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VOLUME:115 No.82, MARCH 20TH, 2018

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HEALTH: THREE-TIME CANCER SURVIVOR INSPIRES NEW TREATMENT

GAME CHANGER Miss age deadline and you’ll be permanent resident NOT citizen

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net PEOPLE born to foreign parents in The Bahamas but who fail to apply for citizenship by age 19 as allowed by law will only be granted permanent residency with a right to work, Immigration Minister Brent Symonette, pictured, announced yesterday.

“So let’s make sure we have a distinction, persons born in The Bahamas, lived here all their lives, applied between 18 and 19 will be considered under the constitutional entitlement for citizenship as to whether or not they are entitled

citizenship,” he said while foreshadowing proposed changes to Immigration law to come this year.

“Those who do not apply in time will be considered and if applicable will be granted permanent residency with the right to work. There are obviously other aspects and rules that apply in terms of length of stay and record and so on so forth.”

Currently the constitution says that people born in The Bahamas to married nonBahamian parents may apply for Bahamian citizenship between their 18th and 19th birthday.

SEE PAGE SIX

FIRST DA HOUSE BURNED DOWN, NOW CENTIPEDE BITE ME

CAT Island, Rum Cay and San Salvador MP Philip “Brave” Davis did not authorise controversial payments to Nassau Island Development (NID), the contractor for the multimillion dollar Gladstone Road Waste Water Treatment Plant (GRWWTP) that is unfinished despite a 91 percent cost overrun, Works Minister Desmond Bannister said in the House of Assembly yesterday.

Auditor EY, in its report on the Water and Sewerage Corporation (WSC) tabled in parliament almost two

weeks ago, revealed two unusual payments were ordered for the company in 2014 and 2016 despite considerable objections from senior WSC officials.

The GRWWTP project was one of two that persisted after senior officials sought the cancellation of their contracts; the other project involved Treasure Coast Development and Construction (TCC) in Eleuthera which worked to create water storage tanks at the Eleuthera Naval Base.

Mr Bannister said yesterday: “No Bahamian should overlook the fact that so far SEE PAGE SEVEN

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

GRAND BAHAMA police seized $1m in cash and a large quantity of suspected marijuana and hashish in two separate raids yesterday.

The cash was found by Drug Enforcement Unit officers shortly after midnight on Monday as they searched a South Bahama residence. The suspected drugs were found in the ceiling of an apartment on the same street some three hours later.

Assistant Superintendent of Police Terecita Pinder said: “Officers of the Drug Enforcement Unit and Rapid Response Unit, while armed with a search warrant went to a residence on Hampshire Drive, South Bahamia and discovered inside that residence over one million dollars in US currency. No arrest was made in this matter and police are actively investigating.”

SEE PAGE THREE

EU DEMANDING OFFSHORE FIRMS FILE REPORTS

DAVIS’ HANDS CLEAN ON WATER PROJECTS

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

POLICE RAID UNCOVERS $1M IN CASH

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

STREET Philosopher Locksley “Potcake” Thompson pictured during his interview with The Tribune yesterday following the fire at his home. He has raised just $350 of the $10,000 he needs to repair his home and has had to sleep outside, where he has been bitten by centipedes. See the full story on page nine.

Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

THE Deputy Prime Minister yesterday warned that “all” International Business Companies may have to submit annual accounts if The Bahamas is to escape Europe’s “blacklist”.

KP Turnquest’s statement, in response to Tribune Business questions, raised immediate fears among financial services practitioners that the “beauty” of IBCs may be lost, given that such reporting requirements would eliminate the advantages associated with using them.

One executive, speaking on condition of anonymity, said such a move risked a repeat of the post-2000 “blacklisting” by the Financial Action Task Force.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

BETHEL ORDERS PROBE ON ‘LIMBO’ PRISONER

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net AFFIDAVITS filed to petition for the release of 42-year-old Alfairs Agregory Higgs - who has been jailed for nearly four years without charge - state the mentally ill man has begun to lose track of time.

Mr Higgs is a schizophrenic, according to relatives, who say he was on medication before he was

ALFAIRS AGREGORY HIGGS arrested by police for disorderly behaviour in 2015

and has been imprisoned ever since without being charged.

His family now fear his incarceration has taken an “irreversible physical and mental toll on him”.

Attorney General Carl Bethel yesterday told The Tribune his office was “aggressively investigating” the matter along with the Ministry of National Security.

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

SEE PAGE SIX

A BLIND LOVE

SEE PAGE EIGHT

PAGE 2, Tuesday, March 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

TAXI DRIVERS FEAR BEING ‘SQUEEZED OUT’ OF INDUSTRY

BY DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

TAXICAB drivers in Grand Bahama gathered at the Road Traffic Department (RTD) on Monday fed up over alleged unfair practices they claim are going on at the harbour.

The group assembled at the National Insurance Building in Freeport around 9.30am where they expressed their frustration over the illegal soliciting of cruise passengers by tour operators.

Although the protest was not sanctioned by the union, taxicab driver Wayne Rolle said they are fed up and want answers from Road Traffic officials.

“This initiative today is organised by the taxi drivers, not the union; we are gathered here to get answers as to why so many unfair practices are going on at the harbour,” he said.

Mr Rolle said cab drivers are calling on Road Traffic officials to monitor the activities at the harbour.

“We had a meeting with Ms Charmaine Fernander at RTD and she was at a loss as to what is going on out there.

She did not know about the soliciting going on.

“If the activity count on the boat is 160, at the end of the day the tour operators carry 1,000 passengers, sometimes even more than that, and we want Road Traffic to monitor that,” he said.

“The tour operators are soliciting on the ground.

They go in there with no pick-ups and they solicit all day on the ground.”

According to law, all prearranged transportation must be booked 24 hours in advance of the ship’s arrival in port.

A SMALL number of taxicab drivers in Grand Bahama gathered at the Road Traffic Department on Monday to express their frustration over alleged unfair practices involving tour operators at Freeport Harbour. Wayne Rolle, right, is seen leaving after filing complaint.

Photos: Vandyke Hepburn Taxicab drivers complained they are being squeezed out of the transportation business.

According to Mr Rolle, the shipping companies are also acquiring mini-vans which they operate at the harbour.

Although a moratorium has been imposed on private charters and taxi franchise since 1992, Mr Rolle claims some tour operators are purchasing buses bonded (duty-free) and painting the name on the side and operating them without a franchise.

“Taxi drivers can’t do that, so they should not do it as a tour operator,” said Mr Rolle.

Mr Rolle met with Ms Charmaine Fernander at the Road Traffic and filed a complaint.

The Grand Bahama Taxicab Union and its members have met with Minister of Transport Frankie Campbell about the issues plaguing them at the harbour, airport, and hotels.

Mr Rolle said that tour operators continue to move about 80 percent of the

visitors at the harbour.

Despite a promise made publicly by former Prime Minister Perry Christie of implementing a 50/50 share between cab drivers and tour operators, he failed to deliver on that pledge.

Mr Rolle said the number of passenger cab drivers move is getting smaller every day. “We met with the minister (Campbell), and he said what was going on was illegal; we met with Road Traffic controller, and he said it was illegal and they will stop it; every day it is getting worse,” he complained.

The Tribune attempted to contact Ms Fernander but calls placed to Road Traffic were not answered up to press time.

David Jones, president of the GBTU, said that while the action was not sanctioned by the union, taxicab drivers are very frustrated with the situation at the harbour in Grand Bahama.

“We have already put forth the issues to both governments, and so the cab drivers are tired of waiting for answers,” he said.

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, March 20, 2018, PAGE 3

Ambassador to EU proposal in wake of blacklisting

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net IN THE aftermath of The Bahamas’ blacklisting by the European Union for being a tax haven, Financial Services Minister Brent Symonette says it might be time for The Bahamas to consider appointing an ambassador to the EU to increase dialogue on matters concerning this country.

The St Anne’s MP said he intended to propose the ambassadorship to Cabinet.

This appointment would most likely also play a role when it comes to the Bahamas’ accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), he said.

Speaking in the House of Assembly yesterday, Mr Symonette said while the government remains hopeful the blacklisting will be short lived, the Minnis administration committed during talks in Brussels, Belgium last week to changing its legal and regulatory framework. This will also include additional accounting and reporting requirements on a timeline of year’s end.

