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Volume: 123 No. 204, Thursday, September 17, 2026
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HALKITIS: GOVT BROKE NO LAWS
Millions spent as NIF governance framework remains unfinished By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Chief Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
MINISTER of Finance Michael Halkitis speaks in the House of Assembly yesterday.
Photo: Chappell Whyms JR
THE Davis administration broke no law when it began spending hundreds of millions of dollars through the National Investment Fund before its board ever convened, Finance Minister Michael Halkitis insisted yesterday, even as he acknowledged that key governance arrangements for the fund remain unfinished. Mr Halkitis, speaking publicly on the controversy for the first time, said the
government relied on parliamentary borrowing authority and the Public Finance Management Act to administer the money through the Ministry of Finance and Treasury while regulations and other NIF arrangements were still being developed. He said the outstanding framework — including regulations, mandates, committee structures, financial reporting and audit processes — is expected to be completed before the end NIF - SEE PAGE FIVE
BAHA MAR OFFERS 16 WEEKS OF FULLY PAID PARENTAL LEAVE
PINTARD DEMANDS ANSWERS OVER MORE THAN $400M
By KEILE CAMPBELL Tribune Staff Reporter kcampbell@tribunemedia.net
By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
BAHA Mar will give eligible full-time employees 16 weeks of fully paid parental leave after the birth or adoption of a child, a benefit that far exceeds both existing Bahamian law
and the two weeks of paid paternity leave currently proposed as part of the government’s national labour reforms. Baha Mar President Graeme Davis announced the policy in an address to employees, saying it will LEAVE - SEE PAGE THREE
OPPOSITION LEADER MICHAEL PINTARD
OPPOSITION leader Michael Pintard yesterday demanded an accounting of more than $400m of roughly $700m the government said it transferred to the National Investment
Fund, saying Finance Minister Michael Halkitis explained only about $310.9m in spending when he addressed Parliament. Mr Pintard also announced that the Public Accounts Committee has agreed to investigate the PINTARD - SEE PAGE FIVE
Finance Minister: Cost of royal visit is still being worked out By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Chief Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net THE government still does not know how much taxpayers will spend on King Charles III and Queen Camilla’s visit to The Bahamas next month, with Finance Minister Michael Halkitis saying agencies are still working out the costs. Mr Halkitis said he understands expenses will be shared between the government and the Sovereign Grant, but
could not say how much the government would be required to pay. “I can't put any numbers to it,” he said. “I understand that the various agencies are meeting, the Ministry of Finance and some of the other agencies are meeting. I'll get a report on what it is.” His comments come amid online speculation over the cost of the royal visit and criticism from the Bahamas National Reparations Committee over taxpayers EXPENSES - SEE PAGE FOUR
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Thursday, September 17, 2026, PAGE 3
Baha Mar expands paid leave benefits for moms and dads LEAVE from page one take effect on June 29 and provide eligible mothers and fathers with 100 percent of their base salary during the leave period. The move comes as the Davis administration works to amend the Employment Act and Industrial Relations Act to expand maternity benefits and introduce statutory paid paternity leave for the first time. Current law provides no specific paid paternity leave entitlement. An employee who has worked for an employer for at least six months is entitled to no more than one week of unpaid family leave annually following the birth of a child, or the death or illness of a child, spouse or parent. Women who qualify for maternity leave are currently entitled to at least 12 weeks. The Employment Act requires an employer to pay at least 33.3 percent of the portion of the employee’s wages up to the National Insurance insurable wage ceiling during maternity leave, with
maternity pay from the same employer generally available once every three years. The government has been consulting on proposals to increase maternity leave to at least 14 weeks and introduce two weeks of paid paternity leave once every three years. Labour and Public Service Minister Pia Glover-Rolle said earlier this year that
amendments were being drafted for further stakeholder consultation before going to Cabinet and Parliament. Baha Mar’s 16-week policy would therefore give eligible fathers substantially more paid time off than contemplated under the government’s draft national proposal. Mr Davis said the policy
was part of the resort’s effort to ensure employees felt “valued, supported, and empowered to thrive” professionally and personally. “By investing in your well-being,” he said, “we continue to strengthen our culture, attract exceptional talent, and reinforce our commitment to being the employer of choice in The Bahamas and throughout
the region.” The benefit will also extend to employees welcoming a child through adoption. Access will be subject to eligibility requirements in Baha Mar’s parental leave policy. Leadership teams are expected to receive the updated policy, frequently asked questions and other material ahead of its implementation. The resort’s move comes as the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers’ Confederation has urged caution over imposing expanded maternity and paternity benefits nationally because of the potential cost to businesses. The Chamber has said it supports the principle of enhanced leave but warned that increased entitlements could cause staffing disruptions and higher costs, particularly for small and medium-sized businesses that may have to pay for replacement employees, training or overtime. It has called for feasibility studies and continued consultation before the changes are implemented.
Chamber officials have also raised questions about how expanded leave would be financed and its potential effect on the National Insurance Board. Dr Leo Rolle, the Chamber’s executive director, previously said paternity leave required a properly researched approach and warned that labour reforms introduced without adequate assessment could increase pressure on businesses. Mrs Glover-Rolle welcomed Baha Mar’s announcement, pointing to it as another example of an employer increasing support for expectant and new parents. She also said the Central Bank has installed breastfeeding pods for new mothers. The government has spent about two years working on broader reforms to the Employment Act and Industrial Relations Act. Public consultations have included maternity and paternity leave, mental health leave, remote work and other proposed changes to workplace protections.
Residents protest Bahama Rock IMMIGRATION CHIEFS TO GET MORE DISCIPLINARY POWERS expansion over homes and safety By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net A DAY after Bahama Rock workers again walked off the job to press the government to approve a proposed expansion they say is needed to save their livelihoods, residents of neighbouring Hepburn Town took to the streets with the opposite message: their homes, health and safety must come first. About 30 residents protested near Eight Mile Rock yesterday against Bahama Rock’s proposed harbour expansion and aggregate mining project, saying they fear renewed blasting and dredging close to their seaside community could worsen damage they blame on the company’s past operations. The competing demonstrations have sharpened the government's dilemma as Bahama Rock approaches a production shutdown. The company is due to cease aggregate production on September 18 and temporarily lay off 69 hourly employees for up to 60 days from September 21 as its currently permitted reserves run out. It has warned that the closure could become permanent if it cannot access new reserves at the former Bahamas Cement Company property. Residents yesterday said the economic stakes for Bahama Rock’s workforce should not outweigh the project's potential effect on hundreds of nearby residents. “Our homes are cracked,” protest organiser Carleza Bain said. “Our foundations are cracked. We've experienced the blasting. We've experienced the shaking. We've experienced the dust and the debris.” Bahama Rock proposes to mine about 269 acres at the former Bahamas Cement Company property as part of a project that also involves expanding the harbour. The Department of Environmental Planning and Protection is still reviewing the proposal and has asked the company’s environmental consultants to
MINISTER of State for Immigration Darron Pickstock By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net
Hepburn Town, Grand Bahama residents turned out to protest blasting and dredging for aggregate by Bahama Rock. Photo: Vandyke Hepburn revise its environmental documents. No final environmental approval has been announced. Ms Bain said residents want damage they attribute to previous blasting addressed before any new project is approved. She said cracks remain in her home's foundation from blasting she believes occurred ten to 15 years ago and claimed other houses in the community were also affected. “The house shakes,” she said, “and if they were to get this project approved, you don't know the structure of our foundation. We don't know how strong it is anymore.” Residents also complained of dust, noise, debris and vibrations during previous blasting. Ms Bain said the proposed dredging has compounded their concerns because Hepburn Town has a history of serious flooding during hurricanes. She recalled returning after Hurricane Wilma to floodwaters reaching her shoulder and said residents fear that excavation behind the settlement could leave the community more vulnerable. “If this project is approved,” she said, “we aint going to have anymore Hepburn Town.” The residents’ protest follows two work stoppages by Bahama Rock employees seeking
government approval for the expansion. Workers have warned that the uncertainty surrounding the project threatens their incomes and the future of an operation that supplies aggregate to the construction industry across The Bahamas. During the first stoppage last week, employees said they wanted the government and company to reach an agreement that would allow the expansion to proceed. Bahama Rock has said its existing permitted reserves are effectively depleted and that it could close permanently without approval to access new material at the former cement plant site. The company has also warned that losing its production could sharply increase aggregate costs nationally. Hepburn Town resident Harold Curry questioned whether the jobs at stake should take precedence over the wider community. “If you have 60 employees you’re going to lay off, but you get 600 people in the community, you do the math,” Mr Curry said. He said residents whose homes were allegedly damaged by earlier blasting had not been compensated and called for properties in Hepburn Town, Harbour West and surrounding communities to be assessed.
“Nobody never came to compensate us with fixing these houses,” he said. Mr Curry also suggested Bahama Rock could contribute more to the area, including by constructing a facility that could serve as a hurricane shelter. Another resident, identified as Margarita, said the concerns extended beyond Hepburn Town to Bartlett Hill, Harbour West and other nearby communities. “We're fighting on behalf of all the families in these areas,” she said, “because the blasting, the dredging is damaging people's homes and it's causing all kind of problems.” She also cited flooding as a major concern. “Our homes matter. Our safety matters. Our health matters,” she said. The concerns are not new. Residents of Eight Mile Rock and nearby communities raised allegations of cracked homes, dust, noise and other effects from previous blasting during DEPP’s July 29 public consultation on the project. Opposition groups have also raised concerns about groundwater, flooding and other environmental effects. Ms Bain said residents have seen insufficient follow-up since that meeting and want their concerns addressed before the project advances.
THE Government plans to give senior immigration officials greater power to appoint, discipline and remove officers as it moves to address a rise in public complaints about the conduct of a small number of immigration officers. Minister of State for Immigration Darron Pickstock told the House of Assembly yesterday that the Public Service (Delegation of Powers) (Amendment) Order, 2026, would give the Director and Deputy Director of Immigration disciplinary authority similar to powers already delegated to the Commissioner of the Department of Correctional Services. Mr Pickstock said the changes are intended to strengthen accountability and allow senior immigration officials to respond more quickly when misconduct is alleged or established. The proposed reform follows an increase in complaints from members of the public about the conduct of some immigration officers, although Mr Pickstock stressed that the concerns did not reflect the department as a whole. He said “the overwhelming majority” of officers serve with professionalism, integrity and commitment and that the changes should not cast a shadow over their work. Instead, Mr Pickstock said the aim is to ensure the disciplinary system is strong enough to deal with misconduct while maintaining public confidence in the department. “The government has moved swiftly to bring
forward this first phase of reform,” he said. Under the amendment, the power to appoint immigration officers would be delegated to immigration officials above the rank of deputy director and exercised through the Office of the Director of Immigration. The Director and Deputy Director would also be empowered, subject to conditions in the Order, to remove officers and exercise disciplinary control over them. “In practical terms, this means that the senior leadership of the Department of Immigration will now have direct authority to act decisively and in a timely manner where misconduct is alleged or established,” Mr Pickstock said, “rather than being constrained by the process that has in the past delayed appropriate accountability.” He said people dealing with the Department of Immigration should be able to expect that officers enforcing the country’s immigration laws will themselves obey the law and respect the rights and dignity of citizens, residents and visitors. “Where confidence in that expectation is shaken,” he said, “Government has a duty to respond.” Mr Pickstock described the amendment as the first phase of a broader effort to strengthen conduct, discipline and accountability within the department. He said the Government would continue reviewing existing frameworks and consider further reforms where necessary, in consultation with the Ministry of Labour, Public Service and National Insurance and other stakeholders.
