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VOLUME:117 No.03, NOVEMBER 25TH, 2019

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NYGARD ACCUSED OF SEX ATTACKS Police probing SIX formal complaints by alleged victims

By TRIBUNE REPORTER BAHAMAS police are investigating six allegations of rape made against Canadian fashion tycoon Peter Nygard.

The Tribune understands the women all came forward to police in July to make formal complaints that Nygard sexually assaulted and raped them when they were all under 16.

All the incidents are alleged to have occurred at Nygard’s luxury Mayanstyle mansion at Lyford Cay. Sources close to the women told The Tribune they are keen the women are given their chance to see

Nygard in court to answer for his alleged crimes.

Already, however, they fear Nygard and his associates – who somehow have learned the full details of the allegations – may attempt to persuade the women to change their stories.

Sources have detailed accounts of what went on behind the walls of Nygard’s home at infamous pamper parties’ held there every Sunday whenever he was in town when sometimes more than 100 girls attended by invitation only through Facebook or by direct solicitation by Nygard’s employees.

PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis supports expunging criminal records of people convicted of possessing small amounts of marijuana, he said yesterday.

Former Commissioner of Police Paul Farquharson is the head of the government’s Rehabilitation of

SEE PAGE THREE

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

OPPOSITION leader Philip “Brave” Davis said the country is headed toward a financial crisis and that he is certain it will face a credit downgrade.

He said at a Progressive Liberal Party press conference yesterday: “We are on a fiscal cliff, falling, there is a financial crisis that we think is looming and looming large. A downgrade is for certain. We’ve been there but they’ve been able to gloss over and paint a picture that was not what we believe is right.”

Mr Davis spoke after last week’s communication in Parliament by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Peter Turnquest.

In large part because of Hurricane Dorian, the deficit for the fiscal year has ballooned to $677.5m and the government plans to borrow $507.9m to meet the shortfall, Mr Turnquest said.

$25M PROJECT TO OUTSOURCE ROAD TRAFFIC DEPARTMENT

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

SEE PAGE THREE

Offenders Committee. He told The Tribune earlier this month that he wants young and first-time offenders, especially those convicted of drug possession crimes, to get their criminal records expunged.

Under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Amendment) 2015, people who have committed murder, manslaughter, treason,

BRAVE - WE’RE HEADING OVER A FISCAL CLIFF

SEE PAGE SIX

PM: TIME TO WIPE THE SLATE CLEAN

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

HOME

SNAKE CHARMERS PEOPLE flocked to enjoy the Bahamas National Trust’s Christmas Jollification, Arts and Crafts Festival over the weekend. Picture Special - Page 10 Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

A BAHAMIAN-LED investor group says its revised $25m proposal to transform the Road Traffic Department and “bring The Bahamas up to international standards” will create 300 jobs, if approved. Franklyn Robinson and Charles Beneby, principals in Bahamas Automobile Safety and Inspection Centre Ltd, told Tribune Business they had “never stopped pursuing” their offer of a comprehensive 20-year public-private partnership solution for the “headache” created by the department’s multiple woes.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

ARCHER BACK WITH A NEW VILE RANT

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

A MAN says his family is distraught after Omar Archer, the registrar of contractors in The Bahamas, “falsely claimed” in a viral video that a relative of his committed indecent and illegal acts involving a minor.

Mr Archer attacked Kyle Dean, a Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) supporter in a

OMAR ARCHER video that has been viewed more than 16,000 times on social media this

month. “Everyone knows that your (relative) was charged for molestation of a minor…” Mr Archer says in the nearly sevenminute clip. “I ga show you what bad mind do, you gon’ regret (expletive) with me bro, straight up, now you brought me out of my shell, I gon’ dismantle what’s left of your stink (expletive), no good piece of (expletive), child (expletive), I gon’ (expletive) all you up. Now, SEE PAGE FIVE

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

INSIGHT

WE NEED MORE THAN SMART TECH TO BEAT CRIME

SEE PAGE SEVEN

PAGE 2, Monday, November 25, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

TRIBUTES PAID TO FELIX BETHEL

By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tri bunemedia.net

PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party chairman Fred Mitchell and Englerston MP Glenys Hanna Martin

paid tribute to Felix Bethel, a former professor at the University of The Bahamas and a public servant, who died last week.

In an interview with The Tribune, Mr Mitchell said Mr Bethel was a brilliant

man who he thought had never reached his full potential.

“He was an incisive intellectual and a man with a very sharp wit. My association, of course, dates back to the year 1974 when

we were both juniors of the public service. I was at Bahamas Information Services and he worked at the Ministry of Transport,” Mr Mitchell said.“It’s very unfortunate that he didn’t get - as a result of some

MR Bethel taught at UB, formerly the College of the Bahamas, for about 45 years. missteps by the administration at that time - he didn’t get the opportunity to be promoted into the upper ranks of the public service.

“The loss to the public service was the benefit of the academy and I think he did an excellent job in training generations of Bahamians in the thousands…about the Bahamas, about his political life and public policy. I think we lost a good citizen of the Bahamas.”

When contacted, Mrs Hanna Martin said she knew Mr Bethel for many years and remembered him as a commentator on the political and social economic circumstances in the country.

“He has mentored and touched a lot of people at the University of the Bahamas. What I liked about him in particular is the fact that he did not put himself in a box in terms of his perception or conceptualisation of his external reality of the world,” she said.

“A lot of times his views, his opinion, his expressions made people uncomfortable which I thought was good because the only way there is progress if there is a chasing on the status quo and he did that a lot. He chased the status quo. He was very committed to concept of social justice and I believe he imparted those concepts through his academic involvement and in

his other commentaries at large.”

Mrs Hanna Martin added: “He could be deemed to be eccentric by many, but everyone is different and unique. He was not afraid to express that.

I think he brought something different, interesting and valuable to the national dialogue.”

Mr Bethel taught at UB, formerly the College of the Bahamas, for about 45 years. He was terminated in January and said he was denied a chance to clear out his office. He threatened to file a wrongful termination lawsuit over the issue, but it is unclear if this ever materialised.

The 70-year-old died “peacefully” Thursday night, after fighting several illnesses, according to his daughter Xan-Xi Bethel-Sweeting.

Mrs Bethel-Sweeting said: “He had been dealing with a number of ailments for quite a while but personally I’m pretty sure it was also tiredness and fatigue. The time came and I will say is that he did have a pretty sharp decline after they insulted him at the university earlier this year.

That’s what we noticed.

“My dad would not have wanted all the details of the circumstances of his death published. He was a nation builder and committed to the empowerment and uplifting of Bahamian people.”

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, November 25, 2019, PAGE 3

MINNIS: TIME TO WIPE THE SLATE CLEAN

from page one

armed robbery, rape or possessed dangerous drugs with the intent to supply cannot have their records expunged. But after five years most others are eligible if they are first-time offenders or were younger than 21 at the time of their first conviction. People have to apply to get their records expunged and Mr

Farquharson hopes that after their application is submitted, it will take the committee no longer than three to six months to reply.

Last week, Dr Minnis became the first sitting prime minister to publicly support some form of marijuana decriminalisation, saying that in addition to decriminalizing possession of small amounts of the substance, he wants it legalized for medicinal and/

or scientific purposes. He said in a statement yesterday: “Our laws regarding the possession of small amounts of marijuana have unfortunately led to the arrest, prosecution, conviction and punishment of many Bahamians.

“Some of these people have been burdened with criminal records, making travel and finding work more difficult. Reforming our marijuana laws

and changing how we treat people with small possession convictions is a matter of social justice. I support expunging the records of Bahamians convicted of possession of small amounts of marijuana. They deserve to move on with their lives free and clear of a criminal conviction. I eagerly await the release of the report by the Bahamas National Commission on Marijuana.

“My government will use

the report’s findings to help reform our marijuana laws.

Part of this reform should be expunging the records of Bahamians convicted of possession of small amounts of marijuana.

Being from the Over-theHill community, I have seen firsthand how our current laws especially harm young people from modest backgrounds. The commission’s findings will be widely circulated and we welcome

the input of Bahamians as we make those long-needed changes to various laws. A Rehabilitation of Offenders Committee has been formed and is reviewing a number of matters for recommendation, including the possible expunging of some criminal records for possession of small amounts of marijuana. We will also take into consideration the recommendation of this committee.”

Nygard accused of sex attacks CANADIAN fashion tycoon Peter Nygard, above, and, left, his luxury mansion at Lyford Cay from page one Sources have also recounted that the complaints to police allege many of the girls were given drugs at the parties and – especially underage girls – forced to have sex.