However, he said The Bahamas remains challenged by global integration

FINANCIAL Services Minister Brent Symonette.

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff and international standards alongside a goal post from international bodies which keeps shifting.

Despite this, the minister said the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has rated The Bahamas as “largely compliant”.

“In December of 2017, The Bahamas signed the OECD’s convention of multilateral administrative assistance in tax matters and multilateral competent authority agreement also in December 2017. The Bahamas became a member of

the inclusive framework for the implementation of Base Erosion and Profit Shifting,” Mr Symonette said yesterday during his contribution to the mid-year budget debate.

“When the administration changed it was pressure on The Bahamas to execute these agreements and the former administration took a different approach seeking bilateral agreements and time basically ran out.

“So when we came to government, the FNM administration took the view to sign on to the

mutual administrative assistance in tax matters convention and also the competent authority and also BEPS. We believed at that time and we still believe that signing on to these initiatives sends a loud and clear message to international counterparts that The Bahamas is a co-operative jurisdiction that is very serious about its commitment to adhering to and implementing the international standards relative to tax cooperation and compliance. We sent that very clear message.

Yet and having sent that message, we find ourselves defending our position once again.”

Speaking regarding his and Finance Minister Peter Turnquest’s trip to Brussels in an attempt to ward off the blacklisting, the St Anne’s MP noted that the EU made its decision in the absence reviewing The Bahamas’ case against its delisting.

“We were told that there was not enough time for the council to review the information presented before taking their position and hence we know from the deputy prime minister’s press release a decision was taken without discussion.

“Speaker, notwithstanding the positive work already undertaken we have made a high level commitment to discuss and address the concerns of the code of conduct by the end of 2018 and to ensure that The Bahamas is delisted as soon as possible.

“We met Wednesday with the technical group of OECD and the code of conduct group and went over the applications that we made, letters we have written and everything else like that.”

He also said: “When we were there we committed to the 2018 deadline which we had always committed to in our correspondence back and forth and this was inclusive of changes to our legal and regulatory frame work and additional accounting and reporting requirements.

“The work going forward will include changes to our legal and regulatory framework and additional accounting and reporting obligations.”

He said the government had begun some of these changes well before the delisting with legislation now before the House and other bills in the works.

In addition, Mr Symonette said the government

produced for the EU a comprehensive timetable that includes consultation of the industry and draft legislation to be laid at Parliament in short order.

The timetable he said is reflective of the recent meeting with the code of conduct group and member states.

“So we detailed what we’ll do in March, which is continue the talking points with the OECD. In April we will evaluate and address these concerns. In June we’ll be reviewing the concerns and in July we’ll publish, obviously have consultations with the stakeholders on any potential draft legislation or changes in regulatory framework for additional accounting or reporting requirements and the list goes on for subsequent months.”

The OECD, Mr Symonette said, seemed comfortable with this schedule.

He further seemed to suggest that had the previous administration acted appropriately, The Bahamas would not have been blacklisted as non-compliant in the face of changing tax regulations from international bodies.

DRUG CHARGE DROPPED AFTER HUSBAND’S PLEA TO MAGISTRATE

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

A POLICE prosecutor yesterday withdrew a drug charge against a woman whose husband previously begged and pleaded with the deputy chief magistrate to have her acquitted of the crime.

Assistant Superintendent Clifford Daxon withdrew the single count of possession of dangerous drugs with intent to supply against Nickya Demeritte, thus discharging her from custody.

The withdrawal was made pursuant to section 230 2(b)2 of the Criminal Procedure Code, ASP Daxon said.

Demeritte had spent the weekend on remand at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BDCS) after pleading not guilty to being found in possession of $20,000 worth of marijuana with intent to supply at her residence on March 15.

Prior to her being remanded, Demeritte’s husband of less than 90 days, 46-year-old Shorn Munroe, plead guilty to the charge and beseeched Deputy Chief Magistrate Subusola Swain to let his wife go free as he wanted to take “full responsibility” for the crime.

Munroe, a contractor, expressed how sorry he was for his actions, but maintained his willingness to shoulder the weight of the punishment by himself, and that he did not want his wife to lose her government job as a result of his actions.

Their attorney, Bernard Ferguson, also tried to get ASP Daxon to withdraw the charge against the 36-year-old newly-wed.

However, Dep. Chief Magistrate Swain informed Munroe, and consequently his wife, that only the prosecution could withdraw the charges against either of them. And when the requests were directed at ASP Daxon, the senior officer ultimately said he would need more time to come to a more informed decision, thus resulting in her weekend stay at the BDCS. The two were arraigned in connection with the recovery of 20 pounds of marijuana from their residence on Venice Bay Boulevard off Bacardi Road last week.

According to a summary of the facts, sometime around 6:30am on the day in question, a team of officers, acting on intelligence and armed with a search warrant, proceeded to a green trimmed white

POLICE RAID UNCOVERS $1M IN CASH from page one She continued: “In the second incident shortly after 3am on the same date, Officers of the Drug Enforcement Unit and Rapid Response Unit, while armed with a search warrant, went to an apartment on Hampshire Drive, South Bahamia and discovered hidden in the ceiling a duffle bag containing a large quantity of suspected marijuana and suspected hashish.”

Two Bahamian men were arrested in connection with the drug seizures.

The estimated weight of hashish seized is 9.80lbs and has a street value of $20,000, according to

ASP Pinder.

The estimated weight of suspected marijuana seized is 45.3lbs and it has a street value of over $45,000.

Meanwhile, police in North Bimini were tipped off to the discovery of a bag containing two guns and ammunition in a cemetery.

Police discovered two .9mm pistols, 51 live rounds of ammunition, and four magazines at the Northern Public Cemetery in Porgy Bay. No arrests were made.

Anyone with information that may assist ongoing police investigations are asked to call 919 or Crime Stoppers at 328-TIPS (8477) in New Providence, and 1-242-300-8477 in the Family Islands.

two-storey complex located off Venice Bay Boulevard.

Upon arrival officers secured the perimeter of the complex and knocked on door #1. They verbally identified themselves as police officers. At that time, officers heard a shuffling sound coming from inside the complex. Then, officers situated at the rear of the building, saw Munroe looking out of a door on the rear balcony.

Officers used flashlights and observed Munroe open the balcony door and throw a dark coloured travel bag over the fence into a bushy area. Shorn subsequently came to the front door and opened it.

After officers presented the search warrant to both Shorn and his wife, and identified themselves, a search was conducted of the residence. Officers subsequently found a brown, homemade cigarette which was found to contain a quantity of suspected marijuana. Both Shorn and Demeritte were arrested and cautioned in connection with that find.

Oiffcers then conducted a search of a bathroom and found in plain view on the countertop a clear Ziploc package with a quantity of suspected marijuana. The two were further cautioned on that find.

Officers then took both defendants to the bushy area at the rear of the residence where they had seen Munroe throw the travel bag and conducted a search of that area. The officers consequently found a blue Travel Star bag with a baggage claim tag from Copa Airlines with the name Shorn Munroe on it.

It was examined and found to contain one tantaped package and a white garbage bag with 22 clear vacuum sealed packages with suspected marijuana inside. The couple was further cautioned in connection with that third find.

While under caution, however, Munroe said: “Man officer, you all done got me. Please don’t lock my wife up she ain’t had nothing to do with this. I won’t waste you all time.

I will plead guilty for this

marijuana.”

Both Munroe and Demeritte were taken to the Carmichael Road Police Station and booked in. Then, while at the Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU), Munroe admitted all knowledge, custody and control of the drugs in question.

His wife, however, denied ownership.

Officers also recorded a statement under caution from Munroe where he admitted to being in possession of the drugs.

On Friday, Mr Ferguson said in his plea in mitigation that his client did not waste the court’s time by pleading guilty to possessing the drugs in question, which Mr Ferguson submitted was borne out of Munroe’s addiction to marijuana.

Mr Ferguson further submitted that if the court considered being lenient, his client would be prepared to kick his habit for good. Thus, he asked that the deputy chief magistrate not impose a custodial sentence, but a fine instead.

