04132022 NEWS, SPORT AND BUSINESS

PUZZLER WEDNESDAY SONIC 2 Happy Meal

HIGH 82ºF LOW 75ºF

i’m lovin’ it!

Monday,

February

CARS! CARS!

8, 2021

The Tribune Established

Being Bound To

Swear To The Dogmas

1903

Of No Master

The Tribune L A T E S T

N E W S

tise Call

To Adver

-2351

601-0007 or 502

Starting at

$33.60

Established 1903

O N

T R I B U N E 2 4 2 . C O M

Biggest And Best!

Volume: 119 No.99, April 13, 2022

CLASSIFIEDS TRADER

ed

VAT includ

THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: PRICE–$1

GET READY TO PAY UP FOR NIB TRYING TO AVOID AN EASTER SHUTDOWN

Laroda says rates will likely increase within next year

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net MYLES Laroda, the minister of state with responsibility for the National Insurance Board, says he anticipates that NIB contribution rates will increase within the next year given the unsustainability of the social agency’s fund.

However, he said, a decision on the matter has not been made as yet.

Mr Laroda made the

revelation to reporters a day after he had exclusively told The Tribune that the NIB fund could be depleted by 2028 if the government failed to take urgent action.

According to the minister, the situation was predicted by a new actuarial review of NIB, which reduced the fund’s potential depletion timeline by one year, as the previous review had made a prediction of 2029.

THE Bahamas cannot “let the National Insurance Board (NIB) go broke”, top business executives warned yesterday, with financial analysts asserting: “You cannot kick the can down the road any further.”

Larry Gibson, chief operating officer of CG Atlantic Pensions, who has

long advocated for comprehensive pension and social security reform in The Bahamas, said without “radical reform” businesses and workers will be faced with contribution rate hikes “every three to four years” to maintain NIB’s longterm sustainability.

“What happens is when the can is against the wall, you cannot kick it any further,” he said.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE United States said the Bahamas government has not effectively implemented laws to provide long-term residents the chance to get Bahamian citizenship “in a timely manner and on a non-discriminatory basis.”

The US made the criticism in the latest human rights report for the country, which is released annually.

As usual, the US recognised the stability of various institutions and systems in The Bahamas, but highlighted recurrent problems, including abuse and poor conditions at the prison and detention centre, the absence of SEE PAGE FIVE

‘WE MUST STOP DRUGS BEING THROWN OVER PRISON WALLS’

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

SEE PAGE THREE

BUSINESS CHIEFS WARN: DON’T KICK CAN DOWN ROAD AGAIN

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

US CRITICISES BAHAMAS ON CITIZENSHIP MEASURES

WAYNE Munroe said prison officers’ ability to smuggle cell phones and contraband into prison has largely been curtailed but officials face a new challenge: officers who retrieve and distribute drugs that are thrown over the prison’s walls.

His comment came after Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis told corrections officers his administration has no tolerance for misconduct from them.

SEE PAGE SEVEN CUSTOMERS at a Shell gas station yesterday as efforts continue to avert an Easter weekend strike by petrol operators.

Photo: Racardo Thomas/Tribune Staff

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net ECONOMIC Affairs Minister Michael Halkitis said the government is planning to meet with the Bahamas Petroleum Dealers Association today to address their concerns about rising fuel prices, among other things.

On Sunday, Vasco Bastian, the association’s vice-president, told

The Tribune the group was trying to ward off a planned Easter weekend strike by around 80 percent of operators.

He said the planned action was in response to soaring fuel prices and the losses incurred by operators as a result of the spike.

Yesterday, Mr Halkitis said he does not believe such an action would happen, adding it is his hope the two parties will

be able to work together to come to an amicable agreement.

“Our communications so far with the association has not included any ultimatum whatsoever put to the government so we will meet with them and see how we can address some of the issues that affect them,” the minister told reporters before yesterday’s Cabinet meeting.

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

SEE PAGE THREE

ALICIA WALLACE: READ THE FACTS, LEARN THE PROBLEM - THEN ACT

- SEE PAGE EIGHT

PAGE 2, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

THE BAHAMAS Department of Correctional Services is reportedly short of hundreds of officers.

PRISON SERVICE ‘NEEDS HUNDREDS OF OFFICERS’

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe said the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services is short hundreds of prison officers and has requested additional mental health experts.

His comment to reporters followed the opening ceremony of a prison staff empowerment seminar at Faith United Baptist Church.

“There is shortage across the entire service,” he said.

“You would have seen that immigration has recruited the largest class ever. Customs is going to have to do it. The police is doing it, the prison is doing it. They’re currently finishing up the psychological analysis,

vetting of the potential recruits and we hope to bring in adequate recruits by the end of this month.”

Mr Munroe later told The Tribune that automated services at the anticipated 700-bed, high medium security facility –– which is projected to be completed 18-24 months after construction starts –– would dramatically reduce the number of required officers. Without automation the correctional facility will need hundreds more officers, he said. With the service, the facility will only need ten.

“Every year a certain number of people retire,” he had told reporters earlier. “The police told me 96 officers are set to retire.

Then some people get ill and go out of service.

Some people die, some are

actually dismissed from the service. So in the police services, we lose about 100, 110 officers a year so if you only recruit 100, you actually go down by 10 so that is why you have to be mindful of those things and we are being mindful of them.”

Mr Munroe said Acting Corrections Commissioner Don Cleare has requested two additional psychiatrists, a psychologist and a child mental health expert for the facility.

“So aggressively,” he said, “the prime minister indicated funding the training of prison officers. We are not certified as a correctional institution because you have to have certified correctional officers to be certified as a correctional institution. We intend to correct and address that.”

BRITISH MAN HELD AFTER DRUGS FOUND ON SAILBOAT

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A BRITISH citizen was arrested in Grand Bahama after Bahamian authorities allegedly discovered illegal drugs on a sailboat docked at a canal in the Bahama Reef Boulevard area.

According to reports, Department of Customs officers were inspecting the sailboat shortly before 11am on Monday when they found

a container with a quantity of suspected marijuana. The drugs weighed a total of 7.5 ounces and have an estimated street value of $495.

Assistant Superintendent of Police Stephen Rolle said customs officials contacted Drug Enforcement Unit officers, who collected the suspected marijuana and arrested the British national.

In a second incident, DEU officers discovered illegal firearms and ammunition in the area at the

International Bazaar shortly after 10pm.

ASP Rolle said officers, acting on a tip, went in the area of a business in the Bazaar. They searched the bushes near a car wash and discovered a black plastic bag, containing a black and brown Remington 20-gauge shotgun, along with two shotgun shells. No arrest was made.

ASP Rolle said investigations are continuing into both matters.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 3

Get ready to pay up for NIB

from page one The report, which is the 11th of its kind, was received by the Davis administration about three weeks ago.

Asked about potential contribution rate increases in view of the report, the minister told reporters it was very likely to happen this year.

Mr Laroda also said there have been recommendations for the Cabinet to impose a 1.5 percent to two percent rate increase incrementally given concerns about NIB’s financial situation.

“Yes,” he said about a possible rate increase before going to a Cabinet meeting, “I will temper that by saying that we haven’t voted on that yet, but a decision is being prepared and I will not be surprised if that happens for the mere fact that we are in this unsustainable position.”

According to Mr Laroda, the current size of the NIB

MINISTER of State Myles Laroda. unemployment assistance fund is around $1.6 billion.

However, he said to 22,000 people. That the fund’s size isn’t the number has now decreased issue, but rather the fact to around 8,000.

“The issue isn’t the curthat social benefits have “far outpaced” contri- rent size of the fund but butions. At the peak the issue is that benefits far of the COVID-19 pan- outpace the contributions. demic, NIB administered In the (1980s), I think the

contribution was around $12m a year, the benefits.

Now, the benefit payouts are north of $100m a year.

That’s just not sustainable,” he said.

The situation, he added, is also compounded by deficit spending.

spending money “like drunken sailors”, which suggested there was not a cash crunch at play.

The FNM chairman weighed in on the situation the day after Minister of State for NIB Myles Laroda told The Tribune that the 11th actuarial review of the fund said it was possible it could be depleted by 2028.

He said the 11th review predicted depletion one year sooner than the 10th report noted.

“I don’t think there is anything surprising about what was said by the minister with responsibility for NIB,” Dr Sands told The Tribune yesterday. “That’s how grave the situation is with NIB. So, I don’t

in government debt and if it’s not government debt it’s quasi-government debt, so government debt of government owned corporations such as Bahamas Mortgage Corporation and NIB has paid for buildings all over the country.

“If you go back to the former minister with responsibility for National Insurance, Shane Gibson, that speech he gave nine years ago to be exact, he would have been dealing with the sad state of affairs of NIB back then.

“I was chairman of the Mortgage Corporation in 2010, 2011 going into election 2012 and I can tell you that NIB’s exposure was significant way

“The reality is the National Insurance Board has been running deficits for the past six years so this pre-dated COVID. This can was kicked down the road too many times. From the fund was established, there has been one rate increase and that was in 2010 from 8.8 percent and 9.8 percent. And you take all of what has been going, we are where we are.”

Because of these financial concerns, Mr Laroda said tough decisions will have to be made, adding the Davis administration is prepared to do what is necessary.

He said: “The prime minister has made statements in public and to his Cabinet colleagues. We have tough decisions to make and we are prepared to make those decisions. We are talking about tens of thousands of NIB individuals who have contributed, some of them for decades.

It will be a shame for those who would’ve paid in not to be able to receive their

benefits at their time and so we are prepared and willing and able to address this concern.”

As for proposed rate hikes, the minister said: “Anywhere from 1.5 to two percent annually (or) biannually so it’s not just going to be one. We could expect numerous increases. That hasn’t been decided by Cabinet as yet but it will be fair that an increase would be coming.”

Numerous previous actuarial reviews have called for contribution rates to increase, citing the proposed measure as just one of many to help sustain NIB. However, successive governments have often elected out of taking such action, with one former minister saying last year no government has been bold enough to implement the recommended increase.

Asked when the government will make a decision on the proposed rate increase, Mr Laroda said “soon”.

back then. With the recent expenditures through the COVID era I believe that NIB is even more exposed and the question is what will this administration do?”

Dr Sands also said: “So, what we find ourselves in as a country is a very, very serious fiscal situation that threatens one of the basic benefits of the Bahamian people. We have kicked this ball down the field over and over and over and now the chickens have come home to roost.

“I am afraid that we are watching this administration spend money like drunken sailors. They are hiring left, right and centre. They are giving

ambassadorships to just about anybody.

“Now their spending suggests that we don’t have a cash crunch either now or in the future, but it belies the fact that in very short order we have tens, if not hundreds of millions of dollars that are guaranteed by the government of The Bahamas and you know the people that are going to suffer from the exposure are the people who need NIB the most.”

During an interview with The Tribune on Monday, Mr Laroda said he was of the view that the situation persisted as NIB had run deficits for nearly six years, compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic.

STATE OF NIB FUND NOT A SURPRISE, SAYS FNM CHAIRMAN

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

FREE National Movement Chairman Dr Duane Sands says the National Insurance Board’s fund has been in a dangerous position for many years, adding its projected six-year depletion time frame was not surprising.

In an interview with The Tribune yesterday, the former Cabinet minister said not only has NIB been used as a “slush fund” over the years, but it was subject to serious government and quasi-government debt.

To make matters worse, Dr Sands said the Davis administration was

believe the minister broke any new ground.

“The question is whether this government is going to fix it. We have warned from the inception of NIB how NIB has been used as a slush fund ostensibly to fund government projects. We have seen the 9th actuarial report, the 10th actuarial report with basically the same warning that the fund would be bankrupt certainly by 2030 and now we are hearing 2029 (2028). I don’t think we have broken much new ground.

“The challenge is that we don’t have the intestinal fortitude to do what is necessary.

“NIB is heavily invested

A RUBIS tanker refuelling a station yesterday.

Photo: Racardo Thomas/Tribune Staff

TRYING TO AVOID AN EASTER SHUTDOWN from page one

“I know just from my research and advance of the meeting that some of the issues that have been plaguing them are the very high costs to rent their premises and the fact that the company that controls the premises also takes off a sum of the convenience store sales, the sea store sales off the top and also some of them have to pay what is known as franchise fees and so they have a very high cost structure.

“But as I said, we will sit and speak with them and hear their issues and as we normally do, agree where we can to bring some assistance but in terms of a strike and a looming strike,

it’s not my information that that’s the position of the Petroleum Dealers Association and so we’re going to sit down with them in the spirit of working together looking to see how we can bring them some relief.”

Yesterday, Mr Halkitis also rejected the association’s suggestions that the government was benefiting the most from the situation due to taxes imposed on the industry, arguing the fees were at a fixed rate.

He also said the government was not considering increasing the profit margin at this time. Earlier this week, The Tribune reported that gas station operators are seeking a 50 percent margin increase and for its calculation to be based on a

percentage, as opposed to a fixed amount.

“Firstly, the government is not benefitting from the increase on the cost of fuel because the government has a fixed tax on gasoline,” Mr Halkitis said.

“For diesel, it’s a combination of a fixed and what they call ‘ad valorem’ which means it fluctuates but for gasoline which most individuals consume, the government’s tax is fixed so whether the price goes up or down, the government’s tax remains the same so it’s not that we’re benefiting from any increase in the price of fuel. We all lament the increase in the price of fuel... from external circumstances.”

With the cost of fuel at the pumps now surpassing

the $6 threshold, some gas operators are considering operating self-service gas stations to help cut high costs.

“We can’t mandate that they must offer a particular service,” Mr Halkitis said of the potential move yesterday.

“That has been aired as a possible remedy for some of their increased costs but from what I gather is that costs have gone up and some dealers are having difficulties re-supplying themselves so as prices have gone up, the cost of a tank... to supply the station has gone up and some has had difficulty in cash flow and doing that and so as I said, we will sit at the table with them and hear their concerns.”

Local officials​and industry stakeholders have predicted a high of $8 per

gallon of gas this spring if the situation does not improve.

PAGE 4, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

‘Churches have acted responsibly on capacity’

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net HEALTH and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville said churches have acted responsibly and he expects them to continue to do so this Holy Week, when they will be at maximum capacity.

Just days before Easter, it was announced that the COVID-19 Advisory Committee approved churches and other places of religious worship and instruction to increase capacity to 100 percent.

On the sidelines of an event yesterday, Dr Darville explained the rationale behind the decision.

“As the numbers of COVID cases begin to fall in the country, it is the

responsibility of the Ministry of Health and Wellness through the EOC to begin to relax the rules. The EOC met and they felt it (was) appropriate to allow churches to meet at 100 percent with necessary healthcare protocols,” he said.

“I believe that this particular Holy Week and the particular season I believe that churches have always acted responsibly and I believe they will continue to do so.

With that being said, the Bahamian people must know a responsibility of ours to be able to practice the right protocols and the Ministry of Health is looking very closely at what is happening around the world. We’re looking at the new variant and we

will make the necessary decisions when the time comes.”

Regattas are a highly anticipated event on the cultural calendar.

Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs Minister Clay Sweeting had said earlier that he expects several Family Island regattas and festivals will be held this summer once COVID19 cases remain low in the country.

Dr Darville assured Bahamians that outdoor settings along with wind are advantageous, but there will be some protocols in place.

“The protocols as it relates to regattas are clearly outlined in our health services rules,” the minister told reporters. “It’s outside. They are usually

coastal where there’s a very good breeze and so the incidents of possible spread decreases with being in an outdoor environment with a five to six knot wind. Around a regatta site there’s usually a lot of wind and so there’s movement of airspaces, but with that being said the regattas committee are aware of what the protocols are and there will be some protocols in place.

“COVID police will be there to make sure the COVID protocols are maintained but we believe the time has come to let’s get on with life, particularly now that the cases are low. “Regattas are lifelines for those communities in the Family Islands and they need actually to gain resources and so we support

them in conjunction with the COVID police and to ensure that protocols are maintained at those sites.”

He also announced that the Cabinet has approved some 278 workers throughout Family islands, inclusive of clerks, handymen, and maintenance staff.

“Our doctor counts, I’ve said it before, in the last few months we’ve hired some 15 doctors that are presently under training to go into the Family Islands.”

This comes as six new cases of COVID-19 were recorded on April 11.

Dr Darville spoke about issues with delayed reporting of new cases, which leads to higher case counts in the daily Ministry of Health dashboard.

The minister explained: “We’re watching all of the

cases, some are travel related. we’re a tourism country and we have to open our borders in order for people to come to spend and to get those tourism dollars. Our responsibility at the Ministry of Health and Wellness is to be able to manage our COVID in the country and to be able to did it effectively.

“We are concerned anytime that there’s an increase in numbers, but what we will realise is the increase in some cases in some days are directly related to reporting being delayed for that day and accumulation of two to three days. So we’re working diligently with our labs to ensure that the cases are reported daily so we can have a direct number that correlates with the specific date on (our) dashboard.”

THE IMAGINE Local Government launch with Rise Bahamas and ORG yesterday. From left, Terneille Burrows, of Rise Bahamas; Dr Nicolette Bethel; Matt Aubry, of ORG, and moderator Azaleta Ishmael-Newry.

Photos: Donavan McIntosh/Tribune Staff

RISING TO LOCAL GOVT CHALLENGE RISE Bahamas, an advocacy group, has launched its Imagine Local Government campaign joined by partners, Organisation for Responsible Governance (ORG) Bahamas and One Bahamas in Nassau.

Best known for its work surrounding the protection of women and children, particularly Marco’s Law, Rise Bahamas is also focused on the implementation of local government in New Providence, which is a part of its good governance and community empowerment pillars.

In 2018, an advisory committee for the introduction of local government in New Providence was approved by the Cabinet. It was this committee that did research and laid the groundwork to promote the concept.

“I appreciate the hard work and dedication to this cause displayed by the advisory committee which allows us to expand on what they started,” said Terneille Burrows, founder of Rise Bahamas. “We are excited to bring this project directly to the people, because as was stated in previous campaigns - local government is for the people.”

As mentioned on the newly launched risebahamas. net website, the group says it believes that The Bahamas “would benefit from local government in New Providence.”

“Currently, we operate with a central government system. A move to local government would be a layer below the central government with the impact of bringing government closer to the people – 70 percent of the population (New Providence) currently has only one level of representation.”

RISE said some things local government representatives in New Providence would handle include: repair and maintenance of district infrastructure; engagement of citizens in decision-making and community development; and introduction of community or district crime prevention measures.

Rise Bahamas was founded in 2014 and has since been registered as a non-profit organisation. More information about Imagine Local Government is available at: www. risebahamas.net and on the Rise Bahamas Facebook page.

THE AUDIENCE at the Imagine Local Government launch with Rise Bahamas and ORG yesterday.

NEUROTRAUMA WORKSHOP HELD TO TEACH MEDICS

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

A NEUROTRAUMA workshop for Caribbean nurses was held to teach frontline medical providers how to accurately manage head and spine trauma.

Dr Myron Rolle, the facilitator of the workshop, launched the event in The Bahamas which he describes as his “home country”.

“It’s fitting to come home and do it here first and then we’ll advance to

other CARICOM member states,” he said.

The neurosurgeon explained he brought a few Harvard nurses from Boston to be in New Providence as well as Grand Bahama.

“We know that in the academic nerve surgical literature that you have a four-hour window of managing these patients so you can prevent death or permanent disability and so we’re trying to equip these nurses with the tools and skills to do just that,” he explained.

Dr Rolle also spoke about a foundation that he started about two years ago which he said was born out of tragedy. In 2010, when he was playing professional American football for the Tennessee Titans in Nashville, Tennessee, Dr Rolle got a call from his cousin that his aunt had died.

“She was hit in the head by a car and didn’t receive urgent, immediate medical attention... at that time I was frustrated,” he told the audience.

“I was disappointed but I said to myself, I got

motivated when I became a neurosurgeon... when I had the networks, when I had the belief of people like Dr Darville and others to do more and to try to fix this gap and fill this void with training, with policy, with education, with advance, with care then I will do that.”

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville said he was delighted to know that “hundreds” of nurses in the capital and Grand Bahama will be trained on how to improve the immediate care

delivered to patients with traumatic brain injury.

“I’ve worked in the emergency room. I’ve seen it at sites of accidents where our emergency medical services would come, not really paying close attention to what’s happening with the patient and as a direct result of poor care at the site create more longterm injury on recovery and so this particular workshop I believe will prove to be beneficial for our nurses and also beneficial to the delivery of healthcare systems throughout our

archipelago,” Dr Darville said.

He added in his remarks: “The critical component of care and the ability to stabilise neurotrauma cases bridges the gap between injury and high-level neurosurgical care and has the potential to improve outcomes and save hundreds of lives. Dr Rolle, you and your team have brought an important topic to the table as we seek to transform and to provide quality healthcare and delivery systems throughout our healthcare system.”

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 5

US criticises Bahamas on citizenship measures from page one

campaign finance laws and regulations, and the limited efforts of the government to enforce rules about conflicts of interest in contracts.

On citizenship, the US said: “There was little progress in advancing legislation intended to address the issue of statelessness.

“Under the constitution, Bahamian-born persons of foreign heritage must apply for citizenship during a 12-month period following their 18th birthday, but applicants sometimes waited many years for a government response. The short period for application, difficult documentary requirements, and long waiting times left multiple generations of persons, primarily persons of Haitian descent, without a nationality.

“Government policy allows individuals who missed the 12-month window to gain legal permanent resident status with the right to work, but some Haitian residents lacked the

necessary documents.

“There were no reliable estimates of the number of persons without a confirmed nationality. The government asserted a number of ‘stateless’ individuals who had a legitimate claim to Haitian citizenship refused to pursue it due to fear of deportation or loss of future claim to Bahamian citizenship. Such persons often faced waiting periods of several years for the government to decide on their nationality applications and, as a result, in the interim lacked proper documentation to secure employment, housing, and other public services. The lack of a passport also prohibited students from accessing higher education outside the country.”

The US highlighted examples of people born in The Bahamas to nonBahamian parents who were awaiting the government’s decision on their nationality for a long time.

Two people were still waiting for a decision 19 and 21 years after submitting their applications.

“In both situations the

individual relied on their employer to sponsor and renew their work permits each year to maintain legal status,” the US report said.

Corruption at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services and Carmichael Road Detention Centre are highlighted as long-standing problems.

“There were widespread, credible reports that immigration officials solicited bribes to prevent detention or grant release. Human rights organisations and media reporting alleged that officials demanded payment in exchange for telephone calls and sanitary napkins,” the US said.

The report noted that last April a correctional officer reported that two prison officers beat a male prisoner, resulting in hospitalisation.

“There were four recorded cases of physical abuse by correctional officers. Two officers in these cases had disciplinary charges levied against them. The evidence in the remaining two cases was

deemed insufficient to go to trial, according to the government.”

The report also said law enforcement investigated four alleged cases of rape at the government’s only safe house for victims of domestic violence, which was also used to hold migrant detainees who are women and children.

“Two investigations resulted in the discharge of the immigration officers involved. Prosecutors dropped a third case because the alleged victim declined to press charges.

