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VOLUME:117 No.98, APRIL 15, 2020

THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: $1

INSIDE: YOUR BRILLIANT 12-PAGE PUZZLE MAGAZINE

BOUNCE BACK

Ray of hope as IMF forecasts 6.7% recovery

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE International Monetary Fund yesterday predicted The Bahamas will swiftly rebound from COVID-19 despair with 6.7 percent GDP growth in 2021.

In its first COVID-19 World Economic Outlook, the IMF forecast The Bahamas and most of its Caribbean neighbours will bounce back swiftly from arguably the greatest economic contraction - or depression - seen since the 1930s.

The Fund’s forecast that the Bahamian economy will shrink by 8.3 percent in real terms during 2020 is in line with Moody’s estimate of an 8 percent contraction

SEE PAGE EIGHT

‘WE DIDN’T THREATEN DOCTORS’

due to the tourism industry shutdown and impact of the government’s national lockdown.

Gowon Bowe, Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) chief financial officer, warned Bahamians not to place their hopes on such forecasts, even though they represent a glimmer of hope for both private sector and workforce, He said that “the earliest” anyone could accurately predict The Bahamas’ GDP will probably be June, as he urged against “false prophesising” that was either overly optimistic or preached “doom and gloom” when it came to this nation’s prospects.

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

HEALTH Minister Dr Duane Sands said yesterday he was “flabbergasted” to learn of doctors allegedly being threatened with noncontract renewal if they choose not to volunteer in the COVID-19 fight.

He said such threats are “not something that is consistent with the Ministry of Health”.

SEE PAGE TWO

REALTORS LOOK FOR ‘IT’S NICE TAX CUTS

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

...BUT PAIN GOES ON AS 30,000 SEEK HELP

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net THE National Insurance Board has paid out more than $5m in unemployment benefits to workers impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, NIB officials said yesterday.

Giving an update to reporters ahead of a Cabinet meeting, Public Service and National Insurance Minister Brensil Rolle said some 12,000 people who

have lost their income due to COVID-19 have already received unemployment payments from NIB. About 30,000 people have applied for NIB assistance.

He said: “We are just under 30,000 applications for unemployment assistance. So far, we have spent about $5m on 12,000 applications. We are processing a significant number of small businesses so we expect the numbers would increase significantly.

SEE PAGE THREE

ALICIA WALLACE WE NEED A PROPER PLAN, NOT REACTIONS

TO HAVE THE BEACH TO OURSELVES FOR ONCE’

A PAIR of seagulls enjoying the peace and quiet on Junkanoo beach yesterday.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

SAN SALVADOR’S SATELLITE SCARE

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

A SATELLITE that crash landed in San Salvador on Sunday, puzzling and scaring residents, was brought down by its manufacturer as part of a coordinated event.

Delvin Major, Air Accident Investigation Authority chief investigator, confirmed the object was an internet and communication

THE DOWNED satellite balloon satellite. “It had reached its useful life and battery depletion and was

brought down intentionally by the operator where it was picked up by a boat,” he said.

The descent was coordinated with air traffic control and a crew was hired to retrieve it. The company operating the satellite is called Loon, a Google affiliate which partners with mobile network operators to expand the reach of their LTE services.

SEE PAGE SEVEN

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net LEADING realtor John Christie, HG Christie’s president and managing broker, yesterday urged the government to slash the tax rate on property sales by 50 percent and “cut all the red tape” to stimulate “real money” inflows to The Bahamas, calling on the government to “get proactive” in stimulating real estate sales.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

TECHNOLOGY

SPECTACULAR CRASH IN VIRTUAL RACE SEE PAGE NINE

PAGE 2, Wednesday, April 15, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

‘GUIDELINES FOR DEALING WITH INFECTED CORPSES SUFFICIENT’

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

DEPUTY Chief Medical Officer Dr Delon Brennen has said officials are not overly concerned about the transmission of COVID19 from infected bodies to health and other industry professionals who handle the dead.

In an interview with The Tribune yesterday, Dr Brennen said medical officials have advised industry professionals including morticians that the established US Centers for Disease Control guidelines for the handling of corpses of infected victims are sufficient.

However, he said ideally, officials believe cremation is best when it comes to options for burial. It has also been recommended

that personal protective equipment be worn at all times regardless of the cause of death, said Kirsch Ferguson of the Bahamas Funeral Directors Association. Officials are further recommending “double bagging” bodies, Dr Brennen said.

Dr Brennen was contacted after the issue was raised by several US media outlets citing the Journal of Forensic and Legal Medicine, which documented that a Thailand medical examiner contracted COVID-19 and died as a result of coming into contact with an infected body. This was the only case of its kind documented by the journal.

Dr Brennen said: “The CDC has a guideline for the handling of bodies and states that there is a safe way. Ideally cremation would minimise this issue

but there are also safe ways to handle bodies outside of cremation for burial.

“So I don’t think we’re overly concerned.

We provided some of that information to those who are in the mortuary business. We have opened up ourselves for further conversation if they require that but at the moment I don’t think it’s an extreme concern for us.”

This is because he said the situation is not widespread.

“It’s hard to say just off of one (case) that would truly be something to change all of our practices but I think the prevailing practice has been to use universal precautions and to double bag bodies and make sure that people are protected using personal protective equipment when they’re handling the bodies out of an abundance of caution,” Dr Brennen said.

For his part, Mr Ferguson said local morticians were relying on the CDC’s recommendations as well.

“As with all infectious disease cases there are concerns about our health and the health of the general public,” he’s said. “But regarding the article making the rounds on social media based on our understanding and acceptance of the Centers for Disease Control as long as we adhere to universal precautions and follow industry best practices we are ensured that our health is protected as well as that of the general public.”

He said the CDC has stressed the use of PPE at all times and to ensure handling guidelines are followed.

“They haven’t made any recommendations outside of what we are familiar with from our training

and updating ourselves on infectious disease cases.

What they are stressing particularly for funeral professionals from the onset of coming into contact let’s say for example you are called into a home to remove a body. Under these conditions you must take precautions. You are not aware of the cause of death but we have to treat every case as an infectious case.

“So we have to adorn ourselves in proper PPEs and also follow proper disposal and also proper cleaning of our utensils and equipment and that’s for everyone straight across the board.”

And like all sectors, Mr Ferguson said his industry will not go unaffected.

He noted that it was likely cost increases were on the way.

“The main concern for

families is cost. While we are mindful that funerals carry a burden of financial responsibility, we are doing our best not to increase cost because of what is going on.

“As a matter of fact based on the restrictions that are before us we have to remind families of certain deletions to cost that we have to take on their pricing.

“Second to that families are free to choose embalming or cremation if they so wish and they must be mindful that postponement is not a deterrent to having what they want done. It’s just a matter of delaying the process in terms of when a funeral can be held if they want to wait for a traditional funeral as we all know it to be. But under these circumstances we can put together any wish that families put before us.”

have suffered this great loss,” a statement from the Ministry of Health said.

Noting there is still a need for more healthcare workers to help in the fight against the COVID19 threat, MoH advised all physicians to notify officials “on when they will make their services available to support the country’s fight against COVID-19.”

“To facilitate this request, the general public is to be assured that all healthcare workers will be provided with proper

personal protective equipment (PPE) to handle patients who are confirmed or suspected to be infected

by COVID-19,” the statement added.

“To ensure that adequate numbers of PPEs are maintained, the government has already ordered additional supplies. Further, supply levels are constantly being maintained and rates of usage of PPEs are being carefully monitored.”

It continued: “…Despite economic fall out of the mandatory lockdown, the

government has already committed to providing physicians with a $5,000 honorarium for those who work on the frontline of the health sector’s response.

“The government has also offered the provision of a life insurance benefit of $100,000 should a healthcare worker (contract) the COVID-19 virus and experience an untimely death.”

All national COVID-19 concerns by medical workers, MoH added, will be addressed by the National Coordination Committee.

‘No threats were made to doctors’ from page one This comes after Bahamas Doctors Union President Dr Melisande Bassett warned in an April 11 letter sent to BDU members that doctors have been “threatened with noncontract renewal” if they choose not to volunteer to be a part of the COVID-19 response.

Noting the matter is currently under investigation, the health minister told reporters yesterday: “I can tell you that they were certainly not threatened by me and they certainly were not threatened by anybody who I have given a directive to threaten them.

“I find that principal abhorrent and it is certainly not something that is consistent with the Ministry of Health, so I’m flabbergasted by that claim and we’re investigating it.”

Other concerns highlighted by Dr Bassett are that some doctors have not received proper training in putting on and removing personal protective equipment (PPE) nor proper N-95 mask fitting.

“In addition to these concerns, some physicians have elderly parents and family members with

comorbidities,” the letter continued. “These physicians have expressed that, if possible, they will assist if they are able to sequester themselves away from home for the period where they are assisting directly with positive patients.

“Since the beginning of March, the BDU has requested additional sleeping facilities to facilitate social distancing and to provide lodging for persons who wish to sequester themselves away from home. To date, the BDU has not received any official information from the minister on this. We know that this is an impediment to many wishing to volunteer.”

Dr Bassett also called for “official documentation” to back up the government’s verbal promise for “compensation and insurance benefits” for doctors or their family members, if

MINISTER Dr Duane Sands

they end up contracting the disease.

Asked by reporters yesterday on when meetings will be held to resolve these issues, the health minister replied he had met with physicians on Sunday.

He said: “On Sunday, I met with some 280 or so physicians by Zoom. The day before, I met with the physicians’ leadership. I am open, I am available and we continue to seek resolutions to any of these outstanding matters.

“This is not the time for division. This is the time for us to come together and solve problems, which is not to say that we have to hold hands and sing kumbaya, but we have a nation of people that’s counting on us and we have to be there for them.”

Earlier this month, Dr Sands revealed that five healthcare workers had tested positive for COVID19, adding that more than 50 workers had been taken out of the healthcare system due to exposure to the deadly virus. One health care worker who tested positive for the virus, Dr Judson Eneas, died more than a week ago.

“The Ministry of Health expresses its sincere condolences to the families that

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 15, 2020, PAGE 3

CORONAVIRUS CRISIS from page one “We anticipate that Family Islands are somewhat slow, so they are coming in at a slower pace and apart from the normal unemployment assistance offered by NIB, 3,000 persons have applied for the special assistance given by the government in the touristic industry.

“And we are processing those and we have made payments so far to most of those individuals.”

Noting that officials have made progress to expedite the claims, Mr Rolle said he was satisfied with the efforts made by NIB workers to speed up the payment of much-needed benefits.

“You will recall that this process was just announced to us less than two weeks ago and we have made those payments to individuals in the major hotel companies,” he noted.

“I know we are having some slight issues in persons with smaller companies because their process is a little bit slower because some of them are not up to date totally.

Pain goes on as 30,000 seek help “And so, based on what is happening in the process, I’m satisfied with the persons (who) are doing a great job at NIB to ensure that monies are on the grounds and paid to individuals as quickly as possible.”

Although much focus has been directed towards paying out unemployment benefits and assistance, NIB is still committed to carrying out its other obligations to the Bahamian public.

“NIB continues to process thousands of ongoing sickness, maternity and industrial injury benefit claims. Additionally, new applications for retirement

and other pensions continue to be processed,” officials said in a statement yesterday afternoon.

Meanwhile, Mr Rolle added: “…We have advanced $20 million in pension payments for the month of April and the only islands that did not get the payments up to date is Grand Cay and Moore’s Island. And we are making those payments this week.”

Asked yesterday if the country can expect to see NIB utilising online platforms in the future, the minister replied: “Absolutely, I had some discussions with my director

and she said ‘this is working and what are we going to do’ and I said to her, ‘that’s a good thing.’ “…We’re demonstrating that we can do this online.

We are paying the big business directly so for example, we send the monies to Atlantis and Atlantis is just distributing it to their staff.

“We’ve asked individuals in the touristic sector for example, to go online, check our website and fill out the simple form that we have and we will then make an arrangement to pay for them.”

He continued: “We just want to make sure that we pay as quickly as we can and

show the Bahamian people that we are there for them and hopefully, they will be there for us. This is an exercise where Bahamians would see the benefit of NIB and of being compliant and making their payments.”