When questioned by Dep Chief Magistrate Swain

if he had any children, Munroe said he has eight children by five mothers, some of whom are in the United States. He also said he is a contractor by profession, while his wife works at Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre.

Munroe then insisted that he does not sell drugs, and has no need to as he owns a “flourishing business”, and that he works and supports his wife and all of his children. However, he admitted that he does have a smoking problem.

He claimed he was commissioned to hold the bag of drugs by a guy for a period of time, after which he said he was to receive two pounds of the marijuana for his personal consumption.

According to him, the bag wasn’t even in his possession for 24 good hours.

However, Shorn was ultimately given what the deputy chief magistrate said is a very lenient sentence: one year in prison and a $15,000 fine. Should he default on the payment, he will serve an additional year in prison.

PAGE 4, Tuesday, March 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

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Republicans cling to Trump’s sinking ship LAST week was another tumultuous one for Donald Trump and his struggling American presidential administration.

He lost one of his most sensible cabinet secretaries in casually dismissing Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State. Tillerson once reportedly described Trump as a moron. The expected replacement, Mike Pompeo, a former Kansas Tea Party stalwart from one of America’s most isolationist states, promises little more than an obsequious echo of Trump’s worst, most ignorant impulses on international affairs.

Meanwhile, in a conservative southwest Pennsylvania congressional district long comfortably in Republican hands, a special election was held Tuesday to fill a vacancy created when the GOP incumbent, a steadfast foe of abortion rights, was caught encouraging his lover to have an abortion. Eventually, he decided it was best to resign. There was apparently no escaping his phenomenal hypocrisy.

Trump, superficially complacent, isolated and wilfully ignorant as usual, waded right into this bi-election with two campaign rallies to support a sagging Republican nominee who could do little but proclaim his allegiance to Trump as justification for voter support.

Trump thus made the election a mandate on his presidency.

Then the Democratic candidate won.

What could be politically wrong or concerning with this picture for the GOP? If one listens to the pathetic chorus of congressional Republicans, the answer is little or nothing is wrong. It is discouragingly clear that at least in the House of Representatives, GOP politicians have concluded their own best personal chance of surviving what may be a November bloodbath for their party is to tie their election chances to Trump.

But history shows that when a president’s popularity dips below 50 percent, his party really receives an epic beating.

Trump’s current numbers are around 40 percent. So a debacle looms for Republicans in congress.

At the same time, as we have reported, Trump cannot stop administering self-inflicted wounds to his sagging administration. His ill-advised steel and aluminium tariffs, continuing vulnerability to special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russian election-meddling investigation and the lingering scandal over Trump’s lawyer’s cover up of his

affair with a porn actress have all damaged him.

Congressional GOP politicians are generally bright and well educated. Why would they continue to support an irrational and unpopular president? And if they are not capable of resisting him or recognising the national interest in doing so, how did they get elected in the first place?

The answer to the first question is simple. Despite his numerous gaffes, errors and low ratings, Trump remains much more popular with the Republican base than are GOP members of Congress. The lawmakers recognise this, and have decided to tie their fate to Trump’s.

One easy but not inaccurate answer to the second question is gerrymandering.

An arcane term whose origin is traced to a Massachusetts politician over 200 years ago, gerrymandering occurs when a state legislature draws boundaries for federal congressional districts to benefit its own party members. By isolating and marginalising supporters of the opposing party, politicians can stack the political deck to benefit allies. This often results in bizarre electoral geography whose only obvious purpose is political.

An often-cited example is an eastern Pennsylvania district resembling a cartoon picture of “Goofy kicking Donald Duck” after the Republican legislature distorted political boundaries to favour future GOP candidates. As the Washington Post reported, the district spanned parts of five counties and at its narrowest point was only as wide as the parking lot behind a seafood restaurant.

Republicans have cleverly and effectively worked to take control of state legislatures around the country during the last 20 years, resulting in the anomaly of GOP control of a solid majority of them despite winning less than 50 percent of votes in statewide elections.

Those state legislatures, especially after the 2010 census and bi-elections provided a golden opportunity to do so, have frequently behaved so egregiously that a North Carolina gerrymandered redistricting case has now come before the US Supreme Court.

The district won last week by a Democrat so publicly opposed by Trump will not exist in November, when new boundaries approved by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court will restore fairness to the election. It’s more bad news for Trump and his band of spineless congressional lemmings.

Oban Energies deal and the rule of law EDITOR, The Tribune.

THE Bahamas National Trust has come out strongly against the Oban Energies deal the Government has signed citing potential environmental damage to the nearby National Parks.

Their concerns are reasonable and coming from the country’s most important environmental group add weight to the controversy surrounding this arrangement.

But the main reason to reject the deal is more fundamental than potential environmental fall out. The

Rule of Law comes to mind.

Signing someone else’s name to a document as reported, otherwise known as forgery, is sufficient evidence to reject the deal in and of itself.

After all the confusion the Government now claims the signature was forged on a “ceremonial document”. The signature remains forgery in that case too, however.

Not to mention all the, shall we say, giveaways and inconsistencies contained in the “official document” tabled in Parliament.

While the country’s

economy remains on the ropes with few prospects in sight, desperation to get something done is a real political phenomenon, but one cannot fathom that the Government and its Parliament - the elected body of rule makers keeping us all in check - could in all conscience allow this charade to continue.

This is not to say some future arrangement cannot be made but this whole sordid affair needs a reset.

RICK LOWE Nassau,

March 18, 2018.

FNM MP warning EDITOR, The Tribune.

Re: FNM MP Warns: People Are Angry.

The Tribune, March 14, 2018.

THIS outspoken politician could not be more accurate in his warning assessment of the FNM

“disconnect” with angry voters.

It looks as if FNM arrogance, with which we are becoming more and more familiar, is already firmly entrenched (only we know what’s best and will do as we like).

They have forgotten that the FNM did not so

much win the last election, it’s that the arrogant PLP bent over backwards to ensure their own loss at the hands of angry voters!

KEN W KNOWLES, MD Nassau, March 15, 2018.

Heroes and heroines EDITOR, The Tribune.

THANK you for affording me the space to recognise some real heroes and heroines. The proprietors and caregivers at homes for the elderly and orphans throughout the country… having visited several of these homes on a regular basis I am moved by the dedication and compassion of these caring persons.

Unfortunately a lot of us do not appreciate the work being done in these homes.

Most of these homes are operated independently and funded by loved ones of the residents with minimal support from the government, In most cases the main contribution is the monthly pensions from NIB. It is noted that it cost the government thousands of dollars a year for each prisoner that is behind bars.

We are talking about young healthy men and women. Can you imagine the cost for each elderly and fragile person in these homes, seniors that have to be looked after 24/7? Folks that have to be cared for as we do a newborn baby.

They have to be fed and given a bath three/four/ five times a day, sometimes more because the majority of them are in sanitary undergarments.

While the majority of residents in these homes are placed there by relatives who love and care about them, but lack the means and ways required to take care of them.

These relatives make every effort to ensure their loved ones are placed in homes where they will be looked after around the clock. They spend quality time with them at every opportunity, bathing and feeding them daily.

Paying for their care while hurting to know they can’t do more. But in some cases there are folks who have been abandoned completely.

This is where NIB comes in. The truth be told the pearls most neglected are the ones whose relatives are in position to take care of them. I know some of

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net us are thinking that some children turn their backs on parents because of the way they were treated while young. But are they taking into consideration the circumstances surrounding the situation. No sane parent sets out to deliberately to neglect their child.

Unfortunately some people are caught up in drugs and alcohol that catapults them into a downward spiral which causes them to lose control. Not only elderly are in these homes there are also orphans, some severely handicapped from birth who can do absolutely nothing for themselves. They too are left there by uncaring families. What about them, besides being born the way they are who did they hurt?

The emergency hostel for children, last time I visited had 38 children some handicapped. What about them?

I would like to pause right here and say thank you and congratulations to the many families who have not turned their backs on their elderly and handicapped loved ones and to the many donors that contributes on a regular basis in making lives better for folks in the homes. God bless you.

