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Mother of graduate found in Turin

‘I can’t believe it was an accident’

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

AS Italian officials downplay the possibility of foul play in the deaths of two Bahamians, the men’s mothers find it difficult to believe their deaths could have been accidental.

The women spoke to The Tribune yesterday as officials scramble to piece together the mystery of how two men with promising prospects died.

Firefighters retrieved the remains of diplomat Alrae Ramsey, 29, from the Po River in Turin, Italy, on Tuesday. Blair John’s corpse was recovered yesterday from the same river.

Cathleen Rahming, 52, John’s mother, said: “It’s

difficult to believe it was an accident because of what my person on the ground said they saw when they went to look at my son.

They were very guarded, they were very careful about what they told me because they wanted to protect me. But my son is very, very fit. He’s a strong swimmer and I know him well enough to know that no, he had no reason to go out this way.”

Ms Rahming’s daughter travelled from London to Turin to represent the family.

However, Turin’s police chief, Giuseppi de Matheis found it difficult to believe the men were victims of crime.

SEE PAGE THREE

VAT FUEL WAIVER BEAT HOUSEHOLDS TARGET

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunedmedia.net

AN estimated 79,000 households have benefitted from the Minnis administration’s concession that eliminates value added tax on Bahamas Power and Light bills under $300.

According to Finance Minister K Peter Turnquest, the figure surpasses a goal set by the government last year to impact around 60,000 households.

He made the announcement yesterday at Parliament to correct an error made during his budget presentation last week that only 23,500 people benefited from the VAT zero rating on light bills.

Water bills $50 and under are also VAT free.

“We provided a sense of tax relief for the Bahamian people by a number of tax measures in this and SEE PAGE SIX

STATESIDE

WHO IS THE JEOPARDY RECORD HOLDER? NOT JAMES SEE PAGE EIGHT

BRITON’S DEATH DUE TO HEART FAILURE

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net POLICE are still awaiting the results of a toxicology report as rumours persist over the mysterious death of British national Dannie Lea. Superintendent Joy Bosfield told The Tribune an autopsy revealed his cause of death was from complications related to heart failure.

However, she said bereaved loved ones remain unconvinced that there was no foul play due to erroneous reports on social media that have been picked up by international press.

SEE PAGE SEVEN

LANISHA’S MINISTRY: WE NEED TO TALK

BELOVED COUPLE PERISH IN BLAZE

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net

BEN and Judy Rose, who are believed to have died in a house fire in Emerald Bay, Grand Bahama, early yesterday morning. See page five for the full story.

Photo: Dave Mackey

UNION ACCUSED OF MISLEADING WORKERS

By NATARIO MCKENZIE Tribune Business Reporter nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

RESORT employers yesterday slammed the hotel union for “deliberately riling up” its members into voting for a strike by misleading them over the 15 percent gratuity’s fate.

Russell Miller, the Bahamas Hotel & Restaurant Employers Association’s (BHEA) president, yesterday read out a statement to the media in which the

ATLANTIS group - which represents the interests of major New Providence hotels - accused the Bahamas Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU) of

engineering a strike vote “around issues that simply do not exist”.

Affirming that hotel employers had never proposed eliminating the automatic 15 percent gratuity, Mr Miller said the union’s leadership had simply made “an uninformed assumption” over the BHEA’s offer and “stirred up” their members’ worst fears to gain overwhelming support for a strike.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

THE Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture is committed to taking all necessary steps toward resolving the reported tensions between Minister Lanisha Rolle and the Bahamas Olympic Committee, according to a senior ministry official.

Rhoda Jackson, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, yesterday said that while no formal discussions have been had SEE PAGE NINE

THE NEXT EDITION OF THE TRIBUNE IS ON TUESDAY

PAGE 2, Thursday, June 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

GRADUATES of the University of The Bahamas North.

Photos: Derek Carroll

‘Don’t be deterred by failures’, Turnquest urges graduates

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest told some 60 graduates of the University of The Bahamas North in Grand Bahama not to be deterred or derailed by challenges and failures, but to take control of their destiny and embrace the

opportunities in front of them.

Mr Turnquest’s remarks came during UB’s recent spring commencement ceremony in Freeport at the Grand Lucayan resort.

“You have to believe in yourself, remember that you are worth every dream you have ever conceived, and know that you can chart your own course into the future.

“We may have many challenges as a country, but don’t let anyone tell you there is not opportunity in The Bahamas. Don’t let anyone tell you there isn’t opportunity in Grand Bahama,” he said.

Mr Turnquest believes that this is a period of growth and opportunity in the country.

He encouraged the graduates to face the challenges of the past head-on and press towards success, and not to focus so much on everything that is wrong with The Bahamas and in their personal lives.

“There is opportunity in front of you, but you have to believe in yourself enough, you have to be willing to preserve long enough, you have to be courageous enough, willing to try something new and risk failing one or two times, or even more.

“You have to be willing to be the first, to walk down a road no one in your family has walked; maybe no one in The Bahamas has walked before and better yet, maybe no one in the world has walked. Graduates, you have to be willing to open your eyes and see.

Your presence here today is a sign that you know this already – that you have put this into practice, and so I applaud you again, I salute you, as the Class of 2019.”

Mr Turnquest said the government has provided opportunity for Bahamians to be entrepreneurs through the Small Business Development Centre, which has provided some $1m in business grants to Bahamians — 46 percent in New Providence and 21 percent in Grand Bahama.

DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest addressing graduates.

He noted that a UB student was a recipient of $200,000 in mixed investment capital through SBDC after 15 revisions of his business plan.

He said of upcoming developments for Grand Bahama: “We are negotiating with a new medical school for Grand Bahama among other initiatives like the tech hub. These are prospects where your individual stories will flourish even more as you take advantage of the opportunities these developments will bring.”

The graduates were also encouraged to expand their borders by looking beyond Grand Bahama for opportunity in the digital economy.

“As you leave this institution, I want you to think about expanding your horizons and remember that you can do that while living right in the comfort of your home, you are prepared.

There is no place in the world like Grand Bahama, and what better to be able to enjoy the benefits of global trade, with the comforts and pleasures of living on the best island in The Bahamas,” Mr Turnquest said.

Dr Rodney Smith, UB president, also brought remarks.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, June 6, 2019, PAGE 3

‘I can’t believe it was an accident’

from page one

last week when Ramsey’s mother called her.

“Alrae’s mom called me “Given the seriousness of asking whether or not I the situation,” he said, “the had heard from Blair,” she outcome of the autopsy said. “We knew they would is crucial, therefore it will be together and it was very be carried out as soon as out of character for them possible. Currently, it can not to keep in touch with be ruled out that appar- their moms in particular, ent injuries may have been especially when they’re the cause of death. If (the travelling so that was a red autopsy) does not clarify flag.” the doubts on the death Ms Rahming’s last comdynamic, the Italian police munication with her son team in charge of the case was last week Wednesday will examine phone records, at 5.11am. “He texted me credit cards and debit card to let me know he was waitrecords.” ing on the train to go into Ramsey, a foreign service Turin. I told officer on study him, ‘I plead leave in Vienna, the blood of was reportedly Jesus over you, in Turin on a I pray that God break. He and gives you great his friend, John, success in your were staying endeavours and at a bed and I love you my breakfast estabson.’ lishment at Via “He was ALRAE RAMSEY, above, la Loggia 2 in home for the and Blair John, below.

Turin.

Christmas holiJohn, a days,” she said.

28-year-old “He was lookSaint Mary’s ing forward to University the day when graduate stuhe would offident, was there cially become to attend a a doctor.

I psychology remember him conference. saying this a “What haplong time being pened was it in school, ‘I was a competition that can’t wait to be finished started with speeches and with this.’ In fact, he was information on psychology very excited about going on and after winning the com- this trip because he did a petition he went to Italy to countdown. ‘Monday I have represent the university to x amount of days, y amount present his research and of days,’ he would say.” findings in psychology,” his John was the oldest of his mother said. mother’s three children.

