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‘VICTORY TRAIN’

Minnis sets sights on winning next election in 2022

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis laid the foundation for the Free National Movement’s reelection campaign during a rally last night.

“Tonight we start the launch of our victory train,” he said. “We start here in our central zone and we will continue to our destiny.

Government House will be the final spot in 2022. But as we move through the community we will be taking on more passengers.”

The rally was held on the grounds of the Edmund Moxey Youth and Community Centre. Elected representatives from the Bain and Grants Town, Mount Moriah, Fort Charlotte and St Barnabas constituencies spoke and attendees were intermittently entertained by Junkanoo groups.

The prime minister

weaved his personal story of growing up poor into a testimony of implementing policies that “uplift the poor and all who have been left behind.”

He touted what he sees as his administration’s successes, emphasising the recent decline in murders and noting 1,056 students have taken advantage of the tuition free education programme he launched at the University of the Bahamas (UB). “(That’s) an increase of 57 percent,” he said, “and it’s projected that there would be an additional ten percent every year of young people who could not get a college education that would be able to get a college education thanks to the FNM.” He announced that ground for a new UB residence and multi-purpose complex will be broken next week. The complex

CABLE Bahamas’ top executive yesterday conceded the $31m drop in the price received for exiting the US was “warranted” but said: “It’s still a massive return for investors.”

Franklyn Butler, the BISX-listed communications provider’s chief executive, defended the 9 percent decline in Summit Broadband’s final purchase price from the initially

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

DAVIS HITS OUT OVER POINTE JOB STATISTICS

By SYANN THOMPSON Tribune Staff Reporter sthompson@tribunemedia.net

SEE PAGE FIVE

FREE FRUIT TO PUSH HEALTHY KIDS DIET

By LEANDRA ROLLE lrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Ministry of Health, in partnership with the Ministry of Education, announced yesterday the launch of a pilot programme to help encourage healthier eating habits among young people.

The initiative, 100% SMART Fruits for Kids, will focus its efforts at the Centreville Primary School, where students and faculty members will be provided with fresh, healthy fruits twice a week for six weeks.

SEE PAGE FIVE

announced $332.5m as still “higher than anyone expected we would get for this business”.

Speaking to Tribune Business in an exclusive interview after the transaction with Grain Management closed this week, Mr Butler said the $301.5m obtained represented a return on investment that is “probably the highest of any merger and acquisition transaction in this region”.

L SOUR CE

THE government’s disappointment in the ratio of foreign workers to Bahamian labour at The Pointe is “laughable,” according to Progressive Liberal Party leader Philip “Brave” Davis.

“The foreign workers in this country could only work in the country through the permission of the government,” Mr Davis said at a press conference yesterday. “So the government must know that they are granting work permits to The Pointe.

CABLE DROPS $31M IN US ASSET SALE PRICE

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

$1

SEE PAGE TWO

PEDESTRIAN KILLED IN COLLISION WITH CAR EVACUEES MOVING TO 90-DAY HOTEL

TONIGHT we start the launch of our victory train, Prime Minister Hubert Minnis told supporters at a rally at the Edmund Moxey Centre last night.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

FIFTY rooms at the Poinciana Inn will temporarily shelter Hurricane Dorian victims in an agreement between the government and the hotel, the Ministry of Social Services announced yesterday.

The government wants to reduce the number of people at the Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium and the Bahamas Academy

THE POINCIANA Inn Auditorium and will shelter people at the hotel for up to 90 days, giving first

consideration to families because of their privacy needs. The ministry and its partners originally housed more than 2,000 people in shelters across the country after the deadly September storm but now house fewer than 400 people at the two shelters.

The ministry said in a statement: “The ministry’s additional search and transitional accommodations resulted in negotiations

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

SEE PAGE SEVEN

By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

POLICE are warning drivers to be careful on the road after a female pedestrian in New Providence lost her life in a traffic collision on Tuesday night.

According to police, the incident happened shortly 8pm when a man driving a silver Honda Fit south on Farrington Road off Boyd Road lost control of the vehicle, colliding with the woman who was walking.

SEE PAGE THREE

PAGE 2, Thursday, January 23, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Free fruit to push healthy kids diet from page one “Today is a pivotal day in the lives of our youth who are the driving force of our future,” said Health Minister Dr Duane Sands at yesterday’s launch.

“Numerous studies show that early indicators of chronic disease begin in youth. Eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables is associated with decreased risks of many chronic diseases including heart disease.

“Through this initiative, it is hoped that even at an early age, the partnership

will demonstrate that the students of Centreville Primary School have developed a heightened sense of awareness of making informed choices about what they eat.”

He continued: “And (so), the Ministry of Health along with the Ministry of Education will closely monitor this pilot programme as this initiative has the potential to be the commencement of a larger long-term commitment to increase the consumption of fruits and healthy snack alternatives in all of our schools.”

According to officials, more than 400 people, inclusive of students and teachers, are expected to benefit as result of the pilot programme.

Speaking at yesterday’s press conference, Tamika Taylor, of Foodie Co, said it is her hope that other sponsors will join in support of the cause.

“It’s a pleasure to partner with the (Ministries) of Health and Education. We commend all efforts of our stakeholders as they have already begun the great work in helping our country have access to food,” she told reporters yesterday. “…But, we hope that corporate Bahamas and private sponsors will come on board as we finish and complete the pilot, (so) that we’ll be able to extend this into the schools on a long term.”

“We have some international bodies like the World Health Organisation and the Pan American Health Organisation who also provides funding for

programmes such as this.

So, we hope that the success of the programme, the pilot will aid in that.”

Dr Sands also reiterated similar comments in his address, noting that “the Ministry of Health cannot do it alone” in the fight against unhealthy habits in the country.

Last year, the government implemented a sugary drinks ban at public health care facilities in the country.

With only 15 percent of the population eating the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables, the health minister is urging Bahamians to make more healthy lifestyle choices.

He said: “Following the results of the 2019 Steps survey, we have greater insights into our nation’s NCD (non-communicable diseases) summary. Based on the initial findings as it relates to fruits and vegetables, only 15 percent of the population aged 18 to 69 eats the recommended five or more servings each day.

“With our increased intake of added salt, sugar and less than 50 percent of Bahamians drinking the recommend eight glasses or more water each day, most families in our country are being significantly and negatively affected by preventable NCDs. “… (So) along with our partners, we encourage all Bahamian residents from the young that we are highlighting today to the senior pearls to continue to make lifestyle choices that will contribute to increasingly good health for years and generations to come.”

WOMAN IN HOSPITAL AFTER BEING SHOT

BY ARMED ROBBER A WOMAN is in hospital after she was shot by an armed robber outside her home, police said.

Shortly after 11pm on Tuesday, a woman had just arrived at her home on Jumbey Drive, Golden Gates, when she was approached by an armed man who shot her before

running away. She was taken to hospital and is listed in stable condition.

Anyone with information that can assist with this investigation is asked to contact the Central Detective Unit at 502-9991/2, Crime Stoppers at 328TIPS (8477) or the nearest police station.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, January 23, 2020, PAGE 3

NO TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS IMPOSED OVER CHINA VIRUS

By LEANDRA ROLLE lrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas has not been advised to impose any travel or trade restrictions following the deadly coronavirus outbreak that has spread from China to the United States, health officials revealed yesterday.

In a press statement, the Ministry of Health said: “The international community, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the regional Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) are concerned that

this new virus can result in a pandemic (a worldwide occurrence of the virus) as occurred with SARS and H1N1 avian influenza. “…Based on the currently available information, however, WHO does not recommend any restriction of travel or trade.”

The revelation came hours after Health Minister Dr Duane Sands told reporters that officials were still awaiting recommendations from international organisations concerning the deadly virus.

“We have been in

constant touch with the Pan American Health Organisation and the World Health Organisation at a very high level,” he said yesterday.

“We have alerted our stakeholders. We have been in discussions with our major port, that’s LPIA, in order to have them begin to consider what alternative approaches we need to take. “(But) as of 20 minutes ago, there (have not been) any recommendation or any changes at our borders, any restriction to travel and this is coming directly from PAHO and WHO.”

Since its outbreak in Wuhan, China, the virus has infected hundreds of people across Asia, killing 17, according the international reports. The first US case was reported on Tuesday.

Although there have been no reported incidences of the virus in the Bahamas, Dr Sands said officials were watching the matter very closely.

Symptoms of the virus can include respiratory problems, difficulty breathing, fever, cough and pneumonia.

Trial begins of trio accused of murdering four and injuring six in 2013

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net THE trial of three men accused of the 2013 Fox Hill mass shooting that killed four people and injured six others got underway yesterday.

Jurors heard the prosecution plans to call the fourth occupant of the car used in the drive-by shooting as one of its witnesses.

Prosecutor Zoe Gibson, in an opening address to the jury, said the fourth occupant of the Honda Accord vehicle allegedly used by Peter Rolle, Jermaine Curry and Justin Williams will give key evidence against the three accused.