The Tribune understands that some of the victims who have laid complaints with the police have been approached by people – including a policeman – on behalf of Nygard to change their stories.

However, none of the six victims who made their complaints to police in July have retracted a single word of their allegations.

Police were first made

aware serious claims were being made about Nygard as early as March this year but it was only four months later the formal complaints were lodged.

The girls’ lawyers fear these six women may just be the tip of the iceberg and that over the years the “pamper parties” were staged dozens more women were subjected to assaults by Nygard.

One complaint goes back to the year 2000 and the newest to just three years ago in 2016.

Common to many of the women’s stories is that in addition to being “recruited” via Facebook to attend the parties Nygard or his employees

RIVAL: Louis Bacon would approach girls at his store in Marathon Mall. The girls would be told they were “beautiful and could be a model” and then invited to the the “pamper parties” to meet Nygard.

Once they were at Nygard’s home the victims

have told how they were quickly offered alcohol and “little blue pills” – which lawyers believe may have been the date-rape drug Rohypnol.

Victims recall feeling unable to control their bodies, aware of their surroundings – that they are being raped but can physically do nothing to resist or stop it.

Lawyers believe the rape investigation may play a large part in Nygard’s reluctance to return to The Bahamas where he has just been given a threemonth sentence and heavy fine for contempt of court which he is now appealing. His fear, they believe, is that while he would be

MAN, 56, ON SWISS TO STAND TRIAL OVER CHARGES HE RAPE CHARGE BROUGHT COCAINE INTO THE COUNTRY

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tribunemedia.net

AN Eight Mile Rock man was charged with rape in the Freeport Magistrate’s Court on Friday. Charles Davis, aka, “Pope”, 56, of Bayshore Road, Jones Town, appeared before Magistrate Rengin Johnson.

Davis was not required to enter a plea and was remanded into custody.

The case was adjourned to February 19, 2020 for trial before Magistrate Gwen Claude in the Eight Mile Rock Magistrate’s Court.

In a separate court matter, a man was charged with assault with a deadly weapon.

Hayward Johnson, 20, of Gordon Avenue, Freeport, also appeared before Magistrate Johnson.

He was charged with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon. He was not required to enter a plea to the charges and the case was adjourned to March 11, 2020 for trial before Deputy Chief Magistrate Debbye Ferguson.

A SWISS man was charged in Magistrate’s Court on Friday with possession of 7.4 pounds of dangerous drugs.

Rene Buffat, 66, of Switzerland appeared before Magistrate Andrew Forbes charged with one count each of possession of dangerous drugs with intent to supply, importation of dangerous drugs, conspiracy to possess dangerous drugs with intent to supply, and conspiracy to import dangerous drugs.

It is alleged that on November 21 in New Providence, Buffat was found in possession of cocaine, with intent to supply, according to the court dockets. It is also alleged that on that same day, Buffat imported cocaine into the country.

Furthermore, it is alleged that sometime between November 13-21, Buffat, being concerned with others, conspired to possess the drugs with intent to

supply. It also alleged that sometime between November 13-21, Buffat, along with others, conspired to import the drugs.

According to initial police reports, shortly before noon on Thursday, November 21, Drug Enforcement Unit officers, acting on information, conducted a search of a man’s luggage at Lynden Pindling International Airport and uncovered a black taped package with suspected cocaine.

The drugs were estimated to weigh 7.4 pounds and had a street value of $50,000.

Buffat pleaded not guilty to all of the charges. Magistrate Forbes noted his court does not have the jurisdiction or authority to grant bail. However, the magistrate said Buffat does have the option of applying to the Supreme Court.

Buffat told the court he was not aware that drugs were on him. He also said he had no reason to commit the crime and claimed to be a victim of a scam. However he was remanded to the Department of Correctional Services until March 16, 2020 when he is set to stand trial.

immediately arrested on arrival he would also be passed over to detectives for questioning on the rape allegations.

In a New York court earlier this month Nygard and his lawyers claimed there was a widespread conspiracy against him orchestrated by his billionaire rival, Louis Bacon.

Documents filed claimed Bacon – through Fred Smith, QC, and others, including The New York Times – were paying women to make damning allegations against him regarding his sexual behaviour.

Some Nygard critics believe this “conspiracy theory” was floated in

an attempt to stall a nine-month investigation by The New York Times which had collated a number of interviews with women said to have told similar stories about Nygard and aspects of his private life.

The paper is understood to have started to submit questions to Nygard when he suddenly ran to court claiming all the women’s stories were fabricated and had been paid for.

Lawyers for the women who have made complaints to Bahamas police fear these women may now be targeted by Nygard and paid to recant their complaints.

Editorial View - Page 4

PAGE 4, Monday, November 25, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

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Time to show Omar Archer the door TO jump out of the second floor window of a court room - for whatever reason - is not the act of someone thinking straight.

This is perhaps the single most headline grabbing moment in the colourful career of Omar Archer.

He’s had his run-ins time and time again and for many became one of those weird characters screaming on the fringes of public debate.

There wasn’t an eyebrow left unraised when, out of nowhere, the Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis made him the government-appointed Registrar of Contractors. Archer’s eccentric past hardly screamed “This man must be trusted with a government office”.

Sure enough it wasn’t long before he was making waves again, demanding the dismissal of Director of Works Melanie Roach for alleged favouritism in granting works to specific contractors.

Ms Roach had to patiently point out that her position didn’t actually allow her to select contractors. She was, she assured the public, a loyal and honest civil servant who had devoted her life to public service and never once had her integrity been questioned before Mr Archer started throwing charges against her.

Minister of Works Desmond Bannister quickly leapt to her defence,

saying: “She brings an exceptional level of integrity to the ministry; has the highest degree of respect from myself and from her professional colleagues and is a workaholic, who has carried a tremendous burden of modernising our outdated roads and infrastructure throughout the country,” he said. “It is an honour for me to work with her.”

Now it seems Mr Archer has found a new target in the person of PLP supporter Kyle Dean who he accuses of operating a Facebook page titled Bahamas Against Corruption, something Mr Dean denies.

Mr Archer’s vile, foul-mouthed tirade against Mr Dean has now been seen on social media more than 16,000 times.

In it he also uses foul language against a number of leading PLP party members.

If the Prime Minister hasn’t seen the video may we suggest someone in his office sits him down for a few seconds and shows him what Mr Archer is up to.

Then hopefully this bad joke being played out on the public can come to the swift end it deserves.

Whatever value Dr Minnis sees in Mr Archer, however much he or the FNM think he’s worth hanging on to, they’re wrong.

Show him the door.

Peter Nygard and complaints which deserve our full attention PETER Nygard’s history in The Bahamas has, it feels, not seen a day without controversy.

Whether it is illegally dredging the ocean floor, rowing with his billionaire neighbour, his lavish generosity to politicians and businessmen, the headlines have chronicled his every move.

There has long been something distasteful in the stories people routinely recount about what goes on at the parties staged at his home in Lyford Cay. Many young women openly admit spending time there with friends, enjoying his hospitality. Others, so we heard, suffered cruelly for their innocence.

These were only unproven stories – until today. Now it appears Nygard – should he ever find his way back to The Bahamas – may have to explain himself. Bahamas police have been confronted with six official complaints alleging rape and sexual assault by the Canadian billionaire.

Due process must now follow. The police we expect to do a thorough and professional job, examining the alleged victims’ stories and coming to a decision on whether to forward matters to the

Director of Public Prosecutions for further action.

We know the police will not be blind to the fact that Nygard is a powerful man with unlimited cash at his disposal.

There are already serious concerns by the lawyers for the girls who have lodged their complaints that somehow they will be persuaded to change their stories.

Nygard himself has already thrown into the public arena that his accusers have themselves been paid to damage his reputation.

Clear heads are going to be needed here. Commissioner Ferguson needs to be on his guard. Every step must be made to protect these women and, if their stories seem credible, to make sure they have their day in court to confront the man they say abused them.

It may be tempting for people to think there could be a quick pay day in it for them by helping Nygard discover who his accusers are. This may even include policemen which would be the ultimate betrayal of the trust the public places in them.

Rest assured, The Tribune - like many others - will be watching closely over the coming months how this all plays out.

Do something new EDITOR, The Tribune I WAS born in a time when elitist education was the order of the day (1970s).

Currently, both globally and locally there is a move to increase access to education. There will definitely be a compromise on quality happening in most western educational institutions.

The Bahamas and most of the Caribbean cannot afford to lose at least about 25% of our youth who never get a tertiary education in a modern world that will require advance training beyond high school. However, the schools modus operandi

are designed for students like I was – good academic background, supportive mom and non-violent.

