03172023 NEWS AND SPORT

MINISTER STILL NO TO RCI DEAL

Hanna Martin has not changed view on $110m beach club

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net

EDUCATION

Minis-

ter Glenys Hanna Martin revealed yesterday her views have not changed on Royal Caribbean International’s $110m project for Paradise Island, saying she did not support it during the Minnis administration and her opinion remains the same.

The Tribune asked Mrs Hanna Martin about her past objections to the

project on the sidelines of an event yesterday.

While in opposition in 2021, Mrs Hanna-Martin called the proposal “harebrained”. She hit out at the Minnis administration for “kicking a Bahamian developer to the curb” in favour of the cruise line.

However, it was recently announced that the revised proposal was approved by the Davis administration, and developers are expected to break ground

‘WHEN NOT IF’ ON MARITAL RAPE LAW

By LETRE SWEETING Tribune Staff Reporter lsweeting@tribunemedia.net

DISCUSSIONS on the proposed Sexual Offences Act continue with State Minister Lisa Rahming indicating it is not a matter of “if” but “when the act will be passed.

Yesterday evening, officials from various agencies and organisations took part in a forum on marital

rape and the proposed amendment to the Sexual Offences Act.

The discussion was jointly hosted by the Ministry of Social Services and Urban Development, the Department of Gender and Family Affairs and The University of The Bahamas (UB), where the discussion was held.

Ms Rahming announced her advocacy for the

GB AIRPORT $200M REDEVELOPMENT A ‘LIFELINE’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A PROMINENT Freeport attorney yesterday hailed the “lifeline” provided by Grand Bahama airport’s imminent $200m redevelopment, saying: “We’d be doubly dead in the water without it.”

Terence Gape, a partner with the Dupuch & Turnquest law firm, told Tribune Business that numerous

multi-million dollar investment projects targeted at the island were reluctant to proceed without the security

SMITH STILL PURSUING PI LIGHTHOUSE PROJECT

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net.

BAHAMIAN entrepreneur Toby Smith said yesterday he still wants to move forward with his Paradise Island lighthouse project despite the ongoing challenges he has faced. Mr Smith, the principal behind the $3m Paradise Island Lighthouse & Beach Club project, made his comments when asked about the government’s approval of Royal Caribbean International’s $110m development on Paradise Island.

SOME MPS HAVE NOT YET DISCLOSED

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

TWO weeks after the March 1 deadline, Public Disclosure Commission chairman Bishop Victor Cooper said officials are still waiting for some parliamentarians to complete their filings.

The chairman told The Tribune on March 2 that about ten percent of members of Parliament did not meet the March 1 deadline.

When contacted yesterday for an update, he said: “Basically, the count is the same and so we’re just waiting for the rest of them to complete their (filings).”

of knowing there would be an airport capable of facilitating the necessary airlift and customer access.

Speaking after Chester Cooper, deputy prime minster and minister of tourism, investments and aviation, confirmed that a Bahamian investor group and their international partners will invest $200m to transform Dorian-devastated Grand Bahama International

Genesis Academy hosting a two-day national pride event for independence celebration

GENESIS Academy hosted the first of two days of national pride events in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Bahamian independence yesterday.

The grand opening ceremony was attended by Minister of Education Glenys Hanna Martin and Leslia Brice MP, with music by the Royal Bahamas Police Force Band. There was also a Junkanoo rushout

by representatives from the One Family Junkanoo group.

The second day of events today will include a conversation with former Prime Minister Perry Christie, a reflection on Bahamian culture by Dr Nicolette Bethel, and workshops by Chris Justilien, Senator Quinton Lightbourne and Carlyle Bethel.

A closing ceremony will feature the Singing Bishop, Prophet Lawrence Rolle, as well as Pastor Simeon Outten, The Rahming Brothers and Bishop Denczil Rolle and Friends. The public is invited to attend the closing ceremony, starting at noon and running until 1.30pm.

MINITER of Education Glenys Hanna Martin and MP Leslia Brice attended and gave remarks at the national pride celebration at genesis Academy.

Photos: Austin Fernander

Minister still no to RCI deal

SMITH STILL PURSUING PI LIGHTHOUSE PROJECT

“almost immediately”.

“My views have not changed,” Mrs HannaMartin told this newspaper yesterday. “First of all, the cruise industry does not require an island on New Providence. I mean, what we should be developing... is the cultural and entrepreneurial opportunities for the cruise ship visitors when they disembark. They keep saying there’s nothing to do, well let’s get something done,” she said.

The Englerston MP added Crown land should be very carefully utilised due to it being a limited resource and owned by the Bahamian people.

The project has been mired in controversy for years. Both the cruise line and the government had been embroiled in a longrunning battle, including in the Supreme Court, with Bahamian entrepreneur Toby Smith, who has asserted he has a binding lease for at least two Crown land acres that Royal Caribbean is seeking to use in its project. Mr Smith is seeking to invest $2m to restore Paradise Island’s lighthouse.

However, on February 16, Chief Justice Sir Ian Winder rejected the entrepreneur’s claim that his lease agreement is valid.

Asked about Mr Smith yesterday, Mrs Hanna Martin pointed out from day one she has said the “Bahamian participant” in the matter needed to be “front and centre”.

“The Prime Minister indicated that talks are continuing with him (Mr Smith) but certainly, he was part of this. This is a deal that we inherited from the Free National Movement administration—I did not support it then, my views have not changed on it,” Mrs Hanna Martin also said. When contacted by the Tribune yesterday, Mr Smith praised Mrs Hanna Martin for sticking to her stance.

“I praise her for being true to her words and we look forward to bringing our development to fruition with the support of everybody in the government,” Mr Smith said.

Yesterday, Mrs Hanna Martin also blasted former Prime Minister Hubert Minnis for his comments on the project. Dr Minnis this week criticised the revised project, accusing the Davis administration of “disadvantaging” Grand Bahama by not linking RCI’s Paradise Island deal with projects for that island as his administration had planned.

“I hear the former Prime Minister criticising it. But you know if he says it was tied to Grand Bahama but when Grand Bahama failed, why is he arguing now it’s tied to Grand Bahama? And he was proceeding with it when the Grand Bahama deal was not clearly going anywhere. So, he’s speaking out of two sides of his mouth,” Mrs Hanna Martin said.

In 2020, while in opposition, it was reported that Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis declared that a PLP government would cancel any lease granted to RCI for Crown land to develop its beach club project. However, after the Progressive Liberal

Party won the 2021 general election, officials said Mr Davis was seeking a compromise in the Crown land row.

Last week, Mr Davis said his administration has ensured that Bahamians have more involvement in the controversial project and said it was approved so that visitors have more activities.

“We approved the project to ensure that Bahamian participation is maximised, that Bahamian opportunities are maximised,” Mr Davis said on the sidelines of an event. “From the timeline that was given they intend to start breaking

ground almost immediately. Hopefully it will be started because part of the challenges that we have in the country today is what we call attractions for tourism.

“Very often on any given day, we could have up to 30,000 tourists in our port and there has to be attractions for them. This will be one of the other attractions that will be available to them and so that is very welcome news for us... and there will be opportunities for Bahamians,” Mr Davis said.

Minister of Tourism Chester Cooper has said regarding the Crown land being leased to RCI, the

ENTRANCE EXAMINATION

2023-2024

Temple Christian High School will hold its Entrance Examination on Saturday, March 18, 2023 at the school on Shirley Street from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon for students wishing to enter grades 7, 8, 9 and 10.

Application forms are available at the High School Office. The application fee is twenty-five dollars ($25). Application forms should be completed and returned to the school by Friday, March 17, 2023.

For further information, please call telephone number: 394-4481/394-4484.

government plans to also convert this asset into an ownership stake in the development that would be held by the country’s sovereign wealth fund.

According to Mr Cooper “the project will cover 17 acres – of which 13 acres represent privately held land and some four acres of Crown land that was included in the lease to RCI by the former administration”.

He told The Tribune he hopes to still bring the project into fruition.

Mr Smith said in his view RCI has not received final approval to go forward with its plans, noting there are still various steps to be taken since the land is considered a private area.

“As far as I’m concerned there are various steps in the approval process and RCI hasn’t received final approval. The land remains as private potential land. And the Bahamian people that decide if they’re willing to accept the zoning, becoming commercial,” he said. Despite some of the ongoing controversy with his project, Mr Smith said his end goal is to see the project executed.

“The end goal for me is to see our project brought about on a foundation of ambitions. And when the government calls for Bahamians to seize opportunities, they’re embraced and allowed to proceed,” he said.

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis invited Mr Smith to reapply for government approval of his project. Mr Davis said he had asked Mr Smith to submit a fresh application after Chief Justice Ian Winder ruled last month that the entrepreneur did not have a valid and binding Crown land lease for five acres of land that would facilitate his project in the Colonial

Beach area.

“The court has ruled that he had no interest in the land and I’ve invited him to, if he is still interested, to reapply for consideration of the government of his project and we await his application,” Mr Davis said of Mr Smith.

Tribune Business had previously reported that it thought that reapplying could undermine and cut across Mr Smith’s prospects of appealing the Chief Justice’s ruling to the Court of Appeal.

Mr Smith had been in a long-running battle with both the cruise line and the government in the Supreme Court. Mr Smith has asserted he has a binding lease from the Minnis administration for at least two acres of Crown land that Royal Caribbean is seeking to use in its project.

Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation Chester Cooper had previously said that the land currently proposed under the RCI project “has not been subject to any dispute or litigation.

Given that Royal Caribbean has reduced its Crown land footprint from seven to four acres, and no longer appears to need the two that it was contesting with Mr Smith, it would appear a potential pathway has opened for the two investors and projects to co-exist side-by-side, Tribune Business previously reported.

WHEN asked if her opinion on the Royal Caribbean Beach Club deal had changed since the originally proposed under the Minnis Administration, she said she still does not favour the deal. She said that from day one that a “Bahamian participant” needed to be “front and centre”.

Photo: Austin Fernander

from page one

from page one

TEMPLE CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

‘When not if’ on marital rape law

proposed amendments to the Sexual Offences Act. She said: “This means a lot, not only to me, but to those who will benefit, when this act is passed. I’m not going to say ‘should’, because it will.”

Panelist Cedric Moss, Senior Pastor of Kingdom Life Church, expressed his concerns about the term “rape” in marital rape and proposed several other options.

He said: “It makes absolute sense to have a law to govern sexual intercourse between two unmarried persons, because unlike married people, unmarried persons have no legal covenant, no legal contract that implies open-ended consent — not that it can’t ever be withdrawn, but it is certainly given at the point of marriage— therefore they need moment by moment specific consent between them.

“My biggest concern is that the current approach that the government is using proposes to redefine rape to lump unmarried people and married people in the same category, to apply the same rules, to govern their conduct, toward each other sexually.”

He added: “Rape is what we define it to be. It makes good sense to continue with that approach and leave the definition of rape to be solely applicable to non-consensual sexual intercourse between unmarried persons and simply appropriately extend the provision in section 15 (which calls the act in several cases of separation, assault by a spouse), of the Sexual Offences Act to include currently exempted marriages.”

Attorney Robyn Lynes gave her perspective as a practising attorney, posing the question, “After rape, then what?”

“In a society like ours, where everything has to be a conversation, and even after the conversation, it leads into a conversation that’s going to be followed by a conversation, coupled with a conversation. We talk a lot. Because we talk a lot and everyone is entitled to his or her views, the law is slow,” Ms Lynes said.

She added: “In these collections of conversations, we are also caught up on words, caught up on words to the detriment of our women, to the detriment of our sisters, of our mothers, of our wives.

State

Social Services

“We could win and the law is amended and it takes out those words, ‘who is not his spouse’. And all of sudden in a day,

MOM AND POP SHOPS BIGGEST VIOLATORS OF PRICE CONTROL

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRICE control inspectors have found that “mom and pop stores” are the biggest violators of price control regulations, according to senior inspector Theodore Curry yesterday.

Mr Curry told reporters during a press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister that some of the complaints stated by violators is that “it’s difficult doing business in the country”.

However, he said inspectors have sent out warnings, telling store owners “the law is the law”.

When asked if grocery retailers have been compliant with the expanded price control list, he said they have been “for the most part”.

“Unfortunately, it’s the mom and pop stores or the stores you call Overthe-Hill,” Mr Curry added. “We find that most of the biggest stores and I don’t want to call any names but the bigger ones, they are in compliance okay, because of the cost of doing business and I won’t get too much into that.

“But some people, their complaint is it’s difficult doing business in the country so anywhere

where they can try and get around the system, they tried to do that. But we try to admonish and try to tell them that hey, the law is the law (and) you have to find other creative, innovative means to make extra money.

“If it’s on the items that we control, you may have to unfortunately pass that cost on to something else to make up the difference. We don’t like to do that. But the reality is that’s what it is.”

Meanwhile, Rex Adderley, head of the Consumer Affairs Department (Price Control Unit), said the body is now looking to tighten penalties for those found in violation.

“Presently, we are sitting now with the board subcommittee looking at the Price Control Act and the Rent Control Act and seeing how we can up those fines and imprisonment terms in regard to infractions but presently, I think that the fines are $5,000 for each infraction or term not exceeding six months for each infraction,” he added.

“It’s becoming evident now that we may have to up that so it could be much clearer.”

With respect to price gouging complaints,

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL

The Public is hereby advised that I, GARNELL JOHNSON of P.O Box SS 19756 Wilson Track, Freeport, Grand Bahama, Parent of ZARIAH TAMETRA JOHNSON A minor intend to change my child’s name to ZARIAH TAMETRA PARKER If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Deputy Chief Passport Officer, P.O. Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that KENEL HORACIUS MARCELLIN of P.O. Box SS19058 Kemp Road, New Providence, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twentyeight days from the 10th day of March, 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

officials admitted that there have been isolated cases, but said it was nothing to be overly concerned about.