Ms Gibson further stated that the jury can expect to hear testimony from one or more of the persons injured during the shooting, as well as family members of the four people who were killed in the mayhem.

Her comments came at the first day of trial concerning the December 27, 2013 shooting at Freedom Park before Justice Deborah Fraser, just over six years after the incident took place.

Williams, Rolle and Curry are accused of murdering four people - Claudezino Davis, Shaquille Demeritte,

Eric Morrison and Shenique Sands on that date.

They are also charged with the attempted murder of Chino Davis, Janet Davis, John Davis, Samuel Ferguson, Jermaine Pratt and Leroy Taylor.

According to reports, around 6pm, occupants of a small, dark vehicle opened fire “with a variety of weapons” in the area just behind the basketball court where several people were gathered awaiting Junkanoo results.

Davis was pronounced dead on the scene while 10 others were taken to hospital. Demeritte, Morrison and Sands later died in hospital of their injuries.

Taking the witness stand yesterday, Detective Corporal Navar Neely, a crime scene investigator, gave evidence about his analysis of a Honda Accord registered to Maxwell and Eric Culmer Curry.

D/Cpl Neely said he made checks of the vehicle and observed the ignition switch appeared to be damaged. Various parts of the ignition switch were also observed in a compartment on the driver’s door.

D/Cpl Neely said he also observed a screwdriver on the back seat, and also noted that several sunglasses as well as a number

of fired casings of different calibers were scattered throughout the vehicle.

According to the officer, he said he observed 9mm and .223 cartridge casings, the latter of which Mr Farquharson said are fired from AK-47 assault rifles or “similar weapons”. D/ Cpl Neely said he found out the calibers of the casings by looking at the numbers at the bottom of the cartridges.

D/Cpl Neely said he also observed “bullet fragments” in the vehicle.

As a result, the officer said he photographed the vehicle and upon completion, the various items were collected and packaged. Then, using fingerprint powder, D/Cpl Neely said he processed and consequently obtained 17 latent fingerprints from various parts of the vehicle.

D/Cpl Neely said he did not obtain any prints from the vehicle’s exterior door handles. He also said he did not process any of the casings for fingerprints out of concerns he may have inadvertently compromised any ballistic value the casings would have had.

Nonetheless, the officer said he handed the fingerprints he lifted, as well as the various exhibit items over to senior officers for

The injured woman was transported to hospital and later died. The driver of the vehicle remained on the scene and is assisting police with the investigation.

Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) Superintendent Shanta

Knowles urged motorists not to use devices while driving that distract them and adhere to the road regulations and speed limit.

“They have a responsibility to, of course, themselves, not only to their passengers, but to everyone who is using the road and so we encourage people to drive within the limits

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

In the meantime, the health minister said officials will continue to heighten surveillance for virus symptoms.

“What we have done is begun the process of ramping up our ability to test for this virus,” he said.“…We have to be very careful not to exaggerate and create panic. I can assure you this ministry if paying very closely to this.”

A city in lockdown - Page 13

THE THREE accused: Left, Jermaine Curry and, behind him, Justin Williams. Right: Peter Rolle.

Photos: Terrel W Carry Sr/ Tribune Staff

them to be processed. A number of photographs were developed from the pictures D/Cpl Neely took, which were exhibited in court.

Lead Crown attorney Roger Thompson asked the officer if one of the fingerprints he collected was that of Rolle, but the defence attorneys swiftly criticised him for asking such a question.

Murrio Ducille, who represents Curry, called the question “outrageous” and “ridiculous”. Sonia Timothy, who represents Rolle, said it was a “leading question”, while Mr Farquharson asserted that the damage Mr Thompson caused by calling Rolle’s name is irreversible because it cannot be erased from the jury’s mind.

D/Cpl Neely never did get to answer the question.

Then, while being cross-examined by Mr Farquharson, D/Cpl Neely was made aware of the fact that he did not take any photographs of the shell casings because they had fingerprints on them. In response, the officer said he didn’t because there weren’t any prints on them.

When asked by the attorney if he dusted the casings for fingerprints, D/Cpl Neely said no, as he wanted to maintain the integrity of

PEDESTRIAN KILLED IN COLLISION WITH CAR

from page one

Dr Sands said that although the ministry is keeping an eye on updates,“there are far more deadly viruses that are in the Bahamas.”

“While this is something (that) we are paying very close attention to, I want people to remember that we had 130,000 people die from measles last year. You had almost a half a million people die from flu last year and probably that same number will die from flu around the world,” he told reporters yesterday, as he urged people to get the flu shot.

- the speed limits are... posted on our streets. We encourage people to pay attention to the road signs and be careful when there are pedestrians.

We want everyone to arrive at their location, their destination, as safely as possible,” she explained.

Officers from the Traffic Department are continuing investigations.

the items for future ballistic analysis.

However, Mr Farquharson suggested that his concerns were pointless, as the entire scene he photographed had been unsecured for 24 hours, as he asserted that the event took place at 6pm on the previous day. And during that time, Mr Farquharson said police could have altered it “any way they wanted to”.

“I’m not saying they did, I’m not saying they didn’t,” Mr Farquharson said.

D/Cpl Neely was shown one of the photographs he took, which Mr Farquharson said shows that the Honda Accord operated via a keyless ignition system.

Mr Farquharson said that was evidenced by a “push start” button near the dashboard.

Thus, Mr Farquharson said that the standard ignition switch D/Cpl Neely took another photograph

“strongly suggests” that the Honda Accord in question was actually a car used by some unknown person who steals car parts, thus explaining the ignition switch’s presence in that vehicle.

Another explanation, Mr Farquharson posited, is that the car was tampered with by someone who wanted to make it look as if somebody broke into that car.

Mr Farquharson then drew D/Cpl Neely’s attention to the fact that the Honda Accord vehicle in question is a right-hand drive vehicle. Thus, he asserted that if the driver is alleged to be one of the shooters, he would have likely shot the passenger next to him in the process.

However, Mr Thompson objected to such an assertion, charging that it was pure speculation.

The matter continues today.

PAGE 4, Thursday, January 23, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

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Kneejerk politics as election appears on the horizon SO THE pretence is done – the countdown to the 2022 election has begun.

Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis sounded the rallying cry for FNMs last night. His platform so far is a decline in murders, free tuition for students and policies that “uplift the poor”. That latter one will likely see dissenting voices ask whether extra VAT and a new charge on your BPL bill really uplifts anyone – but one way or another, the battle for votes has begun.

Already, Opposition leader Philip ‘Brave’ Davis has taken potshots at Dr Minnis’ claims – but then that’s what Mr Davis does. There’s a depressing predictability about the PLP leader’s regular criticisms.

Any time that Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis does something or puts forward a suggestion or recommendation, you can be sure that Mr Davis will pop up the next day to attack him for it.

As a newspaper, we could write the next day’s headline before it even happens – Davis blasts this or Davis condemns that.

It seldom comes with an actual proposal of how to do things better or how the PLP would approach any given subject. It never comes with any acknowledgement that the PLP could have done better on the issue back when Davis was Deputy Prime Minister.

Perish the thought – he seems to exist in a world where nothing he was involved in could have been done better and everything that was bad was something he wasn’t involved in. Not that he seemed to raise his voice against former Prime Minister Perry Christie too much.

The latest subject to draw Mr Davis’ ire is marijuana – and Dr Minnis’ goal of decriminalising the drug and releasing those jailed for possessing small amounts of marijuana.

With Dr Minnis saying the PLP did nothing on marijuana, Mr Davis rushes to say that they sent Bishop Simeon Hall to the CARICOM commission on marijuana – not that it seemed to produce a lot of action – and amended the law to reduce the time before a criminal record is expunged. This latter was not specifically for marijuana but included cases of small amounts of possession.

Mr Davis therefore concludes that it was the PLP who started the process of marijuana reform. A tenuous claim, to

say the least, but more than that – which is it, Mr Davis? Are you in favour of this reform and claiming credit for it or declaring that it’s of no worth?

He also goes on to criticise the FNM for raising the rate of VAT – without noting that it was under his watch that VAT was introduced in the first place.

Every time Dr Minnis says one thing, Mr Davis will say the opposite – they’re like the Push Me Pull You from Dr Doolittle, the two-headed llama always pulling against itself. With this tug-ofwar of I’m right, he’s wrong going on, is it any wonder Bahamian politics never seems to take the country as far forward as it needs to go?

Worse, in his comments on marijuana, Mr Davis shrugs off those affected by the marijuana laws saying that most of those accused get discharges or noncustodial sentences. Most? What about those remaining? “Most” sounds like it leaves some people behind – and a man who is indifferent to the plight of the few probably shouldn’t be trusted to lead the many.

The frustration is that there are times when Mr Davis gets it right – when he calls the government to account for its failure to follow through on election pledges of recall for non-performing MPs or on campaign finance reform, or over the lack of clarity over the plans of BPL. Even pushing for clear information over the post office deal is the kind of thing a responsible opposition does.

