The Tribune

By FAY SIMMONS

Tribune Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

Former Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis yesterday pushed for more information about the government’s stake in Bahamas Moorings Limited.

Speaking in Parliament yesterday, Dr Minnis tabled questions for Prime Minister Philip Davis about the equity the government and by extension the Bahamian people hold in the company. 

Referencing a press release from the Office of the Prime Minister on February 23, which said Bahamas Moorings is a “a Bahamian-owned company in which the government holds equity”, Dr Minnis asked the government to reveal many shares are held.    

“Can the Prime Minister please let the Bahamian people know how many shares the Bahamian government hold in Bahamas Moorings Limited? It’s critical that you answer this question, because any share that our government holds are in trust for the Bahamian people,” said Dr Minnis. 

“Please produce the evidence to show that the government of Bahamas actually holds shares in this company, or the Bahamian people will believe that your office was not being truthful with them.”

Dr Minnis also questioned if the government used its position as a shareholder to appoint officers in Bahamas Moorings Limited to protect the interests of the Bahamian people. 

He went on to press the Prime Minister on how Bahamas Moorings Limited was allowed to being work before receiving the necessary building and environmental approval. 

“How is it possible that the government of the Bahamas permitted a company in which it had admittedly had equity to commence preliminary activities under the lease agreement, prior to the group receiving all the required approvals, as you admitted in the same statement,” said Dr Minnis. 

“Why was the government of Bahamas careless in its duty to the Bahamian by not being aware that a company that it had equity in had broken the law by commencing preliminary activities under the lease prior to the group receiving all the required approvals.”

The government cancelled a 21-year lease granted to Bahamas Moorings Company, which would have given it control over 49 mooring and anchorage sites across the Exuma Cays. 

The deal, signed by Prime Minister Philip Davis in his capacity as minister responsible for Crown Land, was halted after public outcry over the lack of transparency and consultation. The government’s decision to lease seabed areas to a single private company, granting it the authority to charge mandatory fees, had drawn sharp criticism from marina operators, environmentalists, and local businesses.

Despite the lease’s cancellation, the government has not addressed key concerns surrounding how Bahamas Moorings Company was able to move forward without necessary approvals. The government has also remained silent on the involvement of OPM officials connected to the project.