02132017 news

MONDAY i’m lovin’ it!

24/7 BREAKING NEWS ON TRIBUNE242.COM

E AND H S U

Six shot dead in 48 hours including boy aged 15

By SANCHESKA BROWN Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia.net

SIX people are dead, including a 15-year-old juvenile, and another man is fighting for his life in hospital after four separate shooting incidents in less than 48 hours in the capital.

The homicides took the country’s murder count to 26 for the first 43 days of the new year, according to The Tribune’s records.

Police launched an island-wide search last night for two men suspected of shooting a man dead in Yellow Elder Gardens in the latest incident.

Despite the bloody weekend, Assistant Commissioner of Police Stephen Dean said “hundreds” of police officers were patrolling the streets over the past few days in an effort to keep the public as well as visitors safe.

Meanwhile officer-incharge of the Central Detective Unit, Chief Superintendent Clayton Fernander implored parents after a killing on Friday to “keep a watchful eye” on their children, especially their young boys.

Chief Supt Fernander said police have launched a massive manhunt for the suspects in the weekend killings.

SEE PAGE THREE

XX X X X

X

X

X

XX XX

R

WEEKEND BLOODBATH

T Y,

TA L S

PR O PE

Big Brother Perry is watching you - see Insight, page 7

$1

E OM

HO

VOLUME:114 No.57, FEBRUARY 13th, 2017

Biggest And Best!

H O M ES & R

EN

HIGH 90ºF LOW 82ºF

The Tribune Established 1903

CALL FOR RESISTANCE TO ‘DANGEROUS’ SPYING BILL

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net FORMER Bahamas Bar Association President Elsworth Johnson yesterday joined activist calls for Bahamians to organise protests and public resistance to the recently tabled Interception of Communications Bill (ICB) 2017, which he called “dangerous” spying legislation.

Mr Johnson, who was ratified last week as the Free National Movement’s candidate for Yamacraw, questioned the level of public consultation on the bill, underscoring that it impacted deeply entrenched SEE PAGE SIX

TURNQUEST: CHANGES TO MONTAGU ARE SHAMELESS

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net FREE National Movement Deputy Leader Peter Turnquest yesterday accused the government of “shameless gerrymandering” over recently tabled boundary changes that he claims affect the “deliberate elimination of middle class areas” from the former Montagu constituency.

In an interview with The Tribune he characterised the proposed boundary changes as a “desperate and perverted” attempt to emotionally manipulate the electorate.

SEE PAGE 11

THE BODY of a 15-year-old boy is taken from the scene at Peardale Park in the Englerston area on Friday, one of six fatal shootings over the weekend, and one of 12 so far in what has proven to be a deadly February, as shown in the calendar above.

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/:Tribune Staff

TWO POLICE OFFICERS IN HOSPITAL AFTER BEING BLASTED BY SHOTGUN

By SANCHESKA DORSETT Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia.net

TWO police officers, a husband and a wife, are in serious but stable condition after they were shot multiple times while responding to a “domestic incident”.

Police have an adult male, who was shot by one of the officers, in custody in connection with the shooting.

According to reports, shortly after midnight on Sunday, the officers responded to a domestic incident at a home in Valentine Subdivision off Johnson Terrance. While at the home, a man armed with a shotgun approached the officers and shot both of them before attempting to flee the scene, police said. The officers returned fire. However the suspect was able to

escape in a vehicle.

The victims were taken to hospital where they are listed in serious but stable condition.

Police said that shortly after 4am, officers arrested the shooter, who was also suffering from gunshot wounds. Police also recovered a shotgun from the suspect.

SEE PAGE 12

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

EQUIPMENT AT FAULT FOR SERIES OF BPL OUTAGES

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net THE “catastrophic” island-wide outages that plagued New Providence late last year stemmed from widespread equipment failures at the Clifton Pier Power Station, according to Bahamas Power and Light.

The company reported on the findings of its investigation into two islandwide outages, and another major outage that occurred between November 29 and December 4 last year, in an internal memo sent to the government and obtained

by The Tribune.

SEE PAGE 11

PAGE 2, Monday, February 13, 2017

Man killed as car hits stop sign and flips over

THE TRIBUNE

THE WRECKAGE of a vehicle involved in a traffic fatality at the roundabout at the entrance to Westridge. One man, a passenger in the car, died in the incident.

By SANCHESKA DORSETT Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia.net

ONE man is dead after the vehicle he was in hit a stop sign and flipped over twice before landing on top of him, “crushing his head.”

The incident took place on Saturday evening.

The victim was a passenger in a 1997 Geo Tracker Jeep that was involved in an accident on John F Kennedy Drive shortly after 5pm.

The driver of the vehicle is listed in serious but stable condition.

Assistant Superintendent Craig Stubbs, officer-incharge of the Traffic Division said the driver, for reasons unknown, did not stop before entering the roundabout on JFK Drive and Westridge. As a result, the vehicle slammed into the road sign, became airborne and hit another sign

before finally coming to a stop on the other side of the roundabout.

Both the passenger and the driver were thrown from the vehicle.

“According to our initial reports, for reasons unknown, when the driver got to the roundabout he did not stop and collided with a sign,” ASP Stubbs said.

“This caused the vehicle to become airborne, when the vehicle landed it collided into a second pole. The driver was ejected from the vehicle. During the time the vehicle was airborne, the passenger was also ejected but when the vehicle landed it landed on his head and crushed his skull. He died instantly. None of the men were wearing seat belts.

The driver was taken to hospital where he is listed as serious but stable.”

ASP Stubbs said speed was “definitely a factor” in

the accident. He said once the investigation is complete, officers will determine if the driver will face any charges.

He appealed to members of the public to “wear seatbelts at all times” and to adhere to the rules of the road.

“We continue to ask people to obey the speed limit and the signs on the road.

They are clearly displayed and are there for a reason,” ASP Stubbs said.

“Do not speed, always wear your seatbelts. Seatbelts save lives. If you do not use your seatbelt or obey the traffic signs, you can cause death to yourself and others. If these men had been wearing seatbelts, they would have been injured but lives could have been saved,” ASP Stubbs said.

The investigation continues.

THE DISTRAUGHT reaction at the scene on Saturday after the traffic fatality at the roundabout at the entrance to Westridge.

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 13, 2017, PAGE 3

Weekend bloodbath from page one

In the latest incident in Yellow Elder Gardens, Assistant Commissioner of Police Stephen Dean said that, shortly after 8pm, a man was sitting in the front of his home on Derby Road with two other persons when the suspects with handguns came and shot him. They fled on foot.

“All of our officers are out on the road and streets tonight trying to find these killers,” ACP Dean said.

“This is not the only incident we are investigating.

We are investigating several incidents over the weekend and we want to bring these persons to justice.”

The fifth shooting of the weekend took place at about 11pm on Saturday, in Yellow Elder Gardens, According to police reports, the victim was standing outside his home on Graham Drive when the occupants of a white Nissan vehicle pulled up and shot him multiple times before speeding off.

The victim was pronounced dead on the scene.

An hour earlier, around 10pm, police were called to the scene of a shooting at a party on Deans Street.

Police say a group of persons were attending a celebration when the occupants of a blue self-drive vehicle

pulled up and fired several shots into the crowd before speeding off.

Two men were shot and taken to hospital by ambulance. One man died shortly after arrival and the other victim is listed in critical condition.

Earlier on Saturday, around 12.30am, officers responded to another shooting incident at a party this time in the East Street area.

According to police, a group of persons were at a nightclub off Lewis Street, when an argument broke out that led to a man armed with a handgun firing several shots into the crowd.

One man was shot as he attempted to leave in his vehicle; he was pronounced dead at the scene. Another man was taken to hospital where he later died of his injuries.

The final shooting incident took place shortly after 7.30pm on Friday. Police said the 15-year-old victim was walking across Dale Park in Peardale when he was approached and shot by a gunman, who fled on foot.

Chief Supt Fernander said the teen was “wellknown” to the police and “was in and out of custody for questioning on a number of serious matters”.

Chief Supt Fernander said officers did not know the motive for the shoot-

POLICE Chief Supt Clayton Fernander urged parents to “keep a watchful eye” on their children, especially young boys, in the wake of the Peardale Park shooting.

THE SCENE at Yellow Elder last night where a man was hot dead in front of his home on Derby Road. ing, however he said police Tribune, ACP Dean said believe the victim was tar- police are “doing an excellent job” arresting persons geted.

He also said police were who have committed serinot ruling out a connection ous crimes, however he said to the murder of 23-year- crime is not just “a police old Benjamin Anderson, problem”.

“We have five persons goof nearby Ida Street, who was described by police as a ing before the court tomorrow (Monday) for murder “prolific offender”.

Anderson was shot mul- and other serious offences. tiple times and killed while We have also arrested a lot standing in front of his of persons in relation to home on Tuesday, Febru- firearms and firearm smuggling. We continue to do ary 7.

Chief Supt Fernander good work, despite what is asked parents to keep a happening, we are doing closer eye on their children. our job everyday but if we “A little boy in his early depend on just the police, teens, where are the par- crime will not go down. ents? Parents have to pay Everyone must do their job, attention to their children, come to the police with the especially the young men information and help us and I will continue to say, get these persons off the we are losing our young streets.”

Anyone with information men as the victims and the accused persons. I am ap- on any of these incidents pealing to parents please is asked to contact police pay attention to your kids, at 911 or 919, the Central especially the young men,” Detective Unit at 502-9991 or Crime Stoppers anonyChief Supt Fernander said.

In an interview with The mously at 328-TIPS.

BYSTANDERS grieve at the scene of last night’s fatal shooting in Yellow Elder.

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

NOTTAGE AND BELL CRITICISED FOR CONTINUED SILENCE FORMER Deputy Commissioner of Police Marvin Dames last night criticised National Security Minister Dr Bernard Nottage and State Minister of National Security Keith Bell for their “continued silence” in the wake of a spate of killings.

Mr Dames’ criticism came after five people were shot dead in four separate incidents between Friday and Saturday. One of the victims was a 15-year-old boy.

Eleven people have been killed so far this month following a bloody January, which saw 14 people killed.

According to The Tribune’s records, there have been 25 homicides so far this year.

“As Bahamians woke up to begin their day on Sunday morning, the news of

even more killings on the streets of our capital, once again horrified Bahamians,” Mr Dames, the FNM candidate for Mount Moriah, said in a statement.

“Since Friday night, there have been five murders on New Providence, all of them involving firearms; all of them carried out in public.

In addition to the murders, there were multiple shootings, including the shooting of two police officers by a shotgun-wielding assailant.

While partisan rancour will clearly not solve the crime problem, the continued silence of the minister of national security and his junior minister speaks volumes.”

Mr Dames said that those who are entrusted with “ensuring the safety of our

nation” must reassure its residents that the situation is “under control”.

He added: “However, with 25 murders already on the record (for 2017), an average of one murder every two days, and a pace that, if continued, will certainly lead to another heinous murder record, making a case that the nation is secure is extremely difficult.

“However, silence on the part of our national security officials will not do. The recurring theme of our young men continuing to lose their lives at such an alarming rate should be cause for all Bahamians to think about what this means for the future of our Bahamaland.