PAGE 4, Thursday, September 17, 2026
THE TRIBUNE
Government still cannot say what King’s Bahamas visit will cost EXPENSES from page one
footing the bill. Mr Halkitis said cost-sharing arrangements were still being worked out. “It’s always my understanding that it’s a sharing of the cost,” he said, “but you know again, as with all of these things, it’s a work in progress. When we get that information, we’ll share it.” King Charles and Queen Camilla are expected to visit The Bahamas as part of a wider royal tour from October 27 to November 4. The King is also scheduled to make a state visit to Guyana before travelling to Antigua and Barbuda, where he and Queen Camilla will attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. The Bahamas visit differs constitutionally from that of an ordinary foreign leader because King Charles is King of The Bahamas and the country’s Head of State. It will be his first visit
to The Bahamas since succeeding Queen Elizabeth II in 2022 and his second official visit to the country. The most recent major royal visit was in March 2022, when Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales, travelled to The Bahamas as part of Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations. The government earmarked $636,194 for expenses associated with that visit. The Tribune previously reported that much of the funding went to New Providence vendors and businesses, with other spending covering accommodation for the royal couple and staff, security, digital and electronic work at schools, the Royal Ball and regatta, and Bahamasair charter flights between New Providence, Abaco and Grand Bahama. The upcoming visit has drawn criticism from the Bahamas National Reparations Committee, which has cited Britain’s historic oppression and injustices
BRITAIN’S King Charles III and Queen Camilla wave to the crowds from the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the coronation ceremony in London, May 6, 2023. Photo: Frank Augstein/AP against Bahamians and preparing the country for reparations. The time is governments to stop pretheir ancestors. royal visits and leaving now for the republic,” the paring this country for The committee said the taxpayers to pay the cost. committee said. “And the guests and then hand us government should stop “The time is now for time is long past for our the bill.”
State ordered to pay $50K over 15-year court delay By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune News Editor rrolle@tribunemedia.net THE Court of Appeal has ordered the State to pay $50,000 to a man whose attempted rape case languished for more than 15
years after prosecutors failed to get his court file to New Providence, dismissing the Director of Public Prosecutions’ challenge to a finding that his constitutional rights were breached and increasing his damages from $10,000.
The court found the delay breached his constitutional right to a fair hearing within a reasonable time, dismissing an appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions and increasing an earlier $10,000 damages award fivefold.
The man, Anthon Lightbourn, Sr, was arrested and charged with attempted rape in October 2004 and committed to stand trial in the Supreme Court the following year. However, the depositions from the preliminary inquiry and the related file remained at the Magistrate’s Court in Marsh Harbour and were never transmitted to New Providence for preparation of an Information. No Information was ever filed. The charge was eventually withdrawn in March 2023 after Mr Lightbourn launched constitutional proceedings against the Attorney General and DPP. His passport, which he had surrendered as a condition of bail, was returned later that month. In a judgment delivered by Chief Justice Sir Ian Winder, the Court of Appeal upheld a Supreme Court finding that Mr Lightbourn’s constitutional right to a fair hearing within a reasonable time had been breached. It partly allowed Mr Lightbourn’s separate appeal, replacing the $10,000 vindicatory damages award with $40,000 and awarding another $10,000 for the suffering, distress, anxiety, humiliation and “sting” of having the attempted rape charge hanging over him for so long. Although the Supreme Court treated the overall period between Mr Lightbourn’s arrest and the withdrawal of the charge as 19 years, the Court of Appeal calculated the constitutionally relevant delay differently. Sir Ian said the delay did not begin immediately after Mr Lightbourn was charged, but after the point at which he could reasonably have expected to have been tried. Applying three years recognised in Bahamian law as a marker for reasonable time, the court found the relevant delay began after October 2007. With the charge withdrawn in March 2023, Sir Ian said the delay was about 15 years and six months. “A delay of 15 years and six months,” he said, “by any measurable standard, is inordinate and presumptively prejudicial.” Prosecutors said that the file had been mislaid at the Magistrate’s Court in Marsh Harbour after Mr Lightbourn was committed and was never transported to
New Providence for preparation of the Information. The trial judge had rejected circumstantial evidence advanced by the DPP that a colleague of Mr Lightbourn intentionally misplaced the file. Sir Ian said responsibility rested with the state regardless of whether the failure occurred at the Magistrate’s Court or within the prosecution. The ruling came despite the Court of Appeal upholding the Supreme Court’s finding that Mr Lightbourn did not contact prosecuting authorities for 14 years. Mr Lightbourn said that between 2005 and 2019 he contacted his attorney, Godfrey “Pro” Pinder, at least twice a year seeking updates and was told there was a major backlog in the criminal justice system. He began contacting the DPP’s office directly in 2019 after mistakenly believing his attorney had died. According to the judgment, Mr Lightbourn made several calls and was eventually told the complainant no longer wished to proceed and that he would be summoned to court so the matter could be discharged. He later spoke with Sergeant Deveaux, who indicated she was taking a withdrawal statement from the complainant. Mr Lightbourn wrote then-DPP Garvin Gaskin in June 2020 seeking to have the matter discharged but received no acknowledgement. The Court of Appeal agreed with the trial judge that Mr Lightbourn had “patiently” waited during the earlier 14-year period and had not asserted his rights against prosecuting authorities. However, Sir Ian said that failure could affect the amount of damages he received but could not justify removing those years from consideration when assessing the constitutional breach. The court also rejected the DPP’s argument that Mr Lightbourn’s later efforts did not amount to asserting his rights because he was seeking to have the case discharged rather than brought to trial. Sir Ian said the request for a discharge came after Mr Lightbourn was told the complainant no longer wished to proceed and was nevertheless aimed at bringing the outstanding prosecution to an end. The original $10,000
damages award was too low because the Supreme Court had effectively confined its assessment to the later period when Mr Lightbourn began actively pursuing the matter, the Court of Appeal found. “The true period of the delay was more likely 15 years and 6 months,” Sir Ian said, adding that Mr Lightbourn actively sought to have the matter resolved for only about one year of that period. The court substituted $40,000 in vindicatory damages, saying the amount accounted for the true length of the delay while recognising Mr Lightbourn’s failure to assert his rights and providing an incentive for the State to ensure criminal trials are heard in a timely manner. It also found that the Supreme Court should have awarded compensation for the personal effect of the unresolved charge. Sir Ian said there was no independent evidence of Mr Lightbourn’s suffering beyond his own account, making the award largely nominal, but found he was nevertheless entitled to compensation for the suffering, anxiety, stress, humiliation and sting caused by the prolonged attempted rape charge. The court awarded $10,000 under that head, taking into account that Mr Lightbourn had been less assertive than the applicant in a comparable case and had not lost his substantive employment, although the delay in his case was longer. Mr Lightbourn did not succeed in his separate claim for damages arising from the surrender of his passport. He said the passport restriction prevented him from travelling internationally, caused him to miss two honeymoons and his daughter’s graduation, and affected his ability to obtain a business licence and open a bank account. The Court of Appeal upheld the finding that Mr Lightbourn could have applied to have his passport returned or sought permission to use it, particularly since he had previously obtained a variation of other bail conditions. The DPP’s appeal was dismissed, while Mr Lightbourn’s appeal was allowed in part. He was also awarded his costs of the appeal, to be taxed if not agreed.
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, September 17, 2026, PAGE 5
Halkitis defends spending as NIF scrutiny continues NIF from page one of the year. “We’re looking to do it as soon as possible,” he said. “I mean definitely before the end of the year.” The explanation comes after Central Bank Governor John Rolle confirmed that the NIF’s Board of Governors had never formally convened, despite government fiscal reports showing hundreds of millions of dollars moving into and out of an account bearing the fund’s name. Government reports showed the fund held $265.3m at the end of December 2025 but just $200,000 by the end of March, a reduction of about $265.1m. Opposition members contend transactions undertaken through the fund since the account was opened in July 2025 were unlawful because the board had not met the key responsibilities assigned under the National Investment Fund Act. The concern goes beyond unfinished paperwork. The National Investment Funds Act gives the Board of Governors responsibility for managing the fund, setting its governance rules and investment strategy, and overseeing its banking and investment accounts. It also requires the fund to operate transparently and accountably. Because the board never met, the central question
is who authorised the movement and spending of hundreds of millions of dollars, and under what legal authority. It also raises questions about whether the safeguards built into the law were followed and whether the decisions can now be properly accounted for and audited. Opposition leader Michael Pintard has instructed attorneys to examine whether the government’s management of the fund breached criminal, constitutional or statutory law and to advise on possible legal remedies. Mr Halkitis rejected that position. “We believe that we were in the exercise of the law,” he said. “They have a different opinion. We recognise that there are some administrative things that need to be completed, and we’re going to complete them.” He said the government had sought legal advice from the Office of the Attorney General on how the Public Finance Management Act, National Investment Funds Act and parliamentary borrowing authority interacted. “We acted in accordance with that advice and will bring any measure considered necessary before Parliament at the appropriate time,” he said. Mr Halkitis said the government considered itself authorised to use the fund based on
FINANCE MINISTER MICHAEL HALKITIS a borrowing resolution passed by Parliament last March. He said the Ministry of Finance and Treasury administered the money while the NIF’s governance structure was still being completed. The minister also provided a broader breakdown of how the money was used, saying roadworks and building projects accounted for $210.6m in investments. Those projects included construction, renovation, acquisition and modernisation of public assets, including roads, a new court complex and an administrative complex. Another $100.3m was
Pintard presses government to account for NIF millions PINTARD from page one NIF, with the Treasurer expected to be called as early as next week. His comments came after Mr Halkitis told Parliament that $310.9m in NIF proceeds had been used for public infrastructure — $210.6m on buildings and roads and another $100.3m on aviation infrastructure. But Mr Pintard said that left a substantial portion of the roughly $700m previously identified by the government as excess borrowing receipts transferred to the fund unaccounted for in the minister’s presentation. “The other thing that the minister totally missed,” he said, “he never commented on more than $400 million of the $700 million that was supposedly transferred into the fund. He concentrated on roughly around $310 million.” Mr Pintard called on the government to provide a full breakdown of the money and identify the account in which it is held. “Rather than be distracted I believe by the minister speaking about all of the projects that they are working on,” he said, “we want to first start this discussion with where is the money? Account for the 700 million. Which account is it on?” The controversy has intensified after Central Bank Governor John Rolle confirmed that the NIF’s Board of Governors had never formally convened, despite an account bearing the fund’s name being maintained at the Central Bank. The National Investment Funds Act provides for a Board of Governors to oversee a fund and assigns it responsibilities for its
management and governance. Mr Halkitis told Parliament that, before the NIF’s governance arrangements became fully operational, the Ministry of Finance administered the money through the ministry and Treasury under the Public Finance Management Act. He said the government sought advice from the Office of the Attorney General on how that Act, the National Investment Funds Act and Parliament’s borrowing authority interacted. Mr Pintard rejected that explanation and accused the government of operating outside the framework established by the NIF legislation. “His legal basis for moving millions of dollars out of the National Investment Fund was not the National Investment Act,” he said. “They did not follow the law.” He argued that money was instead held by the Ministry of Finance without the oversight contemplated under the NIF structure. Mr Halkitis has maintained that Parliament authorised the government in March 2025 to borrow up to $300m and deposit the proceeds into the NIF for infrastructure and national development. He also said the NIF’s Board of Directors was appointed with effect from June 30, 2025, although the government has acknowledged that aspects of the fund’s governance arrangements remain unfinished. Mr Pintard said that explanation raised another question: whether the money was actually being administered through the NIF established by law or through a separate Ministry of Finance account. He said the government
had transferred public money before the board was meeting and before an investment committee and other governance mechanisms were in place. Mr Pintard said that left, in his view, two possibilities: either NIF resources were not administered in accordance with the legislation or the Ministry of Finance handled the money outside the NIF structure. He said the second possibility would raise further questions about how those transactions were reflected in the government’s fiscal accounts. The FNM leader said Mr Halkitis’ statement had therefore deepened rather than resolved the opposition’s concerns. “We support all of those items he mentioned,” he said of the infrastructure projects. “What we do not believe is that he’s giving a proper explanation on where the money came from and by what rules did he apply those money to those projects.” The Public Accounts Committee will now pursue its own examination of the fund. Mr Pintard said the opposition was using several avenues to obtain answers, including the PAC and possible court action. “We will go to court at the appropriate time once we are armed with the right advice,” he said. He also dismissed suggestions that the opposition should have pressed the government more extensively for answers during the parliamentary sitting, saying the PAC investigation would provide another mechanism to scrutinise the transactions. Mr Halkitis has said the government will cooperate fully with the committee.