Prosecutors dropped a fourth case when the accuser died from COVID-19.”

According to the report, violence against women worsened during COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions as victims were prevented “from seeking safe havens or other assistance.”

“The government did not implement longstanding civil society recommendations to address gender-based

violence,” the report said.

The US also said the government did not effectively enforce provisions of the Equal Opportunities Act, which prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities. Among other things, the US highlighted the lack of accessible transportation for people.

The report said: “The law affords equal access for students, but only as resources permit, as decided by individual schools. There were several segregated schools for children with disabilities in Nassau; however, on less-populated islands, children with learning disabilities often lacked adequate access. The government tried to facilitate distance learning for students with disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic but faced problems in providing equal access.

A mix of government and private residential and nonresidential institutions provided education, training, counselling, and job placement services for adults and children with

disabilities.

“Several persons with disabilities submitted complaints concerning the lack of parking spaces available near buildings for persons with disabilities, as persons without disabilities were using the spaces with impunity. The government was unable to enforce the Equal Opportunities Act due to a lack of inspectors to monitor parking availability and to ensure that new building specifications aligned with accessibility requirements.”

The US said there are few safeguards against quid pro quo donations in the campaign finance system, “creating a vulnerability to corruption and foreign influence.”

It added: “The procurement process was susceptible to corruption since it contained no requirement to engage in open public tenders. In February the government passed the Public Procurement Bill (2020) to improve transparency and accountability in the public procurement process.”

FIRST PINERIDGE HOMES NEXT MONTH

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

TRANSPORT and Housing Minister Jobeth Coleby-Davis said she expects the first set of homes being built in the government’s Pinecrest Subdivision will be completed by next month, with the remaining houses expected to be finished in the months thereafter.

Mrs Coleby-Davis gave the update after recently touring the development.

According to the minister, a total of 47 homes are being built in the area in the first stage. She said: “I am quite impressed with the work and the effort that has been put into the building of these homes and the discussions happened before we started related to what experiences we’ve seen with Hurricane Dorian and the response of the structures there and also many of the concerns coming from me as a young person that went and experienced the building of a home and had my own personal issues.

“It was really important for me to make sure that enough was done to

provide structures that people can be proud of.

Pinecrest is sold out at the first stage which is 47 homes so we have a lot of families that are excited to become homeowners in a few short months. We have single mothers, single fathers, teachers, nurses, police officers and defence force officers and young married couples, young professionals and older persons.”

The Pinecrest project is a PPP initiative between the government and Arawak Homes Limited.

Asked how soon the homes will be completed, the minister said the first batch should be completed sometime next month.

“We have a good schedule and as long as they stick to schedule, we should see some of the homes completed in May, and then the other set will roll out in the first week of July and then the last week in July and then we have some that will be rolling out mid-September and then end of the September and then October will be our last batch of the first 47. So, it will be different timelines that you will see them rolled out and completed.”

According to Mrs Coleby-Davis, the government is planning a similar initiative for Grand Bahama, with some 140 affordable homes set to be constructed there. Asked about the potential impact of rising goods prices on the government’s housing initiative, the minister said she believes the government has offered enough incentives to contractors to help offset the hike in prices.

“We have tried to provide them enough cushion in the contingencies at the contract level so they can be able to better manage their costs and we also have a quality surveyor that is on board with the team and he is reviewing and making sure the cuts when it comes to materials and the quality of what is being used to build the homes,” she said.

“So, while we see the rising costs could have some effect, I think we have provided enough cushion - well hopefully, we have provided enough cushion in the ​contingency and some of the exemptions that is granted to our private contractors that assist us in bringing affordability to homes and homeowners.”

SHANTY TOWNS BEING PROBED

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

WORKS and Utilities Minister Alfred Sears says his ministry is investigating the development of unregulated shanty towns across the country with a view to make recommendations to Cabinet on how to deal with the illegal communities.

Mr Sears said the recommendations will be included in a comprehensive report centred on shanty towns and will be presented to Cabinet upon completion.

The revelation comes after government officials raised alarm about increased incidents of unlawful land clearing in the country and promised to crack down on those engaging in the illegal practice.

With respect to shanty towns, Mr Sears was clear the government does not condone anyone erecting illegal structures on public land.

However, he said the Davis administration must be guided before an official stance is taken.

“With respect to any squatting on government land, that matter is now being reviewed,” the minister told reporters before going to a Cabinet meeting yesterday.

“I spoke with the chairman of the town planning board, Mr Johnson. I know they are reviewing it. Also, the building control unit of

the Ministry of Works, so I should have a comprehensive report and the report that I expect will have options and recommendations. At which time, I will go to Cabinet and present a strategy and we will then implement.

“I was in Abaco three weeks ago for the commissioning of the little Abaco bridge and I was driving from the airport, I was told that there are certain communities which subsequent to Hurricane Dorian have been established.

“Upon returning to Nassau, I asked the town planning and the building control to investigate the reports that I have received, and I expect that those reports will be forthcoming and with recommendation and in the context of that report, it will address the history that is what the previous government would’ve done.”

The Minnis administration began demolishing illegal structures in Abaco last year in a bid to eliminate the remaining shanty towns on the island after many of the communities were wiped out by Hurricane Dorian in 2019.

However, the demolition exercises were stopped after Supreme Court Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson ordered the government to cease and desist further interference with those communities until the judicial review of the matter was completed.

She also ordered that officials must get approval from the court before demolishing any further structures.

Asked yesterday if the government planned to follow in the footsteps of its predecessor, the minister said officials will wait to receive recommendations from ministry officials familiar with the situation before taking a position.

Mr Sears also acknowledged the housing crisis on the island post-Dorian as a serious challenge and committed the government to addressing it in a comprehensive manner.

“We have a human situation in Abaco,” he said.

“We have thousands of people who were displaced and Bahamian citizens and long-term residents, some of whom are housed in domes and other temporary facilities which were not intended for any long-term habitation.

“The minister of housing has already broken (ground) for a new subdivision in Abaco to address this human situation of displacement. Many persons have been made refuges… we have to address this matter of housing in a very comprehensive way so that we can provide stability as well as habitable places where people can put their lives back together...but one thing is certain that no one has an unfettered right to establish unregulated communities on public land.”

TRANSPORT and Housing Minister Jobeth Coleby-Davis.

St. Francis Xavier Cathedral Holy Week & Easter 2022 Mass Schedule Saturday, 9th April –

Vigil for Sunday at 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, 10th April –

Passion (Palm) Sunday Sunday of the Passion of our Lord.

Mass at 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.

Monday, 11th April –

Mass at 7:00 a.m. only.

Tuesday, 12th April & Wednesday, 13th April – Mass at 7:00 a.m. and 12:10 p.m.

Thursday, 14th April – (Holy Thursday)

Mass at 7:00 p.m. only.

Evening Mass of Our Lord’s Supper.

This will be the only Mass of the day.

Friday, 15th April – (Good Friday)

The Passion of Our Lord.

Passion of the Cross at 8:30 a.m. and 12 noon.

This is a day of Fast and Abstinence.

Saturday, 16th April – (Holy Saturday)

Vigil for Easter at 8 p.m.

Sunday, 17th April –

Easter Sunday – The Resurrection of Our Lord.

Mass at 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.

Monday, 18th April –

Easter Monday – No Mass.

Tuesday, 19th April –

Regular Mass schedule resumes – 7:00 a.m. and 12:10 p.m.

PAGE 6, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

The Tribune Limited

THE TRIBUNE

PICTURE OF THE DAY

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

Publisher/Editor 1903-1914

LEON E. H. DUPUCH,

Kt., O.B.E., K.M., K.C.S.G., (Hon.) LL.D., D.Litt .

SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH,

Publisher/Editor 1919-1972 Contributing Editor 1972-1991

EILEEN DUPUCH CARRON,

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

Published daily Monday to Friday

Shirley & Deveaux Streets, Nassau, Bahamas N3207 TELEPHONES News & General Information Advertising Manager Circulation Department Nassau fax Freeport, Grand Bahama Freeport fax

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

WEBSITE, TWITTER & FACEBOOK www.tribune242.com

@tribune242

tribune news network

Everything going up, now it’s NIB IT seems like everything is going up.

An overheard conversation this week probably reflects the thoughts many are having across the country.

The person was listing off the price increases at present. “Gas prices up,” he said. “Food prices up, bills going up, even plane tickets up not that we can afford to go anywhere, and now they’re talking about putting NIB up?”

You’ve perhaps heard the same refrain as people try to figure out how to pay their bills and fill their food cupboards. You perhaps have said the same words yourself.

For NIB, it’s no surprise that the fund has taken a beating over the economic crash brought on by COVID. It’s a simple equation – fewer people at work with so many furloughed or losing their jobs entirely so that means the contributions have dropped, while so many more people in need of help to get them through the long months of COVID restrictions.

That the lifetime of the fund has dropped by a year then is not a shock, although it is a reminder of the longstanding concern of how our national insurance fund is maintained.

The current minister of state with responsibility for the fund is Myles Laroda, who said yesterday: “The reality is the National Insurance Board has been running deficit for the past six years so this pre-dated COVID. This can was kicked down the road too many times.”

Mr Laroda is not wrong about that can kicking. In fact, in the actuarial report filed in 2002, the prediction was that the fund would be bankrupt by 2030. As FNM chairman Dr Duane Sands said yesterday as he cautioned against using the money as a slush fund: “Now we are hearing 2029/2028. I don’t think we have broken much new ground.”

Sir Franklyn Wilson yesterday warned of the consequences of kicking that can any further. He said: “The question about kicking the can down the road is an absolutely true statement. I’ve heard that said by at least one prior minister

at NIB. Successive ministers have run that entity in a way that raises questions about the level of payroll, the number of people, the investment policy…

“We cannot let NIB go broke. The pensioners, all the people that depend on that, that’s something we don’t want to imagine.”

So we can’t let it go broke, and we shouldn’t use it as a slush fund – and we need to fill it back up. Again, that’s a simple equation – stop taking money out of it and start putting money back into it. And if it won’t refill on its own as people get back to the workplace, we’ve got to pay more. All that’s left is timing.

A number of businesses are already talking about reeling from so many financial costs – and we don’t want unemployment to spike as that won’t help either. So when do you raise it, and by how much? And what reform goes with it?

Larry Gibson, the chief operating officer of CG Atlantic Pensions, is already warning that without reform we will be faced with contribution hikes “every three to four years.”

It is a big task to rescue our nation’s pension pot – and simply sticking up the prices on its own is not going to help.

Mr Laroda speculated yesterday that in terms of rate increases it “is not just going to be one. You can expect numerous increases”.

These are the consequences of not rescuing the fund in better times, and having to do so in the middle of an economic crunch.

Will Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis be the one to take the reins and steer the fund to safety? We shall see.

Credit, though, to the person who compiled that report all the way back in 2002, that has turned out to be so accurate.

Interestingly, the minister with responsibility for NIB that he handed it to at the time is a familiar face. It was Brave Davis.

That can kicked all the way down the years has ended up at his feet once more.

Deterring gangs EDITOR, The Tribune.

AS THE debates are being discussed about the legal age of consensual sex at age 16 or 18 with a young teenager there are some things to examine and consider that are impacting the social issues with families in the Bahamas. For too long young teenage girls 14,15,16 and 17 were having babies as a single parent. These teenage mothers were unable, unprepared and not ready to raise children because they still were not mature enough to have this knowledge.

Adding more problems was the fact that they had to drop out of school and were unable to have a High School Diploma. This made it extremely hard,

difficult and nearly impossible to raise their kids.

The dilemma from this is that 95% of gang members are from a single parent home. The foundation of a nation is a strong united family with a mother and father together raising their children. The first thing to address this problem is to make it a law that 18 years old is when a consensual sex relation can be with a woman, then the second thing is for the Bahamas Government to have the Ministry of Youth introduce Sports programmes - Basketball, Baseball and Football to keep teenagers from joining gangs.

Also implement Mentoring Telephone Hotline numbers for kids in Coordination with the Christian

Council along with School Guidance Counselors to offer kids without fathers a positive role male model that can help him to stay away from joining gangs.

I was happy that Prime Minister Philip Davis implemented my recommendation in the Letter to the Editor Crime Prevention and Prisoner Rehabilitation to disrupt gangs in the Bahamas by having a Police Task Force Gang unit to address the gangs’ problems facing the Bahamian people. Hoping for a better Bahamas, onward, forward and upward. One God, One Nation and One people.

PEDRO SMITH Nassau, April 11, 2022.

End the Travel Health Visa EDITOR, The Tribune.

WHEN is The Bahamas going to become realistic and end all the complicated and time consuming entry rules like most other countries? We were regular visitors to Nassau coming to stay at our holiday home for many years. However, we have not been able to complete all the hassles and be on the ground in three days.

Finding a place to get the required rapid antigen test is a challenge and expensive. Waiting for a written result is uncertain. Scanning

all the documents and vaccination certificate to get the Health Visa is another problem. All of this has to be done in conjunction with flights which are far fewer than previously. We know so many other Canadians who simply cannot be bothered with your policies and are now going elsewhere.

What now is the point of the Visa with COVID-19 on the decline? We are told that it has apparently just become an expensive tax. The Bahamas is falling behind now. People want easier entry these days.

We saw all the interesting and successful events of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s recent trip to your country on our Canadian television and media. It was great publicity for The Bahamas. How unfortunate that much of the enthusiasm generated by their trip cannot be transformed into more visitors arriving because of your unbelievably difficult entry rules.

MICHAEL ROBERTSON Toronto, Canada, April 10, 2022.

CRABS cross a wall after spawning in the sea in Giron, Cuba, on Saturday. Millions of crabs emerge at the beginning of the spring rains and start a journey to the waters of the Bay of Pigs in a yearly spawning migration.

Photo: Ramon Espinosa/AP

Tough love really love?

EDITOR, The Tribune.

LAST night in a social setting a video was shown about one of our former athletes that has been experiencing the most challenging time one can imagine. While the video was heartbreaking what was most disturbing were the negative comments coming from some of the people in the group. It makes one wonder what happened to us as a people.

When did we become so cold and uncaring?

I see and talk with him often he wanted me to share his story.

As he soared through the air the crowd cheered him on with shouts of “go boy go you gat this one”. When he touched the ground with a record breaking jump he was greeted with hugs and cheers from his coach, family, friends and fans. His name headlined the sports section of every newspaper.

And then it happened.

One night at a party celebrating his gold medal victory while smoking a joint the champ was introduced to the white lady.

On most days you can see him walking the streets.

Sometimes he is pushing a cart but most of the time he is just walking around begging to get something to eat.

While some of us respond in a sympathetic way others snub him by either rolling up our car windows or turn up our noses and look the other way.

How quickly we forget.

Several years ago we were at the stadium cheering him on. We used to go to the meets just to watch him participate. Now here we are ignoring and scorning this man whose name was in every track and field fan’s mouth.

When cocaine first made its unassuming debut on the party scene in The Bahamas before it hit the streets

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net it was labeled “the chic drug”.

It was socially acceptable mostly among the elite.

So when some young athletes, musicians and other glamorous professionals who had quick rises to fame, were introduced to cocaine’s seductive charm it became the perfect match for an affair. Some was seduced and enamored by the white lady before they ever reached the top.

The outcome of the story is different for each individual. Many managed to free themselves from her embrace and find a way to overcome the addiction and have even helped others get back on track.

However, far too often, the story has ended with someone’s career coming to a close at an early stage.

Sadly, in some of the more extreme cases, lives are cut short.

When you pass him on the streets he looks like someone you know, but you are not sure because the person you know who looks like him would never be a street beggar.

So you don’t stop because you believe if it is him he could do better.

“And you are right he could do better, but he loves being an addict and would rather beg. He prefers to scrounge through the garbage bins and go to war with the rats over something to eat rather than be some business executive or the track star he used to be.”

We shuck him out of our lives without looking back. Saying if he wants he can stop his foolishness.

He never mentions family and you may ask what about his family. “Right what about his family? Well aren’t we all God’s children,

isn’t he our brother.” So we practice tough love.

Tough love is supposed to be a strict, but kind way of dealing with someone who has a problem. But more emphasis is placed on tough and not so much on kind.

National Institutes of Health noted that “get tough treatments do not work and there is some evidence that they may make the problem worse.”

It brings to mind the prodigal son. We all know the story. The prodigal son went off to some distant land and wasted his inheritance. Fell on hard times and even shared swill with the pigs. The brokenhearted father wanting to bring him back home searched all over, but could not find him. So he waited at the street corner praying that his long lost son would return.

Our brother who is just down the street, a stone’s throw away from us... Just a kind word away from our embrace, why aren’t we reaching out to him?

We don’t have to go searching for him. Why don’t we bring him home?

This young man this brother that brought us so much laughter and joy as we cheered him on at the tracks. Will we continue to practice tough love and let him dig through the garbage cans for something to eat until we attend his home going celebration where we will tell stories of how great an athlete he was... or will we bring him home.

“That’s what friends are for For good times and bad times I’ll be on your side forever more That’s what friends are for” God bless The Bahamas.

ANTHONY PRATT Nassau, April 10, 2022.

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 7

‘We must stop drugs being thrown over prison walls’

from page one The men spoke at the opening ceremony of a prison staff empowerment seminar at Faith United Baptist Church yesterday.

“The US Embassy,” Mr Munroe said, “donated to us the scanners and so they now scan clothing and where contraband was coming in the shoes, I’m told that that’s basically cut out.

“Now we’re concerned with people throwing drugs over the wall. The prison officers are the only ones with free movement retrieving them. Commissioner

(Don) Cleare is alert to this, they have patrol teams to deal with it. There are also now some CCTV cameras in the hallway. We’re looking to use more technology to address these issues.”

Earlier, Mr Davis lamented the fact that officers sometimes behave unlawfully and said his administration is determined to hold such people accountable.

“As officers in charge of upholding and enforcing the laws and rules of this institution, I would have thought it unnecessary to remind you of the need to ensure that your own behaviour

SECURITY MANAGER TESTIFIES IN FRESH MARKET THEFT TRIAL

By PAVEL BAILEY

A SECURITY manager testified yesterday in the ongoing trial of a former employee of Solomon’s Fresh Market, who is accused of stealing $342.50 worth of groceries.

Vashnique Rolle, 28, of Pinewood Gardens, is on trial before Senior Magistrate Samuel McKinney.

The prosecution alleges that on November 17, 2021, Rolle, while working at the cash register at the store’s Harbour Bay location, was caught on surveillance video stealing hundreds of dollars worth of groceries.

The security and investigations manager at AML, Darrell Mitchell told the court that he recognised Rolle as a former employee at Solomon’s Fresh Market.

He said at 7pm on the day of the incident he reviewed security footage of the accused at her cashier station, scanning items that were not properly rung up.

These items observed in surveillance footage matched items that were recorded as unpaid for in official reports detailing all of Rolle’s transactions.

Mr Mitchell indicated that Solomon’s system never deleted any transaction at a point of service (POS) station. This allowed Solomon’s to calculate the loss of the stolen item to be $342.50 by cross referencing the stolen items to its counterparts still in stock.

Both the surveillance footage and the official report were shown to the court and entered into evidence.

Rolle’s attorney, Alleecia Delancy, during her crossexamination disputed the

contradiction between the surveillance footage and the cashier system. She then put it to Mr Mitchell that those systems were malfunctioning and that they were at fault and not Rolle.

Rolle’s attorney also alleged that her client had clearly swiped her card to activate the stem despite Mr Mitchell’s claim that she had not, resulting in the theft.

Ms Delancy also called into question Mr Mitchell’s earlier claim that one of the two men in surveillance footage at the time of the incident was Gilbert Lloyd.

She said the man in the footage in a grey shirt and khakis is black whereas Mr Lloyd is a Caucasian.

She told Mr Mitchell that the man in the footage was not Mr Lloyd, who has a charge account with Solomon’s, but his chef and a signatory on the account to which Mr Mitchell agreed.

She further suggested that the second man with dreadlocks is responsible for the theft of items in a second cart as the security footage showed that he had blocked Rolle’s view of the second cart during the incident.

In her closing arguments Ms Delancy said five other employees were let go from Solomon’s that week. After Mr Mitchell confirmed this, she said another employee from the same register as Rolle was also let go at that time, arguing it was a system error that was at fault both times.

After this, the prosecutor Inspector Timothy Bain closed his case.

Rolle’s case was adjourned to May 2 for her counsel’s no case submission.

GIRL, 14, CHARGED OVER KNIFE ATTACK

By PAVEL BAILEY

A 14-YEAR-OLD girl was arraigned in Magistrate’s Court yesterday accused of attacking a woman with a knife.

The juvenile appeared before Senior Magistrate Derence Rolle Davis on a charge of assault with a dangerous instrument.

She was arrested on March 15 at Kenilworth Street for allegedly assaulting a woman with a knife.

She pleaded not guilty to the charge.

As the accused was already on police bail, Magistrate Rolle Davis extended it for the 14 year old.

However, as a stipulation for her bail, the accused was placed on curfew. She is ordered to remain in her home from 8am to 5pm Mondays through Fridays, as well as 8am to 2pm on Saturdays and remain indoors all day on Sundays.

Her case was adjourned to July 6.

MAN ACCUSED OF HARMING WOMAN

By PAVEL BAILEY

A MAN was granted bail yesterday after he was charged with causing grievous harm to a woman at a bar.

Wilfred Farrington, 33, stood before Senior Magistrate Derence A Rolle Davis accused of causing harm to Rakesha Murphy on Friday, April 1. at the

Campari Bar on Market Street.

In court, Farrington pleaded not guilty to the charge.

He was granted bail at $1,000 with one or two sureties and warned not to have contact with either the complainant or any witnesses in this matter during that time.

Farrington’s case was adjourned to July 19.

also falls within the laws and rules which you impose on others,” he said.

“Sadly this is not the case.

I understand that some among you are still tempted to facilitate the prohibited use of cell phones, and continue to collude in the smuggling and use of illegal drugs within the institution.

“You should be in no doubt that my administration’s policy is to hold any lawbreakers among you to the highest account, and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”

Mr Davis continued: “Apart from the obvious legal offence, engaging in such behaviour completely undermines the moral authority of everything that we seek to do here. How can we ask inmates not to break laws, when they know that some officers do? And how can we claim that personal self-discipline, and adherence to law and order, is a better way for all of us to live, if the very people charged with upholding that lesson behave in ways which go completely against it?”

Mr Munroe said the Ministry of National Security and Ministry of Finance are negotiating over a public private partnership tender

for the construction of a new 700-bed high medium security prison.

He said officials hope to select a bidder by the end of the year or early next year, with construction projected to end 18 to 24 months after beginning.

The facility will use renewable energy.

“As the prime minister said, the prison has the conditions that the officers work in as well as where prisoners are housed. It has been used as the basis for having sentences reduced, having findings that go contrary to keeping people in the prison,” Mr Munroe said.

The new prison, he added, “will be steel fabricated so there will be no place to dig and hide contraband, no place to hide phones.”