“Just recently, the department has acquired nine additional inspectors in New Providence,” Mr Adderley said.

“We are seeking now to look at a full picture of the whole Bahamas and look at the islands that require inspectors and those that don’t have inspectors, we want to hire inspectors in those areas.”

He also highlighted Abaco as one of their priority islands for increasing manpower, saying “we are trying to get at least two price inspectors there”.

Back in December, several Abaco residents expressed frustration over the “absurd” prices of food in grocery stores on the island.

He continued: “We have had calls come in from Family Islands and, like I said, we are working on trying to get these additional price inspectors in these islands so we can start some work, especially islands in the southern part of the country.

“For instance, Exuma doesn’t have one at all and Long Island doesn’t have any at all.”

rape no longer excludes a wife, and then where are we? How much closer are we to justice?

“The truth of the matter is in jurisdictions where marital rape is the law, prosecution is almost non-existent. And so I want to add this question: After rape, then what?”

Ms Lynes added:

“Because that woman needs a safe space. And if we call it rape or anything else, as a country we don’t have a place that she can go.”

Maxine Seymour, Opposition Senator, said the Free National Movement currently has no official position on the issue, though they have agreed that non-consensual acts should be criminalised, discussions on marital rape are still continuing.

Questions were raised from the public concerning making the divorce process faster and free, as a way to address the issue of marital rape.

Panelist Carol Misiewicz, retired deputy registrar of the Supreme Court, said going through a faster process of getting a divorce would not address the physical and mental toll a victim of marital rape has gone through.

Another member of the

public asked how initiating sex or doing things to try and initiate sex in a marriage would be classified in both the current law and proposed amendment.

Pastor Moss said: “Currently under the law, a husband who initiates with his wife in that way is fully protected. (However), a single person should not under the current law, because he can run afoul of the law and commit rape.

“If the definition of rape is changed, that would put married people in that same category as well. A married man would have to think twice about initiating any kind of act that would be defined as sexual intercourse with his wife, should the definition change.”

Mr Moss suggested if rape in the case of married persons is called something else under the law to specify the violence and other factors displayed during the act, consequences of the various offences could range from mandatory counseling to life imprisonment.

Other panelists who voiced their perspectives included Nicolette Bethel, an associate professor at UB and Charlene Paul, chairperson for Caribbean Women in Leadership (Bahamas).

CPC CONCERNED SOME BAY STREET STORES OVERCHARGING TOURISTS

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Consumer Protection Commission (CPC) is concerned that some Bay Street businesses are targeting tourists and overcharging them for items they had agreed to purchase at a certain price.

Lavade Darling, education, CPC research and training manager, said cruise ship passengers appear to be the ones that are mostly targeted and committed officials to addressing the issue.

“They would purchase an item for an X amount of dollars. They would give you some free items and when these tourists get back to our homes, they find that the credit card has been charged 10,000 or 15,000 for an item that really should’ve cost only what they agreed to purchase,” he said at the weekly press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister yesterday.

“That is a major concern for us. We are working with the other relevant agencies to address that. It’s not something that we can address on our own so tourism is aware and we are working with them to resolve these issues.”

Mr Darling addressed the matter while giving an overview to reporters on the complaints the department

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL

The Public is hereby advised that I, NKEM ADONIS SMITH of #3 Oak Terrace, Sunset Park, Nassau, Bahamas, intend to change my name to NKEM ADONIS TAYLOR If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O.Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that KELLY-ANN GAYLE MCKENZIE of Lower Bogue, Eleuthera, The Bahamas, is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 17th day of March, 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

has received over the years.

Most complaints made to the commission are from people wanting a refund.

Others are related to timeshares, he added.

“So, persons basically purchase a timeshare, they want out of it, right and the Act provides the conditions under which you can get out of your timeshare. The problem is that the timeshare operators are not giving them the opportunity to get out of their timeshare. So that’s a major concern for us.”

Additionally, there have been complaints about credit and debit card fees, which Mr Darling said is something that comes up quite regularly. He noted the recent frustrations expressed by gas retailers over the issue and said the commission intends to see how they can lower costs with respect to their credit card and debit card fees.

“The merchant services agreement for using a credit card stipulates that you’re not supposed to have a minimum purchase and you’re not supposed to be charging a convenience fee to use a credit or debit card,” he said.

“So that is a matter of major concern for us, and how are we addressing it –we had a meeting recently with Central Bank to speak about that and we did and one of the things that came out of that meeting is that we’re going to be looking at introducing legislation to actually enforce the merchant services agreement.” He said using a credit and debit card should not be more expensive than using cash and that “it goes against the stated policy objective of the government of The Bahamas.”

“So, as the statutory agency, those types of matters are a concern for us and we are addressing them so what we are going to do is develop a financial literacy campaign that we expect to launch in a few months and we’re going to speak to particularly small businesses about how you can lower your cost.”

He also revealed that the body wants to strengthen legislation to better deal with complaints made against cemeteries and funeral homes as the industry largely remains unregulated.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that CLARE GARDINER-HANNA of 77 Wellington, Nelson Road Freeport, Grand Bahama is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twentyeight days from the 17th day of March, 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

NOTICE is hereby given that KRISTIN ALEXANDRIA HOWARD of #47 Ambermist Way Forked River, NJ 08731 is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twentyeight days from the 17th day of March, 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

MINISTER of

for

Lisa Rahming was confident the amended Sexual Offences Act will pass, while speaking at a forum discussing marital rape yesterday. The event was hosted in conjunction with Ministry of Social Services and Urban Development, the Department of Gender and Family Affairs and The University of The Bahamas (UB).

Amendments to Procurement Act good, but there’s still opportunity for strengthening

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

THE executive director of the Organisation for Responsible Governance (ORG) supports government’s plans to reform the Public Procurement Act, saying that there is still opportunity for strengthening.

Governance reformer

Matt Aubry has spoken on the public procurement legislation repeatedly, having previously given recommendations to the government.

Mr Aubry is hopeful that The Bahamas is able to take the necessary steps to make the awarding of government contracts more open, transparent and accessible after progress had stalled following the Public Procurement Act’s implementation during the Minnis administration’s final days.

He also highlighted aspects of the Public Procurement Act which “maintained a very high standard”, while also suggesting aspects to be incorporated.

“We found that in the instance of the Procurement

Act, that there were a lot of things that still maintained a very high standard,” he told this newspaper yesterday.

“So, the requirement to publish (notice of a contract award) within 60 days across the government, that was something that brings tremendous amounts of transparency, and so we’re really glad that something like that continues.”

He continued: “Although neither administration yet has enacted it, what we do here is that there’s a process in place, and a new vendor that will be utilised to start with reporting those, that’s going to be a critical element and if that’s able to happen, it creates great opportunity for a lot more folks on taking advantage of government contracts.

“Another thing that we saw in the new bill, was the specification for preferences in the prior act it had talked about as having a domestic preference, which basically means that you could put greater weight on local vendors, over international vendors. This act made it even more specific and said specifically youthowned businesses, Family Island-owned businesses,

and businesses owned by women, which is phenomenal and we very much support that.”

Mr Aubry reiterated ORG’s recommendation to be more inclusive of individuals with disabilities, which would be in support of the Disabilities Act.

Asserting that it was critical that the government

now “build trust in the system” that all bidders will be treated fairly, and have an equal opportunity to provide goods and services to the public sector, he voiced concern about the reformed act, saying that the government failed to present how the process is appealed.

“What we know in

GBPA SIGNS $15M SOLAR FARM DEAL

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A $15M SOLAR farm will be constructed on Grand Bahama, making it the first of its kind in The Bahamas.

The licensing and power purchase agreements were signed yesterday between the Grand Bahama Port Authority and the Grand Bahama Power Company with Lucaya Solar Power Ltd.

The project, financed through IDB Invest, will consist of two solar sites — one at Fairfield and another at Devon — together occupying over 30 acres and generating 9.5 megawatts of energy.

Some 80 persons are expected to be employed during the construction phase.

The cost of electricity has been an ongoing concern for consumers on Grand Bahama, and GBPC executives have given an assurance that this new solar farm will help to stabilise the cost of power, create a resilient electric system, and get us off foreign oil.

GBPA President Ian Rolle said the “pioneering” project is 65 percent owned by Bahamians.

“Grand Bahama has a long history of pioneering new industries and today is no different. Today, we at GBPA are pleased and proud to

announce the licensing of Lucaya Solar Power Ltd, a new solar power generation project on Grand Bahama, under partnership through a power purchase agreement with GBPC,” he said.

“This project is the first of its kind for the nation, supported by a pioneering regulatory framework created in 2012, which was introduced as another first of its kind for the region,” he added.

“Not only does this project reduce our carbon footprint, and heavy reliance on fuel for power generation, but we are also pleased to learn it breaks new ground in gender equality with 70 percent of its installation being led by women engineers,” he said. He noted that it is a small and essential step in the direction of generating cleaner, more affordable and sustainable electricity for citizens on the island.

Derek Newbold, chief operating officer at GBPA, said Grand Bahama will have the first utility-scale solar farm operation in the country.

“It is a $15m investment,” he said. “It will sit on two sites spread out over 30 acres, and generate on average 9.5mw of energy.”

In terms of employment after construction, Jorge Marquez, of LSP Ltd, said they will hire about four persons because that type of facility does not require intensive manpower to operate and maintain.

“We think two on the field and two in administrating … for operation and maintenance of the project,” said Mr Marquez.

“I think it is something The Bahamas needs, and hopefully more investments come in this direction,” he

said.

Dave McGregor, GBPC president, hailed the moment as historic.

“This is an historic moment for (Grand Bahama) and for GBPC, in signing our first independent power producer PPA contract with LSP,” he stated.

“It has been a long winding road; and you (LSP) beat GBPC to be the first solar project on the island. We are still developing our own (solar) project.” Mr McGregor welcomes the project.

“It will get the island on a great start to the renewable transformation, and together provide around six percent of our energy usage,” he added.

“So, we are really looking forward to welcoming that resilient, clean energy system and start getting us off that expensive foreign oil. We are giving away our foreign exchange and importing expensive foreign oil, so a great first step” he said.

NOTICE is hereby given that CHARLES CHERRY of Sir Lynden Pindling Estates, New Providence, The Bahamas, is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 17th day of March, 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

procurement, an active and transparent procurement process, can be a tremendous movement to reduce the potential of any type of corruption, because it’s transparent,” he said yesterday.

“It’s all the vendors need to be registered and vetted and then the processes of how those selections are made should be really specific. And both the prior act and this one have lots of specificity in that instance.

“But when you get when you say made an appeal, or you’ve made a bid, and that bid was taken by somebody else was won by somebody else, and you have a concern that it might have been chosen for some other reason, having a very clear and independent way to appeal, that process to get it looked at independently, is really important in terms of building folks’ trust and compliance with this type of legislation.”

Public procurement, if used correctly, and in a fair, transparent and accountable manner with open, competitive bidding for government contracts can be an important tool of national development by

facilitating the growth of small and medium-sized businesses.

It can also ensure taxpayers receive value for money, and eliminate waste, inefficiencies and other unnecessary expenses and loss in the tender process.

The House of Assembly passed the Public Procurement Bill and Public Finance Management Bill on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Philip Davis said the legislation, once enacted, will allow improved government financial management and greater transparency.

The bills will also repeal and replace the Public Finance Management Act 2021, the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2018 and sections of the Financial Administration and Audit Act and The Public Procurement Act 2021.

On Wednesday, Mr Davis said the government’s digital procurement platform has generated $2.6m savings in just four months since its launch, as close to 1,500 companies have registered with the electronic portal with almost 300 public sector contracts put out to bid through it.

SOME MINISTERS HAVE STILL NOT YET DISCLOSED

from page one

Asked the reason why these MPs still haven’t disclosed, he said: “Again, there are various excuses, I suspect, or reasons that they may have and so we just write and do our part of the job that they’re required to do in asking them to get it in.

“Their responsibility (is) to do it and it’s our responsibility to report to the Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

Earlier this month, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis said his public disclosures would be filed on March 2 if the documents had not been turned over on the deadline.

Yesterday, Bishop Cooper confirmed Mr Davis did disclose, but did not specify which date this took place.

Asked if Mr Davis filed on the deadline, the chairman indicated: “He disclosed when he indicated to you that he would.”

Asked if Mr Davis filed

on March 2, Bishop Cooper answered: “I don’t get into the specificity of that. We write to them and let them, we remind them ‘you gotta disclose’ and then if they haven’t, some people write for extensions. They have their reasons for that.

“Our responsibility is to write to the Prime Minister and the leader of the opposition, advising them what is happening, and we’re in the process of doing that now.”

Bishop Cooper had previously indicated that 90 percent of parliamentarians had filed by the deadline.

Last year, Bishop Cooper reportedly told The Nassau Guardian that some firsttime MPs were not aware that there was a legal requirement for them to file financial disclosures under the Public Disclosures Act. The chairman was blunt this time around when asked if he found it unacceptable. “It is unacceptable because people are expected to follow the rules and nobody’s above the rules,” he said yesterday.

NOTICE is hereby given that JASMIN LYDIA HOWARD of #300 Parsippany NJ 07054 is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 17th day of March, 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

MATT AUBRY, executive director for Organisation for Responsible Governance (ORG) supports the governments plans to strengthen the Public Procurement Act.

THE GRAND Bahama Port Authority signed a deal with Lucaya Solar Power Ltd. for a 30 acre 9.5 MW Solar Farm.