The modern student has mainly weak academic background, few supportive parents and are more aggressive and outspoken.

As an educator, I read omnivorously and it gives insight but reality is harder than theory. The solution is more remedial work for students deficient and more conflict resolution training for the teacher and other faculty. This is a start but as you implement you improve. There are many other changes such as teaching with technology,

but let’s do something instead of continue status quo and wonder why there are thousands of gang members in the Bahamas.

Do something different!

Most educators believe that strict discipline is essential for academic success and it’s true but that locks out the majority. We can no longer build a world with a tiny ruling elite, then use the police force to suppress the unsuccessful aspirant that turned to crime when statistically the results were predictable-madness.

BRIAN PLUMMER Nassau, November 5, 2019.

A tax system we can’t afford EDITOR, The Tribune YOUR Editorial comment of Thursday, the 21st November, was informative in that it laid out the serious fiscal situation facing Bahamian governments as we continue to grapple with increasingly devastating Atlantic hurricanes.

While the media was curiously dismissive of the link between the last government’s fiscal woes and another category 5 hurricane, it is nonetheless positive (though not surprising) that, with the FNM in power and facing a similar weather-related fiscal situation, the media’s approach has been more constructive.

On present models, climate change will continue to fiscally challenge Bahamian governments of whatever party. It will, as you rightly state, require a departure from the ordinary ways of thinking if we are to maintain our historical record as a wellmanaged country with modest levels of public debt. Revenues generated from traditional sources (i.e. regressive consumer taxes on the poor) will not be sufficient.

However, it is hoped that your reference to the present oil-exploration activity being conducted by a company known as BPC does not reflect a serious suggestion that we pivot for revenues toward the very carbon industries that are blamed for the

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net global warming that sent us Dorian.

Apart from being the last thing our environment needs, it was frankly embarrassing to see our Prime Minister run off to the UN claiming that we are innocent victims of a carbon-energy assault on earth’s climate, only to return and get busy approving oil exploration projects.

As for the Guyanese example, while I wish that unfortunate country well, it is difficult not to conclude that getting into the oil business in 2019 (when the US is a net energy exporter and there is an international upsurge in renewablesbased technologies) is akin to getting into the horse and carriage business in 1919, when production of Ford’s Model T was in full swing. We will see.

The last thing we should want or need at this point in our national development is to sully our lands or seas with the muck of the dying oil industry.

As to the suggestion that ‘unshackled’ foreign investment will somehow heal our fiscal woes, it is worth considering that, with a population of under 400,000 souls, we received foreign investment inflows of $947 million, or about $2,700 per person, last year (a bad year for us). That places us among the highest

per capita recipients of FDI on earth. It is long past time that we stopped the rush for numbers and became more discriminating instead about what kinds of investments we seek and permit – as the OBAN fiasco vividly demonstrates.

The Bahamas has sufficient investment inflows, a sufficiently small population and (crucially) a large enough economy to absorb the fiscal shocks associated with Atlantic hurricanes without a crisis every few years.

The elephant in the room is neither the need to sell out to the environmentally disastrous oil industry nor to join a race to the bottom for even more foreign investment, especially if the latter involves dismantling the protections of Bahamianisation. Rather, it is to bring our revenues in line with our GDP per capita by moving toward a sensible, progressive policy on taxes.

We can no longer afford to run our country on a narrow and inflexible revenue base that disproportionately taxes the poor and brings in no more than 18 percent of GDP in revenues. Nor can we afford to indulge the wealthiest individuals and corporations by foregoing taxes on income.

It is a luxury that no country that is serious about its development can afford.

It really is that simple.

ANDREW ALLEN Nassau November 22, 2019

Food for thought EDITOR, The Tribune ROADSIDE vendors do they have Health certificates? An ever increasing group of people just trying to make a dollar, but they are selling food - coconut juice, etc…are they not required to get a Food handlers certificate and display it?

Marijuana for personal use…totally unsurprised PM talking he supports legalising a ‘joint’ but as previous writer opined you have to legalise the source from where the individual is going to obtain his personal snatch!

Supermarkets…am I imagining things, but certain products have gone sky-high…all Pork items…

Beef Steak…then there is the annoying unavailable products, the stores have computers surely there can be better management? Maxwell House decaffeinated out of stock everywhere…agent says three-weeks for a new supply…dah, you ain’t got computer? Food prices have inflated by six percent…and no relief!

Minister of Finance… when is a fee not a Tax?

Ask yourself, sir! BP&L have been living on the wild side since 2017… time someone pulled them in and legitimatised their actions…BP&L has to go to a RFP to purchase anything…has BEST Commission approved LNG? Has URCA approved LNG? When was the RFP to manage new engines at Clifton? Oh that report on Ms Darnell Osborne… surely ready by now?

ABRAHAM MOSS Nassau November 18, 2019

THE TRIBUNE from page one ‘Brave’ Davis, you too Picewell Forbes and you too. . .Glenys, I gon’ (expletive) all y’all up…”

In the video, Mr Archer justifies the rant by accusing Mr Dean of attacking the Minnis-led government through a Facebook page, Bahamians Against Corruption. Mr Dean claimed yesterday that he is not the operator of that page.

“The comments he made are distressing, they are untrue, they are unwarranted and as a professional I should not be subjected to the attacks of a political appointee, especially when I have a career that is sensitive,” Mr Dean said.

“My family is very much offended and stunned by it because they did nothing to warrant these attacks and upon the video circulating they have sought legal advice. That nothing has been done to censor him by his bosses is even much more stunning to my family.

The family is very much

Monday, November 25, 2019, PAGE 5

Archer back with a new vile video rant hurt. The comments were also very careless because sexual molestation or unlawful sexual intercourse with minors is a serious issue. It’s not something that should be used to exact revenge on your opponents.”

Mr Dean said his family has been bombarded by calls since the video went viral.

“We’ve had so many people reach out to us who are concerned about the emotional and psychological impact they think his comments may have had on my family,” he said. “We’ve received calls form people calling on my family to rise above the fray during this

time of unwarranted attacks by a high-ranking official.

“When the government appoints people to the public service to highranking positions, they should be held responsible for their actions and what they do. Regardless of how much a person is politically connected, they should never get away with making such libellous statements against people without repercussions.”

Since his controversial appointment as registrar of contractors, Mr Archer has made headlines for a number of reasons, including by openly criticising Works Minister Desmond

Bannister and Director of Works Melanie Roach.

Yesterday, Progressive Liberal Party Leader Philip “Brave” Davis said such attacks are unprecedented from someone employed by the government. He claimed Mr Archer’s continued employment is a source of tension for Mr Bannister and Ms Roach and he questioned if Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis is protecting him for political reasons.

“There is no precedent for this kind of conduct by a civil servant,” Mr Davis said. “I’m aware that there are tensions existing between the

minister responsible for works and other ministers and the director of works because of the conduct of this individual, which is unprecedented. If he wants to become a public commentator on events, I think he needs to find himself another job and/or the government can engage him as a consultant to their party.

But to allow him to carry on like that on the public purse with no repercussion is unacceptable. If the minister of works realises this man’s conduct is not in keeping with general orders and generally accepted conduct of a public servant and he cannot do anything

about it, then there must be somebody else keeping that person employed and that obviously could only be the prime minister of the Bahamas.”

Mr Archer, who has had several run-ins with the law over the years, was a visible supporter of the FNM in the lead-up to the general election. His current position in government was not advertised to other potential applicants and the terms of his employment have not been made public.

The Tribune reached out to Mr Archer for comment but he did not reply.

Editorial View - Page 4

Marine charged with murder is given bail

By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tribunemedia.net THE Royal Bahamas Defence Force marine charged with murdering his superior at Government House was granted bail on Thursday.

Able Seaman Jevon Seymour was granted $30,000 bail after the Court of Appeal deemed a judge’s decision unreasonable for denying the marine’s bail on July 11.

Seymour must follow the terms of his bail by wearing an ankle monitor, reporting to the Airport/Western Police Station three times a week before 6pm, surrendering his passport and other travel documents to the Registrar of the Court of Appeal and avoiding contact with the Crown’s witnesses.

The panel noted there was no evidence that suggested that Seymour would be a flight risk or a threat to public safety.

A ruling posted on the

Court of Appeal’s website noted: “…Although the judge may have been justified in concluding as he did that the appellant might abscond, in the absence of evidence or the ‘substantial grounds’ provided by the Crown which could ground a reasonable belief that the appellant was a threat to public safety or public order; or would interfere with witnesses, the judge’s reasons for refusing bail were unreasonable and flawed.