“As our police officers courageously stand in the firing line, and as we the

residents navigate our lives in constant fear of being the next victim of crime, it is increasingly evident that something must be done now.”

The former police officer said he is willing to lend his expertise to the government to fight crime, but if his help is not accepted, he said the FNM has a plan to “arrest this scourge”.

The FNM has pledged to reinstitute term limits for the commissioner of police, reorganise the Royal Bahamas Police Force reserves, review officers’ pay, launch neighbourhood watch programmes nationwide, and establish a public sector anti-corruption agency, if elected to office this year.

The FNM has also pledged to adopt a “zerotolerance” policy on crime;

POLICE BUST MAJOR GUN RING

By SANCHESKA DORSETT Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia.net

POLICE believe they have cracked a “major gun trafficking ring” after officers seized a large amount of ammunition from a home in Nassau Village.

Four persons - an American man, a Bahamian man and two Bahamian women - were taken into custody in connection with the seizure.

According to reports, shortly after 5pm, officers from the Firearms Tracing and Investigation Unit, executed a search warrant on

a home on Wilson Street, where they discovered 50 live rounds of .40 ammunition, 26 live rounds of .380 ammunition and two live rounds of 9 millimetre ammunition.

All the occupants of the home were taken into custody.

Earlier in the day, shortly after noon, officers from the Selective Enforcement Team, during an operation in Pinewood Gardens, seized an AK-47 assault rifle, two magazines and a quantity of dangerous drugs.

According to reports, officers searched two homes

on Avocado Street where the firearm along with two magazines and a quantity of marijuana were found.

Two adult males were taken into custody in connection with the find.

Anyone with information on any of these incidents is asked to contact police at 911 or 919, the Central Detective Unit at 502-9991 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 328-TIPS.

work with communitybased partners to change the culture of violence in communities through neighbourhood safety programmes; eliminate crime habitats; enact legislation to establish the National Intelligence Agency (NIA); use state-of-the-art technology including gunshot detection devices, social media exploitation technologies, drones, etc, and establish a National Neighbourhood Watch Consultative Council.

The party has also pledged to establish a public sector anti-corruption agency; conduct a comprehensive review of police officers’ compensation; strengthen the RBDF satellite base presence/ operations in the north-

ern, central, southern and southeastern Bahamas; enforce Marco’s Law inclusive of a sexual offenders register and implement aggressive measures to address the trafficking of narcotics, firearms, human trafficking, illegal immigration and poaching.

The FNM has also said it would establish a forensic crime lab with an independent director, increase efforts on financial and cyber investigations, and place metal detectors at school entrances and use CCTV and professionally trained security officers for reinforcement.

Mr Dames also offered prayers and condolences to all the families and communities who have been victims of crime.

PAGE 4, Monday, February 13, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

The Tribune Limited NULLIUS ADDICTUS JURARE IN VERBA MAGISTRI “Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master”

LEON E. H. DUPUCH,

SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH,

jrolle@tribunemedia.net

Publisher/Editor 1903-1914 Kt., O.B.E., K.M., K.C.S.G., (Hon.) LL.D., D.Litt .

Publisher/Editor 1919-1972 Contributing Editor 1972-1991

EILEEN DUPUCH CARRON,

C.M.G., M.S., B.A., LL.B. Publisher/Editor 1972-

Published daily Monday to Friday

Shirley & Deveaux Streets, Nassau, Bahamas N3207 TELEPHONES

News & General Information Advertising Manager Circulation Department Nassau fax Freeport, Grand Bahama Freeport fax

(242) 322-1986 (242) 502-2394 (242) 502-2386 (242) 328-2398 (242)-352-6608 (242) 352-9348

WEBSITE, TWITTER & FACEBOOK www.tribune242.com

@tribune242

tribune news network

The mouse that got caught in the trap THIS latest attempt by government to strip Bahamians of all privacy is proof that these legislators must indeed take all Bahamians for fools.

Remember what dear old Abe Lincoln said: “You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.”

By now we hope that most Bahamians are not as gullible as they used to be.

Imagine trying to push a Bill through parliament to create a “single legal framework” to allow the Police Commissioner to obtain a warrant from a judge to examine all your private information received from telecommunications, internet providers and postal services for a period of three months.

The proposed legislation provides for the “interception of all communication networks regardless of whether they are licensed as public or not”.

And this so soon after Justice Indra Charles ruled that MP Jerome Fitzgerald’s right when he tabled in the House of Assembly the private e-mails, including financial statements of the environmental group, Save the Bays, could not be protected by parliamentary privilege.

Mr Fitzgerald has appealed this ruling.

However, if this proposed Bill passes the House, Mr Fitzgerald would have had every right to do what he did, provided he had first petitioned the Attorney General to make an “ex parte” application to a judge in chambers for permission to do so.

If this Bill passes, no one will have any privacy in the future, particularly in a citizen’s business operations. It would sound the death knell for private investment, the secrecy of which has already been brought into question by the Fitzgerald performance in the House of Assembly last year.

But don’t you trust your government? one might ask. The blunt answer is no.

Over the years – with the exception of a few in the judiciary — government has not inspired confidence. The community is too small for this kind of legislation – and vendettas run deep.

The 10-page Listening Devices Act was introduced in 1972 to give the National Security Minister – where satisfied that national security was being threatened or an offence had been committed or was about to be committed — permission in writing to use a listening device to gather evidence. The permission was to last 30 days. Permission could also be given to police officers by the Commissioner of Police after consultation with the Attorney General.

There were offences against the 1972 Act, should, for example a person advertise or publicly exhibit the contents of the listening device for sale. There were other prohibitions. The consequence for breaches was a fine not exceeding $2,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or both fine and imprisonment.

Sometime in 1982, a Bahamian businessman brought in a security firm to

check the security of his telephones and that of several of his friends. One day, he telephoned us to find out if we would be interested in using their services to check the safety of The Tribune’s phones. We accepted. The editor’s phone failed all tests. We were being tapped, and yet, to our knowledge no one had officially applied to the attorney general for permission to do so. Nor were we aware of anything that should attract such eavesdropping - unless, of course, it was political.

Fairly recently when upgrading our infrastructure to take advantage of new technologies, The Tribune engaged one of the top five global security firms to instal a multi-layered state of the art system, which could deal with the many threats facing media companies.

One day the experts were working our system when they noticed activity.

They laid a trap, and like any good bee our attacker went straight for the honey.

He was followed by our experts. As a result we know his exact location, down to the very building and street from which he was doing his clandestine business. All we are prepared to say is that his country is located on the Pacific side of the world. The comment of one of the experts supervising our system was that for a media company our size it was highly “unusual to have such a concerted and focused attack as was discovered”.

Our operations are daily monitored by this company and we receive reports of any untoward activity immediately. Many of our e-mails, including local ones, are sent to SPAM, which is a warning that they might contain a virus, which, if opened, would contaminate our system.

We also get a regular Spam Quarantine report.

We are satisfied that our technology is sufficiently sophisticated that our experts would quickly detect a local hack and ferret him out.

However, this is one piece of legislation in the hands of the Bahamas government that should be rejected outright because — like it or not — in the wrong political hands it could be abused.

Fred Smith, QC, one of the lawyers in the Save the Bays case against MP Fitzgerald has said that “if we were to create an independent Department of Public Prosecutions, an independent office of Attorney General, then you could start talking about legislation to help protect national security. But this spying act can be used by the government of the day to go into the emails, telephone calls secretly of opposition candidates, every journalist, it takes away client-attorney privilege. This means there will be no more banking privacy.”

Unfortunately, there are claims that political interference has not only infiltrated our police force, but there are also suggestions that some sections of our judicial system has also been contaminated.

If so, Government’s proposed legislation does not bode well for such a contaminated political atmosphere.

Halkitis, magician and joker EDITOR, The Tribune.

PERRY Christie’s alter ego in the Ministry of Finance stepped completely out of character the other day and allowed himself to get caught up in the hype of the PLP convention.

Michael Halkitis is a naturally low-key man who doesn’t care much for hyperbole. But mesmerised by the pom-poms, the music and the sea of yellow shirted adoring fans, he went off the deep end in an attempt to explain the whereabouts of the elusive VAT money.

He gleefully let rip a laundry list of infrastructure and public goods that were facilitated by the $1 billion that was siphoned out our pockets as a “luxury” tax for the mere privilege of living here.

To quote the Joker in the popular Batman series, I would ask Mr Halkitis to riddle me this?

When VAT was introduced, it was on the promise of the reduction or elimination of certain types of customs duties. If that did happen and we caught a break on duties then what was the net income to the government from this new value added tax?

Supposedly we will have to subtract from this grand

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net $1 billion total, those taxes that would have come to the government by other means such as customs duties. One billion dollars might have been the gross take but it could not be the net to the treasury.

I found it most puzzling that the Minister erroneously regaled his fellow delegates with tales about paying for new boats, new planes and even helping with hurricane repair with money from VAT takings.

He had to walk that back when it was pointed out that Parliament had approved loans to pay for many of these new items. Halkitis then embarrassed himself with the lame excuse that all government money goes into (and therefore comes out of) the Consolidated Fund. Well duh!!!

Then we got the doozy that VAT money somehow helped him to “facilitate” a loan to Bahamasair to buy new airplanes. As if a Sovereign guarantee wasn’t enough for the bankers.

They needed a VAT comfort letter.

But leaving that out, VAT was introduced to help us reduce the fiscal deficit and

to start paying down the national debt.

We are still running deficits and the debt has ballooned every year. Worse, we now have the indignity of a downgrade of our credit rating. Just now the clouds are building for an increase in the rate of VAT from 7.5% on everything except sunshine and rain, to a rate of 10% next year. And if Christie is re-elected he will be emboldened to take it all the way up to his original planned rate of 15%.

Assuming the economy doesn’t contract under this weight, that will double the amount of money that Halkitis can use to “facilitate” other loans. And don’t believe the smoke and mirror that will come about lowering customs duties further. Customs duty is a one-time pain, but paying VAT every time you withdraw your own money from an ATM is a perpetual annoyance.

If you think we will get better fiscal prudence from Kool PC and the Gang when we give them $2 billion in VAT receipts to play with, then I have some BAMSI insurance to sell you.

Loose talk and loose spending Lessons from EDITOR, The Tribune.

MORE and more totally loose talk from Cabinet Ministers - this time Hon Brave Davis at his walkabout at the new Baseball Stadium. I am told baseball is dying.

Yes, it will be state of the art and of course international renown before a single ball has been thrown as that is how our Cabinet Ministers think, but for the Minister to suggest that there is a chance for a US baseball team to commit to do spring training that’s very far fetched.

If the Minister knew how spring training works he would never have said that, but oh how we love to exaggerate everything so it sounds incredible and then a flop.

We threw away $10m on carnival for maybe 120 visitors to come ... we seem to be heading to throwing away again $5m this time when we have thousands out of work.

Why can’t the Ministers stop telling an untruth?

Cruise Ships, whether the Minister wishes it or spins it, are sailing away from the ports of Nassau and Freeport when we

need their business desperately.

IAAF relays another total waste of money and time - the bleachers will be empty as they were for the Popeye Bowl Game. Who benefits?

Does the Ministry measure these expensive sponsoring events to their return or can they?