Photo: Vandyke Hepburn

The Tribune Limited

Hanna Martin standing by her words

VERY often in public life, we see our leaders take the politically expedient option.

Politicians go along with the decision of the day rather than stand by the opinions they previously expressed.

It would have been simple enough for Glenys Hanna Martin when asked yesterday about the Royal Caribbean project set for Paradise Island to say that she was now fully supportive of the approval of the deal.

But she did not.

In opposition, Mrs Hanna Martin was critical of the project, saying it was “hare-brained”. She criticised the Minnis administration for “kicking a Bahamian developer to the curb” in favour of the cruise line.

However, she told The Tribune yesterday that her “views have not changed”.

She was forthright in saying that the cruise industry does not need such an island space, and said “what we should be developing… is the cultural and entrepreneurial opportunities for the cruise ship visitors when they disembark. They keep saying there’s nothing to do, well let’s get something done”.

Her position may cause her some complications – as a Cabinet minister, speaking out in criticism of a deal approved by the government may be a political conundrum.

The question of collective Cabinet responsibility is sure to be raised.

But there is credit to be given for Mrs Hanna Martin being so consistent in her views.

She said: “I did not support it then, my views have not changed.”

The RCI deal is not the first case this government has encountered of something that was opposed when not in power gaining favour when in office –that even extended to the Office of the Spouse, whose current occupant found it to her liking when not on the campaign trail.

Mrs Hanna Martin’s stance will surely lead to questions for the Prime Minister, who changed his own mind, apparently because he felt the new deal solved the concerns he himself had in opposition.

Now he will need to answer why the new deal he has agreed cannot convince a member of his own Cabinet.

For Mrs Hanna Martin, though, there are clearly points of principle at stake. What the next step in this saga is, we shall have to wait and see.

But the politics of our nation needs more leaders who stick to their guns rather than changing with the political tides of the day.

Disclosures

It has now been two weeks since the March 1 deadline by which Parliamentarians were required to file their public disclosures.

The chairman of the Public Disclosure Commission yesterday said that some of those still have not completed their filings.

After the deadline, he reported that “about ten percent” missed the deadline.

Just for clarity, that deadline is provided in law. That means they broke the law.

It remains unclear whether the Prime Minister himself met the deadline. We know he did disclose – but not whether he met the deadline. The commission chairman was not forthcoming yesterday on that fact.

There is no reason we should not know if Mr Davis met the deadline. There is no reason why we should not know who did or did not disclose. There is no reason for Parliamentarians not to have known what they are required to do by law.

The details of the disclosures are to be provided to both the Prime Minister and the leader of the Opposition. We challenge both of them to reveal those findings – and tell the public which of our representatives abided by the law, and which did not.

Even the chairman of the commission deemed it “unacceptable” that people did not file appropriately.

So what will we do? Will we enforce the matter as the law provides? Or will we continue to pay lip service to a law that holds our representatives to account?

And if we do not enforce the law, our leaders should explain to the Bahamian people why they don’t have to abide by the rules, when everyone else does.

Corporal punishment

EDITOR, The Tribune.

THE TRIBUNE reported on March 15 that one of the students of the Bimini Primary School who was “violently” spanked by a police officer is too traumatised to go back to school.

If it is true, as has been reported in The Tribune, that the principal brought in the officer to administer corporal punishment on the students, that in itself raises the question as to whether or not the parents of these children should’ve been notified before the spanking.

With parents now alleging that their children have bruises, I believe that the principal and the officer both crossed the line.

The Ministry of Education and Technical and Vocational Training should immediately put an end to corporal punishment.

The Bahamian government does not even administer corporal punishment on serial rapists and serial murderers, yet has no qualms using violence on unruly children? The powers that be need to make it make sense.

Furthermore, many of these public-school educators who are parents themselves, most notably those in Grand Bahama and New Providence, do not enroll their own children in the public school system.

Even they don’t seem trust the system they’re a part of.

Does anyone believe for one nano-second that an educator will call a burly

Promiscuity is to be lauded?

EDITOR, The Tribune

I WAS hoping not to get mired publicly in this issue, but the more I watch the revolution and revocation of forbidden sexual attraction and practices, the more I begin to question the philosophical, familial and societal implication of the alphabet agenda community.

By now, I guess everyone in society is well aware of the putative power that they wield to shutter and shatter organisations, destabilise or hamstring governments, cancel individuals who dare to disagree with their illusionary behaviour and lifestyle. But, has anyone really considered the meaning of the B in this mnemonic?

If we seriously examine bisexuality, we will see that in promoting it we will now subliminally or blatantly disregard the commitment to monogamous relationship. This is something that we have been promoting for years to reduce or eliminate sexually transmitted infections. Has this campaign taken a backseat? Or will the promoters of this type of behaviour be cancelled?

If the idea of sticking to one sexual partner still holds true, then bisexuality, which has found its ways in the alphabet agenda community, is counter to that.

contradicts science. “The science” doesn’t know what a woman is while science clearly defines who that is. So, let’s be sure we are arguing from objective science and reality instead of “the” subjective and situational science. With this new revelation, can anyone now use the word infidelity with any authority? Absolutely not! Will the term adultery slowly fall into disuse or is it being wilfully retired? Is there a new word or phrase afoot to replace same? Can an individual within a marriage accuse the other person of cheating, if either self-identifies as a bisexual?

police officer to beat their own unruly children?

Obviously, they have no issue doing so for the children of other parents. The psychological, emotional and physical scars of what allegedly transpired is not the concern of the Bimini Primary School officials, judging by their cavalier response to one of the parents.

Spanking should be left to the parents, not to educators who are not emotionally invested in their students or police officers who might be upset about their marital issues at home or the situation on the job.

Under these circumstances, these individuals would be more than willing to use violence on little strangers as a way to vent.

Hence, the importance of ending corporal punishment in the schools.

The B stands for bisexual. Well, I assume that is what it stands for since the goalpost is constantly being moved. I get to understand that some individuals who are afraid of being labeled as homosexuals prefer to self-identify as bisexuals, which tends to have a more softened effect and is more “accepting” by their families. From our basic understanding of English and math, doesn’t the word bi mean two? Has bi taken on another meaning? That’s possible! Since what we have always known as basic scientific fact is now being touted as fluid or situational truth.

Bisexuality, I reckon, is when an individual has or claims to have sexual attraction for two people: one of their own born gender and another of the oppositely born gender.

We cannot be telling our children one thing then subliminally normalising the same behaviour that we are advocating against. This is complete lunacy and hypocrisy! With bisexuality, we will now be promoting three people in a relationship. Tripartite relationship, mmm?

Isn’t this an asininely covert way of encouraging promiscuity? Don’t we overtly turn our noses up at people who knowingly practice promiscuity? Or has this begun to change?

By the way, does promiscuity still have the same meaning? It is so difficult to keep up with the English language because words are constantly “evolving”.

Before you come at me with “the science”, let’s make sure that we are using some science that we can establish basic fact. Currently, “the science” which is being used actually

What we now know and hold as civilised sexual behaviour among publicly elected and appointed officials or anyone for that matter will be called into question. Can their sexually immoral behaviour, if it is considered immoral, be questioned if they self identify as bisexual? Is it our desire to contribute to the sweetheart pandemic? If so, we are doing a great job! With the endorsement and normalisation of this behaviour, how can we tell an individual that he or she can’t self-identify as tripartite lover?

I reckon that with the normalisation of this agenda, we will have to hold a ceremony to posthumously absolve those whom we, as a society, crucified for this deviant sexual behaviour.

PASTOR CARLYLE

PEART

Nassau, March 15, 2023.

Happy St Patrick’s Day

A YOUNG sloth named Gloria, that was rescued after being stolen from the wild destined for trafficking, hangs from a branch after being released in the city’s Botanical Garden in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Gloria was cared for by the Free Life Institute NGO that rehabilitates injured wildlife found in the surrounding Rio area and returns them, when possible, back to the wild. Those that are too injured to be released are sent to other rehab centers or sanctuaries to live out their lives in protected environments.

Photo: Bruna Prado/AP

BIGAMIST SENTENCED TO 0NE YEAR OF PRISON

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was sentenced to a year in prison yesterday after he admitted to charges of entering into a fraudulent marriage while he was still legally married to someone else.

Lavardo Ferguson, 36, faced Senior Magistrate Carolyn Vogt-Evans on charges of fictitious marriage and two counts of false declaration for a marriage.

On March 10, 2022, in New Providence, Ferguson went through with a marriage ceremony with Christina Dunkley knowing it to be void on the grounds that he was still legally married to Raquel Brown.

Ferguson is further said to have made false statements for the purpose of his second marriage by stating that he was a bachelor on February 2, 2022, and March 10, 2022.

In court, the defendant pleaded guilty to all three charges. Ferguson then explained to the magistrate that Ms Dunkley only became aware of his first marriage on March 13 of this year as the couple made inquiries at NIB shortly before his arrest.

The defendant went on to say that he signed divorce papers given to him by Ms Brown in 2012 one year after they were married. He further said he has not

had contact with his first wife since then, but never received his official copy of the divorce papers. he told the court he believed his divorce was finalised to which the magistrate pointed out he had failed to put that he was divorced on official documents pertaining to the second marriage. It was then noted by the prosecution that in addition to Ferguson having a prior stealing conviction from 2002, that both women he married are Jamaican nationals. He also claimed that Ms Brown applied for residency through him without his knowledge.

Magistrate Vogt-Evans told the accused that she did not believe it when he said he did not know he was still married. Taking into consideration his early plea of guilt, his employment as a security guard at The Nassau Guardian and his age, the magistrate sentenced Ferguson to one year in prison for this offence.

In addition to stating that she wanted to send a clear statement against such offences, Magistrate VogtEvans said the reason for her sentencing was for breach of the sacrament of marriage. She also stated that marriage has been used to circumnavigate immigration protocols. Ferguson was informed of his right to appeal sentencing within seven days.

ESCAPED PREGNANT TEENAGER SENT TO BDCS

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A PREGNANT teenager was sent to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services after she admitted to escaping custody last week while she was being housed at the Willie Mae Pratt Centre for Girls.

The 16-year-old girl, who cannot be named because she is a minor, stood before Magistrate Kara TurnquestDeveaux. Her mother was also present.

There, she faced a charge of escape from lawful custody.

On March 9, while the defendant was attending a medical appointment at the

adolescent health clinic on Shirley Street, she successfully escaped her remand officers and broke out of the medical facility.

She was later recaptured and arrested at a residence in the area of Windsor Place on March 14.

In court, she pleaded guilty. Representatives from Social Services and the Willie Mae Pratt Centre both agreed that the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BDCS) was the best facility in which to keep her.

The magistrate sent the accused to the juvenile section of BDCS until service of her probation report on May 31.

GUN WAS TAKEN FROM FIGHTING NEIGHBOURS

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A 20-YEAR-OLD man was sent to the department of correctional services yesterday to await sentencing after admitting to having a gun that he says he took from his fighting neighbours earlier this week.

Cornell Seymour faced Senior Magistrate Carolyn Vogt-Evans on charges of possession of an unlicensed fireman and possession of ammunition.

At around noon on March 14 on Ethel Street, in the area of Montel Heights, officers approached Seymour in his parked grey Nissan Note for suspicious behaviour.

A search of the vehicle uncovered a black Taurus G2C 9mm pistol on the floor of the left passenger seat. Officers further seized seven unfired rounds of 9mm ammunition from the driver’s side of the vehicle.

In court, the

accused pleaded guilty to both charges.

When questioned on his actions by the magistrate, Seymour claimed it wasn’t his gun. He said he had taken it from his neighbours, who he says are husband and wife, while they were having a potentially violent argument the night before his arrest. He further claimed police found the gun disassembled in his car and that it was his intent to return the weapon to its owner.

When asked by Magistrate Vogt-Evans why he didn’t call the police to collect the firearm Seymour said that he was unaware that he could do that.

After the prosecution confirmed the claims made by Seymour were also what he had told police in his official record of interview, the magistrate deferred Seymour’s sentencing to March 27.

Until that time, Seymour will be sent to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services.

MAN TO PAY $1,000 FINE FOR STOLEN IPHONE

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN was fined $1,000 in court yesterday after he admitted to illegally entering a woman’s home and stealing her iPhone.

Sterphron Fenelus, 25, appeared before Magistrate Algernon Allen, Jr, on charges of unlawful entry, stealing and receiving.

Between March 9 at 9pm and March 10 at 1am,

Fenelus entered a residence on Podoleo Street. There it is said he stole a woman’s iPhone 11 which was valued at $600.

In court Fenelus pleaded guilty to the unlawful entry and stealing charges which resulted in the receiving charge being withdrawn.

He was fined $1,000 for the offence or risk six months in prison.

Fenelus is expected to pay half of his total fine before release.

A FIRE caused major damage to a house in the Malcolm Road area last night. Firefighters were still mopping up the aftermath as The Tribune visited the scene yesterday. Up to press time, there was no confirmation of the extent of the damage, or of any injuries.

Photo: Austin Fernander

Food Independence: Plan ahead by preserving your gardens produce

IN MY last article, I wrote about becoming more “food independent” as a nation by growing our own food at home and by supporting local agriculture. I was pleased by the feedback I received from people inspired to start or revive their home gardens.

We are now already in the month of March and the growing season for most vegetables is well under way and in fact the end of the growing season is already in sight as the sun intensity gets stronger every day.

Most vegetables become almost impossible to grow once we reach the month of May because of the intensity of the sun and the frequency of the rains that typically begin in May or June. Now is the time to preserve products from our garden and from our local farmers.

Since our country’s growing season for many vegetables is actually quite short, we need to consider preserving our produce is some form or another so we can enjoy delicious produce during the upcoming hot, summer months when we are no longer able to grow these items.

