NASSAU, The Bahamas — The Government budgeted $1 million this fiscal year for repatriation, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Immigration the Hon. Fred Mitchell said during his Mid-Year Budget Statement in the House of Assembly, March 11, 2013.
“This has been reduced by 10 per cent due to the budget exigencies and the amount is now $900,000. So far this fiscal year, we have used $736,420.98 of the allocation, with a balance left for the annual allocation of $143,479.02” Minister Mitchell said, “This figure should be reduced further by two charter payments of $27,000 each to Bahamasair from Cat Island and Crooked Island at a cost of $20,000.”
The Immigration Minister also explained that the Detention Centre has an approved budget of $260,000; there is a budget reduction of 10 per cent. “We have spent so far this year at the Detention Centre $204,892.30. The balance left to be spent for the rest of the fiscal year $29,107.70. The estimated monthly maintenance is $3,000; cleaning is $4,300 and food $5,000. For a total estimated monthly expenditure of $12,300. In addition, there was an expected expenditure of $9,300.”
He said in terms of revenue generated by the Immigration Department, the projected revenue for the first six months of fiscal year: $22,829,082.00. In the first six months of the year, Immigration took in some $20, 511,374.93. There was therefore a shortfall in the projections for the mid-year of $2,317,707.07. “I am advised that there are two reasons for this,” Minister Mitchell said.
“The projections for the year were over ambitious and secondly, there is the need to collect monies which are owed the Department. “I have been assured that the Department will be pursuing these arrears of payments.” The Immigration Minister also broke down the total number of migrants repatriated by the Department last year. In the period January to December 2012, some 3,134 people were repatriated.
Of that number, 2,496 were Haitian and 638 were other nationals. “Clearly, this incursion into our country of undocumented migrants from Haiti is our challenging immigration issue. It is also a national security problem, a social problem and an economic issue.” Minister Mitchell said, “The fact is the migrants are drawn to this country because their labour is in demand in this country.
They are willing to do jobs which Bahamians are said not to want at the prices which are now on offer to the labour market.” He added that the conventional wisdom is that Bahamians will not do these jobs. “The result is that people from Asia now populate the homes of the well to do from Lyford Cay to the Eastern Road and all points in between. Haitians are the nationality of choice in the labouring sector.”
Minister Mitchell said Bahamian businesspeople come to the Department all the time and say that they are unable to find Bahamian labourers with the necessary work ethic at the price being offered for their labour. “The Cabinet has asked that we work in conjunction with the Department of Labour and the National Training Program so that within a year we will be able to stop issuing work permits for maids, housekeepers and labourers.” “I say this only as a warning shot about what is likely to come,” Minister Mitchell said. “I also say this in the presence of Members of Parliament because of what you can expect in the way of significant pushback from the business community if the policy is implemented and the attendant political costs.”
