THURSDAY
Island heat, McFlurry treat
The Tribune
Hero died trying to s Hield c Hildren
Three gunmen opened fire killing two men in area off Kemp Road
By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was trying to use his body to shield young children from a hail of bullets when he was killed in Kemp Road on Tuesday. Eric Smith, 24, and two others were struck when gunmen opened fire shortly before 3pm in the area of St James Road and Kemp Road. One man died at
the scene. Smith later succumbed to his injuries in the hospital, while a 71-year-old suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Relatives said Smith was an innocent bystander who was trying to protect children, including his twoyear-old nephew. “The brother that came behind him has a son living there, so he was actually
unemployment rise Blamed on ‘mismatch’ of skill sets
By LYANIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
THE Davis administration yesterday defended its labour record as unemployment jumped to 10.8 percent in the first quarter of 2025, insisting the rise reflects a mismatch between skills and available jobs rather than a shortage of opportunities. Its response comes after the administration spent late 2024 touting BNSI reports showing an 8.7 percent jobless rate — the lowest in 16 years — before
COI chairman questioned
by
police over allegation on passport handling
By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net
COALITION of Independents (COI) chairman
Charlotte Green was questioned by police yesterday about her allegations regarding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ handling of passports and visas, claims the ministry had
asked police to formally investigate.
Ms Green told The Tribune she spent about 15 minutes at the Security Intelligence Branch, where officers compared her remarks with the ministry’s statement. She said she provided evidence, including press clippings, before
PHA: extended P ower outAge didn’t affect patient care
By KEILE CAMPBELL Tribune Staff Reporter
kcampbell@tribunemedia.net
THE Public Hospitals Authority (PHA) said patient care was not disrupted after a power outage hit Princess Margaret Hospital yesterday evening, insisting a ventilator-dependent patient remained safe on backup battery during the incident. The authority said power to the medical and surgical blocks went out at about 4.45pm and was restored by
World famous Valley Boys claims BoW leg hurt funding
By KEILE CAMPBELL Tribune Staff Reporter kcampbell@tribunemedia.net
WORLD Famous Valley Boys chairman Brian Adderley has accused Youth, Sports and Culture Minister Mario Bowleg of damaging the group’s reputation and sponsorship prospects by prematurely claiming “there’s only one Valley Boys”. Asked if the group’s ability to secure sponsorship has been impacted, he said: “Yes, it is because the intent of the minister’s statement, whether it’s deliberate or
COI chairman Charlotte Green.
ErIC Smith was struck by a bullet while using his body to shield young children from gunfire on Tuesday in the area of St James Road and Kemp Road - he would later succumb to his injuries in hospital.
HigH Commissioner of Canada to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, Mark Berman paid a courtesy call on the Ministry of Tourism, Investments and Aviation yesterday. Director general of Tourism Latia Duncombe, and staff, are pictured meeting with High Commissioner Berman at the ministry’s offices.
Photos: Kemuel Stubbs/BIS
Sands: PMH outage unacceptable as redundant backup power failed
6.17pm. Officials said the critical care block, which houses the intensive care unit, neonatal intensive care unit, and the emergency room, was not affected.
“The executive management team was on the ground during the outage, and clinical teams ensured that patient care continued without interruption,” the PHA said. “We wish to reassure the public that no patients were harmed and all safety protocols were followed.”
Officials said a risk assessment has been launched and new backup batteries installed to strengthen redundancy. They apologised to patients and visitors for the delay in visiting hours until power was restored.
Despite those assurances, former Health Minister Dr Duane Sands called
the incident unacceptable, stressing that hospitals are designed with multiple layers of backup power.
“Princess Margaret Hospital is built with redundant generator systems,” Dr Sands said. “If city power fails, the backup generator is supposed to kick in, and if that generator fails there ought to be another backup. This is why it is so concerning, because a hospital should never be in a position where power is lost for that long.”
He warned that patients in critical care are especially vulnerable. “You are talking about people on ventilators, babies in incubators, and patients on operating tables,” he said. “If the power goes off and generators do not come on, then staff are left manually bagging patients to keep them alive, or trying to complete an operation by flashlight. That is not acceptable.”
Consultant Physicians
Moore’s Island resIdents
Staff Association President Dr Charelle Lockhart said she was not on shift during the outage but was told senior management acted quickly to protect patients. She said colleagues reported the situation remained calm, with critical units unaffected.
Bahamas Doctors Union President Dr Camille Glinton-Thompson also confirmed there was no interruption to patient care.
Dr Sands, however, said the incident reflected deeper issues in the health system, citing concerns about maintenance, emergency preparedness, and chronic shortages of resources.
He urged investigators to determine whether lapses contributed to the failure.
“Capacity is something that you cannot cut corners on,” he said, warning that “when you having these kinds of events, head should roll.”
angry over
govt neglect and unfulfIlled proMIses
By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net
RESIDENTS of Moore’s Island are angry and fed up with years of unfulfilled promises and stalled projects, claiming the community has been left neglected by successive governments.
Nathaniel Hield, president of the Moore’s Island Improvement Association, said frustrations have reached a breaking point as critical infrastructure, including the airport, clinic, and docks, remain in disrepair or incomplete despite millions of dollars allocated.
On Tuesday, residents staged a protest, urging the government to act on the island’s longstanding issues. Demonstrators warned that if their concerns are not resolved, they will send a message at the ballot box. “No clinic, no vote; no seawall, no vote; no dock, no teachers, no vote,” they chanted during the protest.
Mr Hield said the people of Moore’s Island are disgruntled, and tired of the many unfulfilled promises, including unfinished government projects such as the seawall and dock.
“A contract was awarded here to a contractor to do some work. The work has been going on for four years, and they said it’s $12m, but nothing is completed as yet,” he said
According to Mr Hield, the island’s government clinic is “in a deplorable state,” forcing nurses to leave by midday due to a lack of air conditioning and proper electricity. “When it rains, the janitor has to go in at 6am to bail out water,” he said. “They call it the ‘Clinic in the Can’. It’s moldy inside and not fit for proper medical care.”
The airport terminal, he added, has also fallen into disuse. “If it’s raining and you arrive by plane, you have to stay on the aircraft because the terminal is locked up and not operational. The bathrooms don’t work, there is no air conditioning, and part of the electrical system is down.”
Mr Hield said contracts issued for repair and construction have repeatedly stalled due to political changes. “The FNM gave a contractor the airport project, then the PLP stopped it for review,” he said. “Nothing has been done since. The same with the seawall and dock – a contract was awarded, but the work has not been carried out.”
The island’s fishermen, he noted, have been especially affected. “This is a fishing community, but the main dock for freight boats and big fishing vessels is out of order,” he said. “It has been broken and left that way. Fishermen are inconvenienced .”
Green: I gave police my evidence and I stand by my statement
Education is also a concern. With about 500 residents and 200 schoolchildren, Mr Hield said Moore’s Island suffers from a shortage of teachers. He said the school building itself is in good condition as BTVI adopted the school and built a new restroom block. “But, we need more than two additional teachers,” he added.
To draw attention to their plight, Mr Hield said the community decided to hold a protest. He said they have raised concerns for more than five years, but promises by both PLP and FNM administrations have failed to deliver results.
“This is not a political thing – this is an island thing,” he stressed. “We’ve had promises for 10, seven, and five years. They told us we would get our property deeds and they sent surveyors. When the PLP came to office, they came back last year and said that in the space of three weeks we would get our property deed, but we haven’t,” Mr Hield said.
“We’re just tired. The people are angry and frustrated. We are neglected.”
He also dismissed claims that a rubber track had been built for local athletes. “That’s a lie from the pit of hell,” he said, adding that a dormitory project for student athletes was started but left unfinished.
“It’s like every time an election comes, they come and throw us a little party, give us sweet words and promises,” Mr Hield said. “But nothing changes. We are tired of being taken for fools.”
being released. “I gave them my evidence, and like I said, they have to investigate, but the evidence was presented and like I said, my statement that I had released, I stand by that. Everything I said, I stand by that,” she said.
