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PM CONCERN OVER DIVISION AHEAD OF VOTE

By KHRISNA VIRGIL Deputy Chief Reporter kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie said yesterday there is a very “tenuous line” between the manifestation of “hatred” and “violence” while admonishing Bahamians that “we must all live together” after next month’s general election.

SEE PAGE FIVE

Six-figure commission for contract imposed without bidding after 2012 election

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

family of Jerome Fitzgerald, Minister of Education, Science and Technology, was introduced as the group health insurance broker at exactly the same time as NIB tried to give it the same role for its property and casualty business.

The commission for insurance brokers is typically three per cent of a policy’s premium amount and, given the size of NIB’s workforce and multi-million dollar property portfolio, A Scott Fitzgerald Insurance Brokers and Agents would likely have earned a sixfigure sum from these contracts according to industry sources.

Those sources suggested that the company’s SEE PAGE THREE

THE National Insurance Board (NIB) sought simultaneously to make a company owned by a Cabinet Minister’s mother the ‘broker of record’ for both its group health and property insurance business less than two months after the 2012 general election.

Documents obtained by The Tribune show that NIB imposed A Scott Fitzgerald Insurance Brokers and Agents Ltd into the existing medical insurance contract for its employees, which was held by BISX-listed Family Guardian, in late June, 2012.

The company, which is owned by the mother and

HALL SAYS IT’S NOT HIS JOB TO CHECK DISCLOSURES ACCURACY

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net

ing information given and publishing it.

The public discourse surrounding the issue has advanced from initial shock over how much or little candidates declared, to questions over the accuracy of respective declarations.

Political newcomer Bishop James Darling, of the Bahamas Constitution Party, listed his net worth as $48m. Bishop Darling, whose occupation was given as a “minister of religion”, listed the bulk of this figure as $40m from securities.

SEE PAGE SIX

AMIDST mounting controversy over the accuracy of disclosures filed by election candidates last week, both Parliamentary Commissioner Sherlyn Hall and Public Disclosure Commission Chairman Myles Laroda said yesterday they were not responsible for verifying the data put forward by candidates, insisting that responsibility lies with other government agencies.

Mr Hall said his office is only responsible for record-

THE FNM mass rally at Golden Gates park last night. See page three for more.

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

PM PRAISES MINISTER AT CENTRE OF BAHA MAR CONTROVERSY

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

AS he continued his silence on the controversies involving several members of his administration, Prime Minister Perry Christie singled out Education Minister Jerome Fitzgerald for praise last night, commending him for his performance this term.

Speaking at a Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) rally in Central Andros last night, Mr Christie referenced cer-

tain party members present, including Mr Fitzgerald, as being a part of the Sir Lynden Pindling dream.

And in what seemed like the closest he came to referencing the controversies surrounding his government, Mr Christie also railed against “lies” and “fake news,” though he never specified what he was referring to.

“The FNM will say all sorts of bad things about us,” he said. “They will tell fake news about us, but we are protected by the shield of faith against the lies, against the fake news. We will

be strong.

“There will be no room for anyone who wants to compromise, subvert or change the course of what we are doing.”

Mr Christie did not address the controversy surrounding The Tribune’s revelation that Mr Fitzgerald solicited contracts from Baha Mar developer Sarkis Izmirlian while he sat in Cabinet and later became one of the lead negotiators to remobilise the property.

SEE PAGE THREE

TWO ARRESTED AS MARIJUANA WORTH NEARLY $400,000 SEIZED

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

RASPBERRY ICED TEA

ASSISTANT Commissioner of Police Samuel Butler said authorities are concerned about the level of drug trafficking taking place within local communities following the seizure of nearly $400,000 worth of marijuana in the Big Pond

area yesterday morning.

A Bahamian man and a Jamaican woman were arrested in connection with the major drug bust, police said.

According to ACP Butler, the senior officer responsible for drug investigations, the seizure happened around 6.45am yesterday after Drug Enforcement Unit officers received intel-

ligence and subsequently executed a search warrant at a house at Water Street.

After having “made our presence known” and entering the residence in question, ACP Butler said officers discovered a number of sacks and a children’s backpack containing 390lbs of suspected SEE PAGE TEN

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CHRISTIAN COUNCIL ‘NOT MORAL POLICE’

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

NEWLY appointed Bahamas Christian Council (BCC) President Bishop Delton Fernander yesterday pledged to transform the group into more of a “social justice ecumenical” council, as he said its focus should not be on presenting itself to be the “moral police” of society.

SEE PAGE SIX

PAGE 2, Thursday, April 27, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

THE SCENE at Golden Gates Park last night as supporters of the Free National Movement gathered for a mass rally.

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

LONG Island candidate Adrian Gibson last night.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, Thursday, April April 27,27, 2017, 2017, PAGE PAGE 3 3

Govt ‘most corrupt since independence’, says Minnis

By SANCHESKA DORSETT Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia.net

FREE National Movement (FNM) Leader Dr Hubert Minnis last night labeled Prime Minister Perry Christie and his administration the “most corrupt, the most incompetent and the most victimising government since independence” pointing to several examples of why the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) should not be given another chance to “ruin the country”.

Addressing hundreds of supporters at the Golden Gates Assembly Park in Carmichael Road on Wednesday, Dr Minnis said if reelected Mr Christie would bring back the same “corrupt, tired, out of control, arrogant, disrespectful, all for me baby crew” and insisted the FNM will bring a new generation of leaders who “will not bow to foreigners” and always put Bahamians first.

Dr Minnis said it is disrespectful for Education Minister Jerome Fitzgerald to “beg for contracts” for Baha Mar and “shameful” that the nation’s leader refuses to address the matter.

Mr Christie has refused, on many occasions, questions from reporters over whether he will fire Mr Fitzgerald or demand his resignation as the Marathon candidate despite Mr Fitzgerald’s admission that he sought contracts worth millions from Baha Mar for his family’s business.

FNM candidates at the rally in Golden Gates last night. From left, Shonel Ferguson (Fox Hill), Dionisio D’Aguilar (Free Town), and Shanendon Cartwright (St Barnabas). Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff “Jerome didn’t just want word. His silence says it all. language before students at a little contract. He wanted Jerome should have been the University of The Bahato hog up the limousine fired. The PLP’s message mas,” Dr Minnis said. business. He forget that is crystal clear - to hell with “Because of Christie’s everybody have to eat in the Bahamian people. And poor behavior, Wayne Munthis country and put bread you know what? If they win roe, thought it was okay to on the table. His mindset Christie will put Jerome tell people to kiss his you was clear: I don’t care about right back in the Cabinet so know. Well, we ain’t nasty the taxi and limousine driv- he can beg someone else for like him. It is disgraceers in this country and their contracts.” ful that someone Christie families just like I don’t Dr Minnis pointed to advised to be appointed a care about the health of the several members of the Queen’s Counsel acted in residents of Marathon,” Dr PLP who were embroiled in such a vulgar manner. As Minnis said. controversy, including Free usual Christie said noth“Jerome is just like many Town candidate Wayne ing about this vulgarity. He of them in that PLP Cabi- Munroe who suggested last should never have been apnet. They just want to: hog week that his detractors can pointed in the first place. up, hog up. Don’t forget kiss his backside. The FNM “I would never allow a Allyson Maynard Gibson. leader said the reason PLP Ryan Pinder as minister of She wanted her and her members are able to “do financial services to negofamily to hog up business at what they want” is because tiate a lucrative deal and Baha Mar. If you let them Mr Christie is asleep at the job with the very industry get back in, you can kiss wheel. people he is supposed to our country goodbye. What “Christie pretended to be oversee and who will have is as disgraceful as Jerome interested in good govern- business before the govbegging for contracts is the ance but allowed Alfred ernment. Christie had no reaction after he was found Gray to (allegedly) interfere problems that someone out. He didn’t apologise or in the court system. Chris- could walk into the office of express regret. He danced tie pretended to respect the one of his ministers and do and pranced. The PLP Bahamian people and the such a thing. Christie even have contempt for what you dignity of his office but he bragged about what a sweet think. Even worse, Perry has stuck up a vulgar middle fin- deal Ryan was getting. said nothing. Nada - Not a ger at us. He used obscene “...Jerome Fitzgerald

knew that Christie’s Cabinet could do whatever they want. These people are bold in their bad ways. He blatantly went about begging for contracts at Baha Mar. What he did was in clear violation of Cabinet rules of conduct and standards. Of course, the PLP have little to no standards left. They are greedy and ‘grabalicious.’”

Dr Minnis said the FNM is offering a new direction and his goal is to bring together a team of Bahamians you can believe in.