Every day on our streets you see disheveled persons begging a little charity and when they approach our car we roll up the glass. Has it ever occurred to us that by giving them a little of the change in your ashtray once in a while you are giving them hope and one day they might be able to repay you? Well maybe not them, but our Heavenly Father who said the least you do unto them you do unto me. Are we looking at the bigger picture? Every day, some youth is taken before the magistrate charged with various degrees of crime.

Parents spend sleepless nights worrying about where their child might be.

Boys are sleeping in abandoned cars because they were locked out of their homes at night for staying

out late. Many of them turn to gangs where they are welcomed.

“People don’t you understand the child needs a helping hand or some day he is going to grow up to be an angry young man.”

Teenage girls evicted from home because they got pregnant. What are to become of them? Roberta Flack talked about them in Trade Winds. “Young men of restless breed looking for a fight, young girls soon to become street walkers in the night. Children of rich and poor searching for the truth and if they don’t find i, God help tomorrow”.

The young man you refused to let into the house is now standing in front of the judge or dead.The pregnant girl is out selling her body for a hit. Her children the oldest four is left to look after his younger siblings three and two. The beggar you did not give a little spare change is armed and about to break into your home. What are you going to do? A sad fact is that there are many widows and orphans in The Bahamas who are left to fend for themselves. But what a lot of us have forgotten is that we are mandated

by God to have an active role in providing for the underprivileged, it is our Christian duty, relatives or not.

James 1:27 says,”Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father is this:to visit orphans and widows in their afflictions.

Special thanks to Minister Butler at Unity House, Ms Ferguson at the Hostel, Deacon Sister Moxey at Pats home for the elderly, Reverend Kendal at Good Samaritan, Nurse Rodgers at Persis Rodgers at her home for the aged, Nurse Bain at A&A Comfort Care, Dr Iilonka at Rebecca House, the Ranfurly Home, and others for the wonderful job they are doing in caring for the elderly, the orphans and the underprivileged. They are the real heroes and heroines of our time.

TP Nassau, March 17, 2018.

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, March 20, 2018, PAGE 5

Office of the Spouse plan is approved by Cabinet

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net THE proposed Office of the Spouse of the Prime Minister has been approved

by Cabinet, with Patricia Minnis expected to take up a non-paying post alongside a clerical staff member “in a few short weeks”.

Foreign Affairs Minister Darren Henfield announced during his mid-year budget speech yesterday the office will operate out of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Tribune reported in December that Patricia Minnis, the wife of Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis, pushed for the office last year in a bid to raise the profile of women leadership in the country.

She made the announcement at a luncheon hosted for spouses of senior government officials, revealing at the time that she had submitted a proposal for the office to cabinet.

Yesterday, Mr Henfield said Cabinet decided on the proposal several weeks ago, adding Dr Minnis recused himself from the meeting when the matter was raised.

Mrs Minnis will not receive a salary for her new role, he said; however, the office will host her and just one other employee, a “clerical worker” who will assist her in her duties.

That person will be transferred to her office from another department within his ministry, he said.

In addition, Mrs Minnis will receive the benefits typically given to government officials when they are travelling abroad to represent the Bahamas, Mr Henfield said, including a foreign service representative.

Critics yesterday observed that in some ways the Office of the Spouse overlaps with the Ministry of Social Services, particularly the Department of Gender and Family Affairs which evolved from the Bureau of Women’s Affairs to focus on families more broadly.

When former Social Services Minister Melanie Griffin announced the

PATRICIA MINNIS, who opened the Instinct II: From Darkness to Light art exhibition at Bahama Mar on Friday. The show features the works of Nadine Seymour-Munroe, Ana-Lisa Wells, Chantal Bethel, Claudette Dean, Jessica Colebrooke, Leanne Russell, Lillian Blades, Lisa Codella, Sue Bennett-Williams and Sue Katz. Mrs Minnis is expected to take up a non-paying post as the Spouse of the Prime Minister within weeks.

Photos: Peter Ramsay/BIS evolution of that department in 2016, she said its creation was consistent with United Nations’ sustainable goals.

Yesterday, Mr Henfield said the Office of the Spouse “will focus on the health and well-being of women, girls and adolescents, as enunciated with respect to general equality in goal five of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development, adopted at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in September of 2015.”

He said: “It is our view that the weight of that office––which will engage in the forum of First Ladies and Spouses of the Region––will help to bring more focus to issues such as promoting the health and well-being of adolescents in the Caribbean and reducing adolescent pregnancy; expounding on the prevention of various forms of cancer that are prevalent

among women; encouraging the elimination of mother-to-child transmission of HIV and congenital syphilis in the region, and more.”

Mr Henfield mentioned that Mrs Minnis addressed the First Ladies and Spouses of CARICOM forum in Belize last September during the launch of the Spouses of Caribbean Leaders Action Network (SCLAN).

“Just recently, in Haiti, Mrs Patricia Minnis also participated in an event with school children of that country at the invitation of the First Lady of Haiti, Martine Etienne Joseph,” he said. “The prime minister’s spouse will receive no pay for her efforts in this regard, but will simply be supported by my ministry as she engages with CAWAC Action Group and the CARICOM Secretariat, and various United Nations agencies and others.”

EXTRA PHARMACHEM INVESTMENT REVEALED DURING PM TOUR

BY DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net THE expansion project at Pharmachem Technologies in Freeport has significantly exceeded its original investment cost by some $60m and is now estimated to be around $180m.

President Pietro Steffanutti took Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis on a tour of the facility on Friday.

It was his first visit to the plant since he took office last May. The project – commencing under the former Christie administration had been pegged at around $120m but during Friday’s briefing, Pharmachem officials revealed that it had changed significantly.

The company had also initially forecasted an injection of some $47m into the local economy, but are now projecting to spend over $100m, with some $18m already spent locally.

Dr Minnis, along with Minister of State for Grand Bahama Senator Kwasi Thompson, and four Grand Bahama MPs, including Michael Pintard, Minister of Youth Sports and Culture; Pakesia Parker Edgecombe, parliamentary secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister; Iram Lewis, parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Public Works, and Senator Jasmine Darius. Rev Frederick McAlpine, the MP for Pineridge, was not present.

Prime Minister Minnis was impressed with the work Pharmachem is doing in the global fight against HIV/AIDS worldwide.

The company currently manufactures the active ingredient of an anti-retroviral drug that is used to treat some one million HIV/ AIDS patients around the world. They are constructing a new multi-product facility that will allow Pharmachem to manufacture two or three other drugs.

Dr Minnis said: “What we see here were very impressive; they are involved in the manufacture of the active ingredient of a particular drug but will be adding to that an additional two drugs which show how important they are…”

He commended the staff for doing an “excellent work” at Pharmachem.

“As small as we are in The Bahamas, the work done here by Bahamians is for the supply of medication to about one million throughout the world - that is very significant. And with the additional two drugs, it is a matter of time before The Bahamas provides medication in excess to two million – we are making a great contribution to health care throughout the world,” he said.

During his tour of the facility, Dr Minnis was also very impressed with the level of safety at the Pharmachem.

“What is amazing is the amount of emphasis they place on safety. While touring, I noticed an ambulance on the compound… And I am certain (with the safety measures in place here) there would probably be no accidents.”

Dr Minnis believes the expansion by Pharmachem is a demonstration of their confidence in the Bahamian economy.

He noted that the investment of $180m would result in an additional 80 jobs for Bahamians when the new

facility is built.

“We are impressed with what we see here, and we will continue to do all we

can as the government to ensure the smooth running and construction of the facility that would help

increase employment.”

The plant is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.

PAGE 6, Tuesday, March 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

Game changer from page one The addition of a specific designation such as permanent residency if this is not done would be a new addition to law.

Mr Symonette said issues relating to children born outside of the country to Bahamian women married to foreign men, and children born to single Bahamian men will also need to be addressed.

Insisting impending amendments to the Immigration Act have nothing to do with any ongoing case in the court, Mr Symonette said the changes are needed largely because the laws

have not changed much since 1973, The Bahamas’ year of independence.

He did not mention the ongoing Jean Rony JeanCharles matter, which is now before the Court of Appeal. However, Mr JeanCharles’ situation falls into the minister’s description of persons who will not be granted citizenship once the immigration laws are amended.

“What we need to do now, Mr Speaker, is look at the law as it exists and the government is committed to filling the office of law reform commissioner and will shortly be appointing a person to hold that office.

