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Volume: 112 No.156

FRIDAY, JULY 22, 2016

PRICE - $1 (Abaco / Grand Bahama $1.50) The Tribune

The man behind the lens

Inside Weekend

Jobless rate down by 2.1%

Carnival jobs HIELD’S PORTRAIT JOINS THE helped with RANKS OF SPORTING LEGENDS unemployment

By KHRISNA VIRGIL Deputy Chief Reporter kvirgil@tribunemedia.net THE Department of Statistics is expected to announce today that the overall unemployment rate is now at 12.7 per cent after a 2.1 per cent decline, with officials pointing to Bahamas Junkanoo Carnival “related activities” accounting for some of the improvement, according to the 2016 Labour Force Survey results obtained by The Tribune.

The overall unemployment rate stood at 14.8 per cent when the previous survey was done in November 2015. The latest survey covers the reference period of April 25 to May 1, 2016.

When officials surveyed New Providence’s job situation, they found a decrease in the unemployment rate, which fell from 15.9 per cent last November to 13.2 per cent in May. However, the rates of unemployment in Grand Bahama and Abaco increased by 0.5 per cent and 0.4 per cent respectively, to 14.7 per cent and 10.1 per cent.

The report also states that youth unemployment, which covers people 15 to 24-years-old, is higher than any other area. However, this category declined from the rate of 30 per cent recorded in November 2015 to 25.8 per cent in May. SEE PAGE SIX

DEMOCRATIC National Alliance Leader Branville McCartney said Prime Minister Perry Christie’s assertion that the Progressive Liberal Party may become unstable without him is a “slap in the face to other persons” in the governing party.

“I was very surprised by

what he said,” Mr McCartney told The Tribune yesterday.

“What he said is that no one in his party can lead that party and therefore what he is telling the general public is the persons he would have in their constituencies can’t be trusted because they can’t lead.

“If that’s the case, no one should bother supporting SEE PAGE SIX

Weekend

Creole Cuisine Page7

Behind th e lens

Why every picture tells a story

Interview, pages 4&5

IZMIRLIAN FILES FOR FULL LIQUIDATION OF BAHA MAR

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

SARKIS Izmirlian’s Granite Ventures Ltd filed a summons in the Supreme Court yesterday seeking to transition Baha Mar from provisional liquidation into full liquidation, a process Prime Minister Perry Christie once described as a “chilling prospect” for the resort and the country.

In a press statement, Granite Ventures said it took this route because Baha Mar’s provisional liquidation process “has been inappropriately prolonged,” failing “to provide either any standing or transparency for Baha Mar’s unsecured creditors”.

This comes as Baha Mar’s receivers are believed to be nearing a decision regarding which buyer will be selected to purchase the resort.

SEE PAGE SIX

BUTLER-TURNER: IF MINNIS WINS, PARTY WILL ABANDON ME

By KHRISNA VIRGIL Deputy Chief Reporter kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

LONG Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner contended yesterday that if Free National Movement Leader Dr Hubert Minnis scored another victory at the party’s convention next week, she believes the FNM would abandon her.

Mrs Butler-Turner, who is for the second time facing off against Dr Minnis for the leader position of the party, pointed to accusations that Dr Minnis will likely seek vengeance against her and five other members of Parliament who threatened to petition Governor General Dame Marguerite Pindling to have him constitutionally removed.

SEE PAGE THREE

DNA: CHRISTIE SAYING NO ONE ELSE IN HIS PARTY IS FIT TO LEAD

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunmedia.net

art books pageants film fashion Friday, July music cha 22, 2016 rity food animals

CHAVANO ‘Buddy’ Hield’s portrait, as created by artist Jamaal Rolle, was unveiled alongside those of 37 more sporting legends last night. For the full story and more photographs from the event, see page two.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

DISNEY SAYS EGG ISLAND CANNOT SUSTAIN CRUISE LINE DEVELOPMENT

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net

DISNEY Cruise Line said yesterday it has no plans to construct a cruise port at Egg Island, Eleuthera, claiming impact studies have suggested that island’s marine environment could not sustain a development of that magnitude.

In an email responding to questions from The Tribune on Thursday, Disney Cruise Line spokeswoman Kim Prunty confirmed that environmental impact assessments and geo-technical studies carried out by the company have indicated that the quaint island’s marine and environmental profile could not survive a development on that level.

Ms Prunty said: “We regularly look for opportunities for growth, some of which we pursue and others that we don’t. We recently completed a careful and thorough review of a project at Egg Island and determined that the environmental impact of our intended development would be too significant.”

SEE PAGE SIX

TENNYSON WELLS VOWS TO SUPPORT RIVAL CAMPAIGN IN LONG ISLAND

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net IF Long Island MP Loretta Butler-Turner is renominated as the Free National Movement’s standard-bearer for the constituency, former Cabinet Minister Tennyson Wells pledged yesterday that he would campaign for an independent candidate or run in the area himself as a last resort.

SEE PAGE THREE

PAGE 2, Friday, July 22, 2016

WEEKEND NEWS

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HAILING OUR SPORTING LEGENDS

SOME of the attendees at Thomas A Robinson Stadium to acknowledge and celebrate 38 Bahamian sporting legends.

CHAVANO ‘Buddy’ Hield with Obediah Wilchcombe, Minister of Tourism and Dr Daniel Johnson, Minister of Youth, Sport and Culture at the Bahamian Athletic Legends ceremony.

THE nation’s newest NBA star, Chavano ‘Buddy’ Hield was joined by an array of sporting legends from The Bahamas last night as part of the country’s 43rd Independence Anniversary celebrations.

Among those being honoured were former Deputy Prime Minister Cynthia ‘Mother’ Pratt, women’s NBA star Jonquel Jones, and veterans such as Leonard Boston Blackie Miller, Peter Gilcud, Andy

Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

Knowles, Sir Arlington Butler as well as the late Vince Ferguson. The list was joined by the country’s only test cricketer, Ivan Johnson, as the list of 38 Sports Legends was unveiled, along with portraits created by artist Jamaal Rolle.

Minister for Tourism Obie Wilchcombe said the sporting heroes “have given the nation and the Bahamian people a sense of pride and place in the world”.

THE PORTRAIT of Della Thomas among others unveiled at the Thomas A Robinson Stadium to last night.

BYRON Ferguson with his portrait by Bahamian artist Jamaal Rolle.

THE 38 SPORTING LEGENDS HONOURED

1 Eddie Ford 2 Frank ‘Pancho’ Rahming 3 Ed Smith - Football 4 Donnie Martinborough Sailing 5 Edward Leon ‘Apache’ Knowles - Baseball 6 Wil Culmer - Baseball 7 Keith Parker 8 Bradley Cooper 9 Sterling Quant - Basketball 10 Ray Minus Jr. - Boxing 11 Sir Arlington Butler 12 Tom ‘The Bird’ Grant 13 Leonard ‘Boston Blackie’ Miller 14 Cecil Rose - Basketball 15 Cynthia ‘Mother’ Pratt Volleyball 16 Ivan Johnson - Cricket 17 Della Thomas - Bodybuilding 18 Andy Knowles - Swimming Coach 19 Peter Gilcud 20 Dr. Timothy Barrett - Triple Jump 21 Buddy Hield - Basketball 22 George ‘Tony’ Curry Baseball 23 Yolett McPhee McCuin – NCAA Women’s Basketball Coach 24 Vince Ferguson 25 Dame Albertha Isaacs 26 Byron Ferguson - Volleyball 27 Richard ‘The Lionheart’ Johnson 28 Gomeo Brennan - Boxing 29 Edmundo Moxey - Baseball 30 Candice DeGregory Culmer - Softball 31 Fred ‘Papa’ Smith 32 Linda Ford- Softball 33 Glen ‘The Master’ Griffin Softball 34 Charles Thompson - Basketball 35 Randy Rolle Sr. 36 Laverne Eve - Javelin Throw 37 Edney Bethel - Softball 38 Jonquel Jones – Basketball

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 22, 2016, PAGE 3

Challenger to pay $50,000 today despite concerns

By SANCHESKA BROWN Tribune Staff Reporter sbrown@tribunemedia.net

LONG ISLAND MP Loretta Butler-Turner said yesterday she will pay the remaining $50,000 she pledged the Free National Movement’s Finance Committee for the party’s upcoming convention today, despite still having “concerns” about the “transparency” of the event.

Mrs Butler-Turner told The Tribune that she has every intention of honouring her promise to pay $100,000 to assist with the three-day event, however

she said she has serious concerns that have yet to be answered by the Convention Committee.

Mrs Butler-Turner remained tight lipped on what her concerns were but said she hopes the election process at the convention is fair and transparent.

“I will make every effort to ensure that any questions I have in my mind are dealt with at the party level. I choose my words very carefully, hopefully we will have a free and fair election process,” Mrs Butler-Turner said.