She described the questioning as intimidation and warned it threatened free expression. “That’s an infringement on the freedom of speech for every Bahamian, because if it can happen to me, it can happen to others, and this is what victimisation looks like,” she said.
Her interview followed a August statement in which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed it had asked police to probe her allegations, saying she accused Minister Fred Mitchell of overseeing a rise in fraudulent passports and “selling visas like candy.” The ministry wrote to the Commissioner of Police requesting a formal investigation and urged Ms Green to present evidence. “If she cannot, the country will know that the allegations are bogus,” the ministry said at the time. The ministry stressed yesterday that Mr Mitchell personally made no complaint, and that the referral to police was made through the Permanent Secretary “in the public interest”. It added that the matter is now strictly in the hands of law enforcement. Police have not confirmed whether a formal investigation is underway. Ms Green first made the allegations in an audio post on August 19, accusing the government of granting passports to foreigners without proper qualifications and pointing to alleged scandals involving visas. She also claimed Haitians with Bahamian passports were travelling daily to the Turks and Caicos despite not being able to speak English or complete immigration forms.
PASSPORTS from page one
COALITION Of INdepeNdeNTs ChAIrmAN ChArLOTTe GreeN
mOOre’s Island residnet claims the island’s airport is locked up and not operational.
prINCess Margaret Hospital.
‘Hundreds of openings exist that we are unable to fill’
unemployment rose to 9 percent in the fourth quarter and 10.8 percent in the first quarter of 2025.
A Ministry of Labour and Public Service statement acknowledged the findings of the Bahamas National Statistical Institute (BNSI), which showed 25,925 Bahamians were unemployed between January and March, an increase of nearly 9,000 since late 2024. The ministry believes the figures also reflect seasonal layoffs and sectoral contractions, particularly in construction and tourism, as well as more Bahamians entering the workforce, with participation climbing to 76 percent.
Labour Minister Pia Glover-Rolle said the challenge is not job creation but unemployability.
“It is not simply that jobs are unavailable,” she said.
“Hundreds of openings exist in our Department of Labour database that we have been unable to fill. The real challenge lies in building and aligning skills with the opportunities on offer. That is why this administration has been proactive in investing in training, apprenticeships, and new pathways to ensure Bahamians are ready for the jobs of today and tomorrow.”
She pointed to initiatives such as the National Apprenticeship Programme, piloted in construction and maritime sectors; the Bahamas Polytechnic
Accreditation and Training Hub (BPATH), which allows students to earn career certifications; the Creative and Performing Arts School (CAPAS); and the expansion of the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI) to Abaco, Eleuthera, and Exuma.
The minister also cited the launch of the National Productivity Task Force, mandated to lay the foundation for a National Productivity Council to address efficiency and workforce shortfalls.
While the government stressed that GDP growth and record-low unemployment in late 2024 show strong fundamentals, private sector leaders warned the latest data expose deep structural weaknesses.
Peter Goudie, labour chief for the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and a representative on the National Tripartite Council, branded the 52 percent increase in jobless workers over seven months as “pretty scary”.
“We have a very difficult situation in our country,” he told Tribune Business. “What also concerns me is the number of males not getting through higher education. We need to fix the education system from the bottom up.”
The BNSI report also showed nearly one in three employed Bahamians — 65,225 people — were underemployed, working part-time while seeking more hours. Some 28 percent of working men and 17 percent of working women had no formal qualifications,
raising concerns about productivity and competitiveness in an economy increasingly shaped by digital and knowledge-based industries.
Youth unemployment stood at 20.9 percent, with 6,960 young people unable to find work. The data also highlighted gender disparities: women aged 20 to 44 and 45 to 54 were more likely to be unemployed than men in the same age groups, though men aged 25 to 44 had slightly higher unemployment than women in that cohort.
Mrs Glover-Rolle said the Department of Labour has since facilitated major hiring exercises, particularly in Grand Bahama, that will be reflected in future surveys.
“Last year, our GDP continued to grow. And in the third quarter, unemployment reached one of its lowest points since the turn of the century,” she said. “We remain confident that our policies, training initiatives, and investments will continue to expand opportunities and prepare Bahamians for long-term success. We are focused on creating jobs, and we are also going a step beyond to ensure that our people have the skills, training, and readiness to seize the jobs that will be created.”
Still, Mr Goudie warned that unless the education system improves and more Bahamians gain the skills employers demand, businesses will remain unable to recruit effectively, undermining productivity, competitiveness, and living standards.
‘We are close to bringing the Cannabis Act into force’
BY LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Chief Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE Davis administration intends to bring the full provisions of the Cannabis Act into force before the end of the year, including fixed penalties for small amounts of marijuana possession, according to Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville.
“We are close to bringing the act into force,” he told The Tribune yesterday. “If all goes well certainly before the end of the year.” His comment comes as people continue to be arrested for minor cannabis possession, despite the Act setting a $250 fine for up to 30 grams and removing criminal penalties.
So far, only the provisions establishing the Cannabis Authority have taken effect. National Security Minister Wayne Munroe said laws are not fully enacted until officials believe the structures needed to enforce them are ready.
He explained that the responsible minister has the authority to decide when specific provisions take effect.
Cannabis Authority chairman Dr Lynwood
Brown told The Tribune this week he has raised concerns about the failure to enforce decriminalisation measures. He suggested police officers may not be fully aware of the status of the law, leading them to arrest people out of caution and rely on superiors for guidance that is not always clear. Mr Munroe pushed back yesterday, saying Dr Brown was mistaken. He stressed that law enforcement officers know the law has not yet been brought into force.
“The reality of it is the law does not say it’s okay to smoke dope. Let’s be very clear about that,” Mr Munroe said. “Cannabis possession is still a crime. It is not something that
the law says is acceptable. That’s the starting point.”
He added: “If you’re smoking dope, you still ain’t gonna be able to be recruited to any of the armed forces. People can still drug test you, and you can’t get jobs if you fail drug test.”
The Cannabis Act, passed in 2024, legalises medical and religious cannabis use and outlines six business licence categories. Most licences are restricted to Bahamian citizens or majority Bahamian-owned companies, with fees ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 depending on the type. Officials previously said licence applications would open by mid-2025, but now expect them to be available before year’s end.
By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net
THE Disaster Risk Management Authority (DRM) said yesterday it is preparing for possible activation as a tropical disturbance threatens to bring heavy rain and storm conditions to the Southeast Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands by Friday.
Officials confirmed Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis has instructed the Ministry of Works to ready assets for potential flooding. The National Disaster Operations Committee and Family Island administrators have also been placed on alert for the potential activation of the National Disaster Emergency Operations Centre and Family Island Incident Command Centres.
The Bahamas Department of Meteorology said it is closely monitoring disturbance AL94, described as an “active tropical wave” now east of Puerto Rico. The system is forecast to move west-northwest, with conditions likely to become favourable for
the formation of a tropical depression near the Southeast Bahamas and Turks and Caicos.
“Environmental conditions are forecast to become more conducive for development on Friday, and a tropical depression is likely to form in the vicinity of the Southeast Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands during that time,” the department said.
Residents in Inagua, Mayaguana, Acklins, Crooked Island, Long Cay, Ragged Island, and the Turks and Caicos Islands are advised to prepare for
possible tropical storm impacts. Even if the disturbance does not strengthen, forecasters warn of scattered showers, thunderstorms, and possible tornadic activity on Friday and Saturday. Rainfall totals of two to four inches are expected, with isolated amounts up to six inches. Residents are urged to secure homes and property, identify nearby shelters, and prepare emergency kits with water, medications, flashlights, and essential documents sealed in waterproof containers.
HealtH and Wellness Minister dr MicHael darville
labour Minister Pia Glover-rolle
Mom: He leave me just like that
HERO from page one
shielding the children in the yard. That’s how he got killed,” Ms Martin said.
