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VOLUME:114 No.243, NOVEMBER 9TH, 2017

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INSIDE

Brave told Miller halt brother’s deal Auditors not aware he cancelled contracts

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party (PLP) Leader Philip “Brave” Davis revealed yesterday he intervened to cause the cancellation of two contracts awarded to his brother’s company by the Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) while he served as minister of works in the Christie administration.

Mr Davis insisted he did not want his brother to be awarded any contracts with the Ministry of Works or any agency in his portfolio

and as a result he moved for them to be cancelled when he learned these wishes were not honoured.

His comments came a day after The Tribune published contents from Ernst & Young’s (EY) audit into BEC, now called Bahamas Power & Light (BPL), which accused former Executive Chairman Leslie Miller of allegedly “influencing” procurement decisions and sometimes “circumventing” the process altogether.

Mr Miller has denied these allegations.

MORE than $700,000 was wrongly paid out to 1,227 Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) officers in 2014, the Office of the Auditor General has found.

The officers were given lump sum payments otherwise afforded only to Bahamas Public Service Union members, despite the fact RBDF officers are among a group explicitly excluded from receiving the lump sums according to the 2014 BPSU Industrial Agreement.

The report said $710,250 was wrongly paid out.

MELIA IN GRATUITY COURT VICTORY

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Court of Appeal’s president yesterday pleaded for industrial peace at Melia resort, calling for a “good faith” resolution to the long-running dispute over worker gratuities.

Dame Anita Allen, in a unanimous verdict in favour of the hotel, called on management and the Bahamas Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU) to “return to the table” and resolve a situation that almost caused an industry-wide strike during 2014’s peak Christmas/New Year tourism period.

GREENSLADE ‘WANTED TO MOVE ON’

SEE PAGES SIX & SEVEN

The finding is contained in an audit report tabled in the House of Assembly yesterday for the period July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2015.

Of the irregularity, the Auditor General said: “This breakdown in the internal controls with respect to the agreed articles set out in the Industrial Agreement has a wider impact than just the amount noted herein for the RBDF. As there were ten categories of (excluded) employees, these other employees may have also received lump sum payments on August 17, 2014 that may have gone undetected.”

SEE PAGE FIVE

L SOUR CE

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

BLUNDER GIVES RBDF OFFICERS EXTRA $700K

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

$1

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net MINISTER of National Security Marvin Dames yesterday revealed former Commissioner of Police Ellison Greenslade expressed a desire to demit office in a private meeting with him shortly after the general election.

Mr Dames shared the anecdote in the House of Assembly during his contribution to debate on the Pensions (Amendment) Bill 2017, providing new details on the circumstances surrounding the police chief’s controversial resignation.

SEE PAGE THREE

LEADER of the Opposition Philip ‘Brave’ Davis MP holding a copy of yesterday’s Tribune in the House of Assembly.

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

ISLAND LUCK SHUTS MONEY TRANSFERS

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A MAJOR web shop yesterday said all customer accounts being used for money transmission will be closed following regulatory concerns expressed by the Gaming Minister.

Dirk Simmons, Island Luck’s chief financial officer, said the web shop had acted on its own initiative. “We do not offer a money transfer

service; we never intended to offer a money transfer service, and we do not intend to offer the service.

This is something that happened organically due to the robustness of our systems,” said Mr Simmons.

His comments come just weeks after Dionisio D’Aguilar, who has ministerial responsibility for gaming, suggested that the Bahamas could again be ‘blacklisted’ through web shops acting as unregulated

money transfer businesses.

Mr D’Aguilar also questioned the web shop industry’s Know Your Customer (KYC) scrutiny, suggesting that while they verified client identities and addresses, they did not assess their source of income. Mr Simmons reiterated: “This was purely a proactive decision to align our business offerings with the highest interpretation of the laws that govern our licence.”

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

REFINERY DEAL WILL BRING UP TO 600 JOBS

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A $4.5 billion oil refinery and storage terminal is “aiming to hit the ground running in the New Year”, with construction set to create between 300-600 jobs “at a single time”.

Peter Kreiger, Oban Energies’ managing director, told Tribune Business that the group hoped to complete Heads of Agreement negotiations with the Government for the Grand Bahama project “within weeks”.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

PAGE 2, Thursday, November 9, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

SAVE The Bays chairman Joe Darville and volunteers till the earth to plant neem trees to provide shade for the increasing number of domestic animals being taken to the Grand Bahama Humane Society.

SAVE The Bays volunteers plant 15 neem trees on the gardens of the Grand Bahama Humane Society, taking the organisation’s message of greener is better to new grounds where a four-legged population will enjoy the shady outdoors.

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SAVE The Bays took its greener is better message to a different kind of platform recently, far from the halls of government and the courts right to the Grand Bahama Humane Society.

The organisation planted 15 neem trees on Humane Society grounds.

“Grand Bahama has had so many challenges with a slow economy and one storm after another hitting the island including most recently Hurricane Irma,” said Save The Bays Chairman Joe Darville. “The result has been that many who are displaced or out of work have turned to the Grand Bahama Humane Society, giving up their pets because they simply could not afford to feed and care for them. The Humane Society grounds are large, but there is little shade and with the larger than usual numbers of four-legged residents, staff and volunteers were in a quandary.”

The environment advocacy group took a chunk of the budget usually reserved for Earth Day when members plant trees on school

grounds on various islands and purchased 15 trees from Abaco Neem. They were shipped to Freeport and volunteers from Save The Bays planted them.

Grand Bahama Humane Society Executive Director Tip Burrows said they were thrilled.

“We are really thrilled about this wonderful and timely donation,” said Ms Burrows. “In the summer, it gets so hot out in the dog play area, and we want them out of their kennels.

We are looking forward to the trees flourishing and providing a canopy of shade for the next few years, maybe even by this coming summer.”

Mr Darville said the trees were specifically selected for their properties and to support local growers.

“Neem is called Nature’s Pharmacy,” said Mr Darville. “The trees contain all sorts of medicinal properties. They also keep mosquitoes at bay and most importantly for all the Spots and Fidos in the care of the Humane Society, they provide shade.”

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CAHLIN BANNISTER, a student at Bishop Michael Eldon School, Freeport, waters a tree during the planting of 15 neem trees at the Grand Bahama Humane Society. The trees were imported from Abaco Neem farms.

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THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 9, 2017, PAGE 3

Greenslade ‘wanted to move on’ from page one

After months of speculation he was being forced out of the post, Mr Greenslade emphatically denied rumours at a handing over ceremony last month and told reporters the time had come for him to move on.

“It was very early on following one of our weekly briefings,” Mr Dames said, “that meeting being between minister and police commissioner, that Mr Greenslade said to me and I am paraphrasing, ‘I recall when you were serving as my deputy commissioner and you came into my office and told me that your time had come and you were tendering your resignation and moving on. I did not understand at the time why you had come to that decision.’

Mr Dames continued:

FORMER Commissioner of Police Ellison Greenslade.

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff “Mr Greenslade went on to say, ‘That is until now. I find myself at the same place and feel that the time has

come for me to move on’.”

The amendment bill will grant a full pension to someone who has served

a minimum period of 25 years, and at least seven of those years as the commissioner of police or the commander of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.

Mr Greenslade’s tenure was a key highlight in MPs’ contributions on the bill because the changes will ensure he receives maximum pension benefits.

Although Mr Greenslade served in the force for fewer than 40 years and as commissioner for fewer than ten years, Attorney General Carl Bethel told The Tribune last month the Minnis administration planned to amend the Pension Act in a way that would allow him to receive maximum pension.

Yesterday, Mr Dames underscored the importance of term limits, and flagged the government’s plan to introduce

PENSIONS CHANGE ‘SERVES NO GOOD’

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net OPPOSITION Leader Philip “Brave” Davis called the Minnis administration’s amendment to the Pensions Act the “Ellison Greenslade amendment” yesterday, arguing it serves no public good but is a tool the administration has used to negotiate Mr Greenslade out of his position as commissioner of police.

Mr Davis meticulously argued the amendments to the Pensions Act were not benchmarked against other provisions in law but conveniently fit the specific circumstances that allows Mr Greenslade to receive maximum pension benefits. Despite serving in the RBPF for fewer than 40 years and as commissioner for less than ten years – facts that would have precluded him from receiving maximum pension benefits before the passing of yesterday’s amendment – Mr Greenslade has taken up his new post as high commissioner to the United Kingdom with maximum pension benefits.