“If we cannot as the potential government go into

this and have free and fair elections how will we be able to govern? That is the most important thing for me. In order to be effective in governance we have to be most transparent and accountable, especially when dealing with the internal matters of our organisation.

“There are issues I would love to have concise and clear answers on but I have not gotten that. I am committed to ensure that the FNM gets my share of the funds to make the convention happen and by tomorrow (Friday) they will have the balance of my money.

I have addressed my con-

cerns, I am not satisfied they have been met but I will still give them the money.”

Mrs Butler-Turner and FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis were each asked to raise $100,000 to fund the Official Opposition’s national convention on July 27 to 29. It is estimated that the convention will cost the party $350,000, with the party’s finance committee tasked with raising the remaining $150,000. As of Wednesday, Dr Minnis had paid in full, Mrs ButlerTurner had only paid half and the Finance Committee had contributed $50,000.

On Wednesday, party

Chairman Sidney Collie said any surprise leadership contenders would not be required to pay any money toward the convention.

When asked if she saw this as an issue, Mrs ButlerTurner said: “No, I don’t.”

“I do not have a problem with that, sometimes we have to do what is right for the greater good,” she said.

“At this juncture this is the only way we are able to have a convention so I do not mind doing my part in that regard. I just pray that the challenges we have, everyone is satisfied at the end of the day that the election was done in fairness and

transparency.”

So far, only Dr Minnis and Mrs Butler-Turner have announced that they are vying for leadership, while Dr Duane Sands will challenge East Grand Bahama MP Peter Turnquest for his deputy leader’s post.

The theme for this year’s convention is “Because You Matter” and will be held at the Melià Hotel.

Evening sessions begin at 8pm and are open to the public. The convention also will be carried live on Our TV, ZNS TV, ZNS Radio, Peace FM and Star FM. It also will be streamed live on Facebook.

BUTLER-TURNER: IF MINNIS WINS, PARTY WILL ABANDON ME from page one

Mrs Butler-Turner was asked whether she was prepared to leave the FNM if she was not elected its leader during an appearance on 96.9 FM talk show “The Revolution” with host Juan McCartney.

Responding, she pointed to reports that the party had plans to replace her as its candidate in Long Island. It has been speculated several times that the party was considering controversial Fort Charlotte MP Dr Andre Rollins as its next candidate for the island.

Dr Rollins visited Long Island in February and it was reported that he was seeking support from FNMs on the island. It came as photographs surfaced on social media purportedly depicting the MP visiting the home of a wellknown FNM Long Islander.

“I would like to be able to say ‘yes I am going back to Long Island and bring home the seat for the FNM’ but in the back of the mind and probably will become front of my mind are the words of Dr Minnis who said if he prevails, no when he prevails, that he will deal with the six of us,” she said.

“That for me is the leader saying I have no intent of unifying us, I am going to get rid of you. That for me is going to be a further challenge to unification of our party and people need to know that.”

She continued: “…I believe the FNM under Dr Minnis is prepared to leave me and let me just underline why I say that. (It is) because of what he said and because as a sitting incumbent I have had two challengers already in my constituency that have not been

LORETTA Butler-Turner during a meet and greet this week at SC McPherson school. rebuked.

“The first one is another sitting member of Parliament who has chosen that he is no longer running in his area but he thinks he can go to Long Island to undermine Loretta,” she said, referring to Dr Rollins.

“There has been no public rebuke of that action.

It is disrespectful. It is undermining. It is divisive. It is not good for the health of our party and I have not ever said that I have no intention again of running in Long island. That is the first strike.

“The second strike during the last regatta in May of this year there were persons that were being introduced on the regatta site by Dr Minnis. One person in particular that this would be the next FNM standard bearer in Long Island and the people of Long Island have said ‘you have got to be joking.’ That person has now come out and is rebuking me everyday, maligning my good character, castigating me and saying why they think I am unfit.”

She was referring to former Cabinet Minister Ten-

TENNYSON WELLS VOWS TO SUPPORT RIVAL CAMPAIGN IN LONG ISLAND from page one Mr Wells was adamant that Mrs Butler-Turner did not have the support of party voters on the island as he pushed back against accusations that his involvement in the FNM was linked to the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) and rooted in a personal agenda.

“I am 70 in December,” he said, “you think I have any time to waste dealing with petty issues? I don’t.

I don’t have time for petty issues. I look at who are there and I make judgment based on what I feel and know. She (Loretta) doesn’t fit that bill, Minnis is miles ahead of her in that.”

Mr Wells added: “I support the FNM under Minnis and that’s how I’m going to vote. As far as I’m concerned I never was a PLP. I supported the PLP as an independent. At my age going forward, I’m not going to follow anybody blindly. I look at the situation, I assess it and I think of the country. If I think that’s the right thing to do, whether PLP or FNM, I’ll do it.

“I’m not looking for nothing no more,” he said. “I’d

like my children and grandchildren and the children of the country prosper.”

Mr Wells has recently been a staunch advocate of Dr Hubert Minnis, who is expected to face off against Mrs Butler-Turner in a leadership battle at the party convention next week. His commentary has drawn the ire of some FNMs, who expressed distrust of his motives given his former political affiliations.

Mr Wells resigned from the FNM in 1999 and later became an independent representative for Bamboo Town. In 2012, he campaigned against Mrs Butler-Turner on the island in support of the PLP’s candidate Alex Storr. Mrs ButlerTurner garnered 979 votes to Mr Storr’s 531, while Democratic National Alliance candidate Mario Cartwright received 219 votes.

“I think they are entitled to those views,” he said, “but I don’t have no motives of running. Other than if she was returned as leader.

I’ve said publicly that if she was successful, we’ll organise an independent to run against her.

“Even if that be me. I have no interest really in running, but that doesn’t mean that if nobody else

goes that I would sit down and let her go back to do the same bull**** again. I don’t mind doing that for five years.

“Only as a last, last resort but there are couple of people who I have talked to, there are a few names being circulated.”

Mr Wells revealed that a potential candidate being circulated was lawyer and Tribune columnist Adrian Gibson, whom he said that he would not have any difficulty supporting.

Notwithstanding Dr Minnis’ comments, Mr Wells pointed out that the FNM leader had a strong running mate in Deputy Leader K Peter Turnquest.

“Minnis got another man there who I believe understands what they’re about, based on what I see over last three to four years, his presentation in Parliament and advice in the business section (of local newspapers) just about every day. To me he looks to have some principle, when they tried to get him to run against Minnis he said no. And he’s not seeking office like what (Senator Dr Duane) Sands is doing.”

The FNM convention is scheduled for July 27-29 at the Melià Hotel.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

nyson Wells. Mr Wells has publicly stated his support for Dr Minnis many times and predicted that he will defeat Mrs Butler-Turner and her running mate Senator Duane Sands at the party’s convention next week.

This was only the case, Mrs Butler-Turner said because Mr Wells saw Dr Minnis as someone he is able to control.

“They have been rejected

by Long Island before,” she added. “They have left the Free National Movement and now sit in a position of

advisory. That person is no less a person than the opportunist Tennyson Wells who cannot get what he wants under (Prime Minister) Perry Christie and now sees a soft spot to try and get what he wants.

“Has he ever said to the Bahamian people that his

biggest desire is to be able to have a casino license for some failed project he has in Coral Harbour and that is the reason why he is so gung-ho because he knows under a Loretta ButlerTurner (administration) he has no way of getting that casino license?”

When contacted by The Tribune, Mr Wells rejected this assertion yesterday, insisting that his support of Dr Minnis was not grounded in partisan bias but a sober assessment of the political landscape.

He pointed out that the project to which Mrs Butler-Turner referred was approved by the American state of Georgia, and has been underway for the past 16 months. He explained that investors received positive indications from the Christie-led government on the casino license, but ultimately took the project to America because of lingering uncertainty from investment banks over the shuttered Baha Mar project.

Last month Mr Wells said Mrs Butler-Turner and Senator Sands “don’t stand a chance” against Dr Minnis and Deputy Leader Peter Turnquest at the convention.

Mr Wells at the time was adamant that the “tactical, smooth and politically savvy” Dr Minnis and Mr Turnquest had the support of the majority of the FNM’s delegates now as they had back in 2014 when they won their respective races.

PAGE 4, Friday, July 22, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

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UN holds informal poll for next chief UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The UN Security Council held its first informal poll Thursday on the dozen candidates competing to succeed Ban Ki-moon as secretary-general on Jan 1, a secretive vote behind closed doors.

The 15 council members decided not to reveal the results — unlike the informal “straw” polls ten years ago, which were made public and led to Ban’s election to the world’s top diplomatic post.

Japan’s UN Ambassador Koro Bessho, who holds the rotating council presidency, confirmed after the two-hour closed council session that the vote had taken place.

“This is private,” Britain’s UN Ambassador Matthew Rycroft told reporters earlier. “This is a recruitment process. It must be done respecting the confidentiality of the candidates.”