John, however, never “My son was a very presented his research loving, a very, very focused, last week Friday as was a very aggressive, a very expected. affectionate, magnetic “He attended day one person who only wanted of the conference which to do good and eventually was Thursday but he didn’t come back home and do show up on Friday or Satur- good for his country. That day and his whole purpose was his plan. He studied was for that,” Ms Rahming psychology for more than said. one reason, one of the main John had spent two reasons was he realised the days in London visiting his importance of getting into sister before travelling to the mind so he wanted to be Italy. His mother discov- in a position where he could ered something was wrong improve people mentally

THE SCENE in Italy after the discovery of the body of Blair John. because most things begin who may even be travelling in the mind and then trickle in that area, they need to down to the other areas know what is going on so so he was very concerned we can send out a clarion about the way the human sound for Bahamians or being functioned men- even people of colour to be tally. He was done with all careful going in that area. his classes. His sister was Two ideas I have in my studying in London and he head are robbery or their went there. He then went to colour or maybe even to get Rome and took photos. He their documents to travel was doing selfies and send- because their bags are still ing them to me from the missing.” different landmarks.”

For her part, Anita Ms Rahming said she has Ramsey, Alrae Ramsey’s relatives in Italy trying to mother, said she is trying uncover what happened. to piece together what hap“I’m really not looking pened as well. “I don’t know forward to anything, not for sure but I’m working excited about even knowing with the government to see what happened but I want what happened,” she said. to know as much details “Everybody who knows my about what may have hap- son knows he was a gem. pened as possible,” she He was a people’s person said. “I need that. Not just and educated. Obviously for my son but for anybody something went amiss

MOREE TO TAKE UP POST ON JUNE 12 THE Cabinet Office has announced that Brian Moree, QC, will take his position as the country’s newest chief justice on June 12.

In a press release, the Cabinet Office stated that in accordance with Article 94 (1) of the constitution, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis, after consultation with the leader of the opposition, advised Governor General Dame Marguerite Pindling to appoint Mr Moree to the post.

Mr Moree is senior partner of law firm McKinney, Bancroft and Hughes and

is head of the litigation and dispute resolution practice area and the financial services and regulation practice area.

He has served in the judiciary in various capacities since his admission to the Bahamas Bar in 1979. Mr Moree has also served on various boards, committees and commissions.

As one of his many achievements, Mr Moree was named in 2007 as the ‘Executive of the Year’ by the Bahamas Financial Services Board in recognition of contribution to the financial services industry.

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

BRIAN MOREE QC

because he’s not a boy to get involved with anything untoward. The minister came to my house, the permanent secretary came to my house, they’re all working with me.”

In the House of Assembly yesterday, Foreign Affairs Minister Darren Henfield said Ramsey had been employed at the ministry since December 9, 2013. He was posted at the Bahamas

Embassy in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, as the third secretary/ vice-consul in 2016-2017.

“Then, last year, he was granted an in-service award to pursue a oneyear postgraduate diploma programme in diplomacy/ international relations and languages at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna in Austria for the period September 2018 - June 2019,” he said.

PAGE 4, Thursday, June 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

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

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A better way of protecting the poor OUT of date, ineffective and failed.

That’s the verdict of AML vice president Renea Bastian on price control – the policy that intends to keep the price down on essential items so that people aren’t priced out of the ability to feed themselves.

The goal may be laudable – but is it effective?

Mrs Bastian says that for starters, it is misguided – the items on the price control list are not even the healthier options.

They call them breadbasket items – a list of butter, cooking oil, mayonnaise, grits, cheese, corned beef, evaporated milk, margarine, rice, sugar, flour, bread and tomato paste. But the problem for businesses is that while they are held back on profit on these items, that means they have to raise the price elsewhere on others. For a broader, healthier diet, those costs still come back on the consumer – and that list is lacking in fruit and vegetables for a start.

Of course, readers will be well aware of the wildly fluctuating prices on fruit – sometimes high enough to draw a gasp of shock as you check the sticker.

Mrs Bastian was speaking at an event organised by Hands For Hunger, a group well known for its efforts at tackling problems with food supply across the country – so this is not a retailer calling out for the chance to make more money, rather someone simply asking if the way we are going about things really is the best way.

Can we change around the items in that breadbasket, for example? Or can we be smarter about taxation?

This week’s Budget included a reduction in tax, for example, on furniture.

That’s all well and good – but furniture purchases tend to be fewer for families and therefore a reduction there has less

of an impact on most people’s daily life.

Would there perhaps be a way of using that money to reduce food costs to give a more meaningful effect for more?

That’s not an easy balance, of course – that furniture money won’t go that far when spread across a wider market, but that is just one example. The question remains: can we be smarter about making food more affordable?

Our nation is very dependent upon imported food too – is there more we can do to encourage the internal food market to help eliminate unnecessary shipping costs?

These are not questions raised to criticise the current way of doing things – but rather to ask if we can do more.

For those living in poverty, that little extra can be the difference between a full plate and an empty stomach.

March to honour those we miss Friday’s Labour Day parade will be a poignant occasion.

Marchers will have four colleagues very much in mind – the four who will not be alongside them this year.

We hope everyone present will take a moment to honour Tabitha Haye, Tami Patrice Gibson, Kathleen Fernander and Dianna Gray-Ferguson, who died last year when a vehicle ran out of control and ran into the parade.

We hope that will be marked with prayers, with words – and with good behaviour by all in attendance.

If the parade can be an occasion to bring people together safely, to celebrate the day without excess, that will truly be a way of honouring those we wish were still there too.

No WTO scare tactics, just facts EDITOR, The Tribune.

IT is said that people like me who don’t like WTO and have the courage to say so are using “scare tactics”.

I must admit that what I say is scary, but they are not “tactics”; they are facts.

Believe it or not I believe in foreign investment. But I do object to a group that is in no way tied to The Bahamas making investment decisions for us. The reason is very simple. The WTO is a group made up of some very wealthy and powerful nations. The decisions they make will be for their benefit, not ours. We should be making decisions for the benefit of our grandchildren.

As we all know, there are nations that would like to take over our fishing areas, wipe them clean and leave.

I would like to know that our fishermen could leave their boats to their children and grandchildren. I would like to see that those Bahamians who operate fly fishing businesses in The Bahamas can hand their trade and its profits over to their children and grandchildren. That’s not too hard to understand, is it?

When I was a young man, gas stations were owned by Bahamians and the owners

could hand them over to their children. How many gas stations are still owned

by Bahamians? Do the fathers have anything to leave? How hard is that to understand?

Some have used Mr Austin Levy, the father of Hatchet Bay, Eleuthera, as an example of foreign investment.

When Mr Levy came here there was some disagreement as to what he could do. The Hon AF Adderley represented Mr Levy, and Sir Stafford Sands represented a group later known as “The Bay Street Boys”. Mr Levy won.

The important thing was that BAHAMIANS who lived here would wallow in the bad or profit from the good of the decision.

Hatchet Bay and Mr Levy were successful. Mr Levy showed by his performance that it takes three ingredients to make a business successful: production, transportation and marketing. It is unfortunate that the PLP ran him out of here.

If we join the WTO, decisions that will affect us will be made in some distant land by some people who have never lived here and don’t know how to find The Bahamas on a map. They will decide what is good for

them, not for us who live here.

People say that protections for some Bahamian businesses have been put in place for when we join the WTO. Who made the decisions? Were the Bahamian people asked? Or were they made for “some Government chronies”, as usual?

Furthermore, what happens if they change their minds after we’ve joined.

Sue them is the cry! Who’s going to pay the bill? Are you joking?

The other alternative is that we can pull out!! Yeh? Check with the English who want to pull out of the EU! Once you’ve joined and get enmeshed with them it’s next to impossible to pull out.

Yes Bahamians and residents of The Bahamas, I said in my recent article that joining the WTO was like a flea crawling up an elephant’s leg with the intention of rape. Well it looks as though the elephant has turned around and is going to rape the flea! And you know what will happen...The flea will die!

Scare tactics? No, just facts.

PIERRE V L DUPUCH Nassau, June 4, 2019.