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spent on airport development and air connectivity across the Family Islands, covering airport construction, runway and terminal improvements, land acquisition, engineering, project management, surveying and related professional services. Mr Halkitis cited airport improvements in Cat Island, Long Island, Exuma and San Salvador. The fund also supported the acquisition of water infrastructure. His explanation provides more detail than previous government fiscal reports, which disclosed the sharp reduction in the NIF’s balance but did not fully break down
the spending. Questions surrounding the fund intensified after Mr Halkitis previously disclosed that about $700m in excess borrowing receipts had been transferred to the NIF rather than used for deficit financing. Yesterday, he defended the spending as investment in infrastructure intended to improve public services and transportation links and strengthen public facilities. “They represent an investment in the proposition that every Bahamian community should have the infrastructure required to participate
meaningfully in the country’s progress,” he said. “This is the wider purpose of national investment: to use resources available today to create enduring public value for tomorrow.” Mr Halkitis said the government nevertheless accepted that the fund required stronger governance and oversight. “The stronger the public investment,” he said, “the stronger the systems of oversight, reporting and assurance must be.” He confirmed that the fund’s Board of Directors was appointed on June 30 and said the remaining administrative arrangements are now being completed. “The objective is to ensure that future decisions are taken within a clear and settled framework,” he said, “with defined responsibilities, effective oversight and the reporting required by law.” Mr Halkitis said the Ministry of Finance has the NIF’s financial records and that they will be dealt with through the applicable accounting, reporting and audit processes. He also said the government would cooperate with the opposition and the Public Accounts Committee as scrutiny of the fund continues. “It’s their job to ask these questions,” he said. “It’s our job to answer them.”
PAGE 6, Thursday, September 17, 2026
THE TRIBUNE
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Freedom of information must finally become a reality THE Government’s decision to release the proposed Freedom of Information regulations for public consultation is an important and welcome step. It should also mark the beginning of the end of an unacceptable national delay. More than 14 years have passed since Parliament first approved freedom of information legislation. The original 2012 law was never brought into force and was replaced by the Freedom of Information Act in 2017. Nine years later, Bahamians are still waiting for a fully functioning system through which they can request public records, challenge refusals and obtain an independent review. Attorney General Wayne Munroe has acknowledged that the latest development has been a long time coming. He is right. The proposed regulations would establish the practical machinery needed to make the law work, including application procedures, response periods, internal reviews, fees and the responsibilities of information managers within public bodies. The Davis administration deserves credit for advancing the regulations and inviting public scrutiny before they are finalised. Consultation provides an opportunity to identify provisions that may make access unnecessarily difficult, expensive or slow. The consultation opportunity should be seriously considered. The requirement for applicants to provide government-issued identification deserves particular examination. The Government has a legitimate interest in administering requests responsibly, but citizens should not have to surrender more personal information than is necessary to obtain records that belong to the public. The proposed fees must also remain modest. Charges for copying or certifying documents may sometimes be reasonable, but costs should never become a barrier preventing ordinary Bahamians, journalists, researchers or civic organisations from exercising a legal right. Response times are equally important. Public authorities would generally have 30 days to respond. That may be reasonable for complex or extensive requests, but straightforward applications should be answered sooner. Transferring a request from one agency to another should not restart the clock indefinitely or allow departments to avoid responsibility. Agencies should be required to
assist applicants, transfer incorrectly directed requests promptly and provide updates where delays are unavoidable. Government bodies must also explain precisely why information has been withheld or redacted. It should not be sufficient to cite confidentiality or national security in general terms. The specific legal exemption must be identified and justified. Freedom of information does not mean that every government document must be released. Personal medical records, active criminal investigations, genuinely sensitive security information and legitimate commercial confidences require protection. Public officials must balance transparency with privacy, safety and the effective operation of government. But exemptions must remain exceptions. They cannot become convenient shields against embarrassment, criticism or accountability. Regulations alone will not make the system work. Every public authority needs properly trained information officers, functioning records-management systems and the resources to locate and review documents. A right to information means little if ministries cannot find their own records or if requests disappear into unanswered email accounts. A single online portal should allow applicants to submit requests, follow their progress and appeal decisions. The Government should publish statistics showing how many requests each agency receives, how long responses take and how often access is refused. Proactive disclosure would also reduce the burden on the system. Contracts, procurement awards, audited accounts, policy reports, environmental approvals and major development agreements should routinely be published without requiring individual requests. Most importantly, the Government should provide a firm timetable for full implementation. The Attorney General has expressed confidence in the administration’s commitment but has not provided a completion date. After 14 years, another open-ended promise is not enough. Freedom of information benefits governments as well as citizens. It allows administrations to answer suspicion with documents, correct misinformation and demonstrate that decisions were properly made. The consultation is a significant step forward. The Government should be congratulated for taking it. Now it must finish the job.
Response to C Allen Johnson on AI question EDITOR, The Tribune. C Allen Johnson, asks the right question. Not “will AI take our jobs,” but whether the structures we build companies out of — departments, approval chains, layers of people whose work is coordinating other people — survive software that can coordinate itself. He is right, and the answer matters more here than in most places. But there is a specific reason it matters here, and it is not the one in his letter. Our second industry runs on a legal test that counts people. Under the Commercial Entities (Substance Requirements) Act 2023, a Bahamian entity carrying on a relevant activity must demonstrate economic substance in The Bahamas: core income-generating activity conducted here, direction and management here, and adequate qualified fulltime employees and operating expenditure here. “Adequate” is not a fixed number. It is judged as proportionate to the income the entity earns. Staff and spend must scale with what the business makes. Now run Mr Johnson’s machine-native firm through that test. It earns more and employs fewer. Proportionality reads that as thinner substance, not better business. An entity that automates its onboarding, monitoring and regulatory reporting — precisely the automation he recommends — drifts toward the wrong end of its own compliance test while doing more of its real work here than before. This is not a hypothetical. It is a collision between the technology we are being urged to adopt and the standard that keeps us off the European Union’s list.
LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net And it cuts both ways. If substance continues to be measured in headcount, then whichever jurisdiction redefines it first — measuring where systems are directed, where data is held, where accountable decision-makers actually sit — becomes the natural home of the machine-native financial firm, and we become the expensive alternative. The Ministry of Finance is the competent authority under the Act. It could commission that review inside this fiscal year. It would cost very little, and it is the one item on this subject where being early is worth real money. Three shorter observations. Coordination is not our binding constraint. What stops a ten-person Bahamian company from behaving like a hundred-person one is the licence cycle, the bank account, the price and reliability of power, the cost of bandwidth, the permit regime, and the fact that most inputs arrive by ship and clear by hand. No agent clears customs at the dock. A working companies registry and payments that settle in hours would do more for our firms next year than any AI strategy. Cheap output makes checking expensive. The letters math — five hundred people replaced by fifty, or ten — assumes that verifying the machine’s work is free. Agents working in chains compound their errors rather than cancel them, and a confident wrong answer costs far more to catch than an obviously wrong one. Verification is the new middle management: fewer people than
the old kind, better ones, and no education policy that stops at “learn the tools” will produce them. A correction. We levy no income tax, and government revenue does not rest on wages — VAT, duties and a turnover-based business licence fall on sales, not staff. (Since 2024 a fifteen percent top-up tax has applied to the largest multinational groups, and to nothing else.) So, output rising while employment stays flat does not threaten the Treasury the way it would in most countries. What it does threaten is National Insurance, whose base is payroll, and which now carries roughly three contributors for every pensioner against seven at its founding in 1974. The risk is not a collapsing tax base. It is a narrowing contribution base, and a widening gap between what the economy earns and what reaches households as wages. That gap is the part worth being uneasy about, and a hotel worker or a clerk reading this is entitled to be. Much of what we sell cannot be delivered from a screen in another country — a beach, a room, a meal, a building. That protects a great deal. It does not protect the office floor above it. Mr Johnson says the countries that understand this early will grow the firms. Understanding is not the hard part. Being the jurisdiction where a machine-native company can be formed, banked, licensed and shown to be substantial — in days, and under legislation written for how such a company actually works — that is the hard part. And it is ours to write. Son of The Bahamas. M J ARNETT Nassau, September 10, 2026.