Too often though he falls back into sniping, and if the election countdown has started then the electorate will need more – policies not potshots.

Imagine, though, if instead of this constant knee jerk reaction, our political leaders of every stripe could pull together on issues to find an outcome that benefits the nation as a whole.

Imagine if aspiring to high office wasn’t just a game of cutting your opponent down but instead offering the best ideas to build the nation up, even if it doesn’t happen under your watch but under someone else’s.

We’re not sure there is such a thing as being bi-partisan in Bahamian politics these days, but there ought to be some common ground where leaders can meet. Whether we see such a thing with an election now on the horizon, we’ll leave to you to imagine.

Who’s on Pointe duty?

EDITOR, The Tribune THE Pointe Heads of Agreement (HOA) was signed on June 18th, 2015 but held before being tabled on January 2nd, 2017 (election May, 2017) Article: 3 of HOA requires the developer to sub-contract 40% of the gross value of the development construction…does anyone at OPM – Works know what portion was?

Article 3.2 mentions work permits between, note 400-500 on a short READERS have been posting their reactions to the stories making the news on tribune242.com this week.

After Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis said he would support releasing from prison those convicted for having small amounts of marijuana, Sickened said: “Excellent! Finally a government and a leader with sense – at least on this topic.

Get this done now and then move on to bigger things.”

John had this to say: “This is a hot potato and no matter what decision the government makes there

term basis…ratio nonBahamian workers is to be 70%…this may be amended to suit the parties.

Shadow training required…was this ever done? Was the 70% ratio amended? Show letter.

The HOA does not seem to include or provide for financial penalties if these clauses are breached…

Clause: 3 useless.

Surely if the then Government, PLP, was serious there would have been a serious penalty for violation of the labour concession…

will be repercussions. The main thing is not to rush to a decision. In fact, it can be a decision where the results are phased in over a period of time. The government doesn’t ever want to appear to be telling people, ‘there’s no more jail time and there is no more criminal record for small amounts of drugs, so it’s okay to abuse it’.”

say a $100,000.00 fine if the percentage Bahamian-Foreign worker was breached for every 30-days of the breach. We have to stop being silly.

It is blatantly obvious the FNM Minister of Labour kept a blind eye on The Pointe and totally disregarded the lack of Bahamian construction workers on the site. Explain Mr Foulkes.

W THOMPSON Nassau January 20, 2020.

An Inter-American Development Bank report revealed that around onethird of Bahamas Power & Light’s Family Island power generation capacity is “at or beyond the end of its life”, prompting this comment from Avidreader: “I trust that I can claim to speak on behalf of many residents of Marsh Harbour who would be very grateful to see power restored to many residential areas where the lack of electrical power since September 1st has made life even more difficult. Truly there is a great deal of work to be done.”

We should be compelled by our values EDITOR, The Tribune THE imperceptive neoconservative from the north, Kevin Evans, proved yet again that talking fool is a very serious thing.

Mr Evans seemed perturbed by the verbal contortions from Foreign Minister Darren Henfield as he tried to ad lib a nuanced policy that the Bahamas doesn’t have a dog in the fight between the US and Iran.

Indeed, we don’t, but our values ought to compel us to always seek the moral high ground in international affairs.

Henfield was pained as he attempted to walk a verbal tightrope trying as best he could to hover above the fray without causing offence on Queen Street.

Better he had leaned on history, international law and on our core founding principles that enshrine our abiding respect for the rule of law.

In the latest dust-up in the Middle East, he could have said that we support the 1907 Hague Convention as well as Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. These laws state that in peacetime extrajudicial execution is illegal.

We earn respect when we keep faith with international law while privately urging our friends to do the same. For the record, Mr. Evans, the Bahamas enjoys friendly relations with both the US and Iran. The enemy of our friend is not automatically our enemy.

The doctrine of geopolitics combines with our shared history with the US and together they anchor our foreign policy.

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net We do see eye-to-eye with the United States on the need to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions. In 2008 we passed a law called the International Obligations (Economic and Ancillary Measures) (Iran) Order which prohibits any Bahamian person, entity, vessel, or aircraft from aiding and abetting Iran’s nuclear programme.

By that Order we proved our intent to promote global peace and harmony.

And even this wasn’t aimed specifically at Iran. Rather it can be viewed as an extension to our commitment to the UN’s Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to which we acceded 44 years ago.

Mr. Evans posits that we should blindly support this US action in the Middle East on the irrational basis that the end (eradicating terrorism) which we support, justifies the means (killing a senior member of a foreign government) which we don’t.

Mr. Evans should also get his facts straight lest he become a purveyor of the same kind of fake news and misinformation that passes for fact, science and logic in important capitals these days.

He would do well to understand that saying all Muslims are the same is as illogical and naïve as saying all Christians are the same.

The principal divisions of Islam are Sunni and Shia. Al-Qaeda, the jihadist group of mostly Saudis that attacked the United States

on 9/11, is Sunni, as are ISIS and the Taliban. Iran happens to be Shia.

As then US President George Bush was at pains to explain following the 9/11 tragedy, Islam did not attack the United States.

Terrorists hiding behind a peaceful religion did.

And it is seriously disconcerting to hear Mr. Evans cast aspersion on the prophet who founded one of the great religions of this world.

We can hope that Mr. Evans tones down his xenophobia long enough to appreciate our solemn responsibility to the truth, to the rule of law and to getting along with all nations.

Likewise, former Foreign Minister Fred Mitchell would do well to dial back his rhetoric and to practice restraint in his tiresome never-ending attacks on the government.

Mr. Henfield and the Finance Minister should simultaneously try to sing from the same music sheet on policy matters, but their indiscretion didn’t open the door to Mitchell’s latest bout of “chicken little syndrome”.

Events vindicated the government’s strategy to “watch and wait” as the US and Iran squared off. Mitchell wanted travel warnings, red flags and sirens, but an appeal for vigilance by citizens abroad was all that the situation required.

As our longest serving Foreign Minister, the late Paul Adderley would have growled if briefed on Kevin Evans’ spiel: “I don’t have time for foolishness.”

And neither do we.

THE GRADUATE Nassau, January 22, 2019.

Unwanted rather than unborn EDITOR, The Tribune

Re: ‘There’s No Choice’ The Tribune, January 21, 2020.

THOSE in favour of keeping abortion dangerous and illegal (why not add sweet hearting?) would seem to prefer that a child is born unwanted rather than unborn.

Unfortunately, one doesn’t hear of very many such law-abiding, well-meaning citizens offering to give the undesired child a ‘good’ home or to take care of its welfare and expenses for the next 18 years or so.

KEN W KNOWLES, MD Nassau, January 21, 2020.

THE TRIBUNE from page one will feature 1000 beds for students and more than 50,000 sq ft of “common areas, including a fitness area, study rooms and a 200-seat dining hall, a 500seat ballroom and, most of all, a spiritual centre,” he said.

He struck familiar themes when attacking the Progressive Liberal Party, likening the party to frogs and crabs “that can be slippery to catch”.

“But we know how to catch crabs, you have to be strong with them and cut their biters off right away,” he said.

He again expressed his commitment to marijuana law reform, having received the long-awaited report of the Bahamas Marijuana Commission on Tuesday.

Although lawyers say few are imprisoned for possessing small amounts of marijuana, he said he has “sent a notice to our prison wardens (and) to our prison officers that they must get ready to free our young people.”

PLP leader Philip “Brave” Davis recently toured inner city communities, declaring afterwards that this administration’s Over-the-Hill programme, which promised to rejuvenate the areas, has failed.

“To date,” the Killarney MP responded last night, “$941,299 in benefits have been given to applicants from the Overthe-Hill in business licence exemptions, commercial vehicles, stamp and real property tax and building materials.”

Although billed as a

Thursday, January 23, 2020, PAGE 5

Minnis sets sights on 2022 election

PRIME Minister Hubert Minnis at a rally at the Edmund Moxey Centre last night.

Photos: Shawn Hanna/ Tribune Staff support last night’s rally,” he said. “There was no new ground broken last night. It was the same mish-mash of attacks on the PLP which passes for policy by the FNM. The prime minister turns out to be useless and clueless. So desperate

town-hall, questions were not taken. In a late night press statement, Mr Davis said the meeting was falsely advertised.

“The prime minister must say who paid for this and whether any government funds were expended to

was he that he had to use a Junkanoo group to draw a crowd. So with hurricane relief with no teachers, the prime minister can find time for trash talking on a public park.”

Editorial View - Page 4

PLP LEADER DAVIS HITS OUT OVER POINTE JOBS STATISTICS from page one

If 70 percent of the workers at The Pointe are foreigners, it meant that the government gave them those number of work permits to work at The Pointe.