That is obviously in the

Office of the Attorney General and will be as the name attributes looking at law reform, so immigration will be one of those issues (and) financial services might be another as we move forward,” he said earlier in his presentation to the House of Assembly.

“So I will foreshadow today there will be amendments to the immigration rules as we go forth.

“This is a discussion and I have mentioned it on the floor many times. It is time to have this discussion, which is not reactionary to lawsuits that are happening over there. It’s something I’ve been foreshadowing for a long time because

the immigration rules in our country started with independence essentially in 1973 and have not been drastically overhauled in the 40-odd years since independence.

“There are some drafts currently before Cabinet that we are looking at dealing with the whole question of harbouring of illegal immigrants. There is the whole question of increasing the fines and like I said these are basically before Cabinet, but I do them by way of foreshadowing what may happen. The question of increasing offences for harbouring /employing persons who are here illegally and also dealing

with the whole question of repatriation and so forth, so there will be changes to the Immigration Act and we hope to discuss those in Cabinet and if agreed to they will be laid before Parliament in short order.”

Regarding repatriations, Mr Symonette said these have increased during this Free National Movement’s term in office.

These are mostly regarding repatriations of undocumented persons with no legitimate claim to immigration status in The Bahamas and the regulation of immigration status to non-Bahamian with legitimate claims.

He also said the numbers

of Haitian immigrants repatriated between 1992 and 2002 and between 2007 and 2012 were demonstratively high.

For this year alone there have been 571 Haitians sent back to their homes.

In 2017 there were 5,468 repatriations, the majority of these migrants were also from Haiti with 4393 sent home.

In addition, Mr Symonette said fees will increase.

He did not roll out the full slate of fee changes but said work permit fees will increase from $1,000 to $2,000 and penalties for harbouring illegals are also expected to become more stringent.

BETHEL ORDERS PROBE ON ‘LIMBO’ PRISONER

from page one

Callenders & Co attorney Crispin Hall, and Mr Higgs’ sister Candace Mills yesterday filed writs of habeas corpus on his behalf, alleging Mr Higgs’ constitutional rights are being violated every day he remains in detention.

Mr Hall said: “This is a prime example of why we should honour and respect the rule of law within the country. When we brought those cases with the long term Carmichael Road Detention Centre detainees there was some outrage by some segments of society, where the persons said, ‘oh, they were of Haitian descent’.

“Here we have it a man born in West End, within the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, his father is

Bahamian man, can be held and imprisoned unlawfully.

There is a complete breakdown within the structure of rule of law in the country,” he continued, “there is a breakdown in the respect for rule of law and due process within the country and it creates an environment for situations like this to happen.”

Mr Higgs was born to Turks Islander Linda Ellen Higgs and a Bahamian man on December 2, 1975.

His birth registration was included in a supporting affidavit. His father is not listed on his birth certificate; however, the Tribune has spoken with Mr Higgs’ father and withheld his name due to his profession.

Mr Higgs’ father made an urgent appeal for his son to be released.

It is alleged Mr Higgs’ arrest stemmed from

growing frustration as he tried to regularize his status at the Immigration Department, and as such, he was arrested with a number of identification documents like his birth certificate and an expired travel document.

Ms Mills’ affidavit read: “Alfairs has told me he has been beaten repeatedly in the Fox Hill Prison over the years by other inmates and as a result he suffers from severe abdominal pains for which he has not been treated.

“Alfairs told me that he is often abused by the other inmates,” her affidavit continued, “and on one occasion when I visited him he raised his shirt to show me fresh wounds resulting from having been stabbed and the prison officer instructed him to put his shirt down.”

“In addition to the constant abuse, after being unlawfully detained for so long it is apparent to me that Alfairs is beginning to lose track of time.”

The Tribune was contacted by Ms Mills, 33, and Mr Higgs’ father following the newspaper’s coverage of long-term detainees at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre, and the high-profile case of Bahamian-born Jean Rony Jean-Charles.

Yesterday, Mr Hall added: “So it’s not a surprise you have a person like Alfairs who can be detained for nearly four years without charge because we have often seen this happen, and that’s because there is a complete disregard for persons to have a fair hearing. And that’s why it’s so important and significant that these matters are paid

ALFAIRS AGREGORY HIGGS special attention to, and these matters are brought not only before the courts

but to the country at large so they can see what is going on.”

SUSPECT IN 2016 MURDER CASE IS GRANTED BAIL

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

ONE of three men allegedly involved in a murder plot that was executed some two years ago has been granted bail ahead of his trial by the Court of Appeal.

Appellate Justices Jon Isaacs, Stella Crane-Scott, and Acting appellate Justice Milton Evans granted Duran Neely $15,000 bail with two sureties ahead of his trial over his alleged involvement in the murder of Kenyari Lightbourne on June 21, 2016.

The appellate judges said Neely must be fitted with an electronic monitoring device prior to his release on bail and is to report to the Central Police Station on East Street each Monday, Wednesday and Friday before 6pm until his trial in October.

On June 21, 2016, Lightbourne was shot multiple times while walking through his Woods Alley neighbourhood off Market Street. He died at the scene.

Neely and the alleged gunman, Jahamaro Edgecombe, were arraigned within months of each other

in 2016 in connection with Lightbourne’s death; Edgecombe in August of that year on a single count of murder, and Neely on October 18 on a conspiracy to commit murder charge.

Both Neely and Edgecombe are now charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder. A third individual, Sean Brown, is charged with accessory after the fact.

The trial over Lightbourne’s murder was initially due to commence before Acting Chief Justice Stephen Isaacs on August 29 of last year, however, it suffered multiple adjournments due to issues with the empanelment of the jury.

A month prior to that date, however, a key witness in the matter was charged with perverting the course of justice after he claimed his statements to police were given by force.

In the video, Carlderon Brown, of Spice Street, Pinewood Gardens, and whose identity was protected by an anonymity order, claimed police beat him and forced him to give a false statement to implicate Edgecombe, his cousin and Neely in the matter.

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THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, March 20, 2018, PAGE 7

Davis’ hands clean on water projects from page one we have spent $18.3m on a project that was budgeted for $9.6m and the project still remains unfinished.

We’re all going to have to pay for that and the Bahamian people need to know who was it who brazenly authorised the payment of millions of dollars, money people were not entitled to. “(The) Cat Island (MP) says it wasn’t him. I believe it wasn’t him. It was not Cat Island, Mr Speaker. There were very few people with the power to do that. And every Bahamian, no matter what their political loyalty would be, should be interested in helping us find the answer to that question.”

It remains unclear who authorised the controversial payments to NID. In 2016, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Works, Colin Higgs, wrote to former State Minister for Finance Michael Halkitis and former Financial Secretary Simon Wilson about his concerns over a $1m payment ordered for NID. Last week, The Tribune asked Mr Halkitis about the matter. He said: “Everything should be in the files at the Ministry of Finance.”

Afterwards, Acting Financial Secretary Marlon Johnson told The Tribune the matter is being internally reviewed within the ministry.

Yesterday, Mr Bannister defended other people who have been mentioned in connection with NID, including Merlene Poitier, a secretary in the law firm of Mr Davis who is a holder of a single share in NID. Ms Poitier’s association with Mr Davis was noted in EY’s report. In addition, Mr Bannister defended Ruth Bowe Darville, a lawyer connected to his former law firm who has represented NID over the years.

He said: “Much has been

made of the name Merlene Poitier appearing in that report. I know Merlene and I know she would never purposely be a party to anything that is wrong.

However, those who would have caused her to be in a vulnerable position need to come forward and say so. If that company is sued, she faces liability that someone so decent should never face.

“Additionally, during debate the member of Cat Island also touched on the fact that the company NID had its offices at Commonwealth Law Advocates and in the process he mentioned the name Ruth Bowe Darville. Commonwealth Law Advocates is a firm that I started after I walked away from a law firm that caused me great distress.

“In 2007, when I entered public life I left Commonwealth Law Advocates in the able hands of Ms Ruth Bowe Darville, an outstanding professional. That company first became a client of Commonwealth Law Advocates some five years after I left; I had nothing to do with it. However, I stand by the integrity of Mrs Ruth Bowe Darville.