This is a skill that many of our ancestors used as part of their regular life and food procurement practices. When Grammy grew up in Cat Island, she did not have tomatoes imported from Mexico in the grocery store so if she wanted to have tomatoes through the long summer months, she would bottle them during this time of year when the tomatoes are in good supply. I propose that we return to some of these practices to gain even more food independence as individuals and as a country. When any local vegetable or fruit is in season then let’s make sure we enjoy it and incorporate it into our daily cuisine as much as possible but let’s also look a few months ahead and consider how we can preserve some of these items for use during the months when it will not be available in fresh supply from our garden

By Tim Hauber

or local farmers. There are many different ways of preserving food and today I can only mention a few but if you do some research, you will find ways of preserving almost every product that comes out of your garden.

Preserving food basically means that we treat the food in some way to prevent it from spoiling until it is consumed at a later date. There are many different ways of treating food in order to stop spoilage; including: dehydration, salt curing, canning/bottling, fermenting, pickling in vinegar, freezing, or preserving in sugar.

There are many different advantages of preserving our own food including:

1. Prolonging the shelf life of the produce we have grown locally, thus reducing the need to import food.

2. Reducing the amount of packaging we import into the country and waste we accumulate by reusing jars etc.

3. Saving money by buying produce in bulk from local farmers when in season

4. Creating personal empowerment by reducing our dependence on corporations to feed ourselves and our families.

5. Enhancing flavors, as some preservation techniques will produce a unique and special product, such as making pickles from cucumbers or specialty hot sauces from local pepper varieties.

6. Improving our resiliency as an island nation by reducing our need to import food.

CANNING/BOTTLING

Canning or bottling fruits and vegetables

involves heating foods in cans or jars to pasteurize the contents. When done properly many foods can be successfully preserved with this technique and enjoyed throughout the year.

Tomatoes have been preserved using this technique for many years in The Bahamas. There are a wide variety of sauces, salsas and chutneys that can be preserved by canning.

DRYING

Many food products can be preserved by removing the water from the fruit or vegetables. Once the water has been removed by drying, the spoilage organisms cannot survive thus keeping the product safe for consumption later.

Foods can be dried by the sun, dehydrator or in a typical home oven. Historically conch has been preserved by drying it in the sun.

Items such as grits, corn or pigeon peas are dehydrated by the air and sun as part of the farming technique so these items can be stored for long periods of time without spoiling.

If you have a dehydrator at home, you can dry almost any fruit and make a tasty snack or baking

ingredient for later in the year. When mangoes are in season our family collects the hairy mangoes and we extract the juice which we put into the dehydrator to make fruit leather, a delicious snack! You can dehydrate many different vegetables to be used later in soups and stews. When you have more kale coming out of your garden than you can eat then consider making kale chips in the dehydrator. This too is a delicious and healthy snack!

FREEZING

By freezing your fruits or vegetables you are preserving the food for future consumption. This is a relatively easy way of preserving foods, but it uses a lot of electricity to keep your freezer full and frozen all year long; however, when you have a big bag of mangoes that you just cannot eat fast enough then the freezer is a quick way to save the mangoes before they spoil.

Simply put the mango flesh into zip loc bags and throw them in the freezer and you will have local mango deliciousness in the middle of winter!

PICKLING

Pickling vegetables in vinegar is another method of preserving fresh vegetables. The vinegar drops the pH and prevents spoilage organisms from damaging your produce.

There is almost no limit to the variety of vegetables and combinations of vegetables that can be preserved by pickling.

Pickled onions have a long tradition in The Bahamas and many of the locally made hot sauces are actually shelf stable due to the use of vinegar.

FERMENTATION

Fermenting vegetables is similar to pickling with vinegar except we do not add vinegar, but we add salt which then creates a suitable environment for certain ‘good’ bacteria to grow which in turn produces acid that preserves the vegetables in the same way as vinegar.

By doing salt fermentation we can get a more complex flavor profile and we eliminate the need for buying vinegar.

Pickles are traditionally made by fermentation as is Sauerkraut and Kimchi. Almost all vegetables can be preserved by fermentation and there is a lot of

information available now regarding the health benefits of eating fermented vegetables.

SUGAR PRESERVATION

Jams and jellies are examples of preserving food using sugar. By cooking the fruit and adding large amounts of sugar we reduce the water activity in the product and once again preserve our food by stopping the spoilage organisms. Homemade guava jam is one such exquisite treat that never fails to put a smile on my face!

I challenge you this month to find a local source for some vegetables that are currently in season and find a way to preserve some for enjoyment later in the year!

There are many online sources and step-by-step videos that can provide guidance and inspiration. This can also be a fun activity and family tradition that you can reclaim and pass along to your children and future generations.

Later this year, the Centre for Training and Innovation (CTI) will be holding classes in Food Preservation for residents of Eleuthera.

Many of the techniques highlighted here will be taught as well as

food handling and safety protocols.

Another advantage of producing preserved food items and value-added products is the potential to create additional income streams through the development of new and flavorful shelf stable foods. These products can be sold and enjoyed locally and exported throughout the Caribbean and the world at large where there is a growing demand for authentic Caribbean flavors, condiments, and foods.

• Tim Hauber is the farm and growhouse operations officer at CTI & OEF. Established in 2012, the One Eleuthera Foundation (OEF) is a non-profit organisation located in Rock Sound, Eleuthera. For more information, visit www.oneeleuthera.org or email info@oneeleuthera. org. The Centre for Training and Innovation (CTI) is the first and only postsecondary, non-profit education and training institution and social enterprise on Eleuthera. CTI operates a student training campus in Rock Sound, Eleuthera, with a 16-room training hotel, restaurant and farm. For more information about CTI’s programmes email: info@oneeleuthera.org.

of One Eleuthera Foundation

ONE Eleuthera Foundations’ Tim Hauber speaks about the various methods of food presevation with the vew of food security and independence.

Tim Hauber

New mooring hotspot at Montagu, but are there plans to accommodate?

A STRANGE phenomenon has been taking place in Montagu Bay in recent months, growing exponentially in recent weeks. Montagu Bay is looking a lot like Elizabeth Harbour in Exuma, a stretch of water between islands that turned from a helmsman’s highway into a watery parking lot for boaters.

Montagu, the bay that lies between the eastern district of New Providence and Paradise Island and Atholl Island to the north has suddenly become a floating marina. There are no dock slips, pilons, ladders, boardwalks, connections for shore power, restrooms or laundry facilities as you would see in a marina where boats in a city environment normally dock.

Yet more and more boats convene as if there were a convention of catamarans and they are free to come and go, drop anchor (hopefully not on coral), spend a night or longer, take off for Exuma presumably and honker down in the next safe harbour.

I point this out not because I am anti-sailing.

I landed in The Bahamas 41 years ago on a sailboat, met my husband who was then an avid racing sailor, at a regatta and we spent the best years of our lives on one sailboat or another. In fact, my husband is still a sailmaker as well as a marine surveyor and his reputation is so solid that boats come up all the way from St Thomas to have sail repairs done right.

Zut I also know what the excessive sailboat traffic did to Elizabeth Harbour in Exuma. There have been times when so many sailors gathered that they were able to walk across the harbour on a line-up of inflatables. Did the fun and

By Diane Phillips

the challenge outweigh the impact on the harbour?

Boaters brought benefits, livened up George Town, filled the few small cafes with freshly baked bread and croissants, spent money in restaurants, bought fuel and liquor, tied up at Minnis dock for a daily run

whatever was left of any coral reefs? Was it just a free run, no charge for spending the winter in the warmth of the Bahamian sun on a boat that owed nothing to The Bahamas and could up anchor and sail off at the next high tide to make it safely over the shallow Exuma banks?

to the grocery store or to get water. They created the world we now call Exuma, the boater’s paradise of The Bahamas.

They also left gobs of plastic bags filled with trash in town because there was never a solid plan for where all these boats were supposed to dump their refuse. It wasn’t their fault. It was lack of planning.

While everyone was partying and talking about the beauty of Exuma and the fun of Elizabeth Harbour, something else was happening. The fish disappeared. A watery parking lot for vessels became a tragedy for what attracted them in the first place. Again, not their fault. These sailors loved the waters of Exuma, surely among the most beautiful and breathtaking in the world.

But no one was checking – were all the boats on moorings to avoid dragging anchor and to protect

I have no idea why the boats, a few luxury yachts and monohull sloops, but mostly catamarans, have now chosen Montagu Bay as their parking lot. Is there a shortage of available slips at a reasonable rate in Nassau’s marinas? I do know that one day this week seven yachts were turned away from the most sophisticated new marina because it was full. Were others just as busy?

Palm Cay Marina is so packed with catamarans, most of which go out on weekly charters to the Exumas, that they’ve made it difficult for local boaters to keep their vessels there.

Nassau Yacht Haven has undergone an upgrade and is busy. Does Nassau need another marina? Or should there be a charge, as Mario Carey has suggested in his urging that we monetize the waters of The Bahamas, not just for the big ships passing through but for the hundreds of smaller vessels that winter here?

I do not know the answer, but I know that something does not feel right about the risks we are taking with our waters, both environmentally and for security. Is the increasingly crowded harbour an

accident waiting to happen as more boats moor in a channel where mailboats, tour boats and other vessels pass constantly?

As I pose the question, please remember that I am a sailor, former commodore of the racing Bahamas Yacht Squadron, co-founder of Books on Board, a means of trading books with others living or staying on boats where space is limited. I would happily give up my home on land to live on a boat.

My respect for sailors is deep and abiding, and I was one of those who fought for years to make sailing the national sport of The Bahamas. Finally, it is -- as it should have been all along. But as we celebrate the Road to 50 and

acknowledge the importance of this means of transport that carved a path for our forebears to make their way through the islands, we are risking that which made the journey so special.

We need to monitor what is happening, ensuring that mooring buoys are in place, coral is not being destroyed or compromised and those who spend a night respect the laws that include a no take zone for fish, conch and crawfish.

We need to understand what happens to their trash and whether the boats all have proper holding tanks which are not being emptied in the bay.

We are just at the beginning of what appears to be a new chapter in Nassau’s boating annals and if

something needs to happen to prevent Montagu Bay from going the way of a now-barren Elizabeth Harbour in Exuma, this is the time. All of this is offered with no disrespect to those on the catamarans that dot the bay. I look at them daily on my way to an office on land and feel a stab of longing for the life they enjoy at sea.

To the sailors - May you enjoy The Bahamas while respecting the rich marine resources that drew you here and may you continue to take the slow, steady ride when the wind fills your sails and a broad reach is as gentle and rewarding as the dream you had when you were young and one day wanted to sail the Lucayan Sea.

‘... something does not feel right about the risks we are taking with our waters, both environmentally and for security.’

Abaco Strong

Abaco Strong holds its next Abaco Farmers Market at Treasure Cay Park tomorrow from 9am-2pm. It will be held in conjunction with a Trunks of Treasure Trunk Show and Flea Market, where members of the community will be selling gently used building supplies, furniture and household items. The first farmers market was held in Februry in Marsh Harbour at the BAIC plaza and was a huge success. There were more than 25 vendors selling a wide variety of items including vegetables, seedlings, candles, jewelry, prepared food, baked goods, local honey and more. For more information about Abaco Strong, visit AbacoStrong.org.

Anglican Church Men Council

Tribute to Men on March 18 at 5.30pm. Christ Church Cathedral. 21 men will receive the Bishop Michael Medal of Honour. All are invited to attend.

Antique Auto Club of The Bahamas

The Antique Auto Club of The Bahamas hosts its annual car show on Saturday.

The event takes place at Arawak Cay from noon

also be food, games and prizes. Entry is $10, or $5 for children.

Some of the club’s Edukarting students will also be present - who were at the Motorsports Olympics last year in France with Team Bahamas.

One of the adopt-a-karts will also be present, and officials of the Bahamas Games Secretariat will be in attendance - with Edukarting to be featured as part of the Bahamas Games.

Bahamas Anglican Cursillo Ministry

Lenten Reflections will be held on

March 25 at 4pm at Mt Olivet, Bishop Lodge, Fox Hill Road. Come and hear seven clergy give seven mediations. Light refreshments will be served. All are invited to attend.

Bahamas Mind Over Miles

Elite Outdoor Fitness will host the Bahamas Mind Over Miles 5k and 10k run, with 4 Seasons Race Management, on May 27 at Montagu Beach at 6am.

The event is being held in conjunction with the Potter’s Cay Fruit, Fish and Vegetable Vendors’ Assocation.

Registration fee is $25 and ther will be a DJ, cash prizes and surprises in addition to the event, while food and drinks will be on sale. Contact Marco Armbrister on 421-1106 or email marcoarmbrister@icloud. com.

Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge

Officers and members of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge, Jurisdiction of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands, and its subordinate lodges, recently commemorated the Grand Lodge’s 73rd anniversary during the regular bi-monthly meeting of Royal Eagle Lodge No I, held February 27. The

Prince Hall Masons were joined by Brothers from the English, Irish and Scottish Constitutions.

Pindling, Arthur D Hanna, George A Smith, Cecil Wallace-Whitfield, Philip M Bethel and Clement T Maynard who were among the framers of the Bahamian Constitution.

It was Prince Hall Masons serving in the government of The Bahamas, and headed by Prime Minister Lynden Pindling, and the Opposition, headed by Sir Kendal Isaacs, who led a delegation to London to discuss the Independence Constitution (December, 1972). On April 2, 1973, then Minster of Home Affairs RF Anthony Roberts announced in the House of Assembly that The Bahamas had a new flag.

The country’s new flag (which replaced the Union Jack), along with the Coatof-Arms, was designed by Brother Hervis Bain.

