Dear Editor,
The last 24hrs has been a hoot!
While watching the debate in Parliament yesterday, I was shocked when Atlantis boss, Sol Kerzner, released that statement reminding Papa about certain conditions in the heads of agreement that he signed over 10 years ago.
Man when i read it, I just shook my head because now things are starting to become clear.
Let me explain.
Bahamas Press, have you ever had a female interest who you wasn’t really into, but you never severed ties with her just in case things don’t work out with the real squeeze or the wife? You talk to her dead bad, give her little attention, play with that once or twice a month, give her just enough emotional support to where she stayed around, but at the end of the day, you kept her at arms length because you had a main squeeze? The interest wasn’t your priority, she was your backup plan.
Well this is the position Papa finds himself in with Baha Mar and Atlantis.
Papa was praying to his god for some sort of large economic investment that would jump start the economy out of that recession. After his witch doctor killed a couple cows, soused a few dogs and bar b qued someone’s little kitty, Atlantis showed up.
She was the sweet lil ting back in the early 1990’s that caught Papa’s eyes. She had big breast and a fat bungee, just like how we Bahamian men like it and at the first chance, Papa went all Beyonce, and put a ring on it, signed the (prenuptial) agreement without reading it and now Papa and Sol has been joined together at the hip for over 10 years.
What Papa his little Haitian witch doctor put together, only God can put asunder!
Fast forward to 2007 and the ushering back into power of Papa. It was good times again for Atlantis because during the last 5 years, they were not getting any love from the PLP, because the PLP was checking out another big breast, big bungee gal name Baha Mar. But the thing is, when Papa got into office, he notice the new big bungee, big breast gal the PLP was checking out too. The main squeeze (Atlantis) started to notice the her man was coming home late and hire a PI who told her that Papa does go over the wall out west to meet a lil ting.
Atlantis went into full “dont touch my man” mode!
BP, some women, when they sense competition try to see where their man head is. So in this vain Papa had to show his main squeeze (Atlantis) that he was dedicated to her 100%. So what did he do? The moment he took office in 2007 he made it quite clear that he dont like Harrah’s. Who was Harrah’s? Harrah’s was Baha Mar’s sugar daddy. Knowing that by removing the sugar daddy the competition would go away, the main squeeze (Atlantis) thought that the coast was clear and she and her man, Papa, would live happy ever after.
But BP, junglist like vampires, them gals don’t die easy, and the sweetheart (Baha Mar) went and found another sugar daddy who had even deeper pockets than the first sugar daddy. Enter Sun Young Dollar, aka, the Chinese government.
PRIVATELY, Papa was happy about this because the recession is going on longer than he anticipated and he knew the sweetheart would really be a shot in the arm economically. But his problem was the wife (Atlantis). She wasnt going to allow him to bring no other woman (Baha Mar) into the house. The wife say she dont share man BP. Plus with the sweetheart’s new sugar daddy, papa knew that the Bahamas wouldnt be footing the bill, but what Papa didnt know was that Son Young Dollar (The Chinese government) will let you feel up and even ‘mess’ with he gal, BUT you have to do it HOW HE WANT YOU TO DO IT, WHILE HE WATCHING!
Yup, Son Young Dollar (The Chinese government) is a super freak!
So here is Papa’s dilemma. For the past 3 years, he has been flirting with Baha Mar, grinning up he teeth and feeling her up in private, while publicly he dissing her just to show Atlantis that he is faithful to them. But it all came to a head with that press statement released last evening and Atlantis told Papa that she knew what he was doing behind close doors with Baha Mar.
What the Bahamian people dont realize BP, is that Papa been sleeping with Atlantis in the day, and does jump the wall and go put lil somethin somethin on Bah Mar at night. Look at it this way, Papa has done just enough to act like he isnt interested in Baha Mar while at the same time not killing the deal. If papa didnt want Baha Mar to be here, I think we all know that he would have kicked them out of the country by now. But 3 yrs into his administration, and Baha Mar is still here, still getting feel up by Papa!
I am telling you BP, Papa saying one thing in public to appease Atlantis and then saying something totally different in private to appease Baha Mar! This is the price you pay for tying yourself down to one woman when you know you have wondering eyes.
