Premier fights local company VI Airlink; Letter to US unearthed
Our newsroom advised readers this week in an article dated March 16, 2017 that Premier Smith was actively lobbying the United States Department of Transportation (DoT) on behalf of BVI Airways, a foreign company, in which his government pumped some $7Million of taxpayers funds into, but refused to help the local VI Airlink who had proposed to do the same thing- direct flights from Miami, Florida to the Terrance B. Lettsome International Airport.
Premier Smith- Foreign comes first
Local co-owner of VI Airlink Neville C. Braithwaite Jr, spoke out against the Premier’s action and also wrote to the DoT, along with InterCaribbean Airways, with an objection to BVI Airways application.
Mr Braithwaite told our newsroom that with the $7M start-up funds given to BVI Airways they could run other local carriers out of business.
Many residents, while agreeing for the need for better airlift, were surprised that Premier Smith would so actively lobby both publicly and in writing against a local business.
Well our usual National Democratic Party sources have provided us with a copy of the letter the Leader of Government Business wrote to Mr Brian J. Hedberg of the US DoT, dated March 8, 2017.
See below for copy of leaked letter:
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42 Responses to “Premier fights local company VI Airlink; Letter to US unearthed”
How can we ever RISE with this type of Leadership who looks as us as sh#t to flush down their toilets? We are melanated people with untapped potentials beyond measures if we are given the chance, guidance, and support to RISE! Doc, you should be ashamed. If I ever needed a cup of sugar, I can always go to Mr. Brathwaite and connect with him and get that cup of sugar.
What are we getting from these people we know nothing about, but their spin on helping these poor little isolated islands with our tax dollars?
What does it benefit them now or even the country. I don't now.
Will BVI Airways really put other companies out of business. Maybe VI Airlink need to step up their game. Customer service goes a long why and good and competitive prices.
I personally feel that VI Airlink is over reaching. They claim that they wanted to do the same thing but ask the question with new planes it would have been 4 times the cost. I support locals getting the first go at anything but sometimes the government will make unpopular disscions but they have to be made.
It all comes down to transparency. Just like everything else with this Government they continue to conceal their dealings when it comes to the people's purse resulting in mistrust and situations like the one that presents itself. So you take 7 million of the people's money and give it to a foreign company without bothering to divulge the terms of the deal and the shareholders of this entity to the people. If VI Airlink and Inter Caribbean did not file for the objection certificate then that information would not have been released. As it is we got the terms and conditions of the deal from a foreign organization in the USDT. Imagine that? That is unacceptable for any Government much less the one that once represented itself as;"Government in the Sunshine".
We now know that the deal provides that the Government is required to exempt the carrier from having to pay any landing fees, airport authority fees, navigation charges, storage fees, parking fees, lighting fees, fuel taxes etc. just some of the concessions. All this for a private entity whom we do not know who are the shareholders are and it is reasonable to assume that none are BVI Islanders. It is not a level playing field when one airline gets all these concessions and the others get none.
I am all for more airlift solutions but not if it is not transparent or if proper due diligence is not observed. Not if it means that the BVI people will have to get the short end of the stick and that BVI companies who have invested so much of their hard-earned money will not be able to compete because of unfair advantages created by their own Government. Come on Man!
Bi Water put the local water company completely out of business: VI Air Link will still continue to fly and VI Air Link will still be subserdize with our tax money....which is the better transaction(NDP did one and VIP did one)