“I will be a transformational leader in areas such as education reform, renew-

able energy, business opportunities for young people, urban development, promoting Bahamian culture and heritage, social intervention for at-risk youth, niche agriculture; and diversification within tourism and other economic sectors,” he said.

“This election is about removing a PLP government that has brought our country to its knees. This election is also about hope and opportunity. This election is about nurturing the dreams and unleashing the talents and energy of the Bahamian people, especially our young people.”

PM PRAISES MINISTER AT CENTRE OF BAHA MAR CONTROVERSY from page one

Although Mr Christie told The Tribune this week that he doesn’t “run from any issue,” it remains unclear if he plans to address the controversy that has dominated headlines in the past week.

For his part, Mr Fitzgerald was one of the two Cabinet ministers who travelled to Andros with Mr Christie and attended the rally.

Declaring “Marathon on lock,” Mr Fitzgerald mentioned Baha Mar, saying

he encountered a resident yesterday who is employed at the resort and who is a traditional Free National Movement supporter but will vote for the PLP out of concern for FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis’ pledge to execute a “real sale” of the resort if his party wins the election.

“We walk by faith and not by sight,” Mr Fitzgerald said. “Every day they coming after Marathon but they can’t have it.”

Last night, Mr Christie also pitched the May 10 election as a choice be-

tween “going forward” as a country with the FNM. He spoke for more than 30 minutes during the rally that was attended by several hundred residents of the island.

Without providing specifics, he revealed that Cabinet will have a special meeting today to examine agreements that he said could provide a big boom for Grand Bahama.

“We will continue with a major plan for Andros,” he said, adding that his government will integrate the Bahamas Agricultural

& Marine Science Institute (BAMSI) into the University of the Bahamas and cause “hundreds more jobs” to be created.

“There will be major developments to have,” he said.

Painting Dr Minnis as incapable of keeping his party together, he said the Killarney incumbent has “ran back to Brent Symonette.”

“I can’t image you electing a party who cannot stay together where the people of that party say all kinds of things about that leader,” Mr Christie said.

FITZGERALD MOTHER HANDED NIB DEAL from page one

insertion into a group health contract that had already been placed meant it stood to get “thousands of dollars” in commission fees without “doing anything to get it”. And they raised questions over whether A Scott Fitzgerald Insurance Brokers and Agents, as a relatively small company, would have had the manpower resources to handle an account as big as NIB’s.

Tribune Business revealed in 2012 the “grave concern” over plans to make A Scott Fitzgerald Insurance Brokers and Agents Ltd its general insurance ‘broker of record’, given that the company had not participated in the contract bidding process.

However, what was not exposed then, but has now been uncovered, is that NIB also granted the company the brokerage contract for its group health insurance business - a policy that would provide coverage for its near-600 employees.

There is nothing to suggest that Mr Fitzgerald or his family members have done anything wrong in relation to the NIB insurance contracts, and there is no evidence - unlike in the recent Baha Mar controversy - that the Minister sought to lobby for his mother’s company to get the business.

But letters obtained from an NIB employee, acting under condition of anonymity, emphasised that Family Guardian, not the national social security system, would absorb the costs associated with A Scott Fitzgerald Insurance Brokers and Agents’ commission.

A June 29, 2012, letter to

then Family Guardian president Patricia Hermanns written by then NIB director, Algernon Cargill, said: “I enclose a copy of our letter to Allardyce ScottFitzgerald dated June 29, 2012, and write to formally confirm to your company that, effective immediately, A Scott Fitzgerald Insurance Brokers and Agents has been appointed as representative (broker of record) for NIB at the existing commission rate for NIB’s group insurance business that is currently placed with Bahama Health/Family Guardian under a contract that expires January 31, 2013.

“It is also understood

that, as a result of this appointment, there is to be no increase in cost and/or decrease in the existing benefits offered under our group plans and, specifically, no direct cost to NIB.” It is unclear whether A

Scott Fitzgerald Insurance Brokers and Agents was replacing an existing ‘broker of record’, or whether the role was newly-created for it.

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THE TRIBUNE

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

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Surely Bahamians would not be so foolish “WE KNOW that there are those of you who are looking for jobs, who are looking for security, and who feel that more could have been done,” Prime Minister Christie told a Progressive Liberal Party mini-rally in Marathon recently.

“We have never claimed to be perfect but I tell you this: we have never stopped working and providing opportunities for the people of this country.”

Mr Christie’s words seemed to be an echo from the past - the past of 1992 when the Public Treasury was bankrupt and unemployment out of control.

The people were hurting while a beaten Prime Minister, baffled by an unexpected defeat at the polls, talked to a reporter in his Conch Sound, Andros, constituency and wondered why?

“We knew people were hurting,” Sir Lynden Pindling said as he reflected on his 25-year rule. The “one man’s dream” that he had carved out for himself and his “all for me baby” inner-circle had collapsed. Suddenly he realised that God had not “given this country to the PLP”.

“We knew that homes were being sold, we knew that parents were taking kids out of school,” Sir Lynden told the reporter, “but we didn’t think that this would have affected them so dramatically in determining what they would do during the election.”

Sir Lynden was in such shocked disbelief that he felt Bahamians would soon wake up, see what they had jettisoned, and be done with the Ingraham government in three years - he didn’t think the new government could last a full term. In fact it lasted 10 successful years.

Mr Christie, now facing his constituents and fighting for another term in office, confessed that his administration “never claimed to be perfect”. However, he was still confident that Bahamians would look past the high unemployment and a society haunted by crime and return his party to power for another five years.

“I have no doubt whatsoever that in the quietude of your homes when you think about it, you know if you’re going to make an investment in your future, the best investment you can make is in the PLP,” Mr Christie told those attending the Marathon rally.

“So when people have to make a choice when they ask themselves who they should vote for, look at the record. Look at the record and then when they look to the future and the challenges that will be in front of this country they must ask themselves, one by one as they examine the candidates in this general election, which party has put up the team that is the best team.”

Yes, let’s look at the record. Mr Christie’s government was returned to power with the promise that it would solve the crime that was destroying the country.

Before the 2012 election they erected large billboards declaring that “Under

the FNM - 490 + Murders (a record)”.

The billboards were erected in tourist areas in an economy that owed its survival to tourism. Mr Christie told Bahamians that the PLP had the solution to eradicate crime and, if returned to power, Bahamians would once again have a peaceful society.

However, when crime continued to grow and get more violent, Mr Christie was asked if he didn’t now regret allowing his party to elect those billboards. “No,I don’t regret anything in a political campaign,” was his surprising answer.

If this is so, then he should have no problem condemning the scandals now shattering his own party. His attitude, after winning the 2012 election, seemed to be “all’s fair in love and war”.

The Christie government came to power with promises - but few, if any have been kept. Crime is out of control. In five years there were “490 plus” murders under the Free National Movement; to date for the same period under the PLP there have been 619 reported according to The Tribune’s records. So far, for almost the first four months of this year there have been 50 murders. Six in a six-day period round last weekend. The figure grows daily.

Many promises have been made to provide a National Health Insurance programme to ensure that no Bahamian goes without medical care. Health Minister Perry Gomez has said that already more than 2,600 people have been enrolled in a plan with a budget of $100 million.

However, the good doctor has had to acknowledge that government does not yet know how it is going to fund the scheme.

Already there is a tone of failure.

And then there is BAMSI, a project dogged by misfortune that is supposed to feed the country and reduce the cost of food importation. Will BAMSI, an expensive project, eventually become another Hatchet Bay disaster?

On taking over the successful 2,000 acre Hatchet Bay farm at Alice Town, Eleuthera, and getting rid of the scientists and skilled Bahamians, Sir Lynden boasted that Hatchet Bay under his government was to be “the greatest success story in agricultural history in the Bahamas”. Thanks to ignorance, it was a colossal failure. On the floor of the House of Assembly in 1991, then Opposition leader Hubert Ingraham accused the “incompetent wasteful” Pindling government of having “murdered” the once prosperous Hatchet Bay Farms “in cold blood and in broad daylight”. His words were mild when one remembered the colossal disaster.

When one examines the Christie government’s record - with some of the “all for me baby” group being exposed as feathering their own nests first - it would indeed be a foolish people who would go to the polls on May 10 and vote for five more years of such failure.

What we tolerate EDITOR, The Tribune.

EVERY five years political parties do two things: embrace new faces to create the illusion that they are fresh, dynamic and relevant and publish a manifesto. In the first instance, the heart and mind of the organisation does not change, new political aspirants are simply an accessory worn by the old guard.

