The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

Self-employed Bahamians, such as taxi drivers, hair braiders, food vendors, jet ski operators and small business owners have not been hung out to dry in the wake of the COVID-19 economic crisis, due to the Free National Movement administration’s kind gesture in rendering financial assistance via the NIB unemployment assistance programme. According to National Insurance Minister Brensil Rolle, 7,235 self-employed recipients received $15.6 million. Rolle’s revelation that $175m in NIB funding has been dumped into the domestic economy since Hurricane Dorian and COVID-19 underscores the extent of the economic fallout.

Based on my calculations, 42,214 Bahamians have received a portion of the $175m – all except one hard-working Bahamian mother who had contributed to NIB for ten years.

Despite her track record of contributing, NIB had informed her that she was not eligible for its COVID-19 unemployment assistance. She had lost her job in late 2019, which was a few months before the COVID-19 outbreak. She had applied for assistance in 2019, but has never received a response from NIB regarding that old application. Her most recent application was rejected, on the basis of her being unemployed a full year before the advent of COVID-19.

However, what she found odd was that her co-worker, who also lost his job a few months after her, received assistance from NIB in the thousands. He is currently awaiting to be processed again.

According to the unemployed Bahamian mother, who has four small children, NIB is being inconsistent with its disbursement exercise. I agree. I feel that NIB should have been straightforward with the applicant by stating that it is not interested in helping her, rather than giving her the runaround.

While thousands of self-employed Bahamians, many of whom weren’t contributing a dime to NIB, have received millions in assistance before COVID-19, this woman, who had contributed, is rejected for no logical reason. How’s that fair? I am not saying that these non-compliant Bahamians shouldn’t be helped. What I am saying is that one would think that a solid NIB contributor would be far more eligible than persons who have not contributed. Situations such as this causes one to question the system.

By announcing that NIB has disbursed $175m in assistance, Rolle had rubbed salt in the wound of this young Bahamian mother, who also just happens to be a dyed-in-the-wool FNM. After her experience with NIB, she told me that she won’t be voting FNM in 2022. Quite frankly, I don’t blame her.

KEVIN EVANS

Freeport,

Grand Bahama.

October 18, 2020.