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VOLUME:117 No.185, AUGUST 24TH, 2020

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NURSE’S FEARS AS SHE BATTLED COVID

Bernadette’s ordeal left in recording shows that she prayed she’d survive

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net NURSE Bernadette Rolle left a heartbreaking message describing her ordeal as she fought COVID-19 in a clinic.

A voice note she sent to loved ones detailing her deteriorating health circulated on social media over the weekend and captured the fears she had for herself and her family.

At one point she expressed hope that she would overcome the disease, saying: “…I out of the worst, I out of the worst (sic).”

Instead, she died on Friday, one of ten people whose death from

COVID-19 was confirmed in the last week, according to information provided up to press time.

In the recording, Nurse Rolle said the difficulty she felt breathing and eating was “scary”, likening her battle with COVID-19 to a rollercoaster ride.

“It’s just, oh my God,” she said breathlessly.

The mother-of-two worked at the Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre and was being treated at the South Beach Clinic when she died.

She said in the audio that another nurse prayed with her and reminded her that she had to fight for her children.

THE Ministry of Health confirmed that six more people have died from COVID-19 as the country recorded an additional 155 new cases of the virus, according to dashboard information for Friday and Saturday.

However, the dashboard yesterday was not released up to press time last night. The dashboard

HAYWARD’S CHILDREN LAUNCH NEW COURT CASE

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE ruinous financial impact of the late Sir Jack Hayward’s battle for control of the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) has been exposed by a $4m legal bill still owed by his estate over a decade later.

The fight with the late Edward St George’s estate, and the financial shockwaves it sent through Sir Jack’s empire some 13 years ago, has helped set the stage for another present-day legal contest between the latter’s heirs that threatens to further strip the GBPA’s 50 percent owner of millions of dollars at a time when Freeport desperately needs every investment cent it can get.

BREWERY’S QUESTIONS OVER RIVAL OPERATING

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

SEE PAGE THREE

A BAHAMIAN brewery’s principal has slammed the government for allowing its main competitor to operate while his firm remains closed, adding: “It doesn’t pay to be a Bahamian in your own country.”

Jimmy Sands, the Bahamian Brewery and Beverage Company’s founder, said that Commonwealth Brewery’s retail arm, 700 Wines & Spirits, appeared to be running an online operation where consumers could place and pay for their drinks’ orders electronically, and then either have them delivered to their home or pick them up from a store.

for Saturday, August 22 was released at 12.28am on Sunday as health officials struggle to release the information in a timely manner.

Five deaths were reported on Friday, however only four of them were COVID-19 related.

A non-COVID-19 death is someone who died because of another health condition even though they may have tested positive for the virus.

According to the SEE PAGE THREE

HOME

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

ANOTHER SIX ADDED TO VIRUS DEATH TOLL

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

HO US E & 8 THE PEOPLE’S PAPER: $1

NURSE Bernadette Rolle was a mother of two children

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

FINAL MOMENTS OF DOOMED FLIGHT

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

THE final moments before the helicopter crash that killed billionaire coal tycoon Chris Cline, 60, and six other people have been revealed.

The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) recently released the cockpit voice recording transcript of the July 2019 helicopter crash off

TYCOON Chris Cline Big Grand Cay, Abaco. The transcript, released on Aug 17, captured a conversation

mainly between voices identified as the pilot and the first officer/co-pilot.

According to a Pilot/Operator Aircraft Accident Report, the pilot was David Jude and Geoffrey Painter was identified as co-pilot.

The July 4 crash killed Cline’s 22-year-old daughter Kameron as well as the pilot. The other victims were Brittney Layne Searson of Palm Beach, Florida;

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

SEE PAGE FIVE

INSIGHT GB BUSINESSES: WE NEED YOU TO LISTEN, DR MINNIS

SEE PAGE EIGHT

PAGE 2, Monday, August 24, 2020 THE TRIBUNE

THE TRIBUNE TUESDAY, MARCH 24TH, 2020, PAGE 15

Bahamas Power & Light Tropical Storm Laura Projected Track, Intensity & Estimated Rainfall

8AM TUESDAY 50+ MPH

1

Marsh Harbour

Freeport

Nassau

8PM MONDAY 50+ MPH

Eleuthera

Cat Island Andros

1

Exumas

Cay Sal Bank

San Salvador

Long Island

8PM SUNDAY

T

45 MPH

Ragged Isl

T Inagua

8PM MONDAY

45+ MPH

Tropical Storm Laura heads to Gulf of Mexico

A FALLEN palm tree damaged by Tropical Storm Laura on the ground in Puerto Rico

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net TROPICAL Storm Laura is not likely to strengthen as it moves across Cuba and is not forecasted to become a hurricane until it is well away from The Bahamas and in the Gulf of Mexico, according to Chief Meteorological Officer Arnold King yesterday.

Yesterday afternoon, the storm was moving at 21 mph with sustained winds of 50 mph as it churned towards Cuba.

“It shouldn’t strengthen,” Mr King said. “It’s not likely

to strengthen as it moves across Cuba….. It’s not forecasted to become a hurricane until it’s well away from The Bahamas and in the Gulf of Mexico and then it should strengthen into a hurricane.

“It should be in the Gulf of Mexico. . .well away from The Bahamas and that would be...between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.”

He added an all-clear for the entire country is expected to be given probably by 9pm today.

Still, Mr King said a tropical storm warning was in effect yesterday for the

Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeast Bahamas which includes islands such as Inagua, Mayaguana, Crooked Island, Acklins, and Ragged Island.

A tropical storm alert was in effect for the northwest Bahamas while a tropical storm watch was in effect for the central Bahamas which includes Cat Island, Exuma, Rum Cay and San Salvador.

Even though Andros is the northwest Bahamas, a watch was in effect for that island as well. Mr King said this is because Andros is the western most island in the northwest Bahamas.

JUSTICE NEVILLE SMITH DIES RETIRED justice Neville Smith died on Friday. In a statement, Progressive Liberal Party Chairman Fred Mitchell extended condolences on behalf of the party and PLP leader, Philip “Brave” Davis.

“Justice Smith gave years of dedicated service to our country in the public service

and as a judge,” Mr Mitchell said in a statement. Justice Smith served as a senior justice of the Supreme Court and as acting chief justice of the Supreme Court of several Caribbean jurisdictions.

He is also a former counsel at law firm Sharon Wilson and Co.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, August 24, 2020, PAGE 3

CORONAVIRUS CRISIS from page one “I know that, I know that,” she said, “it’s just like a roller coaster, one thing everything smooth, then the next minute it’s just oh my God.” She later said: “This ain’ easy, this ain’ easy…oh my God, this just scary, just scary, the fight to breathe ain’ easy, fighting to try eat and you don’t have no appetite…I was vomiting, oh Jesus, oh God, just keep fighting and praying.”

In a statement, the Public Hospitals Authority said Nurse Rolle worked with the PHA for about 14 years. “Nurse Rolle worked across various wards at the Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre,” the PHA said. “SRC Hospital Administrator Mary Lightbourne-Walker described the loss as one that is a blow to the Sandilands family.

She convened an emergency meeting this morning to advise staff at SRC of Nurse Rolle’s passing and to address any concerns they may have in her capacity as hospital administrator.”

Health Minister Renward Wells also released a statement, saying: “Nurse Rolle was dedicated to her family, to her patients, and to the institutions of nursing and SRC.” Bahamas Nurses Union president Amancha

Nurse’s ordeal left in recording Williams said in an interview with Eyewitness News that Nurse Rolle was allegedly turned away from Princess Margaret Hospital twice when she sought treatment.

However a hospital source told The Tribune the nurse refused to be admitted on two different occasions.

Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis is expected to discuss the nurse during his national address this evening.

In a statement, Progressive Liberal Party chairman Fred Mitchell called on Dr Minnis and Mr Wells to ensure nurses are not turned away from the hospital and that their overtime is paid.

“Nurse Rolle symbolises the value, courage and inherent risks associated with being on the frontline of this pandemic fight,” Mr

Mitchell said. “We call on the government to do more to protect the health and ensure the safety of our gland frontline workers.

The prime minister must sit as a matter of urgency with the nurse’s union and arrest this rapidly deteriorating labour impasse by resolving all outstanding issues in the public’s interest before more lives are lost.”

Earlier this month health officials confirmed that 23 people on the Male Ward at SRC tested positive for COVID-19 after a staff member who worked across three wards of the institution tested positive.

Of the patients testing positive, six presented with symptoms and another 17 were asymptomatic, officials said in a statement at the time.

Editorial View - Page 6

“This ain’ easy, this ain’ easy… oh my God, this just scary, just scary, the fight to breathe ain’ easy, fighting to try eat and you don’t have no appetite…I was vomiting, oh Jesus, oh God, just keep fighting and praying...”

Another six added to death toll from page one

Saturday’s dashboard, 83 COVID-19 patients are currently hospitalised.

Between Friday and Saturday, 91 new cases were confirmed on New Providence, 23 on Grand Bahama, eight on Abaco, six on Bimini, five on Acklins, two on Exuma, two on Crooked Island, three on Inagua and one on the Berry Islands. The location of 14 confirmed cases was classified as “pending.”

Those who died from COVID-19 on Friday include: Case #130, a

PM Dr Hubert Minnis female of New Providence; Case #152, a 71-year-old female of New Providence; Case #1151, a 54-year-old female of Abaco; and Case

#1369, a 45-year-old male of Eleuthera.

Deaths recorded on Saturday are Case #958, a 45-year-old female of New Providence who died Friday night and Case #1324, a 63-year-old female of New Providence died Saturday morning.

According to the information provided up to press time, there were 1,765 confirmed cases, of which 1,504 were active, including more than 1,000 in New Providence.

Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis is expected to participate in a press conference today.

BAIC TO REMAIN OPEN AS LONG AS ORDERS PERMIT

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas Agricultural and Industrial Corporation will remain open as long as lockdown orders permits it to perform “an essential service in this time of food supply instability,” the corporation said in a statement yesterday.

BAIC said the shutdown of businesses across the country has affected food imports and threatens food security, prompting greater demand for local food sources.

“The Bahamas Agricultural and Industrial Corporation (BAIC) is one of those public organizations providing an essential service in this time of food supply instability,” the corporation said in a statement. “As part of the food supply chain, the corporation is an essential entity of Government that performs the vital task of subsidizing and providing technical assistance and administrative support of agricultural and industrial operations throughout the archipelago of The Bahamas. BAIC’s functions are carried out through its head office located on Old Trail Road which has oversight of the

Packing Houses, Feed Mills, Produce Exchanges, the Abattoir and the Soldier Road Industrial Park, the Gladstone Road Industrial Park.

BAIC also manages Governmentowned land that are leased for commercial purposes on Grand Bahama, Eleuthera, Abaco and Andros.”

“Newly appointed General Manager at BAIC, Mr Rocky Nesbitt, pictured, has taken the helm of BAIC at a crucial time in the country’s history. He informed that BAIC is committed to continue working closely with Bahamian farmers to ensure they are successful in their quest to produce fresh quality produce and livestock in sufficient supply for distribution to every island in The Bahamas. Therefore, in accordance with the National Emergency Lockdown Orders, BAIC’s head office will remain open and available to all farmers, in particular those on Andros, Cat Island, Eleuthera and Long Island, to assist their businesses whenever and however, possible.”

BAIC said it will open the Produce Exchange when allowed to fulfill part of the government’s

function of implementing “measures that would allow its citizens to have full access to quality, affordable and sufficient food and water.”

“The Corporation will continue to enforce the COVID-19 safety protocols.

BAIC has installed hand wash stations and sanitizing dispenses and will continue to wear masks and practice social distancing at its head office and satellite offices on Grand Bahama and the Family Island and at its commercial units namely the Produce Exchange, the Fish and Farm Store and the Feed Mill.”

According to the statement, BAIC plans to implement a shift system to reduce the number of employees in an office space and to maintain at least three feet distance between people in work stations. Staff members who are medically vulnerable will be permitted to work from home if able to.

“COVID-19 has put a tremendous strain on the economy and the Government has mandated that we find innovative ways to immediately increase local food production, which is an enormous task for the Corporation,” Mr Nesbitt said.

SATURDAY DASHBOARD

CURFEW ON EXUMA OFFICE CLOSED CROOKED ISLAND & ACKLINS A CURFEW has been implemented on Acklins and Crooked Island with immediate effect after a COVID-19 case was confirmed on Acklins and officials launched investigations into seven suspected cases between the two islands.

The Office of the Prime Minister said in a statement that a “10pm - 5am curfew and all provisions as outlined in the Emergency (COVID 19 Pandemic) (Storm Preparedness) Order, 2020 will apply to the islands of Acklins and Crooked Island, effective immediately. The provisions are being applied to both islands on the advice of health officials.

“On Thursday, 20 August 2020, health officials confirmed one case of COVID-19 on the island of Acklins. Health officials are also closely monitoring four suspected COVID-19 cases on the island. On Crooked Island, health officials are closely monitoring three suspected COVID-19 cases.

Active contact tracing continues on both Acklins and Crooked Island.”

THE Department of Inland Revenue’s Exuma office has been temporarily closed for deep cleaning after a staff member tested positive for COVID-19.

A statement from the department said business owners are reminded that access to services are still readily available online and through its customer service call centre.

The department

implemented its COVID19 response plan Friday when the positive result was reported, the statement issued on Saturday said.

The Ministry of Health’s Surveillance Unit was contacted to initiate an assessment and contact tracing and all national COVID-19 protocols are being followed to ensure the health and safety of staff, the department said.

RELOCATION FOR PHA THE Public Hospitals Authority (PHA) has temporarily relocated Emergency Medical Dispatchers from their previous location at the Police Control Room to the PHA’s Corporate Offices in Centreville. The relocated dispatch call centre went live at 4pm Friday, August 21, and will operate from the PHA’s Corporate Offices until further notice.

During this period, calling 919 will not connect you to an Emergency Medical Dispatcher.

In the event of a medical emergency, or to reach an ambulance dispatcher the public is asked to call 3232597, 323-2586, 376-9000 or 814-2742. The public will be notified once Emergency Medical Dispatchers return to the Police Control Room.

PAGE 4, Monday, August 24, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

CORONAVIRUS CRISIS

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net AS applications for food assistance have increased, Kwasi Thompson, State Minister for Grand Bahama, said the government has expanded its food distribution programme with the help of Urban Renewal.

On Friday, he stated that 2,000 vouchers are being distributed at the Urban Renewal Centres in the five constituencies in Grand Bahama to help address delay issues.

The five centres are Seahorse Village for East Grand Bahama; Beaconsfield for Marco City; Murchinson Avenue for Pineridge; Lewis Yard opposite the Mermaid Hole, Central Grand Bahama, and EMR at Praise the Lord for West Grand Bahama.

Senator Jasmine Darius, Deputy Director of UR, said they are pleased to partner with the food distribution programme. She said centres are open from 9am to 5pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

“We will be distributing

GB food programme expanded - Kwasi vouchers and we want to remind residents to wait until they are contacted,” she said.

Mr Thompson reported that to date the Feed GB programme has assisted some 7,754 households.

“This represents over 30,000 residents who have benefitted and received vouchers through the programme,” he said.

On Thursday, he said, 1,000 vouchers were distributed through the programme’s five designated distribution centres in Freeport.

The minister said the feeding programme is in keeping with government’s mandate to provide emergency food assistance to vulnerable Bahamians

and residents impacted by COVID-19.

He said the GB Food Task Force through the Feed GB programme will continue to assist those in need, adding that vouchers are being distributed throughout communities every day at the centres at Reach Out Ministries, Salvation Army, the Red Cross, Jubilee Cathedral, and Calvary Temple Church.

Applicants who have not yet received any vouchers should be contacted by telephone or text and told when and where to collect their vouchers, Mr Thompson said. “I want to thank Grand Bahama for their patience. This increase in distribution centres will

assist in ensuring that residents receive their vouchers. We know residents have been applying and calling to find out when they will receive it.

“With the additional centres at Urban Renewal, we believe they will now be able to get their vouchers in a much quicker fashion. We encourage those in need to register at www.feedgb. com,” he said.

Other local grocers have been added to the food voucher list, including Stop N Shop, Kross Town Convenient Store, and West Town, in addition to Solomon’s Wholesale, Sawyer Fresh Market, and Express Food Mart.

Minister Thompson indicated that the GB Food

Task Force, in keeping with the National Task Force, has also implemented the needsbased programme to help identify most vulnerable. He explained that persons will be placed in the category of either most vulnerable, moderately vulnerable, and least vulnerable to receive assistance, weekly, every other week, or once per month, respectively.

There is a three-step process for applicants – registration, verification of the information, and approval, he noted. “Once approved you are assigned a centre, which will contact you with a date and time to pick up the voucher, and persons are required to present their ID,” he said.

Mr Thompson said the

digital wallets are also being utilised through their partnership with GB Port Authority through the use of the new Kanoo App. “We intend on expanding that and using other digital wallets to assist residents,” he added.

He also noted that discussions were started with Agriculture Minister Michael Pintard and other MPs about a programme to assist local fishermen, meat and livestock producers.

Through that programme, people would receive vouchers for local fish, livestock, fruits and vegetables.

Persons experiencing a delay in receiving their voucher should contact the help desk WhatsApp at 727- 2473 or email feedgrandbahama@gmail.com.