Political novices, waiting to be corrupted by the political system and its processes. It is the equivalent of expecting to be healthy after having kidney, liver and lung transplants in a body riddled with cancer. A sad state of affairs indeed.

Political party manifestos usually serve as the vision the organisation has for the country. Personally, I do not put too much stock in manifestos. Far more important to me is the character of the leaders of the

organisations who publish that propaganda.

Political parties, to a large extent are self serving idea factories, so it should not be a surprise that all of the parties will have ideas that are palatable for public consumption.

The problem is never with the idea, I have heard many good ones over the years, but the willingness of government to properly implement and follow through in a cost effective way is a separate matter. We need leaders who are principled men. When a man is guided by principles and not political expediency or greed one can have a greater level of confidence in what they say they will do.

There are many reasons that Perry Christie should have honorably demitted office, two failed referendums attest to that, but his desire to stay in power suggests that he is not a principled, or, at least in my opinion, an honorable man. Nor is

Hubert Minnis. The lack of confidence the majority of FNM MP’s showed against him in the House of Assembly should have prompted his resignation as well, but he is still Captain of the ship.

Branville McCartney should have stayed with the FNM after being scolded by former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, but he chose to leave and start his own party.

By doing so he forfeited the lessons necessary to shape the character all true leaders need.

How can we have confidence in the utterances of a manifesto when the frontmen cannot be trusted.

Ultimately, the Bahamian people are responsible, we have set the bar so low in our personal and national lives that I can only guess that we are getting what we have chosen to tolerate.

JB Nassau, April 20, 2017.

History of Bahamian rights EDITOR, The Tribune.

I GOT home from the FNM Tsunami Rally about 11 last night. I hurriedly tuned into ZNS TV13 to see what the PLP rally looked like.

Interestingly, Perry Christie was coming to the end of his speech. I recoiled as he belted out in a hoarse voice that the rights and privileges we as Black Bahamians enjoy today were given to us by the PLP. Certainly I could see the desperation in the face of a tired aged man who, to his dismay, can see power slipping away from him.

The enlightened among us would know that in 1956 the PLP was still in opposition.

Sir Etienne Dupuch a member of the UBP, moved a resolution in the HOA to end discrimination in public places in The Bahamas.

Where were Perry Christie and this crew of PLP gangsters? In the 1967 general election, the UBP and the PLP were tied 18-18. It was Sir Alvin Braynen, a white Bahamian, and Sir Randol Fawkes, both independent candidates who won their seats, sided with the PLP to bring about majority rule.

Where were these PLP gangsters then?

Certainly Perry and his

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net gang are using scare tactics to hold on to power and privileges to enrich themselves more and more. They can never get enough. It’s obvious that they cannot run on their current record of failures, so they resort to the past, of which they had no part. Bahamians are not stupid. Let us vote them out! It’s the Peoples’s Time!

VELLY WILMORE Nassau, April 21, 2017.

(In 1956 when Sir Etienne Dupuch moved his anti-discrimnation resolution in the House, Sir Henry Tayor, one of the founders of the PLP in 1953, was the only PLP House member. Sir Etienne, contrary to what this letter writer says, was never a member of the UBP, which was founded in 1958.

(Although Sir Etienne’s Resolution was sent to committee where it was meant to die a natural death, his mission was accomplished that night. When he was ordered to sit down by Speaker Asa Pritchard, he refused and was threatened

with arrest. The House was suspended in confusion as an angry crowd chased House members down Bay Street to their parked cars.

(As Sir Etienne wrote at the time: “The next day hotels and other public places that had barred coloured people from participating in their facilities sent notices to The Tribune announcing that the barriers were down. In future their places would be open to everyone who conformed to recognised standards of dress and behaviour. The battle had been won.”

(Elsewhere it has been said that Sir Henry Taylor was the first to attempt to get an anti-discrimination committee in the House.

This is not true. This apparently was his intention, but he was beaten to it by Bert Cambridge, who some years earlier, had asked for a committee to consider discrimination in the colony. What was then referred to as “the Old Guard” in the House — made no comment, but appointed a committee, which never met. That was the end of the first attempt to abolish discrimination. Learning from Mr Cambridge’s mistake of asking for a committee, Sir Etienne instead moved a resolution.— Ed).

The sleeping PM EDITOR, The Tribune.

NOMINATION Day was held on April 20. PM Perry Christie was nominated for the Centerville constituency for the ninth time. In a photo with the PM sitting at the nomination table that went viral on social media, he was seen with his head slumped forward. Christie appeared to have fallen asleep. This photo was similar to another one with the PM asleep onstage at an event in North Andros. The said event was the renaming of the Nicholls Town Primary School in honour of Androsian educator Clara E Evans.

Another Facebook photo of the PM sleeping onstage while either Fred

Mitchell or Dr Michael Darville addressed the audience made the rounds on social media.

There are about five other photos of the PM in slouch positions that have been posted on social media.

At a recent rally on a Family Island an exhausted looking Christie was standing behind the podium as he was being introduced.

His age was accentuated in that photo. At 73, the PM is old and tired.

The Facebook photos of him asleep have become popular memes around the country. They remind me of Charles Perrault’s Sleeping Beauty. While some have made light of Christie falling asleep incessantly at public events, the time has

come for the hundreds of PLP stalwart councillors who are diehard Christie loyalists to face the reality that Christie may no longer be physically fit to lead their party or this country. He has nothing left to offer this country. I think it is time for Christie to hang up the gloves.

The physical and mental grind of the rallies as well as the duties of the PM are taking an exacting toll on the 73-year-old body of the PM. Father Time is finally catching up to a man many thought was immortal. To many young Bahamians, however, the has become the sleeping PM. THE WHISTLEBLOWER April 23, 2017.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, April 27, 2017, PAGE 5

Gray finding favour despite island infrastructure problems DESPITE evident neglect and infrastructural needs throughout their community, voters in Acklins appear apprehensive about a potential future without incumbent MP V Alfred Gray.

During a visit to the island this week, The Tribune canvassed several voters throughout the island, which many consider the most crucial in the constituency of Mayaguana, Inagua, Crooked Island, Acklins and Long Cay (MICAL).

While some have suggested that improvements to healthcare stood as the most pressing of issues, others said that economic stability is a major concern.

All agreed that Acklins, and to a greater extent, MICAL would be won or lost in Salina Point.

Sitting on some 21 miles of sparsely paved roadway to the southeast of its nearest neighbouring settlement, the community of some 200 persons is a microcosm of all the problems facing the constituency.

In Salina Point, a polling division won convincingly by a margin of 82 votes in 2012 by Mr Gray, simple choices like doctor visits, medications and even secondary level education have become luxuries often considered out of reach.

“Don’t waste your time asking how bad it is here.

If you drove here, parked here and walked 20 feet in any directions, I bet you could find 200 reasons to vote out Mr Gray,” was how a 53-year-old fisherman responded to questions about the quality of life in Salina Point.

Ricardo Wells hears about the realities of life from residents in Salina Point, Acklins, as the election looms Asking to be identified as a “son of the Acklins soil,” he added: “But for every reason you find, I bet you will hear ten cries by these people about all (Mr Gray) has done for us.”

Unregistered for the upcoming election, the resident said he has given up the hope of seeing political change come to Acklins and MICAL. Further down the street, seated on a bench near the community’s primary school, an unemployed mother of two speculated that any of the candidates vying for office in MICAL could win if they canvass the area relentlessly over the next two weeks.

Asking not to be identified by name because, as she claimed, her resume has been in the hands of Mr Gray for the last six months, the longtime Salina Point resident said she has long concluded that to survive in a community so remote, one must be in good standing with those either in office or vying for it.

“If it comes down to us down here like it normally does; boy any one of these people could win this seat because we have seen so much bad. Anything that sounds sweet could get us on board,” the mother said.

“Yeah, we gon’ talk bad about Gray. But we have no other choice because things have gotten so bad that the little one or two people he help can’t measure up to all those that are struggling,” she said.

“We stood with Gray because we was all thinking the next lot would be us or someone we know, (but) all we got was promises. Now only people coming over that hill to us is people a part of this struggle or them set coming to see if what they hear is real.”

Acklins, like most of the southern Islands, sustained a direct hit from Hurricane Joaquin in 2015. The storm damaged the island’s Island Luck web shop.

According to residents, the establishment offered the closest thing residents had to a bank for well over four years.

Moreover, the island is still without an ambulance and a properly staffed and outfitted clinic. Acklins shares a doctor with Crooked Island and Long Cay. Both mail boat and airline services work on schedules, often mirroring increases in tourism activities on the island.

With respect to tourism, residents are calling for upgrades to both the island’s airport and several of its ports. Plans have been drafted for repairs to the Salina Point port, but those plans have gone unused to date.

The surreal nature of life in Salina Point could best be summarised by the first encounter between media personnel and political organisers on the ground for a Free National Movement (FNM) rally on Tuesday.

After making the pains-

V ALFRED GRAY, the Minister for Agriculture and Marine Resources and MP for MICAL. taking journey to Salina be considered minute when cent,” Mrs Rolle said.

Point the group was in- juxtaposed against that of “But through it all he formed that its arrival was her neighbours. has done for us all he can. not expected for another Asked to expound, Mrs When I was sick he was several hours and that the Rolle said with a short sigh there. Whenever I called community wasn’t ready to followed by long smile, he answered. There ain’t service them.

“Gray has been good to no easy way to walk away “You should have called me.” from that, that level of supahead and told us you were She said the controver- port is important when you coming now. We would sial MP has played a major are way down here trying to have called in some fish and role in her life during his survive.” other things to cook,” said time in office. In addition Mr Gray has represented 49-year-old Roselyn Rolle, to assisting her with find- MICAL since 2002. a part-time storekeeper ing employment, Mrs Rolle The FNM has selected who greeted the group. said Mr Gray went as far as Miriam Emmanuel as its “We have cold drinks, to visit her during a recent standard-bearer in the consome stuff to snack on illness. stituency. but we would have to call “He helped me on many Mrs Emmanuel, pastor around on this end to see occasions so I have to re- and director of church opif we could pull something main grateful for him. This erations for Good Samaritogether for y’all.” isn’t about votes and thing. tan Kingdom Ministries in When asked about life, This is about life and the Salina Point since 1989, rework and leisure in Salina best way to say thank you placed Walt Saunders, who Point, Mrs Rolle admitted for all he has done for me withdrew because of health that she wasn’t thoroughly is to vote for him when I reasons. happy in her community, can. There has been a lot of but said she remains grate- good with the bad, it’s just Comments and responses ful that her struggle could that the bad is the most re- to rwells@tribunemedia.net

PM CONCERN OVER DIVISION AHEAD OF VOTE from page one

Expressing concern over “serious” division among voters, Mr Christie suggested that the actions of some political groupings will do nothing to connect citizens, but instead only amount to a “confrontation”.

He said it is up to Bahamians to understand the workings of the country’s democracy, which allows everyone to choose who they would like to represent them, and for politicians on the losing end to accept their fate.

These remarks were not part of the Prime Minister’s prepared speech, which he said would “take too much intellectual fortitude” to read during the commissioning ceremony of the Public Hospitals Authority and Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre’s Community Counselling and Assessment Centre, a newly renovated $950,000 facility on Collins Avenue at the former Ministry of Sports building.

“We must avoid in our country some of the serious things that I am observing when it comes to division,” Mr Christie said yesterday.

“Politics in small countries has to be managed properly.

“Hubert Ingraham and I tried to manage it properly.

We happen to have been law partners and shared a lot of assets together, so there’s an understanding that you have to be civilised notwithstanding strong criticisms of each other.

“But I want to express a concern, it has to do with

mental health, that there is a very tenuous line between the manifestation of hatred and violence and we must exercise the greatest care of citizens of our country to ensure that we set a standard for our democracy, which has demonstrated that change can take place and take place fluidly from one to the other.

“We must exercise the greatest care because if you jump into my yard as they have done and tear down my posters as they have done, what do you expect me to do? That is the average person.

“And when you have me pulling down yours and you pulling down mine what do you expect to happen? At some stage, a confrontation. And what do you expect to happen when there is confrontation?”

He continued: “So we have to recognise that when the Bishop of the Anglican Church spoke out, other church leaders must speak out, other leaders and civic leaders must speak out also because we have too much of a wonderful country with a wonderful reputation outside of this country.

“We’re making too many advances as a country not to recognise the care we ought to exercise and that no matter how much we feel that there should be change, at the end of the day we must remember we must all live together after it takes place.

That is the point I thought I should make.

“We are a family as a country and the best form of mental health is to un-

BNCP FIELDS 15 CANDIDATES THE Bahamas National Coalition Party (BNCP) has 15 candidates vying for seats in the House of Assembly in the upcoming general election.

The BNCP was formally the Bahamas National Citizen Coalition (BNCC), an activist group established in 2013. In 2015, the BNCC transitioned to a political party and later changed its name.

Candidates include BNCP Leader Wesley Campbell, who is running in Englerston and Chairman Andrew Stewart, who

is vying for Free Town.

The other candidates are: Orien Knowles, Carmichael; Denise Wilmore, Marathon; Leroy Butler, Mount Mariah; Lorraine Arthur, Centreville; Angela Cox, Fox Hill; Rodney Curry, Garden Hills; Don Lockhart, Pinewood; Kendal Lewis, Yamacraw; Ann Marie Rolle, Seabreeze; Barrington Usher, North Andros and Berry Islands; Fredrick Role, Tall Pines; Paul Rolle, Nassau Village and Randy Rolle, Fort Charlotte.

derstand what that means.

There is more that connects us than divides us and we must understand the workings of our democracy. It is meant to give people the best choice at a certain time to make whatever decision they make and then for those of us who are on the losing side to accept it and move on because that’s what our country is like and what it should be like,” Mr Christie also said.

Mr Christie went on to admit that given the resources available, there is more that can be done for people in the country. He pointed to a scenario that he came across while campaigning, in which among several people living in one household, only one individual was employed.

“As a political leader I speak to it. There is anguish, there is bewilderment and anguish. And bewilderment not known, not identified, not counselled on, just continues to develop into (mental illness).”

He added that he is “worried” that unless the country can introduce an effective healthy lifestyles programme, the Bahamas will have a tough time dealing with sick residents.

Earlier this week, Reverend Laish Boyd, Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands, denounced the “gutter politics and venom” associated with the general election, charging that the practice could hinder upstanding persons seeking to offer themselves for public office in the future.

In a pastoral letter to his parishioners and the nation over the current election cycle, Bishop Boyd said he is “personally horrified” at the “terrible practice of denigrating and maligning others” by “unscrupulous opponents” in the political realm, which he said ultimately discourages “some decent people” from wanting to serve.

The letter, released on Monday, comes amid an election cycle that has already been marred by verbal jousting between political parties, and at least one confirmed physical altercation between supporters of two of the country’s major political parties, the PLP and the FNM. There has also been name-calling. In March, FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis dubbed Prime Min-

ister Perry Christie “Cotton Candy Christie” while insinuating that Mr Christie’s soft policies have contributed to Grand Bahama’s economic hardships. He has repeated the nickname over the past few weeks.

In January, PLP Chairman Bradley Roberts criticised Dr Minnis’ and the FNM’s new slate of candidates to contest the upcoming election, charging that Dr Minnis’ selection of “hapless, perennial losers and visionless personalities” gave the impression

that he rummaged through former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham’s “political junkyard or graveyard” to salvage what he termed a “political scrap gang.”

Despite also calling those FNM candidates “bad and unfit” to run in the impending election, Mr Roberts later called for “peace and calm” during this election season, adding that “we can disagree without being disagreeable or insulting” each other.

• Mental health of the Nation, see page 12

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THE TRIBUNE

HALL SAYS IT’S NOT HIS JOB TO CHECK DISCLOSURES ACCURACY from page one

At a press conference yesterday, Bishop Darling claimed his wealth was from an “antique” inherited from his parents.

Meanwhile, incumbent Fox Hill MP Fred Mitchell did not declare an overall net worth on his form, but a figure can be deduced from the assets and liabilities he declared.

This was also the case for other candidates, including Orien Thomas Knowles, the Bahamas National Coalition Party’s candidate for Carmichael, and Karen Davis, the Democratic National Alliance’s candidate for Free Town.

Also, several declaration forms submitted last week bore variations in the spelling of candidates’ names.

Contacted by The Tribune yesterday for clarification on whether his office analysed details of decla-

ration forms submitted on nomination day prior to the forms being published, Mr Hall vehemently denied that his department was mandated by law to verify and check the information provided by candidates.

Mr Hall, who has been under fire for his handling of the registration process for the May 10 general election, contended that it has been “common practice” for his office to “record” and “publish” what it receives from candidates.

“We simply record what is given and publish it,” said Mr Hall.

“We are not responsible for the verification of the information given. We simply receive what is given and publish it. As to the accuracy on any queries that arise, you would have to check with the Attorney General on that.”

Allyson Maynard-Gibson did not respond to re-

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quests for comment up to press time.

Mr Hall referred The Tribune to the Parliamentary Elections Act, noting that the law specifies preliminary and general procedures for elections; registration of voters; electoral broadcast guidelines; writs of elections; nominations and several other pertinent procedures associated with an election.

With respect to nominations, the law specifies that all nominated candidates must declare, to the best of their knowledge, estimation of the assets, income and liabilities of themselves, their spouse and children.

The Public Disclosure Commission is also mandated by law to “examine” declarations submitted by respective members of Parliament and senators.

The Public Disclosure Act specifies that in addition to examining disclosures made, the commission

can, if need be, request additional information to best clarify information it has obtained.

However, Mr Laroda said the language laid out in the act speaks directly to annual declarations made by parliamentarians and senators. The attorney explained that the law covering the commission does not pertain to those vying for public office during election cycles.

Of disclosures submitted on nomination day, Mr Laroda insisted that the forms associated with those declarations are sent to the Parliamentary Registration Department.

“Those forms come directly from there and go back there, we have no purview over them,” Mr Laroda said.

“We handle year-to-year disclosures. If an MP or a senator declares in their annual disclosure that they have $5,000 in their First

Caribbean bank account, it is our job to chase that down and verify that.

“We work to ensure that those annual disclosures are in and legitimate. If we don’t get reports on time, we write the Official Opposition leader and/ or the Prime Minister to bring it to their attention that their members are not current.

“That is what we do.

That is where it starts and where it finishes. Anything beyond that will have to be taken up with the Parliamentary Department or some other agency, but not here,” he added.

However, the public has not been able to view annual public disclosures by parliamentarians during the course of the five-year Christie administration as none have been gazetted.

On Monday, former Deputy Prime Minister Brent Symonette called to question the accuracy of disclo-

sures filed by other veteran politicians after a Tribune report identified him as the wealthiest candidate vying for office this year.

Singling out Prime Minister Perry Christie and Minister of Labour Shane Gibson, but also speaking generally, Mr Symonette noted that the intention of public disclosures was to prevent a gross increase in wealth while in office.

He also suggested at the time that there would be greater public confidence in the Public Disclosure Commission if its chair was not a political appointee.

Mr Symonette, the Free National Movement’s candidate for St Anne’s, reported a net worth of $156.4 million - nearly $100 million more from his 2011 disclosure of just over $65 million.

Mr Christie’s net worth has hovered around $2m for three election disclosure periods.

CHRISTIAN COUNCIL ‘NOT MORAL POLICE’ from page one

Bishop Fernander, in an interview with The Tribune the morning after succeeding Dr Ranford Patterson for the organisation’s presidency, said although the BCC’s modus operandi of late has been one by which “people expect us to speak on everything,” his future plans for the BCC involve it speaking up for the “marginalised” and “those who don’t get a chance to put their issues on the forefront”.

He also pledged to build on the legacy Dr Patterson established during his six years as the BCC’s president, vowing that the council will continue to use its presence and influence throughout The Bahamas to be a positive “change agent” in society.

Bishop Fernander also said rather than try to convince governments to take the ethical or spiritual high ground over issues of national importance, the BCC will instead focus on speak-

BISHOP Delton Fernander ing “truth to power” to its collective congregation.

Under Dr Patterson’s leadership, the BCC spoke out publicly on a number of controversial matters, such as the gaming referendum in 2013, last year’s gender equality referendum and Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival.

However, Bishop Fernander suggested yesterday that while, historically, the BCC is mandated to “speak to national issues and to give some perspective” on national issues, the “essence” of the group “was not as it is today, to speak on every situation that is happening”.

“But we were the people, I know when I joined the council, we were writing papers, and putting on human rights and those kind of things,” Bishop Fernander

said. “And then over the years it’s changed into what it is today in that people expect us to speak on everything.

“It is my hope that while we’re at the council that we be a social justice ecumenical council, a council that will speak up for those that are marginalised, those that don’t have the ability to speak to the powers that be, those who don’t get a chance to put their issues on the forefront.”

He added: “We are one of the pillars that make up society. And as one of the pillars we have to help hold the weight that is the Commonwealth of the Bahamas and it is through our initiatives and through our speaking up that we hope to correct some things that we believe are going in the wrong direction.”

When asked if the BCC has plans to do more to ensure that its views and admonitions are better addressed by those in governance, Bishop Fernander said: “I believe the real strength of the Christian Council sometimes is the pulpits we speak

at. And maybe we should stop just trying to convince governments and convince people. And that’s a very tall task because only God can change hearts, but we trust that He is able to do it.

“And so the long and short of it, I think some of it has just been flattery given to us, that they put us on a committee or they ask us to come in and talk to certain issues, but you know they really don’t value the input that we give.

“But I believe the true strength, that has been proven in our last president, Dr Patterson, the true strength of the council, sometimes speaking truth to power doesn’t mean that you speak it in Parliament or you speak it in the press, is that you can speak to the people.”

Bishop Fernander is the organiser and current lead pastor of New Destiny Cathedral in Nassau, as well as the past presiding bishop of Kingdom Building Pastors and People International.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, April 27, 2017, PAGE 7

Former foreign Baha Mar staff call for money owed to be paid

By KHRISNA VIRGIL Deputy Chief Reporter kvirgil@tribunemedia.net FORMER foreign employees of mega-resort Baha Mar have again made calls for a resolution to the “injustice” they have suffered after not being paid money owed to them nearly 19 months after they were let go from the hotel.

In an open letter to the government, which was also sent to The Tribune, the expatriates said that despite months of promises, no explanation has been sent to them about why they have not been paid, adding that emails and calls have not been returned.

They questioned why the collective group of expatriate employees had been discriminated against and asked how officials planned to fix the issue, pointing to specialised skill sets they provided to the resort.

The letter, addressed to officials including Prime Minister Perry Christie, government advisor Sir Baltron Bethel, Attorney General Allyson MaynardGibson, Baha Mar President Graeme Davis, Liu Liange, vice chairman and president of the Export Import Bank of China (CEXIM) and Claims Committee Chairman James Smith, among others was sent last Friday, the day of Baha Mar’s soft opening.

Mr Smith was not available for comment yesterday up to press time, but last month he told The Tribune that CEXIM had not given authorisation to pay the foreign workers.

Although last year the Christie administration directed the Claims Committee to prioritise paying former Bahamian employees of Baha Mar, Mr Smith’s revelation at the time went against the widespread expectation that former expatriate employees of the resort would be paid from what was left after the money given to former Bahamian employees, Bahamian creditors and foreign creditors is subtracted.

“Despite multiple attempts to communicate with those

copied here, in hopes of a resolution, it is with deep regret that this appears to be our only alternative,” the letter read.

“We are members of the former Baha Mar team. We brought experience from across the globe, to help build a foundation for new, thriving career opportunities for Bahamians and a stunning destination for international visitors. We were a part of the team committed to prove true on the forecast that this single development would bring a 13 per cent growth to the country.

“This may not be our country of origin, but we invested commitment and hard work into wanting to see it succeed.

“Almost 19 months have passed since the Baha Mar team was dismantled, following the legal actions, and we were all terminated. Where the company was not in a place at the time of termination to provide what was contractually owed to the employees, we all believed in a better tomorrow. We

BAHA MAR COURTYARD worked hard to get back on our feet and found creative ways to move ahead.

“And then, months after promises were made and never fulfilled, we received the great news through media sources that funds were granted to compensate due wages to all employees of Baha Mar. But somehow at this juncture, unbeknownst to us, ‘all employees’ took on a new definition than the ‘Baha Mar team’ we had known.”

The letter continued: “Our Bahamian colleagues - very rightfully so - received what was dutifully owed to them.

Yet, despite being all employed under the same company, we were segregated out and did not receive payments.

No explanations were sent as to why owed funds for time served, repatriation and vacation were not paid, (as well as non-refundable rent, school tuitions and other obligations) and calls and emails were not returned. Formerly one team, ‘we’ were now labeled as the

‘former expatriates of Baha Mar’.

“Despite all of this, assumptions were made that justice would prevail and maybe these things just take time. After all, funds were allocated, our colleagues were paid, so why should we question that a resolution wasn’t imminent?

“Yet, coming up on almost two years later, there is still no clarity, zero response and no compensation has been provided. Moreover, claims that Bahamian subcontractors, Bahamian companies and US subcontractors needed to complete the resort have been paid, but the expatriate claims have still not been addressed.”

In December, Mr Smith said former expatriate employees of Baha Mar would be paid a “high figure” by the committee.

During a previous court supervised bankruptcy proceeding, Mr Smith said, there were indications that a “special group of expats” deserved preferential treatment equivalent to creditors.

MUSIC STAR LOU ADAMS DIES, AGED 94

LOU ADAMS, a legendary figure whose contributions to Bahamian music and cultural development are indelible, has died aged 94.

In a statement expressing condolences to the family of Mr Adams last night, Bradley Roberts, the Progressive Liberal Party chairman, said: “Influenced by big band trumpeter Bill Moore in the early days, Lou enjoyed this genre of music at local night spots such as The Royal Victoria, Fort Montague and The British Colonial hotels at their special functions. Additionally, these bands greatly influenced many local musicians such as Freddie Munnings Sr, exposing them to the sound of big band, jazz, Broadway and other popular music from the United States and the United Kingdom.”

Mr Adams was known as a gentleman of class and distinction, a talented artist who rose to great acclaim during his heyday. The Lou Adams Orchestra created inroads in the music industry, leading the way for other Bahamians to be able to perform in the best hotels in the Bahamas - a feat which was once impossible. The Lou Adams Orchestra was the first black Bahamian group of performers to play at hotels like the British Colonial and Victoria Hotel.

Born on Fowler Street in 1922, Mr Adams studied at the then Victoria School and the Eastern Senior on Shirley Street, which was headed by Mr Mansfield, an Englishman, and later prominent educator the late C I Gibson.

He played with the Chocolate Dandies as a youth and after they disbanded, he went on to work with among other groups, Cleveland Peterson & the Melody Makers, a group in which Levi Gibson played the violin. The Lou Adams Band was a staple at Lyford Cay for many years.

In 2004, he gave an interview in which he fondly reflected on his first encounter with Mr Moore, who would later offer Lou music lessons. As the trumpet was Mr Moore’s principal instrument, he impressed upon Mr Adams to take it up.

“He would take the trumpet and make so many different sounds. Bill made the trumpet cackle like a hen, he made it laugh, and showed great music ability,” Mr Adams recalled.

As an adult, he was described as a suave, well-spoken and sharp-witted gentleman of great talent and tremendous recall, and for much of his life he was, without doubt, one of the elder statesmen in the music industry in the Bahamas.

“With his death comes the end of an era in Bahamian music and cultural development,” Mr Roberts said. “He will be sorely missed as his body of work lives on in the hearts and minds of many devoted fans for generations to come.”

PAGE 8, Thursday, April 27, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

Baha Mar’s opening in words and pictures Richard Coulson and his daughter, Amanda, offer different but approving views of a landmark occasion “WHAT a swell party this is!” sang Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby 60 years ago in the film ‘High Society’.

Last week, Nassau enjoyed another swell party as the vast 1,800-room Baha Mar hotel/casino complex celebrated - finally, but smack on schedule - a socalled “opening reception”.

Like any good party, it must have cost a small fortune. Possibly 400 Bahamians and visitors quaffed champagne and downed snacks and sushi for up to three hours. Since no paying guests had yet checked in, it was all expense and no revenue for the owner, Hong Kong’s international conglomerate Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE), flagship of the well-known Cheng family.

But this was no time to quibble about cost. Baha Mar’s President, urbane, silver-haired Graeme Davis, a consummate American hospitality executive, has assured us that a phased

INSIDE Baha Mar resort at its ribbon-cutting last Friday. opening is the professional casino, Jack Niklaus Golf way to launch, with Grand Course and Convention Hyatt ready to accept a Centre are already doing growing tourism trickle business, which will doubtstarting in May, and the up- less grow with aggressive market Rosewood and SLS event scheduling.

Last Friday, only the brands during the following months. The Sky Warrior Convention structure could be roamed by eager invited guests. The sweeping entrance halls and arcades, all glass, white walls, and blue carpets, led to the grand ballroom, past the ramps and stairs descending from the Hyatt Tower. We found ourselves in the spacious hall, subtly lit and decorated, with buffets and bars scattered among comfortable lounges - no rigid rows of hard auditorium seating.

After ceremonial ribbonATTENDEES at the Baha Mar opening reception.

cutting, the guests of honour gathered on the central dais: the Governor-General, the Prime Minister, Mr Davis and Ning Yuan representing the prime contractor China Construction America (CCA). Only two speeches were delivered, both mercifully short and graceful.

Mr Davis led off by noting “the vision conceived over 14 year ago by Sarkis Izmirlian”, a generous recognition of the man who preceded him. Many Bahamians, even at Cabinet level, could learn statesmanlike behaviour from Mr Davis’ example. On behalf of the Cheng family he went on to extend congratulations to all concerned - Government,

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff Bahamian builders and the a tightly scripted presenta1,700 present employees, the tion that punched all the financier Chinese EXIM right buttons for the upbeat Bank, and even CCA, who occasion. He did let fly what took so much flak for the might be a sly dig at Atantis, original Baha Mar bank- as Baha Mar will “appeal ruptcy but are redeeming to a broader demographic themselves with successful than our existing Bahamian completion. Expressing the resorts”. Baha Mar naysayintention “to continue to ers have often questioned contribute to the Bahamian its success against Atlantis’ economy”, he smoothly in- proven formula, but that’s troduced the Prime Minister. an unlikely concern for any Now occurred the day’s five-star new competitor most startling event - for the and the time-stressed travfirst time in living memory, eller will welcome its closer Perry Christie’s speech was spot to the airport. short! Perhaps restrained After the speeches, I had by his handlers fearful of plenty of time for Bahacontroversial ad-libbing in mian sip-sip, chatting with this politicised season, he friends old and new. BTC abandoned his usual verbal Boss Leon Williams told extravaganza in favour of me about the challenges of

THE TRIBUNE installing telecoms through the project; former Central Bank Governor James Smith looked relaxed after the tense distribution of over $100 million to compensate former Bahamian staff and creditors (we avoided the issue of payments to foreigners); PLP Chairman Bradley Roberts, resplendent in a yellow-trimmed jacket, spared me a few minutes between vigorous networking with party stalwarts; Danny Liu, resident manager of CCA, was more affable after his disentanglement from Baha Mar’s tense history and current commitment to The Pointe’s gleaming downtown project.

Education Minister Jerome Fitzgerald made a brief appearance, calm, cool and quiet after the drubbing he received in the local press that very morning. He made no speech, but I noticed he got a warm handshake and abrazo from Mr Davis, who had no involvement in Mr Fitzgerald’s earlier indiscretions and doubtless got major help from his Cabinet role in bringing CFTE to Nassau.

One face nowhere to be seen in the crowd was the

Thursday, Thursday, April April 27,27, 2017, 2017, PAGE PAGE 9 9 pugnacious visage of Free National Movement leader Dr Hubert Minnis. Whatever his publicised views, I thought that a prominent public figure would show up, and if a truly astute politician, would have seized a brief smiling arm-clasp with Perry Christie. It is hard to believe that he will earn any political mileage from giving a cold-shoulder to Baha Mar, now becoming a national institution, largely staffed

by Bahamians and open for Bahamian enjoyment years into the future. Possibly some critical features will be disclosed once our AttorneyGeneral finally gets around to order unsealing of the contractual documents of sale to CFTE, but their significance will fade before the visible reality of the project and its certain contribution to our national image and to our Gross Domestic Product.

• Richard Coulson is a retired lawyer and investment banker born in Nassau and from a long line of Bahamians. He is a financial consultant and author of A Corkscrew Life - adventures of a travelling financier.

SCENES at Baha Mar and the reception at its ribbon-cutting last Friday.

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

THE IMPORTANCE OF ART RECOGNISED

JOHN EDWARD COX, in front of one of his own paintings temporarily on display in the Casino, has been re-hired as Creative Director at Baha Mar.

THE MAX Taylor Bar has three colourful large-scale paintings “that pay tribute to the vibrancy of our long-gone native music clubs and bars”.

IT was an extremely exciting and pleasant surprise to see that Bahamian art was still front and centre of this mega-resort on its opening last Friday.

Since this concept was specifically conceived and promoted by Sarkis Izmirlian, many of us were sceptical that this vision would be carried over under the new management.

Fortunately Graeme Davis, after a long career with the Rosewood brand, understands that art is not mere decoration but rather an important vehicle to attract the high-end travellers who form a crucial part of the “Orange Economy” and who spend far more dollars per day than your average cruise ship passenger.

Mr Davis therefore rehired John Edward Cox as Baha Mar’s Creative Director to continue the work of running an in-house art department, dedicated studio spaces and an art gallery, entitled The Current. Aside from the large-scale unique commissions, smaller artworks and rights for Bahamian prints and editions in all the hotel rooms were purchased in 2012-2013.

As recently as a few weeks ago, original works were still being snapped up from artists’ studios and the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas’ most recent National Exhibition to continue to fill the lobbies and public spaces.

On a tour of the Conven- the breathtaking terraces, tion Centre, the Casino, behind whose bar was a sucThe Current and various culent oil painting by Lynn restaurants, bars and lob- Parrotti. With the colours of bies of both the Hyatt and the ocean and the flaming the Casino pink flaminHotel, we were gos, it light‘Clearly, every able to view ened the mood the depth and attempt is made, and toned breadth of this through colour down the colcommitment to our scheme Bahamian art. choices and from the overThe first thing artwork, to return stimulation of to see walking visitors back to the Casino to directly into the calmness the Casino is a sense of peace of the Cariba stunning bar after leaving the bean.

This dedicated to frenzy of the calmness was the celebrated also continued artist Max Tay- gambling arena.’ while moving lor with three towards the colourful, large-scale paint- Hyatt’s lobby, whose themes ings that pay tribute to the of turquoise and white were vibrancy of our long-gone complemented by abstract native music clubs and bars. artworks by Toby Lunn and Walking around the Casi- Antonius Roberts. no, the vistas visible through The reception desks are the rows of one-armed ban- framed by a monumental dits give onto glimpses of artwork, repeating Cox’s large-scale works by ab- meditative motif of the circle, stract expressionists Kendal which symbolises balance.

Hanna and Tessa WhiteheClearly, every attempt ad, as well as intricate col- is made, through colour lage assemblages by Lillian choices and artwork, to Blades and wall hangings return visitors back to a

by April Bey. Behind the sense of peace after leaving golden gates of the cashiers’ the frenzy of the gambling cage were three specially- arena. commissioned pieces by The “3 Tides” restaurant Hanna, featuring spades, was named by the art dehearts and other symbols of partment, both for the three the surrounding green-felt meals per-day they will gaming tables. serve as well as for the three At the back of the casino artists it represents (Stan we found a delightful cigar Burnside, John Beadle and bar - an indoor-outdoor Roberts) with 10 to 15 artspace - replete with regal works by their artists’ colawnings and giving out onto lective, known as Jammin’.

If all this weren’t enough, a trip to the Convention Centre is like a Bahamian art history class: from the older generation of the original masters Brent Malone, Amos Ferguson, the Burnsides, Hanna, et al, there is also a large-scale commission by a fledgling artist who only recently won the coveted Central Bank Art Prize, Jordanna Kelly.

The experience, however, was not without disappointments.

Formerly the ballrooms had been named for private collections, whose donors had agreed to lend their Bahamian art to the hotel; these names have been hastily removed and replaced with uninspired titles, since the relationships had soured after the original closure.

Many of the initial team at The Current, who were laid off suddenly during that infamous June, 2015, bankruptcy filing, are not there to enjoy or take pride in their work, with many faces and works of art missing from this momentous present day.

Still, it is a testament to the Baha Mar brand that it continues to look to our local art scene for inspiration in generating an exciting venue for a new tourist product.

• Amanda Coulson Voges is Director of the National Art Gallery of The Bahamas.

PAGE 10, Thursday, April 27, 2017

TWO ARRESTED AS MARIJUANA WORTH NEARLY $400,000 SEIZED from page one

marijuana with a street value of $390,000, along with a male and female occupant of the residence. Both individuals were subsequently taken into custody.

ACP Butler also emphasised the concerns he and local police have with “the level of drugs moving within our communities and the impact it actually has on persons, particularly young persons, and the correlation between drugs and crime”.

He added: “The Drug Enforcement Unit has been somewhat consistent with this type of arrest,

and while it may not demonstrate one of our largest seizures, it still represents a large seizure. We also recognise that a number of these large seizures have been found within our local communities. We are concerned with that. We also speak of the availability once its in the community for consumption, and its certainly something that is concerning to the Drug Enforcement Unit.

“We prefer when we actually make the seizure at sea, it doesn’t reach land, but obviously from time to time it arrives within the communities, and we will seek you out.”

He added: “We are con-

THE TRIBUNE

DEU officers at the scene of a large drug bust yesterday at a home in Big Pond where a man and woman were taken into custody. A child was also present in the home.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff tinuing to follow the mandate of the Commissioner of Police, who spares no resources in these efforts to continue to have our community clean of drugs. We are a well-oiled unit and we are always up to the task.”

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ACP Butler admonished drug peddlers and those thinking of possibly participating in the illicit trade to reconsider.

“The Drug Enforcement Unit really feels good about its intelligence network, the relationship with the public, the relationship with other entities, and we strongly say to persons who seek to participate in the illegal drug trade, that the Drug Enforcement Unit will seek you out, the Drug Enforcement Unit will leave no stone unturned,” he said.

“We are certainly inspired by what we do. We understand the significance of going after perpetrators of

drug trafficking.

“We know we have much more work to do, and we will continue to be on the front lines moving drugs from our streets.”

Last month, authorities arrested three men after drugs valued at more than $420,000 were seized in two separate incidents.

On March 19, at a house in South Bimini, police discovered 191.5lbs of marijuana with a street value of over $191,000. A 54-yearold resident of Bimini was taken into custody.

In another incident in Bimini, officers stopped a vessel and discovered 20lbs of suspected cocaine with

a street value of $225,000 along with 10lbs of marijuana worth $10,000.

Two men, aged 43 and 42, were arrested and taken into custody, police said.

The drugs from these police seizures total $426,000 in value and came after a major drug bust in the capital in February.

At that time, police arrested nine persons, including a Bahamian pilot and two men from Suriname, in connection with three major marijuana seizures in New Providence and Abaco. Officers seized 633lbs of marijuana with a combined estimated street value of $640,000.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, April 27, 2017, PAGE 11

Three accused over shooting

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

THREE men were arraigned yesterday for murder. Christavio Tucker, 22, Kelvin Clarke, 23 and Kevin Ramsey, 24, were escorted into court by police.

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

SENTENCING TODAY FOR MURDERER OF MOTHER

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net A MAN convicted by a Supreme Court jury of murdering his mother returns to Supreme Court today for the judge’s decision on sentencing.

Jerome Butler, 57, appeared before Justice Indra Charles last Friday, when his lawyer David Cash suggested that he receive a lesser sentence within the 30-60 year range set out by the Court of Appeal in the case authority of Larry Raymond Jones.

Prosecutor Uel Johnson recommended a 40-yearpenalty for the death of 81-year-old Princess Butler.

Justice Charles deferred her decision on sentencing until today.

Butler stood trial for 10 days in front of Justice Charles concerning the February 4, 2015 murder.

Mrs Butler was found dead in her home at Petersfield Road in Highbury Park shortly after 8am.

An autopsy revealed that she died of asphyxia, and as a result of finding facial

bruises and internal injuries about her body, police launched an investigation.

Her son was arraigned in Magistrate’s Court 12 days later in connection with the death. He pleaded not guilty to murder when formally arraigned in the Supreme Court three months later.

During the trial, the jury heard testimony from Corporal Chris Pickstock, who presented photos and videos extracted from a Samsung Galaxy cellphone, allegedly owned by Butler.

According to Cpl Pickstock, the videos and photos were taken on February 4 at 6.30am and 6.34am.

During cross-examination

by Mr Cash, Cpl Pickstock acknowledged that there were “a lot” of other videos and photos in the phone.

Crime scene investigator Constable 1800 Levar Neely said he took photographs of the crime scene on February 10. One of the photographs showed a suspected bloodstain on the bedroom floor, the jury was told.

Mr Cash asked Constable Neely if it was the “best practice” in homicide in-

vestigations to take photographs while the body was at the scene. The detective agreed with the defence lawyer’s suggestion.

Constable Neely also agreed that he could not say how many people were in the room between February 4 and 10, 2015.

The jury also heard testimony from Dr Austin Davis, who examined the body and said the initial death certificate indicated that the victim had died of natural causes, as he had found nothing peculiar about the body, except for a bloodstain on the sheet.

Sergeant 527 Basil Evans testified that he had questioned the 57-year-old at the Central Detective Unit on February 12, 2015, concerning his alleged involvement in his mother’s murder.

He denied suggestions during his video recorded interview with police that he had physically attacked his mother and choked her to death because of an argument over money he had spent on his girlfriend.

Mr Johnson and Alicia Delancy prosecuted the case.

THREE men appeared in Magistrate’s Court yesterday accused of being the suspects behind a fatal shooting last week in an inner-city community.

Christavio Tucker, 22, Kelvin Clarke, 23, and Kevin Ramsey, 24, stood before Chief Magistrate Joyann Ferguson-Pratt facing murder and attempted murder charges that were allegedly committed on April 21.

The three men were also alleged to have stolen a 2001 black Honda Odyssey, the property of Auveline McKenzie and valued at $6,500 on March 17.

Concerning the murder

charge, it is alleged that the trio, being concerned together, intentionally caused the death of Patrick Axanthio Thompson.

They are also alleged to have attempted to cause the death of PC 3825 Hall and are accused of being in possession of a black .45 XD45ACP pistol and an HK submachine pistol.

According to initial reports from police, shortly after 4pm, a group of men were standing in front of a car wash on Market Street, near Palm Tree Avenue, when the occupants of a dark coloured vehicle pulled up and fired several shots at them before speeding off.

A victim was hit and died of his injuries at the scene.

Police said officers chased

the suspects into the Ridgeland Park area, where the three men allegedly fled on foot from the getaway vehicle. Police said they eventually caught the alleged assailants near a bushy area.

Police also allegedly discovered a tech 9 automatic firearm and a .45 pistol.

The three accused were told that their case will be fast-tracked to the Supreme Court through the presentation of a voluntary bill of indictment at their next Magistrate’s Court appearance scheduled for May 31.

Due to the nature of the allegations, they were remanded to the Department of Correctional Services to await trial. However they have the right to make an application for bail in the Supreme Court.

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STATUS HEARING FOR TRIO IN ARMED ROBBERY TRIAL

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

THREE men awaiting trial for armed robbery appeared in the Supreme Court yesterday for a status hearing.

Levi Johnson, 21, Jameko Arnette, 21, and Rojas Kelly, 20, appeared before Senior Justice Stephen Isaacs for an update in their case concerning a gunpoint robbery on June 30, 2015.

However, the matter was adjourned for 24 hours,

to when Crown prosecutor Cordell Frazier will indicate whether the prosecution is ready to proceed with trial on October 9.

It alleged that the trio robbed a convenience store of $700 cash. They have denied the charge.

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A competitive compensation package will be commensurate with relevant experience and qualification. Fidelity appreciates your interest, however, only those applicants short listed will be contacted.

PAGE 12, Thursday, April 27, 2017

The cycle of hate

THE TRIBUNE

Mental health of the nation

By DR MIKE NEVILLE

T

HE stunning or hides at night to ambush beauty of the their unsuspecting targets. sparkling sands Strength and bravery are and the turquoise non existent; they only feel waters attracts millions of big and powerful behind visitors to these shores. the barrel of a gun. They do There are, of course, not even have the courage some dangers to be found to behave like a shark and under this azure water par- attack in the open. adise: the majestic sharks What has turned this parand the scintillating speed adise into a crime capital? of the barracudas mark Clearly, many of the misthem as predators to be re- creants must be unable to spected. have feelings for others, unThe moray eel, howev- able to have empathy for the er, seems to resemble the suffering that they cause. threats that we are facing on This comes largely from dry land. It is a an upbringing fearsome crea- ‘A woman who that has been ture that lurks, devoid of love, well hidden, in has been raped a toxic mix of the coral reefs. is viewed as brain dysfuncThe eel even having caused tion and malooks evil as it ternal depridarts from hid- the violence or it vation. There ing to attack must have been has also been its prey. It has a tacit societal consensual.’ two jaws: the approval of first snaps shut much of this and holds its prey while the behaviour, what we might second begins to tear away describe as the politics of the flesh. It wraps its body hate. around the honeycomb A great Muslim scholar, coral making it impossible Ibn Rushd, who was born in to pull out; the blood of the Cordoba in 1126, said: “Igeel is poisonous and whilst norance leads to fear, fear heat can destroy the toxin leads to hate and hate leads many fishermen do not like to violence, this is the equato even cut up the body as tion.” the blood can cause festerIt used to be fairly siming wounds to develop on ple to create ignorance them. as education could be I feel this resembles the limited and diluted. The cowardly murderer who newspapers and the state shoots from a moving car controlled the media. It

THE moray eel lurks in coral reefs and darts out to strike its prey. is now more subtle; many people look for their own news on social media or via search engines on the internet. The problem is that mass media can create what has become known as ‘alternate facts’; the use of web robots (bots) can do simple, structurally repetitive tasks much faster than humans. This allows false stories to be pushed and enables them to pop up first on your search engine.

The stories that create fear, whilst generally untrue, have had an effect on our opinions and even on elections around the globe.

It seems easy get people to fear and then hate minorities whether by race or

religion. Crime is another perfect target; we are already afraid so the fire is ready to be stoked by lurid stories. The solutions, however, are not usually based on international research or the results of examination of local programmes but rather a clamour for more violence. I can never accept the axiom that if society meets violence with more violence, then violence will disappear.

A more sinister and disturbing delivery of this societal hate is the blaming of the victim. A woman who has been raped is viewed as having caused the violence or it must have been consensual!

The myth that all murder victims are just bad men killing bad men should be disturbing and painful to all society; it is simply not true.

The longer we hide behind these “alternative facts” the more difficult it becomes to solve the crime problem.

It is perhaps wishful thinking to expect all leaders to tell the truth but the truth about crime and societal issues must be reported by the media. There is increasing research that shows how domestic violence and stalking behaviours can lead to horrendous consequences; it is time to take early warning signs seriously. We must also shine a light on the seedy linkages

between the criminals and the seemingly respected groups within society.

Martin Luther King said: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only Love can do that.”

NEXT WEEK: as the election looms, a look at the historical impact of mental health on world leaders • Dr Mike Neville is a forensic psychiatrist who has practiced for more than 40 years in The Bahamas, working at Sandilands, the prison and in private practice. Comments and responses to mneville@tribunemedia.net.

READERS RESPOND TO FNM PETITION CALL AFTER the FNM urged Bahamians to sign a petition calling for Cabinet ministers Jerome Fitzgerald, Allyson Maynard-Gibson and Shane Gibson to be fired, readers gave their reaction on tribune242.com.

Sheeprunner12 wondered about the technicalities of such a move: “The Parliament was prorogued on April 10th ... MPs/Senators ceased to be MPs/Senators ... If Cabinet Ministers are either MPs or Senators does it not follow that the Cabinet was also dissolved?

What does the Constitution say? If the COP is the Provost-Marshall, what is the role of each Permanent Secretary?”

To which ThisIsOurs responded with: “Apparently

Cabinet doesn’t dissolve ...

Zhivago Laing explained that it’s set that way to allow for some governmental authority between dissolution of Parliament and Election Day.” Moncurcool also offered a response to Sheeprunner 12’s question: “Sidney Collie leave this alone. May 10 is the date for firing. By the way, Sheeprunner12, that is my same question. When Parliament is dissolved all MP seats are vacant. Thus,

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how can you be a member of Cabinet without a seat?

That is the strange part of our system.”

After the NHI Secretariat said that more than 2,600 people have enrolled in the NHI programme since its launch on Monday, DillyTree had this to say: “Waiting to hear what happens when those mere 2,600 people try to actually see a doctor. With only 60 doctors in total registered, that’s already 43 patients per doctor.”

Economist said: “This is what happens when a government implements NHI without dealing with the PHA and other wasteful matters first. This will be another major drain on the taxpayer as it will leak tens

of millions of dollars due to inefficiencies and corruption.”

After PLP chairman Bradley Roberts made accusations of further tax evasion and ownership of a stolen vehicle against FNM candidate Howard “Rickey” Mackey, Economist wondered: “So when is either party (DNA actually has set something out) going to tell us, in a sensible well thought out fashion, how they will fix the economy? All we see are a bunch of little children calling each other names while the country goes down the drain.”

Clamshell asked: “Is everybody in Parliament driving a luxury car that was stolen in the US?”

PAGE 14, Thursday, April 27, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

JUNE RUSSELL, of Blackfly Lodge, Abaco, with ‘Uncle Barry’.

CAPTAIN Errol Thurston and local boy Roman with a nice catch and release White Marlin in Abaco.

A WHITE Marlin for Captain Errol Thurston and ‘ZEBRAS’ still biting in Abaco. Bronson guest.

Russell with a Wahoo.

KEEP checking the Ba- be helpful in tracking the tacular fishing to be had in hamasSport Fishing Net- “hot spots” and providing The Bahamas, expert adwork (BSFN) expert page advice on gear and fishing vice, tournament dates and for fishing reports through- methods being used. results, informative features out the Bahamas: this will For a sample of the spec- and photo galleries visit the BSFN page at tribune242. com or www.bsfn.biz or on Facebook - Bahamas Sport Fishing Network.

BSFN slideshows can be found on USA Today’s website in the Travel section at experience.usatoday.com.