“The law is the force behind all tangible things that a society may possess and while the law is akin to a living creature, it should not be manipulated to suit an individual’s purpose,” Mr Davis said.

Citing a Tribune report, he noted Attorney General Carl Bethel said last month

the Minnis administration would amend the Pensions Act to “capture and formalise what occurred in the 1980s where Richard Demeritte, the auditor general at the time, was permitted to complete his pensionable time while servicing as high commissioner to the Court of St James (United Kingdom).

That practice allowed him to complete his pensionable years in that capacity”.

However, Mr Davis explained there is a distinction between what happened to Mr Demeritte and what the Minnis administration will now allow to happen through the Pensions Act. He said: “(Mr Demeritte) was permitted to complete his pensionable time while serving (in another capacity but the) commissioner isn’t allowed to complete his term; it’s being truncated and we are now amending the law to reduce his time of service to suit him.

“It is obvious that this proposal was not subjected to basic scrutiny or thought,” he added.

“Nobody asked the tough but simple questions: have we done this before; what happened then? It will be interesting to learn what benchmark was used for this purpose. Why seven years? During the ceremony of the handover of the commissioner of police, the prime minister, the member for Killarney, announced numerous strategies to fight

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crime on every level and to fight corruption. Somehow the issue of term limits came up and he announced his government’s intention to reintroduce term limits for the commissioner of police and for the commander of defence force and commissioner of corrections. I think he indicated that it will be five years. So why seven years (to receive maximum pension benefits) when you (consider) the term limit that has been proposed to be exacted now on serving commissioners?

“The perception is now that we are negotiating the law to serve our purpose and not the common good.”

To highlight the extent to which the Pensions Act has been amended to suit Mr Greenslade, Mr Davis said there were several other benchmarks the administration could have used. “(There are) several options in law that could have been considered as benchmarks, even their 2009 model of five-year terms,” he said.

“Judicial officers have the five-year provisions. We know the governor general has no specified time for service to secure pension.

Why not eight years then?

Consistent with provision section four of the Parliamentary Pensions Act which provides that prime ministers, MPs and senators must serve at least eight years or two full parliamentary terms, whichever is the lessor? Why not eight years again consistent with Pensions Act for permanent secretaries? Why seven years if it is for the common good? I’m sniffing and I cannot get around the thought that the departure of the commissioner was negotiated rather than voluntary, particularly with the personalities involved and after all that transpired since this government took office. Literally the commissioner went missing in action. There’s no room in government for even the appearance that this is a shot-gun separation… We are today debating the Ellison Greenslade bill after four months with an absent commissioner and rampant crime.”

During his speech, Mr Davis and National Security Minister Marvin Dames got into a back-and-forth about whether crime stats are escalating but the opposition leader eventually withdrew his most controversial statements on the matter.

a “succession planning model” for the public service. He said senior public servants were often kept in top positions for so long that it blocks opportunity for other qualified and competent individuals to make significant contributions.

He noted past extensions given to senior public officers on the verge of retirement, and instances when retired officials were called back to serve in highlevel posts.

Mr Dames called the phenomenon a “stumbling block to advancement” and a contributing factor to the country’s brain drain.

Mr Dames said the police force was very close to completing its “manpower audit,” and preliminary findings have confirmed an oversubscription of senior ranks.

He explained if the

status quo is maintained, there will be no vacancies or upward mobility over the next five years, and asked parliamentarians to consider the impact on productivity and morale.

“Sometimes we become too insecure, possessive, and at times even obsessed over positions when we ascend to them,” said Mr Dames, prefacing that it was a general statement.

“Somewhere along the line, we make the mistake and think that the organisation belongs to us and nobody else. When persons remain in top positions for too long, they run the risk of becoming complacent and begin to lose the true purpose which is the advancement of the organisation and not themselves.

“But when it’s time to go, it’s time to go!” he added.

PAGE 4, Thursday, November 9, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

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

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SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH,

jrolle@tribunemedia.net

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

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

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Six months in, Dr Minnis, and we need reassured SIX months after the Free National Movement’s resounding victory in last May’s General Election is an appropriate time to take stock of its achievements.

In the run-up to the election, this newspaper consistently supported the then opposition FNM because we considered change was essential in order to avoid the country falling into the abyss after five years of corruption, malfeasance and sheer poor governance by a failed Progressive Liberal Party administration. We believed the FNM under the leadership of Dr Hubert Minnis offered an attractive and viable alternative which would stamp out corruption and blatant wrongdoing, manage the nation’s finances effectively and govern efficiently while always putting the people’s interests first.

By common consent, Dr Minnis and his new ministers made a good start.

Their refreshingly positive approach, including action to crack down on dishonesty, illegality and unscrupulous behaviour, was widely welcomed. Most people thought that at last they were witnessing a genuine change of attitude and approach by the political class. They hoped the country was on the brink of a new era of sound and decent governance which would lead to a fairer society and enhanced prosperity.

Sadly, however, this promising beginning is already being marred by a palpable sense - among political observers and the general public alike - of drift and disconnection within the government’s ranks and a lack of consultation and coordination. Allied to a lack of vision and direction at the top, the impression is being created of a rudderless government; and this leads people to fear that, notwithstanding all the pre-election hype and rhetoric, nothing has really changed politically in this country.

At the same time, there is concern among FNM supporters that after the PLP’s first party convention for some years it may already be starting to bounce back as the opposition despite the heaviest election defeat in its history and having retained in leadership positions some of its failed and discredited old guard politicians. That such a resurgence could be happening partly because of perceived errors or inaction by government ministers makes it all the more disquieting.

Doubts about the new government’s performance have not been helped by the current controversy over the Prime Minister’s proposal, which was a volte face on his part, to increase the salaries of Members of Parliament by the time of next year’s budget. This has been fiercely criticised. It is clearly unwise and politically inept to raise such a sensitive issue when the nation’s finances are in such poor shape - particularly

when, whatever the merits of the issue, there was no need to do so eight months in advance. The government should surely consider this in slower time and make a decision in mid-2018, based on recommendations of an independent committee, when the political and economic climate may be different.

Other political missteps include the Deputy Prime Minister’s hints about imposing additional taxes like corporate income tax which is already causing concern in the business community. If the government needs more revenue to balance its books, the right procedure is to come up with reasoned proposals and initiate a consultation with the private sector. Moreover, his public warning about $42m of Hurricane Matthew relief money being unaccounted for (and the implication that the PLP administration had misappropriated it) only to say later that it is in the consolidated fund after all smacks of either poor judgement or incompetence.

Examining our varied sources of information, the overall view of members of the public seems to be that in order to retain trust and continued support the government needs now to explain what it is doing to fix the problems of the country. It also needs to articulate afresh a vision for the nation and to clarify its long-term goals.

In the short-term, at a time of austerity people want to be reassured that cuts in government expenditure are actually being enforced and that measures to grow the economy like, for example, reducing red tape and making it easier to do business, are being implemented.

The government is faced with myriad challenges. To name just a few, what is being done about the crime situation, how are the country’s healthcare issues being managed and the problems at the Princess Margaret Hospital resolved, what is being done about the non-functioning Post Office, what measures are being taken to reduce youth unemployment and remove young men from the streets and will the pre-election suggestion about removing VAT from so-called breadbasket items be implemented?

We believe if this government is to succeed it needs, without delay, to coordinate its activities more effectively and ensure information about its policies and achievements is communicated with one voice to as wide an audience as possible.

Under the Westminster system a prime minister is traditionally ‘primus inter pares’ - first among equals. But in more modern times he has to assert himself as the nation’s leader. If the current drift is allowed to gain momentum, FNM voters will become disenchanted and lose hope, and they could all too easily change their political allegiance.

That’s been The Bahamas’ story since we won independence.

The Pointe EDITOR, The Tribune.

FOR the first time today I parked in the Pointe Multi Storey Car Park. As I got my ticket I was told to go to L5 - is that a space or a level I asked - Level. On the way up to level 5, I passed levels 2, 3, 4 which were virtually empty so why I had to go to level 5 was very obscure unless the other floors could only take a certain weight!

There was only one other car on level 5. The drive up to level 5 showed what I would consider to be a half finished utility building - everything was bare concrete, unfinished.