What Sol did with that press release, implying that they are going to sue for breach of contract, was to remind Papa that he signed a prenuptial agreement and that when the divorce go down, she aint going quietly. Which brings me to another issue; how visionless was Papa when he signed that original contract with Atlantis? You mean to tell me he actually never foresaw the Bahamas getting involved in another hotel project like Atlantis, ever? How stupid!
The Bahamas isnt a one woman country. Any investor, with any size project can come here, but Papa tied the country down to one large resort, Atlantis. This is an utter travesty and shows just how visionless papa is. Papa has also put the entire country in a box because now Atlantis has the upper hand and can ask for equal concessions, comparable to whatever Baha Mar or any other large scale hotel investor gets. How can you put the country and the tourism industry in a box like that?
BP, I hope my people see now that its not Papa who dont want Baha Mar here, its Atlantis. Atlantis doesnt want the competition because they will be fighting Baha Mar for the same high end visitor dollar. Its like the Bay Street Boys “all for me” economic philosophy all over again, where Sol is using the government to basically give him and help him keep his monopoly on the Bahamas.
Consider this. The country is building a new airport, changed traffic flow, paved and in some cases repaved roads, not for the people, but for Atlantis. Atlantis has to much influence and for them to release that press statement and imply what they did should tell the entire country just who Papa takes orders from. The country is in dire need of an economic jolt, and Atlantis is only thinking about themselves. Sol Kerzner dont want Baha Mar even though he knows the COUNTRY needs it.
When will people wake up and see that Sol doesnt care about the country. He only cares about his company’s profits and is willing to use his influence to maintain those profits even if it means the entire country suffers.
Atlantis has called out Papa and if he wants to save the marriage, he will rebuff Baha Mar. If Papa wants a messy divorce, it means kicking Sol to the curb. But more importantly, Papa has to figure out where his loyalty lies, with his people or with foreign investor Sol Kezerner.
My last point, anyone notice how Atlantis was so quiet about this when the PLP was in power? Where was Sol’s voice when the PLP was negotiation with Baha Mar? They didnt like the PLP bringing in Baha Mar, but there was nothing they could do because Sol dont have PC by the nuts like the way he has Papa. Truth be told, the PLP courted Baha Mar for this simple reason, they didnt want the country to be tied so heavily to one company. Baha Mar was suppose to be the counter balance to Atlanits.
Bahamians better thank the Lord for this recession because if there was no recession, Papa would have told Baha Mar to carry their ass long time!
Signed,
Altec!
I remember perry cristie saying this deal was a secret so nobody knew what cristie deal was until ingraham mentioned it in the house of assembly after he came to power
Altec,
Thanks for your reply, but I think you’re really missing the point(s).
1) I can’t understand your questioning signing a MFN clause with Kertner for the original deal. It was far the largest investment in Bahmaian history, it was very, very risky (remember the state of the country back then — much, much worse than even today). It was simple: no MFN, no deal.
2) There continues to be this misconception that Papa drove Harrah’s away. You can easily read all the publicly available documents which prove beyond a doubt that it wanted to walk away long before Papa made his speech in Parliament. The reasons: after going private it took on huge debt and the recession roared in.
3) You still don’t get the point that the PLP had about five years to finalize and simply didn’t do it! Had they acted properly and promptly this issue would have never come to be.
Finally, to the other reader, MFNs are executed globally between private companies and governments all the time. It’s obvious you have never negotiated a big investment.
Cheers — M.
Interesting story! It made me laugh. LOVED IT!! A number of the views on this page speaks to the way politics is carried out in the country by the PLP & FNM. I SMELL A BIG RAT with this story. If anyone knows or been watching Ingraham, he does not let nothing get pass him. If Ingraham has information on the PLP he is sure to bring it to light. So why has this information never come out to fore front or why hasn’t Ingraham blasted the PLP for it? Ummm??? Leslie Miller, an ex M.P called into a Steve McKinney’s talk show yesterday and said he has read over all the agreements and has never seen this clause in any statement. Like I say, I smell
a RAT iwith the PLP & FNM party. Hope the smell ain’t too stink that it spreads & makes the entire country sick. We may just have to use rat poison & fix the problem.
Altec….go to the head of the class! BP,please post this on facebook
It has long been posted Ronica7.
BP
Altec, that’s a genius parable. You should try to break down every complex issue that way so that people can understand. Now go for how silly it is for The Bahamas to be a one-and some-industry country.