Case against legalising marijuana EDITOR, The Tribune.

TODAY in The Bahamas and in countries throughout the Caribbean and around the world, the marijuana debate rages on!

Many countries, including The Bahamas, are actively looking at their position and trying to formulate policies and laws, as it relates to marijuana legalisation.

This is a very exciting time in history, but also a time where we have to tread very carefully and cautiously, so that we do not regret whatever decisions that are made as a country concerning the marijuana issue at hand.

Let me emphatically say from the onset that as a Physician specifically a Paediatrician, I am against the legalisation of recreational marijuana in The Bahamas.

My strong position on this matter stems from the well known deleterious effects of marijuana on the developing brain.

As a Paediatrician, I am involved with the care of adolescents daily. This is the group in our society that we have to consider and protect as we debate the marijuana issue at hand.

The use of marijuana, alcohol, and other drugs is often seen in this group and it is consistent with the risk taking behaviors that characterise this period of development. This period is also known for risky sexual behaviours. An increase rate of accidents also characterise this period.

It has been proven scientifically without any doubt that frequent marijuana use damages the brains of teenagers and young adults.

The brain is actively growing and developing from birth, through infancy, through childhood, through adolescent and well into mid-twenties before the brain is fully developed.

During the time the brain is growing and developing it is very vulnerable to injury from chemicals such as marijuana, alcohol and other drugs and toxins.

Dr Krista Lisdahl, a director of the brain imaging and neuropsychology

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net lab at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee stated that “It needs to be emphasised that regular cannabis (marijuana) use which we consider once per week, is not safe and may result in addiction and neurocognitive damage.”

Psychologists have also documented cognitive decline, poor attention and memory along with diminished IQ among adolescents who use marijuana regularly.

There is also research evidence that has linked frequent use of high levels of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the chemical that is responsible for the “high” effects that marijuana users seek, to depression, anxiety, and psychosis.

In The Bahamas today the national average in education is somewhere around a “D”. As a country we are spending a large percentage of our GDP on education and many efforts in Educational circles are being made to improve this average. Legalising recreational marijuana will definitely worsen this already low average.

A study in the Journal of Neuroscience also showed that even a one or two time use of marijuana in teens can result in demonstrative brain injury that may have a lifetime effect.

This further highlights how very important it is that marijuana is not made readily available, through legalising recreational use in The Bahamas. We cannot risk our nation’s future when it comes to this issue. We cannot gamble with our children’s future. Our nation’s children are our most valuable asset.

While I am against recreational marijuana legalisation, I am quite aware of the fact that marijuana has shown considerable promise for treating medical conditions, including pain, Seizures, nausea from chemotherapy and many other medical

benefits. These benefits are thought to come from the cannabidiol or CBD a chemical component of the marijuana plant. CBD does not cause the “high” that THC causes. I support the medical use of marijuana only.

In the Tuesday, May 28, 2019 edition of the Freeport news an article states” Barbados approves importation of medical Cannabis” The article went on to state that “the drugs will be imported by the Barbados drug service.” The information was disseminated

by Barbados minister of health at a training seminar for health care providers on the therapeutic prescribing of medical marijuana products the article went on to explain.

I believe this is the best way for The Bahamas to go.

Control the drug and educate Medical professionals for appropriate prescribing practices.

No to the legalising of recreational marijuana because of the risk to our young citizens and yes to highly controlled and regulated importation and distribution of marijuana medical products.

These products should be prescribed by licensed medical practitioners only and imported by licensed drug agencies only.

There is a lot at stake here. Our policy makers ought to have learnt from the mistakes made from legalising gambling in the Bahamas and avoid the pitfalls that came with its legalisation.

While those is the financial sectors may argue that there is a lot of income to be gained from recreational marijuana legalisation, let us remember that no amount of money is worth risking the future of the youth of this country.

Let’s not make the same mistakes with the marijuana issue as we did with the gambling issue.

DR WILFRED FERGUSON Paediatrician Freeport, Grand Bahama June 5, 2019.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, June 6, 2019, PAGE 5

Beloved couple perish in blaze

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net THE badly burned bodies of a husband and wife were discovered among the ruins of a house fire in the upscale canal residential subdivision of Emerald Bay, Grand Bahama, early yesterday morning.

The victims are believed to be that of well-known elderly couple Ben and Judy Rose, who were both in their late 70s. Also discovered were the remains of the couple’s three pet dogs, who also perished in the fire which broke out around 3am.

Although the cause of the fire is not yet known, a close friend of the couple described the incident and their deaths as “just devastating”.

“They were model citizens and really nice people - this is just devastating for me,” said Dave Mackey, a longtime friend of the Roses.

Fire broke out at the two-storey residence on Matching Lane shortly after 3am. Police Fire Services was alerted and fire units were dispatched to the scene.

When firefighters and police arrived the building was completely ablaze.

Assistant Superintendent of Police Terecita Pinder reported that after the flames were extinguished, officers discovered human remains among the ashes.

Chief Fire Officer Superintendent Ernest Hanna, Police Fire Services said told reporters at the scene: “The fire was extinguished and the building was totally destroyed, along with a vehicle and equipment on the property,” he told reporters at the scene.

The Roses’ home was built on stilts, with a steel stairway for access up to the living space at the top, and a garage/car port at the bottom.

Supt Hanna told reporters at the scene: “At this time, the occupants, an elderly male and female in their 70s may be inside the building. I can confirm at this time that we have located what appeared to be the remains of a badly burnt human in the building, and we are continuing to search to ascertain whether someone else is (still) there.”

ASP Pinder later confirmed around 11.15am that a second body was also discovered in the house among the rubble.

While police

SCENES after the blaze in Emerald Bay, Grand Bahama, where two people died, believed to be Ben and Judy Rose. had information concerning the identities of the deceased, officers did not formally release their names yesterday.

“We will not give any names at this time. We need to confirm the persons’ identities first,” Supt Hanna said.

However, Jaimie Rose, a nephew of one of the victims, was spotted at the scene, climbing on a ladder peering into the burned house.

The Roses are a wellknown Grand Bahama family. Ben Rose, is the brother of Jaimie Rose’s father, well-known businessman Colin Rose, owner of OBS Marine; and David Rose, who is an expert spear-fisherman and former commercial diver.

Ben Rose was a retired businessman and the owner of the former Silver Reef Health Spa. He was a former diver who had pioneered shark diving in Grand Bahama, and was also a nature enthusiast who had first discovered the caves at the Lucayan National Park, which are named Ben’s Cave. Mr

Rose had three brothers one of whom is Nassau photographer Roland Rose.

His two other brothers, Colin and David, both live in Freeport.

Mr Rose’s wife, Judy, was a professional chef, who had worked at the health spa, and also at an exclusive bone fishing lodge in Grand Bahama.

The couple had retired, however, it is believed Mrs Rose still cooked and baked bread quite a lot at their home in Emerald Bay. Mr Mackey, who knew the couple well, was devastated on learning news of their deaths. He said that he first met Mr Rose and his wife many years ago when he lived at the Silver Reef Spa. “I was going through difficulties with a separation from my ex-wife at the time and I lived there for a year, and they were a very kind couple,” he recalled.

He said Mrs Rose at the time was a trusted friend to him. “She was a confidant for me; she and I were quite close and we would talk for hours. She was a kind,

gentle-hearted soul. And Ben was a mellow, down to earth, soft spoken and creative person,” he said of the couple.

Ben Rose was also an artist and painter. His artworks had been featured

at Festival Noel, an annual fundraising event to raise money for the Rand Nature Centre.

Mr Mackey, who also resides in Emerald Bay, said that he had visited the couple at their home once,

Photos: Vandyke Hepburn and would sometimes get home baked bread from Mrs Rose. He said that he is very saddened to learn of their tragic passing.

Investigations are ongoing into the cause of the fire.

PAGE 6, Thursday, June 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

$699m VAT collection lower than expected

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net THE Minnis administration collected $699.3m in value added tax in the 2018/2019 fiscal year, a 21.5 percent increase over the previous fiscal year, according to Deputy Prime Minister K Peter Turnquest yesterday.

