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SPAIN’S CLAIM ON SUNKEN TREASURE
Legal battle looms over who has rights to galleon’s fortune By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas faces a battle with the Spanish government to lay claim to sunken treasure and historical artifacts worth potentially millions of dollars that lie within this nation’s waters. James Goold, an attorney with US law firm, Covington & Burling, asserted to Tribune Business yesterday that any Spanish galleon wrecked in Bahamian waters, as well as the
cargo it was carrying, is the property of that nation’s government and not The Bahamas. The Washington DCbased lawyer, who has successfully represented Spain in previous legal disputes against underwater explorers and salvors, added that the Madrid government was vehemently opposed to so-called treasure hunting and wanted its underwater cultural heritage to be recovered and preserved in museums for the public’s benefit. FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS
HEALTH and Wellness Minister, Dr Michael Darville said there is another suspected case of monkeypox in the country. This comes after the minister reported last month that a foreign national who travelled to The Bahamas was being closely monitored by health officials and suspected of having the disease.
The individual was believed to be in his mid 40s and had been placed in isolation after showing symptoms associated with the disease. He was a short time later flown out of the country. Yesterday, the minister said it was confirmed that the man did indeed have monkeypox. Yesterday, during a press conference at the Office of the Prime Minister, Dr SEE PAGE TEN
By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
PRESS secretary Clint Watson says addressing legislation on abortion is currently not a priority for the Davis administration, adding that the government does not make “impulsive decisions” based on what other countries are doing. Discussions surrounding the issue of abortion were reignited last week after a recent United States Supreme Court decision overturned the Roe vs Wade ruling that granted abortion rights across the country. It means the constitutional right to abortion, upheld for nearly a half century, no longer exists. It will now be up to individual US states to decide whether the procedure will be legal for their residents. SEE PAGE FIVE
TAX CHANGE HAS INSURERS ‘FLYING BLIND’
SECOND MONKEYPOX CASE BEING EXAMINED By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
ABORTION ISSUE NOT ON GOVT’S TO-DO LIST
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
PIGASSO
A SWIMMING pig - just one painting in an event which has seen artists banding together to help repair Elbow Reef Lighthouse with a silent auction. See today’s WEEKEND section for the full story.
BAHAMIAN insurers yesterday said they are “totally in the blind” as to how Budget tax reforms will work with “time having run out” to make any adjustments due to the new fiscal year beginning today. Anton Saunders, RoyalStar Assurance’s managing director, told Tribune Business that “we cannot operate in a state where we don’t know what to do” because of ongoing uncertainty over the taxation regime for 2022-2023. FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS
LOCKDOWN MEALS COST POLICE $750K By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net
OUTGOING police commissioner Paul Rolle has recalled the push back he received from the Minnis administration over a $750,000 bill the Royal Bahamas Police Force racked up from aroundthe-clock policing during lockdowns at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time Mr
POLICE on patrol during lockdown in 2020. Rolle also said there was a lot of confusion among officers due to the rapidly changing Emergency Powers Orders.
“This thing was changing while you were in flight,” Mr Rolle said of the orders and whether there had been any friction with government over how he chose to administrate and navigate the RBPF in the early days of the pandemic. “We had difficulty keeping up with them.” Mr Rolle sat down with The Tribune earlier this week in his final days as SEE PAGE FOUR
Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper
DIANE PHILLIPS: NEW WAYS TO GROW THE ECONOMY
SEE PAGE NINE
PAGE 2, Friday, July 1, 2022
POLICE OFFICERS DONATE BLOOD A BLOOD drive was held yesterday at the Royal Bahamas Police Force headquarters where officers of all ranks donated blood. Photos: Austin Fernander
THE TRIBUNE
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, July 1, 2022, PAGE 3
Chief Justice: Bail murders a matter for law enforcement By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net WHILE admitting that the courts must focus on getting cases to trial as soon as possible, Chief Justice Sir Brian Moree said violence against people on bail is a matter for law enforcement. He noted that once bail is granted, the courts have no control over what happens outside the courtroom other than to try and expedite matters as soon as possible. The chief justice’s comments come at a time when the issue is in the public domain as a number of persons out on bail have been killed recently. Asked yesterday about dealing with this trend, Sir Brian explained: “Well, the way that the judiciary has to address the problem is this: when persons are accused of an offence, they are entitled to apply for bail. Now the law sets down the governing principles, which needs to be applied when somebody applies for bail. “We have to understand under the Constitution there’s a presumption of innocence and the Court of Appeal has laid down very clearly what these principles are that must be applied. It’s not a question of the judge wanting to grant bail or not wanting to grant bail. That isn’t the issue. It is a question of applying the law with regards to these applications and when that is done the judge either grants bail or does not grant bail. “Now once when bail is granted then obviously we in the courts have no control over what happens outside the courtroom other than to try and get these cases to trial as soon as possible and that comes back to what I was mentioning a moment ago. How long does it take us to get a case to trial and, once we’re in trial, how long does it take for us to complete the trial.” He added: “Those are the points which we have to look at in collaboration with the other stakeholders in the criminal justice system. The answer is not for the courts to simply deny bail – the law doesn’t allow that. We have to follow the law and in any case that is before a judge the judge has to look at the circumstances of that particular case, apply the relevant principles and come up with a decision and that’s what we do.” He noted that there is a perception that an individual should not be granted bail and people question why bail was granted in particular cases. However, the chief justice asserted that in every case the decision whether or not to grant bail is not based on the personal view of a judge
or a magistrate. Instead, it is based upon a consideration of the specific facts and circumstances of that case and then they must apply the legal principles and make a decision, he said. “And so I think that sometimes it may be thought that a person shouldn’t be granted bail but in those circumstances you have to look at the principles. You have to look at the law. If a judge does not grant bail in circumstances which are improper, then the likelihood is that person is going to appeal and the Court of Appeal is going to reverse that decision,” he told The Tribune. “So that’s the way it works. This isn’t a question of personal views. This is a question of applying the law to the facts of circumstances in every case. What is happening with regards to our society with so many persons on bail being the victims of a shooting or, I guess, some other violent act? (It) is a matter which has to be addressed by the law enforcement agencies and in the court system we have to focus on getting these cases to trial as soon as possible.” Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis on Monday asserted that courts have to “step up” in regards to hearing murder cases. Sir Brian did not want to directly address the comments of the prime minister, but insisted the courts are doing what they can. “He certainly expressed a view on it and I don’t wish to say anything directly on that. I would only say this: the courts are working very hard with limited resources to deal with this backlog and hear cases the best we can. “I think that the public needs to understand why are these delays occurring. Once they understand it then perhaps they will appreciate that we need an holistic approach to solving the problem. We in the judiciary accept our responsibility for processing these cases as best we can with the limited resources that we have, but the judges are working very hard to deal with the backlog with regard to the specific time it takes to finish a trial – that depends on many factors case by case. “And the judges have strong case management powers, which allows them to try to conduct the trial in a way which is efficient, but also respectful of the constitutional rights that accused persons have before the court. It’s a balance and we in the judiciary have to strike that balance through the management of the case.” Sir Brian highlighted that the backlog of cases in court goes back a “very long way”. “We’re going back
CHIEF Justice Brian Moree. certainly eight, nine, ten years ago when this backlog has accumulated over a period of time.” He added that the COVID-19 pandemic compounded the problem because there was a period of time on the criminal side that all jury trials were suspended due to being unable to accommodate them within the limited space available. He stated a number of things contribute to the backlog relating to the criminal justice system generally, adding the point that there are a number of components involved in the criminal justice system and a number of stakeholders. “It involves the police. It involves the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. It involves the Public Defender’s Office. It involves obviously the private defence bar who represent accused persons on the criminal side and, of course, it involves the various government agencies, which provide forensic evidence, DNA evidence and evidence from pathologists with regard to criminal cases. “And so all of these matters have to be looked into because it is taking a very long time to get the evidence ready. In many cases, it takes between 18 and 24 months to get this evidence and so consequently all of these issues have to be addressed if we’re going to be able to reduce the timeline it takes to deal with cases.”
HUMAN REMAINS FOUND IN GRAND BAHAMA By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net
HUMAN skeletal remains were discovered in a mound of soil that was transported by a truck to a residence in the Lucaya area, police reported. Assistant Superintendent of Police Stephen Rolle said that a male homeowner found a human skull while doing some yard work at his home on Wednesday. According to reports,
Police received a report shortly after 10am that human remains were found at a residence situated on Winterton Lane in the Chesapeake Subdivision. When police arrived at the residence, they spoke to a male resident who told them that while mowing his lawn he discovered a human skull. ASP Rolle said tthe man checked his surveillance camera. While viewing the footage, the male observed a round object fall from a
truck that was offloading soil in his yard the previous day. On closer inspection of the load of soil, the man also discovered several bones that were suspected of being human. The remains were taken to the Rand Memorial Hospital, where they were examined by a doctor and determined to be human remains. ASP Rolle said investigations are continuing into the matter.
POLICE PROBE DROWNING IN EXUMA POLICE are investigating an apparent drowning on a beach in the settlement of Farmers Hill, Exuma. Preliminary reports are that sometime after 2pm police were alerted to the incident and on the western section of the beach found a caucasian man on the shoreline being attended to by medical practitioners. The man was later
pronounced dead by a local doctor. Initial investigations indicated the victim, who was a guest at a local lodging, had been a short distance off from the shoreline. Another swimmer heard a distress call. A watercraft operator was alerted and immediately made his way to where the victim was. The male was pulled out of
the water and taken ashore. He was unresponsive on arrival. The local medical practitioners were summoned and rendered life saving medical assistance, however, to no avail. The police are awaiting an autopsy report to confirm the exact cause of death. This matter remains under active investigation.
Photo: Austin Fernander
‘STILL AREAS THAT NEED ATTENTION AFTER AUDIT REPORT’
By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
TWO years after the Auditor General revealed alleged impropriety in the Magistrate Courts, Chief Justice Sir Brian Moree said there are still certain areas that require further attention. In 2020, the alleged impropriety was highlighted in the report by Auditor General Terrence Bastian, exposing instances of cashiers allegedly altering payment receipts and involving two dozen cheques that had gone missing. A case where a missing endorsed blank cheque for $6,000 that was later cashed was directly given to the Royal Bahamas Police Force for further investigation. Yesterday, asked how he felt officials in the judiciary have done in addressing the concerns from the report, Mr Moree said: “I think that there are issues which still need to be addressed. Some of those matters we have dealt with through policy changes within the magistrate’s courts. “We’ve introduced certain checks and balances, but I think there are still certain issues which require further attention.” Asked more pointedly of the issue, he said: “Well, I’m afraid I have to be a little careful about that. Let’s just say this,
those issues involve the police and further investigations. And, as I said, it’s not appropriate for me to preempt those, but there are certain things which I think still require further attention.” When the cheques were brought up, he assured that aspects were addressed, but highlighted certain limitations. “I think specifically these matters were looked into,” he told The Tribune. “I don’t frankly recall exactly the final outcome there because that was several years ago. I’ll have to check the files, but I think that the whole issue of accountability and checks and balances has been addressed at all levels in terms of policies and procedures. “Now to the extent there’s gonna be any further inquiry and investigations at another level is a matter for the police and for the Director of Public Prosecutions.” He added that the investigations are his office’s responsibility. “Well, we follow through to the extent where we’re able to do in the judiciary. In other words, policies and procedures, checks and balances. We’re not responsible for investigations, police investigations, and any prosecutions that may come out of that. “They fall into the area of the DPP and the police, but certainly we tried to make policy and process changes to introduce checks and balances and to better monitor these affairs. What else happens, as I say, is a matter for other agencies.”
PAGE 4, Friday, July 1, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
Rolle: I felt betrayed by Minnis administration By JADE RUSSELL jrussell@tribunemedia.net POLICE Commissioner Paul Rolle on his last day in office yesterday said he felt “betrayed” and “deceived” by the Minnis administration in its handling of three high-ranking police officers, adding he never supported them being placed on leave. Senior police officers Clayton Fernander, Leamond Deleveaux and Ken Strachan in 2019 were asked to take their accumulated vacation leaves. During during an interview on ‘Cop Talk’ with host Sergeant Makelle Pinder, Mr Rolle addressed the challenges he faced working with the previous administration. He said: “When dealing with the officers that were placed on leave, I never supported that. I made that known into the administration at the time. “When they asked me to do that, I refused, okay in the first instance. And when the time came up for the extension I refused in January. “I told them if you give me a Cabinet conclusion, because that’s not me I don’t think I should be the one doing it, I didn’t want to do it. And in March again it came up and they asked for me to do it and I refused to do it.” After refusing multiple times to extend the officers’ leave, Mr Rolle said the relationship between him and the Minnis government became “tense”. Mr Rolle said he asked the administration to put their instructions in writing and he would then carry out their orders. However, after carrying out the “written instructions” he described feeling deceived and betrayed by the way it was done. Commissioner Rolle added, he then had intentions of going to the Prime Minister and letting him know he was ready to retire. However, he said he later received a call that the Prime Minister had something for
POLICE Commissioner Paul Rolle. Photo: Moise Amisial him, which he believed was Mr Fernander is to be his marching orders. How- confirmed as the new police ever, he ended up receiving Commissioner on Tuesday. a proclamation to prorogue Mr Strachan was Parliament instead. bestowed a Queen’s honour Following the 2021 early and Mr Deleveaux is set election when the Free to be the next Deputy National Movement was Commissioner. voted out, Mr Rolle informed “I said to the other assisthe new Prime Minister Philip tant commissioners ‘Look Brave Davis of the current y’all are young, sit and circumstances and his plans. allow me to do this for Commissioner Rolle added these guys. I don’t want to he had he already brought hear no complaints and I back officers Fernander, ask that you support them,” Deleveaux and Strachan. Mr Rolle went on to say. He took the opportunity to When asked what he apologise to the men for how wants his legacy to be, Mr they were treated and said he Rolle responded that he would do everything in his wants to be remembered power to restore their dignity. as the Commissioner who Rolle had received some touched the lives of people. backlash from the ordeal of He noted when came in the officers and said he had 2020 it was at a crucial time to take the licks for it. when people were hurting.
TWO MORE MURDERS IN NATION POLICE are investigating after two separate murders in the country. The latest murder took place last night. As The Tribune went to press, officers were at the scene on Robinson Road and Washington Street, where a man was found unresponsive. Further details were unavailable late last night. Meanwhile, Grand Bahama Police are investigating a murder after a man was stabbed to death on Wednesday evening at a local bar in Freeport. According to reports, the victim and another
man were involved in an argument. Assistant Superintendent of Police Stephen Rolle reported that shortly before 10pm on Wednesday, June 29, Police received a report of a stabbing at a bar situated on McKenzie Street. He said officers were sent to the scene to investigate. According to initial police reports, a group of men was standing in front of a business establishment when two adult males started arguing. It then escalated to a physical confrontation. ASP Rolle said that one
of the men was stabbed multiple times in the chest area and ran to the entrance door of the establishment where he collapsed. The victim was transported to the Rand Memorial Hospital in a private vehicle. He was examined by a doctor and later succumbed to his injuries. Mr Rolle said that a second male was also stabbed, but his injuries were non-life threatening. ASP Rolle said investigations are underway and police are searching for a male suspect in connection with the matter.
Lockdown meals cost police $750k from page one Commissioner. He will retire on July 5 and officially hand over the post to Deputy Commissioner Clayton Fernander. Mr Rolle became Commissioner on March 30, 2020. “One of the big challenging things I had was - remember now, you are in lockdown and so restaurants were closed, officers were working around the clock,” Mr Rolle said. “I
had to feed them. So, I had to bring in the canteen staff and we were doing about 1,000 meals a day because you had to cover all of the shifts, a little over a thousand and then we had the defence force join to assist. So, I had to feed them as well because no restaurants were open. “That was a herculean task to feed them and you know then we had the night shifts and produce lighter meals for them and keep
the water flowing, that was very costly. “I think we must have spent, the first bill I submitted to the government was $750,000. Then they started to say ‘Why did you spend all this money?’ “I said ‘listen man we had to feed these people. We are in lockdown. That first lock down I think was 14 days and so you could imagine feeding 1,000 persons a day and that was only breakfast and lunches
- thousand meals. “You know the breakfast was like $8 and lunch was $15. So, multiply that. That’s like $23,000 per day. So, you see how that adds up?” Regarding emergency powers orders, Mr Rolle said as the rules began to change really fast, there was confusion. “See we had the emergency powers orders. I think it was more for me to interpret and I had them
asking me what this means and so I had to interpret that for the officers. “When the orders started changing and I’m like, y’all have to give us time, you know. Y’all are changing these orders so fast and I have these officers out there we don’t have time to have meetings to educate these officers. Then what happened is there were officers who started to be in breach because they were operating under old orders
and this thing was changing while you were in flight. Then you would get complaints from the public and then the public started getting annoyed because they were reading and they had their consults and we would have lawyers call but the message wasn’t getting out fast enough. “There were times when the orders would change twice, three times in a week. We had difficulty keeping up with them.”
Princess Diana of Wales “A SPECIAL DAY”
Remembering Our Best Friend GEORGE’S WORKSHOP
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, July 1, 2022, PAGE 5
‘Govt making efforts to sustain NIB fund’
ABORTION ISSUE NOT ON GOVT’S TO-DO LIST from page one
PRESS secretary Clint Watson. By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net PRESS secretary Clint Watson has insisted that efforts are being taken by the government to ensure the sustainability of the National Insurance Board Fund. His comments came after the opposition accused the Davis administration of not being committed to addressing the issue. “The opposition has been very big on talk but very slow to action,” Mr Watson said during a press conference yesterday. “It’s the opposite of the Davis administration. The Davis administration is keen on taking action. “When you hear that there’s this talk from the administration about NIB fund and most of the talk that you’ve heard so far is the Prime Minister saying that he’s not going to put
any taxes or any burden on the people right now (because) it’s not the right time – that does not mean that it’s the end of the discussion. It means there is a different avenue and that is exactly what the Prime Minister is doing.” In April, The Tribune exclusively reported that the 11th actuarial review of the National Insurance Board predicted that the fund could be depleted by 2028 should officials neglect to take urgent action. That report had reduced the fund’s potential depletion timeline by one year, as the 10th review had made a prediction of 2029. However, concerns about NIB’s fund resurfaced last week after it was reported the review recommended for the contribution rate to be increased by two percent next month, with bi-yearly increases until 2036.
However, here in The Bahamas, abortion remains illegal. During yesterday’s press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister, Mr Watson was asked to state the government’s position on abortion in view of the recent ruling. He replied: “We have not made public any position at all since it’s happened. “It’s just happened in the United States of America. We don’t make impulsive decisions in The Bahamas’ government based on what the US has done. “Now, granted, it will cause for more awakening or to see whether there will be any effects, but we’re not going to all of a sudden pick up a mandate of dealing with abortion legislation because the United States Prime Minister Phillip “Brave” Davis has previously said that an increase was not being considered by his government. On Monday, Mr Davis told reporters that his administration has not decided whether it will accept the report’s recommendations and added that until a decision is made, the government will continue to “hold the line”. Speaking on the issue, Free National Movement chairman Dr Duane Sands has said that it appeared that the Davis administration is hoping the solution for NIB will find itself and further accused the government of kicking the issue
did something. That’s not how you govern.” He said the government came into office with a “specific set of priorities,” which, he said, is their main focus. “We govern based on what your priorities are,” Mr Watson said. “The administration was selected based on a specific set of priorities. That’s the focus of the government. We divert in the event of an emergency or you divert in the event of there being a clarion call for some change, but not because something happened in another country you just drop your mandate and pick up something else. “That was never a part of the Davis administration’s mandate and to this point still, it does not become a part of it. Whether there be conversations, we’ll see what the public is asking for. We’ll see what those involved with the industry are saying about it
down the road. He also said if the government decides against following the recommended rate increase, it will need to reprioritise its 2022/2023 budget to offer assistance to NIB. Responding yesterday, Mr Watson insisted the Davis administration was working to come up with several solutions to bolster’s NIB fund, which, he said, will not be depleted under the government’s watch. “The Prime Minister and his Cabinet are working on new opportunities of streams of revenue and new opportunities to ensure that the fund is rebuilt right now without having to tax the Bahamian people,” he said.
and whether or not it has any bearing in The Bahamas, but right now it is not a discussion that Bahamians are having here widespread as far as their involvement in it so it’s not a priority for the administration.” He also said if decriminalising abortion “is something the Bahamian people want, they know how to lobby for change”. “We govern on behalf of the Bahamian people,” he continued, “and that means you are sent to govern based on what they believe your interest line up with their interest. That has not been something expressed by the Bahamian people on a mass scale so it’s not on anybody’s agenda. It’s not on our agenda. It’s not on the opposition’s agenda so it’s probably not a conversation Bahamians want to entertain at this time. Will that always remain? I can’t say. New generations are coming up and their requirements are different.”
