Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham said that he intends to make whatever decision is best for the country and that he and his party will accept the political consequences of that decision.
He was speaking on the the topic of the controversial foreign labour issue for the $2.6 billion Baha Mar development. Baha Mar developers have requested to bring in more than 8,000 Chinese labourers to perform the construction work on the Cable Beach resort project – a request that has raised serious concerns for the country.
Once completed, the Baha Mar resort has the potential to provide thousands of permanent jobs for Bahamians, but initially it would require the largest number of foreign ers to flow into the Bahamas with no advantage to the local workforce.
Further, the prime minister voiced the valid concern that Baha Mar is not backed by an internationally recognized brand and has already had trouble filling the few rooms they currently have. With 3,500 new rooms it is questioned whether the resort will have the ability to keep them filled.
With the election in the not too distant future Ingraham seems to be a in a no-win position but has stated that he will make the best decision at whatever the political cost.
The prime minister said, “I will not take account of what the political consequences of it is. I will do what I think is the best for the Bahamas and if that means that there is a political price to pay then I will pay it, and my party will pay it.”