To get back to the ground floor required a lift which I just missed as the only other car owner on the floor had just taken it for the ground floor.

There is nothing to indicate on the outside of the

lift door which floor it is on so one waited for it to return to floor 5. There are 9 floors I noticed and the lift was utility at its best, bare concrete floor with covers on the walls that are used to protect furniture when traveling in lifts. I suppose in case the motion caused one to hit the side.

There was no soothing voice to say the doors are closing now or you have reached the ground floor.

The lift did return to the ground floor swiftly.

On returning to the car park, I had been advised the ticket machine only accepts US dollars and found I only had two and not the required three so as it said credit cards tried my B$ Visa which promptly got stuck in the ticket machine.

I tried cancel a couple of times and then called assistance and got an answer on

Hypocrisy of Brave EDITOR, The Tribune.

HOW can Philip ‘Brave’ Davis fix his mouth to say the PLP does not support the proposed wage raise for MPs? Either the leader of the opposition is extremely forgetful, or else he believes it is the Bahamian people who have no memory.

Just to remind Mr Davis, only a few years ago, when the PLP was in office, he said salary increases for Parliamentarians would “remove the temptation

letters@tribunemedia.net for politicians to do things that are not right. Because if they (MPs) are earning a living by doing this, then there would be no need for them to do anything else, I think that’s what the Bahamian public has to understand.”

Now, he says the “personal needs of well off politicians” should not come before the needs of

B JOHNSON Nassau, November 6, 2017.

The legacy of Martin Luther EDITOR, The Tribune.

the second time of trying.

By this time, the credit card has slowly extracted itself from the machine which now said it was out of order as was its twin standing beside it. Anyway I took the lift to floor 5 and drove back down the unfinished building to the barrier where my three dollars was accepted with one B$ amongst the three and the barrier was raised.

However surely a more finished building could have been constructed and not the cheapest in the world.

Was it necessary to go to level 5 and why do the ticket machines not work?

I do hope that Baha Mar was constructed to a better standard by CCA. PATRICK THOMSON Nassau, November 1, 2017.

LETTERS

the people. I wonder what could have changed?

Most likely, what has changed is that Brave now finds himself out of power and in need of ammunition to throw at the FNM. So his old opinions are conveniently disposable if they will help him attack the government and score cheap political points.

That, for Mr Davis’ information, is called hypocrisy.

H

OCTOBER 31st, 2017, marked the 500th anniversary of the German monk, Martin Luther, nailing his 95 theses to the door of the Wittenberg Church. It was a list of objections he had of the prevailing Church practices of the Catholic Church at the time. It is hard to imagine that his objections could have caused him his life if not for the protections afforded him by people who were supportive of his views.

In this age the question arises as to the relevance of the Reformation. It is treated primarily as an historic event and is viewed as such, by many Christians, Churches and Pastors.

However, at the time of Luther’s defiance the Church was in a different place. There were practices that were not allowed. Roman Catholic priests were not allowed

to marry, it was possible to pay for the sins you would commit in advance; through a system of “indulgences” Priests were able to forgive sins and the Pope was the ultimate spiritual authority on earth. The “Reformation” challenged this.

What is the challenge today? For those Church leaders who see their theology in a light that is similar to Luther and John Calvin the ongoing struggle is the conflict that arises when they attempt to reconcile a “right theology” with the “rightness of the theology” they subscribe to and practice, and for many it is difficult, especially when a “balance” between the temporal and spiritual is attempted.

Many who espouse a Reform theology perspective are essentially pragmatists when it comes to paying

bills and maintaining a particular lifestyle.

The battle started by Luther is still alive as the media driven environment we find ourselves in is unrecognisable from that which came into being, when another German who was a Catholic invented or refined the printing press, almost century before Luther made his move.

We now see a modern theological framework in which everyone can be a theologian, and the rightness of our personal theology impresses, controls and modifies any right theology we may claim to have.

However, the mantra of “Reformers keep on Reforming” is as important today as it was at the beginning of the movement.

EDWARD HUTCHESON Nassau, October 30, 2017.

Striking a balance EDITOR, The Tribune.

The Tribune, Culture Clash, November 1, 2017.

IT is commonly accepted that a man is a visual being biologically. So if a woman

acts and dresses like a traditional nun, the average male will usually not be all that titillated. The opposite is also an unalterable biological fact. Therefore, It would be commonsense

to find a sensible happy medium in action and dress - and that’s the naked truth!

KEN W KNOWLES, MD Nassau, November 2, 2017.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 9, 2017, PAGE 5

Blunder gives RBDF officers extra $700k from page one Auditor General Terrance Bastian, during his investigation, also found an irregularity that had the opposite effect, robbing some officers of payments to which they were entitled.

The salary entry point for officers is $18,600, but some RBDF recruits received $600 less than they should have, Mr Bastian found.

The Auditor General said to now pay $600 per annum to 833 people who were enlisted between 2003 to 2015 “would have a monumental impact on public funds.”

In fact, he said the impact on the Consolidated Fund could be as high as $435,000 if anomalies connected to the issue are addressed.

The Office of the Auditor General also found five vendors who provided services to the Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) between 2013 and 2015 under-reported the amount of money they received to a combined total of $1,047,321.95, impacting their associated business licencing fees.

Mr Bastian said: “Payments made by the government to these vendors exceeded the gross

revenue they reported to the Business Licence Unit.”

The companies in question are not listed in the report, yet businesses who knowingly present false information in declarations commit an offence and could be liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years.

“There appears to be a lack of interconnectivity within the government system that allows internal and external perpetrators of fraud to manipulate weakness in internal control for their gain,” the Auditor General concluded.

“The companies examined either did not have a business licence or was able to obtain licences just before conducting business with the RBDF. In some cases, the RBDF was the sole revenue generator for these businesses. These businesses should be penalised in accordance with the Business Licence Act (2010), otherwise it would appear that such activities are acceptable.”

Mr Bastian also found that between October 14, 2014 and June 26, 2015, $275,000 was “expended” to a home-based business that had been denied a business licence. The business had quoted a tax

identification number, charged and received value added tax (VAT) but was not registered with the VAT office.

The auditor general said: “It is unfathomable as to how 18 invoices from this company could be processed without the accounting section verifying whether this company was legitimate. It would that there had to be collusion and a lack of oversight during the approval phases and processing of these invoices over the nine months during which these transactions occurred.

“Once a business starts to transact with the government without a licence, it gives that business credence to continue to do the same within the public domain.

Since public officers and professionals are held to ethical standards, it would appear in this instance that those standards were not upheld. Fraudulent activities were borne by both sides and could have accelerated to additional purchases processed in favour of this company. This manipulation of the system resulted in losses for the government in its expenditure relating to these purchases, the revenue not collected in customs duties, Business Licence Fees, and

AUDITOR General Terrance Bastian.

VAT Fees.”

The Auditor General said his office discussed its report with the RBDF, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Public Service,

all of whom “accepted and agreed to take the action necessary based on the findings, implications, and recommendations in the report.”

MINISTER: TREES ARE OUR HERITAGE AND OUR DEFENCE MINISTER of the Environment Romauld Ferreira addressed hundreds of students during the morning assembly at CI Gibson Senior High School on Monday to talk to them about the importance of forestry, which supports life on the planet.

“Youth, like you, enjoying adolescence and teenage years should capitalise on every opportunity to become a part of nature. When we speak about nature here, we are essentially talking about forests and trees,” said Mr Ferreira.

“We have mangrove, coppice and pine forests.

Forests and trees are the

DRUGS SEIZED AFTER BOAT PURSUIT TWO men were arrested in Exuma yesterday as part of a drug swoop.

At about 3am, a team of officers from the Drug Enforcement Unit and the Police Marine Support Unit, assisted by US Drug Enforcement Agents, spotted a go-fast vessel in the area of Highbourn’s Cay, Exuma, with two Bahamian men on board.

A chase ensured, during which packages were seen to be thrown in the water. The vessel was later stopped and two suspects arrested.

The officers were also able to retrieve six bales of marijuana from the water.

• A man and a woman were arrested on Tuesday after police allegedly found a quantity of marijuana in a car they occupied.

