke the people who need the money won't see a penny - they will be stuck in our shittey hospitals getting crapped on by red tape bureaucratic BS that makes it not worth while to try to get anything that was supposedly donated..... what are we gonna get to share a tent while we watch customs officers and immigration officers shipping relief supplies back to Nassau on the Legacy? Thanks for nothing again....

Well_mudda_take_sic 5 years, 2 months ago

For decades Customs and Immigration have been two of the most corrupt and harmful departments within government.

TalRussell 5 years, 2 months ago

Comrade Abavoians who had no cash and with all ATM and and payment systems down were rudely denied the right board the government's owned and operated national airline, yes, no ... nor has KP, offered reimburse Abacoconians for the $75 some were able to pay per family member, to board the flight ... sinful .... believe nothing but the physical you can see and touch to keep to feed, house and clothe your own . wouldn't' put pass Imperialists reds if they sent Abacoians seaweed* to eat and classified it in financial records as hurricane relief eatable sea food** ....

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