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President of union to sue Sandals

By SANCHESKA BROWN Tribune Staff Reporter sbrown@tribunemedia.net

TRADE Union Congress President and attorney for the Bahamas Hotel Maintenance and Allied Workers Union Obie Ferguson said he will file a writ today in the Supreme Court on behalf of the more than 600 terminated Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort workers for “union busting” and “unfair dismissal”.

One day after employees were made redundant and given severance packages,

Mr Ferguson told The Tribune he is seeking reinstatement for all of the terminated workers. He accused the executives at the allinclusive, luxury resort of dismissing the workers for “being a part of a union.”

The resort closed on Monday to begin renovations. Officials have said the property will re-open in October.

Mr Ferguson also said he is “very, very” disappointed in the government for allowing “these foreigners” to come into the Bahamas and treat Bahamians like dirt.

He said with a general election on the horizon, workers should support those who support them.

“What we are doing now, we are filing unfair dismissal for every worker who was unfairly terminated and who was terminated as a result of union activities. He (Sandals’ owner Gordon ‘Butch’ Stewart) cannot be allowed to disrupt this country. We welcomed him to The Bahamas we think he should make as much money as he should but he

By KHRISNA VIRGIL Tribune Staff Reporter kvirgil@tribunemedia.net

TALL Pines MP Leslie Miller yesterday railed against the tactics of the Bahamas Maintenance and Allied Workers Union, saying the BHMAWU “held a gun to the head” of Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort executives and is now reaping what

it has sown with the “unfortunate” job losses of more than 600 resort employees.

During an impassioned interview, Mr Miller said despite the calls for the Christie administration to intervene on behalf of the redundant workers, there is “not one damn thing” the government can do as the resort is privately owned.

In a word of advice to

the union and those who believe they are free to do as they please under private ownership, the former Cabinet minister said they should all “carry their ass” and work someplace else if they are not pleased with the way resort owner Gordon “Butch” Stewart runs his business.

SEE PAGE SIX

SHAUNAE Miller holds her gold medal at last night’s medal ceremony, awarded for the women’s 400m at the 2016 Summer Olympics, inside the Olympic stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Photo: Andrew Medichini/AP

MILLER BACKS RESORT AND TELLS PM HAILS MILLER GOLD AS HISTORIC MOMENT FOR NATION UNION TO ‘CARRY THEIR ASS’

SEE PAGE SIX

MOTHER IN TEARS AS SHE TELLS OF FINDING SON DEAD

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net PATRICIA-MAE Wilson fought back tears in the Supreme Court yesterday as she recalled a 24-hour window on December 9, 2015 within which she had sent her son off to his father in good health only to later find him lying face down in the street, having been stabbed.

SEE PAGE SEVEN

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Perry Christie said yesterday that Shaunae Miller’s dramatic gold medal winning performance at the 2016 Olympic Games is one of the most extraordinary moments in this country’s history.

Mr Christie said as they watched the event from home, he and his family

danced with joy, but like other Bahamians, nervously paused at the end to determine who won the race.

“The impression initially from the announcers was the American had won until they looked at the photo finish and they saw the results listed that Shaunae had won,” he said.

“These moments in our history unify our country because every Bahamian,

notwithstanding challenges, despair, hopes, everyone came together as Shaunae was running for all of us and all of us were running for her.”

Ms Miller finished the 400 metres race in a personal best time of 49.44 seconds, ahead of one of the world’s most decorated sprinters, the USA’s Allyson Felix who clocked in at 49.51.

SEE PAGE TWO

DIVING INTO THE HEARTS OF THE 242

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net

CONGRATULATIONS poured in from different sectors of society yesterday, as Bahamians continued to marvel at Shaunae Miller’s gold medal performance Monday night at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.

Among those offer-

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ing congratulations were Prime Minister Perry Christie, who called the young Olympian’s performance “magnificent”, Free National Movement Leader Dr Hubert Minnis and Democratic National Alliance Leader Branville McCartney.

Ms Miller, 22, stunned the entire sporting world with her dive across the finish line to capture her

first Olympic medal shortly after 10pm Monday.

Speaking to The Tribune on Tuesday, Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Dr Daniel Johnson said he would soon be flying back to the Bahamas from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where he saw Ms Miller capture her first Olympic medal.

SEE PAGE THREE

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PAGE 2, Wednesday, August 17, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

BAHAMAS’ Shaunae Miller falls over the finish line to win gold in the women’s 400-meter final during the athletics competitions of the 2016 Summer Olympics at the Olympic stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Aug. 15, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

PM hails Miller gold as historic moment for nation from page one

Ms Miller’s dive at the end of the race may have been decisive in her victory and ignited fierce debate among observers on social media who questioned whether it was appropriate.

For his part, Mr Christie said the dive towards the finish line displayed Ms Miller’s indomitable spirit,

regardless of whether it was intentional.

“Whether she intentionally dove herself over, you know most athletes lean to get the edge at the finish line, but whether she accidentally fell or whether she purposefully did it, it was a wonderful outcome, a wonderful result for our country.

She reflected everything we would want Bahamians to be and everything we have

demonstrated through the ages as people who live throughout these islands, the indomitable spirit, never giving up, never giving in and being able to bring every possible muscle and sinew at the right time aimed at holding on and crossing the finish line. We are so incredibly proud of her that this demonstration of who we are, who we should be, who we wish to pass on to young Ba-

hamians, she’s put it all out there for us and the world is talking about her today and that is the most important thing. She gave everything of herself and it was such an extraordinary moment in this history of our country and I’ve identified it as one of the iconic experiences of our country, one of the iconic moments in the history of our country.”

Mr Christie said Ms Mill-

er’ accomplishment highlights the need to do more to develop the athletic talents of Bahamians.

“One of the great challenges we have is, unlike countries like Jamaica that continue to do well, Trinidad that we see is doing well in the region, little small Grenada that we see had two athletes in the 400m finals, what our challenge is as an island nation is we

have our resources concentrated in Freeport and New Providence and we don’t have the facilities yet in our islands to take advantage of some of these athletes who are gifted. We have to make haste right now to give them facilities in the islands even if it’s just an open great lawn of grass that you can train on so that we are able to cause them to be identified.”

SHAUNAE Miller celebrates with the Bahamian flag after winning the gold medal in the women’s 400m final.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, August 17, 2016, PAGE 3

Diving into the hearts of the 242 from page one The Carmichael MP, still overjoyed by performance, commended Ms Miller for her achievement; calling it the crowning jewel of years of hard work by every member of Team Bahamas’ 32 member squad.

“This moment, this historic achievement will certainly be memorialised in the best way possible,” said Mr Johnson. “She did not just do herself proud, she did the team, the country, the region; the world proud.

Shaunae has proven to the world that (the Bahamas) is again on the map athletically.”

Dr Johnson said while the “specifics” of a proposed celebration still have to be sorted out, his ministry, along with the Office of the Prime Minister, is preparing a “huge” event in honour of the success of Shaunae Miller, Team Bahamas and a host of other outstanding athletes.

“Next week you can expect a big moment once that team touches down home. Not jut for Shaunae, for the entire team. This is a moment for our country, a moment that we have to hold in high esteem because over the last decade we have worked to state the claim that the Bahamas is an athletic force. With this and all the other achievements by our athletes, we have done it.

“242 pride runs here and there, but wherever and when it runs, it runs deep.

So we have to celebrate this

THE IMAGE provided by Omega showing the photo finish of the women’s 400m final as Bahamas’ Shaunae Miller, bottom right, falls over the finish line to win gold ahead of United States’ silver medal winner Allyson Felix. achievement.”

Yesterday, Dr Minnis said Ms Miller is to be commended for “her years of hard work, training and commitment to excellence.”

“Her performance transcends all national divides and offers great cause for a collective celebration,” he added.

The Killarney MP called Ms Miller the country’s latest “Golden Queen”.

Meanwhile, Mr McCartney said Ms Miller’s victory stands as proof of the “indomitable Bahamian spirit.”

“Her victory on such a huge platform was a reminder to the world that although we may be small in size we are mighty and courageous. As she hoisted our beautiful flag into the air, she also lifted the spirits of the entire nation,” said the former Bamboo Town MP. Also weighing in, PLP leadership hopeful and for-

mer Attorney General Alfred Sears commended the athlete on her performance.

Mr Sears said Ms Miller’s determination shone through during her race, noting that she refused to be dominated while remaining focused on her destination.

“Shaunae was tough and beautiful in the moment.

An Olympic gold medal is the result,” he said.

Mr Sears added: “It is fitting to recognise that her gold medal performance was not the result of wishful thinking, or spur of the moment decision-making.

Shaunae is one of the nation’s premiere 200-metre runners, and her decision not to contest that event in order to focus on the 400 metres was not a unanimously popular one.

Shaunae, however, decided that she would sacrifice the possibility of two medals to focus on the one that meant the most to her, for

SHAUNAE Miller dives across the finish line ahead of United States’ Allyson Felix to win gold. whatever her own reasons ment, but an inspiration to was again in total control of may be.