This is in addition to the $1.9bn government secured in revenue.

However, he said officials expect VAT receipts to come in lower than expected due to a time delay in payments at the new rate versus the old rate because of the concessions granted to hotels and the construction sector.

Nonetheless the minister of finance said government was confident that revenue performance in the last two months of the 2018/19 fiscal year will be in line with current projections.

He made the comments while defending the government’s new duty exemptions on certain school supplies, apartment-sized stoves, refrigerators and furniture.

Musical instruments are also now duty-free.

It was the government’s intention to ensure that the Bahamian people were able to feel the impact of fiscal policy decisions in a tangible way, Mr Turnquest said, adding the budget was “inspirational, imaginative and aspirational”.

“That is why we have attempted to provide a number of tax relief measures in this budget that should be felt by all,” Mr Turnquest told parliamentarians yesterday.

“We took a deep look at the most frequently imported items based on data we received from the Customs Department.

From that list, we identified the items that were most relatable to the average household in The Bahamas,

DEPUTY Prime Minister Peter Turnquest. and tailored our working list to include school supplies and household implements.

“Now, apartment-sized fridges and stoves are dutyfree for the Bahamian people. That young couple or that young millennial going out on their own for the first time is now able to set themselves up without being killed with a high customs bill. Parents and teachers can now stock up on school supplies for students for a lower price due to the duty reductions, and in some cases removal.”

He continued: “The National Youth Band, the Bahamas All-Star Band, and every other orchestra or band assembled in the Bahamas can now expand their members as instruments are now cheaper to purchase.”

He said a child who has always wanted to learn to play the trumpet may now be able to afford to purchase one.

The minister also sought to clear up the government’s strategy when it came to allocations for various ministries.

Among these was the budget for the Department of Social Services.

“It is worth explaining the allocations in the budget to support our social safety net, as some in the opposition and in the media have misrepresented the numbers, particularly those concerning line item 2721001 under social assistance benefits.

“Beginning in fiscal year 2014/15, the PLP spent approximately $4m on the Renewable, Inspiring,

Sustaining, Empowering (or RISE) social safety net reform project, which was started under an IDB loan facility in 2012. However, due to the fact that the former government could not meet the deliverables of the facility, the programme was unceremoniously stopped in August 2017.

“This administration, however, saw the value in the programme — which was centred on alleviating poverty in The Bahamas by changing behaviour to bring about improvements in education and health, of those in the lower income class.

“To this end, we took away some of the positive lessons from the RISE programme and integrated them into our core service offerings, so that those that would have been assisted

by the programme initially, would not lose their net benefit.

“To do this, we allocated $1m in 2018/19 toward the services of the old programme.

However, we found that those services did not require that level of funding, as only $75,760 was spent as at March of 2019.

“So, despite the allocation for 2019/20 being much lower than the $1m that was budgeted in 2018/19, the $488,951 actually represents — one, the closing out of the social safety net programme and two, proper budgeting to fit the needs of a particular programme.”

He also said: “I would note also that allocating just under $500,000 allows us room to expand the services currently offered under this line item, which will help

to further alleviate poverty in the Bahamas. Moreover, although the Department of Social Services had a 1.7 percent decrease overall, in line with the general practice of more precise budgeting, we increased the budget allocation significantly in the most important areas.

“Specifically, the overall social assistance benefits allocation by $1.6m in the upcoming budget year. It is important to repeat this: The allocation overall for social assistance benefits will increase by $1.6m in the upcoming budget year.

“We also increased our allocation for the Food Assistance Programme by $1.4m to $14.2m and our Subsistence/Support of Persons Contract by $0.3m to $2.6m this year,” he added.

VAT FUEL WAIVER BEAT HOUSEHOLDS TARGET from page one

in previous budgets,” the deputy prime minister told Parliament.

“We made water bills under $50 and electricity bills under $300 zero rated

under value added tax and last week in my communication we announced that

this would be permanent.

“However to clarify that estimate that I mentioned during that communication after questions in the media about our projection of 60,000 beneficial households made last year. I said in the communication last week that 23,500 households had benefitted from the concessions to eliminate VAT on water and electricity on the specified rates.

“Households that benefited from the zero-rating on electricity bills actually average 79,000 households not 23,000, which represents approximately 84 percent of the residential consumers in New Providence and the Family Islands.

“So, in total, the amount of consumers that are benefitting from this change actually surpassed our initial estimate of 60,000.”

He continued: “You see, Mr Speaker, when they talk about us not doing anything for the people, and only focusing on

fiscal numbers but not doing things that people can feel in their pockets, it begs me to question their perspective of governance and what it means to act in the best interest of our people.

“If providing tax relief so that over 79,000 households in this country do not have to pay an extra seven and a half percent that they put on their water and electricity bills is not in the best interest of the people, I shudder to think what the opposition thinks is in the best interest of the people.

“These examples vividly demonstrate that, unlike our predecessors, we do not just talk about change, we actually implement it.”

The government raised the ceiling for VAT-free electricity bills last November in direct response to soaring costs at the time.

Initially the ceiling was set at $200 and first announced in the 2018/2019 budget.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, June 6, 2019, PAGE 7

Need for more divers to be met by training

By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tribunemedia.net MINISTER of Agriculture and Marine Resources Michael Pintard yesterday issued a call for all young Bahamians interested in a diving career to contact his ministry.

Mr Pintard stressed the need for more Bahamians in this industry and invited interested Bahamians to pick up applications from the National Training Agency located on Gladstone Road or at the Department of Marine Resources located on East Bay Street.

He said applications will be accepted starting today and officials expect the

initiative to start the third week of this month. He said an orientation will be held during the third week of this month and training will commence the following week.

“Over the years, there has been a concern raised by practicing fishing vessel owners and operators, as well as new Bahamian investors to the commercial fishing sector, of the challenges associated with finding and employing young Bahamians in the capacity of divers on board their fishing vessels,” he said.

“In addition to finding and employing the divers, there is another challenge of grave concern to owners and operators, which is the

ability to retain divers once employed. In an effort to protect their investment and maintain their fishing operations or businesses, some owners, operators, and new investors to the commercial fishing sector, have approached the government for permission to hire foreign divers.”

Mr Pintard said the diving training programme consist of five mandatory modules and one additional module. The training will conclude with a one-month internship on board a Bahamian certified vessel.

Modules include a month of soft skills training that has been tweaked specifically for the dive and fishing industry, one week of training on the laws governing

BRITON’S DEATH DUE TO HEART FAILURE from page one

His death was widely reported by the British media as a murder with many foreign newspapers claiming he had been “beaten to death” based on unconfirmed speculation.

Early reports on social media in the Bahamas had claimed he suffered head injuries, however this was never reported by police. Bahamian police have said they are not investigating the matter as a homicide.

Supt Bosfield said the toxicology report will hopefully provide more insight into the events that led to the discovery of Lea’s body on a lawn of a Port New Providence home on May 19.

The 29-year-old from Stokeon-Trent was said to be a father-of-one, a personal trainer and an oil remediation engineer.

Lea was found sometime before 5pm on May 19 by a security guard, who had called the relatives of a homeowner to notify them that the front door was ajar. The owners were reportedly out of town at the time.

When the relative came to check the home, along with the guard, Lea was discovered barefoot wearing only blue pants.

DANNIE LEA

the industry, one month to receive a diving certificate, CPR and first-aid training, as well as two-week training in the use of air compressors for fishing purposes and air compressor maintenance. The optional module is specific to fish pot construction.

Gregory Bethel, acting assistant director at Department of Marine Resources, said the programme will be free of charge to the participants and noted the entire cost will be covered by the government.

Mr Bethel said: “As indicated the government will be covering the entire cost of hosting the programme inclusive of that course is all of the dive gear and equipment. I can say that to date

the government has already invested some $40,000 with respect to just dive equipment for participants of this programme.”

The minister noted the increase of foreign nationals applying to the Department of Marine Resources for compressor permits.

