The world continues to watch the ongoing saga that is the opening and continued build-out of Baha Mar, with the Global Construction Review (GCR) yesterday publishing an article suggesting that the $4.2 billion mega resort has entered into an "unpredictable new phase" after the Free National Movement's (FNM) unprecedented win over the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) in last night's landslide general election.
This is the second article this week that is highly critical of the Chinese government's investment in The Bahamas. But this particular article outlines incoming Prime Minister Dr. Hubert Minnis as "hostile" to the resort's new Hong Kong-based owners, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises.
"Out is Perry Christie, whose Progressive Liberal Party government facilitated a Chinese state bank's takeover of the $4 billion hotel and casino complex, Baha Mar, in Nassau," the GCR story said.
"And in with all but five seats in the 39-seat House of Assembly is Dr. Hubert Minnis of the Free National Movement, who railed against the Christie government's deal with a Chinese buyer of the resort, Hong Kong-based Chow Tai Fook Enterprises, calling it a 'brazen theft of our country's assets'."
Earlier this week, a Fox News contributer suggested that China's widespread investment in The Bahamas is tantamount to the communist country owning The Bahamas' government. Now this latest article suggests that a Minnis government could change that dynamic, especially with regard to Baha Mar.
At the soft opening ceremony for Baha Mar's Grand Hyatt towers and casino, then Attorney General Allyson Maynard-Gibson seemed to suggest that her government had to protect against a possible Minnis government derailing the secret deal forged between the Bahamas government and the Export-Import Bank of China (CEXIM) for the sale of the property. Those documents were sealed by the Bahamian courts and, despite promises for them to be released to the public, have been kept under wraps.
The article points out to the world that Minnis "pledged to uncover details of Chow Tai Fook's purchase of Baha Mar from China's Export-Import Bank, and even hinted at opposing the sale, details of which remain shrouded in mystery".
"He would, he said in a March 12 statement posted on Facebook, 'execute a real sale of Baha Mar to a qualified and respectable purchaser'," GCR said.
"This led to speculation in the Bahamian press that the FNM's pledge might open the door to Baha Mar's original developer, billionaire Sarkis Izmirlian, to try once more to buy the resort back."
Izmirlian was in attendance at yesterday's swearing in ceremony for Minnis, as he received his instruments as the prime minister of The Bahamas. It is not yet known what relationship Izmirlian will have with this new government.
Minnis assured The Bahamas in his victory speech Wednesday night that he would uncover any wrongdoings by the former PLP administration. While he was not specific about which former PLP ministers might be investigated, it is widely known that former Minister of Education Jerome Fitzgerald was embroiled in an email scandal that revealed he solicited contracts from Baha Mar's general contractors, China Construction America, on behalf of his father's company.
Another article published this week by Business Insider, questioned whether or not the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) under its Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, might be opening up an investigation over these issues. However, the Business Insider article noted that the DOJ, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Treasury Department, all "declined to comment on whether an investigation existed".
Meantime, Baha Mar's Grand Hyatt opened its reservation system this week.

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