Papa must have slap his son the Junior Minster of Finance into next century for reading into HOA Atlantis press statement.Did you see his face after Perry Christie explain that it was Courts if Atlantis chooses to challenge the Bahamar deal. Papa knew that Perry had covered alll his bases.
One point for clarification of context – Most Favoured Nation (MFN) clauses are afforded to countries (hence the word ‘Nation’ at the end of the name) and NOT between a sovereign state and a company. The Christie government in their zest to appease and appeal to investors made some really imprudent decisions. Amazing that it was supposedly the Nationalist Party that acquiesced the most to investors.
You should know Bahamas Press shall hail Christie and Hubert on this masterful delivery of opportunity for the Bahamian people [Baha Mar]. We shall be a bit explicit in this communication and spell out the details to our readers. This deal is definitely a once in a lifetime for all Bahamians and foreigners. Bahamas Press has much to say on this. STANDBY THIS SUNDAY!
BP
There may be a misunderstanding here on the Bahamar deal.The previous government signed a Heads of Agreement not a contract.The Heads of Agreement outline what may be contained in a contract if one was signed.The present government appears to have signed the contract that is causing the problem; but, we need to do what is in the best interest of the Bahamas and not investors who can leave us in the bag.
Man this needs to be sent to all the media outlets. This really breaking it down. Lots to think about.
Well written and a pleasure to read!
But, three tiny facts get in the way:
1) Most favored nation clauses are the absolute standard in every country in the world when major investments are negotiated.
2) The PLP negotiated and signed the original deal (and so many members of the then government made huge sums for personal gain just like they did with Pegasus – remember that scam? – and Ginn).
3) The PLP had the authority to finalize the deal with 70% Bahamian workforce allotment AND DIDN”T DO IT! Just like they had 5 years to rebuild the straw market AND DIDN”T DO IT (signing a bloated contract one month before elections is an obvious fraud).
But, thanks for the laughs and really, I think your writing skills are far above most.
Cheers — M
MSmith, here is the problem with your 3 points
1)The “most favored nation clause” is a standard practice but Papa was short sighted in agreeing to it in this case. You now see the effects with the Baha Mar agreement. Any other investor who wants to bring in a touristic investment the size of Atlantis will have problems.
Seeing that tourism is the bread and butter of the Bahamas, why do anything that would reduce the size of any investment? That clause should not have been in that deal, point blank.
2) Yes the PLP negotiated and signed the original deal, but what you are so conveniently forgetting is that when the FNM took office, they “re-did” the deal. the original deal was with Baha Mar and Harrah’s.
When Papa took office, he ran off Harrah’s and Baha Mar needed a new financial backer. So when the Chinese came to the table, they brought their own set of requirements, with the sticking point being that they wanted their people to do 70% of the work.
As a matter of fact, the new deal the FNM struck with the Chinese and Baha Mar was so bad, that Papa had to go to China afterward and get them to give up $400 million. But no one is mentioning that are they?
Other than getting a few more jobs for the contractors, didnt Papa say the trip to China was a failure? Hmmmmmmmmmmmm.
3) You seem to be getting your facts confused. The issue of foreigners coming here to work on Baha Mar was never an issue until the FNM came to power and ran off Harrah’s which caused Baha Mar to hook up with the Chinese.
there was no talk of 70% foreign workers coming to work on Baha Mar when the PLP negotiated the first agreement. Why is it that some people seem to forget that?
If Papa had to do it all over again, he wouldnt have ran of Harrah’s. The Chinese are sticking to their guns because they have all the leverage. Its going to be their way or no way at all..
Papa’s only problem is that PC signed a prenuptial with the wife, so somewhere it going to cost.The wife ain’t going nowhere but she will be happy. Leverage
Poor ‘Wifey’.
BP
If ANY one reads this….. there is NO way they wont understand whats going on . This is soooooo written for Bahamians to understand exactly what’s going on .. DAMMM we in trouble !
Well, Well, papa got caught with his pants down. How will he explain to Sir Sol that Baha Mar is now his new lover. Maybe the China Brush was sweeter than what the African Queen had to offer. Pull up your pants papa, Mama see ya.
This story is pretty intresting, HMmm. There is some serious points to this.Thanks for writing.
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