Bahamians from all walks the race. This time, Ameri“For all these reasons of life who have ever nur- can favourite Allyson Feand more, we congratulate tured a dream and worked lix tried to take over. She Shaunae Miller on her gold towards its realisation. managed to close the gap at medal performance in the “Shaunae’s win signifies the end, but Ms Miller had 400 metres at the 2016 Rio that size is irrelevant when one surprise for her - divOlympics. Her achievement excellence is embraced as ing across the finish line to inspired a nation, and no a standard and there is a snatch the gold. doubt, a world.” refusal to rest on one’s lau“I saw Allyson the last The College of the Baha- rels.”

20 metres of the race and mas also released a stateDuring Monday’s race, then my mind just blanked ment on Ms Miller’s awe- Ms Miller stormed out of after that,” Ms Miller told inspiring performance. the blocks in lane seven, reporters shortly after the “Shaunae carried with her taking a commanding early race. “The only thing I was the heart and hopes of the lead as she fended off her thinking about was the gold Bahamian people. We sa- challengers. But on the medal. I was on the ground lute her determination, per- backstretch, she was chal- and I heard my mother severance and sacrifice that lenged by American Nata- screeching, so I knew I must catalysed this outstanding sha Hastings in lane four, have gotten the gold.” achievement including set- who pulled up beside her.

It was with that dive ting a new personal record But she shook that off going Shaunae Miller added her of 49.44 seconds. Not only is through the final curve. name to Bahamian sporting this an historic accomplishOff the bend, Ms Miller history.

SHAUNAE Miller lays on the ground after winning the women’s 400m final on Monday night at the Olympics in Rio.

READERS DELIGHTED AT MILLER’S OLYMPIC GOLD SUCCESS SHAUNAE MILLER’S thrilling gold medal-winning run in the Olympic Games 400m final prompted a flood of comments on tribune242.com.

Socrates said: “Fantastic job by Miller! I’m sure there will be sour grapes from some of her peers on the US side, but she won the race . . . Finish . . . Bahamas gold.”

Greentea1 paid tribute to the “gutsy” athlete: “Shaune Miller! What a gutsy win. Loved seeing that kind of will and determination in action. She decided she wasn’t losing and she would not be denied the win, Congratulations!! 242 all day!”

MassExodus thought it was a momentous moment: “What Shaunae Miller did last night was not only win

the Olympic Gold in the 400 with, in my opinion, the closest and greatest finish to an Olympic race, but she also defeated the most decorated female USA track athlete of all time. A MONUMENTOUS moment for Shaunae Miller and the Bahamas.”

Honestman said: “Congratulations to Shaunae on running the race of her life and bringing home the gold medal. Fantastic performance. Yet another golden girl!”

BlackbeardNYC was delighted with the win: “SO PROUD - living outside BAH now – it made me so proud to see a Bahamian take the gold. I appreciate it so much more.”

There was this from Baha10: “Still can’t talk, only type! Excellent! Proud night to be Bahamian! Well done Shaunae! Lift up your heads Bahamas! Let us use her inspiration and determination to fix and make our little country better again.”

An American reader, Johnmcntsh, was also proud of Shaunae’s achievement: “Although I am an American, we visit a lot. Halfway through the race we realized nothing was going to stop Shaunae.

She was not going to be

denied. So proud of that young lady!”

The “dive” over the finish line that brought the gold to Team Bahamas also sparked some discussion.

My2cents said: “It actually looked like she tried to lean in in order to get ahead of Felix, but she was too far from the finish line and couldn’t recover. It was either propel forward or suffer a clumsy fall, and no medal. Even Michael Johnson, and a couple of other sprinters said it was not intentional. Either way, it was a good race and she came out the winner.”

Honestman didn’t think the dive was deliberate: “I don’t think Shaunae deliberately dived to get over the line (but if she did it is still perfectly legal as the

rules stand). Personally, I think she became slightly imbalanced looking left to see where her opponent was and also was just completely whacked. It would be a shame if a rule change meant that a distance runner runs a great race, stumbles or dives over the line through exhaustion and is

then disqualified. Maybe not the most graceful finish but she won by the rules.”

PAGE 4, Wednesday, August 17, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

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Trump blasts nation-building but wants Iraq oil WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump says that as president he would end “our current strategy of nation-building and regime change” because they don’t work. His dislike for nation-building is shared by many, including none other than the target of his criticism, President Barack Obama.

In fact it was Obama’s predecessor, Republican George W. Bush, who committed the US to large-scale nation-building projects in Iraq and Afghanistan. Obama discarded that strategy while trying to keep enough US influence there to prevent those two countries from crumbling.

Obama’s approach may not have worked, but it’s not Bush-like “nation-building”.

And while the Republican presidential nominee argued against nation-building in a foreign policy speech Monday, he advocated for something even more grandiose: seizing Iraq’s oil wealth in the aftermath of the US invasion in 2003 that toppled Saddam Hussein.

“I have long said that we should have kept the oil in Iraq,” he said in Youngstown, Ohio. “I said, ‘Keep the oil. Keep the oil. Keep the oil. Don’t let somebody else get it.’” It would have required US troops to protect the oil, he said, but the benefit would have been clear today.

“If we had controlled the oil like I said we should, we could have prevented the rise of ISIS in Iraq, both by cutting off a major source of funding and through the presence of US forces necessary to safeguard the oil and vital infrastructure products necessary for us to have the oil.”

Rather than nation-building, this would have been nation-grabbing, making Iraq a de-facto American colony.

In the final months of his administration, Bush negotiated an agreement with the Iraqi government that called for all US troops to leave the country by December 2011. Obama stuck to that schedule, believing that the Iraqis needed to stand on their own while the US turned its attention to other pressing needs at home and abroad, what he called “nation building at home.” Obama, supported by his first secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, saw Bush’s nation-building effort as a proven failure.

Iraqi politics, however, never overcame sectarian divisions, undermining the Iraqi army and leaving an easy target for IS. Trump is right that the Islamic State

capitalised on the political and security vacuum in Iraq in 2014, but it’s not clear that a long-term US military occupation to hold and exploit Iraqi’s oil resources would have led to a more stable outcome.

Trump says he would have used money from the sale of Iraqi oil to pay for the care of wounded soldiers and the families of those Americans killed in the war.

“This proposal by its very nature would have left soldiers in place of our assets,” he said. “We would have had soldiers there guarding this valuable supply of oil.

In the old days, when we won a war, to the victor belonged the spoils.”

After major military victories, the 240-year-old United States has tended to pour money and aid back into countries it has fought to help re-establish governments and services. It was, in fact, a kind of nation-building approach. The US still has troops in Germany and Japan, with the permission of those nations, but it never confiscated their natural resources.

In his speech, Trump said that as president he would discard “nation-building.”

In its place would be what he called a new approach, which he described simply as halting the spread of “radical Islam.” He said that if elected he would convene an international conference on the topic and work closely with Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Russia, the NATO alliance and “all others who recognise this ideology of death that must be extinguished.”

Trump also called Monday for “extreme” ideological vetting of immigrants seeking admission to the United States, vowing to significantly overhaul the country’s screening process and block those who sympathise with extremist groups or don’t embrace American values.

“Those who do not believe in our Constitution, or who support bigotry and hatred, will not be admitted for immigration into our country,” Trump said.

“Only those who we expect to flourish in our country — and to embrace a tolerant American society — should be issued visas.”

Trump’s proposals were the latest version of a policy that began with his unprecedented call to temporarily bar foreign Muslims from entering the country — a religious test that was criticised across party lines as un-American.

By Robert Burns, AP National Security Writer

Time for a change EDITOR, The Tribune.

THERE were comments recently made by Obie Wilchcombe to let all and sundry know that it is useless to challenge Perry Christie for the leadership post in the Progressive Liberal Party in a convention. His reasons are that he has the support of the delegates and is able to hold the party together. It is quite unfortunate that those are the criterion that will be used by the delegates to make a choice of party leader.

Are these delegates Bahamians who live in The Bahamas? Have they not been able to see the destructive effects of what the past

four years under ‘Perry’ has done to the morality, economy and sovereignty of this nation? Are they not able to see the hopelessness and despair on the faces of the Bahamian people? Do they not see 5000 high school students graduating every year with no prospects of a sensible future? Do they not see the uncontrollable murder rates and the deal making that benefits foreigners more than Bahamians?

To deliberately make a choice to choose a “likeable” but incapable leader who is visionless, clueless and indifferent to the needs of the modern Bahamas borders on treason, in my opinion.

This nation will not survive another four years of ‘Per-

ry’. The delegates have the power to change that. The Bahamian people have the power to change that.

Perry Christie has been a member of Parliament for the past 40 years and Prime Minister for a total of nine years. His tangible benefits to his constituents and the Bahamian people are virtually non-existent.

He (and those close to him) alone have benefitted from him having been given the opportunity to “serve” the Bahamian people.

Considering the current state of politics in this country I can only say “may God help us all”.

JB Nassau, August 12, 2016.

Focus on parenting EDITOR, The Tribune.

NOW that we have accepted that women are free to have as many children as they wish or they can bear, and we have excoriated the hapless Richard Lightbourn for his unwise, unfortunate and offensive remarks at the FNM Convention last week, perhaps we can use some of that passion positively to effect change to a problem which we have been ignoring for decadesresponsible parenting.