It is all so irrational spending for spending sake.

Enquiry with new Government - Dr Minnis?

W THOMPSON Nassau, February 10, 2017.

THE GRADUATE Nassau, February 9, 2017.

the Holocaust EDITOR, The Tribune.

I FOUND it disturbing that while Holocaust survivor Eva Schloss was sharing with Bahamians her memories of the horrors inflicted on humanity by the Nazi Regime, our government was busy tabling the Interception of Communications Bill 2017 that would allow them to intercept and examine a person’s communications via telecommunications, internet and postal services.

Also I have not forgotten the gifts to the government of anti-riot gear, tear gas launchers, gas grenades and armored vehicles from our Chinese “benefactors”, all of which paints a picture of totalitarian tendencies.

I cannot help but remember the poem written by Pastor Martin Niemoller who lived through the same perilous times as Eva Schloss.

“First they came for the socialists and I did not

speak out – because I was not a Socialist.

Then they came for the Trade Unionists and I did not speak out – because I was not a Trade Unionist.

Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak out – because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me – and there was no one left to speak for me.”

IAN MABON Nassau, Februry 10, 2016.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 13, 2017, PAGE 5

Symonette: I would have voted for Donald Trump in US election

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net FORMER Deputy Prime Minister Brent Symonette said he would have voted for Donald Trump if he was eligible to vote in last year’s US presidential election.

“I worked with Mrs Clinton for five years in my previous job and I don’t think I could have voted for her,” he told members of the Rotary Club of East Nassau on Friday afternoon. “But I’ll leave that there … that’s a personal, personal decision,” he said.

The former Foreign Affairs Minister’s comment came during a speech to the club about the effect President Trump is likely to have on The Bahamas.

He concluded that the president’s impact is likely to be minimal, with plenty of continuity expected with respect to America’s policies involving The Bahamas.

“The relationship between the US and the Bahamas will continue to grow and I don’t see much that President Trump can do to change that,” he said.

Mr Symonette discussed a list of issues key to the relationship between the two countries and made an assessment about how they could be impacted under the new president.

Among them, he asked: “Will he appoint a US Ambassador to The Bahamas?

Well, we haven’t had one for five years because the Senate of the United States couldn’t confirm the ap-

FORMER Deputy Prime Minister Brent Symonette. pointee and regrettably she Atlantic Undersea Test and died before she could be ap- Evaluation Center (AUpointed. I do believe there TEC) and Operation Bahas been a choice made by hamas, Turks and Caicos the United States for an (OPBAT), Mr Symonette ambassador here and hope- said these are unlikely to be fully he will be announced cancelled. shortly and if rumour is “Will Trump say for intrue he is already in the stance cancel the US agreeprocess of buying a house ment with AUTEC,” he in The Bahamas.” asked. “No, they just signed As for US agreements the agreement the other with the Bahamas like the day and paid some $11m

per year for the rights for the underwater evaluation and testing for the center in Andros.”

“Will they cancel OPBAT? OPBAT is a strategic operation here in The Bahamas which protects the borders of the United States which allows law enforcement officers in the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Bahamas and America

to patrol our borders and many of you have heard of operations where they encounter illegal immigrants, drugs and also operations where they’ve actually rescued people. So I doubt very much that will be cancelled by President Trump.”

“Will they not build an embassy? They required land on Shirley Street to build an embassy so there-

fore that motion is going ahead. Maybe the funding for that will be delayed depending on the administration’s desire for use of those funds anywhere in the world.”

Mr Symonette also said President Trump is unlikely to disrupt the status quo within the financial sector.

“Will President Trump change any of the rules related to the financial sector?” he asked. “I doubt it because he doesn’t make them. Most of these regulations are made by international organisations like OECD, which are made up of many countries that all have their own agenda.”

Mr Symonette concluded that Bahamians will have more impact on the country’s relationship with the US than any policy President Trump supports or implements.

“If we continue with crime and other issues like that we will be blacklisted again and again and again,” he said.

Mr Symonette’s speech came against the backdrop of political interest in whether he will run for Parliament in the St Anne’s constituency in the general election.

He remained unwilling yesterday to say what he will do, despite repeated references to his consideration and encouragement from some Rotary Club members.

Taking to the podium, his first words were: “I’m wearing a red tie today by way of appeal to Trump, not to party.”

BTC SELECT COMMITTEE MAKING ‘STEADY PROGRESS’ IN PROBE

By KHRISNA VIRGIL Deputy Chief Reporter kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

THE select committee appointed to probe the 2011 sale of the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) Ltd is making “steady progress” despite a rocky start, according to Golden Gates MP Shane Gibson on Friday.

Mr Gibson, who heads the committee, told The Tribune that the committee has requested all documents needed for their investigation. He said some of the needed documents

were received and are being reviewed. After this is complete, he said another committee meeting will be scheduled.

At the first select committee meeting early last month no Official Opposition members turned up.

Mr Gibson at the time confirmed to The Tribune that the five-person panel had begun its charge to investigate, examine and inquire into the circumstances and facts relating to the privatisation of the company.

Committee members

include South Beach MP Cleola Hamilton, and Tall Pines MP Leslie Miller, both members of the governing Progressive Liberal Party, and Montagu MP Richard Lightbourn and North Eleuthera MP Theo Neilly, who are members of the Free National Movement (FNM).

Mrs Butler-Turner, leader of the Official Opposition, was formerly named to the committee but replaced herself with Mr Neilly.

Mr Gibson explained that an email notifying all committee members of the

upcoming meeting was sent

by Maurice Tynes, clerk of Parliament, via email.

Mr Neilly advised the committee that he was travelling and could not attend, according to Mr Gibson, but there was no response from Mr Lightbourn.

Mr Lightbourn told The Tribune that he did not receive a notice concerning the meeting.

Last November, the government moved a resolution in Parliament to establish a select committee to probe the controversial sale to Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC).

Suggesting the 2011 sale was essentially a “giveaway”, Mr Gibson called the decision to privatise the telecommunications provider “damaging” as he pointed to BTC’s revenue generation abilities.

The Golden Gates MP was also adamant that some inconsistency might

exist between the cost at which the then FNM government sold BTC and what CWC actually paid for it. BTC was sold to CWC for $210m, but Mr Gibson highlighted that in CWC’s audited financial statement, the company said it purchased the company at a cost of $204m.

ARMED ROBBER THREATENS GARDENER WALKING TO WORK IT was around 5 o’clock on the morning of Saturday, February 4, when a gardener, walking to work, was held up at gunpoint in a failed robbery.

The incident took place near the National Insurance building on Blue Hill Road as the gardener walked towards the Sports Centre. Suddenly a white car pulled up with four men inside. One of the men, armed with a handgun, got

out of the car, pointed the gun at the gardener’s head, and threatened that if he did not give him his wallet, he would shoot him in the head.

The gardener pleaded for his life, saying he had no money. Told he was lying, the gunman demanded his wallet.

Finding the wallet empty, the gunman ordered the gardener take his shoes off as he continued his search

for money. Nothing was found. From the car the other three men ordered that the gardener be shot.

Despite the urging of his co-conspirators, the gunman refused to pull the trigger.

The gardener’s empty wallet was thrown in the bush as the men drove off in the direction of the Reef Restaurant on JFK Drive.

The distraught gardener continued walking. About a

quarter of a mile down the road, he came across a man who had ridden past him on his bicycle shortly before the hold up.

The man was in tears. He said that men in a car had robbed him at gunpoint of $200 and stolen his bicycle.

“You should be happy that they didn’t shoot you, at least you are still alive,” was the only comfort the gardener could offer his fellow victim.

26 ½” X 26”

$90.00

37” X 38 3/8”

$130.00

37” X 50 5/8”

$160.00

38 3/8” MULLION

$10.00

50 5/8” MULLION

$12.00

1-year limited warranty ~ Same day collection or delivery Available at these fine stores

677-2100

326-4121

393-8165

PAGE 6, Monday, February 13, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

Smith: Spy bill draconian and unconstitutional

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net GRAND Bahama Human Rights Association president Fred Smith on Friday railed against a bill tabled by the government that would allow police to intercept and examine a person’s communications from telecommunications operators, internet providers and postal services.

Mr Smith condemned the bill, which would streamline the process in which the Commissioner of Police can obtain a warrant from a judge, as an “unconstitutional and draconian” abuse of power.

Expressing grave concern that it was tabled so close to a general election, and as the government is engaged in a constitutional battle over parliamentary privilege and the rights of citizens, he urged all Bahamians to protest the legislation.

According to the Interception of Communications Bill, 2017, which was tabled on Wednesday night, this would be done in the “interest of national security,” which is defined as protecting the country from “threats of sabotage, espionage, terrorist acts, terrorism or subversion”.

The legislation will provide for the “interception of all communications networks regardless of whether they are licensed as public or not” for a period of three months, unless renewed.

The bill says this will include public telecommunications operators, internet providers and postal services.

“This is a completely unconstitutional anti-privacy spy act by the government,” Mr Smith told The Tribune. “It is shocking that this government would have proposed this after they just passed the Freedom of Information Act. It is unbe-

lievable that they should go 180 degrees the other way and pass a law that is going to savage everybody’s privacy in The Bahamas.

Mr Smith said: “The Bahamas already has the Listening Devices Act. If you want to reform that act so police can conduct clandestine surveillance more effectively then do that.

But to give the government through the Commissioner of Police, a political post, such power? Unfortunately there is no independent Director of Criminal Prosecutions; that is run by the Attorney General and that’s a political position under any government. It is extremely dangerous to invest this kind of intrusive spying power to the government.

He continued: “If we were to create an independent Department of Public Prosecutions, an independent office of Attorney General, then you could start talking about legislation

to help protect national security. But this spying act can be used by the government of the day to go into the emails, telephone calls secretly of opposition candidates, every journalist, it takes away client-attorney privilege. This means there will be no more banking privacy.”

Last August, Justice Indra Charles ruled that Marathon MP Jerome Fitzgerald infringed on constitutional rights when he tabled the private emails of Save The Bays in Parliament, and therefore could not be protected by parliamentary privilege. Mr Fitzgerald has appealed that ruling, and the case is ongoing.

The Interception bill states that in order to obtain an interception warrant, the Commissioner of Police, or someone acting on his behalf, would have to petition the Attorney General to make an “ex parte”

application to a judge in chambers.

To receive such a warrant, it must be proven that the information to be inspected cannot be acquired by any other means, the bill notes.

The Attorney General would also have to be satisfied that the warrant is needed in the “public interest or interest of justice”.

The bill also states that a person who unlawfully intentionally intercepts a communication is liable upon conviction to a fine not exceeding $50,000 or a prison term of up to four years.

Mr Smith said: “The parliamentarians did this in late hours of a parliamentary session, didn’t circulate a draft bill as to why it’s necessary. It takes the whole nation by surprise, and it’s done on the eve of a general election. This must terrify every opposition candidate.

He added: “I encourage everyone to condemn it,

to resist it and to protest against it. The mischief behind this act is that it is secret spying by a political directorate with no supervision, no scrutiny. It is an attempt to get around the constitutional protection to have your privacy and my privacy respected.”

