New U.S. Charge d'Affaires Lisa Johnson said yesterday the "negative" points contained in a recent U.S. Department of State report critical of The Bahamas government are not reflective of the relationship between the United States and The Bahamas.
Johnson said the media "grabbed" on to the uncomplimentary sentences in that report.
She added that the report also highlighted many of the accomplishments that the government made.
"The relationship between The Bahamas and the United States remains strong," she said when asked about criticisms following the release of the 2014 Investment Climate Statement on The Bahamas.
The report highlighted the Christie administration's failure to fulfill many of its "ambitious campaign promises of economic and fiscal reform".
"The investment climate report is something we issue for 80 countries worldwide," Johnson said.
"We do it every year. People who have read the report will see it commends a number of things that the government has done and a number of initiatives. We are encouraging Americans and American companies to invest here.
"The media of course is going to go to the one or two negative sentences and grab it and that's politics. I don't think it's reflective at all of the relationship between our two countries."
Several MPs have criticized the United States over the report that raised concerns over the alleged lack of transparency and "undue government interference" in The Bahamas government's bidding and procurement process.
The report also noted that the government failed to implement a mortgage relief plan and create 10,000 new jobs as promised.
Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Cleola Hamilton is the latest to speak out against the report.
"Personally, I think, Mr. Speaker, it is disingenuous coming from a country whose congress sits around and does absolutely nothing and failed to fulfill its election promises to its people," she said during debate on the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities) Bill on Wednesday.
But before she could continue, House Speaker Dr. Kendal Major stopped her.
Prime Minister Perry Christie said last week the report delved into areas where it ought not to have gone.
"I'm always surprised when [the Americans] set a standard that they would not want anyone else to go," he said.
"For example, should I be talking about how many failed promises President Barack Obama had? It just doesn't make any kind of sense to me that I should go there."
As Johnson noted, the report does highlight several positives including the strength of the financial sector.
"The financial sector of The Bahamas is highly developed and dynamic, providing a wide array of services by several types of financial intermediaries," the report said.

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