“It‘ll be more controlled, it will be modern so you can have it surveilled by cameras and to cut down on contraband and the ability of people to communicate with the outside uncontrolled.

“As you know there are phones in prison so if you want to use the phone just so it’s monitored. That’s the way it is in all institutions.”

PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis.

PAGE 8, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

Read the facts, learn the problem - then act

By Alicia Wallace

APRIL is Sexual Assault to recognise these situaAwareness Month — a tions and safely, effectively period for raising awareness stop them from escalating.

The social norm that and educating the public on sexual assault in paral- is street harassment, for lel with advocacy for laws, example, has to be underpolicies, programmes, and stood as not only an services to prevent it, effec- uncomfortable or annoying tively respond to it, and experience for women and ensure access to justice for girls, but one that induces fear and is on the continsurvivors.

RAINN defines sexual uum of sexual violence.

This strategy is aimed at assault as “sexual contact or behaviour that occurs changing indifference to without explicit consent of violence. People convincthe victim”. Some exam- ing themselves and each ples are unwanted touching, other that violence does not matter results in too attempted rape, and rape.

According to the little intervention and the National Crime Victimi- indifference observation of sation Survey in the US, violence can lead to particieight out of ten perpetra- pation in it.

By engaging men and tors of sexual violence are known to the victim, and boys and guiding them to 93 per cent of children become allies, there are and teen victims knew the more people to name and interrupt acts of sexual perpetrator. demonstrating Sexual violence is not violence, limited to strangers; on the less acceptance within and contrary, predators often among peer groups. They prey on people they know become leaders and encourand use their vulnerabilities age others to help create a against them. Our response protective environment.

2. Teach skills to preto sexual violence has to take this into consideration. vent sexual violence. The In 2016, the Centers for approaches named are learnDisease Control and Pre- social-emotional vention, National Center ing, teaching healthy, safe dating and for Injury Prevention ‘Sexual violence intimate relationship skills and Control, is not about to adolescents, and Division promoting of Violence sex, but a way healthy sexuPrevention to exert power ality, and developed a and control. By empowerresource for ment-based the preven- teaching socialtraining. These tion of sexual emotional skills, approaches violence. we give people require sex STOP SV: positivity.

It A Technical ways to express means addressPackage to themselves that ing issues of Prevent Sexual sexuality and Violence is a do not harm equipping 48-page docu- other people, ment that and help them to young people with the tools lays out the to navigate it strategy, the understand that in safe, healthy approach, and the control they ways. the evidence need to exercise That supporting includes underthe approach. is of and over standing their At the begin- themselves.’ bodies, assertning, it clearly states that sexual violence ing their bodily autonomy, is a public health prob- understanding consent, and lem, it is highly prevalent, respecting “no” from other some groups are dispro- people.

Comprehensive sexualportionately impacted, and preventing sexual violence ity education is critical to building a healthy society is a priority.

It also identifies risk and preventing sexual viofactors which include expe- lence. In addition to this, riences of physical abuse we need to teach commuas a child, exposure to vio- nication skills, empathy, lence between parents, problem-solving skills, and gender norms, hypermas- conflict management.

Sexual violence is not culinity, poverty, gender inequality, and inadequate about sex, but a way to laws and policies. It makes exert power and control. By connections between sexual teaching social-emotional violence and other forms skills, we give people ways of violence, health con- to express themselves that sequences, and economic do not harm other people, and help them to underconsequences.

Importantly, it states that stand that the control they sexual violence can be pre- need to exercise is of and vented, and this requires a over themselves.

The empowerment-based comprehensive approach that includes the individual, training focus on self-deterrelationship, community, mination, risk assessment, and bystander intervention. and societal levels.

3. Provide opportunities The strategy is divided into five areas with accom- to empower and support girls and women. Strengthpanying approaches.

1. Promote social norms ening economic supports that protect against vio- for women and families and leadership lence. The approaches for strengthening this strategy are bystander and opportunities for girls approaches and mobilising are the approaches for the strategy. men and boys and allies.

This strategy is a This means men and boys have to step up and inter- response to the disproportionate impact of sexual rupt unsafe interactions.

They have to be trained violence on people who

ONE of the things needed to prevent sexual violence is to teach the skills to do so - including understanding consent and respecting when someone says “no”.

Photo: Markus Spiske/Unsplash are unemployed, underemployed, experiencing poverty, unhoused, or have limited parental supervision, all exacerbated by gender inequality.

Support can take the form of subsidised childcare, ensuring there is equal pay for work of equal value, and making paid family leave accessible. These measures can increase women’s economic stability and decrease poverty of women and children, thereby reducing risk factors for sexual violence.

4. Create protective environments. The approaches for this are improving safety and monitoring in schools, establishing and consistently applying workplace politics, and addressing community-level risks through environmental approaches.

There are changes that need to be made at individual and familial level, and there are changes that must take place at the community level, through institutions.

Changes to the physical environment, such as the installation and maintenance of proper lighting, can increase the feeling of safety while it reduces the risk and rate of sexual violence.

Institutions also have a responsibility to contribute to the change we

need to see. The technical package says, “Women in workplaces with proactive sexual harassment policies were less likely to be physically threatened or to be the targets of unwanted sexual behaviour or comments. Women also responded more assertively to unwanted sexual behaviour when the workplace implemented policy, complaint procedures, and training to prevent sexual harassment.”

International Labour Organization’s Convention 190 on the Elimination of Violence and Harassment in the World of Work is one example of an international treaty that can make workplaces safer environments, reducing the risk of sexual violence.

5. Support victims/survivors to lessen harms. The approaches for meeting this strategy are victim-centred services, treatment for victims of sexual violence, and treatment for at-risk children and families to prevent problem behaviour, including sex offending.

There are long-term effects of experiencing sexual violence, and there is often limited or no provision of care for survivors. It is important to have support built in to any plan to address sexual violence. Support services include support groups,

crisis hotlines, therapy, medical advocacy, and legal services. Making these services accessible helps to reduce the effects of sexual violence on the survivor, reduced risk for perpetrating sexual violence in the future, and improvements in family life.

The stop SV technical package notes that a multi-sectoral approach is necessary to address sexual violence.

Health, education, justice, media, and social services must all work together to prevent sexual violence.

The strategies require the participation of various institutions and the engagement of leaders of various fields in order to reach individuals and families.

The government has a responsibility to protect people and their human rights. This does not mean the institutions within which people spend most of their time and money should do nothing. They also have an obligation to ensure the safety and well-being of the people within their spaces.

This must include protection from sexual violence and appropriate responses to it when it occurs.

Sexual violence is an issue that is not being appropriately addressed in The Bahamas. Sexual violence is not just a crime to be punished. It is a constant

fear that limits the lives of the people at the highest risk.

It alters the lives of survivors and, in many cases, their loved ones. There has to be a plan to prevent it, and it requires participation of all institutions and social groups. Responses to it must include accessible resources and services for survivors, and they must respond to their specific needs.

Work on this has already started. We have had the Strategic Plan to Address Gender-based Violence since 2015, and it has yet to be implemented. We continue to react to horrific stories of sexual violence and call for specific actions.

We need to remind the government of the work that has already been done, call for it to be updated, properly resourced, and implemented.

Several Members of Parliament and the Senate have expressed their concern and promised to do all they can to address this issue.

It is easy to read the report, to meet with the people who conducted the research and developed the plan, and the people who have been working on this issue within communities to move it forward. That is what is required, more than any speeches or social media statements of support. Action, now.

To Publish your Financials and

Legal Notices Call: 502-2394

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 9

TECHTALK

TESLA CEO Elon Musk speaks at the “Cyber Rodeo” grand opening celebration for the new $1.1 billion Tesla Giga Texas manufacturing facility in Austin, Texas, last week. The event marked the opening of the new factory in Travis County, which is Tesla’s new home after a move from California.

(Jay Janner /Austin American-Statesman via AP)

FIFA TAKES ON STREAMING COMPANIES WITH OWN SOCCER PLATFORM

ELON MUSK SAYS TESLA WILL BUILD VEHICLE DESIGNED TO BE A ROBOTAXI AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Tesla will build a vehicle dedicated for use as a robotaxi, and it will start making three new vehicles next year, CEO Elon Musk told fans at a party celebrating the opening of a Texas factory.

Musk didn’t give details of the robotaxi other than to say it will “look quite futuristic.” He also said Tesla will start building the Cybertruck pickup at its new factory near Austin, Texas, next year.

After that, it will start building a new Roadster and an electric semi, he said.

He made his remarks last week at the “Cyber Rodeo at Giga Texas,” an invitation-only party for thousands of guests at Tesla’s new billion-dollar-plus factory.

As many as 15,000 people were expected to attend the private event hosted to mark the opening of the new factory in Travis County that also serves as the company’s new headquarters following its move from California.

Musk said at the Thursday night event streamed live on YouTube that Tesla was delivering the first Model Y small SUVs built at the

new factory, which he said can make a half million of the SUVs per year.

Tesla and Musk have often missed targets to start producing vehicles. In 2019, he promised a fleet of autonomous robotaxis would be on the road the following year, but the company’s “Full Self-Driving” software is still being tested by selected Tesla owners on public roads.

The company is the largest maker of electric vehicles in the U.S. and the world.

Musk said this year will be about

scaling up the Austin factory as well as a new one in Germany. He also said the company may start building a robot in 2023. “Next year there’s going to be a massive wave of new products,” he told the crowd Thursday night.

A county-issued permit said the event included interactive tours, food, alcohol and live entertainment. But the event was off-limits to the general public and the news media.

Musk has said the Austin-area plant will employ up to 10,000 workers.

TOYOTA UNVEILS FIRST ELECTRIC VEHICLE SINCE RAV4 EV IN 2014 DETROIT (AP) — Toyota, the top-selling automaker in the U.S., is rolling out its first fully electric vehicle in eight years.

The company on Tuesday unveiled the battery-powered bZ4X small SUV, which starts at $42,000 and can go up to 252 miles (406 kilometres) per charge.

The bZ4X, which will be sold globally, adds to the 38 electric vehicle models now on sale in the U.S., with more than 120 expected by 2025.

While it doesn’t have ground-breaking range or performance for an electric vehicle, the bZ4X is an important entry because it’s from a trusted brand that will convince some buyers to make the switch from internal combustion engines, said Stephanie Brinley, principal analyst for S&P Global Mobility.

“You’ve got buyers who are interested in checking this out but may not be willing to try a new brand, or leave (Toyota) to go to Chevrolet or Ford,” Brinley said. “As we transition to a market that is more dominated by electric vehicles, the answer is really convincing normally ICE (internal combustion engine) owners to try something new.”

The bZ4X looks similar

LONDON (AP) — FIFA is getting into the streaming platform business with a soccer version of Netflix and Amazon Prime.

The service is free and largely featuring documentaries and some live games at the launch but it could eventually be a way for FIFA to broadcast World Cup matches itself at a cost.

While increasingly positioning itself as a rival to existing media companies, FIFA+ will also be used by the governing body to promote its sponsors.

“There is no plan to charge a subscription fee for the service, that doesn’t mean to say that we may not evolve over time should there be a value proposition that allows us to charge subscription if we step into premium rights or adopt other kind of models,” FIFA director of strategy Charlotte Burr said. “But there will always be a free experience on FIFA+.”

Geo-blocking can be used to limit matches broadcast on FIFA+ to specific territories.

FIFA was less clear if the platform will be an accessible means of watching World Cup qualifiers that are often not available to view widely as each federation is able to sell the rights and some confederations bundle them together.

FIFA said the live matches would be from competitions previously lacking coverage, initially with 1,400 games streamed each month.

The launch could see FIFA shift content off YouTube that it has previously used to broadcast classic matches and sports politics events.

The recent FIFA Congress in Qatar was not streamed on the long-standing video sharing website unlike previously.

GERMANY’S BOSCH BUYS BRITISH AUTOMATED DRIVING STARTUP FIVE

THE TOYOTA bZ4X SUV Battery-Electric Vehicle. (Toyota via AP) to and is slightly longer, lower and wider than Toyota’s RAV4, the top-selling vehicle in the U.S. that isn’t a pickup truck. It is Toyota’s first EV since 2014, when it last sold an electric version of the RAV4.

Like most electric vehicles, it’s fast when compared with internal combustion engine vehicles. The all-wheel-drive version can go from zero to 60 miles per hour (97 kilometres per hour) in as little as 6.5 seconds, Toyota says.

Sales will start in states that have zero-emissions vehicle requirements, then spread to the rest of the U.S., Toyota said. The bZ4X will be on display at the New York International Auto Show, where press days start this week.

The show opens to the public from April 15-24.

Toyota says it plans to offer 15 electric vehicles by 2025, with seven with the bZ brand, which stands for “Beyond Zero.”

When the bZ4X arrives

in U.S. showrooms in May, owners likely will have to hurry to get the $7,500 federal tax credit that would make it more affordable.

The automaker expects that sometime before the end of June it will reach a 200,000-vehicle cap on the credits.

After it hits the cap, the credits will be phased out over the next year, reaching zero as Tesla and General Motors already have.

Toyota reached the cap largely by selling plug-in

gas-electric hybrid vehicles such as the RAV4 Prime, which can go 42 miles on electricity before switching to a hybrid system that uses an internal combustion engine.

Automakers sold nearly 4.6 million electric vehicles worldwide last year. LMC Automotive, an industry consulting firm, expects that to rise to nearly 7 million this year and to more than 15 million by 2025.

Still, that will be only about 15% of global vehicle sales.

BERLIN (AP) — German auto parts and technology company Bosch said Tuesday it is buying Five, a British automated driving startup, for an undisclosed amount.

Bosch said Five, which is based in Cambridge and employs 140 people at six locations in the U.K., currently focuses on a cloudbased development and testing platform for the software used in self-driving cars.

Bosch board member Markus Heyn said the company wants Five “to give an extra boost to our work in software development for safe automated driving, and offer our customers European-made technology.”

Bosch said in a statement that Five “gave preference to Bosch over other takeover bidders,” which it didn’t identify, and that the agreement was signed at the beginning of April. It said the companies agreed not to disclose financial details, and that the deal is subject to approval by antritrust authorities.

PAGE 10, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

BRITISH PRIME MINISTER PAYS FINE FOR BREACHING LOCKDOWN

LONDON Associated Press

PRIME Minister Boris Johnson said yesterday he paid a fine from police for attending a lockdown-breaching birthday party in his official residence, making him the first British leader to be sanctioned for breaking the law while in office.

The fines for Johnson, his wife, Carrie, and Treasury chief Rishi Sunak brought a simmering crisis for the prime minister back to full boil, with opposition politicians immediately calling for his resignation.

Johnson and his Conservative government have faced growing outrage since allegations surfaced late last year that he and his staff flouted Britain’s pandemic restrictions and held office parties in 2020 and 2021 when millions in the country were barred from

meeting with friends and family — or even attending funerals for their loved ones.

“I have paid the fine and want to offer a full apology,” Johnson said. “I understand the anger many will feel that I myself fell short when it came to observing the very rules which the government I lead had introduced to protect the public. I accept in all sincerity that people had the right to expect better.”

Downing Street said Johnson was being sanctioned for attending a “gathering of two or more people indoors in the Cabinet Room at 10 Downing Street” on June 19, 2020. The event was a surprise birthday party for the prime minister.

Johnson said the gathering lasted “less than ten minutes,” and “at that time, it did not occur to me this might have been a breach of the rules”.

London’s Metropolitan Police force said it had issued at least 50 fines after investigating a dozen events held in 10 Downing St. and and other government buildings.

They reportedly included “bring your own booze” office parties and “wine time Fridays” organised by Johnson’s staff.

The force did not identify the recipients or the size of the fines.

But Johnson’s office confirmed shortly after that the prime minister and Sunak each received notice Tuesday that they would be issued with fines for an undisclosed amount. If paid promptly, such fines do not result in a criminal record.

Opponents, and some members of the governing Conservative Party, say Johnson should resign.

Thousands of people were fined by police for rule-breaking social gatherings during the pandemic.

“Boris Johnson and Rishi

Sunak have broken the law and repeatedly lied to the British public,” said Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labour Party.

“The Conservatives are totally unfit to govern. Britain deserves better.”

Opposition parties called for lawmakers to be recalled from their Easter break for a vote of no-confidence in Johnson.

The COVID-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group said “there is simply no way” that Johnson or Sunak can remain in their jobs.

“It’s still unbelievably painful to know that the Prime Minister was partying and breaking his own lockdown rules – while we were unable to be at our loved ones’ sides in their dying moments,” said the group’s spokesman Lobby Akinnola.

A total of 16 parties were investigated by a senior civil servant, Sue Gray, with a dozen of them

also under investigation by the Metropolitan Police.

In January, Gray published a report into some of the gatherings, the ones not under criminal investigation. She said “failures of leadership and judgment” in Johnson’s government allowed events to occur that should not have happened.

The report said some of the gatherings showed a “serious failure to observe” standards for government, and some behavior at the parties were “difficult to justify” given how the public were asked to restrict their lives.

Jill Rutter, a senior fellow at the Institute for Government think-tank, said “partygate” had damaged the reputation of both the government and the civil service.

“The line, ‘It’s one rule for them and another law for the rest of us’ really does resonate,” she said.

OKLAHOMA GOVERNOR SIGNS BILL TO MAKE ABORTION ILLEGAL OKLAHOMA CITY Associated Press

OKLAHOMA Governor Kevin Stitt signed a bill into law on Tuesday that makes it a felony to perform an abortion, punishable by up to ten years in prison, as part of an aggressive push in Republican-led states across the country to scale back abortion rights.

The bill, which takes effect 90 days after the Legislature adjourns next month, makes an exception only for an abortion performed to save the life of the mother. Abortion rights advocates say the bill signed by the GOP governor is certain to face a legal challenge.

Its passage comes as the conservative US Supreme Court considers ratcheting back abortion rights that have been in place for nearly 50 years.

“We want to outlaw abortion in the state of Oklahoma,” Stitt said during a signing ceremony for the bill, flanked by anti-abortion lawmakers, clergy and students. “I promised Oklahomans that I would sign every pro-life bill that hits my desk, and that’s what we’re doing here today.”

Under the bill, anyone convicted of performing an abortion would face up to ten years in prison and a $100,000 fine. It does not authorise criminal charges against a woman for receiving an abortion.

Sen Nathan Dahm, a Broken Arrow Republican now running for Congress who wrote the bill, called it the “strongest prolife legislation in the country right now, which effectively eliminates abortion in Oklahoma”.

Dahm said the bill would apply to any physicians in Oklahoma who dispense abortion medication to women, which accounted for about 64% of all abortions performed in Oklahoma in 2020, the most recent year for which statistics were available. There is no enforcement mechanism in the bill for women who order abortion medication online from out-of-state suppliers. Oklahoma lawmakers passed a bill last year to prevent women from ordering abortion medication online, but that measure was blocked by the Oklahoma Supreme Court.

COIVD AND OVERDOSES PUSH US TO HIGHEST DEATH TOLL EVER NEW YORK Associated Press 2021 WAS the deadliest year in US history, and new data and research are offering more insights into how it got that bad.

The main reason for the increase in deaths? COVID-19, said Robert Anderson, who oversees the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s work on death statistics.

The agency this month quietly updated its provisional death tally. It showed there were 3.465 million deaths last year, or about 80,000 more than 2020’s record-setting total.

Early last year, some experts were optimistic that 2021 would not be as bad as the first year of the pandemic — partly because effective COVID-19 vaccines had finally become available.

“We were wrong, unfortunately,” said Noreen Goldman, a Princeton University researcher.

COVID-19 deaths rose in 2021 — to more than 415,000, up from 351,000 the year before — as new coronavirus variants emerged and an unexpectedly large numbers of Americans refused to get vaccinated or were hesitant to wear masks, experts said.

The coronavirus is not solely to blame.

Preliminary CDC data also shows the crude death rate for cancer rose slightly, and rates continued to increase for diabetes, chronic liver disease and stroke.

Drug overdose deaths also continued to rise. The CDC does not yet have a tally for 2021 overdose deaths, because it can take weeks of lab work and investigation to identify them. But provisional data through October suggests the nation is on track to see at least 105,000 overdose deaths in 2021 — up from 93,000 the year before.

New research released Tuesday showed a particularly large jump in overdose deaths among 14- to 18-year-olds.

IN this photo provided by Will B Wylde, a person is aided outside a subway car in the Brooklyn borough of New York yesterday after a gunman filled a rush-hour subway train with smoke and shot multiple people.

Gunman opens fire on Brooklyn subway NEW YORK Associated Press A GUNMAN in a gas mask and a construction vest set off a smoke canister on a rush-hour subway train in Brooklyn and shot at least ten people yesterday, authorities said. Police were scouring the city for the shooter and a rental truck.

A scene of horror unfolded as frightened commuters ran from the train as others limped out of it. At least one collapsed on the platform.

“My subway door opened into calamity. It was smoke and blood and people screaming,” eyewitness Sam Carcamo told radio station 1010 WINS. Smoke poured out of the train car as the door opened, he added.

Five people were in critical condition but expected to survive. At least 17 in all were injured in some way in the attack that began on a subway train that pulled into a station in the Sunset Park neighborhood, about a 15-minute train ride from Manhattan and predominantly home to Hispanic and Asian communities.

Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell said that the attack was not being investigated as terrorism, but that she was “not ruling out anything”.

Authorities had a photo of a suspect and were working to confirm his identity, two law enforcement officials said. The motive remains unknown. Officers around the city were told to look out for a U-Haul truck with a certain Arizona license plate number and to stop it and detain all occupants immediately.

Investigators recovered a handgun at the scene, along with multiple smoke devices and other items they are analyzing, the officials said. They said the suspect is believed to have had at least two extended magazines.

Investigators believe the weapon jammed, preventing the suspect from continuing to fire, the officials said. The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has completed an urgent trace to identify the gun’s manufacturer, seller and initial owner.

The attack unnerved a city on guard about a rise in gun violence and the ever-present threat of terrorism. It left some New Yorkers jittery about riding the nation’s busiest subway system and prompted officials to increase policing at transportation hubs from Philadelphia to Connecticut.

One rider’s video, shot through a closed door between subway cars, shows a person in a hooded sweatshirt raising an arm and pointing at something — possibly the door to a conductor’s booth — as five bangs sound. In another video, smoke and people pour out of a subway car, some limping.

“Someone call 911!” a person shouts.

Other video and photos from the scene show people tending to bloodied passengers lying on the platform, some amid what appear to be small puddles of blood, and another person on the floor of a subway car.

Juliana Fonda, a broadcast engineer at WNYC-FM, told its news site Gothamist she was riding the train when passengers

from the car behind hers started banging on the door between them.

“There was a lot of loud pops, and there was smoke in the other car,” she said.

“And people were trying to get in and they couldn’t, they were pounding on the door to get into our car.”

As police searched for the shooter, Gov Kathy Hochul warned New Yorkers to be vigilant.

“This individual is still on the loose.

This person is dangerous,” the Democrat said at news conference. “This is an active shooter situation right now in the city of New York.”