FEEDING INITIATIVE COACHES from the Mark Knowles Tennis Bahamas organisation drove through the Pinewood community delivering more than 1,10 food packages to residents in need of food assistance this weekend.

Given the challenges the country is currently facing, Bahamian tennis pro and Founder of MKTB Mark Knowles says the organisation felt compelled to lend a helping hand during this difficult time.

“It’s truly a humbling and heartwarming experience to help provide this assistance for the residents of Pinewood. I feel for those who have lost jobs and are affected by the shutdowns. It is unfortunate, but I’m comforted and hopeful that more initiatives like this will pop up because, as a community working together, hand in hand, we can achieve much and be our brothers’ keepers,” Knowles explained.

DARVILLE CALLS FOR CONCILIATORY APPROACH

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A FORMER veteran Bahamian educator is expressing concern over reported threats by the Minister of Education to “hunt down” unregulated educational facilities operating in the country.

Former school principal Joseph Darville believes it would be wise that the government instead invite those illegal operators to come in voluntarily to be regularised.

The issue is one that should be best handled and resolved using “a more conciliatory method,” according to the wellknown educator who served some 30 years in the private education system.

In a statement issued yesterday, he said: “I would like to address the expression attributed to my dear friend, the Honorable Minister of Education.

Supposedly, he or his government will “hunt down” those individuals who have dared to establish unregulated educational facilities in the nation. To ‘hunt down’ immediately awakened in my mind the images

of well-armed hunters sent forth with bows and arrows, handguns and pistols to capture some escaped criminals or to kill some wild and threatening beasts of prey. I know it is not what was meant, but the images linger in my mind. A more conciliatory method, I thought, would have been to invite these clandestine offenders who have centres of learning without proper sanctions to come in voluntarily to be regularised in accordance with the law. I pray, therefore, that this method could still be employed.”

Also concerned about the education of Bahamian children during the COVID-19 pandemic, Mr Darville is calling for every child to be equipped with necessary instruments for virtual learning.

He said: “We know not for how long this pandemic of COVID-19 will continue to interrupt the traditional manner of facilitating the education of our children. Firstly, every child of formal education age must be equipped with the necessary instruments with which to commence or continue learning.”

In this electronic age, the educator says each and

every child should be in possession of a laptop or tablet.

He also noted that every teacher in the nation should have all the necessary equipment, as well as training to facilitate distance learning.

Despite the economic woes of the country, Mr Darville indicated that there are funds, “the millions and billions stored in local and foreign banks,” that can be accessed for such a venture at a cost of some $30 million.

He also suggested that contributions can come from the wealthy, who receive an exemption of corporate or income tax, and who are the one percent of the population owning 99 percent of the wealth of this nation.

“Thus, it is time they be asked, pleaded with, or persuaded to give back to the children of this nation,” he stressed. “I estimate it to be within the range of less than $30m to equip every school-age child in this country with proper instruments for learning,” Mr Darville said.

“It is indeed a sacred obligation that we must pay immediate, knowledgeable, and wise attention to this

national and essential obligation. Without this urgent attention, we will set this country up to be the capital of illiteracy in the world.

We already have a dumbeddown literacy level in this nation,” he warned.

The educator also referred to challenges in the homes of children, particularly where most parents are not familiar with modern technology, and where there is a need for serious assistance.

According to Mr Darville, many of them, even at the traditional level of 39 percent, are living at or below the poverty level.

“Thus, there needs to be an army of facilitators prepared and sent forth in all these homes to assist students and parents in gaining a basic understanding of using instruments for distance learning,” he stated.

To address this, the educator suggested that thousands of high school and college graduates could be utilised in this respect.

“Exiting the halls of institutions of learning this year, last year and many in the past, we have a huge cadre of savvy young people, in the thousands (like 10,000 or more), from high schools and universities, who can

JOSEPH DARVILLE be employed at basic wage to be that army of facilitators sent forth in homes to assist our students and their parents. What a marvelous way to give back to the nation and at the same time to obtain employment for themselves! Funds to cover this, again, can come from the accumulated riches of the privileged in our nation. You know, I can easily name individuals and corporate entities in this regard, but let us just say, they can easily come forth voluntarily for the benefit of our children,” emphasised Mr Darville.

Turning his attention to the private institutions, the educator thinks that the government should assist in keeping those schools afloat by providing the necessary subsidies, equipment, and enrolling many of the public

school children in these institutions to alleviate congestion in the present public school system.

“By this action, another problem will be solved.

As private schools would not be able to attract but a fraction of their usual enrolment, due to economic reasons again, many of the teachers who would be necessarily laid off.

Thus, the remedy could now be to re-employ them to carry on their good and necessary work. Economically, this is a golden win-win situation. Years ago, as a principal in the private school setting, an estimate was made comparing the cost of teaching a child in public school and one in the private setting. The result was that it cost 15 percent more in the public setting than in the private.

“Finally, I call upon the Minister of Education and the Government of the Bahamas to seriously recruit wise, intelligent and knowledgeable individuals in this nation to assist in establishing a solid, functional and modern path in the education of our children in the present or post COVID-19 environment,” Mr Darville said.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, August 24, 2020, PAGE 5

Final moments of doomed flight THE FATEFUL WORDS ‘I haven’t flown this thing in over a month ... it’s been in the (expletive) shop.’

When asked what was wrong with the helicopter, the reply was ‘every (expletive) thing’.

CHRIS CLINE, his daughter Kameron, above, and, top, the wreck of the helicopter being pulled from the sea. from page one Jillian Nicole Clarke of Los Angeles, California; David Jude of Kentucky; Delaney Wykle of Washington, DC; Geoffrey Lee Painter of Barnestaple, United Kingdom.

The report noted the local time was approximately 2am and the light conditions were dark, however, the pilot and the first officer decided to turn off the landing lights.

“I can turn this landing light off. I don’t know you wanna leave it on?” asked Jude.

“Nah, turn it off. We’ll get all the lights down and get our eyes adapted,” replied the first officer.

Although Jude pointed out a layer of clouds, the first officer maintained, “I’m not worried about that. If we - we can’t get down there then we can’t get down, I mean it’s as simple as that isn’t it.”

Later on, the condition of the helicopter was hinted at.

“I haven’t flown this thing in over a month until today,” Jude said, “ it’s been in the (expletive) shop.”

When the co-pilot asked what was wrong with the helicopter, Jude replied “every (expletive) thing.”

He added: “I wish we’d sell this (expletive) thing. I wish we’d go get us something decent - fly something that we don’t have to go to school for every (expletive) week.”

Things took a turn towards the end of the transcript when the first officer said, “Alright airspeed coming up. No, it’s not coming up. So push that nose forward. Get some airspeed.

Within about 17 seconds, an electronic voice and a sound similar to a warning tone was heard.

“Warning terrain,” the electronic voice repeated.

Jude asked “how high

are you” but answered his question three seconds later with “ three hundred feet”.

The first officer responded: “We’re not.”

But, Jude pointed out “That’s what it says over here”.

“Yeah, we were diving,” said the first officer.

Eight seconds later the officer brought up a fatal accident in the UK, in which the exact same thing happened.

It is not clear the exact incident he was referring to.

The ill-fated aircraft was a Agusta Westland AW-139.

Business Jet Traveller, an aviation magazine, once highlighted the AW-139 is a similar design to the AW-169.

On October 27, 2018, an AW-169 chopper crashed shortly after take-off from the Leicester City Football Club in the UK killing the pilot and four passengers - including the billionaire club owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha.

UK investigators blamed the crash on a loss of yaw control owing to a failure of the tail rotor control linkage.

A sound of impulsive noise was made and then finally “rotor low” “rotor” was uttered before the transcript ended in Cline’s crash.

The chopper crashed minutes after takeoff.

However it wasn’t until 12 hours later, at around 2.53pm on Thursday, July 4, that the helicopter was reported missing. After the aircraft was reported overdue, search and rescue HELP WANTED: Full-time,

live in care giver with at least 5 years experience caring for elderly, hearing impaired person with limited mobility.

Must be CPR certified and able to cook with specific dietary restrictions. Light cleaning required. Must be an experienced driver with valid driver’s license for more than 5 years and own a vehicle.

Contact:albejon@comcast.net

efforts were immediately launched. The helicopter was later discovered submerged in 16 feet of water about two miles off Grand Cay, Abaco, where Cline owned a private cay.

The group took the pre-dawn flight to transport two ill passengers to the United States for emergency medical attention, according to reports.

‘I wish we’d sell this (expletive) thing. I wish we’d get something decent something that we don’t have to go to school for every (expletive) week.’

PAGE 6, Monday, August 24, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

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

LEON E. H. DUPUCH,

SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH,

jamaaltheartist@gmail.com

Publisher/Editor 1903-1914 Kt., O.B.E., K.M., K.C.S.G., (Hon.) LL.D., D.Litt .

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C.M.G., M.S., B.A., LL.B. Publisher/Editor 1972-

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Hearing nurse Rolle shows reality of the COVID-19 fight AS she fought a losing battle against COVID-19, nurse Bernadette Rolle recorded a voice note detailing her struggle.

The note circulated after the Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre nurse lost her life to the virus. Tributes came quickly. Former Minister of Health Dr Duane Sands said he was “privileged to know her”, while his successor said she “was dedicated to her family, to her patients, and to the institutions of nursing and SRC”. The Public Hospitals Authority said she had worked for more than 14 years with the authority, while administrator Mary LightbourneWalker warned that the sacrifices made by frontline workers to provide care cannot be overstated.

It was the voice note though that really brought home the horror of this virus. In the note, Ms Rolle can be heard fighting for every breath. When she speaks, her words come in waves between gasps. She talks of being on the ventilator, of the staff trying to find ways to treat her because she was allergic to some of the medication, of her diabetes.

Most heartbreaking of all, she can be heard talking about her children and trying to get through this.

There are those who would claim that this virus is a hoax, that there is no need to react as strongly as governments

around the world have done – but hearing nurse Rolle battling for her life, battling for her every breath leaves you in no doubt.

We hope with her diabetes that every effort was made to keep her from the frontline of this fight – as we hope the same is being done with her fellow medical staff who have pre-existing medical conditions that could leave them more at risk from COVID-19.

We also hope the story of Ms Rolle reminds everyone of the need to take precautions – not just for your own health, but for that of the medical professionals into whose hands you would be placed if you came down with the virus. We need to protect them so that they can protect us.

We would also note one other alarm bell being rung by Dr Sands as he paid tribute to Ms Rolle. He said: “We do not know the extent or number of COVID-19 infections in The Bahamas.

Confirmed COVID-19 cases are only a percentage of the total.”

As you go about your business, we would urge you all to treat everyone you meet as if they might have the virus. Not just for your sake. But for nurse Rolle.

For all the nurses. They need you. Pray that you won’t need them, and pray for nurse Rolle’s family, and thank her for all that she did for Bahamians.

Grand Bahama has had enough GRAND Bahama business owners are as mad as hell and they’re not going to take it any more.

Nearly 200 owners say they are ready to protest if the Prime Minister extends the lockdown in Freeport.

For five weeks, small businesses have been shuttered, and some of the owners on a Zoom call on Saturday talked about making a collective stand, some even saying they will reopen their businesses in defiance of the lockdown orders.

We would note that at the heart of their complaint is that they have received no response to letters sent individually asking for the lockdown to be lifted. The government owes citizens a response at the best of times – but there is no excuse for not keeping in close contact with the people when you’re telling them to shut down their businesses.

The reality of surging case

numbers and increasing deaths is not to be ignored – but too many people are left feeling out of the loop, as if they don’t matter when what they need to hear from government is a plan. If not a reopening now, then when? When it comes, how will it work? People need to make their own plans, so why not talk to them about it?

With some evidence that lockdowns do not work on their own, what is our solution other than open up then lockdown again when cases surge? How do we manage our society once the lockdown is over?

We all have the same goal of defeating the virus, but doing so while keeping our economy alive will give us the best chance of recovery when all this is over – even if that seems a distant dream for now.

Government, hear your citizens’ cry, before it is too late.

Say No to maskholes EDITOR, The Tribune WEAR a mask. Keep a six-foot distance. Wash your hands.

Had we followed these three SIMPLE steps, we would not be in the terrible mess we’re in today.

A group sits under an outdoor awning, face to face, playing dominos and chatting.

A man smokes ribs on a street corner, bare faced, serving customers without masks. They chat back and forth.

A woman offers gallons of a thick pink liquid concoction for sale street side, no mask, chatting to customers without masks.

These are the scenes that have been playing out on the streets of Nassau that you don’t read about in the media.

In the privacy of homes and Airbnbs, people have been hosting get-togethers.

It’s not uncommon to accidentally spray a jet of saliva on someone when

you talk. Saliva collects under the tongue and is involuntarily released more often than you may think.

Today people were jumbled up in mind boggling queues outside the supermarkets, lowering their masks to speak to each other. Spit flying. A security guard stood at the door, mask dangling from his ear.

The media plays a big role in shaping society. Besides acting as a watchdog - so crucial to democracy - their role is to inform, educate and entertain.

I don’t see too much going on in the way of educating.

While some are doing an admirable job (kudos to them, they know who they are), too many who call themselves journalists are pushing their personal agendas instead of educating the public and playing a leading role in helping to stop the spread of COVID-19.

It is important and right to scrutinise, expose and

question. It is NOT cool to use this very important platform to undermine public efforts to get a handle on the virus and play on the emotions of people.

The Police: No matter the explanation offered, the article surrounding the operation of the restaurant at Golden Gates left a bad taste in the public’s mouth. Not only must the law apply evenly, it must be seen to apply evenly.

Lawyers: To those lawyers who hope to captitalise on the pandemic by taking on “free” cases hoping to be awarded costs by the court at the taxpayers expense, donate your services free by identifying untitled vacant land in depressed areas for community farming.

The People: If you want to end lockdowns, wear a mask, social distance and wash your hands.

Say No to Maskholes.

ATHENA DAMIANOS Nassau, August 19, 2020.

Gross inexperience and insensitivity EDITOR, The Tribune AT this point in the global efforts against COVID-19, there is enough information to determine what has worked and what has not. In a June 22, 2020 Time magazine article entitled “The Best Global Responses to COVID-19 Pandemic”, the author, Ian Bremmer noted that countries that “... responded earlier and aggressively had better responses.” Among several countries, he noted the example of Taiwan, with a population of more than 23 million persons, their close proximity to China and less than 500 cases with seven deaths (confirmed by the Johns Hopkins coronavirus dashboard). He notes a rapid response to close the borders and quarantining of the infected while businesses remained open, among other factors, as a key to keeping infection rates low while not devastating the economy.

Decisions have consequences.

Many consequences are foreseeable, but rational decision makers know this. Every nation on earth was handed the same problem with this virus, it is how they made decisions that determined their outcomes! Assessing the impact of the decisions made by the “competent authority” and his medical advisors, I have lost confidence in either of them to lead the country any further

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net in this pandemic. Although the prime minister recently reversed his decision to lockdown the country “effective immediately” on August 17th, the fact that he made the decision at all was mind boggling, damnable, calloused and despotic.

That decision was not a fluke, because he has made many similar decisions before. When the first case of coronavirus was confirmed, he and his medical advisors delayed in closing the border to visitors from affected countries. They had no clear plan either then or now for how they should approach the problem. Impromptu lockdown announcements contributed to community spread as people flocked to grocery stores and water depots.

Asking persons who tested positive to self quarantine without a means to monitor or physically isolate them was a public health failure.

They reopened the borders too early and with a phone app, failed to properly track or quarantine infected persons encouraging more community spread.

Many have opined that Dr Minnis has had a lot on his plate and no one has had to deal with this kind of catastrophe before, but the rational responses of many

nations, Taiwan included, shreds these fallacious arguments. As a people, we are too used to having unqualified decision makers making decisions while wondering why we don’t have better outcomes for problems. How many have considered the outcomes of neighbouring islands like Bermuda, Barbados, Trinidad, Grenada, etc? Or the humane, compassionate leadership of Jacinta Arden, of New Zealand, a first time prime minister with no medical experience.

The decision making of our prime minister and his medical advisors showed, in my opinion, gross inexperience, insensitivity, a lack of critical thought and simple common sense. The default position to repeatedly ‘lockdown’ is one of neophyte decision makers.

The psychological and socio-economic effects still reverberate through this archipelago of islands and will for many months! That the prime minister could singlehandedly destroy the presumption that doctors are supposed to be intelligent speaks volumes. Both the prime minister and his advisors must go, and they must go now! It is clear that they have nothing to offer.

May the voters of Killarney not repeat their mistake in the next election!

JB Nassau, August 21, 2020.

PM needs our support EDITOR, The Tribune THE unfortunate illness of Brave Davis and the dramatic rise in deaths and hospitalizations convince all reasonable observers of the Bahamian society that COVID-19 is a serious virus. Frankly, I don’t wish to engage with anyone on this topic who believes otherwise. My advice to such people is that they have private conversations with others who might be able to help them think through this.

In light of the severity of COVID-19, we need a coherent, aggressive and singular approach. We need to give the Prime Minister our fullest support as he leads this charge.

And the Prime Minister needs to work hard at restoring our trust and earning our confidence. To

do so, I would suggest the following: 1. Cease deploying dramatic “gat ya” lockdowns.

They have people on edge.

If lockdowns must be imposed, give ample notice.

2. Cease the use of national lockdowns as a primary strategy. Consider whether lockdowns by geographic areas might be effective. However, if national lockdowns must be imposed, do them fully to assure the best results in the shortest period.

