Throughout The Bahamas, professional Bahamians as well as political commentators are critical of the Grand Bahama Port Authority on the recent resignations of Bahamian executives from that organization.
Sources have told The Bahama Journal that the principals of the Port are making a concerted attempt to weave a web to exclude Bahamians from the top positions in the company ﾖ although this is a claim Port CEO Albert Miller has already denied.
A leading businessman from Freeport said on Thursday the number of resignations demonstrates a high level of insensitivity and political ineptness on the part of the family of the late Edward St. George and the other major shareholder, Sir Jack Hayward.
The businessman said it is incumbent on the government to break this web to ensure that qualified Bahamians are able to hold senior positions in the company.
But Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe told The Bahama Journal on Thursday that there is no need for the government to get involved in the managerial decisions being made by the Grand Bahama Port Authority, but he indicated that he was concerned that the Port did not appoint a Bahamian as chairman.
Minister Wilchcombe spoke to The Bahama Journal a day after PLP Senator Philip Galanis said the government ought to be “very concerned” about the recent shakeup at the Port, which included the appointment of foreign-born Hannes Babak as chairman.
Mr. Babak replaced Julian Francis, who resigned a year after he was appointed.
Asked whether he was concerned or disappointed by Mr. Babakﾒs appointment, Minister Wilchcombe, who is a Grand Bahamian and the MP for West End, responded, “I am a Bahamian and I believe in the philosophy of Bahamianization. I stand very firmly on the side that argues that we should put Bahamians in place in every single opportunity where there are qualified Bahamians.
“Are there qualified Bahamians? Absolutely. There are qualified Bahamians all over The Bahamas. There are qualified Bahamians who can sit in and provide the leadership that the Port Authority needs now. Thatﾒs my view, but thatﾒs obviously not the view held by those who make that decision.”
Mr. Galanis said Wednesday night that he is concerned that the Port Authority is going backwards in terms of its treatment of Bahamians.
“Itﾒs interesting that 35 years ago [former prime minister the late] Sir Lynden [Pindling] made his bend or break speech to Grand Bahama because the people who were then running the Grand Bahama Port Authority thought that they were a government unto themselves. Iﾒm afraid that we are seeing history repeat itself and that the lackeys who are aiding and abetting in this process are doing the Bahamian people, and particularly Grand Bahamians, a major disservice,” Mr. Galanis said.
“I think this is something that needs to be checked and it needs to be checked now and also the government needs to understand what is the vision for replacing those persons who have been displaced. What is the plan of the Grand Bahama Port Authority to move the company forward in a manner thatﾒs going to recognize that there are adequately qualified Bahamians to hold major positions in management?”
But Minister Wilchcombe insisted the government ought not get involved in those kinds of decisions at the Port, but must work with Port officials to ensure that there is a clear vision for the further development of Freeport.
While he did not speak directly about the resignation of Nassau-based attorneys Sean McWeeney and Sharon Wilson as directors of the Port Authority, Minister Wilchcombe said it is time that more Grand Bahamians play key roles in the management of the city of Freeport.
“My view has also been that we brought Nassau-centric thinkers who simply thought about Freeport and forgot the rest of Grand Bahama,” he said.
“[The government] never got in the business of the Port Authority when it made changes, when it employed the same people who people are now raising concerns about. We never got in the business of the Port Authority then. Iﾒm trying to figure out why we (and Iﾒm speaking for me, Obie Wilchcombe, a man from Grand Bahama), why should I be getting in the business of what the Port Authority is doing now?”
He said that before the late GBPA Chairman Edward St. George died in 2004, he argued with him about the fact that Grand Bahamians were not prominent members of the Portﾒs board.
“When does the indigenous Grand Bahamian get to be a part of creating for, not only Freeport, but the entire island of Grand Bahama, opportunities through the Grand Bahama Port Authority?” he asked.
Noting that the governmentﾒs presence in Freeport has been very limited over the years, Minister Wilchcombe added that the government has to play an important role in Freeport ﾖ and in the entire island of Grand Bahama.
The Grand Bahama Port Authority has been grabbing headlines over the last eight weeks after Mr. Francis, the former Central Bank governor, resigned. Hot on the heels of his resignation was the resignation of Barry Malcolm, who was the Port Authorityﾒs executive vice president.
And more recently, the Port Authority announced that the position of deputy chairman, which was held by Willie Moss, had been made redundant.
Mr. Galanis, who believes it is clear that Mr. Francis and perhaps Mr. Malcolm were forced out of the Port Authority, said the changes are cause for great concern.
But Minister Wilchcombe appeared less concerned about the managerial shakeup.
“I know Willie Moss and I know she served the Port Authority well, but Iﾒm not alarmed by the changes being made by the Port Authority,” he said. “They will make changes; theyﾒre a private company; they can make changes. At the end of the day letﾒs hope they have a plan thatﾒs going to benefit, not only Freeport, but the entire island of Grand Bahama.”
By: Candia Dames, The Bahama Journal