Fire and police officials were investigating reports that there had been an explosion, but Sewell said at a press conference just after noon that there were no known explosive devices. Multiple smoke devices were found on the scene, said mayoral spokesperson Fabien Levy.

After people streamed out of the train, quick-thinking transit workers ushered passengers to another train across the platform for safety, system chief Janno Lieber noted.

High school student John Butsikaris was riding the other train when he saw a conductor urging everyone to get in. He thought there might just have been a mundane problem until the next stop, when he heard screams for medical attention and his train was evacuated.

“I’m definitely shook,” the 15-year-old told The Associated Press. “Even though I didn’t see what happened, I’m still scared, because it was like a few feet away from me, what happened.”

PUTIN VOWS TO PRESS ON WITH INVASION KYIV, Ukraine Associated Press

VLADIMIR Putin vowed yesterday that Russia’s bloody offensive in Ukraine would continue until its goals are fulfilled and insisted the campaign was going as planned, despite a major withdrawal in the face of stiff Ukrainian opposition and significant losses.

Russian troops, thwarted in their push toward Ukraine’s capital, are now focusing on the eastern Donbas region, where Ukraine said Tuesday it was investigating a claim that a poisonous substance had been dropped on its troops. It was not clear what the substance might be, but Western officials warned that any use of chemical weapons by Russia would be a serious escalation of the already devastating war.

Russia invaded on February 24, with the goal, according to Western officials, of taking Kyiv, toppling the government and installing a Moscow-friendly regime. In the six weeks since, Russia’s ground advance stalled, its forces lost potentially thousands of fighters and the military was accused of killing civilians and other atrocities.

Putin insisted yesterday that his invasion aimed to protect people in parts of eastern Ukraine controlled by Moscowbacked rebels and to “ensure Russia’s own security”.

He said Russia “had no other choice” but to launch what he calls a “special military operation,” and vowed it would “continue until its full completion and the fulfillment of the tasks that have been set”.

For now, Putin’s forces are gearing up for a major offensive in the Donbas, which has been torn by fighting between Russian-allied separatists and Ukrainian forces since 2014, and where Russia has recognized the separatists’ claims of independence. Military strategists say Russian leaders appear to hope local support, logistics and terrain in the region favor Russia’s larger and better-armed military, potentially allowing its troops to finally turn the tide in their favour.

In Mariupol, a strategic port city in the Donbas, a Ukrainian regiment defending a steel mill claimed a drone dropped a poisonous substance on the city. It indicated there were no serious injuries. The assertion by the Azov Regiment, a far-right

group now part of the Ukrainian military, could not be independently verified.

It came after a Russia-allied separatist official appeared to urge the use of chemical weapons, telling Russian state TV on Monday that separatist forces should seize the plant by first blocking all the exits. “And then we’ll use chemical troops to smoke them out of there,” the official, Eduard Basurin, said. He denied yesterday that separatist forces had used chemical weapons in Mariupol.

Ukraine’s Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said officials were investigating, and it was possible phosphorus munitions — which cause horrendous burns but are not classed as chemical weapons — had been used in Mariupol.

Much of the city has been razed in weeks of pummeling by Russian troops. The mayor said on Monday that the siege has left more than 10,000 civilians dead, their corpses “carpeted through the streets.”

Mayor Vadym Boychenko said the death toll in Mariupol alone could surpass 20,000 and gave new details of allegations by Ukrainian officials that Russian forces have brought mobile cremation equipment to dispose of the corpses.

SPORTS PAGE 11

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13, 2022

MIAMI Marlins’ Jazz Chisholm Jr celebrates after hitting a two-run home run.

(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

CHISHOLM HITS TWO RUN HOMER BUT MARLINS LOSE 4-3

By GREG BEACHAM AP Sports Writer ANAHEIM, Calif.

(AP) — Pinch-runner Tyler Wade slid home when Marlins shortstop Miguel Rojas bobbled Max Stassi’s grounder in the ninth inning, and the Los Angeles Angels swept a twogame interleague series with a 4-3 victory over Miami on Tuesday night.

Anthony Rendon hit a two-run homer and Jack Mayfield had an RBI triple for the Angels, who went 3-3 on their season-opening homestand.

Jazz Chisholm hit a tying two-run homer in the seventh and Jesús Luzardo had a careerhigh 12 strikeouts over five sharp innings in his season debut for the Marlins, who lost four of five on their seasonopening California road trip.

After Mayfield drew a one-out walk from Anthony Bender (0-1) in the ninth, Wade’s steal of second base was upheld by video review. The Marlins thought Wade’s trailing foot had been blocked off the bag by Chisholm.

Wade advanced on a wild pitch and then scored when Rojas couldn’t cleanly field Stassi’s hard-hit grounder at the drawnin infield.

Closer Raisel Iglesias (1-0) pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for the Angels.

Luzardo was outstanding amid the late-afternoon shadows at Angel Stadium, striking out seven of the Halos’ first 10 batters — including Shohei Ohtani twice.

He struck out the side in the fifth before manager Don Mattingly pulled him on 76 pitches, leaving him tied with Dontrelle Willis and Wei-Yin Chen for the franchise record for strikeouts by a left-hander.

Patrick Sandoval allowed three hits and an unearned run over four innings in his first start of the season for the Angels. The lefthander’s first start was supposed to be Friday, but was pushed back four days due to arm fatigue.

Rendon was in a 1-for-15 slump to start the season before he pulled a slider from Tanner Scott into the SEE PAGE 14

MEMBERS of the Bahamas Carifta Swimming Team training at the Betty Kelly Kenning Aquatic Centre. Photos: Racardo Thomas/Tribune staff

The Bahamas ‘going for four straight’ at Carifta Swimming

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

WITH just two days to go before they head to Hamilton, Bermuda for the return of the Carifta Swimming Championships, head coach Travano McPhee said he’s confident that the Bahamas regain the team title once again.

The Bahamas has captured seven of the past eight and three straight titles before there was a break in the competition in 2020 due to the rise of the coronavirus pandemic.

And although he’s waiting on the full team to assemble in Nassau before they depart on Thursday, McPhee said he likes what he’s seen on paper and in the pool from the practices sessions with those based in New Providence.

“We’re looking good. We have a very strong team, a very disciplined team,” McPhee said. “It’s a very experienced team on the top end. Our seniors have a lot of facilities in the country and the pool itself.

“We are very familiar

HEAD coach Travano McPhee. with our surroundings over there, so I think it will make it very comfortable, especially for the younger age groups, which should give us an edge over the other countries.”

The team will depart the

capital on Thursday and after a chance to get in a practice session on Friday, they will begin competition on Saturday through Monday.

“We have a very strong team from top to bottom.

We have some excellent team captains in Delaney Mizell, Erald Thompson, Zaylie-Elizabeth Thompson.and Jake Thompson, so we have excellent leadership up top,” said McPhee, who will be assisted by Grand Bahama’s Andy Loviett and Camron Bruney.

Despite the two year lay off from not having the competition staged, McPhee said it won’t affect the Bahamas in its quest to continue their dominance in the region.

“We were the first to put in our protocols during Covid-19 and our kids didn’t really miss a beat in the water,” he said. “I think that gives us a little edge on being ready.

“Not having the event for the past two years will have a little effect on a lot of swimmers, but we didn’t miss a beat. We had our team practices, our regular meets and stuff like that.

So we’re going for four straight.”

The goal, according to McPhee, is to get out to an early start in the team standings at the end of the

first and second days of competition. Once they establish that, they should be able to capture another title.

Emmanuel Gadson, a student of Spring Hill High School in South Carolina, is looking forward to making his debut for the Bahamas national team.

“I feel very good. I think I’m ready to swim.

I’ve been training very hard over these past few weeks,” Gadson said. “It’s a great team. I love all of the people on it and I think we’re going to do very well.”

The 16-year-old Gadson will be entered in the boys 15-17 100 and 200 metre breaststroke where he’s posted personal best times of one minute and 10 seconds and 2:30 respectively.

He has also swam 31 seconds on the 50m breast.

“I really want to go out there and place well,” said Gadson, who is eager to compete in his favourite event – the 200m breaststroke.

Also making her debut at SEE PAGE 12

WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAM HEADING TO EL SALVADOR

THE Bahamas Football Association’s Beach Soccer Women’s National Team is off to San Luis la Herradura, El Salvador to compete in the El Salvador Beach Soccer Cup. Competition for team Bahamas begins on Thursday against the home team, El Salvador, in the Costa Del Sol Stadium.

They follow their opening match with games against powerhouses Argentinz and the United States of America.

The contingent is headed by head coach Daria Adderley who has been working with the young squad for the past few months. Staying fit and not sustaining injuries will be the key for

team Bahamas if they intend to advance in the tournament.

The coaching team are fielding a younger team as they transition to the new generation of national team players.

The players on the team are Gabriell Murphy, Hadassah Knowles, Angel Williams, Rondrica Paul, Gina Stubbs, Janeka

Edey, Nia Hall, Brianna Capron, Jada Thelamour and Jade Thelamour.

Joining Adderley on the management team are Soraya Toppin-Herbert, DWFD; Jodei Clark, team manager/coach and Karen Wert, the physiotherapist.

The team returns home on Sunday.

PAGE 12, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

EMMANUEL Gadson

THE TRIBUNE

LAUREN Bridgewater

ERIN Pritchard

MAXWELL Daniels

The Bahamas ‘going for four straight’ at Carifta Swimming FROM PAGE 11 Carifta is Lauren Bridgewater, who is entered in the girls 13-14 division in the 50 and 100m freestyle events.

The 14-year-old ninth grader at Queen’s College, who swims for the Barracudas, has posted lifetime bests of 53 in the shorter race and 1:05 in the longer race.

“It’s a different experience for me because I never really expected it to happen,” she said. “But I’m excited. I think this year would have been my year to show what I could do because last year I was kind of struggling.

“So I used this year as my opportunity to get back into it and become one of the Carifta swimmers. I’m so glad that I finally made it.

“Looking at the makeup of the team, Bridgewater said she likes it because her teammates are “very lively and there’s a lot of excitement every day, positive vibes, and so I feel we should do very well when we get to Carifta.”

Erin Pritchard, an eight-grade student of St Andrew’s School, is also competing in the girls 13-14 division, and the triathlete is just as excited as everybody else to make her presence felt in Barbados.

“I think it’s a really great opportunity and I can meet so many new people,” Pritchard said. “I think it will be a really good experience to go with the team and so I think it will be a lot of fun.”

With the event returning after a two-year hiatus, Pritchard said she heard so much about the event and Barbados that she just wanted to be able to experience it all for herself.

“I don’t know what to expect. Anything could happen,” insisted Pritchard, who swims in all of the breastrokes with best times of 38 seconds in the 50m, 1:24 in the 100m and 3:00 in the 200m.

“But overall, I just want to have fun and spend time with everybody. I think the team is very strong.

“We all have our strength and so it’s been good training and competing with them.”

And Maxwell Daniels is an 11-12 competitor in the 100m backstroke (1:14), 50m freestyle (29), 50m butterfly (36) and 50m backstroke (33) The 13-year-old eighth grader at St Augustine’s College

has been swimming for the past ten years, but will be making his first Carifta appearance.

“I feel confident that I will do very well,” he said.

“I’m looking forward to having fun and getting to meet some new people from the other countries and to win some medals.

“This team has some very fast people who are capable of winning medals, having won medals from prior Carifta so I feel that we have a team that can win again.

I want to win some medals too.”

Having represented the Bahamas before in four Goodwill Games, the Mako Aquatics competitor said he’s looking forward to the

challenge as a first timer at Carifta.

With the remainder of the team coming in from Grand Bahama and from schools in the United States, McPhee said they hope to get in a solid practice on Thursday morning before they take off for Bermuda later in the day.

“We just need to get the relay exchanges down pat and get the chemistry together,” he said.

“Some of them haven’t competed on the national team in two years, so it’s just getting them acclimatised to this atmosphere again.

“From the first day of racing, we hope to be in great shape. The team looks

strong. In my opinion, this is one of the better teams we have ever assembled. I think we’re ready to go and defend our title.”

Masking up Team Bahamas are the following: Girls 11-12 - ChristinAlyssa Clarke, Samirah Donaldson, Seleste Gibson, Lelah Lewis and Trinity Pratt.

Girls 13-14 - Tia-Isabella Adderley, Lauren Bridgewater, Mia Patton, Erin Pritchard and Elle Theberge.

Girls 15-17 - Rhanishka Gibbs, Kyana Higgs, Rachel Lundy, Delaney Mizell, Keianna Moss and Zaylie-Elizabeth Thompson.

Boys 11-12 - Maxwell Daniels, William Farrington, Lenin Hamilton, Noah Knowles, Dijon Simmons and David Singh.

Boys 13-14 - Caleb Ferguson, Zion Gibson, Tristen Hepburn, Asher Johnson, Ayrton Moncur, Donald Saunders and Caden Wells.

Boys 15-17 - Jack Barr, Tristin Ferguson, Nigel Forbes, Emmanuel Gadson, Marvin Johnson, Jake Thompson and Erald Thompson III. While McPhee, Bruney and Loveitt make up the coaching staff, the team manager is Andrea Strapp.

Courtney Barr is the female chaperone and Patrick Ferguson is the male chaperone.

AFTER RUN TO EAST FINALS, HAWKS FACE PLAY-IN GAME VS HORNETS

By PAUL NEWBERRY AP Sports Writer

ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta Hawks never expected to be in this position.

Not after last summer’s Surprising run to the Eastern Conference final.

But here they are, needing to win two play-in games just to make the playoffs.

First up: the Charlotte Hornets on Wednesday night in a matchup between the ninth and 10th seeds in the East.

“Our destiny is in our hands,” Hawks centre Clint Capela said.

Atlanta was one of the biggest surprises of the 2021 postseason, knocking off both the Knicks and the top-seeded 76ers before losing to the eventual champion Milwaukee Bucks in a highly competitive conference final.

With a young core led by Trae Young, the Hawks set a goal of finishing in the top four in the East this season. Instead, after a year plagued by COVID issues, injuries and a strange lack of chemistry, they had to settle for the next-to-last play-in spot.

“We have to live in the moment,” coach Nate McMillan said. “We can’t think about all of that. We have a game we have to win.”

The Hornets are in the playin tournament for the second

ATLANTA Hawks guard Trae Young, right, puts up a shot over Houston Rockets guards Garrison Mathews (25) and Jalen Green, back, during the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke) year in a row. While they haven’t made the playoffs since 2016, they appear to be a franchise on the rise.

“We feel like we can definitely win and sneak into the playoffs,” guard Terry Rozier said.

The winner of the 9-10 game advances to a road contest Friday against the loser of the 7-8 game between Brooklyn and Cleveland for the final playoff spot in the East.

“We’ve still got a chance to make the playoffs,” Young said.

“We’ve got to take advantage of it.”

Collins, since March 11 because of a sprained foot and an injured finger.

Collins has stepped up his rehab in recent days, including some 4-on-4 workouts.

Coach Nate McMillan said he’s not sure if Collins will be able to play limited minutes against the Hornets, but the Hawks are preparing to go without him.

“He’s been out for so long,” McMillan said. “The focus is on the guys that we do have in uniform. If we’re lucky enough to get him back, we’ll talk about that and adjust to that.”

COLLINS UPDATE The Hawks have been without one of their top players, John

PLAY-IN REDUX The Hornets had 10 more victories than a year ago in the

abbreviated 72-game schedule, but they still finished 10th in the East for the second straight season.

In the 2021 play-in game, Charlotte was routed 144-117 by ninth-seeded Indiana. Several Hornets players have talked about the sting of that loss providing momentum coming into this season.

Charlotte is healthier and playing much better than it was a year ago. The Hornets won 11 of their last 15 games.

“Most years we would be the seven or the eight seed — most years — but this year the East was more competitive,” Hornets coach James Borrego said. “I am really proud of this group.”

SMALL BALL Led by guards LaMelo Ball and Rozier, the Hornets ranked fourth in the league in scoring (115.3 points per game) and have been especially effective when going with a small lineup.

Charlotte can really get out and run when 6-foot-7 P.J. Washington and 6-6 Miles Bridges are playing the centre and power forward positions.

“They play small and they play fast,” said McMillan, whose own team ranked sixth in the league in scoring (113.9). “They are a team that wants to get out in transition.”

DOUBLING TRAE Young had a historic season, becoming only the second player in NBA history after Tiny Archibald to lead the league in both total points (2,155) and assists (737).

The Hornets had good success against Young in their final regular-season matchup, using a wave of double teams to hold him to a season-low 9 points on 3-of-12 shooting.

Young did manage to dish out 15 assists in that game.

“We can’t let him breath,” Rozier said. “He’s a pretty confident player, but we just have to make it tough for him.”

HOME EDGE The Hawks claimed the No. 9 seed on a tiebreaker with the Hornets, which is why this game is being played in Atlanta.

That’s a big break for the Hawks, who were much better at home (27-14) than they were on the road (16-25).

The Hornets, by comparison, had virtually the same record in Charlotte (22-19) as they did away from home (21-20).

“Whenever we play at home, we are much more confident, the energy is better, the focus is better,” Capela said.

“To get that first game at home, it’s a huge advantage for us.”

THE TRIBUNE

IRVING, DURANT LEAD NETS PAST CAVS IN PLAY-IN FOR NO. 7 SEED

By BRIAN MAHONEY AP Basketball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Bring on Boston.

That’s the next stop on a recent rise for the Brooklyn Nets, who were in 10th place not long ago but don’t look like an underdog right now.

Kyrie Irving had 34 points and 12 assists, Kevin Durant added 25 points and 11 assists, and the Nets took the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference by beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 115-108 on Tuesday night in the play-in opener.

The Nets raced to a 20-point lead after one quarter and turned the Cavaliers away time and again to earn a matchup with No. 2 seed Boston in a series that begins Sunday.

“I know that team very well and they know us very well and it’ll be a back and forth,” said Irving, a former Celtics guard, “and once you throw that ball in the air, you’re going to really see some spectacular basketball.”

Irving made his first 12 shots before a 3-pointer rimmed out in the fourth quarter. He finished 12 for 15.

A preseason NBA Finals favourite who sputtered through a turbulent season and were in 10th place entering the last week of the regular season, the Nets have run off five straight wins. With Durant and Irving, they are far more dangerous than the usual No. 7 seed.

And both are willing to give the ball to teammates who are capitalising when they get it. Bruce Brown had 18 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, while Andre Drummond scored 16 points.

Brown, who is from Boston, talked about how they can keep doing that against a Celtics team missing defensive anchor Robert Williams. Durant was aggravated when he heard that.

“It ain’t going to be that easy, I’m going to tell you that,” Durant said.

Unless the Nets play like they did in the first quarter.

The Nets made nearly 71% of their shots in the period — Irving and Durant combined to make all eight of theirs — and closed the period with a 15-3 spurt that made it 40-20. It was a bigger lead than Brooklyn had in any first quarter during the regular season.

“You can’t give a team like Brooklyn that has championship aspirations and players who have won championships a 22-point lead,” Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “Again, give our guys credit for getting back in it. But that’s damn near impossible to overcome.”

Darius Garland scored 34 points for the Cavaliers, who have another chance to earn the No. 8 seed.

They will host the winner of the Atlanta-Charlotte game on Friday, with the winner moving on to face No. 1 seed Miami.

Brooklyn and Cleveland both went 44-38 but the Nets clinched the tiebreaker by beating the Cavs at Barclays Center last Friday to finish 3-1 against them. Cleveland was confident it could come back to Brooklyn and win, though it was clear quickly just how difficult that would be.

Irving was 9 for 9 in the first half, with a jumper at the buzzer that made it 57-43.

“I always say about Kyrie in a March Madness, onegame type of situation, he’s a tough guy to bet against,” former Cavs teammate Kevin Love said. “Again, seen this movie before but still — I think that there’s just times where he comes out and plays out of his mind and that’s why he’s a future Hall of Famer. So you just kind of have to tip your hat to him. He hit some really tough, contested shots today.”

The Cavaliers, trying to extend a surprising season that saw them double their win total from a season ago, kept chipping away in the second half. But they would too often miss an open 3-pointer or give up an extra possession on an offensive rebound that the Nets would take advantage of.

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 13

Sydney Clarke and Blazers ‘have been improving’

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net THE collegiate season is starting to wind down for Sydney Clarke and her University of Arlington at Birmingham Blazers women’s tennis team.

And while it’s been a tough road for the Blazers, Clarke said she’s been grateful for the way things have turned out so far.

“I feel great. I feel very happy with the way things have progressed for me this semester,” Clarke said.

“I’m just appreciative and excited to be able to wrap up the season.”

20-year-old Clarke and the Blazers, who are 10-10 and 2-2 in Conference USA, will be back in action on the courts on Saturday when they take on Middle Tennessee.

They will then wrap up their season in Murfreesboro from April 21-24 when they compete in the 2022 Conference USA Championships.

On Saturday, Clarke suffered a heartbreaking tie-breaker loss to Margaux Maquet (3-6, 7-6, 10-8) as UAB fell 4-1 to No.51 ranked Charlotte.

Clarke, however, came through in doubles as she teamed up with Maggie White and they secured a 6-1 win over No. 23 Margaux Maquet and Lucia Quiterio in doubles.

“I was hoping to get the win over Charlotte, but I didn’t. Hopefully I can get a

win over Middle Tennessee this Saturday before we get ready for our conference championship next weekend,” Clarke said.

“It’s been tough because the competition is very good. Everyone on our team has been playing very well, but we just had a rough day on Saturday.”

With a lot more focus on her mental preparation, Clarke said she could end

up with some very good results over the final two weeks of competition.

“It’s all about getting mentally prepared from the night before,” she stated.

“I just have to visualise my game plan and how I am going to play the next day. I have to learn to be mentally prepared.”

As for the team, Clarke said the Blazers have been performing very well with

SYDNEY Clarke in action. some good victories.

“Each match we have been getting better and we have improved in different aspects of the game,” she insisted.

“Whether it’s in singles or doubles, we have been improving.

“But I think our doubles match play has gotten a lot better and even though it has been tough on us this year, I feel we will learn from these experiences and be even better next year.”

In critiquing her game, Clarke said if she can bring the same energy each match she plays, she can be a force to reckon with for the Blazers.

“Sometimes I tend to doze off in lala land, but if I mentally prepare myself and visualise how I want to play and keep the same energy, I will play better than I am right now.”

With school getting ready to close for the summer, Clarke said she’s been

able to apply herself in the classroom and is looking forward to break when she returns home on April 30th for relaxation and fun with her family and friends.

“These last couple of weeks have been tough with a lot of tests and classes,” said the entrepreneurship major with a minor in mass communication.

“It’s been a little tough just trying to keep up with everything and playing over the weekend. But otherwise it’s been great.”

Clarke is a former student of CR Walker Secondary High School who went on to graduate from Windsor High School while being a part of the Albany Tennis Academy powered

by Lleyton Hewitt.

She is the daughter of Shayvon and Bernard Clarke and has a younger sibling Sarai Clarke, who is attending Webb School in Tennessee where she is also playing tennis.