She would have had nothing to do whatsoever with the operations of that company, nor would she would have received any benefits other than her normal legal fees. I know Ruth and I could tell you that.”

Mr Bannister dismissed Mr Davis’ claim that auditor EY has participated in a witch-hunt against the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), but he distanced himself from the auditor’s inclusion of the obituary of Mr Davis’ mother in a section of the report that said someone with the same name as Ms Poitier was identified as a close family friend of Mr Davis’ mother.

“I would never personally have inserted information with respect to the obituary of the mother of the member for Cat Island into

MEMBER of Parliament Desmond Bannister. this,” Mr Bannister said.

“However, it was not for me to interfere with the work of an international accounting firm and had I done otherwise I would now be accused of tampering so I left their work as it is. If there’s something wrong with it, if there is something they made a mistake with, it is there for all of us to see. By the same token, there is much in that report that we all have to look at and seriously take into consideration.”

He said: “The Water and Sewerage Corporation (WSC) is a national asset.

It must perform efficiently and in the best interest of the Bahamian people.

Anyone who alleges that an international accounting firm with the reputation, skill and experience of Ernst and Young is on a witch-hunt is seriously

underestimating the intelligence of the Bahamian people.

“The real witch-hunt is shown in the report. How else can one explain the email from Audley Hanna to both the former prime minister and the deputy prime minister in which he said, and I quote, ‘In a previous email from me I said we need to deal with these FNM cronies at Water & Sewerage.’

“The fact is the audit was long overdue and politicians will have to appreciate that the Bahamian people in the future will demand that we operate these entities efficiently and in the best interest of the country. We will all have to be accountable and we will have to be transparent.”

Mr Bannister chastised former Progressive Liberal Party (PLP)

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff Chairman Bradley Roberts for instructing WSC’s board in 2012 not to disconnect services of Abaco residents because of the imminent by-election.

“No Bahamian would take lightly to a politician directing the corporation to discontinue a disconnection exercise until after an election is completed as was done at the Water and Sewerage corporation,” he said. “How can anyone be so arrogant to say auditors had no right to question politically led decision making. That statement and statements like it are why members opposite are where they are today. All of us, everyone of us in political life need to distance ourselves from that statement. Politically motivated interference can never again be tolerated in the Bahamas. We as politicians

must appreciate that our actions must be directed toward uplifting our people through national development, not petty political tricks. We’re not elected for that and this new generation of Bahamians will not tolerate it.”

Mr Davis interrupted Mr Bannister to suggest Mr Roberts’ order has been misinterpreted.

He said: “The member spoke about a politically directed order with respect to disconnections in the middle of a campaign of a by-election. The complaint I was hearing is they were being disconnected because of politics and what the chairman was doing was ensuring there would be no blame for disconnecting water because of politics.”

Parliamentarians laughed and mocked his comment afterward, however.

NO TENDER PROCESS FOR ROAD CONTRACTS WORTH $86M

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

WORKS Minister Desmond Bannister revealed yesterday that nine road works contracts worth $86m collectively were awarded without a public tendering process under the former Christie administration.

He called this an “abuse of the tendering process”.

He also revealed that contracts worth $100m were awarded for the Bahamas Agriculture & Marine Science Institute (BAMSI) project that were also not subjected to a public tendering process.

“Over $86m in road contracts were negotiated in a manner that is inconsistent with established public service procedures without any competitive tendering,” he said.

“Contrary to established public policy, not a single one of them went to tender.

Members opposite simply chose the contractor that they wanted and issued a contract to them and these nine contracts were shared among five contractors.”

As Mr Bannister revealed the worth of the contracts awarded by the previous administration absent a tendering process, Free National Movement (FNM) parliamentarians expressed shock from their chairs.

Nonetheless, Mr Bannister said: “Let me say that as a politician I too would love to evade the tendering process.

It can work well when you are purchasing goods, but when you are looking at services such as building structures and roads, price should not be the sole consideration.

“Experience, reliability and ownership of modern equipment are among the

intangible factors that the tendering process as presently configured does not give sufficient weight to when considering value for money. So I’m not totally in disagreement with members opposite as to how they proceeded with road paving.”

Mr Bannister’s comments came in the context of responding to Engerlston MP Glenys Hanna Martin’s request for information on the road work contracts his administration has recently entered into. He identified ten such contracts, all worth less than $50,000, the threshold under which contracts are not expected to undergo a multi-layered tendering process.

Mr Bannister, however, said even these contracts should be issued on a competitive basis. “…Usually several names are put forth, and the person whose bid is most attractive is selected,” he said. “This process was put in place so as to avoid allegations of corruption, since if a contract is negotiated with one individual without any competitive tendering, allegations may easily be made that it is a corrupt transaction and that value for money was not received by the Bahamian people.”

The contracts awarded included one for Mayaguana road works on April 15, 2014 worth $5,000,059; another contract was for a portion of Queens Highway, Andros awarded on December 30, 2014 for $7,106,801.87.

Others included a contract for Acklins on April 24th, 2016 worth $19,472,611; a contract for Dundas Town & Murphy Town Abaco on January 9, 2015 worth $5,015,506; a contract for Central Andros Roads on September 1, 2015

for $20,611,528.63; a contract for Green Turtle Cay roads on August 26, 2016 worth $4,469,363.22; a contract for BAMSI Perimeter roads on February 6, 2017 for $4,843,333.97; a contract for Acklins roads on May 19, 2016 for $7,248,725 and a contract for Crooked Island Seawall & Carriageway on September 19, 2016 worth $12,879,477.71.

Mr Bannister did not reveal the identity of the companies to which the contracts were awarded.

He hinted, however, that this will not be the last time he makes concerning revelations about how contracts were sometimes awarded by his predecessors.

BAMSI, he said, involved $100m in non-tendered contracts, a matter, he said, he will “deal with another time”.

After his speech, Opposition Leader Philip “Brave” Davis said he left key information out of his presentation.

“In each instance, the technical officers would have advised the minister as to value for money and (Mr Bannister) could have said that each of these contracts was approved by the Cabinet and there is nothing wrong with that,” he said.

PAGE 8, Tuesday, March 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

A Blind Love: couple seeks help for baby’s surgery THEY say love is blind.

When in love, sometimes nothing can stop two people who desire to spend the rest of their lives together.

Antoine and Abbie Munroe, who are both blind, have brought truth to this old adage in a positive way. Their testament of love is one so strong that despite the discouragement from many of their family members and friends, they married and now have a beautiful baby girl.

Antoine is a 32-year-old teacher’s aide at the Erin H Gilmore School for the Blind. He teaches braille, reading, writing and computer education, taught through the Jaws software for the blind.

“Being at the school brings me joy,” he said.

“I am very happy to impart my knowledge to the students because I believe that once they are equipped with the necessary skills and training, they can take their rightful place in society.”

He is teaching by example. I know Antoine well, having worked closely with him and the Bahamas Alliance for the Blind and Visually Impaired (BABVI). He once served as BABVI president and proved himself very efficient in this post. He was active on social media promoting the association’s events, formed strong alliances with public and private institutions, and was successful at implementing programmes and raising funds towards the cause. He is currently the president of the Disabled Person’s Organisation.

Professional in nature, you can expect timely responses through Whatsapp or email when communicating with him.

Oftentimes, I found him even more efficient and professional than those with sight. Over the years, I wondered when Antoine would get married and have a life of his own, or if he was resigning himself to be totally immersed in his work and charitable activities. Fast forward to today, Antoine is a loving husband and a proud father.

He met the love of his life, Abbie, when they were both attending EH Gilmore. Antoine was born with sight, but his mother had a curable infection at the time when he was born.

Doctors told her that by the age of ten or 11, her son would lose his sight.

Antoine recalls when his sight started to go in primary school, and he started seeing only light, then only shadows. One morning at the age of ten, he woke up and could see nothing at all.

Abbie (nee Daxon) was born blind. They both ended up attending EH Gilmore and when Antoine was about 15 years old, he became smitten with Abbie.

It’s a small school and a great opportunity to really get to know your classmates. So Antoine knew Abbie well and felt inclined to write his first love note.