According to police, around 9pm Tuesday, officers from the Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU) were on routine patrol on Market Street when they observed a man standing next to a car acting in a suspicious manner. Police said they searched the car occupied by the man and woman and allegedly found marijuana.

Police said the two will be charged in court this week.

lungs of the Earth. They help us balance the amount of vital oxygen and remove harmful carbon dioxide from the air. Trees also regulate humidity in the air and cool down the planet.”

Mr Ferreira explained to the assembly that trees provide us with everyday support we take for granted, such as food, shelter, shade and jobs to help support us and our families.

He also added we use the wood from trees to make products, such as furniture and more importantly homes.

“Our trees in The Bahamas, particularly our pine trees are high quality wood, resistant to termites and

very durable. We cannot forget the importance of forests to climate change mitigation and how carbon is stored in the ground,” said Mr Ferreira.

“Forests are home to 80 per cent of the world’s terrestrial plants, animals and insects. They provide us with water that is also vital to life on the Earth because without water we could not survive. Underneath the pine trees on islands like Abaco, Andros, Grand Bahama, and New Providence, you will find fresh water.”

Mr Ferreira also pointed out to the students that the straw they see in the Straw Market comes from the

palms within our forests, which is key to generating our local economy. He urged the importance of protecting mangroves, as they are our

first line of defence on our coastlines against erosion and storms, such as hurricanes, as well as serving as nurseries for baby fish.

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PAGE 6, Thursday, November 9, 2017

Brave told Miller halt brother’s deal

THE TRIBUNE

from page one The audit said Mr Miller wrote to BEC officials in October 2012, directing them that BEC’s board had requested two contracts be given to AL D’s Construction & Roofing – owned by Mr Davis’ brother – even though the business was not the preferred bidder in a tender process.

There was no assertion in the audit that the former deputy prime minister was involved in this decision.

Taking issue with parts of the audit, Mr Davis said when he learned AL D’s Construction & Roofing was chosen for work, he summoned Mr Miller and Permanent Secretary Colin Higgs to voice his concerns.

However, the Cat Island, Rum Cay and San Salvador MP said it was Mr Miller who insisted AL D’s Construction & Roofing should not be disqualified for work because of its owner’s familial ties to the former deputy prime minister.

Mr Davis told Parliament that in sensing Mr Miller’s reluctance to follow his directive, he further instructed Mr Higgs to write a letter to BEC and its board of directors requesting the company terminate with immediate effect the two contracts awarded to his sibling’s company.

The EY report, first leaked to The Tribune and later tabled in the House of Assembly, does not include the information regarding Mr Davis’ intervention in having his brother’s contracts cancelled. For this reason, Mr Davis said in his view the report was not complete and was proof of the Minnis administration’s quest to “smear” and “scandalise” Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) members.

In response, Works Minister Desmond Bannister said the audit report made an “incorrect” allegation against Mr Davis, adding

DOCUMENTATION in the audit showing a note from Leslie Miller directing that a contract be awarded to AL D’s Construction - and the details of offers, showing two bids at a lower rate than that offered by AL D’s, including one for Dudley Smith Construction Company, for which acceptance had been sought. “unequivocally” there was no evidence presented that the opposition leader did anything wrong.

However, the audit and The Tribune’s original report did not accuse Mr Davis of any wrongdoing.

“I’m at peace,” Mr Davis said in the House of Assembly yesterday morning. “Earlier my karma and spirit were deeply disturbed and aggrieved.”

He also said: “The minister during the break indicated this report suggests that you might have given a contract from BPL. I said that’s what the report suggests? I said what else did the report say? He said that’s all the report said that you gave your brother a contract. I said well that report would be incomplete because if you check you would see that it is incomplete.

“Because when I became aware that BEC had awarded my brother a contract and it came to my attention I immediately summoned the chairman of BEC. If I’m not mistaken the member of Bamboo Town (Renward Wells) may have been present. I knew I discussed

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the matter with him for sure.

“I called them (the chairman and the PS) in and I said, ‘look my brother is not to be awarded any contract for my ministry or any of the agencies which falls in my portfolio. If any of the other ones wish to deal with him them fine, but he is not going to get anything from my ministry or any of the agencies that fall in my portfolio’.

“The chairman took the position that look man your brother ought not to be disqualified from the projects because he’s your brother and in any event, this is BPL, the board that will be dealing with this not your ministry.”

Mr Davis continued: “I said I hear what you’re saying… but in this political world I don’t want it to be said that my brother got anything for my ministry or any agencies.

“I conveyed this to the minister and I said if this is not in the report then the whole report is just the continued witch-hunt that your government is continuing on just to smear and to scandalise PLPs. “I said check with your PS to see whether or not and quite frankly when I was speaking to him I knew that I had done some things, but I wasn’t quite sure that the letter had gone out but I knew that I gave instructions so I asked the minister to check.”

The letter Mr Davis was referring to is dated December 14, 2012. It was sent by Mr Higgs to Mr Miller referencing AL D’s Construction.

Mr Davis also said he was holding Mr Bannister accountable for the oversight in the report because he had knowledge of this letter.

The letter from Mr Higgs read: “I am directed to request that BEC terminate

DESMOND Bannister MP. with immediate effect the two contracts recently awarded to ALD Construction, namely contracts for the renovation and painting of Blue Hills Substation and for the repair of the substation building, Soldier Road.

“ALD Construction should be invited to submit any claims for compensation for which they feel entitled. To the extent that any such claims cannot be agreed between the parties, the same should be resolved by arbitration, pursuant to the appropriate contract clause(s).

“They should also be requested to take steps to remove all of their plant, machinery, materials and equipment from the construction sites and to terminate any subcontracts which may have been entered into by them for the purposes of or in connection with the contracts.”

The letter, which was also tabled in Parliament, did not bear Mr Higgs’ signature, but Mr Bannister said he attested to its authenticity.

Mr Davis further questioned whether this letter had been ignored by auditors, adding whatever the case was he expected Mr Bannister would have instructed EY to go back and consider its contents.

“Mr Speaker, this (letter) did not come from me,” Mr Davis said. “This came from the minister to me, so it would have come from an official source from the permanent secretary that still

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff works for him. This letter is which completely exondated December 14, 2012, erates the leader of the where it was cancelled and opposition. I know him to I would have expected be an honourable man and that the report that Ernst would not wish to see his & Young they are profes- reputation besmirched,” he sionals, an international said. auditing firm with their “I think members ought integrity to protect. to appreciate that when “Now either they ignored we are in this place the these instructions, they integrity that we bring is saw these instructions and important and so before I ignored it or these instruc- sought to table that report, tions that were provided knowing there was an allewere not brought to their gation against a fellow attention. Whatever it is at sitting parliamentarian, I the very least I’d expected spoke to him privately as he was that the minister having indicated as I would do with discovered this would have any member of this place,” said to Ernst & Young you Mr Bannister said. need to go back on that par“I pulled him on the side. ticular matter and take this I spoke with him privately. in to account.

I said there is an allega“But at least take this tion against you. He took into account but it wasn’t issue with that and there and so Mr Speaker it is an was an opportunity for him egregious effort. It’s target- to be able to communicate ing PLPs no doubt about directly with my office as it because I can say here I indicated the first time that not only PLPs got con- that we met which he took tracts from BEC but FNMs advantage of. too. In fact, FNMs got con“My permanent secretracts in the ministry I was tary confirmed that the involved in. We did not ministry had done what preclude anyone and while he had instructed. Somehe laughs I can say that the how the records of BPL brother of the prime min- did not reflect that at all. ister was one of those who That is regrettable because got contracts from BPL when the auditors came for a lot of monies - weld- in and when they did their ing contracts at the Clifton work they would not have Pier.” come across that letter.

For his part, Mr Ban- The report has not been nister maintained he had reprinted. It was fully my every intention to inform intention to indicate that the House the report did when I spoke here today not consider Mr Davis’ but somebody who had intervention. access to that report, and “I wish to table volumes it’s a very small number of one and two of the report persons, leaked it out and together with a letter from as a result a reputation Permanent Secretary Higgs, could be tarnished.”

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 9, 2017, PAGE 7

THE BAHAMAS Power and Light head office.

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

New policies now in place at BPL to prevent irregularities

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

FOLLOWING Ernst & Young’s (EY) revelations regarding irregularities in procurement decisions at Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) under the former Christie administration, Works Minister Desmond Bannister said yesterday new policies are now in place, which will be “scrupulously followed”.