Narcissism and politics EDITOR, The Tribune. BAHAMIAN politics is like a hybrid creature in that we prefer ‘forceful’ leaders who are capable or appear to be capable of getting things done And at the same time, demonstrate and show empathy for and with the unwashed masses. Indeed, politics, especially here in The Bahamas is Not an exact science. A classical case which brings this phenomenon in focus is the never stage play by the Hon Michael Clifton Pintard (FNM-Marco City) Leader of the Opposition, for now. After several failed attempts to enter, the House of Assembly, Leader Pintard was finally able to be elected for Marco City over in Freeport, Grand Bahama. It is interesting to note that that same constituency embraced the former Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield a perennial ‘loser’ many years ago. I have ‘known’ both of these men in public life. They both possess similar attributes. Both ‘brilliant’; good orators; fairly good tacticians and able to project leadership perceptions. Clearly, however, in both cases, they failed to climb
to the top of the greasy pole. In addition, neither of them could ever win a seat in New Providence, save and except in Marco City, Grand Bahama. Their public persona and facial expressions are deadly similar. I have ‘known’ the late Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield for decades before his death. He, et al, in the embryonic FNM tried to recruit me into their ranks But I always saw the FNM and all of its leaders, so far, save and except for the indomitable Rt Hon Hubert Alexander Ingraham, our former Prime Minister, as flakey, Dr Minnis included. No one, to date, had a bigger than life personality more so than Sir Lynden. Of course, public displays of self-confidence, for a politician are crucial. One does not have to wear it on one’s sleeve with arrogance and acting like a Bull Frog dressed up in soldier’s clothes. That was the image projected by Wallace-Whitfield and that, in my view, is the same style that Pintard has Always projected. Pintard has declared that he, Clifton, is the Best person (God help the FNM) to continue to lead his Doll
House of Cards. Mind you, he has experienced three consecutive massive political whipping by Brave But he wants to come back for More? Is this man crazy; delusional or simply a sucker for beatings? The good brother has had his three bites at the political Apple and failed. What more or else does he hope to accomplish? If you are involved in a relationship and your partner decides that they want nothing further do with you, rightly or wrongly, what are you able logically and lawfully able to do? Beg; plead and cry like a baby or pick up your Georgie Bundle and move on? The Pintard era is, mercifully, over. It is public knowledge that Core leadership of the increasingly irrelevant FNM and, possibly, the demoralised rank and file adherents within that entity No Longer want him as Leader. I advise Clifton To Get Out with the remnants of his dignity intact. To God then, in all things, be the glory. Jr
ORTLAND H BODIE, Nassau, September 6, 2026.
Tribute for Neville Wisdom
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EDITOR, The Tribune. I WAS saddened to learn of the passing of former Minister of Sports Neville Wisdom I recall Mr Wisdom being a gentleman and a decent human being. Each time we met, he was always positive and encouraging. And he had a smile. I remember when Perry Christie served as Prime Minister and Mr Wisdom as Sports minister, he telephones me and said,
Pat, you know Perry?” I replied “what you mean if I know Perry? Perry from Centerville and I from Centerville. He said”, boy Pat, I battling for you to become the chairman of the boxing commission but the PM wants Dr Gay”. Obviously, the PM won but I was appointed Deputy Chairman. I am of the opinion that Mr Wisdom will be remembered as one of our best
sports ministers. On behalf of the officers and directors of the RBA Boxing Hall of Fame and Museum Association, we extend our condolences to the family of Mr Wisdom. May his soul rest in peace. Pat Strachan, Founder and Chairman, RBA Boxing Hall of Fame and Museum. PAT STRACHAN Nassau, September 7, 2026
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, September 17, 2026, PAGE 7
Exuma rape accused denies assault allegations By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN accused of raping and assaulting the mother of his child in Exuma denied the allegations yesterday, telling a jury the pair argued that night because he believed she was preparing to take their son away. Khethino Cadet gave evidence in his own defence before Justice Jeannine Weech-Gomez on charges of rape and aggravated assault. Prosecutors allege Cadet raped and assaulted a then 33-year-old woman in
Exuma on August 17, 2024. Cadet denied hitting the complainant, dragging her from a bathroom, cutting off her underwear with a knife or sexually assaulting her. He became emotional and broke down in tears while denying allegations that he inserted his finger into the complainant’s anus until she bled. Cadet said he was only concerned about his son that night and did not want the complainant to take the child away. He told the court he met the complainant while they were both working at Sandals Emerald Bay Resort in Exuma. Their relationship
WOMEN ACCUSED OF USING FORGED SLIP IN VEHICLE FRAUD By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net TWO women were accused of using a forged customs document to fraudulently obtain vehicle insurance and registration, while one was also charged with stealing the vehicle days later. Prosecutors allege Jacqueline Donjoie, 45, and Antoneaka Griffin, 23, uttered a forged Bahamas Customs inspection slip bearing the names of Edison Nesbitt and Donjoie to obtain an insurance policy from NUA Insurance Agents and Brokers on August 6, 2025. Donjoie allegedly used the same forged customs slip at the Road Traffic Department the following day to obtain a certificate of title registration. She is further accused of stealing a 2016 Hyundai Santa Fe belonging to Mr Nesbitt with an accomplice on August 11.
The vehicle is valued at $7,500. Donjoie was charged with stealing, possession of a forged document, two counts of uttering a forged document and two counts of fraud by false pretences. Griffin was charged with possession of a forged document and fraud by false pretences. Both women pleaded not guilty to their respective charges before Senior Magistrate Kendra Kelly Burrows. Donjoie was granted $5,000 bail, while Griffin was granted $3,500 bail, each with one or two sureties. Donjoie must sign in at the East Street South Police Station on the first Monday of every month by 6pm, while Griffin must report to the Carmichael Road Police Station on the same schedule. The pair return to court for trial on November 19. Sergeant Vernon Pyfrom prosecuted the case.
MAN GETS COMMUNITY SERVICE FOR $900 PHONE THEFT AT LPIA By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was ordered to complete 250 hours of community service after admitting to stealing a phone at Lynden Pindling International Airport last month. Robert Francois Jr, 20, stole an iPhone XR belonging to Alicea Forbes at LPIA on August 18. The phone was valued at $900. Francois pleaded guilty to stealing before Senior Magistrate Kendra Kelly Burrows. He expressed remorse and said he had made a stupid mistake.
Francois claimed his family was going through difficult times and that he intended to sell the phone to help care for them. After admonishing him for his actions, the magistrate granted Francois a conditional discharge. He was ordered to fully reimburse the complainant for the stolen phone and complete 250 hours of community service. Failure to comply with the conditions will result in a one-month prison term. Francois returns to court on October 2 to compensate the complainant and again on November 27 for a report on his community service. Sergeant Vernon Pyfrom prosecuted the case.
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later became intimate and they had a son together. Cadet said that after his contract at Sandals expired, he remained in Exuma because of the complainant. He said the complainant later moved to Eleuthera with their son in 2020, but they began speaking again in 2023. Cadet claimed the pair had discussed being together to raise their child as husband and wife and later lived in a rent-to-own home in Exuma. On the night of the alleged incident, Cadet said he returned home around 10pm after bartending and found the complainant eating birthday cake while their son played with the dogs. He claimed he then noticed that the complainant’s and his son’s clothes had been packed into suitcases. Cadet said the complainant told him she wanted to leave to care for someone she called “mother”. He said he began putting his son’s belongings back into the child’s room and later heard the complainant speaking in Creole on the phone. Cadet said they argued over her plans to take their son.
He denied raising his hands to the complainant or hitting her. Cadet also denied pulling her from a bathroom into a bedroom and said there was no bathroom door. That evidence contradicted the complainant’s earlier testimony that Cadet broke down the bathroom door after she barricaded herself inside. Cadet further denied cutting off her underwear with a knife or sexually assaulting her. He said that around 2am he was making tortilla pizzas with his son when the complainant became upset because the child was awake so late. Cadet claimed she grabbed the child, prompting him to take his son back and go to the child’s room, where he later fell asleep. He said the complainant was gone when he woke the next morning, although her belongings remained at the home. Cadet denied demanding sex from her at any point that night. He also denied burning the complainant’s clothes and said the allegations against him were false. Cadet said he later learned while on remand that the complainant had
been pregnant at the time of the alleged incident. He said he was shocked and believed he deserved to know whether the second child was his. Under cross-examination from prosecutor Eucal Bonaby, Cadet said he is a Jehovah’s Witness and had proposed that he and the complainant become engaged. Mr Bonaby suggested Cadet’s account was a recent fabrication, which Cadet denied. The prosecutor also suggested Cadet grabbed the complainant’s phone and searched it, finding a Creole-language conversation. Cadet denied doing so. Mr Bonaby further suggested that Cadet demanded sex from the complainant and slapped her after she refused. The prosecution alleged that Cadet then removed her clothes, cut off her underwear and attempted to have sex with her while she was naked and curled up on the bed. Cadet denied those allegations. He also denied inserting his finger into the complainant’s anus until she bled during a struggle. Cadet rejected a further suggestion that he forced
the complainant to sit on a bucket containing water and peroxide after the alleged assault. He also denied cleaning blood from the scene or burning the complainant’s nightgown and underwear. Cadet agreed that he fell asleep that night but said he could not say where the complainant was while he slept. The prosecution also suggested the complainant and child’s belongings had never been packed, which Cadet disputed. In response to a question from the jury, Cadet said the complainant had brought a knife into the room. Cadet also told the jury the complainant first left Exuma in 2020 for a restaurant job after the COVID-19 pandemic affected employment on the island. He said he learned during the proceedings that the complainant was married and that his attorney later discovered she was in the process of divorcing. Cadet said he did not change the bedsheets after the alleged incident. Keith Seymour represented Cadet. Mr Bonaby and Cassie Bethel appeared for the prosecution.
PAGE 8, Thursday, September 17, 2026
THE TRIBUNE
OSH workshop focuses on updated safety protocols for national industries By KEILE CAMPBELL Tribune Staff Reporter kcampbell@tribunemedia.net THE Department of Labour plans to use drones to inspect worksites, including on remote islands and cays, as it expands its occupational safety and health inspectorate amid a rise in workplace accidents. Labour and Public Service Minister Pia Glover-Rolle said the government is working with the Organisation of American States to introduce drone-assisted inspections, with the technology expected to be fully operational within 24 months. “We’re looking within the next 24 months,” she said, “to be able to say that our drone technology is fully engaged, even if we start small with just one or two.” Mrs Glover-Rolle said the technology would allow inspectors to monitor remote locations from a central point and extend the Department of Labour’s reach. The department also plans to expand its inspectorate by training and recruiting people with occupational safety and health experience. The announcement
came during the Ministry of Labour and Public Service’s Occupational Safety and Health Validation Workshop at St Gregory’s Anglican Church, where proposed national workplace safety regulations were being reviewed. The push comes after more than a dozen confirmed industrial or workplace accidents were publicly reported across The Bahamas so far this year, leaving several people dead and others injured or hospitalised. The incidents included falls from scaffolding and rooftops, machinery-related accidents, electrocutions and a hillside collapse. “I believe that even one on-the-job injury or death is one too many,” Mrs Glover-Rolle said, “and each of these incidences are a reminder of what is at stake.” She acknowledged that industrial accidents had increased, but said construction activity had also grown. Mrs Glover-Rolle said inspectors had intensified enforcement and were covering more ground to prevent accidents and ensure compliance with requirements involving protective equipment, training
LABOUR and Public Service Minister Pia Glover-Rolle speaks during the Ministry of Labour and Public Service OSH Validation Workshop, an initiative centred on reviewing new Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) regulations and establishing updated safety protocols to strengthen standards across national industries. Photo: Shawn Hanna and supervision. Worksites could face temporary closure and fines of up to $5,000 for each infraction if they fail to comply, she said. She also appealed for the public to report unsafe workplaces, saying inspectors could not monitor every site. “Our inspectors can’t be everywhere at once,” she
said, “so we’ve many times called on the public, and we need the public to serve as our eyes on the ground, reporting violations when they see them.” Reports can be made to the Department of Labour’s Rapid Response Unit at 302-0527 or 302-2550. Mrs Glover-Rolle said the department already receives complaints about
workers without protective equipment or harnesses and unsafe conditions at construction sites and restaurants. She stressed that occupational safety concerns extend beyond construction, pointing to slips and falls in offices and accidents in kitchens and restaurants. The workshop also focused on regulations
covering workplace health and safety committees, fire precautions, pressure systems and a proposed construction-industry safety regulation. Mrs Glover-Rolle said some of the wider occupational safety and health regulations were first approved in 2013 and agreed to by social partners but were never brought into force. The Bahamas ratified International Labour Organization Conventions 155 and 187 on June 12. They are expected to enter into force for the country on June 12, 2027. The conventions require countries to develop and continually improve occupational safety and health policies, inspection systems, enforcement mechanisms, training and measures to prevent workplace injuries and diseases. Mrs Glover-Rolle said the developing framework should also address thermal stress and mental health in the workplace. The workshop is expected to lay the groundwork for a follow-up seminar in November as the government moves towards finalising the occupational safety and health framework.