As it relates to those workers whose employers have not paid their NIB benefits, Mr Rolle said NIB is still open to negotiations with those companies. There have been numerous complaints from some employees in recent weeks, claiming that their employers have deducted but failed to pay their NIB contributions.

Speaking on the matter

yesterday, Mr Rolle said: “We’ve taken the position that we’re going to negotiate with these companies.

We’re going to reach out to them and have agreements signed with them, but the critical point is our clients, our customers will not be disadvantaged because our company did not pay.

“NIB has the capacity to go after these big companies and we will… but what we want to do is make sure that persons who need the funds can get it and we’ll do the back leg work to talk to these big companies who have not been up to date in their contributions.

TRIBUNE photographer Shawn Hanna visited the beaches during lockdown

600 tested for virus

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

ABOUT 600 people have been tested for COVID19, Health Minister Dr Duane Sands said yesterday, adding health officials are hoping to test “several hundred more” by the end of the week.

His comments came after Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis announced on Sunday the Ministry of Health will expand testing for COVID-19 this week, which could result in a sharp increase in cases.

“As testing expands,” Dr Minnis said, “more people will be diagnosed with COVID-19 in The Bahamas, including those with mild symptoms. The Ministry of Health plans to expand testing this week. This will result in an increase in the number of cases.”

While noting people at higher risk for COVID-19 are being tested by health workers first, Dr Sands told reporters yesterday that as officials continue to “liberalise the indications for testing”, more testing will be conducted in the country.

He said: “… The high-risk persons are the ones that we’ve been testing first and so as we liberalise the indications for testing, you’ll see more people getting tested. So as of yesterday, I believe, we were probably up to some 600 or so tests and we expect to get perhaps several hundred more (tested) by the end of the week. It’s making sure that every single step along the way, that you have the swabs, that you have the viral media, that you have the test kits, that you have the reagents for the lab, that you have the personnel, the transportation to get it from

the family islands to New Providence and so on and so forth.

“And some of it may require that we expand how we do it and potentially use other reference laboratories in other countries to get some of the RT-PCR testing done.”

Last week, health officials, using an exponential regression analysis model, had projected 90 cases by Easter Sunday but up to Monday, there were only 49 confirmed cases in the country, with nearly 500 persons in quarantine.

While agreeing the country is making progress against the COVID-19 threat, Dr Sands said it’s still “too early to tell” whether the country has reached its peak of cases or has seen a flattening in the curve. “We have some encouraging signs. We’re hoping and praying that this is consistent but, we cannot

be presumptuous. Let’s see how this goes. We don’t get too many shots at this,” he noted.

“We want to do it right.

We are mindful of the challenges on human beings.

We are mindful of the impact on the economy and this balancing act is a very important balancing act.”

One challenge, previously noted by the health minister, for officials in this fight included the availability of size friendly isolation tubes. The containment tubes are used to transport infected patients.

The absence of isolation chambers and other critical medical supplies sparked concerns about the readiness of Family Islands for COVID-19 after Bimini resident Kim Johnson-Rolle died from complications related to the infectious disease last month. The delay in getting her from Bimini to Nassau,

where she later died, was attributed to a lack of the isolation tube.

Noting the country now has about six isolation tubes, Dr Sands said: “We are looking into seeing whether we could have something custom made, but that obviously is a very different process. And in the meantime, we have to plan a very different approach.”

“These are the real challenges facing us… Purchasing medical equipment and supplies is not as simple as purchasing clothes.

There are only limited suppliers that make devices for the morbidly obese, the super obese etc.”

Speaking to reporters yesterday, the health minister was also asked why officials were no longer using the Royal Bahamas Defence Force’s Coral Harbour Base as a healthcare facility for COVID-19 patients.

However, he said: “This

is a rolling response, this is a moving target and we look at something today and it changes. What we’re trying to do is to respond in a way that’s effective, that’s impactful and to make sure that the response provides the best security and safety for Bahamians as far as their health.

“We are still discussing the possibility of a field hospital, but we thought it necessary to complete the part at Princess Margaret Hospital, the Grand Bahama - the Cancer Association in Grand Bahama - the South Beach health centre in New Providence, Doctors (Hospital) east, Doctors (Hospital) west and you see how that goes.

“If there is a demand for more, then we go ahead and build it out but remember, hurricane season is upon us and we have to focus on getting the Rand Memorial Hospital back up.”

PRISON PLANNING TO MAKE REUSABLE MASKS

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

OFFICIALS at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services are hoping to implement inhouse reusable cloth mask production as a part of the prison’s strategy to safeguard officers and prevent the spread of COVID-19 on the compound.

The plan, according to Hervie Culmer, president of the Correctional Officers Staff Association, is one of a few “heightened” measures to ensure

there is no outbreak at the facility. Other measures include thermal screening at the first point of entry, increased cleanings and the distribution of disposable masks and gloves to staff.

Hand sanitisers, he said, have also been distributed to both officers and inmates. He said: “I have to commend the officers of the department who are doing a tremendous job despite being overlooked. The officers continue to show up and put out the best quality of work.

“Efforts at the department have been

heightened as it relates to cleaning. You would have been informed that the entire department is shut down from the public so in an effort to battle this global pandemic we’re doing what we can.

“The commissioner and I actually would have spoken and we are partnering to see how best we can outfit every staff member with a reusable washable mask. “…We are trying to see how fast we can get those manufactured in house.”

Officials realise that guarding the compound against the potentially

deadly virus comes down to more than prohibiting visits, the association president said.

“At our first point of entry, we have medical staff deployed there and that is the first thing that happens when you enter the compound (there is) the temperature check.”

He added that to his knowledge there hadn’t been any anomalies when staff reported for work.

About a month ago, prisoner visitations were suspended.

“All public activities are suspended until further

notice. We are taking the same precautions inside as others are outside and we are executing the same

protocols,” Corrections Commissioner Charles Murphy told The Tribune at the time.

PAGE 4, Wednesday, April 15, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

NURSE WHO IS USING PRAYER TO COMBAT VIRUS

By TANYA SMITH-CARTWRIGHT ts-cartwright @tribunemedia.net

SHENIQUA Rolle, a Bahamian registered critical care nurse living in Tucson, Arizona, says she uses prayer to combat the fear of catching the deadly novel coronavirus.

To date, Arizona has more than 3,700 cases of COVID-19; 122 people have died.

“Initially there were no cases in Tucson where I work,” Ms Rolle told The Tribune. “Then I came to work one day and we had three positive patients. The hospital was prepared for it, so management decided

to separate the ICU for COVID-19 patients vs nonCOVID patients and that’s how they managed it from the first positive patient going forward.

“My luck, I got the patients that tested positive for COVID. I initially was not afraid because I bought into the message that it affected older people from what had happened in Italy. I was sitting next to a colleague of mine and I asked her if the COVID19 patients I was going to care for were old. She told me they were not old. I was shocked. Generally they were in their 40s and 50s.

That was the first time I felt concern working with the COVID-19 patients.”

Ms Rolle said she has been on an emotional roller coaster, trying to learn as much as she can about the disease.

“I think I would initially diagnose myself with media toxicity,” she continued. “I read too much, I researched too much on COVID and then I put myself in a state of shock. I became fearful, anxious, very panicky, especially when I first started with them. I had a doctor explain to me that there were two different strains of COVID-19 and I think that was the second time, other than seeing that it also affects the younger population, that I realised I didn’t understand the virus as I thought I did. Then I had

flashbacks to all the hoarding and panic shopping and pandemonium around the world and then it all started to make sense to me then.”

Ms Rolle acknowledged there is a shortage of personal protective equipment in US hospitals as that country “begins to climb that mountain of fighting the virus”. She also pointed out that the US east coast is getting pounded right now with cases, but even so, cases are still expected to rise.

“So not only are you concerned about contracting the virus, but you are also concerned about contracting it due to lack of protection that may present itself,” she said.

“It hasn’t presented itself to me but I am very much aware of the possibilities.

I have been working with some really sick patients, but the first thing I do to protect myself is put a little angel on my name badge.

I also pray and feel that I have a force field around me to protect me and I

encourage the other nurses who have the same faith to understand that, because you will go insane thinking about the odds that are against you.

“I use the PPEs as provided. In this environment, you never feel that you are protected as you should be, but when you get in the room as a nurse, you just get right into caring for the patient and you don’t even remember which patient is COVID-19 positive. As a nurse, it’s like a reflex, you just go and do what you have to do.”

In The Bahamas about 50 healthcare workers have been placed in quarantine due to their exposure to the virus.

who have money saved have to be careful how they spend their money. So that luxury of a rainy day fund or a buffer (a minimum of a four-six months of savings) also needs to be budgeted.

You cannot continue with business as usual in terms of your spending habits.”

He says priority spending should go to food, communication, healthcare, transportation, utilities, and housing.

“You might have flexibility in reprieve in terms of mortgages and rent. For persons who have loans, particularly those with good credit history, they want to use this opportunity to have a candid discussion with their bankers in terms of what sort of concessions can be given - deferral of credit commitments. You should not run away from your banker.

“In the absence of a vaccine we might be looking at a recovery from 18 to 24 months,” he added. “It is expected to be a lot deeper than the Great Recession, as it has impacted all of the sectors – retail, financial, travel, etc. The downturn, however, is expected to be a shorter time. You also have to start thinking, ‘if this recession goes on over 24 months’, you still need to have a little cushion in terms of finances.”

Mr Pinder, an economist at BTC who has worked at the Ministry of Finance in the past, said the government will also need to retool the national budget, suggesting more money go towards welfare.

“Retooling in respect to the budget is needed,” Mr Pinder said. “For example the constituency allowance is about $4 million in the budget. That money should be placed in a central pool to help with welfare provisions.

Some constituencies might have less need than others.

That will be $4 million to help with inner city people where the needs will be greater. There is probably a need to look into cost rationalisation.

People are working from home.

Do we really need to lease that office space? The same thing applies with government vehicles. They are all parked now. Are they all needed?

“We also need to rationalize in areas of duplication . . . do we need some of these services to be provided at this time? One of the areas I have not heard about publicly, not saying it’s not being done, is expenditure cuts. In this economy you obviously don’t want to send people home. We also need to look at ways to get revenue in a bad economy.”

NURSE: Sheniqua Rolle

‘Budgeting so important in tough times’

By TANYA SMITH-CARTWRIGHT ts-cartwright @tribunemedia.net

BACK ON THE ROAD CARS were back on the road yesterday after the five-day lockdown.

Photos: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff

A LOCAL economist is urging people to create feasible budgets in a time when economic recovery might be 18 to 24 months away due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As cases continue to surge at home and overseas, Bahamians are also grappling with the economic fallout from the crisis.

Thousands of hotel employees and workers from other sectors have been temporarily laid off since March and it is unclear when they will return to work.

In these uncertain times, Rupert Pinder says proper budgeting is key.

“The first thing that everyone has to do is create a budget,” Mr Pinder advises.

“Firstly, look at your intake to include welfare and unemployment, by that I mean whatever is coming in. “Secondly, look at your needs and necessities. You have to find a way to strip all things that are luxury and focus on those things that are your basic needs.

“Given that you are looking at 18-24 months for any sign of recovery, even those

GOVT PROVIDES CASH TO PEOPLE STUCK IN US

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas government has provided cash to some desperate Bahamians stuck in the United States, often to help with their living accommodations during the COVID-19 crisis, according to Bahamas Ambassador to the United States Sidney Collie.

The US State Department, he said, has also worked with this country’s immigration department to ensure Bahamians approaching the end of their visit are not found in violation of US immigration laws.

Mr Collie said small funds have been given only in cases of “real emergencies,” stressing the government cannot fund long-term accommodations for Bahamians stuck in the US. “In some cases, exceptional ones, where there’s absolutely no other accommodations that have been found we have provided financial assistance but the Bahamas government is not able to commit to providing long term accommodations for people, the accommodations are very short term and we try to work out some other form of accommodations for persons in distress,” he said.

Prime Minister Dr

Hubert Minnis announced the closure of this country’s borders to incoming flights on March 23.