While he did not outline what these new policies were, Mr Bannister, who has the electricity provider in his portfolio, said there is now a refreshing new culture of transparency and

accountability at BPL. “I conclude first by advising that new procurement policies are now in place in BPL,” the minister said during the morning session of Parliament yesterday.

“They were desperately needed and will be scrupulously followed.

“Finally, there is a refreshing new culture of transparency and accountability at BPL. We intend to ensure that BPL remains a special place to work and we look forward to employees enthusiastically buying into the new culture and supporting the new management initiatives.”

His comments came the day The Tribune

exclusively revealed contents of EY’s audit into BPL, which highlighted instances where former Executive Chairman Leslie Miller allegedly “influenced procurement decisions” for the awarding of contracts “or circumvented the process entirely.”

According to a copy of the audit obtained by this newspaper ahead of its tabling in the House of Assembly yesterday, EY found alleged actions taken

by Mr Miller regarding the issuance of contracts worth less than $100,000 – below the limit of board/chairman involvement – at the government entity were “highly irregular”.

The audit further found numerous other irregularities, including pay outs to some companies that were not registered with the Corporate Business Registry and more than $3m in payouts to vendors with tax identification number (TIN) anomalies.

The auditors, in some cases, found a “lack of supporting documentation for payments remitted to vendors,” invoice dates months apart although they are sequential, “vendor invoices containing an invalid or no tax identification number,” “inconsistencies across vendor invoices,” and “no evidence of existence of vendors at the

Bahamian Corporate Business Registry,” among other issues.

The revelations, gleaned as part of a probe into an alleged fraud scheme at BPL, paints a picture of a company riddled with internal control issues.

EY said it performed analytical procedures on BPL’s vendor payment transactions and selected a sample of about 345 disbursements totaling an approximate $14,524,321 for review of supporting documentation.

During this review, EY found the following irregularities: 40 cheques lacking supporting documentation valued $974,868; 32 vendors with value added tax TIN

anomalies valued at $3.2m; and five instances where there was no evidence of vendor as a registered company with payouts valued $422,082.

EY further found three instances of inconsistencies across vendor invoices valued at $101,963; three instances of a time lag between date of invoice and date of payment valued at $90,144; two instances of purchase order dates subsequent to invoice issuance date valued at $24,806 and one instance of an internal memo prepared on the same date despite invoices being received on various days for a value of $20,500.

UNION ACCUSES GOVERNMENT OF COVER-UP

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMAS Electrical Workers Union (BEWU) representatives yesterday suggested the government was attempting to “cover up” the roles some employees at Bahamas Power and Light allegedly played in the vendor fraud scheme by “picking out” portions of the Ernst & Young audit report.

During a contribution in the House of Assembly yesterday, Works Minister Desmond Bannister indicated several of the BPL employees who facilitated a scheme to defraud the company of nearly $2m were exonerated by the report.

The Carmichael MP thanked the “vindicated” employees for their years of service and said he looked forward to many more years of continued “productivity and goodwill”.

Mr Bannister highlighted five of the 11 employees yesterday.

In direct objection to his comments, BEWU Secretary General Astrid Bodie questioned how such a case could be made.

“I cannot sit back and allow this message to stand as is, I don’t care how it is written, carried or heard; I am calling a spade a spade.

If they are guilty in any way, just how the line staff were called in to meetings and given their walking papers, (these other employees) should have faced the same treatment,” Ms Bodie told The Tribune.

Referring to three employees connected to the Accounts

Payable Department, two of which were named by Mr Bannister Wednesday, Ms Bodie said the Ernst & Young audit report detailed how the trio directly oversaw the submission, vetting and printing of 44 cheques.

The Ernst & Young audit in its ‘Invoice Approval and AP Process’ section does name the three workers and indicates the trio “printed the fraudulent cheques”.

“It says it here in black in white,” Ms Bodie said.

“Their names are listed one, two, three; so how could the report name them and then you get up in the House and talk about them being vindicated? How in the world does that happen?

“I have respect for the minister but this is wrong,” she maintained.

BPL’s cheque system calls for clerks to produce invoice orders for payment and submit them to a superior.

Once submitted, managers are expected to review individual cheques and validate them.

Once done, those cheques are then passed on to BPL’s Accounts Payable Dept.

Ms Bodie continued: “If we are going to clean house, let’s clean house.”

She added: “This isn’t about politics here. This is about doing what is right across the board and not picking out what you want to make a big deal about.”

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

PAGE 8, Thursday, November 9, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

CHARGÉ D’AFFAIRES SAYS FAREWELL

US Embassy Charge d’Affaires Lisa Johnson paid a farewell courtesy call on Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis on Wednesday, November 8, at the Cabinet Office in the Churchill Building.

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THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 9, 2017, PAGE 9

FROM left, Linda Fisher, librarian; Sidina Whyms; Daniella Dorsett; Patricia Glinton-Meicholas, author of Lusca and Other Fantastic Tales; Deonte Charles; Terecita Forbes vice-principal of Government High School; Ashlyn Sands; Benet Johnson.

AUTHOR HELPS YOUNGSTERS TO DISCOVER BAHAMIAN LEGENDS IN support of a bookgiveaway project launched by Guanima Press Ltd, Patricia GlintonMeicholas marked the publication of her new collection of original short stories, Lusca and Other Fantastic Tales, by gifting 600 copies to the students of her alma mater

— Government High School.

“For some time now, I have had a deep concern for the widespread underperformance in educational achievement, when I know that Bahamians are brilliant. I believe that low achievement in reading and the

spurning of reading widely contribute significantly to the problem. Guanima Press has always given away lots of books, but with the launch of Patricia’s new book, I decided to do it in a really big way, giving away thousands of books in the hope that it would encourage more

reading” said Neko Meicholas, owner of Guanima Press Ltd, which published the new work.

Recognised nationally and internationally for her writing ability and cultural knowledge, Ms GlintonMeicholas has created, in Lusca and Other Fantastic Tales, yet another means

of preserving several of the unique, legendary, but mostly forgotten creatures of Bahamian folklore including Lusca, the Hag, and Chickcharnie. With her fertile imagination at play, she has also created a number of otherworldly characters, who demonstrate powers that are sure

to have readers looking over their shoulders at unusual sounds.

Lusca and Other Fantastic Tales continues what the author’s first book, An Evening in Guanima, started, the preservation of a wonderful aspect of our Bahamian heritage — its rich folklore.

Argument breaks out as lawyer accuses witness of being a liar

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net A WAR of words erupted in the Supreme Court in Grand Bahama on Wednesday between witness Allan Alcime and a defence attorney after the former was accused of being a liar and making up a story about being at the scene of the deadly shooting and home invasion of a husband and wife in Deadman’s Reef in 2015.

Alcime insisted he was with the three accused men on September 12, 2015, when they allegedly held up the couple with guns at their home.

Barry and Sheena Johnson were found shot to death at their triplex apartment on the morning of September 13, 2015. Five

men were arrested and charged with the murders and armed robbery.

Three of the men are on trial - Paul Belizaire, Devaughn Hall, and Kevin Dames. Alcime and Virgil Hall accepted plea deals to testify as witnesses for the Crown and were convicted of the armed robbery.

Both are serving time in prison.

Alcime has testified he and three of the coaccused (Virgil Hall, Belizaire, and Devaughn Hall) were dropped off by Kevin Dames to a location in Deadman’s Reef on the night of the murders. He alleged Devaughn told them a week before the killings that he knew where $2m and some cocaine were. He claimed Devaughn shot the couple

after they did not find any money.

Under cross-examination on Wednesday, lawyer Geoffrey Farquharson accused Alcime of being a liar and suggested he was never at the scene on the night of the shooting.

“You made up the story… you were not on the crime scene,” said Mr Farquharson.

Alcime insisted he was there and he was the one in the video surveillance footage wearing camouflage pants, with a black longsleeved shirt and a black hat.

Mr Farquharson requested the video be shown. In the black and white video, he pointed out the person whom Alcime said was him, was

not wearing a black shirt and black hat, but rather it appeared to be a white shirt and white hat in the video.

But Alcime insisted it was him in the video.

“I was there,” the witness said.

Alcime said he was the one in the video holding a shotgun, which was later found by police in his backyard, wrapped in a black long sleeve shirt.