MAN DENIES STEALING Government cannot say whether $19,040 THROUGH HIS JOB vendors will return to Cabbage Beach By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was accused of stealing $19,040 earlier this year through his employment. Prosecutors allege Brian O’Neil Saunders, 43, stole the money belonging to Elroy Knowles on April 7 in New Providence. Saunders pleaded not guilty to stealing by reason
of service before Senior Magistrate Kendra Kelly Burrows. Sergeant Vernon Pyfrom, the prosecutor, raised no objection to bail. Saunders was granted $3,000 bail with one or two sureties. He must sign in at the East Street South Police Station on the first Monday of every month by 6pm. Saunders’ trial is set to begin on November 24.
POLICE PROBE APPARENT SUICIDE ABOARD SHIP AT GREAT STIRRUP CAY A 52-YEAR-OLD American man was found dead aboard a cruise ship after it arrived at Great Stirrup Cay yesterday, prompting a police investigation into what authorities believe was an apparent suicide. Police in The Berry Islands received information shortly after 7am about the man’s death aboard the vessel, which had arrived at Great Stirrup Cay. Officers assigned to Great Stirrup Cay, along with detectives from New Providence, boarded the vessel and were directed to the ship’s medical facility, where they located the deceased and began their investigation.
Preliminary information indicates that on Tuesday, September 15, while the vessel was travelling from Florida to Great Stirrup Cay, the man’s wife discovered him unresponsive in a bathroom. Emergency medical assistance was requested, but efforts to revive him were unsuccessful. The man was pronounced dead by the ship’s doctor at about 4:05pm. His body was subsequently secured in the vessel’s medical facility. Police said further information suggests the couple had an argument before the incident.
By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net ABOUT 21 Cabbage Beach vendors are to be dispersed among public beaches across New Providence as officials make room for them at existing locations, but the government cannot yet say whether they will be allowed to return to Paradise Island once construction of the Four Seasons Ocean Club Residences is completed. Parks and Beaches Authority Chairman Jamahl Strachan said yesterday the displaced vendors are expected to be accommodated at Goodman’s Bay, Montagu Beach and Junkanoo Beach, where inspectors have already begun enforcing 10-by-10 space allocations among existing vendors. Mr Strachan said the authority’s immediate focus was ensuring the Cabbage Beach vendors could continue earning, but referred questions about whether they would eventually return to Cabbage Beach to the Minister of Tourism. “We look to resettle them as soon as possible,” he said, “so that they're not disenfranchised, so that they don't lose any of their earnings, and then we'll continue going by the air.” He said the longer-term
arrangements would be the subject of further discussions between tourism officials and the vendors. The relocation comes amid continuing uncertainty over public access to Cabbage Beach during construction of the Four Seasons development and claims that some vendors had been offered $10,000 to move. Dis We Beach, a group advocating for beach users and vendors, has called on the government and the developer to clarify the relocation process, public access arrangements and whether vendors will have a right to return after construction. A video circulating among vendors showed a man telling them that signing a letter would allow them to request relocation and receive $10,000 from the developer. The government subsequently distanced itself from the purported letter. Phylicia Woods-Hanna, investments director and head of the Bahamas Investment Authority, previously said the government had neither issued the letter nor provided the payments. “If there’s no signatory printed on it,” Mrs Woods-Hanna said, “then there’s no way to authenticate that letter.” She said the Ministry of Tourism remained in contact with affected vendors
and was seeking alternative locations for them. Mr Strachan said the Parks and Beaches Authority could not address the alleged $10,000 payments, but said resettlement from the authority’s perspective meant spreading the vendors among public beaches it manages. “Resettlement for us means adequately dispersing them along the public beaches that we look after,” he said, identifying Goodman’s Bay, Montagu and Junkanoo Beach. “There are a tremendous amount of tourists,” he said. “There's enough to go around, and we just want them to get as much as they can.” The prospect of adding about 21 vendors to those beaches has raised concerns about overcrowding because vendors already operate at the proposed relocation sites. Mr Strachan said Parks and Beaches officials had assessed the available space and were now enforcing existing allocations to accommodate the newcomers. “Each vendor is allocated a 10 by 10 space,” he said. “If we adhere to that particular allocation, then we'll have more than enough space to accommodate the new vendors.” He said inspectors had
been deployed for about two weeks to bring vendors into compliance and create room for those displaced from Cabbage Beach. Mr Strachan said the Parks and Beaches Authority would assist with the relocation to ensure affected vendors were not deprived of their livelihoods. The Four Seasons Ocean Club Residences development is being undertaken by Access Industries, owner of the existing Ocean Club, Florida-based Two Roads Development and the Four Seasons brand. The dispute has centred on how public access to Cabbage Beach will be maintained during construction and what happens to vendors once the project is completed. Dis We Beach previously said the developers’ plans appeared to provide for public access to shift between the eastern and western boundaries during construction, with a permanent 15-foot-wide access path eventually planned. The group has also questioned reports that only ten kiosks would be available for 27 vendors once the project is completed and has sought clarification on whether relocation arrangements would guarantee their return.
POLICE PROBE SHOOTING THAT LEAVES MAN HOSPITALISED Elderly rights bill targets hospital abandonment A 22-YEAR-OLD man was hospitalised in stable condition after he was shot during an incident on Wilton Street on Tuesday night. According to police, shortly after 9pm on September 15, ShotSpotter technology detected gunshots in the Wilton Street area, prompting officers to respond. Upon arrival, officers found the man suffering from gunshot wounds. Emergency Medical Services attended the scene and transported him to
hospital, where he received medical treatment. Preliminary investigations indicate that the victim was seated in front of a residence on Wilton Street with a group of males when two unknown men, both dressed in dark clothing, approached them. Police said the suspects discharged firearms in the direction of the group before fleeing the area. Detectives later visited the hospital and were informed by medical personnel that the victim was listed in stable condition.
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HEALTH and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville yesterday praised the proposed Older Persons Rights, Protection and Care Bill, 2026, saying it would provide comprehensive protections for the elderly. He described the legislation as long overdue and said it comes at an important time for the country as populations worldwide continue to age and governments confront uncomfortable realities. “While general human rights protections apply throughout life, the particular vulnerabilities that may accompany ageing are not always adequately addressed in law,” he added. “The Bahamas therefore brings this Bill at an important moment. While the international community is negotiating what a future global legal instrument
should contain, The Bahamas is moving now with legislation that goes beyond a declaration of principles.” His comments follow the bills’ release for consultation. Dr Darville said recommendations received during the consultation were considered and incorporated where they strengthen the legislation. “This is a comprehensive bill,” he said. The health minister said the bill recognises older persons as rights-holders, but acknowledges that rights “written on paper mean little without mechanism to make them real.” One of the most consequential provisions deals with elderly patients discharged from public hospitals. Where a next of kin had previously provided care or assistance and taken the older
person to hospital, that relative would have to arrange to collect the person from the ward after being notified of their discharge. If the hospital medically transports the person home, the relative would have to receive them. The obligations would form part of a broader regime governing caregivers. Dr Darville said older people had been abandoned at hospitals for too long without recourse, but stressed that the practice would end under the proposed legislation. The legislation would also require doctors, nurses, police officers and other professionals to report suspected abuse or neglect, create a specific offence of financially exploiting someone aged 65 or older and give courts broad powers to remove vulnerable older people from unsafe circumstances.
Further to this, it would expand protections beyond the existing framework, which already regulates residential care establishments and allows protection orders for domestic violence, including financial abuse involving household members and dependants. “The men and women whom this Bill seeks to protect built families, staffed our classrooms, cared for our sick, operated businesses, served in our churches, worked in the Public Service, built communities and helped construct the Bahamas that we inherited,” Dr Darville said. “They should not reach the later years of life only to discover that age alone has made them invisible. This Bill says something different. It says that your rights do not retire when you do. It says that dignity has no expiration date.”
PAGE 10, Thursday, September 17, 2026
THE TRIBUNE
Simon • Front Porch
Male Supremacy & Privilege Entrenched in Bahamian Psyche The diabolical nature of racism and sexism is the pernicious belief that a class of individuals is superior because the complexion of their skin is white or because they were born with male genitalia.
