Stakeholders in the tourism industry in Tobago are not happy with the short-term refurbishment to be undertaken at the ANR Robinson Airport.They expressed their disapproval and concern after an Airports Authority media conference at the Coco Reef Resort and Spa on Wednesday to announce the intended upgrades, which are expected to cost $150 million.
The tourism officials say they want a new airport, which they have been clamouring for over the past years but have been ignored.At Wednesday's press conference, temporary stopgap measures for the 30-year-old structure were disclosed.
Dianne Hadad, of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, said the work is being rushed and was far from what the stakeholders had suggested."What was presented was very rushed. It is maintenance work. It is time Tobago gets what it deserves. This is a plaster on a sore. This is not what we want and I don't think this is what we should accept," Hadad said. "We do not want any upgrade of any facility. We want a new airport. I have not heard a commitment to give us the facility.
"If we are going into tourism in a serious way, the greeting of our people is very important. We have been fighting for too long. Let us do it right, let us do it thorough and let's give Tobago the right thing. We need a new facility and we don't need the patching and fixing. Patching and fixing will only take us through a short period of time.In an immediate response, Kurt Adjodha, deputy chairman of the Airports Authority, said while the aim was to build a new airport in the long term, the AA had to be economical and efficient in the short term.