About 270 Bahamian students in Florida are among those eager to return home, Mr Collie said. “They have been made to understand that the border is closed, there’s an emergency and there’s no chance deep into this lockdown that it’s going to be opened,” he said.

“We’ve advised them they have to ride it out where they are and those who need subsistence living assistance, we’ve given those and as issues pop up in emergency cases where there is a real need for small cash, that has been provided.”

Profiling those needing assistance, Mr Collie said: “We have Bahamians who got caught, didn’t make it back home, didn’t pay attention, ran out of money, are living in hotels and had to vacate the hotels.”

“They’re mostly in South Florida. Some don’t have a credit card or the card maxed out so emergency arrangements have been worked out for them at consulate offices. In the rest of the US, most students and other Bahamians have made satisfactory arrangements to stay in the country.”

Mr Collie said there are about 40,000 Bahamians in the US.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 15, 2020, PAGE 5

CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

HOW RAJIV IS MAKING THE BEST OF IT IN CANADA

‘Govt is not responding to struggling Bahamians’

By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

RAJIV Williams, a first year student studying in Canada, is among the scores of Bahamian students unable to return home amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Mr Williams, who studies at Ontario Tech University in Oshawa, Canada, told The Tribune 80 percent of people left his campus once his school transitioned to online classes after fears over the pandemic heightened. Still, he said he didn’t expect the situation to escalate so quickly.

“I honestly was going to tough it out until the end of the semester, because I thought it was going to be cool and everything,” the 18-year-old said. “I had a ticket to come back home on April 18, but then it got cancelled because of the whole situation. I bought the ticket from January, but it was cancelled about three weeks ago.”

Mr Williams said he believed his ticket was cancelled after Canada closed its borders on March 18. He added that after he realised he would not be able to come home, he decided to book a domestic flight to be with his sister in another part of Canada.

“I’m currently in Halifax with my sister, I travelled on March 29,” he said. “Where I was not many people were panicking, but a lot of people were wearing masks and washing their hands like crazy. And when I was at the airport, I just wanted to get in and out of there, because as people passed by wearing masks, some of them were coughing and I was a little alarmed.”

Mr Williams said while he was disappointed he would not be able to come home to spend time with his parents, he was grateful he had a sibling in Canada whom he could stay with.

“It really helped me a lot because if I was by myself here I honestly didn’t know what I was going to do. I thought about all of that and I know it gives so many people who don’t have anybody a lot of stress and

By EARYEL BOWLEG ebowleg@tribunemedia.net PLP leader Philip Davis has criticised Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis’ recent national address for not responding to the urgent needs of struggling Bahamians with no food and or money.

This week, Dr Minnis announced the suspension of the alphabetical shopping schedule and the appointment of a food security task force to ensure those in need receive adequate food.

In a statement sent Monday night, Mr Davis acknowledged these key points of the address but argued that the urgent needs of many Bahamians were not being taken care of.

The opposition leader said that shortly before the prime minister’s address, he received a call from a single mother down on her luck. He said: “She is desperate. She has no food and the landlord is threatening eviction. She is hurting now and the address provided no hope but more agony and despair.”

Mr Davis, pictured, said the announced task force “appeared to be a longer term strategy to deal with the broader issues of food security and increased local food production capacity.” He further questioned the prime minister’s statement that progress was being made in the COVID-19 fight. “(Monday night) we heard the prime minister boast that we are making progress in the fight against COVID19 but how does he measure that when at the same time he announced that the number of cases is rising?

“Where is the light at the end of the tunnel? The prime minister presumably has in his possession the metrics to give some kind of forecast as to when he sees the picture improving.

None of that was evident in his speech (Monday), except the bare assertion that things are getting better. Where is the evidence of that?”

Mr Davis also brought

up concerns about the immediate needs of the unemployed, the poor, the elderly and the disabled.

The prime minister had “nothing encouraging to say” to newly unemployed persons who have applied to the National Insurance Board (NIB) for employment insurance benefits, said the opposition leader.

He noted the PLP’s representatives in Parliament urged in their contributions that bureaucratic norms be done away with in this crisis. “It is regrettable that the government did not see its way to have employers continue to pay the salaries of the displaced workers and for the government to reimburse employers on receipt of rebillable invoices. This option is quicker, more efficient and would spare NIB the administrative overload that is at the root of the payment delays. The government is advised to reconsider this option,” he said.

RESIDENTS IN LONG ISLAND TO GET FREE COUNSELLING RAJIV Williams is a a first-year student studying in Canada adds to the panic of the whole situation.

“That’s too much to handle because as a first year student in Canada, I think it puts a lot of pressure on you. I know for some, they were lucky

to escape before Canada and the Bahamas closed their borders, but I know if they were in this position by themselves — with everything that’s going on — it would be too hard to focus.”

STARTING today, Long Island residents will receive free COVID-19 counselling sessions courtesy of psychologist Dr Barrington Brennen, according to MP Adrian Gibson.

“We fully understand the far reaching effects of COVID-19,” he said in a statement. “It has not only affected our physical health but it is also affecting us mentally and financially. As such, in the coming weeks, there will be several initiatives being introduced to assist Long Islanders.”

Mr Gibson has arranged for virtual counselling sessions for residents who need to vent, talk or seek counselling. The sessions will be available every Tuesday and Wednesday from 6pm to 8pm. Dr Brennen will schedule appointments and undertaking sessions via WhatsApp video, Facetime, Zoom and/or teleconference.

“We also note that your MP has arranged for a number of care packages and other initiatives to assist Long

Islanders-particularly the elderly, indigent and persons who may have been laid off due to COVID-19 concerns, during this time,” the statement further said. “You MP hopes that such initiatives will alleviate some of your burden and allow you to focus on staying safe and healthy as we overcome COVID19.” The packages include essential items like hand sanitizers, dettol soaps, wipes, vape rub, vitamin C, panadol and vapo drops for cough relief.

COURT DEALS WITH LOCKDOWN AND CURFEW VIOLATIONS

By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

A MEXICAN man who claimed he violated the national curfew one morning last month because he was looking for snacks and water was fined $650 yesterday.

He was among several people who appeared before Magistrate Sandradee Gardiner for curfew and lockdown violations.

Many of those charged claimed they only violated the orders because they were in search of food and water from nearby relatives.

Rene Isaac Huerta, 46, was charged with violating the national curfew after police found him near New Providence Highway around 12.30am on March 24. He pleaded guilty to the charge and was given a $650 fine which he paid the same day. According to the facts ready by Prosecutor Bridgette Strapp, on the morning in question, officers stopped a Honda Fit with a man inside. When questioned, the man told officers he was looking for snacks and water. He was then taken to the Central Detective Unit and in an interview under caution, admitted the offence.

Biondi Black, 31, was also charged with violating the national curfew on two different occasions. In the first incident, officers found him near Market Street on March 21 around 10.25pm.

In the second incident, Black was found in the area of Peter Street on April 13 around 10.20 am.

He pleaded guilty to the charges and was fined $400 or one month at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BDCS) for the first charge and $250 or 14 days at the BDCS for the second charge. He was given until April 24 to pay both fines.

When given an opportunity to speak, he told the judge he had only violated the curfew because he was dropping food off to his daughter who told him that she had nothing to eat.

In response, Magistrate Gardiner told him he should have called the COVID-19 hotline if he had a legitimate reason to be outdoors.

Fabian Ferguson, 39, also pleaded guilty to violating the national curfew after he was found in the East Street area around 10.45pm on Sunday night.

He was fined $400 or one month in prison. Sgt Strapp told the court that night, officers on mobile patrol in the area of East Street and Deveaux Street, observed a man standing on the street.

When police approached the male for questioning, Sgt Strapp said he ran away.

The officers gave chase and the defendant was subdued.

During an interview under caution at a nearby station, the defendant admitted to the offence.

During the arraignment, Ferguson told the judge his power was off and he had no stove to cook with, so he decided to “take the risk of going outside” to get food from his aunt.

Rakemio King, 19, was also charged for breaking the curfew after police found him near Fox Hill Road around 8.35pm on Monday night.

He pleaded guilty and was fined $420 or one month at the BDCS. He was given until April 24 to pay the fine. During his arraignment, he also told Magistrate Gardiner that he left his house to “try and get something to eat,” because he lived by himself and was currently unemployed.

Judson Pierre, 20, also pleaded guilty to violating the national curfew after he was found in the Fowler Street area around 9.15pm on March 23. He was fined $700 which he was ordered to pay on or before April 17 or risk spending one month behind bars.

When questioned by police that night, Pierre told them he was coming home from a nearby relative. In response, Magistrate Gardiner told him it was not the time to visit relatives and if he needed to be entertained he should have used facetime or WhatsApp. Addison Hepburn, 24, and Meshack Fernander, 22, were also charged after officers found them near Bernard Road around

7.25pm Sunday night. They both pleaded guilty to the charge and were each fined $400 which they were ordered to pay by April 17, or risk facing one month in prison.

While pleading his case, Hepburn told the judge he left his home because his grandmother wanted him to go to his mother to get something to eat.

Fernander also told Magistrate Gardiner that his family was poor and there was no water at their home so they asked him to go out to see if he could find some.

Ahmad McKenzie, 31, was charged after police found him near Acklins Street around 12.15 am on March 30.

He pleaded guilty and was fined $400 which he was ordered to pay on or before April16, or risk spending one month at the BDCS. Gary Smith, 23, was also charged after officers found him near Walker Street around 10.20pm on March 30. He also pleaded guilty and was fined $400 which he was ordered to pay on or before April 24, or risk facing one month at the BDCS. Several people also appeared before Magistrate Gardiner charged with violating the recent five-day lockdown implemented by Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis.

22-year-old Valentino Smith was charged after police found him near Sea

Link Drive around 2.50pm last Friday. He pleaded guilty to the charge and was fined $400 or face spending one month in prison.

That afternoon, officers in the Sea Link Drive area on patrol observed a Nissan March vehicle travelling east. They beckoned the driver to stop who —when questioned — told police he was going by his mother who lived in the area.

Smith was represented by attorney Ian Cargill who asked Magistrate Gardiner for leniency since his client did not waste the court’s time. Smith was subsequently given until April 17 to pay the fine.

Shannondor Williams, 20, was also charged after he was found near Thatch Palm Avenue around 9am on Sunday morning. He pleaded guilty to the charge and was fined $800.

Sanchez Delva, 19, was charged after police found him near Cordeaux Avenue around 12.40pm on Monday.

Sgt Strapp said when Delva was questioned by police on the day in question, he told them he was “walking to one of his brethrens for a plate of food”.

During the hearing, Delva told the judge he was outside because he had an altercation with his grandmother. In response, Magistrate Gardiner told Delva he has to take the lockdown seriously because

people were dying from COVID-19.

Herbert Edgecombe, 28, also pleaded guilty to violating the lockdown after officers found him near Graham Drive around 8.35pm on Monday. He was fined $800 which he was ordered to pay on or before April 24 or risk facing one month at the BDCS. According to the prosecution, when officers questioned Edgecombe that night, he told them he was going to buy ‘Grabba leaf’ to smoke.

Patrick Finlayson, 28, was found near Florida Court around 5.45pm on Sunday.

He pleaded guilty and was fined $500 which he was ordered to pay on or before April 24, or risk facing one month at the BDCS. Floy Andrews was charged after she was found in the Matthew Street area around 7.30pm last Friday.

She pleaded guilty to the charge and was fined $500 or one month in prison.

Lelon Gibson, 42, also pleaded guilty to violating the lockdown after officers found him in the Kemp Road area around 5.20pm on Sunday. During the arraignment, he told the judge he left his house to get some Sunday dinner from his cousin who cooks the “best food”. He was subsequently charged $800 which he was ordered to pay by April 16. Failure to pay the fine would result in one month in prison.

PAGE 6, Wednesday, April 15, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

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Choosing the right solution TWO futures to choose from – but which path will we take?

Ask two economists what the state of finances will be in a year’s time and you’ll likely get two different answers.

Fast forward a year and one of them is going to look pretty wrong.

And yet we sit peering into our financial futures today with two very different forecasts ahead of us.