“The judge chose to base his decision to refuse bail on his conclusion that the appellant might abscond from an inference he drew based upon his ‘findings’ that the offences were serious, the penalties severe and the evidence ‘cogent’.

As we have already demonstrated, those were not the only relevant factors he was required to take into account in the exercise of his discretion.”

The ruling added: “Additionally, in spite of the appellant’s good character,

his strong family and community ties and his long unblemished record of service with the RBDF, the judge took into account the notorious facts of the high rate of murder in this community and the growing culture of vigilantism (both clearly unconnected by evidence to the appellant) and erroneously connected those notorious facts with the fact that the offences occurred at the residence of the head of state so as to justify his denial of bail to the appellant on the basis that the need for public safety and public order were ‘paramount’. With respect, this conclusion is unfair to the appellant and clearly unreasonable.”

Earlier this year, Seymour, 35, was charged with the shooting death of RBDF Petty Officer Percival Perpall, 52, and the attempted murders of two of his colleagues, Calvin Hanna and Ellis Rahming on April 28.

According to initial police reports, the three

MAN STABBED IN NIGHTCLUB

By RIEL MAJOR Tribune Staff Reporter rmajor@tribunemedia.net

POLICE are investigating the circumstances surrounding a stabbing incident that left one New Providence man in hospital early yesterday morning.

According to reports, shortly after 2am, a man was at a night club on Maxwell Lane in Rock Crusher Subdivision when he got into an argument that escalated with another man, which resulted in the man being stabbed. He was transported to the hospital and is listed in serious but stable condition.

Meanwhile, police on Grand Bahama are investigating a shooting that left two Freeport residents in hospital on Friday.

Assistant Superintendent of Police Terecita Pinder said police received reports

of a shooting in the Raleigh Drive area shortly 9pm.

She said uniformed and plain clothes officers went to the scene and discovered a man with a gunshot wound to the leg. He was transported to the hospital by paramedics.

ASP Pinder reported that on arrival at the hospital, officers discovered a second victim with gunshot wounds to both legs.

The victims told officers that they were at Raleigh Drive when two males, one armed with a firearm, opened fire hitting them in the leg. They were treated by doctors and are both listed in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries.

ASP Pinder reported that two male suspects were later arrested and are assisting police with their investigations.

In other crime news,

officers arrested a man after they recovered an illegal firearm and ammunition on Saturday night.

According to reports, shortly after 10pm, officers were on patrol on Spence Street when they saw a man walking. The man began to act suspicious which led to a search of the man. Officers recovered a 9-millimeter pistol which contained 14 rounds of ammunition.

The 34-year-old man of McCullough Corner was taken into police custody and is expected to be formally charged before a judge later this week.

Additionally, officers searched a bushy area on Kim’s Crescent off Baillou Hill Road and recovered 383 foil wrappings, two plastic bags and a container with suspected marijuana.

The drugs were estimated to weigh two pounds with a street value of $2,000.

FOUR HAITIANS ADMIT OVERSTAYING

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

FOUR Haitian men were recently charged in the Freeport Magistrate’s Court for breach of the Immigration Act. Briceler Phanor, aka, Raymon Odine, 29; Astrel Fabre, aka Gaby Mauvais, 39; Guerby Metayer, aka Guyemond Honore, 29; and Eddy Metellus, aka William Junior Joseph, 28, appeared before Magistrate Rengin Johnson recently.

They were charged with

overstaying contrary to Section 28(1) & (3) of the Immigration Act. It is alleged that on November 10, the men were all found in Freeport, Grand Bahama after the expiration of their visitor’s status. They all pleaded guilty and were convicted and ordered to pay a fine of $3,000 each or in default serve nine months imprisonment.

The men were also charged with misleading an immigration officer, contrary to Section 10(e) of the Immigration Act.

According to the particulars, the men knowingly misled immigration officers by providing false names during interrogation.

They pleaded guilty to the charge and were ordered to pay a fine of $3,000 each or in default serve nine months imprisonment.

The sentences are to run concurrently.

Magistrate Johnson also ordered all defendants deported to Haiti upon payment of the fines or completion of their custodial sentences.

JEVON SEYMOUR, charged with murdering his superior

officers were attacked while on duty at Government House.

Around 2.30am on the date in question, a man accessed Government House, made his way to the guard house where P/O Perpall, the guard commander, and other officers were, police reported.

According to police, P/O Perpall was seated in the administrative area along with another RBDF marine while others were on break in another area.

The male intruder subsequently opened fire on P/O Perpall, hitting him several times in the upper body before fleeing the premises.

He was pursued by alert marines, but escaped.

Paramedics were summoned to the scene where they pronounced P/O Perpall dead.

P/O Perpall enlisted in the RBDF more than 30 years ago and was once a United Nations peacekeeper in Haiti.

Seymour has denied the charges against him.

PAGE 6, Monday, November 25, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

DAVIS: GOV’T HAS FAILED TO PAY $7M IN VAT REFUNDS

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

OPPOSITION leader Philip “Brave” Davis said the government has not been paying legitimate VAT refunds, adding yesterday that it is undermining the compliance level of the tax and “overstating its true performance value”.

Mr Davis said three business people have

complained to him about the government’s failure to pay them VAT refunds in accordance with the law.

The total amount due to them is about $7m, he said.

“Persons have called me and asked me to intervene on their behalf,” he said. “I’ve had at least three people do so and I’m told there are many, many more. If the government is truly committed to transparency, they should

publish the level of VAT refunds which are approved but not yet paid.

As chairman of the Public Accounts Committee and leader of the opposition, I will be compiling a list of vendors for government or from state owned enterprises, whether domestic or international, who are owed refunds for long periods and are facing financial hardships as a result. Through this

communication, I am calling these vendors and VAT registrants to present their claims for payment or VAT or other tax refunds to me on a confidential basis and I will seek clarity from the prime minister on the settlement of these claims.

“I should add that I will also bring to the attention of those who independently review the fiscal state of this country – including the IMF, Moody’s and Standard

and Poor’s – the magnitude and nature of these claims to ensure that the government properly accounts for these claims in its fiscal accounts.”

Yesterday, Financial Secretary Marlon Johnson told The Tribune he is not aware of any systemic problem with paying VAT refunds.

“We have been making steps to try to speed up the refund process and we have had some success

with that,” he said. “I’m not aware of any particular issues and I can say certainly there is no systemic issue that is keeping people from getting their VAT refunds. If there is a company that is having trouble getting VAT refunds, as always they can report it to the Ministry of Finance and we would take a look at it, but there are no systemic issues with VAT refunds.”

OPPOSITION leader Philip “Brave” Davis expected to worsen due to registered a 12.8 percent the disruption to business contraction compared to activity and productive the same period last year, capacity in both Abaco with air and sea visitors and Grand Bahama, which posting declines of 14.7 and account for 2.6 percent and 12.4 percent respectively.

Responding to Hurricane 13.8 percent of the labour Dorian will cause a deparforce,” the report said.

In September, the ture from the government’s country’s tourism sector fiscal targets for the next five budget periods at least, with compliance possibly resuming in the 2024/2025 fiscal year.

According to the fiscal strategy report, the

percentage of debt to GDP is projected to increase to a peak of 66.2 percent in 2021 before declining. However, the report notes there are potentially major risks to the government’s projections, including another hurricane or less economic growth than anticipated.

For this fiscal year, the government projects revenue loss of $236m and an expenditure increase of additional $302.6m.

We are heading over a fiscal cliff, says Brave from page one According to the government’s 2019 Fiscal Strategy Report, the debt is projected to increase by $1.3bn over the next five years.

Mr Davis said: “This administration is now at a crossroad. It can no longer pretend that it has a handle on this self created fiscal crisis. The impact of Dorian cannot be used as the reason for the obvious decline in the government’s ability to provide basic public service. Many Bahamian businesses have failed or are now on the verge of failing because of the gross fiscal mismanagement of this ‘balance sheet’ administration who ignores legitimate contractual obligations to achieve contrived and elusive deficit targets.”

Mr Davis said the government should establish an Economic Advisory

Council “forthwith” to look at the fiscal and economic state of the country and design a social contract that would “provide binding guidelines for expenditure, revenue, wage and pension reform policies over the next five years.”

“This is a perilous time for The Bahamas as the government has proven itself incapable of managing the economic and fiscal affairs of this country,” he said. “No amount of hubris, arrogance or grandstanding by the current minister of finance can change this reality. It would be incredibly selfish and unpatriotic of me and my political colleagues to watch and do nothing as this administration through sheer incompetence drives this country over a fiscal cliff. We believe that the true fiscal state of this country is worse than being reported by the government as blatant political

considerations now seem to govern the reporting and classification of government expenditure and revenue.