NPOTSA president Tommy Stubbs, Crestwell ‘the Bomber’ Pratt and assistant treasurer Andy ‘Smudge’ Ford hold the NPOTSA memorial plaque.

SUPERIOR Waste Department Da Boyz with the championship trophy.

Da Boyz win the Old Timers Memorial Softball Tournament WITH renovations at the Archdeacon William Thompson Softball Park at the Southern Recreational Grounds not completed yet, the New Providence Old Timers Softball Association staged their first Memorial Softball Tournament over the weekend at the Bankers Field at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex.

Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg led a list of dignitaries to watch the twoday event that saw the Superior Waste Department Da Boyz win the championship trophy.

Da Boyz, managed by Sandy Morley, went undefeated in the tournament and pitcher Salathial Dean was named the Eddie Ford’s most valuable player as they routed the defending champions Yelrom Home Boys 19-8.

It was Da Boyz’ second straight win over the Home Boys after they won 14-6 to advance to the final.

The Home Boys came back and knocked off the Dozer Heavy Equipment Pros 16-2 to secure their berth into the final. The Pros were managed by David Brown and DeAngelo Dillet.

The Home Boys got some consolation as Greg Smith earned the Crestwell Pratt’s home run derby with three homers in seven swings over Teran Wood, Stephen Beneby Jr and Dermont Charlow.

Bacchus Rolle, the Member of Parliament for South Beach, participated for the Q-Club Divers.

Bishop Delton Fernander was on hand to pray for several family members, including Chela Armbrister, who lost both her brother-in-law Ed Armbrister and husband, Kelson Armbrister, a league sponsor of the KC Construction Raiders.

MINISTER of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg and NPOTSA’s Keith ‘Belzee’ Smith present Salethial Dean with his MVP award.

Nardo Dean, of the Ministry of Tourism’s Sports Division, prayed for league members who had passed away, with their relatives and teammates coming onto the field and receiving white stemmed roses on their behalf.

Also in attendance were Romell Knowles, the Bahamas Olympic Committee (BOC) president; Jennifer Dotson, the first female president of the Bahamas Softball Federation (BSF) and Dwayne Stevens, the first person to hold the presidency of both the New Providence Softball Association and the Bahamas Government Departmental Softball Association (BGDSA) at the same time.

“We appreciate the efforts by sponsors to make the tournament a success, and others, especially umpire Martin “Pork” Burrows,

GREG Smith receives the Crestwell Pratt home run derby trophy from Danny Stubbs and Makeva Wallace-Stubbs.

scorers Dudley “Bones” Moxey and Elsa, our assistant treasurer Andy Ford, our treasurer Clelia Armbrister and Makeva Wallace and her team at Bahamas Events & Sports for helping us organized the two day long tournament,” said Tommy Stubbs, president of the NPOTSA. “It was gratifying to see so many faces at the park, people who have made softball the great sports that it is, including retired players Crestwell Pratt, “Doni” Lockhart, Eddie Ford, former NPOTSA presidents Lawrence “Buddy” Smith, Henry Dean; softball veterans Anthony “Boots” Weech Michael Dillet and “Banker” Fitzgerald and legendary ladies softball coach Ali Culmer.”

Stubbs, on behalf of the NPOTSA, sent heartfelt

condolences to relatives and friends of their members who died during the pandemic and said that while they were not able to attend their funeral services to say farewell, they want their families to know how much they wished they could have attended.

He further noted that the league looks forward to the day when the NPOTSA can return to the “government ground,” as it is commonly called, to resume their competitive modified pitch competition.

April 20th has been set as the deadline for team registration for the NPOTSA’s new season that will start on Monday, May 2nd.

The league’s executive council will meet on Saturday, April 23 to finalise all details for the opening.

PAGE 14, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

DEVERS SINGLES THROUGH SHIFT, LIFTS RED SOX OVER TIGERS 5-3

By DANA GAURUDER Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — Rafael Devers singled through the open shortstop area with the infield shifted to the right side, driving in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning Tuesday as the Boston Red Sox overcame a three-run deficit to beat the Detroit Tigers 5-3.

“Teams are going to attack him a certain way and he feels like he has to swing hard. It’s the other way around,” Boston manager Alex Cora said.

“Just take what they give you. That’s the mark of a professional hitter.”

Garrett Whitlock (1-0) pitched four hitless innings to win in his first appearance since the Red Sox announced his $18.75 million, four-year contract on Sunday.

Hirokazu Sawamura also got two outs in hitless relief of starter Rich Hill, who allowed three runs and five hits in 4 1/3 innings.

Cora ideally wanted Hill to go five innings and have Whitlock pitch the last four. The plan almost worked to perfection.

“They’re going to load up with righties against Rich,” Cora said.

“He can get them out and then we can turn the page to Whitlock.

“We get a lot of good matchups from that. They complement each other well.

“It’s a good plan, it’s just a matter of how long we can do it.”

Whitlock allowed just one baserunner, on a sixth-inning walk to Jeimer Candelario, in an efficient 39-pitch outing.

“Rich pitched amazing, did an absolutely wonderful job,” Whitlock said.

Boston, which has not been above .500, improved to 2-3.

Devers had a pair of RBI singles, raising his average to .381, and Kiké Hernández doubled twice for the Red Sox. Detroit’s Spencer Torkelson, the top pick of the 2020 amateur draft, doubled in the third inning for his first big league hit after an 0-for10 start. The ball dropped in right-centre, 309 feet from the plate, in front of the glove of diving right fielder Christian Arroyo.

“It’s something I’ve looked forward to for a long time,” Torkelson said. “For it to finally happen, it’s special. The baseball gods were tested me out a little bit, just seeing what I was made of.

“You’ve just got to persevere, trust yourself and the hits will come.”

Detroit took a 3-0 lead in the third when Torkelson scored on Robbie Grossman’s groundout, Jonathan Schoop followed with a run-scoring single and Javier Báez added an RBI double.

Hernandez hit an RBI double in the sixth and scored on a single by Devers that chased Tyler Alexander, who gave up five hits in 5 1/3 innings.

J.D. Martinez tied the score against Jacob Barnes when he sliced an opposite-field double off the foul line in deep right field, a call upheld in a video review.

Hernandez walked against Alex Lange (0-1) leading off the eighth and advanced on a wild pitch.

Arroyo added a two-out RBI single off Will Vest.

“They did a good job with their at-bats as the game went along,” Detroit manager A.J. Hinch said. “They had tougher at-bats and we didn’t execute quite as well as the game went on.”

TRAINER’S ROOM Red Sox: 2B Trevor Story (illness) didn’t start for the third consecutive game. “Hopefully tomorrow,” Cora said. “We’re not going to be stupid about it.”

Tigers: Grossman left after the sixth inning due to right groin tightness.

ATLANTA Braves’ Ozzie Albies follows through on a two-run double during the second inning of the team’s baseball game against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Ozuna, Albies power Braves’ offence in 16-4 rout of Nats

By GEORGE HENRY AP Sports Writer

ATLANTA (AP) — Marcell Ozuna homered twice, Ozzie Albies drove in three runs and the Atlanta Braves fired up their offence to rout the Washington Nationals 16-4 on Tuesday night.

Coming off an 11-2 loss, the Braves began the game with a .201 team batting average before banging out 19 hits and going 9 for 19 with runners in scoring position.

Ozuna, Austin Riley, Adam Duvall, Dansby Swanson and Orlando Arcia each had two RBIs. Travis d’Arnaud had three hits and flopped to the field dramatically when hit on the left shoulder in the eighth inning by a 52 mph pitch from outfielder Dee Strange-Gordon.

Albies homered on a 59 mph pitch from

Strange-Gordon, who made his first big league mound appearance.

Ozuna began the fourrun fourth with his first homer this season, a drive to centre off reliever Austin Voth that made it 7-1. Ozuna connected to left in the fifth off Paolo Espino, padding the lead at 11-1. It marked Ozuna’s 12th multihomer game and his first since Sept. 22, 2020 against Miami.

Defending World Series champion Atlanta snapped a two-game skid. It avoided dropping three straight for the first time since losing four in a row last Sept.

14-18.

Bryce Elder (1-0), a fifthround draft pick out of the University of Texas in 2020, won his major league debut, allowing three runs and six hits with no walks and four strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings. He was given a spot start after going

11-5 with a 2.75 ERA in 25 games across three levels of the minors last year.

The Braves went up 3-1 in the second when Heredia and Albies both doubled to drive in three runs charged to Patrick Corbin (0-2), who gave up six runs and nine hits in 2 2/3 innings, his ERA rising from 4.50 to 10.80.

Corbin has lost seven consecutive starts to Atlanta with a 7.25 ERA dating to Sept. 6, 2019.

Albies has a .429 average and 11 RBIs in 28 career atbats against Corbin.

Atlanta has won 15 of 21 against Washington since the start of last season.

GOING, GOING, GONE Nationals star RF Juan Soto reached 100 homers in his career by connecting in the sixth off Elder to join six other active players to hit that many at age

23 or younger. The others are Miguel Cabrera, Bryce Harper, Ronald Acuña Jr., Albert Pujols, Giancarlo Stanton and Mike Trout.

Solo’s second homer of the season, a solo shot, landed about 15 rows into the seats in right-centre, traveling 451 feet and leaving his bat at 113 mph. Washington went back-to-back when Bell followed Soto with a homer.

TRAINER’S ROOM Washington DH Nelson Cruz was scratched from the lineup for an undisclosed reason about 20 minutes before the first pitch. Yadiel Hernandez moved from LF to DH, hitting fourth, and Lane Thomas was inserted in the lineup in left, batting seventh. ... Espino was drilled in the right thigh on a liner from Matt Olson in the sixth, but stayed in the game to give up a two-run

double by Riley that made it 13-3.

ROSTER MOVES The Braves designated C Chadwick Tromp for assignment as they selected Elder’s contract from Triple-A Gwinnett. Atlanta also optioned C William Contreras and LHP Tucker Davidson to Gwinnett and selected RHP Jackson Stephens’ contract while designating RHP Jacob Webb for assignment. Stephens pitched the seventh, eighth and ninth to earn his first career save.

UP NEXT Braves LHP Max Fried (0-1, 7.94 ERA) hopes to bounce back from a rough opening day start. Atlanta’s ace will pitch opposite Washington rookie RHP Josiah Gray (0-1, 9.00) as the teams conclude a threegame series in Wednesday’s 12:20 p.m. start.

MIAMI Marlins’ Bryan De La Cruz, left, is safe at second on a passed ball as Los Angeles Angels shortstop Andrew Velazquez takes a late throw during the second inning of a baseball game Tuesday in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Chisholm hits two run homer but Marlins lose 4-3 FROM PAGE 11

short left field porch at Angel Stadium in the sixth to put Los Angeles up 3-1.

Chisholm answered several minutes later with a homer into the right-field porch to tie it again.

ADELL’S ERROR Miami went ahead in the third when Bryan De La Cruz’s soft two-out single bounced past Angels right fielder Jo Adell. The ugly two-base error allowed Garrett Cooper to score.

Adell, who turned 23 last week, is off to a rough start in his third big league season, both at the plate and in the field. The Angels dropped veteran outfielder Justin Upton after spring training despite owing him $28 million partly to clear more playing time for Adell, one of their top prospects.

REED GETS RUN Angels hitting coach Jeremy Reed was ejected for the first time in his career for arguing after

Matt Duffy was called out on a check swing to end the fourth inning.

TRAINER’S ROOM Marlins: OF Avisail Garcia’s back injury is improving, Mattingly said. Garcia didn’t play in the two-game series.

Angels: SS David Fletcher went on the 10-day injured list with a left hip strain. The team called up Andrew Velazquez from TripleA Salt Lake, and the journeyman infielder went 0 for 3 in his Halos

debut.

UP NEXT Marlins: After a day off, Sandy Alcantara (0-0, 3.60 ERA) is expected to take the mound in Miami on Thursday for the home opener against Philadelphia.

Angels: Ohtani (0-1, 1.93 ERA) makes his second mound start of the season on Thursday in Los Angeles’ road opener at Texas.

He pitched one-run ball into the fifth inning against Houston last week.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 15

SHIRLEY SPORK ONE OF 13 FOUNDERS OF LPGA, DIES AT 94 DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Shirley Spork, one of the 13 founders of the LPGA Tour who learned two weeks ago she would be inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame, died Tuesday, the LPGA said. She was 94.

The LPGA said she died in Palm Springs, California, where she had been living and taught into her 90s.

While she never won on the LPGA Tour — her best finish was runner-up in the 1962 LPGA Championship at Stardust Country Club in Las Vegas — Spork’s impact stretched across seven decades of starting the tour and teaching the game.

She was behind the creation of the LPGA Teaching & Club Pro Division, which began with six members and now has more than 1,700 women professionals.

The LPGA Hall of Fame is among the most stringent in sports, requiring 27 points accrued through victories, majors and top awards. The tour voted last month to add Lorena Ochoa, who had not achieved the minimum 10 years on tour; and all the founders who didn’t get in through their performance on the golf course.

“Getting into the LPGA Hall of Fame is the highest honor ever in our profession, so I’ve climbed the whole ladder and gotten to the top,” Spork said. “I hope I can sit up on that ladder for a few more years and enjoy it.”

A longtime resident of Palm Desert, California, Spork showed up regularly for the first major of the year at Mission Hills. She also attended the Founders Cup, often greeting players with a handshake and a swing tip off the 18th green.

“There are many things I admire about Shirley but one, in particular, is her passion to continue to learn and stay involved with the game,” said Karrie Webb, the only woman to win five different majors. “When she’s at an LPGA event you will always find her on the range watching all the girls, getting to know them, and maybe even giving a tip or two.”

Spork grew up near Detroit and started with only a putter.

The pro at Bonnie Brook golf course became aware and gave her a set of 3-, 5-, 7- and 9-irons.

She soon was winning regional tournaments, and she won the National Collegiate Golf Tournament in 1947 at what is now Eastern Michigan University.

On May 6, 1950, while teaching in the Detroit public school system, Spork turned pro and became one of 13 women who signed the original charter of the LPGA. While Spork competed regularly on the LPGA in those early years, she was an instructor first. She persuaded the LPGA to create a teaching division in 1959.

Spork was one of only two people to be selected LPGA Teacher of the Year twice, and she did that 25 years apart.

“Through the years I have met a lot of people and made a lot of dear friends,” Spork once said.

“It was fun to go to work every day and teach because people who came to me wanted to learn how to play.

Learning to play the game of golf is like eating an elephant. It’s overwhelming unless you eat just one bite at a time and slowly digest it.”

Her death leaves Marlene Hagge as the only surviving LPGA founder.

ATLETICO Madrid’s Joao Felix, second right, is challenged by Manchester City’s Aymeric Laporte, second left, Kevin De Bruyne, right, and Rodrigo, left, during the Champions League, first leg, quarterfinal soccer match between Manchester City and Atletico Madrid at the Etihad Stadium, in Manchester, last week.

(AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

Atlético needs attack to start clicking again against City

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer MADRID (AP) — This time, defence alone won’t be enough to keep Atlético Madrid alive in the Champions League.

Diego Simeone’s team need their attack to wake up if they wants to overcome the 1-0 first-leg loss to Manchester City in the quarterfinals of the European competition.

The team were held scoreless and managed a total of one shot on target in their last two matches.

To reach their first Champions League semifinals since 2017, Atlético need their stars to step up when City visit on Wednesday.

João Félix, Antoine Griezmann and Luis Suárez have combined to score only four goals since early March — two by Félix and two by Suárez in the same Spanish league game.

Matheus Cunha and Ángel Correa, the other Atlético forwards, also haven’t helped much recently, being unable to score since February.

“Hopefully our players with greater hierarchy will have a fantastic night tomorrow,” Simeone said Tuesday. “It will be a game in which anything can happen.”

Other than the double against last-place Alavés on April 2, Félix is scoreless in six matches in all competitions, including two with Portugal’s national team. Suárez hadn’t found the net since Feb. 19. The

ATLETICO Madrid’s head coach Diego Simeone, right, argues with referee Istvan Kovacs during the Champions League, first leg, quarterfinal soccer match between Manchester City and Atletico Madrid. (AP Photo/Dave Thompson) 35-year-old Uruguay striker was key for Atlético in its Spanish league title-winning campaign last year but has played a reduced role this campaign.

Griezmann has been struggling the most, though, with no goals in nine consecutive matches for Atlético in a scoreless streak that dates back to a Copa del Rey match in January. He also didn’t score in two recent matches with France. The 31-yearold forward returned to Atlético this season after a lackluster stint with Barcelona but hasn’t fully met expectations.

Simeone rested Félix against Mallorca on Saturday and started with Suárez

and Griezmann in attack, but they struggled in a 1-0 loss that left the team fourth in the league standings with seven rounds to go, in danger of not securing a Champions League spot next season.

Atlético had only one shot on target against relegation-threatened Mallorca and none in the first leg against City.

Still, Simeone hinted Atlético won’t change their style much on Wednesday.

“We won’t steer away from what we usually do,” Simeone said.

“We will try to get the timing right to create our opportunities, and hopefully we can combine better in transition and

take advantage of our counterattacks.”

Besides their offensive struggles, Atlético’s recent home record in European competitions also has been disappointing. They haven’t won in their last six home games in the Champions League, with four draws and two losses.

They lost to Liverpool and AC Milan this season, with draws against Porto in the group stage and Manchester United in the first leg of the round of 16.

To make it worse, the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium won’t be at full capacity on Wednesday after UEFA charged the club with “discriminatory behavior” and ordered a

5,000-seat section of the stadium to be closed after an Atlético fan was filmed making a Nazi salute in the first leg in Manchester. Atlético, who tried to overturn the ruling, will also have to display a UEFA banner there, saying “#NoToRacism.”

Simeone, who was insulted and nearly hit by objects thrown from the stands in the round-of-16 match against Manchester United in England, said he wished the sanctions handed to clubs were “more equal.”

The coach also hinted at a lack of respect by some other coaches and former players toward him and Atlético’s style recently, saying that from his part “there will always be respect” toward his colleagues.

Atlético’s defence, which has carried the team under Simeone in recent years, was largely effective in Manchester but it will remain without central defender José María Giménez, who hasn’t recovered from a muscle injury that kept him from playing in the first leg.

Midfielder Héctor Herrera also will not to play because of a muscle injury.

Not having the awaygoals rule in place this season could be key for Atlético after it failed to score in England.

Playing in the quarterfinals for the sixth time in nine seasons, the Spanish club is seeking their first Champions League title.

TRACKING TIGER: NO WORD ON PGA OR US OPEN, ONLY ST ANDREWS

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer

TIGER Woods tees off on the fifth hole during the final round at the Masters golf tournament on Sunday, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — If history is any indication, perhaps the Internet sleuths who track flight patterns should circle May 10 on the calendar and look for a private jet going from South Florida to Tulsa, Oklahoma.

That would be the next chance for Tiger Woods to play.

And he didn’t sound all that promising when he left the Masters.

Woods has been consistent since he first spoke publicly in the Bahamas last December that he is done playing a full schedule because of his damaged right leg from his car crash 14 months ago, to go along with five surgeries on his lower back.

“I won’t be playing a full schedule ever again,” he told Sky Sports on Sunday after closing with a 78 for his highest score ever at the Masters. “It will be just the big events.

I don’t know if I’ll play Southern Hills or not.”

Southern Hills is the site of the PGA Championship on May 19-22.

Woods has played it three times. He tied for 21st in a 30-man field at the Tour Championship in 1996 (8-over 288), and his streak of four consecutive major wins ended at Southern Hills in the 2001 U.S. Open when he tied for 12th (3-over 283).

Most recently would be his fourth PGA Championship title in 2007.

This will be the first major since then at Southern Hills.

May 10 is a date to observe because it’s the Tuesday before PGA Championship week.

It was Tuesday before the Masters that Woods ignited hopes with a scouting trip to Augusta National, not so much to see the course but to test his right leg.

He played, made the cut for the 22nd straight time, and made it through four days of the toughest walk in golf.

“I will try, there’s no doubt. Like this week, I will try to get ready for Southern Hills, and we’ll see what this body is able to do,” he said.

Curiously missing from the prospects was the U.S. Open on June 16-19 at The Country Club outside Boston, perhaps because he’s only looking at the next possibility.

He made it clear he would be at St. Andrews, where he won in 2000 and 2005, and described it as “my favorite golf course in the world.”

“I will be there for that one,” he said.

Otherwise, stay tuned. He is a five-time winner at the Memorial, but it would seem unlikely to play another big course (uphill walks from every green to tee) that falls two weeks after the PGA Championship and two weeks before the U.S. Open.

PAGE 16, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

NASHVILLE SOCCER-SPECIFIC STADIUM NEARS COMPLETION

By TERESA M. WALKER AP Sports Writer NASHVILLE, Tenn.

(AP) — The Nashville SC held an open practice Tuesday at the largest soccer-specific stadium in the United States.

The team is scheduled to play its first game at 30,000-seat GEODIS Park on May 1, though there are still some construction and final touches being finalized.

Defender Walker Zimmerman said it’s been a slow build from the expansion franchise’s debut Feb. 29, 2020, playing at Nissan Stadium, home of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans.

“It’s incredible to think this is our permanent home and place where 30,000 can come, pack it out cheering for us,” Zimmerman said.

“It’s amazing. We can’t wait for May 1st. It’s going to be an amazing atmosphere, and hopefully we can bring back three points to open it the right way.”

Nashville is starting this season with its first eight games on the road.

Nashville currently ranks seventh in the Western Conference with 10 points and a 3-2-1 record.

This club has reached the playoffs each of its first two seasons, losing to Philadelphia Union in a shootout in the Eastern Conference semifinals last November.

GEODIS Park was built at the Nashville fairgrounds right next door to the historic speedway, which city officials and Bristol Motor Speedway are working on a planned renovation.

The stadium features a 360-degree roof or canopy over the seats with lots of steel struts and brick designed to mimic the industrial area in the neighbourhood.

Club seats have access to three separate themedclub areas on the west side of the stadium, while the west side features a 65-foot wide concourse.

Architects even designed a stage for musicians who start each home game with a guitar riff, the national anthem or concerts during the game.

The Bermuda grass was installed on the field in early March. Bathrooms on the concourse are reversible, allowing them to be used for pregame events outside before gates open.

The May 1 debut already is sold out, and Nashville has sold 21,000 season tickets for this season.

Nashville chief executive officer Ian Ayre said recalled the plans being only lines on paper when he arrived in 2018.

“Fans in the stadium, players on the field, and it felt like a sound check for May the first for me getting over those final touches,” Ayre said.

“Great testament to so many people, too many to mention.”

The practice was open to season-ticket holders with Nashville expecting up to 4,000. Torrential thunderstorms Tuesday morning dampened the turnout.

The fans who did show up stayed busy buying merchandise, walking down to the front row to watch practice or tour the stadium.

Midfielder Anibal Godoy said they’re looking forward to this new stadium, knowing they need to win at home.

Nashville went undefeated at home in 2021, going 8-0-9 in a streak the players hope to carry over to the new park.

Godoy said they know if they win at home they’ll go to the playoffs.