Police said several men were gathered behind a house when three masked gunmen pulled up in a white Japanese vehicle and began firing. As the shooters retreated, they continued spraying bullets at two men walking nearby. Smith was hit in the head; another victim was struck in the upper body. A video of the aftermath quickly spread online, showing chaos as relatives screamed, police rushed to regain control, and an elderly man clutched his bloodied arm.
One woman recording the scene cried, “somebody just got kill”, while another said she had to run for her life.
Smith’s mother, Erica Smith, said she had seen her son only moments earlier when he went to bathe. Later that day, she removed his clothing from the bathroom — a painful reminder of his sudden death.
Lying in bed with her two grandsons when the gunfire broke out, she said she did not hear the shots because she was wearing headphones until her
four-year-old grandson alerted her. She later realised her son was among the victims after hearing someone shout his nickname, “Bina.”
“That was it, gone. He leave me just like that,” she said.
Family members had rushed Smith to the hospital themselves. At first, he did not realise he had been shot but complained of pain in his head. Relatives described him as quiet, respectful, and uninvolved in crime. He had no children and worked alongside a relative who is an electrician.
“They were innocent,” Ms Martin said, calling for justice for her nephew and the other victims.
A source told The Tribune police believe the gunmen missed their intended targets — brothers of a slain gang leader — and instead hit innocent men.
National Security Minister Wayne Munroe urged people who know those carrying guns or involved in crime to contact police, warning that otherwise they too could become victims of crossfire.
Among the wounded was a 71-year-old man who had accompanied his friend — the 54-year-old victim identified by locals as “Meech” — to visit his daughter. He recalled the
terrifying barrage of gunfire, saying a bullet had him “dancing” as it tore through his body.
He said he looked to check on his companion, but at some point, the man lost consciousness.
Eric Smith
A 71-year-old man - friend of the 54-year-old man that died at the scene - being helped after being shot when three gunmen opened fire in the area of St James off Kemp Road, Tuesday.
The Tribune Limited
NULLIUS ADDICTUS JURARE IN VERBA MAGISTRI
“Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master”
LEON E. H. DUPUCH
Publisher/Editor 1903-1914
SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH, Kt., O.B.E., K.M., K.C.S.G., (Hon.) LL.D., D.Litt .
Publisher/Editor 1919-1972
Contributing Editor 1972-1991
RT HON EILEEN DUPUCH CARRON, C.M.G., M.S., B.A., LL.B.
Publisher/Editor 1972-
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The world as Trump sees it
SOME countries’ leaders are watching rising seas threaten to swallow their homes. Others are watching their citizens die in floods, hurricanes and heat waves, all exacerbated by climate change.
But the world US President Donald Trump described in his speech at the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday didn’t match the one many world leaders in the audience are contending with. Nor did it align with what scientists have long been observing.“This ‘climate change,’ it’s the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world, in my opinion,” Trump said. “All of these predictions made by the United Nations and many others, often for bad reasons, were wrong. They were made by stupid people that have cost their countries fortunes and given those same countries no chance for success. If you don’t get away from this green scam, your country is going to fail.”
Trump has long been a critic of climate science and polices aimed at helping the world transition to green energies like wind and solar. His speech Tuesday, however, was one of his most expansive to date. It included false statements and making connections between things that are not connected.
Ilana Seid, an ambassador from the island nation of Palau and head of the organisation of small island states, was in the audience. She said it’s what they’ve come to expect from Trump and the United States. She added that not acting on climate change will “be a betrayal of the most vulnerable,” a sentiment echoed by Evans Davie Njewa of Malawi, who said that “we are endangering the lives of innocent people in the world.”
For Adelle Thomas, a climate scientist who has published more than 40 studies and has a doctorate, climate change disasters are personal, too. A vice chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the world’s top body on climate science, Thomas is from The Bahamas and said she experienced firsthand “the devastation of the climate disaster” when Hurricane Sandy hit the Caribbean and New York City, the city Trump was speaking from, in 2012.
“Millions of people around the world can already testify to the devastation that climate change has brought to their lives,” she said. ‘The evidence is not abstract. It is lived, it is deadly, and it demands urgent action.”
A look at some of Trump’s statements Tuesday, the science behind them and the reaction.
On renewable energy
WHAT HE SAID: Trump called renewable sources of energy like wind power a “joke” and “pathetic,” falsely claiming they don’t work, are too expensive and too weak.
THE BACKSTORY: Solar and wind are now “almost always” the least expensive and the fastest options for new electricity generation, according to a July report from the United Nations. That report also said the world has passed a “positive tipping point” where those energy sources will only continue to become more widespread.
The three cheapest electricity sources globally last year were onshore wind, solar panels and new hydropower, according to an energy cost report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).
Subsidies endorsed by Trump and the Republican party are artificially keeping fossil fuels viable, said University of Pennsylvania climate scientist Michael Mann. “If one were truly in favor of the ‘free market’ to determine this, then fossil fuels would be disappearing even faster,” he wrote in an email.
Relatedly, Trump falsely claimed European electricity bills are now “two to three times higher than the United States, and our bills are coming way down.” But in fact retail
electricity prices in the United States have increased faster than the rate of inflation since 2022, according to the US Energy Information Administration. The agency expects prices to continue increasing through 2026.
On the international politics of climate, the UN and the Paris Accord
WHAT HE SAID: Trump blasted the UN’s climate efforts, saying he withdrew America from the “fake” Paris climate accord because “America was paying so much more than every country, others weren’t paying.”
THE BACKSTORY: The Paris Agreement, decided by international consensus in 2015, is a voluntary but binding document in which each country is asked to set its own national goal to curb planetwarming emissions and decide how much money it will contribute to the countries that will be hit hardest by climate change. Because carbon dioxide stays in the atmosphere for more than a century, the United States has put out more of the heat trapping gas than any other nation, even though China now is the No 1 carbon polluter. Since 1850, the US has contributed 24% of the human-caused carbon dioxide that’s in the air, according to Global Carbon Project data. The entire continent of Africa, with four times the population of the US, is responsible for about 3%.
On coal being referred to as clean
WHAT HE SAID: “I have a little standing order in the White House. Never use the word ‘coal.’ Only use the words ‘clean, beautiful coal.’ Sounds much better, doesn’t it?”
THE BACKSTORY: Coal kills millions of people a year. “The president can pretend coal is clean, but real people — mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters— will die for this lie,’’ said Stanford University climate scientist Rob Jackson..
Trump also called the carbon footprint “a hoax made up by people with evil intentions,” a contention that Texas A&M University climate scientist Andrew Dessler agreed with. Dessler said the term was coined by oiil companies and may have been designed to shift the responsibility for combatting climate change away from corporations to individuals.
The science of climate change started 169 years ago when Eunice Foote did simple experiments with flasks and sunlight showing that carbon dioxide trapped more heat than the regular atmosphere. It’s an experiment that can be repeated at home and has been done in labs hundreds of times and in greenhouses around the world every day. It is basic physics and chemistry with a long history.
“It is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land,” reported the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which is hundreds of scientists, with doctorates in the field.
In 2018, Trump’s own government said: “The impacts of global climate change are already being felt in the United States and are projected to intensify in the future.”
On cows and methane
WHAT HE SAID: In “the United States, we have still radicalized environmentalists and they want the factories to stop. Everything should stop. No more cows. We don’t want cows anymore.”
THE BACKSTORY: Cows belch methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.
Around the world, cattle are often raised on lands where forests have cut down. Since forests capture carbon dioxide, cutting them to raise cattle results in a doublt whammy. Still, no one is suggesting that cows be gotten rid of, said Nusa Urbancic, CEO of the Changing Markets Foundation.
“This polarising and divisive language misrepresents the environmental message,” Urbancic wrote.
By MELINA WALLING and SETH BORENSTEIN
PICTURE OF THE DAY
Lack of shelters from abuse
EDITOR, The Tribune.