One obvious example is the treatment of the purchase and ongoing operating subsidy to the Grand Lucayan, amounting to $77m in expenditure, is being classified as an investment so as to exclude it from the deficit calculation. There are others: the shareholder loan to Aliv of $10.5m, the treatment of the loan to the Bahamas Power and Light of $15m and VAT refunds to Buckeye and Statoil estimated at $50m.”

The economy, according to the government’s strategy report, was expected to grow by 1.7 percent in 2020 but is now projected to contract next year by 0.6 percent because of anticipated weakness in tourism activity in the first half of 2020.

“Employment conditions in The Bahamas are also

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2019

THE STORIES BEHIND THE NEWS

Numbers don’t lie we need more than smart technology to turn back crime

By Malcolm Strachan

AFTER the shared relief at the end of 2018 as the murder count was held to 91 - the lowest in nine years - the Bahamian people had high hopes the tide was turning. Shepherding a nation after the bloodshed-filled years under the former administration, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis’ appointment of ex-assistant police commissioner Marvin Dames as the Minister of National Security was starting to pay dividends.

In 2019, doubling down on their commitment to tackle crime, Mr Dames touted the government’s nearly $11m investment in technological enhancements to the Royal Bahamas Police Force’s crimefighting arsenal. With $8.9m for the government’s CCTV programme and $1.9m for the introduction of ShotSpotter gunshot detection technology, we hoped to see a further decline.

However, the criminal underworld has proven itself to be resilient. Murders are already trending higher than last year and a recent uptick in armed robberies, which typically rise before Christmas, has seen a familiar uneasiness beset the public.

Yet, when Bahamians would prefer to hear from a dogged Commissioner of Police, instead, every statement coming from Commissioner Anthony Ferguson sounds like it’s coming from a public relations officer. On multiple occasions when questioned by the media, he has been resolute in that his policing plan is currently working and that Bahamian people should not live in fear.

Be that as it may, when we hear of other citizens being robbed at gunpoint, one tends to think, “that could have been me”.

Hence, Ferguson sounds like he is either living in an alternate reality or he is not in tune with the Bahamian people, and thus unqualified to do the job.

Lucky for Ferguson, the visible police patrols and the decrease in murders last year may have been enough to ensure the people still believe in his ability. However, his penchant to try to

save face is an undesired quality.

The Bahamian people - particularly those of us living in the densely populated capital - always feel near to the action, and thus, vulnerable to the criminal element. It provides little to no comfort when Ferguson continues to posit that all is well when we can clearly see that it is not. Although, this recent upswing in crime has come since the midpoint of the year, the implementation of crimefighting technology that was supposed to ratchet up the RBPF’s capabilities does not seem to be working.

Instead of pandering to the Bahamian people as a politician would, a more meaningful indicator of the benefits of CCTV and ShotSpotter is to tell the Bahamian people how many crimes were prevented or solved as a result.

The mere fact that we’ve yet to see one headline heralding their benefits in helping the police solve a single crime says much more than the empty rhetoric.

Additionally, citizens that face the same daily challenges live by a “who feels it, knows it” principle – meaning we are likely to believe a brother or sister who has been a victim of crime over a spin artist. Accordingly, despite COP Ferguson’s unwavering belief that all is well, countless Bahamians would beg to differ.

And those of us that make it day-to-day, thankful that we didn’t become the latest victim of crime, only feel more disconnected from the police.

While this voices the frustration and cynicism felt by some, this isn’t by any means an indictment on the many good, hard-working men and women of the police force. We know their job is one of great challenge and responsibility and we are grateful for the sacrifices they, along with their families, continue to make.

The issue is solely with the executive continuing to speak to the Bahamian people as if we don’t travel these roads every day.

We read the papers. We hear the sounds of gunfire and mothers weeping over their dead sons. We see how

shaken up our brothers, sisters, friends and co-workers are after being robbed by these savages. We simply want those tasked to protect and serve to acknowledge the same.

As it relates to the investments made by the government to increase the RBPF’s crimefighting capabilities, it ought to be determined if they have gotten a good return on their investment. And on a broader note, what key performance indicators exist to determine if the policing plan has been successful?

What objectives did the police meet to confirm that things are as COP Anthony Ferguson says they are?

Subsequently, what other factors will be considered for the police to tackle crime next year, in the event it is determined that some of the technological upgrades did not yield the targeted benefits?

Perhaps the focus should also incorporate the punitive measures associated with these crimes.

In the case where individuals are caught with firearms or being involved in the trafficking and distribution of dangerous weapons, what methods are the government considering to increase the risks being taken by these criminals? The mental math that today’s criminal performs when plotting to rob someone or settle a vendetta amounts to a small concession to get an enemy off the street for some of these perpetrators.

Much consideration has to be given to how this is being addressed.

The criminal justice system needs reform and lawmakers need to ensure that stiffer penalties are enforced. Dames, whom is at fault for, up to this point, not bringing any legislation to Parliament that addresses some of these issues, needs to take the gloves off. While technology was a welcomed approach, criminals seem unflappable, as killings persist, and citizens are being robbed and assaulted at all times of the day.

Those in charge have to get serious and stop deflecting and attempting to assure the electorate that everything is okay.

ABOVE: Minister of National Security Marvin Dames and, below, Commissioner of Police Anthony Ferguson

PAGE 8 MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2019

INSIGHT

EMAIL: insight@tribunemedia.net

Blatant, patent and flagrant - the double standards in the OAS

DOUBLE standards have become the new system in the Organization of American States (OAS).

This unwholesome development does not portend well for the future of the Organization which is increasingly becoming a rubber stamp for the will of a few governments. It also creates a huge cloud over the bilateral relations of nations within the hemisphere.

This undesirable development was brought into stark and glaring reality over events in Bolivia. The Permanent Council of the OAS, the Secretary-General, Luis Almagro, and the governments that are usually quick to lambaste other governments on human rights issues, have all been silent in what has been happening in Bolivia, starting with the coup d’état of November 10 that forced the elected President, Evo Morales, from office and into asylum in Mexico.

The Organization and Secretary-General Almagro have said nothing about the gross human rights violations against the indigenous people of Bolivia.

“At least eight young Bolivians were killed on Tuesday (November 19)

when the country’s political crisis exploded into deadly violence in the city of El Alto. Nearby lay another five bodies, their feet poking from blankets or flags, their names and ages printed on A4 sheets placed on top of the corpses. “Joel Colque Patty, 22”; “Devi Posto Cusi, 34”; “Antonio Ronald Quispe Ticona, 23”; “Clemente Eloy Mamani Santander, 23”; “Juan Jose Tenorio Mamani, 23”, reported the British Newspaper, The Guardian. The report continued: “The rightwing interim government that took power after Morales’ toppling on 10 November has rejected claims the army was behind Tuesday’s killings, which came during confrontations between troops and Morales loyalists outside a fuel storage depot the latter had been blockading. But in El Alto – a

teeming high-altitude city near La Paz long considered a Morales stronghold – locals are adamant the government is to blame for what they call a massacre of innocent workers.”

What The Guardian reporter, Tom Phillips, in El Alto, knows must also be known to governments of OAS member states who have embassies in Bolivia and nearby countries. Yet, not one of them has raised the issue of human rights violations in Bolivia. Incidentally, they have also not done so in relation to Chile – a vocal member of the Lima Group – or Ecuador whose government has become a recent convert to Lima Group positions.

Haiti, whose government, votes consistently with the Lima Group, has also been spared any criticism despite ongoing unrest in the country. The double

standard is blatant, patent and flagrant.

Another almost scandalous manifestation of the double standard being applied in the OAS – and one that Secretary-General Almagro has never explained – is that almost in the same words that the OAS electoral observation mission used to describe the elections of October 20 in Bolivia, another OAS electoral observer mission (EOM) to Honduras in 2017 denounced the election result in that country.

But, neither the SecretaryGeneral nor governments brought the matter to the Permanent Council, nor did they seek to conduct an audit of the election nor did they demand new elections.

The following is what the electoral mission to Honduras concluded in its November 27, 2017 report: “Based on the analysis contained in this report and the observations included in the two preliminary reports, the EOM considers that it observed a low-quality electoral process.

The abundance of irregularities and deficiencies is such as to preclude full certainty regarding the outcome”.

The question is left

blowing in the wind: why one standard for Honduras, and another for Bolivia?

To be clear, all matters of this kind should be brought to the Permanent Council with clear and unbiased information to inform member states. The election in Bolivia needed to be discussed fairly, transparently and openly. But so, too, was a discussion necessary of the elections in Honduras.

