The Tribune

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Tribune Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

FORMER Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis’ admission that he did not see the International Monetary Fund’s report recommending a VAT increase to 15 percent was criticised yesterday as evidence that he was “not fit for the job” of leading the country.

Attorney General Ryan Pinder chided the Killarney MP in the Senate, telling senators this was at its worst proof that the then-Prime Minister showed an “insatiable appetite” for power no matter the consequences to the country.

Ahead of the upper chamber’s passing of the 2021/2022 supplementary budget, Mr Pinder echoed the position that due to the IMF’s recommendation, the former Minnis administration held a snap election because it was not prepared to take on a tax increase without getting a fresh mandate from the public.

However, last week Dr Minnis said his administration did not consider raising the tax, adding that before losing office in September, he did not see the advice of the IMF that this was necessary.

Mr Pinder accused Dr Minnis of being too busy campaigning to see the report.

“The way they managed the VAT administration of this country would have resulted in having to raise the rate again to 15 percent,” Mr Pinder said.

“The former Prime Minister commissioned a report from the IMF to study the VAT regime of this country in response to how they were managing it with multiple exemptions and multiple in the zero-rating category.

“That IMF report came back with a recommendation to raise the rate to 15 percent.

“In any event, I agree personally with the Prime Minister of this country when he intimated in that other place that that IMF report – and the consequences of how they administered this VAT regime – caused them to call a snap election because they weren’t prepared to take that burden on themselves before an election. They (the Minnis administration) needed a new mandate and in my opinion, it caused the snap election.

“Not only is this shocking, but the political mischief of the member for Killarney when he said he had no sight of the IMF report.”

Mr Pinder added: “This is the same Prime Minister of The Commonwealth of The Bahamas who commissioned the very same report (who) says he did not receive the report. He (Dr Minnis) did not see the report because he was too busy campaigning.

“Not seeing the report that he commissioned is even worse than the bad decision he made as Prime Minister. As such it is more and more clear that he was not fit for the job.

“It can’t be good governance to say that the Prime Minister of a country can no longer govern and turn his attention to the matters of such important national interests as its tax regime because he was campaigning for an election in which his woeful administration got rolled out.

“This is the height of political mischief and dishonesty and or ineptitude, you choose or even worse it’s an insatiable appetite for power no matter what the consequences are to the country.”

The Minnis administration commissioned the report, but, according to Dr Minnis, the IMF presented it in September as officials were preparing for the election.

Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis said when his party assumed office, it saw the analysis from the IMF which noted if the government failed to adjust its VAT structure, VAT would have to be raised to 15 percent.

Mr Davis said based on the report, it was his belief the Minnis administration was intent on raising VAT. Mr Davis was justifying his decision to put VAT back on breadbasket items during debate in the House of Assembly last week.

The Davis administration plans to reduce VAT to 10 percent with few exemptions.