Brother Timothy Gibson composed the National Anthem – March On, Bahamaland which was adopted in 1973.

in the person of Commodore Leon Smith, the first Bahamian to serve as Commander, Defence Force. Prince Hall Masons have also served as Speaker of the House of Assembly.

Today, many Prince Hall Masons and Eastern Stars continue to honorably serve their country in the Halls of Parliament – both at the Senate and House levels.

Most Worshipful Past Grand Master of Masons, Carl R Culmer, in his charge to Brothers in attendance said: “While we can learn much from our past, we cannot be satisfied with those accomplishments” but must build upon “what our Brothers have done to bring us to where we are today.”

Past Grand Master Culmer admonished the Brothers to ensure that Prince Hall Lodges across the archipelago: “Become more involved in training and directing our Brothers in order for them to be better prepared to continue in the footsteps laid for us.”

“My Brothers, we must be more than about Titles, Collars and Numbers. There is nothing in Masonry that prevents us from building business, mentoring our youth, speaking out on troubling issues, moving beyond political, religion and social lines. The opportunities are there waiting for us to embrace them. Our Brothers prior to us have set a golden standard and wrote a great 73 and 50-year history. What will our Brothers say about us in the next 73 years, or on the Road to 100?”

ANTIQUE vehicles will be on show at Arawak Cay tomorrow by the Antique Auto Club of The Bahamas.

Funeral Service For

Marvin Clyde Rolle, 49

of Flamingo Gardens, will be held on Saturday, March 18th, 2023, 11:00am at First Baptist Church, Market Street. Officiating will be Rev. Dr. Diana Francis assisted by other Ministers of The Gospel. Interment will follow in The Southern Cemetery, Cowpen and Spikenard Road.

Marvin is survived by one daughter: Althea (Ali) Rolle-Higgs; son-in-law: Randon Joshua Higgs Sr; grandson: Randon Joshua Higgs Jr.; brothers: Lawerence & Theresa Lockhart and Dennis & Lakeycha Lockhart; sisters: Mildred (Terence) Henfield & Maxine Knowles; uncle: Bursil (Ena) Rolle and McDonald Smith; aunts: Margaret (Irvin Jr.) Taylor, Eldora and Florida Rolle; nephews: Shawn (Kendra), Shamal (Nicole), Lawerence Jr. (Tina), Dennis Jr., Alexander, and Keyron; nieces: Jacintha (Christopher), Petra RolleCooper, Sheanda, Denay, Denella, Alexandria, Denicia, Delia, Petra Rolle-Cooper; grand nephews: Jakaylen, Brian, Lawerence III, Johnathan, Christon, Christoff, J’mori & Ashton; grand nieces: Shawndra, Brianna, Cassidy, Mckenzie and Madison; cousins: Phyllis & Adrianne Rolle, Trudymae Smith & Tanya Rolle, Valentina (Lloyd) Nairn, Roselda Davis, Chrystal (Dario) Hanna, Quincy & Evelyn Taylor, Wendy & Angela Rolle, Anishka Grant, Shenique Smith, Marsha Butler, Dewey, Bursil & Dino Rolle, Allan (Charlene)Taylor, Lionel Harris, Lermon and Kenny, Garvin, Steven, Patrick Rolle, Byron & Norman Smith, Alexanda(Alecia) Laroda,Valentino Bowe, Brandon & Nicanta Smith, Trevander & Daniel Bethel, Gretchen Bowe, Janiece Bethel, Yvonne Bethel, Advilda Dames, Willamae & Don Lottmore, Henfield, Christopher (Cynthia) Bullard, Bernal, Patchely & Hollace Bullard, Evie Wallace, Etta Johnson, Sidney (Francis) McPhee, Earlymae, Shelia, Hastie, Ken McPhee, Eulamae Morley, Larry Bullard, Hope (Orrie) Johnson, Mavis Jackson & Family, Tiffany & Mannix Barton, Blanche Sears, Madonna Evans, Lorana Sears, Kina & Basil Ferguson, Renaldo Swann & Daxon Curry, Ernestine Flowers, Iris & Norma Paul, Tessa Bullard, Rayvana, Tony & Troy Henfield, Patricia Farrington, Holly Cummings, Will Smith, Anya Tinker, Ian & Carlos Ferguson; other relatives and friends including: Best friend-Shantel Brown, Alethia Cunningham, The Rolleville & Harry Cay Family, The entire Bullard and Ferguson Clan, Kimberley Rigby, Mark, Smiley, Pat, Shavargo, Ricky, Val Davis, Johnathan Evans, Karen Tynes, Joe Storr, Cardi King, Jennifer Brown, Ruth, Ziggy, Flamingo Gardens Family, 3rd street-The Grove family, First Baptist Family. Hon. Keith Bell & Carmicheal Constituency and many others too numerous to mention. The body will repose in the Blessed Redeemer Chapel at Ferguson’s Funeral Directors, 7th Terrace Collins Avenue on Friday from 1:00p.m. - 6:00p.m. and at the Church on Saturday from 10:00a.m. until service time

The Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas was constituted by the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the State of New York on February 27, 1950, with Bro William Watson-Thompson as its first Grand Master of Masons. Twentyfive years later, the MWPHGL was incorporated by an Act of Parliament, commencing August 5,

The hosting of the anniversary meeting at Royal Eagle Lodge No I was of further historic proportions as the lodge will commemorate its 125th anniversary October 1, 2023. The then Royal Eagle Lodge No 45 was warranted by the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of the State of New York on October 1, 1898 with Brother FW Adderley as its first Worshipful Master.

The celebrations are being held at a significant time in Bahamian history, as the country approaches its Golden Anniversary (50th) of IndependenceThe Road to Fifty – on July 10, 2023. The Prince Hall legacy has been inextricably interwoven with the history of The Bahamas in both the pre and post-Independence eras which includes playing major roles in the march to Majority Rule (January 10, 1967) and Independence. The Prince Hall Family of Masons has been devoted to social, political and economic improvement within the Commonwealth.

To provide context, Prince Hall Masons have played, and continue to play, pivotal roles at the three levels of government – executive, legislative (Parliament) and judiciary - in addition to the fields of education, religion, national security and law enforcement, cancer education and awareness, the legal profession, media, civic organisations, medicine, sports, banking and finance, business, the trade union movement, politics, arts, culture “and every area of our society in the building of our nation”.

It was Prince Hall Masons in the persons of Brothers Sir Lynden

It was Prince Hall Masons who headed the first Independence Advisory Council and first The Bahamas Independence Secretariat which was responsible for planning the inaugural celebrations in 1973 in the persons of Lynden O Pindling (chairman, Independence Advisory Council), and Bro George Smith (chairman, Bahamas Independence Secretariat who served as Parliamentary Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister).

It was Prince Hall Masons who, along with others, and, recognising the value Bahamian women could make to the socioeconomic development of the country, played leading roles in advocating for equal rights for women that led to the Women’s Suffrage Movement.

It was Members of the Order whose vision and foresight led to an independent Bahamas and the end of British Rule and under whose guidance the policy of Bahamianisation was instituted which resulted in qualified Bahamians being promoted to leadership positions in all spheres of society, but particularly the national economy and the Public Service which was hitherto unheard of.

The Prince Hall Family of Masons and Order of Eastern Star can boast of having among its membership former Premier Sir Roland Symonette, in addition to Prime Ministers Sir Lynden O Pindling, Hubert A Ingraham, Perry G Christie and Phillip “Brave” Davis among its membership.

Governors General Sir Gerald C Cash, Sir Clifford Darling, Arthur D Hanna and Cornelius Smith have been among Brothers who have received the Grand Lodge’s highest honorary designation – that of Past Grand Master, for their contributions to the Order, in the first instance, and society as a whole.

Prince Hall Brothers have served as leaders of His Majesty’s Loyal Opposition - Brothers Sir Lynden O Pindling, Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield, Hubert A Ingraham, Philip E Davis and Michael C Pintard; as Chief Justice, Sir Cyril Fountain, and as Commander Defence Force,

Brother Leslie M Dean, the 16th Most Worshipful Grand Master of Masons of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge, speaking on the way forward, says he envisions the Order’s continued growth and contribution “in the further achievements of this great archipelagic nation – spreading the cement of Brotherly Love throughout these fair islands and adjacent territories, building brick-by-brick”.

“Our Masonic leadership role within the various societies and communities must be constant, positive and relevant, building and shaping the minds and character of our young boys and men, and girls and women, through our various mentorship programmes” Grand Master Dean said. “It is my hope that our Masonic product will enlarge and redound to the benefit of our Masonic Jurisdiction specifically, and the wider society generally.”

Rotary Club of South-East Nassau

The Rotary Club of South-East Nassau will hold its Fun Run Walk event on Saturday, Martch 25, starting at 5am.

The route runs from Rotary Park at Western Esplanade to Goodman’s Bay and back.

Corporate registration is available for $1,500 (gold), $1,000 (silver), $500 (bronze), and $300 (supporting). Individual registration costs $20 or free for children under 12.

Clubs & Societies page returns

OUR Clubs and Societies page is back - with a chance for you to share your group’s activities with our readers.

We hope it can serve as a community noticeboard to let people know about your organisation and what you have been doing, or about events that are coming up.

To feature on our Clubs and Societies page, submit your report to clubs@tribunemedia.net, with “Clubs Page” written in the subject line. For more information about the page, contact Stephen Hunt on 826-2242.

OFFICERS and members of the Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge, Jurisdiction of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands, and its Subordinate Lodges, along with visiting Brothers from the English, Irish and Scottish Constitutions, gathered for a commemorative photograph at the conclusion of the Royal Eagle Lodge No I regular bi-monthly meeting.

Photo: Prince Hall Media Services

RBDF’s Annual Church Service

Sunday at TAR National Stadium

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

AS their contribution to the celebrations of the Oaktree Medical Center’s 50th CARIFTA Games, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force will hold their Annual Church Service 2pm Sunday at Thomas A Robinson National Stadium, followed by the parade through the streets.

Commander Origin

Deleveaux, accompanied by Chief Petty Officer John Ingraham and Petty Officer Shantell Brennen, made the announcement on Wednesday during the Local Organising Committee of the games’ weekly press conference, this time held on top of the oldworld war bunker opposite the stadium.

Deleveaux, speaking on behalf of Commodore Dr Raymond king, thanked the LOC for helping to facilitate their 43rd Annual Church Service that will be held under the theme, “The pursuit of excellence as guidance of our heritage, nation builders and community leaders.”

As the best naval base on this side of the hemisphere, Deleveaux said they hope to accomplish their 10 missions as they engage in nation building, especially through the four major youth development programmes that they are engaged in.

“Everyone is quite familiar with the Rangers, which sets the standard in youth development in the Commonwealth of the Bahamas,” Deleveaux pointed out. “We have Rangers on 7-8 islands with over 2,000 active Rangers

NFL FROM PAGE 16

intention was to play and my intention was to play for the New York Jets,” Rodgers said. “I haven’t been holding anything up at this point. It’s been compensation the Packers are trying to get for me, kind of digging their heels in.”

Rodgers, who replaced Brett Favre as the starter in Green Bay after the Hall of Famer was traded to the Jets, spent 18 seasons with the Packers and led them to a Super Bowl title following the 2010 season.

Once the teams figure out trade details, Rodgers will be following in Favre’s footsteps by going to New York and trying to lead the Jets to their first championship since another No. 12 — Broadway Joe Namath — delivered a victory that he guaranteed against the Baltimore Colts on Jan. 12, 1969.

Former No. 1 overall pick Baker Mayfield was among other players on the move Wednesday, agreeing to an $8.5 million, one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press. The person, along with all other unnamed sources cited in this story, spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement

and so when we talk about nation building, this is what we do.

“We also have another programme called Hype – Helping Youth People Excel. We also have Programme Sure and the last programme we have is called Taps.

“So, when it comes to nation building, this is what we do in terms of ensuring that our kids are inspired to do bigger and better things.”

As community leaders, Deleveaux revealed that Commander King has instructed every

they confirmed hadn’t been announced.

Mayfield, the top pick by Cleveland in 2018, joins his third team since last July. He gets an opportunity to compete with Kyle Trask to replace Tom Brady, who retired after three seasons with the Buccaneers.

Mayfield was 2-8 in 10 starts last season with the Panthers and Rams.

Jacoby Brissett, who replaced Mayfield in Cleveland while Deshaun Watson served a suspension, agreed to terms with the Washington Commanders on a one-year contract worth $10 million with $8 million guaranteed, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.

Brissett will compete with projected starter Sam Howell, a second-year pro. Brissett threw for 2,608 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions last season for the Browns in 11 starts.

Two 1,000-yard rushers are off the market.

Running back Jamaal Williams and the Saints agreed on a $12 million, three-year contract, a person familiar with the deal told the AP. Williams led the NFL with 17 rushing touchdowns while running for a career-best 1,066 yards with the Detroit Lions last season.

Running back Miles Sanders, coming off his best season with the NFC

department of the RBDF to engage in some type of initiatives to raise the level of participation with their neighbours and friends in their communities.

Apostle Raymond Wells, of Living Waters Ministries, will deliver the message during the service for the first time as they partner with the LOC of CARIFTA as they come out and be a part of the whole experience at the stadium before the public gets to see the RBDF adorned in their uniforms during the march. “Everybody knows that the Royal Bahamas

Defence Force has the best band in the land,” Deleveaux said.

“They will be leading the way. We are excited, not only about it, but we’re excited for you because you will have an opportunity to view it.”

Rolle revealed that the parade will leave Bahamas Games Boulevard and head north to University Commons to Blue Hill Road north to Tucker Road. From there, the parade will travel west to Water Street and head north onto Lakeshore Road. From there they will

traverse to Hayler Street to Rupert Dean Lane on to Poinciana Drive and head west to University Drive to University Commons and back to the Bahamas Games Boulevard where it will end in the parking lot.