“So where’s the disappointment, why the disappointment? It just shows a failure of this government to pay attention to what is going on, that they are not monitoring what is going on in the country and in the economy. If they were monitoring The Pointe, they would have been able to recognise the numbers.”

Earlier this month, Labour Director John Pinder told The Tribune there were 264 foreign labourers to 90 Bahamian workers at site. According

to a Department of Labour inspection report at the construction site completed at the end of last year, there were 229 Chinese workers and only 90 Bahamians; 35 people of other nationalities were working on the site as well as two Bahamian companies.

His comments came days after The Tribune did a head count of foreigners leaving the Bay Street construction site, estimating more than 200 Chinese labourers walking from the area to their accommodations across the street.

In the Heads of Agreement between China Construction America (CCA), The Pointe’s developer, and the government, it states that 70 percent of the workers must be Bahamian, while 30 percent should be foreign.

This week outside Cabinet, Minister of Labour Dion Foulkes said the government “is very disappointed” with the disproportionate ratio of Bahamians to foreign workers at Bay Street construction site and is currently in talks with its management to resolve the issue.

“We’ve been in talks with the management at The Pointe, their explanation is that they have some 22 Bahamian subcontractors working at The Pointe and they are including those numbers - the employees that work for those 22 subcontractors as part of the Bahamian component,” said Mr Foulkes.

He added: “We’re sitting down with them, we are talking to them we did a survey as early as last week

and it something we are not pleased with. Their figures conflict with our figures and it is something that we are trying to work out. Given what we have seen, their argument is depending on when you come the Bahamian component is much

higher, whether you come in the morning or in the evening.”

Meanwhile, Mr Pinder previously told The Tribune that he has sent a team out every month to do a head count to see if Pointe officials are complying

with the prescribed worker ratio. The Ministry of Labour was told back in 2018 by Pointe officials that more foreign workers were needed for the “superstructure” phase of the construction, requiring specialised workers.

PAGE 6, Thursday, January 23, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Minnis on marijuana ‘a publicity stunt’- PLP

By SYANN THOMPSON Tribune Staff Reporter sthompson@tribunemedia.net

PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party leader Philip “Brave” Davis downplayed the potential impact of Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis’ declaration that he supports prison release of those convicted for having small amounts of marijuana.

Calling it a publicity stunt, Mr Davis said a firstyear lawyer would know that most people arrested for small amounts of marijuana are not sent to prison.

And while he expressed support early last year for the decriminalisation of recreational marijuana, yesterday said he is concerned about the drug’s impact on the poor.

His comments came a day after Dr Minnis received the Bahamas National Marijuana Commission’s report. At the time, Dr Minnis also hit out at the PLP, saying the previous Christie administration had done nothing when it had the chance to support marijuana reform.

Expressing his concern yesterday about legal marijuana’s potential impact on the vulnerable, Mr Davis

said: “The complete liberalisation of marijuana use in the country would impact the poor, not positively and impact them negatively.

That is the conversations we should be having. My concern is about our innercity youth who would be more impacted by easy access to this product and what would be the result and consequences.”

Mr Davis also said that most people arrested for marijuana are not sent to prison but “most get conditional or absolute discharges or non-custodial sentences.”

He said the prime minister should focus on working with the United States to lift travel restrictions on those who have criminal convictions for small amounts of marijuana possession.

“Perhaps he should be engaging with the United States government to discuss ways and means of facilitating them being able to travel to the United States or facilitating them being able to get a visa to go to the US. That’s doing something to impact the lives of people,” he said.

He also raised questions about who will be able to obtain licences to cultivate

marijuana in a legal environment. He said the PLP visited Jamaica to witness its marijuana industry, which it found is a business for the rich.

“We therefore know that the business of marijuana processing and distribution is capital intensive and is for rich businessmen and women. The prime minister should not seek to fool us that he is making way for small business people.

The FNM is making way for their rich business friends to make a windfall when the law changes. In Jamaica for example, it takes about five million US dollars to establish a marijuana business. The PLP wants to know who is being linked up to get these marijuana processing licences, export permits and businesses.”

Mr Davis also said it is false to say the PLP did not contribute to marijuana reform.

“Bahamians would recall that our last term in office, it was the PLP who amended the law to provide for a significant reduction in a timeline before criminal records are permanently expunged and this included the possession of small quantities of marijuana.

PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party leader Philip “Brave” Davis This legislative reform measure was passed unanimously in the House of Assembly; it means that the whole process of marijuana reform was started by the PLP,” said Mr Davis.

He also said it was the PLP which appointed Bishop Simeon Hall, now a member of the Minnis administration’s Bahamas National Marijuana Commission, to CARICOM’s

marijuana commission. The Bahamas National Marijuana Commission’s report is expected to be tabled in the House of Assembly next week.

Editorial View - Page 4

Munroe: Drug reform a ‘dishonest’ agenda

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net ATTORNEY Wayne Munroe, QC, has accused the Minnis administration of “dishonesty” as it tackles marijuana reform, insisting the government wants to garner political support and restrict cultivators and suppliers of the drug.

On Tuesday, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis said Bahamian marijuana users

should not be criminalised as he voiced support for the release of those convicted for having small amounts of the drug. But Mr Munroe said this issue “doesn’t exist”, adding the prime minister appeared to be pushing an agenda.

Dr Minnis has also said the former Progressive Liberal Party government did nothing to push the country toward marijuana decriminalisation.

“The PLP did engage in

this matter because it was the PLP that appointed Simeon Hall (now Bahamas National Marijuana Commission co-chairman).

So this whole ball was put in motion by the PLP,” Mr Munroe said in an interview with The Tribune.

“Now when they came to power they clearly came with an agenda to do something and I don’t want to claim to be a prophet, but it’s probably an agenda to limit the number of persons

in the medical marijuana field and then just to play on the rest of it for political gain.

“It’s clear to me that what happened under this Free National Movement, which would not happen under the PLP, is the commission went forward without any clue as to what the law is because medicinal marijuana has always been legal in the Bahamas and under the Dangerous Drugs Act. I have on a number of occasions set out the provisions for what make it so, but this continues to persist.

“So if they are trying to say this is something new when it clearly exists, it’s because they want to change what happens now and that’s a wide number of people who could (be treated) with medicinal marijuana. Under the PLP, the commission would have been properly briefed on what the law is. The law is that medicinal marijuana is legal,” he argued.

Regarding Dr Minnis’ support for the release of those now in prison for small amounts of marijuana, Mr Munroe questioned the level of impact this would have if enacted.

“This thing about setting them free, that’s a part of in my mind, the agenda as well. I don’t know of anyone who is in prison for

WAYNE MUNROE, QC simple possession of a small quantity of marijuana. In my experience in the last year or so people have been awarded fines for being in possession of 50 lbs of marijuana and not sent to jail.

Mind you there are very large fines, but then it’s a large quantity of marijuana.

“I have known from the time I came back from law school in 1990, if you were caught with a small amount. . . and you pleaded guilty you would get a conditional discharge. The change in view was the person before the court needed help and not punishment so you would get a conditional discharge conditioned on you attending drug treatment and passing drug tests. It was usually for a period of six to twelve months. If you successfully complete the treatment they probably wouldn’t take it back up.

“You come back and got an absolute discharge, not only do you not go to jail,

you don’t have a criminal record at all. If you don’t complete you pay a fine and end up with a conviction and after five years if you are an adult it’s automatically expunged. If you are a minor after two and a half years you get your record expunged. That is what the law is at current.

“But you hear this releasing people for small possession (but) the law never criminalised them from 1990. The law sought to treat them.”

He also said: “So this release them from jail is based off of people going to jail. Now who is in jail are people who are convicted of possession with intent to supply – trafficking — and there is no plan to decriminalise trafficking in drugs because they didn’t decriminalise it in Jamaica either.”

In a BNMC report that leaked last month, it was noted that 4,280 people were arrested for possession of marijuana from 2014 to 2018. However, there were less people arrested for possession with intent to supply with 2,452 cases registered.

The amount of drugs confiscated from each person arrested was not provided in the early version of the report. “I don’t want to appear to be a prophet but I wouldn’t be surprised if they say we are going to legalise medicinal marijuana and we’re going to restrict the number of people who can cultivate it and supply it,” Mr Munroe said. “Because now every doctor can deal with it and every pharmacist can deal with it.

“They know about these things. They are not being dumb they are being dishonest. This is the narrative that they are trying to run to lead to their result.”

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, January 23, 2020, PAGE 7

EVACUEES MOVING TO 90-DAY HOTEL from page one

with Poinciana Inn for a total of 50 rooms. The objective is to place families in those rooms –– which will afford them the privacy that families need.

“All the necessary due diligence was completed by technical teams from the Ministry of Social Services and Urban Development, the Department of Social Services and the Department of Gender and Family Affairs, in addition to a number of other government ministries, prior to entering into the agreement with Poinciana Inn.” The ministry did not reveal costs for the arrangement.