Mr Pintard said: “Part and parcel of the requests has been an increase of requests for foreign nationals seeking compressor permits to work on board Bahamian registered commercial fishing vessels. I should indicate that persons are only able certainly as it relates to foreign divers to apply for this ministry for compressor permits after they would have gotten a labour certificate for the

Department of Labour and then a work permit from immigration.

“Fortunately, my colleagues share the view that this ministry holds that they should no longer issue labour certificates and work permits without us working in tandem consulting on this issue.

“In an effort to assist the fisheries sector, the government through a joint effort between the National Training Agency, the coordinating agency, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources along with the Ministry of Health have all gotten together to train and certify interested Bahamians.”

PAGE 8, Thursday, June 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

Who is the Jeopardy record holder?

Not James JAMES Holzhauer lost has worked. Holzhauer now on Monday, and his defeat holds the top 16 highest was big news. Maybe daily winnings records, and you heard about it: After was correct 97 percent of winning $2.255m on the the time he buzzed in with popular TV game show his “question” which was Jeopardy, Holzhauer finally really the answer. lost by a small margin Holzhauer has been honto Chicago librarian and oured by the city of Las Princeton graduate Emma Vegas, where he resides. PunBoetcher. dits have described him as Holzhauer came within a America’s favourite gambler. relative whisker In fact, this Uni($58,484) of Pundits have versity of Illinois beating Ken described him math graduate Jennings for as America’s has become the the honour of clean-shaven being the all- favourite face of American time winnings gambler. In fact, sports betting. champ on Jeop- this University His significance ardy. In doing rises when you so, Holzhauer of Illinois math consider that led the TV quiz graduate has it was just one show to its best become the year ago that ratings in 15 a US Supreme clean-shaven years.

Court ruling That, coin- face of American legalised sports cidentally, was gambling outsports betting. when Jenside the state of nings rang up 74 Nevada. straight contest wins. WritOne industry expert ing not long ago in The described sports betting Washington Post, Jennings as “an area that for most described Holzhauer as people is shrouded in mys“a sports bettor who feels tery. Holzhauer demystifies supremely confident bet- this area to some degree. ting aggressively”, using Holzhauer is a living, counter-intuitive tactics breathing, relatively norlike starting with the high- mal-seeming individual.” est value questions first. It He is also an individual

“JEOPARDY!” sensation James Holzhauer speaks after being presented with a key to the Las Vegas Strip in front of the Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas sign in Las Vegas.

Photo: Caroline Brehman/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP who compares himself with an investment bank.

“Handicapping a team is basically fundamental analysis of a firm,” he told the Post. “In-game wagering is day trading a volatile stock.

The big difference is that the sports market has much higher transaction costs, so you need to be sharper to make a living in Vegas than on Wall Street.” Take that, you Manhattan moguls.

While no exact figures exist and the US census does not list sports bettor as an actual occupation, a good guess would be that there are only a few thousand souls in the US who are able to support themselves by betting on sports.

Holzhauer is one of them.

And his Jeopardy millions can protect him against a few misguided future bets.

STATESIDE

with Charlie Harper

HIGH FIVES ALL ROUND IT happened on Sunday, May 22, 2019, in Atlanta.

There’s a YouTube video of it, but you have to listen to (or fast forward through) 34 minutes before you get to the really good stuff.

Speaking eloquently and with understated passion on a sunny day to a crowd of around 400 young male graduates of distinguished Morehouse College, an American billionaire tech investor suddenly transformed their lives.

Robert F Smith promised to pay off the college debt for every one of them.

The tab for such a commitment is estimated to be around $40m. At the moment Smith delivered his oral earthquake, you can see his solemn, distinguished fellow laureates gasp behind him on the raised podium. Then, as the camera pans through the crowd of graduates, it sinks in: They aren’t going to spend years, maybe decades, getting out of school debt jail. High fives and whoops abound. There’s no video of their proud parents, but it seems reasonable to imagine some dangerously elevated heart rates in the palpable

BILLIONAIRE technology investor Robert F Smith.

Photo: Steve Schaefer/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP excitement among them. chemical engineering from Smith just became the Cornell and business from most popular commence- Columbia. He worked ment speaker of all time. at New York investment He’s estimated to be bank Goldman Sachs, and the either the wealthiest then founded Vista Equity or second wealthiest Afri- Partners in 2000. The firm can-American, and his gift manages $46bn in assets, benefits Morehouse’s 2019 and Smith, still its CEO, is class. The college is perhaps worth $5bn himself. best known as the alma mater You might expect someof Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. one so accomplished to lead But who is Robert F Smith? a quiet, dignified personal Well, for someone so life. Not Smith: He marwealthy, he has successfully ried a Playboy model three stayed out of the public years ago at a ceremony eye, at least until recently. serenaded by John Legend Growing up in Denver with and Seal. In fact, his sons parents who both earned are named after Legend and PhD degrees, he earned an Jimi Hendrix. He owns one internship at prestigious of Elton John’s old pianos.

Bell Labs as a high school So, apparently, you can junior and won degrees in do well by doing good.

AFRICAN-AMERICANS comprise roughly 13 percent of the total US population. Black voters also represent about 25 percent of the Democratic Party’s strength on national election days. And there are now more than 50 black congressmen and women in Nancy Pelosi’s House of Representatives caucus.

So black voters and their leaders count for a lot as Democrats calculate their election chances next year.

Many of those black voters seem to have one issue on their minds above all others.

Philadelphia Democratic congressman Dwight Evans told The New York Times recently that when he goes home to his district, “The issue that I hear constantly is, ‘We sent you (to Washington) for one reason only: to get rid of the president, right? So why haven’t you gotten rid of him yet?”

While the Congressional Black Caucus remains

PRESSURE PILES ON PELOSI

divided on the question of whether and how hard to push Speaker Pelosi to get on with impeaching President Trump, some powerful black Democrats are already committed to impeachment.

Among those are House Financial Services Committee chairwoman Maxine Waters of California and Homeland Security Committee chairman Bennie Thompson of Mississippi.

So far, Pelosi is holding firm.

But the pressure is building.

FINALS FLICKERED BUT NO FLAMES EUROPEAN soccer wrapped up its 2018-19 season with two games that did not match the quality of the games that preceded them.

In the Champions League tournament final, two English clubs met. Liverpool beat Tottenham in Madrid, 2-0 with a penalty goal in the first two minutes and another goal just before the finish.

It was Liverpool’s sixth European championship, and the team looked terrific.

With the charismatic German manager Jurgen Klopp leading the way, they

seem poised for a long run of success.

Tottenham star forward Harry Kane returned from injury and played the whole game, but his team had played very well in earlier games without him, and might have done better without him in this match, too. There are reports that vital lynchpin Christian Eriksen will leave Tottenham in the off-season, and maybe manager Mauricio Pochettino will, too.

In the Europa League final, Chelsea whipped London rivals Arsenal, 4-1. The Blues were the far better team in Baku,

Azerbaijan, a site chosen long before these two English neighbours reached the final. One Arsenal player, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, could not play because he is Armenian and his country is technically at war with Azerbaijan.

Chelsea concluded a strong first season under Italian coach Maurizio Sarri, but he may leave to coach Italian champion Juventus of Turin. Chelsea’s Belgian star player, Eden Hazard, will probably leave to join Spanish giant Real Madrid, so this might be Chelsea’s last major title for a while.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, June 6, 2019, PAGE 9

Lanisha’s ministry: we need to talk from page one

between the two sides to date, ministry officials stand prepared to chart the “best way forward.”

Ms Jackson’s comments came yesterday after The Tribune was referred by Mrs Rolle to Director of Youth K Darron Turnquest for comment on the BOC’s claims.

When contacted, Mr Turnquest said he was in no position to comment, as he was on vacation and had no first-hand knowledge of the dispute. Mr Turnquest then referred this newspaper to Ms Jackson for comment.

Ms Jackson told The Tribune: “We know that there is definitely need for a discussion, so steps will be taken to bring all of the stakeholders together… steps will be taken to determine how to proceed.”

Earlier this week, the BOC demanded Mrs Rolle either sit down for formal talks with the various sporting federations or be removed as minister.