AS a nation, we are confronted with many myriad issues which seem intractable but in reality, are easily solved, in my opinion. We have the long standing ‘problem’ with the provision of transient homes/shelters for many of our abused women and children. We have been paying lip and other services to this for decades.
Then we have the glaring necessity for a well thought out and implemented National Apprenticeship Programme. We are also faced with absolute necessity for a workable and well-funded relationship between the church and the state, regardless of the political party in power… the collective church of The Living God, Jesus Christ, has more transformative power than it realises much less proclaim and demonstrate.
Having said all of the above, let’s take a few minutes to dissect each of the challenges. As it relates to adequate transitory safe housing for women and children, has anyone considered the possible purchase of the former Corner Motel down at Carmichael Road and Faith Avenue? I agree that much renovation would be needed but the basic structures are there with multiple units.
While the administration and its hard-working Minister of Social Services, et al,
Myles LaRhoda (PLP-Pinewood Gardens) may wish to construct a dedicate building complex just for these unfortunate individuals, the remaining time in this first Davis term is too short. Hence, I recommend the long-term lease or outright purchase of The Corner Motel. Affordable housing has long eluded the average Bahamian who resides here in New Providence. This has little to do with the government of the day due to the simple fact that almost 65 percent of our population is creased right up here in New Providence, where land no longer grows. The logical principles of supply and demand apply. There are, however, large tracts of governmentally owned land just sitting there and doing nothing to alleviate the severe affordable housing/property for more of the unwashed masses. For instance, along the Sports Centre Road, there’s a so-called Hot Rod Complex and a huge empty space directly opposite that.
If laid out and developed properly, as a former developer myself, I suggest that close to 200 affordable homes/multi-family units could be constructed
and distributed to qualified applicants.
Many of our students and younger adults have, traditionally, been pushed and persuaded by their peers or parents to seek to excel in academics, which in and of itself, is not a bad thing. Not everyone, however, is cut out or academics.
Thousands are skilled with their hands are would make master carpenters; plumbers; automotive mechanics; A/C technicians; chefs; landscapers and the beat go on. The Davis administration must roll out its touted National Apprenticeship Programme in short order. Youth unemployment and the ratio of High School drop outs are simply too high. These Must be address before we are thrust into 2026.
The collective church and the administration, of the day, both seem to be clueless about ways and means to reduce and arrest the rapid decline in our morals; societal interaction and the development and growth of an insidious culture which does not reverence God, much less man. We need such a partnership if we are to restore our country in these critical areas. With God on our side, we, as a people cannot lose. To God then, in all things, be the glory.
ORTLAND H BODIE, Jr Nassau, September 23, 2025.
Davis centre of the PLP
EDITOR, The Tribune. EVERY political party has its centre of gravity. For the Progressive Liberal Party, that centre is Philip “Brave” Davis. He is the only glue keeping the PLP intact. His popularity is unmatched since Lynden Pindling. He has rebuilt trust with Bahamians, restored the party’s strength, and steadied the ship after its humiliation in 2017.
Without him, the PLP looks less like a disciplined movement and more like a collection of competing ambitions.
But Davis is 74. Fred Mitchell is 71. Glenys Hanna-Martin is 66. Chester Cooper, at 55, is considered one of the younger figures. The median age of the caucus is closer to retirement than renewal.
The voters, by contrast, are overwhelmingly young. The gap is stark. This is the dilemma Davis faces. His legacy will not be measured only in policies passed or projects delivered. It will be measured in succession. Lynden Pindling, for all his greatness, did not prepare the PLP for what came after him. Perry Christie stayed on too long, bottling up renewal and leaving the party weakened by the time he exited. Davis has the chance to break this cycle. Three paths stand before him. If Davis serves a full fiveyear term after 2026, he would lead into his 80s. His personal popularity might keep the PLP afloat, but the succession crisis would only deepen.
If the PLP loses in 2026, the suppressed rivalries will surface all at once. Without Davis as unifier, the factions will clash openly, and
the PLP could descend into political civil war. There is a third path. Davis could run again, win, and then serve three years to complete his agenda. After that, he could hand the party and the government to the next generation. That would give his successor two years in office before facing the voters. It would provide time to grow into the role, build authority, and carry the PLP forward with legitimacy. The truth is simple. The PLP today stands because of Brave Davis. But the party cannot live off his strength forever. His legacy, and the party’s survival, will hinge on whether he can pass the baton with wisdom and timing. If he succeeds, he will be remembered as the leader who saved the PLP twice: first from defeat, and then from itself.
BAHAMIAN TRUTH September 23, 2025.
MEMBERS of the Shinto priesthood try to push down a sacred timber from a wheeled platform at the end of Mihishirogi Hoeishiki, a ceremony of the Shikinen Sengu ritual to rebuild the shrine’s main
Shinto deities, at the Ise Jingu shrine complex, in Ise, central Japan.
Photo: Hiro Komae/AP
Adderley: Group’s exclusion from seed funding ‘a betrayal’
inadvertent, was to suppress potential sponsorship to the group. Also, when the minister of government speaks, potential sponsors take note, and so his statements are also being reviewed by our legal team as we feel that he’s injured us with those statements.”
Mr Adderley said the minister’s remarks, made while allocating government seed funding, misrepresented the legal dispute over the Valley Boys’ name. He insisted the courts have not conclusively ruled against his group, which is appealing the Registrar General’s decision to deregister them earlier this year for failing to comply with a directive to drop “Valley Boys” from their name. He claimed that as recently as September 17, in a meeting with Junkanoo Corporation of New Providence (JCNP) executives, Mr Bowleg assured him the Valley Boys would remain eligible for funding despite the appeal. Their exclusion on presentation day, when the splinter group led by Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis’ brother, Trevor Davis, received funding only, he described as a betrayal.
Mr Adderley also argued the Attorney General’s involvement in the case creates a conflict of interest because the office is representing the Registrar General while also advising the government.
The World Famous Valley Boys chief questioned why the government has now taken back direct control of seed funding decisions, saying the JCNP was historically responsible for making recommendations to avoid political interference. He called the government’s stance “deliberate” and an attempt to weaken his group’s competitiveness, saying, “Now, Junkanoo is supposed to be the national pastime of The Bahamas, and you would want everybody to be involved in the spirit of competition. Why are you singling out one group to penalise them?”
Mr Adderley went further, blasting the proposed Junkanoo Authority Bill as unnecessary overreach. “You must ask yourself, what national emergency there is with Junkanoo that requires the government to waste public resources on the Junkanoo Authority? What national emergency is there for the government to want to control Junkanoo?” he asked. “Why is the government trying to own
Junkanoo? It’s a creative thing, it’s creative as hell. You can’t legislate it.”
Mr Bowleg has dismissed the claims of victimisation, saying Mr Adderley’s faction was excluded because it failed to register with his ministry and provide
compliance documents. He called it “disingenuous” to suggest otherwise, insisting that funding rules apply to all groups. Despite the dispute, Mr Adderley pledged the Valley Boys will march this Boxing Day and New
Year’s Day. “The Saxons would like that, because they would do anything to try to win the parade,” he said, referring to a situation where his group does not participate. “But we will be there, and we will beat them,” he added, boasting that the Valley Boys’ record of five straight wins “will not be broken.”
He added that, with or without government seed money, the Valley Boys would “continue their tradition of excellence” on Bay Street.
Munroe: Govt now enGaGinG bidders to build lonG -needed forensic lab
By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
THE government is now engaging bidders to finalise contracts for a long-needed forensic laboratory, a move officials say is critical to easing long delays in sexrelated cases that depend on DNA evidence.
National Security Minister Wayne Munroe said discussions follow the posting of the project on the government’s procurement portal late last year, with the facility expected to be built through a public-private
partnership. “There’s a committee that’s chaired by Assistant Commissioner of Police Earl Thompson, that has provided the specifications for this lab that will include pathology all the way up to chemical, biological and DNA analysis, inclusive of firearms and ballistic analysis,” Mr Munroe told reporters yesterday. “We’re at the point now of engaging with the persons who have expressed interest to see about firming up contract for the an agreement for the construction of that building.”