I suggest that we take the

opportunity while the topic is fresh on our minds to consider several aspects of this problem including the following: 1. Finding a way to censure men who spread their seed indiscriminately and then ignore the fruit of their loins.

2. Giving consideration to having stiffer penalties for fathers who do not maintain their children and ignore maintenance orders from the courts.

3. Being more diligent in prosecuting more men who

impregnate underaged girls. (In this connection facilitators should also be included).

4. Giving consideration to a less humiliating and more effective way for mothers to enforce maintenance orders.

5. Having judges experienced and knowledgeable in family law hearing family matters.

JEANNE I THOMPSON Nassau, August 4, 2016.

Succession of the PM EDITOR, The Tribune.

WE must appreciate that in our small country, we have much to learn to and even more to experience.

In the past 49 years, we have only seen three Prime Ministers and four leadership races which led to a change in leader within one of the two major political parties. As a result, it is safe to say that we have not fully explored the limited possibilities of succession of a PM in the Westminster system.

Perhaps it may be best to consider these possibilities: 1. The PM leads his Party into the general election and his party loses. This effectively makes him the Leader of Opposition, but traditionally, such a loss is taken as a direct message from the people that they no longer have any confidence in the PM’s leadership. As a result, that person would ideally step down as leader, allowing for a new leader of the Party to be elected with the view that they will become the Leader of Opposition and lead the Party into the next general election.

This is what happened in the UK in 2010 when Gordon Brown and the Labour Party lost to David Cameron and the Conservatives. After it was clear that the Labour Party would not remain as the governing party, Gordon Brown, in one speech, both conceded and resigned as leader of the Party. Hubert Ingraham did the same thing in 2012. The issue with this approach is that there is no guarantee that the outgoing PM will accept the election results as a vote of no confidence in their leadership by the majority, as seen in 2007 when the PLP was defeated and outgoing PM Christie remained as leader of the Party.

2. The PM is challenged and defeated during his term. In the Westminster

LETTERS

letters@tribunemedia.net system, such an outcome usually leads to an early election being called, because it is understood that the new leader of the governing Party does not have the mandate of the people.

Therefore, it is only fair in a democratic system that the people be given an opportunity to vote for or against this Party with a new leader at the helm.

3. There is a transition of leadership where the PM indicates that he will NOT lead the Party into or after the next general election.

This is the simplest option and perhaps the most preferred. The Party has a convention to determine who the new leader will be, and that new leader prepares to lead the Party into the next general election while the PM has the opportunity to complete his full term. This is the concept of a co-leader or leader elect.

While it is not completely unconventional for a PM to resign either at the beginning of their term or midway into their term, we have to appreciate the implications this would have.

A Party wins an election with one leader who is given the mandate of the people, then changes leadership, forcing the people to deal with country leadership that they did not vote for or give a mandate to. It is easy to discredit this argument from a theoretical standpoint by stating that the PM is the first amongst equals and that we do not vote for a leader of the country, rather we vote for representatives who will make up the leadership of the country. While this may be true in theory, we are fully aware that in The Bahamas, as with many other countries, peo-

ple vote for Party and leadership more so than a representative. We have seen in recent events that David Cameron stepped down as PM only one year into his term, which has led to a public outcry for an early election to be called to allow the people to decide who they wish to have lead their country.

Given the above, it is rather baffling that some commentators have implied that Sears’ bid for leadership is either untimely due to its proximity to the next general election, or complicated by the fact that he is not a Member of Parliament. In the Westminster system, there is perhaps no better time, almost a year before general elections, to make a bid for leadership. It allows the people to vote for the Party with such leadership.

As it relates to his not being in parliament, this allows for the concept of a coleader or leader elect mentioned in option 3, where the new leader can focus on preparing the Party for a general election while the incumbent PM can complete the last few months of his term. The resolution of the Baha Mar project, for example, requires the full-time and careful attention of the PM. Therefore, the concept of a co-leader or leader elect will achieve an orderly succession of the PLP, serve the public interest and facilitate the PLP’s preparation of the next general elections.

Once an election is called, the fact that Sears is not an MP will be a non-issue, as he will be among the others fighting to be elected.

The Bahamas is in need of a transition in leadership. Alfred Sears just may have figured this out right after all!

MR DEMOCRAT Nassau, August 11, 2016.

Pride in Miller EDITOR, The Tribune.

EVER since Britain’s Desmond Bannister broke the 4 Minute Mile in the late ‘50’s, the athletic World has speculated on the finite limits of the endurance and speed of the human body .

As these limits of human velocity shrink, Shaunae Miller will be heralded as

the first in World Track History, to adopt this specific finishing tactic.

She has demonstrated immense determination, courage and sheer intelligence in her run. Her spontaneous, split second decision bordered on brilliance.

Defiantly walking Panamanian streets in my 5-day-

old Bahamas 1/2 Marathon shirt, rescued from the dirty basket, I’m not sure if the elicited stares are due to my country’s name or my odour.

I’ve rarely felt so proud to be a Bahamian abroad.

STUART HOWELLS, Nassau, August 16, 2016.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, August 17, 2016, PAGE 5

Minnis: Bahamians must not lose out on Baha Mar

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribuneemdia.net FREE National Movement Leader Dr Hubert Minnis yesterday renewed his warning to future Baha Mar investors not to engage in any negotiations with the Christie-led government that would disadvantage Bahamians.

Dr Minnis dug his heels into the party’s well-worn official position on the speculative negotiations to complete the shuttered $3.5bn Cable Beach property, but would not go so far as to say that he would seek to renegotiate a dissatisfactory deal if elected to government.

His comments come on the heels of revelations from an economic impact report of the resort obtained by The Tribune, which projected the government has lost an estimated $315m in tax revenue because of its opening delays and the court appointed receivership process.

“Whatever negotiations the government is in with the Chinese or whoever, they must take the Bahamian people into consideration and not use it as a political ploy to win points in the election,” he said. “Bahamians must be first, they

must always remember that.

“The Bahamians who worked on that project, we will not negotiate for them to take less than what was supposed to be paid, no bending or negotiations on the people’s money.”

Dr Minnis referred to the proposal by developer Sarkis Izmirlian, in which he outlined plans to have Bahamian contractors complete the project.

“In Sarkis’ negotiations he agreed that he would have Bahamians complete the project. Whoever comes in to complete, it will be Bahamians completing the project. We will not bend to any foreigners or anyone.

“We are putting the Christie government on warning, any sale of that hotel, Bahamians will complete the project. All monies owed to Bahamian contractors will be paid in full, we will not compromise with that.”

When asked whether his government would renegotiate if the deal did not meet these terms, Dr Minnis said: “The FNM after becoming the government, whatever he (Christie) does, the investor will know in advance. (Christie) better not negotiate any inferior deal. We are sending a warning to investors, Bahamians will come

first, we will not compromise.”

Baha Mar was initially expected to open in December 2014 but has been delayed several times since then, something Baha Mar officials have blamed on its general contractor China Construction of America.

The Supreme Court placed the property into receivership last October at

the request of the ExportImport (EXIM) Bank of China.

The economic impact report noted that more than 2,000 direct jobs were lost in 2015 due to the resort being placed into provisional liquidation and later receivership, adding that “the employment impact from (the) project once completed and fully operational (is) uncertain given

slower ramp up resulting from delays and reputational damage.”

According to the document, the resort was expected to create more than 9,000 jobs, with 3,000 being direct employment at the property.

The study also revealed that an estimated 800,000 stop over visitors have been lost due to the resort’s opening delays, with each

visitor expected to spend $576 a day.

Reacting to the report on Sunday, FNM Senator and former Attorney General Carl Bethel said the party would push for a Commission of Inquiry into Baha Mar if it wins the next election. Mr Bethel said a largescale investigation into the resort’s implosion is needed to “name and shame” those responsible.

RENEW BAHAMAS WELCOMES HOSPITAL CONFIRMATION

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

RENEW Bahamas’ chief executive officer yesterday expressed gratitude to the Public Hospitals Authority for its recent investigation into the dumping of biohazardous medical waste at the New Providence landfill, saying the PHA’s investigation will “encourage all those who interact with hazardous materials to follow the proper procedures and guidelines in the future”.

Michael Cox, the newly appointed Renew Bahamas CEO, officially thanked the PHA for officially confirming the source of the controversial disposals at the Harrold Road site, adding that Renew Bahamas is pleased that its decision to “raise awareness about the problem” has led “to such positive results”.

Mr Cox also said Renew Bahamas “tries it best to monitor and vet all materials coming into the landfill,” but said with “400 trucks a day” offloading at the site, it is “impossible for our staff to thoroughly examine every load”.

He added that the duty of care consequently lies with the client, particularly in the case of “professional waste collection companies,” to ensure that “the contents of their load have been properly treated”.

Nonetheless, Mr Cox said the company is committed

to working closely with the Bahamian public and all of its clients and partners, including the government, to “transform the landfill into a model safe, efficient and environmentally friendly operation in the shortest time possible”.

Mr Cox’s statements came just days after the PHA said its investigation into the disposal of untreated biohazardous medical waste at the landfill determined that the refuse originated from the Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH) and was not prepared according to international guidelines. The PHA also said that its investigation revealed that the holding station at PMH “has been illegally used by entities to dispose of medical and biohazards waste.”