It is remarkable that the day after the November 19 atrocities in Bolivia, a Permanent Council meeting was held at the OAS at which not only was no mention made of it by the governments that brought a resolution on Bolivia, but no reference whatsoever was made to the role of the military in ousting Morales from Office, three months before his legitimate term in office was scheduled to end.

The Antigua and Barbuda delegation to that meeting stated that, notwithstanding the coup d’état of October 20, the Government of Antigua and Barbuda recognises: “There is a de facto government in Bolivia. And, in as much as Antigua and Barbuda objects to the manner in which the government

SUPPORTER of former President Evo Morales protect themselves from tear gas launched by the police, in La Paz, Bolivia earlier this month.

came to office, we acknowledge that its de facto status gives it the authority to act on behalf of the state”.

This is the same reason why Antigua and Barbuda has stated it recognises the government of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela.

In its statement to the Permanent Council, the Antigua and Barbuda delegation also declared that it “is extremely anxious that the human rights of all Bolivians, especially its indigenous people, are provided full and unrestricted observance and protection”.

Very conscious of the double standards that now prevail in the OAS, the Antigua and Barbuda delegation also noted that in the resolution on Bolivia, which did call for elections to be held urgently, there was no reference to the constitutional requirement for the election to be held in 90 days. We made it clear that: “We are troubled by the omission of a specific reference to the 90-day requirement” and we stated our expectation that “if the 90-day requirement is ignored or pushed back without a full and credible explanation, the OAS delegation will immediately publish a report denouncing such a development”.

On the same day, the representative of the US delegation speaking under “Any other business”, usually reserved for noncontentious announcements, stated that the US “welcomes the attention of the OAS member states to appreciate the tense political situation in Dominica, surrounding the December 6 elections”. That is fair enough; all tense situations should be fully discussed to ascertain how the OAS can play a legitimate role. The discussion should be held on Dominica – but others as well including Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, and Haiti.

The writer is Ambassador of Antigua and Barbuda to the United States and the Organization of American States. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London and at Massey College in the University of Toronto. The views expressed are entirely his own. Responses and previous commentaries: www. sirronaldsanders.com

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, November 25, 2019, PAGE 9

PAGE 10, Monday, November 25, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

Jollification 2019

BAHAMAS National Trust Christmas Jollification, Arts and Crafts Festival was held over the weekend.

Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, November 25, 2019, PAGE 11

By LEANDRA ROLLE lrolle@tribunemedia.net HEALTH Minister Dr Duane Sands condemned death threats made against Bishop Simeon Hall, cochair of the Bahamas National Commission on Marijuana, for his involvement with the group in conducting research on the drug.

“That’s a very unfortunate thing to hear that… there are individuals who might feel as if they would have to coerce somebody with threats in order to have their way of thinking,” Dr Sands told reporters at a nursing conference on Friday.

“We live in a democratic society and we have chosen to deal with these challenging issues and to have representative views put forward. The Marijuana Commission has been criticised for due process. They have taken on this task and they have sought to do it to the best of their ability. They are not rushing…

So, I condemn anyone who believes that by threat of force they will change somebody’s mind. I might not like what you say, but I will defend your right to say it.”

Last year, the commission was given its mandate by Cabinet to comprehensively examine issues surrounding the use of marijuana.

And although the

Sands condemns death threats to Bishop Hall DUANE SANDS commission has not yet taken a clear position on whether the drug should be legalised in the country, Bishop Hall told Our News last week that he has received two death threats over his work with the commission.

His comment came days after Dr Hubert Minnis became the first sitting prime minister to publicly support some form of marijuana decriminalisation. Dr Minnis told The Tribune last Sunday that he hopes

BUTLERS’ FUNERAL HOMES AND CREMATORIUM FUNERAL Service for Emma Clotilda E. Allen, age 81 years, of Seabreeze Estates will be held on Tuesday November 26, 2019, at 10:00 a.m. at St Anne’s Anglican Church, Fox Hill Road. Officiating will be Rev’d Fr. Hugh Bartlett Jr. assisted by Rev’d Canon Crosely Walkine and Rev’d Willish Johnson.

Interment will follow in the St. Anne’s Anglican Church Cemetery She is survived by her Sons: Chester and Granville “Craig” Allen; Granddaughter: Krishna Allen; Daughter-in-Law: Tammy Pinder-Allen: Brother: Basil Been; Sisters-in-Law: Eileen Been, Beverly Been, Sylvia Been, Dorothy Been, Joan Dean and Velma Cargill; Neices: Andrea, Claudia, Desiree,

Noelle, Sacha and Danae; Nephews: Desmond, Richard, Garth, Clayton, Arthur, Alson, Derek and Andre (Chris) and Many other Relatives and Friends.

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the decriminalisation process will happen before the end of this term.

However, when asked about his position on the issue, Dr Sands replied: “I have deliberately steered clear of opining either as a person or minister, and I’m going to continue to stay out of the fray. When we get the report, and when it’s time for me to give a recommendation to the Cabinet, I think the public will hear how I feel about it.”

He continued: “There are many people considering how this might work and what role it will play, et cetera, and I suspect that considerable thought is going into the what if medical marijuana is liberalised in the Bahamas....But the specifics, I think, ought to wait until recommendations are made and then the Cabinet of the Bahamas has to make changes in either policy or law.”

Dr Sands said there are many healthcare

BISHOP Simeon Hall

professionals who have expressed a desire to use the drug in a medicinal form to treat patients.

“There are people who’ve now requested to grow (the plant) or people who want to process and refine or so on and so forth, and our position has been ‘hold your horses’. It’s not long before we have the definitive position of the Marijuana Commission that would guide the deliberations of the Cabinet and then we’ll come back to the Bahamian public and let them know,” he said.

Speaking to The Tribune last week, Bishop Hall’s co-chair on the commission, Quinn McCartney, said the group is working vigorously to present the preliminary report to Cabinet by the end of this month and the final report in early January.

Mr McCartney said the commission remains committed to providing a comprehensive report that is supported by its research.

PAGE 12, Monday, November 25, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

PAGE 14, Monday, November 25, 2019

THE TRIBUNE

BOLIVIA TO HOLD NEW ELECTION - BUT NO DATE DECIDED YET LA PAZ, Bolivia Associated Press

BOLIVIA’S interim president formally enacted a law yesterday calling for new elections to replace ousted leader Evo Morales, while protests that have gripped the country for more than a month seemed to be easing.

The measure signed by President Jeanine Áñez doesn’t set a date for the new vote. That will be up to a new electoral tribunal that hasn’t yet been named. She promised “to organise just, clean and transparent elections.”

Protests broke out after

Morales claimed victory in an Oct. 20 election that international observers invited in by the government said was flawed by numerous irregularities.

Amid the turmoil, and prodded by police and the military, Morales resigned and went into exile on Nov. 10 — setting off protests by his own backers. At least 32 people have died in the 35 days of demonstrations.

While disturbances continued in some places, the end of highway blockades was allowing food, gasoline and other goods to flow into the capital, La Paz. The new election law approved

Saturday by congress annulled the earlier vote and bars Morales from participating in the new one.

The nation’s first indigenous president had already served 14 years and his rejection of term limits help spawn protests against him.

Morales’ Movement Toward Socialism party seemed stunned by the rapid turn of events after so long in power, during which it had come to control most of the levers of power in the country — including the legislature that voted unanimously to exclude him from the upcoming vote.

Congressman Juan Cala said Morales, “continues to be the

JEANINE ÁÑEZ

president of the party. He is our leader and will have the final word” on the party’s candidate.

“We still haven’t assimilated what happened,’ Cala said. “We have to be self-critical with the errors. But the indigenous organisations and unions are our strength.”

Political analyst Carlos Cordero said many of those who left behind after Morales’ chief aides resigned en masse with their leader are people who had previously been overshadowed. “Now they have the challenge of renovating the MAS,” he said, using the party’s Spanish initials.

K-POP STAR GOO HARA FOUND DEAD AT HER HOME

1812 BATTLE OF BEREZINA COMES TO LIFE BORISOV, Belarus Associated Press THOUSANDS have taken part in a re-enactment of the Battle of Berezina, one of the major clashes of the Napoleonic Wars. Reenactors were in full period costume for the event yesterday in Belarus. The battle took place November 1812 as Napoleon’s army was retreating from its invasion of Russia.