“Now, if he chooses to do that later on, that will be a discussion then, but right now he has said that he has to ensure that the Bahamian people can manage. Now, that’s what I think most people admire about his leadership and good governance. The Prime Minister is able to do more than one thing at the same time.” The press secretary continued: “It doesn’t mean that he isn’t working on a solution to fund the National Insurance Board and he is working on a solution. They are working on a solution and as a matter of fact, you would have heard in the budget that there has been a significant amount
of money that has been put back into the fund that most people aren’t even talking about. “People are talking about ‘oh what are they doing about it’ but reporters ought to be reminded that the budget, there was mention that monies have already been placed back. So, what are we doing? We’re making sure the fund is not depleted, but we’re doing it through a prudent way of fiscal management (and) the Bahamian people could rest assured that the fund will continue to be around for years to come, but it will not be at the risk of their financial stability right now during this difficult time.”
CABLE BAHAMAAS HONOURS MEN IN LEADERSHIP ROLES IN CAMPAIGN By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
CABLE Bahamas has honoured a diverse group of men in leadership roles through its Committed to Excellence campaign. In honour of the collective excellence, the CBL Group has launched a new campaign in partnership with Island Pay and Bahamas Harvest Church to highlight the men within the organisation of varying expertise and backgrounds who work
collaboratively to build the Cable Bahamas brand and the community at large. President and CEO of the Cable Bahamas Group, Franklyn Butler said in a press statement: “It is our desire to create a culture of excellence for our team members as professionals, but also as individuals. I’m pleased to see that in this case it is being both recognised and rewarded.” As part of the campaign the CBL group is sharing the stories of the men who help keep the company
thriving, and treat them to a special golf day and luncheon at the Royal Blue Golf Course at Baha Mar and Royal Blue Tavern. “We are very happy to host the Cable Bahamas Group as part of their Committed to Excellence campaign. The tenets of this campaign, excellence in service, diversity and innovative leadership align with many of our core values at Baha Mar. It is the Baha Mar Resort Foundation’s pleasure to have them enjoy all that Royal Blue has to offer,” senior vice
$25,000 DONATION TO HELP BUILD STORM SHELTER AND SOUP KITCHEN By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net
THE Grand Bahama Disaster Relief Foundation (GBDRF) donated $25,000 to the Evangeline Jervis Community Distribution Centre for construction of a hurricane shelter and soup kitchen in Freeport. The hurricane shelter is the first and only purpose-built hurricane facility on the island of Grand Bahama. It is about 4,200 sq ft and four feet above ground and can accommodate about 300 people. The facility will have a large multipurpose area for dining and sleeping, a large industrial kitchen, and several restrooms, with showers. The shelter facility is expected to be fully completed in August 2022. The GBDRF is a nonprofit organisation that was founded in 2016 after Hurricane Matthew by the Grand Bahama Port Authority, Limited (GBPA). GBPA president Ian Rolle, GBDRF board
member, said the facility will serve as a beacon of hope. “As the island continues to progress in the wake of one of the most devastating hurricanes, this premier hurricane shelter and fulltime soup kitchen will act as a beacon of light and an emblem of hope, not only for the community it resides in, but for the entire island of Grand Bahama,” he said. Mr Rolle noted that the GBDRF was birthed out of a difficult time. He said that since its inception it has created and fostered both local and international partnerships that aid in restoring and rebuilding back stronger, better and more resilient. Carleta Jervis Carolina, member of the Evangeline Jervis Community Distribution Center’s Board of Directors, was very grateful for the generous contribution and support given by the GBPA. “This donation will assist us greatly in meeting the needs and helping to transform the lives of individuals and families in Grand Bahama,” she said.
“This shelter will allow us to continue to provide care, resources, proper food distribution, clothing and a temporary safe environment in the midst of uncertainty or in a crisis.” “I can’t thank GBDRF enough. The generator was a critical need and expense for us and, now that we have the necessary funds, this will aid in the completion of the shelter,” said Ms Carolina. It was noted that the dire need for a designated hurricane shelter became apparent following Hurricane Dorian. The GBDRF encourages other organizations and corporate partners to reach out and offer assistance. Anyone interested in donating and receiving assistance can contact the Grand Bahama Disaster Relief Foundation, by visiting its website, www. gbdisasterrelief.org. Persons may also donate to the Evangeline Jervis Community Distribution Center by visiting their website at www.ejerviscommunitycenter.com.
MAN WANTED IN MURDER INVESTIGATION By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net
GRAND Bahama Police are searching for a man who is wanted for questioning in connection with a murder investigation.
An all-points bulletin has been issued for Rosceno Olivio Cox, 21, of Rum Cay Villas, Freeport. Cox is about five feet, eight inches tall of slim build. He has dark brown complexion and black hair. He is considered to be
armed and dangerous and should be approached with extreme caution. Anyone with information concerning the whereabouts of Cox is asked to call 350-3014/6, 352-1919, 3503106/9 or call the nearest police station.
president of government and community relations of Baha Mar, Robert Sands said in the release. The company is using this opportunity to pay it forward by inviting a select group of high school aged young men to join the group for an afternoon of mentorship. Jeffery Beckles, managing director of Island Pay and pastor Mario Moxey, Lead Pastor at Bahamas Harvest Church, will be a part of the campaign, as they have worked closely
with both gentlemen and organisations on a number of community centric campaigns in recent months. “Several months ago, we began a journey with likeminded corporate partners to bring hope to several families over the holidays. Then we realised that we needed to evolve from thinking about the needs of our families only during the holidays and our efforts evolved into hope for all seasons,” said Mr Beckles. “Today, we are not only putting our corporate
resources to good use, but we are raising the bar by adding our time to the mix. If we are going to have better communities, build a better country, it is going to take our resources, yes, but it requires our time.” Earlier this year, Cable Bahamas, presented the Women in Leadership campaign, a tribute to its first executive leadership team being composed of more than fifty percent women of age demographics ranging from Millennials to Boomers.
PAGE 6, Friday, July 1, 2022
The Tribune Limited NULLIUS ADDICTUS JURARE IN VERBA MAGISTRI “Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master”
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Who gets to claim the sunken treasure? WHERE there’s gold, there’s a claim to be staked. First came the treasure hunters from Allen Exploration, who under the terms of the government at the time set about finding booty and riches beneath the waves in Bahamian waters. Then the new government administration decided that the 75/25 split wasn’t fair and decided to get the largest share. The only trouble is, that prompted the explorers to consider whether it was worth their time and money to find something only to hand over the majority of it to a government that invested nothing in the enterprise. And now here comes the Spanish government, looking to reclaim the contents of its lost galleons. An attorney with a US law firm has become involved, stating that any Spanish ship lost in Bahamian waters, as well as its cargo, belongs to the Spanish government and not The Bahamas. The original explorers say the US attorney is not supported by the law of The Bahamas. The attorney says he has won multiple cases in the US on the principle that the owner of the ship remains so after it has sunk. Meanwhile, the Minister of National Security has invited the explorers to leave if they don’t like the deal, while the Minister of Foreign Affairs this year posted photographs of himself with the man who owns the exploration company, Carl Allen, visiting Walker’s Cay where Mr Allen was his host. If all this is starting to look tangled to you, you’re not alone. The galleons that the Spanish are suddenly so keen to protect for museums and study, in the meantime, continue to gently rot away on the sea bed. It seems inevitable at this rate that if the treasure hunting continues now that it will end up in court in some fashion. The US attorney may have been successful in arguing under US laws, but that would have to be tested under Bahamian law which says that abandoned wrecks belong to The Bahamas unless the country has granted rights to someone else. That law dates back to 1965, and has never been tested by the Spanish. The main ship being searched for, the Nuestra Senora de la Maravillas is described as “the most valuable shipwreck in the Western Hemisphere”. It sank in 1656 near Little Bahama Bank off Grand Bahama, and was eventually found in 1972. Centuries have passed since its sinking, decades since its rediscovery.
And now, it seems everyone wants a share.
Abortion legislation Abortion is in the headlines because of the Supreme Court in the US overturning the long-standing Roe v Wade ruling that granted abortion rights across the country. That has prompted much discussion among Bahamians, but, of course, we have our own laws when it comes to abortion. Here, abortion remains illegal. It would be naïve to think that means abortion doesn’t happen here. Some travel to the US for such a procedure. Some procedures take place here, illegal or not. The question was raised whether there was any consideration on changing legislation here when it comes to abortion – and press secretary Clint Watson was swift to bat the suggestion away. He said such legislation is not a priority for the Davis administration, and that the government does not make “impulsive decisions” based on what other countries are doing. This, despite the government here using the removal of testing requirements for vaccinated travellers by the US as part of its reasoning to do the same here. We make decisions based on actions of other countries sometimes, but not others, it would seem. Interestingly, this is the second time an issue disproportionately affecting women has been shrugged aside. Back in November, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis effectively shrugged off the issue of marital rape, saying: “I have too many other things on my agenda to be thinking about.” Marital rape, you may have noticed, has now moved onto that agenda – so public pressure can certainly make a difference. Not that there’s been much progress there since – and if the government can’t move forward substantially on an issue of a spouse being raped, it’s fair to say there won’t be any change likely on an issue such as abortion. But to just shrug it off as something affecting another country is wrong. It will affect Bahamian women, and legal or not, it should be on our agenda for what the consequences of that will be. Will it mean more illegal procedures here? Will it mean women placed at risk because of that situation? We should be aware of how it will affect us – and discuss accordingly, regardless of any legislative inaction.
A RAINBOW arches in the sky as seen from the courts on day four of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, yesterday. Photo: Alastair Grant/AP
Timely MLK quotes for Bahamian murderers EDITOR, The Tribune. DR MARTIN Luther King, Jr, would’ve been 93 today, had he not been assassinated by James Earl Ray on April 4, 1968 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. With tensions running high at the height of the civil rights movement in the Deep South, King had less than 24 hours before his violent demise spoke cryptically of his impending premature end in his “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech at the Bishop Charles Mason Temple Church of God. In 2001, the Estate of Martin Luther King published A Call to Conscience. Edited by Clayborne Carson and Kris Shepard and published by Hachette Book Group, A Call to Conscience has eleven of King’s landmark speeches he delivered throughout his storied career. I would like to quote several of them, in light of the sheer amount of violence that continues to inundate New Providence. I am hoping that those involved in the criminal enterprise would read this letter and would be moved to read the aforementioned volume in its entirety. One particular case underscores the urgency of the crisis unfolding in the capital. A gentleman on bail was gunned down in recent days in an inner-city area on Nassau. He was a suspect in the murder of another individual who was well-known
LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net to the police. The murder of the first individual tells me that there is a lot of revenge killings in Nassau and the Progressive Liberal Party government seems unable to adequately address it, as the underlying issue stems from hate. These criminals hate one another and they hate the state they’re constantly attempting to engage violently in shootouts. Indeed, it is futile to attempt a coup; for the state is backed by God. Moreover, one is given the impression by the continued bloodletting that these murderers have no fear of God or an afterlife without Jesus Christ. They must understand, as King did, that death is but a comma. Anyway, here are the MLK quotes: “Through violence you may murder a murderer, but you can’t murder.” “Through violence you can murder a hater, but you can’t murder hate.” “Darkness cannot put out darkness; only light can do that.” “In a violent racial situation, the power structure has the local police; state troopers; the National Guard, and finally, the Army to call on -- all of which are predominantly white.” For I have seen too much hate. I’ve seen too
much hate on the faces of sheriffs in the South. I’ve seen hate on the faces of too many Klansmen and too many white Citizens’ Councilors in the South to want to hate, myself , because every time I see it, I know that it does something to their faces and their personalities, and I say to myself that hate is too great a burden to bear. I have decided to love. If you are seeking the highest good, I think you can find it through love. And the beautiful thing is that we aren’t moving wrong when we do it, because John was right, God is love. He who hates does not know God, but he who loves has the key that unlocks the door to the meaning of ultimate reality.” “There is an amazing democracy about death. It is not aristocracy for some of the people, but a democracy for all of the people. Kings die and beggars die; rich men and poor men die; old people die and young people die. Death comes to the innocent and it comes to the guilty. Death is the irreducible common denominator of all men.” “Death is not a period that ends the great sentence of life, but a comma that punctuates it to more lofty significance.” KEVIN EVANS Freeport, Grand Bahama. June 30, 2022.
Davis on court case backlog EDITOR, The Tribune. ON TUESDAY, 28th, June 2022, I was taken aback after hearing the Hon Prime Minister’s charge regarding the backlog of criminal cases and how the High Courts of the Commonwealth of Bahamas
ought to step up to the plate. This appears to be an assertion in error by the Hon Prime Minister Philip ‘Brave’ Davis. In a political science manual it lays out the three pillars of what accounts for or what necessitates the orderly disposition of
Tea, Dr Minnis? EDITOR, The Tribune.
MY LATE father had an uncanny way of ending an evening at home with guests. When he was ready to go to bed he would rise from his chair and ask “Would anyone like a cup of tea before they leave?” I think that it is time now for Mr Pintard to offer Dr Minnis a cup of tea! MONKEEDOO Nassau, June 30, 2022.
a country’s social criminaladministration processes and lists them: 1. The Executive Branch of Government 2. The legislative assembly 3. The judicial Branch of Government Now, this being the case, a sitting Prime Minister must know that if the notion, according to him, seemed to suggest that there were problems with the judicial branch and how it marshals its responsibilities in court, then it is incumbent on the Government of The Bahamas to convene a meeting with the Courts Authorities to acquire the shortfalls, if any, and find out why it appears that the criminal elements were having a field day because of the perceived challenges of the judiciary. This is supportable, I think? Editor, just this moment I felt like discontinuing this article because what I am
writing about is so trivial, I’m sorry. Hon Prime Minister Davis, please consult with the hierarchy of the High Courts, before denigrating it. Whatever might be the difficulties... one thing is certain the High Court does not have its own budget, the Parliament of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, were the ones to supply all of the needs therefore. Now, about the backlog and the assertion of the Hon. Prime Minister about that backlog. Earlier in my time as a policeman, I had the privilege to have been assigned to the Attorney General’s division and worked to assist with assigning criminal case files for trials and also locating suspects for the High Courts of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas... this was just before the year 1992, which meant that Sir Lynden Pindling
was Prime Minister and his party the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) was the government of the day. But what I found while I worked that Office was that there were in excess of 100,000 Criminal cases sitting in the backlog at the Attorney General’s Division, on East Hill Street, Nassau. Then the General election of 1992 came and we saw a change of government from Pindling to Ingraham. The Hon Hubert Alexander Ingraham and his Free National Movement Government took over and the backlog continued. Not once under the Pindling Government had I recalled him addressing the backlog of cases. So, Hon Prime Minister Davis, might I remind you, sir, that you must come with proof of whatever you intend to say to The Bahamian people, because many people can remember, do remember certain
events as if they were done yesterday. Several years ago I wrote suggesting what it would take to administer justice in this country. 1. New Providence should be divided into four districts and equipped with whatever districts will need – police, fire department, courts, mini-hospitals or strengthening of clinics, etc. 2. And crimes occurring in the various districts to be tried there. 3. Therefore, and that being the case, go into the backlog of cases and apportion those files based on place or districts in which the problem have occurred. This would get the files moving again and many of those files – the witnesses could potentially be deceased – could be shelved. FRANK GILBERT Nassau, June 29, 2022.
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, July 1, 2022, PAGE 7
CUSTOMERS outside the Bay Street branch of Scotiabank yesterday.
DAYLIGHT ROBBERY OUTSIDE BANK A ROBBERY took place yesterday morning at Scotiabank on Bay Street. The incident happened at around 10.45am when two men snatched what appeared to be a deposit bag from a customer waiting outside. The two robbers then fled east along Bay Street. An armoured vehicle was present with security guards at the time of the robbery, but did not appear to be the target. A customer at the bank at the time said: “I saw two men dressed in dark clothing come running past the
armoured truck and go running along Bay Street, one of them holding what looked like a deposit bag. It seemed they had grabbed it from someone outside the bank and made a run for it. “No one chased after them, and the armed security guard for the armoured truck was in the vehicle at the time. Police were alerted and arrived a short while later.” Police arrived at the scene as the search got underway for the two robbers. There appeared to be no serious injuries.
MAN PUNCHED SISTER By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was placed on conditional discharge and told to behave by a magistrate after he admitted to punching his sister after a night out drinking alcohol. Bernal Brown, 23, appeared before Magistrate Kara Turnquest-Deveaux on a charge of causing harm. On June 16 in New Providence, the accused reportedly punched his sister, the complainant Tamika Smith, in her face and about her body at her residence. While Brown initially pleaded “guilty with a question mark” to the charges in court after the Magistrate clarified the matter for him, he pleaded guilty with an explanation. Brown agreed with the prosecution’s summary of events that night, which stated that after being
heavily intoxicated, he got into a fight with his sister. This argument was the result of Brown taking items that Ms Smith sells without paying for them. However, while Brown admitted to punching his sister in the face, he disagreed with the prosecution’s assertion that he further punched her about the body. The magistrate cautioned Brown against using violence, saying even one punch could be lethal. Magistrate Turnquest-Deveaux then placed Brown on a conditional discharge ordering him to behave for one month. Should Brown default on these conditions he will not be granted the absolute discharge for successfully meeting the court’s terms. He would also face a onemonth sentence in the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. Brown is expected to return to court for mention on July 29.
DISCHARGE OVER BAR THREAT
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN, charged in a magistrate’s court with threatening another man at a bar, was yesterday given a conditional discharge and told to behave. Lawayne Curtis, 33, appeared before Magistrate Kara Turnquest-Deveaux on a charge of threats of harm. On May 27 in New Providence at the Hi-Tech Bar, Curtis reportedly threatened Antonio Adderley. In court, the accused pleaded guilty to the charge. Curtis explained to the court that he and Adderley, who had been friends for 13 years, had fallen into a
verbal altercation at the bar. Curtis told the court that he had no real intention to cause the complainant harm. He apologised for his actions and for wasting the court’s time. The magistrate accepted Curtis’s guilty plea and granted him a conditional discharge. Under the terms of this discharge Curtis is expected to behave for one month after which he will be granted an absolute discharge. Defaulting on these conditions would result in Curtis’ conviction being recorded and him having to serve a one-month sentence at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. The accused will return to court for mention on July 29.
TEEN GUILTY OF LOITERING By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Court Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MALE juvenile was charged in a Magistrate’s Court yesterday with loitering. The 17-year-old, whose name is withheld because he is a minor, faced the charge before Assistant Chief Magistrate Subusola Swain. On June 19 at Parliament
Street and Prince George Wharf the accused was found loitering in the area without lawful excuse. He then failed to move away quietly when asked to do so by a police officer. In court, the accused pleaded guilty to the charge. Given his early plea, thus sparing the court’s time, Magistrate Swain elected to caution the youth and discharge the matter.
CUSTOMERS at a Rubis gas station yesterday.
Photos: Moise Amisial
Unhappy with price at the gas pump By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS lmunnings@tribunemedia.net SOME consumers are disgruntled about the high cost of gas that have caused them to have less disposable income. With the price of gas at $6.96 per gallon at Esso, $6.98 at Rubis, and $6.97 at Shell, customers are hoping something can be done to reduce the burden. The Tribune canvased motorists yesterday to gain insight into how they’ve been coping in these tough economic times. Nekisha Rolle, told this newspaper that the cost of gas has had a severe impact on her pockets, pointing to inflation and rising costs within the country. Ms Rolle said: “It’s severe. With salaries not increasing, the cost of living has been extremely high and so with the inflation and rising cost, not just on gasoline, of course there is a trigger effect with food and all the other stuff. “It’s really hard for someone who only has a certain amount of income.” Another consumer, Russell Barnett, shared similar views as he said it is causing him to spend more money. “It’s causing me to spend more. I can’t travel or move around the island like I normally would because it’s expensive,” the 61-year-old told The Tribune. When asked how they felt about fuel retailers predicting that prices will soon fall, many consumers were
RUSSELL BARNETT sceptical, as the burden of higher cost is still the reality for all. “I won’t believe it until I see it. Even the politicians make you plenty promises and until you see it visually for yourself and in your hands then you believe it,“ a local engineer who did not want to be named said. Given the present situation, Nyah Roker, the owner of a Honda Inspire, said seeing is believing as gas prices continue to escalate. “I feel like seeing is believing. They have been saying that gas is supposed to decrease, but the price keeps climbing and climbing,“ he said. “They need to do better for us as poor
NEKISHA ROLLE people. How they expect us to make it?” This comes after vice president of the Bahamas Petroleum Dealers Association, Vasco Bastian, said he expects gas prices to decrease slightly “within the next week or two” due to falling oil costs abroad. While he could not predict how much local fuel costs could drop, he believes Bahamians will experience some gas relief very soon, Mr Bastian said recently. This prediction is based on declining oil prices in the US, which has seen a continued drop over the past two weeks.
PAGE 8, Friday, July 1, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
WHEN DOES THE FETUS ACQUIRE A MORAL STATUS OF A HUMAN BEING?