Credit rating agency Moody’s has forecast the Bahamian economy will grow by two percent next year. The International Monetary Fund has smashed that prediction to pieces, with its own forecast of more than three times that amount of growth – a figure of 6.7 percent.

Which should we believe? Well, if the IMF is right and The Bahamas rebounds after coronavirus to the levels seen last year, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis might as well call the election then and there. That would be a remarkable turnaround, leaving us in touching distance of figures from 2018.

The truth is the wide variation between the predictions – and Bahamians are already warning that higher forecast should be “taken with a grain of salt” – is in large part because so much is still unknown. Not just here but globally.

Gowon Bowe, of Fidelity Bank, is right to warn that it is impossible to predict how long and deep any recession will be as a result of this outbreak.

First of all, the virus itself must be brought to a halt, and as much as The Bahamas got a piece of good news yesterday in having a day with no new cases, we would be wrong to think it is behind us now. One day is hope, not a final outcome.

Then, when the virus is defeated, we must pull the economy back on its feet.

That will be no easy task. Just last week, Dr Minnis described the increase in unemployment as “greater than most of us have seen in our lifetime”.

More than that, what kind of Bahamas will we be rebuilding? Do we restore the country to how it was before the coronavirus pandemic or do we reshape it to be less dependent on tourism?

Former Minister of State for Finance

James Smith says much depends on how quickly travel and tourism rebounds – but does the Prime Minister have other ideas?

Dr Minnis has said the country has to be ready to shift how we operate. “We must ourselves change,” he said last week. “We must change our attitudes, we must change our behaviour. We must make this crisis a crisis of opportunity, economic opportunity, financial opportunity, environmental opportunity and social opportunity.”

He talked of how we must learn the lesson that “we are all equal, we are all one” and that we must make generational changes to our economic structure. There were no specifics on what that might mean – indeed, he threw his call open to the public for ideas for the future.

So as we look into next year for The Bahamas, how can we estimate how much it will grow if we don’t know the kind of Bahamas we are building?

Will the key workers who have kept the country going get a bigger slice of the pie? Will we have a country that isn’t put into financial crisis by a month of missed pay cheques? How much will that cost?

What is the price tag that swings from any changes to our economic structure?

Indeed, for the money being spent right now to keep people fed and with roofs over their head, how much debt will we incur and how will we pay it back?

There are no answers to these questions yet because we don’t have answers on the course our future will take. Will we see a new Bahamas next year? Dr Minnis is right in saying that we should look at our country and see what we can make of it. How we can keep what works and forget what doesn’t work for our people. How we can improve the lives of all Bahamians. But saying it and doing it are two different things.

Just as we face a future with two different economic forecasts, we face a future with two different paths – the same route we have been taking, or something new. We just have to make sure that when we fast forward a year this time, the solution we choose will look like the right one.

We are a visionless people EDITOR, The Tribune THE plague that besets us and awakened nations to the realization that over dependence on outsiders to supply the necessities could spell their destruction like nothing else and we in this produce-nothing Bahamas are especially vulnerable.

Have you experienced standing on any of the long, nervous, desperate lines outside even smaller corner food stores in New Providence?

Do you realize perhaps as much as 99.99% of the foodstuffs we’re anxiously towing those endless lines for are products of other nations?

Well consider for a moment what will happen to us if those we depend on, at some time, no longer have surpluses to export?

We are a visionless people blessed with a climate conducive to growing practically every kind of vegetable and, unlike our seasonal suppliers, we are capable of growing them the whole balmy year round and produce as many as four crops every year instead of just one. As for tropical fruits and melons of all types, which among them can we not grow enough of to satisfy our own needs? It has been proven we can grow rice in our wetlands—especially in Andros; we can grow enough sugarcane to produce all the sugar and its by-products we need and what’s stopping us

from growing corn to make our own grits, meal and even flour?

Visit any packinghouse in our Family Islands and you’ll find they reject more of our struggling farmers’ produce than they ship to the Exchange in Nassau where the wastes continues. I say this because, with my own eyes, I witnessed truck loads of spoiled fruits and vegetables regularly heading from there to the public dump during my years in fishing from Potter’s Cay. Is it any wonder our farmers are so lowly motivated and are hardly doing more than going through the motions? One doesn’t have to be a genius to see establishing packaging and canning factories would put an abrupt end to this wastage and ignite a passion for farming the likes of which none could dream would be possible.

It is even worse with meat and other animal products.

I still remember when we didn’t have to import milk, chicken and eggs. There was a time we labeled Long Islanders ‘Sheep-Runners’ for a darn good reason and it boggles my mind why some enterprising Andros ‘CrabCatcher’ hasn’t yet started marketing frozen crabs instead of letting great multitudes of then die on their hands every season. You tell me why in the world we can’t rear enough cows, sheep, goats, poultry and pigs to supply all our country’s

meat needs? I remember, from my time as a boy in Fresh Creek, ranchers from cattle-rearing states in the US, would visit and pay ten dollars for a quart of jumbey seeds, a staggering amount in those days when a soda cost roughly ten cents. Why else would they travel so far and pay so heftily for jumbey seeds when endless grassland dominated their own country? We won’t have to import feed for we are also blessed with other indigenous plants besides jumbey that animals graze on, so let’s raise them and stop coughing up our scarce dollars to purchase imported meat.

Bahamians, God did His part in providing us a country with available land that’s been in fallow from Creation and an ideal climate to complement it; we need to set about using it. It is time bumbling bureaucratic Governments opt out of direct involvement in farming and provide necessary incentives to private visionary individuals who have real passion for growing crops, for animal husbandry, for bottling, canning packaging and marketing, so they can make Bahamaland totally independent in this most vital area of food production.

VERNON MONTAGUE JOHNSON 11 Nassau April 14, 2020

All is not lost EDITOR, The Tribune WE, as human beings, across the globe and in this coronavirus assault as one and we are united. coronavirus is a deadly disease and makes no discrimination, regardless of national origin; race; colour or creed, be it political or religious. Having said that, it is acknowledged, worldwide, that politicians, here and abroad, are using scare tactics and possible misinformation about health consequences to cajole legislatures around the world to initiate and to cement an unprecedented power grab at the expense of constitutional and/or human rights.

One day our PM says that there will be a voluntary isolation regime.

Within days he switches and orders it to be on a 24 hour basis, save and except for essential workers and for shopping and seeking medication. After 5 pm, like clockwork individuals are required, by law, to be in place at home or their usual place of abode.

After preaching social distancing for a few weeks, despite apparently not observing it on at least one very public occasion, with no apparent consequences, the Most Honourable reiterated that policy after thousands of Bahamians continued to swamp food stores and other commercial outlets with a total disregard for social distancing. So what does the Most Honourable do? He orders the entire nation on a 48-hour lock down..... and seemingly declared: “Nobody moves......nobody gets hurt” upon pain of criminal prosecution/ a fine and/or jail time. Where will this end?

I have said it before and with your leave I will say it again. Many of the actions taken by the Most Honourable and his team in recent weeks might be argued to be unconstitutional and ultra vires the law of the land. One lawyer, weeks ago, opined the same position and threatened to initiate legal action to test the PM’s exercise of his newly acquired powers. No other PM before Minnis has ever wielded such autocratic powers in times of war or of peace. Minnis is large and in charge, or so it appears.

The economy is shot to pieces. Tourism is gone for now. It is doubtful that any major foreign investor is going to invest a single dime in the faltering economy of The Bahamas at this time.

Minnis says that he will put together a team of ‘experts’ to make recommendations as to how and when to get our collective marbles out of the sand! Mind you he

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net and the FNM were elected to come up with solutions for all of the so-called issues and problems which confront our challenged nation.

Now, he wants the help of ‘experts’. No problem, but will there be PLPs on that blue ribbon panel?

Messrs. Minnis and Sands are both medical practitioners of note. It is unfortunate that every time one of them opens his mouth that the fears of ordinary Bahamians, founded or unfounded goes through the roof.

We want simple answers to what should be simple questions. Will a majority of those who contract the virus die? Are there any known drug or medication that may alleviate the symptoms ?

What about that vaccine that President Trump talked about that appears to work well with malaria cases? I have yet to hear any of our medical people talk about this. I understand that it is very expensive but what is money when it comes down to saving if only one Bahamian life?

The PM, I am sure, is doing the best that he is capable of. We have never been down this road and certainly we’ve never seen the movie or the cartoon before. I want the PM, et al, to be fully frank with Bahamians. For instance, 80% of those who contract the virus will not necessarily die from it. If the person involved would have had a medical history of diabetes; dialysis; heart condition and other such debilitating illnesses then they are more susceptible to being negatively impacted, even to the point of death. This might be 5-10% of the general population.

The elderly, of course, except they would have maintained good health, are also susceptible to adverse reactions to COVID-19.

Social distancing is not fool proof but they are not saying this. If one must go out whenever possible, please stay about 15 or more feet from the nearest person. What will happen, however, if the all clear is given too soon and we start to readmit tourists? Just a single cruise or airline passenger is able to infect thousands and we will start from scratch all over again.

Dr. Minnis and crew need to jump start the economy by immediately injecting around 2 billions of dollars into the economy. Our working force must get back to wholesome income generating employment as soon as possible. Minnis

and his people must not forget that major resort properties like Atlantis, in particular, and the rest of them in general received hundreds of millions of dollars in concessions under their Heads of Agreement.

Atlantis was supposed to have spent/invested some B$500 millions of dollars over a period of time. It has yet to do so. Now is the time for the administration to demand that it now invests in remedial work and new constructions. While this is going on thousands of furloughed workers could/should be brought on board to assist with this work. At the very least, they would be gainfully employed and be able to put bread on the table without resorting to stealing; prostitution and/or drug dealing.

The administration will have to borrow and spend its way out of this what will become a full blown recession. There are no other options. Our infrastructure has been deteriorating for decades. Now is the time to invest in the same while creating thousands of new jobs and a new class of entrepreneurs. Each ablebodied person who is able to work should be paid a subsidy by the administration in a nonpartisan way.

May I suggest a minimum of B$350.00 per week on a sliding scale over the course of the next three to six months? There should also be a ‘holiday’ period of 90 days on rents; mortgages; credit card payments and insurance premiums, to be subsidized or paid for by the government.

How will all of this be paid for? Simple. A mixture of government Bonds and Treasury Notes; borrowings on the local and international markets. Don’t forget that just a few short months ago, the liquidity in our commercial banks was a matter of concern. Well, now free them up with the appropriate guarantees.

Legislation must be moved to encourage entrepreneurs even more than before. We must eliminate all unnecessary regulations. We must get to the immediate stage where red tape is reduced to the minimum.

With your leave, dear reader and Editors, I will have more to say about all of the above in due course, but for now suffice it to say that all is not lost. Yes, we are fearful, and yes, we are between a rock and a hard place BUT we will, as a people overcome. To God then, in all things, be the glory.

ORTLAND H. BODIE, JR. Nassau April 4, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 15, 2020, PAGE 7

MAN DENIES GIRLFRIEND ASSAULT

By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

A 28-YEAR-OLD man yesterday denied allegations of assaulting his girlfriend with a deadly weapon earlier this month.

Deangelo Johnson appeared before Magistrate Sandradee Gardiner charged with

threatening Kenresse Leadon with harm, assaulting her with a firearm and one other count of assault.

It is alleged sometime between March 15 and April 4, Johnson unlawfully assaulted Ms Leadon with a firearm.

It is also alleged he threatened her with harm on April 7 and assaulted

her that same day. Johnson pleaded not guilty to the charges and the matter was adjourned to June 17 at 10am.

Bail was denied and he was remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BCDS) in the interim. He has the right to apply to the Supreme Court for bail.

Independent auditors’ report To the Shareholder of Santander Investment Bank Limited

Report on the audit of the financial information Our opinion

In our opinion, the financial information of Santander Investment Bank Limited (the Bank) as at December 31, 2019, is prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with the basis of preparation as set out in Note 1 to the financial information.

What we have audited The Bank’s financial information comprises:

SAN SALVADOR’S SATELLITE SCARE

•

the statement of financial position of the Bank as at December 31, 2019.