EVEN the least capable, productive or accomplished man is often convinced that he is innately superior to women who may run the proverbial circles around him intellectually and socially. We have come a long way as a country in gender equality. Still, sexism and misogyny are so entrenched in the Bahamian psyche, including among some women who have internalised a sense of inferiority to men. To better understand male supremacy and privilege, root causes of misogyny and sexism, is to understand, by analogy, the nature and depth of white supremacy and privilege. Imagine the reaction of many Bahamian men, including certain Members of Parliament and certain religious leaders, to a white American offering the following racist statement: “As a white person God made me superior to black people. Black people should not have all the same rights that I have because of the colour of my skin. History has shown that black people are inferior to whites.” Yet, this is the very mindset of many Bahamian men when it comes to women. They may couch their words, even speak glowingly of loving women. But in the end, from questions of full citizenship to marital rape to church leadership, there is a continuum of male supremacy and privilege. In their hearts and in various actions and inaction, they believe that they are
superior to women. God made it this way and history bears this out. While race is more a social construct than a biological reality, an individual is born with certain skin pigmentation. Similarly, though there are biological anomalies, we are born male or female. The analogy between race and gender is necessarily not exact, but it is highly compelling and demonstrative. The diabolical nature of racism and sexism is the pernicious belief that a class of individuals is superior because the complexion of their skin is white or because they were born with male genitalia. Correspondingly, one is born inferior because one has a darker complexion or one is born with female genitalia. Racism and sexism are that absurd. Yet absurdity has led to holocausts and genocide, as well as the subjugation of women for millennia. Prior to one of the citizenship equality referendums, a union leader, as reported in The Nassau Guardian, proclaimed: “I cannot trust my daughter and granddaughter to do the right thing...I am not going to put that kind of pressure on them, not with these clowns out there; these lacklustre, shiftless, trifling negros [sic] out there. Are you crazy?” Here we have male supremacy married to xenophobia. Bahamian women need not marry a foreigner to get hitched to “lacklustre”, “shiftless” and “trifling”
men. There are plenty of them right here at home, where there are scores of highly irresponsible men who often abandon or fail to take care of their children and generally fail to live up to their responsibilities as men. It is no coincidence that it is mostly these men who oppose full constitutional equality for women. The mindset of the union leader and so many other Bahamian men is that women are not as smart or as discerning or as cunning as men. The definition for this: male supremacy, “I’m smarter than you because I’m a man.” This is a curious mindset in light of the fact that perhaps 80 per cent of the students at COB are women and that it is
overwhelmingly women who pursue tertiary studies overseas, with high numbers not returning to The Bahamas after graduation, many of them because of greater opportunities overseas and because of the rank sexism in Bahamian society. Judgment in choosing a spouse has little to do with gender and more to do with the ability of an individual, male or female, to decide for themselves whether they choose wisely or not. Equality means that we are on an even playing field in making decisions. The notion that a man must protect a woman from herself is a nineteenth-century Western mentality and a mentality found today mostly among fundamentalist Christians and Muslims. One of the remaining
bastions of entrenched sexism is religion. Because the image of God is overwhelmingly masculine, patriarchal thinking dominates, from who leads a church to who is allowed to preach. Curiously, many men who abhor racism are sanguine and nostalgic about unjust arrangements which forbid the ordination of women as ministers and priests. So too, many women have appropriated the theological assertion that women lack in their physical person and being the innate ability to image and represent in ordained ministry a God featured overwhelmingly as a patriarch. Theological and religious thinking rendering women mostly as male
The psychedelic pop artist Peter Max has died at 88, his son says By BETH J HARPAZ Associated Press PETER Max, whose colorful, psychedelic pop art expressed the optimism of the “flower power” movement of the 1960s and graced everything from postage stamps to a cruise ship, has died at 88, his son said in a written statement Wednesday. Max died on Monday, the statement said. No cause was given. Max began his career in graphic design in the 1960s, and his swirly, colorful, instantly recognizable designs epitomized the era’s “flower power” art. But thanks to his prolific output and fun, accessible style, Max’s work remained well known and popular well into the 21st century. Max was the official artist for the Olympics, the Super Bowl, the Indianapolis 500, the World Cup, the World Series and many other events. His art appeared on a Boeing 777 airplane and a Norwegian Cruise Line ship. His portrait subjects ranged from U.S. presidents to Taylor Swift. But in his first flush of success in the late 1960s and early 1970s,
his murallike tableaus of flowers, the cosmos and cartoonish figures — all in vivid colors like turquoise, orange and neon green — seemed to be everywhere. Dorm room walls were plastered with his posters. Household furnishings like clocks and bedspreads sported his designs. He even created covers for the Manhattan Yellow Pages, a business phone directory distributed to millions of people. Max himself was featured on the cover of Life magazine in 1969, his trademark dark, bushy mustache framing a hearty grin. “We will remember his extraordinary creativity, his warmth, his curiosity, and the way he saw beauty and possibility everywhere,” his son Adam Max said in the statement announcing the death. “His art became part of American culture, but the man behind that art — the father we knew and loved — is the person we will miss most.” Family fled Nazi Germany Max was born Peter Max Finkelstein in 1937 to a Jewish family in Berlin. They fled Nazi Germany for Shanghai when he was a baby and later spent
time in Tibet, Israel and Paris before settling in New York City when Max was 16. By then, he said in an interview, he was already “a huge fan of American culture”: comics, movies and “all the jazz music.” Max studied in New York at the Art Students League, the School of Visual Arts and Pratt Institute. In 1961, he opened a graphic design studio with friends. His bold, unique style was an immediate hit with ad agencies, publications, the corporate world and in pop culture. That led to a booming commercial business. “My work was really, I would say, almost exploited,” he said. “It was on mugs, it was on bedsheets, it was on dresses, it was on silks and scarves and ties — 70 product lines.” But what “bothered” him about all that success, he said, was that he “wasn’t painting anymore.” So he shut the business down for a time in the early 1970s to reconnect with his art. One of his biggest projects after returning to public life was a series of portraits of the Statue of Liberty, painted at the
PETER MAX, the bearded artist who spurred cosmic art forms in the 1960s, sits among some of his minute-by-minute creations in his New York studio on Nov. 11, 1973. Photo: Dave Pickoff/AP White House at the invitation of first lady Nancy Reagan in 1981. Max weathered various controversies in his personal and professional life. He pleaded guilty to tax fraud in 1997 after the IRS alleged he concealed more than $1 million in income from his art. He was originally sentenced to two months in prison but ultimately was allowed instead to serve the time in a work-release program, pay the back taxes and a $30,000 fine, and perform 800 hours of community service teaching art in Harlem schools. In 2015, his family life became tabloid fodder in a back-and-forth between his second wife Mary and Adam, his son from a previous marriage. The son and a guardian alleged that Mary Max had depleted his finances
and browbeat him. She in turn claimed that they had kept him from her against his will and stolen paintings that belonged to her. Accounts of court appearances described him as frail. His art had a bright, happy vibe Those dark allegations contrasted with the relentlessly bright, happy vibe that infused his work. “The colors are strong, sometimes loud, sometimes raw and sometimes harmonious, but always powerful, and the images are always on the side of the peaceful nature,” he said. “I don’t discuss in my paintings negative things, I don’t dwell on it in my mind and don’t dwell on it in my canvasses.” In another interview, he summed it up like this:
appendages and subordinates influences social norms and attitudes. The corollaries of such thinking are seen in all manner of sexist policy positions, including opposition to both legislation on marital rape and making women fully constitutionally equal to men. A septuagenarian Bahamian woman who experienced racism growing up in The Bahamas and who supported majority rule notes that she no longer experiences such racism at home. But nearing 80, she laments that open and toxic misogyny still reigns as king in The Bahamas. In reaction to the vulgar misogyny she has experienced during her years as First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama once lamented: “I feel it so personally. And I’m sure that many of you do too. Particularly the women. The shameful comments about our bodies. “The disrespect of our ambitions and intellect. The belief that you can do anything you want to a woman. It is cruel. It is frightening. And the truth is, it hurts. It hurts.” If a black Bahamian man wants to better understand the pain of sexism, imagine being demeaned on a regular basis because of one’s race. This is the quality of moral empathy still absent from so many men who claim to adore their black mothers, daughters, sisters and wives.
“I see everything through rainbow eyes.” Although accounts of Max’s career sometimes lament that he was not taken seriously by the art establishment, in fact his work has been featured in dozens of museum exhibitions around the world. New York’s Museum of Modern Art owns seven of his works. The art for the Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine” is sometimes mistakenly attributed to Max, but the design for the album cover and “Yellow Submarine” movie are officially credited to the late Heinz Edelmann. Max claimed in a 2012 interview he did the original “Yellow Submarine” design before handing it off to Edelmann. But the website for New York’s Park West gallery, a longtime dealer of Max’s art, described Max’s involvement in “Yellow Submarine” as “early consulting work.” Max was, however, friends with the Beatles and many other celebrities. He also had a deep interest in Eastern spirituality. He brought “Swami” Satchidananda Saraswati to the U.S., and helped him popularize yoga here. Max’s first marriage to Elizabeth Nance ended in divorce. In addition to his second wife, Mary Max, and his son Adam Cosmo, he is survived by a daughter, Libra Astro.
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, September 17, 2026, PAGE 11
Govt accountability demands answers, not empty promises
By S Timothy Roberts Tribune Editor "Knowledge will forever govern ignorance: And a people who mean to be their own Governors, must arm themselves with the power which knowledge gives." - James Madison THE Progressive Liberal Party in their Blueprint for Change (2021) noted, "We will pass anti-corruption legislation within our first 100 days in office." Prime Minister Philip 'Brave' Davis has not shied away from his desire to provide good governance of the country, affirming to the public that his party is the one that accomplishes this goal. Davis himself, during his Parliamentary Service Bill remarks in July of 2023 said, "...the ultimate beneficiaries of these improvements will be the Bahamian people – the ones to whom we are accountable for all that we do and the laws that we pass." Throughout his initial term, the Prime Minister has unhesitatingly maintained that his administration's paramount focus remains delivering effective governance to all citizens. Yet here we are, at the beginning of his second term still waiting for accountability on numerous issues. What we have received instead is incomplete answers, side-stepping and complete avoidance of accountability; a standard they themselves set, and arguably fall short of. The current focus related to this crisis of faith in the promised accountability from the current administration revolves around claims of improper handling of hundreds of millions of funds which were put into, then taken out of the recently created National Investment Fund by means the Opposition alleges — and the Public Accounts Committee is now investigating — did not appear to be in accordance with the law. THE NIF SAGA Looking back to December 2022, the government replaced the Sovereign Wealth Fund with the National Investment Fund (NIF). At the time then acting PM Chester Cooper during the House of Assembly debate said, "This bill ensures that investment in private share holdings of the government are managed professionally for the long term benefit of citizens of The Bahamas. It ensures that the revenues from natural resources and investment that The Bahamas contributes to the economic certainty of the country and its people." Then in March of the following year Parliament authorised $300m in borrowing into the NIF. Davis said during that session of parliament, "The purpose of the National Investment Fund is to acquire valuable assets that will help build a prosperous future for ALL Bahamians. We cannot build a Fund for national development and then fail to resource it properly." The balance reported in December 2025 was $265.3 million but collapsed to $200,000 by March 2026 according to the government's own Statement of Budgetary Performance, Q3 FY2025/26. In May of this year Finance Minister Michael Halkitis disclosed a second, larger, previously unmentioned transfer of $700 million, leftovers from "excess borrowing." He said in his budget communication: "Our gross borrowings during the nine months in the fiscal year amounted to $2.5 billion, while our debt repayments totalled $1.8 billion. However, the excess borrowing receipts were transferred to the National Investment
accountability are written (at least to some degree) within much of our legislation, we have seen very little from any administration over the many decades since our independence (likely much less before). We are conditioned to accept incomplete answers; we give leeway to political side-stepping, and worse, silence. "The very fact that so much in politics is done in the dark, behind closed doors, promotes suspicion." — Woodrow Wilson, The New Freedom (1913) CIVIC RESPONSIBILITY
The House of Assembly, Bay Street, Nassau, The Bahamas.
“Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient policeman.” — Louis D. Brandeis, Other People’s Money and How the Bankers Use It (1914) Fund and not used for deficit financing." At the follow-up press conference he noted that "additional money that was raised and was not spent was put in a national investment fund for future infrastructure development." In June Halkitis admitted in the House that there is no (statutorily-required) board. Opposition Leader Michael Pintard immediately questioned, "If there is no board, how did they go about establishing this special purpose vehicle to receive $700 million, because from all intents and purposes, they can just put it in anybody's account because that is not an entity." Pintard has since called for an "immediate and comprehensive explanation" of what he termed the "conspicuous absence of any meaningful public information concerning the governance, management, operation and legal administration of the Fund." The OPM Communications Director Latrae Rahming responded, explaining that the funds were used "primarily" to support the Airport Infrastructure Programme. Pintard doubled down saying "if you first put the money in the consolidated fund, you've borrowed the money. You need parliamentary approval to take the money out of the consolidated fund and put it in the national investment fund." Central Bank Governor John Rolle confirms the lack of a statutory board in writing. "I can advise that my instrument of appointment to the Board of Governors of the NIF was dated the 7th of August 2025, for a period of three years, with effect from 30th June, 2025"; Rolle was appointed to the board over a year earlier — a board that has never once convened — and this is now on the record from the Central Bank itself, instead of being just an accusation from the Opposition. Pintard said 'it's fraud with public money' and noted that the Public Accounts Committee has opened a probe with results expected by the end of October. In the first session of Parliament after summer break the government shared a response to the issues raised. Davis said, "it is the responsibility of any government to safeguard public resources, ensure that those resources serve the public interest and address legitimate questions concerning their administration." And that "$310.9 million of the
“The very fact that so much in politics is done in the dark, behind closed doors, promotes suspicion.” — Woodrow Wilson, The New Freedom (1913)
Bahamas' National Investment Fund proceeds have been strategically utilized to strengthen public infrastructure." Set beside the Act itself, Section 11(2) says: a fund "shall be managed according to... the principles of good governance, including transparency and accountability... and international best practices, including the Santiago Principles." Section 8 assigns the power to open the fund's account to the Board, not the Ministry; Section 27 requires the Board - not the Ministry - to report quarterly and annually. The statement's own account says "during the period before the Fund's governance arrangements became fully operational, the Ministry of Finance acted on the basis that the Public Finance Management Act governed the administration and application of these public resources through the Ministry and the Treasury." This is the closest it comes to conceding what Halkitis already admitted in June: the Act's own machinery wasn't running while hundreds of millions moved under its name. Today's statement provided no mention of the $700 million figure at all only the narrower $310.9 million is addressed. No Investment Committee (which, under Section 18, only the Board can appoint). The government stated that it "intends to fully cooperate with the Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee on this matter." The conclusion (for now), after a long wait for the Prime Minister to finally address the NIF controversy in Parliament, leaves many questions still unanswered. He did note that the money had gone toward legitimate public projects and that the government followed proper legal advice, but his statement never mentioned the $700 million at all, never explained why the board wasn't running, and didn't answer most of the specific questions that had been raised. While the government says it will cooperate with the ongoing investigation, many of the core questions about who approved what, and why the fund operated without its required oversight, remain unanswered. DREAM OF AN UNCLOUDED DAY "Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants; electric light the most efficient
policeman." - Louis D. Brandeis, Other People's Money and How the Bankers Use It (1914) Despite the Davis administration's verbal commitment to accountability, transparency and good governance, we are often left in the proverbial dark on a great many matters of national importance; particularly if we
believe we actually live in a democracy and that government is supposed to be 'by the people and of the people'. While it may be an old quote coined by a different political party, 'government in the sunshine' is not a mere partisan slogan, it is a necessary philosophy that citizens and governments should aspire to uphold. The government must work for the people, and their best interests. No decisions involving legislation or finances to be used for the benefit of Bahamians should be made in secret, hidden in clouds of secrecy. Good governance does not just include accountability, it demands it. And while mechanisms for transparency and
The UN Secretary-General's guidance on democracy puts the principle plainly: "For this to work, the people must be aware of what is happening in their country's governance." We live in a country where those who rule us do not believe we deserve answers. Detailed information about the governance conducted in our name — and paid for with our money — is not something they believe they owe us. In a country such as ours we all must be vigilant and ready to do what is needed to have the accountability and transparency inherent to good governance. To our Prime Minister and his administration, as well as the opposition and all government officials; know that words are not enough, and that transparency - a government in the sunshine - must put action to promises if they are to be believed at all
THE TRIBUNE
Thursday, September 17, 2026, PAGE 13
World News
Change in human trafficking policy could make some minors easier to deport By RYAN J FOLEY Associated Press THE Trump administration has ordered caregivers for migrant children to stop reporting human trafficking concerns directly to the office created to help victims, a change that critics say could make some vulnerable minors easier to deport. The directive, in a Sept. 10 memo reviewed by The Associated Press, could mean that some victims would be denied services and face tougher odds of obtaining asylum and visas allowing them to stay in the United States. “This is going to harm children,” said Jean Bruggeman, co-executive director of Freedom Network USA, a coalition that advocates for human trafficking survivors. “This makes it more likely they will be deported before they get the services they need and put back into harm’s way.” The order added another plank to the Trump administration’s hard-line immigration agenda that has forged the most restrictive policies toward immigrants in more than a generation. Some of those efforts have been stopped by courts but many others have taken root. The memo said the change would “streamline the reporting, tracking and referral of trafficking-related concerns.” An administration statement said the change was an effort to reduce the high number of claims that did not rise to the level
of criminal human trafficking but nonetheless triggered the award of benefits and relief. But Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon said the change requires children and their advocates to report human trafficking to the same agency that is holding them in custody. “This move to sideline human trafficking experts is more evidence that the Trump administration will deport kids to score political points rather than actually protect them,” he said. Office has helped thousands of trafficking victims The change applies to 1,800 children who are in federal custody after arriving in the United States without parents or being arrested with parents who were not legally present, and others who have been released but remain under supervision. Under longstanding policy, caregivers are required to conduct an initial screening of unaccompanied children for potential labour or sex trafficking within five days of admission to a facility or shelter. If they suspect the child is a victim, they have been required within 24 hours to notify the Office of Trafficking in Persons, which was created in 2015 to prevent human trafficking and protect victims. If the office certifies the claim, the minors become eligible for a program that gives them greater freedom by allowing them to move out of shortterm housing, placing them in foster care and
benefits. The change in reporting will “strengthen integrity, reduce improper referrals, reduce fraud, and ensure that children who may have experienced trafficking receive immediate support,” the statement said.
A CHILD holds hands with workers at an emergency shelter for migrant children, July 2, 2021, in Pomona, California. Photo: Marcio Jose Sanchez/AP allowing them to attend public school. It does not protect them from deportation immediately, but they can use the determination to pursue visas for victims of trafficking or asylum claims. It also grants eligibility for nutrition, housing and other public benefits once they are released from federal custody. Thousands of unaccompanied minors have benefited from the office’s determinations. They are particularly susceptible to labour and sex trafficking, including in their home countries, on their way to the U.S. and after they arrive, and that’s why Congress has given them protections, Bruggeman said. Administration says change will target
EU CHIEF PROPOSES BLOC-WIDE SOCIAL MEDIA BAN FOR KIDS UNDER 13 By SAM McNEIL and KELVIN CHAN Associated Press THE European Union’s top official proposed on Wednesday banning children under 13 across the 27-nation bloc from using social media sites and imposing limits for older teens on accessing the platforms. The plan outlined by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen adds to global efforts to protect young people using platforms such as Instagram and TikTok from online harm. “I am aware that many perceive the power of Big Tech as overwhelming and impossible to roll back. I disagree,” von der Leyen said in her annual State of the European Union speech in Strasbourg. “We do not have to accept addictive features. We do not have to accept children being drawn into ever more extreme content. We do not have to accept that girls have their photos used for AI-generated sexualised images,” she said. Von der Leyen said that under her proposal “mini accounts” chaperoned by guardians would be granted to kids aged 13-15, with limits on features and the amount of time they can be accessed. For 15-to-18-year-olds, platforms will need to provide a “safe design,” she said. Further details of the plan are expected Thursday. Brussels risks a fresh confrontation with Trump and Big Tech The EU’s 27 member nations still need to debate and vote on the proposal, which could take years and spark tensions with U.S. President Donald Trump,
who has long criticized Europe’s tech regulations. Brando Benifei, an Italian member of the European Parliament, said he supported the plan and that Brussels shouldn’t shy away from a showdown with the dominant U.S. tech companies. “To apply this, you need to confront in a very frontal way the interests of platforms and Big Tech who are not happy with this,” he said. Von der Leyen was advancing a plan she foreshadowed earlier this year, when she said kids should be exposed to social media in a “phased and gradual” way. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok already prohibit anyone under 13 from opening an account, but authorities have accused the companies of failing to keep them off. But some experts said the commission was failing to tackle a more fundamental issue with the social media industry’s core business practices based on getting users hooked on scrolling through addictive content while showing them ads. The plan “merely delays young people’s exposure to the risks of online harm instead of addressing the business model and extractive practices which fuel it,” said Simeon de Brouwer, a policy advisor at digital rights group EDRi. The platforms will “unavoidably target them as soon as they’re a day older than the threshold.” The EU proposals are part of a global effort to improve children’s online safety The commission’s proposal is part of a wider global push to protect young people online and
represents the first move to introduce a bloc-wide age limit for social media. Individual European countries such as Spain and Portugal have taken their own steps to ban teens from social media platforms, mirroring regulatory actions in other places like Australia and New Zealand Some efforts have run into roadblocks. France’s top court last month struck down a law banning children under 15 from social media, saying it infringed on fundamental freedoms. French President Emmanuel Macron vowed to rework the proposal. In the United States, social media company Meta Platforms last month agreed to pay up to $18 billion and add stronger child-safety measures to its Facebook and Instagram platforms to resolve a trial over teen social media addiction and settle claims filed by nearly every state. Manfred Weber, the head of the largest group in the European Parliament, spoke after von der Leyen to propose that the EU follow Australia’s lead in allowing citizens to switch off social media algorithms. “Elon Musk will not like it, but probably that is a reason for doing it,” he said. Von der Leyen also weighed in on the intensifying debate about artificial intelligence and the potential risks it poses to humanity, saying the commission would discuss efforts to slow down advanced AI development with leading AI companies. She said the EU would work with “like-minded partners” like Canada and Britain. “We want to team up on model evaluation, verification, early warning, AI security and much more,” she said.