The lack of a national forensic lab has forced authorities to send samples abroad for testing, leaving rape survivors waiting months for results while cases stall in the courts. Police officers personally transport specimens overseas to maintain the chain of custody.
Mr Munroe believes court delays extend beyond DNA testing, stressing that the judicial system suffers from too few defence attorneys and limited court resources. He has also rejected claims that slow rape kit processing alone is
By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter
ebowleg@tribunemedia.net
THREE women were hospitalised yesterday after they were found unconscious at a breakfast stand on Farrington Road in what police suspect was a gas leak.
Police said they were alerted shortly before 8.30am when a staff member was seen inside the establishment unresponsive. Emergency personnel arrived to find
three women, aged 41, 25, and 23, unconscious. They were taken to hospital for treatment.
A video circulating online showed the women lying on their backs as bystanders and EMS workers rendered aid. One of the women appeared to be receiving oxygen from a tank, with an ambulance on the scene.
Sources told The Tribune the women were later listed in stable condition. Investigators believe the victims may have
inhaled fumes from portable stoves while cooking in a poorly ventilated environment.
The incident comes months after a powerful gas explosion tore through a home in Blue Hill South last December, leaving three children and three adults in critical condition. That blast occurred during a gas refill and triggered a loud explosion heard miles away. Police say investigations into yesterday’s incident are continuing.
driving the sexual offence backlog, blaming systemic inefficiencies in the courts for many unresolved cases. He has insisted that financing is not the obstacle to establishing the lab, pointing instead to technical requirements.
World Famous Valley Boys leader Brian Adderley speaking during press conference at Faith United Church.
Photo: Nikia Charlton
NatioNal SeCurity MiNiSter WayNe MuNroe
Is there a shift in political momentum?
With likely less than a year before a general election, is the political momentum shifting? While it is not clear how much ground the Free National Movement (FNM) may be gaining, it appears that the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) has lost momentum. it is natural for incumbents to lose support for a variety of reasons. these include the failure to fulfill key promises, proverbial unforced errors, and the headwinds created by economic and other challenges. these add fuel to the now perennial penchant of Bahamian voters to throw out governments. how much momentum has the government lost? time will tell. Momentum must be constantly sustained. But it will not be sustained mostly by public relations. indeed, too much hype and glitzy announcements can turn off voters, especially when expectations go unmet. the daily reality of the lives of voters is what will help defeat or re-elect a government! the manner in which the PLP celebrated and promoted its fourth anniversary of election was underwhelming and lacklustre. Even a number of party supporters are groaning that the party appears to currently lack a rational or argument for re-election. the economic and financial headwinds the government faces are tremendous. the significant uptick in unemployment does not augur well. A good number of hotel employees
are working parttime. Many Bahamians are suffering financially.
the hundreds of millions the government owes Bahamian vendors is money not circulating in the economy, a further drag on growth. Despite tremendous financial strain the government says it will give a pay rise to certain public sector employees. Where will the money come from?
Shadow Minister of Finance Kwasi thompson responded to the rise in unemployment in the Nassau Guardian.
“the Bahamian economy has been put into reverse.
According to the BNSi report, the unemployment rate grew by some 50 percent in less than a year, shifting from 7.2 percent up to 10.8 percent.”
“Stopover tourism, the country’s primary economic engine, is flat and trending in the wrong direction...
“What the PLP has given the country instead is high inflation, high taxes, high electricity bills, a stalling economy, endless scandals, multi-million-dollar no-bid contracts to the few, and now, according to the BNSi 5,500 lost jobs.
“their own announced projects have been stuck with unending delays, missteps, and scandals. the PLP is out of excuses, and soon the Bahamian people will show them that they are out of time.”
this is the FNM’s narrative. it is strong and comprehensive. it is part of the message the opposition is taking to voters in their homes and through social media.
What is the government’s messaging? Ominously, the end of the Guardian story reported: “the government did not issue a response to the survey.” While the FNM is on the offence, the PLP appears defensive and without a message. if the PLP does not provide a reasonable counternarrative, the FNM will continue to jab, landing effective punches on the PLP. the anaemic fourth anniversary messaging suggests that the party has not crafted a compelling election message thus far. in the past few weeks, the PLP has responded to FNM attacks with mostly ad hominem, defensive counterattacks on those issuing various messages. this is not a winning strategy. the PLP will need to offer counter messaging that is more effective, proposing solutions to the problems
At this juncture the PLP must convince the country that it has not lost significant ground and that it can be the first government in decades to win re-election.
Bahamians are facing. the headwinds the government faces includes more than economic woes. there is the consistent impression by voters that crime remains out of control and that the government is not taking concerns about immigration seriously. Many perceive that the government has been opaque on a range of issues. Outrageous electricity bills are a nightmare for consumers and business, and for a government months away from an election. the proposed energy reform by the PLP was welcomed by the vast majority of Bahamians, sickened by unreliable electricity supply and high bills.
What could have been a significant accomplishment and major plank in the PLP’s argument for reelection, is now an albatross for the government.
Despite the frequent jaundiced editorialising of some journals, which often appear schizophrenic, inconsistent, and less than balanced, the FNM has improved its communications and political efforts amidst the PLP’s governing and electoral challenges.
Further, given the political agendas and realities of some in the media, the FNM has rightly turned decisively to social media to deploy its messages in a consistent and creative manner. During the week of the PLP’s election anniversary, the FNM proved very effective in its messaging on various platforms.
Many of its candidates are on the ground building momentum for the party, including in constituencies deeply dissatisfied by their
members of parliament, the high cost of living, and the delivery of government services.
Still, FNMs realise they have significant challenges. Nevertheless, there is a growing feeling by many in the party that they are gaining momentum and can win. On the ground, they are finding that PLP voters are less voluble and less confident.
Yet, Prime Minister Philip Davis and the PLP have many political assets, including the power of incumbency and a large war chest. though neither is determinative, as we have seen in past elections, they may prove critical to an election win. turnout and mobilisation are always essential. this in part helped Prime Minister Andrew holness and his Jamaica Labour Party to win a narrow re-election victory, despite low voter turnout at approximately 39.5 percent according to the Electoral Office of Jamaica.
Mr holness had certain advantages. he had dramatically reduced crime. he built many homes. he promised another significant increase in the minimum wage and a significant reduction in income tax. Many voters thought that he governed well enough and that his new promises were credible.
Does the PLP enjoy this credibility? has it fulfilled enough of its major promises to get enough voters to return it to office? Or are sufficient voters dissatisfied enough to turn to FNM leader Michael Pintard and the FNM?
A part of this messaging is the party’s plans on economic and tourism growth, jobs, crime, immigration, housing, infrastructure, governance and accountability, and other issues.
Momentum in politics is about human and social psychology. it is about engendering a mood, a feeling, a bandwagon effect that the other side will lose and that your side can win. While the FNM still has to convince many it can win, it is in a better place than it was in January of this year. At this juncture the PLP must convince the country that it has not lost significant ground and that it can be the first government in decades to win re-election. this will be the proverbial tall order for both parties. No party has this election won or in the bag. For now, it is best to take with an entire box of salt, the bravado or confidence of anyone who tells you that they know who is going to win or lose.
As in the past, there are naysayers or doubters who tell you that there is no way the incumbents will lose. they have been proven wrong repeatedly in many election cycles. this should be no comfort to the FNM. Eventually, an incumbent government will win reelection. the question is, when?
Mr Pintard continues to have a number of challenges. Can he significantly boost the number of FNMs, swing voters, and young voters to secure a victory? this includes boosting his personal appeal. it will require the party to have a compelling and clear message on why the PLP should be fired and the FNM hired.
Prime minister PhiliP ‘Brave’ Davis
Trump, Kimmel and free speech concerns
Being outrageous has always been a big part of the political game plan for US president Donald Trump. Remember when he said, at a campaign stop in 2016 in Sioux City, iowa, that “i could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue in new York City and shoot somebody, and i wouldn’t lose any voters, OK?”