Under the new bill, the Attorney General will be mandated to table a report in both houses of Parliament outlining the number of warrants applied for to intercept communications, the number of warrants granted by the court, the average period of the warrants, the number of warrants refused/revoked by the court, the number of criminal proceedings started from evidence gleaned from communication interception and those that resulted in a conviction, among other provisions.

This must be done annually, within three months after the end of each year.

CALL FOR RESISTANCE TO ‘DANGEROUS’ SPYING BILL from page one

constitutional rights to privacy and as such should have been previewed by the legal community and civil society.

His call to protest was echoed by another FNM candidate, attorney and former Tribune columnist Adrian Gibson, and follows outrage levelled by outspoken QC Fred Smith, president of the Grand Bahama Human Rights Association (GBHRA).

The bill will allow the commissioner of police, or a person acting on his behalf, to obtain a warrant from a judge to intercept and examine a person’s communications from telecommunications operators, internet providers and postal services; providing for the “interception of all communications networks regardless of whether they are licensed as public or not” for a period of three months, unless renewed.

The bill also states that the attorney general can make an application to a judge for such a warrant.

This would be done in the interest of “national securi-

ty,” the bill notes.

The bill, tabled in Parliament on Wednesday night, would repeal the Listening Devices Act. It has sparked renewed concerns over the status of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), and the 2014 reports that the US National Security Agency (NSA) was monitoring mobile phone calls in The Bahamas.

Yesterday, Mr Johnson outlined major concerns over the timeliness of the bill considering the recent Supreme Court challenge over parliamentary privilege and the constitutional right to privacy; and also questioned the efficacy of debate over the bill, and the public’s capacity to fully digest it, given the upcoming general elections.

“Having regard to all of the stalling we had with the Freedom of Information Act, and now to see a bill that really affects some of those most precious rights that we hold dear to us, then the very institution that is set up by constitution to guard these rights (the Office of the Attorney General) is to be ex-parte without the say or concern

of citizens,” Mr Johnson told The Tribune.

“This is frightening and to my mind it’s no more than a spying act. A bill of this import should have gone to the (Bahamas) Bar, the question is whether or not the Bahamas Bar Association, which has in it those experts in constitutional law, would have had an opportunity to look at it, also human rights lawyers, NGOs in community.”

Referring to the government’s lengthy consultation process over FOIA, Mr Johnson said: “When you say to the citizenry we want you to have an input, then you come some days later and put a bill forward like this one. Now I’m wondering whether or not this bill even emanated from the commissioner of police because we already have a listening device bill in which the (commissioner) is empowered by reasonable suspicion.”

He continued: “If we have terrorist concerns, and this seems only local, but do we have terrorists groups here? You cannot say that the commissioner of police is not already empowered by reasonable suspicion

FNM candidate Elsworth Johnson.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff and what exists in the penal case that just went through investors, journalists, and code. There is a sinister un- the Supreme Court,” Mr ordinary citizens.

Johnson added. dercurrent about this bill.”

“The (bill) is an attempt In May 2014, it was re- on the part of the Christie vealed in an article posted administration to foist unProtest Mr Johnson expressed his on website Firstlook.org constitutional legislation concerns as a private citi- that the NSA was “secretly upon you (the public) that zen, but yesterday urged his intercepting, recording and would ultimately lead to party and all other opposi- archiving” the audio of eve- stark breaches of your contion forces to take a public ry cell phone conversation stitutional rights, all whilst stance opposing the legis- in the Bahamas. cloaked in ‘national secuReportedly part of a se- rity’ mumbo-jumbo,” Mr lation. He also lamented that some 90 per cent of the ries of documents leaked by Gibson said in a post on Fapopulation did not have the NSA whistle-blower Edward cebook. economic means to mount Snowden, those documents “We must resist the paslegal defense to an abuse of also claimed that the major- sage of such a bill.” ity of the phone calls were power.

Mr Gibson questioned “I’m calling on the Bar, monitored shortly before the how the bill would engage on independent groups to 2012 general election, during with the Data Protection mobilise themselves, there the Ingraham administra- Act, underscoring that the are experts that will freely tion’s term in office. country did not have an As for the Supreme ombudsman, an independgive their opinions on it,” Court case, Mr Johnson ent official appointed to Mr Johnson said.

“Whether right or wrong was referring to the ruling investigate complaints of there is a certain style by Justice Indra Charles maladministration, notably and class of doing things, in August last year, which against public authorities. the election is in the next stated that Marathon MP “We have no independent three months, what type Jerome Fitzgerald infringed director of public prosecuof discussion can be had on constitutional rights tions (DPP),” Mr Gibson on this? It almost seems as when he tabled the private said, “we have no independif you trying to sneak this emails of Save The Bays in ent attorney general (AG); through. Who drafted this? Parliament, and therefore and we have no independ“The country at this very could not be protected by ent commissioner of police privilege. (COP). The offices of DPP, same point is concerned parliamentary about persons unlawfully Mr Fitzgerald has appealed AG and COP are all politihacking into their infor- that ruling. cal appointees and, over the Mr Gibson was one of the years, have demonstrably mation, they’re suspicious someone is listening. What litigators representing Save answered to or been subthe US has been doing is a The Bays. ject to personal agendas or For his part, Mr Gibson the whims of their political conversation for another day but for the average questioned how the public masters in one form or ancitizen not to be allowed to could be guaranteed that other.” have an input in this is really the bill would not be used He continued: “Could we shocking, so close on a gen- as a tool to intimidate and really trust and believe that eral election, so close to a abuse political adversaries, all interception warrants would be obtained in the public interest or the interest of justice? I certainly would not!”

The National Intelligence Agency, a PLP campaign pledge that was introduced in 2012 and headed by former RBDF Commodore Clifford “Butch” Scavella, still has no basis in law. The agency came under public scrutiny in 2014 when Official Opposition Leader Loretta Butler-Turner, thenFNM deputy leader, raised concerns over its legality.

At that time, National Security Minister Dr Bernard Nottage said that the government plans to table the legislation by the end of the year. Dr Nottage denied that the agency was prying into the personal communications of Bahamians, stating that only criminals known to police are being monitored.

insight@tribunemedia.net

the stories behind the news

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2017

A government spying charter The Interception of Communications Bill threatens the democracy of the Bahamas, says Malcom J Strachan

O

n the eve of a general election, the government headed

by Perry Gladstone Christie is advancing the introduction of the Interception of Communications Bill 2017.

This Bill, which was put forward in Parliament last week without any prior notice or consultation with the public, is a threat to the democracy of this country.

In the Bill, communication is defined as speech, music, sounds, visual images, any form of data, any apparatus or signal used to transmit the same and anything transmitted by postal service.

The Bill allows for the interception of all communications on both private and public systems.

Therefore, by this Bill, any and all communications can be obtained with a warrant by a judge for the purposes of the Commissioner of Police or someone else who he designates. If that is not reason enough to stand up and fight, this Bill also allows the minister responsible the power to obtain all your communications without a warrant!

This Bill will essentially absolve the political directorate of the Bahamas from any punishment before the courts from spying on its citizenry as they have coached their reasoning for the Bill under the intentionally vague and limitless scope of “national security”.

This reasoning is utter hogwash, and every citizen, every Bahamian who loves this country, should fight this Bill. Members of the media should fight this to the death. This Bill would destroy all attempts by the Fourth Estate to hold any administration to account as sources would be open to exposure at the whim of a minister of the government.

It would be open season on political opponents of the government, who would have their lives laid bare by a minister, who with a nod could gain access to every electronic device that they own, accessing every email, and listen to every phone call they make.

Whistleblowers, seeking to expose corruption or abuse in our government, would be at risk.

The ramifications are endless.

Democracy itself would be at risk.

But we do not have to look too far down the road to see what this Bill will do. We should be concerned that this Bill would also be seeking to make legal what this government has already done.

It is a well-known secret that the government of the Bahamas has set up a clandestine spy agency known as the National Intelligence Agency (NIA). This agency does not have any legal grounds upon which to operate.

Its budget is unknown and its purpose unclear. We can venture a guess ... this agency is already

“They want to know what we think, when we think it, who we speak to and what is being said. These are the actions of a government that is totally out of control, and it is up to us, the people, to stop them.” doing what this Bill is seeking to now make legal. ‘Now’ being the operative word.

We have no doubt that our government is already spying on its people.

We have no doubt that many phone lines are already being hacked/monitored by the govern-

ment.

We have no doubt that while some of these efforts may be along the lines of crime fighting, the vast majority take on a more sinister, political end. After all, if their objective was crime fighting then they are doing a piss-poor job at that as crime is still sky-

rocketing, so they must be listening to someone, right? Exactly.

It’s us they’re listening to.

It’s the organisers of We March they are listening to. It’s the organisers and promoters of Save The Bays they are eavesdropping on. After all, who can forget the infamous tabling of their emails in Parliament by the “Garbage Can” Minister of Education, Jerome Fitzgerald. Such actions by a minister in Parliament would become commonplace if this Bill were allowed to succeed.

Political opponents would have their emails, phone calls, text messages, WhatsApps all read back to them from the House of Assembly as the government twists and weaves itself back into office election after election. This is the “Big Brother state” that Orwell warned us about in ‘1984’.

The constant monitoring of a population to detect “betrayers” - betrayers of the Progressive Liberal Party and its philosophy.

Betrayers of their ideology of the “all for me baby” syndicate and their cohorts. Betrayers of the 10 per cent crew and the Sunshine Boys of new. Betrayers of the “it’s my time” politicians, who are seeking to use their office and power to amass great wealth on the backs of the poor and downtrodden of society. This is where we have come!

Not only has our government lied to us at every turn and abused us along the way. They now want to listen in to you as you sit with your loved ones around your dining room tables.

They want to listen in while you talk to your spouse or co-workers about your problems of the day.

They want to peer over your shoulder as you write your letter to the Editor or pen an anonymous email to the newspapers about the theft of abuse being perpetrated by a minister or official in a government department.

They want to monitor you, my fellow Bahamians, so that they can silence you.

They want to monitor us so they can shut us up. They want to know what we think, when we think it, who we speak to and what is being said. These are the actions of a government that is totally out of control, and it is up to us, the people, to stop them. If there ever was a time for Bahamians to stand united against one common threat, it is this Bill.

The time is now, to stand, and let our voices be heard, that we will not allow this administration to take our freedoms and liberties away from us.

We must stand.

• Comments and responses to insight@tribunemedia.net

Much murmuring against Christie over Baha Mar

C

an Prime Minister Perry Christie fool the people of the Bahamas about Baha Mar? The answer is: “No”.

Will Prime Minister Christie and his ministers continue to lie to the people of the Bahamas about Baha Mar? The answer is: “Yes” Why is the Prime Minister and his government continuing to lie about Baha Mar when they know the Bahamian public cannot trust Christie and his ministers on this matter?

The answer is in plain sight - the Christie government has sold its soul and sacrificed the public trust of the Bahamian people to the government of China and their related Chinese interests.

The ongoing charade that this government has perpetrated on the people of the Bahamas has been punctured by the truth consistently throughout this sad saga.

A little refresher: the international media outlet Bloomberg published an article in October, 2015, headlined: “Bahamas Luxury Resort May Open Early in 2016, Official Says”.

