Set against the potential benefits of closer economic ties with China, Bahamian business tycoon Franklyn Wilson has dismissed the antipathy some Bahamians have expressed about Chinese ownership of critical features of the Bahamian economy as "rank prejudice" and argued that since China is spending money, The Bahamas should "ride the waves".

Bahamians continue to raise questions about the increasing level of ownership Chinese businesses have in The Bahamas. Baha Mar being put in receivership by the Export-Import (CEXIM) Bank of China is only the latest move that ends with Chinese ownership of a significant feature of the Bahamian economy. Bahamians have displayed an increasing concern about the matter, which Wilson dismissed.

"That is nothing more than rank prejudice. Let's be candid here; that is nothing more than rank prejudice. The fact of the matter is, what's the difference for us? This is prejudice we're dealing with, that's all. The people don't quite look like the people we've been told are good people. That may sound like a controversial statement, but this is prejudice," Wilson asserted.

Confronted with the scenario that China is using its relationship with The Bahamas to solidify a geopolitical foothold on the threshold of the United States and astride some of the world's major shipping lanes, Wilson's response was, "So what?"

"This is international trade. You build on the strengths you have, and it's for every country to protect their national interest. Let's not be naive; the Chinese would probably not be into The Bahamas if our geographic position was different, but so what?

"The fact that we are close to the North American market? That's a strength; that's nothing to be afraid of. We can negotiate with them from a position of strength," he insisted.

According to Wilson, it is inconceivable - in geopolitical terms - that the United States of America would allow a China it perceives to be hostile to its interests to take a position in The Bahamas without using its influence in The Bahamas to counter the Chinese. What does The Bahamas get out of it?

"It's for us to decide. We have our national interests. It's for us to decide what we get," he said. "If we fail to take advantage of opportunities, who is to blame?"

Wilson also considered the matter of trade with China from a cultural perspective and an economic one.

"You go where the money is. When you are fishing, you go where the fish is.

"And right now in the world China has a ton of money," he said. "Not so many years ago, it was Japan... and after Japan for a long time it was Germany. The fact is that in a global context from time to time, there are certain countries who - for a period of time - experience exceptionally robust economic growth, and so they have the foreign reserves and they have to invest their foreign reserves."

Wilson put it bluntly: "The Chinese government has shown an interest in The Bahamas for whatever reason, and we're a part of the global community, and it makes sense for us to ride the waves created by the global economic community," he said.

Questioned on the potential imbalance in trade between The Bahamas and China, Wilson noted that the issue is not imbalance but mutual advantage.

"Firstly, even if we just buy more Chinese goods, if we can buy it directly from the Chinese rather than buying it from some middleman in the United States, that is advantageous to us, because that has the potential to drive down costs," he said. "The second point is, the fact of the matter is, we do have some international trade."

Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian