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Volume: 119 No.125, May 23, 2022

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TEACHERS’ FEARS ON COVID TRACING

Union concern over ability to properly monitor school cases

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas Union of Teachers is concerned about the capacity of the Ministry of Health and Wellness to facilitate proper contract tracing in the face of COVID-19 cases in schools and communities.

BUT president Belinda Wilson has questioned the Ministry’s ability to

adequately process, and to follow up on all of these cases in a timely manner.

She highlighted her issues in a voice note on Friday.

Last week, Mrs Wilson said the union was “closely monitoring” the spread of COVID-19 in public schools.

“In addition to the 14 schools identified earlier this week with COVID SEE PAGE THREE

SAMPLES RECEIVED IN EXUMA DEATHS PROBE

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net THE Royal Bahamas Police Force has received the results of samples that were sent abroad from three American tourists who were found dead at Sandals in Exuma, confirmed Commissioner of Police Paul Rolle yesterday.

The samples, extracted from each of the three victims, were sent to a lab in

Philadelphia for analysis earlier this month.

Mr Rolle said he directed that those results be forwarded the local pathologist.

He said that when a cause of death is released to the police, he will first release to family members and then to the media.

The commissioner was unable to say whether relatives of the victims were SEE PAGE FOUR

BACK ON THE ROAD CARNIVAL returned to The Bahamas at the weekend - with about 1,000 revellers taking part in a road parade on Saturday. See PAGES TWO AND THREE for more.

Photo: Moise Amisial

TALKS KEEP GOING - AS GAS PRICES KEEP RISING

PILOTS WARN CUSTOMS PLAN COULD HIT NATION

By PAVEL BAILEY

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE vice-president of the Bahamas Petroleum Dealer’s Association, Vasco Bastian, says he is uncertain if gas prices will stabilise anytime soon as negotiations between his organisation and the

government continue.

Mr Bastian, CEO of Esso, East Street and Soldier Road, confirmed that Esso fuel stations in recent days increased the price of gasoline per gallon from $6.33 to $6.48.

SEE PAGE SEVEN

PRIVATE pilots plan to “trust but verify” pledges by Customs to ease clearance reforms that some argue could cost this nation up to 25 percent of its existing

POLICE SEIZE $1.3M COCAINE HAUL

By PAVEL BAILEY

POLICE arrested 21 Chinese nationals after 68 kilos of cocaine were seized in a $1.3m drug bust on a cargo boat near Arawak Cay on Sunday.

Superintendent Audley Peters yesterday described how officers arrested the 21 people after police dogs uncovered drugs on their vessel.

He said: “Police dogs alerted their handlers to

POLICE on the scene of a large drug discovery at Arawak Cay. Photo: Racardo Thomas/Tribune Staff several floors in several

areas on that vessel. On inspection of those areas the officers found a quantity of a substance believed to be that of cocaine. The total amount was about 68 kilos, which was an estimated street value of $1,300,000.”

“As a result of the find, 21 persons were taken into custody, these are all Chinese nationals, these include 20 males and a female.”

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

SEE PAGE FOUR

business if implemented in their original form.

Customs, together with the Ministry of Tourism, held what was described as a “marathon” two-hour meeting with Bahamas Flying Ambassadors and FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

INSIGHT

WHAT DO WE DO IN INVISIBLE WAVE OF COVID? SEE PAGE EIGHT

PAGE 2, Monday, May 23, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, May 23, 2022, PAGE 3

REVELLERS, above and left, on the road parade and performers at the Saturday concert as Carnival returned to The Bahamas.

Photos: Moise Amisial

1,000 turn out for return to the road

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net ABOUT 1,000 revelers flooded the streets on Saturday for a Carnival road parade making for a “perfect” event, according to Rafel Dean, president of the Band Owners Association.

“Everything went as planned,” Mr Dean said the

day after the event.

He said Bahamas Masqueraders was the largest band during the Soca-filled event and other bands came together for a collaboration.

“They said they had a wonderful time, but more importantly the fans that came out and the vendors that came out and made money, had a wonderful time.

“When I did my late ride

through, people were out on the parade until after 8 o’clock... and had their tents spending family time or whatever time they were spending. So, clearly they had a wonderful time.”

Mr Dean said the projected total number of participants was about 1,000 and he said his approval from the Ministry of Health and Wellness was for 1,500 people.

He also said they adhered to COVID protocols. Mr Dean told The Tribune there was on-site COVID testing, particularly regarding Bahamas Masqueraders, and there were checks of vaccination cards and COVID-19 test results.

He added that he received no reports of fights and only one report of someone suffering from dehydration.

There was also a concert on Saturday night featuring big name local and international Soca artists.

Teachers’ fears on COVID tracing from page one positive cases and scores of teachers on quarantine and hundreds of students, we now have Uriah McPhee Primary School, CH Reeves Jr High, Sister Annie

Thompson Preschool and we are still concerned about Stephen Dillet Primary School. There still experiencing some concerns there and there are two other schools that we’re awaiting further information on possible positive cases,” the

voice note explained.

“One of the major concerns now is the capacity of the Ministry of Health contact tracing unit to facilitate, to adequately process and to follow up on all of these cases in a timely manner. So,

MAN KILLED IN HIT-AND-RUN CRASH

By PAVEL BAILEY

AUTHORITIES are currently investigating an apparent hit-and-run traffic accident on Kemp Road that occurred early Saturday morning, leaving one man dead.

According to initial police reports at around 6.45am on Saturday officers were alerted to the unresponsive body of an adult male lying at the entrance to St Margaret’s Cemetery on Kemp Road.

Once units were dispatched to the area their initial investigation concluded that the incident appeared to be a traffic accident.

As a result, officers from the Traffic Investigations Department were also called to the scene.

Emergency Medical Services upon completion of their examination of the body determined that there were no signs of life resulting in the male victim being pronounced dead at the scene.

Preliminary investigations suggests that the victim was walking in a northern direction along Kemp Road, when a vehicle traveling south, struck him. This resulted in the victim being tossed into the cemetery.

Police have so far withheld the name of the victim until his next of kin

can confirm his identity.

While an autopsy report is underway to determine the exact cause of death police have officially classified the matter as an active investigation.

Later that same day, police arrested a suspect in connection with the accident at the Esso station on East Bay Street. He is now in custody.

Police are appealing to members of the public, who may have information that can assist with this investigation and other criminal matters, to contact the Criminal Investigations Department at 502-9991/2, Crime stoppers at 328TIPS (8477) or the nearest police station.

SPEED THOUGHT TO BE FACTOR IN DEATH

By PAVEL BAILEY POLICE are investigating a traffic fatality that occurred when a man crashed after reportedly speeding on West Bay Street on Saturday evening.

In statements to reporters late on Saturday night at the scene of the incident, police Superintendent Audley Peters briefed reporters on what led to the tragic death of the male driver.

“Sometime after 7pm officers were called to a traffic fatality on West Bay Street,” Mr Peters said. “Upon arrival on the

scene they found a small Nissan Cube with extensive damage. Inspection of the Cube revealed a Caucasian male in the front drivers seat, a check of his pulse was done and he was unresponsive. The officers summoned emergency medical services upon their arrival they assessed the body and concluded there was no signs of life.”

The identity of the victim has not yet been disclosed to the public. This is pending notification of the deceased’s family of his death. However, initial investigations into the matter have revealed that

speeding did play a factor in the accident.

“The inquiries thus far have revealed that the driver was heading in a westerly direction at a high rate of speed when he lost control of the vehicle, collided into a coconut tree, cascaded and hit another tree, which was a Poinciana tree and eventually came to a stop.”

Authorities are asking members of the public who might have information on this incident to contact the Criminal Investigations Department or report into the nearest police station.

the Bahamas Union of Teachers we will continue to monitor each school closely and we will ensure that our members are safe and that students are also safe.”

The Tribune tried to contact Education Director

Marcellous Taylor, but there was no response.

It was previously claimed that schools such as CR Walker, TG Glover, CC Sweeting Senior, Garvin Tynes Primary School, Stephen Dillet, CV Bethel, Arthur’s

Town Comprehensive, SC McPherson, Laura Anderson in North Eleuthera, North Eleuthera High, Doris Johnson, Gambier Primary, Gerald Cash, Eva Hilton, have all “seen one or more positive cases”.

PAGE 4, Monday, May 23, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

Miller: Slow progress on Olympia Heights

By PAVEL BAILEY MORE than two months after a $1.2m contract was signed for the placement of infrastructure and development at Olympia Heights, Olympian Ramon Miller said there is still much more work to be done as construction has slowed down in the area.

The first excavators began work sometime in February.

In an interview with The Tribune yesterday Mr Miller said he was happy to see excavators finally begin work on the property the Christie Administration gave him in 2014, but he was still surprised by how long and difficult making progress has been.

Mr Miller and his family

live on 20,000 sq ft of land at Olympia Heights, which is in Tropical Gardens. He had previously exclusively told this newspaper of his struggles with having no electricity for years and having to use a generator so that they could live comfortably.

“They have started, February 17, to be exact,” he said yesterday when contacted by this newspaper.

“That date is when I saw those big excavators and stuff come in around the area that I live and they start(ed) to excavate the land. So far, it’s been three months later, I guess it’s about 90 days, they did start some roadwork and the roughing work. And roughing work meaning knowing the bit of the road, knowing where the poles will be,

knowing where persons’ lands are, all of those, etc.

“I thought it would’ve been an easy one, two, three punch, but it’s much more difficult than what I expected. Because so far, they’ve only did the roughing work meaning cutting the road, the width it should be and clearing down some of the portions, a lot of fill, a lot of high elevations so they had to cut down this and cut down that. So, it’s going but it ain’t as fast as I thought it would’ve been, but just going on.”

In describing what work is left to be done, Miller said that they still haven’t fit power poles into the area and also mentioned that work had slowed down significantly since the project started in February.

“Ain’t no poles up, ain’t

no water running yet. I haven’t seen BPL around or the Water & Sewage Corporation to run like water and stuff. I’m assuming I guess that they only doing the road so far that’s all I see and the work isn’t constant. So, they’d work for a day then take off five days or six days and so on and so forth. At the beginning they did work consistently, but now it’s a day here a day there.”

Mr Miller said he still has to use a generator to get running water and electricity into his home so his family can go about their daily lives. But despite these setbacks, Mr Miller said he is still thankful to the government for their help in the matter.

The Olympic gold medalist also expressed his hope

that his struggles will inspire better collaboration between the government and future generations of athletes so they can aspire for greatness on the world stage.

“I want to thank them for really acknowledging my request and getting the work started that’s a must.

And I just hope that the process don’t be as tedious for up-and-coming athletes that’s my goal. We go out there on the limb and we represent our country and you know they give us land and whatnot but we don’t know the backside of that.

I know if somebody gives you a gift you’d hope the gift provides the necessary infrastructure or needs to go along with it. Not knowing that you’d have to go through all of this to get

yourself established in your hometown after all you’ve done.

“But other than that, once this stage is over hopefully athletes see that someone (is) out there fighting for their cause and I just don’t want it to happen to no other athletes that’s what I want. Because I’m pretty sure more athletes will go out there represent the Bahamas and bring home gold if they don’t have to worry about this.

Getting the land and say ‘Boy you see what Olympian Miller gone through?

He had that land and ain’t had all of these stuff.’

“I’m just trying to avoid that from happening and it shows once you be persistent you get stuff done despite the length of it,” he said yesterday.

POLICE SEIZE $1.3M COCAINE HAUL from page one

POLICE with drugs discovered at Arawak Cay.

Photo: Racardo Thomas/Tribune Staff

Superintendent Peters attributed this major drug bust to the “robust” amount of information collected by police. He also thanked members of the public who continued to help authorities investigate such matters.

Meanwhile, authorities seized 16lbs of marijuana worth $16,000 over the weekend after conducting an immigration raid at a residence in the Carmichael Road area.

According to an official report a combined team of officers from the Bahamas Immigration Department and the Royal Bahamas Police Force executed a search warrant on a residence in the Haitian

community located on Butlers Way off Carmichael Road at 11pm Friday.

There officers from the Immigration Department arrested two males and a female for the offence of Illegal entry.

After their arrest a police search dog alerted its handler to an area. The officer inspected the area and found several packages containing a grassy substance suspected to be marijuana.

The weight of the suspected drugs is 16 lbs and has an estimated street value of $16,000.

While there no arrests were made in connection with the suspected drugs, police say the matter remains under active investigation. The drugs are currently in police custody.

SAMPLES RECEIVED IN EXUMA DEATHS PROBE from page one granted permission to bring in a US pathologist to conduct another autopsy, saying this was outside of his remit.

Earlier this month during a press conference Mr Rolle said samples were extracted from all of the persons “and our forensic scientists have collected those samples for examination.

“We are actively engaging a lab in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to assist us with expediting the toxicological examinations of all of these samples,” he said at the time.

“Once those examinations are done, our pathologist would be able to provide us with an official report as to the exact cause of death and help us to determine exactly what has happened.

“Our forensic scientists have also collected samples from both of the rooms and the properties of the

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Sandals hotel in Exuma to determine whether or not any contaminants are present.”

Married Maryville, Tennessee, couple Michael and Robbie Phillips and Vincent Paul Chiarella of Florida were found dead in two separate villas at Sandals on May 6 after they were stricken by an unknown illness.

Donnis Chiarella, wife of Paul, was the lone survivor.

Officials say the two men and one woman died sometime between 11pm on May 5 when they, along with the lone survivor, visited the clinic seeking medical attention for nausea and vomiting, and around 8.30am to 9am the next morning, when they were found dead in two separate villas.

Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper previously told reporters that autopsies of the American victims had already been completed. However, he noted the findings have not

been released.

Following this, Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville said there were still some ongoing investigations at the resort, but that relatives wanted to bring in a pathologist.

“We also have the pathologist in (the) country who have done their job and samples were sent to a very reliable lab in the United States and a toxicology report was still outstanding.”

“There was requests by family members of the deceased to bring in pathologists from abroad to do another autopsy because you know to move bodies across water, they have to be embalmed and so that request was made. I do not know exactly how far it has gone but we are willing to assist anyone who wants to get to the bottom of their loved ones and so those requests are being entertained but I’m not sure where they are at this point.”

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, May 23, 2022, PAGE 5

FROM left, Sean Geiser, Troy McIntosh, deputy director of building and development department at GBPA, and Ramdeo Ramdass, operation manager at Bahamas Hot Mix, at the announcement of a $1m roadworks project in Freeport.

$1m roadworks begin in GB

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net A $1M roadworks project is being undertaken by the Grand Bahama Port Authority Limited as part of an initiative to resurface roadways in Freeport.

Work was expected to start yesterday at the Fishing Hole Road, and West Atlantic and Adventurers Way roundabout.

Troy McIntosh, GBPA deputy director of building and development services, said the City Maintenance and Management section is excited to begin this initiative to resurface roadways within the city.

He said: “Our city has been through many challenging storm events which

did catastrophic damage to infrastructure around the island, including our roads.

“But our community is resilient, and we are seeing a positive shift in the economic tide,” Mr McIntosh said.

“Excitement for future opportunities and anticipation of new investments is palpable through the city, so we knew this was the ideal time to start this aspect of Freeport’s much-needed makeover to which GBPA is fully committed.”

Mr McIntosh indicated that roadworks will include main thoroughfares and a number of residential roads.

In addition to the Fishing Hole Road, West Atlantic and Adventures Way roundabout, work will

include West Atlantic Drive at Rayvin Mall roundabout, Beach Way Drive, Bahama Reef Boulevard, Pioneers Way, Waterfall Drive, Tarrytown Street and Grand Bahama Highway.

Mr McIntosh said those locations were selected using their Road Rating System, which allows inspectors to assess the condition and rideability of roads annually.

The GBPA roadworks project went out to bid in December 2020. In March 2022, the Bahamas Hot Mix (BHM) that specializes in heavy civil engineering projects, including major highways, was awarded the bid.

Mr McIntosh said that motorists should be careful while driving in areas where

roadworks are taking place.

“We ask motorists to drive with due care and attention while roadwork is underway,” Mr. McIntosh advised.

He noted that there will be flagmen and temporary traffic lights will be in position to direct traffic.

Mr McIntosh urged motorists to obey the speed limit and the posted signs to help ensure the safety of all motorists and crews as they work. He said delays are expected because there will be partial lane closures in some areas.

On Monday, May 23, Bahamas Hot Mix will proceed to the roundabout at Freeport Bible on West Atlantic Drive to resurface the road there. The work will start at 9am and end at 7pm.

Mr McIntosh said the crew will then proceed south to Rayvin Mall to carry out major undertaking there as well, which will last for a period of three days.

The next location is Beachway Drive from East Sunrise Highway to San Salvador, just short of the Castle. At Bahama Reef Boulevard, from Beachway to Cove House. Then at Tarrytown from Seahorse Road to Westminister in Windsor Park, and from Waterfall Drive to King Neptune to Seahorse Road.

The last two locations are Pioneers Way and Grand Bahama Highway.

Ramdeo Ramdass, operational manager at Bahamas Hot Mix, said that they plan to complete the

work as quickly as possible.

He said the contact is short term.

Sean Geiser said people will be at sites to ensure safe traffic management.

He said some roads will be fully closed, including the roundabout at West Atlantic from 9am to 7pm. He said traffic lights will be used at some roads, and at the dual carriageway one lane will remain open.

The Grand Bahama Port Authority said the road resurfacing project is scheduled to be completed at the end of June 2022.

For the latest updates and information on redirected travel routes, residents can follow any of the Grand Bahama Port Authority’s social media sites or visit its website at www.gbpa.com.

NURSES HAVE GIVEN SO MUCH - SO COMPANY BUYS THEM LUNCH IN CELEBRATING its 13th anniversary and a continued commitment to giving back to the Bahamian community, the Bahamas Striping Group of Companies plans to celebrate nurses and the work they’ve done during the pandemic and beyond, by treating 300 nurses to lunch at the end of the month at Manuelo’s Restaurant.

BSGC managing director, Dr Allen Albury, said

it is an absolute privilege for the company to partner with the nursing community.

“What we do recognise at BSGC, is to whom much is given, much is required, and it has always been our mantra of giving back across the country, and we often overlook the contributions of so many who are out there on the frontline some of which have personal challenges, yet

they have to deliver”, he said.

This initiative happens to coincide with International Nurses Month.

Traditionally celebrated from May 6 to May 12 each year, International Nurses Month is now a monthlong celebration to expand opportunities to elevate and celebrate nursing.

Nurse Gina Dean, Acting Director of Nursing, expressed her gratitude to

BSGC for reaching out to the nursing community.

“Over the last couple of years, we have demonstrated that there is so much value to being a nurse, and the profession, and to have a company remember us as nurses continues to make a difference while providing quality patient care,” she said.

While administration of healthcare has always been a challenge for

nurses and physicians, Dr Dionne Dames, Internal Medicine Specialist, at The Princess Margaret Hospital said she would like to applaud the nurses for all that they do, as they have

been challenged over the last two years doing many things that most of the community is not aware of and they have truly been a pillar to our country during the pandemic.

LIVE-IN HANDYMAN • Hands on, proactive household live-in handyman.

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• Responsibility for the maintenance and security of the property during the • and police record.

Interested persons should send resume and supporting documents to:

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All applications must be submitted on or before May 27, 2022.

PAGE 6, Monday, May 23, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

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What are key climate themes at Davos?

WHILE the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s war in Ukraine will be focuses of the World Economic Forum’s gathering of business and government leaders, so too will climate change. It’s captured the world’s attention in unignorable and devastating ways.

The acceleration of rising temperatures, the ferocity and costliness of major weather events, and the impact, particularly on people in developing countries, have pushed the issue from one of science to something that touches every aspect of life, including (or, perhaps especially) business and economics.

Of the roughly 270 panels Monday through Thursday, one-third are about climate change or its direct effects. US climate envoy John Kerry, Ugandan climate activist Vanessa Nakate and Alok Sharma, president of last year’s international climate conference COP26, are among the climate leaders expected in the Swiss resort town of Davos.

At the forum’s first in-person gathering in two years, the climate panels are as varied as the issue. They range from combating “eco-anxiety” to helping debtridden countries finance a renewable transition. Here’s a look at some broader themes that are likely to emerge: ENVIRONMENTAL, SOCIAL, GOVERNANCE Several panels will wrestle with an approach to investing that considers the environment and other key factors.

Known by the acronym ESG, it’s become a force, with trillions of dollars invested in companies that meet certain criteria.

When it comes to climate change, ESG can be important. For individual investors all the way up to firms and government agencies that analyse how companies operate, disclosures and public declarations are paramount. They can be the basis of evaluating a company’s emissions, environmental impact and financial risks tied to climate change.

They are also controversial and raise questions: Should certain declarations be mandatory? Should they be standardised and regulated, and by whom? Or has the ESG movement already gone too far, ultimately hindering investment and doing little to rein in greenhouse gas emissions?

Viewpoints sometimes fall along political lines. In the US, many Republicans call them “woke,” while many on the left, particularly environmentalists and campaigners, argue that ramping up reporting and transparency could lead to real change.

Many managers of some of the world’s largest mutual funds have argued ESG is essential to evaluate risk. Just last week, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the approach had “been weaponised by phony social justice warriors”.

ENERGY TRANSITION AND ‘NET ZERO’ The world’s top climate scientists have warned that significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions this decade is necessary to minimise warming and avoid

the most devastating effects to the planet.

That will require major changes in how business is done, from the way products are produced to how they are transported.

Several panels will look at areas where businesses have successfully transitioned much of their energy portfolio to renewables, the role of finance and government to incentivise or mandate changes, and strategies to keep businesses accountable. Despite heightened consciousness and pledges by businesses, emissions are going up worldwide.

“Moving climate debate from ambition to delivery” is a title of one panel that sums up the enormous challenge.

Sessions will look at sectors, like decarbonising shipping and aviation, renewable transition plans and the challenges of achieving them in countries like China and India. There will be discussion of strategies to ensure major shifts are inclusive and consider people in historically marginalised countries, which are feeling some of the most intense effects of climate change.

An important current through all the discussions will be identifying what “net zero” is — and isn’t — when looking at pledges from companies and countries. Moving away from fossil fuels like coal and oil to renewables like solar and wind can reduce emissions and get a company closer to goals of taking an equal amount of emissions out of the atmosphere as it puts in.

But a transition to renewables often makes up only a small part of company plans. Many rely on balancing their carbon footprint by investing in forest restoration or other projects. While better than nothing, experts note that depending on carbon offsets doesn’t represent a shift in business practices.

WAR IN UKRAINE AND THE FUTURE OF ENERGY Russia’s war in Ukraine will loom large at the conference. When it comes to climate change, the conflict raises two central questions: How should countries respond to energy shocks from reducing or being cut off from Russian oil and gas? And will the war hasten the transition to renewable energies or help fossil fuel companies maintain the status quo?

Since the war began, there has been no shortage of businesses, environmentalists and political leaders trying to influence the answers to those questions, which will carry over to Davos.

“Energy Security and the European Green Deal” is one panel where participants are expected to argue that the way forward is away from fossil fuels. But European countries, some of which are heavily reliant on Russia for energy, also are scrambling to find other sources of natural gas and oil to meet short-term needs.

While no sessions explicitly make the case for a doubling down on reliance on fossil fuels or expanding extraction or exploration, if the last few months are any guide, those points of view will certainly be present.

By PETER PRENGAMAN Associated Press

Spread the message on climate change EDITOR, The Tribune.

ALMOST exactly 30 years after the United Nations declared at COP1 that human activities are changing the Earth’s climate and that these “adverse effects are a common concern of mankind,” little has changed for the better, and the facts remain: A. Global warming/climate change is real.

B. The ongoing and potential impacts of climate change are detrimental to humans and the natural environment.

C. While we —the “general public” — may not agree about humans being responsible for the current era of global warming, the science is clear: We are.

This piece is about climate change messaging; about ways to effectively convey the message so an optimum number of people are reached. For messages about climate change to be effectively conveyed, several factors must be considered: 1. The impact of the audience’s values, identities, world views, and individual priorities on how it reacts to messages. Candidly: People want to know what’s in it for them. For example, a businesswoman might be interested in installing solar panels on the roof of her business if it is made clear how the investment will pay off financially over the long run. A true, true Christian may be motivated to reduce their carbon footprint by having a pastor who “walks the talk” deliver messages about “Creation care,” moral responsibility to others, and how such actions bring believers closer to God. 2. Messages must be framed through the use of “relevant, local images, and through good storytelling that focuses more on people (e.g., a victim of flooding) than nature (e.g, a turtle). Messages must be action-oriented, as in solutions and benefits, not doomsday prophecies, and must focus on concrete local actions that can be taken individually and collectively. For example, residents in low-lying, flood prone inland communities of New Providence need to understand how upgrading flood control infrastructure (e.g., deep wells, improved storm drains) will benefit them. Residents would then be responsible for helping keep drain grates and streets cleared of debris.

3. While scientific evidence is a must, language must be easily understood by the average citizen and must be relevant. Evidence from The Bahamas and

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net the surrounding region must be utilised. For example, while climate change did not cause Hurricane Dorian, conditions related to global warming made it worse. Ocean temperatures have been steadily increasing over the past 150 years, with Atlantic surface temperatures in August 2019 tied with 2015 and 2017 for the second-highest on record. As we learned from our BJC 7th Grade Social Studies “Weather and Climate” unit, hurricanes derive their energy from warm surface waters (hence the time of year) and, the warmer the ocean, the stronger the hurricane.

4. Those concerned about the impact of climate change cannot dismiss climate sceptics. For example, during the 2016 US presidential election when Hillary Clinton said Trump’s supporters belonged in a “basket of deplorables.” Not a winning strategy. While sources of scepticism and misinformation must be addressed, information must be kept relevant.

Allies, sceptics, and deniers must be recruited and respected.

Engage, listen, converse, respect, collaborate. Build alliances, not walls.

5a. And adaptations.

Adaptations are essential, particularly ones with achievable goals that bring tangible benefits to both individuals and the community and that fit within people’s norms and their pocketbooks. For example, turning down air conditioning and running them less will reduce one’s electricity bill, contribute to fewer power outages (especially in New Providence), and reduce CO2 emissions.

5b. Another concrete example: Bahamas Power and Light (BPL) could implement a saver switch programme for customers with central air conditioning. Here, during periods of peak demand, a switch installed by BPL would automatically cycle air conditioners off and on every 15-20 minutes (rotating by, say, distribution substation), while the fan stays on to circulate already cooled air. Incentivize by giving discounts to customers who join the programme.

6. Messaging must be conveyed in diverse formats and forums: from the news media to TikTok; from the pulpit; during political rallies; in classrooms. In short, wherever and however people gather virtually and in person.

An important reminder: As noted in my initial piece,

our brains aren’t wired to deal with distant threats.

For example, though I understand eating too much peas and rice, mac and cheese, conch fritters, and guava duff will probably lead to serious health problems 15, 20, 30 years from now, that knowledge and fear don’t outweigh the pleasure I derive from eating platefuls today, tomorrow, next week. The same applies to our carbon-based economy: It’s working for most Bahamians. So what’s the problem?

Briefly, for respectful, productive dialogue to occur, people must be met where we are and we must feel validated and that what we are doing makes sense for us individually and as a community. Global warming is an urgent issue.

Unfortunately, the challenge of addressing climate change — of mitigating its effects and adapting lifestyles — can feel overwhelming, and this is why we must feel that each of us has the power to contribute to mitigation and adaptation efforts.

An important caveat to all this. While each person has a role to play, especially those of us in wealthier nations like The Bahamas who are top consumers, it is governments and corporations who must assume the mantle of responsibility for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. As Diana Ivanova, a Research Fellow at the Sustainability Research Institute at the School of Earth and Environment, University of Leeds notes, “An important question is who has the most power and agency for a change that will bring sizable cuts to emissions quickly, which really points the finger more to governments and corporations.”

An example of government policy: A revised building code that requires more climate and weather resistant energy-efficient buildings, as in LEED certification whereby buildings are healthy, efficient, and energy saving. This would especially apply to commercial construction and homes over a certain value.

At a very tangible level, if construction cannot be prohibited in low-lying, flood-prone regions, new buildings should be elevated on higher foundations with stringent guidelines for septic systems. Also, to reduce reliance on energyintensive RO municipal water and to reduce strain on supplies, homes over a certain value should be required to have cisterns.

CHRIS MINNS George Town, Exuma May 20, 2022.

Pintard went too far in Minnis criticism EDITOR, The Tribune.

I ALWAYS send my draft letters to a dear friend before I publish them.

We graduated high school together in the late 1970s, and have remained close all these years.

After my last letter he told me to pause. He said to give the poet-comedian leader of the FNM, Michael Pintard, a chance.

He rightly observed that Mr Pintard is unschooled in the arts of high politics and leadership. He has much growing to do.

My halt in writing ended when I read the ridiculous, offensive and incorrect remarks last week by the poet-comedian, attacking former FNM leader Dr Hubert Minnis. Mr Pintard

went too far.

Mr Pintard decided to attack an FNM out of nowhere. Every FNM I talked with was shocked.

Dr Minnis has not criticized Mr Pintard. Dr Minnis has not criticised an FNM, or the party.

In fact, all Dr Minnis has done is go to the House of Assembly well prepared and focus his criticism on the PLP and Philip Davis.

Dr Minnis has done his job.

The only other times Dr Minnis speaks publicly are when reporters ask him questions on the steps of the House, or if they call him to respond to what the PLP said about his administration.

Dr Minnis has been a gracious team player.

Mr Pintard’s attack on

Dr Minnis was petty, childish and unbecoming of a leader.

The people of the Killarney constituency elected Dr Minnis to represent them under the FNM’s banner.

He is paid by the state to be their representative in the House.

Dr Minnis has an obligation to speak on behalf of his constituents. No one can muzzle him – especially not a poet-comedian, who appears to be in a haze of anger.

When the FNM lost in 2002, Hubert Ingraham, a dear friend of mine, won his seat. He stayed in the House as an MP while Tommy Turnquest was the leader of the FNM. Mr Ingraham came to the House well prepared.

He made his contributions as the Member for North Abaco, as he should as their representative. Dr Minnis is doing the same thing. Nothing more.

Mr Pintard’s unwarranted attack on Dr Minnis showed how insecure he is in his position. Dr Minnis has good political instincts.

His critique of the PLP is aggressive and well considered. The media follows Dr Minnis’ interventions because they make sense and are timely.

Mr Pintard, surprisingly, is boring. I thought he would be more exciting due to him being a poet-comedian. But that has not been the case.

Mr Pintard is stiff.

He does not have good political timing. He loves

bureaucracy, having to run simple ideas through a maze of “committees”.

Because of that, Mr Pintard has not gained any national momentum since becoming FNM leader.

Most Bahamians, anecdotally, still think of Dr Minnis as the FNM’s real leader.

That infuriates the poetcomedian. It enrages him.

That’s why, in my opinion, he attacked Dr Minnis, in a haze of anger.

FNMs were not impressed by what the poetcomedian did. We want him to attack the PLP and its leader, Mr Davis. We do not want our leader publicly attacking good FNMs. It is an act of disloyalty for an FNM leader to attack another FNM in good

standing who has done nothing to deserve that attack.

The poet-comedian must be careful. The FNM is a party of open-minded freedom fighters who believe in party democracy. We have no maximum leader who can do as he pleases.

We expect our leader to treat all FNMs fairly. It is offensive for our leader to unjustly attack one of our own. We will not keep a leader who keeps doing this.

The poet-comedian needs to focus his fire on the PLP. Leave good FNMs alone.

THE MACKEY STREET MAN Nassau, May 22, 2022.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, May 23, 2022, PAGE 7

Released sex offender is ‘a risk’ to public, says minister

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe announced that a registered sexual offender was due for release on Friday although he was considered “a risk of significant harm to the health and safety of the public.”

During a press conference yesterday, Mr Munroe said that the current twoyear indecent assault sentence of Alden Scott, 55, was for touching the hips of a nine-year-old girl. His previous offence was the rape of a 17-year-old for which he was jailed in 2014 and released in 2020.

Mr Munroe said that the registrar of the sexual offenders list and the commissioner of the correctional institution considered Scott a significant risk to public safety. Reading their submission to him and hearing the offender, Mr Munroe also considered Scott a significant risk.

“Yesterday, I got notification from the commissioner of corrections with a memo from the registrar of the sexual offenders register that a sexual offender on the register was due to be released today and they were advising that due to the antecedents of the criminal history of the offender, his conduct while in the correctional facility and while out working at a police station was such that they deemed him a risk of significant harm to the health and safety of the public as apposed to a particular individual and they were advising that I ought to make a public announcement of the release of the offender.”

He added: “This is an offender who shows no age preference in victims.

His history shows offences against a child of nine, a young woman of 17, and while in the correctional institution behaviour towards adult females.”

The minister noted the concern of there

TALKS KEEP GOING - AS GAS PRICES KEEP RISING from page one He explained that Esso stations saw the increase first as “we sell more fuel and our inventory turns over quicker”.

He said other fuel providers were likely to increase their prices in the coming days.

Amid the ongoing oil disruption sparked from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Mr Bastian said while he understands the struggles felt by the average Bahamian at the gas pump, local gas distributors, have little to no say in the matter.

“That all depends on how long this war continues,” he said. “I definitely don’t think they (gas prices) are going to stabilise anytime soon, I am hoping that they do, I’m a very optimistic guy. It’s kind of a wait and see situation right now, it looks like Mr. Putin isn’t easing up right now, it’s just a wait and see and I am very concerned.

“Definitely nobody has any control (gas prices). I tell you and I tell everybody we are not the producers of oil, so we have no say in the game.”

In reference to recent talks between gas distributors and the government regarding gas price regulations Mr Bastian noted that these negotiations are still ongoing. As such he cannot put a definitive date as to when an agreement will be made between both parties.

“We are still in negotiations with the government we’re still talking to the government so we have no

definite answers on that right now but we are still talking to the government and we’re still hopeful.

“Right now, I don’t want to put a date or time on it.

All I can say is I hope it’s very, very soon cause it’s very scary for a lot of the dealers at this time so we’re hoping and praying right now and we’re on our knees hoping that things can get better.”

When asked what he would say to Family Island gas consumers hit hard by skyrocketing gas prices, Mr Bastian advised that they try to conserve as much as possible to get through these hard times at the pump. The BPDA vicepresident also said that family islanders should remain encouraged as he still believes that gas prices may stabilise in the very near future.

“I would tell the gas consumers in the Family Islands to do exactly what I was telling the driving public in the island of New Providence to try to conserve as much driving if they can reduce their driving as much as possible. If they can use various additives above industry oil and STP gas treatments. If they live in the same settlement as a fellow co-worker or family friend if they can carpool that’s basically it.

“I want the people in the family islands to stay encouraged and we will get through this together and at the end of the day hopefully everybody will be happy and we can get back to a level of normalisation of gas prices if not in the very, very near future then shortly.”

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being reprisal retaliation against persons who are the subject of a public notice.

If it is manifest as a reality, he warned, it could lead to courts directing against public notifications.

The Freetown MP said the commissioner of corrections reminder that their preferred method of dealing with these persons are for continuing monitoring after release from prison as is done in Canada.

It was incorporated in the parole and re-entry report delivered in 2016.

“I’ve said it previously, we’re gonna have to consult on it because it wasn’t well received when I said it earlier, but the preferred method is not to my mind a more effective method for individuals like this.

Would it be he has to sign in by Saturday at the kiosk.

He has to sign in within seven days of a change of an address and then apart from that he has to sign in once a year. The preferred protection in our view, as I expressed to the offender,

is that you be electronically monitored so that you know that I know where you are 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year,” he explained.

“A part of the exercise going on at this ministry at the moment is a revision of the draft parole and re-entry legislation which was annexed to the report in 2016 and we are doing that at the moment.

The legal office here with a view to submitting to the Attorney General given the perception of that proposition earlier. We’ll have to move to a public consultation and we’ll then have to advance within that fashion.”

Asked what he would say to persons who are uncomfortable with the offender being released back into the public, Mr Munroe replied that the reality of the penal system is that persons are given a certain length of imprisonment. When they finish that imprisonment, they are then released.

“Having been released,

having been set to pay their penalty that’s the end of it unless we make some changes. As a policymaker, the legal department here is canvassing those changes that it is hoped to advance for consideration shortly.

The first change is currently if you are awarded sentence you get time off automatically upfront. So if a judge sentences you to 12 months, you get four months off automatically.

“At the end of time on being released, if you reoffend you never do those four months. The proposed

proposition we are currently looking at that was advanced by the parole and re-entry committee is that you serve all of your sentence. Some of it in prison.

Some of it outside of prison, so you will not be getting four months off upfront.

You may be released on parole and if you reoffend within the terms of your sentence you will be returned to the correctional facility to serve your new sentence after you have completed serving the part of the sentence that hadn’t expired.”

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MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022

THE STORIES BEHIND THE NEWS

THIS May 13, 2020 photo made with a fisheye lens shows a list of the confirmed COVID-19 cases in Salt Lake County early in the coronavirus pandemic at the Salt Lake County Health Department, in Salt Lake City. Health officials later moved to tracking the cases in an online database, but the white board remains in the office as a reminder of how quickly the coronavirus spread.

Photo: Rick Bowmer/AP

The invisible wave of COVID higher than the official figures, infectious disease expert Dr Nikkiah Forbes agreed that that figures may A FRIEND tested posi- be different, but that offitive for COVID-19 last cials also had access to the week. He had to take a test rapid antigen test figures. ahead of travel, and hadn’t Those are less reliable so expected a positive result they are not published, but – but there it was. He was they do serve as a general fully vaccinated, had the guide for officials on the booster, and hadn’t felt ill number of cases. at all, but still somewhere Meanwhile, those totals along the way he picked up here keep creeping up. A the virus. It was, in his case, number of schools have almost an invisible illness. already reverted to online Invisible might be the learning for students – at word for how COVID-19 is least in part, I suspect, to being treated in many ways try to minimise the risk of these days. Last week, CNN disruption to examinations. reported on the “invisible A significant number wave” of COVID that has of other schools have been spreading seen positive across the US. cases – and ‘Why not have it Why invisible? the Bahamas Well, the offi- clearly explained Union of cial counts of to everyone what Teachers has cases are more level of infection called on the incomplete government these days. or number of to “utilise At-home tests hospitalisations wisdom” over have increasthe shutting of ingly replaced triggers certain schools. the number measures?’

It’s hard to of tests done know what at laboratories, and when that means. The union says people test at home, they to ensure safety is first, but don’t report the outcome to it’s not very specific. add to the official count.

BUT president Belinda Instead, some areas have Wilson rattled off a list of resorted to testing sewage schools with positive cases – water, to work out levels CR Walker, TG Glover, CC of infection based on how Sweeting Senior, Garvin much is in wastewater.

Tynes Primary School, SteThe US isn’t the only phen Dillett, CV Bethel, country where official test Arthur’s Town Compreresults are giving a less hensive, SC McPherson, complete picture. Last year, Laura Anderson in North Al Jazeera was reporting Eleuthera, North Eleuthera that the UK death toll was High, Doris Johnson, Gamunder-reported by half, bier Primary, Gerald Cash, while earlier this year The Eva Hilton.

Independent was reporting So how does wisdom “tens of thousands” of cases apply in these cases? Shut missing from the UK gov- the school after a case? Two ernment’s daily figures. cases? Three?

Here at home, the daily This far into the pandashboard only records demic, it seems remarkable positive results from PCR that so many decisions still tests – not the rapid anti- seem to be made on the gen tests. When Dr Duane fly. Why not have it clearly Sands noted that the actual explained to everyone number of cases in The what level of infection or Bahamas could be much number of hospitalisations

By MALCOLM STRACHAN

triggers certain measures?

Have our own ratings of stage one, stage two, etc, and reaching a certain level of cases automatically triggers the next level and the restrictions that go with it?

There seems to be a great resistance now to reintroducing any restrictions. We have had several weeks of cases going up – as has been the case across the region – and yet this weekend partygoers took to the road and joined in carnival.

How many cases will we see from this weekend of celebration? What effect will that have on our numbers?

Normally, they say wait a week to two weeks to see the rise in infections – so take a look at the figures a fortnight from now.

Many have had the opportunity to go and get vaccinated if they wish – but not our young children.

There is no vaccination available here for children under 12, and even if parents were to bundle their youngsters up and head to Miami to get vaccinated, there’s no vaccine cleared at all for children aged five and under yet.

Last week, the death tally was revised after examination of earlier cases, reaching a new total of 810. Had 810 of our brothers and sisters been murdered in the same length of time as the pandemic, we would have had howls of outrage, demands for action, government being held to account. And yet here we are, with the same number of fatalities and we seem eager to throw off the measures that stops that number from rising further.

We may be facing an invisible wave – but we must not let our compassion become invisible.

We must still show that we care by the actions we take. We know too many have already died – so what are we prepared to do to stop those numbers rising further?

THE BAHAMAS Union of Teachers president, Belinda Wilson.

FNM chairman Dr Duane Sands.

EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

INSIGHT

A wrinkle or two

By DR KENNETH D KEMP

THROUGHOUT the course of history, we’ve all inherently benefited from the immeasurable sacrifices of our forefathers.

Men and women who, through their contributions to the betterment of mankind, have made our lives infinitely easier. To that end, we’ve built statues and monuments to show respect and remind us, and succeeding generations, of their vast accomplishments that both awe and inspire future generations to tread a similar path. But true character, when truly tested, is revealed over time and under pressure and the legacy of every man is etched deeply within his temperament and faith.

This week’s report tells the story of a patient named Terry, who in spite of multiple often serious life setbacks, has at age 84 remarkably improved the lives of others within his community.

Terry was born in 1938 in an indigent working class neighbourhood in East End, London. Just two years later, during the Second World War, that area was bombed twice by Nazi Germany so the family relocated to North London where he remained until he became a teenager. Though white and Christian, he was often teased because of his Jewish last name. With a raging contempt tearing at his insides, he fought his bullies almost every day and ended up in juvenile court three times before the age of 10. The judge, recognizing his talent for fighting, designated a police officer as a mentor who, along with his father, introduced him to the sport of boxing as a means of centrifuging his anger. Eventually he went on to become a two-time national and nine-time regional boxing champion and street fighter in London, having participated in 127 fights and only losing six.

Between his formative years of 11 and 18, he joined the British Sea Cadet Corp. After travelling for several years, he landed in Australia and worked in numerous professions. On his eventual return to England, he got married but

the marriage was ripe with nine children and adopt challenges from the start three others.

Working and disintegrated after 18 side by side with governmonths. The couple had ment law enforcement, he one child together, a son. was also deeply invested Despite this, Terry’s adven- in eradicating the innerturous spirit led him to join city communities of drug the British Merchant Navy and violence, operating and on a fateful trip to The one of the few anti-drug Bahamas, he met and fell programmes on Grand madly in love with a Baha- Bahama. To this end, he mian lady named Dorothy. started a half-way shelter After just five days of court- called The Phoenix Proship, he proposed and four ject, for men coming out years later they were mar- of prison and a programme ried. Mixed marriages were for recovering drug addicts. somewhat taboo at the time This infuriated the local but their love overcame drug cartel, however, and every cultural stigma and the lives of both Terry challenge and and his family they were mar- ‘After a routine were repeatried for 53 years medical exam edly threatened, during the hapthreats so severe piest time of his and blood they drove the life. family out of work, he was Both Terry Bahamas diagnosed with The and Dorothy and back to earned a living advanced stage London, where by teaching 4 lymphoma Terry worked and moved to as an education Cat Island for a and was told social worker for short while until he only had six years.

Prime Minister 6-8 months to While residPindling became ing in London, so impressed live. The news he began losing with Terry that absolutely weight. He was he and Sir Wal- shattered itchy all over, lace Whitfield suffered shortarranged for him his family.’ ness of breath, to attend colexperienced lege in San Salvador. He abdominal pain and was then went to the University more tired than usual with of Miami to complete his minimal exertion. After a studies, ultimately gaining routine medical exam and his bachelor of education blood work, he was diagdegree. nosed with advanced stage 4 Terry and Dorothy lymphoma and was told he wanted a large family but only had 6-8 months to live. she suffered from three The news absolutely shatmiscarriages. They even- tered his family. Although tually had two children, a his condition was terminal, boy and a girl. Today, their Terry had the spirit of a daughter has continued the fighter and despite his docfamily legacy by becom- tor’s prediction, he vowed ing a teacher and their son to prove them wrong, drawbecame a Sergeant Instruc- ing on the same grit that tor in the British Army. had gotten him through so He served and fought in much before. For the next Kosovo, Bosnia, Iraq and 11 months, he underwent Afghanistan, dying while numerous surgeries and in active service. In a des- radiation therapy. Then, perate quest to harness the with nothing to lose, he pain from the loss of his volunteered for an experison, Terry threw himself mental cancer treatment into another physical activ- programme. ity and gained a Black Belt He stayed in London in the martial art of Judo. for six years and then He also became focused moved back to The Bahaon becoming a community mas to run the YMCA in builder and started the Grand Bahama as execufirst two boxing clubs in tive director. He remained The Bahamas during the in that role for 14 years.

1960s. He was a champion While employed for the of the physically disabled YMCA he helped launch and mentally challenged their most successful learn and his love of children led to swim programme for him and his wife to foster primary school students

throughout The Caribbean and Central America. He also researched and identified dozens of children with cancer throughout several islands in The Bahamas. He then raised funds for them to attend “Camp Good Days” in upstate New York, which introduced fun summer camping activities for children and families touched by cancer or sickle cell anemia.

Sometime after relocating back to The Bahamas, Dorothy was diagnosed with an aggressive form of early-onset dementia.

When she slipped and fell in the bathroom, Terry developed a hernia trying to lift her. He was admitted to the hospital for treatment and because no one was there to take care of his wife, she was temporarily placed in a nursing home. This was the first time that they were apart from one another in over five decades. But in a devastating twist of fate, Dorothy’s dementia progressed and her health deteriorated rapidly. She died there alone and never having the opportunity to see her husband again.

Following his beloved wife’s death, Terry often spoke about aging and spirituality with Dorothy’s

MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022 PAGE 9

father, Jeffrey who was born in 1914 and had deep insights about life and humanity. Jeffrey’s grandparents were freed from slavery by Queen Victoria and at age 107, the words of advice that he imparted to his son-in-law is that all trauma heals with time and faith. He wholeheartedly believed that you don’t go to heaven because you go to church, you go to heaven because you’ve lived a life of love and service to your fellow man. Terry augments this take-home message by adding that there are 171 references in The Bible to loving others as God loves us and so, with careful determination, he’s applied these principles to his life daily. He and his father-in-law have shared similar insights about life, namely that you have to believe in something to have true purpose.

They also believe that no matter who dies, the world continues spinning so always remain humble, remember that deeds are no less valiant if they go unpraised and to always cherish your family and the people who support you consistently. Thirty-eight years after his doctors gave him 6-8 months, Terry is

still very much alive and continuing to uplift others.

Jeffrey sadly died peacefully in his sleep two months ago, just several weeks shy of his 108th birthday. Like him, I will always remain profoundly grateful for those brave men and women who had to walk through back doors so that I can walk through the front and eternally grateful to men like Terry whose wrinkles tell the story of a life well lived in service to his fellow man.

May their memories, and the memories of the scores of our ancestors whose shoulders we all walk on today, perpetually reverberate throughout the halls of history and continue to inspire us all for many years to come.

This is the KDK Report.

• Nicknamed ‘The Prince of Podiatry’, Dr Kenneth D Kemp is the founder and medical director of Bahamas Foot and Ankle located in Caves Village, Western New Providence. He served as the deputy chairman for the Health Council for five years and he currently sits on the board of directors for the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation in his role as co-vice-chairman.

PAGE 10 MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022

INSIGHT

EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

A ROAD becomes a river - a number of locations particularly in western New Providence were badly hit by flooding after heavy rainfall on the weekend of May 13-15.

The day the rains came IT was Friday, the 13th.

We should have guessed there would be something memorable about it, even though that date has always been lucky for my husband who, in his younger days, made the biggest sale of his career on a Friday the 13th.

Everything seemed fairly normal as the day wore on.

Another work week behind us, a houseguest departing about sunset, heading to the airport to board a British Airways flight to London, no inkling of what was to come. We turned the lights out shortly before 9 and headed to bed to watch a little TV. And the heavens opened.

Like a woman scorned or a groom left standing at the altar dumped by the woman of his dreams, the skies got angry and then exploded with rage. They wept and wept and wept some more.

For five hours, they wept so much until you’d have thought there just weren’t any more sky tears left.

According to meteorologist Wayne Neeley, the Met Office recorded 12.37 inches of rain at LPIA in five hours, as much rainfall, Neeley said, as you would expect in a Category 1 to 3 hurricane.

As for our houseguest, like other passengers

By Diane Phillips

on the full BA flight, he strapped in and was prepared for take-off before being advised that the plane was not going anywhere until the storm passed and there they sat, a cylinder of metal with wings on the outside and frustration on the inside for the next five hours as rain pounded and lightning sizzled and thunder boomed.

At an older hotel in Cable Beach, water swept through the door, a woman slipped and fell and had to be rushed to the hospital by ambulance. At a newer hotel, the ground floor flooded. Elsewhere on Cable Beach, a family’s fenced in back yard became a bay, playing host to a school of gray snapper.

Blake Road, Windsor Field Road, low-lying land east of the Town Centre at Old Fort Bay looked like a river. Across the way in front of Charlottesville, rains pushed piles of debris making a temporary and unwanted statement.

In South Beach, a family scrambled, searching for the highest rubber boots they had, the ones they store in case of bad storms.

They live in a low-lying area.

Throughout much of the western half of New Providence, offices and stores flooded. Downtown Nassau was awash.

It was only a rain storm, a night of rain that should have been a wake-up call about the stark reality of low-lying coastal property, a reminder of why our ancestors clung to hilltop land and prisoners on some islands of the Caribbean were relegated to serving time on the beachfront with no one worrying about a jail. It was only a night of the greatest downpour in recent memory, a night worthy of a note to self about the importance of saving for storm-rated windows or getting that roof repaired, another note to self, hey, climate change is real and it makes for stronger, more intense storms with less notice.

It was only a delay for a flight to the UK that arrived five hours late, but in retrospect, it was a lot more than a night of heavy rain.

It was a harbinger of things to come.

Then again, it was Friday the 13th.

And five days later, some streets were still streets near the airport were still awash.

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EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

INSIGHT

MONDAY, MAY 23, 2033 PAGE 11

DIGGING FOR CRYPTOCURRENCY FOOL’S GOLD

By NICHOLAS KNOWLES “WHEN everybody is digging for gold, it’s good to be in the pick and shovel business.” So goes the saying about those who were truly successful during the California Gold Rush. Not the miners themselves — many of whom died penniless — but the tycoons of industry who filled those desperate minds with illusions of wealth and grandeur and affixed a sturdy pick to their palms.

Today, The Bahamas has, rather accidentally, fallen into a fool’s gold rush of its own, with grifters and well meaning entrepreneurs alike suddenly extolling the virtues of cryptocurrency.

Even the Prime Minister is onboard, his recent speech anointing The Bahamas as the “home for global leaders in the crypto space” signalling a worrying shift in the country’s economic policy priorities.

Indeed, it is surprising that this government has seemingly chosen not to focus on the indicators that matter most to Bahamians—including rising food and fuel costs—but instead pander to global cryptocurrency ventures by offering them an established presence on our shores.

Surprising, too, that at a time when we are still years away from financial stability—owing to our pronounced reliance on an unstable, susceptible-to-external-shocks tourism industry—we are embracing a historically volatile, unregulated financial instrument. (In the last seven months alone, Market Watch estimates the global cryptocurrency market lost $1.7 trillion in value.)

Indeed, Bahamians need to be made acutely aware of and think critically about the dangers of cryptocurrency before this administration further sells

itself to shovel-selling billionaires with no interest in our nation’s growth and prosperity. (Though this is merely mournful hindsight: Perhaps if we thought critically about the poverty cycle that ‘numbers’ and gaming houses imbue on Bahamian society, the noted shovel-sellers and self-proclaimed “professional disruptors” that run them wouldn’t hold such positions of power and influence.)

To think critically we must first — to borrow a phrase from noted statistician Nate Silver — separate the signal from the noise.

The noise is the distraction, the pompous pontification dominating our nation’s discourse; not a single day passes without a recent crypto convert announcing their endorsement in our country’s newspapers.

Whereas the signal — the honest, unadorned truth — is what we’re after.

In other words, the signal is the conch in the conch fritters. The dough itself, and the size of the fritter, is just the noise. And sometimes you need to dig for the conch; even though the menu promised they were the ‘conchiest’ on the island — menus, like people, often lie to advance their own

interests.

So, let’s find our conch.

Cryptocurrencies can be understood as digital currencies which act as a “medium of exchange” through encrypted transactions, rather than relying on a Central Bank or governing authority. In this sense, they are ‘decentralized’ — the system is peer-to-peer (one individual to another).

Whereas crypto enthusiasts will point to this decentralisation as part of the “future of finance,” it is critical to understand that this system, without an underlying asset value that a Central Bank might provide, is based instead entirely on perceived value.

(Some may argue that so-called stablecoins, currencies pegged to the value of an actual currency, solve this problem. Last week, Luna, one of the largest stablecoins, was valued at some $40 billion. Today, after a recent crash that per the New York Times lost the crypto economy $300 billion, the coin is functionally worthless. No conch in that fritter!)

Because cryptocurrencies are inherently speculative, the price of any currency at any point in time is purely theoretical. It is worth, therefore, only what you

can convince someone else it is worth. Those looking to sell their holdings need to find a willing buyer — empty hands to shove a pick into. This makes cryptocurrency a fundamentally zero-sum game, an elaborate scheme to convince you that there is inherent value in a fabricated system.

To quote Stephen Diehl, a software engineer who writes extensively about cryptocurrencies: “These schemes around crypto tokens cannot create or destroy actual dollars, they can only shift them around.

If you sell your crypto and make a profit in dollars, it’s only because someone else bought it at a higher price than you did.”

And convincing someone to buy at a higher price is all part of the game.

That is why FTX — the company at the centre of this country’s fool’s gold rush — will host a lavish conference and invite (pay

for) a dizzying array of sought-after celebrities to eulogise The Bahamas’ “relatively friendly” regulatory environment. (By “friendly,” they mean far easier to take advantage of. Note just how friendly Road Traffic is when you slip a $20 in with your application.) Additionally, per the New York Times, FTX is “headquartered in The Bahamas partly because 80 percent of its $1.1 billion in global revenue stems from a trading instrument that remains illegal in the United States.”

That is why FTX will continue its wellpublicised donations to organisations dedicated to actually improving the lives of Bahamians. (Notably, Pablo Escobar was a well known financier of hospitals, schools, and housing developments across Colombia — often in the same towns ravaged by his drug trade.) This is similar to a tactic known as reputation laundering, first defined in the 1996 book ‘The United Nations and Transnational Organised Crime’ as “the process of acquiring respectability in a new environment.”

It is curious indeed that Sam Bankman-Fried, co-founder of FTX — ostensibly not a Bahamian and having only relocated to The Bahamas in September of last year — has more access to important public officials than the people who brought them to power in the first place.

And, finally, that is why FTX will plaster its name and logo across every inch of advertising space it can buy — including a

Superbowl commercial and the naming rights to the Miami Heat stadium.

Additionally, since 2020, the co-founder of FTX has, per the accountability website Open Secrets.org, spent some $16m supporting Democratic candidates with sympathetic views on cryptocurrency. One campaign in particular, that of Carrick Flynn, received $11m in support funds, a figure Open Secrets notes is “several times the previous record for spending by a single group in a single House primary.” That kind of money can buy significant political influence in this country. (Flynn would go on to lose the election. Maybe he didn’t have enough shovels.)

I have no doubt FTX’s exhaustive attempts to control The Bahamas’ narrative on cryptocurrency will continue. The company certainly has enough resources to manufacture the artificial interest needed to shift public perception slowly in their favour.

What remains to be seen is how Bahamians will respond — not the grifters and false prophets who’ve already bought their way into the game, but those of us genuinely concerned with the continued growth and development of our country.

Cryptocurrency is indeed a game The Bahamas should play no part in. They are not selling the gold mine. They are selling the shovel, and telling us where to dig.

• Nicholas Knowles is a 2019 graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.

PAGE 12, Monday, May 23, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

CBL’s Nassau sales director Wenrick Clarke with Xyan Henry, left, and Dequann Carroll with Dorian Cartwright and a representative collecting the award for Samiya Stuart.

COMMONWEALTH BREWERY HELPS TO SUPPORT STUDENTS COMMONWEALTH Brewery Ltd (CBL) has allocated $6,000 to assist achievers in Grand Bahama and New Providence in continuing their education.

This year, two outstanding students from the Junior Achievement Bahamas’ Company Programme will be awarded $3,000 each toward their college or university fees.

Samiya Stuart (Grand Bahama) and Xyan Henry (New Providence) can expect the funding to accompany their

accolade of third place in JA Bahamas’ Most Distinguished Achiever Awards category.

Kendria Ferguson, corporate relations and sustainability manager CBL, said: “As a brand, CBL seeks to pour back into the communities we serve. Youth empowerment is one of the areas that, as a country, we constantly need to pour resources and support behind. At CBL, we look to organisations like Junior Achievement Bahamas and see the

incredible work they have been doing over the past 46 years, and it was important to us to step up as corporate partners and assist them with providing access to education and financial assistance.”

Junior Achievement Bahamas offers students on every island and in every school the opportunity to participate in a variety of programmes that teach and build financial literacy and entrepreneurial and careerreadiness skills.

Available to students

from K5 to Grade 12, the organisation also seeks funding from sponsors such as CBL to provide scholarships to its achievers.

Executive director of Junior Achievement Bahamas Tammy Lecky said: “Our goal is to set each of our Achievers up for the best possible chance of success. This year, our programmes have seen more than 1500 students from primary to high school on three islands explore what we have to offer. While our primary purpose is to

provide a foundation on which our achievers can live up to their true potential, we are always grateful when companies like CBL give our students financial assistance in charting the course toward their goals.”

Dequann Carroll, junior achievement programme coordinator for Grand Bahama, said: “CBL’s scholarship donation and the consideration to provide not only New Providence but also Grand Bahama is heartwarming for our Grand Bahama Company

Programme Achievers. It sets the tone for our JA goals locally, which is to provide this wonderful programme with all of its opportunities to students around the country.”

Junior Achievement’s Company Programme is tailored for students in the grades 9–12, and this year has attracted 350 students on the islands of New Providence, Grand Bahama and Eleuthera.

To learn more about Junior Achievement, contact info@jabahamas.org.

LOCAL GOVT WEEK TO BE HELD THE Ministry of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs along with the Department of Local Government will host Local Government Week from May 22 to May 27.

This year, there is “Local government today and beyond, positively impacting local communities”.

Local government elections were held earlier this year and saw the nomination of 622 candidates toward securing one of the 403 seats that became vacant on December 29, 2021.

Of the 149 locations for elections to be held, 89 were contested while 60 were uncontested. This demonstrated a shared and balanced view that confidence remains in local leadership through the Local Government.

This week, many of them will gather in Nassau at Super Club Breezes for numerous workshops aimed at improving the function of Local Government.

Island administrators and other local government practitioners from the 33 districts along with their clerks, for the first time ever, will be in workshops with the Ministry of Finance; the Attorney General’s Office; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Treasury Department; Bahamas

Immigration and Customs; the Post Office; Registrar’s General Office; Hotel Licensing; National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA); Departments of Public Works; Physical Planning; Inland Revenue; Road Traffic and the Port Department.

Additionally, those attending will have the opportunity to sit with Cabinet ministers and members of Parliament during a roundtable discussion.

Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs Minister Clay Sweeting, who has responsibility for Local Government, acknowledged the importance of this arm of government.

“Local government has evolved greatly over the years and we want that to continue. We want to change how people look at Local Government because many family islanders benefit from what they do,” he said.

“Local government practitioners are dedicated to the betterment of their communities and we are excited for the future of Local Government and we are hoping for a week of productive workshops.”

Local government is celebrating 26 years of enactment.

Acting director of local

government Neil Campbell said this week the Department of Local Government aims to highlight noteworthy accomplishments.

“It is important to recognise and show appreciation for the many persons who have worked tirelessly and those who continue to ensure that the ideals of local governance and the legacy of local government are espoused and carried on for future generations of family islanders to have a voice in key decisions within their respective islands,” he said.

“Local government presents an excellent opportunity for young people in the Family Islands to step forward and become involved and engaged in local affairs, thereby local government is one of the most effective tools to encourage youth advocacy and participation. Furthermore, local government is the mechanism through which respective governments have been able to decentralize key decisions to allow family islanders the ability to bring about improvements in their islands, respond to local issues in a timely manner and reduce the red tape of getting approvals for basic issues such as, repairs and approvals,” Mr Campbell said.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, May 23, 2022, PAGE 13

Deaths and kidnappings soaring in Haiti capital PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti Associated Press IT WAS about 6am when Venique Moïse flung open the door of her house and saw dozens of people running — their children in one hand and scant belongings in the other — as gunfire intensified.

Minutes later, she joined the crowd with her own three kids and fled as fires burned nearby, collapsing homes. Over the coming hours and days, the bodies of nearly 200 men, women and children — shot, burned or mutilated with machetes by warring gangs — were found in that part of Haiti’s capital.

“That Sunday, when the war started, I felt that I was going to die,” Moïse said.

Gangs are fighting each other and seizing territory in the capital of Port-auPrince with a new intensity and brutality. The violence has horrified many who feel the country is swiftly unraveling as it tries to recover from the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse and the United Nations prepares to debate the future of its longtime presence in Haiti.

Experts say the scale and duration of gang clashes, the power criminals wield and the amount of territory they control has reached levels not seen before.

Gangs have forced schools, businesses and hospitals to close as they raid new neighbourhoods, seize control of the main roads connecting the capital to the rest of the country and kidnap victims daily, including eight Turkish citizens still held captive, authorities say.

Gangs also are recruiting more children than before, arming them with heavy weapons and forming temporary alliances with other gangs in attempts to take over more territory for economic and political gain ahead of the country’s general elections, said Jaime Vigil Recinos, the United Nations’ police commissioner in Haiti.

“It’s astonishing,” he told The Associated Press, noting that gang clashes are becoming protracted, ruthless affairs. “We are talking about something that Haiti hasn’t experienced before.”

At least 92 civilians and 96 suspected gang members were killed between April 24 and May 16, with another 113 injured, 12 missing and 49 kidnapped for ransom, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. The office warned that the actual number of people killed “may be much higher”.

Gangs also gang-raped children as young as ten and set fire to at least a dozen homes, forcing some 9,000 people to flee and seek temporary shelter in churches, public parks and shuttered schools, UN officials said.

Haiti’s National Human Rights Defense Network said some victims were decapitated while others were thrown into wells and latrines. Gangs posted pictures of the gruesome scenes on social media to further terrorise people.

The network said that most women and girls were raped before being killed.

A WOMAN walks past a barricade set up by gang members in Croix-des-Missions, north of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, last month. Gangs have forced schools, businesses and hospitals to close as they raid new neighbourhoods, seize control of the main roads connecting the capital to the rest of the country and kidnap victims daily.

Photo: Odelyn Joseph/AP “Armed violence has reached unimaginable and intolerable levels in Haiti,” Michelle Bachelet, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in a May 17 statement.

Bruno Maes, UNICEF’s representative in Haiti, told the AP that one growing concern is the lack of access to basic things like water, food and medicine because people remain trapped in certain areas while gangs continue to fight, noting that malnutrition is on the rise, affecting one in five children in the Cité Soleil neighbourhood alone.

“We are really seeing a strangulation of Port-auPrince,” he said, adding that UNICEF has been forced to use a helicopter and now a boat to try to reach those most in need.

Staff at hospitals and clinics report they’re being stretched thin, with Doctors Without Borders noting that it treated nearly 100 people for gunshot wounds from April 24 to May 7, forcing the aid group to reopen a clinic in Cité Soleil it had closed in early April because of the violence.

Prime Minister Ariel Henry has remained largely quiet amid the escalating gang violence, while Frantz Elbé, Haiti’s new police chief, said dozens of gang members have been arrested and another 94 killed in clashes with police since he took over the department six months ago.

Nearly 5,000 suspects have been accused of crimes including murder and kidnapping, Elbé said.

“I am going to continue to track down the criminals,” he pledged in a May 9 news conference, adding that Haiti’s understaffed and under-resourced police department of roughly 11,000 officers for a country of more than 11 million people was receiving training and equipment from the international community.

At least 48 killings were reported in the neighborhood of Butte Boyer, which Edna Noël Marie fled with

her husband and three children when gunfire erupted in late April.

The 44-year-old is sleeping on the concrete floor of a crowded shelter with no mattresses in increasingly unhygienic conditions while her children stay at a friend’s home.

“It’s not big enough to shelter all of us,” she explained, adding that she fears gangs will recruit her two sons and rape her daughter. “These people have no remorse, and society doesn’t really care. ...

There is no civil protection.

There are no authorities.

Police are here today, and they’re going to be gone tomorrow.”

About 1,700 schools have shuttered amid the spike in gang violence, leaving more than half a million children without an education, with the directors of some schools unable to keep paying gangs to ensure students’ safety, the UN said.

Efforts are underway to set up an FM radio station dedicated to broadcasting classes, Maes said.

“It’s very saddening for us that children who are willing to learn and teachers willing to teach cannot do so because they feel unsafe,” he said.

The ongoing violence and kidnappings have prompted hundreds of Haitians to flee their country, often a deadly move. At least 11 Haitians died and 36 others were rescued when their human smuggling boat overturned near Puerto Rico this month. Dozens of others have died at sea in recent months.

Another concern is the lack of housing not only for the estimated 9,000 families recently forced to flee their homes, but also for the estimated 20,000 others displaced last year who are still living in overcrowded, dirty government shelters. At the same time, the country is struggling to help roughly 20,000 Haitians the administration of US President Joe Biden has deported in

US FLIES IN EXTRA INFANT FORMULA INDIANAPOLIS Associated Press A MILITARY plane carrying enough specialty infant formula for more than half a million baby bottles arrived yesterday in Indianapolis, the first of several flights expected from Europe aimed at relieving a shortage that has sent parents scrambling to find enough to feed their children.

President Joe Biden authorised the use of Air Force planes for the effort, dubbed “Operation Fly Formula”, because no

commercial flights were available.

The formula weighed 78,000 pounds, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters aboard Air Force One as Biden flew from South Korea to Japan.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack was in Indianapolis to greet the arrival of the first shipment.

The flights are intended to provide “some incremental relief in the coming days” as the government works on a more lasting response to the shortage, Brian Deese, director of

the White House National Economic Council, said yesterday.

Deese told CNN’s “State of the Union” that Sunday’s flight brought 15 percent of the specialty medical grade formula needed in the US, and because of various actions by the government, people should see “more formula in stores starting as early as this week”.

Longer term, he said, the US needs more formula providers “so that no individual company has this much control over supply chains”.

recent months amid sharp criticism.

As police try to contain the gang violence, AP journalists visited the Butte Boyer neighborhood,

where the smell of charred homes and decaying bodies spread for several blocks.

Dogs gnawed on victims’ remains.

Several walls and gates

were scrawled with “400 Mawozo,” a testament to the presence of a gang believed to have kidnapped the Turkish citizens in early May and 17 members of a US-based missionary group last year, demanding $1m in ransom and holding most for two months.

Nailed to a wooden post, a picture of a man killed during the recent gang violence flapped in the wind.

The sign underneath read, “Thanks to the government of my country.”

It was once a quiet neighbourhood that Lucitha Gason, 48, knows she won’t return to again. She was getting ready for church when the explosion of gunfire in late April forced her to abandon her home.

She’s been staying at a shuttered school, but the owner recently demanded that she and dozens of other Haitians find another place to sleep.

Gason is now trying to figure out where to go since she can’t afford to leave the country.

“We can’t count on the government.

We can’t count on organisations.

They’re all making promises that aren’t coming through,” she said. “Here in Haiti, you really have to depend on yourself and what you can do for yourself. There’s no such thing as what the country can do for you.”

SPORTS PAGE 14

MONDAY, MAY 23, 2022

DAVIS CUP AND BILLIE JEAN CUP PLACES SECURED FROM left, Sierra Rodgers, Simone Pratt, Perry Newton, Kevin Major Jr and Baker Newman.

TRIO QUALIFY FOR WORLD UNDER-20s

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

SPRINTERS Antoine Andrews, Paige Archer and Lacarthea Cooper were the latest athletes to qualify for the World Athletics’ Under-20 Championships scheduled for Cali, Colombia from August 1-6.

The trio all attained the qualifying standards in the 200 metres during Sunday’s final day of the two-day Oak Tree Sonja Knowles Track Classic, hosted by the Red-Line Athletics at the Thomas A. Robinson Track and Field Stadium.

Andrews, representing the Bahamas Speed Dynamics, clocked 20.96 seconds to surpass the under-20 boys 200m qualifying standard of 21.40. His teammate Adam Musgrove fell short of the standard with his second place time of 21.48. Fast Forward’s Keanu Ferguson was third in 21.80.

“I’m grateful. Through all of the trials and tribulations that I went through, I did it. My principal always told me to keep the faith,” said Andrews, a 19-year-old 12th grader at St John’s College.

It’s the second consecutive year that Andrews qualified for the championships. Last year, he did it in the 110m hurdles “I’m just going to train hard and

ANTOINE ANDREWS, Lacarthea Cooper and Paige Archer have all qualified for the World Athletics’ Under-20 Championships.

Photos: Christopher Saunders keep myself mentally and physically ready for the championship,” Andrew said.

In the under-20 girls 200m, Paige Archer took the title for Fast Forward in 23.96, holding of Lacarthea Cooper of Red-Line Athletics, who got second in 24.27. In the process, the duo surpassed the World Junior’s qualifying standard of 24.40. T-Bird Flyers’ Melvinique Gibson fell short in third in 25.31.

“I’m extremely happy with the

results. This meet was for me to test my fitness, so I give God all praise and honor,” said Archer, a student of Queen’s College. “My goal is to run faster at the Junior Nationals and then get ready for the World Juniors.”

Archer, however, said she needed the competition from Cooper and that was what pushed her as she came off the bench and took control of the race on the home stretch.

SEE PAGE 17

A SUPERB weekend of competition has resulted in Kevin Major Jr and Baker Newman qualifying for the final two spots on the Davis Cup and Simone Pratt and Sierra Rodgers qualifying for the final two spots for the Billie Jean King (BJK) Cup. From a field of eight men and seven women consisting of former Davis and BJK Cup players along with top tennis juniors, a wonderful display

of talent was showcased at The National Tennis Centre. Kevin and Baker will join Spencer Newman (National Champion) and Marvin Rolle who qualified at The Giorgio Baldacci Open Nationals.

Pratt and Rodgers join Sydney Clarke (National Champion) and Elana Mackey who also qualified at the Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) Nationals in December.

SEE PAGE 16

BAHAMIAN QUARTET COMPETES IN FLORIDA

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

AS the track and field season intensity as athletes prepare for the major international meets this year, a quartet of Bahamian athletes competed at the Duval County Challenge at the University of Florida in Jacksonville, Florida.

Exuma native Samson Colebrooke continued his preparation for the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon in July with a 13th place in the men’s 100 metres on Saturday in a time of 10.53 seconds.

Colebrooke has already produced the 13th best time of the season, running 10.01 on April 9th at the Cheney Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. He surpassed the World’s qualifying standard of 10.05.

Brandon Cranes of Adidas won the straight away race in 10.19, while American Elijah HallThompson was second in 10.,23 and Isiah Young, competing for Nike, was third in 10.30.

Competing against a pretty good field, led by a host of Americans, Grand Bahamian TyNia Gaither had to settle for 15th place in the women’s century in her time of 11.46. Gathier has the second fastest time this year of any Bahamian of 11.11 behind Anthonique Strachan’s mark of 10.99

as both have surpassed the World’s qualifying standard of 11.15.

Aleia Hobbs took the title in 11.28 for the American sweep as Kayla White got second in 11.30 and Brittany Brown representing adidas, was third in 11.30 as well, but beaten out in the photo finish.

American Sha’Carri Richardson got fifth in 11.37 behind compatriot Twanisha Terry, who did 11.34. Richardson, however, came back and redeemed herself by winning the women’s 100m exhibition race in 11.27 over Terry in 11.29.

In the men’s 400m, Grand Bahamian Alonzo Russell posed an 11th place finish out of a field of 24 competitors, who competed. His time was 47.78. Russell has a season’s best of 45.65 that he clocked on April 16th at the Percy Beard Track in Gainesville, Florida.

World and Olympic champion Steven Gardiner of Abaco, still hold onto the world’s leading performance of 44.22 that he established on April 23rd at the LSU Bernie Moore Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, which surpassed the World’s qualifying standard of 44.9.

Winning Saturday’s event in Jacksonville, which saw a diversity of competitors from around the world, was SEE PAGE 17

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, May 23, 2022, PAGE 15

Buddy: I’m playing for Team Bahamas

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net BUDDY Hield is spending a part of his off-season at home on a talent search for his youth basketball programme but also announced his intention to return to international competition for team Bahamas.

While overseeing approximately 80 players for his “Buddy Buckets” AAU team tryouts, Hield committed to suit up for Team Bahamas this summer in the third and final window of FIBA Americas World Cup 2023 qualifiers.

“Oh yeah, I’m playing this summer,” Hield replied when asked The Bahamas’ next step in the qualification process.

In the upcoming window, The Bahamas will have its second matchup against The USVI on July 1, 2022, and will conclude with their second matchup against The Dominican Republic on July 4, 2022.

The Indiana Pacers guard made his last Bahamian National Team appearance in 2018 at the third qualifying window for the FIBA Basketball World Cup China 2019.

On its current path toward World Cup 2023 qualification, The Bahamas is currently 1-4 through the first two windows which featured a win over the US Virgin Islands, a pair of losses to Canada and a loss to The Dominican Republic.

As for the “Buddy Buckets” talent search, Hield hosted scores of aspiring boys basketball players between the ages of 15-18 over the weekend at the AF Adderley Gymnasium.

“The talent was good, we all started off from the bottom, a lot of guys that were here, we have a lot of work to do with them but I found a lot of talent here.

They just have to keep working in the summer, sharpen those skills and

I’ll take them over in the summer with me to work get them situated as best we can and play some AAU basketball,” Hield said, “The main goal is to get 16-18 guys and work with them. You want them to get playing time, you want them to be seen you don’t want them to just be there on the bench and I don’t want to do that to kids.”

For the players that are not selected, Hield said they will have other opportunities in the future but to use that disappointment as a catalyst for improvement.

“Don’t let that discourage you. I’ve been cut many times but I never let that break me,” he said, “Just get back to the drawing board and keep working.

I tell them there’s always a next opportunity next year but you have to really put the work in, put the time and effort in. Keep on working, stay humble and strive to be better.”

In 2020, Hield expanded his Buddy Buckets Programme to the Bahamas aimed at giving players more opportunities for exposure and to advance their skillset on the AAU circuit.

According to its website, Team Buddy Buckets, is a Public Charity Non-Profit Foundation “organized for the purpose of investing in the dynamic leadership potential of student-athletes with intentional considerations for the disadvantaged and underserved. We TeamUp with Caring Influencers in our communities to serve and provide Leadership, Life Skills and Talent Development programs to educate, equip, and enhance studentathletes performance in the classrooms of education, on the court of competition, and in OUR respective communities.”

Hield said his desire to extend the programme to The Bahamas was to provide support to the underserved student athletes of this

generation based on his own experiences growing up in Grand Bahama.

The sixth year sharpshooter had a strong conclusion to the 2021-22 season for the Indiana Pacers and looked forward to his future with the third franchise of his NBA

career thus far.

Hield was traded to the Pacers in February and in 25 games with the club, he averaged 18.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game. He shot 45 percent from the field and 36 percent from three point

range in just over 35 minutes per game.

Prior to the trade, Hield averaged 14.4 points per game, made 182 three pointers, and was shooting a career-low 37 percent in 28 minutes per game with the Sacramento Kings.

“Sometimes all you need is a change of scenery, he said, The time in Sacramento was done but I’m grateful for the opportunity in Indiana, getting better each and everyday, learning and trying to take that next step.”

BASTIAN PICKS TITANS TO CONTINUE IN DIVISION I

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net LATHANIEL Bastian’s academic and athletic journey will continue at the Division I level.

The junior forward ended his time in the transfer portal when he took to social media to announce his commitment to the Cal State Fullerton Titans.

The 6’8” forward and transfer from Angelo State chose the Titans over the University of Charleston, Minnesota State Moorhead, Grenville State, Fort Lewis, Benedict College and Texas at Tyler.

Cal State Fullerton was the champion of the Big West Conference last year and earned a No. 15 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Titans head coach Dedrique Taylor will be in his ninth year at the helm of the programme.

In his lone season with the Rams in NCAA Division II, Bastian was a Lone Star Conference Honorable Mention selection last year.

He led the Rams in rebounding and blocked shots, averaging 7.8 boards and 1.4 blocks per game. He pulled down 219 rebounds, 90 on the offensive glass.

LUCIUS FOX

FOX, KNOWLES HIT HOME RUNS

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net LATHANIEL BASTIAN He averaged 11.3 points per Bastian spent the previgame on 61 percent shoot- ous two seasons with the ing from the field.

Trinity Valley Community Bastian recorded nine College Cardinals at the double doubles on the year. Junior College level.

He scored season high 23 As a sophomore with the points against Western New Cardinals he averaged 5.9 Mexico on February 3, was points and 6.8 rebounds per also his best shooting night game. He also finished with at 8-12 from the field.

19 blocks, 11 steals, and 14 His other season highs assists on 53 percent shootincluded 16 rebounds ing from the field. against West Texas A&M Bastian is a product of on March 3, four blocks the Doris Johnson Mystic against Northwest Naza- Marlins programme at the rene on November 19, and high-school level before four steals against Fort continuing collegiately in Lewis on November 14. the United States.

A PAIR of Bahamian minor league baseball prospects hit their first home runs of the season in productive weekends at the plate for their respective clubs.

Washington Nationals prospect Lucius Fox (Rochester Red Wings - Triple A) is enjoying his best hitting stretch since his new assignment and Los Angeles Angels prospect (Inland Empire 66ers - Single A) D’Shawn Knowles extended his hit streak to six games.