Guess who that official is?

None other than our illustrious Prime Minister. And extra points for the number

The government has sold its soul and sacrificed public trust to the government of China and their related Chinese interests, Malcom J Strachan says of times the PM has publicly announced he expects Baha Mar to open soon, or there is deal to purchase the resort from liquidation - a liquidation he and his government forced on the resort, its then employees and the Bahamian public well over two years ago.

If your answer regarding number of times is “too numerous”, you get bonus points!

The PM and his ministers can’t seem to get their story straight - something we all know happens when you tell one too many untruths after another. The PM would have us believe for the past two years he has done everything in his power to save Baha Mar for Bahamians. Then we learn sad truth after sad truth.

For example, we learned recently that under the Heads of Agreement for The Pointe development, the PM and his folks agreed to allow the poor performing China Construction America (CCA) to move workers and equipment from its un-

finished work at Baha Mar to The Pointe, a project, unlike Baha Mar at the time, which was fully owned by CCA. In fact, within days after the PM and his government did the bidding of CCA, the original developer of Baha Mar was forced to file the Baha Mar project for Chapter 11 reorganisation under US bankruptcy law in the Delaware court.

This was clearly a “nono” for our PM as it upset his and the Chinese’s plans.

Knowing that no process as efficient and effective as Chapter 11 reorganisation exists in the Bahamas, the Prime Minister cried “foul”. He immediately followed with a national address - wrapping himself in the Bahamian flag, so to speak, that we subsequently learned (from public documents) was pinned to him by the Chinese who did not want their duplicity being exposed in the US courtroom.

After chest-pumping oratory, he pushed the Baha-

“What is really in that deal Chow Tai Fook Enterprises has made for Baha Mar, you ask? The Christie Government says it is ‘under seal’ too sensitive for us to know.” mian Supreme Court into the dangerous precedent of not recognising the rulings of the US court with respect to affected Bahamian creditors. The Chinese applauded, patting the Prime

Minister on the back.

And, as a result, we have learned a lot in the almost two years since about Chinese names. Let’s see: There is China Construction America, an interest-

ing name for an entity that did not feel comfortable in a US courtroom.

There is China Export Import Bank - it too was scared of a US courtroom.

What exactly was the bank financing for Export and Import? Was it Chinese workers being exported here to take jobs away from Bahamians and prime Bahamian beachfront property being imported for a pittance into the bank which is owned by the Chinese government?

See pg10

PAGE 8 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2016

Email: insight@tribunemedia.net

A way to give crime its marching orders Conscripting youths for National Service works well in Israel - why not try it here, Sancheska Dorsett suggests

S

ix men were murdered in the Bahamas over the weekend, including a 15-year-old who police described as a “prolific offender”.

These murders all took place within 48 hours and brought the country’s tally to 26 for the year, according to The Tribune’s records.

The killings also marked 12 murders in 12 days in the capital.

Irrespective of circumstance, population density and whatever measurement we use to evaluate the violent crime rate of a given area - these numbers are cause for alarm.

Following my return from a trip to Israel in December, I wrote describing my experience and listing what I thought our small developing country could learn from a nation many consider the “startup capital of the world”.

My initial focus was on the lessons we can learn by diversifying the Bahamian economic portfolio, but there were also many socio-economic lessons that translate from Israel to the Bahamas.

With our country gripped by the fear of crime and the search for solutions seemingly endless, the Bahamas can adopt a similar model to Israel’s compulsory military service. I have seen firsthand the amazing benefits it can have for a developing country.

We are losing scores of our young men to violence or incarceration. Our crimi-

nals are no longer afraid of prosecution and there seems to be no respect for the rule of law and for our fellow man. A programme of mandatory National Service can be a possible aid, if not solution, to the scourge of crime.

The logistics of the implementation of such a programme will undoubtedly warrant lengthy discussion, but the general sense is that if these young men and women were gainfully employed from the day they graduated from high school, it would alleviate the idle time and sense of uselessness and desperation that often leads to crime.

Programmes like these also establish a sense of national pride and, while not a tangible measurement, love of country leads to a generation that would do anything to preserve the values and reputation of their country.

We have failed to witness this with our current generation, seemingly oblivious to the fact that a rise in crime has a direct and adverse effect on the country’s

Israel’s mandatory national service can help in dealing with the scourge of crime while building a sense of national and self worth. tourism product.

A rite of passage in Israel, when someone turns 18, is being drafted into the military. Men serve three years and women normally serve half of that time. Officers (men or women) are signed for an additional year for the privilege of attending the Officers’ Training School.

Some (men and women) then remain in service as a vocation and are entitled

“You get to meet people from different backgrounds, instead of just knowing the people from your high school. It really makes us grow up very fast and opens up our mind to other sectors.”

- Mira Marcus,

International Press Director at the Tel Aviv Municipality

to early retirement at 40, at which time they typically embark on a second career.

According to Mira Marcus, International Press Director at the Tel Aviv Municipality and one of my tour guides, the military service not only teaches you “the art of war” but also develops a love for country, a love for self and “you grow up pretty quickly”. She said the Israeli Army is “full of innovation” and “is a great head start for life”.

Mrs Marcus also said she believes Israel’s compulsory military service is one of the reasons there are lots of successful businesses thriving in the country because the military not only provides early training in sophisticated technologies but it also teaches responsibility and courage.

“It shows you all aspects of society,” she said. “You get to meet people from dif-

ferent backgrounds, instead of just knowing the people from your high school. It really makes us grow up very fast and opens up our mind to other sectors which I think is rare in other communities,” she said.

“Going into the army is much more than just thinking about fighting. It is mandatory but there is high motivation to enter. It creates a very involved society; here we have higher voting rates because people go into the army, they get a broader picture and we have high volunteer rates among Israelis and social enterprises and I think its because of the army. It influences you to do something beyond only what’s good for you, you think about what is good for your country and what is good for society. We go into the army for defence reasons in general but a lot of people learn who they are and what they want to do by joining the service.”

Last year, after a crimefilled weekend in the Bahamas, renowned psychologist Dr David Allen called for the imposition of mandatory national service. The suggestion was among a list of recommendations to combat crime based on the findings of his community-based outreach project “The Family: People Helping People” in an advertisement in national daily newspapers.

Dr Allen said: “Each person must spend some time working in the best inter-

est of our little country, the Bahamas. For young people coming out of high school, there should be a period of national service from one to two years in duration. Older persons should be willing to contribute several weekends per year.”

Dr Allen suggested that, once you are not in college and do not have a job, you should have to enter national service. I agree with this concept. Like I said earlier I have no idea how the programme would work but we must all agree that something needs to be done.

A National Service programme has its detractors, possibly seen as a draconian measure, but in our current state those measures may be necessary. We need new and innovative ways to reach our young people and if a sense of respect for laws and country cannot be achieved voluntarily, the idea of mandatory implementation should be the natural progression.

After another violent weekend is splashed across the front page of today’s Tribune, crime continues to dominate the headlines and paint a grim picture of our future. National Service can be the catalyst for a turnaround and improve the product of the Bahamas’ most valuable asset - not its sun, sand and sea but its people.

• Comments and responses to sdorsett@ tribunemedia.net

THIS WEEK IN THE TRIBUNE Tuesday Woman and Health - weekly advice on taking care of your mind and body and women making waves in the Bahamas Plus comment from Nicole Burrows and sporting mischief and mayhem with Inigo “Naughty” Zenicazelaya

Wednesday Tribune Tech - a weekly look at what’s new in the world of technology Plus Larry Smith’s forthright Tough Call column

Thursday Obituaries and Religion, a weekly review ‘On da Hook’, a weekly look at fishing in the Bahamas

Friday Weekend - a 28-page section devoted to the best in arts, music, fashion, food, books, entertainment, gardening, animal matters, fitness, history and interviews Sports - The Finish Line, a look at the local sports scene, by Brent Stubbs Plus A Comic’s View - Naughty’s unique take on the week in the Bahamas

Saturday The Tribune’s Top 5: a special video review of the week’s top stories by Khrisna Virgil on www.tribune242.com Every day in The Tribune, news, business, sports, weather and Classifieds Trader - the best guide to cars for sale, real estate, help wanted and more.

Plus breaking news and updates on your mobilefriendly tribune242.com

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 13, 2017, PAGE 9

GASTON BROWNE, left, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, alongside Prime Minister Perry Christie at the 35th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community.

Photo: Peter Ramsay/BIS

Transparency vital in passport and residence programmes T

World View

HE global US television company, Cable News Network (CNN), broadcast the first part of a programme on February 8, alleging the sale of Venezuelan passports to Iraqis and others through By SIR RONALD SANDERS the country’s Embassy in Baghdad. The programme These developments ent they are the better. No suggested that it is possible that terrorists might have bring fresh focus to the Citi- other country should have been among those alleged zenship by Investment Pro- doubts about them, not in grammes (CBIPs) operated a world where almost eveto have bought passports.

Interestingly, at least by many countries around rything is capable of crossone agency that facilitated the world in one form or border movement. And, the Venezuelan citizenship another. The countries in- while transparency is cruand residence programme, clude the United States, the cially important - and that posted a statement on its United Kingdom, Spain, is the commitment that the website that “due to the Portugal, Cyprus, Malta government of Antigua and turmoil, danger and unre- and five countries in the Barbuda has made with its liability within Venezuela, Caribbean - Antigua and new policy - an intense vetthe nationality and passport Barbuda, Dominica, Gre- ting of potential citizenship programme has been can- nada, St Kitts-Nevis and St and passport recipients is absolutely vital. celled until further notice”. Lucia.

As I have pointed out in It should be noted that This development occurred days after the Prime previous commentaries on many Caribbean Embasthe CBIP is- sies, and certainly the AnMinister of sue, there is tigua and Barbuda ones, do Antigua and ‘Those who nothing in- not issue passports of any Barbuda, Gas- believe that there trinsically kind. All passport applicaton Browne, is short-term gain wrong with tions and renewals are sent announced citizenship by to the passport offices in in Parliament in pitching the investment their countries. that his gov- cost of citizenship programmes Some Caribbean counernment had by investment at or with their tries operate stringent vetadopted a new merit as a ting processes for CBIPs, policy, restrict- a low sum, or by including referrals to Intering the catego- accepting applicants development tool; it pol and the Joint Regional ries of persons is the rigour Communications Centre to whom dip- despite question lomatic and marks from vetting of their im- based in Barbados, that is plementation connected to agencies in official pass- agencies, run the that is impor- the EU, Canada, the US ports would tant. And it and the UK. Any rejections be issued. grave risk of other is such rigour by these bodies on the basis Amongst the nations slapping upon which of criminal activity or any principles en- visa requirements all countries links to terrorists or terrorshrined in the should insist. ism result in the disqualifipolicy is that on their passport Clearly, that cation of applicants. All the the names of holders and, thus, is the course countries in the Caribbean the holders rendering their that the gov- should follow this pattern; of all diploernment of by doing so, they would matic and of- CBIPs useless.’