“Now we have 30,000 here ... it’s amazing for us and we need to enjoy this time,” Godoy said.

THE TRIBUNE

Benzema strikes as Real Madrid fend off Chelsea comeback

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer

MADRID (AP) — With Real Madrid looking beaten and on the verge of elimination after a fierce comeback by defending champions Chelsea, Karim Benzema came up big once again in the Champions League.

Having scored a hat trick in the first leg to give Madrid a 3-1 lead, Benzema spoiled the English team’s comeback by netting the decisive goal in extra time on Tuesday to put the Spanish club back into the semifinals. After trailing 3-0 at home, Madrid pulled two goals back to secure a 5-4 aggregate victory despite a 3-2 loss at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.

“It was another incredible night at the Bernabéu,” said Madrid midfielder Luka Modric, who set up the hosts first goal. “We suffered but we never gave up. We kept fighting until the end and managed to advance. We gave everything we had and showed great character.”

Benzema also saved Madrid in the round of 16 by scoring a second-half hat trick in a 3-1 win against Paris Saint-Germain after Madrid had lost 1-0 in Paris and conceded early at the Bernabéu.

Benzema’s 12th Champions League goal this season came with a header off a cross by Vinícius Júnior six minutes into extra time.

The hosts had looked defeated after going down 3-0 in regulation, but substitute Rodrygo evened the aggregate score in the 80th and Madrid found a way to reach the last four for the 10th time in the last 12 seasons.

Chelsea had overpowered Madrid early and built a lead through goals by Mason Mount in the 15th, Antonio Rüdiger in the 51st and Timo Werner in the 75th.

“Not many teams can come here and dominate them, as we did,” Rüdiger said. “Over the two legs, if you make the type of mistakes that we did, you get punished.”

Madrid will next face either Manchester City or Atlético Madrid, who play on Wednesday in the Spanish capital with City defending a 1-0 lead from the first leg.

Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti has reached the Champions League semifinals for the eighth time as a manager, equaling the record held by

REAL Madrid’s Karim Benzema, right, celebrates after he scored his side’s second goal during the Champions League, quarterfinal second leg soccer match between Real Madrid and Chelsea at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, Spain, Tuesday.

(AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

CHELSEA’S Mason Mount scores his side’s first goal. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez) José Mourinho and Pep Guardiola.

“We suffered a lot,” Ancelotti said. “In the end, after the 180 minutes, I think we deserved to advance.”

In the other quarterfinal on Tuesday, modest Spanish club Villarreal advanced past Bayern Munich 2-1 on aggregate after a 1-1 draw in the second leg in Germany.

The loss will add to Chelsea’s off-the-field turmoil amid the forced sale of the club after sanctions in Britain against oligarch owner Roman Abramovich following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Chelsea had eliminated Madrid 3-1 on aggregate in last year’s semifinals en route to its second Champions League title.

But Madrid couldn’t play at the Bernabéu that time because the venue was undergoing major renovation work.

Instead, the first leg was at the small Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium in the club’s training centre, a match that ended 1-1 before Chelsea won 2-0 in London.

On Tuesday, the defending champions looked the more dangerous team during most of the match but both sides had

opportunities in a highintensity encounter that went back-and-forth toward the end of regulation.

Chelsea’s American substitute Christian Pulisic had two good chances for a decisive goal in stoppage time but couldn’t capitalise on them. The visitors also had a couple of opportunities later in extra time as they pushed for a goal that would take it to penalties.

The English side got a dream start when Mount opened the scoring after quick touches by Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Werner caught the Madrid defence off guard and left the

forward with an easy shot from inside the area.

The visitors got the second with a firm header

by Rüdiger off a corner by Mount, and they thought they had another in the 62nd after Marcos Alonso scored from inside the area, but the goal was called back after video review because of a handball.

Instead, the third goal came when Werner scored from close range after a nice move to go past defenders in front of the net, but Madrid roared back five minutes later with a volley by substitute Rodrygo. It was set up by an exquisite pass by Luka Modric with the outside of his boot after Chelsea captain N’Golo Kanté gave the ball away with a bad pass near the sideline.

Former Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois had made a good save to deny an attempt by Kai Havertz a few moments earlier.

Benzema, who struck a header off the crossbar in the 66th, had been mostly contained as Madrid struggled to move the ball into attack and kept giving Chelsea opportunities.

But one good chance in extra time was all he needed to make the difference once again.

VILLARREAL STUN BAYERN TO REACH CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEMIFINALS MUNICH (AP) — As the final whistle blew — and Bayern Munich’s dejected superstars slumped to the ground — Villarreal’s substitutes raced onto the field to join the teammates who ousted the six-time European champions.

There would have been room enough in Bayern’s stadium for the entire population of Villarreal to celebrate with them Tuesday after the team reached the Champions League semifinals for the first time since 2006.

Such are the disparities in size and status between these clubs, that all 50,000 residents of the southeastern Spanish city could fit into Bayern’s 75,000-capacity Allianz Arena.

“We are a small city but they are strong players,” Villarreal coach Unai Emery said after his team earned a late 1-1 draw that secured a 2-1 aggregate victory in the quarterfinals.

Villarreal had won the first leg 1-0 at home when they squandered chances for an even bigger lead, and Bayern had levelled the aggregate score when Robert Lewandowski netted seven minutes into the second half. This time it was Bayern that missed chances to score again, and Samuel Chukwueze completed a counterattack in the 88th minute to extend Villarreal’s surprising run in the competition.

“They made the mistake today of not killing us off and we took advantage of that,” Villarreal striker Gerard Moreno said. “What this team has done is great.”

Especially given that Villarreal only qualified for the Champions League by winning the Europa League and is seventh in the Spanish league after struggling domestically.

Bayern, meanwhile, are the runaway Bundesliga leaders.

And while Bayern lifted the European Cup in 2020, the furthest

VILLAREAL players celebrate end of the Champions League, second leg, quarterfinal soccer match between Bayern Munich and Villareal at the Allianz Arena, in Munich, Germany, Tuesday.

(AP Photo/Matthias Schrader) Villarreal have reached in the competition is the semifinals the single time in 2006.

“If you take just this game into account, without the first game, we should have gone through convincingly,” Bayern forward Thomas Müller said.

“It’s difficult to accept this; I don’t know what to say.”

But the same resolve that saw Villarreal beat Manchester United on penalties in the 2021 Europa League final has now seen the team oust both Juventus and Bayern in the knockout phase of the Champions League.

There could be another sixtime champion to eliminate to a reach a first Champions League final. Liverpool or Benfica awaits in the semifinals, with the English club holding a 3-1 lead over the Portuguese side heading into Wednesday’s second leg at Anfield.

Even when Lewandowski levelled the quarterfinal on aggregate — with a low shot after being set up

by Müller — Villarreal continued to cause Bayern problems.

The decisive moment came when Dani Parejo gained possession by the Villarreal penalty area and then launched the breakaway by sending

the ball to Giovani Lo Celso. Lo Celso then slid a pass across the face of goal and Chukwueze struck into the top corner of the net.

Villarreal were delirious and held out for the memorable win.

“We knew we were going to suffer in defence but we were going to have our chances,” Moreno said.

“And, in the end, Chukwueze was able to make the most of it.

“We want to thank those who came here tonight and those who are in Villarreal.

“It’s great to be a Villarreal fan, and you have to enjoy nights like this.”

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 17

Arrow-words are like crosswords, but inside squares on the grid. Write blank squares in the direction ind

wordSEarch JUDGE PARKER

C Q P L Y M O U T H N V Y X L

CARPE DIEM

4

Daily Express Tuesday, February 15, 2022

Puzzles

MARVIN BLONDIE

Y L L E V O L C A E R G N T B

C I E K L J C R E O Q O N A H

I L V Y E P E P G D T Q R V A

G F Q H A T A E K I N E P I Y

L R J C E U P T D A W L I S H

R A R X Z Z Q E S U R T T T P

E C E B V G R R F N T V X O A

E O T R R C H N O O R Q U C I

T M S I S L X T T T D A B K G

CRUSADER PRIZE CROSSWOR

HAGAR THE

TIGER

across 1 Excellent sort of pudding (4) 3 Making breakfast for motorcycle sport (10) 9 I return to a tiny amount (4) 10 Incarceration and burial around noon (10) 11 Caring sort, listen to Edward (4-7) 15 Line on map made in HORRIBLE order to indulge (9) 17 Old coin and key, terribly worn (5) 18 Journalist has soldiers to correct (5) 19 I test duet out – very poor (9) 20 Pottery items are new, delivered after soil (11) 24 Poet shows term’s value (10) 25 Wonderful penalty (4) 26 Chaotic daughter is hospital worker (10) 27 Insect of biting nature (4)

CALVIN & HOBBES

1 2 PL Down 1 Medication for nuisance assassin (10) Find all the terms listed belo Solution tomorro 2 Empty tune Dante 9 composed about knight (10) 4 Against GeorgiaAXMINSTER having a ● BARNSTAP dance (5) BIDEFORD 11● BRIXHAM12● 5 Attention later moved to● DAWLISH ● EXET CREDITON head (9) HONITON ● ILFRACOMBE ● 6 Speech has been translated PLYMOUTH15● SEATON ● first – that’s a blessing (11) TORQUAY ● TOTN 7 Hide anger, concealing impression (4) 8 Inner workings shows 18 courage (4) 12 Musical furniture for top stylist (11) Quick wordSEarch 20 croSSword 13 Laud change in proposal for G Q U X H G S Q change across: (10) 7 Victimisation; 22 N G N 23I R V S G 14 A new shelter contains 8 Continue; 9 Pity; O F M H C T A W 10 came Advent;first 12 Indian; yield that (10) 24 I I W I O I T K 14 Driver; 16 Yellow; L N B N F P L M 16 Murmur18a Mail; suggestion (9) 20 Affinity; L G E Z A N E F 21 Accommodation stolen by 22 Confrontation.

U E B W Q W V T down:(5) 1 Disorder; the Spanish 26 2 Statue; 3 Omen; B R A C V O X S 22 Was obliged to pay nothing, 4 Asperity; 5 Stupid; H C N I F R G E you and6I,Bolt; on the day (4) 11 Toreador; S D Q N T C S R 13 Adoption; 15 Vilify; 23 Forest conceals minerals (4) D L T S X E H C

YE

17 Length; 19 Avow; 21 Fate.

D L C R

R O W G

A J Z U

D I H N

N Y H G

A G K D

T T P O

THE ALPHABEA

TARGET

Anu cG t oJ e

● The Target uses words in the main body of Chambers 21st Century Dictionary (1999 edition)

cAn you crack the Alphabeater? thE each grid targEt alph number represents a letter – or black square. billaboNg across: Sopran As Alphapuzzle, every the alphabet agininalbino align along bail letter ofVolcanic, Globa is used.ball Butballing you have the gridRequit too! baling bang to completeWonder, BILLABONG blab blag blain gain Cellars. use the given letters and black squares below gall gallon gaol global goal lain down: Assail (c the grid to start. the grid is ‘rotationally loan nabob nail olla Borough, Marve symmetrical’ – in other words, it looks theCramp Waddle, same if you turn the page upsideElapse. down.

Solution tomorrow

A 7 27 19 36 3 22 7 32 B C 11 26 29 26 38 15 15 5 D E 23 37 1 35 27 26 34 31 F G 6 28 31 5 23 21 8 39 H I 5 3 7 25 3 39 14 14 J TODAY’S TARGET K 20 37 17 40 2 Good 12; very good 18; excellent 24 24 27 40 (or more). Solution tomorrow L M 24 2 16 5 36 5 31 38 N call 0907 181 2585 for today’s target solution O as a 19 7 crossword, 15 8 the8 task20 18 Best described 28 number in Kakuro *Calls cost 80p per minute plus your telephone P company’s network access charge. is to fill all of the empty squares, using numbers 1 to 9, so Q 21horizontal 39 32block 12equals 23 the 26number 29 to 5 its the sum of each left, and the Rsum of each vertical block equals the number on its top. No be used more S number 17 2 may27 40 in4the same 21 block 1 39 than once. TThe difficulty level of the Conceptis Kakuro increases from Monday Sunday.

U 39 16 to 11 5 32 35 37 9 FIND where the fleet of ships shown is hidden V in the grid. The numbers to the right of and W 29 13 2 6 20 23 34 8 below the grid indicate how many of the X squares in that row are filled in with ships or Yesterday’s Yesterday’s parts of ships. The ships do not touch each Y 38 19 39 22 22 5 31 38 other, even diagonally. Some squares have SudokuZ Answer Kakuro Answer HOW many words of four letters or more can you make from the letters shown here? in making a word, each letter may be used once only. each must contain the centre letter and there must be at least one nine-letter word. no plurals.

Verb forms ending in s permitted.

DENNIS THE MENACE Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so the each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Conceptis Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday

BATTLESHIPS

been filled in to start you off.

Solution tomorrow 2

1

CRYPTIC PUZZLE Across 1 Dutch house colour (6) 4 What many in panic make themselves (6) 9 Head off disaster and have a party with fruit (7) 10 Parties appeal to him (5)

1

1 Pop a question that’s somewhat obscure (6) 2 Little matters as Tom found out (5) 5 Conceal or report a story (5)

18

25 A Spanish nobleman is a good-looking fellow (6)

D

2

E

1

F

4

G

2

H

1

I

2

J

1 2

3

7

22

15 I will shortly get accustomed to being maltreated (3-4)

24

16 One with nervous trouble can be really sour (6) 17 Game won by the overforties (6) 19 A below average girl (5) 21 Lady upset by North American singer (5)

Yesterday’s Cryptic Solution

Yesterday’s Easy Solution

Across: 1 Ebb tide, 5 Neigh, 8 Tower of London, 9 Alibi, 10 Restful, 11 Digest, 12 Abated, 15 Saluted, 17 Cigar, 19 Inexpressible, 20 Eased, 21 Toppers.

Down: 1 Extra, 2 Bowling alleys, 3 In ruins, 4 Effort, 5 Neons, 6 Indefatigable, 7 Handled, 11 Despite, 13 Backs up, 14 Advent, 16 Taped, 18 Reefs.

Across: 1 Husband, 5 Askew, 8 Little Bighorn, 9 Tenor, 10 Nonplus, 11 Manner, 12 Wander, 15 Reserve, 17 Ocean, 19 Champ at the bit, 20 Easel, 21 Larceny.

Down: 1 Holst, 2 Set in one’s ways, 3 At large, 4 Debunk, 5 Argon, 6 Knowledgeable, 7 Windsor, 11 Miracle, 13 Another, 14 Mental, 16 Repel, 18 Natty.

4 Maintenance (6) 9 Green leaf vegetable (7) 10 To estimate (5) 11 Large graceful curve (5) 12 Grow without restraint (3,4) 13 It isn’t surprising (5,6) 18 Snobbish (4-3) 20 Author of Robinson Crusoe (5) 22 To shadow (5) 23 Reviling (7) 24 Like better (6) 25 Niggardly (6)

1

2

1

2

2

2 x cruiser

4 x submarine

21

25

1 Meal (6)

4

3 x Destroyer

23

Across

1

1 x Battleship

17 20

9 10

1

15

19

8

4

8 Labour exchanges? (4,7) 14 There’s nothing to hold down such a point of view (7)

EASY PUZZLE

24 Be able to repeat a vigorous dance (6)

14

7

B

12

13

6

C

3 Made allowances? (7)

7 With the organ study over, got paid employment (6)

23 Greek letter varies in slope (7)

6

5

2

10

11

12 Caterer gets involved in a domestic row (7)

22 Row about the right judge perhaps (5)

5

9

16

20 Deposit for a house (5)

4

4

A

8

6 Today’s competition? (3,4)

18 I sing about one Italian drink (7)

3

Down

11 Annoyed by a haughty clique (5)

13 Helpful intervention provides nice places to work (4,7)

2

3

Down 1 Hold out against (6) 2 Instruct beforehand (5) 3 Surgical knife (7) 5 Heathen (5) 6 Hard to remember (7) 7 Pleasing to the eye (6) 8 The money required (11) 14 Man of power or wealth (7) 15 Unquestionably (2,5) 16 Imprison (4,2) 17 Nothing but (6) 19 Share equally (5) 21 Simulate (5)

S I N U

2

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

M

G

8

9

10

28

29

30 31

■

11

12 32

■

2

4

1

1

5

1

2

3

1

3

1

2

4

13

■ 33

● Alternatively, for six Extra Letter clues text DXBEAT to 64343. Texts cost £1 plus yo

KEIJO 3 3

1

2

4

1

1

1

2

2

2

4

PAGE 18, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

STOCKS GIVE UP GAINS, END LOWER FOLLOWING INFLATION REPORT

By STAN CHOE, DAMIAN J. TROISE AND ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks ended slightly lower on Wall Street Tuesday after investors weighed new data showing some signs that inflation slowed slightly in March, though overall it remained at its highest level in 40 years.

The S&P 500 fell 0.3% after having been up 1.3% earlier in the day. The pullback extends the benchmark index’s losing streak to a third day, reflecting investors’ worries about the potential economic

collateral damage as the Federal Reserve tackles high inflation more aggressively.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq composite each fell 0.3% after shedding early gains.

The indexes initially rallied following the release of the report, which showed inflation last month was again at its highest level in generations, driven by soaring gasoline prices in particular. Still, the reading was relatively close to economists’ expectations.

Another faint silver lining was that inflation wasn’t as bad as economists expected, when ignoring

the costs of food and fuel.

Known as “core inflation,” this is the reading that the Federal Reserve pays more attention to when setting policy because it’s less volatile. And core inflation on a month-over-month basis moderated to its slowest level since September.

“Hopefully this is as bad as it gets,” said Brian Jacobsen, senior investment strategist at Allspring Global Investments.

“The risk is that a red hot labor market grows cold under the force of those higher food, fuel, and financing costs. This is a time when economic resilience will be tested.”

The S&P 500 fell 15.08 points to 4,397.45. The Dow fell 87.72 points to 34,220.36, and the Nasdaq lost 40.38 points to 13,371.57.

Smaller company stocks held up better than the broader market. The Russell 2000 rose 6.61 points, or 0.3%, to 1,986.94.

Stocks in recent days have been trading in the opposite direction of Treasury yields, which have climbed to their highest levels since well before the pandemic. Yields jumped as investors brace for the Federal Reserve to hike short-term rates at a faster pace than typical and to

aggressively pare its trove of bonds, whose buildup helped keep longer-term rates low.

But Treasury yields pulled back on Tuesday following the inflation report.

The 10-year yield slid to 2.72% from 2.77% late Monday. It was as high as 2.83% overnight, before the inflation report’s release.

The 10-year yield nevertheless remains well above the 1.51% level where it began the year.

Stocks elsewhere around the world closed lower or mixed, as unease continues to hang over markets about the war in Ukraine, Chinese efforts to contain COVID

THE WEATHER REPORT

5-Day Forecast

TODAY

ORLANDO

High: 86° F/30° C Low: 67° F/19° C

TAMPA

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

Windy in the morn‑ ing; sunshine

Breezy early; partly cloudy

Some sun with a t‑storm; breezy

Cloudy, a t‑storm in the afternoon

A couple of afternoon showers

Mainly cloudy

High: 82°

Low: 75°

High: 84° Low: 72°

High: 84° Low: 73°

High: 82° Low: 72°

High: 83° Low: 73°

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

87° F

74° F

90°-72° F

89°-73° F

90°-72° F

91°-75° F

almanac

E

ABACO

S

N

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 73° F/23° C

10‑20 knots

S

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 73° F/23° C

8‑16 knots

FT. LAUDERDALE

FREEPORT

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 76° F/24° C

S

E

W

WEST PALM BEACH

E

The higher the AccuWeather UV IndexTM number, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.

The exclusive AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature® is an index that combines the effects of temperature, wind, humidity, sunshine intensity, cloudiness, precipitation, pressure and elevation on the human body—everything that affects how warm or cold a person feels. Temperatures reflect the high and the low for the day.

W

W

uV inDex toDay

THURSDAY

N

N

| Go to AccuWeather.com

TONIGHT

High: 87° F/31° C Low: 71° F/22° C

High: 82° F/28° C Low: 72° F/22° C

MIAMI

High: 84° F/29° C Low: 76° F/24° C

8‑16 knots

KEY WEST

High: 82° F/28° C Low: 76° F/24° C

Statistics are for Nassau through 2 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 81° F/27° C Low .................................................... 71° F/22° C Normal high ....................................... 81° F/27° C Normal low ........................................ 69° F/20° C Last year’s high ................................. 86° F/30° C Last year’s low ................................... 63° F/17° C Precipitation As of 2 p.m. yesterday ................................. 0.00” Year to date ................................................. 6.79” Normal year to date ..................................... 5.23”

ELEUTHERA

NASSAU

High: 82° F/28° C Low: 75° F/24° C

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2022

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 74° F/23° C

N

High

Ht.(ft.)

Low

Ht.(ft.)

Today

5:59 a.m.

6:24 p.m.

2.6 2.5

12:21 p.m. 0.2 ‑‑‑‑‑ ‑‑‑‑‑

Thursday

6:44 a.m.

7:08 p.m.

2.7 2.8

12:37 a.m. 0.1 1:01 p.m. ‑0.1

Friday

7:27 a.m.

7:52 p.m.

2.8 3.0

1:24 a.m. ‑0.1 1:41 p.m. ‑0.3

Saturday

8:10 a.m.

8:35 p.m.

2.8 3.2

2:11 a.m. ‑0.3 2:21 p.m. ‑0.5

Sunday

8:54 a.m.

9:20 p.m.

2.8 3.3

2:58 a.m. ‑0.4 3:03 p.m. ‑0.6

Monday

9:39 a.m.

10:08 p.m.

2.7 3.3

3:46 a.m. ‑0.5 3:46 p.m. ‑0.7

Tuesday

10:27 a.m.

10:58 p.m.

2.6 3.3

4:36 a.m. ‑0.4 4:33 p.m. ‑0.6

sun anD moon Sunrise Sunset

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 75° F/24° C

N

S

E

W

8‑16 knots

S

10‑20 knots

ANDROS

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

tiDes For nassau

6:50 a.m. Moonrise 7:32 p.m. Moonset

4:43 p.m.

5:02 a.m.

Full

Last

New

First

Apr. 16

Apr. 23

Apr. 30

May 8

CAT ISLAND

E

W

outbreaks and where inflation and interest rates are heading.

The price of U.S. crude oil climbed 6.7% to settle at $100.60, keeping the pressure on high inflation.

Brent crude, the international standard, rose 6.3% to settle at $104.64.

Higher interest rates from the Federal Reserve would slow the economy, which would hopefully knock down high inflation.

Consumer prices were 8.5% higher in March than a year earlier, accelerating from February’s 7.9% inflation rate and the highest since 1981.