Social Services Minister Frankie Campbell said in November that officials wanted to close all New Providence shelters by the end of the Christmas season, but he later reversed this position.

For his part, Iram Lewis, minister of state for disaster preparedness, management and reconstruction, has not said when the dome city in Abaco is expected to be completed to house hurricane survivors. Access to the domes will be free of charge, he has said.

FIFTY rooms at the Poinciana Inn will temporarily shelter Hurricane Dorian victims in an agreement between the government and the hotel.

2019 a record breaking year for tourism

By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net LAST year was a “record breaking” one for tourism, with the country hitting the highest recorded number of stopover visitors in its history, according to the Ministry of Tourism’s Director General Joy Jibrilu.

Speaking at a press conference at the Baha Mar resort yesterday, Mrs Jibrilu revealed the country welcomed 1.78 million airline visitors in 2019, with 1.45 million visitors hailing from the United States.

“After Hurricane Dorian, it was not business as usual,” she said. “We had to go back and regroup... and so our new campaign for the next few months will be ‘Still Rockin’.

“Everyone knows Hurricane Dorian came through The Bahamas the 2nd of September. Prior to that, you will see that we were on course 2019 through just an absolutely record breaking year considering that we had double digit growth in 2018.”

Mrs Jibrilu reported the top three origin cities for travel to The Bahamas— New York, Boston and Miami —all showed “positive trends”.

She also revealed that international airlines will increase their services to the country this year.

“JetBlue is now offering a second daily flight from Boston to Nassau,” she said. “This is an important market for us. United Airlines, beginning the first week of March, will (also) offer a non-stop Saturday flight from Denver to Nassau… and Southwest Airlines has new seasonal Saturday flights from Houston to Nassau.”

According to Mrs Jibrilu, Air Canada has also increased its service to four flights per week and starting

at the end of March, five direct flights from London to Nassau will be offered due to demand.

In terms of development projects, Mrs Jibrilu noted that Prince George Wharf cruise port is set to undergo a “massive transformation” which will be completed in 2022. “The government recently entered into a negotiation with Global Port Holdings. (The project) will be $250m and... will begin the renaissance of the downtown Nassau area,” she explained.

Mrs Jibrilu also said Margaritaville is set to open in June and will feature 150 hotel rooms and 150 luxury ocean front condominiums, along with a pool, waterpark and marina.

Noting the impact Hurricane Dorian had on their report, Mrs Jibrilu also mentioned the significant strides Freeport has made since the storm.

“When we got into the campaign immediately following Hurricane Dorian letting the world know that 14 islands welcomed (them) with open arms, Freeport was not included.

“And we had to change that to 15 islands because Freeport has rebounded so quickly. 100 percent of their cruise lines are operating, 84 percent of the hotels are open, 84 percent of restaurants, 75 percent of tours and 55 percent of attractions are open.”

Still, Mrs Jibruli admitted that Abaco requires a significant amount of work before it can fully recover.

“The media needs to let the world know the best way they can help is to visit because it’s a long road ahead for Abaco.”

Speaking to reporters at the event, Tourism Minister Dionisio D’Aguilar said he believed 2019 was an “exceptional year” for the country.

“Were it not for Hurricane Dorian it would have been an off the chart year,” he added.

“So... September, October, and November were months that saw substantial decreases in stopover visitor arrivals... but (in) Christmas there was certainly a bouncing back.”

Mr D’Aguilar said he believed a lot of people who made reservations to visit Abaco and Grand Bahama ended up visiting other islands after the storm.

“The reports from those islands were that they never seen numbers like they saw in Christmas of 2019.

So I’m very excited, I’m very proud (and) I think the country did extremely well,” he said.

PAGE 8, Thursday, January 23, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

S

O FAR, 2020 is providing ample evidence that real and perceived discrimination in the United States on the basis of gender and race remains a big issue.

Let’s take race. The black heavyweights have already left the Democratic presidential nomination sweepstakes.

Senators Kamala Harris of California and Cory Booker of New Jersey pulled out after promising starts that did not portend fundraising success nor sufficient traction in the early (overwhelmingly white) primary states of Iowa and New Hampshire. Joe Biden now looks like a runaway winner in the upcoming South Carolina primary contest, where African Americans represent a majority of Democratic voters.

In football, after the 2019 NFL regular season ended, unsuccessful teams scrambled as usual to jettison their losing coaches and rush to sign hopeful replacements. Five head coaching jobs were available, and no black coach was chosen for any of them.

Kansas City offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy got several interviews, but some observers complained Bieniemy’s interviews were only arranged to satisfy the league’s largely ineffective Rooney Rule that aims to ensure owners and general managers would at least be exposed to black head coaching candidates.

Of the league’s 32 teams, only three (Pittsburgh, the Dolphins and the Los Angeles Chargers) are led by black head coaches. In front offices around the league, Miami’s Chris Grier is currently the only black general manager. This is in a league where roughly 70 percent of the players are black.

In ostensibly ultra-liberal Hollywood, we are in the midst of another awards season featuring very, very few black nominees in the major categories, either in front of the camera

We hold these truths to be self-evident but nothing’s really changed, has it?

COUNSELOR to President Trump, Kellyanne Conway

STATESIDE with Charlie Harper or behind it. The Oscars awards show is coming up on Sunday, February 9.

The Hollywood Reporter has been covering this story closely. Activist April Reign, who created the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite, told that newspaper that “in the past, the excuse (for so few black nominees) was: ‘There just weren’t enough performances to nominate.’

“Well, that’s not the case

this year,” she said. “There is a wealth of talent — and not just of black performers but of various marginalized communities — that was overlooked,” Reign said.

“And it’s really unfortunate. I’m interested in what Hollywood and the Academy are going to do to make the entertainment industry reflect those that support it.”

Women have also

felt overlooked since moviemaking began in Hollywood. While prominent and successful actresses were gaining increased artistic and financial clout even before MeToo shook the industry and took down alpha producer Harvey Weinstein, control behind the cameras has proven more elusive. No women made this year’s list of Best Director nominees.

“It’s disturbing but not surprising that women directors still don’t get the respect and awards that male directors do,” said Melissa Silverstein, founder of the advocacy website Women and Hollywood and director of the Athena Film Festival. “The fact that they are constantly overlooked is why we all keep doing the work to change the system and the culture.”

That brings us back to women in politics, an issue thrust back onto front pages with Bernie Sanders’ alleged 2018 remark to Elizabeth Warren that a woman could not beat Donald Trump.

Perspective on this

issue comes from a perhaps surprising source: Kellyanne Conway. This sharp-tongued counsellor to and outspoken advocate for US President Donald Trump is best known for haranguing reporters from the White House driveway, and for her marriage to influential conservative attorney and sharp Trump critic, George Conway. The couple have four children.

Conway is the granddaughter of a reputed New Jersey crime boss, a former high school cheerleader and the 1983 winner of the Blueberry Princess beauty pageant. She also graduated with honours from college and holds a law degree. An early supporter of Texas Senator Ted Cruz in 2016, she later shifted nimbly to Trump and became his campaign manager for the last weeks of his successful run for president. No other woman has ever managed a successful American presidential campaign.

Entering politics 20 years ago, she joined fellow blondes and Fox TV fixtures Laura Ingraham and

Ann Coulter as the “pundettes”, offering glamorous conservative commentary on TV and elsewhere.

She also co-authored a 2005 book entitled “What women really want: How women are quietly erasing political, class and religious lines to change the way we live.”

Conway told The Washington Post recently that “politics has traditionally been a man’s game. Men wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and see the next US senator.

Women are more likely to run for office only if asked.

“So much has changed, yet so much has not changed. For all the economic, educational and ownership gains women have enjoyed in the US, parity in politics remains a lagging indicator.”

Conway said she agreed with Sanders that Warren couldn’t beat Trump this year. “But it’s not because she’s a woman. It’s because her radical ideas are out of step with the American voter.” Time will tell if Conway is right.

NBA IS POISED FOR ITS MOST COMPETITIVE FINISH IN YEARS IT’S AN indication of the degree to which the NFL dominates American sports that this week, when the league has essentially suspended activity on the field to allow Super Bowl frenzy to build, most water cooler sports conversations still concern the upcoming clash of the titans (not Titans) in Miami a week from Sunday.

But meanwhile, while we await the Super Bowl fiesta, the other American global league has moved into the second half of its 2019-2020 season and there are plenty of fascinating story lines.

The NBA seems poised for its most competitive finish in years.

Perhaps the biggest NBA story concerns partnerships. Several teams have cobbled together a superstar pairing in hopes of emulating the success of previous world championship pairings in places like Chicago (Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen), Los Angeles (Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal), and Miami (LeBron James and Dwayne Wade).

The Los Angeles Clippers snagged last off-season’s biggest free agent, defending league champion Kawai Leonard, and matched him with Paul George and a scrappy outfit that outperformed expectations last season. The Clippers, led by veteran coach Doc Rivers, are playing .700 basketball and are running just behind their cross-town rivals.