BOC Secretary General Derron Donaldson on Tuesday stressed that the organisation’s position on Mrs Rolle was not political or discriminatory.

He said despite the BOC’s willingness to hash out many of its issues with the Sea Breeze MP, things remain at an impasse.

Mr Donaldson at the time asserted that an immediate resolution would be needed if all sides were to move forward amicably.

Mr Donaldson said things between the BOC and Mrs Rolle came to a head following her decision to travel to Yokohama, Japan last month for the 2019 IAAF World Relays without seeking the organisation’s accreditation.

MINISTER of Youth, Sports and Culture Lanisha Rolle.

He claimed sporting procedures and protocols mandate that state officials seek accreditation at a national level via that country’s national sporting body prior to accepting any international invitations.

The local body would then write its international counterpart to arrange all formal aspects of the trip.

“You see, that did not happen,” he told The Tribune. “She travelled by

virtue of an IAAF invite without note to the BOC president. That’s not protocol at all. Added to that, she took meetings there and didn’t even make an attempt to arrange to have the local sporting bodies, on the ground for the event, present at those meetings.”

Mr Donaldson continued: “We wrote her on this and in her response letter she said she was not subject to, or bound by, any agreement

Photo: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff of protocol relative to the BOC. We as a sporting community demand more and we deserve more.

Hence our position.

“We accept that she may be unaware of certain things relative to the post of minister of youth, sports

and culture, that’s why we are asking that she sits down with us as we look to fix the issue.

“But if she isn’t interested in doing that, then we can move to the next step. But this is all up to her,” he added.

Beyond the letter

submitted to the BOC, Mrs Rolle has remained silent on the matter.

Opposition Leader Philip “Brave” Davis on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis to step in and bring about a resolution in the dispute.

PAGE 10, Thursday, June 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

‘Outdated price control fails to offer healthy food’

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net PRICE control is a failed and outdated social policy that artificially lowers the cost of select foods while driving up costs on other healthier options, according to AML Foods Vice President Marketing & Communications Renea Bastian.

Noting food was among the most heavily taxed areas of the country’s economy, Mrs Bastian called on the government to do its part in lowering the cost of affordable living at a forum on food security last week.

She explained 15 percent of AML’s sales were on price controlled items at an operating loss.

“But even more important,” she said, “is the fact that most items on the price control list are not the healthier options.”

The BISX-listed food retail and franchise group’s brands include Solomon’s SuperCentre, Solomon’s Fresh Market and Cost Right.

Mrs Bastian was speaking as a panelist at Hands for Hunger’s annual forum Food for Thought.

“The government’s role is to work to lower the cost of affordable living,” she said.

“As an example, for every dollar earned, food store profits are three to four percent, after you allocate for VAT at 12 percent duty and other taxes.

“Food is one of the most heavily taxed areas of our economy. Shipping costs are high, one of the highest in the region, and its 40 percent controlled by the government.

“Price control artificially lowers the price of commodities well below

THE BOARD of Directors of Hands for Hunger along with the 2019 Food for Thought panelists. From left, front, Daisry Higgs (Ministry of Education), Travis Miller (technology specialist), Pastor Dale Moss (religious leader), Renea Bastian (AML Foods Ltd), Eldira Backfrord (secretary,H4H BOD); Back, Jermaine Wright (director, H4H BOD), Zeleka Knowles (H4H executive director), Herbert Cash (treasurer, H4H BOD), Anja Allen (director, H4H BOD), Chakita Archer (director, H4H BOD), Melinda Bacchus-Maynard (director, H4H BOD), Vanessa Eneas (vice-president, H4H BOD), Sadye Francis (director, H4H BOD). profitable levels, forcing Moss, Church of God of increased prices on many Prophecy Life Transforother items.” mational Center; and web Each year, the non-profit developer Travis Miller, organisation stages an Thought + Method. interactive and awarenessMrs Bastian said it was building forum that seeks her personal belief that all to deepen consciousness stakeholders—the governabout national food security ment, private entities, and by analysing best practices citizens—needed to work with stakeholders in hopes together to pool resources of unearthing solutions on and take action in the fight improving access to healthy, against hunger. sustainable lifestyles.

She suggested private For this year’s event, entities can find more ways panelists and participants to contribute to organiwere asked to explore “The sations and programmes Future of Food: Are we working to reduce hunger doing enough?”. and poverty, adding that Others panelists included private citizens should Daisry Higgs, Ministry of get involved by working FOOD for Thought panelists, from left, Daisry Higgs (Ministry of Education), Renea Bastian (AML Education; Pastor Dale directly with those in need.

Foods Ltd), Pastor Dale Moss (religious leader), Travis Miller (technology specialist).

PINTARD DEFENDS EXTRA FUNDING FOR CONSULTANTS AT BAIC

By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tribunemedia.net

MINISTER of Agriculture and Marine Resources Michael Pintard yesterday defended the 2019/2020 budget increase for consultancy agencies, domestic and international travel and the Bahamas Agricultural & Industrial Corporation (BAIC).

Speaking to reporters at the Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Pintard said each year his ministry will increase the amount of funding for consultants.

“We believe that the $300,000 is not sufficient. There is a wide range of areas where consulting is required. One of the things we are doing now is converting to e-agriculture so much of the permits, for example, you should apply for online… you are able to do so from smartphones, laptops and that’s both for agriculture as well as marine resources. We have just finished developing the mechanism in order to do that, so someone doesn’t

have to land in Grand Bahama in East End and go to the administrator’s office to get a permit.”

He added: “They can do all of that online in agriculture. We want the permitting system to be pretty much be automated. We would like for those farmers that are in the Family Island working with livestock for them to be able to take pictures of wounds or an ailment that their animal is having (and be) able to send it to a veterinarian. A lot of the information that we want distributed through our extension service, we want to be able to do that through using ICT and so consultancy services that’s an example of the kind of services we need.”

The minister said for each department a list was made of the things needed to be done.

He said: “We do not have in-house expertise to execute and so $300,000 is a drop in the bucket. I remember a time not so long ago you had one consultant making more than

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that carrying out functions.

We have a series of areas in the ministry that require our expertise. “ He also said: “One of them is with respect to dealing with the issue with conch and having a candid discussion with fishers throughout the country about what our concerns are about the pressures that has been brought on the conch stock and getting their feedback on what we intend to do over the course of the next six months.

“The same thing is true with the Nassau grouper, we have just allocated $20,000 to a preeminent expert on the Nassau grouper who happens to be a Bahamian.

Helping to defray some of the cost for the study on the Nassau grouper which again we have been in discussions with fishers and others throughout the Family Islands and of course we are in the discussion on the marine protected areas so both in agriculture and marine resources.”

As it relates to domestic travel expenses, he said: “We have been moving through the Family Islands hearing directly from farmers and fishers with what their challenges are and so we are able to move as quick as possible to remedy it. Again, the figure you saw in my view should be increased even further.”

Regarding international travel, his ministry officials are attending meetings with ministers and technical officers working in agriculture in Caribbean and elsewhere.

When asked about the budget increase of BAIC, Mr Pintard said the agency has had a “shortfall” in its budget that had to be remedied.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, June 6, 2019, PAGE 11

Parliament cell phone ban after protest goes viral

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net HOUSE Speaker Halson Moultrie has ruled that visitors will be prohibited from carrying cell phones into the gallery after videos of a disturbance in Parliament last week went viral on social media.

The recordings, Speaker Moultrie said, posed a very serious threat to the security of the House of Assembly.

His announcement is more of a reinforcement of an existing and practised rule, which now requires visitors to leave cell phones at the door with Royal Bahamas Police Force guards.

It does not apply to members of Parliament, technocrats and the media.

However, he said the media will have to seek permission from the House through Chief Clerk David Forbes to capture cell phone video.

Last week scores of people in the House gallery took video and photographs of Fontella Chipman-Rolle’s surprising outburst, which disrupted the Minnis administration’s budget communication.