SAN SALVADOR

GREAT EXUMA

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 75° F/24° C

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 76° F/24° C

N

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 75° F/24° C

E

W S

LONG ISLAND

tracking map

High: 82° F/28° C Low: 76° F/24° C

10‑20 knots

MAYAGUANA High: 82° F/28° C Low: 78° F/26° C

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures

CROOKED ISLAND / ACKLINS

are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

RAGGED ISLAND High: 83° F/28° C Low: 77° F/25° C

H

High: 82° F/28° C Low: 76° F/24° C

GREAT INAGUA High: 85° F/29° C Low: 77° F/25° C

N

E

W

E

W

N

S

S

10‑20 knots

12‑25 knots

marine Forecast ABACO ANDROS CAT ISLAND CROOKED ISLAND ELEUTHERA FREEPORT GREAT EXUMA GREAT INAGUA LONG ISLAND MAYAGUANA NASSAU RAGGED ISLAND SAN SALVADOR

Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday:

WINDS SE at 8‑16 Knots SE at 7‑14 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots ESE at 8‑16 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots E at 12‑25 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots ESE at 8‑16 Knots ESE at 8‑16 Knots SE at 7‑14 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots ESE at 8‑16 Knots E at 12‑25 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots ENE at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots ENE at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots ESE at 8‑16 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots ESE at 8‑16 Knots

WAVES 3‑6 Feet 3‑6 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑2 Feet 4‑7 Feet 4‑7 Feet 5‑9 Feet 4‑7 Feet 4‑7 Feet 3‑6 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑2 Feet 4‑7 Feet 3‑6 Feet 4‑7 Feet 4‑7 Feet 6‑10 Feet 5‑9 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑3 Feet 4‑8 Feet 4‑7 Feet 2‑4 Feet 1‑3 Feet

VISIBILITY 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 8 Miles 6 Miles 8 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 8 Miles 10 Miles 6 Miles 8 Miles 8 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 8 Miles 9 Miles 8 Miles 10 Miles 8 Miles

WATER TEMPS. 76° F 76° F 76° F 77° F 76° F 76° F 80° F 80° F 77° F 77° F 77° F 77° F 78° F 78° F 81° F 81° F 79° F 79° F 78° F 78° F 77° F 77° F 79° F 79° F 76° F 76° F

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 19

US, ALLIES AIM TO FORCE RUSSIA TO SHIFT MONEY AWAY FROM WAR

By FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States and its allies are pushing ahead with sanctions aimed at forcing Vladimir Putin to spend Russia’s money propping up its economy rather than sustaining its “war machine” for the fight in Ukraine, a top Treasury Department official said Tuesday.

Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo, one of the main U.S. coordinators on the Russian sanctions strategy, said in an interview with The Associated Press

that the goal is to make Russia “less able to project power in the future.”

On the same day that inflation notched its steepest increase in decades, Adeyemo said reducing supply chain backlogs and managing the pandemic are key to bringing down soaring prices that he related to the ongoing land war in Ukraine, which has contributed to rising energy costs.

“Let’s be clear that the increase in energy prices was caused by President Putin’s invasion, and we’re going to continue to see volatility in those markets as long

as President Putin continues his illegitimate invasion of Ukraine,” he said. He added that the Biden administration was “committed to doing everything we can to lower the cost of energy for the American people.”

As Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s No. 2, Adeyemo is tasked with developing a sanctions strategy that many economists have equated to economic warfare with Russia. He’s also leading Treasury’s efforts to rebuild the American economy from the pandemic with equity at the fore.

Adeyemo discussed the next steps the U.S. and its allies will take to inflict financial pain on Russia — and the complications the war has on rising costs to Americans back home.

The U.S. and its allies will next target the supply chains that contribute to the construction of Russia’s war machine, Adeyemo said, which includes “everything from looking at ways to go after the military devices that have been built to use not only in Ukraine, but to project power elsewhere.”

“What that means practically is that with less money,

POST-EASTER TOURISM IS ‘HIGHER THAN EVER’ FROM PAGE 24

Bahamian tourism and resort industry, with occupancies and bookings varying from island to island depending on factors such as airlift and available room inventory. He added that the sector is “not always comparing apples with apples” given that this year’s holiday period is later than those for prior years, while 2019 - the last full pre-COVID period - was a “banner year” for tourism.

“Notwithstanding these factors, New Providence and the Family Islands definitely are on a firm road to recovery and, for Easter, many hotels are citing better than or the same occupancy against 2019.

For some of the hotels they’re running behind, and in some Family Islands that have been impacted by reduced airlift and reduced inventory, they are finding challenges and occupancy levels have followed suit.

“I can give you Eleuthera, Exuma and Abaco as examples where occupancies are meeting or exceeding 2019

levels in some instances.

That’s where airlift has improved, but where it has dropped occupancies have followed suit. This firm recovery is not applicable to all at this point in time.

Grand Bahama as a destination continues to face challenges. It’s a mixed bag, but the overall impact is positive. Not every island is in the same condition for airlift and hotel rooms.”

Mr Sands said hotel yields, and average tourist length-of-stay, were both increasing although he did not provide any figures.

“For the most part, there has been growth in average room rates year-over-year,” the BHTA president said.

While air fares were rising under pressure from increased fuel costs, he added that it was “very difficult to judge” how much of this was driven by global oil prices versus “yield management” by airlines as they sought to maximise revenues by focusing on more profitable routes given the industry’s issues with pilot shortages.

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL

The Public is hereby advised that I, ALEXIS ELIZABETH LEVYBENSETTON of P.O. Box CB-11262, Southern District of New Providence, Bahamas, intend to change my name to ALYA ABDULLAZIZ MOHAMMED AL QASIMI. 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 LAFRANCE ALCIRA of Eleuthera Heights, 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 twentyeight days from the 6th day of April, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that VADA ALCIRA of Eleuthera Heights, 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 6th day of April, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that MYRLANDE CAMFORT of Rock Johnson Road, Nassau, 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 6th day of April, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

“The room inventory available post-COVID is not the same as the inventory available preCOVID,” Mr Sands said.

“The positive news is that recovery is taking place and also that business is improving, and that the demand for the islands of The Bahamas continues to be strong. Our business is currently headed in the right direction.”

Tracy Cooper, Bahamasair’s managing director, recently confirmed that the national flag carrier has been forced to respond to aviation fuel price volatility through raising its air fares by $3 on domestic routes and by $10 internationally.

With fuel costs soaring by an “extra $100,000 per week”, Mr Cooper said the airline had no choice but to pass some of the increase on to passengers as it was impossible to “absorb all of that” within its existing

expense structure.

He added that aviation fuel prices had risen by $1.50 per gallon over the past six to seven weeks after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sparked sudden volatility in global oil prices.

He added of current aviation industry conditions: “What we have is the fact that the fuel prices have gone up significantly. We’re up $1.50 or so more on a gallon of aviation fuel. It’s over $4.12 a gallon of aviation fuel.

“This has obviously been the impact of the Russian invasion.

Unfortunately, Bahamasair is using 90,000 to 95,00 gallons of fuel a week, so it’s a significant impact. It’s easily costing the airline an additional $100,000 a week in fuel costs. We don’t have any choice but to pass some of that on to the consumer because we cannot absorb all of that.”

Russia will have less money to invest in their military,” he said.

Adeyemo said Putin recently admitted that the Russian economy was going to have to transform.

Adeyemo interpreted that to mean that “the Russian economy is less flexible, it’s smaller, it’s less able to project power into the future.”

Adeyemo’s work includes coordinating with U.S. allies to develop thousands of unprecedented sanctions on Russia’s leadership and its Central Bank, which is intended to cripple the country’s financial system.

Germany in particular faces international pressure to curb its business ties with Russia, which provides the European superpower with natural gas.

“Our German counterparts and my European counterparts in general are working as hard as possible to make plans to get off of Russian energy as quickly as possible, including last week’s announcement that they were going to ban Russian coal in the near term,” Adeyemo said. “And our expectation is that they’re going to take these steps.”

Based on the $1.50 per gallon increase figure supplied by Mr Cooper, and the 90,000-95,000 gallons consumed by Bahamasair per week, this newspaper’s calculations show that the airline’s fuel costs have risen by between $135,000 and

$142,500 per week. Based on a four-week month, that means monthly costs have jumped by between $540,000 and $570,000.

Over a year, that translates into between a $7.02m and $7.41m expense hike.

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, Shannon Nefra Smith of the Southern District of New Providence, Bahamas, intend to change my child’s name from IYANNA NESHANN EATON to IYANNA NESHANN EATON SMITH. 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, New Providence, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

MARKET REPORT www.bisxbahamas.com

TUESDAY, 12 APRIL 2022

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX: BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 6.70 40.50 2.05 2.90 2.60 6.05 10.05 3.55 9.02 3.10 7.20 14.00 2.71 10.25 11.25 10.75 15.00 4.00 10.00 16.50

52WK LOW 4.55 32.12 1.46 2.20 1.30 5.50 6.00 2.82 4.25 2.27 5.50 9.75 1.99 6.50 10.02 9.00 13.10 3.50 8.00 15.50

SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Benchmark Bahamas First Holdings Limited Bank of Bahamas Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Cable Bahamas Commonwealth Brewery Commonwealth Bank Colina Holdings CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Emera Incorporated Famguard Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) Limited Focol Finco J. S. Johnson

PREFERENCE SHARES 1.00

1.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1.00 10.00 1.00

1.00 10.00 1.00

Bahamas First Holdings Preference Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A Fidelity Bank Bahamas Class A Focol Class B

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00 100.00

SECURITY Fidelity Bank (Note 22 Series B+) Bahamas First Holdings Limited

CLOSE

CHANGE

%CHANGE

YTD

YTD%

2279.43

0.02

0.00

51.19

2.30

SYMBOL AML APD BBL BFH BOB BPF BWL CAB CBB CBL CHL CIB CWCB DHS EMAB FAM FBB FCL FIN JSJ BFHP CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA FBBA FCLB SYMBOL FBB22 BFHB

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing) 115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.62 100.54 99.98 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.98 100.00

104.79 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.36 100.00 99.98 91.00 90.95 89.02 89.62 89.00 90.24 90.73

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.50 4.67 2.20 207.86 207.68 1.72 1.83 1.81 1.05 9.37 11.83 7.54 16.64 12.84 10.77 10.00 10.43 14.89

52WK LOW 2.11 3.30 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.68 1.73 1.75 1.01 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57 9.88 8.45 11.20

Bahamas Note 6.95 (2029) BGS: 2014-12-7Y BGS: 2015-1-7Y BGS: 2014-12-30Y BGS: 2015-1-30Y BGS: 2015-6-7Y BGS: 2015-6-30Y BGS: 2015-10-7Y BGRS FL BGRS69023 BGRS FL BGRS79026 BGRS FL BGRS78024 BGRS FX BGR125238 BGRS FX BGR127139 BGRS FX BGR127149 BGRS FX BGR129249 BGRS FX BGR131249 BGRS FX BGR132249 BGRS FX BGR136150

BAH29 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0307 BG0330 BG0407 BSBGRS690231 BSBGRS790262 BSBGRS780248 BSBGR1252380 BSBGR1271398 BSBGR1271497 BSBGR1292493 BSBGR1312499 BSBGR1322498 BSBGR1361504

LAST CLOSE 5.30 39.95 2.04 2.31 2.50 6.05 9.25 3.30 7.60 2.66 7.16 14.00 2.27 10.13 12.50 10.75 15.00 3.99 10.00 15.50 1.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00 LAST SALE 100.00 100.00 107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.63 100.54 99.98 100.00 100.00 100.00 89.62 100.00 100.00 100.00

CLOSE 5.30 39.95 2.04 2.31 2.50 6.05 9.25 3.30 7.60 2.66 7.16 14.00 2.29 10.13 12.51 10.75 15.00 3.99 10.00 15.50 1.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00 52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks 52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume Change - Change in closing price from day to day Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings

VOLUME 50

400

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

CLOSE 100.00 100.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00

107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.62 100.54 99.98 100.00 100.00 100.00 89.62 100.00 100.00 100.00

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 (0.01) 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund Leno Financial Conservative Fund Leno Financial Aggressive Fund Leno Financial Balanced Fund Leno Financial Global Bond Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - Equities Sub Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - High Yield Income Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - Alternative Strategies Fund Colonial Bahamas Fund Class D Colonial Bahamas Fund Class E Colonial Bahamas Fund Class F

MARKET TERMS

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.00 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

(242) 323‐2330 (242) 323‐2320 EPS$ 0.239 0.932 0.000 0.140 0.070 1.760 0.369 -0.438 0.140 0.184 0.449 0.722 0.102 0.467 0.646 0.728 0.816 0.203 0.939 0.631 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

VOLUME

9,000 100

NAV 2.50 4.67 2.20 204.67 199.97 1.72 1.83 1.81 1.01 9.37 11.79 7.54 15.94 12.47 10.74 N/A 10.43 14.89

DIV$ 0.170 1.260 0.020 0.080 0.000 0.000 0.260 0.000 0.000 0.120 0.220 0.720 0.434 0.060 0.328 0.240 0.540 0.120 0.200 0.610 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

INTEREST Prime + 1.75% 6.25% 6.95% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.50% 6.25% 4.25% 4.59% 4.53% 4.50% 5.00% 5.00% 5.50% 5.55% 5.60% 5.65% 5.69% YTD% 12 MTH% 0.34% 4.30% -0.06% 5.21% 0.21% 2.72% 1.37% 3.18% 8.18% 14.94% 0.26% 2.76% 0.36% 2.37% 0.28% 2.51% -1.31% -3.43% -0.02% 10.36% -0.33% 18.23% 0.22% 3.05% -3.89% 14.76% -1.04% -2.57% 0.81% 4.20% N/A N/A 3.00% 25.60% 7.90% 48.70%

P/E 22.2 42.9 N/M 16.5 N/M N/M 25.1 -7.5 54.3 14.5 15.9 19.4 22.5 21.7 19.4 14.8 18.4 19.7 10.6 24.6 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

YIELD 3.21% 3.15% 0.98% 3.46% 0.00% 0.00% 2.81% 0.00% 0.00% 4.51% 3.07% 5.14% 18.95% 0.59% 2.62% 2.23% 3.60% 3.01% 2.00% 3.94% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

MATURITY 19-Oct-2022 30-Sep-2025 20-Nov-2029 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2022 9-Feb-2023 28-Mar-2026 22-Sep-2024 15-Oct-2038 15-Jan-2039 15-Jan-2049 15-Apr-2049 15-Jul-2049 15-Oct-2049 21-Apr-2050

NAV Date 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 28-Jan-2022 30-Sep-2021 30-Sep-2021 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Mar-2021 31-Mar-2021 31-Mar-2021

YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths NAV - Net Asset Value N/M - Not Meaningful

TO TRADE CALL: CFAL 242-502-7010 | ROYALFIDELITY 242-356-7764 | CORALISLE 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225 | BENCHMARK 242-326-7333

PAGE 20, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

GAS MARGIN RISE ‘NON-STARTER’ DESPITE FAIRNESS QUESTIONS FROM PAGE 24 mindful of the impact this will have for transportationdependent businesses and consumers by further hiking already-high pump prices, Mr Halkitis confirmed that the Government will not approve any such rise.

“It’s a very volatile business to be in,” he told reporters of the petroleum industry. “We understand that. But I can say that, too, in this environment we look at the whole picture, [and] to seek to increase margins, that would only lead to higher prices at the pump for Bahamians. It’s safe to say that’s a non-starter at this time... Raising the margins would lead directly to more increases at the pump, and that won’t happen right now.”

Sir Franklyn Wilson, chairman of BISX-listed FOCOL Holdings, the Shell distributor/wholesaler, yesterday told Tribune Business that while current global oil price volatility had again raised questions about the equity of the industry’s price-controlled fixed margins, there was virtually zero appetite among policymakers for change given the potential economic, social and political ramifications.

Echoing the position voiced by Mr Halkitis, he said of current market

conditions: “Obviously it calls into question the fairness of the fixed rate margins, and it plays out every so often when the matter comes up. What they [the gas station dealers] say is we need a higher margin, and the Government says the public cannot afford it.

“That tension is there, but I can’t imagine the Government agreeing to a higher margin or much of a change because it will hurt consumers.” Sir Franklyn added that he spent little time dwelling on whether price controls on the Bahamian petroleum industry should be eliminated, and the margins switched from fixed to a percentage, because there was minimal to no chance that this will happen.

“The [fixed margin] system has been in place for so long that it would be such a material change in government policy,” he argued.

“I don’t spend much time thinking about it. You accept what you cannot change.

This has been the policy of successive governments for so long that I don’t imagine any Cabinet would find it easy to do something.”

Instead, calmer global oil markets and reduced price volatility - something that lies completely outside The Bahamas’ control - is “what we have all got to pray for”, Sir Franklyn added. “When

prices spike to this level, and margins are fixed, it affects both the wholesalers and retailers. They need to spend more money to purchase the fuel, and they get the same margin even though they have to spend more to buy it. It’s a challenge. It’s a tough battle.”

The FOCOL Holdings chairman argued that any Easter weekend shut down by gas station operators would be counter-productive, as they would suffer while also harming the Bahamian economy. “Individuals may make some decisions, but these people have families, it’s their livelihoods. That’s a big decision to close their business. How does that help?” asked Sir Franklyn.

“Let’s think it through. If you close the business, you lose even more. You lose your sales from the convenience store. At least that’s not price controlled. If you look at what is happening with the service stations, you will see increasingly the gas part is used to draw traffic [to the store]. If you close, you lose your sales and gross margins from the convenience store.

That’s not going to help you.

That’s not going to improve your viability.”

Mr Halkitis yesterday said the petroleum industry’s structure, and the fees levied on independent gas station

operators by FOCOL, Rubis and Esso (Sol Petroleum), were among the concerns voiced by the Association in its letter to the Government requesting today’s meeting.

“They wrote us a letter requesting a meeting in which they laid-out some of the difficulties that they are facing,” the minister said.

“They particularly mentioned increases in bank fees, fees for cash deposits, credit card fees, increased mortgage rates, increased liability and property insurance and some others. They are requesting that we look at the regime that they operate under....

“I know, just from my research in advance of the meeting, that some of the issues that have been plaguing them are the very high cost of renting their premises, the fact that the company that controls the premises also takes off a sum of the convenience sales, the see-saw sales, off the top, and some of them have to pay what is known as franchise fees, so they have a very, very high cost structure.”

It is difficult to see exactly how the Government can assist the gas station operators with these issues as all are governed by contractual relationships, and it would be intervening and interfering with private commerce

NASSAU AUTO POOL RISES FASTER THAN POPULATION FROM PAGE 24 to have a negative effect on citizen safety, air quality, overall quality of life and citizen mobility.

“The existing road network is challenged by a lack

of room to expand and traffic is often congested and chaotic. Congestion is a serious problem in that many intersections exceed their design capacity, particularly at noon and between 3pm and 5pm. These

inefficiencies negatively impact the island’s economic productivity as working hours are lost, and the cost of operating vehicles to transport goods increases with extended travel times and fuel consumption.

“Congestion is also associated with harmful effects on societal behaviour, public health and road safety, which is further challenged by street designs that do not consider the needs of pedestrians and potential cyclists.”

Focusing on the environmental effects in particular, the Sustainable Nassau Action Plan added: “Increasing motorisation rates (number of passenger cars per 1,000 inhabitants), lack of regulation and incentives for cleaner energy in transportation all contribute to CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions. Per capita CO2 emissions from fossil fuel use and cement production in The Bahamas was 11.06

if it moved as such. The only thing within the Government’s power to change is the industry’s price-controlled, fixed margin structure and the amount of tax it earns on every gallon of gasoline and diesel sold.

Petroleum wholesale suppliers earn a fixed margin of 33 cents per gallon, and Sir Franklyn, who confirmed the majority of FOCOL’s operators are independent dealers, defended the distributors’ operating practices and argued that such concerns only surfaced when oil prices were high and volatile - as they are now.

“For each of the large wholesalers generally, I am satisfied that, in normal circumstances, the arrangements they have with the wholesalers are reasonable,” he added. “The cost of capital being what it is, in any number of instances the terms are very favourable to the dealers.

“The wholesalers are in the same position. The fact of the matter is the cost of carrying the inventory is a hell of a lot higher. We’re in the same boat. This is the nature of the business.

The wholesalers are in the same boat. It ain’t like we’re making it and they’re not.

The same forces affecting them are the same forces affecting the wholesalers.” tons in 2014, which is high compared to other small states.

“Some causal factors for these high emission rates appear to include the absence of emission standards regulations, and enforcement of mandatory maintenance for public and private vehicles. Other influencing factors are inadequate measures to improve the efficiency of traffic management and the transportation system.”

Despite the interruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, little has changed from the report’s findings and they likely remain as relevant today as they were then. “Public transportation routes have remained essentially unchanged since 2000 despite new growth areas throughout New

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE

INTERNATIONAL PROPERTY FINANCE LTD. Company No. 235363

(In Voluntary Liquidation) NOTICE is hereby given pursuant to Section 204 (1)(b) of the BVI Business Companies Act, 2004 that INTERNATIONAL PROPERTY FINANCE LTD. is in voluntary liquidation. The voluntary liquidation commenced on 1st April 2022 and Querube C. De Nuñez of Pasea Estate, Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands been appointed as the Sole Liquidator.

Dated this 5th day of April 2022 Sgd. Querube C. De Nuñez Voluntary Liquidator

THE TRIBUNE Mr Halkitis, meanwhile, said the Bahamas Petroleum Dealers Association had made no threat of a shutdown in its letter to the Government. Besides the impact on cash flow and credit lines from the increased cost of fuel purchases, he added that the sector was also concerned about a further impact to its expense structure from the impending minimum wage increase.

The minister also denied that the Public Treasury was benefiting significantly from the rise in gasoline prices via taxation, saying: “The Government is not benefiting from the increase in the cost of fuel because the Government has a fixed tax on gasoline. For diesel it’s combination of fixed and what they call ad valorem, which means it fluctuates, but for gasoline, which most individuals consume, the price is fixed.

“So whether the price goes up or down, the Government tax remains the same. It’s not that we’re benefiting from any increase in the price of fuel.” However, sources subsequently questioned the comments on the gasoline tax structure, saying they understood it consisted of a flat $1.14 per gallon levy plus 10 percent VAT. As VAT is a percentage, the Government’s take goes up as fuel prices increase, they said.

Providence and changing citizen travel patterns,” the Sustainable Nassau Action Plan said.

“These inefficiencies in the public transport service contribute to the rise in private vehicle ownership, which has increased over the last ten years. The number of vehicle registrations (57,500) has outpaced the growth in population (50,000). Despite the correlation between car ownership and income, as well as high taxes on imported vehicles, ownership remains relatively high in various low income districts of New Providence.

“The island’s current car dependence, made worse by an inefficient public transportation system, will severely affect the island’s ability to function productively because of increased road congestion. The total New Providence population is expected to grow by approximately 27 percent between 2015 and 2040, and with the private vehicle being the dominant form of transportation, this population growth will lead to continued low-density residential development and dispersed land-use patterns, as well as increased dependency on private vehicles.

“Moreover, the age groups which are expected to increase the most in population size are the 50-64 year olds, and those 65 years and older, with growth rates of 50 percent and 192 percent, respectively, from 2015 to 2040. This aging population stresses the need for improved public transport services and mobility in general, as car use among these demographics decreases because of aging and impairment.”