Mr Farquharson suggested to Alcime it was someone else and the police had shown the video and that’s how he knew what the suspect was wearing the night of the shooting.

Alcime denied police showed him the video when he was arrested.

“You made a deal to tell

them you was the person… so you could get off for murder,” Mr Farquharson said.

He then suggested to Alcime that he is a “brazen liar,” referring to letters Alcime had written to the Supreme Court justice after his arraignment for the murders.

“You wrote that you (were) arrested for something you had no knowledge of and to give you bail?”

“Yes sir,” replied Alcime.

Mr Farquharson asked: “And now you telling us you were on the scene of the crime?”

Alcime did not answer.

“So you lied to the judge just like you lied to the jury,” suggested Mr Farquharson.

Alcime shot back angrily:

“I was there. I got to be, have to be insane to say I do something if I ain’t do it.”

Mr Farquharson further accused the witness of lying in his letter to the judge that he was never convicted of a crime prior to 2015.

He questioned Alcime about a number of criminal offences for which he was charged and convicted, including causing harm in April 13, 2010, and that he was charged with stealing a Honda motorcycle in May 2011.

Alcime said causing harm was not a serious offence and that he did not steal the motorcycle but had received it from someone.

The trial continues before Justice Estelle Gray-Evans.

PAGE 10, Thursday, November 9, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis views the body of the late Calvin Johnson, former MP for the Free National Movement.

Photos: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

Tributes paid to former MP

By MORGAN ADDERLEY

MEMBERS of Parliament paused proceedings in the House of Assembly yesterday to pay respects to former Free National Movement (FNM) MP Calvin James Johnson, who died last month.

Johnson was elected MP for the former Fort Fincastle constituency in 1992. He died on October 30 at the age of 64. The House was suspended for one hour yesterday to allow MPs to view the body of their former fellow parliamentarian.

Upon reconvening, Speaker of the House Halson Moultrie called for a moment of silence in honour of Johnson. After this, Mr Moultrie invited MPs to present tributes to celebrate Johnson’s legacy.

MP for South Beach Jeff Lloyd remembered Johnson as a politician, a consul general, and “one of the great and outstanding parishioners of St Francis Xavier Cathedral.”

Mr Lloyd said: “I have known Mr Johnson for nearly 30 years. Particularly following my return

from the United States of America, when I became more intimately involved in the ministry of the Catholic Church, particularly and especially St Francis Xavier, where he also was a member.

“In 2000 Mr Speaker, I became a permanent deacon in the Roman Catholic Church, and one of my more energised and energetic supporters and encouragers was Mr Johnson… Mr Johnson was always encouraging, always enabling, in that sometimes very difficult and problematic ministry, facilitating the lives of those to whom I had preached and sought to serve.

“When I contemplated becoming affiliated with front line politics, [Johnson was] one of the souls that I sought because again of our relationship in the church and his own sense of faith and the journey of own his life as…a politician. I sought his counsel and advice. Again, in his usual manner, he was sober, honest…and encouraging.

“Two weeks before his passing, he and I met on Bay Street, and I guess sensing the challenge of being a minister in government, especially responsible

for a large ministry, such as the Ministry of Education, he left me with these words: ‘stick with it.’ Stick with it.

“And so I rise today on behalf of our grieving community at St Francis, where tomorrow his mortal remains will be first funeralised and interred and on behalf of…the men’s group [in St Francis], we wish to extend to his family our deepest sympathies.”

Reece Chipman, MP for Centreville, also paid respects to Johnson. Mr Chipman spoke on behalf of the people of Centreville as well as “the people of Ft Fincastle, and East Street, and Farm Road, all of whom had an opportunity to be represented” by the former parliamentarian.

Mr Chipman said: “[I began my] relationship with Mr Johnson in 1992 when I campaigned with him.

He was running against a giant [former MP Alfred T Maycock] and we were very, very excited about that moment that we realised that the young people of Centreville had decided that they wanted change.

“And 1992 was that year that Mr Johnson would have entered these walls of Parliament. And so that was the

PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis signs the book of condolences. beginning of our relation- Mangrove Cay, also fondly ship. I then campaigned in remembered Johnson. Mr 2007 where he was an inte- Forbes said Johnson “really gral part of my campaign gave much hope to young in St Thomas More. And persons in the community, his advice and encourage- in Mason’s Edition and ment…was very important McCullough Corner.” to the success of the Free He added: “Many eveNational Movement in 2007. nings you could see him “Once again in 2017…I sitting on the wall… Today met with [Johnson] and we the boys on the corner…are talked and he offered great all saddened by his passing. advice and encouragement.

“He was a decent man, an But most importantly, what exemplar, had a very posiI’d like to say to the House tive disposition and also of Assembly is how impor- a very caring individual… tant and the legacy Mr [Johnson] also had a chance Johnson would have left in to serve in the diplomatic Centreville and Ft Fincastle corps, as an ambassador, and that legacy goes on. consul general of the Baha“And so I just wanted mas, he did really well.” to ensure that on behalf of Mr Forbes reiterated how the people of the wonderful Johnson gave hope to “the constituency of the area of disenfranchised young men Farm Road and Ft Fincastle and women Over-the-Hill” and even some of Bains and and fondly recalled him Grants Town, he played “sitting on the wall under an integral role not only in the breadfruit tree with his campaigning but also in the suit on.” lives of many of the young Johnson will have a state people in that area,” Mr recognised funeral, which Chipman said. will be held today at 10am Picewell Forbes, MP at St Francis Xavier Cathefor South Andros and dral, West Hill Street.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 9, 2017, PAGE 11

HOW LONG BEFORE THE GATES GO UP ON CABBAGE BEACH? IS IT TIME TO BUY?

TOURISTS and Bahamians pictured enjoying the sunny weather at Cabbage Beach.

YOUR SAY

by Diane Phillips In 2005, a jaw-dropping California court ruling sent shock waves through a crowd of Hollywood A-listers. No matter how much money they had, no matter how airtight they thought their rights to privacy were, they could not block the public from a stretch of Malibu Beach that ordinary people including, God forbid, those with surfboards had used for years.

The decision ended a bitter 22-year battle in a case involving billionaire David Geffen whose $100m mansion sat on a piece of beach with sands so perfect they could have been the inspiration for the name of his production company, Dreamworks.

Geffen (net worth now estimated at $8.2 billion) was the lead in a fight that included stars whose names and standards lit up marquees and whose work was exemplary. These were not the bad guys in a movie that ended in a blast of bullets and gunfire. They stood for the very best in their craft and in their principles. Tom Hanks, Bob Dylan, Dustin Hoffman, Barbra Streisand and Steven Spielberg were among the superstars and supporters trying to defend this Malibu piece of heaven on earth from strangers who wanted to take a swim, stroll or ride the waves.

It was a fight over private vs public rights, and it raged with an intensity that made it all the more interesting because both sides featured good guys with reasonable arguments.

In the end, the little guy won. Geffen lost the legal battle, was ordered to pay $300,000 in legal fees and was going to be fined $1,000 a day for every day he refused to turn over the keys or remove the gate which blocked public access from this stretch known as Carbon Beach on the famed Malibu coastline.

That case was not alone.

A decade later in December 2016, in a similar case, two California property owners were fined a combined $5.1m for blocking access to a public beach.

While courts in California – a state where fitness is just above godliness and beaches are an integral part of life – are getting tougher on the privacy rights of the rich and standing up for the little man who had original access, it is not likely that courts in The Bahamas would take the same route. Ours is a legal system seeped in private property rights and wary of changing the rules in the middle of the game. Rule changes frighten investors off and make everyone nervous.

There is also one other important difference. On Carbon Beach in Malibu, at the centre of the most famous cases, the public had the right to access before the rich and famous discovered this stretch of paradise and began building, then blocking the way to the water.

On Paradise Island, on

the other hand, deeds going back to the granting of the land show the property was always in private hands even if the public had used it - as there was nothing built on the shore.

Although the ownership backgrounds vary, the dilemma the ordinary Bahamian faces who wants to use the beach is the same dilemma faced by millions of people all across coastal states and towns like those in California. In communities where the wealthy buy up the most prized land along the waterfront, fewer people have access to the beach.

So if the dilemma is the same, but the ownership issue is different, is there a solution to this problem locally? There just may be.