This caused the proceedings to be suspended briefly.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance K Peter Turnquest had just begun to table an amendment to value added tax regulations when Mrs Chipman-Rolle, sister of Centreville MP Reece Chipman, stood in the gallery and threw several white wrist bands onto the floor of the House of Assembly.

Speaker Moultrie said the matter is being actively looked at by police who want to speak to two

SPEAKER of the House Halson Moultrie. members of Parliament stranger from the gallery.

“With respect to reports before wrapping up the and the broadcast of the investigation.

Speaker Moultrie said: events from this Parlia“The chairman and presid- ment, the rules are clear ing officer of the Parliament whenever a disturbance having given a statement to occurs within the precincts the Royal Bahamas Police of this Parliament. The Force on yesterday (Tues- camera, particularly those day) and the clerk of this of the Parliamentary ChanParliament (David Forbes) nel are to be directed on having given a statement the chair and not to roam to the police on yesterday the gallery and broadcast (Tuesday) and the police the events nor should there indicating that they intend have been any cell phone to take two further state- recordings of the events ments - a statement from that took place and was disthe member for Golden tributed on social media.

“The reports that I Gates (Michael Foulkes) where one of the missiles received based on that that were thrown landed breach of the rules and the on the desk and a state- broadcast on social media ment from the member for has resulted in my estiMICAL (Miriam Emma- mation to a very serious nuel) where one of the threat on the security of objects also landed on the the Parliament of the Comdesk that were tossed by the monwealth of the Bahamas

and on its senators and members.”

He continued: “As a consequence of that, the ruling of this chair with respect to cell phones are as follows: no stranger will be permitted to bring a cell phone into the chamber of the this Parliament without first receiving permission of the Speaker via the clerk of this Parliament.

“Technocrats of the government will be permitted

Photo: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff to bring the cell phones receiving clearance of the into the chamber of this presiding officer of the Parliament, the media will Parliament.” be permitted to bring cell He prefaced his ruling phones into the chamber of by reading into the record Parliament and of course provisions of the Powers members are permitted and Privileges (Senate and to bring their computers House of Assembly) Act, and cell phones into the which outlines a range of Parliament. actions by visitors that are “But under no circum- punishable by summary stance should any recording conviction of a fine not of the proceedings of the exceeding $600 or a prison Parliament by cell phone term of no more than six be broadcast without first months or both.

PAGE 12, Thursday, June 6, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

Man who killed woman on porch has appeal rejected

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net A MAN has failed at appealing his 15-year sentence for trying to kill a woman as she sat on a porch five years ago.

The Court of Appeal dismissed Rauel Pierre’s appeal concerning his attempts at both Rashad Farrington’s and Kimberly Goodman’s lives in April 2014.

According to the ruling, around 9pm on the date in question, Ms Goodman was visiting a friend on Milton Street who braided her hair.

At some point, she decided to sit on the front

porch and did so with Mr Farrington, the home-owner’s son.

While they were sitting on the porch, Ms Goodman noticed a man standing in the distance, who began to walk towards her and Mr Farrington.

As the person did so, Ms Goodman noticed him pointing a gun in their direction. However, she said that in her opinion, the gun was “jamming”.

At that point, she said she shouted out to Mr Farrington: “That n**** have a gun,” or words to that effect. The two of them then ran into the house for safety.

Ms Goodman said she heard one gunshot just

before she got inside the house. According to the ruling, she was unsure of how many other shots she heard, but based on the evidence she probably heard more than two.

Ms Goodman said she recognised the gunman as a young man she had seen earlier that day and with whom she had had a brief conversation as she was on her way to the Super Value food store.

That person, she said, identified himself as “Racoon” during their conversation.

According to the ruling, Ms Goodman said when she saw “Raccoon” earlier that day he was wearing a white t-shirt.

However, the gunman wore a black, hooded sweater/pullover that fell over his forehead.

Nonetheless, she maintained that both were the same person.

Ms Goodman also said the gunman was a person whom she had seen in the area from time to time whenever she would visit the area.

She further testified that once she and Mr Farrington ran inside the house, she told the other occupants that “Racoon” was the person who shot at her and Mr Farrington.

Her identification was based on her recognition of Pierre’s eyes which she described as “funny

looking”. She attended an identification parade sometime after the incident in which she picked out Pierre as the person who approached her and Mr Farrington with the firearm.

Sometime later, Pierre was arrested by police officers on mobile patrol who had received certain information. The officers saw him leaving a home and getting into a vehicle that was waiting in the street.

The officers searched the yard and found a black hooded sweater.

At the time, Pierre said he was visiting his girlfriend Chrissy at the home he had left. However, the officers made enquiries in the area and were unable to find a

person named Chrissy.

Pierre was charged with two counts of attempted murder, and two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

He stood trial before Justice Carolita Bethel; he was found not guilty of trying to murder Mr Farrington but guilty on the other three counts. He was subsequently sentenced to 15 years in prison for attempting to murder Ms Goodman and ten years each for the firearms convictions.

However, Justice Bethel took into account the two years he had spent on remand awaiting trial, resulting in 13 and eight year sentences to run from the date of conviction.

POLICE HUNT SUSPECTS AFTER SERIES OF ARMED ROBBERIES POLICE on New Providence and Grand Bahama are searching for the suspects behind several armed robberies that occurred on Tuesday.

In the first incident, according to reports, shortly after 8pm a man was in the parking lot of a food store in the western part of New Providence, when he was approached by three men, one armed with a sharp instrument, who robbed him of cash. He and passersby held onto and detained one of the men while the other two got into a red vehicle and sped away.

A 21-year-old resident of Elizabeth Estate is in police custody and is assisting with this investigation.

In a second incident, shortly after 10pm a woman was standing outside a residence on Pine Yard Road when she was approached by an armed man who robbed her of her handbag before running away.

In the third incident, according to reports, shortly after 11pm a woman was sitting in her vehicle in the area of Yamacraw Beach when she was approached by three armed men who robbed her of her 2008

silver Honda Fit, licence number AR74848, before speeding away.

And on Grand Bahama, a business was robbed at gunpoint in Freeport late Tuesday evening.

Assistant Superintendent of Police Terecita Pinder reported that the incident occurred shortly before 11pm when a masked gunman entered a business on the Mall Drive, robbing the cashier of an undetermined amount of cash.

Anyone with information is asked to call police at 502-9991 or Crime Stoppers at 328-TIPS.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, June 6, 2019, PAGE 13

DAVID CANDIB, vice president of development and operations of Global Ports and Destination Development Group.

Carnival clears land for EIA

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

CARNIVAL Corporation has started initial land clearing work at East Grand Bahama in preparation of conducting an environmental impact assessment study for construction of its proposed $100m cruise port on Grand Bahama.

David Candib, vice president of development and operations of Global Ports and Destination Development Group, told The Tribune that the land clearing is to provide access to the site as part of an EIA. The cruise company is leasing more than 300 acres of land in an area known as Sharp Rock in East Grand Bahama from the Grand Bahama Development Company/Grand Bahama Port Authority.

The area is known as an eco-sensitive zone, and the company promised that it would preserve 110 acres as a natural wetland.

The port will be the largest cruise port built by

Carnival in the world, and would be able to accommodate two of their largest ships at the same time.

On Monday, The Tribune learned that work was underway at the site, and that several heavy equipment vehicles operated by City Services had been contracted to clear the land.

Efforts to contact officials at the Grand Bahama Port Authority concerning required approved permits proved fruitless up to press time.

Minister of State for Grand Bahama Kwasi Thompson was also contacted for an update concerning the EIA for Carnival, but he did not return Tribune calls up to press time.

Meanwhile, Mr Candib said that Carnival is continuing to work with government agencies and the GBPA for a timeline in submitting what is required for an EIA, in hopes of securing permits later for construction.

“This is the initial work of clearing land to access the site as part of the EIA.

This is not for the issue of formal building permits,” he said.

Carnival’s proposed port is expected to built by October 2020, and would be able to accommodate two 6,000 passenger cruise ships, with a crew of 2,000 at the same time. The project is expected to revitalise the island’s tourism sector bringing 1 million passengers annually, and create about 1,000 jobs, and a myriad of entrepreneurial opportunities for Bahamians.