THE TRIBUNE

‘WE CANNOT LET NIB GO BROKE’ FROM PAGE 24 had to be reset, and what we’re finding is that the time between resets is getting shorter and shorter.”

Multiple contribution rate increases are precisely what could be coming. Myles Laroda, minister of state in the Prime Minister’s Office with responsibility for NIB, yesterday said the just-completed 11th actuarial review had recommended a contribution rate increase of between 1.5-2 percent that could come as early as this year depending on whether the Davis administration agrees to implement it.

And this will not be a onetime rate increase, as the minister warned Bahamians to brace for “numerous increases” over several years in a bid to shore up NIB’s $1.6bn reserve fund which, according to the actuarial review’s projections, will be completely exhausted by 2028 - just six years away.

“Yes,” Mr Laroda responded, when asked if an NIB contribution rate increase could be implemented this year. “I will temper that by saying we have not voted on that yet [in Cabinet], but a decision is being prepared and I would not be surprised if that happens for the mere fact we are in this unsustainable position.”

Asked about the magnitude of the rate increase, the minister replied: “Anywhere from 1.5-2 percent [points]...annually, bi-annually. For a period of time. So it is not just going to be one.

You can expect numerous increases. That hasn’t been decided yet but, to be fair, an increase is coming soon.”

Such an increase would take

the total contribution rate to between 11.3 percent and 11.8 percent.

NIB’s present reality was predicted more than two decades by its seventh actuarial review, completed in 2001, which forecast that “reserves are projected to become exhausted” by 2029 if comprehensive reforms are not implemented to address the fundamental problem of benefit payouts exceeding contribution income.

The recipient of that review, which was only one year out, on September 11, 2002, was then-NIB chairman and now-Prime Minister, Philip Davis QC. Now, with just six years left to the NIB Fund’s total depletion, the magnitude of the correction will be that much more severe for businesses and workers already grappling with surging inflation, COVID recovery, rising gas prices and a potential minimum wage increase.

Private sector executives described the prospect of NIB contribution hikes as a “double” or even “quadruple whammy” for a business community still fighting for “survival.

Yet there was also an acknowledgement that NIB cannot be allowed to fail, given that for thousands of Bahamians it represents a key source of retirement savings (pensions) while also ensuring that others remain above the poverty line through the provision of unemployment, sickness, industrial accident, maternity and death/funeral benefits.

Agreeing that the social security system’s importance to wider Bahamian society cannot be ignored, Sir Franklyn Wilson, the

Sunshine Holdings and Arawak Homes chairman, told Tribune Business: “The question about kicking the can down the road is an absolutely true statement. I’ve heard that said by at least one prior minister of NIB. Successive ministers have run that entity in way that raises questions about the level of payroll, the number of people, the investment policy....

“In this climate, any rate increase is not a good time given where business is. All we can do is hope and pray the minister holds off for as long as he can, but as a social security system we cannot let it go broke.”

Sir Franklyn said Mr Laroda’s comments were tantamount to advocating for a contribution rate increase, adding: “He’s already talked to his Cabinet colleagues to get them in a frame of mind to vote yes.

The point I’m making is that any cost increase in this climate is not good, whatever form it takes is not good, but we cannot let NIB go broke.

That’s the consequence.”

Asked what the fall-out would be if this occurred, Sir Franklyn replied: “Oh my God. That’s too difficult to imagine. We cannot let NIB go broke. The pensioners, all the people that depend on that, that’s something we don’t want to imagine.”

Peter Goudie, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s (BCCEC) labour division head, agreed that this nation “has no choice” but to rescue NIB given the dire social and economic ramifications if it were to fail.

“The timing is awful but I don’t think they have a

choice,” he said of the Government. “No one has ever wanted to deal with it. To some people, NIB is the only pension they’re going to have. If that runs out, they’re in trouble. I know it’s going to be difficult for everybody, bad timing for everybody, but this country has been putting it off for far too long.

For years and years, it has been putting reform off.

“That’s no different that the unfunded civil service pension liabilities.

We’ve been putting it off for years. We can’t keep kicking the can down the road for ever. I just don’t think we have any choice. It’s most unfortunate, and bad timing.

It’s got to happen otherwise we’re all in trouble, and everything and everyone will be hurt.”

With a minimum wage increase also in the pipeline, Mr Goudie said an NIB contribution hike will be akin to “a double whammy” for many businesses at a time when they are also dealing with supply chain woes, surging inflation, COVID recovery and rising gas prices. “We knew this was coming,” he added of NIB. “It has to come, or you’re going to have an awful lot of people not getting a pension.”

NIB contributions, which take the form of a payroll tax, are currently split 3.9 percent/5.9 percent between employee and employer, respectively. They have seen only one increase this century, when the combined rate rose from 8.8 percent to the present 9.8 percent in 2010.

Any new rate hikes, besides increasing business costs, will also cut into employee take-home pay and disposable income just when

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 21 they are facing heightened inflation.

Mr Laroda did not break down the recommended 1.5-2 percent increase between employer and employee, although he said the $1.6bn NIB reserve fund’s depletion has been hastened by a year between completion of the 10th and 11th actuarial reviews. He added that the “issue” facing NIB is that contributions have exceeded benefit payouts for the past six years.

NIB’s 2017 annual report, the last to be publicly disclosed, revealed that the year’s $277.5m contributions were exceeded by $286.5m in benefit payouts. The same occurred the previous year, when $275.2m in benefits overshadowed $261.2m in contributions. NIB’s income only remained positive as a result of earnings on its investment portfolio.

Mr Laroda yesterday described this as “unsustainable”, and added: “The reality is that NIB has been running deficits for the past six years. So this pre-dated COVID. The can was kicked down the road too many times. From the fund was established, there’s been one rate increase, from 8.8 percent to 9.8 percent in 2010.

If we take all that has been going on, we are where we are.”

With the 11th actuarial report and reform recommendations shared with his Cabinet colleagues, the minister added: “We have tough decisions to make, and we are prepared to make those tough decisions. We are talking about tens of thousands of NIB individuals (beneficiaries) who have contributed, some of them for decades, and it would be a shame for those who have paid in not to be able to receive their benefits. We are prepared, willing and able to address these concerns.”

Mr Gibson yesterday suggested that the Government may seek to raise NIB’s

current $710 per week wage ceiling as a means to gain increased contribution income from higher earners.

He added that NIB’s issues also related to the fact that The Bahamas has an increasingly elderly population that is living longer, but which is supported by a workforce whose growth has failed to keep pace, meaning that the ratio of retired persons versus active is growing.

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) reported in 2018 that NIB contribution rates must more than double to over 20 percent to prevent a long-term Bahamian pension crisis.

It projected that the Government’s total pension liabilities - including those owed to the civil service and public corporation workers - will ultimately grow to 160 percent of GDP. Pointing out that all Government pension commitments are “underfunded”, the IDB’s 2018-2022 strategy said eliminating this deficit will require NIB contribution rates to rise from the present 9.8 percent to 20.3 percent.

“Beyond the medium term, pension liabilities for which the Government is directly responsible - including social security commitments, pensions and public entity pensions - amount to 160 percent of GDP and are underfunded,” the IDB said. “Fully funding these pensions would require increasing the social security payroll tax from 9.8 percent to 20.3 per cent - a 107 per cent increase.

“Pension liabilities are also projected to increase faster as a percentage of GDP in the Bahamas compared to the United States by 2060, reaching 41.6 retired Bahamians per 100 workers (from a current 1:10 ratio) compared to 36.8 per 100 workers in the United States,” the IDB country strategy said.

PAGE 22, Wednesday, April 13, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

TOURISM CORP CHIEF HOSTS REGIONAL AGRICULTURE BODY THE TOURISM Development Corporation’s (TDC) newly-appointed executive director recently met with a regional agricultural body to discuss how the two sectors can work better together and boost Bahamian agritourism.

Ian Ferguson hosted Inter-American Institute

for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) officials at the TDC’s headquarters on George Street. In attendance were IICA country representative, Mari Dunleavy, and staff, along with TDC executives.

The meeting was organised as a formal introduction between new

officials, and an opportunity to continue discussions on ways in which Bahamian producers can expand their offerings of agricultural produce to benefit the tourism sector.

“We wanted to officially meet face-to-face and share our common goals for agritourism throughout the

islands of The Bahamas,” said Mr Ferguson. “Our meeting was very productive. “We discussed, among other matters, agritourism opportunities and the need to increase local production of Bahamian food items requested by tourists.

We also talked about the importance of providing

crucial linkages between hotels and our Bahamian farmers.”

Mr Ferguson said the TDC will continue to collaborate with the IICA and more meetings between the two entities are planned in the near future.

BAHAMAS BANK TO SPONSOR FTX-ORGANISED CONFERENCE A BAHAMIAN financial institution has agreed to become the “platinum” sponsor for a digital assets conference to be hosted in this nation later this month by one of the world’s leading crypto currency exchanges.

Deltec International Group will sponsor Crypto

Bahamas, which aims to bring together investors and builders in the blockchain, digital assets and web3 space, and is being organised by Bahamasbased FTX and SALT. Scheduled for April 26-29 at the Baha Mar resort, Crypto Bahamas will cover Bitcoin, DeFi, NFTs

(non-fungible tokens), regulation, web3, gaming and more. Jean Chalopin, Deltec’s chairman, said: “Deltec has been a longtime friend of FTX, and it is our pleasure to support them and SALT on this important event for both The Bahamas and the overall adoption and

development of DeFi and CeFi policies locally and around the globe.

“As the first financial institution in The Bahamas to have supported blockchain developments and adopted digital currencies, our participation in Crypto Bahamas is a great fit as we work with regulators,

industry experts and entrepreneurs to advocate for innovation and positive disruption.”

Deltec has partnered with FTX and SALT to develop content and entertainment for the conference’s ‘Trusting Disruption’ stage, which will focus on future leadership

The IICA is a specialised agricultural agency which promotes and encourages agricultural and rural development among the 34 member countries of the Inter-American system, of which The Bahamas is a member. and innovation across many industries.

“We are thrilled to welcome Deltec as a major sponsor at Crypto Bahamas this year,” said Anthony Scaramucci, SALT’s founder and chairman.

“Deltec’s insights, based on their history and experience at the forefront of digital adoption in the financial services industry and in The Bahamas, will be invaluable, and we look forward to learning from them.”

‘NO WATER FROM STONE’ WARNING ON COST HIKES FROM PAGE 24 are in business have to determine what direction they want to take and whether it’s worth being in business.”

Mr McCartney, who has interests in the pharmaceutical, education and real estate sectors, as well as his Halsbury Chambers law firm, said the combined impact of an NIB rate hike,

soaring inflation, supply chain woes and rising gas prices - as well as a potential minimum wage increase - could have a dampening effect on confidence in a private sector that is “not just there yet” in terms of post-COVID recovery.

Emphasising that he was not against a minimum wage rise, but concerned that businesses are being hit with multiple cost rises

all at once, Mr McCartney said: “To just add an extra burden to doing business in this country, it is quite frustrating to say the least....

“It’s going back to the same well, but there’s a hole in the bucket dear Liza, dear Liza. There’s a hole in the bucket dear Liza, a hole.

You’re going back with that bucket and there’s nothing in it. At the end of the day, you cannot get water from

a stone. It’s a difficult situation for business people as well as the general public, but we are where we are unfortunately.”

Ben Albury, Bahamas Bus and Truck’s general manager, told Tribune Business he could “live” with an NIB contribution rate hike provided the social security system was “properly managed” with the necessary accountability and transparency, and there was a plan developed to tackle all its issues.

He argued that too often NIB had been employed as a “slush fund” by successive administrations, with its assets used to finance domestic government debt (bond) issues; government buildings; and other infrastructure and pet projects that had not always delivered the best returns for the Bahamian people.

“It will have a hard impact considering inflation and all the other issues going on,” Mr Albury said of an NIB contribution rate increase, “but I don’t think anyone will find it too much of a surprise. NIB has said it was something it has been looking at increasing for a number of years for the reserve fund to remain viable. I can live with that

as long as it’s properly managed and a clear cut plan is worked out.

“NIB has been used a slush fund and not always managed in the best way.

Hopefully they can articulate a plan that makes NIB viable and sustainable. An increase has been thrown on the table several times, but the last one was in 2010. It’s been quite a while since we had an increase.

Hopefully they can keep the increase as low as possible and introduce some accountability for the money and how it is spent, and how they will alleviate the issues.”

Robert Sands, the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s (BHTA) president, told Tribune Business that while “NIB must survive” any contribution rate increase could not be imposed “arbitrarily” or viewed in isolation without considering the other cost pressures facing the industry and wider Bahamian economy.

Pointing to the role NIB fulfills “in times of crisis” as well as fostering savings and providing pensions, he added that “the Fund must serve the purpose for which it was built. However, the BHTA chief said: “What

NOTICE TO THE

PUBLIC

The private road of St. Augustine’s College and Monastery from St. Augustine’s Cemetery Road to Prince Charles Drive and all other premises (grounds) belonging to the school and monastery

WILL BE CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC

from Monday, April 18th, 2022 at 11:59 p.m. until Tuesday, April 19th, 2022 at 11:59 p.m.

BRANVILLE MCCARTNEY we cannot do is arbitrarily agree where an increase in rate should be at this time in isolation from other costs that might have an impact on the sector.

“One single cost increase must be assessed against the backdrop of other costs and the environment in which we operate. An issue that concerns us is the pending minimum wage increase.

We are also currently faced with the dire global supply chain issued. We certainly support some type of [NIB] increase but it has to be against the backdrop of all this taking place. We support the Government in the concept of both the minimum wage and ensuring NIB’s life can be extended.”

Noting that an NIB contribution hike will impact the entire Bahamas, Mr Sands added: “The devil is in the details of how this will be determined.

The bottom line is that NIB needs to survive. It must survive, and it’s an institution that supported thousands and thousands of Bahamians in the past, and many thousands looking forward to its continued survival in the future.”

The COVID-19 pandemic both impacted NIB’s liquidity, via $100m in unemployment benefits, and its contribution income as businesses closed and workers either terminated or furloughed.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 13, 2022, PAGE 23

AIRLINES SAY FARE RISES ARE ‘ALMOST AUTOMATIC’

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net RIVAL airline operators yesterday said it is “almost automatic” that ticket prices will increase to partially offset soaring fuel costs after Bahamasair revealed its fares have risen.

Anthony Hamilton, Southern Air’s director of administration,

and president of the Bahamas Association of Air Transport Operators, told Tribune Business there was very little the industry can to about rising costs that are outside its control.

“Fuel is a major component of the service that’s provided, and the rise in fuel prices definitely has an immediate impact,” he added. “Safety is a primary function of the industry, and this simply means operational costs are going to increase. The most likely

experience for the customer is going to be price increases.

“This is a supply and demand situation, and as long as the market is demanding service then the service is going to be delivered.”

Mr Hamilton spoke after Tracy Cooper, Bahamasair’s managing director, told Tribune Business that the national flag carrier had increased ticket prices for all domestic travel by $3, and on international routes

by $10, to partially counteract rising fuel prices.

This was in response to aviation fuel increasing by $1.50 per gallon in just seven weeks following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. With Bahamasair consuming between 90,000 and 95,000 gallons of fuel per week, its weekly fuel bill has risen by between $134,000 and $142,500.

Faron Sawyer, president of Cherokee Air, yesterday said he can only increase air fares by so much as his

customers do not earn sufficient income to absorb the fuel cost pass-through.

He added: “This rise in fuel is impacting us big time, because we can’t go up on the price that much to try and compensate, so this is causing our business license to go more and your bottom line flat, and you are not making as much money.

“With our clientele, we don’t fly that many wealthy people, so we have just tried to be mindful of our

clients’ situations. We had gone up a little bit, but not to the point where they say they can’t afford to travel any more.”

Despite these fuel price hikes, there will be no flight cancellations. Mr Sawyer said: “We’re just hoping that oil prices stabilize, and we’re monitoring it, but with oil going up the way it is it is affecting the price of everything else.”

TECHNOLOGY PROVIDER IN SOCIAL IMPACT HONOURS A BAHAMIAN technology provider has been honoured for its social impact by one of its main partners.

Cloud Carib, in a statement, said it was named VMware’s 2022 Social Impact Partner of the Year for Latin America as part of the latter’s annual Partner Achievement Awards. This award celebrates companies for positively impacting the world through the use of VMware technologies.

The Bahamian firms said it was recognised for its commitment to innovation for a better future and driving business around

sustainability, equity and trust. “This year’s VMware Partner Social Impact Award winners highlight companies that are not only driving exceptional business outcomes for our customers, but are also exceptional global citizens,” said Gustavo Rios, VMware director of channels organisation.

“The last year brought us both new and continued challenges, and VMware is proud to see Cloud Carib honoured for their ability to help customers deliver under unique circumstances.

Technology was the connective tissue for so many, and Cloud

Carib helped customers leverage VMware tools for the greater good in some of their most vulnerable hours.”

In 2021, Cloud Carib helped facilitate plans by the Bahamian government to introduce multiple high-quality digital services across the archipelago. Using VMware solutions, Cloud Carib implemented e-government by giving citizens access to a variety of government services online.

Previously, services such as passport renewals, land transfers and even the issuance of birth or death

certificates had only been available through in-person transactions that cost citizens hundreds to thousands of dollars, as well as significant time. Using VMware private multicloud infrastructure, Cloud Carib implemented the region’s first UXP (Unified Exchange Platform) that enabled the Government’s e-services vision.

“We’ve dedicated the past decade to meeting and exceeding the expectations and needs of our clients,” explained Cloud Carib founder and chief technology officer, Stelios Xeroudakis. “VMware has

been a trusted partner in making that possible, so to be recognised in this way is a great source of pride and achievement for our entire team.”

The VMware Partner Achievement Awards programme is conducted in partnership with technology research firm, IDC, which reviewed and evaluated award submissions against the criteria for each category. Partners were recognised for their achievements in delivering VMware technologies and solutions that helped customers move to modern, cloud centric architectures

and transform their businesses.

They were selected for their ability to help customers leverage VMware solutions, in combination with next generation technologies, to lead the industry.

TO ADVERTISE TODAY IN THE TRIBUNE CALL @ 502-2394

business@tribunemedia.net

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13, 2022

$6.15

$6.25

$6.16

$6.19

‘We cannot let NIB go broke’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE BAHAMAS cannot “let the National Insurance Board (NIB) go broke”, top business executives warned yesterday, with financial analysts asserting: “You cannot kick the can down the road any further.”

Larry Gibson, chief operating officer of CG Atlantic Pensions, who has long advocated for comprehensive pension and social security reform in The Bahamas, told Tribune Business that without “radical reform” businesses and workers will be faced with contribution rate hikes “every three to four years” to maintain NIB’s long-term sustainability.

“What happens is when the can is against the wall, you cannot kick it any further,” he said. “You have to deal with it, and like so many things we’ve ignored and kicked it down the road and it’s somebody else’s

• ‘Radical reform’ required after ‘can kicking’ • Initial contribution hike of up to 2% points • 2029 exhaustion forecast two decades ago problem to deal with. There’s a time when that ‘somebody else’s problem’ sits squarely in your lap and becomes a problem.

“It’s absolutely no surprise whatsoever, and if there isn’t radical change, radical reform, you’re going to see it [rate rises] every three to four years for a while. This is a combination of things that have been in the works for years. We knew it

LARRY GIBSON

SEE PAGE 21

‘No water from stone’ warning on cost hikes

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE GOVERNMENT was yesterday warned it “cannot get water from a stone” with a likely National Insurance Board (NIB) contribution rate hike set to add to multiple cost increases facing the Bahamian private sector and consumers.

Branville McCartney, the former Democratic National Alliance (DNA) leader, likened the prospect of an imminent NIB increase (see other article on Page 1B) to “going back to the same well with a hole in the bucket” given that many businesses were still struggling for

“survival” following the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Anything that increases the cost of doing business cannot be welcomed,” he told Tribune Business.

“The average businessman cannot survive. It’s hard enough as it is now with the pandemic that caused many businesses to go out of business, and those in business to try and keep their doors open. Any increase in terms of NIB payments just makes the situation even worse.

“Businesses, for the most part, are holding on for dear life, and with inflation, the cost of gasoline, it makes it extremely difficult for those wanting to get into business.

They think twice, and those that

SEE PAGE 22

Gas margin rise ‘non-starter’ despite fairness questions

Post-Easter tourism is ‘higher than ever’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A TOP hotelier yesterday said tourism demand for the post-Easter weekend period is “higher than it’s ever been” and “going beyond the traditional ring fencing” that usually marks the peak winter season climax.

Robert Sands, the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) president, told Tribune Business that business volumes for May and June are “extending the winter season” past the holiday weekend that traditionally marks its ending and the start of the slower summer period.

A CABINET minister yesterday ruled out increased margins for gas station dealers as “a non-starter” even though a major petroleum supplier conceded that current volatility “calls into question the fairness” of the industry’s pricing structure.

Michael Halkitis, minister of economic affairs, speaking ahead of today’s meeting between the Government and Bahamas Petroleum Dealers Association (BPDA) representatives, said agreeing to the latter’s call for greater margins “would lead directly” to increased gasoline prices at the pump “and that won’t happen right now”.

While he pledged that the Davis administration will seek to “bring them some relief” where it can, the minister’s remarks effectively pre-empt and head off the central demand from the Association and its members - a 50 percent increase on their current margins, and shifting the basis for how it is calculated from a fixed, pricecontrolled sum to a percentage.

Such an increase would take retail (gas station) margins from the present 54 cents per gallon to 81 cents per gallon but,

SEE PAGE 20

• Minister rules out increased pump costs for Bahamians • Sir Franklyn: Gas station shut down counter-productive • Wholesalers suffering too: ‘It ain’t like we’re making it’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

“We’re seeing the pent-up demand for the destination is going beyond the traditional ring fencing, which is after Easter, and seeing it extend to May and June, which are higher than they have ever been,” he said. “It appears to be extended, and every indication is that it is going longer, which is great.

“Easter this year is late April, and it is normally much earlier. It’s giving the destination an extended winter season, and I’m using that as an acronym for the high season. We look forward to it, and let’s pray that it’s the start of a trend.”

Mr Sands described the upcoming Easter weekend as “a mixed bag” for the

SEE PAGE 19

Nassau auto pool rises faster than population

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

SIR FRANKLYN WILSON

NEW Providence’s transport system is not supporting its “economic, social, or environmental well-being”, an InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) report has affirmed, with the number of cars on-island growing faster than the population.

The Sustainable Nassau Action Plan, developed between 2015 and 2017 but only recently released, revealed that in

the ten years prior to its publication the 57,000-strong increase in vehicles on New Providence’s streets outpaced the 50,000person rise in its population.

“The current mobility and transport system in New Providence does not appear to be supporting the island’s economic, social or environmental well-being.

An over-arching mobility strategy for the island is urgently required,” the report concluded. “The ongoing increase in private vehicle ownership and use continues

SEE PAGE 20