That would be the Los Angeles Lakers, who built on their spectacular recruitment of LeBron James in 2018 by adding superstar Anthony Davis by trade from New Orleans. The

LAKER LeBron James Lakers trail only Milwaukee for the best record in the league so far, and may be heading for more postseason glory.

Then there are the Houston Rockets, who managed to reunite two of the fantastic talents from the Oklahoma City Thunder of a decade ago. Having traded for perennial scoring leader James Harden in 2012, the Rockets have added Russell Westbrook to challenge for the Western Conference title. The Rockets are presently among five teams vying for the second playoff seed position behind the Lakers.

No matter how that tussle shakes out, seven of the eight playoff spots in the West seem already settled, with the three teams listed above likely to be joined

by Dallas, Denver, Utah and Oklahoma City. Recent multiple champion Golden State, crippled by injuries and defections, is not competing for the playoffs this year.

In the East, the Brooklyn Nets signed recent NBA champions Kyrie Irving away from the Boston Celtics and Kevin Durant from the Warriors. Durant is out

for the season, and Irving just returned to regular action. The Nets look like a disappointing lottery team this season after a very surprising and encouraging 2018-19 campaign.

The Milwaukee Bucks have the NBA’s best record and in Giannis Antetokounmpo they may have its best player. His supporting cast has a lot of veteran leadership and experience, and coach Mike Budenholzer has a strong track record. If the Bucks don’t get distracted and relax too early, they seem ticketed for the NBA finals in June.

The Miami Heat signed Jimmy Butler away from Philadelphia, and still have Hall of Famer Pat Riley leading the front office and NBA championship coach Eric Spoelstra on the bench.

Riley is on the way to join legends Jerry West and Bill Russell as superstar players who were able to transition to team management and continue to earn championship rings. The Heat should win their division and make some serious playoff noise.

Elsewhere in the East, as in the West, seven of the eight postseason spots seem already locked up.

The Heat and Bucks should be joined by the defending champion and still dangerous Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers from the Atlantic Division, plus Orlando and Indiana.

The NBA trade deadline is approaching in a couple of weeks, and most league headlines figure until then to speculate about who’s moving where. But the playoff picture is already clear.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, January 23, 2020, PAGE 9

BAIL DENIED TO MAN, 31, ACCUSED OF CAUSING HARM

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

33-YEAR-OLD Dwayne Belizaire yesterday

Photos: Vandyke Hepburn

Dead woman had been strangled and immersed in water, court told

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net A WOMAN who was found murdered nearly three years ago on Valentine’s Day in Eight Mile Rock, Grand Bahama had been strangled and immersed in water, the Grand Bahama Supreme Court heard yesterday.

Hospital pathologist Dr Mandy Pedican took the stand yesterday in the trial of 33-year-old Dwayne Belizaire, who is charged with the murder of Margaret Smith on February 14, 2017 at Sea Grape, Eight Mile Rock.

Justice Estelle Gray Evans is hearing the case. A jury of eight men and four women has been impaneled. Erica Kemp of the Office of the Attorney General is appearing on behalf of the Crown, and Jethlyn Burrows is representing Belizaire.

According to Dr Pedican, she performed an autopsy on the deceased on February 17, 2017, in the presence of two police officers, and her fellow colleague, pathologist Dr Ana Tancawan. She noted that Smith, an otherwise “very healthy woman,” died of “manual strangulation and immersion.”

Dr Pedican said the deceased sustained injuries to the neck. She observed red marks under the chin along the jawline, as well as abrasions, and a large injury in the middle of the neck.

She also noted that there was multiple haemorrhaging on the thyroid cartilage, which supports strangulation. There were

also abrasions on the right side of the neck which she said could have been caused by a sharp-edged instrument.

Smith had also suffered superficial abrasions on the arm, and multiple lesions on the dorsal aspect of the right lower thumb, which Dr Pedican described as possible defence wounds sustained when “warding off an attack or protecting oneself from an attack.”

The deceased had also been bitten on the left arm.

There were also various injuries to her back caused by a sharp-edged instrument, and an injury to the left temple.

Dr Pedican also testified that the deceased had some fluid in her sinuses.

She explained that this could have happened if the deceased’s head was dunked into the water while breathing.

A rape kit was also conducted by the pathologist, who noted that the victim had vaginal abrasions.

“They looked haemorrhagic, which suggests haemorrhaging in the area,” said Dr Pedican.

The pathologist also noted that there was an injury in the bladder/genital inner region, which she described as “very haemorrhagic usually indicative of some blunt force trauma.”

Dr Pedican collected various samples from the deceased, including blood, and swabs.

She said the samples and rape kit were sealed and handed to Det Corporal Damien Burrows, one of two officers present at the autopsy on February 17 at the morgue.

Dr Pedican indicated

that the deceased’s lungs weighed twice the normal weight. When asked by Prosecutor Kemp whether a person could strangle themselves to death, Dr Pedican said it was not possible. She explained that a person using their own hands would only render themselves unconscious but would not die and would later regain consciousness.

Under cross-examination, Mr Burrows asked Dr Pedican if a rape kit was requested.

Dr Pedican said that it was not requested and explained that a pathologist would make the call whether it is warranted based on the circumstances.

“The circumstances dictate the kind of autopsy… and, in this case, it was an undressed female, and so we have to look at the case in this light,” she explained.

Also testifying was Dr Ferdinand Fermal, of the Accident and Emergency Department at Rand Memorial Hospital.

He said Dwayne Belizaire was accompanied by a police officer at the A&E Section around 11.30am on February 18, 2017.

Dr Fermal collected blood samples from Belizaire. During a physical examination of the defendant, he noted superficial wounds or linear abrasions to his back and left side.

The emergency room physician also took note of injuries on the joints of his left hand, as well as scratches and abrasions which could have happened within three to 12 hours of blunt force trauma being inflicted.

The trial resumes today.

A GRAND Bahama man was charged in the Freeport Magistrates’ Court yesterday in connection with a video that was posted on social media of him allegedly punching another man.

Wayne Garnett Barr Jr, 31, of Coco Plum Street, Pioneers Loop, appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Debbye Ferguson, charged with causing harm.

It is alleged that on January 19, the accused attacked Carlos Gibson.

Barr, who was represented by attorney Wendell Smith, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

Prosecutor Sergeant Veron Rolle informed the court the defendant should be denied bail as the offence for which he is charged prohibits the Magistrates’ Court from granting bail.

Mr Smith, however, wanted the judge to use her discretion by granting his client bail, as Barr has never had any previous matters or convictions, and is a young “industrious” individual in the community.

WAYNE Garnett Barr Jr, He also suggested the court could impose bail conditions, and order the accused not interfere with his alleged victim.

However the judge said she was constrained by the law. “I am a prisoner to

the law and bail is denied.

I must follow the law,” she told Mr Smith.

Barr can apply to the Supreme Court for pre-trial release. The matter was adjourned to March 25 at 11am.

CHARGED WITH DEATH THREATS

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A 27-YEAR-OLD Freeport man was arraigned on several serious offences, including making death threats and assaulting a police officer.

Antwaun Outten, a resident of Watergate Apartments, appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Debbye Ferguson.

He is charged with assaulting a police officer.

It is alleged that on January

ANTWAUN OUTTEN 20, the accused assaulted Police Constable 3706 Thurston while he was executing his duties at Central Police Station.

Outten was also charged with making threats of death against PC Thurston.

He was also charged with disorderly behaviour.

Outten was not represented by an attorney. He pleaded guilty to the charge of disorderly behaviour, but pleaded not guilty to the other two charges. The accused was denied bail on the death threat charge.

Deputy Chief Magistrate Ferguson adjourned the matters to March 25. Sentencing was also adjourned until that time.

PAGE 10, Thursday, January 23, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

‘Existential threat of climate change’

By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

ZHIVARGO LAING, executive director of the University of The Bahamas’ Government and Public Policy Institute

CLIMATE change is an “existential threat” to the environment, the economy and “life itself”, a former minister of state for finance has said.

Zhivargo Laing, executive director of the University of The Bahamas’ Government and Public Policy Institute, made the sobering statement while giving a presentation at a climate change panel discussion.

The UB panel on Risk Management and Climate Change in Coastal Areas and the Environment highlighted the importance of adaptation and mitigation efforts for national development and preservation.

Presenting in the Harry C Moore Library yesterday, three panelists discussed the implications of climate change from an economic, environmental

and sustainable development standpoint.

Acknowledging the amount of “economic transactions” that are driven by the country’s “coastal aesthetics”, Mr Laing said that a healthy economy “requires an enabling environment”.

“Our dominant tourism trade and the many economic activities it induces is driven by the archipelagic... clear-watered fishing wonders of our land, matched in sheer physical beauty by few other territories that can be seen by land or space,” he said.

“Natural disasters can pose substantial threats to this body of economic activity as they can devastate environments. (This is) something we have seen in the wake of the passage of Hurricane Dorian and other storms in the past.”