Yeah, outrageous. “His audiences love it. His opponents try to use it against him — but so far, to no avail,” according to a national Public Radio report at the time. Little has changed since then. Trump is still doing outrageous, less than one year into his second term as America’s chief executive officer. For example, he has just in the past week publicly ordered his attorney general to find or concoct enough evidence to prosecute political opponents. He has also excoriated the United nations and withdrawn substantial US financial assistance from a body he admits offers the best chance for peace in the world.
STATESIDE
And last week, Trump may have hit a new low. With his active approval, his administration exerted its considerable pressure on a major legacy American television network to punish a late-night talk show host. And it worked, at least for a week. government censorship, freedom of the press and freedom of speech all were suddenly front and centre in the American consciousness. ABC and Jimmie Kimmel were at the heart of the latest outrage. By his own account Tuesday night as he returned to ABC’s airwaves after a six-day hiatus heavily influenced by Trump’s Federal Communications Commission, late night talk show host Jimmie Kimmel has appeared over four thousand times during his nearly 23 years on American airwaves.
Tuesday’s return performance was certainly Kimmel’s most consequential, and he memorably rose to the occasion. it might have been among the most significant moments in the history of American television, which was presciently described in 1961 by thenchairman of that same FCC newton Minow as a “vast wasteland”. Minow said this about US
“Even though I don’t agree with many (MAGAns) on most subjects, it takes courage for them to speak out against this administration, and they did, and they deserve credit for it.”
-Jimmy Kimmel
multi-million-dollar merger between Skydance entertainment and Paramount, which had to be approved by the FCC.
Anyhow, Kimmel made a casually callous remark last week about the recent assassination of rightwing demagogue Charlie Kirk, who was clearly and influentially aligned with Trump, MAgA and the movement’s active recruitment of young college-aged voters.
Kimmel’s comment burst into flames on the internet and led the current FCC chairman, 46-year-old Brendan Carr, to pressure ABC into pulling Kimmel’s show off the air.
TV: “When television is good, nothing—not the theatre, not the magazines or newspapers—nothing is better. But when television is bad, nothing is worse. i invite each of you to sit down in front of your own television set when your station goes on the air and stay there, for a day. i can assure you that what you will observe is a vast wasteland.
“You will see a procession of game shows, formula comedies about totally unbelievable families, blood and thunder, mayhem, violence, sadism, murder, western bad men, western good men, private eyes, gangsters, more violence, and cartoons. And endlessly, commercials— many screaming, cajoling, and offending. And most of all, boredom. True, you’ll see a few things you will enjoy. But they will be very, very few. And if you think i exaggerate, i only ask you to try it.”
That was said 64 years ago. Chances are you watch a fair amount of American television. What do you think? is Minow’s assessment still true? it’s hard to argue that it isn’t still worth considering. But one thing that has certainly been added over the past decades is the pervasive and increasing presence of cable television’s political echo chamber, where networks have become politically aligned with national parties and ever more influential.
in the world of late-night American TV, though, irreverence is king. no one is spared the biting criticism of the sharp-tongue hosts. Kimmel has in recent years cruised along in second place, behind only the CBS show with Stephen Colbert which was cancelled soon after Colbert criticised (CBS owner) Paramount’s $16m settlement with Trump over a “60 Minutes” interview. This cancellation also coincided with the company’s application for a lucrative
Trump had bragged about ABC’s decision to suspend Kimmel’s show, calling it “great news for America” and, of course, denigrating Kimmel’s talent and ratings. Last week Carr even suggested that ABC’s broadcast license could be revoked, which raised concerns anew over potential government overreach into the media’s independence and editorial decisions.
On Tuesday night, Kimmel began his monologue by thanking those “who supported our show, cared enough to do something about it, to make your voices heard so that mine will be heard. i will never forget it.
“And maybe most of all, i want to thank the people who don’t support my show and what i believe, but support my right to share those beliefs anyway. i include my old pal Ted Cruz, who believe it or not said something very beautiful on my behalf.
i don’t think i’ve ever said this before, but (Texas senator) Cruz is right,” Kimmel said on Tuesday. “He’s absolutely right. This (government censorship) affects all of us, including him.”
Kimmel quoted Cruz stating that if the government attempts to ban media, it will “end up badly for conservatives. i think it is unbelievably dangerous for the government to put itself in the position of saying, ‘We’re going to decide what speech we like and what we don’t, and we’re going to threaten to take you off air if we don’t like what you’re saying.’ going down this road, there will come a time when a Democrat wins again – wins the White House, and they will silence us,” he said. “They will use this power, and they will use it ruthlessly. And that is dangerous.”
Kimmel praised Cruz for saying what many believe.
“even though i don’t agree with many (MAgAns) on most subjects, it takes courage for them to speak out against this administration,
and they did, and they deserve credit for it. And thanks to them for telling their followers that our government cannot be allowed to control what we do and do not say on television.”
Kimmel acknowledged that while his show “is not important, what is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this”.
He pointed to TV personalities he has met from around the world. “Our freedom to speak is what they admire most about this country. And that’s something i’m embarrassed to say i took for granted until they pulled my friend Stephen Colbert off the air and tried to coerce the affiliates who run our show in the cities that you live in to take my show off the air. That’s not legal. That’s not American. That is un-American, and it is so dangerous.”
Many Americans clearly agree with Kimmel. But that won’t prevent Trump’s administration from continuing to exert and abuse their massive federal governmental power.
“They have a license granted by us at the FCC, and that comes with an obligation to operate in the public interest,” Carr told Fox news.
“We are in the midst of a massive shift in dynamics in the media ecosystem for lots of reasons, again, including the permission structure that President Trump’s election has provided,” Carr told CnBC Thursday. “And i would simply say we’re not done yet with seeing the consequences of that.”
Kimmel cut to a clip of Trump stating, several years ago and in a different context, “if we don’t have free speech, then we just don’t have a free country. it’s as simple as that. if this most fundamental right is allowed to perish, then the rest of our rights and liberties will topple just like dominoes. One by one, they’ll go down.” Kimmel paused to let the irony sink in for his viewers.
“We have to speak out against this now, because Trump’s not stopping,” he said. “Trump’s gunning for our journalists, too. Over the weekend, his Foxy friend (Defence Secretary) Pete Hegseth announced a new policy that requires journalists with Pentagon press credentials to sign a pledge promising not to report information that hasn’t been explicitly authorised for release, including unclassified information. They want to pick and choose what the news is.”
with Charlie Harper
Jimmy Kimmel poses for photographers, March 30, 2025, in London.
Photo: Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP
Govt signs $3.17m contract for storage facility at RBDF base
By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Chief Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net
THE Davis administration yesterday signed a $3.17m contract with Pyramid Construction to build a 15,000-square-foot supply storage facility at the Royal Bahamas Defence Force’s Coral Harbour base, marking what officials say is a critical step in modernising the force’s operations.
National Security Minister Wayne Munroe called the deal a “significant milestone”, describing it as the first phase of a broader redevelopment plan for the RBDF base. Construction is expected to begin within weeks and take a year to complete.
“This phase of development also includes the acquisition of a marine travel lift, which will provide the capacity to dry dock the Royal Bahamas Defence Force vessels, greatly enhancing the operational readiness and sustainability of the fleet,” Mr Munroe said.
He said the second phase will replace functions still housed in the unfinished hotel that currently
serves as the supply house.
Modern facilities will be built for the galley and dining areas, senior and junior rates’ messes, the exchange, gym, and band room.
“Following the relocation of these essential spaces, the unfinished hotel will be safely imploded, creating room for much needed additional office spaces and parking facilities,” he said, noting that conceptual designs for the new structures have already been completed.
Mr Munroe added that plans are advancing for a new off-base barracks to house officers and enlisted personnel, and officials are also searching for suitable sites to support recruit training.