3. Deploy more robust and scientific protocols on our Family Islands in particular and eventually do the same on NP and GB. 4. Conduct more tests.

5. Select a non-political and perhaps even a nonmedical person to serve as CEO of the COVID-19 response. That individual should be supported by the

current team and several others from a few other disciplines as well.

6. View options through the prism of the broad economic and social impact of COVID-19. For instance, we should see this as a $10 billion problem and therefore spare no expenditure to address it. In other words, stop putting bandaid on a patient with a heart attack. Please.

7.

Improve quality of statistics and other information.

Whether the Prime Minister does any or all of the above, we need to give him our fullest support. In a crisis such as we have, the only thing worse than an incomplete strategy is non-adherence.

LYNDEN R. NAIRN Nassau.

August 23, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, August 24, 2020, PAGE 7

MAN SHOT AFTER ARGUMENT AT FRIEND’S HOUSE A MAN is in hospital after he was shot during an argument at a friend’s house, police said.

Shortly after 9am Friday, a man was at the house at Anthodium Avenue, Garden Hills, when he fell into an argument with another male.

After an exchange of words, the perpetrator left

and returned a short time later with a firearm and discharged it in the victim’s direction, injuring him, police said. The victim was transported to hospital via private vehicle where he is listed in stable condition.

An investigation into this matter continues.

Police also seized a quantity of marijuana on Friday.

In the first incident, shortly after 10am officers from the Drug Enforcement and K9 Units armed with a search warrant went to a residence on Quarry Mission Road. While there the police search dog was deployed in the presence of the occupants. A short time later, the search dog alerted its handler to a section of

the house. On close inspection, officers recovered a quantity of suspected marijuana and cash believed to be the proceeds of crime.

Two male suspects were arrested in connection with this incident and are expected to be formally charged in court soon.

In the second incident, shortly before 4pm, officers

from the Mobile Unit were on routine patrols on Commonwealth Boulevard, Elizabeth Estates, when their attention was drawn to a male who aroused their suspicion. The suspect was stopped and a field search was conducted. The officers recovered a quantity of suspected marijuana. The male was arrested and taken to

THE Fresh Creek Bridge in Andros is closed for repair after a mail boat, top right, lost control and struck the bridge, shown by the arrow above, causing major damage.

Bridge closed after collision with boat

his residence at Malaysia Way. While there, a search was conducted which resulted in the officers recovering an additional quantity of suspected marijuana and a black Glock 9mm pistol along with 75 unfired rounds of ammunition. This suspect is expected to be formally charged in court.

THE Fresh Creek Bridge in Andros, a vital transport link, is closed for repair.

Last Wednesday it was reported a mail boat leaving Fresh Creek Dock lost control and struck the bridge causing major damage. The ship involved is the Bahamian owned MV New G, which has been operating in the country since 2015.

The Ministry of Public Works and the Port Department are currently investigating the accident.

It is believed tthere were strong winds coupled with a high tide at the time of the bridge strike. Due to the size and weight of the ship, considerable impact forces would have been exerted on the bridge.

The impact has been assessed by officials of the Ministry of Public Works.

There is severe damage to the bridge foundations and thus it is deemed not safe for use by the general public and will be closed to vehicular traffic, a press release from the ministry said.

The bridge will remain closed until the necessary repairs are made and the bridge is deemed safe to the public. While the bridge is closed, the government will run a ferry service for both passengers and vehicles.

The bridge is known to be in a poor condition and the urgent need to construct a replacement has been made one of the priority schemes for the Ministry of Public Works.

In March 2020, a contract was signed with a local Bahamian firm, Caribbean Coastal Services, to undertake the engineering studies and design of the replacement of the Fresh Creek Bridge.

The Ministry of Public Works is urgently working in conjunction with Caribbean Coastal Services to finalise a repair solution for the bridge. It is anticipated that the repair work will start in the next few weeks.

TIME TO CHECK OUT SWEDEN?

THE ongoing COVID-19 pandemic created a lot of reaction on tribune242.com including this from JR51: “It would appear that the numbers grew dramatically after the Mr Gates circus came to town and the IMF handed out a very large loan. It might just be a coincidence, however based on a total lack of transparency on the real numbers and some real crazy stuff coming out of the PM, anything is possible. Maybe Minnis and his cronies can go to Sweden for a week or 2 to see how to deal with a pandemic and not cripple the country’s economy.”

That didn’t impress jowblow who said: “Swedens approach resulted in it having 2-3 times as many deaths compared to other Nordic countries. They were willing to allow their population to be exposed to the risk of death in order to protect the economy.

That is immoral in any language!”

And Clamshell agreed: “Exactly. Well-said. Tired of hearing about the supposed Sweden miracle.”

Rawbahamian added these thoughts: “I suppose now, our illustrious P.M. will state “ The Competent Authority “ now sees fit to lock us down until the infections stop or the economy crashes whichever comes first ! Well at this rate, the economy will long be destroyed before this viral invasion is over and The Bahamas will be known as “A TURD World Country”.

The death of a nurse at Sandilands provoked a sympathetic reaction.

Bogart put it like this: “Really sad Nurse Bernadette Rolle, Front line warrior employeed at government-controlled and run Sandilands Rehabilation Centre, SRC passed away. Nurse Bernadette, I salute you!

“Full investigations on heroine Nurse Bernatette

front line worker passing away must be done by certified independent committee or such like organizations and if contacted by way of negligence or manner of government, or employees workplace then all persons in charge must be held responsible to fullest extent of the law.

“I salute all frontline warriors and in the unfortunate event of contracting the disease in line of work, fullest independent investigation be swiftly conducted.

The nation owes this to all frontline warriors.”

News that Bahamasair is burning through $7m per month annoyed tribanon who said: “These two buffoons, D’Aguilar and Tommy T, should have long ago taken steps to reduce Bahamasair’s gushing cash bleed out to the maximum extent possible, as was sensibly done by just about every other passenger airline company around the world. But not surprisingly, D’Aguilar and Tommy T seem incapable of quickly finding the tap heads or valves they need to shut-off in order

to stop as much of the cash bleeding as possible. They prefer whining about the problem to us through the news media, instead of actually doing something about it. Just how much more of this utter incompetence is our nation going to made to endure?!”

TrueBahamian added this: “Sounds like no one in management at Bahamasair nor the Minister knows anything about running an airline or business for that matter. Mr. D’Aguilar being a businessman should know something about business. It’s like Super Value shutting down because of a lockdown and Mr. Robert’s looking at salary but forgetting he has rent (if he doesn’t own the buliding), electricity to keep his frozen goods from spoiling, etc.

“Can everyone in Bahamasair along with the Minister just resign?

Bahamasair is a waste of taxpayer money in good times, judge now. Can the government just shut this down as it is only an expense that we can afford to keep paying?

Death Notice For Rev. Dr. Gilbert T. Hepburn Former Police Officer #504 (Commercial Pilot, Flight Instructor& Musician) of Fox Hill, New Providence, Bahamas and formerly of Hallandale Florida, USA died on Thursday, August 13th, 2020.

He is survived by his daughters: Natasha and Melissa Hepburn; sister: Dr. Linda P. Virgill; niece: Alextine Daxon; and other relatives.

Arrangements for the funeral service are being finalized and details will be announced at a future date.

THE STORIES BEHIND THE NEWS

MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 2020

Patience runs out as GB businesses demand to be heard

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net Nearly 200 frustrated Grand Bahama business owners stand ready to protest from today if their pleas to reopen their businesses continue to be ignored by officials at the Office of the Prime Minister in Freeport.

Small businesses not classified as essential services have been shuttered for five weeks now due to ongoing government lockdown orders to control the spread of the coronavirus.

Fearing another week of lockdown by the Prime Minister, business operators on Saturday had reached their wits end. Some 180 small businesspersons attended a Zoom meeting discussing concerns about the ongoing lockdown and closure of businesses.

“We need to get back to business… so we can begin to get this economy back up and running,” stressed a rental car operator. “And so, our suggestion is to open our economy and allow us to be able to fight COVID-19.”

By taking a collective stand, they are hoping their concerns will not continue to go ignored by officials at the OPM, after receiving no response to letters sent individually asking for the lockdown on their businesses to be lifted.

Yesterday, a letter signed by nearly 200 business operators outlining their concerns and suggestions for safe reopening was sent to the OPM. “We will protest if the Prime Minister come Monday announces a lockdown for GB… we have to take action,” demanded the

business owner, who says he is willing to defy lockdown order by reopening his business if it comes down that.

“They cannot continue to ignore us, and if they do, this is going to be our position. The protest is based on the outcome of what the government decides to do with the information we have provided to them,” he said.

“If they decide to lock us down on Monday for seven days, are you prepared to be lockdown for seven more days? If they do not respond, are you prepared to continue to be ignored?” he asked.

The small business operators feel their concerns are being disregarded due to the lack of response from the government.

“I feel really disrespected… it’s just like, who cares? Even if I had gotten

KWASI Thompson is Minister of State for Grand Bahama

a message acknowledging (my letter) that would have been satisfactory to me. But nothing at all, so what is that saying to us?” another business operator complained.

A local civil engineer said that clearly the government does not have a plan. “It’s been more than five months, they shown no plan; they have advised that COVID will be around for quite a while and they offered no plan,” he said.

“That is obvious they have no plan, and I think they need to be shown a way forward because they don’t have a way forward.”

A female business operator said Grand Bahama is unique and must be dealt with differently than Nassau.

“The government needs to understand that GB is in a very unique situation. We have reached a point now where change needs to take place,” she said.

A food distributor stressed the lockdowns are “just not necessary” and are destroying GB’s economy.

“The economy of the country doesn’t have to be destroyed in the name of COVID, and there are examples in the Caribbean and around world. There are many countries in the Caribbean and many countries in the world that are open for business, that are practising all the necessary protocols and refusing to destroy their economy in the name of COVID,” said the concerned business operator.

“The plan exists in many countries and that is, simply allow business owners to provide opportunity for employees to come (back to) work, practising all the protocols. I support what is being done wholeheartedly, and this is just not necessary.”

A small restaurant operator indicated that there is a “ripple effect” and everyone is hurting, not just businesses.

“We are all frustrated; it is more than just the business community,” she said.

“I have people calling me every day saying they need food and clothing, and it is a ripple effect in our community when small businesses close – people are out there hungry and need food.”

When a concerned clothing store operator asked what the five GB MPs are doing on their behalf, she was informed that none has advocated or done anything to assist or support the reopening of small businesses.

Another irate woman in the Zoom meeting called on businesses in the Bahamas

to stand united as a people and to put aside politics.

“We need to have our economy opened,” she appealed.

“GB has proven when we went 64 days without any cases that we were following protocols - wearing the masks, social distancing and sanitising – and it proved effective. And based on that, I believe it is important that the government of The Bahamas open up our economy.”

The businesswoman indicated that they aware of the seriousness of COVID-19 and that business operators are “capable and willing to enforce the protocols to ensure safety of all Bahamians and the continuance of our businesses.”

She then expressed frustration over the political division perpetuated by past and present governments to divide Bahamians.

The situation at hand, she stressed, is bigger than politics - one that impacts the future of The Bahamas, and “the government must come forward with… plans that will cause us as a nation to move upward, forward, onward and together.”

“We are one Bahamas, we are one people and we must be united. This is not a Nassau or Freeport situation… I call on people of Nassau and GB to stand united as a people,” she said.

“To the pastors who have been silent, we call on you to take a stand with the people. We are not inciting unrest, however, we must take a stand… we must act.”

“I call on the Bahamian people, this is not FNM, PLP or DNA, we are sick and tired of the political rhetoric or ‘Russian roulette’ they have played with the people of the Bahamas.

Please people of Nassau and Out Islands hear my cry and stand together as Bahamians.”

In a final plea, the business woman said: “To the government and MPs we ask and beg you to hear our cries, hear our plan. We ask you that you will not come Monday and present fear and despair.”

Here are some of the other comments businesspersons made in the Zoom conference on Saturday.

“I agree with the protest, but I would protest on Monday morning so that the protest would be able to be seen in Nassau before he (the Prime Minister) speaks to the nation, showing the Competent Authority, can see the business owners are serious.”

Another said: “We complying and no resolution, so might as well we stand and try make a difference.”

“Better to STAND, then to Fall. I’d rather STAND trying than to don’t try at all,” one woman commented.

“So why didn’t our MPs for Grand Bahama stand behind the plan that was submitted by the Chamber - this is so disheartening,” another said.

“Think about it, the government has not lost any salary these past five months or no Health officials has lost any salary, think about it.

“Business owners have had enough and want answers,” another said.

“I am in full agreement (of this),” said one business operator in the travel industry.

Another person indicated that the mere fact that so many businesses attended Saturday’s Zoom meeting speaks volumes.

“This meeting in itself is the strongest message I think we could communicate to anyone. The more than 170 persons on this platform, is a stand, in and of itself,” someone commented.

“I thank you, the organisers of this meeting for the tone and approach you are taking. A level-headed, reasonable approach to stand up and be heard. The silent protest will speak far more volumes than shouting,” another individual said.

“A well worth effort this meeting has been. Let us continue to determine our fate,” said another attendee.

“We have 5MPs, the GBPA, Freeport City Council and a Minister of State for Grand Bahama.

That is a lot of leadership,” another pointed out.

“What are the Port’s (Grand Bahama Port Authority) comments on this protest? Will the licencees be protected?” some asked.

If there are no changes following Sunday’s letter, or a planned protests, one business owner commented: “For me, once we are ignored after the march my next move would be to open my business. Just the way we have been ignored, to also ignore them and open my business. And deal with whatever comes from that. Again, we are not breaking any law. And so, if we are ignored after protests for me, I will open my business to the public and advertise that (my business) is open for business.”

Editorial View - Page 6

EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

BY MALCOLM STRACHAN IT was only nine months ago that COVID-19 was still a new phenomenon we were watching from afar.

Prime Minister Minnis, who has long espoused his affinity for the poor and downtrodden, did so again last December. When asked for a statement on a Department of Statistics assessment which revealed the Consumer Price Index had increased in September, he did not hesitate to remind the populace of his government’s charge to protect the poor.

“We feel that the wealthy, the rich individuals, regardless of the outcome, they would be able to survive and protect themselves.

And we would still need them to help generate jobs, employment…

“But we would do all we can to protect that grouping that needs protection, and that is the poor and marginalised. So, regardless of what happened, policies will be there to ensure their protection.”

Prior to COVID-19’s impact, The Bahamas’ cost of living - per Expatistan, a cost of living calculation website - has been noted as being more expensive than 95 percent of countries in the world. This came at a time when tourism was on the rise and unemployment was trending down – a stark contrast from projections of more than 40 percent of Bahamians being unemployed.

When the competent authority made the decision last Monday to put the country into an additional seven-day lockdown effective immediately, one could only imagine the despair of those desperate for a reprieve. As families huddled together around TV sets, Prime Minister Minnis’ words echoed through living rooms all around New Providence. A stunned populace witnessed the unconscionable - the feeling that policies purported to have the citizenry’s best interest at heart are instead more punitive in nature.

Despite what supporters of the Prime Minister inside and outside government say, the reality is such a decision may have been his costliest mistake during this entire term.

The Prime Minister walking back his decision looked much more like the realisation of the gravity of his mistake than concerns about the possibility of an approaching storm.

Naturally, many Bahamians that want to believe the competent authority

INSIGHT

MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 2020 PAGE 9

A mistake that Dr Minnis can’t afford to repeat intends to do what is best for the country have a very difficult time believing that now. Consider this series of questionable decision making: the borders were opened prematurely; we are not testing adequately; lockdowns are seemingly being implemented more ad hoc than scientifically, and without visible consideration of how they’re injurious to the poor. Further, the competent authority, rather than being viewed as one of the people, is being viewed as a dictator.

For as long as we are still being affected by the coronavirus, the Prime Minister’s ability to show he is the right person for the job is continuously being tested.

He currently faces the immense challenge of winning back the trust of the Bahamian people after doing the reprehensible.

What occurred last week has been largely viewed as the proof of a complete disconnect with what poor people experience – despite his claims to have a heart for the very same people.

Fears over being unable to gather necessities like life depending medication, water and other grocery items, caused widespread pandemonium and protests from the Bahamian people.

By the time Prime Minister Minnis reversed his decision, the damage was done. Trust between the government and the Bahamian people had been significantly eroded.

Despite pushing policies to create opportunities for Bahamians living on the margins, when it comes to COVID-19, we’ve not always understood the thinking behind some decisions.

Certainly, the National Food Distribution

PEOPLE queueing up to go shopping last week

Taskforce has been a great initiative, but it still has not been immune to issues. At the very least, the government doesn’t always seem as sensitive as it should be.

For his part, the Prime Minister has certainly had the most challenging task of governing the country amid natural disasters and a public health crisis. But at some point, that will no longer qualify as a valid excuse. We’re already at a point where most citizens have begun to tune out such sentiments.

The expectation is that this is the job he signed up for, and as citizens, we turn to the government when we are faced with times such as these. Moreover, the Prime Minister took it upon himself to assume the powers of being the competent authority. Therefore, what comes along with that – whether it is praise, criticism or condemnation – he must continue doing the job and meet the challenge head-on.

Furthermore, where there are lessons to be learned, he must do so with humility and with the Bahamian people top of mind – in particular, the poor, whom he said he is committed to protecting.