Napoleon had aimed to retreat into Poland by crossing the Berezina River, which was expected to be frozen at the time. However, the river had not frozen over and the nearest bridge had been destroyed, leaving the French forces potentially trapped. Army engineers and soldiers were able to rapidly build two bridges across the river, working in frigid water and risking hypothermia. The French were able to retreat, but suffered heavy losses estimated at as many as 25,000.

SEOUL Associated Press

MEN dressed as 1812-era Russian and French soldiers re-enact a staged battle in the town of Borisov

Bloomberg launches his presidential bid NEW YORK Associated Press BILLIONAIRE and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, one of the world’s richest men, has formally launched a Democratic bid for president.

Ending weeks of speculation, the 77-year-old former Republican announced his candidacy yesterday in a written statement posted on a campaign website describing himself as uniquely positioned to defeat President Donald Trump.

He will quickly follow with a massive advertising campaign blanketing airways in key primary states across the US. “I’m running for president to defeat Donald Trump and rebuild America,” Bloomberg wrote. “We cannot afford four more years of President Trump’s reckless and unethical actions,” he continued.

“He represents an existential threat to our country and our values. If he

MICHAEL BLOOMBERG wins another term in office, we may never recover from the damage.”

Bloomberg’s entrance comes just 10 weeks before primary voting begins, an unorthodox move that reflects anxiety within the Democratic Party about the strength of its current candidates.

As a centrist with deep ties to Wall Street, Bloomberg is expected to struggle among the party’s energised progressive base. He became a Democrat only last year. Yet his

tremendous resources and moderate profile could be appealing in a primary contest that has become, above all, a quest to find the person best-positioned to deny Trump a second term next November.

Forbes ranked Bloomberg as the 11th-richest person in the world last year with a net worth of roughly $50 billion. Trump, by contrast, was ranked 259th with a net worth of just over $3 billion.

Already, Bloomberg has vowed to spend at least $150 million of his fortune on various pieces of a 2020 campaign, including more than $100 million for internet ads attacking Trump, between $15 million and $20 million on a voter registration drive largely targeting minority voters, and more than $30 million on an initial round of television ads.

He did not say how much he would be willing to spend overall on his presidential ambitions, but senior adviser Howard Wolfson did: “Whatever it takes to defeat

Donald Trump.” Wolfson also said that Bloomberg would not accept a single political donation for his campaign or take a salary should he become president.

Even before the announcement, Democratic rivals pounced on Bloomberg’s plans to rely on his fortune. “We do not believe that billionaires have the right to buy elections,” Sanders said as he campaigned in New Hampshire.

Elizabeth Warren, another leading progressive candidate, also slammed Bloomberg for trying to buy the presidency. “I understand that rich people are going to have more shoes than the rest of us, they’re going to have more cars than the rest of us, they’re going to have more houses,” she said after a campaign stop in Manchester, New Hampshire. “But they don’t get a bigger share of democracy, especially in a Democratic primary. We need to be doing the face-to-face work that lifts every voice.”

K-POP star and TV celebrity Goo Hara was found dead at her home in Seoul yesterday, police said.

Police said an acquaintance found the 28-year-old dead at her home in southern Seoul and reported it to authorities.

The cause of death wasn’t immediately known. Police refused to provide further details.

Goo made her debut in 2008 as a member of the girl group Kara, which had big followings in South Korea, Japan and other Asian countries. She later worked as a solo artist and appeared on many TV shows.

In May, Goo was reportedly found unconscious at her home and was hospitalized.

She was embroiled last year in public disputes with an ex-boyfriend who claimed to be assaulted by her. Goo accused the man of having threatened to circulate a sex video of her.

The case made her the subject of tabloid fodder and malicious online messages.

In October, another K-pop star and actress, Sulli, was found dead at her home near Seoul. The 25-year-old was known for her feminist voice and outspokenness that was rare among female entertainers in deeply conservative South Korea. Before her death, she appeared in a TV show and spoke out against online backlash she received over her lifestyle.

GOO HARA

NETANYAHU VOWS TO CARRY PRO-DEMOCRACY CANDIDATES ON BUT WITH LITTLE SUPPORT ADVANCE IN KEY ELECTIONS JERUSALEM Associated Press

PRIME Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looked to project business as usual yesterday as he returned to work following his indictment on corruption charges, but a wall of silence from his usually loyal Cabinet ministers could mean tough times ahead for the embattled Israeli leader.

Netanyahu is determined to fight the charges from the prime minister’s office in what promises to be a lengthy court battle. But long before the proceedings begin, it could be his own Likud party that decides his political future as the country appears to be heading toward new elections.

A show of support from his Cabinet would give Netanyahu a boost as he tries to rally the party and public behind him. Netanyahu’s efforts so far, however, appear to be falling short.

One top Likud official,

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU Gideon Saar, has already announced his intention to challenge Netanyahu in party primaries.

“There isn’t a single person who thinks that after a third or fourth or fifth or sixth election, Netanyahu will succeed in forming a government,” Saar told Channel 12 TV on Saturday. “There is only one way that we can save the country, get it out of this crisis and maintain the rule

of Likud, if today we go to a snap primary election.”

The open call is a risky maneuver in a party that fiercely values loyalty and has had only four leaders in its 70-plus-year history.

Netanyahu’s lackeys immediately attacked Saar, with the party saying he has “shown zero loyalty and maximum subversiveness.”

But perhaps influenced by polls showing a majority of Israelis thinking Netanyahu should step down, the party’s most senior ministers pointedly remained mum. Foreign Minister Israel Katz, Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan and Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein, among others, are all straddling the sidelines as Netanyahu clings to power.

With just 18 days to go to either form a new government or trigger new elections, pressure will surely be mounting on these and other officials to show their hand.

HONG KONG Associated Press

PRO-DEMOCRACY candidates won nearly half of the seats in Hong Kong’s local elections, according to partial returns earlier today, as voters sent a clear signal of support for the anti-government protests that rocked the Chinese territory for more than five months.

A record 71% of the city’s 4.1 million registered voters cast ballots Sunday, well exceeding the 47% turnout in the same election four years ago, election officials said.

So far, pro-democracy candidates have won 201 out of 452 seats in 18 district councils. Previously, the bloc had fewer than a third of the seats.

Among the winners were former student leaders and a candidate who replaced prominent activist Joshua Wong, the only person barred from running in

SUPPORTERS of pro-democracy celebrate a district council win the election. Rally organizer Jimmy Sham, who was beaten by hammer-wielding assailants last month, also triumphed, as did a prodemocracy lawmaker who had part of his ear bitten off by an assailant.

Hong Kong’s largest pro-Beijing political party suffered the biggest setback, with at least 155 of its 182 candidates defeated. Among the losing incumbents was controversial lawmaker Junius Ho, who was stabbed with a knife while campaigning this month.

The pro-democracy camp

hailed its strong gains in the normally low-key race as a “victory” for the Hong Kong people. Candidates said the city’s embattled Chief Executive Carrie Lam must heed protesters’ demands including free elections for the city’s leader and legislature, and an independent probe into alleged police brutality.

“We won a small battle today but it shows that Hong Kong people have a chance to win the war. We will fight on,” said Henry Sin Ho-fai, a pro-democracy candidate who won.

THE TRIBUNE

Monday, November 25, 2019, PAGE 15

PM CONGRATULATES SON AS HE OPENS CLINIC

By LEANDRA ROLLE lrolle@tribunemedia.net

endeavour, while also noting that he never expected him to follow in his footsteps.

“The greatest time in any parent’s life is when they’re standing to congratulate their son and daughter and can see that they’ve succeeded because many kids that go off for training never return home,” the prime minister said.

“The fact that they have returned home showed the care and love for their country and the confidence they have in their

PRIME Minister Dr Hubert Minnis officially opened the Oxford Women’s Health Centre during a ceremony on Friday.

The centre, which focuses on women’s health, is operated by gynaecologist Dr Jamil Minnis – who is the prime minister’s son.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, the nation’s leader congratulated his son on his new

The Tribune

country and I am very grateful and thankful for that.”

He continued: “I never expected (Jamil) to follow into my footsteps of becoming a physician… I’ve tried to encourage them to do law… but they did not listen to me and they both ended up in medicine.”

Prior to opening his obstetrics and gynaecology practice, Dr Jamil Minnis worked as an associate professor series II and clinical instructor at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta.

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FORBES ministers owedat Bahamas ance of some also said as $62,023 The source Forbes was one $20,000 each Mr Light, with Power and in arrears of Monday the company former minister as of July, in talks with balance over to settle the period. Mr for some $60,000 obtained list a a three-month PLP Mount according to

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DR PERRY GOMEZ $24,498

LESLIE MILLER $42,219

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HUMILIATION FORAFTER 4O YEARS LOSES HIS SEAT

seats: Encaptured four Island and Cat were spent under to South Aners’ dollars administration. glerston; 1,900 votes and San Salvador; Christie the win with is evidence 2017 the as well as Exuma DORSETT Mr Christie’s 1,875.