Antigua and strengthen the confidence ficial passports would be tabled in parlia- Barbuda has chosen to take of other nations in the inment annually, made public with its publicly declared tegrity of their system and and the information shared policy which has been give them comfort in not with all countries with shared with other govern- applying visa requirements which Antigua and Barbu- ments and published in full. on all their passport holdda has diplomatic relations. There is good reason to do ers. In this way, the value In the same week - the so, not only for Antigua of the CBIP to their econoday after the Antigua and and Barbuda, but for all mies will endure and their Barbuda announcement non-European Union and native people will have reand one day before the G20 members which are fo- assurance in the worth of CNN programme - there cusing attention on CBIPs, their own passports. Politiwere protests in Dominica ostensibly on the basis that cally that is important, as at against the activities of they could be avenues for least one Caribbean counthe government, including facilitating terrorists and try has experienced.

Those who believe that claims of selling diplomatic criminals.

If the governments of there is short-term gain in passports. The protests culminated in a clash between these countries believe that pitching the cost of citizencrowds and the police in full CBIPs are important to ship by investment at a low battle dress and weapons, revenue generation so as sum, or by accepting apwith snipers on key roof- to maintain and advance plicants despite question economic and social devel- marks from vetting agentops. opment, the more transpar- cies, run the grave risk of

other nations slapping visa requirements on their passport holders and, thus, rendering their CBIPs useless.

Within the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries, there have been commentaries and editorials in the media that have expressed concern about the CBIP because, it is said that persons who qualify for citizenship and a passport in one of the CIP States, have access to all CARICOM countries.

Theoretically, that is true. In practice, of course, it is not. Native nationals of member-states of CARICOM countries have no freedom of movement within CARICOM, except for specifically designated categories, and even in those, unless there is a bilateral agreement between states, those categories are, regretfully, not respected.

And, even business people

and investors from member-states of CARICOM find it difficult to establish business in other CARICOM countries.

They have to satisfy national laws and national requirements: unfortunately, very few have been able to do so in the history of CARICOM. But, if CBIP recipients were able to invest in CARICOM countries, in addition to the one in which they received citizenship, there should be nothing wrong with that; indeed, it should be welcome. And, if CBIP recipients were to be unacceptable “subject to public interest considerations”, they could be denied entry or the right to remain in the country concerned, in the same way that this principle applies to native nationals of a CARICOM country.

This “subject to public in-

terest considerations” provision was clearly set out by the Caribbean Court of Justice in the landmark Shanique Myrie case in 2013.

The global attention that passports are receiving, especially diplomatic passports, requires high standards of vetting and transparency to maintain confidence in them. Thankfully, the government of Antigua and Barbuda is prepared to show the way.

Sir Ronald Sanders is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the United States and the Organisation of American States. He is also Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto.

The views expressed are his own. Responses and previous commentaries: www. sironaldsanders.com

PAGE 10 MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2016

Email: insight@tribunemedia.net

GAIN AN EDGE A NATIONAL DIALOGUE ON HIGHER EDUCATION

GAIN AN EDG

A NATIONAL DIALOGUE ON HIGHER EDUCAT

Why a university degree doesn’t have to cost you Can you help students understand the terms they may hear when seeking assistance to pay for college?

“Certainly.

Financial aid is any grant, scholarship, loan or paid employment a student may be offered to help them pay for their education.

A bursary is a grant, usually given by the government, awarded to enable students to study at a university.

Work study is a programme that provides parttime jobs for students with financial need, allowing them to earn money to help pay education expenses.”

Has University of The Bahamas always offered Financial Aid? “Yes, when University of The Bahamas was established in the early years the government made provisions for those who could not afford higher education. We had Financial Aid in the form of work study as well as Financial Aid as we know it now. Back then, it was paid work study. Students did eight or 12 hours depending on whether it

through the creation of the Ministry of Education Teacher Education Grant.

Moreover, the government created the Ministry of Health’s Nursing Education Grant and the Summer Bridging Programme Grant.”

With more than 40 years experience as a counsellor and educator, Cheryl Carey, Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships at the University of the Bahamas, shares her perspectives on the value of a tertiary education and how financial aid, bursaries and private scholarships are permitting students to achieve post-secondary education. was half or full work study.”

Why was paid Work Study so vital for the personal development and empowerment of the student?

“When a young person turns 14 they are taller, more physically mature and there’s a sense of ‘how do I take care of myself?’

Then at 16, they don’t always want to ask mummy or daddy for money.

However, if they can earn money towards their books and personal needs, we felt that taking care of their personal needs while building up self-confidence plays a small yet wonderful role toward student success.”

How has Financial Aid

evolved over the years?

“As we progressed as an institution, the tragedy of September 11 happened, and there was an economic turndown globally, businesses were halted; things were slow.

At the institution unfortunately, there were budget cuts but we still had the goal to help our students.

While we still offered Financial Aid by work study, students were no longer paid cash but instead were given credit on their account. Students worked within the schools and departments for 30 hours per semester.”

How is Financial Aid awarded to students?

“Financial Aid is allo-

Cheryl Carey, University of The Bahamas Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships. cated according to a measurement of demonstrated financial need.

All expenses related to attending university and all financial resources available to the applicant are compared to determine the amount of aid to be awarded.

The amount of aid awarded is based on the level of need that is calculated.

We have two deadlines: for Fall semester (beginning classes in August) the first Friday in February and for Spring semester (beginning classes in January) the last Friday in September.”

What other financial awards are available to students?

“The government is our best benefactor. Not only do they give us Financial Aid but our students who have five BGCSE passes, including Math and English, with ‘C’ grades or above students may receive full Bursary awards.

Additionally, the government wanted to find a way to support qualified student teachers for our schools

How vital are scholarships opportunities for students?

“Scholarships often save lives.

I want to say that Bahamians are the most generous of people, they give and many are the silent givers.

Many large donations are gifted through private companies and loyal donors, including the Lyford Cay Foundations through the creation of UB Scholarship Endowment Funds and several other key companies throughout the Bahamas.

I tell young people to apply to as many scholarships as they can, it is scholarship season! If you are consistent and persistent, you will find one. There are so many out there and it only takes one.”

NEXT WEEK: affording BTVI. • “Gain An Edge” is a weekly collaboration of the Lyford Cay Foundations, Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute and University of The Bahamas aimed at promoting a national dialogue on higher education. To share your thoughts, email gainanedge@tribunemedia.net.

Much murmuring against Christie over Baha Mar From pg 7 And then there is Perfect Luck - the Chinese company created by the Chinese bank to distribute limited funds to former Bahamian Baha Mar employees. Of course, those employees, left unemployed for two years by the Christie government though its liquidation of Baha Mar, were told they had only a few days to fill out Perfect Luck’s concocted forms that ultimately required giving up their rights as creditors to the real sums of monies they were owed.

And, oh yes, we heard about the Ho family and their possible interest in Baha Mar only to have that name disappear when public records indicated criminal activity concerns.

But take heart - the Ho name has been replaced with a new Chinese name embraced by the Christie government - Chow Tai Fook Enterprises. No “America” and certainly no “Bahamas” in this one. The Christie government and Chow Tai tout that Chow Tai has made a deal to own Baha Mar. Never mind that Chow Tai’s owners, the Chengs, have numerous questionable associations with the Hos as well as other businesses that have come under regulatory and legal scrutiny.

What is really in that deal Chow Tai has made for Baha Mar, you ask? Can’t tell? The Christie Government says it is “under seal” too sensitive for us to know.

Too sensitive?! But wait a minute - Chow Tai goes one step better. It admits after

promoting all the things it will do with Baha Mar that it actually has not closed any deal on Baha Mar! And speaking of Baha Mar deals ... there indeed have been two real deals. In all probability, if they had been allowed to move forward, Baha Mar would be open. The first, the reorganisation plan proposed by the project’s original developer in the Chapter 11 proceedings and fully supported by the proceeding’s independent committee of creditors, was stopped by the Christie Administration through its unprecedented use of the Bahamian courts to sabotage those proceedings.

The second, contained in numerous proposals by the original developer to China Export Import Bank, went unanswered by the Chinese without any effort by Prime Minister Christie and his government to demand such proposals be given due consideration. Instead his administration mocked them. But, of course, “what can we do?” was the government’s position.

And so, Baha Mar is not completed or opened.

There is no real deal. Our nation’s credit rating is downgraded.

Unemployment is rampant.

Perhaps Prime Minister Christie is listening to the wrong Chinese. Maybe he would be wise to take to heart Confucius, the influential Chinese philosopher, who taught: “He who acts with a constant view to his own advantage will be much murmured against.”

• Comments and responses to insight@tribunemedia.net

Caves village Premium Office Space for Lease large 2,225 sq.ft. 6 offices, conference room, reception, kitchen, 2 bathrooms, iT/filing room, ample parking. $9,268.51 pm inc. CaM + vaT

STOREWIDE SALE - excluding bulbs, table lamps, floor lamps, lamp shades and crystal chandeliers.

Credit cards accepted as cash

850 sq.ft. 3 offices, conference room, reception, kitchen, bathroom, iT closet, ample parking. $2,939.58 pm inc. CaM + vaT Contact Mr. simon Chappell on 327 1575 or 477-7610 Email: simon@cavesvillage.com

MACKEY STREET PH 393-8165

THE TRIBUNE

TURNQUEST: CHANGES TO MONTAGU ARE SHAMELESS from page one

The draft order tabled

by Prime Minister Perry Christie on Wednesday revealed a new inner city constituency, St Barnabas, formed from seats considered to be Progressive Liberal Party strongholds, and a name change for the Montagu seat to Freetown.

The new Freetown sheds two polling stations and is now bounded by St Andrew’s Drive and Village Road to the south.

Mr Christie explained that the Montagu seat name was changed to reflect the ancestral history of a major part of the constituency, pointing out that the Freetown seat was included in the 1968 and 1972 elections.

“The boundary adjustments smack of desperation and a government who know that they have lost the support of the majority of Bahamians,” Mr Turnquest said.

“They have played around with polling divisions seeking an advantage but as history has taught us, this too will backfire as the will of the people cannot be perverted. The last two referendums tell us that more clearly than any words.

“It has been famously

said, lines on a map do not vote, people do, and that is still true today. Playing on the emotions of the public, particularly the vulnerable and less educated is a perverted methodology and has no place in a modern Bahamas. The renaming of Montagu to Freetown with the deliberate elimination of middle class areas is shameless and smacks of obvious gerrymandering,” he added.

The number of seats in the House of Assembly, as previously reported, has increased from 38 to 39, and are divided as such: 24 constituencies in New Providence; five constituencies in Grand Bahama and Bimini; and ten constituencies in the Family Islands.

Mr Turnquest underscored his party’s commitment to empowering Bahamians and ridding government of career politicians who fail to understand that their time is up.

He added that the FNM could not afford to be distracted by lines on a map in the midst of mounting social challenges, like joblessness, an underperforming education system, and crime.

“It is the people’s time and the FNM’s change team of bright, talented candidates will introduce

reforms to ensure that the people benefit from the assets of this country and not just the same select crew of cronies who have been at the trough since the 1970s,” he said.

“Young Bahamians and the not so young deserve a chance at quality employment and entrepreneurial opportunities, to have a real stake in our country with hope for a better future.”

Mr Turnquest added: “We cannot continue to allow these career politicians to block up the system and hold up progress because the country and its people are developing too fast for them to keep up. We need fresh perspective, fresh ideas and youthful energy missed with experienced professionals to guide us to the next phase of development – full ownership.