Lynden Maycock, the chief executive officer of the LOC, said they are pleased to be able to accommodate the RBDF, who have been a tremendous support to CARIFTA, which has been hosted here eight previous times.

“We say thank you for all that you do,” Maycock summed up.

By JOSH DUBOW AP Sports Writer

SACRAMENTO,

Calif.

(AP) — Mitch Henderson’s victory leap that punctuated Princeton’s famed upset over UCLA in 1996 has become an iconic moment. There is a picture of the joyous jump at the school’s practice facility that serves as a constant reminder of what’s possible.

Now Henderson’s current players have authored one of their own.

Ryan Langborg lifted Princeton to its first lead with 2:03 to play and the Tigers used a late-game run to earn their first NCAA Tournament win in 25 years, topping No. 2 seed Arizona 59-55 yesterday.

“Pretty surreal feeling,” guard Matt Allocco said. “To beat a great team like that on this stage is a pretty special feeling. But also I can’t say I’m surprised. This team has been so good all year, so gritty. On paper, it’s going to look like a big upset. But we believe in each other and we think we’re a really good team. When we’re at our best, then I think we can beat anybody in the country.”

The 15th-seeded Tigers (22-9) scored the final nine points, holding the Pac-12 Tournament champion scoreless over the final 4:43.

Tosan Evbuomwan scored 15 points in Princeton’s first tournament victory since beating UNLV in 1998 when Henderson was a player for the Tigers.

Henderson also played on the 1996 team that beat defending champion UCLA in the school’s final tournament under coach Pete Carril, who died in August. This victory fittingly came in Sacramento, where Carril spent time as an NBA assistant after retiring as Tigers coach.

“He would be very proud of the group,” Henderson said. “He wouldn’t want any attention to be brought other than what these guys did. They played to win. We knew we had to keep the game low possessions.”

Princeton advanced to play seventh-seeded Missouri in the second round of the South Region. The Tigers beat Utah State 76-65.

Azuolas Tubelis scored 21 points for the Wildcats (28-7), who haven’t won a tournament game in consecutive years since 2014-15.

It marked the third straight year and 11th time overall that a No. 15 seed won a first-round game. Arizona is the only school to be on the wrong end of one of those upsets twice, also losing to Steve Nash and Santa Clara in 1993.

“If you want to be a great player, you want to be a great coach, we all got to learn from this,’” coach Tommy Lloyd said. “We got to go back and figure out what happened and understand the value of being up 10 to 12 points with 10 minutes to go, putting the hammer on people, not letting people get back in the game.”

field goal late in the fourth quarter of the Chiefs’ 38-35 win in the Super Bowl.

champion Eagles in which he ran for a career-high 1,269 yards with 11 touchdowns, is heading to Carolina.

Carolina also added former Cincinnati Bengals tight end Hayden Hurst on a three-year contract. Hurst caught 52 passes for 414 yards and two touchdowns last season with another 13 receptions for 141 yards and a TD in the playoffs. Late Wednesday night, four-time Pro Bowl tackle Orlando Brown Jr. agreed

on a $64.09 million, four-year deal with the Cincinnati Bengals. Brown’s agent, Michael Portner, confirmed the deal to the AP. He said it includes a $31 million signing bonus. Brown goes from protecting Patrick Mahomes for the Super Bowl champion Chiefs to blocking for Joe Burrow and the AFC runnerup Bengals. The New England Patriots made their first big pickup of free agency, adding wide receiver JuJu

Smith-Schuster. A person with knowledge of the deal said it is for three years and could be worth as much as $33 million.

Smith-Schuster confirmed the move in a post on Twitter saying he was “Excited for my next chapter in New England!”

Smith-Schuster had 78 receptions for 933 yards and three touchdowns last season for Kansas City. He was held by Eagles cornerback James Bradberry on a play that led to a go-ahead

The Browns agreed with safety Juan Thornhill on a three-year contract worth $21 million — $14 million guaranteed — a person familiar with the negotiations told the AP. Thornhill leaves the Super Bowl champion Chiefs after four seasons. He’s the third defensive player to join the Browns in free agency along with run stopper Dalvin Tomlinson and end Ogbonnia Okoronkwo.

Six-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Fletcher Cox is returning to the Philadelphia Eagles on a $10 million, one-year deal, according to a person familiar with that deal.Veteran safety Jordan Poyer, a two-time secondteam All-Pro, is staying in Buffalo on a two-year deal.

SHOWN, from left to right, are Lynden Maycock, Mike Samds, Petty Officer Shantell Brennen, Commander Origin Deleveaux and Chief Petty Officer John Ingraham.

COMMANDER Origin Deleveaux makes some remarks as he is flanked by Petty Officer Shantell Brennen and Chief Petty Officer John Ingraham.

GREEN Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) reacts as he leaves the field after an NFL game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, January 2. 2022, in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Rodgers says his intention is to play for the New York Jets in the coming season as the four-time NFL MVP quarterback waits for the Green Bay Packers to trade him. Rodgers made his comments on Wednesday during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show.”

(AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

‘Buddy’ and Pacers rally late, beat Eastern Conference-leading Bucks

By ANDREW WAGNER Associated Press

MILWAUKEE (AP)

— Andrew Nembhard scored 24 points and Aaron Nesmith hit six 3-pointers and finished with 22 points as the Indiana Pacers rallied late and beat the Central Division- and Eastern Conference-leading Milwaukee Bucks 139-123 last night.

With Nesmith leading the way, Indiana (32-38) shot 20 for 41 from 3-point distance, including 11 of 14 in the second half, and shot 56.5% overall. Meanwhile, Milwaukee (50-20) shot 52.8%, went 11 for 32 from beyond the arc and gave up 13 points off 12 turnovers.

Indiana, which was playing without injured leading scorer and All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton (ankle), had seven players score in double-figures.

Buddy Hield scored 20 with six assists and two steals and T.J. McConnell posted 19 points.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 25 points. Jrue Holiday added 19 and Khris Middleton finished with 16 for Milwaukee.

The Bucks hit 18 of their first 29 shots, including 4 of 9 from 3-point distance to take a 40-30 lead after one period. The Bucks missed five of their first six shots to open the second as Indiana closed within five points, helped by an 8-0 run that was capped off by backto-back 3-pointers from former Milwaukee guard George Hill.

The Bucks recovered and took a 64-55 lead into the break.

Another 8-0 run, this time with back-to-back 3’s by Nesmith, pulled the Pacers within four points with 4:08 left in the third.

Nesmith fouled Bobby Portis with 3:15 left in the quarter, putting the Bucks in the bonus. Portis and Joe Ingles each knocked down a pair of free throws to stretch the lead to nine.

Indiana stayed within striking distance with its 3-point shooting and after Hill turned a Wesley Matthews turnover into an easy

layup, Nwora drained a 3 to put the Pacers up 102101 with a minute to play..

McConnell’s jumper with 26 seconds left put Indiana up three points and an 11-4 run to open the fourth gave the Pacers a 112-105 lead with 10:27 remaining.

Nesmith’s sixth 3-pointer of the game made it a 122111 game with 7:08 left

TIP-INS

Pacers: Yesterday was supposed to be a homecoming of sorts for Haliburton, who grew up just north of Milwaukee in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. But he was unavailable and will miss at least two more games after suffering an ankle injury at practice Wednesday. Haliburton also missed Indiana’s last two games because of a knee injury.

Bucks: Antetokounmpo appeared in his 711th career game for the Bucks, trying him with Junior Bridgeman (1975-84) for the most appearances in franchise history. … Centre Brook Lopez was held out after injuring his ankle Tuesday night at Phoenix, while guard Grayson Allen missed his second straight game because of right plantar fascia soreness. … With Lopez out, Bobby Portis made his 19th start of the season.

KINGS 101, NETS 96

NEW YORK (AP) —

Domantas Sabonis had 24 points and 21 rebounds, and the Sacramento Kings clinched their first winning season since 2005-06 by beating the Brooklyn Nets 101-96 last night.

De’Aaron Fox added 18 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Kings, who improved to 42-27, second in the Western Conference. They hadn’t finished above .500 since going 44-38 in 2005-06, the last of eight consecutive playoff appearances under Rick Adelman.

Sabonis had 20 points by halftime and the Kings led by as much as 17, but the Nets made it close.

Mikal Bridges scored 23 points for the Nets, who fell 1 1/2 games behind the New York Knicks for

HAWKS’ BOGDAN BOGDANOVIC SIGNS $68M, FOUR-YEAR EXTENSION

ON THE

NPBA

FROM PAGE 16

Erquantae Edgecombe caught the ball in the air but was not able to connect, forcing the game into overtime.

CARIFTA

FROM PAGE 16

“That would have been ideal but there are financial implications there because now we are saying to the athletes you must come to CARIFTA Trials and to the Nationals on two separate occasions, hotel costs are mounting and the average hotel room rate is about $350,” Archer said.

fifth place in the Eastern Conference and are just 1 1/2 ahead of seventh-place Miami as they try to avoid the play-in tournament. Spencer Dinwiddie added 18 points and Nic Claxton had 14 points and 14 rebounds for the Nets.

NUGGETS 119, PISTONS 100 DETROIT (AP) — Nikola Jokic scored 30 points and Denver beat Detroit to snap a seasonhigh four-game losing streak and clinched the Northwest Division.

Jokic, the two-time reigning NBA MVP, had three assists and three rebounds before his first attempt several minutes into the game and finished

14 of 18 from the field with 10 rebounds and nine assists.

Kentavious CaldwellPope scored 20 points, Jamal Murray had 19 and Aaron Gordon 15 for the Western Conference-leading Nuggets.

Rodney McGruder scored 20 for the Pistons, who have lost 12 of 13 games and have the NBA’s worst record. Detroit rookies Jalen Duren had 15 points and 13 assists, while Jaden Ivey added 14 points and six assists.

RAPTORS 128,

THUNDER 111

TORONTO (AP) — Pascal Siakam had 25 points and 14 rebounds and Toronto extended its

season-high home winning streak to six games with a win over Oklahoma City.

Jakob Poeltl had his third straight double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Raptors.

Gary Trent Jr. added 23 points and Fred VanVleet and Scottie Barnes each had 19. O.G. Anunoby added 17 points.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points and Jalen Williams had 15 for the Thunder, who came in having won three straight and six of seven. Oklahoma City is 13-21 on the road.

Josh Giddey scored 13 points, Tre Mann and Isaiah Joe each had 12 and Luguentz Dort scored 10 points for the Thunder.

Edgecombe and Grant combined on a 6-2 run to start overtime and put the Mingoes up four at 68-64. However, the Shockers closed out on an 8-0 run to take the game 72-68 and go up 1-0 in the series. “This was a very winnable game

He continued to say it is financially taxing on both the Government of The Bahamas, schools and individual students.

Hence, he said the BAAAs, in conjunction with the MOYSC, wanted to host a high-level competition in the most cost effective way.

Cherelle Cartwright, parent of a child in the under-15 division, talked about why she disagreed with the organisers’

for us tonight and the guys played their hearts out,” said head coach Bacchus Rolle. “We made the stops but we couldn’t convert it to baskets. This team fights but I think fatigue set in and when fatigue happens your mind goes and then your

decision to remove the under-15 division.

“I am not fond of it simply because of the reason that a lot of the children who are coming from other islands for the nationals, like my son, this might be their first time getting involved. “Nationals or CARIFTA what happens now is that you are allowing the under-15 children to compete with children that are outside of their age range,” Cartwright said.

legs go. We fought well and came back to tie the game and almost won it.”

Rolle added that heading into the second game of the best-of-three series, his squad is going to have some offence. “We have to find more than just Justin

Despite understanding the CARIFTA Games is primarily for the under-17 and under-20 age group, Cartwright believes eliminating the under-15 age group will not be beneficial for the younger athletes as running with the older athletes takes away from the under-15 athletes that are accustomed to running within their normal age group. “The under-15s now have to go with the under-17s

Burrows, who came out big with 17 points tonight,” he said.

“We are also going to have to control the paint and hit more jump shots along with spreading the floor a bit more to give our big men an opportunity to

and you are putting them in a competitive zone that they are probably not even going to compete at when you look at those times of the under 17s.

“I don’t see the need to do that and totally take out that category,” she added.

The parent said combining the events is fine but the entire elimination of the under-15 division does not seem beneficial for athletes looking to compete in the Nationals and takes away

ATLANTA (AP)

— Atlanta Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic signed a $68 million, four-year extension yesterday that will keep him under contract through the 2026-27 season.

Bogdanovic, 30, has averaged 14.1 points in 43 games this season. He has started only five games, but ranks fourth on the team in scoring, behind starting guards Trae Young and Dejounte Murray and small forward De’Andre Hunter.

ESPN first reported the extension, which was announced by the Hawks last night.

The new deal was finalised after Bogdanovic declined his $18 million player option for the 202324 season. The average annual value of the extension is $17 million.

“Bogi brings so many of the qualities we are looking for in a Hawks player,” Hawks general manager Landry Fields said in a statement released by the team. “In addition to his elite shooting ability, he has the versatility to thrive as a starter or sixth man, and a competitiveness that is invaluable to our team and culture. We are excited that he will remain a key part of our team going forward.”

Bogdanovic, a native of Serbia, missed the first 22 games this season after recovering from surgery on the patella tendon in his right knee. He has missed two other games related to management of the knee’s recovery.

Bogdanovic is in his third season with the Hawks following three seasons with Sacramento. He has averaged 14.2 points per game in his career. He set career highs with 16.4 points and 3.3 3-pointers per game with Atlanta in the 2020-21 season. He set another high by making 43.8% of his 3-pointers in the 2020-21 and has made 40.1% this season.