He said if there”, the new dros VIRGIL ELECTION Islands.

By SANCHESKAReporter to the unofBy KHRISNA Reporter seat, Fox According the the Ragged of “criminality et Tribune Staff from the Parwill allow SPEAK An additional being reDeputy Chief bunemedia.n ficial results Registration government course.

THE PEOPLE nemedia.net sdorsett@tri PAGE 4 was still its kvirgil@tribu his Hill, law to take to press time. and liamentary , Mr Chipman after ON’ decounted up his parMoments DNA ‘TO GO PAGE 5 IN a surprisingat the Departmentout of 12 pollas the na- This marked the worst in AFTER leadinglandslide defeat party won seven maiden speech MinLOSE humbling leader, Dr Prime Min- ing divisions in the former ty to a stunning feat for a governing Mr tion’s next PLP BIG NAMESPAGE 7 dealing a parapolls, outgoing that under recent history. victory and to the ProgresChristie lost PLP stronghold, while will nis promised victory came MPS ister Perry The FNM’s won five. lysing blow Party last night, the Centreville PROJECTED watch, Bahamians five years his from 9 YOUR rocky fear his seat in last night by Christie a PAGE to Mr Christie sive Liberal challengIn 2012, have nothing , pointing to despite conPrime Minister constituency representing FAR included two incoming the Centrevilleeighth said that Dr Minnis’ leadership, the government RESULTS SO PAGE 14 Minnis declared 25 votes aftermore than 40 won n, which he for the Dr Hubert of a frachave abused victimisatio tional” “im- es to the area for unof- stituency time with that those who trust “have continued reports ultimately according to consecutive He defeated is “unconstitu MORE COVERAGE and of 2-18 years, party “wrong”.

PAGES positions the post 2,950 votes. moral” and to unofficial tured to fear”. ficial results. candidate Ella removal from has held Opsomething to thousands of According able his at the Mr Christie 1977 and the FNM’s of the Official FNM was Speaking by 1,349 votes at the Q House today. results, the stunning defeat of leader in the House of won all the Lewis the seat since a pledged that jubilant supporterslast night, ment Mr Christie leader of Dr Minnis on will give to pull off securing a mas- position has been Liberal Party time. polling division in E Sports Centre but one administrati Terrance of the PLP, constituencies. Assembly. a long fought National MoveProgressive 39 “This was victory is not the Free also announced his General it sive 34 of ry Regsince 1997. released a but the Prime 2012. ment leader be sworn in as Auditor the resources former is yours,” Although he the loss, The Parliamenta did battle, The to that he will fourth prime Bastianto probe how taxpay- istration Department re- mine - the victory lost his seat statement about speak told thousands needs Minister not election did Bahamas’ full Minnis Movement carThe Dr Christie not release 5pm at GovernFree National packed on the with the last and po- Mr minister at SEE PAGE SIX sults last night, in from the of FNMs (FNM) candidate Reece nival grounds. people’s time numbers coming litical newcomer agency around “This is the and I who secured government from the and I am your servant Chipman, 11pm. However it apSEE PAGE THREE unofficial numbers, the PLP only of the conpeared that “The outcome trust according to vention did not inspireBahalast Mark Humes in the results, said coming afor confidence that’s “obvious” mian electorate but think sweeping defeat residents unofficial that it is I ROLLE have stood behind us now and they night ter Fort Charlotte

By RASHAD Reporter told him party would winning the the party has a wonderful repeatedly lead- the the chance Tribune Staff stand rebuild and emedia.net any a better could not he been victori- opportunity to rrolle@tribun of the country per- election had itself,” he said. leadership for for- ership despite their ous in the PLP’sadding that reengineer longer, him.

AS HE called SEE PAGE SIX RASPBERRY Minister Perry sonal affection for was pro- race in January, made a mistake” mer Prime who ICED TEA “the party resign as leader Mr Sears, Mr Christie.

Free NaChristie to Liberal in choosing to lose to the Al- jected Movement’s (FNM) of the Progressive last night, the tional Party (PLP) said he saw fred Sears

DAMIAN GOMEZ OBIE $3,413 WILCHCOMBE CLEOLA $4,911 HAMILTON they owed $6,118 list and the amount since that date. disconnect” BPL “do not made or further debt incurred named on the NINE individualsdo not include any payments July. The sums

PUT SOUTH ISLANDS T ON MARIA ALER

POLICE LAUNCH E FOX HILL OFFENSIV

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A MAN’ S DREA

boardroom Interview, pages 4&5

MS

Watch the film - every agonising, wrenching, awful second.

Then give up Eugene’s killer

CHRISTIE TO RESIGN

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By RASHAD Reporter ACTING Fergu- Commissioner and address from Dr Minnis Tribune Staff Anti-Gang of Police Anthony emedia.net yesterday said the Inveslast night, Maria is rrolle@tribun Tracing and announced dev- son establishment of two Firearms Unit will operate fore- said: “Hurricane the potentially Bahamas tigation WITH we the DetecMaria another hurricane that separate Royal anti-crime out of the Central the cast for Hurricane Force storm to pass astating monitor.”

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

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

Bowe Photo: Yontalay

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

By RASHAD Reporter not a pain “I assured her that the family the yard, struggle with spotlight yet again, them was doctor, to will have we see in Tribune Staff ance before called on women said. today (Friday) we to look the national as a medical emedia.net acute. rrolle@tribun come my my years political move,one day this week time her pain remained live a life, medical personnel she’s pregand comforting cried.

“He ain’t even to wear blackfor murder victims.

Dr THE hugs her because sure that Prime Minister wife God,” Mrs Woodsidegive my upon after in mourning I’m calling words of I have to make infant are and his a baby. I could my really nant.

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

Tonio Woodside, family at theirEugene wife even is the police can’t fight console the consoled his home where on father, struggled to maintain bud Road a stray bullet as he was shot by did his homework. he Monday as

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By RASHAD Bahamians $10,149,738. by the Carib- Tribune Staff Reporter so alarmed Action Task rrolle@tribunemedia.net increases was comes after bean Financial draft The revision more than

By NEIL HARTNELL Editor Rolle, minForce’s (CFATF) BRENSIL et Tribune Business services he included that were not The Bahamas ibunemedia.n report on his staff ister of public nhartnell@tr 1,700 workers Gen- that he instructedaddressing and National Insurance, in his original count.

December Progressive THE Attorneyslammed to begin work on June.

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

by Liberal Party’sadministrablasted the 2016 and in the nation’s the ballooned Mr Bethel deficiencies adminis- public purse laundering of the of the Minnisof its firings anti-money former Christie to tackle $16,532,738 because on’s tion because “entirely unacfailing as for administrati regime SEE PAGE SIX they had tration with the Christie public service ceptable”, warning “in great known weaknesses hiring of new that period. during put The Bahamas necessary urgency.

BUSINESS workers danger”. told Trib- FULL STORY - SEE Carl Bethelhe had been une Business

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FIREFIGHTERS TACKLE MAJOR NEW BLAZE AT LANDFILL

A DORSETT

By SANCHESKReporter et Tribune Staff bunemedia.n sdorsett@tri

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

SEE PAGE SIX

ROBERTS: PEET A ‘POLITICAL ENEMY’ FOR ANDROS BID

SIVE Liberal PROGRES Bradley Party Chairmanout at his Roberts lashed colleague Vin-

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FORMER PM TELLS OF LAST TALK WITH NOTTAGE

WELLS

By RICARDO Reporter Tribune Staff nemedia.net rwells@tribu

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

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

IS • FORMER PM BY DAVIS TRIBUTE TO LEGACY OF ‘DISAPPOINTED’ FNM ALLEGATIONS COLLEAGUE • SAYS GOVT DID NOTHING WRONGT PAYOU

ROLLE

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

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

TERED 170,000 HAVE REGIS NG DAY AHEAD OF POLLI

with correctnow engaged the voter ROLLE ing and editing it of its

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

lle.

PROUD father: PM Hubert Minnis

However, Dr Jamil Minnis noted the journey has not been an easy one. “I’ve had stumbles along the way. People think that everything is smooth and everything is easy, but it’s one of those things where sometimes you fall and sometimes you get down…,“ he told attendees. “(But), if it wasn’t for the grace of God pushing me and keeping me up and keeping me afloat, then I would’ve given (up). So, I always every day just count my blessings.”