He stressed the project is part of a long-term plan to modernise and strengthen the Defence Force, one of seven facilities originally designed under the Sandy Bottom project, a $232m investment launched under a previous PLP administration. He said successive governments allowed progress to stall, but the Davis administration is
determined to carry the project forward.
“This facility represents progress, purpose and an unwavering commitment to the future,” Mr Munroe said. “For the Royal Bahamas Defense Force, we are serious about guarding our heritage and the national security of this country.”
The announcement comes amid concerns about the RBDF fleet, with several vessels sidelined due to damage or scheduled maintenance.
Mr Munroe said the government has approval to send HMBS Cascarilla and HMBS AD Hanna back to Dutch manufacturer Damen for complete rebuilds, adding they will return “as practically brand new as you can get them.”
Meanwhile, experts from Damen are expected to assess electronic systems on a Defence Force vessel that crashed into a jetty in Matthew Town, Inagua, last month.
“This would be the third or the fourth time that we had a issue with that ship, and so were looking to have it corrected once and for all,” said Commodore Floyd Moxey.
Bostwick-Dean elected new president of Women United
FORMER senator Lisa Bostwick-Dean has been elected as the new president of Women United, while new board members were also chosen following the non-profit’s Annual General Meeting held in the capital.
Mrs Bostwick-Dean replaces outgoing president Prodesta Moore, founder of the organisation, who will now serve as vice president.
In addition to her new role, Mrs Bostwick-Dean is the managing partner at Bostwick & Bostwick law firm and previously
served in the Senate under the Hubert Minnis administration. She has also been a board member of Women United since 2023. “I am excited to lead Women United, as we work to bring about legal and societal changes to protect, uplift, assist, and empower women and children in The Bahamas,” Mrs Bostwick-Dean said. Her advocacy priorities over her two-year term include strengthening NGO partnerships, expanding advocacy efforts,
introducing school programmes on boundaries, consent and self-respect, improving support systems for at-risk youth, and deepening cooperation with police, social services, and NGOs to better support survivors of abuse.
Women United, founded to advocate for women’s rights, safety and well-being, has been a vocal coalition in the fight to end gender-based violence and discrimination.
In a statement, the organisation said it looks forward to “a new chapter
of growth, collaboration, and continued advocacy with Ms Bostwick at the helm.”
Mrs Bostwick-Dean added: “We also want to encourage other organisations and individuals to join and help, as we need all hands on deck to make changes and improve our lives as women in our country.”
The organisation will host its next meeting on Friday at 6.30pm at Starbucks, Harbour Bay. Updates are available on its Facebook page, womenunitedbs.
NatioNal Security MiNiSter WayNe MuNroe
MiNiSter of Youth Sport & Culture Mario Bowleg presented seed money to Junkanoo groups in Grand Bahama yesterday.
Photos: Vandyke Hepburn
Alleged gang hitman denied bail application for third time
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
AN alleged gang hitman was denied bail for a fourth time yesterday as he awaits trial for a fatal 2022 shooting on Dean Street.
The 21-year-old accused, initially charged as a juvenile, has been charged with murder, four counts of attempted murder, and four counts of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.
Prosecutors allege he opened fire on a crowd of men standing on Dean Street on June 27, 2022, killing one and injuring four others. He has been in custody since July 2022 and was last denied bail on May 23, 2024.
His trial is currently scheduled to begin on July 27, 2026. A previous backup trial date, set for June 9 this year, was missed due to a conflict with a legal training day.
During yesterday’s hearing, prosecutor Janet
Munnings raised no objection to the bail application. However, Justice Guillimina Archer-Minns ruled against release, citing evidence suggesting the accused had gang affiliations and acted as a hitman.
The judge said there was no inordinate delay in bringing the case to trial and highlighted the prevalence of retaliatory killings of murder suspects granted bail. She concluded there were no conditions that could
reduce the risks associated with his release.
Justice Archer-Minns said granting bail would be “grossly negligent”, adding that it was denied for both the accused’s safety and that of the public.
She set a case management hearing for October 8 to try to bring forward the 2026 trial date and noted that the accused may reapply for bail if further delays occur. Stanley Rolle represented the defence.
Two teens plead guilty to attempted robbery
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
TWO teenage boys were remanded to Simpson Penn Centre for Boys yesterday after admitting they tried to
rob a man aboard a vessel at Potter’s Cay Dock in the early hours of September 18.
Prosecutors said the 13- and 16-year-old boys targeted Godfrey Kelly around 3am, stealing cash
and personal belongings before police quickly apprehended them.
They pleaded guilty to attempted robbery before Senior Magistrate Raquel Whyms. Their guardians were present for the arraignment.
The pair will remain at Simpson Penn until November 11, when their probation reports are due to be served. Sergeant Wilkinson prosecuted the matter.
Man given one year probation for beating girlfriend
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was placed on one year’s probation yesterday after admitting he beat and seriously
injured his girlfriend during an altercation on Dunmore Street last week.
Prosecutors said 47-year-old Anthony Gray struck the woman about the body with an
object during the incident on September 19. She was treated in hospital for her injuries.
Gray pleaded guilty to a charge of grievous harm before Magistrate Abigail Farrington. He was placed
on probation for one year, with the condition that any breach would result in a one-year prison sentence.
Assistant Superintendent of Police K Bould prosecuted the case.
Man accused of touching teen girl inapropriately
By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was granted bail yesterday after being accused of inappropriately touching a 16-year-old girl in New Providence.
Prosecutors allege that on September 20, 29-yearold Philip Humes groped the teenager’s private parts.
He pleaded not guilty to indecent assault before Magistrate Abigail Farrington. Humes was released on $7,000 bail with one or two sureties and must sign in weekly at the East Street
South Police Station by 6pm every Friday. His trial is set for December 12.
Assistant Superintendent of Police K Bould prosecuted the case.
Caribbean Bottling Company launches the Coca-Cola ‘Twist to Win’ campaign
COCA-COlA is giving four lucky Bahamians the chance to win a $5,000 shopping spree at the Mall at Marathon. The “Twist to Win” campaign, launched by local distributor Caribbean Bottling Company (CBC), offers a grand prize as well as hundreds of instant prizes, including Apple AirPods and Bose speakers.
To enter, customers must purchase a 20oz bottle of CocaCola, Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Sprite, or Fanta with a yellow cap. They then need to text the code under the cap to an official number, along with their details. Grand prize winners will be given 30 minutes to spend their winnings at select stores, including Kelly’s, John Bull, and BTC. The competition is open to all Bahamian residents aged 18 and over.
The PeoPle to People’s programme celebrated it’s 50th anniversary with a cultural eveing which included performances from the police pop band, a local school rake ‘n’ scrape band and a Junkanoo rush held at Goverment House yesterday. Photos: Chappell Whyms Jr.
China, world’s largest carbon polluting nation, announces new climate goal to cut emissions
UNITED NATIONS
Associated Press
With China leading the way by announcing its first emission cuts, world leaders said Wednesday they are getting more serious about fighting climate change and the deadly extreme weather that comes with it.
At the United Nations high-level climate summit, Chinese president Xi Jinping announced the world’s largest carbon-polluting country would aim to cut emissions by 7% to 10% by 2035. China spews more than 31% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions, and they have long been soaring.
the announcement came as more than 100 world leaders gathered to talk of increased urgency and the need for stronger efforts to curb the spewing of heattrapping gases.
With major international climate negotiations in Brazil 6½ weeks away, the United Nations SecretaryGeneral Antonio Guterres convened a special leaders summit Wednesday during the General Assembly to focus on specific plans to curb emissions from coal, oil and natural gas. in a video address, Xi pledged that China would increase its wind and solar power sixfold from 2020 levels, make pollution-free vehicles mainstream and “basically establish a climate adaptive society.” Europe then followed with a less detailed and not quite official new climate change fighting plan. Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission,
said their infrastructure and investment in renewable energy and the price of carbon had all increased, and their emissions are down nearly 40% since 1940.