ABORTION rights activists demonstrate against the Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v Wade that established a constitutional right to abortion, on Capitol Hill in Washington, yesterday. Photo: J Scott Applewhite/AP By AMANDA ROTH, Associate professor of philosophy and women’s & gender studies, State University of New York, College at Geneseo I LOST my twins in the second trimester of my first pregnancy. One fetus died
around 14 weeks, and a month later I went into preterm labour – likely caused by the death of the first and an infection. I delivered the second twin, who appeared perfectly healthy on the ultrasound but was simply not old enough to survive, at 18½ weeks.
I grieved for years; these were some of my worst moments. Ten years later, this experience is never far from my mind. But since the US Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v Wade, it’s also been a source of constant rumination. I think about
the fact that the dilation and curettage, a common early abortion procedure I received to remove the placenta, is now banned when used to end a pregnancy involving a live fetus in almost all circumstances in six states. If my body had not ended the pregnancy, I wonder – would medical professionals have been too scared of prosecution to help me if the infection had worsened? But mostly, I think about what the Supreme Court ruling of June 24, 2022, will mean for abortion in the second trimester. With early abortion banned or heavily restricted in much of the country, there will likely be a rise in second-trimester abortions, as several commentators have pointed out. From my personal perspective, it is morally abhorrent to deny anyone the ability to access abortion in their own state, no matter why they are seeking one. But the likelihood of more abortions being pushed into the second trimester, as pregnant individuals must overcome more barriers to access, also matters from the point of view of moral concern about fetuses. Many people feel that losing a pregnancy after a few months is more tragic than an early loss. The same is true for later versus earlier abortion. As a moral philosopher, I know that the philosophical theory of gradualism can help make sense of this idea. Gradualism insists that the development of moral status is a gradual process that occurs continuously throughout gestation. That means that later fetuses have more status than earlier ones; later abortions too are more grave morally.
RESTRICTIONS AND DELAYED ABORTIONS
Most abortions in the US tend to occur quite early: 79.3 percent at nine weeks or earlier and 92.7 percent before 14 weeks. Compare that with 1974, just a year after the landmark decision in Roe v Wade, when 21 percent of abortions took place in the second trimester. Some second-trimester abortions are pursued because of fetal anomalies that are not discovered until later; in other cases the pregnant individual might want or need to end the pregnancy because of changes in their health or life circumstances.
Other factors leading to second-trimester abortions, however, are policy-based. Restrictions on public funding and mandated waiting periods can delay abortion care. Research shows that when states institute waiting periods of just 24 hours, the rate of second-trimester abortion increases for those relying on in-state providers. In 2015, Tennessee’s new waiting period led to a 22 percent to 43 percent increase in the second-trimester abortion rate. Following the Supreme Court ruling, it is likely that delays will become the norm, since many pregnant individuals will have to travel hundreds of miles to the closest provider. Having seen surges of patients from Texas traveling to neighboring states, following the state’s adoption of a law banning abortion, clinics in blue states are preparing for influxes of out-of-state patients. Providers have also witnessed the later gestational age at which abortion is obtained by those affected by Texas’ ban. Thus, even if pregnant individuals from the South and Midwest can eventually access abortion in another state, they might be forced to continue the pregnancy for weeks or months. Second-trimester procedures have more health risks than earlier terminations, they are more financially burdensome and there are fewer providers trained to offer them. Moreover, both providers and patients can find second-trimester abortion morally and emotionally difficult. In fact, 91 percent of those having an abortion procedure in the second trimester would have preferred to do so earlier.
WHAT’S THE MORAL STATUS OF A FETUS?
The morality of abortion depends in part on the moral status of a fetus. Full moral status – sometimes called “personhood” – refers to having the same rights and deserving the same moral consideration as any other human being. The most well-known views about the value of fetal life look for a specific moment or threshold of development at which a fetus achieves full moral status – what is known as a “bright line.” Most opponents of abortion tend to insist that conception is the bright line, while some abortion-rights supporters look to birth or the first breath.
In the Roe era, viability, the point at which a baby can survive outside of the womb, considered to be about 23 weeks, served as a legal bright line. Historically, “quickening,” when the pregnant individual feels fetal movement, at around four months or so, was thought to make all the moral difference. In contrast to these bright lines, many philosophers look to cognitive capacities, such as consciousness, reasoning or self-awareness, which do not develop until the third trimester or even after birth. These views share in common the idea that before the bright line fetuses are of little to no moral concern. Gradualism rejects all of this. It holds that there is no such bright line. Instead, the development of moral status parallels the physical, cognitive and relational development of a fetus. Just after conception, a zygote has little more status than a sperm and egg. But as the embryo develops, its moral value increases slowly and steadily. Thus, while a six or eightweek embryo might have very minimal status, a fetus at 32 or 35 weeks has virtually identical moral status to a newborn. Therefore, the earliest abortion is generally morally unconcerning to someone with a gradualist view, while thirdtrimester abortion is seen as a grave action that requires the strongest of moral reasons. Meanwhile, mid-pregnancy fetuses are morally “in between,” as gradualist philosopher Margaret Little puts it. The idea is that by this point in pregnancy fetuses have not achieved full moral status, but they certainly have significant moral value – and ending their lives therefore requires moral justification. Compared with the bright line views, gradualism has the benefit of making sense of the public’s strong support for early abortion, but hesitating about terminations in the second and third trimesters. In the post-Roe era, the view also highlights the moral tragedy if state abortion bans targeting early abortion increase the number of second-trimester terminations. After all, from a gradualist view, early abortion is not seriously morally concerning, but second-trimester abortion is. • Originally published on theconversation.com
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, July 1, 2022, PAGE 9
Growing the economy doesn’t happen when you do what you’ve always done By Diane Phillips
PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis set off a maelstrom of misdirected mischief when he announced elimination of duty on pleasure boats, a concept that goes back decades and was intended to come to fruition at least ten years ago. Elimination of duty is not to make those rich folks with super yachts richer. Elimination of duty is to create a competitive yacht registry in The Bahamas just as Antigua and Barbuda enjoy in this region or the Marshall Islands, Philippines and Hong Kong benefit from in the Pacific. A yacht registry, like its sister counterpart, Bahamas Ship Registry, is a natural progression of the blue economy. And why would a country that is 90 percent blue not want to look at its most bountiful resource as potential for growth so long as growing it protects the blue and not just the economy? No one complained when we created the Bahamas Ship Registry. Officials led delegations around the world promoting it. As it gained traction, we puffed up our shoulders and boasted that ships belonging to companies like Royal Caribbean, Disney, Carnival and Silversea were flagged in The Bahamas. Once the fastest growing ship registry in the world, we’ve slipped marginally to fifth place, despite the registered tonnage continuing to grow. Meantime, the real growth in the maritime industry or blue economy, the explosive machine, is in the luxury yacht, mega yacht and super yacht market. Fueled by what at times feels like obscene wealth, that market is now worth $8.5 billion in economic activity a year and is projected to grow at a rate of more than five percent over the next eight years.
EXCESSES OR UNBRIDLED PERSONAL SERVICE?
You can demean it if you wish. Your disgust of the excesses or envy of the unbridled personal service is irrelevant to the reality. That reality is all around you. Boys with their toys, their super fancy floating palaces with heated pools, spiral staircases, spas and garages that house all the water toys money can buy are part of an expanding high net worth crowd that
travels the world, including The Bahamas, in ultimate luxury. Registering their vessels in The Bahamas not only builds loyalty towards the country, but creates a myriad of opportunities for services ranging from legal to insurance, consulting to engine repair. It boosts marina operations, shipyards and smaller maintenance facilities. It creates maritime jobs of every calibre from crew to captain though no registry restricts hires to nationals of that country only. But ignoring that segment of the blue economy that serves the super wealthy - whose rapidly mounting disposable income seems unfathomable - makes about as much sense as a fur coat in The Bahamas in August. And as noted, this is hardly a new, radical or revolutionary idea. A wellwritten article by Tosheena Robinson-Blair in a 2010 issue of The Investor is titled Bahamas eyes yacht registry overhaul. The subhead - Plans underway to create efficient, top-quality service to lure more megarich boat lovers.
GAIN MORE, RISK MORE, MONITOR MORE
But growing the blue economy also requires absolute vigilance. While we gain more, we risk more. Any disrespect of our waters and marine resources should carry hefty penalties, inclusive of fines, imprisonment and community service. That same hand we are willing to hold has a wrist that deserves a stinging slap should it be caught tossing garbage overboard, failing to use an adequate pumpout facility or anchoring on a coral reef. The concern is greatest in the central and southern islands. There must be a buoy system throughout the Exuma cays to protect its 365 islands, cays and rocks where freedom to roam cannot equate to freedom to destroy. In places like Harbour Island or Paradise Island where there are super yacht facilities, the spend on the island is a substantial contributor to the economy. Rental car businesses, taxis, restaurants, shops all benefit. But in the remote islands when there are fewer trips away from the comfort of the
YACHTS in the marina at Atlantis. Developing the yachting sector and perhaps creating a yacht registry is a natural progression of the blue economy, says Diane Phillips. air-conditioned super yacht into the settlement and more time is spent on and around the boat or speeding off to a nearby cay for snorkeling or diving, the threat of abuse is greater.
TWO-EDGED SWORD
All of which leads to the conclusion that the yacht registry is a two-edged sword weighing in favour of growing it, making good use of the LJM Maritime Academy (and rebuilding the bridge to get to it, please), providing a greater variety of maritime jobs and increasing global awareness of the rare beauty that is The Bahamas. But for all of that, there must be a Lucayan Sea watchdog organisation that does for the waters of this land what Bahamas National Trust does for parks and ORG does for governance. And to date, we do not have that organisation though if all were to pull together and pool resources instead of defending territorial rights and contributor restrictions, we might just have what we need right here at home. If groups have been able to band together for a single cause in the past, they should be able to do so for national monitoring and education along with the RBDF in the future as the yacht registry adds to those enjoying the waters and understanding that to continue to enjoy they must preserve and protect.
REMEMBERING JAY MICHAELS FOR 15 years, you heard the smooth sounds of his voice on Love 97.5 radio. The show was called Rewind the Rhythm and its host, Jay Michaels, was a natural, inviting you to come along as he introduced a song, interviewed an artist, shared behind the scenes stories with those in every genre of music and production, or just reminded you to get those birthday dates in early so he could be sure not to miss wishing someone a happy birthday on their special day. Jay Michaels was the kind of DJ who took the music he played seriously, knew the history around it and the story behind it. He was a welcome resting place from the call-ins of talk radio to which all of us are seemingly addicted despite our annoyance with much of it. Jay was different from many. It wasn’t his voice he wanted to hear or his ego he wanted to feed, what
JAY MICHAELS made him good at what he did was that he thought of himself as a conduit to link the music and the listener, not the star. Though he broadcast seamlessly largely from his home in Delray Beach, Florida, he spent a lot of time in The Bahamas. He knew every event coming up in the calendar and on occasion would agree to MC one, especially if it involved charity. The clarity of his tone, the warmth of his message, the resonance
of his voice became part of the daily Bahamian culture. Jay Michaels passed away this month after a lengthy illness. The family at Jones Communications feels the loss. The founder of Bahamas Speed Week Revival remembered him fondly. “I had kept in touch with Jay and he told me a few weeks ago he had moved back from Vegas to Florida to get treatment so I had feared the worst,” wrote David Mclaughlin. “Jay was a larger than life person and brought fun and laughter to those who crossed his path. He was very much a focal point at the Speed Week Revivals and I recall often that at the end of his auction at the Ball I went on stage and auctioned his cap to raise another $1000 for charity!” Good night, Jay. Thank you for helping all of us rewind the rhythm. May you rest in peace with your favourite music on forever download.
There is a lot more science available today about our resources and the behaviour of the animals that live in our waters than there was a decade ago. That, at least, will be in our favour when the Bahamas Yacht Registry comes into
full play and all Bahamians enjoy elimination from duty on boats, just like the richest among us. Maybe then, some of the wealthiest Bahamians who have had fine vessels in the country for years but registered them in a company name
elsewhere, will finally register them in The Bahamas. That alone would be an achievement even though the poorer among us paid duty within 24 hours of landing a vessel on these shores. I guess it’s true, the rich are different.
Funeral Service For
Sean D. Pratt L.F.D&E, C.E.O
Mildred Taylor, 72 Of Garden Hill #1, Nassau, Bahamas, will be held on Saturday, July 2nd, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. at Voice of Deliverance Church, Winders Terrace, Nassau, Bahamas. Officiating will be Chief Apostle Leon Wallace, assisted by Bishop Carl F. Curry and Bishop Edlin Scott. Interment will follow at Southern Cemetery, Spikenard and Cowpen Road, Nassau, Bahamas. Those left to cherish her precious memories and to see her again are her, Son: Edwin Roxbury; Daughter: Lelia Roxbury; Daughter-in-law: Denece Roxbury; Brothers: Johnny, Michael, Hubert & Kirkland Taylor; Sisters: Dorothy Taylor, Angela Mackey, & Margo Major of Dunmore’s, Long Island; Brothers-In-Law: Whitfield Mackey & Rodney Major; Sisters-In-Law: Cynthia, Margaret & Ruthmae Taylor; Grand Children: Marco & Joy Roxbury; Aunt: Adrianna Taylor of Dunmore’s, Long Island; Nephews: Terrance Storr of San Salvador, Sgt. Troy (Bahamas Department of Correctional), Dwayne & Dario Storr, Denzil Taylor of Freeport, Grand Bahama, Richard Taylor, Vanderson Mackey of Abaco, Vernol & Clyde Taylor of Sandy Point, Abaco, George Taylor, Robert Taylor of Canada, D’Angelo, Raynardo, Aron & Jerome Mackey, & Perry Lockhart Jr.; Nieces: Monique Taylor, Michelle Taylor of Dunmore, Long Island, Maranda Young, Annette Borrows of Sandy Point Abaco, Shanique, Johnella, Shaniqua & Sharmaine Taylor, Aneska, Paige & Stacey Mackey, Ronika & Raedon Major, Sherlin, Destiny, Serenity & Trinity Taylor, Lakeisha and Louise Taylor of Dunmore’s, Long Island; Nephews-In-Law: Noel Borrows of Sandy Point, Abaco & Lomorn Young; Nieces-In-Law: Vernika Taylor of Canada, Michelle Storr of San Salvador, Lisa Storr, Shaniqua & Bernica Johnson Mackey & Chandalee Taylor; 23 Grand Nephews, 17 Grand Nieces, numerous cousins and relatives including Perry Lockhart Sr., James, Vince, Myrtle, Alma, Henry, Peter, Ephraim, Julia, Annette & Margo Taylor, Sandra & Debbie Sweeting, Alma & Judy Smith, Elsie Adderley, Idella Grant, Gwen, Ash, Leon & Timothy Cartwright and a host of other relatives and friends, Relatives & Special Friends: Apostle Leon Wallace & The Voice of Deliverance Church Family, Prophetess Saveletta Fowler & Family, Mr. Hugh Jenkins of London England, Mr. Marvin & Zelia Bethel, Erin Jones, Gwenny & Cedric Smith, Mrs. Isadora Lamm, Mr. Anthony & Family, Mr. Seymour & Family, Annamae Brown, Mr. Levarity, Ricardo Seymour, Jennifer Rolle, Janet Burrows, Dwaine Lamm, Glen Davis, Marcus Moxey, Mavis Tinker, Mavis Adderley, Ms. Hanna, Terresine Minnis, Leonette and Clinton Roxbury, Dr. Dorsette & Dr. Pinder of Poinciana Medical Center, Dr. Tynes, Garden Hills #1 Community, Dr. Francis & Staff at A & E Princess Margaret Hospital, along with additional relatives and friends, too many to mention. Please forgive us if we inadvertently excluded your name. We thank everyone for their prayers and support during this time. May Her Soul Rest In Peace! Relatives and friends may pay their last respects in the “Rudolph Pratt Memorial Suite” at Amethyst Memorial, #534 East Street South opposite Fresh Auto Car Lot on Friday, July 1st, 2022 from 11:00a.m. to 6:00p.m. Due to current Government regulations in respect of Covid-19, masks and social distancing are required and will be strictly enforced. There will be no viewing at the cemetery.
PAGE 10, Friday, July 1, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
Security being tightened at Princess Margaret Hospital By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net HEALTH Minister Dr Michael Darville said his ministry is looking to tighten security at the Princess Margaret Hospital in the wake of reports of alleged incidents that reportedly occurred at the facility. The latest incident involved a 14-year-old girl and a 52-year-old patient at PMH. While the Public Hospitals Authority and the hospital have acknowledged that there was an alleged incident involving the minor last Friday, no mention was made of what was alleged to have taken place. Still, there have been claims on social media that suggest the incident was of a sexual nature. However, National Security Minister Wayne Munroe said earlier this week that both the minor and 52-yearold patient have denied the allegations and added that investigations into the matter are continuing.
During a press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister yesterday, Dr Darville was asked to respond to the incident as well as concerns of patients using drugs at the facility. Last week, a video was posted online showing a man snorting something into his nose in what appears to be at a medical facility. The man was also seen wearing two arm casts.
“Well, you know, we’ve released a statement,” Dr Darville said of the alleged incident involving the minor. “The statement was pretty generic, says basically we acknowledged the fact that something happened, and the police are investigating. Yesterday, the Minister of National Security elaborated on how the investigation is going on.
“For us, we take it very seriously. Our team has gone to the pathogen unit to look to see if we can actually improve the toilet facilities. That is being done. “The second thing we’re doing is we’re looking at beefing up security. We’re looking at the various private contractors who are at the hospital and whether or not an audit needs to be
done with the type of security individuals that are at the facility. “But I wanted to let the public know that after the Minister of National Security elaborated a bit further, and I don’t want to go into it because it’s a police matter, we are moving very swiftly to look whether or not the pathogens unit had any deficiencies in the way how
the toilet facilities work, and we believe that we can improve upon it and we’re going to do that.” As it relates to reports of people using illegal substances at the facility, Dr Darville said officials are investigating the claims. “This is something that has been reported to us on social media. It’s also being investigated. We in our security checks at the hospital, we focus on metal detection and we focus on individuals who may be bringing in a weapon that can put our staff at risk,” he added. “But this issue of drugs coming on to the compound - if it is so, it is something that we’re looking at as well, because as you come through security, we look to see if you’re bringing in anything in there that can harm individuals, but it did create an additional eye opener to determine what’s going on. But that case is being investigated and things that appear to look on social media, sometimes when you do the investigation, it may amount to nothing.”
“We have Bahamians who have been waiting for bypass surgery, a lot of cardiovascular interventions that are not available at Princess Margaret Hospital and they have to hit the road to have cookouts. This particular service will begin to address a lot of issues as it relates to these individuals. “As far as how it’s going to be administered, we are working on all of the logistics, and Cabinet will finalise the final draft on how it’s to be done but I want to assure the Bahamian people, everyone to the sound of my voice, that I have made it very clear that the funding will be fully audited. “There will be a serious guideline as relates to how the funding is spent. But it is for Bahamians
who do not have the financial means to access these lifesaving procedures and we’re going to do the best of our ability.” Dr Darville said since being elected to office, his ministry has offered assistance to several families who otherwise couldn’t afford to have certain medical procedures carried out. “I’ve been doing some of it now for the last ten months. It’s been a caseby-case basis going to Cabinet,” he said. “It’s very tedious, but we have helped quite a few people who’ve been waiting around for important eye surgery, cardiovascular interventions, emergency surgeries, some areas of orthopaedics, and the list goes on and on.
“So, selective catastrophic care and this line item is foreshadowing what is to come in catastrophic healthcare insurance. This is not catastrophic healthcare insurance. This is something that stands in the gap until we deliver catastrophic health care insurance, which we promised the Bahamian people in our blueprint for change.” Asked yesterday how many Bahamians are expected to benefit from this selective catastrophic healthcare, Dr Darville said it was too difficult to give an estimate. He added: “I want to say this, if I have, let’s say twenty Bahamians who need immediate cardiovascular intervention. If I was to consult or get involved a specialist to give me a price,
if I go to them with one, the price would be higher (than) if I go to them with ten. So, when you have this kind of leverage, you could compete for services at a better price and so this is where we’re looking at so this is the logic by having resources in place so that you can do better negotiations for services.” He was also asked what steps will have to be taken by the government to fully implement catastrophic health insurance into NHI this term. “Catastrophic health insurance is a complicated thing to deliver because you want to use risk management to provide these essential lifesaving services,” he replied. “The question is whether (there) would be a tax directly to the taxpayer
or whether we would find other means to get resources to pay for the service. But ultimately, there’s a cost and we need to work on the logistics of how the implementation of the cost will happen. Right now, the economy, as far as we’re concerned in this budget cycle, is not ready to address any additional burden to the taxpayer. What our ministry is looking at many other ways to lay the foundation in order to provide catastrophic health insurance. “So, there’s many things that we are looking at. Some are progressive, and we are working diligently because we’re committed to the Bahamian people that we would deliver it in this term in office and we intend to live up with what’s in our blueprint for change.”
