JOHNNY RODGERS IS WRONG ON EXCHANGE CONTROL
Dr. Johnny Rodgers was in a sense to the manor born. He is now a successful businessman, built on top of a successful career in eye medicine. He is the son of another Doctor Rodgers. He has two well to do sisters both successful in their own rights having retired from the public service. On top of that he is a Bahamian citizen with political ambitions. He ran for the DNA once and funds them with money. Given his antecedents, he cannot be a PLP ever. But the UBP , to which his antecedents would cause him to aspire, do not quite see him as one of them. So what happens to that category of Bahamian is they are on the face of it neither fish nor fowl, although they really support the FNM/UBP alliance. That by way of background. Dr. Rodgers is famous now for push the envelope on exchange control, on financial literacy and on the freedom of businessmen to do as they like and please without restraint from the Government or silly poor people and their MPs. His latest in that development to the public debate is a broadside against exchange control. There is plenty to recommend against exchange control but we think you should not say things that are simply untrue. Dr. Rodgers claims that one of the reasons exchange control must go is because the Bahamian dollar is overvalued and whether or not we have it, the value is gong to collapse. That is simply not true. The value of the Bahamian dollar is determined administratively and for sound political and economic reasons to be one to one with the US dollar. The Central Bank keeps cash in US dollars on hand to back the value of the Bahamian dollar. As long as that obtains, there is no issue about devaluation. And why would you keep talking down the currency of The Bahamas? What would be the value to a businessman of devaluation anyway. It will simply make goods more expensive in this country. So put a lid on it Dr. Rodgers. Take another tack.
Dr Jonny Rogers is wrong on that point about exchange control and devaluation risks.