Basis for opinion We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditors’ responsibilities for the audit of the financial information section of our report.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Independence We are independent of the Bank in accordance with the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants’ Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (IESBA Code). We have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with the IESBA Code.

Emphasis of Matter - Basis of preparation and restriction on use

We draw attention to Note 1 to the financial information, which describes the basis of preparation. The financial information is prepared to comply with the requirements of the Central Bank of The Bahamas (the Regulator). As a result, the financial information may not be suitable for another purpose.

Our report is intended solely for the Bank and the Regulator and should not be used by parties other than the Bank. Our opinion is not modified in respect of this matter.

The financial information does not comprise a full set of financial statements prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards.

Responsibilities of management and those charged with governance for the financial information Management is responsible for the preparation of the financial information in accordance with the basis of preparation as set out in Note 1 to the financial information and for such internal control as management determines is necessary to enable the preparation of financial information that is free from

material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

THE SATELLITE that crash landed in San Salvador on Sunday from page one According to the company’s website, Loon is a “network of balloons travelling on the edge of space, delivering connectivity to people, unserved and underserved communities around the world.”

The object, identified as HBAL074, initially launched in Puerto Rico on December 4, 2019.

“It has been authorised to be returned to the operator

and taken back to Puerto Rico where it was launched from,” Mr Major said.

After the object landed, San Salvador police took custody of some of its parts, The Tribune understands, and the operator is attempting to retrieve them.

The AAIA does not plan to further investigate the matter, having been satisfied with the circumstances surrounding the landing.

Some residents witnessed the landing near the marina in Cockburn Town and

In preparing the financial information, management is responsible for assessing the Bank’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless management either intends to liquidate the Bank or to cease operations, or has no realistic alternative but to do so.

recorded the aftermath.

Their video showed the object flashing red under the night’s sky.

“We just see this thing come out the sky,” one man says in a video posted on social media, “it land out the air and land in the pond but how it is, it land like right in the water but the vibe ain’ gon out yet and we ain’ know what it is .”

Another man said: “See we want walk over there but we scared to walk over there.”

Those charged with governance are responsible for overseeing the Bank’s financial reporting process.

Auditors’ responsibilities for the audit of the financial information Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial information as a whole is free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditors’ report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs will always detect a material misstatement when it exists.

Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of this financial information.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2 Baysidewith Executive West Bay Street & Blake Road, P.O. N-3910,professional Nassau, As part of an audit in accordance ISAs,Park, we exercise professional judgment andBox maintain Bahamas + 1 242 302-5300, F: +We 1 242 302-5350, www.pwc.com/bs. Email: pwcbs@bs.pwc.com scepticismT:throughout the audit. also:

$1,700 FINE OR PRISON FOR MARIJUANA POSSESSION

By FARRAH JOHNSON fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

A 39-YEAR-OLD was ordered to pay a $1,700 fine or face five months in prison after he pleaded guilty to possessing more than two ounces of weed.

Emmanuel Gardiner appeared before Magistrate Sandradee Gardiner yesterday after being found in possession of Indian Hemp on March 18 and again on April 8.

Gardiner pleaded guilty to the charges and was fined $700 for the first charge.

Failure to pay the fine will result in him spending three months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BCDS).

He was also fined $1,000 for the second count of drug possession. Failure to pay that fine will result in five months at BDCS. The sentences are to run concurrently.

Prosecutor Bridgette Strapp told the court around 12.50pm on March 18, officers went to Gardiner’s house armed with a search warrant. When officers arrived at his residence, they went to a wooden gate on the premises and shouted “Police! Open up the gate.” She said police saw Gardiner run away with a white container containing a grassy substance.

Officers approached Gardiner and informed him that a search of his premises would be conducted after showing him a search warrant. They then went to the area where they observed the defendant emptying out the container and collected a substance from the ground which they suspected to be marijuana.

When questioned, Gardiner told police it was his weed for personal use. He was subsequently arrested and taken to the Drug Enforcement Unit where he was interviewed and admitted to the offence. The estimated weight of the drugs was six grams with a $30 street value.

For the second offence, Sgt Strapp said that officers returned to Gardiner’s residence last Wednesday around 3.30pm with a K-9 dog and a search warrant.

Sgt Strapp said officers

informed Gardiner that a search would be conducted and during the investigation, the K-9 made an indication to a drawer area in the kitchen. A search was conducted and officers discovered a white plastic bag with suspected marijuana.

Gardiner was subsequently cautioned and arrested.

During an interview under caution, he admitted the suspected marijuana was his. The estimated weight of the marijuana was 2 ounces with a street value of $230.

Gardiner was represented by attorney Ian Cargill who told the judge his client was a businessman and father-of-three.

He explained Gardiner had “two sets of drugs” at his residence when

police initially searched his home on March 18.

He said the defendant was under the impression police had confiscated all of the marijuana and did not know that the quantity that was in his kitchen drawer was still there when police came back on April 8. Mr Cargill insisted his client was remorseful and asked Magistrate Forbes not to impose a custodial sentence.

In response, Magistrate Forbes said until the law changes, marijuana is still illegal in the country. She also told the defendant he has to consider what he has to lose when making decisions that could affect his livelihood and his family’s well being.

•

Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial information, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit

evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.

•

Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Bank’s internal control.

•

Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures made by management.

•

Conclude on the appropriateness of management’s use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Bank’s ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditors’ report to the related disclosures in the financial information or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditors’ report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Bank to cease to continue as a going concern.

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

Other Matters The Bank has prepared a separate set of financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019 in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards, on which we issued a separate auditors’ report to the Shareholder of the Bank dated March 31, 2020.

This report, including the opinion, has been prepared for and only for the Shareholder of the Bank, in accordance with the terms of our engagement letter and for no other purpose. We do not, in giving this opinion, accept or assume responsibility for any other purpose or to any other person to whom this report is shown or into whose hands it may come save where expressly agreed by our prior consent in writing.

Chartered Accountants Nassau, Bahamas

March 31, 2020

Santander Investment Bank Limited (Incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas) Statement of Financial Position As at December 31, 2019 (Expressed in thousands of Euros)

ASSETS Cash and due from banks Demand – Group Time – Group Total cash and due from banks Loans – Group Prepaid expenses Investment securities Investment in subsidiaries – Group Right-of-use asset – Fixed Asset Other assets – Other Other receivable – Group Total Assets LIABILITIES Due to Group entities - Demand deposits Due to Group entities – Time Accrued expenses – Others Total Liabilities EQUITY Share capital Additional contributed capital Reserve for foreign currency translation Investment securities reserve Accumulated deficit

2019 €

2018 €

407 36,990 37,397 589,827 61 1,388 98,333 144 102 441

1,537 59,985 61,522 1,041,171 17 20,011 98,333 -

727,693

1,221,054

152,100 343

245,769 28,834 48

152,443

274,651

7,579 613,105 (2,141) 1,388 (44,681)

7,579 983,105 (2,141) (8,637) (33,503)

Total Equity

575,250

946,403

Total Liabilities and Equity

727,693

1,221,054

These financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 26th February, 2020 and are signed on its behalf by:

1.

Basis of preparation The accompanying financial information is an extract from the financial statements of Santander Investment Bank Limited’s as of December 31, 2019 and for the year then ended, which have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board and is used to submit to The Central Bank of The Bahamas.

The auditors’ report included herewith should be read in conjunction with the full set of financial statements, which can be obtained at Santander Investment Bank Limited’s office located at Goodman’s Bay Corporate Centre, 3rd Floor, West Bay Street & Seaview Drive, Nassau, The Bahamas.

PAGE 8, Wednesday, April 15, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

I’VE LEARNT A STRUCTURED DAY IS IMPORTANT TO ME IT FEELS as though we have been at home for a long time.

Relative to other countries, it has not been very long at all. We are likely at the very beginning. Not only that, but what we have done thus far is probably nowhere near what is needed. There will be more time at home and it is in our best interest to not only comply, but take some time to make decisions and create systems that will make it easier for us. Going with the flow may work for some, but others will be completely lost, frustrated, or largely unaffected until they realize how much time

has been lost. We each have to figure out what works best for us, and that may require some trial and error.

I have experimented a bit on my own, tried different approaches and arrived at the conclusion that structure is important for me. I want to wake up early, do most of my cooking and baking before the hottest part of the day, check on family members, work on at least one of my projects, catch up with a friend, spend time in the yard and start winding down at a reasonable time every day.

Some people can work with a

The

Alicia Wallace column LAST week I saw a Facebook post that stated the government plan to deal with the COVID-19 crisis is a good one, but the people lack discipline. I stopped and re-read it several times, wondering whether or not it was sarcasm. I waited for people to comment, interested in the conversation it would spark.

People seemed to, for the most part, agree with the statement.

To say I disagree would be generous because I do not even believe what we have seen thus far from the government is a plan.

We have seen the introduction of individual measures.

They do not stem from a strategy and do not work together within a solid, cohesive design. If a strategic plan was in place, we would not have had a grocery schedule introduced just hours before a five-day lockdown was announced.

Surely the people designing the plan would have predicted the chaos we saw at every major grocery store in New Providence. At the

very least, measures would have been put in place to ensure people were able to practice social distancing as they waited to enter the grocery stores. This is not what happened.

There are four major issues with the way the COVID-19 crisis is being addressed by the government. The first is it does not consider and respond to the needs of vulnerable people. Measures put in place to protect our health end up disproportionately disadvantaging vulnerable people. An easy example is the arrest of the unhoused people for breaking curfew.

If the government considered vulnerable people, it would have opened emergency shelters, invited people without homes to stay in them and advised police to transport them to the nearest available shelter instead of criminalizing homelessness when they are found on the street during curfew.

The second is that these short periods of lockdown followed by, essentially,

to-do list and check tasks off as they go, but I prefer to put tasks into time slots. I set time aside for meal preparation, phone calls, leisure activities, work tasks, household tasks and anything else that needs my attention. This is, of course, helpful when I need to schedule meetings and set times for calls with friends in different time zones. It helps that I am disciplined and used to working from home, but there is always temptation to stray from the plan. For some, it feels better to leave the day open and take on tasks at will.

We all have different needs and

they may have changed given the circumstances, so give yourself a chance to figure it out.

Even if you do not like structure, it is a good idea to set your non-negotiables. What are the things you will not let yourself do or fail to do? It does not have to be as strict as getting up at five o’clock in the morning, but it can be helpful to set eight o’clock as the absolute latest you will stay in bed. That way, you have a window of time within which to get up and you can give yourself varying amounts of wiggle room depending on the day you have ahead of

you. It may be a good idea to set alarms for your mealtimes, especially if you are on a particular diet.

Time can go incredibly slowly or surprisingly quickly when you are in a different environment and missing the time queues you usually get when there are coworkers in your physical space. You could end up having lunch at ten o’clock in the morning or completely forgetting about it if you’re not paying attention. Based on what is important to you, experiment with different types of schedules until you find the right fit.

Why we need a proper plan, not just reactions large public gatherings as people panic in clusters at grocery stores in the attempt to prepare for the next lockdown period is like hitting a reset button.

According to last week’s address, we will be doing this over and over again, at least until the end of April.

We stay home for a couple of days and this reduces the spread. We go out again in a rush, trying to get essential supplies (and yes, some use it as an excuse to be out and about), and end up in crowds, likely with asymptomatic people who are spreading COVID-19.

It would make more sense to give everyone time to prepare and have a longer lockdown. The government is probably

delaying this because of the first issue – it is obligated to meet the needs of vulnerable people. There can be no extended lockdown before the government ensures there is food security. We know some can only afford to purchase a few items at a time. They need to be provided with food before grocery stores can be closed to the general public for an extended period. Is the government prepared to do this?

The third issue is the expectation that businesses bear the burden of enforcement. Last week, grocery stores were not given systems or clear operational instructions for compliance with the emergency order given the sudden changes.

They were expected to, overnight, figure out how to manage large crowds with their existing staff. Law enforcement officers were not routinely stationed at grocery stores to help maintain order. The simplest suggestion – to give numbers and have people wait in their cars – was not made by decision-makers. Small adjustments can make a big difference and there would be less to correct and remedy with more input from experts and practitioners. Organizations that managed hurricane relief, for example, can offer tactics and solutions that have proven effective, but that would require consultation.