We hope that with this most recent exercise the Prime Minister was reminded that the poor are in grave danger. They are unable to work. They are being pushed to the brink mentally and financially.

At some point, there is a breaking point.

In the efforts to protect the poor, much better thought out policies need to be implemented and the competent authority must never again lose sight of their hardship.

These are your people Prime Minister Minnis. We all are.

THE PRIME Minister has certainly had the most challenging task of governing the country amid natural disasters and a public health crisis

PAGE 10 MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 2020

By FREDERICK R M SMITH, QC LOFTUS Roker’s infamous “reign of terror” as Immigration Minister in the 1980s is largely responsible for cementing in the minds of average Bahamians the idea that Haitians and people of Haitian descent are second class citizens – actually little better than vermin – and underserving of the same rights as everyone else.

Foreigners were increasingly made scapegoats for the problems of a newly independent Bahamas and few were willing to speak out against the degrading, inhumane and unconstitutional way in which Haitians in particular were being treated. Many Bahamians openly and enthusiastically supported not only Roker’s brutal tactics against Haitians, but also the increasing hatred with which all manner of minority groups and marginalised individuals were regarded.

I remember in the 1980s, one small, courageous group of College of the Bahamas students did stand up against this evil being perpetrated upon the most vulnerable in our midst, and were arrested and marched to court for their trouble.

They, along with the founders of the Grand Bahama Human Rights Association, including myself, Joseph Darville, Darcy Ryan and others, were in the extreme minority. Most Bahamians, feeling their own rights were secured by the new constitution, were happy to look the other way and have continued to do so for the last 40 years.

But, as the saying goes, “Who feels it knows,” and now the chickens are coming home to roost.

Amid the constantly extended COVID-inspired Emergency Orders, rolling lockdowns and fear of contact with our fellow man, Bahamian citizens are feeling what it is like NOT to have certain human or constitutional rights. They are learning what it feels like to be regarded as vermin by those whom they live amongst.

A recent voice note circulated by Abaconians, speaking in revulsion and fear of Grand Bahamians arriving in their midst was an uncanny parallel to the language we have used against Haitians and others for decades.

We “born” Bahamians are experiencing just a little taste of what it has been like for victims of political persecution, non-citizens, citizens in waiting, belongers, stateless children and adults, political refugees, migrants, Bahamian citizens or permanent residents of Haitian ethnic origin, the LGBTQ community and so many other groups that have been viewed with disgust, politically victimized, marginalized, neglected and outright targeted for discriminatory and abusive treatment.

All these groups, for decades upon decades, have lived constantly with what we are experiencing just a little bit of today, prohibited from living, working and moving about as they see fit under fear of stigmatization or even arrest and punishment.

This was never a question of law, but rather arbitrary policy, executive excess, negligence, indifference, or a deliberate, intentional failure to observe the laws passed by Parliament and as interpreted by the Judiciary.

In reality, for the last 70 years (in 1963 we began our flirtation with written constitutionally protected rights) and particularly

INSIGHT

EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

May be now you’ll understand - a little taste of dictatorship shows what generations of ‘others’ have endured

A GROUP of College of the Bahamas students on their way to court in the early 1980s for protesting the treatment of Haitians. The Magistrate dropped the charges; left: A cartoon from the 1980s portraying infamous Immigration Minister Loftus Roker as “Loftdzilla” over his brutal treatment of Haitians and people of Haitian descent in The Bahamas; above: Fred Smith as a young lawyer.

since the late 1960s, The Bahamas has lived in a dictatorship, in all but name.

The Westminster model of governance has not been suited to a country like The Bahamas, with a small population, a political environment of tribal politics and a construct where the small number of Members of Parliament are financially hostage to every Prime Minister given that Cabinet is sometimes made up by up to 75 percent hostage Members of Parliament.

So, governance has usually been by political expediency, not the Rule of Law. Often by “policy”, usually by some misconceived, ill thought out, Ministerial Diktat, like Fred Mitchell’s November 2014 immigration policy, issued overnight in the press, without warning or notice, turning peoples’ lives upside down, terrorizing them, threatening them, making them hide in fear of arbitrary State action and reprisals.

At least for Bahamians today, there is some attempt by Parliament and the Executive through Prime Minister Minnis, to

justify the extensive deprivation of human and constitutional rights by reliance upon provisions of the constitution which purport to give emergency powers to the Executive. I have been reading with continuing interest, the Olympian debate between Dames Joan Sawyer and Anita Allen.

I am reminded of the words of former Prime Minister Christie and I see this pandemic as a “teachable moment“ in the development of our democracy. For too long we have turned a blind eye and accepted that “The Others” - not “Us” can be dismissively treated inhumanely and degradingly like sub-humans, outlawed and abused with little effective recourse.

Money and political power has made Might Right!

The human and constitutional rights of “The Others” are blithely violated by the Executive.

Parliament sits mute and judgement after judgement of the Judiciary is simply ignored. “Their” freedom of movement stolen from them; unable to travel between islands or in or out of The Bahamas. Unable to send their children to school or to enjoy the benefits of educational opportunities even though born in The Bahamas. Arrested in mass raids. Their homes invaded without warrants, vandalized and destroyed or whole communities simply bulldozed overnight.

Kidnapped or arrested on the streets, in buses, at work, at the food store, in churches, at the airports.

“Their” freedom of expression muzzled. “They” are banished or disappeared into the bowels of Carmichael Concentration Camp or Fox Hell Prison for indefinite detention, sometimes for up to 10 years.

Police, Immigration and Defence Force brutality is the norm. “They” are beaten, tortured, forced to live in overcrowded, unsanitary sub-human conditions. “They” are never taken before a court, never charged for having committed any criminal offence.

Those who suffer the luxury of due process are by the thousands young men and women just waiting for trial, kept in the most horrifying and appalling conditions at Fox Hell Prison. “Their” rights trampled upon by arbitrary policy or wilful state institutionalised terrorism, neglect or abuse.

But as it turns out, this has been a double-edged sword.

It wasn’t just the rights of “Others” that were being eroded, shaven away by this process, but the rights of us all. We just didn’t notice when it was being visited upon people who were not “Us”. What we are experiencing now, what Bahamians are railing against, is in reality just a little taste of what could happen to any of us, at any time.

Article 15 of our constitution specifically emphasizes that “ALL PERSONS” are guaranteed human and constitutional rights in The Bahamas. It follows that if these rights can be taken away from one group at any time, they can be taken away from all. Although

the Emergency Orders will eventually end, Bahamians would do well to remember what they are feeling today.

I reflect on the apt reference by Dame Sawyer’s reference to Martin Niemöller’s “First they came for the Jews”. The poem is about the cowardice of the German nation during the Nazis’ rise to power and subsequent incremental purging of chosen targets, group after group, until regular Germans themselves became the targets. The lesson is that eventually, the bell always tolls for you.

For decades, we in the human rights movement have been exposing abuse and defending human rights. We have done so on the fundamental premise that IF THE STATE TAKES AWAY ANY ONE PERSON’S RIGHTS, IT IS TAKING AWAY EVERYBODY’S RIGHTS. For this we have been vilified, threatened, abused, subjected to venomous hate speech, political discrimination and ostracism, and accused of all manner of national treachery and wrongdoing.

Now ALL Bahamians are feeling just a little of what it’s like to have lived, as I did, under the dictatorship of Pap Doc Duvalier in Haiti. At least currently, in The Bahamas, we only get arrested and jailed if we break curfew. In Haiti the Ton Ton Macoutes or Gendarmes shot you on site! This is why, having been born in Haiti, and having experienced authoritarianism firsthand along

with my family, and living under a brutal dictatorship and regime, I have fought proudly, along with my fellow human rights warriors, so hard, going on 43 years now, for the rights of “ALL PERSONS” in The Bahamas, and precisely, as a proud Bahamian, to prevent the country deteriorating into a Haitian-style dictatorship.

Perhaps this little taste of dictatorship will do us some good. This pandemic and its consequences for civil society should be a wake up call to The Bahamas. Hopefully it might even result that, “WE Bahamians” learn to have more empathy, compassion and respect for the rights of “Others”. Hopefully we will have a more visceral appreciation for human rights and a commitment to their preservation and protection for “ALL PERSONS” in the future!

Human rights apply to everyone – not just those who we periodically, conveniently and through politically expedience select to enjoy them, or who have not yet been targeted. Nor should they be taken away from those who are far from sight and therefore far from mind, like those victims of inhumanity at Fox Hell Prison and the Carmichael Concentration Camp [both prisoners and officers as the psychological effects of abuse affect both].

Yes; Wake Up Bahamas!

This pandemic and its consequences to civil society should be a wake up call.

A little taste of dictatorship may be good for the Bahamian Democratic Soul.

INSIGHT

EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

T

Diplomats hamstrung as COVID drives them to the computer screenÂ

HE COVID-19 pandemic is severely limiting the work of diplomacy.

It could have a lasting adverse affect on international relations if finding a vaccine continues to elude global researchers for much longer.

Critical to the work of diplomacy, at every level, is interpersonal contacts at which relationships are forged, attempts are made to iron-out differences, or, at least, some deal is struck – even if it is to defer divisive decisions.

But the protocols of managing the coronavirus has halted such contacts.

Physical meetings and conferences have been replaced by constrained, strait-jacketed, virtual meetings.

Restaurants, famous as venues for dealmaking, are firmly shut. The cannot negotiate effecresult is that off-the-record tively by disembodied discussions are simply not virtual means. For exampossible. There would be ple, negotiating resolutions few in the diplomatic world and declarations is a painswho do not assume that taking process in which telephone calls, and dis- every word matters. One cussions on virtual digital word could change both platforms are not recorded meaning and intent. There– therefore as little as possi- fore, great care is placed ble is said, constraining the on the consequences of the possibility of compromise. use of a word to a country.

Since March, it has been As an example, the words impossible for diplomats in “Climate Change� and international organisations, “Global Warming�, much such as the United Nations as they represent existbodies and the Organiza- ence and survival to small tion of American States states, conjure a different (OAS), to conduct face- importance for industrialto-face meetings either in ized countries, particularly councils or in one-on-one those that deny the existdiscussions. ence of both phenomena.

In Washington, for The intense negotiations, instance, US government required to reach an buildings, offices of mem- understanding, if not an bers of the US Congress agreement, on the use of and embassies have been these terms, are undercut closed to the public with by the restricted nature of most officials and diplomats online meetings. forced to work from home.

One of the big challenges Meetings, conferences that the OAS will face in and bilateral discussions October is how to persuade have had to be held on vir- Foreign Ministers from 33 tual digital platforms like countries to sit in front of Zoom and Kudo. But while their computers at home these meetings are better over two days to particithan nothing, they are pate in the Organization’s inadequate to the task of General Assembly, its highdiplomacy much of which est decision-making body. relies on interpersonal The meeting will be held in contacts. name, but its quality will be The OAS now holds all gravely undermined. meetings of its Permanent General Assemblies Council and committees are more effective for the through a virtual platform. opportunity they provide Subsequently, representa- for Ministers to talk with tives make speeches at each each other outside the other. Lost is the opportu- formal Council. It is in the nity for dialogue that could corridors and in the lounges help to bridge the divide bune problems are overThe Trithat And Best! between governments. Biggestcome, new relationships ne spontaneity are forged, Meetings lack The Tr bu and old ones and flexibility. Often, they strengthened. There will are interrupted by failures be no such opportunity ne uthis The eeTofrikbennew in technology. d year. Indeed, a raft W The most significant Foreign Ministers, includinjury to multilateral diplo- ing three new ones from Watch the macy is that diplomats Guyana, Suriname and film - every A1MAIN

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(CDU) while projecting the Baha- must carefully Though most Police aimed at eliminating tive Unit SEE PAGE 11 units counHe added: near the Southeast Prime was spared gang activity in the morning, of mas Friday Hubert Minnis of the Bahamas the number try, reducing Minister Dr of those SEE PAGE TWO residents and is urging be vigilant islands to

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Dr Hubert MinPRIME Minister Kendera Woodside, nis meeting murdered Eugene the mother of

this Yes I feel for y our countries.than I can say.� more ensure has a responsibilit one mother said he will Each citizen information Dr Minnis provided to and whatever that forward. medical attention is is pregnant. the composure. said he felt the fam- has we must bring among us.� who after feel live Dr Minnis Mrs Woodside, the grieving and days makes me Three These criminals who emphasised country’s he “You can see of those pushed the ily’s pain. “What through,�

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Dr THE hugs her because sure that Prime Minister wife God,� Mrs Woodsidegive my upon after in mourning I’m calling words of I have to make infant are and his a baby. I could my really nant. “As a mother, Hubert Minnis couldn’t answer “He’s right now just for because I this,� her and her unborn make take we will also the all mothers stop and can Patricia Minnis that consumed breath be right here. They well sure to believe mothers who was tearful both ts to make the questions yesterday as babyheart out my body. personnel who arrangemen They said Mrs Minnis, eight- my Kendera Woodside have our sons they necessary medicalsee her on a only son. for her son, killed “This my my daughter too at times. “We and as her and she grieved who was most of them we cradle from birth still with look after to ensure the safety shoot with Eugene, almost delivered house) are basis we (the year-old would’ve men infant.� to me knowing with regular they inside four days ago. people ain’t tell- and What they do to my family? so they are closer patients,� Dr becomeWe have to speakshould of her and her unborn PAGE TWO SEE them. are my former “Why these bringing my son me. they do to us? st by pro- them. I think all women week me? I they we ain’ carry one day this ing me they she cried between What Minnis, a gynaecologi “The message “Why they wear black what’s happening in a baby.� tried to right now?� fession, said. the entire Bahamas 29 years, He’s Dr Minnis and mourn Eugene’s Rose- live screams as must send to this alone.

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Better!

Nobody Does it

40 years.

There is no question that meetings held on virtual platforms have proven that they are beneficial for some purposes. If they continue, they will save governments and businesses a great deal of money that, hitherto, had been spent on travel and accommodation. They should be retained for routine meetings on noncontroversial issues.

But for hard-bargaining and on matters that require careful negotiation, virtual meetings are unhelpful to diplomacy whose effectiveness depends on interpersonal contacts, building relationships and

Trinidad and Tobago, will not have the chance to meet their counterparts from the US, Canada, and Latin America.

The problem is also acute at the United Nations both at the levels of the Security Council and the General Assembly. Up to July, the Security Council could not vote on important issues because its rules do not allow for such voting at informal meetings which is how virtual meetings are characterised.

Recently, representatives have gathered physically once a week to vote on some important issues, but, even so, the work of the Security Council is greatly delayed and impaired. Significantly, this has suited the bigger powers that have taken advantage of Security Council paralysis to advance their national positions, and even their rivalry.

Similarly, in the UN General Assembly, no formal electronic voting system has been established because some members still resist it.

Consequently, resolutions can only pass by consensus of all member states. Since such consensus cannot be negotiated, only minimal compromises are made.

That, too, suits the few giant nations, long intolerant of the many dwarf countries.

All of this makes the world a less safe place. It provides the opportunity for powerful countries, which have the capacity for non-commercial travel, to make arrangements with other countries, outside of the multilateral system.

Invariably, these arrangements serve the interests of the more powerful government.

WEDNESDAY

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December Progressive THE Attorneyslammed to begin work on June.

Amid the said between 2017, the criticism May flaws from early eral yesterday

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are dead, SIX people ju15-year-old including a another man is venile, and his life in hosfighting for four separate pital after in less shooting incidents in the capital. than 48 hours took the The homicides count to country’s murder 43 days of the 26 for the first to The new year, according Tribune’s records. an isPolice launchedlast night of land-wide search suspected for two men dead in Yelthe shooting a man Gardens in low Elder latest incident.bloody weekDespite the Commisend, Assistant Police Stephen sioner of “hundreds� of Dean said were patrolpolice officers over the past ling the streetseffort to keep an few days in well as visitors the public as safe. officer-inMeanwhile Central Decharge of theChief Superintective Unit, Fernander tendent Clayton after a implored parentsto “keep a killing on Friday on their chilwatchful eye� their young dren, especially boys.

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SEE PAGE THREE

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Bahamas Bar FORMER President ElsAssociation yesterday worth Johnsoncalls for Bajoined activistorganise prohamians to resistance tests and public tabled Interto the recently tions he ception of Communica 2017, which Bill (ICB) spying called “dangerous� legislation. who was Mr Johnson, week as the ratified last Movement’s Free National Yamacraw, for pubcandidate the level of bill, questioned on the imlic consultation g that it underscorin entrenched pacted deeply SEE PAGE SIX

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By AVA TURNQUES Reporter .net Tribune Chief tribunemedia aturnquest@ MoveFREE National Leader Peter ment Deputyyesterday acTurnquest government of rcused the gerrymande “shameless recently tabled ing� over that he boundary changes the “deliberclaims affect of middle ate elimination from the forclass areas� constituency. mer Montagu with The d In an interview characterise Tribune he boundary and the proposed a “desperate changes as emoattempt to the perverted� tionally manipulate electorate.

SEE PAGE 11

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By AVA TURNQUES Reporter .net Tribune Chief tribunemedia aturnquest@ ic� “catastroph THE outages that island-wide Providence plagued Newstemmed from late last year equipment Pier widespread the Clifton to failures at according Power Station, and Light.