The United States, Britain and France stressed Thursday that they want a strong secretary-general to lead the United Nations through turbulent times, but Russia and China haven’t made clear what qualities are key for them.

“This could not be a more important job,” US Ambassador Samantha Power said as she headed into the council to vote. “And it could not be a more important time to choose the best possible leader for this organisation on which so much depends and so many depend.”

France’s UN Ambassador François Delattre noted that some have compared the vote for UN secretary-general to the vote for a new pope to lead the Catholic church.

It’s “critically important” to ensure that the process inspires trust and ensures that “we simply have the best candidate selected to become the world’s number one diplomat,” he said.

According to the UN Charter, the secretary-general is chosen by the 193-member General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council. In practice, this has meant that the council’s five permanent members — the US, Russia, China, Britain and France — have veto power over the candidates.

By tradition, the job of secretary-general has rotated among regions and Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe have all held the top post. East European nations, including Russia, argue that they have never had a secretary-general and it is their turn. There has also never been a woman secretary-general and a group of

56 nations are campaigning for the first female UN chief.

The 12 candidates include six men and six women — eight from Eastern Europe, two from Latin America, one from Western Europe and one from the Asia-Pacific region.

For the first time this year the General Assembly held two-hour webcast hearings where candidates made their case to be the next secretary-general and answered questions from UN member states. For the first time, each candidate has also met informally with Security Council members behind closed doors for an hour, Japan’s Bessho said.

According to council diplomats, the 15 council members received ballots for each of the 12 candidates with three choices: “encourage,” ‘’discourage” and “no opinion.” The result for each candidate will be conveyed to the ambassador from the candidate’s country, who also will be told the highest and lowest votes, with no names, the diplomats said.

Another informal poll is expected to take place next week followed by several more in August, and possibly September.

“We’ve never had 12 candidates before,” Britain’s Rycroft said. “We need to whittle it down to a reasonable number through the straw polls. That is what straw polls are for. I would encourage people who don’t do so well to drop out of the race.”

There is no deadline for potential candidates and at least one more, former Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, is making a late bid and has requested that the Australian government formally nominate him.

France’s Delattre said the Security Council’s goal is to make a recommendation to the General Assembly in the fall.

Ten years ago, there were seven candidates to succeed Kofi Annan as secretary-general. In the final straw poll in early October 2006, Ban received 14 “encourage” votes, 1 “no opinion” and no “discourage” vote, and days later the Security Council nominated the former South Korean foreign minister by acclamation to succeed Annan. In 1996, Annan was vetoed by the French — but after a few days of talks, France agreed to support him and he got the job.

By EDITH M. LEDERER of the Associated Press

Digicel back in The Bahamas?

EDITOR, The Tribune.

AFTER more than twenty years of reaping millions of dollars in The Bahamas and repeatedly highlighted in their many commercials over the past 12 months that they are a company 100 per cent Bahamian owned.

It is unbelievable that Cable Bahamas could not find among its staff members or anywhere in the country, a suitably qualified Bahamian to head its new company which has recently obtained the 2nd mobile cellular license in the country.

Chairman of the Board of Directors of the new company Mr. Franklyn Butler appeared to be over joyed to announce that the Chief Executive Officer will be a non-Bahamian by the name of Damian Blackburn. Mr. Blackburn is also a former employee with Virgin Mobile UK, one of the companies that was in the running to the second cellular service provider in the Bahamas.

Virgin Mobile was out-

manoeuvred by Cable Bahamas.

From Virgin Mobile UK, Mr. Blackburn moved on to Digicel which has been engaged in regional competition with Cable and Wireless for their customers across 32 Central American, Caribbean and Pacific markets.

He was also a lead man for Digicel in Haiti amid unscrupulous practices such as blocking applications such as Magic jack, Skype and Vonage which are free apps that are the equivalent to What’s App. This insensitive action by Digicel led to the outrage of many Haitian customers that forced the reversal of blocking the apps.

Allegations of corruption that involved political figures in the Haitian government, which Digicel funded a government tax on education that was an illegal tax and a fund of which the collection and use of funds lacked transparency, with millions of dollars not all going to education.

Digicel, which financed

the campaign of Michel Martelly who later became President in Haiti. Financed the government tax which appeared to be a case of bribery and corruption.

It is believed by many that the fall of Digicel’s main competitor, Viola was due to the implementation of the educational tax.

Blackburn has now landed in the Bahamas. The question should be asked why did he leave the position of CEO of Digicel Haiti, who was the largest private investor in Haiti. In 2015 Digicel under Blackburn, was the lead developer in $45 million dollar hotel project with the Marriott hotel in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Another question should be asked: Why on earth is a telecom company doing getting into the hotel business? We believe that he was brought here in an effort to continue the Digicel-like schemes to uproot the cellular customer base.

DEREK JOHNSON Nassau, July 21, 2016.

A tribute to Ivan Cleare EDITOR, The Tribune WHO WOULD have thought that the death angel would knock at my family’s door wearing the mask of crime?

A day when my family was expected to celebrate and give praises unto God for the birth of my little cousin became a day when my uncle was approached at an ATM by Mr Crime, who himself was adorned in the clothes of hopelessness, with his eyes blazing with anger and disregard for human life. ‘Dead’ was the word my family heard, He was robbed and then shot to death!

This was a senseless act that will take some time to be forgiven. My family and I, like too many other families in The Bahamas, are now left to face a lifechanging decision seemingly within the blink of an eye.

Many Bahamians have walked this road before and many have pleaded, marched and gathered in rallies, crying and begging the Government to take crime seriously. Yet, their voices have gone unheard and the matter is swept under the rug as if it never existed.

Meanwhile as tragedy begets tragedy, and the bodies continuously pile up, I am painfully left wondering: will they ever listen to us? Or must we be satisfied once they disingenuously repeat that the crime rate has decreased, or the events that occur in our country is rare, or that we should be happy that this week is a peaceful week because no act of crime has occurred?

Has this become the new

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net reality for The Bahamas?

Is this what we have to live with? Is this what is being shoved in our faces to ease the pain and stop the overflow of tears? This, my friends, is nonsense!

As the old saying goes, “He who feels it knows it.”

The time is now, the time is here, we need to wake up Bahamas! Bahamians are hurting. What can we do?

Is the lack of compassion from the Government and the criminal justice system a way of saying they do not know where to begin or do not know what to do? Is it their prideful way of asking the Church and the Bahamians for help because they are like iron men and women who would never come face to face with Mr Crime?

A few weeks ago, a friend of mine was heading home when a woman jumped out of the bushes banging on the car glass. She drove to a Police station to report the act and was told that there were no police vehicles at the station to follow her home, so she was then forced to drive home alone with the fear that something might have happened to her throughout the night.

It seems as if the Royal Bahamas Police Force are given new vehicles to aid in the fight against crime every year. Yet on that particular night, unbelievably, not one vehicle was available.

In a microcosm, such is the unresponsiveness and unconcern that we have all displayed toward crime.

God forbid, had something

happened to her along her journey from the station toward home, what would our response have been?

Outrage! Rightfully so, but how many crimes could we have already prevented in this country if we took our responsibilities seriously as Bahamians to rid this country of such evil works?

The late Sir Lynden Pindling asked: “What does it take to be a Bahamian?”

He said that it would take “loyalty to our Bahamas over and above all other; zeal for our Bahamas unmatched by any other; concern for other Bahamians over all others.”

Needless to say, our system has failed the wishes of our former Prime Minster; our system has failed Bahamians. Hurt has overflowed our country, loyalty turned into disloyalty, zeal turned into apathy and concern turned into indifference. Is it the lack of jobs that is empowering Mr Crime in our society? Is it the failure of the educational system that is developing Mr Crime? Or is it the breakdown of the family structure?

We can point so many fingers but sweeping the dirt underneath the rug would never solve the problem. We need to take whatever measures necessary to implement capital punishment. We need to stand together as Bahamians and fight for our country. The time is here, the time is now.

In loving memory of Ivan Cleare.

KATRELL BULLARD Nassau, July 18, 2016

Scary landscape EDITOR, The Tribune.

PM Christie really believes that the young PLP MP’s want him to stay?

Oh when will these long BEC outages from Bahamas ‘No Power’ and ‘No Light’ the heat obviously gone to his head.

Truth the PLP can’t win without him, so God help us.

Not only do the young MP’s want him to stay, but the majority of the old aged PLP MPs. Truth told few could win

on their own. They win on the coat-tails of the Leader.

FNM Minnis-Butler and Collie have to be crazy confirming the financial business of their party .... Bahamians only vote for winners and from what the leader and the aspiring says the FNM are losers.

Anyway how much of the $100,000 would be actually from the pocket of Minnis or Butler? Very little maybe $10,000 at the max. So Brent is now on the outside? I bet $20,000 of Butler’s is his.

Laugh, but the Gatekeep-

ers could be the surprise - Paul Moss understands high finance has been exceptionally successful gather a few other professionals you have something to work with because The People are looking desperately for an alternative.