“So no matter what they have done, the FNM will meet them step for step on the political battlefield as we fight not for our own selfish interest or to retain power but to wrest power from the greedy and those who believe they have a right to strangle this country for their own self-interest and hold up broad based progress of our people,” the East Grand Bahama MP said.

SEARCH IS ON FOR MISSING WOMAN POLICE in Grand Bahama have asked for the public’s help in locating a woman who has been reported missing.

Police said Krystle Charlton, 32, of Pioneers Way, Freeport, was last seen on Saturday, January 21, at the Rand Memorial Hospital.

She is described as being 5ft 9in, weighing 240lbs, with a dark brown complexion and heavy build.

Anyone with information on Ms Charlton’s whereabouts is asked to contact the Central Detective Unit in Grand Bahama at 350-3107 through 12, call 911/919, your nearest police station or the Crime Stoppers hotline at 328-TIPS.

KRYSTLE CHARTON, 32, who is missing.

EQUIPMENT AT FAULT FOR BPL OUTAGES from page one

The memo includes assurances that the overhaul and maintenance of generators at both Clifton and Blue Hills power stations will be completed ahead of the summer peak season.

At the Clifton station, three generators broke down during the scheduled maintenance of one of the station’s largest generators.

The report stated that the reduced output from the Clifton Pier Power Station placed extreme pressure on transmission cables out of Blue Hills Power Station to the Big Pond Substation, which led to a major cable fault and the resulting outages.

The memo read: “On November 29, with three of the five largest units at Clifton Pier out of service, the system’s load was forced to flow primarily from Blue Hills Power Station through the four main transmission cables connecting the Blue Hills and Big Pond substations.

“These cables, though sufficiently sized for normal operations, were not able to withstand the significantly increased load, resulting in two faults, one on the Big Pond-Blue Hills #2 transmission cable, and a second on the Big Pond-Blue Hills #4 transmission cable.

“Once the grid recognised the existence of the faults, automatic protective systems began operating to isolate the faults and prevent them from adversely impacting the entire network,” the memo noted.

“The combination of critical faults on two of the four transmission cables, the proximity of the faults to the Blue Hills Power Station, and the reduced output at Clifton Pier resulted in a total shutdown of the entire transmission and generation networks. While this shutdown prevented critical damage to BPL’s network, resulted in an island-wide outage.”

More than half of customers on New Providence suffered through another major

outage on December 1 due to the uneven load distribution, which forced a shutdown at Clifton even though Blue Hills remained operational.

On December 4, with Clifton’s largest generators offline, one of two remaining units faulted, exposing transmission cables between Big Pond and Blue Hills to added load pressure. In a bid to prevent another islandwide blackout, the memo read, BPL took preemptive action to disconnect the cables from the grid.

“The result, however,” the memo states, “led to voltage and frequency challenges on the network, causing generation to trip offline as part of its safeguard mechanisms, and leading to an island-wide outage. The restoration time from this shutdown was extended due to the additional failure of an overhead transmission circuit during the outage.”

Unreliable electricity supply has been a lagging concern for residents; however, the issue became contentious last year after the capital suffered two island-wide outages, and another major outage within one week.

At the time, Prime Minister Perry Christie told The Tribune that the outages were “too catastrophic, too unusual and [were] deserving of the highest investigation”. Mr Christie said he had been unofficially advised that the incident was the result of “human error”.

The memo, dated December 12, also outlines a “comprehensive strategy to mitigate future occurrences of a similar nature”.

These include the installation of supplemental transmission circuits between Big Pond and Blue Hills, which the company expects to complete within the first quarter of this year. In two cables, faults were repaired and returned to service - with one of those cables requiring the assistance of a fault location expert from American utility provider, Southern Company.

As for generation, BPL notes that all overhaul ac-

tivities to generators at the Clifton station, inclusive of auxiliary systems, will be completed by April - ahead of the summer peak season. Winter period maintenance has also commenced at the Blue Hills Power Station, and is also expected to be completed before the summer peak season. Speaking to the overhaul of one of its largest units at Clifton, BPL said the major overhaul planned for January would “enhance its preparedness and/or performance for the 2017 peak load season”.

Computer issues impacting two of its largest units at Clifton have been identified, according to the memo, and a temporary solution was put in place until the company could begin upgrades to control systems in January.

PowerSecure signed a fiveyear management services agreement, reportedly worth as much as $25m, with the Bahamas Electricity Corporation in February 2016.

Despite repeated calls from the press and the opposition, the government has not released the power company’s business plan.

The business plan cost taxpayers $900,000, and was expected to be completed within 60 days after PowerSecure signed a transitional agreement with the government in July 2015.

Since taking the helm last February, PowerSecure’s efforts at restructuring the cash-strapped utility provider have been marred by island-wide power outages in the capital, and on some Family Islands.

In January, one outage left some customers in western New Providence without power for more than 12 hours, and was reportedly caused by equipment failure at the Windsor Field substation. At the time, BPL said the outage was an “unforeseen” failure and advised that it was conducting a secondary review of all primary substations on the island to assess the functioning of key equipment post Hurricane Matthew.

Monday, February 13, 2017, PAGE 11

PAGE 12, Monday, February 13, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

DNA candidate despairs as cruise ship pulls out of Grand Bahama

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net WITH hundreds of hotel workers unemployed in Grand Bahama, Nevar Smith, the Democratic National Alliance (DNA) candidate for Marco City, said the island is again faced with bad news after the recent pullout of Norwegian Sky resulted in the loss of millions of dollars to the local economy.

He noted that while the cruise ship will still call on Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay, Grand Bahama is left out once again.

Mr Smith said the news comes at a time when Grand Bahama can least afford it.

“This bad news comes on the heels of the largest hotel property on the island closing its doors and with the only casino around do-

NEVAR SMITH ing the same.,” he said in a statement on Friday. “The closure of these businesses alone has left hundreds of Grand Bahamians unemployed and by extension has affected many other people negatively.”

He stressed that the Grand Bahamian economy is poised to lose millions of dollars as a result of the

Norwegian Sky pulling out.

He wants to know what the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) administration is doing about the current state of affairs in Grand Bahama.

“My question is what are the leaders of the governing Progressive Liberal Party doing to stop the economic bleeding in Grand Bahama? How long will the residents of this island have to suffer and struggle in this way before getting some relief?

“Where are the new investments and companies on the island that can provide employment and entrepreneurial opportunities for our people? Why does Grand Bahama continue to be treated like The Bahamas’ stepchild and constantly get the short end of the stick time and time again?”

Mr Smith said that successive governments over

the years have treated Grand Bahama with contempt and in a half-hearted way.

“The nation’s Minister of Tourism is a son of the soil who also serves as the member of Parliament for West Grand Bahama. With that being said, one would think that the tourism sector on this island would be doing much better than it currently is.

“Some may seek to take comfort by blaming Hurricane Matthew for the dismal state of the tourism sector on Grand Bahama Island. My only problem with that is that the sector has been struggling and stagnant for the better part of the last decade.”

Mr Smith believes that Obie Wilchcombe, the Minister of Tourism, has “truly let the people of Grand Bahama down in a

major way”.

Mr Smith is the youngest candidate to be ratified for the upcoming general elections. He was elected as a local government councillor and was voted in as Deputy Chief Councillor.

In September, he stepped down to pursue his interest in frontline politics.

Marco City constituency is a swing seat, with both the PLP and Free National Movement holding it.

Mr Smith said that when the DNA becomes the government, Grand Bahama will be given the attention and support that it deserves. He said the tourism sector will be treated with more respect and Grand Bahamians who are interested in developing attractions that can enhance the tourism product will be given the incentives and assistance needed to succeed.

“A DNA government will work around the clock coming up with creative ways to get more cruise ships back to the island, in addition to getting more hotel rooms in our inventory. Under a DNA government, all Grand Bahamians who are interested will be given the opportunity to actively participate in the development of the tourism sector on the island through various think tanks that will be established,” he said.

“These think tanks will be created with the goal of facilitating a more ground up approach to making tourism work in Grand Bahama once again through harnessing the ideas that our people can offer on a regular basis. All hands must be on deck in order for the needed transformation to happen,” Mr Smith said.

GIBSON: LONG ISLAND NEEDS A NEW AIRPORT

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

AMONG a list of initiatives he pledged to advocate for if elected, Free National Movement (FNM) candidate for Long Island Adrian Gibson said the construction of a “state of the art” international airport was paramount.

Mr Gibson said the airport was critical to alleviate the “stranglehold” the “lack of airlift” has on Long Island’s economy.

Speaking to supporters at an FNM rally in Salt Pond on Thursday night, Mr Gibson lamented the negative impact not having an international airport has on Long Island, so much so that during slow periods, business owners are forced to fund their businesses “from personal funds or watch it collapse”.

This, Mr Gibson said, has resulted in a gradually “dying” Long Island economy, all whilst the government “spends nearly $25m for a few naked people to ‘wind up’ in the streets” for Junkanoo Carnival.

“It would lead to spin-off jobs, new local and foreign investors and business for restaurants, bars, hotels and motels, car rentals, straw and craft vendors, taxi and livery drivers etc … it will also encourage more people to return to our island, to open small businesses and hire others.

“It would bring new money into our economy and direct flights to Long Island from anywhere in the world. A new airport and the economic benefits that would come from it will also create new opportunities to cause young

people to want to stay and/or return to Long Island.

“We have a brain drain here,” he added. “Once many of our youth finish school, they leave for elsewhere and never return except for a regatta. We must address that.”

Mr Gibson also vowed to take steps to diversify Long Island’s economy and expand it beyond the “favour major” sources of employment currently available on the island. Doing so, he suggested, would also be greatly aided by the construction of an international airport on the island.

“Either you are a civil servant, a fisherman, work for the number houses, work for the Stella Maris Resort, or work for Cape Santa Maria,” he said.

“We must broaden the employment options; encourage more investors to come here; encourage more Long Islanders to become entrepreneurs via incentives and a new airport.

“We must think global. We must position ourselves to compete with the world. I intend to lead that charge.”

Other issues Mr Gibson pledged to address are upgrading sporting facilities on the island, increasing educational opportunities, bolstering the fishing industry on the island, and most importantly, reviving the island’s capital, Clarence Town.

“Our capital city is dead,” Mr Gibson added. “The clinic is closed. The police station is closed. The administrative office is crumbling. The population is greatly decreased. Surely, the capital of Long Island must be the most backwards and underdeveloped in the archipelago. We will address that and return Clarence Town to its former glory.”

ADRIAN GIBSON, the Free National Movement candidate for Long Island, arrives on Thursday for a rally at Salt Pond.

MISSIONARIES HELPING WITH REPAIR WORK AFTER HURRICANE

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A US MISSIONARY and a team from South Dakota are in Grand Bahama helping with hurricane restoration and have committed to working for the next two years with their fellow churches in The Bahamas.

Rev Patrick Paul, superintendent of Assemblies of God (AOG) for The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Island, was pleased to partner with Dr Dow Warner and his team, which is assisting with the restoration of homes damaged by Hurricane Matthew in October.