SECOND MONKEY POX CASE BEING EXAMINED from page one
Darville confirmed that the newest suspected case of monkeypox was now with a Bahamian. “Yes, I would like to inform the general public that the suspected case of monkeypox that was in the country on June 9th,” Dr Darville said. “Our National reference lab did the analysis and that case was confirmed to be monkeypox on the 24th of June. The foreigner who was being monitored for suspected monkeypox was airlifted out of the country and the case has been resolved.
Dr Darville told reporters that there is also a suspected case in the country currently. He said: “There is another suspected case in the country that we are monitoring. That individual went through the quarantine process, for I think 21 days and all the contacts associated with that case are also being monitored.” Asked about the suspected case, he confirmed this case is a Bahamian case and they are said to have a history of contact with someone from a foreign country. Symptoms of monkeypox include skin rash, fever, headache, backache, swollen lymph nodes, chills and
exhaustion and can last up to two to four weeks. However, local officials have advised that cases of monkeypox are expected to rise worldwide due to “human-to-human transmission” but reportedly does not pose a significant threat. Anyone with suspected symptoms of monkeypox is asked to call their health care provider or the nearest public health community clinic. Additional information can be obtained by contacting the National Disease Surveillance Unit, Monday – Friday, 9am – 5pm at 604-9090 or 604-9091; or after hours at 376-3809, or 376-3970.
GOVT STILL WORKING ON $10M CATASTROPHIC CARE FUND By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE Davis administration is still working out the logistics of how it will administer the $10m allocated for catastrophic healthcare in the country, Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville said yesterday. Dr Darville was asked about the issue during a press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister yesterday. “This is a new selective catastrophic component,” he said. “It’s a line item. I’m excited about it because it will provide essential tertiary services, life-threatening catastrophic services to many Bahamians who have been waiting for years.
Jackson becomes first black woman on US Supreme Court WASHINGTON Associated Press
IN this image from video provided by the Supreme Court, retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Stephen Breyer administers the Judicial Oath to Ketanji Brown Jackson as her husband Patrick Jackson holds the Bible at the Supreme Court in Washington yesterday.
KETANJI Brown Jackson was sworn in to the Supreme Court yesterday, shattering a glass ceiling as the first black woman on the nation’s highest court. The 51-year-old Jackson is the court’s 116th justice, and she took the place of the justice she once worked for. Justice Stephen Breyer’s retirement was effective at noon. Moments later, joined by her family, Jackson recited the two oaths required of Supreme Court justices, one administered by Breyer and the other by Chief
Justice John Roberts. “With a full heart, I accept the solemn responsibility of supporting and defending the Constitution of the United States and administering justice without fear or favor, so help me God,” Jackson said in a statement issued by the court. “I am truly grateful to be part of the promise of our great Nation. I extend my sincerest thanks to all of my new colleagues for their warm and gracious welcome.” Roberts welcomed Jackson “to the court and our common calling.” The ceremony was streamed live on the court’s website.
All the justices except for Neil Gorsuch attended the swearing-in, the court said. There was no immediate explanation for Gorsuch’s absence. Jackson, a federal judge since 2013, is joining three other women — Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett. It’s the first time four women will serve together on the nine-member court. Biden nominated Jackson in February, a month after Breyer, 83, announced he would retire at the end of the court’s term, assuming his successor had been confirmed.
COURT RULING MAY DELAY CLEANER ENERGY TRANSITION NEW YORK Associated Press
THE Supreme Court ruling limiting the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from power plants could have far-reaching consequences for the energy sector — and make it harder for the Biden administration to meet its goal of having the US power grid run on clean energy by 2035. The nation has been gradually transitioning away from coal to cleaner sources of electricity such as natural gas, solar energy and wind, often because they are less expensive. Most experts don’t think the Supreme Court decision in West Virginia vs EPA will immediately reverse that trajectory. But the ruling could slow the transition to
clean energy in the future because it imposes constraints on what the EPA can do without exceeding its legal authority. That is a frightening prospect, with climate experts warning of dire consequences as global temperatures and extreme weather conditions steadily rise. Depending how Congress or the courts interpret the court’s ruling in the future, it could also change the way other agencies can regulate the power sector. The ruling will also set a tone in policymaking chambers, making it harder to persuade state lawmakers to craft laws to boost renewables, said Sachu Constantine, executive director of Vote Solar, which advocates for laws favorable to solar energy in state legislatures. “Without the threat of EPA or federal regulation
of climate, without a recognition that carbon pollution is really, truly harmful, it becomes harder to make that argument,” Constantine said. “It makes it less likely that the risk or the cost of carbon will be directly felt by the utilities, or by other agencies who have control over how much solar we can deploy. And that loss of regulatory risk means they might be less likely to choose solar.” The case that the Supreme Court took up, West Virginia vs EPA, had been filed in response to former President Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan. The Obama plan would have required states to reduce emissions from electricity generation, primarily by shifting away from coal-fired plants. That prospect upset several industries, including coal, and some state attorneys
general. They challenged how far the EPA could go to influence the industry’s transition away from coal and to cleaner sources. “It was sort of a scary prospect that EPA had the authority to close down power plants and build others,” said Jeff Holmstead, a partner at Bracewell LLP who served as an assistant EPA administrator in the George W. Bush administration. “All the major industry groups opposed that approach because of what they saw as a regulatory overreach. Power companies may still feel the same way, but in the meantime, they’ve invested a lot of resources to try to decarbonize.” When Congress writes laws, it often leaves implementation details up to regulators such as the EPA. In this case, energy industry officials argued that the
EPA had gone too far and overstepped what Congress had intended. The challenge in the West Virginia case sought to diminish that authority. It succeeded. Thursday’s ruling means the EPA cannot force states to shift away from coal to cleaner sources such as natural gas or renewables and compel coal plants shut down. One option that’s now off the table as a result of the ruling is for the EPA to create a nationwide cap-and-trade system, said Richard Revesz, law professor at New York University. Under that system, a limit is set on how much carbon dioxide can be emitted, and companies can trade with each other to reach those goals. “What the court is ruling out are the most effective and cheapest ways of regulating the power sector,” Revesz said.
Nothing in the ruling would stop Congress from creating a cap-and-trade system, but “under the current gridlock and given the filibuster rules in the Senate, it’s not going to happen,” he said. Still, Revesz said, the EPA does have authority to regulate emissions from power plants in other ways. And while the Clean Power Plan never took effect, the nation has been pivoting from coal to cleaner sources such as renewables anyway, often for economic reasons. Many states and large companies have commitments to use clean energy in the near future. “Those commitments are driven by shareholders, by the economics of carbon reduction options,” said Sue Tierney, a senior advisor at Analysis Group and expert on power markets.
SPORTS PAGE 11
FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2022
World Championship team named By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net
W
ith the women’s 4 x 400 metre and mixed relay teams now added to the list, the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations will field a squad of 16 athletes for the World Championship in Eugene, Oregon, next month. Heading the list of competitors on Team Bahamas are reigning World champion and Olympic gold medallist Steven Gardiner and two-time Olympic champion Shaunae MillerUibo, along with World
Indoor Championship silver medallist Devynne Charlton. Kendrick Thompson, the NACAC decathlon champion, along with 2002 World champion Donald Thomas, long jumper LaQuan Nairn and sprinters Anthonique Strachan, Tynia Gaither, Terrence Jones Jr and Samson Colebrooke. Just before the deadline for qualification on Monday, the Bahamas women’s 4 x 400m and the mixed relay teams both earned the 16th and final spots following the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ National Championships
MILLER-Uibo over the weekend to secure their spots at the World Championships. As a result of their performances, the BAAA
named the women’s pool for both relays to include Miller-Uibo, Strachan, Megan Moss, Donneisha Anderson, Javonya Valcourt and Jenae Ambrose, while adding Gardiner, Alonzo Russell, Bradley Dormeus and Wanya McCoy to the men’s pool for the mixed relay. Head coach Rupert Gardiner said the team is a pretty good one and the management team is eager to work with them in Oregon for the championships from July 15-24. “We have some veterans like Shaunae and Steven and others like Anthonique Strachan, Tynia Gaither and Devynne
Charlton and veteran like Donald Thomas and newcomers like LaQuan Nairn and Ken Mullings and both relay teams, so it’s a great team,” Gardiner said. “I expect them to do very well. Great things could happen for us. We have two relay teams and we expect that they will perform very well.” It was anticipated that the men’s 4 x 400m relay team would have also made the cut of the top 16 in the world, but they are the last team standing on the outside in 17th place. Should one of the top teams opt out of competing, the
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U-15 girls lose bronze medal game IT was ultimately a fourth-place finish for Team Bahamas as they completed competition winless at the FIBA Centrobasket U15 Championships for women. The Bahamas lost 79-39 to the Dominican Republic yesterday in the bronze medal game in Gurabo, Puerto Rico. Terell McCoy led Team Bahamas with her second double double of the tournament - 13 points and 14 rebounds. Savannah Turnquest scored 11 with five assists, Geontae Simpson had five points and 10 rebounds, while Dwaynae Knowles added five points and seven rebounds. Puerto Rico, Mexico and the Dominican Republic will now qualify for the FIBA U16 Women’s Americas Championship in 2023. On Sunday, the Bahamas opened up tournament play with a 101-20 loss to Puerto Rico, before a 79-45 loss in the first meeting with the Dominican Republic. They followed with a 119-19 loss to Mexico in the playoff round prior to the bronze medal game. McCoy led the team in scoring and rebounding at 9.8 points and 10 rebounds per game. Turnquest averaged 6.5 points per game while Knowles averaged five points, 2.5 steals and 3.3 assists per game.
TERELL McCoy in action during the bronze medal game yesterday against the Dominican Republic in the FIBA Centrobasket Under-15 Championships for women in Gurabo, Puerto Rico.
WHILE the men’s national basketball team is preparing to play the US Virgin Islands tonight, the focus will be on their home game on Monday night against the Dominican Republic at the Baha Mar resort. The Bahamas Basketball Federation, in conjunction with Baha Mar and Oak Tree Medical Center, the principal sponsors, released the names of the players yesterday and encouraged the public to come out and cheer for them in their bid to qualify for the World Cup. Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg, who served previously as both the president of the BBF and the men’s national coach, said during the press conference yesterday at Baha Mar
By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net AS baseball at all levels continues to take centre stage in the country, the timeline for completion of the much maligned Andre Rodgers National Baseball Stadium faces another possible delay. Minister of Youth, Sports, and Culture Mario Bowleg said that while the project continues its progression, completion will not be further hastened for a single event. Earlier this year, the Confederation of Caribbean Baseball (COCABE) announced that the fourth Caribbean Baseball Cup was set to be the first event hosted at the stadium December 4-11, 2022. “The deadline we had was to try and have that stadium completed for
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BABE RUTH REGION CARIBBEAN INVITATIONAL JULY 7-11 By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net
Bahamas ready to host Dominican Republic By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net
NATIONAL BASEBALL STADIUM FIELD ‘WILL BE WORLD CLASS’
that the team only needs to win one of these two games in order to qualify. Federation secretary-general Jurelle Nairn-Mullings, who conducted the press conference, said Team Bahamas, with a highly accredited coaching staff that includes Chris DeMarco of the Golden State Warriors, Grand Bahamian Yolett McPheeMcCuin, the head coach of Ole Miss women’s team, Mikhail McLean, an assistant coach at the University of Houston and Steve Barnes, encouraged the Bahamian public to come out and watch a fantastic show on Monday night in what will be a pre-Independence celebration. Baha Mar’s senior vice president Robert Sands said they were delighted when they got the call from Bowleg less than 10 days ago to make it happen, they got
the wheels in motion to make the venue a world-class facility. “Sports tourism is an integral part of the marketing that we have here at Baha Mar and will continue to propel the Bahamas as a leading sporting destination and also as a leading tourism destination,” Sands said as he congratulated the BBF, the team and its principal sponsors for including Baha Mar in this venture. Kristi Deveaux, chief executive officer of the Oak Tree Medical Center and a former junior national team member, said when Oak Tree was invited by the federation to sponsor the event, they could not have turned down the offer, especially with their presence at the press conference on her husband’s birthday. She noted that Dr Deveaux, the medical director
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BUDDY Hield and Deyton Albury.
THE country’s best youth baseball talent will take on regional and international competition next weekend at the Babe Ruth Region Caribbean Championships and Invitational. A total of 16 teams from 13 countries are expected to compete in the U12 and U16 divisions July 7-11 at the newly renovated baseball fields at the Baillou Hills Complex. National Sports Authority chairman Greg Burrows Sr also serves as the Commisioner for Babe Ruth Baseball in the Caribbean. “My responsibility was mainly developing the brand in the region. The way I thought would be a good way to launch this brand was to host a tournament during our Independence. “I ended up at the NSA so I, immediately with the staff of the NSA and the
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Wimbledon lookahead: Jokic, Beal cash in quickly as NBA free agency begins Djokovic back on Centre Court on Day 5 By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer
WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — LOOKAHEAD TO TODAY SIX-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic will make his way back to Centre Court on Day 5 at the All England Club. The DJOKOVIC top-seeded Djokovic will face another Serbian player, Miomir Kecmanovic, for a spot in the fourth round. Ons Jabeur will be first in the main stadium against 19-year-old Diane Parry. Jabeur reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals last year and has yet to drop a set this year. The final match on Centre Court will pit American player Steve Johnson against ninth-seeded
Cam Norrie. Former champion Angelique Kerber and up-and-coming Carlos Alcaraz will be on No. 1 Court. STAT OF THE DAY 8 — The number of American men who will be in the third round at Wimbledon, the most at any Grand Slam tournament since 1996. QUOTE OF THE DAY “I think when she’s playing well, it’s very difficult to stop her because her shots are little bit different, with a lot of power. She’s able to move well. Yeah, when she’s with confidence, I think she has shots that are very difficult to stop for the rest of the girls.” — Nadal speaking about Swiatek, who has talked about how much the 22-time Grand Slam champion has inspired her.
THE NBA generated more basketball related income than ever this past season, the total number coming up just short of $9 billion. Business is good. The first night of free agency underscored how good. Nikola Jokic and Bradley Beal both quickly agreed to deals that will be worth more than a quarter of a billion dollars by the time they expire, highlighting the moves made yesterday when the NBA’s annual free-agent negotiating window opened. Jokic agreed to a supermax extension to remain with the Denver Nuggets,
the two-time reigning MVP guaranteeing himself at least $264 million over five seasons starting with the 2023-24 campaign. The final number may go up slightly depending on what the league’s salary cap is going into the ‘23-24 season and if it exceeds current projections. Beal will make $251 million over the next five seasons after re-signing with Washington, one day after turning down $37 million for this coming season from the team with whom he’s spent the entirety of his 10-year career. Other extensions expected to be struck soon include supermax deals for Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns and Phoenix’s Devin
Booker. And then there’s a slew of rookie extensions that can start coming today, with Memphis’ Ja Morant, Miami’s Tyler Herro and New Orleans’ Zion Williamson among the names on that list. All those moves, even the biggest-money ones, were overshadowed by a piece of non-free-agent news that came earlier yesterday when Kevin Durant, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation, told the Brooklyn Nets that he wanted a trade. And that undoubtedly had some sort of an impact on the decisions some teams were making, or were considering, with the surprise
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PAGE 12, Friday, July 1, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
COVID-19 at Wimbledon: 3 top20 men out after positive tests By HOWARD FENDRICH AP Tennis Writer WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Reigning Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic famously decided not to get vaccinated against COVID-19 — which prevented him from playing at the Australian Open in January following a legal saga that ended with his deportation from that country, and, as things currently stand, will prevent him from entering the United States to compete at the US Open in August. More than two years after the pandemic began, coronavirus cases are on the rise around the world lately, due mostly to certain variants, and the health — and vaccination status — of individual athletes is once again a key issue. At Wimbledon, where the All England Club is following British government guidance that requires neither shots nor testing, three of the top 20 seeded men have withdrawn over the first four days of action because they got COVID-19, with No. 17 Roberto Bautista Agut pulling out yesterday. That’s raised the spectre of an outbreak among players at the Grand Slam tournament, where there
essentially is an honour system: If you don’t feel well, you’re encouraged to get a test on your own; if you test positive, you’re encouraged to reveal that and take yourself out of the bracket. “I won’t lie: When I have a cough or something, I get paranoid. It’s what we kind of have to learn to live with. I feel bad for people who test positive. A place like Wimbledon is definitely not where you want to have it,” said Ajla Tomljanovic, a 29-year-old from Australia who is ranked 44th and won yesterday to set up a thirdround match against 2021 French Open champion Barbora Krejcikova. “If you have symptoms or you’re feeling under the weather, it’s your responsibility. I think we all travel with home kits; at least I do. And then once you’ve tested positive, that’s where it comes in that you just say you have it,” Tomljanovic said. “Because you could have lower symptoms and try to play, but that wouldn’t be the right thing to do.” At Roland Garros last month, Krejcikova lost her opening match in singles, then withdrew before trying to defend her doubles championship after saying she tested positive for COVID-19.
Rafael Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion, said after his second-round victory yesterday that he is not doing much other than coming to the tournament site and staying at the house he is renting in the area, “not going out at all anymore.” This is not just a tennis issue, of course. It’s something people are grappling with in all lines of work: how worried to be, when to test, whom to tell. In sports, it’s arisen in Major League Baseball, where some players have been unable to travel for games at the Toronto Blue Jays because of Canada’s rule against allowing entry to unvaccinated foreigners — the same sort of restriction that kept Djokovic, a 35-year-old from Serbia with 20 Grand Slam titles, from participating in tournaments in California and Florida earlier this season and would stop him from going to the U.S. Open, because he says he will not get a shot against COVID-19. In the NBA, Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving appeared in only 29 of 82 regular-season games this past season, largely because of his decision not to get vaccinated.
Nearly all women and men in the top 100 of the WTA or ATP tour rankings did get vaccinated. For some, it was all about wanting to avoid getting sick. “Pretty easy: Vaccines work. Everyone has a right to choose, but more or less, the reason we don’t die from diseases from 50 years ago is because we got vaccines,” said eighth-seeded Jessica Pegula, who is from Buffalo and won yesterday to reach Wimbledon’s third round for the first time. “Of course, it came out really fast, so, sure, there’s always that thought: ‘I hope nothing happens.’ Some people had bad experiences. But for me, I thought it was worth the risk.” For others tennis players, it was more about ensuring they could continue to make a living. “The ATP, similar to the NFL, the NBA, MLB, they’re kind of making you get it, in a way. They’re saying: If you don’t get it, you might not be able to play certain tournaments or in these games, and we’re going to kind of make things so miserable that you’re going to have to get it,” said Sam Querrey, an American who reached the Wimbledon semifinals in 2017. “So for me, it
was a combination that I think it was good to get it, and it makes your life a lot easier from a professional standpoint.” Some players say they respect the choice by Djokovic, who has said he got COVID-19 twice, to stick to his no-vax stance even if it hurts his ability to keep pace with Rafael Nadal, a 22-time Grand Slam champion, in the major trophy count. “The sport needs him — needs him in the sport and at big events,” said Denis Shapovalov, a 23-year-old Canadian seeded 13th at Wimbledon who said he did not have an easy time deciding whether to get the shots himself but in the end, “I figured it was better to be safe than sorry.” All has been back to pre-pandemic “normal” at Wimbledon this year after 2020, when the tournament was cancelled altogether, and 2021, when players were in a bubble-type environment and needed to take COVID-19 tests, and stadium capacity was kept low in Week 1 and spectators were required to wear masks. An All England Club spokesperson said COVID19 policies are “under constant review” and
ITALY’s Matteo Berrettini wears a mask during his singles quarterfinals match against Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime on Wednesday. (AP) pointed to updates made this week, such as increased cleaning, enhanced ventilation, making masks available to players and recommending that masks be worn on official tournament transportation. “I didn’t even know that people were testing positive,” said Coco Gauff, the 18-year-old American who was the runner-up at Roland Garros this year, “until I saw another player wearing a mask.” Bautista Agut wrote on Twitter yesterday that his symptoms weren’t very bad but that withdrawing was “the best decision.” One of his coaches, Tomàs Carbonell, said in his own social media post in Spanish: “Roberto could have tried to play the match because his symptoms aren’t bad. Out of respect to his colleagues and to the tournament, we decided not to go on court, even if the rules would have allowed it.”
Jay Line Fitness 5K was a success MACKEY Williams and Lesli Hanna emerged as the overall male and female walk winners, while Dexter Adderley and Eve Dorsette won the run segment of the 5-kilometre race. The event, held on Saturday, June 25 at St Augustine’s College, was organised by J-Line Fitness Bahamas instructor J Donavon Rolle in his bid to do something different to inspire his clientele as well as raise some funds for the Bahamas Kidney Association. “I wanted to allow participants more freedom without road traffic and the terrain of the campus added another level of complexity,” said Rolle of the race dubbed “the Jay Way” and held at his alma mater. At the same time, Rolle said he wanted to do something different from the regular 5k, providing something fun with a little challenge. “It broke up the monotony over other road races that just go up one way and back,” Rolle said. “Hence we have “surprises” on the route. It was important for us to make sure that the novice runner found it entertaining and the more seasoned runner found it challenging. “We ensured that regardless of the fitness level that the event was one that every member of the family would enjoy.” After watching one of Jay fitness family members donate a kidney and continue to live a healthy lifestyle, Rolle said he wanted to make a contribution to the BKA, especially after they finally got a chance to stage an
FEMALE competitors Ashanti Gibson, Sharon Kelly and Keisha Russell display their ‘sexy’ medals.
J-Line Fitness Bahamas instructor J Donavon Rolle, second from right, presents an appreciation award to Subway representatives Dion Miller and Shantika Jones.
COMPETITORS CHERVEZ BROWN, Jamari Chea and Keith Gomez stretching. Photos courtesy of Derek Smith event coming out of the “This year in addition to pandemic. the tennis shoe drive which “Kidney disease is on the will provide shoes to those rise you want to encourage less fortunate, your finanmore Bahamians to stay cial support will allow us to fit,” he said. donate to those affected by “This year the organis- kidney disease,” he said. ers of 5K the Jay Way are “This will also assist in excited to host yet another bringing awareness to this event.” disease that continues to In addition to their com- increase in The Bahamas.” mitment in motivating The winners are listed others to lead healthier life- here: styles, Rolle said they are Male Walker - 1. Mackey dedicated to community Williams; 2. Erle Bethell; 3. building. Michael Dillett.
BAHAMAS FROM PAGE 11
at Oak Tree, joined her in wishing the team every success and they look forward to watching coach McPhee make history on the sidelines as the first female to coach the national team. “Oak Tree is delighted to be here and we invite everybody to come out with their Bahamian flag to cheer on the Bahamian team,” she said. Moses Johnson, a coach on the men’s national team, announced the team that is currently competing in the US Virgin Islands tonight before they come home and take on the Dominican Republic on Monday. The players are Deyton Albury - guard; Dominick Bridgewater - guard; Jaron Cornish - guard; Joshua Dames - guard; Radshad Davis - guard/
forward; Shaquilio Fritz - center; Buddy Hield - guard; Danrad Knowles - forward; Zane Knowles - center; Franco Miller Jr. - guard; Travis Munnings - forward; David Nesbitt - forward; Kentwan Smith - forward and Mychel Thompson - forward. It was hoped that both NBA players Deandre Ayton, who is with the Phoenix Suns and Kai Jones of the Charlotte Hornets, would have suited up for this window, but both players passed up the opportunity because of prior commitments. The other members of the management team are LJ Rose, the director of basketball operations, Rodney Wilson as the head of delegation, Eugenia Patton and Alicia Greene as the athletic trainers and John Nutt as the public relations officer. Federation president Eugene Horton, who thanked Nairn and her team for the job they did in
Female Walker - 1. Liesl Hanna; 2. Latina Rolle; 3. Tia Johnson. Male Runner - 1. Dexter Adderley; 2.
getting everything set up for the game, said the World Cup qualifier is an opportunity to get the Bahamas qualified for the next level. He noted that the inclusion of McPhee-McQuin as an assistant coach speaks of the power of women in sports and they are confident that she will be a valuable asset to the team. Horton also thanked both the Ministry of Tourism and the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture for their involvement and participation in the promotion of the sport on the international scene. Bowleg said if the team can win one of these two games, they will qualify for the first time for the World Cup, and he thanked both Baha Mar and the Oak Tree Medical Center for partnering with the federation to make the journey possible. When he was coaching the team, Bowleg said he predicted
Perez Willie; 3. Andrew Gardiner. Female Runner - 1. Eve Dorsette; 2. Romona Lewis; 3. Lapeedra Damianos.
that he would be in an administrative role when the team is on the verge of qualifying for the World Cup, but he never envisioned he would have been a politician. “I’m proud to be the Minister of Sports and on Monday, I’m asking all Bahamians to come out and see this team with a high qualified coach in Yolett McPheeMcCuin and players like Buddy Hield, so let’s come out and support this team,” Bowleg said. Both McPhee-McCuin and Hield addressed the media via Skype from where the team was getting ready to face the US Virgin Islands tonight. “A lot of sacrifices have been made by these young men and the coaches and supporting staff,” she said. “I think this is a good opportunity for basketball in the Bahamas to move forward.” Although track and field is considered the national flag carrier, McPhee-McCuin said basketball
Youth Walker - 1. Khyda Hanna; 2. Nadlyn Rolle. Youth Runner - 1. Denaja Minus.
has a number of talented players who can make the sport a very competitive one and she’s just grateful to be a part of it. As for Hield, the Grand Bahamian native said he’s excited about coming home and playing in front of the Bahamian crowd. He thanked Baha Mar and Oak Tree for stepping up as sponsors and he encouraged the Bahamian fans to come out and watch an exciting game against Dominican Republic. Nairn-Mullings reminded everyone that tickets are priced at $30 for general admission, $60 for VIP and $250 for platinum, and are still available at BBFbasketball.com as well as onsite on game day, but she advised persons to get their tickets early and be in attendance in their Bahamian national colours to cheer on Team Bahamas. The doors open at 6pm on Monday and the tip off is at 7pm.
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, July 1, 2022, PAGE 13
JOSHUA ‘DESPERATE’ TO BECOME WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMP AGAIN
Team Bahamas 4th at the Caribbean Amateur Junior Golf Championships By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net TEAM Bahamas fell short of their goal of getting into the top three with a fourth-place finish at the Caribbean Amateur Junior Golf Championships in Humacao, Puerto Rico. The championship was completed yesterday with the Bahamas earning a total of 37.00 points. Puerto Rico took advantage of their home turf by winning the overall crown with 52.00. The Dominican Republic was second with 42.00 and Jamaica was third with 39.00. Bahamas team manager Gina Gonzalez-Rolle said she was very proud of the team’s performance. “The conditions were a little rough and what golfers would say was really rough,” she said. “It rained off and on, the field got flooded but because there was no rain since March the ground sucked it up and the kids continued to play. “The players braved it well and look forward to playing next year in the Cayman Islands.” The top finishers for Team Bahamas came from Aidan Gorospe, Kerrington Rolle and Heathcliffe Kane, the team captain. Kane also won the Izzy Marley Sportsmanship Award in his final year
representing the junior team. Aidan Gorospe had the best individual finish for the Bahamas with a twoway tie for second place in the boys 13-and-under division with Puerto Rico’s Fernando Leduc. Gorospe shot a three-day total of 73-79-81-233, while Leduc did 76-79-78. Puerto Rico’s Evan Pena, who was tied with Gorospe with the early lead on day one, won the divisional title with 73-74-81 for his total of 228. In the under-15 boys division, Jackson Mactaggart was 7th with 249 (79-88-82); Camdyn Forbes ended up in a two-way tie for 14th with 275 (90-9491) and Rhan Miller was 17th with 291 (101-103-87). Cayman Island’s Danny Lyne emerged as the divisional champion with 226 (75-75-76). Bahamas Golf Federation men’s national champion Heathcliff Kane placed sixth in the boys’ 18-and-under division with 231 (75-81-75) and national men’s runner-up Alexander Dupuch was tied for 14th with 244 (84-82-78). Puerto Rico’s Kelvin Hernandez, turning in a solid performance, won the divisional crown with 210 after he shot impressive rounds of 73, 68 and 69. Haley Hall, the lone competitor in the girls’ 13-and-under division, was
TEAM Bahamas fell short of their goal of getting into the top three with a fourth-place finish at the Caribbean Amateur Junior Golf Championships in Humacao, Puerto Rico. sixth with 274, shooting 86, 94 and 94. Puerto Rico’s Ava Saavedra won with 237 (79-82-76). In the girls’ 15-andunder, Chemari Pratt finished ninth with 281, although she managed to bounce back after her
opening round of 101 with 85 and 95 on the final two days. Jamaica’s Samantha Azan was the divisional winner with 231 (74-79-78). And Tyesha Tynes rounded out Team Bahamas’ participation in the girls’ under-18 division
where she was 10th with 271 (94-90-87). Jamaica’s Emily Mayne won the divisional title with 224 (74-70-80). Lemon Gorospe was the team’s head coach, assisted by Georgette Rolle-Harris and Frederick Taylor.
ONE YEAR INTO NIL ERA, FRESH QUESTIONS ABOUT ITS FUTURE By ERIC OLSON AP Sports Writer THE first year of the athlete compensation era in college sports evolved into almost everything the NCAA didn’t want when it gave the green light last summer. What was envisioned as a way for college athletes to make some pocket money based on their celebrity has turned into bidding wars for top recruits and transfers who can command millions for their services. State laws have been passed or overturned and funding in some cases is coming from deep-pocketed donors and alumni who have waded into the recruiting wars. The current frenzy has given rise to serious concerns about recruiting practices and competitive balance and, in turn, questions about where NIL compensation — short for name, image and likeness — goes from here. Will Congress get involved? Will schools take on a primary role? “The way this money situation is exploding on schools, they’re going to compete themselves into the ground,” University of Illinois labor law professor Michael LeRoy said. “They can’t all win under these rules.” Some would say there are no rules, or that rules set up by the NCAA and in state laws have no teeth
and are treated more like suggestions. “When you see Nick Saban losing his cool over recruiting, it’s a sure sign that damage is being done at the highest levels of NCAA athletic competition,” LeRoy said, referring to t he Alabama football coach’s comments in May alleging Texas A&M “bought every player on their team.” The NCAA interim NIL policy says there is to be no pay for play, no recruiting inducements and that athletes must provide a service in exchange for pay. With the schools themselves left out of the loop in the wheeling and dealing, so-called booster collectives sprung up to provide earning opportunities — and, critics say, recruiting enticements. Basketball player Nijel Pack made one of the first big splashes in April. When his transfer from Kansas State to Miami was announced, it was made public he would get a twoyear, $800,000 deal with a medical tech company that came with a car. Pack already is featured in an advertisement. There have been media reports of football and basketball recruits and transfers being promised millions of dollars in NIL deals — all against the rules because they haven’t enrolled. The NCAA Division I Board of Governors in May
warned that enforcement staff would investigate and take action against the most “outrageous violations,” with the schools being penalized for boosters’ improper conduct. Dionne Koller, a professor and director of the Center for Sport and the Law at the University of Baltimore law school, said she’s not surprised how NIL has unfolded. The market, she said, was at a boiling point. “Because we now let the genie out of the bottle,” she said, “this is what’s happening.” Short of congressional action to sort out NIL issues, some wonder if athletes will be declared employees of their schools and have NIL issues addressed through collective bargaining. Proponents say their position is strengthened by last fall’s memorandum from National Labor Relations Board general counsel Jennifer Abruzzo, who wrote college athletes fit the definition of “employees” under federal labor law: someone who performs services for an institution and is subject to its control. Koller said she agrees there is a strong legal basis for calling athletes employees. “Whether we actually get to the point of collective bargaining, I’m still in wait-and-see mode because this is something that can
be changed by statute,” she said. “The NLR Act can be amended to say college athletes can’t be considered employees. Whether Congress would do that, that’s a political question and something we have to keep in mind.” LeRoy said there is nothing to prevent public schools from adopting collective bargaining or Congress from passing an industry-specific collective bargaining law, just as it did in 1926 with railroads and in 1936 with airlines. Marc Edelman, a law professor at Baruch College in New York, said Abruzzo’s memo set the stage for unionization. The NCAA, on the losing end of court cases in antitrust lawsuits, has long opposed unionization and its newly redrawn constitution makes clear athletes cannot be paid by their schools for playing sports. To be determined would be whether only athletes in revenue-producing sports would be included. There also would be Title IX implications with regard to how men’s and women’s interests are addressed. LeRoy, who wrote the 2014 book “Collective Bargaining in Sports and Entertainment: Professional Skills and Business Strategies,” said now that athletes can make NIL money maintaining a semblance of competitive balance should be the impetus for unionization.
Without it, LeRoy said, the five to 10 most wellheeled programs will sign elite, money-motivated recruits and further separate themselves from other programmes.
NBA
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development that one of the world’s elite players is looking for a new place to play. Jokic and Beal have signed lucrative contracts before. For some, the ones they get this summer will be their first. Anfernee Simons, who had a breakout season for the injury-plagued Portland Trail Blazers last year — taking advantage of his opportunity, and then some — agreed to a four-year, $100 million contract to remain with that club. And Lu Dort, undrafted three years ago and someone who made about $4 million combined in his three seasons with Oklahoma City, will stay with the Thunder for the next five years on a deal worth nearly $88 million. TUCKER TO PHILADELPHIA P.J. Tucker is reuniting with Philadelphia general manager Daryl Morey and — assuming he re-signs, as planned — James Harden as well. Tucker agreed Thursday to a three-year deal with the 76ers for $33 million. Morey, Tucker and Harden were together with the Houston Rockets;
LONDON (AP) — Anthony Joshua admitted he is “definitely desperate” to become world heavyweight champion again when he faces Oleksandr Usyk in their rematch in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on August 20. Usyk will be defending the IBF, WBA and WBO titles he claimed from Joshua in beating the British fighter at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September. Joshua (24-2, 22 KOs) was outclassed by his Ukrainian rival, who defied disadvantages in height, reach and weight to win in London by unanimous decision. “What happened then is in the past, I don’t really live in the past, I’m just present,” the 32-yearold Joshua said at a news conference in London on Wednesday. “I’ll be looking to be competing round-byround and if I follow my As, Bs and Cs, it should lead me to KO.” The former two-time world heavyweight champion called for “Less talk, more action. I’m not a comedian, I’m not someone who likes big speeches. “Let me get in there and do my job, that’s my priority. I’m definitely hungry, definitely desperate but how I perform will speak volumes to the masses.” The 35-year-old Usyk, a former undisputed world cruiserweight champion, has won all 19 of his professional contests and wore a blue-and-yellow T-shirt with the message ‘Colors of Freedom’ in reference to his native Ukraine and Russia’s invasion of the country. He helped with the war effort against Russia, initially putting in jeopardy a second fight against Joshua, before being given special permission to defend his world titles. While this will be Joshua’s second fight in Saudi Arabia — he avenged his only other defeat against Andy Ruiz Jr. in 2019 in Diriyah with a points win — it will be Usyk’s first in the country. Saudi Arabia has been routinely accused of human rights violations and has faced claims of attempting to “sportswash” its reputation. Usyk said money was not the driving factor in his decision to fight there. “I’m not fighting for money or the recognition,” Usyk said. “The only thing I’m on my way to is to save my soul. Everything else that is happening to me is just life.” Harden declared free agency Wednesday with the intention of coming back to Philadelphia. Tucker won a title with Milwaukee in 2021 and helped Miami to the Eastern Conference finals in 2022. PORTIS, INGLES TO BUCKS Bobby Portis (four years, $49 million) is returning to Milwaukee, and the Bucks are adding veteran guard Joe Ingles as well. Ingles is signing a one-year deal, according to his wife, Renae Ingles, who tweeted that “CEO of the house, Renae Ingles, is thrilled for Joe and their family.” HEAT DECISIONS Miami will retain Victor Oladipo on a one-year, $11 million deal and Dewayne Dedmon on a two-year deal for about $9 million, though the second year has conditional protections. RAPTORS MOVES Toronto is keeping forwards Chris Boucher (three years, $36 million) and Thaddeus Young (two years, $16 million). BAGLEY STAYING Detroit moved quickly to lock up restricted free agent Marvin Bagley III, agreeing to keep him with a threeyear, $37 million deal.
PAGE 14, Friday, July 1, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
WANDA DIAMOND LEAGUE: GAITHER 4TH IN 200M, CHARLTON 5TH IN 100M HURDLES By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net AFTER their victories at the Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations’ National Track and Field Championships over the weekend, TyNia Gaither and Devynne Charlton got fourth and fifth respectively in their return to the Wanda Diamond League on Thursday. Gaither, the 29-year-old national 100m champion, moved up to the women’s 200m where she placed fourth in 23.06 seconds, while the 26-year-old Charlton, coming off her national record-breaking performance, was fifth in her specialty event in the women’s 100m hurdles in 12.65.
Gaither, a third-place finisher behind Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Anthonique Strachan in the 200m at the nationals, got left in the blocks, but she came off the curve and made up some ground on the home stretch. The race came down to a photo finish as Great Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith got the win over Switzerland’s Mujinga Kambundi after they both clocked 22.37. Denmark’s Ida Karstoft was third in 22.90. With her performance, Gaither earned five points to join Miller-Uibo, American Tamara Clark and Poland’s Nikola Horowska for ninth place in the Wanda Diamond League standings, while Asher-Smith surged out front with 20 points.
CHARLTON
GAITHER
Strachan is tied with Ivory Coast’s Marie-Josee Ta Lou and Gambian’s Gina Bass with four apiece. Charlton, the World Championship indoor silver medallist, got the early lead
in the 10 flights of hurdles, but mid-way into the race Olympic champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn and the rest of the field surged ahead. While CamachoQuinn went on to secure
the win in 12.46 seconds, Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan got second in 12.50, American Nia Ali was third in 12.53 and Jamaican Danielle Williams got fourth in a season’s best of 12.59. Charlton’s time was off her new Bahamian national record of 12.60 that she posted last Friday night at the nationals. Despite her finish, Charlton is now tied for second place with Camacho-Quinn with 16 points each in the Diamond League standings, which has Amusan on top with 22. This was the eighth in the 12-race series for the Wanda Diamond League that began in Doha, Qatar on May 13 and will wrap up in Brussels, Belgium on September 2 before the
finals take place in Zurich, Switzerland, September 7-8. The next meet in the series will take place on August 6 in Silesia, Poland. Charlton, now a grad assistant coach at the University of Kentucky where she’s training under Bahamian coach Rolando ‘Lonnie’ Greene, is looking for her first global medal on the outdoor scene this year at the World Championships. Gaither is expected to run the sprint double in Eugene with Strachan, while MillerUibo is expected to join them both in the 200m. Miller-Uibo, however, will have her priority on the 400m where she was the reigning runner-up from Doha, Qatar in 2019.
BABE RUTH
STADIUM
Royal Bahamas Defence Force started the refurbishment of the Baillou Hills Fours,” he said. “I find that unless we create things, alot of us do not have the drive to do something. I’ve never seen so many people - once they have the understanding that something is happening - have the drive to get their hands dirty and start to develop those fields.” Ticket packages for the event can be purchased at the NSA office at the Thomas A Robinson Stadium. Five day packages for adults are available at $65 for adults and $20 for children. Daily rates are $15 for adults and $5 for children. SuperClubs Breezes will be the Games Village and teams are expected to begin arriving on July 4. Javier Bowe, head of government innovations at Cable Bahamas, spoke on his orgaisation’s role as a major stakeholder. “Once we were approached with sponsorship, our company gladly jumped in to assist with this worthwhile initiative,” he said. “We are happy to support this initiative. The support is from our CEO all the way down. We are excited to build on our mandate, connecting individuals and communities in a positive and meaningful way.” Bowe also serves as manager of one of two under12 teams The Bahamas will enter into the eight-team field. Lionel Ferguson Jr will serve as manager of the other U12 team while Greg Burrows Jr will be the manager of the U16 team. “We hosted showcases here in Nassau where each league sent their best players and the coaches had an opportunity to assess the players. We did the same thing in Grand Bahama to assess the talent. It was a very open process and each league was afforded an opportunity to make their players available,” Bowe said of the selection process. “We made the selections based on our criteria. There are no clubs, all teams have players represented from different leagues. We are all wearing Bahamas across our chest and that is what it is all about.” Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg said the event is indicative of the current administration’s Sports in Paradise initiative. “We have to understand that the amount of money we invest in our youth determines the future of our nation. The little that we put into these events is not sufficient compared to the lives we save with these young men,” he said. “We have a lot of professional baseball players in our system. These U12 and U16 divisions, this is where they start. So the investment we as a people, as a government, the Sports in Paradise brand is not about just having heads in beds, it is about giving exposure to our young people, giving them the opportunity to explore the world.” A final schedule will be released in short order, pending confirmation from several outstanding teams. Each of the age groups will feature two divisions competing in pool play for the first three days of the tournament. All teams will go into a single elimination playoffs on Sunday, July 10. The opening ceremony will take place at 7pm on July 7 at the Thomas A Robinson Stadium. Admission is free of charge.
December. We know that the physical structure is just about 90-95 percent completed with some minor repairs going on right now. But at the end of the day, we believe that if we hold off until January, based on the field itself which needs to be settled, we would have time needed to compact that field before we put the surface on it,” Bowleg said. “We want to make sure that we don’t waste money and that it is prepared and ready to go. There is nothing more important to us than ensuring that that is ready, not an event. “We don’t want to be wasting money dealing with a stadium of that magnitude. We want to be able to attract professional baseball teams so that they come down in the spring seasons so we want to make sure that field is world class and it remains world class,” he said. Woslee Construction Company was originally contracted to build the stadium at a cost of approximately $25 million. Construction began in September 2016 and the original timeline for completion was set at 15 months, concluding in November 2017. Ensuing contractual disputes caused work to cease on the project and the edifice remained idle as costs of material, labour and the rise of Value Added Tax increased project expenditure. That figure was adjusted to $21.4 million, then increased to $27.5 million after contingency and provisional fees were added. In January 2022, Minister of Public Works and Utilities Alfred Sears said in the House of Assembly that an additional $31 million would be needed to complete the national baseball stadium project.