Photos:

work the middle of the floor more.”

The Shockers outrebounded the Mingoes 70-47 in the game.

Game two of the bestof-three series is set for 7pm Saturday at The A.F. Adderley Gym.

from what the event is all about.

BAAA president Archer maintains organisers are trying to create a high-level meet and do that in the most inclusive way.

The CARIFTA Trials and Nationals are expected to start March 25-27 at the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium. The combined event will feature the under-14 girls and boys, under-17 girls and boys and the under-20 girls and boys.

REPLAY: University of The Bahamas Mingoes men in action against the Caro Construction Shockers in game one of their best-of-3 division one playoff series.

UB ATHLETICS

INDIANA Pacers guard Buddy Hield (24) dunks in front of Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) during the first half last night in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/ Jeffrey Phelps)

CARIFTA EXHIBITION PUTS THE PAST 50 YEARS ON DISPLAY

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

LOCAL Organising Committee chief executive officer Lynden Maycock said he’s extremely pleased with how the exhibition of the past 50 years of the CARIFTA Games is coming together in the old war bunker in the parking lot opposite the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium.

Maycock has commissioned veteran historian Stanley Mitchell to create the exhibition for the viewing public when they come to the Oaktree Medical Center’s 50th anniversary of the games, scheduled for April 8-10 at the stadium.

Mitchell, who has attended just about every annual regional junior track and field competition since its inception in 1972,

said he was thrilled when he was approached by Maycock to put together the museum for all to see.

“When he asked me if I could do something over there I told him ‘no, the room wasn’t as big as my bathroom at home,” Mitchell said. “A young lady, who works for the LOC, came over and she said ‘man, this is a big room.”

That was the genesis of Mitchell getting the work started. “We are recreating 50 years of CARIFTA,” Mitchell said. “I think I was chosen because this will be my 40th CARIFTA that I’ve been there. During that time, I’ve video taped and recorded all of them.

“I have in the bunker, starting from the 8mm, then the 16 mm, then it went into VHS and then mini DVD and now it’s on a little chip. So I’ve had to try to secure all these

moments from all over those years and somehow, most of it I have.”

During the exhibition, which will be free of charge, Mitchell said spectators will get to see all of the medal winners during the games from 1974 to 2022. Mitchell also intends to show a movie called ‘Through the years,’ which will highlight some of the exciting times that the fans enjoyed over the

years. “You will see iconic pictures of people who planned all those years during the games up on the wall,” Mitchell revealed. There will also be a tuck shop where the spectators would be able to purchase paraphernalia for the 50th CARIFTA Games at the end of their visit into the museum. The bunker, according to Mitchell, was used for training for World War II

BAHAMAS KIDNEY ASSOCIATION TO HOST FUN RUN/ WALK THIS SATURDAY

By TENAJH SWEETING tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas Kidney Association (BKA) will host a fun run/walk tomorrow (March 18) at 6:30am on Goodman’s Bay.

With March being national kidney month, it was the perfect time for event organisers to host the event to raise awareness for kidney health in The Bahamas.

The event serves as another way for BKA to give back to the community and is one of the association’s major fundraisers for the year.

The fun run/walk will feature a short route which is from Goodman’s Bay to Melia and back and a long route from Goodman’s Bay to Starbucks roundabout and back.

Tamika Roberts, president of the Bahamas Kidney Association, talked about how persons can register for the event with one day remaining.

OHTANI LEADS JAPAN OVER ITALY INTO WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC SEMIFINALS

By STEPHEN WADE AP Sports Writer

TOKYO (AP) — Japan manager Hideki Kuriyama still gets a special tingle watching Shohei Ohtani. It’s been that way since Kuriyama managed the two-way star with the Hokkaido Ham-Fighters.

“When we see Shohei playing, not only the players but also the Japanese baseball fans, all the nation is feeling something extra,” Kuriyama said through a translator after Ohtani led Japan over Italy 9-3 last night to put the Samurai Warriors in their fifth straight World Baseball Classis semifinal.

Ohtani pitched shutout ball into the fifth inning and sparked a four-run third with a bunt single.

“These kind of moments, this is how I feel the sense of Ohtani,” Kuriyama said. “This is Shohei. This is Shohei. When he plays a must-win game like tonight, we see who Shohei is.”

Boston’s Masataka Yoshida homered and drove in the go-ahead run with a grounder, giving him a tournament-leading 10 RBIs. Kazuma Okamoto hit a three-run homer for Japan, which has outscored opponents 47-11 in five games and is batting .313.

Japan travels to Miami for a semifinal on Monday against Puerto Rico or Mexico. Cuba plays the other semifinal against the United States or Venezuela.

Pitching before an adoring crowd of 41,723 at the Tokyo Dome, Ohtani threw his fastest pitch since he joined the Los Angeles Angels in 2018, striking out Vinnie Pasquantino on a 102 mph fastball in the second. That topped a 101.4 mph pitch that struck out Houston’s Kyle Tucker last Sept. 10.

Ohtani (2-0) allowed two runs and four hits in 4 2/3 innings with five strikeouts and a walk and went 1 for 4 with a walk at the plate. He is hitting .438 (7 for 16) with a home run, three doubles and eight RBIs along with a 2.08 ERA, 10 strikeouts and one walk on the mound. Ohtani would be available on four days’ rest to pitch in a possible final on Tuesday -- 4 1/2 days, counting the time difference.

Ohtani stretched his tournament scoreless streak to 8 2/3 innings before the fifth, when Dominic Fletcher hit a soft bases-loaded single into right with two outs on Ohtani’s 71st and final pitch — nine short of the limit. Ohtani had hit Ben

DeLuzio with a pitch with one out, allowed a single to David Fletcher, retired Sal Frelick on a flyout and hit Nicky Lopez with a pitch.

“In the fourth and fifth innings I struggled a bit, but until then I had good rhythm and I pitched well, I think,” Ohtani said.

Ohtani also mentioned his special relationship with Kuriyama, who encouraged him to continue as a two-way player.

“This is such a special moment for me,” Ohtani said, referring to Kuriyama in the Japanese style of Kuriyama-san. “When I played for Kuriyama-san for the Fighter, I learned a lot. Yes, he is someone who taught me how to play well.”

Hiromi Itoh relieved and retired Miles Mastrobuoni on a flyout as Yoshida slammed into the left field wall while making the catch.

Japan is the only nation to reach the semifinals of all five WBCs, winning the first two tournaments in 2006 and 2009. The Samurai Warriors were knocked out by Puerto Rico in 2013 and the U.S. in 2017.

Italy, managed by Mike Piazza, advanced past the first round for the first time since 2013. Dominic Fletcher, an Arizona prospect, drove in all three of

Italy’s runs and had the team’s first home run of the tournament, a solo shot in the eighth off Yu Darvish.

“Against a very good team, you have to be exceptional,” Piazza said. “And obviously tonight we weren’t, We didn’t throw the ball well tonight. We needed our pitchers to have a very good game.”

Italy pitchers walked eight.

“You’re not going to beat at team like Japan with eight walks,” Piazza said.

Japan went ahead in a four-run third.

Kensue Kondoh walked with one out against Tampa Bay minor leaguer Joe LaSorsa (0-1), and Ohtani bunted down the third base line for a single as LaSorsa threw wildly for an error that left runners at the corners. Yoshida’s groundout put Japan ahead, Munetaka Murakami walked and Okamoto homered.

Murakami, a two-time Central League MVP, hit an RBI double in the fifth and Kazuma Okamoto followed with a two-run double off Vinny Nittoli that opened a 7-2 lead.

Yoshida homered in the seventh against San Francisco prospect Joey Marciano and Sosuke Genda added an RBI single.

before the soldiers were sent into battle. It was created to mimic what was being done in a real war situation. The bunker has since been transformed.

“We are trying to be delicate on how we transform the bunker so that when we are finished, it can go back and be preserved to what it was before with all of the photos from World War II back in place,” Mitchell stated.

“Registration will be open on Saturday. We encourage everyone to come out early if you haven’t registered,” Roberts said.

Persons can come out from as early as 5am on Saturday morning or can register at info@bahamaskidneyassociation.org

Roberts added that currently they are at about 30% of the sign up goal and are looking for more support from the public ahead of Saturday’s fun run/walk.

She hopes to have more local businesses sponsor not only this event, but other community events hosted by BKA in the future. For those who are interested in registering for this year’s BKA fun run/walk event, the registration fees for adults are $20 and for students $10.

Despite looking for more support from the public, Roberts is thankful for the amount of support BKA has received and to those who have made the process a smooth one.

BKA encourages those who have not registered as yet to come out early on Saturday and for those that wish to volunteer are welcome and can reach out via the email above or 242-436-1317.

WBC FROM PAGE 16

Puerto Rico capped a dominant pool round in which it blanked Israel in a perfect 10-0 win Monday night.

UNITED STATES 3, COLOMBIA 2

PHOENIX (AP) —

Mike Trout had three hits and three RBIs, and the United States used a stellar night from its deep bullpen to beat Colombia 3-2 and advance to a quarterfinal against Venezuela on Saturday.

Mexico and the U.S. both finished with a 3-1 record in Group C to advance. Mexico gets the top seed because it beat the U.S. 11-5 on Sunday.

Trout singled in the third, bringing home Mookie Betts and giving the U.S. a 1-0 lead. Colombia bounced back quickly, taking a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the third on Gio Urshela’s sacrifice fly and an RBI double from Reynaldo Rodriguez.

CUBA 4, AUSTRALIA 3

TOKYO (AP) — Cuba earned a 7,500-mile flight to Miami for a trip to the WBC semifinals for the first time since 2006.

Alfredo Despaigne hit a tiebreaking sacrifice fly and Yoelkis Guibert followed with a two-run single in three-run fifth inning.

Using current major leaguers for the first time at the WBC, Cuba plays on Sunday in Marlins Park against the winner of the U.S.-Venezuela quarterfinal.

Former Philadelphia Phillies prospect Rixon Wingrove, who led Australia with seven RBIs in the tournament, hit a goahead RBI sngle in the second and had a two-run homer in the sixth off the Chicago Cubs’ Roenis Elías.

Australia got two on later in the sixth before Elías retired Milwaukee Brewers prospect Alex Hall on a flyout.

MEXICO 10, CANADA 3

PHOENIX (AP) —

Randy Arozarena had two doubles and five RBIs, Rowdy Tellez added a tworun single and solo homer, and Mexico pulled away late from Canada to earn a spot in the quarterfinals.

Mexico started the tournament with a surprising loss to Colombia in Group C at Chase Field but rallied with three straight wins, beating the U.S., Britain and Canada.

José Urquidy gave up two runs over four innings, striking out five to earn the win. Arozarena — the 2021 AL Rookie of the Year for the Tampa Bay Rays — hit a bases-clearing double in the sixth that broke the game open, giving Mexico a 6-2 lead.

SOME of the partners getting a sneak preview of the inside of the war bunker where an exhibition for CARIFTA will take place.

STANLEY Mitchell gives an indication of what to expect at the CARIFTA exhibition.

STANLEY Mitchell points out what to expect in the CARIFTA exhibition.

ISLAND RELAYS BAHAMAS SPRING UNIVERSITY TRACK & FIELD INVITATIONAL THIS WEEKEND IN GRAND BAHAMA

ALL six of the universities from the United States of America are now in Freeport, Grand Bahama to participate in Island Relays Bahamas Spring University

Track and Field Invitational this weekend at the Grand Bahama Sports Complex. The six universities participating in the Track and Field Invitational are here with

their full rosters - Texas A&M, South Carolina USC with a contingent of 96 and Oklahoma Sooners with 136 athletes and Arizona Wildcats with 140 persons, all with

their coach& training staff. Athletes from the University of the Bahamas will also be participating in the event, which will get started today and wrap up on Saturday.

SWIATEK, RYBAKINA REACH SEMIFINALS

INDIAN WELLS, Calif. (AP) — Top-ranked Iga Swiatek breezed past Sorana Cirstea 6-2, 6-3 to reach the semifinals of the BNP Paribas Open on Thursday.

Swiatek, the defending champion, took a 4-0 lead in the second set and converted her second match point to close it out.

“I’m happy that I played so intense that I could start both sets well,” Swiatek said. “I’m feeling like I’m handling things pretty well and just playing my game.”

Next up for Swiatek is No. 10 seed Elena Rybakina, who outlasted Karolina

Muchova 7-6 (4), 2-6, 6-4. It will be a rematch from the Australian Open in January, when Rybakina won 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals. Rybakina became the first woman from Kazakhstan to earn a semifinal berth at Indian Wells.

BOXING

FROM PAGE 16

talked about why they decided to go with an all-female card for the event at yesterday’s press conference.

“Well, we needed to come back with something different. We promoted only male boxing over the years and also First Class Promotions is celebrating 23 years in existence this year July and we wanted to come back with something strong,” Minus said.

Persons interested in purchasing tickets for the event are encouraged to visit the website at www. bahamasetickets.com as tickets are selling fast with excitement building around the first all-female professional boxing match.

For persons that wish to purchase tickets in person, box offices will be set up to accommodate physical ticket purchases at the event.

Minus talked about why the public should be at this year’s exciting boxing showdown.

“On the fight card, the main event, one of them was a silver medallist Olympian and one is a bronze medallist, they have had this rivalry for a minute, so they are going to be able to settle the score in The Bahamas,” Minus said.

The prices for general admission are $35 and the VIP section is for $125.

Also, shirts will be on sale in support of six-time British Commonwealth champion Ray Minus Jr. For persons that want to

purchase shirts for the event as well, they can contact 1-242-465-2313 for pricing and additional information.