The owners of the stretch of beach known as Cabbage Beach acquired that parcel when they purchased the One&Only Ocean Club.

Originally planning to build luxury beachfront condos, they altered those plans because of market conditions and applied under the last government for the rights to build a beach club, restaurant and entertainment complex instead.

The plans were appealing, very island-style, casual, but classy. The business that was proposed would have provided opportunities for Bahamian musicians, entrepreneurial opportunities for those selling authentic Bahamian-made goods. It would have provided jobs and it would have been organized with adequate, proper parking, security, welcoming Bahamians, a place to take the family or a date, beach by day, dining, dancing and outdoor club atmosphere by night. The plan was rejected.

The rejection was a shame. It would have been a great amenity and an opportunity for Bahamians and visitors to mingle naturally and comfortably as they do at many Family Island casual beach restaurants.

The rejection also meant the access issue that could have been resolved with the opening of a business on the hillside by the beach went unresolved.

So the stalemate continued. Vendors sold wares, taxis dropped tourists off to a beach that someone else owned. Tourists complained of being hassled by vendors who were selling everything but property; vendors complained the owner, a company ironically named Access Industries, was trying to block them from selling wares, chairs, water and rides; Atlantis worried its guests were being disturbed. There was no clear path to a Cabbage Beach compromise. What can only be described as a peaceful standoff now exists.

But for how long? It doesn’t take too much imagination to think of the day when you park up at the eastern end of Cabbage Beach and head for the narrow path down to the sands only to find it closed. Private or ‘members

only’ the only welcome.

Isn’t that already the case with the rest of the beach all the way to the west?

Miles of sand accessed only by hotel guests who pay for the privilege. Like many other beaches around New Providence the only way to access the beach will be from the sea.

Over the years, Cabbage - arguably the very best beach on the island - has already fallen from favour for locals who now prefer the ease of Goodman’s Bay rather than being perched on the very end of Cabbage.

We suggest the smartest immediate move this government can make to prove to the people of The Bahamas they care about regular folks is to buy Cabbage Beach. The land should be appraised and a fair price offered with fair market value taking into consideration that Cabbage Beach is the last available stretch of beach on Paradise Island, making it far more valuable than it might otherwise be. To try to pay less than full market value would send a chilling message to other potential investors.

Bahamians love the beach. Our love affair with the sand and the water and the clear blue sky above is so deep it is hard to find the words to describe it, but we feel it inside. Long after the headlines of corruption and who did what to whom fade, families will still have the beach they love if this government takes the courageous step of purchasing the most prized piece of

Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff available property on Paradise Island and saying to

the people of The Bahamas – this beach is yours,

forever. Take good care of it.

PAGE 12, Thursday, November 9, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

RESIDENTS have been voicing concern over styrofoam floating in the ocean in Bimini. Pictured is the scene after the initial alert.

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

Activist: Cry for help by Bimini residents is going unanswered

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net ONGOING environmental issues in Bimini will persist unless the government enacts the necessary legal framework to protect Family Island communities, Save The Bays legal director Fred Smith, QC

has warned.

In an interview with The Tribune Mr Smith said he was shocked by the level of help being provided to the residents of Bimini, likening their pleas for government intervention to an unnoticed cry for help.

The environmentalist said he feared Bimini

was finally succumbing to years of “social, economic and environmental discombobulation” at the hands of successive governments and “foreign invaders”.

“What we see in Bimini is the result of the anchor project being encouraged by central government’s failed heads of agreement economic model,” the

outspoken attorney said.

“This has happened in West End with the Wynn Group; in various parts of the Exumas, in Mayaguana, Baker’s Bay with Guana Cay; and the dozens of other failed anchor projects littering The Bahamas. All we’ve got to show for this is failed economic development and all sorts of environmental issues. It is sad that this is where we are at as a country.”

Mounds of Styrofoam have washed up on beaches around Bimini stemming from damage to Resorts World Bimini’s (RWB) floating docks from Hurricane Irma.

More than six weeks since the storm tore through floating docks at RWB, residents said they are still fishing large chunks of Styrofoam from bays around the island.

Last week, it was also revealed more than 100 workers were being laid off from the resort as it struggles to cope in the aftermath of the hurricane.

Mr Smith, like other local environmentalists, has called on the government to enact legislation to legally protect Bimini’s marine habitats.

He repeated that call to The Tribune, urging the Minnis administration to enact legislation which would allow for the legal preservation of all marine protected areas (MPAs), particularly in Bimini.

“It is time for the people’s government to decentralise and amend the Local Government Act to give home rule to the Family Islands so that they can be responsible for their own local economies through local taxes,” he said.

“In the 21st century in The Bahamas, all roads don’t have to lead to Nassau.

It is also the people’s time in the Family Islands.

“Bimini is a tragic example of how we have allowed foreign invaders to rape our islands. Unfortunately PLP and FNM governments have taken a complete hands-off approach to environmental disasters.”

Taking aim at the Minnis administration directly, Mr Smith added: “There is no reason a 35 of 39 seats majority can’t find the ability to do what is right. We need teeth in our laws. We need true protection for our islands and their natural habitat. We need this now.

“We need less talking now. We need statutory bodies that act and get things done. We need bodies that can push for prosecution and true environmental protection; not another BEST Commission,” he concluded.

Last month, residents said they were concerned that without the national spotlight focused on Bimini, RWB may not feel inclined to “finish the job” in terms of environmental clean-up.

A government delegation to Bimini in September in the wake of Hurricane Irma was greeted by the Save Our Home protest group.

Representatives from the group used the opportunity to corner Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis and detail how decades of mismanagement and poorly sanctioned developments led to the destruction of 450 acres of mangroves along the coastline of northern Bimini.

A second government delegation was expected to travel to Bimini last weekend, however, that trip never materialised according to West End and Bimini MP Pakesia Parker Edgecombe.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, November 9, 2017, PAGE 13

TRAINING, above and below, at the Rolex Technical Institute in Nassau, which is now part of a global scheme that will enhance the training of candidates.

GLOBAL VISION FOR WATCHMAKING COURSE THE professional watchmaking training programme at the new Rolex Technical Institute in Nassau has been specially selected for a global scheme.

The venture, launched two years ago in The Bahamas, will now comprise 1.5year intensive training instead of one year, and qualify to even higher standards. As a result, two watchmakers from The Bahamas and Barbados currently undergoing training in Nassau will extend their course and undertake a final exam at Rolex in Geneva, Switzerland, next February.

The programme has been incorporated into a global pilot scheme, along with courses in the United Kingdom and India.

The course also includes six months work experience in an after-sales service centre.

The programme is a product of the

partnership between the Nassau-based Rolex affiliate for the Caribbean and Central America and official Rolex retailers in the region including John Bull.

Building on the two first intakes in 2015 and 2016, two more new candidates, from St Lucia and The Bahamas, are also starting their professional training at the Rolex Technical Institute in September 2017.

Candidates have their intensive course financed by Rolex.

Alexandre Tabary-Devisme, general manager of Rolex Caribbean, said: “Graduates from the Rolex Technical Institute in Nassau are filling skilled and much-needed technical posts in the Caribbean. We are very proud that the quality of their training is recognised and these local trainees are receiving ever more extensive support from Rolex in Switzerland.”

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PAGE 14, Thursday, November 9, 2017

NOMINEE QUESTIONS HUMAN ROLE IN CLIMATE CHANGE WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump’s choice to head the Department of Homeland Security said Wednesday that she believes climate change exists, but said she cannot determine whether humans are the primary cause.

Speaking at her Senate confirmation hearing, Kirstjen Nielsen said she is “not prepared to determine causation” on climate change.

Nielsen’s comment contradicts mainstream climate science, including a US report last week that concludes the evidence of global warming is stronger than ever and that it’s “extremely likely” — meaning with 95 to 100 percent certainty — that global warming is man-made.

As head of homeland security, Nielsen would oversee a sprawling agency that leads the federal response to a range of natural disasters from wildfires to hurricanes.

Democrats criticised Nielsen’s answer, which is in line with top Trump administration officials who downplay humans’ role in climate change.

THE TRIBUNE

RISE IN PUERTO RICO DEATHS AFTER HURRICANE MARIA SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO Associated Press THE pace of deaths quickened on Puerto Rico immediately after Hurricane Maria — well beyond the number of deaths officially attributed to the Category 4 storm.