Mr Laing added: “When you look at the devastation in Abaco caused by

Dorian, you see this physical leveling of things.

“Then you go to Grand Bahama and quite frankly, if you look at the physicality of Grand Bahama, you really don’t see as much devastation unless you go out east.

“What people (don’t realise) is that the devastation (affected) the commerce of the place where flooding literally closed 80 percent of businesses. This is what these storms are able to do.”

Mr Laing insisted that since hurricanes are seasonal, businesses must consider mitigating against their potential impact annually.

He said as devastating as Hurricane Dorian was, if it had been just “a little more forceful”, the “viability” of the entire country would have been threatened.

“Economies and populations that benefit directly or indirectly from activity on the coast have to take into consideration risk mitigation and resiliency issues,” he insisted.

“Policies must now incorporate those kind of planning benchmarks for use in assessing the potential impacts of these projected sea level rises in coastal areas, including flood risks and coastal hazard assessments.”

Dr Adelle Thomas, UB’s director of climate change adaptation and resilience research, also said climate change is something everyone in the nation should make an effort to become knowledgeable about.

She said the risk of climate change is determined by the interaction between hazard, exposure and vulnerability.

“Hazard refers to any event on trends in the physical environment that are affected by climate change,” she explained.

“These can be divided into two categories. We have extreme events which are hazards that occur in a short period of time…and we also have slow onset events that materialise over longer time frames.”

Dr Thomas said hazards are affected by climate change because when

global temperatures rise, hazards tend to intensify.

She added that exposure includes people, infrastructure, ecosystems and other valuable things that could be negatively affected by climate change.

According to Dr Thomas, vulnerability the final component that affects risk to climate change - is the most complex factor of the three.

“Vulnerability refers to the predisposition of being negatively affected by a hazard and includes the capacity to cope or adapt to that hazard,” she explained.

“It is measured differently depending on whose vulnerability it is you are assessing.”

Marcus Laing, a partner of TDG Architects Ltd, was the final panelist.

He said he believed the country is in trouble and that the nation must take action.

“In design and planning, true professionals automatically consider our geographic location, size of the country, environment and economic factors in what they do,” he said.

“The problem is what they do is controlled by clients and budgets, so… the advice we give sometimes never comes to fruition.

This happens a lot on a governmental level but it also happens in the private sector as well.”

Mr Laing said sustainable development begins firstly with planning and placement.

“We have crown land that’s given as farm land in areas where you can’t farm,” he said.

“A lot of these areas that we are allowed to build on are actually natural buffers.

(But) over the years – and not necessarily 100 percent our fault – the global climate change and the elements of global warming and not protecting our environment are now coming back to bite us.

“So knowing the nature of our climate (and) knowing our exposure to the elements...should impact the way that we plan, the way that we design the way that we build.”

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THE TRIBUNE

By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net THE Ministry of Education said officials are addressing the issues plaguing two Family Island schools.

This comes after students at Harbour Island All-Age School protested over the lack of teachers and Progressive Liberal Party Senator Michael Darville raised concern about health and safety issues at Acklins Central High School which led the campus to close.

In a press statement, the ministry said officials are “aware of the need to care for all students, teachers and administrators in the school system” and “consider their overall well-being to be a major priority”.

“As soon as a concern is brought to our attention, the Ministry of Education immediately seeks to put in place the necessary steps to address the issue raised,” the statement noted.

The ministry added that contractors are on the ground at Acklins Central High School to repair the bathroom block and septic tank facility. The school — which closed on Monday — will remain shut until Friday while repairs are carried out.

Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT) President Belinda Wilson told The Tribune that the ministry’s Virtual School platform is “not working properly” and students are losing hours of teaching.

Nevertheless, the ministry still promoted “providing an enhanced

Thursday, January 23, 2020, PAGE 11

Officials looking into problems with two Family Island schools offering of subjects to the Acklins-based secondary school” through the platform and said the internet connection is being addressed to ensure the virtual school programme works.

In September 2018, the Ministry of Education began putting in place the foundation to facilitate distance learning through the internet.

“A major component of this exercise involved the formalised, institutionalised establishment of a distance learning programme. Since that time, our online platform has been formatted to address the teacher shortages in the smaller islands and cays which lacked instructional leaders for specialty courses,” the statement read.

“We are pleased to advise that currently, BTC and Cable Bahamas are working to increase the Acklins school’s fibre optic capacity, thereby strengthening the internet capacity

to ensure a seamless online connection for the online classroom capacity on the island.

“Through the additional instructional hours provided by the Virtual School connectivity, students in Acklins will be able to register for a maximum of nine Bahamas Junior Certificate courses (BJC) and ten Bahamas General Certificate of Secondary Education Examinations (BGCSE) courses this school year, a considerable improvement over the five or six subjects which were the norm for students at this school in the past.”

As for Harbour Island All Age School, the ministry said it is aware of students’ after school protest at the island’s dock and the need for an additional language arts teacher, an issue expected to be remedied soon. Still, the ministry said there has been no loss of instructional time at the school, due to teacher

ELECTIVE OPS BACK ON AT PMH ELECTIVE surgeries at Princess Margaret Hospital will resume today, according to Health Minister Dr Duane Sands.

Procedures were canceled by health officials earlier this week due to overcrowding at the public hospital, compounded by boarders, bed and nurse shortages.

The health minister has previously said the issue of bed shortages will not be resolved until emergency care services at

the Elizabeth Estates and South Beach clinics have expanded and renovations at PMH’s emergency department have been completed.

Still, this is not the first time elective surgeries at PMH had to be suspended.

In the past, surgeries at the hospital have been postponed due a malfunctioning air-conditioner and most recently, malfunctioning sterilisation equipment.

substitutions within the language department.

Director of Education Marcellus Taylor admitted previously that the ministry had a hard time finding teachers to be permanently stationed at the school but said he was not aware of the actual conditions and would have to speak with

the principal. Mr Taylor said recently, “The environment I cannot speak on, I have not been there myself and have to speak directly with principal. Architect drawings of a new school is in the works, but with everything that Dorian left, we cannot say exactly when. Renovations and

upgrades for the school has been talked about for some time.”

The ministry’s press statement insisted that the campus undergoes “continual maintenance throughout the year” and that “routine repairs and renovations are currently ongoing.”

PAGE 12, Thursday, January 23, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

WEINSTEIN RAPE TRIAL OPENS AND MARKS MILESTONE FOR #METOO NEW YORK Associated Press HARVEY Weinstein went on trial yesterday in a landmark moment for the # MeToo movement, with prosecutors painting him as a sexual predator who used his Hollywood clout to abuse women for decades, while his lawyers sought to portray his accusers as willing participants.

Prosecutor Meghan Hast told the jury of seven men and five women that the former studio boss was “not just a titan in Hollywood — he was a rapist” who screamed at one victim that she “owed” him sex, used injections to induce an erection before an assault and pushed his way into the apartment of another woman and attacked her.

“It is for his complete lack of empathy that he must be held accountable,” Hast said.

Weinstein lawyer Damon Cheronis countered by laying out plans to use friendly-sounding emails, calendar entries and other evidence to call into question the accusers’ accounts of being attacked.

The opening of the rape trial more than two years after a barrage of allegations against Weinstein gave rise to the #MeToo movement was seen by activists as a milestone in the global reckoning over sexual misconduct by powerful men.

Weinstein’s lawyers have portrayed the case as the

HARVEY Weinstein leaves a Manhattan courthouse yesterday result of a climate of accusation run amok.

Weinstein has insisted any sexual encounters were consensual. He could get life in prison if convicted.

Weinstein, 67, told reporters he felt “very confident” about the case as he left court: “I got great lawyers.”

While he entered the courthouse without the walker he has been using lately because of back problems, he was leaning on it again as he left.

The once-powerful and feared executive brought to the screen such Oscarwinning movies as “Pulp Fiction,” “The King’s Speech,” “Shakespeare in Love” and “Chicago” and hobnobbed with the elite in Hollywood and beyond, a point prosecutors made by showing jurors a photo of Weinstein with former

President Bill Clinton. A prosecutor also told the judge that Weinstein had taken calls from Clinton while Weinstein was with one of his accusers.

Weinstein’s lawyers later cited the photo in asking for a mistrial, saying the image was irrelevant and accusing prosecutors of improperly trying to influence the jury.

Judge James Burke denied the request.

Scores of women have accused Weinstein of exploiting his position as a career-maker to sexually harass or assault them over the years. But the New York charges centre on two allegations: that Weinstein forcibly performed oral sex on former “Project Runway” production assistant Mimi Haleyi in his apartment in 2006 and raped an aspiring actress in a New York City hotel room in 2013.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, January 23, 2020, PAGE 13

Democrats appeal for help to convict ‘corrupt’ Trump WASHINGTON Associated Press HOUSE Democrats opened marathon arguments in President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial yesterday, appealing to sceptical Republican senators to join them in voting to remove Trump from office to “protect our democracy.”

