‘More teeth’: Police probe tourist’s taxi complaints

FROM PAGE A24 the day at a rate of $30 per person.

She alleged that the driver dropped the group off at Junkanoo Beach and agreed to collect them at 3pm. Megan said the driver never returned for the group and absconded with a bag of her daughter’s that contained souvenirs and the sea card for the cruise ship. She added that the experience cost her group $610.

“We paid $30 a person for 18 people to drive us around for the day,” Megan said. “He said he would take us anywhere we wanted to go for the day. We went to the Queen’s Staircase and then he drove us to Junkanoo Beach, where he said he would be back at 3pm to pick us up and never came back to get us.

“He said we could leave our belongings in his vehicle, and my daughter left her bag with her necklace and her bracelet that we had just bought from the market by this Queen’s Staircase, and her sea card to get back on the ship. Then he never came back to get us. We had to pay another $70 in taxis to get back to the port, so that’s what $600.. $610 now we’ve paid.”

Mr Ferguson said the union was responsible for making the video. It was passed to the relevant authorities and he was unaware of how became public. He added that the taxi union is conducting the investigation because they have an agreement with the Nassau Cruise Port (NCP), and that incidents such as this happen “daily”.

He said: “It is the Bahamas Taxi Cab Union who is in charge of the investigation because we have an agreement with Nassau Cruise Port to actually operate and run the taxi industry, so we assist them in the disciplinary measures against taxi drivers.

“It’s on a daily basis that these things happen. It’s just that particular video was recorded by an executive of the Bahamas Taxi Cab Union, and I don’t know how it went viral, but it was the union that passed the information on to the police, the authorities at the Nassau Cruise Port and the Road Traffic Controller, Linda Moxey.”

“Road Traffic is supposed to be the watchdogs

LEGAL NOTICE

Pursuant to the provisions of Section 138 (8) of The International Business Companies Act, 2000 of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, notice is hereby given that Dunamis Trading (Bahamas) Ltd. has been dissolved and struck off the Register as of the 27th day of July, 2023 of this industry, make sure that dress codes are kept, upkeeping of your taxi, making sure you have all the requisite licences and paperwork that qualifies you to be a taxi driver,” Mr Ferguson added.

“The responsibility of disciplining taxi drivers rests on the shoulders of the Road Traffic controller. We pass the information on to the controller so that she can have all of the information that she needs in order to do proper due process and disciplinary measures.”

Mr Ferguson again criticised the issuance of new taxi plates to drivers who were not properly trained and regulated, adding that the situation is a “dark mark” on the taxi and tourism industries.

He said: “I went on record and said look for the influx of the new taxi drivers untrained, ungazetted, unregulated. This was going to happen. I’ve been in this industry long enough to know when things are going to go haywire. He received a new taxi plate. I wouldn’t say he’s a new driver but you have to understand, when things get out of hand and you have an uptick in competition, it causes good drivers to turn bad because the competition is fierce. The union went on record to say that these kinds of things may happen.”

Jobeth Coleby-Davis, minister of transport and housing,said yesterday that the ministry is aware of the incident and police are looking into the matter.

“Please be advised the Ministry of Transport and Housing and the Road

Traffic Department is aware of the incident involving a taxi driver and a tourist. The police are investigating the matter. Once the police investigation is completed, the ministry will provide an update,” she said.

The taxi driver allegedly involved in the incident yesterday responded in a social media voice note where he denied any wrongdoing. He he acknowledged that he transported a group of 18 at the rate of $30 per person to Junkanoo Beach and arranged to collect them at 3pm.

However, he said he arrived at 2.45pm and waited until 3.20pm for the group and, when they did not come to the vehicle, he left. The driver indicated that to his knowledge none of the tourists’ belongings were left in his taxi and that period, which ends September 30.

“On the enforcement side, the Ministry of Finance is the competent authority and have been doing on-site inspections. They’ve done in excess of 30 on-site inspections.

“To evaluate compliance with reporting, they found a few that were non-compliant. They’ve actually issued fines and asked for remediation on those aspects, so those on-site inspections are underway and they have about 35 more slated to start in September. So we’re meeting all the expectations that were laid out for us and the EU usually comes for a reassessment in October.” he is running a business and not obligated to wait on late clients.

Prime Minister Philip Davis KC and Michael Halkitis, minister of economic affairs, last month and met with the EU technical group that handles tax matters to update them on The Bahamas’ efforts to meet their demands and become compliant.

He said: “I had these people today on tour, it was 17, 18 of them for $30 a person. I been to the Fort almost an hour with these people. They tell me I must carry them to the beach, come back for them like 3 o’clock. I reach there like 2.45 early, and 3.20 these people ain’t never show up so I leave.

“I ain’t stay there till no 3.30 or no quarter to four because guess what? If the ship say 10 minutes, ain’t no different than the ship. I don’t want nobody to think I obligated to stay there and wait till they decide they want to come back. That ain’t how it work. I running a business and that’s the way it go.”

NOTICE

International Business Companies Act No.45 of 2000

ENEL INVESTMENTS LIMITED (the “Company”)

Notice is hereby given that, in accordance with Section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act, No.45 of 2000, the Dissolution of ENEL INVESTMENTS LIMITED has been completed, a Certifcate of Dissolution has been issued and the Company has therefore been struck off the Register. The date of completion of the dissolution was the 19th day of May, 2023.