“I went to her with a letter one Valentine’s day; back then, when you wrote in braille, others couldn’t read what you wrote,” Antoine said, chuckling, recalling that he was about

ANTOINE and Abbie with family.

16 years old at the time.

In the letter, Antoine expressed his interest in Abbie and asked her to give him a chance. She didn’t respond right away and a few days later, Antoine typed up another love note.

This time, she agreed, and young, teenage love was born. It didn’t quite work out that time but just before Abbie was getting ready to graduate, Antoine tried his hand again. He was a year behind her in school and the thought of not being around her every day anymore was daunting.

The next few months before Abbie’s graduation was bliss as they had reunited, but after she left the school, they grew apart.

They went on to live their separate lives but fate brought them back together as friends.

‘We are living life as normally as it could be.’

Abbie found her calling in the Office of the Attorney General. As a receptionist, she would answer the telephone and greet visitors.

Abbie’s dexterity around the multi-level building is commendable. She would effortlessly take packages from floor to floor and knew every individual and the set-up of each office.

In time, Antoine and Abbie found themselves talking to one another every evening via Skype, which brought them closer together. Eventually, they

found themselves talking about everything and falling asleep together on the Skype line.

“I started to think to myself that I am getting older and I am ready to start a family,” recalls Antoine.

“I decided to tell her that I see her as my wife. I didn’t think about the times we broke up; I was just looking at the future. I decided to ask her to give it one last try.”

“We had some fights from both families. Some people think that blind persons shouldn’t marry each other.

I had my own objection to it too at one point (not wanting to make life hard). But I said to myself, ‘I love this woman’. So I just put away the noise in the market and followed my heart.”

On February 13, 2016, Antoine and Abbie were married and on January 28, 2018, they had a daughter, whom they named Antonique. They are very independent. They often cook together but Abbie is the real chef, according to her husband. They get around town economically using Omako Transportation, which operates specifically for people with disabilities and is run “with love and care” by Olliemae Knowles. They also adore the family members and friends who have come around to support them, albeit just a few.

“We are living life as normally as it could be,” said Antoine.

“We have our share of challenges; it’s not a bed of roses all the time, but it is as normal as it could be.

Once a man feels like he is independent, it boosts

BABY ANTONIQUE MUNROE his determination and being able to move around without challenges is the greatest gift a person with a disability could have.”

Antoine beamed when he handed his “precious princess” to me while I conducted this Face to Face. His good friend Roberto Davis was on-hand to assist them with babysitting during the interview. This two month-old baby girl just melts your heart. She smiles so much, you can tell she gets lots of love – and particularly likes “hand” as the old people would call it, when babies love to he held and may cry if you rest them down.

When Antonique was born, it was discovered that she, too, has vision impairment. The hospital staff booked her an appointment for examination at the South Beach eye clinic. On January 25, the Munroes found out that Antonique’s left eye is not fully developed and her right eye has

retina detachment and an issue with the cornea. She was then referred to the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Florida. The family flew over on March 6 and Antonique was seen by a retina specialist as well as a cornea specialist.

Doctors gave them some hopeful news. They would do their best to save Antonique’s sight, and told the Munroes the quicker they perform the much-needed operations on their baby, the more likely the chance would be that she would be able to see clearly.

The cost - $24,320, which is $12,160 per eye. Antonique would then have to remain under the care of Bascom Palmer specialists for a few weeks after the surgeries until full recovery. So far, they have $2,000 saved towards the cause and they are making an appeal to the public for support.

“Antonique is the only hope of sight for our family

A VALENTINE’s themed wedding day.

as both my wife and I are totally blind,” Anton said.

“Imagine a world of darkness where it feels like I am in the middle of the ocean trying to find land and there is no land in sight.

Your donation would make a difference in changing this view. No matter how small, every donation would make a difference to give Antonique a chance for the best life possible.”

There are several ways to contact the Munroes and donate to Antonique’s medical fund. You can deposit directly to the family’s RBC account #728071-3, Mackey Street 05715.

There is also a GoFundMe page in the name of Antonique Munroe. You can email antonmunroe86@ gmail.com. He is also available by Whatsapp on his cellular phone, 804-4125, or you can call them at home at 676-2039. On Facebook, look for Antoine Paul Munroe or Abbie Munroe.

THE TRIBUNE

First da house burned down, now centipede bite me

By MORGAN ADDERLEY Tribune Staff Reporter madderley@tribunemedia.net IN the wake of the fire earlier this month that destroyed much of his home, local street philosopher Locksley “Potcake” Thompson is still in need of assistance.

Yesterday, Mr Thompson told The Tribune he has only raised $350 of the $10,000 minimum his contractor brother needs to build him a new home.

Once the funds are accumulated, this new home can be constructed in as little as six days.

Mr Thompson is “praying” for more donations to come in.

Until a new home is built, he said he’s been left “sleeping out catching draught and getting bite (by) centipede.”

He added: “Centipedes, they love draught. So one crawl up and bit me the other night. I couldn’t sleep at all that night, in all that pain.”

“I take mussy about six Panadol and I sit up in the chair all night until that morning until the pain die down.”

This was the second

house fire Mr Thompson has experienced in three years. On March 8, he told The Tribune of the latest blaze.

“Everything – the whole roof, completely gone. All the bathroom, all the face bowl, the bathroom sink, all that down to rock,” he said.

“It’s a big house, an eightroom house… Only thing left in the house is a little portion in the back.”

With his bed destroyed, Mr Thompson was left sleeping on cardboard in a room as “small as a lil’ toilet.”

His lucky teddy bear and two Bibles were also lost in the fire.

In the aftermath of the Tribune’s story, Mr Thompson said a number of individuals have reached out to him.

These included those offering cash and a mattress donation from Palmdale Furniture.

He said: “When the story came out (a couple) from St Matthew’s Church (read) the story and they presented me with $200 towards it.”

Another couple that lives near the church also approached him.

“They say ‘Potcake we

“Potcake” cooking in the bushes yesterday.

read the story and we cry’. “[They] say they cry (at the part about) the Bibles burning up, and my little teddy bear for good luck how that burn, and then how I sleeping in the draught and afraid of the hurricane and the cold.”

“They read all that and it touch they heart. So they gave me $100.”

On Sunday, a third man presented Mr Thompson with $50. “[Mr Chea], he’s a longtime friend of mine. That’s at Palmdale Furniture. He read the story what y’all put in…and he felt humble.”

“So he drive by here and he stop with the big truck and he give me this mattress to help my condition.”

“And that was very thoughtful and kind of him.

And I appreciate it.”

When The Tribune found Mr Thompson outside St Matthew’s Church yesterday, he was cooking on a portable stove in the bushes.

When asked how he gets groceries, Mr Thompson said: “Well I went to Social Services, and they heard my cry. And they gave me a slip to go to the food store with.”

Through it all, Mr Thompson has not lost his faith.

“Look at God. I can’t look at the devil, I looking at God. Because His blessings helping get in the hearts of good people, and the people have a conscience.”

“And they know my pain, so they trying to help me the best they can.”

“So far (my brother) need $10,000. And we only have $350.”

Those interested in assisting Mr Thompson can contact his brother, Kirk Thompson, at kirkthompson@coralwave.com or 242-422-0545.

READERS RESPOND TO ISSUES IN THE HEADLINES READERS on tribune242.com were once again discussing the issue of shanty towns after Labour Minister Senator Dion Foulkes toured several of the communities on Abaco at the weekend.

Observer said: “The shanty towns exist because they are providing low cost labour to the business community, foreign residence and gated communities that are populated by millionaires and the elites.

“Government is complicit by the issuance of work permits to persons that actually reside in shanty towns.

Government also subsidises the special interests by providing free education and health care to the unfortunate and exploited working class.

“It’s a simple fix but no politician will touch it due to the special interests that control the politicians. Stop issuing work permits unless an individual has a proper and inspected place to live.

Ahhh, there is the conflict.

How much revenue does the government and intermediaries make off of work permits? It’s always hard to solve a problem you really don’t want to solve.”