The fourth issue with the current approach is the assumption people – including those considered low-risk – will comply. This requires a sense of personal responsibility for what

PEOPLE at water suppliers.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

occurs within our communities. Whatever we like to think, we do not have this in high volume. We have a lot of work to do to properly build strong communities with members who actively care about and look after

each other. People who do not care about each other’s wellbeing do not just comply. Until we build the kind of community we want, we need better guidelines and systems that work to enforce them.

BOOKS CAN HELP US ESCAPE WHETHER you have a lot of free time or not, it is important to have something other than work to fill your days. There are new shows popping up on Netflix all the time, social media challenges, virtual parties with top DJs and live sessions with celebrities and professionals in a range of fields. One of my favourite ways to spend my time is reading. I have three fiction books to recommend.

Little Fires Everywhere

by Celeste Ng is a portrait of characters. It opens with the Richardsons’ home on fire and their youngest child missing. Rewinding, Ng tells the deeply personal story of a mother and daughter – Mia and Pearl Warren -- who move into the same suburbs as the Richardson family and rent one of their duplex apartments. The entire book is backstory, digging into past experiences of primary and secondary characters, but it remains clear which characters are the focus. Just as you settle into the stories of the Richardsons and the Warrens, there is an adoption, a missing baby, a ruckus, and a court case with different characters. Ng is skilled in bringing characters to life, making the reader care, and blurring the line between right and wrong. If you read

and love this book, pick up Everything I Never Told You and let Celeste Ng bring you into a world of fascinating, yet ordinary characters for a second time.

With the Fire on High closely follows Elizabeth Acevedo’s The Poet X. Both are young adult novels that remain true to difficult circumstances without a heavy-handed approach or excessive focus on a moral. With the Fire on High follows Emoni Santiago as she navigates the challenges of high school, motherhood, and helping her grandmother to make ends meet. She is passionate about cooking and everyone enjoys her food.

Her strength becomes a challenge when she takes a cooking class at school that requires everyone to follow the rules, no matter how good their intuition may be.

This is the perfect book to read with a teenager. It is

AUTHOR Celeste Ng

sure to spark conversations about family life, career choices, friendship, and the transition to adulthood.

Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams has been referred to as the “black Bridget Jones,” but the comparisons are only at the surface. Carty-Williams using Queenie’s life experiences as commentary on issues of race, gender, migrant cultures, and the continued effects of slavery.

Queenie is easy to like.

The opening of the novel is deceptively light-hearted and simple, so when it turns to heavy themes such as mental health issues and unhealthy relationships, it is a bit surprising. By that time, the reader has a relationship with Queenie and can’t help but to root for her, even when she makes terrible decisions. Queenie is a like a cousin or a friend from high school. She will annoy you, but you want the best for her anyway.

If you are looking for more books and recommendations for other activities, follow Equality Bahamas on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Our team is sharing book, tv show, movie, music, TedTalk, and Tiny Desk concert recommendations almost daily.

Every now and then, we all need an escape

PAGE 10, Wednesday, April 15, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

‘WEEKS BEFORE CANADA RESTARTS’

TORONTO Associated Press

Independent auditors’ report To the Shareholder of Santander Bank & Trust Ltd.

Report on the audit of the financial information Our opinion

In our opinion, the financial information of Santander Bank & Trust Ltd. (the Bank) as at December 31, 2019, is prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with the basis of preparation as set out in Note 1 to the financial information.

What we have audited The Bank’s financial information comprises: •

the statement of financial position of the Bank as at December 31, 2019.

Basis for opinion We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (ISAs). Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditors’ responsibilities for the audit of the financial information section of our report.

PRIME Minister Justin Trudeau yesterday said it will still be weeks before Canada can start reopening the economy and the country’s most populous province announced that all nonessential businesses will be closed until at least May 12 amid the COVID19 pandemic.

Ontario extended its state of emergency for another 28 days. Ontario Doug Ford said Ontario’s schools will not reopen on May 4 as it is

too soon to relax measures as the province continues to fight the new coronavirus.

“Everyone is very interested to know when things are going to get back to normal, when they’ll be able to go back to work,” Trudeau said.

“The reality is, it is going to be weeks still. We recognize that it is going to be important to get our economy going and we will have to do it in phases.”

Canada has more than 26,880 confirmed cases including 898 deaths. More than half the deaths in the

country have occurred in long-term care homes.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.

Trudeau also said that anyone returning from overseas without a credible isolation plan will be required to quarantine in a hotel.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Independence We are independent of the Bank in accordance with the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants’ Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (IESBA Code). We have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with the IESBA Code.

Emphasis of Matter - Basis of preparation and restriction on use

We draw attention to Note 1 to the financial information, which describes the basis of preparation. The financial information is prepared to comply with the requirements of the Central Bank of The Bahamas (the Regulator). As a result, the financial information may not be suitable for another purpose.

Our report is intended solely for the Bank and the Regulator and should not be used by parties other than the Bank. Our opinion is not modified in respect of this matter.

The financial information does not comprise a full set of financial statements prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards.

Responsibilities of management and those charged with governance for the financial information Management is responsible for the preparation of the financial information in accordance with the basis of preparation as set out in Note 1 to the financial information and for such internal control as management determines is necessary to enable the preparation of financial information that is free from

material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the financial information, management is responsible for assessing the Bank’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless management either intends to liquidate the Bank or to cease operations, or has no realistic alternative but to do so.

Those charged with governance are responsible for overseeing the Bank’s financial reporting process.

Auditors’ responsibilities for the audit of the financial information Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial information as a whole is free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditors’ report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs will always detect a material misstatement when it exists.

Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of this financial information.

As part of an audit in accordance ISAs,Park, we exercise professional judgment andBox maintain PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2 Baysidewith Executive West Bay Street & Blake Road, P.O. N-3910,professional Nassau, scepticismT:throughout the audit. also: Bahamas + 1 242 302-5300, F: +We 1 242 302-5350, www.pwc.com/bs. Email: pwcbs@bs.pwc.com •

Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial information, whether due to fraud or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit

evidence that is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, or the override of internal control.

•

Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Bank’s internal control.

•

Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related disclosures made by management.

•

Conclude on the appropriateness of management’s use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt on the Bank’s ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required to draw attention in our auditors’ report to the related disclosures in the financial information or, if such disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the date of our auditors’ report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Bank to cease to continue as a going concern.

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

Other Matters The Bank has prepared a separate set of financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019 in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards, on which we issued a separate auditors’ report to the Shareholder of the Bank dated March 31, 2020.

This report, including the opinion, has been prepared for and only for the Shareholder of the Bank, in accordance with the terms of our engagement letter and for no other purpose. We do not, in giving this opinion, accept or assume responsibility for any other purpose or to any other person to whom this report is shown or into whose hands it may come save where expressly agreed by our prior consent in writing.

Chartered Accountants Nassau, Bahamas March 31, 2020

Santander Bank & Trust Ltd. (Incorporated under the laws of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas) Statement of Financial Position As at December 31, 2019 (Expressed in thousands of Euros, except for share amounts) 2019 €

2018 €

54,283

9,499

482 54,765 45 54,810 223 92,795 218 4,635 9 321 167

582 10,081 67,258 44 77,383 476 88,888 852,030 7,447 12 395 -

153,178

1,026,631

LIABILITIES Due to Group entities Demand deposits Time Subordinated debentures Foreign currency forward contracts Other liabilities

1,412 36,994 3,205 370

151,578 60,603 23,207 485

Total Liabilities

41,981

235,873

ASSETS Cash and due from banks Demand - Group - Others Time - Group - Others Total cash and due from banks Mortgage securitization bonds Foreign currency forward contracts Loans Investment in Group entities Intangible assets Other assets and receivables Right-of-use asset – Fixed Asset Total Assets

EQUITY Share capital Authorized, issued and fully paid: 10,000 ordinary shares of €75.79 each Additional contributed capital Reserve for foreign currency translation Retained earnings

758 (10,004 ) 120,443

Total Equity

111,197

790,758

Total Liabilities and Equity

153,178

1,026,631

Trump goes back on his words WASHINGTON Associated Press PRESIDENT Donald Trump yesterday said he’s open to some states “reopening” before federal social distancing guidelines expire at the end of month, as he appeared to back off his claim of absolute authority to decide when the time was right to act.

Hours after suggesting that the bipartisan concerns of governors about his assertion of power would amount to an insurrection, Trump abruptly reversed course, saying he would leave it to governors to determine the right time and manner to revive activity in their states. Trump said he would be speaking with governors, probably tomorrow, to discuss his plans. “The governors are responsible,” Trump said.

“They have to take charge.”

Still, he insisted, “The governors will be very, very respectful of the presidency.”

Democratic and Republican governors had sounded the alarm after Trump asserted on Monday that he and he

758 381,349 (10,004 ) 418,655

Basis of preparation The accompanying financial information is an extract from the financial statements of Santander Bank & Trust Ltd.’s as of December 31, 2019 and for the year then ended, which have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board and is used to submit to The Central Bank of The Bahamas.

The auditors’ report included herewith should be read in conjunction with the full set of financial statements, which can be obtained at Santander Bank & Trust Ltd.’s office located at Goodman’s Bay Corporate Centre, 3rd Floor, West Bay Street & Seaview Drive, Nassau, The Bahamas.

alone would determine when and how to reopen the economy, despite clear constitutional limitations on federal powers. Trump said he would be authorising governors “of each individual state to implement a reopening — and a very powerful reopening — plan of their state at a time and in a matter as most appropriate.”

Trump added he would support moves by states that haven’t been hit hard by the outbreak to ease restrictions even before federal guidelines on social distancing expire on April 30.

Trump said the country would open up “in beautiful little pieces,” adding that some states with low rates of infection “have fewer

people and they have lots of room.”

It’s unclear if any states are actively considering reopening their economies before May 1.

In a departure from recent tradition, Trump ended his daily briefing without turning the mic over to federal health experts, who have cautioned against moving too quickly to restart economic activity.

Dr Anthony Fauci, the nation’s top infections diseases expert, told the AP that the country is “not there yet” when it comes to the kind of testing and contact tracing needed to begin reopening the economy.

But Trump made clear he is intent on proceeding with his plans.

• PRESIDENT Trump yesterday said that he was cutting off US payments to the World Health Organization during the coronavirus pandemic, accusing the organisation of failing to do enough to stop the virus from spreading when it first surfaced in China. Trump, who had telegraphed his intentions last week, claimed the outbreak could have been contained at its source and that lives could have been saved had the UN health agency done a better job investigating the early reports coming out of China. “The WHO failed in its basic duty and must be held accountable,” Trump said. He added the US would be reviewing the WHO’s actions to stop the virus before making any decision on resuming aid.

UN CHIEF: WORLD FACES EPIDEMIC OF MISINFORMATION ABOUT VIRUS Associated Press

These financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 26th February 2020 and are signed on its behalf by:

1.

PRESIDENT Donald Trump speaks about the coronavirus at the White House yesterday

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned yesterday that the world is facing “a dangerous epidemic of misinformation” about COVID-19 and announced a UN campaign to flood the internet with facts and science to counter what he called “a poison” that is putting lives at risk.

The UN chief decried what he described as a global “misinfo-demic” that is spreading harmful health advice, “snake-oil solutions,” falsehoods, and wild conspiracy theories.

Guterres urged social media organisations to do more to counter the misinformation and to “root out hate and harmful assertions about COVID-19.”

“Hatred is going viral, stigmatizing and vilifying people and groups,” he said in a video statement. “Mutual respect and upholding human rights must be our compass in navigating this crisis.”

The UN chief said people around the world “are scared” and want to know what to do and where to turn for advice, and they need science.

UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric stressed the importance of accurate information, He said the United Nations “will be in touch with various social media companies,” adding that quite a few of them are actively trying to root out disinformation and suspending accounts of people pushing out information

“that is plain wrong and dangerous.”

Dujarric said the UN recognises the delicate balance between free speech and misinformation, saying “that’s a balancing act that is played out every day around the world even in the most free democracies.”

“The secretary-general is not going to be the one to decide,” Dujarric said.