The women’s showdown will be sponsored by a number of local companies.

Companies will include the MOYSC, Ministry of Tourism, 100Jamz Group Companies, Nassau Guardian, Love 97, Cable Bahamas Sports, ZNS, EZ CAR Sales, Nirvana Beach, Bahamian Brewery & Beverage Co. Ltd., Nassau Agencies, Sun Time, Doc’s Pharmacy, Ron’s Radiator, Original Patties, Daina’s Guest House, Eddie Electric Co. Ltd., Heastie’s Services Station, and Battery and Tyre Specialists Ltd. Nathan Arnett, brand manager at Jimmy’s Wine and Spirits and Bahamian

Brewery, talked about why the company decided to sponsor the event.

“We came on board as a sponsor with Modelo primarily because [it] is a beer that is an international sponsor for boxing and UFC and on top of that we wanted to give back to Ray Minus Jr and we want to come on board with bringing awareness for ALS and other serious illnesses and injuries that come along with that,” Arnett said. He added that the former Bahamian champion fighter has given back and been a huge hero for the country and the company will give 100 percent of the profit to the four-time Bahamas bantamweight champion.

Early on in his career in the 1990s, Minus Jr. decided to open a club to

keep troubled young men away from gang violence, drugs and alcohol.

He and his former wife Michelle Munnings Minus had a club called the Champion Amateur Boxing Club which helped 280+ boys from inner city communities.

Despite his battle with the neurogenerative disease known as ALS, which causes persons to lose their ability to walk, talk and eventually breathe, Minus Jr has contributed a lot outside of his many boxing accolades to the Bahamian community and now it’s time for Bahamians to give back to the boxing legend by supporting the WBA’s all-female world title match.

The event will be sanctioned by The Bahamas Boxing Commission.

She dropped her first set of the tournament in the second, but turned it up in the third. The 2022 Wimbledon champion won 15 of 16 first-serve points and never faced a break point in the set.

“I served much better in the third,” Rybakina said on court. “I didn’t start that well in the beginning of the match, I was a bit slower than usual and here the conditions are not that easy for me. In the end, in the important moments I played well.” Rybakina and Swiatek are 1-1 against each other in their careers.

“In Australia, I just know that when I went to play against her, I had really nothing to lose. She’s number one and kind of pressure on her in that moment,” Rybakina said.

Arsenal loses in Europa League, Man United advances to QF

By KAREL JANICEK Associated Press

ARSENAL’s hopes for a European title ended when the Premier League leader was eliminated from the Europa League by Sporting Lisbon yesterday in a penalty shootout.

Lisbon reached the quarterfinals by prevailing 5-3 in the shootout at the Emirates Stadium after a 1-1 draw in regulation in the second leg of their roundof-16 encounter. The first leg ended 2-2.

Gabriel Martinelli failed to convert from the spot for Arsenal.

Meanwhile, Manchester United cruised into the quarterfinals after a 1-0 victory at Real Betis.

Arsenal dominated the extra time with playmaker Martin Ødegaard coming on as a substitute but Sporting goalkeeper Antonia Adán made some stunning saves to force the shootout.

Manuel Ugarte was sent off two minutes before the

end of extra time after picking his second yellow card.

Granit Xhaka gave Arsenal a first-half lead on a rebound to complete a flowing move by the hosts.

Martinelli had his effort on goal blocked by Adán but the ball came into Xhaka’s path for the Arsenal captain to curl it into the net from inside the area.

Pedro Gonçalves leveled the score on the hour to spark the visitors’ attack and force extra time.

Brazil striker Gabriel Jesus, who returned for Arsenal as a substitute in Sunday’s 3-0 win at Fulham in the Premier League for the first time since sustaining an injury during the World Cup, started for manager Mikel Arteta. Jesus produced some dangerous efforts but Adán denied him. The striker was substituted at halftime.

UNITED ADVANCES In Seville, Marcus Rashford produced a clinical finish in the 56th minute, finding the bottom corner

of the net with a low drive from outside the area to help United advance on a 5-1 aggregate score in the second-tier European competition.

Rashford’s 27th goal of the season came after the striker wasted several decent chances to put the visitors ahead at the Benito Villamarin stadium in Seville.

“Betis are a really good team, we saw that

against Real Madrid and Barcelona, but we beat them twice so I think we performed really well,” manager Erik ten Hag told BT Sport. “Second half, we were much better on the ball, keeping it in their half and then you create chances.”

United won 4-1 in the first leg at Old Trafford last week.

Following a 0-0 draw against Southampton in the

Premier League on Sunday, Ten Hag made four changes in his starting lineup with right winger Facundo Pellistri getting his first start for the club.

United withstood

Betis’ early pressure with Real’s 41-year-old captain Joaquín’s long-distance effort hitting the post 11 minutes into the game.

United won the Europa League in 2017.

EUROPA CONFERENCE

LEAGUE

West Ham outclassed

AEK Larnaca 4-0 in London. Jarrod Bowen struck twice in two minutes early in the second half to extend West Ham’s lead to 3-0 after Gianluca Scamacca’s opening goal in the first half.

Substitute Divin Mubama added the fourth to keep a perfect record in Europe this season.

Europa League semifinalists last season, a 6-0 aggregate victory sent the

Hammers to the quarterfinals of the third-tier European competition.

Lazio was eliminated by Dutch club AZ Alkmaar after losing 2-1 in both legs.

Fiorentina rallied to beat Turkey’s Sivasspor 4-1 to progress 5-1 on aggregate.

Sivasspor finished the home game with 10 after captain Hakan Arslan picked a red card.

Anderlecht had a 1-0 win at Real Sociedad for a 2-1 advancement while Nice was in command for a 4-1 aggregate victory after winning 3-1 at home over Sheriff.

Sweden’s Djurgarden lost 3-0 to Polish club Lech Poznan for a 5-0 aggregate elimination.

Basel won a penalty shootout 4-1 after the match against Slovan in Bratislava went to extra time after the two teams were 4-4 on aggregate.

On Wednesday, Gent advanced by beating Turkish club Istanbul Basaksehir 4-1.

BAHAMIAN and American athletes and coaches engaging in a symposium before the start of the Island Relays Bahamas Spring University Invitational in Grand Bahamaa this weekend.

ORGANISERS of First Class Promotions’ all-female boxing match in The Bahamas and Caribbean, set for 8pm on March 31 at the Kendal G.L. Isaacs Gymnasium.

MANCHESTER United’s Marcus Rashford speaks to Manchester United’s head coach Erik ten Hag after being substituted during the Europa League round of 16 second leg soccer match against Real Betis at the Benito Villamarin stadium in Seville, Spain, yesterday.

(AP Photo/Jose Breton)

SPORTS

Under-14 division created for High School Track & Field Nationals/CARIFTA Trials

By TENAJH SWEETING tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

With the CARIFTA Trials & High School National Track and Field Championships set to take place in a combined event on March 25-27, some parents criticised the organisers’ decision to remove the under-15 division.

The CARIFTA Trials and Nationals would usually take place as two separate track and field events but this year, due to financial complications, the Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Culture (MOYSC) and Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) made the decision to combine the events, making it the final track

event before April’s 50th CARIFTA Games.

Despite the decision to cut costs by having a single event, the BAAA president acknowledged that there were some complications that came with this decision.

Drumeco Archer, president of the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations, talked about one of the problems ahead of next weekend’s trials.

“The age of qualifying for the CARIFTA Games starts at the age of someone turning 14 or someone who is 14 within the CARIFTA year, so that creates a fundamental problem for us because if a child competes in the under-15 category, which is combined with the under-17 category,

that child runs the risk of not qualifying for the team because we expect all our athletes to compete in head-to-head competition,” Archer said. He said to come to a happy medium, they simply decided to create a new division called the under-14 division after removing the

PROVIDENCE BASKETBALL ASSOC. PLAYOFFS

Shockers top Mingoes

THE University of the Bahamas Mingoes men’s basketball team came back from down 10 points to force overtime against the Caro Construction Shockers but could not pull off the NPBA playoff win. Despite leading by as much as eight points and having to claw back from being down 10 points, the Mingoes could not pull off the New Providence Basketball Association win and lost 72-68 at The A.F. Adderley Gym.

The Shockers now lead the best-of-three series 1-0. The second game is set for Saturday.

Erquantae Edgecombe and Justin Burrows each contributed 17 points for the Mingoes in the loss.

Ricardo Taylor also scored 11 points for the Mingoes.

Burrows pulled down 11 rebounds and Theodore Grant had seven steals as well. Spurgeon Johnson led the Shockers with 18 points, William Rigby scored 16 and Jeron Smith and Dario McKenzie scored 12 each.

McKenzie also pulled down 15 rebounds for the Shockers.

The Mingoes led by as much as eight points off a Dave Lindsey rebound that converted into a fast break lay-up for Theodore Grant to put them up 34-26 with 1:23 to go in the second quarter.

The Shockers bounced back thiugh to tie the game at 41-41 just 20 seconds into the fourth quarter on a lay-up from Dominique Fernander.

Spurgeon Johnson capped a 13-3 run from the Shockers on two free throws to put them up 54-44 with 6:23 to go in regulation.

The Mingoes cut the lead down and forced a tie with 1.3 seconds to go at 62-62.

The Mingoes called a time out and were able to advance the ball into the front court.

Theodore Grant inbounded the ball and was able to get it close to the basket for the win.

SEE PAGE 12

Mets’ Díaz hurts knee as Puerto Rico tops Dominicans in WBC

MIAMI (AP) — New York Mets star closer Edwin Díaz injured his right knee celebrating a win Wednesday night that advanced Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic and eliminated the Dominican Republic.

Díaz was taken off the field in a wheelchair in Miami soon after pitching a perfect ninth inning to close out Puerto Rico’s 5-2 win over the Dominicans.

The Mets later tweeted that Díaz injured his knee and would undergo further tests yesterday. The Puerto Rican players were jumping together in the infield when Díaz collapsed to the ground, and he quickly reached for his right leg. Díaz was in tears and did not put any weight on the leg.

Díaz’s brother, Cincinnati pitcher Alexis Díaz, was

also crying as Edwin was taken away. Mets teammate and Puerto Rico shortstop Francisco Lindor stood nearby with his hands on his head.

Christian Vázquez homered in a four-run third inning as Puerto Rico advanced to the WBC quarterfinals to face Mexico today in Miami.

It’s just the second time ever that Dominican Republic didn’t make it past the first round (2009).

After Vázquez’s solo homer off starter Johnny Cueto, Vimael Machin, Martin Maldonado, Francisco Lindor and Kiké Hernandez hit four straight singles to make it 3-0. MJ

Melendez then grounded out on a play that allowed Lindor to score.

Cueto took the loss and was lifted before the end of the third after allowing four

hits, three runs and striking out two. Juan Soto made it 4-1 when he homered to deep centre field -- 448 feet -- off

Puerto Rico reliever Jovani Moran for his second home run of the tournament.

under 13 and 15 divisions. Archer added that the alternative to this “inherent” problem would be to have a single event for the CARIFTA Trials and High School Nationals, which is not feasible for the athletes or event organisers.

SEE PAGE 12

FIRST CLASS PROMOTIONS RETURNS AFTER 10YEAR HIATUS

By TENAJH SWEETING tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

FIRST Class Promotions will host the first all-female boxing match in The Bahamas and Caribbean at 8pm on Friday, March 31 at the Kendal G.L. Isaacs Gymnasium.

The Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture will work alongside First Class Promotions in an event that is set to honour and celebrate former Bahamian boxing champion Ray Minus Jr.

The all-female world title fight will also help to bring awareness to Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), which is a body-crippling condition the boxing legend has developed.

The World Boxing Association (WBA) world title fight will feature Toronto’s Lindsay Garbatt vs Las Vegas’ Jaimie “The Miracle” Mitchell in the 10-round main event.

In the 8-round co-main event, Simone Silva from San Palo, Brazil will take on O’Shea Jones from Philadelphia.

The boxing event will feature four female matchups on the night.

Michelle Minus, boxing matchmaker and promoter of First Class Promotions,

SEE PAGE 14

NFL free agency opens with Aaron Rodgers, other QBs on the move

By ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer

AFTER a flurry of moves in the two days ahead of the official start of the NFL free agency period, Aaron Rodgers made the biggest news Wednesday by announcing his intention to play for the New York Jets.

Several more players switched teams, others are staying put and a few stars, including Ezekiel Elliott, will be looking for new homes in 2023.

But Rodgers is the dominant story of the offseason, and the fourtime AP NFL MVP cleared things up during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” on YouTube and Sirius XM a few hours before the

league year started at 4 p.m. EDT.

Rodgers said the Packers assured him after the season they wanted him to return, but things changed after he emerged from a five-day darkness retreat.

He said he was told by people, mostly players on other teams, that the Packers shopped him around because they want to move on and make 2020 first-round draft pick Jordan Love their starting quarterback.

Rodgers said he entered the retreat “90% retiring, 10% playing” but he has since made a decision to play this season.

“At this point, as I sit here, I think since Friday, I’ve made it clear that my

FRIDAY, MARCH 17, 2023

PUERTO Rico pitcher Edwin Diaz (39) is helped by team pitching coach Ricky Bones and medical staff after a World Baseball Classic game against the Dominican Republic Wednesday in Miami. (David Santiago/Miami Herald via AP)

UNIVERSITY of The Bahamas Mingoes guard Delano Armbrister goes to the basket for a layup as Caro Construction Shockers guard Horris McKenzie tries to block him in the first game of their best-of-three NPBA division one playoff series.

Photo: UB ATHLETICS

THE CARIFTA Trials and High School National Track and Field Championships will take place in a combined event this year.