DNA is Bran still frightened he might loose the leadership - hey man where’s is the Convention?

You seem scared.

MARCUS SMITH Nassau, July 18, 2016.

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 22, 2016, PAGE 5

Office manager says doctor flirted with alleged rape victim

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A FORMER office manager at Dr Gerald Forbes’ clinic testified that the woman who has claimed the doctor allegedly raped her was “flirtatious” with the accused when she worked at his medical clinic.

However, Alonzo Pinder, who says he had been employed for 17 years as the manager at Carico Medical Clinic, was unable to give the woman’s name when he was asked by the prosecutor.

He was one of two witnesses called by the accused’s lawyer on Thursday to give evidence in Dr Forbes’ rape trial in the Supreme Court.

Reserve Corporal Dwayne Outten also gave evidence.

It is alleged that on February 3, 2015 at his clinic, Dr Forbes touched the complainant’s vagina and masturbated during a medical exam and raped her on March 2, 2015, having sex with her without her consent during a medical abortion procedure.

Mr Pinder told the court that he knew Dr Forbes for some 20 years and began working for him at Carico Medical Clinic in Freeport in 2000.

He said he was also employed as a nurse orderly and his work hours were from 8am to 5pm, but that he would be in and out of the office. He said that the office door was left unlocked and the public was able to enter freely and patients came in during work hours.

Mr Pinder said that he met the complainant when she first came to work at the clinic. According to earlier court testimony from Dr Forbes, the complainant

was hired on January 31, 2015.

“What was the interaction (at work) between Dr Forbes and the complainant?” Forbes’ attorney Osman Johnson asked.

Mr Pinder replied: “Dr Forbes handled himself professionally and she (the complainant) was flirtatious with Dr Forbes and would touch him and say smart remarks.”

When Mr Johnson asked Mr Pinder if he had ever seen Dr Forbes expose his private parts to the complainant in the office, he said that he did not.

“Did you hear her scream, ‘no, stop’?” he questioned.

“No,” he replied.

Mr Pinder said that the complainant never came to him to complain about Dr Forbes, and he had never seen the doctor force himself on the complainant or act inappropriately with any other staff there.

Prosecutor Erica Kemp in her cross-examination asked Mr Pinder what his duties were as office manager at the clinic.

He responded that he dealt with Forbes’ patient files, and saw to it that the facility was in order and clean. He also performed the duties of an orderly and would stand at the door when Forbes was with a patient.

When asked by Mrs Kemp if the door would be closed, he said the door would be open.

“While the doctor was speaking with patients you are at the door, and if a patient is having a physical you are at the door?” She asked.

“Yes, but if they feel uncomfortable with me there then someone else will be called in,” said Mr Pinder.

When asked what other things he did there, Mr Pin-

DR Gerald Forbes at court. der added that he would also type documents/forms if the secretary was not there.

After being pressed for the complainant’s name, Mr Pinder admitted that he did not remember it.

When asked how many secretaries had been hired at the clinic and how many patients would come into the office on a daily basis, Mr Pinder was unable to provide answers to the questions.

He said that he could not recall how many patients visited on a daily basis because it was a busy establishment. But according to earlier testimony by Forbes,

RAMSEY YET TO APPEAL HIS BRIBERY CONVICTIONS

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

FREDDIE Solomon Ramsey has yet to file an appeal against his convictions on multiple bribery related charges stemming from the Alstom SA/Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) scandal, The Tribune has learned.

Ramsey, who was spared imprisonment, had 21 days to lodge an appeal against his conviction and/or sentence since Justice Bernard Turner, on July 8, imposed a $14,000 fine on the 79-yearold insurance executive relating to French company Alstom SA’s payment of more than $300,000 to a BEC board member to influence the awarding of the New Providence Phase Two and Three contracts between 1999 and 2003.

No documents had been filed with the Court of Appeal up to yesterday concerning the matter, with a full a week remaining for Ramsey - who maintained his innocence during trial to do so.

Ramsey was previously acquitted of two counts of conspiracy to commit bribery and two counts of bribery concerning the Phase Two contract. However, he was convicted of two counts

FRED Ramsey pictured at the Supreme Court. of conspiracy to commit bribery and 12 counts of bribery concerning the Phase Three contract. The 18 charges against Ramsey - four of conspiracy to commit bribery and 14 of bribery - concerned the New Providence Expansion Phase Two and Three contracts.

It was alleged that Ramsey, being concerned with others, did conspire to “solicit, or accept any advantages and an inducement to, or reward for, or used influence in procuring” for ABB Generacion and Alstom SA in the New Providence Ex-

pansion Phase Two contract with BEC between 1999 and 2003.

It was further alleged that Ramsey, on seven occasions during the same period, solicited and received a total of $321,107.81 in bribes from Alstom SA, formerly ABB Generacion.

At Ramsey’s sentencing hearing two weeks ago, Justice Turner told Ramsey that he would have two months to pay the $14,000 fine or spend six months at the Department of Correctional Services.

The judge also said he saw no reason why he should not order the entire $221,457.81 Ramsey allegedly received from Alstom as a result of the scandal be repaid, which the judge said should be paid to BEC or any successor of BEC within nine months.

Failure to pay off the $221,457.81 within that time, Justice Turner said, would result in that sum being applied to Ramsey’s real property tax and/or him facing a separate term of six months’ imprisonment.

Justice Turner also said that sum should be paid to the country’s Consolidated Fund should BEC (now Bahamas Power and Light) no longer be considered a public body.

THREE ACCUSED OF KILLING STUDENT TO FACE TRIAL IN 2018

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net THREE men will stand trial in Supreme Court in May 2018 concerning the murder of a 16-year-old honour roll student at Government High School.

Jason Petithome, 21, Antonio Brown, 20, and Dwayne Harris Jr, 22, appeared before Justice Bernard Turner in the Supreme Court on Wednesday for a fixture hearing relating to the March 11 killing of Miz-

ilana Beauchamp.

Terrel Butler appeared for Harris while Glendon Rolle, absent at a previous fixture hearing, confirmed that he is representing the other accused men against the allegation.

Justice Turner said he would adjourn the matter for trial to May 14, 2018.

Beauchamp was caught in the crossfire of young men throwing rocks while on a bus on Carmichael Road as she was on her way to school around 8am earlier this year. A rock struck

the tenth grade student on her head and she died of her injuries in an ambulance on the way to hospital.

Her alleged killers were charged with murder under Section 291 (1)(B) of the Penal Code, which does not attract the discretionary death penalty if a conviction is reached at the end of trial.

They pleaded not guilty to the charges when formally arraigned on July 1.

The three accused men are in custody at the Department of Correctional Services.

Photo: Vandyke Hepburn business was slow at the clinic.

“You really can’t help us with anything that happened there in mid February?” Ms Kemp asked.

“No,” he replied.

“At any given day in March 2015, if something happened (at the clinic) you cannot help the court with what happened because as you said you were in and out of the office?”

Mr Pinder admitted that he could not recall what happened at the office on March 2 or March 15 or any given day in March.

Ms Kemp asked: “On March 4 can you tell us what happened?”

“I can’t…I don’t have any records,” he replied.

Corporal Reserve Dwayne Outten said on March 16 he was at Forbes’ clinic and was given a $US 100 bill to take to the complainant at her home. He was given directions to the complainant’s house by the doctor. The doctor, he said, had previously introduced the complainant to him as a new employee.

He said the doctor told him that he had fired the complainant and wanted to avoid any trouble and wanted him to drop off some money to her.

The reserve officer, who is also employed as heavy

equipment operator, said the complainant was not at home so he returned the money to Forbes.

The prosecutor asked the reservist if he had anything to do with the investigation into the matter that is before the trial, and he said he did not. The defense then closed its case when their third and fourth witnesses were unavailable.

The trial resumes on Friday.

Career Opportunity Scotiabank (Bahamas) Limited – Marsh Harbour is seeking the services of a

Personal Banking Officer Position Summary: The Personal Banking Officer is a member of the branch team and is responsible for contributing to the overall success of the branch at which they are assigned by meeting negotiated goals through the identification and satisfaction of customer needs. Success will be achieved through meeting the goals negotiated with the branch manager. These assigned goals include specific personal sales goals, sales activity goals, along with other objectives relating to teamwork, customer service and personal development.

Key Accountabilities for this role: • Identifying and satisfying the financial needs of potential customers; • Listening to and fully identifying the customer’s needs to link the identified need to appropriate solutions; • Using the Bank’s referral process when a referral opportunity is identified; • Initiating calls to a predetermined group of customers to retain and expand banking relationships, by offering customized solutions to customers; • Developing new customer opportunities through referrals from existing, satisfied clients and other sources; • Consistently delivering the desired customer experience during every customer interaction; • Applying the Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements including verifying and documenting Customer identity, source(s) of funds and the nature of the activity that is to be undertaken.

Educational Requirements: • Two years of related experience within the finance industry, in a Lending capacity; • Undergraduate Degree in Banking, Marketing or General Business

Functional Competencies: • • • • • • • •

Strong sales ability; Thorough knowledge of all Commercial Banking products and services; Excellent written and oral communication skills, negotiation and analytical skills; Good technical knowledge of Banking Systems and platforms; Strong Relationship Management Skills; Strong Customer Service Skills; Strong networking and interpersonal skills; Goal oriented and a self-starter

Qualified candidates should submit C.V. via email to: hrbahamas@scotiabank.com on or before Friday, July 29, 2016.

Please note: Only candidates short-listed will be contacted.

®Trademark of The Bank of Nova Scotia, used under licence (where applicable).

PAGE 6, Friday, July 22, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

DNA: CHRISTIE SAYING NO ONE ELSE IN HIS PARTY IS FIT TO LEAD from page one

them. He said at the end of the day that he doesn’t trust them to lead the party so you shouldn’t trust them either.”

Mr McCartney made fun of Mr Christie’s past talk about building a “bridge to the future” in the party, noting how the construct has dismantled in the face of high-profile resignations of some first-time parlia-

mentarians once associated with his party, such as Dr Andre Rollins and Greg Moss.

“What happen to the ‘bridge to the future’?” he asked. “That bridge seems to have blown up into oblivion. It’s very eerie. Before Sir Lynden Pindling got his last PLP defeat, he said some things. Hubert Ingraham said similar before the last election. He said he has the experience, the wind is behind his back and the

people want him. Pindling said the same thing before his last defeat, Ingraham said it before his last defeat and Christie is almost saying the same thing before what will be his last defeat.

He is going to get what Pindling got and what Ingraham got. All of them are from that political stock.”

Mr McCartney said Mr Christie struggled to give an honest answer into his rationale for remaining at the helm of the PLP.

“He’s in his mid-70s and he knows nothing else. He has to constantly look for some reason as to why he wants to stay on.”

When asked about his political future on Monday, Mr Christie said: “There are two things. One, that I have enough young people who are a part of my government who have asked me to stay on. Two, that with respect to staying on, everyday of my life I recognise that I provide stability.

“My leadership provides stability to my side. You see what instability means when you look at the opposition and I daresay that this could happen when I demit office as well.

“The country has moved to Pindling, to Ingraham, division in the FNM, to Christie, he’s holding right now, no division in the PLP. “And so the question for us is, moving forward, one of the great advantages the

PLP offers to this country is a very stable government, one with the capacity to guarantee continuity in governance and one that has been meaningfully employed in major reforms in this country, the latest one of which is the University of the Bahamas.”

Mr Christie made the comments during an appearance on the Kiss FM radio talk show, “Ed Fields Live” with host Ed Fields and co-host Rogan Smith.

JOBLESS RATE DOWN BY 2.1% from page one

In addition to jobs provided by Junkanoo Carnival, the newest survey results obtained by The Tribune said the 2.1 per cent decrease in the unemployment rate was also influenced by jobs in the manufacturing sector increasing by 26 per cent, among other factors. This sector accounts for four per cent of total employment, the department said.

The results of the survey also indicate that since November 2015, the labour force grew by 1.7 per cent and now totals 215,880 persons.

However, between May 2015 and May 2016 there was a significant increase of 3.3 per cent in the labour force.

In addition, since November, the number of employed people increased by 7,540, while the number of unemployed people fell by 3,855.

The survey said that discouraged workers in the country declined by 10 per cent.

New Providence, Grand Bahama and Abaco experienced declines in the number of discouraged workers of 14 per cent, 16 per cent and 7 per cent respectively.

These persons, according to the standard definition of the International Labour Organization (ILO), adhered to by the Bahamas and most countries including those of the Caribbean, United States and Canada, did not look for work because they believed no jobs were available for them, the report said.

In the employed labour force, there are more men than women, the survey said.

The department has scheduled a press conference for today to release the new job figures.

Izmirlian files for full liquidation of Baha Mar from page one

“For more than a year,” Granite said in a statement, “the best interest of (the unsecured creditors) have not been served by the Bahamian government’s ill-conceived placement of Baha Mar into provisional liquidation under which unsecured creditors, including many Bahamians, have received no information about any progress towards resolving their debts, while the movement from provisional liquidation to liquidation is continuously postponed without reason.”

Granite Ventures said the provisional liquidation process has only served

the economic interests of the Export-Import Bank of China “and, by association, China State Construction Engineering Corporation and its subsidiary CCA.” The bank is Baha Mar’s $2.5 billion secured creditor.

“By moving Baha Mar to full liquidation status, Granite seeks to ensure that unsecured creditors will finally have a fully court appointed independent party, namely a liquidator, who will be able to secure fairness through their statutory powers by acting as a check on the bank appointed receivers,” Granite Ventures said.

“In the inordinately long provisional liquidation––a time period well beyond what provisional liquidations are meant to cover–– unsecured creditors, including hundreds of Bahamian

companies, remain unpaid and with no visibility into either the likelihood or the timing of any repayment of debts owed.”

In an interview with The Tribune, Wayne Munroe, attorney for certain government agencies owed money by Baha Mar, disputed the idea that the provisional liquidators have been indifferent to the needs of Baha Mar’s unsecured creditors.

“Izmirlian pledged all assets of the company to the EXIM Bank so I don’t know what their talk is now,” he said. ‘There is nothing for the joint provisional liquidators to administer because he gave all the assets to the EXIM Bank. And they know this.”

Mr Munroe called Granite’s latest move a sign of Mr Izmirlian’s desperation.

“I gather he may have gotten an idea that the receivers may have chosen a buyer and this is a desperate attempt to complicate matters,” he said. “He does not have our national interest at heart and if anyone had any doubt this should dissuade them.”

Previously, Mr Izmirlian himself described liquidation as an unattractive prospect for Baha Mar. In response to the Supreme Court’s decision last November to adjourn liquidation proceedings until this year, BMD Holdings LTD, the holding company through which Mr Izmirlian was developing Baha Mar, said: “The developer has never viewed a winding up or liquidation of Baha Mar as an attractive outcome for the Bahamas.”

Prime Minster Perry Christie has also expressed

aversion to liquidation, saying last year that it would represent a “chilling prospect” for the country.

“No one wants that,” Mr Christie said to emphasise the need for various parties to reach an agreement on the resort.

After winding-up petitions are filed, provisional liquidators are sometimes appointed to preserve a company’s assets.

Liquidation, on the other hand, would involve the dividing of assets up among creditors and shareholders.

Since the original hearing date of November 2, a hearing for full liquidation proceedings to commence has been repeatedly adjourned.

The next hearing on the issue is slated for September 30.

Granite said it hopes to have its latest petition heard on that date.

DISNEY SAYS EGG ISLAND CANNOT SUSTAIN CRUISE LINE DEVELOPMENT from page one

Ms Prunty said as a result, Disney Cruise Lines made the decision to close the door on the idea.

Earlier this month, a petition spearheaded by residents of Eleuthera surfaced, calling for a ban on any development by Disney Cruise Lines.

On Monday, Prime Minister Perry Christie spoke about the matter, calling for caution as he insisted that no development deal with the cruise line had been approved.

He said while he understood the initial shock and panic over the proposal which had been made public to that point, residents in Eleuthera could rest

assured that his Cabinet would not sign off on any plan without the relevant assessments being done.

At the time of Mr Christie’s statement, the “Stop Disney from purchasing Egg Island” petition had some 1,337 signatures.

The petition, among other things, highlighted the island’s importance to the livelihood of residents and

the ecosystem of the surrounding islands.

Disney Cruise Lines has on several occasions ventured into discussions with the Bahamas government on opportunities to widen its cruise brand.

The company maintains that it has always mandated that studies be carried out to guard against environmental dangers.

READERS RESPOND TO GALANIS CRITICISM OF PM AFTER former PLP MP Philip Galanis criticised Prime Minister Perry Christie for saying that the party could become unstable without him, readers gave their reaction on tribune242.com.

Well_mudda_take_sic said: “Christie now only hears himself and others in his head who are figments of his imagination; he’s no longer capable of hearing those around him in any meaningful way.”

Jackbnimble asked: “Tell me, why would the PM want to give up ‘the good life’ and just retire and go off into the sunset and live like ‘regular’ folk simply because we can’t stand him?”

“He gets to ride around in a chauffuer-driven car with

outriders and traffic halting when he’s passing all at the expense of the taxpayers.

Everyone bows to his whim and fancy because he is ‘THE PM’; he has access to the Public Treasury and can spend the taxpayers’ money as he pleases with NO ACCOUNTABILITY; he gets to travel on the taxpayer’s money; gets to give longwinded speeches at public and private events where persons are forced to listen whether they like it or not

. . . and all for a period of FIVE WHOLE YEARS!” Proudloudandfnm was critical of Mr Galanis’ leadership suggestions: “Wow, Galanis is delusional. Look at the list of names he has. Jerome? Obie?

Mitchell? Halkitis?”

And there was this from Honestman: “Four years of PLP mis-rule has set this country back 20 years.

The colossal and empty twin towers of Baha Mar will remain a monument to the greed of the PLP elite.

There really ought to be another commission of enquiry when this is over.”

• In The Tribune’s latest online poll, we asked readers if they agreed with Loretta Butler-Turner that the FNM is at the weakest point in its history. At the time of going to press, 80.3 per cent of those voting agreed with the Long Island MP. The poll is still open, so don’t miss your chance to vote and join the debate on tribune242.com.

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 22, 2016, PAGE 7

THE PAROLE committee held a meeting at the Paul Farquharson Conference Centre with senior police officers yesterday.

Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

Call for ‘mature approach’ to parole

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

A WELL-KNOWN attorney yesterday dismissed the idea that were challenges in presenting the concept of parole to victims or persons affected by serious crime, claiming that the country’s “wholly unsatisfactory” system of early custodial discharge is essentially parole without the requisite parameters.

Wayne Munroe, QC, a member of the Parole and Re-entry Steering Committee (PRSC), said the current modus operandi of allowing an inmate to be released from custody despite only serving two-thirds of his/ her sentence is the same as granting parole without putting the necessary conditions in place for their release.

Mr Munroe also cautioned politicians to take the “mature approach” in allocating funds for the implementation of a parole system in the country, as he

WAYNE Munroe and Archbishop Drexel Gomez. said failure to heed his advice would result in a “fairly brutal” response to “people who take petty views” on a serious matter.

Mr Munroe made his comments on the sidelines of a conference at Police Headquarters between members of the PRSC and senior members of the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) over the issue of a parole system in the country.

The PRSC has been appointed by the government to propose a policy framework for a parole system

and interventions for the seamless reintegration of past offenders into Bahamian society.

However, as also acknowledged by PRSC Chairman and former Police Commissioner Paul Farquharson yesterday, the task of introducing parole to victims of and/or persons affected by serious crimes such as murder and rape, is a tall one, as those individuals would likely only be interested in and comfortable with punishment for the offender.

Mr Munroe said: “When

we engage the starting point is going to be you ask that person who says they are a victim of crime or that their relative was, ‘do you want to have any say about this person’s release back into the community?’

“If the answer to that is ‘yes, I want to have some say, because I see my value in being able to express what happened to me,’ well the only way that can happen is with a parole system.

“And again people will be told that it’s not a question of ‘if’ - most people are coming out of prison the question is ‘when’, the question is who has a say in ‘when’, and the question is the conditions upon which they are released. The reality of it is that when you create a circumstance, you shouldn’t be surprised with the outcome.”

Mr Munroe said as it stands, convicts are sometimes released from custody after serving just two-thirds of their sentences, which he suggested is essentially the

same thing as parole. “...Although the prison is now moving to a correctional facility where they try to correct your behaviour, I think personally if I were a victim of crime, I would want to have some say on when the person was released and if they were released,” he said. “And if they’re not going to serve the whole sentence which is the whole reality, I would want them accountable for the part of the sentence that they are released early.

Plain and simple.

“And so it should be very simple. I’ve said in blunt terms to everyone, we have a system, it’s a wholly unsatisfactory system, it’s a system that’s bound to introduce problems, and it’s not a question of whether you introduce a parole system, the only question is the parametres of it, because we already have it.”

According to committee member and retired Anglican Archbishop Drexel Gomez, the PRSC has not

yet approached the public on the matter, but said he expects the committee to engage in public meetings sometime in September.

He said the PRSC has until November to present the policy framework to the government.

Regarding the issue of fund allocation for the implementation of a parole system, Mr Munroe said as he has given his “billable time freely” to the PRSC, politicians would be wise to use a “mature approach” when dealing with the matter.

“It’s like if you put in a solar (power) system,” he said. “It costs money to put it in, but you save something over the long run, and that is going to have to be the mature way in which politicians look at this.

And if they don’t look at it in that mature way, having given freely of my time, I will be fairly brutal in how I respond to people who take petty views on a serious matter.”

CALL TO IMPLEMENT LAWS IN HONOUR OF MARCO ARCHER ACTIVISTS are harnessing the power of social media to demand the creation of a sex offender register and the activation of the MARCO Alert system for missing children in a viral protest today.

Non-profit group Solidarity242 is calling on Bahamians to flood social networks with hashtags and videos in a bid to grab the attention of lawmakers who have been slow to fully enact amendments to the Sexual Offences Act and the Child Protection Act. “It has been five years since the Bahamas was rocked by the brutal death of Marco Archer and yet Marco’s Law is not fully functional. There is no sex offender’s registry, there is no MARCO Alert,” said Kishlane Knowles, cofounder of Solidarity242.

“Our children are being left vulnerable and we as Bahamians have to push back and demand that the government does its part in protecting our children, as promised. Sexual preda-

tors are walking among us, nameless and faceless,” Ms Knowles said.

“We don’t know who they are until they have hurt a child. When a child goes missing there is no systematic way of alerting the general public immediately. How many children between 2011 and 2016 could have been saved from sexual abuse and/or abduction had the government implemented the elements involved in Marco’s Law? Let’s really think about that.”

In late 2013, the government tabled two amendments, one to the Sexual Offences Act and the other to the Child Protection Act, which would create a sexual offender register, and a MARCO alert for missing children, respectively.

The changes are the direct result of the death of 11-year-old Marco Archer who was murdered by convicted paedophile Kofhe Goodman in 2011.

The Child Protection Amendment Act 2014

came into operation on August 26, 2015. Under the Mandatory Action Rescuing Children Operation or MARCO alert, when a child is reported missing and authorities are satisfied that there is a risk of harm or death, the commissioner of police will be required to use the alert.

The regulations that will govern the MARCO alert were introduced in the House of Assembly in February of this year.

The sexual offender register would place all persons who are convicted of sexual offences on the proposed list. However, it is unclear when this will come into force.

Meanwhile, the viral protest will take place at 6pm. People are urged to post on social media using hashtags like #justiceforMarco, #MarcosLaw, #protectourchildren and #Solidarity242.

Selena Archer, event organiser, said: “There will be hashtags, a temporary profile picture for supporters to

MINISTRY ‘AWARE’ OF RISE IN PASSPORT APPLICATIONS THE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration said it is aware of the increase in the number of passport applications during the summer period at all the Passport Offices in The Bahamas and overseas offices.

In a press statement issued on Thursday, the ministry indicated that steps are being taken to address these issues to the extent that resources allow.

“A special team of staff members has been put in place to deal with issues relating to Grand Bahama and to assist with the backlog of issued passports in

Grand Bahama.

“We hope to offer some relief within the coming week. Arrangements are also being finalised to assist with the demand in the overseas offices and the Family Islands section.

With the provisions that have been put in place, the ministry expects the backlog to be reduced as quickly as possible,” the statement said.

Last month, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration Fred Mitchell said that the Passport Office was experiencing the “summer from hell” as he announced delays of more

than 12 weeks for e-passports.

Speaking to reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on West Bay Street, Mr Mitchell said the Passport Office has been plagued with a series of issues including power failure, air conditioning failure and equipment breakdowns.

At the time, Mr Mitchell said even if the public pays the $200 for expedited passports, there is no guarantee the documents will be ready on the specified date.

He pleaded for “patience” as the government attempts to fix the outstanding issues at the department.

download and two other elements that we are keeping under wraps until Friday’s launch.

“The protest has been designed to be inclusive of all Bahamians no matter what island they live on or what

country they live in. The beauty of the viral protest is that all the activities can be done online from the comfort of a smart phone, tablet or computer.”

Activists plan to use the support garnered from the

event to demand answers from the government on the stalled process.

Interested persons can visit the Solidarity242 Facebook page for more information on how to get involved in the event.

PAGE 8, Friday, July 22, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

216 arrests, 856 cases cleared, $450,000 in property recovered thanks to Crime Stoppers IN the nearly 15 years since Crime Stoppers Bahamas was established, the community action organisation has helped lead police to 216 arrests, assisted in clearing 856 cases in the process and recovering more than $450,000 in property.

Moreover, $676,000 worth of narcotics has been seized, all as a result of information provided by concerned Bahamians with a few persons requesting cash

rewards to date.

“There must be a concerted effort placed on building relationships between the community, media and law enforcement,” said Marisa Ahwai, chairman of Crime Stoppers Bahamas, a civilian organisation under the umbrella of Crime Stoppers International which offers monetary rewards for anonymous tips about suspicious activity in the community.

“Forensic science and investigative skills are an

integral part of solving crimes, but information from the public is one of the most crucial elements of the investigative process.”

Police recorded 146 homicides in 2015, which was a record-breaking year for killings in The Bahamas.

According to a February 2016 report released by the US Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC), while residential security remains a pronounced concern in light of alarming crime statistics,

a combination of residential alarms, security gates on windows, neighbourhood watches and roving security patrols have proven an effective deterrent.

“If we all start minding our neighbour’s business and reporting anything suspicious to Crime Stoppers, we can further reduce property crime,” Ms Ahwai said.

“The Crime Stoppers hotline provides a way for people to expose crime of any kind with no fear of being

identified,” the chairman said, adding that all incoming voice calls are answered in the US or Canada.

The NGO plans to launch an app for smart phones in the near future.

“We want to make it as easy as possible for people to report wrongdoings,” Ms Ahwai said. “Our goal is to rid the Bahamas of the scourge of crime and violence so that residents and visitors alike can feel free to walk about day and night and enjoy our

beautiful Bahama land. We urge residents to step up and help ‘Stop the Crime Before It’s Your Time!’”

Using anonymous tips provided by the public, Crime Stoppers assists authorities in uncovering fraud, solving crimes and exposing all forms of abuse.

To report a crime or suspicious activity text or call 328-TIPS (8477) in Nassau or toll free at (242) 300TIPS (8477) in the Family Islands.

FLORIDA CONCERNS OVER FIGHTING ZIKA WITHOUT FEDERAL FUNDS MIAMI Associated Press

FLORIDA mosquito control officials worry they won’t be able to keep up their efforts to contain the bugs that carry Zika without federal funding, even as concern mounts that the first infection from a mosquito bite on the United States mainland is near.

Yesterday, fogging trucks drove through a MiamiDade County neighbourhood where health officials are investigating a Zika diagnosis that doesn’t appear

to have connection to travel outside the US. Zika is usually spread by mosquitoes, but nearly all the Zika cases in the US have been contracted in other countries or through sex with someone who got it abroad.

“We want to make sure we reduce the mosquito population down to zero if possible in this case,” said Chalmers Vasquez, MiamiDade County’s mosquito control operations manager.

Vasquez’s inspectors are going door-to-door, trapping mosquitoes for testing, hand-spraying and re-

moving the standing water where they breed. Such aggressive mosquito control and surveillance is now routine in Miami-Dade County, which leads Florida in confirmed Zika cases linked to travel.

The Florida Department of Health announced yesterday that another Zika case potentially not related to travel was being investigated in Broward County.

While Zika’s appearance in mosquitoes in the US mainland is likely, health officials don’t expect widespread outbreaks like those

seen in Latin America and the Caribbean. Zika is such a mild disease for most people that they don’t even know they have it, but it has been found to lead to severe birth defects if a pregnant woman is infected.

The tropical mosquito that carries Zika, Aedes aegypti, likes to live near people and it doesn’t travel far.

No mosquitoes collected in Miami-Dade County so far have tested positive for Zika or other viruses carried by the same species, according to state and county officials.

A FEMALE Aedes aegypti mosquito acquires a blood meal on the arm of a researcher. Concerns are growing about the Zika virus, spread by such mosquitoes.

GN-1780

THE TRIBUNE

Friday, July 22, 2016, PAGE 9

Pay to play policy further exposes the FNM

TO BORROW a popular colloquialism, the world of politics is ‘on fleek’ this week.

This is the time of year the two major parties of our neighbours to the north are staging their national conventions. So far, we’ve had a sprinkle of plagiarism, a dash of revenge and a major dose of crazy all around.

And that’s just the Republicans.

But if you think Melania Trump, Ted Cruz, Rudy Guiliani and Chris Christie cannot be outdone by our local brand of bizarro, think again. There has been a lot of talk of our own major parties’ upcoming conventions and the stage has been set for some homegrown madness.

A Comic’s View

By INIGO ‘NAUGHTY’ ZENICAZELAYA

leadership level I would hand in my credentials, toss back their keys and ask the last person leaving the FNM to turn the lights off on their way out. There is no way a party serious about stewarding the billions of dollars that would be under their control if they win should be in such a position.

To make matters worse for the delegates and attendees used to being “balled out” by over-the top political events in the past, FNM chairman Sidney Collie warned that the upcoming convention would be on A few months ago, I was the “frugal side”. In other surprised when a longtime words, don’t come looking Free National Movement for no free food and libasupporter asked my opinion tions cause een nuttin’ hapon the idea that the FNM pening. was actively trying to lose While I think we are long the next general election. past overdue as a country in At the time, I laughed off focusing on the substance the question. Why would rather than the style, we the party best positioned to all know that if the FNM win the government work had it, they would spend it. to diminish its own chance They would toss millions at grabbing power, gaining to the wind on free perks and T-shirts like largesse living ‘The average the PLP or be off the taxpay- Bahamian has no ‘rolling on 20s’ er’s dime for the like the DNA, say in selecting next five years? whose tour bus Sure, the candidates. gives Hillary FNM certainly The parties Clinton’s a run hasn’t helped for the money. its shot at the don’t bother to Except Clintop with all the stage debates ton’s campaign infighting and so we can get relies on dona(too frequent) tions from mila better feel for weak showing lions of people when it comes the candidates’ and big busito addressing ness (hey, corstance on the national issues. porations are issues.

And once But I wrote the people too, my party’s short- elected, most friend.) comings off Here in this as policy and MPs are harder little country public relations to find than $10 of ours, the big incompetence. in the FNM’s donors hide out Surely they in their corners would get their bank account.’ and play kingact together in maker from a time for their convention, distance. They are not comright? Right? ing out of the shadows to Wrong.

‘Roc wit Doc’ it seems. Nor This week, we learned are the thousands of sothat the FNM actually had called hardline party supthe orbs to compel the two porters whose support ends candidates running for the where the collection plate leadership position to pony begins. up $100k each for next Mr Collie also took the week’s big shindig. opportunity to advocate for According to former reform. “This is a classic FNM deputy leader Loretta case for campaign finance Butler-Turner, the party reform”, he said. Actudecided both she and Dr ally, this is a classic case of Hubert Minnis would have politicians expecting Bahato add big money to the cofmians to foot the bill once fers in order to pull off the again. event in which both are vyWhat, exactly, would Baing for the leadership post. hamians get out of publicly Reportedly, this is the first funding elections for the time in the FNM’s history 20,000 parties seeking to a request like this has ever ‘run tings’ (not to mention been made. the 20,000 that will pop up I don’t know about you, once we start)? The average but if asked to personally Bahamian has no say in sepay $100k to play at the lecting candidates (a la pri-

BROKEN OR JUST BROKE?

SIDNEY Collie at Wednesday’s press conference by the FNM, where he cautioned that the forthcoming FNM convention would not have all the “bells and whistles”.

maries). The parties don’t bother to stage debates so we can get a better feel for the candidates’ stance on the issues. And once elected, most MPs are harder to find than $10 in the FNM’s bank account.

As it stands, most elections cost taxpayers $3m to $5m or more. We would love to help, but the way our bank account is set up …

Don’t get me wrong: public funding of campaigns is lofty and ideal but needs to come with conditions (see primaries and debates.) And right now the biggest question is how the FNM got into this position. Obviously, something is very wrong with the way the party is being run and it’s doubtful holding the convention three months later would have made a difference unless they have a magic money tree stashed out waiting to bloom somewhere.

One other thing Mr Collie said I found very interesting. It seems anyone contesting any of the major leadership posts can enter the race right up until the last night of the convention.

And get this: they won’t have to pay a penny to do so. Well played, former Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, well played. Looks like you will get your pound of flesh and every drip of blood in the end after all.

BABIES FOR CHRISTIE Prime Minister Christie plans to contest his current position when the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) holds its convention in November.

According to Mr Christie, young cabinet ministers, MPs, millions of Bahamians and even unborn babies still waiting patiently in the Lord’s arms in heaven still want him to stay on as leader.

In perpetuity. Because the world will implode and be sucked into a black hole if he isn’t there as the Krazy Glue to hold everything together.

To say the idea of Mr Christie remaining as Prime Minister is ludicrous is like saying expecting Baha Mar to be completed in my lifetime is ludicrous.

That’s because it is so far from reality I expect to see unicorns and leprechauns before I see that happening.

But I will say it anyway.

Mr Christie, your dream to win another general election is ludicrous.

Not only are Bahamians ready to turn the page on

GN1781

the Christie era, they are ready to burn the whole book. This past term has been an abysmal failure.

The last referendum was a sign that voters “ain’t on ya run” anymore.

That the Prime Minister would hide behind unnamed MPs to justify his insatiable appetite to rule is embarrassing. Who are these fictitious PLPs jinxing the PM to stay on? Because they need to go too.

After four and a half years of a failing economy, crime highs and job lows, enough is enough. If the PLP can survive the aftermath of losing former Prime Minister Lynden Pindling as leader it can certainly survive post-Christie.

The PLP’s famous slogan is “Believe in Bahamians”.

Well, Bahamians feel that it’s time for a fresh start.

Believe that.

• Inigo ‘Naughty’ Zenica-

Photo: Tim Clarke/Tribune Staff zelaya is the resident standup comic at Jokers Wild Comedy Club at the Atlantis, Paradise Island, resort and presents ‘Mischief and Mayhem in da AM’ from 6am to 10am, Monday to Friday, and ‘The Press Box’ sports talk show on Sunday from 10am to 1pm on KISS FM 96.1. He also writes a sports column in The Tribune on Tuesday. Comments and questions to naughty@ tribunemedia.net

PAGE 10, Friday, July 22, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

THE LOOK OF SUMMER

By PEANDRA PRATT

LEARNING to apply make-up at the Eye Candy summer camp. Photos: Tim Clarke/Tribune Staff

Cycling Club Bahamas Cycling Club Bahamas. Weekday rides, east, morning, Tuesday & Thursday leaving 5am sharp from Sea Grapes Shopping Centre, East Prince Charles Drive.

This ride is a 17-mile loop to the Northbound Paradise Island Bridge and back again (Both bridges are sometimes incorporated depending on available time). Open to riders capable of 18mph+ for 1 hour.

Lights are essential.

Weekday rides, west, morning, Wednesdays & Fridays leaving 4:45am sharp from Fidelity Bank Parking Lot (opposite Cable Beach Police Station), West Bay St. This ride is a 20-mile loop. The route is varied. Open to riders ca-

JOIN THE CLUB OUR Clubs and Societies page is a chance for you to share your group’s activities with our readers.

To feature on our Clubs and Societies page, submit your report to clubs@ tribunemedia.net, with “Clubs Page” written in the subject line.

For more information about the page, contact Stephen Hunt on 5022373 or 447-3565.

pable of 18mph+ for 1 hr.

Lights are essential. Contact Shantell to confirm your attendance.

Afternoon, Tuesdays & Thursdays leaving 5:30pm sharp from Old Fort Shopping Center east of Solomon’s Fresh Market. This ride is 18-20 miles depending on whether you choose to do a second loop. Recommended for Strong Riders capable of 20mph+ for 1-1.5hrs. Intermediate Riders 18-22mph -see Spyda Weekend rides, Saturdays leaving 6am sharp from Harbour Bay Shopping Centre in front of First Caribbean Bank (Starbuck’s) 30-40 miles headed West. In order to complete this ride it is recommended that you have done some recent cycling! Leaving P/I Bridges optional at the end.

The pace will range from 18–20+mph, 2.5 hour duration Sundays leaving 6am sharp from Harbour Bay Shopping Centre in front of First Caribbean Bank (Starbuck’s) 40-50 miles headed East. This ride is not recommended if you have not cycled recently or first timers! P/I Bridges optional at the end. The pace will range from 18–20+mph, 3 -3.5 hour duration (cyclists are invited to join in anywhere along the route).

Upcoming events: Youth Cycling Developmental Programme, each Saturday at the tracks, con-

POTENTIAL make up artists have been learning the techniques at the Eye Candy Makeup Store & Studio’s sixth annual summer makeup camp this week at Mario’s Bowling and Entertainment Palace.

Twenty two girls aged eight to 18 interested in makeup artistry as either a

career or a hobby have been taking part in the camp, which started in 2010.

The camp describes itself as “the perfect introductory makeup class”, teaching the girls different everyday looks ranging from natural makeup, which is only foundation, powders, eyebrows, lip gloss and mascara, to more glamorous looks featuring eyeshadows, glitter, face-paint-

ing and more creative looks.

Many of the campers have been coming to the camp since it’s inception with two employed as makeup artists at Eye Candy.

Next year, the Harbour Bay Plaza-based store will be celebrating its 10-year anniversary and promises that the annual summer camp will be bigger and better in July, 2017.

LESLIE Pindling receiving a certificate from Rotaract VP Tiffany.

ROTARACT members at the Seahorse Institute.

tact Barron on 552-5128.

July 22-25 Team GearedUp to NYC “Tour of Hilltown”.

July 31 & August 1 Grand Bahama Road Cycling Championships 25 mile TT & 75 Mile Road Race Freeport, Grand Bahama.

August 13 & 14 Viva! Bahamas Invitational T/T & Road Race Nassau, Bahamas.

August 20 BASRA Marathon Swim, Grand Bahama.

September 11-18 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final Cozumel, Mexico http://cozumel.triathlon. org/event/schedule.

September 24 Potcakeman main event triathlon, Nassau, Bahamas.

November 5 & 6 Conchman Triathlon 30th An-

Bahamian economy. Some features mentioned were a parking garage, shops, a bowling alley, theatre, marina and various restaurants and bars.

Two new members were also inducted to the club .

On the Independence holiday weekend, the RCEN assisted with Painting at the Seahorse Institute. The Seahorse Institute provides programmes for children with autism and related disabilities in The Bahamas.

The club meets twice monthly on Mondays at Lifestylez Bar and Lounge (Formally Bacardi BarEast & Bay Streets). Fellowship begins at 6pm and meetings begin at 6.30pm.

Should you have any interest in joining the club, email rotaract.eastnassau@gmail.

niversary Race & Party, Grand Bahama.

February 4 - 2nd Annual Bahamas Medical Center Dri Tri. February 18 - Ride For Hope, Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera.

Rotaract Club of East Nassau Rotaract Club of East Nassau. - July has been a busy month for The Rotaract Club of East Nassau.

On July 4, Leslie Pindling came to speak to us on The Pointe. Mr Pindling provided the club with information on the development including how the development will revitalise downtown Nassau and benefit the

com or visit the facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RotaractEastNassau.

Rotary Club of New Providence Rotary Club of New Providence. - The club will be hosting a dunking for polio on July 30, from noon to 5pm. Past presidents, the current president and incoming president will all splash down in the dunk tank at the event, which is part of the campaign to end polio now. It will be held at Arawak Cay, from noon until 5pm. Hamburgers, hotdogs and drinks will be on sale. All proceeds are in aid of the Rotary Foundation.

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Funeral Service For

Percival Joshua Sweeting Sr., 61 affectionately called

“Percy” or “Luggo”

a resident of Bel Air Estates and formerly of St. James Road or Five Pound Lot, who died at his residence July 11th, will be held Friday, July 22nd, 2016, 10:30 a.m. at Five Porches Of Deliverance Centre Apostolic Tabernacle, Market Street and Poinciana Avenue. Chief Apostle J. Rodney Roberts assisted

by Rev. Timothy Stewart will officiate. Interment will follow in the Eastern Cemetery, Shirley Street.

Left with cherished memories are his wife, Patricia; son, Percival Jr.; Daughter, A’Leithia; brothers, Roscoe, Llewellyn, McArthur and Leroy Thompson; Sisters, Jennifer and Melanie Delancy; Jennifer Symonette, Linda Laing, Patrice Thompson, Louise Coleby and Judy Cartwright; Daughter-in-law: Lauren Sweeting; Five Aunts: Nurse Viola Sweeting-Butler, Mable and Ella Delancy, Jenny Basden and Janet Williams; Uncle: Louis Williams of Houston, Texas.

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Relatives and friends may pay their last respects at the church from 9:00 a.m. to service time.

THE TRIBUNE

‘The Bahamas’ own street philosopher’

Friday, July 22, 2016, PAGE 11

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PAGE 12, Friday, July 22, 2016

A DIGGER in action as Wulff Road is dug up.

THE TRIBUNE

Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

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By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net

EXTENSIVE road repairs being carried out on a mile-long stretch of Wulff Road this month have vexed scores of motorists forced to find alternative routes to offset traffic woes and poor driving conditions.

Over the last week, The Tribune has received calls and emails from motorists expressing their displeasure with the current state of the busy New Providence thoroughfare, many taking issue with how long the repairs are taking.

According to reports, repairs began earlier this month. At that time, officials gave the impression that work would be

completed in “a couple of weeks”. Residents claimed that the tentative timeframe was only given once they inquired about the nature and specifics of the repairs.

The Water and Sewage Corporation (WSC) is leading the repairs as it attempts to refurbish a series of integral underground pipes.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Works, Colin Higgs, yesterday confirmed that his department was awaiting the completion of WSC’s leg of the repairs to begin the rehabilitation and re-paving of the Wulff Road area.

This week, The Tribune asked businesses in the area how they had been affected but all expressed satisfaction that officials had ensured access to them was

not obstructed during the repairs. A spokesperson for one of the area’s most popular companies, FYP Builder’s Mall, said: “Business hasn’t been affected in any way. Our customers are able to get in and out of the store with relative ease and we are able to operate as usual.”

A WSC official told The Tribune that “the works are nearing completion and we should be substantially completed by this weekend”.

The works have affected motorists traversing a nearly mile-long stretch of Wulff Road, from the Claridge Road intersection to the East Street intersection.

There is no official word on when repairs would be completed.