“What we are doing is we will push out scientifically based information, information that will help us as a global community fight the virus,” he said.

“Social media companies are making those decisions all the time, but I think it is important we all do what we can to fight the spread of dangerous misinformation on fighting the virus.”

SPORTS SECTION E

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 15, 2020

CARIFTA postponed

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

ike the 2020 Olympic Games, which has been called off until next year, the 2020 CARIFTA Games has now been postponed until 2021.

Newly elected North American, Central American and Caribbean President Mike Sands said during a meeting on Thursday, it was agreed that the region’s biggest junior track and field meet will not be held any time this year due to the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.

NACAC and the local organising committee in Bermuda had previously agreed to postpone the games, which was originally scheduled for this weekend in Hamilton, Bermuda.

Sands said it was the view of the joint bodies that they could attempt to hold the three-day meet before the end of August.

However, he said when they discussed the matter last week, they came to the following conclusion:

L

1. The COVID-19 pandemic and its overall impact on the host country as well as all members of the CARIFTA family.

2. The impact on government and private sector plans and budgets for 2020 and perhaps, beyond.

3. Uncertainty in respect of the re-convening of international travel.

4. Closure of schools and sports facilities thereby impacting athletes’ ability to train and adequately prepare for a delayed edition of the CARIFTA Games in 2020.

5. Delayed examinations for students at the pre-college stage of their careers.

World Athletics has already announced the postponement and/or cancellation of several of its own competitions for 2020, including the World Junior (Under-20) Championships.

“The executives therefore agreed to have me, in my capacity as president, engage in discussions with our member federation in Bermuda, the government of Bermuda, the National Olympic Committee (the

NEWLY elected North American, Central American and Caribbean president Mike Sands.

local representative of Panam Sports) as well as sponsors of the Games of 2020, to ascertain their thinking in respect of the postponement of the Games to Easter of 2021,” Sands said.

The executives thought that the aforementioned decision would still mean that Bermuda would host the 49th edition of our CARIFTA Games, leaving the door open for Guyana to continue planning to host the 50th anniversary edition but in 2022.”

Sands said discussions have begun with all stakeholders in Guyana, craving their understanding and support, given that Bermuda did nothing to lose the annual event and is therefore deserving of being given the opportunity to make good on its commitment, albeit, one year later.

The NACAC Executive believes that our decision is in the best collective interest of our CARIFTA family and allows us all an opportunity to support both Bermuda and Guyana in the face of these most

trying times,”Sands said.

“We have an excellent opportunity to work more deliberately together, to show to the world that our annual CARIFTA Games are, indeed, the very best junior track and field competition, globally.”

NACAC, according to Sands, once more appeals to all of its stakeholders to heed the advice of their medical fraternity and adhere to the established protocols aimed at enhancing our capacity to defeat COVID-19.

Last month, the International Olympic Committee, in conjunction with the Local Organising Committee of Japan and the Japanese Government, agreed to postpone the 2020 Olympic Games, scheduled for July 24 to August 9, to July 23 to August 8, 2021.

The Olympics and now the CARIFTA Games are the first two major international events that have been called off this year and will now take place next year.

World Athletics, which governs the sport of track and field, has agreed to the postponements.

BAAA president sets record straight on Nationals

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

ALTHOUGH the governing body of track and field, World Athletics, has reserved a date for their member countries to hold their national championships in August, Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations president Drumeco Archer said the Bahamas’ nationals could only be held at that time if the Bahamas Government gives the clearance to stage any local events.

Last week, World Athletics announced that they have protected the weekend of August 8-9, 2020, as the projected window for national championships this year, following the disruption of the international competition calendar by the coronavirus pandemic.

“I think it will obviously be an ideal position that we could take so that you can say you still had a track and field season,” Archer said. “But the problem is, you don’t know what the coronavirus containment level is at that point.

So everything hinges on global development because Europe and the United States are both still under siege and they make up a large part of the track and field community.

“Even for us, our national track and field programme is based on our US Development programme

because many of our elite ath- from July 24 to August 8, 2020 to letes train in the United States. July 23 to August 8, 2021, Archer And the other question is will our said coaches are looking at the national stadium be available to possibility of having their athletes us by August and what we have shut down their season in October achieved to the level where we so that they can prepare for the can go out and enjoy public off season in the lead up to spaces again?” next year.

Archer said it’s his wish “There are two comthat the BAAA Nationals, peting thoughts that we originally set for June - but are faced with right now,” that won’t happen because Archer said. “If we don’t the priority is to ensure that achieve containment level, the public remains healthy I think that it’s a real pos- and therefore they don’t sibility that we won’t have want to go against any govthe nationals this year. ernment policy that is in “If you follow the place about the gathering regional development of of crowds at any national the coronavirus, every ARCHER event until further notice. island, with the exception “So we can only encourof the British Virgin Islands, age our athletes to stay positive are increasing their numbers by and active in their training, as the day and we are moving into much as they can,” Archer said. May and after that it’s June. We “But we can’t do a whole lot more have not taken into consideration, than that. The problem that I have the resumption of travel.” is whether or not the athletes will World Athletics announced that be race ready for July or August the newly established Global Calconsidering our limitation. endar Unit has engaged actively “The other thing is nationals is with member federations, area not just senior nationals, but it’s associations, meeting directors also our junior nationals and so and the World Athletics Athletes’ will we have athletes available in Commission in order to identify August because everyone will be this window, a weekend when wrapping up their season and get- no Wanda Diamond League or ting ready for school. I don’t how World Athletics Continental Tour feasible it is for the nationals to be meetings are scheduled to be held held in August.” this year.

And with the 2020 Olympic The purpose of creating a proGames in Tokyo, Japan postponed tected window is to allow athletes

to be able to compete in their national championships without scheduling conflicts, and member federations are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity if it is safe for athletes to compete in August. This applies primarily to the Northern Hemisphere, which is in its outdoor season.

The Athletes’ Commission has advised that elite athletes have a strong desire to compete this year if possible, and World Athletics will do everything it can to conduct an international competition season later this year to assist athletes in preparation for the Tokyo Olympic Games next year.

Said World Athletics President Sebastian Coe: “None of us can predict the future in these unprecedented times but we do know that different countries are at different stages of managing this pandemic so we are trying to give a structure to our athletes and member federations so they can begin to plan for the year ahead. If it is at all possible, we will schedule a belated outdoor season from August to October to help our athletes to figure out where they stand after the disruption of this year.

“We are hopeful that this can begin with national championships in many Northern Hemisphere countries in early August as travel restrictions

across country borders will not impact these events. This will be followed by what we hope will be a solid international season, but of course we are dependent on the global response to the pandemic.

Nevertheless, we think it’s better to offer our stakeholders some hope of a return to normalcy later this year.”

The Global Calendar Unit continues to work with the Diamond League and Continental Tour to reschedule the rest of the 2020 season and an announcement is expected towards the end of April.

Because of the uncertainty surrounding the ability of all countries to resume competition at the same time or for athletes to have equal access to major competitions this year, the suspension of the Olympic qualification process will remain in place from April 6 to November 30, 2020, as announced earlier this week.

This means that any results posted during this period will not be eligible for Olympic qualification or world ranking points.

Looking forward to next year, the Global Calendar Unit has agreed that the 2021 national championships protected windows will be on June 5-6 and June 26-27, 2021, just prior to the end of the qualifying period for the Tokyo Olympic Games (June 29, 2021).

NFL, UNION APPROVE VIRTUAL OFFSEASON WORKOUT PROGRAMME

By ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer

THE NFL and its players union have agreed to conduct “virtual” offseason workout programmes due to the COVID-19 pandemic until every team is permitted to open its facilities.

Teams can hold voluntary classroom instruction, workouts and non-football educational programmes using online platforms, according to a memo sent to the teams that was obtained

by The Associated Press.

League executive Troy Vincent said it’s imperative to be “reasonable and responsible in the current environment.”

The three-week, virtual offseason starts on April

20 for teams with new head coaches and April 27 for the others. It runs through May 15.

Teams with a new head coach have the option to go four weeks.

A team can’t begin its virtual programme after April 27.

Teams also can’t save their virtual weeks for use after facilities open and players return to the field.

Participating players must be paid the $235 daily minimum and players with offseason workout bonuses must be credited for their participation in those sessions. Each rookie player will receive a minimum of $135 for each day he participates in a club’s development programme.

WORKERS hang an NFL shield on the main stage before a news conference in San Francisco on February 4, 2016. The NFL and its players union have agreed to conduct “virtual” offseason workout programmes until every team is permitted to open its facilities.

(AP Photo/David J Phillip) Teams can provide workout equipment worth up to $1,500 per player.

The league’s offseason programme concludes June 26.

If stay-at-home orders throughout the country continue into the summer,

teams will have to conduct a mandatory veteran minicamp in a virtual manner.

“Whatever we do is going to be in compliance with the governing rules of the particular state and it’s going to be consistent with good and recommended medical health practices,” NFL lead counsel Jeff Pash said.

“We’re going to do it in a way that preserves competitive equity and doesn’t expose anyone to risks that the medical profession says people shouldn’t be exposed to. We’re going to rely on that kind of guidance.”

Pash said the league has not discussed contingency plans to alter the schedule, or play games outside a team’s home stadium.

PAGE 12, Wednesday, April 15, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Mother of T-wolves star Towns dies from COVID-19

By DAVE CAMPBELL AP Sports Writer MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Jacqueline Cruz-Towns, the mother of Minnesota Timberwolves centre Karl-Anthony Towns, died Monday due to complications from COVID-19 after more than a month of fighting the virus. She was 58.

The Timberwolves made the announcement via the Towns family, which requested privacy.

The team intially said Cruz-Towns was 59. Karl Towns Sr, the father of the two-time All-Star player, was also hospitalised with the virus but has since recovered.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Cruz-Towns was a fixture at Timberwolves games from the start

of her son’s NBA career.

He was the first overall pick in the 2015 draft out of Kentucky.

“Jackie was many things to many people — a wife, mother, daughter, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend,” the statement from the Towns family said. “She was an incredible source of strength; a fiery, caring, and extremely loving person who touched everyone she met. Her passion was palpable, and her energy will never be replaced.”

The family expressed gratitude to the “warriors” at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center in Philadelphia and JFK Medical Center in Edison, New Jersey, the hospitals where she received care.

After his parents first felt ill at their home in New

Jersey, Towns and his sister urged them to seek immediate medical attention and be tested for the virus.

Towns posted an emotional video on his Instagram account on March 24, revealing his mother was in a medically induced coma.

She’d been hospitalised, after a high fever and bad cough persisted.

After some improvement, Towns said last month, her situation “went sideways” quickly.

He also, in that video message, made an impassioned plea to people to stay home to help stop the spread of the virus.

The East Coast has been hit particularly hard by COVID-19, with a death toll in New York state alone that has topped 10,000.

TOUR DE FRANCE POSTPONED, COULD START IN LATE AUGUST

By JEROME PUGMIRE AP Sports Writer PARIS (AP) — After weeks of holding out hope that the Tour de France would be able to go ahead as planned, the world’s most famous cycling race was finally added to the list of sporting events postponed by the coronavirus pandemic.

The three-week race could still take place this year, however, with French newspapers reporting late Tuesday that a new start date has been set for August.

Both L’Equipe and Le Parisien said organisers are now hoping to stage the race from August 29 to September 20.

That new time slot would see the race end on

Champs-Élysées just as the rescheduled French Open tennis tournament starts a few miles away in western Paris.

Tour organiser Amaury Sport Organisation did not immediately reply to a request for confirmation from The Associated Press.

But local authorities in Haute-Savoie region tweeted that the last of the mountain stages will pass through its rugged and daunting climbs on September 17 on the race’s 18th stage.

The Tour was set to start on June 27 in the Riviera city of Nice.

But that effectively became impossible on Monday night when French President Emmanuel Macron announced in his speech to the nation

that all public events with large crowds have been cancelled until at least mid-July.

“Given that it’s now impossible that the Tour starts at its planned date, we are consulting with the (International Cycling Union) to try and find new dates,” ASO had said earlier yesterday.