Power vehicle. reported escape in a taken Bahamas company were reports, The to of its invesThe victims are on According where they on the findings islandA DORSETT shortly after midnight re- to hospital but stable tigation into two another

By SANCHESKReporter officers in serious and Sunday, the domestic inci- listed wide outages, that occurred et Tribune Staff to a condition. shortly bunemedia.n outage that sponded Valentine said major sdorsett@tri in 29 and Police November dent at a homeoff Johnson an officers arrested officers, a also between 4 last year, in after 4am, TWO police wife, are in Subdivision While at the the shooter, who was December sent to the a Terrance. with a from gunshot internal memo husband and stable condition home, a man armed the of- suffering Police also recov- government and obtained serious but shot multiapproached them wounds. from the by The Tribune. after they were responding shotgun both of a shotgun SEE PAGE 11 ficers and shot to flee ered ple times whileincident�. attempting The suspect.

SEE PAGE 12 to a “domestican adult male, before police said.

HowPolice have by one of the the scene, returned fire. con- officers suspect was able to who was shot custody in ever the officers, in the shooting. nection with

shootings one of six fatal area on Friday, e Staff in the Englerston in the calendar above.

W. Carey/:Tribun as shown at Peardale Park Photos: Terrel from the scene to be a deadly February, boy is taken a 15-year-old 12 so far in what has proven THE BODY of and one of over the weekend,

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By NICO SCAVELLA Reporter of killings,� respond “as et Tribune Staff t ibunemedia.n enforcemen and in nscavella@tr as possible� in Perry quickly meaningful way� ods�

PRIME Ministerlikened a “very certain neighbourho fighting efforts. to do so their crime A DORSETT and the suggestion Mr ChrisChristie yesterday no crime situBy SANCHESKReporter and makes These efforts,would likely the Bahamas’“Wild West,� is “emotional et Tribune Staff suggested, a “subbunemedia.n ation to the recent wave tie sense�. came dedicating sdorsett@tri the as he said in the capital include number of officHis comments rethe country after the country streets of of murders a “major� and stantial�

DESPITE homicides in hours its 27th homicide for to patrol the and simust solicit � effort by his ers Providence recording 13 er of corded Seven people have “continuous on to “flood New the year. ly giving them Friday.

13 days, Commission since multaneous Greenslade been killed to interdict administrati with officers in afternoon, Police Ellison is not in “the capacity of people a the streets�

On Monday that is necessaid the Bahamas and the movements reported that “crisis� incorporata bid to do “all this madness the police also outside a state of can conon the streets,� police ofwas stabbed Nassau sary to bring reserve on day man average Bahamian nt more their ing about to a halt�. were an establishme speaking and “if necessary� tinue to “go without the Street while two men Mr Christie, yesterday, ficers, of g Royal Bahaas normal day� in the area attacked. with reporters occur- incorporatin Force marines shot while victims fear of being mas Defence conference Ross Corner. These stable said the “madness�

At a press s on to gang activity in policing efforts. said he to be in ring is due also of were said in hospital. at police headquarter Mr Christie with a weekend and retaliation. past bloody be speaking Monday afterCommissioner condition er He said the a “shocking would Commission so“carnage�, said it is simSEE PAGE THREE said the only weekend ist� that will refor people Greenslade country’s crime Greenslade not enough developmen government to lution to the “keep prolific ply finger at the press to speaking at a Staff quire the to “point the crisis� problem is bars�. He in times of their Ellison Greenslade ER of Police Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune offenders behind Bahamas police to “manage COMMISSION not yet refuse yesterday. said the Royal (RBPF) is Act, Chapter SEE PAGE THREE conference Police Force implementing Suppression considering “locking down boxer was of human trafficking.53, of 106. a curfew or The former with three James Coakley, Andros LAMECH JOHNSON Creek, also charged filed under Reporter Ross By on Staff Cargill Chief et of rape before a double shooting lamented Tribune bunemedia.n was broughtJoyann Fergu- counts 6(a) of the Sexual ljohnson@tri recent inciyesterday, Section 99. It nature of the three mosthave left one Corner in Magistrateto answer to two Offences Act, Chapter in “too bold� in the capappeared WELLS son-Pratt he engaged in perdents, which three others the A MAN

By RICARDO Reporter of trafficking Section is alleged that crimes occurring dead and insisted Magistrate’s Court yestercounts Staff he man condias Tribune SEE PAGE SIX in serious sexually as- sons contrary to ital recently, nemedia.net of prolific in hospital accused of Trafficking rwells@tribu that a “handful hell-bent day woman during 3(1)(a) of the and saulting a harge of the offenders� remain holidays. and po- tion.

Persons Prevention Officer-in-c Unit, the public.

AS the country the Christmas a victim in Detective to grapple on terrorising alleged to be lice continue spate of vio- CentralSuperintendent ClaySEE PAGE THREE She is speaking to with the latest law enforce- Chief Fernander, scene of lent crimes, are seeking ton media on the ment officials assistance in the A DORSETT the public’s

By SANCHESKReporter et Tribune Staff bunemedia.n placed author- sdorsett@tri an law as it the hands of investigatthe in allow POLICE are es surThe bill will t judiciary, or a ity solely T independen ICB met ing the circumstanc of a er of police, commission on his behalf, the the death was that the

By AVA TURNQUES Reporter acting a adding standards rounding ld boy who .net person Tribune Chief warrant fromin- internationa l recent three-year-o tribunemedia e in a car to obtain a judge to aturnquest@ also addressed yesfound unresponsiv Supreme Court a per- and of the Listening in front of his daycare Y General tercept and examine from criticisms Privy ions ATTORNE Act by the ibson terday afternoon. communicat opera- Devices the toddler Allyson Maynard-G the In- son’s ications The body of shortly afCouncil. suggestion - telecommun providers and yesterday defended a She said any was a was discovered of Communica tors, internet Monday by terception ter 2pm on that the legislation an important postal services. yesterday, SEE PAGE SIX bill� was false. tions Bill as tool that would In a statement ibson ex- “spying anti-crime privacy of lawSEE PAGE FIVE Maynard-G move was the Mrs enhance rather than that this abiding citizensit, as detrac- plained ted in Bahamiunpreceden encroach upon FOR YOU... tors claim.

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By SANCHESK said this elecnemedia.net Reporter con Palacious “difficult� for ljohnson@tri kvirgil@tribu et Tribune Staff Sr was tion will be and the FNM Move- sdorsett@tribunemedia.n of OMAR Archer both the PLP is no FREE National convicted Dr Hubert N Archdea- and at this point there how yesterday senment Leader to harm a ANGLICA gauge said said the threatening way to “properlygo.�

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Deputy Prime nearly he to be “fighting for neither day after Phillip “Brave� page 45-year-old Nassau gressive Liberal of office as that The ernment out Day, May and predicted party nor the Ministerpredicted that the Village resident appeared Davis in the heralded Election SEE PAGE SEVEN Movement PLP will win 30 seats that will bring the governing National 10, as a day next Free SEE PAGE TWO 30 seats in change. spoke dur- will wingeneral election. at month’s Dr Minnis on conference as a guest ing a press Appearing SEE PAGE THREE

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By RASHAD Reporter register, ridding Tribune Staff ised errors. emedia.net much-public enough staff to rrolle@tribun “We have “We 170,000 peo- do this,� Mr Hall said.certiJUST over sure it’s to vote have to make after tople have registered 10 general elec- fied some 14 daysdate.� for the May ry Com(Tuesday’s) tion, Parliamenta Hall said day’s accordance with the In Elections missioner Sherlyn ry pubParliamenta yesterday. what he de- Act, Mr Hall will give of This follows election in a “mad rush� notice of the week, statscribed as to vote lic this of newspapers people registering place in conthe last day ing the date, times when on Monday, and registration. 172,000 peo- stituencies papers must be There were to vote in the nomination delivered. ple registeredelection.

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traditions. just a short ROLLE “Earlier today,present ParBy RASHAD Reporter the while ago, Tribune Staff officially disemedia.net liament was Christie said. rrolle@tribun Mr of Perry solved,�seat in the House “Every PRIME Minister the prover- Assembly is now vacant. the to you, Christie rang morning, “It is now left beloved bial bell yesterday that the 2017 citizenry of our who will announcing be held on nation, to decide in the next election willMay 10. fill those seats In doWednesday, address, givof Assembly.

His televisedOffice of the House you will also be dethe ing so, moen live at the came who will form Prime Minister, Commis- ciding of the BahaPolice government five years. ments after Greenslade, for the next that mosioner Ellison as provost mas “You will make in what ns in his capacity decision proclamatio pray marshal, readHouse of As- mentous hope and fair elecoutside the Governor Gen- I earnestly be free and Pin- will following a spirited sembly from Marguerite Let tions eral Dame Parliament. peaceful campaign. dling dissolving said he is but the forthcoming Mr Christie election will us contestwith all the vigour confident the and will fol- elections fair at our command.�

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By RASHAD Reporter Tribune Staff emedia.net rrolle@tribun Nottage’s DR Bernard forever be will “footprints the Bahamian etched on tal landscape� developmen work as a forthrough his of the Bahamer president of Athletic mas Association s, the Bahamas Association , the Medical Association and as a afMinDoctors’ Union consumer FORMER Prime the reminister for health and was to accept when I ister Perry Christie education, defeat, a fairs, Opposifor it as I did arrears, into pictured yesterday. W. national security, who was in sponsibility response to Photo: Terrel Philip “Brave� airport tenant described recent resigned,� he said in levelled e Staff tion Leader as Carey/Tribun the criticism recent on from accusations Mr Christie Davis said Wednesday. in questions on 71, died administrati e spending, misfea- moves made by the government pandering at his administration Nottage, party Dr a by of irresponsibl WELLS at the Clevea “misstep� thought

By RICARDO Reporter Wednesday He will receive sance and cronyism. that weeks. never any he was “disap- to its base. acceptmaintained Tribune Staff “There was land Clinic.

He also said allegations being in arrangenemedia.net that I was degree relating Mr Christie by the rwells@tribu gova state funeral announced, documents on my part any Per- pointed�around by the new to be a review of controversies would ing responsibility for irreMinister that ments Prime two tossed matters any the press secof criminality,notion FORMER as to these his administration of according to Office of the the whatsoever yesterday condemned ernment concerning his last term spending andbare’ is just that much absolve ry Christie retary for the and prove as noth- sponsible Minnis administra- transpired during Anthony is is wrongdoing efforts by the his government in Prime Minister, that ‘the cupboard prime minister.at accusations from of the FNM’s rhetoric slogans.� slogans.� tion to portray as he challenged back Newbold. “political political adminisHitting light, SEE PAGE SIX ing more than challenges I have the Minnis SEE PAGE THREE a negative leader to carry out a members of the controvergovern“One of the the nation’s te examination of the who led the $8m to tration concerning of more thanclean up as the person led the government “dispassiona sial pay out and who record�. interview at one vendor for hurricane to an ment off of $1.2m During a lengthy home on Thursand the write his Cable Beach defended his day, Mr Christie

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Pages 20&21

G concern ADMITTIN Bernard Notin over what Dr have battled last tage may his isolation during Prime Minisdays, former yesterday for ter Perry Christie admiration the expressed forth by the effort put security to former national the build-up minister in election. the May general from his Breaking away since being public silence office in hisof a voted out last month, toric fashion Mr Chrishis visibly troubled portions of his tie detailed with last conversation and longfriend childhood colleague on time political Thursday.

Centreville The former Nottage as Dr MP saw “fought tehis someone who throughout naciously� he loved and life for thosetrait he said he a supported, up to their saw on display . last conversation PAGE SIX SEE

OPENS AT LAST HEALTH CENTRE MARSH HARBOUR

it must Hurriis so devastated the island as Ragged Island remained on home has Minnis warns with those whohomes last week. “Every The en Rag- discussion battered their has been destroyed. has been health facility on storm-strick Min- cane Irma Prime teachers’ residence no water. destroyed. The and safety conditions to deteriorate, urged the 18 been has been destroyed. The is no light. There is HEALTH he smell the school will only continue destroyed. There about, you can yesterday as The in the afterged Island Minnis said to evacuate “As we walkcarcasses, dead animals. deister Dr Hubert on the island reduced will stench of dead of the individuals remaining residentsIrma, which has them REPORT that we get of rubble and SPECIAL health conditions Russell, math of Hurricane it’s essential there to piles Words: Khrisna W Carey teriorate and Dr Minnis said. only most structures Pictures: Terrel island unlivable. Dr Minnis to leave the for off this island,� rendered the bly reluctant stay here,� saw for the concern understanda “They cannot were as home, expressing Many and a delegation and days ever known through said after he damage left by Irma place they’ve hurricane ripped of their residences, first time the Five monster will have about the safety personal belongings. behind. We Defence by the smell after the Category island. “They are concerned may have left and the exacerbated here of all es- whatever materials they condition, the small southern vessel a the same physical the destruction still Force dispatch the cleanup and at The island’s carcasses and strongly urge those the Defence said.

Dr Minnis of rotting animalled Dr Minnis to small community can Force will try to commence SEE PAGE THREE there is security,� sential services, to leave until the ensure that Island been time has on Ragged Ragged Island and be restored. to the residents; a walk through “I’ve spoken Minnis said following Dr devastated,�

BAHAMIAN PROJECT

WELLS

By RICARDO Reporter Tribune Staff nemedia.net rwells@tribu

TERS yesFIREFIGH a large blaze terday battled Providence at the New three weeks Landfill, nearly a massive that after tackling city dump fire at the nearly a month. burned for Charge of Fire Officer in Chief SuperinServices, Evans said tendent Walter is “not confire the the current any way to this nected� in and at previous blazedo not know time officials the fire. Howwhat caused t Minister Environmen ever told rehe Kenred Dorsett the site that porters at “sabotage� in said suspected the fire. He relation to the team he “instructed�to have the of firefighters “before and blaze extinguished day� today nomination Baha Mar’s certainly before Friday. opening on started shortly The blaze and Wednesday after 3am officEvans said Chief Supt battle the fire to but ers expect another day for at least wind is a “huge� he said the factor.

SEE PAGE SIX

SIVE Liberal were obtaineda from a ther’s PROGRES The emails Bradley EMAILS leaked following of China Con- by The Tribune Party Chairmanout at his highdata breach (CCA) Roberts lashed story in December of CCA struction America’s colleague Vinthat from the breach former party night, accusservers show2013, Jerome lighting by a San Francisco cent Peet last North Anto servers China Construction as early as was seeking ing the former Islands MP hacker.

Fitzgerald of dollars eventually paid 24 bitcoins dros and Berry enemy� $24,000) secure millions trucking, and (the equivalent of of being a “political an independin brokerage, to their servat Baha who mounted because he to have access it aplimousine contracts showing a resat in Cabinet ers restored; however, ent campaigna nomination forwarded leaked emails Mar while he of Educathat emails ONE of the Education, Sciwas denied party.

Minister of as the Minister and Tech- pears relating to personnel quest from or d, Jerome Fitzgerald. from the governing tion, Science Tribune has to, to PLP supcompromise ence and Technology Speaking at CCA were in The nology, The a rally in North officials at Baha porters at night, Mr Robagent for Limolink despite top they were not learned. which his Bahamas. You are encourcontradict the saying Andros last is war� as The emails this week de- Mar clientele with the hack at reference from was fa“this a by “I get said to if company writes, vote erts aged of Viacom Minister, who his office to concerned the crowd toPerry Mr Fitzgerald ma- limousine time. the president feel free he urged Dr nied ever using to himself the an email dated May 18, am aware that interior arrive miliar. with regard the you wish. Please incumbent In a vote “Also Izmirlian terials have began to really personally for we direct contracts adding that for the business from the mul- 2013, sent to Mr contact me would with limousine to meet with to or his family resort. agents contact Gomez, is a vote the hotel. I be Fitzgerald, Peet your for Mr Mr could have for dollar or Curby ready it if we ti-billion - the Probro- are people anytime,� he Mr Porter our Managing Free National Movement.SIX Porter, Shelly appreciate Mr Fitzgerald Party MP QuentinAlarice Fill copied, appointed your official your SEE PAGE his Director directly.� tis and 1st 2013.� writes. gressive Liberal we really ker for June - appears also Mr Fitzgerald indicates a request TWO & THREE “As indicated cusSEE PAGES for Marathon $20,000 He then makesfor limouto start brokerage highend to for requesting readiness only cater to be official Baha Mar’s and trucking services and of Mr Izmirlian Baha Mar, tomers and are the project a month from Sarkis services at of Baha Mar of re- sinehe touted the level original developer the ex- the as the brokers citing Izmirlian, were necessary remain for the property. penses that cost of his fa- cord to cover the Healthcare hisMarsh Harbour has a tortureddeadROLLE Centre RASHAD By missed Reporter tory, one of of shoddy Tribune Staff emedia.net lines and claimsall without rrolle@tribun ip, ity. of- workmansh ENT clear accountabil GOVERNM ed the anyThe facility’s original bankrupt. ficials commissionHealththe contractor went of Marsh Harbour n in Abaco yesConstructio care Centre centre began it as a longIngraham terday, touting to the island healthcare under the former awaited boost on. adminisin and the Christie Health administrati Christie adhealth centre When the e Staff tours the new tration’s National came to power, RASPBERRY Perry Christie the W. Carey/Tribun Insurance plans. and Ado- ministration renovating Photo: Terrel ICED TEA PRIME Minister it spent $1m Like the Child SEE PAGE SIX Abaco yesterday.