Trump’s lawyers sat by, waiting their turn, as the president blasted the proceedings from afar, threatening jokingly to face off with the Democrats by coming to “sit right in the front row and stare at their corrupt faces.”

The challenge before the House managers is clear.

Democrats have 24 hours over three days to prosecute the charges against Trump, trying to win over not just fidgety senators sitting silently in the chamber but an American public, deeply divided over the president and his impeachment in an election year.

Rep. Adam Schiff, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, outlined what the Democrats contend was the president’s “corrupt scheme” to abuse his presidential power and then obstruct Congress’ investigation. He then called on senators not to be “cynical” about politics, but to draw on the intent of the nation’s Founding Fathers who provided the remedy of impeachment.

“Over the coming days, we will present to you—and to the American people—the extensive evidence collected during the House’s impeachment inquiry into the president’s abuse of power,” said Schiff standing before the Senate. “You will hear their

HOUSE impeachment manager Jason Crow, speaks during the impeachment trial against President Donald Trump in the Senate in Washington yesterday testimony at the same time as the American people.

That is, if you will allow it.”

Most senators sat at their desks throughout, as the rules stipulate, though some stretched their legs, standing behind the desks or against the back wall of the chamber.

The proceedings are unfolding at the start of an election year and there are few signs that Republican are interested in calling more witnesses or going beyond a fast-track assessment to bring a quick vote on charges related to Trump’s dealings with Ukraine.

The trial marks just the third time the Senate has weighed whether an American president should be removed from office.

Democrats argue Trump abused his office by asking Ukraine to investigate political rival Joe Biden

while withholding crucial military aid, and also obstructed Congress by refusing to turn over documents or allow officials to testify in the House probe.

Republicans have defended Trump’s actions and cast the process as a politically motivated effort to weaken the president in the midst of his reelection campaign.

A new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows the public is slightly more likely to say the Senate should convict and remove Trump from office than to say it should not, 45% to 40%. But a sizable percentage, 14%, say they don’t know enough to have an opinion.

One question there’s wide agreement on: Trump should allow top aides to appear as witnesses at the trial.

CHINESE CITY STOPS OUTBOUND FLIGHTS, TRAINS TO FIGHT VIRUS BEIJING Associated Press A CHINESE city of more than 11 million people planned to shut down outbound flights and trains today as the world’s most populous country battled the spread of a new virus that has sickened hundreds of people and killed 17, state media reported.

Everyone in the city of Wuhan was to be restricted to some degree. The stateowned People’s Daily newspaper said no one would be allowed to leave.

The official Xinhua News Agency said no one would be permitted to leave without a specific reason.

Train stations and the airport were to shut down at 10am. Buses, subways, ferries and long-distance shuttle buses would also be temporarily closed.

Most of the cases are in Wuhan and surrounding Hubei province, but dozens of infections have popped up this week around the country as millions travel for the Lunar New Year, one of the world’s largest annual migrations

PASSENGERS wear masks on a high speed train in Hong Kong of people. A handful of When asked about infected people who came Wuhan’s public transport from Wuhan have also been shutdown, WHO chief found overseas.

Tedros said authorities In Geneva, the World were likely acting to preHealth Organization put off vent transmission and mass deciding whether to declare gatherings. “We cannot say the outbreak a global they have done something health emergency and unusual,” he said. asked an expert committee The number of new cases to continue meeting for a has risen sharply in China, second day today. “We need the center of the outbreak. more information,” WHO The 17 deaths were all in Director-General Tedros Hubei province, where the Adhanom Ghebreyesus outbreak emerged in the said. provincial capital of Wuhan WHO defines a global late last month. Wuhan emergency as an “extraordi- authorities said the provnary event” that constitutes ince has confirmed 444 a risk to other countries cases, which would bring and requires a coordinated the national total to more international response. than 500.

MONTY PYTHON STAR TERRY JONES DIES AT 77 LONDON Associated Press

TERRY Jones, a founding member of the anarchic Monty Python troupe who was hailed by colleagues as “the complete Renaissance comedian” and “a man of endless enthusiasms,” has died at age 77 after suffering from dementia.

Jones’s family said he died on Tuesday evening at his home in London “after a long, extremely brave but always good humored battle with a rare form of dementia.”

“We have all lost a kind, funny, warm, creative and truly loving man whose uncompromising individuality, relentless intellectand extraordinary humour has given pleasure to countless millions across six decades,” Jones’s wife, Anna Soderstrom, and children Bill, Sally and Siri, said in a statement.

PAGE 14, Thursday, January 23, 2020

By Clyde Eiríkur Hull and Eric Williams, from the Rochester Institute of Technology

C

OUNTRIES around the world throw away millions of tons of plastic trash every year.

Finding ways to manage plastic waste is daunting even for wealthy nations, but for smaller and lessdeveloped countries it can be overwhelming.

We recently carried out a study for the Caribbean island nation of Trinidad and Tobago that applied economic principles to its plastics management challenge. Some of what we did can be used anywhere.

Our backgrounds are in business management and sustainability.

Although Trinidad and Tobago is a tiny country whose economy is based on beach tourism and the petroleum industry, and we had relatively little data on plastic production, use and disposal available, we see this as a useful case study.

Trinidad and Tobago is not the only place where data is limited or expensive.

Because Trinidad and Tobago’s population is just 1.2 million, we were able to look at its complete economy. It belongs to Caricom, the Caribbean Community, a regional organisation that includes 16 million people, giving it access to larger markets. And it struggles with the same problems many large countries face: lack of landfill space. The disposal problem is urgent.

Plastic arrives as packaging The first step to solving any problem is to measure it. This is often challenging for plastics, due to lack of data on where they come from and end up. A major part of our analysis was repurposing trade statistics to make up for limited data.

Material flow analysis

THE TRIBUNE

The first step in managing plastic waste is measuring it – here’s how one Caribbean country did it helps quantify the flow of products and wastes. This process was developed in the late 1990s by industrial ecologists for waste management. They have applied it to track materials like metals and products like computers at national and international scales.

The analysis combines different kinds of data. It tracks imported or newly manufactured products entering economies to their use and reuse, including recycling, export or disposal in landfills. Academics and government agencies conduct material flow analysis to inform environmental management.

The most surprising finding from our study was that most of the plastic entering the country’s landfills – a total of 49,000 tons per year – was not produced or imported. Rather, it entered the country as packaging around imported products.

In other words, the largest amount of landfilled plastic “came along for the ride” with other things.

Recycle, burn or ban Much plastic waste ends up in landfills (or the ocean), but there are better solutions. One is recycling.

One promising finding from our study is that people in Trinidad and Tobago throw away 26,000 tons of PET plastic bottles every year – enough to make building a domestic

recycling facility economically efficient. There is also enough domestic demand for PET bottles to use the plastic that would come from a recycling facility to make more bottles.

A second solution is finding an alternative use for plastic waste. Plastic can be burned for energy, with proper scrubbing and cleaning, as is done in Sweden, where about half of all garbage is burned for energy.

Some companies elsewhere, such as Lehigh Northeast Cement Co. in Glens Falls, New York,

are starting to burn plastic as a fuel in cement plants.

Cement production is energy intensive, and plastic can substitute for a large portion of the fossil fuels used. Trinidad and Tobago has a cement plant of sufficient size to burn around 29,000 tons of plastic waste.

Whether this option would work depends on whether there are other uses for the plastic and how much plastic the cement plant there would take.

There are economic motivations to find out: Using waste plastic can increase

profits at cement plants while reducing the amount of plastic going into landfills by roughly 30%.

A third solution is banning some plastic items.

We determined that a ban on ubiquitous polystyrene shopping bags could reduce plastic waste in Trinidad and Tobago by 2,000 tons per year. Along with several other Caricom countries, Trinidad and Tobago has banned the use of these bags and other single-use plastics starting Jan. 1, 2020.

While these results are specific to Trinidad and

Tobago, material flow analysis can be used in any country. This approach clarifies the real outcome of efforts to manage plastic. For example, it showed us that banning single-use plastic bags and plastic straws could be worthwhile, but should be part of a larger strategy that identifies and manages larger sources of waste plastic.

This kind of analysis does not have to be be expensive.

Our study was based on publicly available data on imports and exports, manufacturing, and waste flows into landfills. Our results, although incomplete, were sufficient to spotlight workable solutions.

The main barriers to using material flow analysis are awareness and expertise. The method is not yet widely known, and relatively few people have been trained to do it. But in a globalised world, where huge quantities of goods and materials are constantly moving across borders, it is a valuable tool for tackling urgent waste management challenges.

• Sherwyn Millette, a Ph.D. graduate from Rochester Institute of Technology and current sustainability consultant to Trinidad and Tobago’s College of Science, Technology and Applied Arts, was a coauthor of the study described in this article. theconversation.com