Bogart had this to say: “The logistics of rehousing 10,000 shanty town migrants is not as simple without severe disruption to Abaco and even the rest of the nation. One of the main purposes in terms of illegal housing need to find lawful housing units with water, legally built toilets and proper electricity. Children who never attended schools need schools to attend. The aged, infirm,

ill, physically and mentally challenged from the shanties need housing. Can the present food merchants increase inventory to cater to an increased legallyhoused population and the buyers pay increased prices now including licence fees and overheads? New increases in legal electricity demand, can they all afford it? Where will previous low cost renters be able to afford rent for legally built housing units likely to rapidly increase in rent – also disturbing current legal bona fide Bahamian rentors? Guaranteed that some of the 10,000 illegal shanty town dwellers will seek to find other hidden areas to start anew. Perhaps some might even take to the seas. While the need to eliminate the shanties is critical for the residents it should be even more so in terms of enforcing Bahamian rules and regulations and national security. The Bahamian Prime Minister of the sovereign nation, The Commonwealth of the Bahamas has already given the deadline, now past.

The authorities need a well coordinated plan and at this stage need to ask the Haitian govt to send the planes or boats to assist to repatriate their citizens.”

In Tribune Business, Peter Bates, The Sign Man’s principal, asked the question “What does it matter

if we have income tax?” prompting Avidreader to give this answer: “For the simple reason that the imposition of an income tax requires a large (and presumably expensive) government bureaucracy to manage it as well as the fact that tax evasion is an art in which the rich will demonstrate their expertise with the help of foreign experts in tax avoidance. Income tax would not be so bad if the rich were willing to pay their fair share but that is very unlikely to be the case here where the political class will call a payroll withholding tax an “income tax” while their class declares very little income that is not hidden on the company’s books or shielded by nominee shareholders, etc.”

Joeblow said: “Politicians are notoriously irresponsible with public funds! They simply can’t be trusted.

They still can’t account for how VAT monies are being spent!”

Sickened also expressed doubts: “Once you start income tax you will also need to implement a more robust local business accounting reporting and examination because all business owners will just put a bunch of their living expenses through the business and reduce their ‘salary’. Things such as housing allowance or free company housing, corporate cars and car maintenance, food allowance. We will eventually end up with 77,000 pages of tax code like in the US.” • Don’t miss your chance to join the debate on tribune242.com.

Tuesday, March 20, 2018, PAGE 9

STREET Philosopher Locksley “Potcake” Thompson is pictured during his interview with The Tribune yesterday following the fire at his home.

Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, March 20, 2018, PAGE 11

TRUMP-LINKED DATA ANALYSIS FIRM TAPS 50M FACEBOOK PROFILES OF ELECTORATE WASHINGTON Associated Press

A DATA analysis firm employed by President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign tapped the Facebook profiles of more than 50 million users without their permission, allowing it to capitalise on the private social media activity of a large portion of the US electorate, newspapers reported on Saturday.

One of the largest data leaks in Facebook history allowed Cambridge Analytica, which had ties to Trump campaign strategist Steve Bannon, to develop techniques that formed the basis of its work on the Trump campaign, The New York Times and The Guardian reported.

Facebook said it suspended Cambridge Analytica over allegations that it kept the improperly obtained user data after telling Facebook it had been deleted.

In a blog post, Facebook explained that Cambridge Analytica had years ago received user data from a Facebook app that purported to be a psychological research tool, though the firm was not authorised to have the information. Roughly 270,000 people downloaded and shared personal details with the app.

Cambridge Analytica later certified in 2015 that it had destroyed the information it had received, according to Facebook, although the social network said it received reports “several days ago” that not all the data was deleted. Facebook says it is investigating.

Facebook has also suspended the access of Cambridge Analytica’s parent company, Strategic Communication Laboratories; University of Cambridge psychology professor Aleksandr Kogan, the academic who created the app in

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP question; and another individual, Christopher Wylie of Eunoia Technologies, who also allegedly received user data from the app. Wylie is a former Cambridge Analytics employee who has emerged as a primary source for the Times report.

Cambridge Analytica denied wrongdoing in a statement. It said the parent company’s SCL Elections unit hired Kogan to undertake “a large-scale research project in the US”, but subsequently deleted all data it received from Kogan’s company after learning that Kogan had obtained data in violation of Facebook policies. The firm said none of Kogan’s data was used in its 2016 election work for the “avoidance of doubt”.

Kogan did not immediately reply to an emailed request for comment. Wylie could not immediately be located.

The Facebook blog post, written by deputy general counsel Paul Grewal, cited the “public prominence” of Cambridge Analytica, called the alleged data retention

an “unacceptable violation of trust” and said the social network will take legal action if necessary to hold all parties “responsible and accountable for any unlawful behaviour”.

Cambridge Analytica is probably best known for its political work during the 2016 US presidential campaign. The company claims to build psychological profiles based on personal details from millions of Americans that can categorise individual voters. It worked for both the primary campaign of Texas republican Sen Ted Cruz, and Trump’s generalelection campaign.

Trump’s campaign Saturday denied using the firm’s data, saying it relied on the Republican National Committee for its data.

“The campaign used the RNC for its voter data and not Cambridge Analytica,” the campaign said in a statement. “Using the RNC data was one of the best choices the campaign made. Any claims that voter data were used from another source to support the victory in 2016

are false.”

Cambridge Analytica is backed by the family of billionaire donor Robert Mercer, a hedge fund manager who also supported the Trump campaign and other conservative candidates and causes, including Bannon, the Trump campaign strategist.

Trump campaign officials have downplayed Cambridge Analytica’s role, saying they briefly used the company for television advertising and paid some of its most skilled data employees.

The firm had secured a $15m investment from Mercer and wooed Bannon with the promise of tools that could identify the personalities of American voters and influence their behaviour.

But Cambridge Analytica did not have the data to make its new products work.

So the firm harvested private information from the Facebook profiles of more than 50 million users without their permission.

A representative for Bannon did not immediately respond to an email

seeking comment.

The company has surfaced in the US probes into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

British officials are also investigating the firm in connection with the June 2016 EU referendum.

Trump’s former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, disclosed an advisory role with Cambridge Analytica last August. SCL later said that position never materialised. Flynn is co-operating with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference after pleading guilty to a felony charge.

Cambridge Analytica CEO Alexander Nix also disclosed last November that the company reached out to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange during the campaign to request emails related to the campaign of Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Nix said Assange denied the request, which came after Assange had said publicly that he had the emails. Clinton campaign emails stolen

by Russian agents are one focus of the election-interference probes.

Nix has denied any involvement in Russian election meddling.

Revelations that Cambridge Analytica misused social media data could also be of interest to Mueller’s investigation. While much of the thrust of special counsel’s investigation has been tightly held, Mueller has requested that the firm turn over the emails of any employees who worked on the campaign, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal last year.

Mueller is also looking at the role Wikileaks played in acquiring and making public the stolen Clinton campaign emails.

EL Egido food market in Havana, Cuba.

Cuba opens first wholesale market HAVANA Associated Press

CUBA has opened its first wholesale market, lending a hand to some non-state businesses in an economy dominated by government-run enterprises.

State-run newspaper Granma said the market is part of an ongoing effort to “reorganise” commerce on the communist island.

The market will sell beans, beer, sugar, cigars and other goods for 20 to 30 percent less than the products cost at state-owned retail stores throughout the country.

Since 2010, the government has authorised about 500,000 people to operate private businesses, and many of them have long sought access to a legal wholesale marketplace where they can pay below retail for the materials they use for their own products or resell to the public.

For most, their wait is not over. The government says the single market known as the Mercabal is only open to 35 worker-owned co-operatives in Havana, at least for now. Other officially licensed private workers might have access later.

The state-run economy accounts for 70 to 80 percent of the Cuban economy.

PAGE 12, Tuesday, March 20, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

YACHTS CATCH THE EYE

NASSAU harbour has played host to some spectacular yachts in the past week. Among the boats on show was Loretta Anne, winner of the Motor Yacht of the Year title at the Superyacht Awards, and owned by Canadian billionaire Loretta Anne Rogers. Also visiting was the yacht Our Heritage, owned by Oklahoma energy company retired counsel Robert Burk and his family. Mr Burk says their favourite place is the Exumas.

Photos: Ron Lightbourn

FROM top, the yacht MQ 2, Rebel, an unidentified yacht and Our Heritage.