The team from Pierre,

South Dakota, has helped with the roof repair of Rev Terrence Jones’ house on Nelson Road, in the Mayfield Park Subdivision.

“We are delighted to have partnered with our friends from the Assemblies of God in the US to help us with restoration following Hurricane Matthew. And they have pledged to work with us for the next two years, sending teams to come in every few months to assist us,” Rev Paul said.

Sherlin Williams, national director of AOG Men’s Ministry of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands, said the Men’s Ministry was established to help during such devas-

tation. He said Dr Warner and his wife, Cindy, had been to Grand Bahama in 2002 and 2007 on missionary work.

“They have been in China for the past seven years, and we are very appreciative that they have taken the time to come and assist us with our hurricane restoration ... to bring some normalcy back to the island of Grand Bahama,” he said.

Stafford Symonette, restoration director of AOG, connected with Dr Warner after the hurricane. He was in Jacksonville, Florida, when the category four storm hit Grand Bahama, and could not believe the level of devastation he saw

on the television while in the Turks and Caicos.

“I said ‘we got to do something’ and I got on the phone and began to call and got connected with Dow Warner. And he got to work right away assembling teams from South Dakota to come and assist us, and I want to say how thankful I am to him and his team. It is not a vacation for them.

They have been climbing roof and working here.

They have come from so far to assist … and are an example for others to follow,” he said.

Dr Warner is the founding director of Sons of Salvation Christian Missionaries in The Bahamas.

He and his wife have also

led a seven-year mission to China teaching about Jesus Christ.

They are no strangers to the Bahamas and said when they heard about the devastation caused by Matthew shortly after returning home to the US from China, they immediately decided to come and help.

“We know Pastor Terrence and the pastors here from our trip in 2002 when we brought over 100 persons to the island to help with ministering. And so we got as many teams to come and help Pastor Jones here with his roof,” he said.

“We could have stayed in the US but we chose to come and help someone else and we want to share

the love of Christ - that is what missionary work is about. I have known Pastor Jones since 2002 in Garden Villas and he is always willing to work with the poorest of poor. So when we heard it was his house that needed repairs, for me, it was a no brainer and we come here to serve him in any way we can,” he said.

He challenged Christians in the Bahamas to get out of their comfort zone and to consider going to China to minister.

Pastor Jones thanked Dr Dow and the team from South Dakota. “It is wonderful what they are doing, and I am so grateful. My heart is filled with joy right now,” he said.

TWO POLICE OFFICERS IN HOSPITAL AFTER BEING BLASTED BY SHOTGUN from page one

He is also listed in serious condition in hospital and is under heavy police guard.

Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact police at 911 or 919, the Central Detective Unit at 502-9991 or Crime Stop-

pers anonymously at 328TIPS. In other crime news, police in Eleuthera took three men into custody in two separate incidents for possession of dangerous drugs.

In the first incident around 8pm on Thursday, officers in Eleuthera were

on routine patrol in Rock Sound when they intercepted a blue vehicle with two males. The vehicle was subsequently searched and a quantity of marijuana was found.

The two occupants were taken into custody.

In the second incident, shortly after 1am, officers in

Harbour Island were on routine patrol on Colebrooke Street, where they saw a man acting “in a suspicious manner”. Police searched the man and a quantity of cocaine was found.

The man was subsequently taken into custody.

Investigations into these incidents continue.

MAN JAILED FOR THREE YEARS FOR ATTEMPTED RAPE

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was sentenced on Friday to nearly three years in prison for attacking a woman with intention to rape her.

Senior Justice Stephen

Isaacs sentenced Davardo Percy Knowles, 34, to two years and nine months in prison concerning an incident that took place on October 31, 2014, at an establishment in downtown Nassau.

Knowles faced a charge of assault with intent to commit rape for the Halloween

attack, which left the victim with facial bruises when she put up a struggle.

Knowles, who was unrepresented, had previously pleaded not guilty to the charge when he was formally arraigned in the Supreme Court on April 10, 2015.

However, he changed

his plea when his trial was set to begin before a jury yesterday, resulting in the judge directing the ninemember panel to convict him of the charge.

Stephanie Pintard and Anishka Hanchell represented the Crown in the matter.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, February 13, 2017, PAGE 13

The

Tru Tru Festival

THE TRU Tru Bahamian Festival was held at John Watlings distillery this weekend. There was a large turnout to the event, which included food, games and art. Among those attending was Prime Minister Perry Christie.

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

PAGE 14, Monday, February 13, 2017

Tips to keep your neighbourhood safe

SOMETHING may be wrong in your neighbourhood.

There’s too much violence, or there’s an everpresent threat. Perhaps a child or adult you know was robbed. Maybe you’ve seen signs of drug dealing. Maybe a string of break-ins has you wondering what’s coming next.

You’re uneasy - even frightened - for yourself and your family.

Perhaps nothing violent has happened, but you see warning signs - such as graffiti, vandalism, abandoned cars, loitering, litter - that crime and violence may be reaching your neighbourhood soon.

By observing all of this, individuals can begin the challenge of reducing the opportunities of crime being committed against them, their loved ones, friends, property and their environment.

Police advice

By CORPORAL MAKELLE PINDER

The Royal Bahamas Police Force National Crime Prevention Office provides tips that can assist in safeguarding both you and your neighbourhood.

A safe home • Check locks on all doors. Are they working?

Are they heavy-duty locks recommended by your local community police officer?

• External doors. Are they sturdy? How do they swing from the building? Are they hollow core doors? External doors should always swing away from the building.

• Sliding doors. Are they working properly? Can the glass be easily shattered so as to allow the locks to be opened from the outside?

• Windows. Are they open at nights or when the family is away from the home? Are the operators working properly?

• Burglar alarms. When were they last tested?

• Security cameras. Are they producing clear images of persons or is there a blur on the screen?

• Do your children know how to get rid of unwanted callers who may be attempting to ascertain informa-

tion, to determine if they are home alone?

On the outside • Cut down overgrown properties and contact the Department of Environmental Health to remove derelict vehicles.

• Have abandoned buildings either torn down or battened down.

• Be sure to report unknown vehicles that are parked in the neighbourhood. They may be stolen.

• Inform your local community police officers of all shortcuts and track roads in your area.

• Beware of persons claiming that their vehicle has broken down and that they want to use your telephone. This is a NO! NO! • Tell them you will call the police to assist them.

This should get them leaving the area in a hurry.

• Be on the lookout for persons posing as repairmen, freelance workers and

utility workers.

• Regardless of being referred to as a nosey person, pay close attention to your neighbours’ visitors.

• Check the outside of your home every day or as much as possible.

In your vehicle • While driving, occasionally check your review mirror for persons that may be following you.

• If you are being followed, drive to the nearest police station.

• If being followed, do everything possible to bring attention to yourself • If bumped from the rear and you are not certain of the person’s intention, do not stop. Where possible, increase your speed and try to get the vehicle’s registration number, colour, make and anything that stands out.

• When approaching home or work, do not stop if you are being followed.

THE TRIBUNE

Have a signal with those in the house.

• Alert a family member or significant other of your intended route.

• Do not pick up hitchhikers, even if they appear to be old ladies or children in distress.

• Once at home, do not return to the vehicle. Items that are not perishable must be left in the trunk.

Please help us help you!

Remember that safety is everyone’s concern.

Should you need more information on neighbourhood safety or if you have information pertaining to any crime, please contact the police at ‘919’ or Crime Stoppers at 328-tips (New Providence), 1-300-8476 (Family Islands) or if you know of individuals who may be in need of counselling and emotional support please contact the Department of Social Services hotline 322-2763.

BAARK LOOKING TO BUILD ON RECORD YEAR THE Bahamas Alliance for Animal Rights and Kindness (Baark!)) is looking to build on its 2016 achievement of providing a record number of spay/neuters with a series of initiatives in the coming weeks.

Since forming in 2009, Baark! has worked to reduce the number of homeless animals on the streets of The Bahamas through sterilisation programmes such as TNR (Trap-NeuterReturn) and providing subsidies for low-income families with owned pets.

With a record 1,803 spay/ neuters last year, Baark!

- which actively promotes spay/neuter and education projects to create cleaner, safer and more responsible communities in The Bahamas - has completed more

than 6,000 in total.

“Our recipe for success is kind supporters, successful fundraising events, dedicated volunteers and our strong relationship with local veterinarians across the island,” Baark! chairman Laura Kimble said. “We cannot believe we were able to almost double our annual goal of 1,000 surgeries.”

Baark! will continue to host monthly Sunday spay/ neuter clinics at the Bahamas Humane Society (BHS). “A good portion of our numbers in 2016 were a result of impromptu Sunday clinics that the hardworking vets at the BHS would put together after the ambulance drivers would identify areas on the island where a lot of animals needed spaying or neutering,” Ms Kim-

ble said. “So for 2017 we have decided to pre-plan the dates and target specific areas and promote ahead of time.”

Dr Solomon Kwakye, Head Veterinarian of the BHS, said: “The only way to get a handle on the large number of unwanted dogs and cats in The Bahamas is through spay and neuter clinics. We are loving working together with Baark! to help prevent suffering.”

To mark World Spay Day, Baark! and the BHS will host a clinic on Sunday, February 26, and on the first weekend in March the Baark! truck, volunteers and vets Dr Dorsett and Dr Solomon will travel to Grey’s, Long Island. Local co-ordinator Sandra Cooke said it was important for Baark! to come to Long Island and help with the feral cat population and assist people who cannot afford to spay or neuter their pet.

The clinic will be sterilising dogs and cats.

“We hope people who really need help will come forward with their pets and take advantage of these offers,” Lissa McCombe, Baark! vice-chairman, said.

Baark! does not receive government funding and

MEMBERS of the Baark team. relies solely on donations from supporters and their own fundraising efforts.

The organisation will be

hosting a country and western themed ‘Valentine’s Hoedown’ on Saturday at Philosophy Smokehouse

Bar & Grill.

“We absolutely rely on the generous donations of our supporters. The more money we can raise, the more surgeries we can provide and the more lives we can save,” Ms Kimble added.

To make an appointment or for more information call Baark! on 427- SPAY (7729), visit www.baarkbahamas.com or on Facebook or contact Laura Kimble 457-4411, laura@baarkbahamas.org.

CUBAN HELD OVER ATTEMPT TO SMUGGLE 14 INTO THE US UNITED States Coast Guard (USCG) officials said on Friday a Cuban national is suspected of attempting to smuggle 14 people into Florida by boat.

According to a USCG statement, a US Customs and Border Protection plane crew spotted a suspicious vessel on Tuesday near The Bahamas. The statement says that the vessel would not stop when US authorities intercepted it about 12 miles southeast of Miami.

Officials said Customs and Border Protection crews fired “warning shots and disabling fire” before a Coast Guard cutter arrived on scene and took 15 people to shore. One migrant came from Ecuador, one from Jamaica, six were Chinese and six came from Sri Lanka.

The USCG said the Cuban, a legal permanent resident of the US, is being investigated on suspicion of human smuggling.

PAGE 16, Monday, February 13, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

Public Services

Motorcade PUBLIC Services week includied a motorcade, heading along Bay Street, and through Rawson Square. Trucks and cars were decorated, and members of the public service took part in the parade.

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff