Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation Chester Cooper broke no laws when he a signed a $70 million loan agreement with the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) in Saudi Arabia last week, Minister of Economic Affairs Michael Halkitis said yesterday.

Halkitis said that Cooper, at times, acts as the minister of finance.

"We understand ... how the law operates," Halkitis said when asked about the issue during the weekly press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister.

"... We comply with the law.

"You know, when it's necessary to have everything completed and I's dotted and T's crossed, we comply with the law."

Asked if Cooper made a "preliminary signing," Halkitis responded, "I don't want to comment on that directly because I wasn't there. From time to time, DPM acts as minister of finance. When the agreements are concluded, they will be executed properly."

Asked to respond to the opposition's claim that the government broke the law, Halkitis said, "That seems to be the opposition leader's [refrain]. Every time he gets up he says laws were broken.

"No laws were broken."

On September 27, the Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation, in a press statement, said that Cooper "will sign a major loan agreement with extremely favorable terms from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on behalf of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas for the construction of airport infrastructure in the Family Islands that will advance the tourism sector in The Bahamas and the country's gross domestic product".

In a separate statement that day, the Saudi Fund for Development said it signed two development loan agreements - one with The Bahamas and the other with Mauritius - totaling US $140 million.

"The first development loan agreement, worth $70 million USD, was signed with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation of The Bahamas, Hon. Isaac Chester [Cooper], to fund the Family Islands Airports Renaissance Project, which aims to develop and raise the capabilities of airports in the Exuma Islands and increase the number of visitors to the airports from 237,000 to 285,000 visitors annually."

Cooper and other government and tourism officials were on a trade mission to West Asia, that began with a stop in Qatar and then on to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia where the agreement was signed.

Shortly after the signing, the Free National Movement Leader Michael Pintard argued that the government broke the law by having Cooper sign for the loan agreement.

He said only the minister of finance - who is currently Prime Minister Philip Davis - can borrow money on behalf of the government, as laid out in the Public Debt Management Act, 2021.

"If the government does not acknowledge and correct this breach of the law, we put them on notice that we will submit same for legal review with a view to voiding the arrangement," said Pintard, who also called on the government to release the terms and conditions of the loan.

The post Halkitis: No laws broken with Saudi loan agreement appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

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