improper claims Under the change ordered last week by the administration, federal employees and care providers were told to no longer report labour and sex trafficking claims involving the minors to the Office on Trafficking in Persons. Instead, the memo said those claims should be submitted only to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which oversees the housing of unaccompanied minors. That office will now investigate the claims and decide which ones should be forwarded to the Office on Trafficking in Persons for further review, the memo said, warning that
providers “must respond promptly to requests for information.” In a statement, the Office of Refugee Resettlement said the change was driven by a review last year that found 95% of more than 9,000 reports “were determined not to be viable trafficking leads” for criminal investigators. “The vast majority of the reports detailed instances of alleged abuse or neglect, not forced labour or commercial sex as defined in human trafficking statutes,” the statement said. Even so, 58% of reports from shelter employees and case managers qualified for trafficking-related
Former official questions rationale Jen Smyers, who served as deputy director of the Office of Refugee Resettlement during the Biden administration, said the claim that the change will streamline reporting is questionable. She said ORR already gets the human trafficking reports but has no special expertise in evaluating them, unlike the office created for that purpose. The fear is that legitimate claims will get delayed or missed during the new layer of review, and career employees will face political pressure to refer fewer cases, she said. “It’s the opposite of streamlining,” Smyers said. Smyers noted the change comes after what she called an “ onslaught “ of Trump administration policies that have undermined the ability of unaccompanied minors to gain legal status, including making it harder to leave federal custody, arresting sponsors in the middle of the release process, and cutting their legal representation. “What they are trying to do is deport as many as possible. What interferes with deporting children is if they are eligible for protections Congress has
PAGE 14, Thursday, September 17, 2026
THE TRIBUNE
World News Russian drone strike on a passenger bus in Ukraine kills 5 people and wounds at least seven others By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press A RUSSIAN drone struck a passenger bus in southern Ukraine early Wednesday, killing five people and wounding at least seven in the latest in a series of Russian strikes on civilian transportation. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the attack an atrocity with no military purpose. The strike occurred in the Nikopol district of Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region, near the war’s southern front line. Oleksandr Hanzha, head of the regional military administration, said that all five were killed at the scene while the seven wounded were receiving medical care. Zelenskyy described the vehicle as a minibus and said in an X post that the strike had “no military rationale” and that it was “just another atrocity.” He said the strike was connected to Russia’s targeting of logistics and critical infrastructure that has continued “unabated.” Zelenskyy said that a passenger train was also struck in the Mykolaiv region on Wednesday, damaging a railway station and a diesel locomotive. Nearly 170 passengers on board the train were evacuated before the strike. An electric locomotive in the northwestern city of Kovel was also struck, Zelenskyy said. Ukraine requests locomotives from partners Russian strikes on Ukraine’s rail network have resulted in more than 500 locomotives being damaged or completely destroyed since the beginning of the all-out war on Feb. 24, 2022, with more than half those strikes occurring this year, Ukrainian Foreign Minister
corvette commander decided to fire two red signal flares, after which the helicopter left the area where the Russian warship was located,” the ministry said. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Wednesday that Moscow has no aggressive intentions toward Europe, but that if countries on the continent were to launch an attack on Russia, “it would be a completely different kind of war, and a very short one.”
IN THIS photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, firefighters put out a fire at private homes following a Russian air attack in Sumy, Ukraine, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026. Photo: Ukrainian Emergency Service/AP Andrii Sybiha wrote on X on Tuesday. Sybiha described such attacks as “systematic” and aimed at disrupting logistics across Ukraine. He said that Ukraine urgently needs replacements for damaged locomotives, and called on the country’s partners to assist in finding locomotives compatible with its 1,520-millimeter rail gauge and to assist in financing. In another post on X on Wednesday, Sybiha said that Russian forces were striking passenger trains, locomotives, stations and railway routes “knowing exactly how essential they are for civilians, evacuations and Ukraine’s economy.” “This is not collateral damage. It is a systematic hunt for people and an attempt to (paralyze) civilian life,” he wrote. Zelenskyy says there is no truce on halting
energy strikes In an interview with CBS News on Tuesday, Zelenskyy pushed back against an earlier claim by U.S. President Donald Trump that Ukraine and Russia had agreed to mutually cease attacks on each other’s energy infrastructure. Zelenskyy said that Ukraine was ready to enter such an agreement, if Russia stops striking Ukrainian energy facilities. Trump said in a social media post Monday that such a truce had been reached, but didn’t offer details on the purported agreement. Previous efforts to broker even a partial ceasefire have repeatedly fallen apart within hours, with both sides accusing the other of violations. In the CBS interview, Zelenskyy said that the possibility of an energy truce was discussed during a recent meeting in Kyiv with Trump’s representatives, Steve Witkoff
and Jared Kushner, but that he had told them: “If the Russians are ready for an energy truce, that means there will be no attacks on energy facilities at all.” Russia decorates ship captain who fired flares at Danish helicopter Russia’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday that the captain of a Russian warship that fired two signal flares toward a Danish military helicopter on Monday, drawing ire from Denmark, has been awarded a medal for his “competent and resolute action.” The ministry said in a statement that the Soobrazitelny corvette was on a mission in neutral waters in the Baltic Sea when its crew spotted the approaching helicopter, which failed to respond to calls made via the international communication channel. “To prevent a provocation by the Danish helicopter, the
Russia confirms the death of a general in Donetsk The deputy head of the Russian armed forces’ military-political department, Lt. Gen. Apti Alaudinov, confirmed Wednesday that a decorated Russian general had been killed in the occupied Donetsk region. Alaudinov, who didn’t provide details on the circumstances of Maj. Gen. Anton Grunis’ death, hailed the officer as “a hero” and “one of the most respected generals … a real man and officer and a great patriot.” The confirmation of Grunis’ death came after Robert “Magyar” Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, alleged on Wednesday that Grunis had been killed in occupied Donetsk by a Ukrainian drone while at a command post in the village of Kindrativka. In July, Grunis reported to Russian President Vladimir Putin that his troops had captured the town of Kostiantynivka and he was later awarded the Hero of Russia medal. Ukraine has disputed that Kostiantynivka was fully taken by Russian forces. Grunis had previously fought in Chechnya, a mainly Muslim republic whose bid for independence after the
Soviet Union’s collapse led to years of war with Russian government forces. He also took part in Russia’s campaign in Syria. In Ukraine, he commanded the 4th Guards Motorized Infantry Brigade. Meanwhile, 17 other sites were damaged in Ukraine’s Kyiv region between Tuesday and Wednesday morning, according to the head of the Kyiv regional military administration, Tymur Tkachenko. Eight private homes, five vehicles, a municipal building, a hangar and a production facility were among the sites damaged, Tkachenko said on Telegram. Zelenskyy said on X that the Kherson, Donetsk and Poltava regions had also come under attack. In the northern city of Sumy, six people were injured in a Russian guided aerial bomb attack, including a 14-year-old girl, according to the head of the Sumy regional military administration Oleh Hryhorov. Two homes were destroyed and 10 others damaged in the strikes, along with damage to an educational facility, Hryhorov said, adding that two other men were hospitalized after a separate strike hit an industrial zone. In the port city of Odesa, one person was killed in a Russian attack that sparked a fire at garages and damaged vehicles and private homes, Serhii Lysak, head of the city’s military administration, wrote on Telegram Wednesday. Russia’s Defense Ministry said that its air defenses downed 71 Ukrainian drones overnight. In the Belgorod region, one person was killed and four others were wounded by Ukrainian strikes over the last 24 hours, according to acting governor Alexander Shuvayev.
NASA spacecraft discovers a huge new crater on the moon By MARCIA DUNN AP Aerospace Writer SCIENTISTS have discovered a crater on the moon that’s bigger than the Roman Colosseum and is the result of a powerful impact two years ago that initially went undetected. The steep-sided hole — about 728 feet (222 meters) across and up to 141 feet (43
meters) deep — is the solar system’s biggest known impact crater carved out in recent times. Such a large-scale event is estimated to occur only once every 132 years, researchers said, making this a treasure trove of information as NASA prepares to build a base for astronauts on the moon.
“This event constitutes a statistically rare, effectively once-in-a-lifetime observation,” the scientists wrote in one of two studies appearing on the subject Wednesday in the journal Science Advances. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter spotted the crater on the moon’s near side in May 2024 soon after it was formed
by an incoming fragment of an asteroid or comet. The moon strike escaped real-time detection by telescopes on Earth and in space. LRO’s wide-angle images were not identified in the crush of data until August 2025. The spacecraft gathered more detailed pictures last fall, followed by
confirmation of the discovery early this year. The crater — named for the late Thomas McGetchin, a former director of Houston’s Lunar and Planetary Institute — is three times bigger than the previous record-holder found by the LRO a decade ago. Pockmarked since ancient times, the moon bears some of the solar system’s largest impact craters, including one that stretches more than 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) across. This latest impact churned the lunar surface for more than 66 miles (100 kilometers). Dust and rocky soil were hurled away at a higher angle than expected, according to Mark Robinson, chief scientist for the LRO’s cameras who works at Intuitive Machines. Robinson was the lead author for one of the studies. A separate study identified a 4-mile-wide (7-kilometer-wide) cold spot around the new crater, consistent with a loosening of the moon’s top soil. Co-author David Paige of the University of California,
Los Angeles, likens it to gardening. “We’re now thinking of impacts as a way to garden the regolith — churning the sediments and putting stuff above that’s usually below the surface,” Paige said in a statement. The LRO’s numerous crater discoveries since its launch in 2009 show that the moon’s top inch (2 centimeters) of soil is being overturned by ejected material every 80,000 years, faster than previously thought, according to Robinson. Contrary to the popular belief that the Apollo moonwalkers’ dusty lunar footprints will last forever, they will “definitely be long gone in that time frame,” Robinson said in an email. The next step is to calculate the risk of ejected crater material striking NASA’s planned moon base, he added. “That information will help engineers harden structures so one won’t have to worry about damage, or maybe worry less.”
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THE TRIBUNE
ALIV opens new store in Hooper’s Bay, Exuma
CUTTING the ribbon at ALIVs new location at Hooper’s Bay, Exuma. ALIV has opened a new retail store in Hooper’s Bay, Exuma, expanding its presence on the island with a second location serving residents and businesses. The new store, located closer to residential communities, will offer the company’s mobile and fixed services, devices and in-person customer support. ALIV already operates a store in George Town, which opened as part of the telecommunications provider’s expansion into the Family Islands. Keiran Chase, director of consumer sales at Cable Bahamas Group, said the new location reflects the company’s continued investment in Exuma and is intended to provide customers on the island with the same level of service available elsewhere in The Bahamas. “Exuma has been very good to us, both in customer feedback and growth, and it
is a pleasure to return that support through excellent service,” Mr Chase said. The opening comes as ALIV marks ten years since entering the Bahamian telecommunications market in 2016. By 2018, the company had established nine flagship stores and more than 50 retail touchpoints nationwide, including its first Exuma location in George Town. Deputy Chief Councillor Monique Morley welcomed the company’s continued investment in the island and encouraged ALIV to work with local businesses and the wider community. “We especially look forward to initiatives that create opportunities for our young people and help them continue to advance,” she said. ALIV also plans to partner with local government to adopt a community basketball court in Exuma
as part of its community initiatives. The company said the project is intended to improve the recreational space available to young people on the island.
Thursday, September 17, 2026, PAGE 15