Officials in the US territory on Wednesday reported the island had an average of 82 deaths a day in the two weeks before Maria hit Sept 20. The average increased to 117 deaths a day through the rest of the month, but the rate then fell below usual in October.

“The truth is, that’s not normal,” said Jose Lopez Rodriguez, a demographer with the island’s Demographic Register. “We saw a difference, and it was a significant difference.”

The territory’s government has said 55 people died during the hurricane or later as a direct result of the storm, which knocked out power across the island.

The overall daily death figures hint that the storm could have caused other, harder-to-detect fatalities as well, though officials at the government’s forensic institute said they did not have evidence to attribute them

to Maria. They also rejected some media reports that suggested hundreds of people had died as a direct result of the hurricane.

“Those figures of 200, 400, 1,000 — no. Those deaths have not been reported to the institute,” said Edwin Crespo, director of the island’s Bureau of Forensic Science. “The institute has no reason to hide bodies.”

Crespo said death certificates sent to his agency involving natural deaths didn’t state whether a lack of power could have been a factor. “If the hospital or doctor didn’t make the

connection,” he said, then paused before adding: “We weren’t there.”

Hector Pesquera, secretary of Puerto Rico’s Department of Public Safety, acknowledged that some deaths classified as natural possibly might have been linked to the hurricane.

“Yes, they could have occurred,” he said.

“We cannot deny that categorically.”

Wanda Llovet, director of the Demographic Register, said a total of 2,838 deaths were reported for September, a 20 percent increase from the 2,366 deaths

reported for the same month in 2016 and up from 2,242 in September 2015.

But, she said, the number of deaths last month totaled 2,119, which was down about 10 percent from 2,353 in October 2016 and 2,379 in October 2015.

Pesquera said the government does not plan to investigate whether any deaths should have been classified as having a link to the hurricane.

“Why would there be an investigation?” he asked, saying a doctor would not risk losing his licence by signing an erroneous death certificate.

REVAMPS FOR TWITTER AND SNAPCHAT SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Struggling socialmedia darlings Twitter and Snapchat are taking on new looks as the services seek wider audiences in the shadow of Facebook.

Twitter is rolling out a 280-character limit for nearly all its users, abandoning its iconic 140-character limit for tweets. And Snapchat, long CHILDREN wave US and Chinese flags as President Donald Trump arrives at Beijing Airport, yesterday, in Beijing, China. Trump is on popular with young people, traveling to Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines. will undergo a revamp in hopes of becoming easier to use for everyone else.

Both services announced the moves Tuesday as they look for ways to expand beyond their passionate but slow-growing fan bases.

Twitter has said that 9 percent of tweets written in English hit the 140-character limit. People ended up supply, you cannot accept.” expected to demand that for the presidential visit. spending more time editing BEIJING Associated Press He called on “every the nation curtail its dealThe Trumps walked tweets or didn’t send them nation, including China and ings with Pyongyang and alongside Xi and his wife out at all.

PRESIDENT Donald Russia,” to fully implement expel North Korean work- through the historic site Snap, Snapchat’s parent company, did not provide Trump nodded apprecia- UN Security Council reso- ers from its borders. Trump and admired artifacts from details on the upcoming tively as China’s Xi Jinping lutions against North Korea has praised China for taking centuries’ past. Trump showcased a centuries-old enforcing sanctions aimed some steps against Pyong- posed for photos and, with changes. temple in Beijing’s Forbid- at depriving its government yang, but he wants them to a wave of his hand, joked den City. He clapped along of revenue for its nuclear do more. to Xi about the reporters as the two leaders watched and ballistic missile proChina is increasingly watching. And he laughed a Chinese children’s opera. grams. The latest measure, disenchanted with North and clapped along during And the pair shared a tradi- adopted after a September Korea over its nuclear an outdoor opera featuring tional tea and salutations of atomic test explosion, the weapons development but colorful costumes, martial friendship.

North’s largest yet, banned remains wary of using its arts and atonal music.

Trump’s two-day visit imports of its textiles and full economic leverage over Trump said afterward CHICAGO (AP) — to China opened with dip- prohibited new work per- its traditional ally. It fears he’s “having a great time” Former President Barack lomatic niceties aplenty mits for overseas North triggering a collapse of the in China. But much of Obama, free of a job that Wednesday. But thorny Korean laborers. It also North’s totalitarian regime the remainder of his stay forced him to move to issues await the two world restricted exports of some that could cause an influx of in Beijing will revolve Washington for eight years, leaders behind closed petroleum products. refugees into northeastern around deep negotiations showed up to a downtown doors, including potenTrump’s words drew a China and culminate in a over trade with Pyongyang Chicago courthouse for jury tial tensions over trade caustic response from North US-allied unified Korea on and other matters. The duty on Wednesday morn- and China’s willingness to Korean state media, which its border. president also is expected ing. Then he heard the words put the squeeze on North issued a statement WednesChina poured on the to showcase a round of most prospective jurors pray Korea over its nuclear day saying the US should pomp and pageantry for business deals signed for: You’re dismissed. weapons program. “oust the lunatic old man Trump’s arrival. The presi- Wednesday by Chinese and Shortly before noon, Ahead of his arrival, from power” and withdraw dent and first lady Melania US companies that the two Cook County Chief Judge Trump delivered a stern its “hostile policy” toward Trump were greeted at the sides say are valued at $9 Timothy Evans told message to Beijing, using Pyongyang “in order to get airport by dozens of chil- billion. reporters that the former an address to the National rid of the abyss of doom.” dren who waved US and Among them: a pledge president had not been Assembly in South Korea White House officials Chinese flags and jumped by China’s biggest online selected for jury duty. But to call on nations to con- said Trump would under- up and down. The couple retailer to buy $1.2 billion Obama was ready to serve front the North. score his public messages spent the first hours of their of American beef and pork. if told to do so, Evans said.

“All responsible nations about North Korea when he visit on a private tour of the Such contract signings are For his troubles, Obama must join forces to isolate and Xi sit down for private Forbidden City, Beijing’s a fixture of visits by foreign is in line to receive $17.20 the brutal regime of North talks on Thursday. China is ancient imperial palace. It’s leaders to China and are — the daily rate of pay for Korea,” Trump said. “You North Korea’s largest trad- usually teeming with tourists aimed at blunting criticism performing this civic duty. cannot support, you cannot ing partner and Trump is but was closed to the public of Beijing’s trade practices.

a five-country trip through Asia Photo: Andrew Harnik/AP

Niceties in public - but hard talks for Trump in China

JURY DUTY FOR OBAMA - BUT HE IS NOT PICKED

It’s “a way of distracting from the fact that there’s been no progress in China on structural reform, market access or the big issues that the president has tried to make progress on with regard to China,” said Elizabeth Economy, the director for Asia Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Trump has made narrowing the multibillion-dollar US trade deficit with China a priority for his administration — and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said Wednesday the deals were a step in the right direction.

“Achieving fair and reciprocal treatment for the companies is a shared objective,” Ross said.

“Today’s signings are a good example of how we can productively build up our bilateral trade.”

China’s trade surplus with the United States in October widened by 12.2 percent from a year earlier, to $26.6 billion, according to Chinese customs data released Wednesday. The total surplus with the United States for the first 10 months of the year rose to $223 billion.

US TIGHTENS CUBA TRAVEL RULES WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans seeking to visit Cuba must navigate a complicated maze of travel, commerce and financial restrictions unveiled Wednesday by the Trump administration, part of a new policy to further isolate the island’s communist government.

Now off-limits to US citizens are dozens of Cuban hotels, shops, tour companies and other businesses included on a lengthy American blacklist of entities that have links to Cuba’s military, intelligence or security services. And most Americans will once again be required to travel as part of heavily regulated, organised tour groups run

by US companies, rather

than voyaging to Cuba on their own.

The stricter rules mark a return to the tougher US stance toward Cuba that existed before former President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro restored diplomatic relations in 2015. They come as President Donald Trump tries to show he’s taking action to prevent US dollars from helping prop up the Cuban government.

Still, the policy is only a partial rollback of Obama’s changes. Cruise ship visits and direct commercial flights between the countries will still be permitted.

Embassies in Washington and Havana stay open.

Trump announced his new policy in June.