The last time the Tour was not held was in 1946, with the nation still emerging from World War II. It was also stopped during WWI. Holding the race without legions of fans on the roadsides and mountain passes of France — an idea previously proposed by French Sports Minister Roxana Maracineanu — is not something organisers are likely to favour.

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Wednesday, April 15, 2020, PAGE 13

Game off: Youth baseball leagues scrambling amid COVID-19 pandemic

By WILL GRAVES AP Sports Writer PITTSBURGH (AP) — The end to months of fundraising, planning and practice ended with a press release and tears.

Mike DeLuca envisioned his youngest son, John, capping his baseball career the same way most 12-year-old All-Star squads from Monroeville, Pennsylvania, had for the last two decades: with a week spent playing teams from all over the country at Cooperstown Dreams Park in early August.

Then the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in the United States and the shutdowns began. The sprawling complex near the Baseball Hall of Fame in central New York was no exception.

Park officials announced in March they had cancelled the entire 2020 summer tournament season.

When Mike DeLuca told his son, the boy cried.

“It’s devastating,” said DeLuca, who is also the team’s coach. “But it also is a hard lesson in life and unfortunately thousands upon thousands of 12-yearolds are learning this lesson right now. It’s still a kids’ game. They should always play like the cliche says: Play it like it’s your last game, because you never know.”

No one does.

Youth sports leagues and businesses all over the country are scrambling, though baseball and softball are feeling immediate effects more acutely than most. Basketball and hockey seasons are over, their tournaments called off. Soccer runs year-round in many places. Football for many seems months away.

Baseball and softball had an estimated 4.5 million players between the ages of 6-12 in 2018, according to the Aspen Institute. Yet

fields normally filled with the familiar “ding” of aluminum bats this time of year now sit silent — a particular sting as winter finally gives way to the warmth of spring.

“It’s like Mother Nature is mocking you,” said Lafe Hermansen, treasurer of North Shore Little League in the northern Seattle suburbs.

Hermansen’s sons, ages 14 and 11, are trying to fill the void with games of catch in the yard and batting practice in the garage.

It will have to do for now even as their patience is being tested while they wait until at least May 11 — the date until which Little League International has (for now) suspended all league activities.

President Donald Trump tweeted he hopes youth baseball returns “soon.”

Soon enough to salvage some semblance of a season? That’s where things start to get tricky.

Even if federal guidelines limiting crowd size are eased, it doesn’t mean teams will sprint to the field to play. Some leagues are already offering refunds to families wary of having their kids put back in a team setting.

Others are concerned about the potential financial fallout.

The cost for returning sponsors in the Capitol Hill Little League in Washington, D.C., is $800.

Most are small businesses, many of which have been hit hard by the slowing economy.

League president David Fox wonders if those businesses would be better served asking for their donations back.

“That $800 might go to pay and, quite honestly, should go to pay people who need it rather than a logo on the back of a T-shirt,” Fox said.

IN this August 16, 2010, photo, Newtown, Pa.’s Matt Hand reacts after his team’s 8-5 loss to Toms River, N.J., in their Mid-Atlantic regional final Little League baseball game in Bristol, Conn. Youth sports leagues and businesses all over the country are scrambling, though baseball and softball are feeling immediate effects more acutely than most. Basketball and hockey seasons are over, their tournaments called off. Soccer runs year-round in many places. Football for many seems months away.

(AP Photo/Fred Beckham) Which might produce a ripple effect a year from now. Capitol Hill LL needs to pay three different entities for field permits, an expensive proposition even for a league whose participation levels increased dramatically this year following the Washington Nationals’ World Series triumph. A drop in sponsorship could curtail momentum.

“We couldn’t do anything else,” Fox said. “Couldn’t do tournaments. Couldn’t do any fun activities. We were actually starting a pretty robust fundraising effort. But we can’t do clinics, can’t pay beyond fields and equipment if we lose 15 per cent to 20 per cent of our sponsors.”

The stakes are higher for Matt DeSantis, president and CEO of AC Baseball, which organises baseball and softball tournaments in Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and South Carolina. With the calendar seemingly changing by the

IN this April 4, 2020, photo, a youth baseball field sits empty at Monroeville Park in Monroeville, Pa. The Monroeville Baseball Association is among thousands of youth baseball leagues across the country that are in danger of having their seasons cancelled as part of the COVID-19 pandemic.

(AP Photo/Will Graves) day, DeSantis and his handful of full-time employees are scrambling to find a way to accommodate more than 1,400 teams that registered to play this spring and summer. He hopes the $2.2 trillion federal stimulus package helps him avoid layoffs.

DeSantis is offering teams scheduled to play

in May the option to find a tournament later in the summer. While a Canadian club has bailed, no one else has taken him up on it.

“Nobody’s transferring.

They want to play,” he said.

Tournament teams represent the committed, but the heartbeat of local youth leagues are the recreational players who might not play

this year — and then never come back.

“These in-house kids, you go to them next year, they’ll be, ‘Hey, you dropped us last year,’” said Gary Sifkey, a board member with Montour Youth Baseball League in the Pittsburgh suburbs. “We’ve lost them to deck hockey, we’ve lost them to video games, we’ve lost them to soccer.”

Mike Glover, president of Central Perkiomen Youth Association north of Philadelphia, believes age 10 is the tipping point.

“When they get to 10, 11, the kids start to have choices,” he said.

“There might be the most at-risk age group. In our case, the 12 year-olds, they want to play their last season. They want to see it through.”

Central Perkiomen holds a “bat ceremony” every spring to honour kids graduating out of the programme. For some, it will be the end of baseball.

A week in Cooperstown was supposed to serve as that rite of passage for John DeLuca and his teammates.

Though the park is offering a chance to come back in the future, by next spring the Monroeville group will be teenagers, too old and too big to play on fields designed exclusively for kids. They’re in the process of having their $17,000 entry fee refunded.

Mike DeLuca found another tournament in South Carolina in early August. He’s holding out hope the lockdown will be over so he won’t have to disappoint his players yet again.

The coach and the father has already made one rule, however. No one is allowed to talk about Cooperstown anymore. What’s the point?

“We’re never getting back what we thought we were going to have,” DeLuca said. “We’re not.”

PAGE 14, Wednesday, April 15, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

TOKYO HAS NO ‘PLAN B’ FOR ANOTHER OLYMPIC POSTPONEMENT

By STEPHEN WADE AP Sports Writer TOKYO (AP) — There is no “Plan B” for the Olympics if they need to be postponed again because of the coronavirus pandemic, Tokyo organisers said yesterday.

Masa Takaya, the spokesman for the Tokyo Olympics, said organisers are proceeding under the assumption the Olympics will open on July 23, 2021.

The Paralympics follow on August 24.

Those dates were set last month by the International Olympic Committee and Japanese officials after the coronavirus pandemic made it clear the Tokyo Games could not be held as scheduled this year.

“We are working toward the new goal,” Takaya said, speaking in English on a teleconference call with

journalists. “We don’t have a B Plan.”

The severity of the pandemic and the death toll has raised questions if it will even be feasible to hold the Olympics in just over 15 months.

“All I can tell you today is that the new games’ dates for both the Olympic and Paralympic Games have been just set up,” Takaya said. “In that respect, Tokyo 2020 and all concerned parties now are doing their very best effort to deliver the games next year.”

IOC President Thomas Bach was asked about the possibility of a postponement in an interview published in the German newspaper Die Welt on Sunday.

He did not answer the question directly, but said later that Japanese organisers and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe indicated they

IN this April 2, 2020, photo, a man wearing a face mask walks near the logo of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, in Tokyo.

(AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

“could not manage a postponement beyond next summer at the latest.”

The Olympics draw 11,000 athletes and 4,400 Paralympic athletes and large support staffs from 206 national Olympic committees.

There are also questions about frozen travel, rebooking hotels, cramming fans into stadiums and arenas, securing venues and the massive costs of rescheduling, which is estimated in Japan at $2 billion-$6 billion.

Tokyo organising committee CEO Toshiro Muto addressed the issue in a news conference on Friday.

He is likely to be asked about it again on Thursday when local organisers and the IOC hold a teleconference with media in Japan.

The other major question is the cost of the delay, and who pays.

Bach said in the Sunday interview that the IOC would incur “several hundred million dollars” in added costs. Under the so-called Host City Agreement, Japan is liable for the vast majority of the expenses.

“This is impossible to say for now,” Takaya said.

“It is not very easy to estimate the exact amount of the games’ additional costs, which have been impacted by the postponement.”

Tokyo says it is spending $12.6 billion to organise the Olympics.

But a Japanese government audit published last year says the costs are twice that much.

Of the total spending, $5.6 billion is private money. The rest is from Japanese governments.

SHIFT FROM SPORTS TO MEDICAL GEAR KEEPS RI COMPANY OPEN

By JIMMY GOLEN AP Sports Writer SPORTS have gone dark, and so have the sporting goods stores that sold the G-Form protective pads used in soccer, mountain biking and by dozens of major league baseball players.

So CEO Glen Giovanucci had a choice: Shut down the North Smithfield, Rhode Island, factory and furlough 70 employees, or find something else for them to make during the coronavirus pandemic.

Two weeks later, the company was combining with other local businesses toward a target of 20,000 face shields per day, filling a gap in the need for medical protective equipment.

“We started doing this to help save jobs, to save our employees’ jobs. Now we saved another company’s jobs,” Giovanucci said in a telephone interview. “And then it’s what everyone would love to do: help people who need the

help, which is the medical community, and first responders.”

A former Northeastern hockey player and assistant coach, Giovanucci said the company’s protective pads were steadily growing in market share, covering the shins and elbows of recreational players and stars like former Ireland soccer captain Robbie Keane and a list of major leaguers that includes Manny Machado, Ryan Braun, Charlie Blackmon and brothers Yuli and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. “And then, all of a sudden, this happened,” said Giovanucci, who is known as “Gava.”

Orders from major customers like Dick’s Sporting Goods, Academy Sports + Outdoors and Scheels All Sports dried up.

“Most of their doors are shut,” he said.

And G-Form was about to follow suit. “We were going to have to shut it down — so 40 employees, all good friends, some family. And we didn’t want to do that,” he said. “So we’ve

A WORKER wears one of the shields G-Form is producing at its factory in Smithfield. (AP) brainstormed to see if we could come up with an idea.”

Giovanucci knew there was a shortage in personal protective equipment for hospital staff; he considered masks, but the company had no sewing equipment or expertise. Hand sanitiser needed an alcohol source, so Giovanucci will leave that to the likes of Jack Daniels and other distilleries that have turned their production to ethanol.

“Face shields seemed like something we could do,” he said.

“The two biggest challenges were finding the raw materials, and

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creating the process to manufacture it. It’s a daily adventure in both.”

After coming up with a design, G-Form went in search of suppliers for the clear shield plastic and foam and elastic for the band.

And then, occasionally, finding a new supplier when the first source dried up.

“Materials that were supposed to be there yesterday are gone, and it’s because things are becoming scarce,” Giovanucci said. “It’s like a crapshoot every day.”

Last week — two weeks after they made the decision to retrofit their entire manufacturing process — G-Form was shipping 10,000 shields a day to medical distributors and hospitals.

With the addition of northern Rhode Island neighbours Atlantic Footcare, Ocean State Book Binding, Beck Companies, VPI and Larson, Giovanucci is hoping to hit 20,000 per day by the end of this week. “We just can’t keep up with it,” he said. “We can’t

produce quickly enough to fulfil the demand.”

Atlantic Footcare, which mostly made insoles for boots and sneakers, was given dispensation to remain open during the COVID19 crisis because it is a military supplier. But President Keith Lonergan said he was still facing furloughs because orders had stopped coming in from companies like L.L. Bean and Red Wing.

“It was literally a godsend for us,” Lonergan said. “It keeps our people busy, and not only does it keep them busy but it looks like we’re going to add employees.”

Lonergan said he was lucky to have the space to set up new workstations, six feet apart.

Employees are wearing masks and rubber gloves as they assemble the shields.

“There’s a lot of courage just to go in and work,” Giovanucci said.

“People are fearful in any work environment, when they’re anywhere close to a crowd of people, that they won’t do it.

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