Robert Smith lescent and that was the (CARS) Complex ed last year, commission

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ManEmergency actiThe National t after they agement Agency (NEMA) the police managemen cations with from entering the vated its emergency evacuation and an were blocked at the Kenplan yesterday area. were also shelter was established at the Several persons with respira- dal G L Isaacs Gymnasium Centre to the hospital Elizabeth Sports during Gar- rushed on Queen as a shelter S in Jubilee tory complaints.

Tribune arrivedwere which was used - for displaced RESIDENT to evacuate their When The residents last hurricane dens were forced after a massive the scene, several as the the believed on their roofs,homes. residents. landfill homes yesterday the dump is smaller Providence pouring water their The fire at by a fire at the Newcommunity in thick, blaze grew closer to for Tall been started of Parliamentalso assist- to have off Fire Trail Road. blanketed the smoke.

Member bush fire Miller was black hazardous the Royal Bahamas Pines Leslie in hosing down their TWO AND THREE entrance Members of SEE PAGES blocked the visibility ing residentsproviding transportaPolice Force as homes and who needed help. residents to the subdivision those for Angry tion zero. dropped to in verbal alterbecame involved fire off Fire a smaller bush to the city after a spread have ed by Movement fre- Trail Road that blanketed Jubilee Gardens yesterday Fire Trail Road. fire the smoke in Jubilee the Free National areas in in bushes off to prevent dump. The flees from the A DORSETT YOUNGSTER done enough the New Providence Gardens and surrounding landfill that started at and threatened A at the New Providence to evacuate their homes. Hanna/Tribune Staff

By SANCHESK Reporter quent fires have caused some of thick, black smoke officials fire were asked et Photos: Shawn Tribune Staff prompting issues.

Landfill that Many residents bunemedia.n respiratory mas- several homes, sdorsett@tri them to develop SEE PAGE THREE came as a owners in JubiTheir comments at the landfill, raging ANGRY home was startyesterday expressed sive fire was lee Gardens concern that neither which officials believe nor disgust and Liberal Party the Progressive had any redespite not having many purchase WELLS sponse to his Mar’s former RICARDO By Baha imReporter offers, as cases of Tribune Staff Izmirlian said enced alleged nemedia.net developer, Mr “stands ready, officials solicitROLLE migration from migrants rwells@tribu

By RASHAD Reporter his company buy Baha developer ing bribes and able to Tribune Staff beatings of THE originalMar resort willing complete it emedia.net and alleged prisoners in today and Bahamian rrolle@tribun of the Baha the resort’s Mar with migrants and States has de- immediately Bahamian conyesterday said THE United Bahamas custody. the Ministry continued completiondates workers and chronic delays the Yesterday, the The opening highlighted “intimida- of Foreign Affairs said lays, missed stag- tractors. ’s CCA for either government ental “inaccurate� and “now supposedthe en- created by or patent incomof report had “incomtion of non-governm self interest now. The gered opening� s� and efforts and in some cases . into late next petence must stop organisation and autire property Sarkis deserves better.� plete� information by the government to an incident year shows that superi- Bahamas inhibit “free to Referring “is SEE PAGE SIX Minoffer thorities criminal Education Izmirlian’s Fitzgerald or� to the current situation. for in which speech through as problems this, and ister Jerome libel laws�

However, despite SEE PAGE 12 in its latest the Bahamas report. rights human also referThe report

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Unlike powerful states, they need a functioning multilateral system in which to represent their interests – right now that system is fractured even more than it was prior to COVID-19.

The effects of the pandemic have limited the diplomacy of Caribbean state, including their capacity to negotiate with the nations whose policies most greatly affect them.

This situation calls for more cohesive policies by CARICOM governments and collective action by all of them in every international organisation.

The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the U.S. and the OAS. He is also a senior fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and at Massey College in the University of Toronto. The views expressed are entirely his own. Responses and previous commentaries: www. sirronaldsanders.com

PAGE 12, Monday, August 24, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

RESIDENTS FLEE AS GULF COAST SEES POSSIBLE TANDEM HURRICANES NEW ORLEANS Associated Press THE Gulf Coast was yesterday braced for a potentially devastating hit from twin hurricanes as two dangerous storms swirled toward the US from the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Officials feared a history-making onslaught of life-threatening winds and flooding along the coast, stretching from Texas to Alabama.

A storm dubbed Marco grew into a hurricane yesterday as it churned up the Gulf of Mexico toward Louisiana.

Another potential hurricane, Tropical

Storm Laura, lashed the Dominican Republic and Haiti, and was tracking toward the same region of the US coast, carrying the risk of growing into a far more powerful storm.

Experts said computer models show Laura could make landfall with winds exceeding 110 mph, and rain bands from both storms could bring a combined total of 2 feet of rain to parts of Louisiana and several feet of potentially deadly storm surge.

“There has never been anything we’ve seen like this before, where you can have possibly two hurricanes hitting within miles of

each over a 48-hour period,” said Benjamin Schott, meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service’s Slidell, Louisiana, office.

The combination of the rain and storm surge in a day or two means “you’re looking at a potential for a major flood event that lasts for some time,” said weather service tropical program coordinator Joel Cline. “And that’s not even talking about the wind.’’

Where precisely Marco was headed — and when the storm might arrive — remained elusive. The hurricane was initially expected to make landfall today, but the National Hurricane

Center said that “a major shift” in a majority of their computer models now show the storm stalling off the Louisiana coast for a few days before landing west of New Orleans — and likely weakening before hitting the state.

However, skeptical meteorologists at the center were waiting to see if the trends continue before making a dramatic revision in their forecast.

Marco is a small storm that may be pushed westward along the Louisiana coast, delaying landfall but worsening storm surge, Cline said.

The prospect of piggybacked

hurricanes was reviving all-toofresh memories of damage caused

by Hurricane Katrina, which struck the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, 2005. The storm has been blamed for as many as 1,800 deaths and levee breaches in New Orleans led to catastrophic flooding.

“What we know is there’s going to be storm surge from Marco, we know that that water is not going to recede hardly at all before Laura hits, and so we’ve not seen this before and that’s why people need to be paying particular attention,” Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards warned at a briefing yesterday.

FIREFIGHTERS DIG IN AHEAD OF HIGH WINDS CALIFORNIA Associated Press THREE massive wildfires chewed through parched Northern California landscapeyesterday as firefighters raced to dig breaks and make other preparations ahead of a frightening weather system. That system was packing high winds and more of the lightning that sparked the huge blazes and scores of other fires around the state, putting nearly a 250,000 people under evacuation orders and warnings.

At the CZU Lightning Complex fire in the Santa Cruz Mountains. south of San Francisco, authorities said their effort was hindered by

people who refused to heed evacuation orders and those who were using the chaos to steal.

Santa Cruz County Sheriff Jim Hart said 100 officers were patrolling and anyone not authorised to be in an evacuation zone would be arrested.

“What we’re hearing from the community is that there’s a lot of looting going on,” Hart said.

He said eight people have been arrested or cited and “there’s going to be more.”

He and county District Attorney Jeff Rosell expressed anger at what Rosell called the “absolutely soulless” people who seek to victimize those already victimized by the fire.

A FIREFIGHTER stands on top of a fire truck along Highway 9 while monitoring flames from the CZU August Lightning Complex Fire

Trump to back his vision of greatness WASHINGTON Associated Press REPUBLICANS will aim to recast the story of Donald Trump’s presidency when they hold their national convention, featuring speakers drawn from everyday life as well as cable news and the White House while drawing a stark contrast with Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.

Trump is looking to shift his campaign away from being a referendum on a presidency ravaged by a pandemic and economic collapse and toward a choice between vastly different visions of America’s future. Reshaping the national conversation around the race has taken on greater urgency for Trump, who trails in public and private surveys as the coronavirus continues to ravage the nation’s economy and his reelection chances.

The four-day event is themed “Honoring the Great American Story”. The convention will feature prominently a number of

PRESIDENT Donald Trump well-known Trump supporters, including members of the Trump family, but also those whom the GOP say are members of the “silent majority” of Americans who have been aided by Trump’s policies. Some have been “silenced” by a “cancel culture” pushed by Democrats, the campaign officials said.

Trump himself was expected to appear each night in the key 10pm Eastern hour, planners said.

Where Democrats highlighted Republicans who crossed party lines to back Biden as an indictment of Trump’s leadership, the GOP lineup will primarily feature figures on the conservative media circuit with the hope that they can deliver red meat for the president’s loyal supporters — though planners say they will feature some people who did not vote for Trump in 2016.

Planners insist they will put forward a more “positive” convention than Democrats’ roasting of Trump. Yet the president also appears intent on trying to seize on the nation’s cultural divides, particularly around issues of racial injustice and policing, drawing on grievances to motivate his base.

The opening night tonight will highlight the “Land of Promise,” aiming to show how Trump helped renew the American dream. Featured speakers include South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, who will deliver the coveted closing speech of the televised prime-time block; former Ambassador to the UN

Nikki Haley; presidential son Donald Trump, Jr.; staunch congressional defenders Reps. Matt Gaetz of Florida and Jim Jordan of Ohio; and Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel.

Tanya Weinreis, a Montana coffee shop owner who received federal loans to pay her employees during the coronavirus, will also speak, as will Andrew Pollack, whose daughter Meadow was among those killed in the 2018 school shooting in Parkland, Florida.

Tuesday’s theme is “Land of Opportunity,” which is expected to cast Biden’s plans as “socialist” and “radical left.” Wednesday, themed “Land of Heroes,” will feature a raft of conservative personalities while speakers on the final night, themed “Land of Greatness, will include Alice Johnson, the criminal justice advocate whose sentence on drug crimes was commuted by Trump at the urging of celebrity Kim Kardashian.

MY BROTHER HAS NO PRINCIPLES, SAYS SISTER WASHINGTON Associated Press PRESIDENT Donald Trump’s older sister, a former federal judge, is heard sharply criticising her brother in a series of recordings, at one point saying of the president, “He has no principles.”

Maryanne Trump Barry was secretly recorded by her niece, Mary Trump.

In one recording, Barry says she had heard a 2018 interview with her brother in which he suggested that he would put her on the border to oversee cases of immigrant children separated from their parents.

“His base, I mean my God, if you were a religious person, you want to help people. Not do this,” Barry says. At another point she says: “His goddamned tweet and lying, oh my God.” She adds: “I’m talking too freely, but you know. The change of stories. The lack of preparation. The lying.”

BELARUS PRESIDENT MAKES ARMED SHOW OF DEFIANCE MINSK, Belarus Associated Press

THE authoritarian president of Belarus made a dramatic show of defiance yesterday against the massive protests demanding his resignation, toting a rifle and wearing a bulletproof vest as he strode off a helicopter that landed at his residence while demonstrators massed nearby.

In the 15th day of the largest and most determined protests ever in independent Belarus, a crowd of about 200,000 rallied against President Alexander Lukashenko in a square in Minsk, the capital. They then marched to another rally and approached the Independence Palace, the president’s working residence.

Video from the state news agency Belta showed a government helicopter landing on the grounds and Lukashenko getting off holding what appeared to be a Kalashnikov-type automatic rifle. No ammunition clip was visible in the weapon, suggesting that Lukashenko, who cultivates

THOUSANDS of people gather to protest against President Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk yesterday The size and duration Square. There were no offian aura of machismo, aimed only to make a show of of the protests have been cial figures on crowd size, unprecedented for Belarus, but it appeared to be about aggression.

Protests started after a a former Soviet republic 200,000 people or more.

The demonstrators presidential election that of 9.5 million people that officials say handed the Lukashenko has ruled then marched to another square about 2.5 kilometers 65-year-old Lukashenko harshly for 26 years.

On Sunday afternoon, away and approached the his sixth term in office with 80% voter approval. Oppo- an opposition rally over- edges of the presidential nents claim the results are flowed Minsk’s sprawling residence grounds, where 7-hectare Independence police in full riot gear fraudulent.

stood shoulder-to-shoulder, holding large shields. The protesters dispersed in the evening amid rain.

There were no immediate reports of arrests.

Earlier this month, some 7,000 people were arrested at protests, many of them badly beaten with clubs or wounded by rubber bullets,

violence that only caused public outrage to swell.

Lukashenko appears to be flailing about for a strategy to counter the anti-government demonstrations.

He has repeatedly blamed Western interference, claimed the protests were backed by the United States and accuses NATO of building up troop concentrations in Poland and Lithuania on Belarus’ western border, which the alliance denies. He also claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin was willing to offer security assistance to his government to quell the protests if he asked for it.

Lukashenko has consistently repressed opposition during his time in office and weariness with his hardline rule appear to have galvanized opponents.

“Belarus has changed.

Lukashenko has been able to unify everybody, from workers to intelligentsia, in the demand for change,” said protester Slava Chirkov, who attended Sunday’s demonstration with his wife and son.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, August 24, 2020, PAGE 13

DONCIC BEATS BUZZER WITH LONG 3, MAVS BEAT CLIPPERS IN OVERTIME

By BRIAN MAHONEY AP Basketball Writer

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Florida (AP) — The Celtics are moving on, while the 76ers are heading into an uncertain future.

Kemba Walker scored 32 points and Boston pulled away in fourth quarter to complete a first-round series sweep over Philadelphia 110-106 yesterday.

Jayson Tatum added 28 points and had a playoff career-high 15 rebounds for Boston, which advances to the Eastern Conference semi-finals and a meeting with the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors swept the Nets.

Boston’s win marks the first sweep in 15 playoff series meetings between the teams.

It also is the third straight season that Philadelphia has failed to advance past the second round.

Walker went to the playoffs twice during his eight seasons in Charlotte, but never made it out of the first round. He said this is a small piece of what he sought in signing with Boston in free agency last summer.

Joel Embiid led the 76ers with 30 points and 10 rebounds. Tobias Harris added 20 points and five rebounds despite leaving briefly after a scary fall that bloodied his left eye. Embiid couldn’t put a finger on one thing that upended the team this postseason. Harris was trying to contest a shot by

Tatum at the 2:40 mark of the third quarter and inadvertently had his legs taken out from under him by Tatum. Harris fell on the left side of his face and laid on the court for several minutes as medical staff attended to him.

He suffered a left eye laceration and was cleared of a possible concussion. He returned to the game with 5:12 left in the fourth with a bandage over his left eye. “I felt OK enough to go back out there and try and do something to help us win,” Harris said. “I rather go down with my guys than sitting in the back.”

But Harris out, Boston scored the final nine points of the third

quarter as part of a 12-0 run. The Celtics’ lead grew to 96-79 in the opening minutes of the fourth.

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Florida (AP) — Kyle Lowry limped off the floor in the first quarter and the Toronto Raptors will surely need their point guard in the next round.

Not Sunday. Not when they simply unleashed the best bench effort in NBA history.

Norman Powell scored 29 points, fellow reserve Serge Ibaka added 27 points and 15 rebounds and the Raptors steamrolled into the Eastern Conference semi-finals by routing the Brooklyn Nets 150-122 to complete a four-game sweep.

The Raptors got 100 points off their bench, most in any game since official starters began being tracked in 1970-71, according to Elias.

No bench had scored more than 94 in the regular season or 86 in the postseason.

The Raptors lost Lowry to a foot injury in the first quarter but the defending NBA champions had more than enough depth and power left to wrap up the first sweep in franchise history and set up a series with the Boston Celtics.

Boston, seeded third, ousted Philadelphia in four games. The series will start Thursday.

Pascal Siakam had 20 points and 10 assists for the Raptors. They upped their record to 11-1 in the bubble and made it clear it won’t be easy to knock them off their spot atop the NBA. Boston handed Toronto its lone loss since the restart and will be a

much sterner test than the undermanned Nets, who were using converted guards as forwards, and forwards as centers.

The Raptors would likely need Lowry for that one. He was grimacing in pain in the first quarter and soon left the game and eventually the arena to have the injury examined elsewhere on the NBA campus.

Caris LeVert scored 35 points for Brooklyn, which came to the bubble without many of its top players but went 5-3 in the seeding games to earn the No. 7 seed.

But the Raptors overpowered them in three games and used a rally in the fourth quarter to win Game 2, the only one in which the Nets had a chance.

The Raptors began to get separation near the end of the first quarter and then seized control in the second, getting inside easily against the undersized Nets.

Only LeVert, with 26 points in the half, could keep it from getting completely out of hand, so the Toronto lead that was 17 was down to 77-68 by halftime.

But the Raptors blew it open for good quickly when they returned.

Powell hit the middle of Toronto’s three straight 3-pointers in a 12-0 run that doubled the lead to 94-70, and Ibaka nailed consecutive 3s late in the third quarter to extend it to 27.

Terence Davis tossed in a 30-footer at the buzzer to make it 116-87.

HONOURING BRYANT Tatum wore a T-shirt in the pregame and postgame Kobe Bryant’s picture on the front. He also wore a purple armband during the game in honour of the Lakers legend to honour his mentor on what would have been his 42nd birthday.

“I just wanted to acknowledge him,” Tatum said.

“Everybody knows how much he meant to me, and still means to me. ... I know he’ll always be watching and I’m just trying to make him proud.”

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — Luka Doncic stepped back for a winning 3-pointer — on a tender ankle, no less.

Another installment in the ever-growing legend of Doncic.

Doncic’s deep shot at the buzzer capped a triple-double and the short-handed Dallas Mavericks beat the Los Angeles Clippers 135133 in overtime yesterday to even the playoff series at two games apiece.