Trump’s climate comments challenged
Last week, member states agreed that their nationally determined contribution would range between 66% and 72%, and that they would formally submit their plan before the November negotiations, she said. Xi and Brazil’s leader also took thinly veiled swipes on Wednesday afternoon at US President Donald trump’s attacks a day earlier on renewable energy and the concept of climate change. “While some country is acting against it, the
international community should stay focused on the right direction,” Xi said.
Brazilian President Luiz inácio Lula da Silva, who is hosting the upcoming climate conference, said, “no one is safe from the effect of climate change. Walls at borders will not stop droughts or storms,” Lula said. “Nature does not bow down to bombs or warships. No country stands above another.”
“All of us may lose because denialism may actually win,” he concluded.
Guterres said, “the science demands action. the law commands it. the economics compel it. And people are calling for it.”
Time to ‘wake up’ amid catastrophes
Marshall islands
President hilda heine said she was there to issue “a demand for us all to wake up from a community whose hospitals and schools are being destroyed’’ by rising tides. She said she has regularly been awakened by floods and drought emergencies in her small island nation and that it will soon be others’ turn.
“if we fail to wake up now and end our dependence on fossil fuels the leaders of every country in this room will be woken up by calls about catastrophes of wildfires, of storms, of heatwaves, and of starvation and drought,” she said.
Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif said his country knows this all too well,
with recent floods that have affected 5 million people across over 4,000 villages, killing over 1,000.
“As i speak to you, my country is reeling from intense monsoon rains, flash floods, mudslides and devastating urban flooding,” he said. “We are facing this calamity at a time when the scars of the 2022 floods that inflicted losses exceeding $30 billion and displaced millions are still visible across our land.”
Anthony Albanese, prime minister of Australia, called this a decisive decade for climate action and said
Australians know the toll of more frequent and extreme weather events like cyclones, floods, bush fires and droughts. “Australia knows we are not alone,” he said.
‘Here we must admit failure’
“Warming appears to be accelerating,” climate scientist Johan Rockstrom said in a science briefing that started the summit.
“here we must admit failure. Failure to protect peoples and nations from unmanageable impacts of human-induced climate change.”
“We’re dangerously close to triggering fundamental and irreversible change,” Rockstrom said. texas tech climate scientist Katharine hayhoe told leaders that every tenth of a degree of warming is connected to worsening floods, wildfires, heat waves, storms and many more deaths:
“What’s at stake is nothing less than everything and everyone we love.”
Under the 2015 Paris climate accord, 195 nations are supposed to submit new more stringent five-year plans on how to curb carbon emissions from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas. technically the deadline was in February and about 50 nations — responsible for one-quarter of the world’s carbon emissions — have filed theirs, including Pakistan, Micronesia, Mongolia, Liberia and Vanuatu. All of those nations submitted on Wednesday. UN officials said countries really need to get their plans in by the end of the month so the UN can calculate how much more warming Earth is on track for if nations do what they promise. Former US President Joe Biden submitted America’s plan late last year before leaving office and the trump administration has distanced itself from the plan. Before 2015, the world was on path for 4 degrees Celsius (7.2 degrees Fahrenheit) of warming since pre-industrial times, but now has trimmed that to 2.6 degrees Celsius (4.7 degrees Fahrenheit), Guterres said. however, the Paris accord set a goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) since the mid 19th century and the world has already warmed about 1.3 degrees Celsius (2.3 degrees Fahrenheit) since.
US accuses a powerful Haitian businessman detained by ICE of ties to violent gangs
JUAN
SAN
Associated Press
iMMiGRAtioN agents in the United States arrested haitian businessman Dimitri Vorbe because of his alleged ties to violent gangs in his troubled Caribbean country, the US State Department said Wednesday. Vorbe was arrested tuesday and placed in the custody of the US i mmigration and Customs Enforcement in the Miami area.
o fficials determined that Vorbe “engaged in a campaign of violence and gang support that contributed to h aiti’s destabilisation,” the US Embassy in h aiti said in a social media post, adding that his activities in the US could harm Washington’s foreign policy. t he post included a video with a mugshot of Vorbe and the word “detained” in red capital letters emblazoned over his face. i t also showed
him standing facing a camera flanked by two unidentified officials in flak jackets who were grabbing his right shoulder and left arm with their backs to the camera. Vorbe comes from a powerful family that owned a private power company that supplied electricity in h aiti and obtained lucrative government contracts for key construction projects.
Gangs and h aiti’s elite Vorbe is the second
person from h aiti’s elite to be arrested on US soil in the past two months. i n July, US immigration officials arrested Pierre Réginald Boulos, a businessman, doctor and former h aitian presidential hopeful. h e remains detained at Krome North Service Processing Center near Miami, along with Vorbe. Authorities have accused Boulos of supporting violent gangs in h aiti that the US
government has deemed terrorist groups. i t was not immediately clear if Boulos or Vorbe have been charged. A search for court records shows no formal charges.
Some of h aiti’s elite have long been accused of financing and supporting powerful gangs that control up to 90% of the capital, Port-au-Prince, with violence surging in recent months.
A UN-backed mission led by Kenyan
officers supporting h ai -
ti’s National Police has struggled to quell gang violence as it remains understaffed and underfunded.
t he UN-backed mission that began last year has less than 1,000 personnel, far below the 2,500 envisioned, and some $112 million in its trust fund — about 14% of the estimated $800 million needed a year.
h aiti on UN agenda Vorbe’s arrest comes as h aiti’s crisis dominates some speeches and conversations at the UN General Assembly this week.
Kenyan President William Ruto said Monday that the biggest impediments to the current mission that ends next week were logistics, transport and support.
While he commended the US government for giving the mission vehicles, he noted that “most of them were secondhand, and they broke down and put our people in grave danger when it happened in hostile areas.”
Ruto said he supports a successor mission.
“Kenya believes that it is the right thing to do,” he said. “We need a better mandate, a much more robust mandate to be able to deal with the gangs and the situation on the ground.”
t he US and Panama have urged the UN Security Council to authorize a new force of 5,550 in h aiti with the power to detain suspected gang members.
o n Wednesday, Luis Abinader, president of the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of h ispaniola with h aiti, said the only way forward for h aiti is “coherent and sustained international action.”
h e said he backs the proposal for the so-called gang-suppression force.
t he multidimensional crisis in h aiti represents a serious threat to peace and security for the Dominican Republic and the entire region,” Abinader said.
Secretary General Antonio Guterres leads a climate summit, yesterday, at UN headquarters. Photo: yuki Iwamura/AP
BNT’s 30th Wine and Art Festival set to return on October 4 and 5
THE Bahamas National Trust’s (BNT) signature Wine and Art Festival will return on October 4 and 5, marking the 30th anniversary of the cultural showcase.
The event will be held at the Retreat Garden in Nassau from noon to 9pm each day. Organisers say this year’s milestone underscores the festival’s long-standing commitment to the arts, community, and conservation.
More than 40 Bahamian artists and vendors are expected to participate,
featuring painting, sculpture, jewellery, and ceramics. Live music, performances, and culinary demonstrations will also be included.
“Wine and Art has become more than a festival—it’s a gathering of community, culture, and conservation,” said Kimberly Knowles, BNT development officer. “Every glass raised and every piece of art admired helps support the stewardship of our 33 national parks across The Bahamas.”
The festival will offer more than 50 wines from around the world, supplied by title sponsor Caribbean Wines & Spirits. Black Sail Wines & Spirits and Liquid Courage will also participate.
Proceeds will go directly to managing the country’s 33 national parks, funding conservation work such as protecting endangered species, upgrading visitor facilities, and supporting research.
The BNT expressed gratitude to sponsors including the Ministry of Tourism, Auto Mall, Nassau Paradise Island Promotional Board, Nassau Cruise Port, Aliv, SunCash, Colina,
Coconut Stock, Bahamas Waste, and Expressions Entertainment. Tickets are available at bntevents.com, BNT offices, and select 700 Wines and Spirits locations.
