Walwyn baffled at government’s perceived apathy
Sixth District Representative Myron Walwyn said he was confused about what he described as the government’s lack of care and apparent inaction in the face of urgent problems affecting the territory.
Walwyn said the territory is nearing yet another tourist season but argued that the government has not been giving this the attention it deserves, despite the tourism industry being of significant importance to the territory and its economy.
“We are on the heels of another tourist season and the much talked about national tourism plan is nowhere in sight and the agency charged with the responsibility to bring tourists to our shores is still without proper facilities from which to effectively carry out their duties,” Walwyn said recently.
Staffers of the BVI Tourist Board remain without a functioning office and Walwyn said such things raise questions as to whether the territory is simply shooting blindly in the dark with the most fiercely competitive industry in the Caribbean.
According to Walwyn, there have been no new tourism-related investments in the territory, and none seem to be on the horizon.
The Sixth District Rep pointed out that down the Caribbean archipelago, there are millions of dollars in hotel investments in places such as St Vincent, Barbados, Anguilla and Barbuda.
“It begs the question as to what really is our government doing and what are their plans for the industry,” Walwyn said. “What are our plans for Prospect Reef? What are our plans for the much-needed expansion of the T B Lettsome International Airport?”
He questioned the government about how it intends to fund the planned airport expansion and whether it has even sought funding yet.
“The tourist season is upon us, and if you take a drive around the territory, you do not even get the impression as if we are open for business,” Walwyn lamented. “Not even the very bushes on scenic routes have been addressed. The many potholes are still very present.”
According to Walwyn, the territory remains unclean, yet there is no apparent urgency on the part of the government to give the territory the facelift it desperately needs ahead of the arrival of tourist season guests.
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The charter companies crewed yachts are almost fully booked for season. The hotels that are open on Tortola can be filled by one American flight. The term visitors are turned off by the numbers of cruise ship passengers.
The Territory would be better served by shutting down the Tourist Board and using the funds to spruce up the Territory, fix the roads, cut the bush. Make the Premier give back what he spent in Monacco, reduce the staff at Registry and force them to do everything on line; form filing, invoicing, payment, etc., reducing staff and use the funds to fix the Territory.
Why a new WE ferry dock when all that’s needed is to streamline clearance so one form, scanned passports, one person handling everything instead of three different ministries causing jam-ups.
Shut down the fiefdoms and spend the savings beutifying the Territory enhancing the tourism experience so it sells itself!!
he just loves the news he needs to stick with zan but the bvi is not a real place with people in the house arrested and charged and facing jail time
because he too was arrested and locked up
1) Yacht tourism – They sail around the BVI for a week or more. Spend lots of money, mostly at restaurants near the coast. They don’t care about the BVI’s problems on land. Their most unpleasant experiences are usually dealing with civil servants when entering and leaving the BVI.
2) Land tourism – Villa rentals, hotel occupants, etc. are decreasing on Tortola but holding steady on VG and JVD. Crime and infrastructure determine which islands host most of the these visitors.
3) Cruise ship tourism – 2 sided effect. Helps some business on Tortola(taxis, boat tours). But damages the attractiveness of Tortola for land tourists.
That’s it. There are practically no tourists for concerts, medical procedures, advanced education, ship registry and whatever other false attractions the BVI government promotes.
Well you can’t even get the bush cut because yall beloved UK mandates that everything goes to tender.
Leave Barbuda out as tourist investment, it’s gentrification taking place there, where after hurricane Irma that guy Gaston brown relocate them to Antigua with crocodile tears, while he set up surveyors to cut up the lands to sell rich white people, and use the army to prevent the barbudans from returning home to salvage anything at gun point, when they forcefully did go home there was fences blocking beaches saying no trespassing, the police station got damage and the government won’t repair it so the same white people rented a house to hold the police do the police has to show their loyalty to these white people when they call and say there is a black man swimming in the beach the police lock them up right away, they even lock up senator council members who is part of the executive of government.
That’s the same they bring to the BVI talking crap Gaston Brown.
The Premier and his motley crew ( Lorna excepted ) are experts at engaging in local pastimes…
mostly Lymin.
them need to investigate them rude kids coming out the basketball gym every afternoon, blocking traffic and acting like they own the roads, them girls especially are the worst, they dress like street walkers
TB LETTSOME AIPORT DONT NEED TO BE EXPANDED.
Just put a wall up to keep apathy out !