Doncic finished with 43 points, 17 rebounds and 13 assists for his second straight triple-double.

“We know this kid has got a flair for the dramatic,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. “He’s a guy that lives for these moments.”

To think, Doncic was a game-time decision due to the left ankle he hurt in Game 3. But once he stepped on the floor, he knew he would give it a go.

And once crunch time hit, the ankle wasn’t even a thought. “One of the best feelings I’ve ever had as a player,” Doncic said about the winner. “Just something special.”

Marcus Morris hit a 3-pointer with around 9 seconds remaining in OT to give the Clippers the lead. It simply set the stage for Doncic’s winner over Reggie Jackson. His teammates rushed out to congratulate him. “Big-time players make big-time plays.

He’s a big-time player,” teammate Trey Burke said.

“He’s proved it already in this league.”

Doncic’s theatrics helped the seventh-seeded Mavericks post their biggest playoff comeback win, overcoming a 21-point, second-quarter deficit. Their previous best was 19 against the Spurs in San Antonio during Game 5 of the 2003 Western Conference Finals.

Dallas used a 16-0 run in the third to take the lead -and led by 12 points in the fourth before the Clippers rallied.

Lou Williams tied it at 121 by hitting two of three free throws with 50.6 seconds remaining in regulation.

After Dallas failed to score on the next possession, the Clippers called a timeout to set up a play with 24.7 seconds left. Kawhi Leonard’s 3-point shot with 0.2 seconds remaining was off the mark. The Mavericks failed on a lob toward big man Boban Marjanovic to send it to overtime.

• Game 5 of the best-ofseven series is Tuesday.

NFL HAS 77 APPARENTLY FALSE POSITIVE COVID-19 TESTS FROM LAB

By BARRY WILNER AP Pro Football Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The NFL had 77 positive COVID-19 tests from 11 teams re-examined by a New Jersey lab after false positives, and all those tests came back negative.

The league asked the New Jersey lab BioReference to investigate the results, and those 77 tests are being re-tested once more to make sure they were false positives.

Among teams reporting false positives, the Minnesota Vikings said they had 12, the New York Jets 10 and the Chicago Bears nine. The Jets cancelled a walkthrough Saturday night but had a full practice yesterday morning after the previously positive tests came back negative. The Bears moved their practice scheduled for yesterday morning to the afternoon.

The Detroit Lions had a player with a false positive test from the same lab in New Jersey and he was held out of practice yesterday, a league source told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the league and team were not disclosing test results.

The Pittsburgh Steelers said they had six false positives and those players will be back at practice today. The Philadelphia Eagles held out four players from working out yesterday.

The Cleveland Browns initially cancelled practice, but after re-testing turned up negative tests they decided to have their workout.

There are five labs nationwide that service the 32 teams, with only the New Jersey facility having the false positives this weekend.

The number of positive COVID-19 tests from a specific facility that might actually be false demonstrates the precarious position the NFL is in less than three weeks from the regular-season opener.

“Definitely probably better that this happened now than three weeks from now,” said Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane, whose club had some of those positive results.

“But it seems like every few weeks, or even every week, something’s going on. Who know what the next curveball will be?”

Beane said tests in the Northeast had gone “haywire,” and called it “a lab issue and not a true

issue with our guys currently” after several Bills were held out of practice.

Anyone testing positive for COVID-19 — even a false positive upon a retest — is required to have two more negative tests before being cleared to return.

The NFL uses BioReference for all of its COVID-19 testing, though tests are handled by labs throughout the nation to ensure teams get results quickly — hopefully within 24 hours.

Heading into this weekend, there had been four confirmed positive tests for players who were at training camps.

“Clubs are taking immediate precautionary measures as outlined in the NFL-NFLPA’s health and safety protocols to include contact tracing, isolation of individuals and temporarily adjusting the schedule, where appropriate,” the NFL said in a statement.

“The other laboratories used for NFL testing have not had similar results.”

Jets offensive lineman Leo Koloamatangi, who opted out of playing this season because of family health concerns, tweeted: “Wishing nothing but safety and great health over my brothers and their families right now. As it

turns out, testing isn’t as reliable as we’d all hoped.”

The Bears were alerted Sunday morning about the test findings.

“That’s where I was really excited for the way we went about communicating with the coordinators, the coaches, the players early, just letting them know, ‘Hold on for the now. We’re gonna delay this thing. Let us work through this a little bit,’” Bears coach Matt Nagy said.

“And then we were able to get those players and everybody involved in the positive test, we were able to get them in and obviously get re-tested and come back with the second test, and it came back all negative. So now we had to go to, ‘Now, what do we do?’

That’s when we went ahead and figured we were able to move forward with practice. We delayed it.”

Beane stressed the need for transparency throughout the Bills’ organisation and said some players were on a conference call with the NFL’s chief medical officer, Dr Allen Sills.

“We had an open dialogue with our players,” he explained. “We even had some of our leadership crew of players on with Dr Sills this morning just hearing directly

with him, who’s aware of all these tests that have gone a little bit haywire here in the Northeast.

“And I think that was good for them to hear, because naturally, if you’re going to be out there tackling and blocking and things like that, passing the ball around, people might be unnerved if we got some guys missing.”

The Browns said initial results from the lab indicated multiple “presumptive positive cases” that included coaches, players and staff. The team did not disclose the number of positive tests and had resumed the scheduled practice about four hours after calling it off. The team also did a thorough cleaning of the facility in Berea, Ohio. “We’ve concluded our re-testing of each initial presumptive positive result from yesterday among players, coaches and staff,” a team spokesperson said. “All have come back as negative, which is consistent with the irregularities across the league from multiple teams. As a result, we are reopening our building and will resume football activities this afternoon. As per protocol, the individuals with test results in question may not re-enter the building until they receive another negative test result tomorrow.”

PAGE 14, Monday, August 24, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Ray Minus Jr’s Champion Amateur Boxing Club has a new location FROM PAGE 16 Sports and Culture.

During a visit at the facility, the green tarp is still around the fence with a few posters that promoted the monthly shows that Minus Jr staged for his amateur programme.

On the inside are the rumbles of what was once a site, not just for countless amateur and professional boxers, but also those who later came around for fitness classes conducted by Minus Jr and sensei Gregory Storr.

Before being dismantled, Minus Jr was joined by Ronn Rodgers, who moved his Strikers Boxing Club into the facility last year.

“I was with Ray when the facility was off Wulff Road near It’s A Small World,” said Rodgers, a cousin of Munnings-Minus. “When he moved to Wulff Road opposite Whims, I was there with him too. He was doing pretty good there for quite a while.”

Since then, Rodgers opened his own club, which was staged at various sites

until he reunited with Minus Jr last year because of an opportunity to open and operate a ring in Tampa, Florida in April, but when the coronavirus pandemic took shape in March, everything was put on the back burner.

“I closed my gym to help him build his amateur programme because the gym I was going to start in Tampa would have had an amateur programme so we could connect with each other,” he said.

“The offer is still on the table, but for now I will continue to operate my gym at another location. It’s not in the area what I really want in the southside of the island, but it will do for now. It’s just a big loss not having Champion Boxing Club on Wulff Road.”

Munnings-Minus, who still operates First Class Promotions, said it’s disappointing to see the operation dismantled at the site. “Champion Boxing Club was the feeder system for First Class Promotions,” Munnings-Minus said.

“Champion Boxing and First Class has been the leader in boxing for the last two decades where they have been able to represent the country at a number of international events.

“I feel honoured that I was able to give back to the country because we were able to take a lot of the guys off the street and made champions out of some of them, but also provided an alternative to crime for a lot more of them.”

Last month, First Class Promotions celebrated its 20th year of existence and Munnings-Minus said if they had been given the respect and support from both the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture and the Bahamas Boxing Commission, they would have still been in the promotional game.

“Without us in the game, nothing much happened for boxing,” she said.

“I don’t want to brag about it because there were other promoters who came along after us, but we put in a lot of work to produce the

largest stable of amateur and professional boxers in the country.”

Over the years, Munnings-Minus said they were able to produce a number of boxers like Valentino Knowles and Carl Hield in the amateur ranks and Meacher ‘Pain’ Major, Jermaine ‘Choo Choo’ Mackey, Elkana Saunders, Jerry ‘Big Daddy’ Butler, Alpachino Allen, Damien Thinker, Taureano ‘Reno’ Johnson, Ryan ‘Big Youth’ McKenzie, Wilson Theophile, Shimon Bain, Drexell McIntosh. “Anything to help someone to turn their lives around, we were glad that we were able to do it,” said Munnings-Minus, who thanked her father, Cedric Munnings, for granting them permission to use the facility for their programme over the years. “There is no regret in doing it. I’m just glad that Champion Boxing Club and First Class could have made such a contribution to the sport for the past 20 years.”

Minus Jr said he wants to provide an alternative for

boxers to train when the facilities at the National Gym is closed for them to stay active, so he’s looking at opening a smaller facility at his home.

“I love boxing so much.

I’m like the great Sugar Kid Bowe, who said ‘I like boxing more than I like woman,’” Minus Jr said.

“We definitely want to help any boxer who is interested in the sport. We want to make sure that they are properly prepared and at their best.”

Mackey, who started training with Minus Jr when he was near his home next to It’s A Small World and went on to become the Bahamas and Commonwealth super middleweight champion, said he’s reached out to his former coach and mentor to assist him in relocating his gym there.

“I was shocked to find out that the Champion Boxing Club was closed down. I spoke with Ray’s daughter, Rayshell, and she told me about him wanting to relocate to his house. I told her that I think it’s a great idea

and I would go by to talk to him,” he said.

“He told me what he was thinking and I helped to critique the idea to fit the location. However, it’s been challenging at this time because of the lack of financial support and funding.

He lost everything, including all the boxing bags and gloves. The only thing he was able to salvage was the ring.”

Mackey, who formed his own CCM Fitness Club around 2011, said it is a tragedy that Minus has to relocate from the site where he’s been operating from for so long, but life goes on.

“For whatever reason he had to relocate, I just want to be able to assist him because he’s been there for me when I was training and competing. I’m going to be helping him with the young boys when he gets the gym up and running,” said Mackey, now competing in the Bahamas Triathlon Association as a competitor in a bid to stay competitive as an athlete after he retired in 2016.

LOS Angeles Dodgers’ Mookie Betts, right, gets congratulations from Will Smith, after Betts hits a two-run home run, his second home run of the game, with Colorado Rockies catcher Elias Diaz, left, looking away during the eighth inning of a baseball game in Los Angeles yesterday. The Dodgers won the game 11-3, hitting seven home runs against the Colorado Rockies.

(AP Photo/ Alex Gallardo)

BETTS HOMERS TWICE AS DODGERS POUND ROCKIES 11-3 LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kiké Hernández hit a three-run drive and Mookie Betts went deep twice in the Dodgers’ seven-homer attack, powering Los Angeles past the Colorado Rockies 11-3 yesterday for a three-game sweep.

The Dodgers are the only team in the majors yet to lose a series, unbeaten in 11. They have won 11 of 12 games overall and own the best record in baseball at 22-8 at the halfway point of this abbreviated season.

Cody Bellinger, Corey Seager, Will Smith and Max Muncy also homered for Los Angeles. Victor Gonzalez (1-0) earned his first major league victory.

PADRES 5, ASTROS 3 SAN DIEGO (AP) — Fernando Tatis Jr. made two spectacular plays at shortstop, Manny Machado hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning, and San Diego completed a threegame series sweep.

The Padres have won seven straight, all against the two Texas teams. The Astros have lost three straight. They came in on an eight-game winning streak.

Tatis retreated into left field and jumped to rob George Springer of a hit for the second out of the eighth inning. Springer couldn’t believe it, and reliever Craig Stammen (3-1) clapped for the 21-year-old star.

CUBS 2, WHITE SOX 1 CHICAGO (AP) — Yu Darvish struck out 10 in his career-high fifth consecutive victory, and the Cubs stopped the seven-game win streak by the White Sox.

Kyle Schwarber hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning as the Cubs won for just the fourth time in their last 11 games. The NL Central leaders were outscored 17-5 in the first two games of the series.

José Abreu went deep for the White Sox in the second, matching a major league record with a home run in four consecutive atbats. Abreu connected five times in the first two games against the Cubs, including three homers and four RBIs in Saturday night’s 7-4 win.

ATHLETICS 5, ANGELS 4 OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Mark Canha hit a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning, and Oakland improved to 5-0 in extra innings.

Matt Olson made the last out of the ninth, but Franklin Barreto came in to run for him at the start of the 10th. After Matt Chapman singled Barreto to third, the Angels brought the infield in before Canha hit a high fly to center off Ty Buttrey (1-1). Mike Trout made the catch but Barreto scored without a throw.

Shohei Ohtani hit a towering three-run homer for the Angels. Anthony Rendon singled twice to extend his hitting streak to 13 games. Tommy La Stella also had two hits.

CARDINALS 6, REDS 2 ST. LOUIS (AP) — Yadier Molina had four hits and top prospect Dylan Carlson hit his first career homer, helping the Cardinals to the victory.

Harrison Bader also connected for St. Louis, which won three of four in the series. Molina, Carlson and

Bader each finished with two RBIs. The Cardinals scored the last six runs after Eugenio Suárez hit a two-run homer in the first inning for the Reds.

Bader went deep for a two-run shot in the second after he also homered during Saturday’s 3-0 win.

Molina put St. Louis ahead to stay with an RBI single against Tyler Mahle (0-1) in the third.

RAYS 5, BLUE JAYS 4 ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Josh Fleming pitched five innings of tworun ball for Tampa Bay, winning his major league debut.

Fleming (1-0) is the 11th different starter in 29 games this season for the injuryfilled Rays pitching staff.

John Curtiss worked 1 2/3 perfect innings to get his first career save.

Toronto starter Trent Thornton left after a scoreless inning with right elbow inflammation.

The AL East-leading Rays took a 3-2 lead in the fifth on an RBI single from pinch hitter José Martínez, Austin Meadows’ sacrifice fly and a run-scoring single

by Brandon Lowe off Ryan Borucki (1-1).

TWINS 5, ROYALS 4 KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Nelson Cruz hit his 10th homer for Minnesota, and closer Taylor Rogers dodged trouble in the ninth inning.

Cruz connected on Trevor Rosenthal’s 99-mph fastball for a solo shot that went an estimated 441 feet to center field in the ninth.

The drive gave Minnesota a two-run lead and helped the Twins win their eighth

series in nine tries this season.

Tyler Clippard (1-0) got the win with a perfect eighth. Rogers allowed an RBI single to Maikel Franco but retired Alex Gordon to complete his sixth save.

GIANTS 6, DIAMONDBACKS 1 SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Mike Yastrzemski celebrated his 30th birthday with a go-ahead home run, and the Giants earned their sixth consecutive victory.

Trevor Cahill and four relievers held the Diamondbacks to five hits, and the Giants completed their first three-game series sweep of the season.

Caleb Baragar (3-1) got the final two outs of the sixth for the win.

Yastrzemski drove a 3-2 pitch from Luke Weaver (1-4) into the Giants’ bullpen in center field leading off the sixth for a 2-1 lead.

Alex Dickerson added a three-run homer off Hector Rondon in the seventh.

The Diamondbacks have lost five in a row.

PIRATES 5, BREWERS 4 PITTSBURGH (AP) — Gregory Polanco hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning, helping Pittsburgh complete a three-game series sweep.

Polanco connected off David Phelps (2-3) for his fourth homer and finished 2 for 3 with a walk. It was Polanco’s second two-hit game in as many days, lifting his batting average from .085 to .151.

The Pirates nearly doubled their season win total in one weekend. They entered the series with a 4-17 record, worst in the major leagues.

Chris Stratton (1-0) pitched a scoreless eighth for the win, and Richard Rodriguez worked a perfect ninth for his first save.

Justin Smoak had two hits and three RBIs for Milwaukee, including a two-run homer that gave the Brewers a 4-2 lead in the sixth.

ORIOLES 5, RED SOX 4 BALTIMORE (AP) — Rio Ruiz drove in four runs, Thomas Eshelman provided exceptional relief for injured starter Wade LeBlanc, and the Orioles beat the Red Sox to earn a split of the four-game series.

Anthony Santander stretched his hitting streak to 18 games for the Orioles, who climbed back to .500 (14-14) with their second straight win following a sixgame skid.

After Boston’s Kevin Pillar homered on the game’s second pitch, LeBlanc faced three more batters before leaving with left elbow stiffness. Eshelman (2-0) then came in and worked 4 1/3 scoreless innings.

Tanner Scott gave up a two-run homer to Jackie Bradley Jr. in the ninth before getting the final out for his first career save.

TIGERS 7, INDIANS 4 CLEVELAND (AP) — Tarik Skubal and Daniel Norris combined to pitch six innings of one-run ball, leading Detroit to the victory.

Jorge Bonifacio hit a two-run homer and Niko Goodrum and Grayson Greiner connected for solo drives for the Tigers, who won for the second time in the three-game series after losing their previous 20

games to Cleveland. César Hernández belted his 12th career leadoff homer for the Indians.

Greg Allen hit a threerun drive in the ninth off closer Joe Jiménez before José Cisnero recorded the final two outs for his first save.

NATIONALS 9, MARLINS 3 WASHINGTON (AP) — Aníbal Sánchez pitched seven effective innings for Washington, and Trea Turner drove in three runs.

Sánchez (1-3) allowed one run and five hits in his longest outing of the season.

The veteran right-hander went 0-2 with a 9.00 ERA in his first three starts this month.

Turner went 3 for 3 and scored two runs. Rookie Luis Garcia also had three hits and scored three times for the Nationals, who have alternated wins and losses over their last 10 games.

Corey Dickerson homered for Miami for the second straight day. Humberto Mejía (0-2) allowed four runs, two earned, and seven hits in 3 2/3 innings.

MARINERS 4, RANGERS 1 SEATTLE (AP) — Kyle Lewis and Sam Haggerty homered and Justin Dunn pitched one-hit ball over six innings, leading Seattle to the win.

The trio of rookies sent the Rangers to their eighth straight loss and helped the Mariners to their first series win and sweep of the season. Seattle has won five of six at home.

Dunn (2-1) earned his second career win, both coming against Texas. He struck out six and walked one.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, August 24, 2020, PAGE 15

JOHNSON WINS BY 11 SHOTS, BACK TO NO. 1

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer

BAYERN’s goalkeeper Manuel Neuer lifts the trophy after Munich won the Champions League final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain at the Luz stadium.

(Matthew Childs/Pool via AP)

NORTON, Mass. (AP) — Dark clouds gathered. Thunder rumbled.

Lightning flashed on the horizon. Just as unsettling was seeing Dustin Johnson in complete control of his game with a performance worthy of his return to No. 1 in the world. He was as close to unbeatable as he has ever been.

Johnson capped off his dominant week at The Northern Trust with an 8-under 63, finishing with a tap-in birdie in the dark following a storm delay for an 11-shot victory at the TPC Boston. It was the largest margin of victory since Phil Mickelson won by 13 at the TPC Sugarloaf in 2006.

Johnson hit every green in regulation yesterday, and missed only three greens over his last 54 holes. His final 54 holes were rounds of 60-64-63.

He finished at 30-under 254, making him only the third player in PGA Tour history to finish at 30 under or better. He missed the record by one shot set by Ernie Els in 2003 at Kapalua.

BAYERN DEFEAT PSG 1-0 TO WIN 6TH EUROPEAN CUP

By ROB HARRIS AP Global Soccer Writer LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Kingsley Coman headed Bayern Munich to a sixth European Cup title yesterday, scoring against boyhood club Paris SaintGermain to seal a 1-0 victory in the first Champions League final to be played without fans.

While Bayern won its first final since 2013, PSG has yet to lift the European Cup despite more than $1 billion being spent on players in nine years.

More than $500 million was spent on Neymar, Kylian Mbappé and Angel Di Maria but PSG looked far from formidable or threatening against the Bavarian giants who felt more assured on European club football’s biggest stage.

As the costly front three were frustrated in front of goal, it was instead a winger who was born in Paris and started his career at PSG who inflicted the blow.

The 24-year-old Coman ghosted in at the far post unchecked by the PSG defence and was ready to

meet a cross from Joshua Kimmich in the 59th minute.

It was Bayern’s 43rd goal of a perfect European campaign that has seen Bayern become the first team to win all 11 Champions League matches.

“When you win a title like this with brothers on the pitch,” Kimmich said, “that’s the maximum you can ask for.”

It capped an incredible transformation this season under Hansi Flick, who emerged from the shadows in November, with a promotion to the top coaching job with Bayern fourth in the Bundesliga.

The season is now over -- three months later than planned due to the coronavirus pandemic pause in play -- with Bayern treble winners just as it was in 2013.

The European Cup joins the Bundesliga trophy -- won for an eighth successive season — and the German Cup. Bayern joins deposed champion Liverpool as sixtime champions of Europe, only behind AC Milan

BAYERN’s head coach Hans-Dieter Flick is tossed in the air by his players as they celebrate after winning the Champions League final soccer match against Paris Saint-Germain at the Luz stadium in Lisbon, Portugal, yesterday.

(Miguel A Lopes/Pool via AP) (seven) and Real Madrid (13). It was the first final to end 1-0 since Real Madrid beat Juventus in 1998 which was also the last final to feature teams who qualified as domestic champions.

But the singing PSG contingent around the

directors’ box was silenced in a stadium that was largely empty due to coronavirus restrictions.

And when the final whistle blew, Neymar was in tears, embraced by Bayern rival David Alaba. “They were more clinical than us,”

PSG midfielder Ander Herrera said.

“When you play another top team in Europe, if you don’t score they will,” he added.

PSG’s footballing superstars were subdued at a final which lacked the usual

pre-match entertainment from pop stars.

Not that PSG lacked chances to take the lead at a final that should have been played in Istanbul in May, rather than the Portuguese capital in late August when seasons usually begin not end.

Only the presence of “Istanbul” on the match ball that Neymar struck at Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer in the 18th was a reminder here of the pandemic-enforced change of location.

Neymar did spark the move that saw Herrera and Di Maria combine but the Argentine could only strike over. And an interchange between Herrera and Mbappé before halftime ended with a weak shot from the French forward.

Perhaps the only surprise was that there was no 56th goal of the season

by Bayern forward Robert Lewandowski.

For once his scoring contribution was not needed as this season like no other ended with a 21st successive win for Bayern as part of a 30-game unbeaten run.

SEVILLA BEAT INTER MILAN 3-2 TO WIN 6TH EUROPA LEAGUE

By JAMES ELLINGWORTH AP Sports Writer COLOGNE, Germany (AP) — The longest Europa League season came down to a defender’s spectacular shot and a striker trying to keep it out.

Instead of blocking Diego Carlos’ overhead kick — which was going wide — Romelu Lukaku deflected it into his own net. That handed Sevilla a 3-2 win in the final Friday and a record sixth Europa League title.

And it gave Lukaku the distinction of scoring for both teams.

The Belgium striker had given Inter a perfect start with an early goal after winning his first duel with Diego Carlos, who could easily have been sent off in the process. The Brazilian defender was the last defender when he fouled Lukaku on a counterattack in the third minute but was only given a yellow card.

Lukaku scored the spot kick, but Sevilla fought its way back into the game with two headers from Luuk de Jong, setting the stage for Diego Carlos to hit his game-winning kick in the 74th.

“If you win the penalty and it’s a red card, if indeed it was a red card, then ultimately the match would have been a lot less tough,” Inter coach Antonio Conte said through a translator. “The referee made a decision in the end. That’s the way he read this decision and there’s also VAR, but we know VAR is used differently in every different country.”

Conte also hinted he could leave Inter after his first season

SEVILLA’s Fernando holds the trophy after winning the Europa League final soccer match against Inter Milan in Cologne, Germany, on Friday.

(Lars Baron/Pool Photo via AP) as coach brought runner-up finishes in Serie A and the Europa League.

The loss extended Inter’s wait for a first European trophy since Jose Mourinho led the Italian club to the Champions League title in 2010.

Sevilla has won the Europa League in four of the last seven seasons.

“This group deserve this. We’ve been fighting all season and getting over the problems that we’ve encountered,” said Sevilla rightback Jesus Navas, who won his third Europa League with Sevilla — 14 years after his first.

The game started at breakneck pace despite being the 54th game of 2019-20 for both teams in a season extended because of the coronavirus pandemic.

After just three minutes Lukaku surged away with the ball when a Sevilla attacking throwin was cleared, and Diego Carlos pushed him down as he prepared to shoot. Goalkeeper Yassine Bounou had played a key part in Sevilla’s run to the final but could do nothing to stop Lukaku’s powerful penalty kick into the bottom-left corner.

The lead lasted just seven minutes before Luuk de Jong levelled

the score with a diving header off a cross from right-back Jesus Navas.

De Jong was rewarded with a start after scoring the winning goal as a substitute against Manchester United in the semi-finals.

The Dutch striker gave Sevilla a 2-1 lead in the 33rd with a header at the far post at a free kick, but three minutes later Inter scored in nearly identical fashion, Diego Godin heading in from almost the same position off Marcelo Brozovic’s free kick. De Jong put Sevilla in front 2-1 with a header at a free kick in the 33rd, but Inter defender Diego Godin responded

with his own headed goal three minutes later. Lukaku could have put Inter back in front in the 65th when he burst in behind Sevilla’s defence but Bounou charged out to block his low shot.

After Sevilla reclaimed the lead, Jules Koundé stopped Inter levelling once again when he cleared substitute Alexis Sanchez’s shot off the line in the 82nd.

Sevilla coach Julen Lopetegui said he was delighted to win a trophy with Sevilla in his first job since spending barely three months in charge of Real Madrid in 2018. He had lost his job as Spain coach on the eve of the World Cup over his decision to take over Real.

“It was a very emotional game but in the second half we controlled the game a bit better we dug in,” Lopetegui said through a translator, paying particular tribute to Diego Carlos. “He gave away the penalty then he scored that wonderful overhead kick.”

In a season defined by the coronavirus pandemic, Sevilla finished with a player on the field who had his own season disrupted by a positive test for COVID-19.

Serbian midfielder Nemanja Gudelj was a late arrival to the Europa League tournament “bubble” in Germany after a period in isolation following his positive test last month. He didn’t report any symptoms.

He was welcomed by his teammates with hugs last week and was a late substitute in the semifinal win over Manchester United before replacing Diego Carlos in the 86th minute of the final.

SPORTS SECTION E

Gaither and Gardiner victorious in 100m

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

T

‘RENO’ MIGHT GET HIS WISH IT appears that Tureano “Reno” Johnson might get his wish by getting a bout against elite competition in the middleweight division.

According to ESPN Deportes, DAZN plans to schedule the bout between Johnson and WBO junior middleweight title holder Jaime Munguia, as one of its many marquee matchups this fall. “For the month of October, DAZN expects to schedule Devin Haney-Yuriorkis Gamboa and Jaime Munguía-Tureano Johnson,” the ESPN report said.

“Tentatively for September they could reschedule the battle between Jorge Linares and Javier Fortuna, and for November the fight between Gennadiy Golovkin and Kamil Szeremeta.”

Both Johnson and Munguia fight under Golden Boy Promotions. The possible bout between the two has also been profiled on the promotional outlet’s web series “Fantasy Fights.”

Now sporting a 21-2-1 win-loss-draw record, Johnson is coming off a victory over the previously undefeated Jason Quigley on July 18 for the NABF middleweight title at the Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, California. Just after his win over Quigley, Johnson was ranked

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MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 2020

SEE PAGE 13

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

SOCCER,

No.8 in the World Boxing Council and No.15 in the International Boxing Federation. He first issued a challenge to Munguia in May via Twitter.

“Gots to keep the momentum,” Johnson tweeted, “Let’s bring on Jaime Munguia. Come and test the waters with a real Middleweight SHARK. Come for a swim.”

RENO

Munguia, 23, is undefeated (35-0, 28 KOs) and stopped Gary O’Sullivan in round 11 of his last fight on January 11.

Johnson was profiled by Golden Boy Promotions on his time spent during quarantine and made a clear statement on his intentions for his return to the ring. “It’s not just Munguia, its any of the big boys out there. I am in the top 10, I’ve been in the top 10 for quite a while.

In recent times I’ve even been close to the number one ranking. I deserve that opportunity, I believe I’ve gotten an unfair shake at many times but that’s just the way boxing is at times,” Johnson said.

he coronavirus pandemic may have limited the amount of meets that they compete in, but quarter-miler Steven Gardiner and sprinter Tynia Gaither are making the best of the opportunities they’re provided with.

Competing at the American Track League Meet #7 on Saturday at Life University in Marietta, Georgia, the duo pulled off victories in the 100 metres.

Gardiner, coming off his national record-breaking performance in the men’s 150m a week ago, produced his lifetime best of 10.35 seconds. The 24-year-old Adidas-sponsored athlete took the race ahead of Cejhae Greene of the Knoxville’s All-Stars in 10.38.

“I wished I was more explosive because I have the foot speed, but overall I felt good about it,” Gardiner told The Tribune. “I don’t normally start on the straight away, so my coach told me to be explosive coming out and to work on my arm movement.

“I did that and I came across the line in a pretty good time. I was working on my technique and my drive phase.”

Gaither, on the other hand, emerged on top of the field in the women’s century in 11.61 over Madison Fleming, who did 12.51.

Gaither, 27, came back in the finale of the meet and lowered her time to 11.59 for another victory over Kimberly Williams of Adidas in 12.07.

Prior to the meet, Gaither picked up a pair of victories at the Back to the Track Series III Meet at Prairie View A&M University in Prairie View, Texas in the 60m in a personal best time of 7.46 and the 100m in a wind-aided 11.25.

Looking back at his time of 15.07 the previous weekend at the Atlanta 150m Challenge at the same site to erase Chris ‘Fireman’ Brown’s national record of 15.10 in the 150m,

TYNIA GAITHER won the 100m at the American Track League Meet #7 Saturday at Life University in Marietta, Georgia.

Gardiner said he was fully prepared for the century this weekend.

“It showed that I am in great shape. I could have gone faster, but I am still pleased with the way I performed,” he said.

“It’s been a great season.

It’s not what I expected, but I ran some really good times this year in the 200m, 150m and now the 100m, so I feel good about my performances.”

Now that he’s officially done for the year, Gardiner said he can take a break and get ready for the long haul towards to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, which was postponed in July to July 2021.

“This year we won’t be able to compete in the big races, so hopefully next year everything will be back to the way it was,” said Gardiner of the season that was interrupted due to the coronavirus.

“I just want to continue training and working hard, regardless of what happens.

I know I will have to be ready for whatever happens next year.”

STEVEN GARDINER As the 400m champion at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Qatar last August, Gardiner has not contested any one-lap races this year and he indicated that the focus next year will

probably be on his assault of the 200m, an event he made his international debut in when he came from Moore’s Island, Abaco when he was coached by Anthony Williams.

“I think we will be switching it up from now on,” said Gardiner, referring to the recommendation from his current coach Gary Evans.

“You will see me doing a lot more 200m with the 400m.

I enjoy competing in both and I believe I can have just as much success in the two of them.”

With limited amount of fans or in some cases none at all due to the coronavirus protocols, Gardiner said he has been able to concentrate on his mission and that is to run as fast as he can.

In addition to his PR in the 100m, Gardiner has also produced season’s bests of 15.10 in the 150m, 19.96 in the 200m and 31.83 in the 300m.

Gardiner’s manager Clyde Bryan, the chief executive officer of On Track Management. Inc. said he was pleased that Gardiner “finished the race injury free. On to 2021.”

Bryan is also the manager for female Olympic champion and World Championship silver medallist Shaunae Miller-Uibo, who didn’t compete this weekend.

The 26-year-old MillerUibo was sixth in the 150m race in the Atlanta 150m Challenge in 20.35 when she returned to action a week ago after she had to withdraw from the finals of the women’s 100m the previous week at the Star Athletics Sprint Showcase in Florida where she ran 13.56.

Bryan said Miller-Uibo will compete again prior to season’s end, but he was not at liberty to announce when or where.

Miller-Uibo is also waiting on the results of the case against Bahrain’s Salwa Eid Naser, who was provisionally suspended for missing three drug tests in a 12-month span after last year’s World Championships. If she does, Miller-Uibo will be elevated to the top of the podium.

Ray Minus Jr’s Champion Amateur Boxing Club relocates

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net RAY Minus Jr and his Champion Amateur Boxing Club, the country’s most successful sporting franchise, has been forced to move from a location that has been its hallmark over the past two decades.

Founder and head coach Ray Minus Jr, who celebrated his 56th birthday on July 3, has relocated to the National Boxing Centre at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex with the view of eventually opening up a smaller gymnasium at his home on Wulff Road near It’s A Small World PreSchool where he actually got his amateur programme started.

Michelle MunningsMinus, former wife of Champion Club founder Ray Minus Jr, said it was inevitable that the facilities be dismantled as there is a need for more space to do some expansion on the property on Wulff Road opposite Whim Auto.

“Ray Minus was only supposed to be there temporarily, not permanently,” Munnings-Minus said.

“We’re doing construction with upgrades to the building, so we needed the space.”

After he completed an impressive sting as one of the Commonwealth’s greatest bantamweight/ lightweight fighters, Minus Jr retired from competitive boxing in 2001 and launched his Champion

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RAY MINUS JR, Jermaine ‘Choo Choo’ Mackey and Michelle Munnings-Minus during First Class Promotions’ glory days.

Boxing Club at his home off Wulff Road in 1995.

Five years later after making the transition to his last location on Wulff

Road, Minus Jr and Munnings-Minus started First Class Promotions, which gave birth to a number of outstanding professional

boxers as they branched out of Champion Boxing Club as amateurs. “I spent more than 20 years there and it’s been very exciting,”

Minus Jr said. “I still have a super talented boxer, Lennox Boyce, who I will continue to groom to be the next great amateur boxer to come out of this country.”

On not being able to utilise the facilities on Wulff Road anymore, Minus Jr said he misses it already.

“We had some great moments there. A lot of parents brought their kids there and we were able to work with them,” he said.

“A lot of parents saw the progress that their children were making. I know a lot of them are probably upset about what is going on, but we will rebuild at another location.”

Munnings-Minus, the promoter for First Class Promotions, said while it was a business decision to close the facilities to Champion Boxing Club about two months ago, Minus Jr has relocated to the National Boxing Gymnasium where he, along with Stevie ‘the Heat’ Larimore, are consultants for the sport in the Ministry of Youth,

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