Mr Candib said project officials plan to return to Grand Bahama to host another information meeting to share with the public further opportunities that would be available to Bahamians.

He said they held a meeting in Grand Bahama previously and shared opportunities for design and food and beverage sectors.

“We will be coming back over the next month or two for another information meeting with opportunities for Bahamians,” he said.

PAGE 14, Thursday, June 6, 2019

POLICE THWARTED BY ELECTRONIC DOORS DURING SHOOTING VIRGINIA BEACH, Va Associated Press

POLICE responding to the deadly mass shooting at a Virginia Beach municipal building were unable to confront the gunman at one point because they didn’t have the key cards needed to open doors on the second floor.

Over the radio, they desperately pleaded for the electronic cards and talked of bringing in a sledgehammer, an explosive charge or other means of breaking down the doors.

The killer was eventually gunned down, and whether the delay contributed to the toll of 12 victims dead and four wounded is unclear.

But the episode last week illustrated how door-lock technology that is supposed to protect people from workplace violence can hamper police and rescue workers in an emergency.

“That’s definitely a blind spot that this particular shooting has shown,” said Gregory Shaffer, a retired FBI.

THE TRIBUNE

Cruise lines stop trips to Cuba after restrictions MIAMI Associated Press THE Trump administration’s new restrictions on travel to Cuba will hit hardest at the cruise industry, taking away a new and increasingly popular destination at the start of the critical summer vacation season.

Major cruise lines immediately dropped stops in Cuba from their itineraries and hastily rerouted ships to other destinations including Mexico.

Nearly 800,000 passengers already on cruises or booked for future trips were affected, according to the Cruise Lines International Association, an industry trade group.

At docks in Florida and aboard ships at sea, frustrated travelers vented yestereday over wrecked

vacation plans. In New York, shares of cruise line companies fell in midday trading.

“We have a ship full of disappointed and angry people,” said Darcy Van Zijl of Cape Coral, Florida, who had planned to celebrate her 45th birthday with a cruise to Havana.

The US Commerce Department announced the new regulations Tuesday to take effect Wednesday.

Cruise lines that carried passengers for “people-topeople” travel to Cuba were told they could not continue.

The restrictions effectively made it illegal to cruise from the US to Cuba, according to the industry group.

Cuba trips represented a relatively small percentage of passenger cruises — about 3% or 4% for Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings and even less for

Royal Caribbean Cruises and Carnival Corp., according to UBS analysts.

But passengers typically paid more to visit the island. Cuban itineraries commanded premiums of up to 20% over cruises to The Bahamas, according to UBS analyst Robin Farley.

“This is going to have a noticeable impact on the cruise lines’ earnings this quarter and the rest of this year and likely into 2020,” said Henry Harteveldt, a travel analyst with Atmosphere Research Group.

At midday, shares of Norwegian were down 5%. Royal Caribbean was off 4%, and Carnival had dropped 3%.

After their first stop in Key West, Florida, Van Zijl and her daughter, sister and brother-in-law learned that the ship would sail for Nassau in the Bahamas

instead of Havana.

“We paid a lot of money for this cruise ... way more than a cruise to The Bahamas,” she texted to The Associated Press while her ship was at sea.

For Samantha Arceneaux and her husband, Nick, a cruise from Port Canaveral, Florida, to Cuba was to be their first trip alone since the birth of their daughter eight years ago. The Orlando woman arranged a camp for her daughter and picked a ship room with no view, thinking that she and her husband would spend most of their two days wandering around Havana.

Now the only stop by the Norwegian Cruise Line boat may be in Key West.

“I live in Florida. I could drive to Key West if I wanted to,” Arceneaux said. “That’s not why I’m paying thousands of dollars.

It’s quite disappointing.”

Passengers booked to depart Wednesday showed up at Florida ports, only to learn that they weren’t going to Cuba.

At the dock in Fort Lauderdale, a Royal Caribbean employee tried to disrupt a reporter’s interviews with unhappy passengers, saying it wasn’t the company’s fault that the US government had suddenly barred trips to Cuba.

Cruising from the United States to Cuba started in May 2016, as President Barack Obama moved to improve relations.

Whether by boat or air, Cuba quickly became a romantic destination just a short hop from Florida.

The nation’s hotels and many other facilities are not yet on par with other tourist stops in the Caribbean.

That added to its appeal.

US World War II D-Day veteran Tom Rice, from Coronado, California, parachutes in a tandem jump into a field in Carentan, Normandy, France, yesterday.

D-DAY VETERAN PARACHUTES AGAIN CARENTAN, France Associated Press NO murderous hails of gunfire this time. No D-Day objective that had to be taken, whatever the cost.

This time, 75 years almost to the hour after he parachuted into Nazi-occupied France, Tom Rice again found himself floating down through Normandy’s skies, now a grizzled 97-year-old thrilled as a little kid.

“Woo-hoo!” the ex-paratrooper yelped after hitting the ground, carrying the memories of comrades lost in battle and on a new mission — of remembrance this time — for the ever-shrinking numbers who sacrificed so much in World War II. “I represent a whole generation,” Rice said.

Engines throbbing, C-47 transport planes dropped string after string of parachutists, a couple of

hundred in all - including Rice, who jumped strapped to a partner, not alone and laden with weapons as he did on June 6, 1944.

“It went perfect, perfect jump,” Rice said after catching his breath. “I feel great. I’d go up and do it all again.”

The clouds of jumpers, with round ‘chutes akin to those used by D-Day soldiers, were honoring the thousands of paratroopers who leapt into gunfire and death 75 years ago.

Their landing zone Wednesday was fields of wildflowers outside Carentan, one of the targets of the airborne forces that were dropped in darkness on perilous missions to take strategic objectives and disrupt German defenses so that the greatest amphibious invasion in history, on the D-Day beaches, would have a greater chance of

success.

Rice, of San Diego, jumped into roughly the same area he landed in on D-Day. He said it was dark in 1944 when he hit the ground in hostile territory and he can’t be sure exactly where he was.

Rice jumped with the US Army’s 101st Airborne Division on that momentous day 75 years ago, landing safely despite catching himself on the exit and a bullet striking his parachute. He called the 1944 jump “the worst jump I ever had”.

“I got my left armpit caught in the lower left hand corner of the door so I swung out, came back and hit the side of the aircraft, swung out again and came back, and I just tried to straighten my arm out and I got free,” he told The Associated Press in an interview.

TRUMP, IRISH PM DIFFER ON BREXIT SHANNON, Ireland Associated Press FOR the backdrop to his first official visit to Ireland, President Donald Trump wanted to promote his golf course on the nation’s rocky west coast. The Irish government countered with the grand staging of an ancient castle.

In the end, neither side got what they wanted. The compromise location for Trump’s meeting yesterday with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar was the VIP lounge at Shannon Airport, just down the hallway from the food court and dutyfree shop.

And the meeting itself was more than just a warm handshake for the cameras, as the two broke sharply on

what would be best for Ireland if the United Kingdom were to leave the European Union.

Varadkar has become a vociferous opponent of Brexit, a move Trump supports. Many in Ireland express worry that if the UK does leave, a “hard border” will return between Ireland and Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K, potentially reigniting sectarian tension that lasted for decades and sometimes exploded into violence.

“Probably you’ll ask me about Brexit because I just left some very good people who are very involved with Brexit, as you know,” Trump said in the leaders’ meeting. “And I think it will all work out very well, and also for you with your

wall, your border.”

Varadkar quickly retorted: “I think one thing we want to avoid, of course, is a wall or border between us.”

“I think you do, I think you do,” Trump responded.

“The way it works now is good, you want to try and to keep it that way. I know that’s a big point of contention with respect to Brexit.

I’m sure it’s going to work out very well. I know they’re focused very heavily on it.”

Trump also has one other stop during his two days in Ireland, and it’s not the capital of Dublin or the famed Cliffs of Moher. Rather, it’s his own golf course in Doonbeg, where he will sleep for two nights amid the commemorations of the 75th anniversary of D-Day.