Fox had his most successful game since he was optioned to the Red Wings

earlier this month when he finished 3-4 with a home run and two RBI against the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs on May 20.

After going hitless in his first four games with the Red Wings, Fox went 11-25 in his next five games, including three multi hit games and a perfect 3-3 night with a stolen base against the Iron Pigs.

Since he joined the Red Wings, the versatile infielder is hitting .303 with five RBI, three stolen bases, slugging .515 with a .940 OPS. Knowles hit his home run shot Saturday night against the San Jose Giants. His solo shot in the seventh broke a scoreless tie en

route to a 3-0 win.

The Angels’ no.30 prospect in its pipeline, has had a series of late game heroics this season which included a pair of walk-off hits.

For the second time in the series against the Stockton Ports, D’Shawn Knowles delivered late game heroics and another walk-off win for the Inland Empire 66ers.

Knowles currently leads the 66ers with a .331 batting average, 23 RBI, an .889 OPS and nine stolen bases in his second season assigned to the club.

In 84 games last season, he hit .227 with a .280 OBP, a .635 OBP, five home-runs, 48 RBI, and a team leading 31 stolen bases.

PAGE 16, Monday, May 23, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

KEVIN, Baker, Simone and Sierra in action.

DAVIS CUP AND BILLIE JEAN CUP PLACES SECURED from page 14 On the final day of competition at the BLTA trials, Simone Pratt won over Sierra Rodgers 6-1,6-2 and Kevin Major won over Baker Newman 7-5,6-1.

Kevin and Baker are former Davis Cup members and Simone Pratt is also a former BJK Cup player. This will be a

first-time appearance for Sierra Rodgers who turned 16 recently.

President Perry Newton congratulated the four persons (Simone, Sierra, Kevin and Baker) who qualified for Team Bahamas and welcomed them to the 2022 Bahamas BJK and Davis Cup teams. He said: “It is indeed an honor to represent the country at this high level of competition.”

The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men’s tennis. It is described by organisers as the World Cup of Tennis and is contested annually between teams from competing countries. Similarly, the Billie Jean Cup formerly the Fed Cup is the premier international team competition in women’s tennis, the competition was launched in 1963

and features over 100 countries annually.

The stage is set, and the Davis Cup Group III Americas Competition will take place in Escazu, Costa Rica June 22nd-25th 2022 at the Costa Rica Country Club on hard courts. Countries competing are The Bahamas, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico and

Venezuela.

Three teams will be promoted to the World Group II Play-offs and two teams will be relegated to Americas Group IV. The 2022 BJK Cup Group II Americas will take place at the Centro Nacional De Tenis Parque Del Este In Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

The surface venue is also hard court.

Central State hopes to find new recruits from Bahamas

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net BY the time they leave the Bahamas this week, members of the faculty staff of Central State University are hoping that they can add some more Bahamian students and athletes to their programme in the state of Ohio.

Members of staff, accompanied by Bahamian Kim Hanna and Rupert Gardiner, were in town from Thursday and will be leaving on where they are trying to increase their enrolment to more than 100 Bahamians either on campus or now through their online programme.

They have been conducting recruiting sessions in the foyer of the Thomas A Robinson National Stadium for those interested.

Jahan Culbreath, leading the delegation from Central State University, headed

by Dr Jack Thomas said when he first came here as the Athletic Director with their Marauder football team in 2015, he said met then Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe and the Minister of Education to form a Memorandum of Understanding that started

FROM left, Dr Fred Aikens, Tara Owens, Jahan Culbreath, Kim Hanna, Arietha McSwain and Rupert Gardiner during the Central State University visit to the Bahamas.

Photo: Christopher Saunders off with a Public Schools Scholar Program combined scholarship between the ministry and the school.

“We started with ten Bahamian students. It grew the next year to 20, then 30 and it kept growing,” said Culbreath, of the PSSA program, which was originally focused on just the public schools. “We also recruit private school students. But what makes this a great programme from a financial standpoint, we are very affordable.

“Central State is one of the most affordable schools in the United States and the most affordable in the state of Ohio. So it makes it relatively easy when you

combine the two scholarships. It almost puts a student on full scholarship.

There are some minimum fees attached to it.”

The program has also been extended to student of BAMSA, which makes The Bahamas the second home for Central State. Hopefully, the Marauder Athletic Department will be back to conduct some training camps for athletes in the future.

While they host to booster their compliment of Bahamians on their marching band, Central State is also looking at increasing the participation of student/athletes on their flourishing Marauder athletic teams, including track and field, volleyball.

Currently on the women’s track team, coached

by Elliot Lightfoot, are senior Danielle Rodgers from St Anne’s; junior Tyler Lightbourne from Queen’s College and sophomore Glennae Forbes from Grand Bahama. On the men’s team are seniors Emmit Higgins and Ishmael Williamson, both from Bishop Michael Eldon; freshman Juwan Rigby from Tabernacle Baptist; junior Lavano Sands and freshman Jaheim Wilson, both from CV Bethel.

On the men’s volleyball team, coached by Ray Lewis, is freshman Tyrone Sands from CC Sweeting High.

Athletic Director Tara

Owens said they have been extremely pleased with the talent they acquired from The Bahamas and are always looking to recruit those who are willing to make Central State University their choice.

“I think the Bahamian population is so essential. I think they bring so much to our campus,” Evans said. “The student-athletes come prepared. They are ready to work academically. They work hard on and off the field.

“They bring so much of their culture to the campus and they get to share their stories, hence we like coming to The Bahamas and do our recruiting. We want to get as many Bahamians on our roster as possible.”

Owens said they love their Bahamian population that they want to see it double and triple the size that is presently there.

Dr Ariethia McSwain, the chief online officer at Central State University, said her legacy is to be in a position to assist as many persons to get a college education and with the introduction of their online programme, she can help so many who won’t have the financial means to do it in person as a student.

“I’ve always had an

interest in Bahamian students, having been here for five years, coming back and forth,” McSwain said. “I knew the commitment that Bahamian students had and their parents had in valuing their educational pursuits.

“So this is a great way to get them to become of our institution, even if they can’t afford the means to be a part of our campus.

We are so proud that so many people have been here inquiring about how they can be a part of our programme.”

Hanna, the Bahamian representative, encouraged Bahamians interested in learning more about their enrolment at Central State University, to contact her kimamahanna@gmail.com.

She noted that they were able to recruit at least two students from Cat Island to be a part of the PSSA programme.

“It’s a pleasure to have them here, especially with virtual zone calls so that we can not only meet with persons in New Providence, but also from Grand Bahama and the Family Islands,” Hanna said. “We want to ensure that we can reach as many persons as possible to get them enrolled in the programme.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, May 23, 2022, PAGE 17

Trio qualify for world under-20s from page 14

“I was waiting for this type of competition,” stated Archer, who on Saturday claimed the 100m title in 11.94 ahead of Asya Stanislaus of the Bahamas Speed Dynamics in 12.14 with Swift Athletics’ Sherinique Sears third in 12.68.

For Cooper, it was a relief to get back to the level she was before she suffered an injury that prevented her from competing at the Carifta Games in April in Jamaica.

“It feels great. I was waiting for this moment. I knew that when I come back I was going to run fast,” said Cooper, a 12th grader at St Augustine’s College. “I qualified for the events that I wanted to qualify for. I did it in the 200m. The 400m is my next move.”

Now that she’s proven that she’s back, Cooper said she can continue her training towards being a medal potential at the World Juniors.

Already qualified for the championships is strongman Keyshawn Strachan.

The world’s top ranked competitor in the under20 boys javelin, won his specialty with a heave of 75.35m. The qualifying standard is 69.00m.

“It wasn’t how I expected, but I will take it,” said Strachan, whose ultimate goal at the championship is to erase the world junior record of 86.48m that was established by Neeraj Chopra of India at the 2016 World Juniors’ in Bydgoszoz, Poland. “I can’t wait

to get there and do my thing.”

Although it wasn’t a qualifier for any international meet, Nia Wright of Ted-Line-Athletics won the under-17 girls 200m in 25.6 over Jamiah Nabbie, unattached Thompson, who did 25.37 for second.

Bayli Major, also of RedLine Athletics, took third in 26.01.

“It really wasn’t what I expected, but I’m glad that I won it, considering that I just came off an injury,” said Wright, a 15-year-old 10th grader at St Augustine’s College. “It was goof.

I think I performed exceptionally well.”

Tumani Skinner, also of the Red-Line Athletics and another SAC student, doubled up as the under-17 boys’ 400m champion on Saturday in 49.,77 over Fast Forward’s Berkley Munnings, who did 50.15 and SAC and Red-Line’s Quinton Rolle, who was third in 52.11.

Skinner, admitting that he wasn’t at full strength because of the flu, managed to pull of the 200m on Sunday in 22..20 with 100m champion Ishmael Rolle of Swift Athletics taking second in 22.54. Caldon Whyms of Core Athletics was third in 23.02.

“The double feels great.

I want to thank God. I had the fever. But I just went out there and did my best,” Skinner said. “I did what my coach (Tito Moss) told me and I left it all up to God. I knew the competition was going to be tough.

“I had the 100m champion, who was a fierce

PARTICIPANTS in the Under-20 event at the weekend.

Photos: Moise Amisial

competitor. All respect to him. At 13, he was tough to beat. He is bad . I expect some great things from him in the future. Today was just my day.”

In a couple other performances of note, Javonya Valcourt of Fast Forward took the under-20 girls 400m in 57.29.

“I wasn’t pleased with my time, so I’m still glad I finished my race injury-free,” said Valcourt. Who just graduated from Mt Verde Academy in Florida, but haven’t decided on what college I will be attending yet. “I think there was a lot of wind pout there, especially on the back stretch.”

Red-Line Athletics’ Shimar Bain took advantage of the wind to easily win the under-20 boys 400m in 49.02, followed by a pair of his teammates with Jaydin Plakaris second in 49.55 and Jamal Flowers third in 49.94.

“It was great. I had the mindset to go out there and the best of my ability. I followed my race plan, which was to get out off the blocks and finished strong,” Bain said. “I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the help of God, my famjly and my coach and teammates.

“The competition was there. I was hoping for that all season long and I finally got it.”

There were a number of other performances produced during the two-day meet, which according to Red-Line’s head coach Tito Moss, was the biggest to be held in New Providence this year with close to 700 competitors entered.

SONIA Knowles receives flowers during the track classic event names after her.

BAHAMIAN QUARTET COMPETES IN FLORIDA from page 14

Photos: Moise Amisial

American Trevor Stewart in 45.91. Jamaican Nathon Allen was second in 46.17 and Kenya’s Emanuel Korir was third in 46.22.

Rounding out the field of competitors was Grand Bahamian Holland Martin in the men’s long jump. He placed tenth out of a field of 11 competitors with a best leap of 22-feet, 5 2/4inches or 6.85 metres, his only legal mark in three attempts. He scratched his first and final got on the scoreboard in his third and final try.

Holland has not cracked the top 50 list of performers in the event, which has Laquan Nairn sitting in ninth place with a leaping feat of 26-11 ¾ (8.22m) on April 16 at the USATF Golden Gala to match World’s qualifying standard.

Tajay Gray of MVP cleared 28-8 1.4 (7.83m) on his fourth attempt to win Saturday’s event in Jacksonville. Tristen James of DMA got second with258 (7.82m) on his sixth and final try and American Tariq Evans was third with 24-9 ¾ (7.56m) on his opening leap.