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REIGNING world champion and Olympic gold medallist Steven Gardiner heads the lists of top athletes expected to compete in the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, next month.
WORLDS FROM PAGE 11
Bahamas could end up earning another team in the championships. Gardiner was a coach on the Bahamas team at the Olympic Games in 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. He told Tribune Sports he anticipates that this team will perform very well and bring home a couple of medals. The team is scheduled to depart on July 12 in time to get acclimatised for the championships.
Women team Anthonique Strachan (100/200m/4x400/ mixed medley relays); Shaunae Miller-Uibo (200/400m/4x400m/mixed medley relays); TyNia Gaither (100/200m); Devynne Charlton (100m hurdles); Donneisha Anderson (4x400m/mixed relay); Javonya Valcourt (4 x 400m/ mixed relays) and Janae Ambrose (4x400m/mixed relays). Men’s team - Steven Gardiner - 400m/mixed medley relay); LaQuan Nairn (long jump); Terrence Jones (100m); Samson
Colebrooke (100m); Ken Mullings (decathlon); Donald Thomas (high jump); Alonzo Russell (mixed relay); Bradley Dormeus (mixed relay) and Wayna McCoy (mixed relay). - The management team consists of the following: Rupert Gardiner - head coach; Shaun Miller Sr assistant coach and James Rolle - jumps coach. Mabelene Miller - manager; Dionne Britton - assistant manager; Cindy Dorsett - team doctor and Pharez Cooper - therapist.
RESULTS: BAHAMAS GOLF FEDERATION’S NATIONAL GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS THE Bahamas Golf Federation hosted its National Golf Championships last week at the Ocean Club on Paradise Island, Lyford Cay, Albany Golf Club and the Royal Blue Golf Club at Baha Mar. • Here’s a look at how they finished the four days of competition: Men’s Regular Flight Heathcliff Kane – 67-77-81-81-308 Alex Dupuch – 78-77-76—80-311 Leon Cooper Jr – 87-94-97-96-374 Mid-Amateur Flight Lynford Miller – 81-78-82-82-323 Juan Trevor Gibson – 79-85-96-82-342 Leander Brice – 81-93-03-94-361 Bradley Culmer – 92-87-100-87-366 Ural Pratt – 84-94-97-06-371 Colin Lightbourn – 102-99-97-96-394 Christopher Adderley – 94-100-106-94-394 Martin Brent – 93-113-89-101-406 Paul Longley – 106-114-112-109-441 Nico Maritz – 84-89-93-NS-Retired Leron Williams – 89-86-107-NS-retired Male Senior Flight Peter McIntosh – 80-81-83-79-323 Ashley Glinton – 83-79-86-85-333 Kelsey Rolle – 84-86-88-85-343 Broderick Pinder – 85-85-89-85-344 Ian Hepburn – 80-89-96-91-356 Kirkland Bowe – 84-91-99-84-358 Dwight Tinker – 87-99-94-99-379 Stephen Johnson – 89-96-96-103-384 Neil Abrahams – 100-97-102-393 Jimi Thompson – 97-102-112-94-405 Colin Watson – 104-108-103-100-415 Anthony Sam – 95-104-113-105-417
Mark Carter – 79-84-97-NS-Retired Anthony Hinsey – 77-89-104-NS-Retired Super Senior Flight Dorrel Allen – 75-80-89-82-326 Raymond Gibson – 77-86-82-81-326 Kevin Marche – 79-80-86-83-328 Robert Chin – 84-8284-86-336 Peter Chin – 92-91-81-83-347 Dr Richard Grant – 86-87-94-88-355 Norman Pryce – 88-88-94-90-360 Larry Wilson – 92-103-93-96-384 Adrian Burbage – 94-89-100-110-393 John Reckley – 100-92-104-103-399 Leroy Laing – 94-103-105-104-406 Andrew Moxey – 113-116-114-114-457 Peter Dupuch – 98=107-110-NS-DNF Legends Flight Vernon Wells – 73-84-98-90-345 Oswald Moore – 93-89-93-91-362 Craig Flowers – 88-90-94-91-363 Ambrose Gouthro – 93-94-97-95-379 Philip Pinder – 98-105-101-101-405 Allan Gardner – 105-97-107-113-422 Louis Sang – 99-107-108-117-431 George Turnquest – 99-115-120-DNF-DNF Female Regular Flight Ashley Michel – 73-78-85-78-314 A’Marie Smith – 90-91-93-100-374 Miranda Tucker – 97-99-109-93-398 Angel Johnson – 99-122-145-121-487 Female Senior Flight Rosa Lua – 77-87-80-85-327 Rosena Pratt – 93-104-110-106-413 Valerie Grant – 95-103-106-109-413 President’s Cup Female Regular Flight
Ashley Michel – 83-79-162 Miranda Tucker – 88-75-163 A’Marie Smith – 84-94-178 Angel Johnson – 145-121-266 Female Senior Flight Rose Lua – 81-87-168 Valerie Grant – 82-88-170 Rosena Pratt – 86-85-171 Male Regular Flight Richard Gibson Jr – 74-67-141 Alex Dupuch – 73-77-150 Leon Cooper Jr – 83-81-164 Healthcliff Kane – 83-83-166 Christopher Adderley – 91-78-169 Malcolm Adderley – 92-85-177 Mid-Amateur Flight Colin Lightbourn – 74-72-146 Chris Bloore – 75-75-150 Jerard Nixon – 80-71-151 Ural Pratt – 78-76-154 Patrick Arthur – 82-73-155 Bradley Cujlmer – 85-71-156 Lynford Miller – 78-78-156 Juan Gibson – 86-71-157 Ian Brooke – 84-76-160 Leander Brice – 81-82-163 Martin Brent – 82-83-165 Graham Garde – 93-82-175 Paul Longley – 112-109-221 Nico Maritz – 80-NS-DNF Leron Williams – 96-NS-DNF Senior Flight Ashley Glinton – 76-74-150 Neil Abrahams – 83-73-156 James Beaumont – 84-72-156 Peter McIntosh – 81-77-158 Kelsey Rolle – 81-78-159
Dwight Tinker – 78-82-160 Stephen Johnson – 77-83-160 Broderick Pinder – 82-78-160 Kirkland Bower – 90-74-164 Ian Hepburn – 85-80-165 Robert Nabb – 79-89-168 Anthony Sam – 89-81-170 Colin Watson – 89-85-174 Jimi Thompson – 112-94-206 Mark Carter – 86-NS-NS Anthony Hinsey – 98-NS-NS Super Senior Flight Larry Wilson – 69-72-141 Peter Chin – 72-74-148 Robert Chin – 75-76-151 Dorrel Allen – 80-73-153 Raymond Gibson – 77-76-153 Philip Andrews – 75-81-156 Kevin Marche – 82-79-161 Adrian Burbage – 76-86-162 John Reckley – 84-82-166 Norman Pryce – 85-81-166 Paul Major - 85-81-166 Dr. Richard Grant – 87-81-168 Jim Laroda - 86-88-174 Leroy Laing – 90-88-178 Andrew Moxey – 90-90-180 Peter Dupuch – 90-NS-DNF Legends Flight Philip Pinder – 77-77-154 Max Quant - 87-70-157 Ambrose Gouthro – 82-79-161 Craig Flowers – 84-80-164 Oswald Moore – 86-80-166 Allan Gardner – 84-89-173 Vernon Wells – 91-82-173 Louis Sang – 85-93-178
PAGE 16, Friday, July 1, 2022 FROM PAGE 22
our request for a meeting, and hopefully we will get that shortly. Other than that we are in the blind; totally in the blind. That’s the issue. We cannot operate in a state where we don’t know what to do. We don’t know what the definition of turnover is. We don’t know anything.” A critical issue as yet unresolved is the definition of “turnover” that the Government plans to apply for the purpose of calculating the Business Licence fees payable by the sector. Underwriters, in particular, are seeking clarity as to whether “gross written premium” or “net premium earned”, the latter of which strips out the sums ceded to reinsurers, will be used as the basis for the calculation, or even “net underwriting income”. The resulting uncertainty, Mr Saunders said,
INSURERS ‘TOTALLY IN BLIND’ ON BUDGET TAX CHANGES is making it impossible for the industry to plan or properly advise partners such as reinsurers. And he pointed out that, while Tribune Business’ copy of the Business Licence (Amendment) Bill showed insurers as having to pay a fee equivalent to 2.25 percent of annual turnover, the draft he possesses shows that as being 2 percent. “I can only tell you that from RoyalStar’s standpoint we are in a holding pattern because we don’t know,” Mr Saunders added. “We have told all our business partners around the world that we don’t know. Reinsurers, businesses we do projects for in The Bahamas, we told all of them that we don’t know. There’s all
NOTICE
kinds of aspects going on that we are in the dark and cannot report intelligently to our partners on because we don’t know. “They are asking questions we cannot answer. We are in a holding pattern while the law is changing around us. We do not know what to do. Hopefully the Government will respond to the BIA and we can have a meeting so that we can lay all the cards on the table and see what happens. After that we can make the appropriate changes to the business. “I guess they’ll get to us eventually. There’s nothing we can do except continue to press the Association for a meeting and tell our business partners we cannot tell them anything because
THE TRIBUNE we don’t know anything.” Anton Sealey, the BIA’s chairman, did not respond to Tribune Business phone calls and messages seeking comment before press time last night. However, Tom Duff, Insurance Company of The Bahamas (ICB) general manager, echoed Mr Saunders in saying: “The BIA is seeking to have an urgent meeting with the financial secretary [Simon Wilson] and maybe even the Prime Minister so we can get clarification. That meeting is still to be called.” With the industry having little to go on beyond the Budget communication as to how its new structure is to be implemented, he added that obtaining - and agreeing on - the definition of “turnover” will be key. “We need total clarity on all these points so that we can work out what it means.”
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that MATHIAS DURAND of Yamacraw Hill Road, New Providence, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 24th day of June, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE is hereby given that NATASHIA DIONNE YOUNG of P. O. Box SP-60342, #10 Lookout Drive, Coral Harbour, New Providence, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 24th day of June, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that NAOMI JEUDI of Blue Hill Road, New Providence, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 1st day of July, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE is hereby given that REMILUS PHILIPPE of P. O. Box SB-50714, Carmichael Road, New Providence, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 24th day of June, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
MARKET REPORT www.bisxbahamas.com
WEDNESDAY, 29 JUNE 2022
BISX ALL SHARE INDEX: BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 6.70 53.00 2.47 2.61 2.60 6.10 10.05 4.15 9.02 3.59 8.00 17.50 2.65 10.75 11.25 10.85 17.26 4.00 11.00 16.50
52WK LOW 5.30 33.80 1.60 2.20 1.30 5.75 6.96 2.82 4.75 2.27 5.95 9.80 1.99 7.05 10.02 9.55 13.10 3.50 8.20 15.50
SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Benchmark Bahamas First Holdings Limited Bank of Bahamas Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Cable Bahamas Commonwealth Brewery Commonwealth Bank Colina Holdings CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Emera Incorporated Famguard Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) Limited Focol Finco J. S. Johnson
PREFERENCE SHARES 1.00
1.00
1000.00 1000.00
1000.00 1000.00
1.00 10.00 1.00
1.00 10.00 1.00
Bahamas First Holdings Preference Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Colina Holdings Class A Fidelity Bank Bahamas Class A Focol Class B
CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00 100.00
52WK LOW 100.00 100.00
SECURITY Fidelity Bank (Note 22 Series B+) Bahamas First Holdings Limited
CLOSE
CHANGE
%CHANGE
YTD
YTD%
2612.26
-16.95
-0.64
384.02
17.23
SYMBOL AML APD BBL BFH BOB BPF BWL CAB CBB CBL CHL CIB CWCB DHS EMAB FAM FBB FCL FIN JSJ BFHP CAB6 CAB9 CHLA FBBA FCLB SYMBOL FBB22 BFHB
BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing) 115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.66 100.47 100.67 100.43 100.34 100.23 100.00 100.00 100.98 100.00
104.79 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 99.96 100.67 100.43 100.04 100.00 89.62 89.00 90.24 90.73
MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.52 4.69 2.22 207.86 212.41 1.73 1.83 1.82 1.05 9.37 11.83 7.54 16.64 12.84 10.77 10.00 10.43 14.89
52WK LOW 2.11 3.30 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.68 1.73 1.75 0.99 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57 9.88 8.45 11.20
Bahamas Note 6.95 (2029) BGS: 2014-12-7Y BGS: 2015-1-7Y BGS: 2014-12-30Y BGS: 2015-1-30Y BGS: 2015-6-7Y BGS: 2015-6-30Y BGS: 2015-10-7Y BGRS FL BGRS81035 BGRS FL BGRS97033 BGRS FL BGRS71024 BGRS FL BGRS75022 BGRS FL BGRS81037 BGRS FL BGRS88028 BGRS FX BGR129249 BGRS FX BGR131249 BGRS FX BGR132249 BGRS FX BGR136150
BAH29 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0307 BG0330 BG0407 BSBGRS810359 BSBGRS970336 BSBGRS710245 BSBGRS750225 BSBGRS810375 BSBGRS880287 BSBGR1292493 BSBGR1312499 BSBGR1322498 BSBGR1361504
LAST CLOSE 5.90 39.95 2.25 2.35 2.51 6.10 9.75 3.95 8.98 3.55 8.00 17.17 2.82 10.26 11.52 10.85 16.58 3.98 10.00 15.50 1.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00 LAST SALE 100.00 100.00 107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.66 100.09 100.91 100.54 100.34 100.00 89.62 100.00 100.00 100.00
CLOSE 5.90 39.95 2.44 2.35 2.51 6.10 9.75 3.95 9.00 3.35 8.00 17.17 2.80 10.26 11.49 10.85 17.26 3.98 10.00 15.50 1.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00
BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00 52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks 52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume Change - Change in closing price from day to day Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings
VOLUME 6,000
7,000 131,000
5,000
0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
CLOSE 100.00 100.00
CHANGE 0.00 0.00
107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.66 100.09 100.91 100.54 100.34 100.00 89.62 100.00 100.00 100.00
0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund Leno Financial Conservative Fund Leno Financial Aggressive Fund Leno Financial Balanced Fund Leno Financial Global Bond Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - Equities Sub Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - High Yield Income Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - Alternative Strategies Fund Colonial Bahamas Fund Class D Colonial Bahamas Fund Class E Colonial Bahamas Fund Class F
MARKET TERMS
CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.19 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.02 (0.20) 0.00 0.00 (0.02) 0.00 (0.03) 0.00 0.68 0.00 0.00 0.00
(242) 323‐2330 (242) 323‐2320 EPS$ 0.239 0.932 0.000 0.140 0.070 1.760 0.369 -0.438 0.140 0.184 0.449 0.722 0.102 0.467 0.646 0.728 0.816 0.203 0.939 0.631 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
VOLUME
480
NAV 2.52 4.69 2.21 197.44 202.39 1.73 1.82 1.82 0.99 9.37 11.79 7.54 15.94 12.47 10.74 N/A 10.43 14.89
DIV$ 0.170 1.260 0.020 0.080 0.000 0.000 0.260 0.000 0.000 0.120 0.220 0.720 0.434 0.060 0.328 0.240 0.540 0.120 0.200 0.610 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
INTEREST Prime + 1.75% 6.25% 6.95% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.50% 6.25% 4.25% 4.81% 4.31% 4.56% 4.43% 4.87% 4.33% 5.55% 5.60% 5.65% 5.69% YTD% 12 MTH% 0.99% 4.22% 0.36% 5.78% 0.67% 2.74% -2.97% -2.35% -4.72% 6.04% 0.83% 2.82% -0.18% 3.72% 0.76% 3.55% -3.55% -3.85% -0.02% 10.36% -0.33% 18.23% 0.22% 3.05% -3.89% 14.76% -1.04% -2.57% 0.81% 4.20% N/A N/A 3.00% 25.60% 7.90% 48.70%
P/E 24.7 42.9 N/M 16.8 N/M N/M 26.4 -9.0 64.3 18.2 17.8 23.8 27.5 22.0 17.8 14.9 21.2 19.6 10.6 24.6 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
YIELD 2.88% 3.15% 0.82% 3.40% 0.00% 0.00% 2.67% 0.00% 0.00% 3.58% 2.75% 4.19% 15.50% 0.58% 2.85% 2.21% 3.13% 3.02% 2.00% 3.94% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%
MATURITY 19-Oct-2022 30-Sep-2025 20-Nov-2029 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2022 26-Jul-2035 17-Apr-2033 22-Oct-2024 7-Sep-2022 26-Jul-2037 26-Jul-2028 15-Apr-2049 15-Jul-2049 15-Oct-2049 21-Apr-2050
NAV Date 31-Mar-2022 31-Mar-2022 25-Mar-2022 31-Mar-2022 31-Mar-2022 31-Mar-2022 31-Mar-2022 31-Mar-2022 31-Mar-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Mar-2021 31-Mar-2021 31-Mar-2021
YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths NAV - Net Asset Value N/M - Not Meaningful
TO TRADE CALL: CFAL 242-502-7010 | ROYALFIDELITY 242-356-7764 | CORALISLE 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225 | BENCHMARK 242-326-7333
Bahamian commercial banks, meanwhile, have “a full agenda with the Ministry of Finance” via a series of meetings this month that are designed to resolve multiple issues including fears that reimposing Business Licence fees on the sector could revive a situation that caused The Bahamas’ 2018 blacklisting by the European Union (EU). Gowon Bowe, Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) chief executive, yesterday said the Davis administration had still not eased his concerns on the issue despite the Prime Minister’s subsequent House of Assembly assurance that no harm would come to The Bahamas. However, unlike the insurers grappling with the 3 percent premium tax’s elimination, he added that the banks “still have time” as Business Licence fee payments are not due until March 2022. “If they have legal advice, and have a basis to say that what we committed to as a government in 2018 is not being overturned this time, that needs to publicly documented and not narratively suggested,” Mr Bowe told Tribune Business of EUrelated concerns. “There are too many interested parties, particularly in the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development) and EU countries that will have some questions, as will any objective local observer. The Government has a responsibility to be more elaborate in its reasoning that these elements will not impact our standing with the OECD and EU. They need to lay out what they
have utilised to reach that conclusion.” The then-Business Licence regime for commercial banks was disbanded in 2018 because it was part of a structure that created a preferential tax regime for foreign-owned entities, which enjoyed benefits and concessions that their counterparts operating in the domestic economy did not. This ran afoul of the EU’s prohibition on so-called ‘ring fencing’, which seeks to eliminate such preferences. Mr Bowe, meanwhile, said the Homeowners Protection Act and real property tax matters are also set to be discussed in the upcoming meetings between the Government and commercial banks, which have been arranged by the Central Bank. He added that it was vital the Government and commercial banking sector are “on the same page” to ensure The Bahamas’ postCOVID recovery moves forward, particularly since the latter is both the major credit provider and an “investor in public sector debt. “We recognise there are some areas where the Government is looking to expand the revenue base, but it has to be done in a predictable manner so we do not have implications that are unforeseen. Collaboration will certainly help that,” Mr Bowe said. “We’re all in this together. One way or another we’ll either rise together or be pulled under together. “It’s far better to work together to lift ourselves up rather than working against each other to drag ourselves down.”
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that ROSELIE ST. CHARLES-PETTY of P. O. Box General Delivery, Church Street, Palmetto Point, Eleuthera, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 24th day of June, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that WILSON DONJOIE of P. O. Box SB-50714, Carmichael Road, New Providence, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 24th day of June, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that PAULETTE FRANCOIS of Peel View off Bellot Road, New Providence, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 1st day of July, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that VILLARD FRANCOIS of Jolly Hall, Exuma, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 24th day of June, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, July 1, 2022, PAGE 17
Hot Mix’s expansion ‘not connected’ to Gold Rock FROM PAGE 22 prompted suggestions that DevCO was negotiating with rival suitors, with several sources pointing to Bahamas Hot Mix. Given construction and infrastructure demand across The Bahamas, it was suggested that there will be no shortage of players seeking to replace Gold Rock in the concrete manufacturing space. Leonard Sands, the Bahamian Contractors Association’s president, hinted at such a development when he said: “I’ll tell you what I think is going to happen. I can see one of the major construction development companies that will enter the business and replace them. “I can see that happening. I don’t want to call names but I can see that happening. I can see a buy-out happening and that business (Gold Rock) being taken over.” Mr Myers, though, vehemently rejected any suggestion of a link between his company’s plans and the situation at Gold Rock. Pointing out that it had no interest in securing an aggregate supply deal with DevCO, he added that Bahamas Hot Mix had been licensed to produce concrete and asphalt in Freeport “for years”. Noting that it had been “pouring thousands and thousands of yards of concrete on a daily basis” at Freeport Container Port during the COVID pandemic, Bahamas Hot Mix’s founder said an expansion of its manufacturing capabilities in the country’s second city was a natural progression given the expected increase in development activity stemming from the Grand Lucayan’s sale, the Carnival cruise port project and other private sector activity. Mr Myers, stating that the Freeport operation will focus on supplying ready mix concrete and asphalt, and not be involved in concrete block production, told this newspaper: “We’ve been up there producing concrete and asphalt for years. We have a licence to operate up there, we bought a property four to five years ago and have been developing it. “We’re about to open up. The equipment is just about installed. It’s got absolutely nothing to do with Gold
Rock. That’s just unfortunate timing. It’s not got anything to do with us; we don’t have anything to do with it. We bought the land some years ago and have been setting up the plant. It’s no secret that we’ve been doing it. It’s right across the road from Gold Rock.” Bahamas Hot Mix, which is one of the major infrastructure developers in the country, features several prominent Bahamians on its Board. Peter Andrews, Bahamas Waste’s chair, is its vice-chair while the company’s treasurer is Craig Symonette, head of the Symonette Group and Bahamas Ferries. John Bethell, of Bethell Estates, is company secretary, and another shareholder is the trust for former deputy prime minister, Brent Symonette’s children. Mr Myers, meanwhile, said Bahamas Hot Mix was alive to the expansion potential of Freeport’s economic rebound. “We’re actively engaged on pouring thousands and thousands of cubic yards of concrete on a daily basis at Freeport Container Port. We’ve been doing that since 2020, 2021,” he told Tribune Business. “We’ve had two concrete plants up there for several years now. We already have the licence, the staff and the investment up there, so why not go and extend our footprint? This happened before anything occurred at Gold Rock. We’ll be open for business, selling concrete - not blocks, but ready mix within the next week. “We’re looking at all the investment and projects going on there. We think Freeport has a great opportunity to expand in the next five to ten years. We see Freeport becoming the industrial hub for The Bahamas, and see a lot of good things being done by Freeport Harbour Company, Freeport Container Port, Hutchison Whampoa, Mediterranean Shipping Company, the Government,” Mr Myers continued. “We see a large investment down there. In the future, as business expands, we want to be part of that and that’s why we’re investing in an asphalt plant and a concrete plant and looking to do more manufacturing there. Everyone should keep their eye on Freeport. There’s a lot happening.”
PUBLIC NOTICE
INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, HUEY TREVYON JOHN LEADON of #8 Rosewood Street, Pinewood Gardens, New Providence, Bahamas, intend to change my name to JAYVON TREVYON FERNANDER. If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O. Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.
PUBLIC NOTICE
INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, QUENTINO RAYNARD FERGUSON of Stapleton Gardens in the Western District of New Providence, Bahamas, intend to change my name to QUINCY RAYNARD SANDS. If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O. Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice. LEGAL NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION International Business Companies Act (No. 45 of 2000) In Voluntary Liquidation
Notice is hereby given that in accordance with Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act, (No.45 of 2000), SANDSFOOT COMPANY LTD. is in dissolution. The date of commencement of the dissolution is 17th June, 2022. Danyel Falcon of 40 SW 13th Street Suite 802,Miami, FL 33130 is the Liquidator and can be contacted at All persons having claims against the above-named company are required to send their names, addresses and particulars of their debts or claims to the Liquidator before the 17th July, 2022.
PEDESTRIANS pass the New York Stock Exchange, in May, in the Manhattan borough of New York. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, file)
Stocks slump, closing out the worst quarter since early 2020 By DAMIAN J. TROISE and ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers Wall Street racked up more losses for stocks Thursday, as the market closed out its worst quarter since the onset of the pandemic in early 2020. The S&P 500 fell 0.9%, its fourth consecutive drop. The benchmark index is now down 21% since it hit an alltime high at the beginning of the year. It entered a bear market earlier in June. All told, the S&P 500’s performance in the first half of 2022 was the worst since the first six months of 1970. “And in 1970 there was a solid rebound after that first half decline,” said Lindsey Bell, chief markets and money strategist at Ally Invest. “This time around, the impact of the Fed, the impact of inflation and the uncertainty of where growth goes from here is really weighing on investors’ minds. ... We just don’t know when the clouds of uncertainty are going to start to clear.” The market’s steep decline this year has all but wiped out its gains from 2021, what was a banner year for the market as it emerged from its previous bear market in early 2020. Rising inflation has been behind much of the slump for the broader market this year as businesses raise prices on everything from food to clothing and consumers are squeezed tighter. Inflation remains stubbornly hot, according to a series of recent economic updates. The Federal Reserve and
other central banks have been aggressively raising interest rates to try and slow economic growth in order to cool inflation. Higher rates can bring down inflation, but they also risk a recession by slowing the economy too much. They also push down on prices for stocks, bonds, cryptocurrencies and other investments. “What the market is trying to assess is when does it seem as if the Fed is going to have what it needs to ascertain that inflation is plateauing,” said Quincy Krosby, chief equity strategist for LPL Financial. The S&P 500 fell 33.45 points to 3,785.38 Thursday. It lost 16.4% in the April-June quarter, its biggest quarterly decline since it slumped 20% in the first three months of 2020, when the pandemic upended the global economy in a matter of weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 253.88 points, or 0.8%, to 30,775.43. The Nasdaq slid 149.16 points, or 1.3%, to 11,028.74. Small company stocks also fell. The Russell 2000 lost 11.38 points, or 0.7%, to 1,707.99. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which helps set mortgage rates, fell to 3.01% from 3.09% late Wednesday. Technology companies were among the biggest weights on the market, as investors continued to favor utilities and other traditional defensive stocks. Apple fell 1.8%, while Exelon rose 2.2%. Retailers and other companies that rely directly on consumer spending also
LEGAL NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION International Business Companies Act (No. 45 of 2000) In Voluntary Liquidation
Notice is hereby given that in accordance with Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act, (No.45 of 2000), TAYNTON COMPANY LTD. is in dissolution. The date of commencement of the dissolution is 17th June, 2022. Danyel Falcon of 40 SW 13th Street Suite 802, Miami, FL, 33130 is the Liquidator and can be contacted at All persons having claims against the above-named company are required to send their names, addresses and particulars of their debts or claims to the Liquidator before the 17th July, 2022.
posted some of the biggest losses, as they have all year. Amazon slipped 2.5% and Best Buy shed 2.9%. Investors got another update on inflation Thursday. A measure of inflation that is closely tracked by the Fed rose 6.3% in May from a year earlier, unchanged from its level in April. The report from the Commerce Department also said that consumer spending rose at a sluggish 0.2% rate from April to May. The update follows a worrisome report earlier this week showing that consumer confidence slipped to its lowest level in 16 months. The government has also reported that the U.S. economy shrank 1.6% in the first
quarter and weak consumer spending was a key part of that contraction. The situation has become even more complicated following added supply chain problems because of COVID-19 lockdowns in China and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The war in Ukraine prompted a surge in oil prices this year that resulted in record high gasoline prices. The OPEC oil cartel and allied producing nations decided Thursday to increase production of crude oil, but the amount will likely do little to relieve high gasoline prices at the pump and energy-fueled inflation plaguing the global economy.
LEGAL NOTICE
NOTICE
Saddlebrook Development Corporation NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) Saddlebrook Development Corporation is in voluntary dissolution under the provisions of Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 29th day of June 2022. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Baird One Limited of 308 East Bay Street, Fourth Floor, P.O. Box N-7768, Nassau, Bahamas. Baird One Limited Liquidator
LEGAL NOTICE
NOTICE
EXCELSIOR HOLDING COMPANY LIMITED NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) EXCELSIOR HOLDING COMPANY LIMITED is in voluntary dissolution under the provisions of Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 27th day of June 2022. (c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Baird One Limited of 308 East Bay Street, Fourth Floor, P.O. Box N-7768, Nassau, Bahamas. Baird One Limited Liquidator
NOTICE FULBRIGHT HOLDINGS LIMITED N O T I C E IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows: (a) FULBRIGHT HOLDINGS LIMITED is in voluntary dissolution under the provisions of Section 138 (4) of the International Business Companies Act 2000. (b) The dissolution of the said company commenced on the 29th June, 2022 when the Articles of Dissolution were submitted to and registered by the Registrar General. (c) The Liquidator of the said company is Bukit Merah Limited, The Bahamas Financial Centre, Shirley & Charlotte Streets, P.O. Box N-3023, Nassau, Bahamas Dated this 1st day of July, 2022 ___________________________________ Bukit Merah Limited Liquidator
PAGE 18, Friday, July 1, 2022 FROM PAGE 22 for its products. Gold Rock, in a statement posted to its website, accused Freeport’s quasigovernmental authority and DevCO of “undercutting any and all good investments” on Grand Bahama and refusing to work with it. It added that the closure of its block and ready mix operations was critical to its “long-term survival” as this would preserve scarce aggregate for its remaining concrete structuring business. In its message to staff and customers, Gold Rock asserted: “Gold Rock was notified of extremely limited access to necessary materials to support the block and ready mix divisions. Gold Rock requested a meeting for a sustainable solution with GBPA/ DevCO, requesting reasons as to why we would have limited access to the necessary materials upon the renewal of our contract.
CONTRACTORS BRAND CONCRETE SUPPLIER SHRINKAGE ‘BIG BLOW’ “No representatives with a decision-making ability attended the meeting.. Gold Rock was told that what was proposed was non-negotiable; the remaining materials were ‘promised to be sold to an international buyer’.” That “buyer” was not named either by Gold Rock or the GBPA and DevCO, which rapidly issued media statements in response to the controversy stoked by the company. The dispute erupted over Gold Rock’s efforts to negotiate a new contract with DevCO for the purchase of aggregate that is used in its concrete manufacturing processes. “They had a contract with DevCO for five years, buying the rock quarry from them for their concrete and cement products,” said one source, speaking on condition of
anonymity. Charisse Brown, chief executive and chief legal counsel at DevCO, for which Hutchison Whampoa has Board and management control, denied that it has “terminated or cancelled any contract” with Gold Rock. Voicing “surprise” at the company’s position, she conceded that the fiveyear contract involving the supply of aggregate fill had expired last month. “As the 2017 contract was due to expire, DevCO began new contract negotiations in earnest in May of this year,” Ms Brown said. “The terms and conditions of the new proposed contract are now in the final stages.” However, several contacts suggested that “reading between the lines” it appeared that DevCO
was also talking to other parties. Ian Rolle, the GBPA’s president, meanwhile denied that the regulator had any involvement or contract with Gold Rock involving “the sale of aggregate stockpiles (boulders and fill) in the Devonshire subdivision”. He placed responsibility for the matter with DevCo. Gold Rock, though, maintained that the GBPA and DevCO “disregarded” the concerns it voiced over the loss of aggregate/fill supply, and the impact this would have on its concrete-making business. “We cannot continue to sustain further investment in the affected businesses with the limitations imposed by GBPA/ DevCO,” the manufacturer warned. “We have been blessed to find such good people since we came here 30 years ago. Our business, like many others that have tried to work with GBPA/DevCO and their affiliated companies, have been met with roadblocks that are ‘nonnegotiable’, undercutting any and all good investments into this island. It is unfortunate that we have been forced to make this decision, but we cannot work in conjunction with GBPA/DevCO any longer. “It has made it impossible to have a sustainable investment on this island. When asked about an alternative source of aggregate materials they proposed we design and build them a marina. Gold Rock will not be doing that. Our hearts are heavy for our employees, their families and customers affected by this, but it is out of our control,” Gold Rock continued. “Gold Rock does not anticipate a resolution to this issue because of the lack of acknowledgement and response to the concerns we have expressed. These terms have led to us shutting down two of our divisions in order to sustain enough aggregate for our structure manufacturing for the long-term survival of Gold Rock. “In summary, it has become clear that the Port Authority is willing
to undercut our 30-year investment for their own short-sighted financial benefit. This has forced the Gold Rock family to take this position.” No mention was made of how many jobs were likely to be lost or the financial impact on the manufacturer. However, the relationship the Del Zottos and Gold Rock once enjoyed with the GBPA appears to have soured considerably since 2016, when the latter selected them as its joint venture partner in the Freeport Light Industrial Park project - a development that did not proceed. Reaction to Gold Rock’s move was mixed yesterday. Several construction industry sources yesterday described it as “bizarre” given that there were multiple sources of aggregate and fill in The Bahamas that could it could turn to as an alternative to DevCO’s supply. Others said the gap created by Gold Rock’s withdrawal from concrete block-making and ready mix concrete will likely be rapidly filled and taken over by other industry players. They pointed especially to Bahamas Hot Mix, which yesterday rejected suggestions that plans to ramp-up its own Freeport-based ready mix and asphalt production was connected to Gold Rock’s woes, describing the timing as a coincidence (see other article on Page 22). Mr Wrinkle, though, suggested the demise of Gold Rock’s two divisions will be keenly felt. “I was just about to place an order with them,” he revealed. “It’s going to have a significant impact. Most of the pre-cast concrete - well basins, catch basins for drainage, pre-cast pipes - they did a lot of stuff for infrastructure works. We’ve come to depend on them. “It’s a big blow for local industry. We’ll have to import it from the US now. That’s a critical component to the construction industry. If that was pulled out from underneath us because of negotiations with the Port Authority, that’s not a good sign for business.
THE TRIBUNE
It’s happened too often. They turn off the spigot and you’re left hung out to dry. There’s no recourse.” Mr Wrinkle said contractors and developers had previously done “substantial business” with Gold Rock, adding that its move to shutter those two divisions will increase foreign exchange outflows by forcing companies to source alternative products overseas “for no good reason”. “It’s the wrong direction to go in, closing down a business of that magnitude and impact. It’s a red flag warning,” he added. “The Government should not encourage, and nor should the Port Authority, the exporting of our raw materials. It’s not a progressive policy for the advancement of Bahamian manufacturing, that’s for sure. Same old, same old. “If we have to take that foreign exchange and US dollars to buy septic tanks and drainage tanks, that’s another hit. It’s not just that we’re taking food out of families’ mouths, we’re also taking US currency out of the local economy. All the commercial building developers, all the roadworks going on, those people buy from them.” Leonard Sands, the present BCA president, said the fall-out from the closure of Gold Rock’s two divisions would largely be confined to major commercial and infrastructure (roadworks) projects because its products were little used in residential work. “Without those products being supplied locally, we will have to go back to what we were doing before, casting things in place on-site,” he told Tribune Business. “You will have some efficiency being lost from pre-made products being supplied and installed, and now having to pour them and put them in place rather than having them supplied and installed. You will lose that efficiency. “I don’t think they were an across-the-board business to the industry like many think. The impact will not be so significant as to cause shockwaves throughout the industry.”
THE TRIBUNE
‘FAR-REACHING EFFECTS’ IF BAHAMAS SPEEDY ON MARIJUANA MOVE FROM PAGE 22
countries around the world in the industry. “The framework will be for the regulation of the medical cannabis industry from the farm to the border, and will also provide a separate regulatory framework for industrial hemp, for wellness products and for pure industrial uses such as clothing, rope and building materials made from hemp. “We will also provide a framework for the de-criminalisation of possession of small amounts of cannabis products.” Mr McCartney, reacting to Mr Pinder’s pledge, said: “This should have been done a long time ago in our country. Some of our economic woes would not have been as grave had we had this industry embedded in our economy previously. I feel quite confident about that.” Backing the dual industrial hemp and medical marijuana regulatory structure as “maybe the best way to go”, Mr McCartney said he wanted to see more details on the Government’s proposed framework before commenting further. “I won’t say we have missed the window of opportunity yet, but if we don’t move speedily we will,” he told Tribune Business. “I think this industry will help tremendously. I think it will not only do well but cause other industries to grow as well, the tourism, the medical. It will enhance medical tourism. It will have farreaching effects.”
Friday, July 1, 2022, PAGE 19
FROM PAGE 22
David Concannon, spokesperson for Allen Exploration, yesterday dismissed Mr Goold’s position as “not supported by the law of The Bahamas”. He added that Bahamian law gives the explorer permission to salvage the galleon under the licence granted by the Government in 2018. Both the Abandoned Wreck Act 1965, and Antiquities Monuments & Museums Corporation (AMMC) Act 2011, vest rights to both the wreck and recovered artifacts in the Bahamian government. Mr Goold, though, insisted: “The Spanish government and UNESCO (the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation), and many other nations, have a strong interest in creating programmes to preserve underwater cultural heritage for public benefit. This is opposed to treasure hunting. The Spanish government has a strong interest in preservation of sunken Spanish underwater cultural heritage for public benefit and is against treasure hunting.” Confronted with Bahamian law, which seemingly vests the rights to this cultural heritage in this nation’s government, Mr Goold replied: “In general, the legal principle which I represent Spain on is that the owner of the ship remains the owner after it has sunk, and I’ve won multiple cases in the United States for that principle, which is done in order to protect it for museums and study.” The Spanish government has not been slow in the past to initiate litigation over the fate of galleons, laden with booty and riches seized from its Western Hemisphere colonies, that sank centuries ago. Mr Goold was involved with a claim that ended up in US federal court in 2007, involving the well-known underwater salvor, Odyssey Marine Exploration. He successfully argued
Spain lays claim to Bahamian treasure that the Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes, an 1804 warship, was Spanish property. The contents of its recovered cargo, including an estimated $500m worth of gold and silver coins, were shipped back to Spain in 2012 due to the legal outcome. The Spanish government also sued Odyssey for $1m over what was termed “bad faith and abusive litigation”, but since abandoned that claim in return for the explorer relinquishing more of the coins and artifacts it had removed from the wreck prior to the court verdict. Allen Exploration’s Mr Concannon, though, dismissed the Spanish threat. He said: “Mr Goold’s opinion is not supported by the law of The Bahamas. The Bahamas follows the British law on ownership that has been in place since the signing of the Magna Carta. That is, anything buried in the soil belongs to the landowner. This has been the law in the Bahamas since at least 1965.” The Abandoned Wreck Act 1965 says: “Claims of all persons to abandoned wreck are hereby barred, and the property in all such wreck is hereby vested in Her Majesty in right of Her Government of The Bahamas except wreck found in any place where Her Majesty or any of Her royal predecessors has granted to any other person the right to that wreck.” The Antiquities Monuments & Museums Corporation (AMMC) Act 2011 adds: “The ownership of every artifact discovered in The Bahamas after the commencement of this Act shall vest in the Government from the moment of
discovery.” Mr Goold’s and Spain’s legal successes have largely occurred before the US courts. It is unclear whether they would be able to mount a challenge to Allen Exploration’s Bahamasbased activities in the US, and would instead have to submit to the Bahamian judicial system, although the explorer’s principal is an American citizen. Some have described the Nuestra Senora de la Maravillas as “the most valuable shipwreck in the Western Hemisphere”. And a March 8, 2021, video clip records Mr Allen saying his company is already recovering “gems” and “pendants” from the ocean floor, although he does not give the precise location. He said: “I have been looking most of my life for a ship called Nuestra Senora de la Maravillas, otherwise known as Our Lady of Wonder, and I do believe we’re on the debris field floor that’s the stern castle because of these gems that we’re finding and these pendants that we’re finding.” Mr Allen, as stipulated by his agreement with the Bahamian government, has been working to set up a Grand Bahama-based museum where the artifacts recovered from his underwater exploration will eventually be put on public display. The AMMC is thought to be working with Allen Exploration to document, assess and value what has been recovered from the latter’s exploration efforts. The Nuestra Senora de la Maravillas was transporting gold, silver and other riches plundered from Spain’s Latin American colonies
back to the homeland when it sank on January 4, 1656, near Little Bahama Bank off Grand Bahama after being rammed by one of the other vessels in its ninestrong fleet as they sought to avoid shallow water. The site, said to have been lying under 30 to 50 feet of shifting sand, was eventually located in 1972 by treasure hunter Richard Marx but his exploration efforts were cut short following a falling-out with the then-Bahamian government. Subsequently, the Washington Post reported in 1986 that a Memphis businessman with an interest in wreck salvaging, Herbert Humphreys, had located the wreck and begun to recover artifacts. The value of its cargo was pegged at $1.6bn by the article, which said several million dollars’ worth of gems - including a 49.5 carat emerald worth $1m - had already been recovered. Humphreys’ work was said to have had the blessing of the then-Bahamian government, which received 25 percent of the value of whatever was recovered - a sum consistent with current law. It is unclear when his salvaging stopped, and how much may be left for Allen Exploration to uncover. Spain’s emergence as a potential player in Bahamian underwater exploration comes as the Government plans to take a “majority” share of the financial rewards. Ryan Pinder, the attorney general, told the Senate during his contribution to the Budget debate that planned legal reforms will “reverse” the present formula whereby the proceeds from underwater
treasure salvaging in Bahamian waters are split 75/25 between the explorer and the Government. The Attorney General subsequently clarified to Tribune Business that the revised split has yet to be determined by the Davis Cabinet. “Cabinet would decide what the actual split will be, but we anticipate that it will be the majority position,” Mr Pinder told this newspaper. “It will be rebalanced in favour of the Government. That goes before the Cabinet. The Cabinet will decide the actual split.” Wayne Munroe, minister for national security, subsequently invited Allen Exploration to leave The Bahamas if it does not wish to accept the Government’s new terms. However, Mr Concannon said Mr Allen has been in contact with the Davis administration and has a “cordial” relationship with them. Fred Mitchell, minister for foreign affairs and the public service, posted a series of photos to his Facebook page on March 26, 2022, showing himself visiting Walker’s Cay and describing Mr Allen and his wife, Gigi, as his “hosts”. The photos show he was accompanied by his police sergeant aide, Chris Curry, and Paul Clare Jnr, a foreign service officer. There is also a photo showing Mr Mitchell having dinner with Mr Allen and Louquisha Russell, who in other posts is described as a PLP stalwart councillor from Grand Cay. However, when contacted by Tribune Business about that meeting, Mr Mitchell declined to discuss its nature.
PAGE 20, Friday, July 1, 2022
THE TRIBUNE
Bahamasair targets 60-70% Orlando service occupancy BAHAMASAIR expects the revival of its service from Orlando to Freeport to “easily give us 60-70 percent” passenger occupancy levels and repeat the “very good numbers” produced pre-Dorian. Tracy Cooper, the airline’s managing director, speaking to Tribune Business prior to yesterday’s inaugural flight from Orlando, said: “We are well into that from a planning perspective. We expect overall that route to do reasonably well because we’ve done it before with very good numbers, so we expect that to easily give us 60-70 percent load factors.” Asked whether this route will be sustained beyond the summer months, and become year-round, he replied: “We normally run that as seasonal, but it is based on performance. If things are looking good and can be sustained, we will, but we typically run it as a seasonal route.” Bahamasair’s first direct flight from Orlando to Grand Bahama in almost three years touched down shortly after 11am yesterday to a water salute and the sounds of Junkanoo. The weekly direct flight was introduced prior to Hurricane Dorian in 2019, but was halted by both the Category Five hurricane and the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the flight arrived yesterday completely full. Among those welcoming the visitors was Ginger Moxey, minister for Grand Bahama; Senator Kirk Russell; Senator James Turner; Harcourt Brown, permanent secretary in the Ministry for Grand B ahama; Mr Cooper; Steven Johnson of the Ministry of Tourism; and James Carey, Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce president. Mrs Moxey said the flight’s arrival signals that “we’re back”, and added: “Today is another grand day for Grand Bahama and we’ve been through it all, as you
would know, and Orlando service to Grand Bahama is a big deal.” She added that the Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation, together with the Ministry for Grand Bahama, is working to get visitors back to the island, and said: “We’re so happy to have this direct flight here today and there’s more to come.” This was a reference to Bahamasair’s planned direct flight from Raleigh, North Carolina, that is set to begin on November 10 this year. Mr Cooper told Tribune Business that the national flag carrier was still developing its plans for that service, but revealed that it “may be more advantageous” to fly from Raleigh as opposed to Charlotte because the latter is a major hub for American Airlines. “We’re still working through the November launch of the North Carolina to Freeport route,” he said. “That is still in the making as far as what we expect out of it. We will be promoting it. We’re still between if it’s going to be out of Charlotte or going to be out of Raleigh. Right now, American Airlines serves Nassau from Charlotte. It may be more advantageous to go from Raleigh than Charlotte. “We will be marketing it as a two, dualstop where you can either stop in Freeport or in Nassau. “You’ll fly from North Carolina to Freeport, do a quick stop there and continue on to Nassau. We will be marketing both legs or destinations. “If passengers want to make a dual stop, they can stop in Freeport and we can later on bring them to Nassau. “We expect it to have good traction. As far as loads and expectations of loads, it will probably take a while until we’ve carried passengers to be able to figure that out.”
BAHAMASAIR’S first direct flight from Orlando to Freeport arrived shortly after 11am yesterday with a full flight. Welcoming the passengers were Ginger Moxey, minister for Grand Bahama; Senator Kirkland Russell; Tracy Cooper, managing director, Bahamasair; and permanent secretary in the Ministry for Grand Bahama, Harcourt Brown. (BIS Photo/Andrew Miller)
GINGER MOXEY, minister for Grand Bahama, said the flight’s resumption showed the island is back on track. Also shown are Tracy Cooper, managing director, Bahamasair; Senator Kirkland Russell; Senator James Turner; and Steven Johnson, Ministry of Tourism. (BIS Photo/Andrew Miller)
RENTAL MARKET ‘STRONG OVER NEXT 12 MONTHS’
By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net
THE Bahamas Real Estate Association’s (BREA) president yesterday identified New Providence’s rental market as a segment that
will be particularly “strong over the next 12 months” due to the boost from multiple investment projects. Nikki Boeuf told Tribune Business that demand for rental properties was being bolstered by expatriate workers arriving in The Bahamas to work on construction projects and
other developments. This is offsetting the dropoff in post-Dorian rentals as Grand Bahama and Abaco residents who relocated are increasingly looking to return home. “We still have the international market that’s picked up tremendously, and we are seeing a lot of
rentals with international rentals now. These are a lot of condos, condos in general,” Mrs Boeuf said. Expatriate construction employees working on developments such as GoldWynn and at Love Beach are “primarily” behind this new surge in rental demand. The
only thing that may cool the market at this point is a lack of available inventory. Mrs Boeuf said: “I’m finding that inventory is a little harder to locate, but it depends on what our clients want, of course. But again, I expect at some point it will start to slow in any case because normally after such a long period of strong sales we always will see a cyclical market where we’ll see things start to level off.”
As for the “sellers market” in the domestic real estate niche, Mrs Boeuf said it was difficult to predict how long this trend will last. She said: “It’s very difficult to say the length of time. “We’re noticing this thing in the US that they’ve now started to hit a recession, so I don’t know if we’ll have a full two-year run, but I do certainly see this trend going on for a while yet.”
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THE TRIBUNE
Friday, July 1, 2022, PAGE 21
Investment bank touts $8m preference raise AN INVESTMENT bank yesterday said it acted as the exclusive placement and escrow agent for the BISXlisted Bahamas Property Fund in raising $8m for the latter via a preference share issue. RF Bank & Trust (Bahamas), which also acts as the real estate investment trust’s administrator, said in a statement that the private placement for 8,000 Series 1 Preference Shares closed on April 15, 2022. The shares had a purchase price of $1,000 and a minimum subscription of 50 shares. Subscriptions were allowed at increments of 10 shares thereafter. It added that the Bahamas Property Fund intends to use the net proceeds
from the private placement for working capital requirements and to repay bank debts. The Series I shares will pay a dividend at a rate of 5.5 percent per annum and will mature on December 31, 2032. The Bahamas Property Fund’s Board will now examine whether to resume investor dividend payments after a 15-year hiatus following completion of the $8m preference share financing. Michael Anderson, RF Bank & Trust’s president, previously told Tribune Business that paying out a Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) loan with the offering proceeds will provide the necessary flexibility to “put back on the table” the possibility of returning capital to
shareholders. With no dividend paid since around the time of the 2008-2009 financial crisis, he added that the Property Fund had received a further boost from its 2021 annual financial performance which produced a more than $4.2m positive reversal of the prior year’s $860,116 loss. The full-year $4.348m profit, while largely driven by a revaluation that increased the worth of the Property Fund’s real estate holdings by $3.3m, also came from improved occupancy rates at its flagship Bahamas Financial Centre property on Charlotte Street in downtown Nassau. Stripping out the revaluation, the Property Fund generated just some $1.048m
in profit from its core operations. With vacancies down, and occupancies up at, rental income rose 14.5 percent year-over-year to $3.029m compared to $2.646m in the 12 months to end-2020. And, besides the top-line boost, the Property Fund as landlord also saw its share of common area maintenance costs drop year-over-year by almost 25 percent to $1.318m as opposed to $1.752m the year before. The occupancy increase thus raised the BISX-listed real estate investment trust’s (REIT) revenues while at the same time cutting expenses - with both impacts directly hitting the bottom line. Mr Anderson told this newspaper that, with rental rates expected to further
improve to the mid-80 percent range at the Bahamas Financial Centre in 2022, the Property Fund is predicting that net income - stripped of any revaluation impacts - will be “quite a bit ahead” of that produced in 2021. And, with tourism starting to rebound, he added that it is also targeting an occupancy increase at its One Marina Drive property on Paradise Island from the mid-30 percent range to 50 percent during the course of the 2022 calendar year. Confirming that the $8m preference share issue had closed fully subscribed, Mr Anderson said the proceeds will provide long-term capital to repay the bank debt and eliminate the principal payments required by the latter,
THE WEATHER REPORT
5-Day Forecast
TODAY
ORLANDO
High: 90° F/32° C Low: 75° F/24° C
TAMPA
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
TUESDAY
A stray t‑storm; winds subsiding
Breezy early; mainly clear
A morning shower; some sun, breezy
Partly sunny and breezy
Breezy with a stray thunderstorm
Cloudy, a stray t‑storm; breezy
High: 88°
Low: 78°
High: 88° Low: 80°
High: 89° Low: 79°
High: 88° Low: 78°
High: 89° Low: 77°
AccuWeather RealFeel
AccuWeather RealFeel
AccuWeather RealFeel
AccuWeather RealFeel
AccuWeather RealFeel
AccuWeather RealFeel
98° F
85° F
98°-85° F
99°-86° F
97°-82° F
96°-83° F
The exclusive AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature® is an index that combines the effects of temperature, wind, humidity, sunshine intensity, cloudiness, precipitation, pressure and elevation on the human body—everything that affects how warm or cold a person feels. Temperatures reflect the high and the low for the day.
N
almanac
E
W
ABACO
S
N
High: 86° F/30° C Low: 79° F/26° C
8‑16 knots
S
WEST PALM BEACH High: 90° F/32° C Low: 79° F/26° C
8‑16 knots
FT. LAUDERDALE E
W
FREEPORT
High: 89° F/32° C Low: 81° F/27° C
N
S
E
W
High: 88° F/31° C Low: 76° F/24° C
MIAMI
High: 89° F/32° C Low: 80° F/27° C
7‑14 knots
KEY WEST
High: 88° F/31° C Low: 82° F/28° C
ELEUTHERA
NASSAU
High: 88° F/31° C Low: 78° F/26° C
Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2022
N
uV inDex toDay
The higher the AccuWeather UV IndexTM number, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.
tiDes For nassau High
Ht.(ft.)
Low
Ht.(ft.)
Today
10:06 a.m. 10:27 p.m.
2.2 3.0
4:21 a.m. 4:03 p.m.
0.4 0.3
Saturday
10:46 a.m. 11:05 p.m.
2.3 2.9
4:59 a.m. 4:43 p.m.
0.4 0.4
Sunday
11:28 a.m. 11:43 p.m.
2.3 2.8
5:36 a.m. 5:26 p.m.
0.5 0.6
Monday
12:12 p.m. ‑‑‑‑‑
2.3 ‑‑‑‑‑
6:15 a.m. 6:12 p.m.
0.5 0.7
Tuesday
12:24 a.m. 12:59 p.m.
2.7 2.4
6:54 a.m. 7:03 p.m.
0.5 0.8
Wednesday 1:09 a.m. 1:50 p.m.
2.6 2.5
7:37 a.m. 8:00 p.m.
0.4 0.8
Thursday
2.5 2.7
8:24 a.m. 9:02 p.m.
0.3 0.8
1:59 a.m. 2:45 p.m.
sun anD moon Sunrise Sunset
6:24 a.m. 8:04 p.m.
Moonrise Moonset
8:23 a.m. 10:19 p.m.
First
Full
Last
New
Jul. 6
Jul. 13
Jul. 20
Jul. 28
CAT ISLAND
E
W
High: 85° F/29° C Low: 79° F/26° C
N
S
E
W
8‑16 knots
S
10‑20 knots Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
Statistics are for Nassau through 2 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 89° F/32° C Low .................................................... 80° F/27° C Normal high ....................................... 88° F/31° C Normal low ........................................ 75° F/24° C Last year’s high ................................. 88° F/31° C Last year’s low ................................... 77° F/25° C Precipitation As of 2 p.m. yesterday ................................. 0.38” Year to date ............................................... 27.98” Normal year to date ................................... 13.60”
High: 86° F/30° C Low: 79° F/26° C
thus freeing-up cash flow for potential dividend returns. Some $600,000-$700,000 of the proceeds from the offering will also finance renovations at the Property Fund’s properties, with the outlay ultimately reclaimed by tenant CAM payments.
| Go to AccuWeather.com
TONIGHT
High: 91° F/33° C Low: 78° F/26° C
JIM WILSON, RF Bank & Trust’s investment banking vice-president.
ANDROS
SAN SALVADOR
GREAT EXUMA
High: 86° F/30° C Low: 79° F/26° C
High: 86° F/30° C Low: 79° F/26° C
N
High: 86° F/30° C Low: 77° F/25° C
E
W S
LONG ISLAND
tracking map
High: 87° F/31° C Low: 79° F/26° C
10‑20 knots
MAYAGUANA High: 88° F/31° C Low: 82° F/28° C
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
CROOKED ISLAND / ACKLINS RAGGED ISLAND High: 86° F/30° C Low: 80° F/27° C
High: 86° F/30° C Low: 80° F/27° C
GREAT INAGUA High: 88° F/31° C Low: 80° F/27° C
N E
W
N E
W
S
S
12‑25 knots
12‑25 knots
marine Forecast ABACO ANDROS CAT ISLAND CROOKED ISLAND ELEUTHERA FREEPORT GREAT EXUMA GREAT INAGUA LONG ISLAND MAYAGUANA NASSAU RAGGED ISLAND SAN SALVADOR
Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday: Today: Saturday:
WINDS E at 8‑16 Knots ESE at 8‑16 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots ESE at 8‑16 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots NE at 12‑25 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots E at 12‑25 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 10‑20 Knots E at 8‑16 Knots
WAVES 3‑6 Feet 3‑6 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑2 Feet 3‑6 Feet 3‑5 Feet 3‑5 Feet 3‑5 Feet 3‑6 Feet 3‑5 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑2 Feet 1‑2 Feet 3‑5 Feet 2‑4 Feet 3‑5 Feet 3‑5 Feet 4‑7 Feet 4‑7 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑3 Feet 3‑5 Feet 3‑5 Feet 1‑3 Feet 1‑3 Feet
VISIBILITY 10 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 8 Miles 6 Miles 7 Miles 6 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 8 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 8 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles
WATER TEMPS. 83° F 82° F 84° F 84° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 84° F 84° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 82° F 82° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F 83° F
business@tribunemedia.net
FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2022
$6.92
$6.96
$6.97
Insurers ‘totally in blind’ on Budget tax changes By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Bahamian insurers yesterday said they are “totally in the blind” as to how Budget tax reforms will work with “time having run out” to make any adjustments due to the new fiscal year beginning today. Anton Saunders, RoyalStar Assurance’s managing director, told Tribune Business that “we cannot operate in a state where we don’t know what to do” because of ongoing uncertainty over the industry’s taxation regime for
* ‘Time has run out’; new fiscal year starts today * Industry ‘can’t operate in state’ of uncertainty * Banks still seeking clarity on tax switch-up
2022-2023. The Prime Minister, in unveiling the Budget more than one month ago, disclosed the Government’s intention to eliminate the 3 percent premium tax and replace it with an annual Business Licence fee equivalent to 2.25 percent of an insurance company’s “turnover”. However, the absence of
any implementation road map, together with a precise “definition” of what turnover means and a clear basis for calculating the new Business Licence fee, has left the entire sector both property and casualty, as well as life and health insurers - scrambling to adjust without possessing key details. The Bahamas Insurance
CONTRACTORS BRAND CONCRETE SUPPLIER SHRINKAGE ‘BIG BLOW’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Bahamian contractors yesterday warned that a Grand Bahama concrete manufacturer’s decision to shut down two of its units is “a big blow” for major commercial and STEPHEN Wrinkle infrastructure projects in this country. Stephen Wrinkle, an ex-Bahamian Contractors Association (BCA) president, told Tribune Business that Gold Rock Corporation’s products had been “an integral component” in largescale developments and the industry will now be forced to consume critical foreign currency in
* Gold Rock blames GBPA/DevCO for ‘undercutting investment’ * Closure of block and ready mix units key to ‘long-term survival’ sourcing alternative products from abroad. He spoke out after Gold Rock, whose principals are the Floridabased Del Zotto family, blamed the decision to close its concrete block and ready mix concrete operations on the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) and its Grand Bahama Development Company (DevCO) affiliate refusing to renew the now-expiring five-year contract that saw the latter supply it with the aggregate SEE PAGE 18
‘FAR-REACHING EFFECTS’ IF BAHAMAS SPEEDY ON MARIJUANA MOVE By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
The Democratic National Alliance’s (DNA) exleader says The Bahamas must move “speedily” to avoid missing its “window of opportunity” for establishing itself as a medical marijuana and industrial hemp player. Branville McCartney, whose party included the creation of a legalised marijuana industry in its unsuccessful 2017 general election platform, told Tribune Business that the Davis administration needs to be “more action than words” when it comes to crafting and passing the legal framework for realising these ambitions. Suggesting that The Bahamas’ economic woes “would not have been as grave” had it moved sooner to establish the sector, he backed the decision to seemingly adopt the “Canadian approach” to developing the industry through the hiring of a law firm from that country, Cassels, Brock and Blackwell to advise the Government. “Canada is the system, the country of choice I would have followed in terms of the legislative process,” Mr McCartney told this newspaper. “It’s a
multi-billion dollar industry in Canada and we don’t need to reinvent the wheel. We need to follow their lead in The Bahamas as far as the approach, which has been quire successful in terms of its impact on the economy. “I hope this is not just talk. I hope they can put this into action. The previous administration spoke about it, nothing happened. I would hope and pray this administration has more action than just words in this regard and see it come to fruition.” Ryan Pinder, the attorney general, told the Senate during the Budget debate that the Government will provide separate frameworks for the regulation of medical marijuana and industrial hemp. Previously, the Government had only appeared to focus on medical marijuana regulation, leaving proponents of industrial hemp concerned and frustrated that their chosen product may miss out. But Mr Pinder affirmed: “We will advance a comprehensive suite of legislation on the regulation of cannabis, creating a new agri-business industry in The Bahamas. This legislation is internationally benchmarked against the SEE PAGE 19
Association (BIA) has been pushing for a meeting with Philip Davis QC and top Ministry of Finance officials in a bid to resolve all outstanding issues and concerns, but this has yet to take place and July 1 and the new fiscal year’s start has arrived. As a result of the Budget tax reforms, the previous 3 percent levy paid by consumers on their
premiums when renewing or taking out new policies should now be eliminated. “The short answer is no,” Mr Saunders replied, when asked if the Bahamian insurance industry had resolved all concerns surrounding the taxation switch with the Government. “We have a requested a meeting, and I think the Association is still waiting for a reply from the various parties in government. “Time has run out. July 1 is when the Budget becomes effective. We are still awaiting a response on SEE PAGE 16
HOT MIX’S EXPANSION ‘NOT CONNECTED’ TO GOLD ROCK
By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Bahamas Hot Mix’s chairman yesterday said the imminent expansion of its Freeport-based concrete and asphalt production capabilities has “got absolutely nothing to do” with a rival supplier’s troubles. Anthony Myers told Tribune Business it was “just unfortunate timing” that Gold Rock Rock Corporation is closing two of its concrete-manufacturing divisions to ensure its “long-term survival” amid a shortage of aggregate that represents a key ingredient in its products. Gold Rock, in a statement to customers and employees (see other article on Page 22), blamed the shuttering on the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA)
A PHOTO purportedly showing Bahamas Hot Mix’s expanded Freeport concrete and asphalt plant. and Grand Bahama Development Company (DevCO) “undercutting its investment” by dragging out talks on a new aggregate supply deal to replace the recently-expired deal. This SEE PAGE 17
$6.98
SPAIN LAYS CLAIM TO BAHAMIAN TREASURE By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net
The Bahamas faces a battle with the Spanish government to lay claim to sunken treasure and historical artifacts worth potentially millions of dollars that lie within this nation’s waters. James Goold, an attorney with US law firm, Covington & Burling, asserted to Tribune Business yesterday that any Spanish galleon wrecked in Bahamian waters, as well as the cargo it was carrying, is the property of that nation’s government and not The Bahamas. The Washington DCbased lawyer, who has successfully represented Spain in previous legal disputes against underwater explorers and salvors, added that the Madrid government was vehemently opposed to so-called treasure hunting and wanted its underwater cultural heritage to be recovered and preserved in museums for the public’s benefit. Mr Goold’s intervention adds a new twist to The Bahamas’ efforts to regulate, and extract a greater share of the proceeds from, underwater wreck exploration and salvaging in its territorial waters. It holds particular significance for efforts by US multi-millionaire, Carl Allen, the Walker’s Cay owner, and his Allen Exploration outfit, to retrieve valuable artifacts from the the sunken Spanish treasure galleon, the Nuestra Senora de la Maravillas. SEE PAGE 19