The PHA also confirmed that investigators found that PMH documents were also found among the disposed refuse.

The investigation follows a report in July about the unsanctioned dumping of medical waste-- vials of blood, used needles and other medical remains--and patients’ documents at the dumpsite.

The PHA’s statement said that as a direct result of the infraction, an “ex gratia offer” of $10,000 was extended to Renew Bahamas to cover costs associated with “all remedial efforts to move and clean up the cited area”.

The PHA said PMH, along with Bahamas

Waste, further assisted with remediation efforts by providing disinfectant chemicals, pressurised chemical dispersion canisters, personal protective equipment and technical advice regarding exposure management and decontamination of waste.

PHA also said it has introduced several measures at PMH to mitigate against such an infraction, which includes taking legal action against anyone found disposing waste at PMH, as well as the implementation of closed circuit television (CCTV). PMH has also engaged a safety manager who now has direct oversight for the monitoring of refuse, in particular biohazardous waste.

The PHA also said it has notified the Ministry of Health of its concerns and “has urged that priority be given in collaborating with other government entities in carrying out a more extensive investigation into this illegal practice”.

Yesterday Mr Cox also acknowledged that “indiscriminate dumping of various forms of harmful waste” has plagued the Harrold Road site since the company first began operations in 2013.

However, Mr Cox said due to the company’s “ongoing educational efforts,” many of the company’s regular clients “now appreciate the importance of proper waste treatment and the need to recycle as much of the material coming into

HUNT STILL ON FOR MISSING 89-YEAR-OLD

THE family of a missing 89-year-old man suffering from dementia is still appealing to the public for help in locating their relative.

Charles Lightbourne has not been seen since Saturday, August 6, between noon and 5pm “in the fields” of the family’s expansive property on Carmichael Road west. He was last seen in a light-blue, long-sleeved shirt with short blue jeans and a “blue sailor hat.”

Family members said Mr Lightbourne is 5’10” with a slim build.

Anyone with information of his whereabouts is asked to call police at 911/919, the Central Detective Unit at 502-9991 or the nearest police station.

the site as possible”.

“Thanks to this growing awareness, along with our ever-expanding remediation efforts, the New Providence landfill is steadily transforming for the better,” Mr Cox said. “The $6m Materials Recycling

Facility installed in May was a significant step in the right direction and we believe the PHA’s report is yet another.”

Renew Bahamas is the private company contracted to manage and remedy the problems at the landfill.

SICKLE CELL DISEASE

THURSDAY, AUGUST 18, 2016 AT 6:00PM / DOCTORS HOSPITAL CONFERENCE ROOM, DOWDESWELL STREET

SPEAKERS

DR CORRINE SIN QUEE BROWN

DR TEDDY TURNQUEST

DR G. ASHAINI KNOWLES

PEDIATRIC HEMATOLOGIST

ADULT HEMATOLOGIST

PEDIATRIC SURGEON

Sickle Cell disease is a hereditary blood disorder affecting the red blood cells. These cells can become sickle shaped (hence the name of the disease) making it difficult for them to pass through small blood vessels. When those blood cells get trapped, they can’t carry oxygen to all parts of the body and this is what causes the pain and complications associated with Sickle Cell Disease. People with Sickle Cell can experience anemia, jaundice and gall stones as well as acute pain in the arms, legs, chest and abdomen.

Prolonged blockages can also cause damage to most organs including the spleen, kidneys and liver. Join us August 18 as Dr Corrine Sin Quee Brown, Dr Teddy Turnquest and Dr G Ashaini Knowles discuss how this disease impacts both children and adults.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR! Don’t miss next month’s lecture when Dr Alphaeus Allick discusses the beneets of following a “Plant-Based Diet.” Thursday, September 15, 2016

BONUS!

www.doctorshosp.com I (242) 302-4600

CHARLES LIGHTBOURNE, who suffers from dementia and has gone missing.

Isn’t Your Health Worth It?

PAGE 6, Wednesday, August 17, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

Govt under fire for failure to protect workers

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net UNION chiefs yesterday blasted the government for its perceived failure to protect the rights of the hundreds of Sandals resort workers who were made redundant without notice and allegedly forced to sign legal agreements “under duress” in order to receive severance pay.

Yesterday, a source close to Sandals said former employees would be given first preference for interviews as the resort prepares to reopen in October.

The source also painted a different picture of the severance process, telling The Tribune that it has gone smoothly with some employees “smiling” as they received their cheques.

However, Donnell Ferguson, president of the Bahamas Maintenance and Allied Workers Union (BMAWU), said the “un-

ion busting” move was unjustifiable as she pledged the union’s commitment to relentlessly pursue the matter on behalf of workers.

Mrs Ferguson took issue with Prime Minister Perry Christie’s decision to decline comment on the matter, also calling out Labour Minister Shane Gibson, Attorney General Allyson Maynard-Gibson, and the Official Opposition for their perceived inaction.

“This is unjustifiable what has happened in this country,” she said, “our leaders are not standing up for the people of The Bahamas. I rest this solely at the feet of the government of The Bahamas. The prime minister has declined to make a statement as a leader of this country.

“We will not sit by quietly and allow this to happen to our workers. If we allow this to happen to Sandals workers, other companies, other foreign investors will want to take that same po-

sition and where will the workers be?

“The workers are the backbone of The Bahamas and to be treated in such a manner as the workers of Sandals have been treated is poor. I cry shame on the government, shame.”

She added: “Not one word was said, not one word when they tried to get a comment from the PM, he declined. As a leader, and you want to be elected again? This has an impact on this whole country not just the workers at Sandals. It’s a whole ripple effect that is taking place and everyone is sitting back and twiddling their thumbs.”

For several years, BMAWU has had multiple ongoing labour disputes with the resort with the primary sticking point being Sandals’ refusal to recognise the union as the bargaining agent for its employees despite a 2011 ruling by the Privy Council that the resort do so.

Sandals has refused to negotiate with the union, and criminal proceedings filed by the union began on Monday.

“It is a clear union busting tactic,” Mrs Ferguson said yesterday.

“This is not the first time Sandals has done this. This is the second time. We are galvanising and we are putting all our info together because it was done so quickly we couldn’t even inform our members properly of what was to happen and how they were to go about it.”

She added: “(Workers) were asked to signed documents that said that Sandals would not be sued or liable or they can’t talk about it which the minister himself said was illegal. It was mandatory in order to get the cheque, it was attached to it, you could not get the cheque unless you signed for it.”

One Sandals worker, who worked at the resort

for four years, described the process to collect severance packages as “intimidating”.

“The atmosphere was filled with intimidation because they had maybe seven or eight security outside and then you had to go and wait,” the worker said.

“Then when they called you they said this is what you have to do in order to get your cheque, you have to read it, sign it, and you can get your cheque. If you don’t sign it you won’t be able to get your cheque.”

The worker continued: “It said once you sign this you can no longer sue Sandals, you are not longer tied to Sandals, whatever is on this paper is between you and Sandals, you can’t say anything about it.”

On Monday, Mr Gibson told the House of Assembly that it was illegal to force anyone to sign a deed of release in order to receive benefits to which they are entitled.

Yesterday, BMAWU first vice-president Omar Bernard said he yearned for a labour environment that would prevent any resort from resuming operations after committing such an egregious and reprehensible act.

“Not Sandals,” he said, “not under these conditions, that is just not fair and not the way citizens ought to be treated and the government is up to date on everything.

“What (Sandals) said is it’s not that we are going out of business, it’s that we are firing all of you and rehiring other workers. And they believe they can get away with it, but the battle has just begun. They have just added energy to this union and we will be here for employees affected and we’re going to be there for new employees.

“The union is not going anywhere,” he added. “We have to rail against oppression in this country.”

me my money? I am entitled to that. They paid them two weeks severance, unfair dismissal requires three weeks severance and up to maximum of 18 months.

They gave them six months, what happen to the other 12 months? But that’s the way they treat Bahamians.

People who are not familiar will jump and say ‘that is a good deal’ but that is not a good deal. They are entitled up to 18 months will all of

their benefits. What happen to the gratuity? That falls as a part of their wage. What happen to the meals? You must put them in the position they would have been in if everything had gone normal and if they were working there, what would they have gotten? That is what we are claiming, that is what they are entitled to.”

Mr Ferguson said he believes the government is “too slack” with foreign

investors and said he is disappointment that there has been no comprehensive response from anyone in Cabinet.

“The government seems to allow these people to do whatever they want at whatever cost,” Mr Ferguson said.

“We are disappointed these people can come to The Bahamas and treat Bahamians in this fashion. I sent letters to everyone let-

ting them know something was happening, the prime minister, the minister of labour, the minster of tourism, obviously these foreign people have more say than them. But I know one thing, election is coming and I am asking the workers, all workers of this country to support who support you.

The government’s first obligation is to its citizens but these people were dismissed and we have still not

got a comprehensive position from the government.”

On Monday, Prime Minister Perry Christie declined to speak on the Sandals matter when approached by reporters.

The Tribune understands that the rehiring process at the resort is already underway.

The repairs at Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort are expected to cost $4m with a 14-week timeline.

PRESIDENT OF UNION TO SUE SANDALS from page one

must respect the laws of the land,” Mr Ferguson said.

“The employees were forced to sign a waiver but that will not affect his court action. That is illegal,” he said, repeating comments Labour Minister Shane Gibson made in the House of Assembly on Monday.

“Why do I need to sign something for you to give

MILLER BACKS RESORT AND TELLS UNION TO ‘CARRY THEIR ASS’ from page one

Asked if he believed the union’s July protest, which

involved parking heavyduty trucks in the road to block off sections of West Bay Street near Sandals, had anything to do with the

THE BAHAMAS CO-OPERATIVE LEAGUE INSURANCE BROKERAGE LIMITED To Our Valued Customers:

Please be advised that The Bahamas Co-operative League Insurance Brokerage Limited will be closed on Friday, August 19, 2016 to allow staff to attend the company’s Annual Staff Fun Day. We will resume normal business on Monday, August 22, 2016.

We apologize for any inconvenience caused.

Management

redundancies, Mr Miller said “absolutely”.

“What spurred the man to do what he did sending all those people home is those big trucks,” Mr Miller told The Tribune when he was contacted. “Because you are a foreigner that don’t make you any less than a Bahamian.

“Sandals is not the government’s property. It isn’t BEC or Water and Sewerage or any government ran place. As the union it should not have done what it did to embarrass the executives of the hotel. It was not the right and proper thing to do.

“I don’t think it was right to send so many people home and I would ask him to please take all the workers back once the renovations are complete.

“But to me it was him sending a clear signal that the union could not dictate to him how to conduct his business.”

He continued: “If they didn’t like it, they could have carried their ass and work someplace else. But they can’t go around doing this foolishness. They held a gun to the man’s head with his own business. The unions must understand

this cannot and will not work.”

On Monday, many of the workers said they were caught off guard by the news, with scores of them showing up to work in uniform only to be told they no longer had jobs.

The employees received their severance packages at Christ the King Anglican Church and the resort’s Cable Beach location. A source connected to the resort said the average payout to line staff was $6,105.

The lowest payout in this category was $758 and the highest payout was $22,717, The Tribune was told.

According to the wellplaced source, the average payout for supervisors was $20,614, with the highest payout being $34,747 and the lowest payout was $4,626.

It is unclear if all the terminated employees will be rehired when the resort re-opens in October after renovations, however a source close to the property clarified earlier statements, telling The Tribune yesterday that staff who were made redundant will have first preference for interviews.

The situation drew rebuke from Labour Minister Shane Gibson who said the government had very little notice of the Sandals’ decision to make the 600 employees redundant.

However, Mr Gibson’s suggestion was denied by a source connected with Sandals who told The Tribune that high-ranking officials of the resort informed Prime Minister Perry Christie of the intention to make employees redundant.

During a communication in the House of Assembly on Monday Mr Gibson said: “It was with deep disappointment that the Ministry of Labour received a letter from Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort, informing us that the contracts of more than 600 employees would be terminated today as a result of Sandals’ closure.

“My ministry first learned about the closure on Tuesday, August 1, with the rest of the country when information was leaked to the media and printed in a local newspaper. I requested a meeting with officials from Sandals on August 3.

“We met with Chief Executive Officer of Sandals Resorts International

Adam Stewart as well as members of his executive and legal teams. During that meeting, we asked them to consider laying employees off instead of making them redundant. They told us they would consider this suggestion and get back to us within 24 hours. However, after not hearing from them, my ministry wrote Sandals a letter on August 4, requesting the resort’s latest position and further details on the proposed closure.

“Sandals has yet to respond to my ministry,” Mr Gibson added. “Instead resort representatives wrote the attorney general and copied the Ministry of Labour on Friday, August 12, informing us of their decision.”

Mr Gibson said the government has been advised that the resort will be closed for eight weeks as it carries out renovations because hotel officials said the work could not be carried out in the presence of guests.

The resort, he said, indicated that it would retain 44 Bahamian managers, 13 work permit holders and 44 line staff members to maintain the property during the closure.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, August 17, 2016, PAGE 7

CUBAN detainees Carlos Pupo and Lazaro Seara outside court on Thursday.

Photo: Tim Clarke/Tribune Staff

Govt faces interest bill on damages to Cubans

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

THE $150,000 in legal costs the government must pay in connection with the illegal detention of two Cuban nationals could increase daily if the Christie administration fails to pay as ordered by the Supreme Court.

Months after Senior Justice Stephen Isaacs issued a writ of habeas corpus granting the release of Carlos Pupo and Lazaro Seara Marin from the Ba-

hamas Department of Correctional Services (BDCS), the court had certified the award of $75,000 each in costs for the habeas corpus application that had been argued by Fred Smith, QC, of Callenders & Co in February of this year.

After the July 13 certified taxation order, the Cubans’ lawyer wrote a letter, dated July 28, to the Office of Attorney General requesting compliance of the court’s orders by August 15 lest any further interest accrues on the legal costs.

However, the payment,

which included an additional $5,000 - representing 6.75 per cent interest owed up until the deadline - was outstanding up to press time yesterday.

The letter, addressed to the Crown, notes that an additional $27.74 daily will be applied for any additional delay on payment.

During the brief hearing that lasted 10 minutes in February, the judge was made aware of the circumstances behind the pair’s detention.

In March 2013, Seara Marin was arrest in Andros

MOTHER IN TEARS AS SHE TELLS OF FINDING SON DEAD from page one

The mother of 12th grade Doris Johnson Senior High School student, Adonai Wilson, told a 12-member jury that her dead son would have turned 17 this Thursday if he had still been alive.

“When was the last time you saw him alive?” prosecutor Kristan Stubbs asked.

“It was the day before he died, which was the eighth when he left to go to his father,” the teen’s mother said.

“He was healthy from what appearance I saw.

Only God knows what gone on inside,” she added.

Speaking about the day her son was fatally stabbed, Wilson’s mother said she had to make a “couple of runs” that day.

“I got a call from my daughter that he (Adonai) got stabbed on Prince Charles (Drive) by the light.

I made my way out there and the traffic was thicker.

I kept coming in and out of the lane, not knowing what I was going to. As I moved towards Esso (Service Station), the ambulance passed me,” Mrs Wilson said.

“It parked across from where Adonai was. I parked in front of it and I ran out of the car to where Adonai was. He was lying face down,” she added.

“After you saw him, what did you do?” the prosecutor then asked.

“I broke down, I broke down and cry,” Wilson’s mother said, as she wiped away tears from her eyes.

“After you saw your son, where did you go?” the prosecutor asked.

THE THREE young men, with faces concealed, who are accused over the killing of Adonai Wilson.

“I had to accompany him sisting in the prosecution of to the hospital so I drove in the case. front in the ambulance with Tai Pinder appears the driver to PMH,” the alongside Mr Reckley and witness said.

Karissma Romer with Mr The witness said she and Ducille. her family returned to the Before Mrs Wilson was Rand Morgue at Princess called to the witness stand, Margaret Hospital to iden- the jury heard evidence tify her now dead son. from Detective Cpl Davard Three accused teens, Frazier who said that on ages 18, 15 and 17, who deny December 11, 2015, he went murdering her son, sat in to the Rand Lab where he the prisoner’s dock as Mrs saw and spoke with a paWilson gave her evidence. thologist who gave him cerAccording to initial re- tain information. ports, Wilson, 16, was He said the physician stabbed multiple times dur- pointed out to him an aping an argument with sev- parent stab wound in the eral other students shortly centre of a lifeless male’s after school was dismissed back, another at the back early because of exams. He waist line and two to the died in hospital a short time upper right arm. later.

The officer said he phoThe incident took place tographed the face and inaround 2pm on Prince juries of the dead male and Charles Drive and a graphic received toxicological samcell phone video of the in- ples from the pathologist cident was spread on social that he later turned over to media. the police forensic lab for The teens have retained DNA tracing and forensic attorneys Murrio Ducille, analysis.

Roberto Reckley and Ian The trial resumes today Cargill to represent them. before Justice Bernard Bradford McKenzie is as- Turner.

by officers of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.

Despite his arrest, he was never charged in court for the incident.

He was brought to Nassau and held at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre.

In July 2013, he was transferred to the BDCS and initially held in the remand centre before he was placed in the maximum-security section where he remained up until the day of the hearing.

Seara Marin had been in custody for 34 months.

Pupo, Mr Smith said at

the hearing, had been unlawfully held for 32 months following an arraignment in Abaco on a charge of illegal landing in May of 2013.

Pupo had pleaded guilty to the charge and immediately paid the fine imposed on him by the court.

At the request of immigration officials, he paid for a return ticket to Florida.

Instead he was taken to Nassau and detained at the Carmichael Road Detention Centre until July 2014, when he was transferred to the BDCS. Pupo was also placed in

maximum security after a short stint in the remand centre, the court heard.

Franklyn Williams, of the Office of theAttorney General, said the Commissioner of Corrections Patrick Wright would not contest either application.

As a result, Senior Justice Isaacs ordered the release of the Cuban nationals and awarded legal costs to the applicants.

Martin Lundy II, Alex Morley, Crispin Hall and Adrian Gibson also appeared for Pupo and Seara in February’s applications.

PAGE 8, Wednesday, August 17, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

Bank reveals extent of crime in The Bahamas T

HE Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has just published the most comprehensive report ever on crime and violence in The Bahamas.

Researcher Heather Sutton compiled data from multiple sources on the scope and nature of crime and violence in the country. The aim is to establish a baseline against which progress can be measured.

The report surveyed crime prevention and suppression policies, programmes and projects adopted by government and non-governmental organisations, and suggests the most effective ways forward.

In her executive summary, Ms Sutton notes that Bahamian police and public health records “confirm high levels of crime and violence (specifically murder, armed robbery, and rape) that have consistently risen during the past decade”.

Here are the main findings: • The murder state has doubled over the past decade and is now among the highest in the region - at 31.9 per 100,000 in 2014.

• Victims of homicide are predominantly males between 18 and 25, and retaliation is the main murder motive.

• Over the last five years 86 per cent of all murders took place in New Providence.

• Guns are used to commit most murders, but there are just as many stabbings treated at the Princess Margaret Hospital as there are gunshot wounds (288 gunshot wounds and 251 stabbing wounds in 2013).

• The number of gunshot and stabbing wounds treated at PMH far outweighs the number of murders.

There were 4.5 times as many stabbings and shootings treated at the hospital, and these are increasing at an even higher rate than murder.

• Violence against women and children is a major concern, although no surveys have been done on prevalence of either intimate partner violence or sexual violence.

• The average rate of rapes reported over 2009– 2013 was 27 per 100,000

population - above the already-high regional average - and rape is highly underreported.

• Cases of rape treated at PMH alone were nearly 1.6 times higher than those recorded nationally by the police.

• Unarmed robberies increased 92 per cent, from 2006 to 2013. Armed robberies are much higher in number and have also nearly doubled over the same period.

• Vehicle theft has more than doubled in the last ten years.

• Eighteen different gangs are operating in The Bahamas. They vary in size, membership, and the extent of involvement with illegal activities.

• There is a lack of empirical research identifying the specific risk and protective factors relevant to crime and violence in The Bahamas.

• The Bahamas needs

improved data collection as well as increased data sharing and transparency to gain a better understanding of what works and what doesn’t.

The lack of transparency was a key complaint. The IDB report identifies significant barriers to the sharing and analysis of data. “Much of the information requested for this report was not provided even after extensive requests at the highest levels (and) data sharing even among government entities is not common practice,” the report notes.

This is a critical failure, the report says, because dealing with crime effectively depends on research and objective evaluation of policies, programmes and strategies.

And this requires both transparency and a willingness to invest in data collection, monitoring and evaluation — something no Bahamian government has attempted to do.

AN INTERESTING THING FROM THE FNM CONVENTION Aside from the cat fighting, the recent Free National Movement convention did little to bolster party unity or enhance the party’s public appeal. But there was one thing of interest.

It was a speech by a young mother named Astra Armbrister-Rolle, who said the fate of the country now rested in the hands of young people and women.

She was referring to the fact that 50 per cent of voters in the 2017 election will be under 35 and over half of them will be women.

“We have the opportunity to create jobs through innovation...to fight injustice (and) get involved in shaping the future for our children,” she told delegates.

Ms Armbrister-Rolle is a fundraising professional who has worked in Canada and is director of development at the Bahamas National Trust. In her speech, she offered a wish list of items that would attract her vote in the upcoming election: Tackling economic inequities and removing barriers to resources and opportunities; leading by example, to fight corruption from the top; real action on land issues and a commitment to Bahamian ownership of the economy; and modernisation of the school system to meet 21st century needs.

“These are my demands,” Ms Armbrister-Rolle said.

“A better country with greater chance of survival and success for my son. This is a plea for change, and for the leaders of this country to get it right for all of the

mothers out there who fear for our children.

“A good family friend once told me to never fear speaking up for what is right. If I can stand up and demand better of my leaders, maybe some other woman or young person will have the courage and assurance to do the same.”

PORK-BARREL POLITICS AND THE FOOD INDUSTRY As the government pours millions of unaccountable tax dollars into a political pork-barrel project on Andros called BAMSI, the only two commercial food processing firms in the country have quietly gone out of business - putting at least 20 Bahamians out of work.

P W Albury & Sons, distributors of Champion brand canned products, announced the closure of its Centreville plant last month. And Sawyer’s Food Products shut its Claridge Road factory at the end of 2013. Both had been canning food since the 1950s.

In 1959, Paul Albury, a schoolteacher from Spanish Wells, acquired the defunct J S Johnson canning operation, which traced its origins to the early years of pineapple farming on Eleuthera.

Sawyer’s was founded in Nassau in 1957 by Wesley and Norma Sawyer, operating initially from a small plant in Oakes Field. Mr Sawyer had trained in food processing at Arthur Vining Davis’ Three Bays Farm on Eleuthera.

Both companies started out canning tomatoes and pigeon peas supplied by small farmers around the country. Over the years, they expanded their product ranges to include beans, jams, sauces - and even items like conch chowder and pig’s feet souse (under the Sawyer’s label).

But for the past 15 years at least, both were importing all their raw materials - including produce. In an effort to stay afloat, P W Albury even began importing pre-canned products from the US to distribute under their own label.

Spokespeople for both families identified two major factors that led to the demise of their companies.

“Bahamians have totally changed their eating habits,” said Caroline Albury, Paul Albury’s granddaughter. “Most rely on fast food outlets now rather than cooking their own meals.

That plus the high overheads made it impossible to compete with imported goods.”

And according to for-

mer plant manager Michael Sawyer: “It was difficult to source raw materials in the right quantities at the right cost. Import controls on competitive foreign products were dropped in the early 2000s, and high local overheads made it difficult to operate.”

It boils down to the same old Bahamian story - a tiny fragmented market with low volumes can produce no economies of scale. It’s much cheaper and easier to import food products from larger countries with major agro-industries.

The pineapple industry is a case in point. Exports of canned pineapples began in the mid-1800s from Eleuthera. And the J S Johnson company was formed in 1876 to can pineapples, tomatoes, guavas, grapefruit and other produce at a factory on Union Street in Nassau. Back then, newspaper reports described Eleuthera as “one big flourishing pineapple plantation.”

The peak year for Bahamian pineapples was 1892, when more than eight million were exported. But Hawaii and the Philippines - with better growing conditions and distribution networks - started producing pineapples and The Bahamas simply could not compete.

By the late 1920s, the industry had collapsed. J S Johnson closed its factory and set up an insurance agency. Later the factory was sold to Paul Albury, who moved the plant to its present site in Palmdale.

When Paul died in 1964, sons David and James took over and changed the name to P W Albury & Sons.

When the sons died, David’s three children kept the company going.

In the 1940s, Wesley Sawyer worked at the Telecoms Department in Rock Sound. He met and married Norma Perpall, who was Arthur Vining Davis’ secretary. Mr Davis - the legendary chairman of Alcoa - was a big developer and landowner on Eleuthera.

Mr Sawyer started working at Davis’ Three Bays Farm on a tomato and pineapple canning operation. He went to the US for training, and then moved to Nassau. After working with Carl Claridge, shipping okra in brine to the US, he set up his own canning plant on Crawford Street in Oakes Field, moving to bigger premises on Claridge Road in 1964.

Wesley Sawyer died in 1974, but his wife and two sons - Kenneth and Michael - kept the company operating until December 2013.

• What do you think?

Send comments to lsmith@ tribunemedia.net or visit www.bahamapundit.com.

THETRIBUNE TRIBUNE THE

Wednesday, August 17th,17, 2016, PAGE A99 Wednesday, August 2016, PAGE

WHALES

TECHTALK

ON THE WEB WEBCAM VIEWERS FROM AROUND THE GLOBE HELP WITH RESEARCH A WEBCAM’S audience from around the globe is getting incredible views of 3,000 beluga whales that gather near that western part of Hudson Bay in Canada each summer.

The white whales, which resemble oversized dolphins, nuzzle and clown for the camera. They feel the lens with their teeth and blow bubbles at it. Sometimes they swim upside down for a better view.

That’s what Stephen Petersen, head of conservation and research for Winnipeg’s Assiniboine Park Zoo, and his wife, biologist Meg Hainstock, are looking for. Only when the whales turn upside down can the researchers determine their sex, which they need as they study the animals’ social structure and behavior.

The webcam’s viewers are helping, too.

Its creators — Bozeman, Montana-based Polar Bears International and Explore. org, a project of the Annenberg Foundation — included a “snapshot” feature that allows viewers to take still

shots of the feed. Petersen and Hainstock hope the result will be a trove of photographs of individual whales that will help them catalog the population as they try to answer questions about the animals’ behaviour.

For example, why do certain whales of a similar age and sex consistently gather at certain times or locations?

What function do Hudson Bay’s estuaries serve for these animals? Do beluga whales have a matriarchal social structure? Do certain whale groups’ low numbers have a long-term effect on the rest of the population, such as the case with the population in Alaska’s Cook Inlet, which is struggling as compared to the healthy Hudson Bay population?

“As far as I know, there’s no other investigation of beluga from under the water on this scale,” Petersen said.

“A lot of the stuff that’s been done before is from observers on top of the water. It doesn’t really give us a good sense — belugas don’t spend a lot of time on top of the water.”

THIS photo provided by Explore.org shows the view of a beluga whale from a webcam gathered in the Churchill River in the Hudson Bay in Manitoba, Canada. (AP)

Explore.org and Polar Bears International have used similar crowdsourcing technology to monitor polar bears’ annual migration in Hudson Bay. Researchers hope years of viewers taking snapshots will provide them with images that can help assess the bears’ health and reproductive rates.

Other scientists are increasingly using crowdsourcing to raise money for research or perform tasks that would be too costly or timeconsuming to be performed by a team of researchers.

One of the most well-known projects is by the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, whose software has been downloaded by millions of users and allows researchers to use the dataprocessing power of those computers in the institute’s

search for alien life in space.

“In general, there is a growing interest in using citizen science projects to raise awareness and support scientific research,” said Krista Wright, executive director of Polar Bears International.

For the beluga whale project, Petersen said viewers are instructed on how to identify males from females, and are then asked to take snapshots when the whales flip over and their sex is in view of the camera. The photographs are tagged male or female and uploaded to a database that will help identify individual whales and their locations.

Operators switched on the cameras July 15 and have since averaged about 2,500 viewers a day, according to Explore.org spokesman Mike Gasbara.

The researchers hope that after this season ends in August, they will have a catalog of individual whales that can be tracked in subsequent years, along with the locations where different groups are gathering to find if any patterns emerge.

Understanding the beluga whales is important because their ecosystem soon may be altered with the effects of climate change, Gasbara said.

Less Arctic ice could bring threats to the beluga in the form of killer whales and increased boat traffic and pollution, he said.

“I think because we’re right at the beginning of this, any information that we get on social structure is going to be informative for other locations,” Petersen said.

Associated Press

FORD SAYS IT WILL HAVE FULLY AUTONOMOUS CAR BY 2021 GOOGLE’S video chatting app on mobile devices.

The app, dubbed Duo, represents Google’s response to other popular video calling options, including Apple’s FaceTime, Microsoft’s Skype and Facebook’s Messenger app. (AP)

GOOGLE’S DUO APP JOINS THE CROWDED FIELD OF VIDEO CALLING

KNOCK, knock, Google’s video chatting app has arrived.

The app, dubbed Duo, represents Google’s response to other popular video calling options, including Apple’s FaceTime, Microsoft’s Skype and Facebook’s Messenger app.

Duo isn’t much different from the other video chatting services, except that it gives a glimpse at who is making the call, helping the recipient decide whether to answer.

Google calls this feature, “Knock, knock.”

The new app, announced in May, was released Tuesday as a free service for phones running on Google’s Android operating system as well as Apple’s iPhones.

Like FaceTime for iPhones, Duo only requires a person’s phone number to connect. Many other

services require both participants to have account logins to use their video calling options.

Google has been offering video calling through its Hangout feature for several years, but the internet company is now tailoring that service for business meetings.

Duo is being billed as a simpler, more reliable way to see friends and family as you talk to them.

It is the first of two new mobile apps that Google, owned by Alphabet Inc., has planned for this summer.

The Mountain View, California, company also is preparing to unveil a new messaging app called Allo featuring a robotic assistant that will suggest automated responses to texts.

Associated Press

FORD Motor Co. intends to have a fully driverless vehicle — no steering wheel, no pedals — on the road within five years.

The car will initially be used for commercial ride-hailing or ridesharing services; sales to consumers will come later.

Ford CEO Mark Fields announced the new goal Tuesday at the company’s Silicon Valley campus in Palo Alto, California.

“This is a transformational moment in our industry and it is a transformational moment for our company,” Fields said.

Ford’s approach to the autonomous car breaks from many other companies, like Mercedes-Benz and Tesla Motors, which plan to gradually add selfdriving capability to traditional cars. Instead, Ford is taking the same approach as Google, which supports moving directly to selfdriving cars once the technology is perfected.

“We abandoned the steppingstone approach of driver-assist technologies and decided we were going to take the full leap,” said Raj Nair, Ford’s chief technical officer, Nair says Ford will continue developing driver-assist systems, like automatic emergency braking or lane departure warning.

But making personal cars more autonomous is dangerous, he said, because Ford hasn’t figured out how to make sure drivers stay

engaged and ready to take back the wheel when the car encounters an obstacle. Removing the driver solves that problem.

Ford’s vehicle will be specifically designed for commercial mobility services, like taxi companies, and will be available in high volumes. Ford says personal ownership of self-driving cars will come later.

The Dearborn, Michiganbased company also says it plans to double the staff at its Palo Alto research centre by the end of next year to nearly 300 people. It will buy two more buildings next to its current building in order to expand its campus, Fields said.

Ford said it will make several investments and partnerships to speed its development of autonomous vehicles.

Ford and Chinese search engine company Baidu will each invest $75 million in Velodyne, a company that makes laser sensors that help guide self-driving cars. Velodyne, based in Morgan Hill, California, says it will use the $150 million investment to expand design and production and reduce the cost of its sensors.

Laser sensors — called Lidar, which stands for light, detection and ranging — can also be used in conventional vehicles as part of driver assist systems such as automatic emergency braking.

Associated Press

• A TESLA electric car caught fire during a promotional tour in southwest France, but those aboard escaped unharmed.

Tesla said in a statement that it is “working with the authorities to establish the facts” about Monday’s fire in Bayonne.

The driver was quoted in local newspaper Sud Ouest as saying he answered a Facebook ad offering test drives of the Model S sedan.

The driver said he saw smoke, and the three people aboard got out before seeing it catch fire.

Regional administration spokesman Patrice Abbadie said Tuesday that nobody was hurt and no property was damaged.

The U.S. government investigated Tesla in 2013 after two fires in Model S sedans, but closed the investigation after Tesla raised the cars’ suspensions and added a titanium shield to protect their batteries.

• A FRENCH mayor has denounced the “anarchical settlement” of “Pokemon Go” characters on the “territory” of his eastern village and has ordered the game’s creator to remove the virtual creatures.

Bressolles Mayor Fabrice Beauvois said Tuesday that he has mailed a decree to California-based Niantic Inc. and The Pokemon Company to make sure they stop setting up Pokemons in the village of about 800 inhabitants northeast of Lyon.

In his decree, the mayor says the search for Pokemons puts pedestrians and drivers at risk because players get inattentive while watching their smartphones and that it may also result in groups of people forming at night.

The game, increasingly popular around the world, sends players into the real world to search for digital monsters known as Pokemons, which appear on their smartphone screens.

• CONSUMERS think smartphone makers are releasing too many new models each year, a survey showed this week.

The survey conducted in six countries, commissioned by the environmental group Greenpeace, showed that more than half of those who responded would prefer to change their phones less frequently.

Handset devices are one of the most frequently replaced electronics products.

The top cellphone companies, Samsung and Apple, launch new flagship phone models at least once every year, showing off the latest display and mobile processor technologies.

Phone makers typically upgrade their cheaper lineups as well.

“Over half of respondents across the countries surveyed agree that manufacturers are releasing too many new models, many designed to only last a few years,” said Chih An Lee, global IT campaigner at Greenpeace East Asia.

“In fact, most users actually want their phones to be more easily dismantled, repaired and recycled.”

PAGE 10, Wednesday, August 17, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

Kelly’s donates kitchen to help children’s home

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

IN the spirit of giving back, Kelly’s Freeport Ltd generously donated and installed a brand new kitchen at the Grand Bahama Children’s Home.

Lynn Lowe, managing director at Kelly’s, said she was very touched when she visited the home and saw the tremendous need there.

There has been a significant increase in the number of children residents at the home, with occupancy reaching up to 31. And of that number, 14 are children under the age of four.

After recently visiting the home, Mrs Lowe said that Kelly’s is committed to do everything it can to help.

“We called them and asked if they wanted a kitchen and they said they would love it. We had our contractors come and take out the old kitchen and installed the new one, and they are excited.

“We are very happy to add some excitement to the

home through the kitchen renovation project. The new kitchen looks amazing,” she said.

In addition to the kitchen project, Kelly’s has also assisted in transforming and improving the home’s computer room by installing new countertops as workstations for all the computers.

This comes just in time for the upcoming school term, as the computer room is where the children go for tutoring and to complete their homework assignments.

Although Kelly’s has always donated to the home in the past, Mrs Lowe said her first visit was during the kitchen renovation project.

“I had never been here before. I was blown away by the whole experience of being here,” she said. “All the kids were here and it really is eye opening to know there are children that cannot be cared for under normal circumstances.

“I met all of the aides and the people who take care of

them. I cried because it was very touching that these children will have, although it is not completely normal, a life given to them by the benefit of other people in the community.

“Kelly’s has always been one to give back to the community as much as we can when we see a need. We have always done things for them before, but coming here and experiencing what happens on a daily basis and struggles for food, diapers, and clothes, and I kind of made a pact to do everything we can do.”

Mrs Lowe said they have now started a food drive at Kelly’s in an effort to also get the community involved in assisting the home.

“We want to get other people in the community to realise what goes on there and to help as much as they can,” she said.

Jean Hivert, treasurer at the Grand Bahama Children’s Home Committee, commended Kelly’s for the donation.

“I think it is an awesome donation from Mrs Lowe

KELLY’s unveiling the new kitchen at the Grand Bahama Children’s Home. and Kelly’s. The kitchen tance. She said they are in resources and marketing was falling apart and we need of baby supplies. manager at Kelly’s, is en“We have 14 babies and couraging the community had done some work trying to patch it up without much we need lots of (diapers) to donate food items, espesuccess. This is a very wel- and baby food. We want cially snacks for school. to thank people who have comed gift.”

She said Kelly’s will be Ms Hivert said that the brought cribs also,” she collecting donations during committee has put appeals said. the months of August and Lynne Fraino, human September. out on Facebook for assis-

to the home on Tuesday.

Ravanno Ferguson, president of Fast Track Management, said part proceeds raised from its second annual “Glow Run” held in July were used to purchase supplies.

“We were able to purchase all the items on their list. We did very well at the run this year and were able to raise additional funds by incorporating a midnight mile event,” he said.

Fast Track Management is a sports management company that assists athletes in terms of fitness – in track and field, basketball and other sporting fields.

The company also conducts fast track fitness programmes for the general public and holds several fitness events every year.

Shavon and Ricky Martin of Fly High Promotion said that they have adopted the

Grand Bahama Children’s Home as their sole charity.

“We believe in giving back and after every event we hold we give part proceeds to charity. A couple years ago a friend of mine who is on the GB Children’s Home board told us of the need at the children’s home and so we have been donating snacks and food items. We try our best to give back, especially to the children, and

GROUPS OFFER SUPPORT AHEAD OF SCHOOL YEAR

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

TWO local organisations have donated much needed supplies and food to the Grand Bahama Children’s Home just in time for the new school year.

Fast Track Management and Flying High Promotions presented school supplies, toiletries and snacks

SCENES from the Jazz in the Square event, above and below, in Churchill Square in Freeport on Friday.

JAZZ BRINGS A BUZZ TO DOWNTOWN FREEPORT

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

THE Churchill Square in downtown Freeport was buzzing with excitement on Friday with a ‘Jazz in the Square’ event, the second of four events planned by the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) to promote economic activity in the downtown area.

The GBPA Ltd and its Invest Grand Bahama Small Business Bureau (IGBSBB) launched a ‘Back to School Family Fridays’ initiative on August 5.

On Friday, August 12, it hosted a jazz event with performances by Methice Rigby & Friends and spoken word from poets ‘Esi Amani’, ‘T O Gittens’, Siadra Sutherland, Antonio

Smith and ‘Copy Written’.

Derek Newbold, GBPA’s senior manager of business development and Invest Grand Bahama, said the event provided exceptional entertainment, as well as the opportunity for merchants to showcase their products and services.

“The event was well attended and the performances were all first rate,” he said. “It really was a one of a kind event for downtown, and the attendees loved it.

“It’s important to us that our licencees and residents…understand that we value their support.”

Mr Newbold explained that the GBPA established the IGBSBB “to serve as a vehicle to provide the local business community with a more streamlined support mechanism geared toward

delivering more tangible business solutions.”

Business Services Manager for IGBSBB LaShawn Dames hopes to make the ‘Back to School Family Fridays’ an annual event.

“This is the second Back to School Fridays event and we are gaining great momentum. The artists and musicians did an excellent job keeping the crowd entertained. It was a true display of talent and a truly a wonderful evening,” she said.

The next ‘Back to School Family Fridays’ event will be a vocalist competition on Friday, August 19 when persons will compete for a $1,000 cash grand prize.

Persons interested in participating should register at www.gbpa.com no later than today.

we would like to encourage others to the do the same.”

Lynne Fraino, an executive member of the home, commended Fast Track Management and Flying High Promotions for their continued commitment.

“This is the third year that both have given to the home. Every time they host an event they make donations, and today’s back to school supplies, toiletries,

baby items, and food snacks, are very much needed.

“We are very grateful for the assistance they give because it takes a lot to run the home, and with 31 kids in our care we need as much food supplies and items as we possibly can to manage the home effectively. We want to also call on other business establishments to get on board and assist,” said Ms Fraino.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, August 17, 2016, PAGE 11

YOUNG SCHOLARS MEET GOVERNOR GENERAL

THIS year’s scholarship recipients pictured during a reception with Governor General Dame Marguerite Pindling, along with Minister of Education Jerome Fitzgerald.

MARTIN LUTHER KING ASSOCIATE TO GIVE SPEECH

DR XERNONA CLAYTON

DR Xernona Clayton, the woman who drove Dr Martin Luther King to Memphis just before he died, made a wrong turn on her way to the airport.

Today Dr Clayton has turned her grief to recognising and helping people. She founded the world famous Trumpet Awards that have brought many outstanding people to the forefront.

Some of those have included our own Prime Minister Perry Gladstone Christie, the late Myles Munroe, Sir Franklin Wilson and many other Bahamians.

Dr Clayton will be in Nassau on October 29, to be the guest speaker at the 2016 R E Cooper Meritorious Award celebrations at the Atlantis Ballroom, Paradise Island.

Dr Clayton, who is celebrating her 86th birthday this month, was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma.

She was an American civil rights leader and broadcasting executive. During the Civil Rights Movement, she worked for the National Urban League and Southern Christian Leadership Conference, where she became involved in the work

of Dr Martin Luther King Jr. She then went into television, where she became the first African American from the southern United States to host a daily prime time talk show. She became corporate vice president for urban affairs for Turner Broadcasting.

She later created the Trumpet Awards and the Trumpet Awards Founda-

tion.

The 2016 R E Cooper Meritorious Award for Service will also feature Fr George Clements as guest speaker.

More than 22 people will be recognised and honoured and four posthumous awards will be given out.

For more information on the upcoming event, visit www.recooperaward.org

PAGE 12, Wednesday, August 17, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

ABOVE and below, some of those taking part in Camp Eco-Explorer.

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EXPLORING THE ENVIRONMENT AROUND US

TELL people you’ve just spent seven days swimming with stingrays, gliding through mangroves in a kayak, horseback riding and swimming in the open water with dolphins and they might assume you’re describing an expensive eco holiday or a much dreamed about summer vacation.

They may even ask where they can sign up for one themselves.

But for nine lucky Grand Bahama teens, experiencing some of the most unforgettable activities The Bahamas has to offer was all part of Camp Eco-Explorer, a seven-day camp sponsored by Waterkeepers Bahamas and Save the Bays.

“It was such a blessing to convene with young minds and introduce them to Mother Nature in her most natural, unspoiled form,” said Save the Bays Chairman Joseph Darville. “To see their faces light up at the sight of a stingray and the peace that washed over their faces as we kayaked through mangroves….it was truly miraculous.”

As members of Waterkeeper Alliance, a leading international NGO that coordinates more than 290 member licensed organisations who act as watchdogs for the world’s waterways,

Save the Bays and Waterkeepers Bahamas work tirelessly to make sure the citizens of the Bahamas are educated and informed about decisions, policies and practices that have an impact—positively or negatively—on the country’s fragile ecosystem. One of its main initiatives is protection of mangroves, which act as incubators for marine life and a barrier from ocean surges and flooding during storms.

“For a few of the campers, this was their first time in a kayak and also the first time they had been up close and in mangroves,” said Waterkeepers Bahamas Executive Director Rashema Ingraham. “This camp has given them an experience to use as a point of reference when it comes to making big decisions about their environment going forward.”

“I found it really impressive how beautiful the mangroves are,” said 15-yearold Viore Bosfield. “They are really amazing. They live in such a tough area and they adapt perfectly.”

In addition to acting as buffers when severe weather strikes, mangroves provide filtration adding to the reasons Bahamian waters are crystal clear. Unfortunately, they are also one of the first plants cleared to

make way for developments because they often stand between the open water and land. Removal of mangroves and wetlands makes hurricanes that much more devastating.

“So many people my age don’t care about the environment,” said 14-year-old camper Tyler Adderley. “They grow up thinking they should sell off our beautiful lands and beaches to others when they don’t realize it’s unique and should be kept as ours.”

These are exactly the kind of ecological realities Mr Darville and Ms Ingraham spent the week conveying to their young stewards with the hope that when it comes their turn to make decisions about the ecological future of their country, they’ll make informed choices.

“A big part of changing the mind-set of Bahamians so they become involved in protecting and preserving the environment is to inspire Millennials,” Ms Ingraham said. “Everyone can relate to a calming, lifechanging experience when they talk about the water.

These campers are the faces of our future Waterkeepers. They now have the confidence and the spark to be stronger agents of change.”

Earn great rewards

WE’RE READY TO SAY “YES”!

VISIT OR CALL 242-502-6206 LEADER IN PERSONAL BANKING SERVICES WATERKEEPERS Bahamas executive director Rashema Ingraham (left) and Save the Bays chairman Joseph Darville (centre) with Grand Bahama teens and pre-teens as part of Camp Eco-Explorer.