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VOLUME:118 No.09, DECEMBER 3, 2020

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IMF WARNS: LONG, HARD ROAD AHEAD

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE Bahamas faces “anything but a V-shaped recovery” from COVID-19 with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) yesterday warning a four-year haul to regain economic output lost in 2020 lies ahead.

The fund, in a statement on its annual Article IV consultation with The Bahamas, also further slashed its projections for the Bahamian economy’s performance this year and in 2021 as it branded this nation “one of the hardest hit countries in the Caribbean” due to more than 7,500 COVID-19 infections.

Its latest forecast increased the severity of The Bahamas’ real gross domestic product (GDP) shrinkage to -16.2 percent for 2020, as opposed to its last -14.8 percent

contraction estimate, while further slashing 2021’s economic growth forecast to a relatively tepid two percent.

The latter revision represents a further cut, after the IMF previously revised its projections for next year’s GDP growth from 6.7 percent to 4.6 percent as recently as October.

With The Bahamas’ short-term rebound prospects more than halved, and a further $269m slashed from 2021’s forecast economic output, this nation faces a longer and harder recovery than initially thought.

The IMF forecast that Bahamian GDP will only recover to pre-COVID-19 levels come 2024, meaning that this nation likely faces a four-year climb at least to dig itself out of the hole created by the pandemic.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

DISNEY PROJECT PROTEST REACHES 400K MILESTONE A PETITION launched by environmental activists in protest of Disney’s plans to construct a multi-milliondollar cruise destination in South Eleuthera has collected almost 400,000 signatures.

The petition is a part of a campaign, “STOP Disney Last Chance for Lighthouse Point”, to persuade the international company to abandon its plans.

Up to press time

yesterday, total signatures exceeded 399,000 on website change.org, with campaign officials describing the move as an “exciting” one.

“We’re looking to reinvigorate the campaign and continue pushing out the fact that we do need answers to our questions,” re-Earth president, Sam Duncombe told The Tribune.

SEE PAGE THREE

WHEN WILL WE GET IT?

By TANYA SMITH-CARTWRIGHT tsmith-cartwright@tribunemedia.net AS the United Kingdom became the world’s first country to authorise use of a COVID-19 vaccine, Minister of Health Renward Wells said the government is still determining which brand it will secure.

This comes as questions persist about health officials’ plan for storage and distribution of the high maintenance drug.

Yesterday, Mr Wells told reporters he would like to avoid the expensive route that involves the purchase of special cold storage freezers.

“As you know you have to keep it (the Pfizer vaccine) in negative 90 degrees F, which is excessively cold. So we were looking to purchase freezers if we go the route of Pfizer, if we go the route of Moderna, which doesn’t need that kind of freezer equipment, obviously it would

be less expensive for the Bahamian people.

“We’re looking to secure vaccines immediately,” he added.

Addressing its weekly COVID-19 webinar, PAHO assistant director Dr Jarbas Barbosa said The Bahamas can have access to the COVID-19 vaccinations between March and April of 2021.

He also said though the production of the vaccine seems quick, PAHO is of the opinion that it will be effective against the virus.

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and its partner BioNTech released the final analysis of the vaccine the companies generated and found it to be 95 percent effective, which is a significant improvement over the 90 percent effectiveness shown in an interim analysis earlier.

SEE PAGE FOUR

ANTI-OIL PETITION ‘80 PERCENT OVERSEAS’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE oil exploration battle further heated up last night after Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC) sought to discredit an activist petition by asserting just 20 percent of signatories were local.

The explorer, which almost certainly faces a

THE STENA Icemax drill ship. legal challenge to its bid to start exploratory drilling on December 15, said in a

statement that research suggested that the Our Islands, Our Future coalition was using overseas signatories to skew the results of a petition that has attracted more than 50,000 backers.

BPC added that, in so doing, it was “trying to turn the view of Bahamians against this potentially transformational project”.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

HAS COVID-19 CAUSED DEATH RATE INCREASE?

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net ALTHOUGH the country has not recorded daily COVID-19 deaths for several weeks, some funeral homes say they are still seeing a major uptick in overall deaths which they are attributing to an overburdened health care system.

Bahamas Funeral Directors Association President Kirsch Ferguson told The Tribune yesterday that COVID-19’s impact has had far-reaching consequences, one that has affected the nation’s death rate.

SEE PAGE FOUR

FRONT PORCH COVID-19, LIFEBOAT ETHICS AND CONSPIRACIES

PAGE TEN

PAGE 2, Thursday, December 3, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

A PROTEST held outside Parliament yesterday.

Photos: Terrel W Carey Sr/Tribune Staff

McAlpine allows private bill on aragonite resoures

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

HOUSE Speaker Halson Moultrie allowed a Bill introduced by Pineridge MP Frederick McAlpine to have a first reading in the House of Assembly yesterday despite the strenuous objection of Renward Wells, the Bamboo Town MP and leader of government business in the House.

This was the first time this parliamentary session that a private Bill was allowed to have a first reading, with Speaker Moultrie saying he was following the constitution.

The Bill for an Act to repeal the Ocean Industries Incorporated (Aragonite Mining Encouragement) 1971, was drafted

PINERIDGE MP Frederick McAlpine yesterday.

by Bahamian Evolution, a group that demonstrated in Rawson Square as the House met.

Those backing the Bill argue that the country has not benefited enough from its natural resources. They say they want a new regime to govern aragonite in the country.

Mr Wells argued that Mr McAlpine did not renew his notice about wanting the Bill read for a first time at the previous sitting of the House therefore he should not have been permitted yesterday to move a motion for the Bill to be read.

“We did not sit idly by on this whole issue of the aragonite, of mining, of the petroleum industry, of the sovereign wealth fund,” he said. “The member for Centreville brought to this House – and put on the record of this House for well over a year – a call for a select committee to look into the issue and there were many persons out there who were saying that this administration was being flippant about it, but it was this administration that gave the member the opportunity to be able to stand in this place and bring that resolution.”

Mr Wells insisted that according to the lower chamber’s rules, when a Bill of a private member comes to the House, the House must decide whether to allow that Bill to be tabled.

Speaker Moultrie, however, said the constitution allows members to have private Bills to the House tabled.

“I believe there is only a formality at first reading, but according to the constitution, all members of this Parliament have the right and privilege to bring

a Bill that shall, according to the constitution, be debated and disposed of,” he said.

Speaker Moultrie has repeatedly railed against the way the government conducts business, saying some matters are unconstitutional and the executive exerts too much power over the legislature.

He has repeatedly decried the fact that the Rules and Business Committee of the House has not met to draft new rules for the institution. The committee is headed by Mr Wells.

“I have had difficulties with these rules from the very beginning and I have called for the House Rules and Business Committee to meet to review these rules,” Speaker Moultrie said.

“Some of the provisions in these rules in my estimation are unconstitutional and they seek to deprive members and the Parliament of fulfilling its fundamental role and it is the position of this Chair that whenever it is an issue with the rules and the constitution and the privileges extended by the constitution, the constitution will supersede those rules because there should be no rule that should circumvent the constitution and any rule that circumvents the constitution shall be deemed null and void by this Speaker until the Rules and Business Committee meets and rectifies the situation with the rules.

“And so, we are not entertaining any further discussions on the rule that I just made. The Bill should be read for the first time, laid on the table and at second reading and committal, the Bill could be dealt with and disposed of by the Parliament,” Speaker Moultrie said.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 3, 2020, PAGE 3

Petition to stop Disney reaches 400,000 signatures

THE VIEW at Lighthouse Point in Eleuthera. from page one “Disney’s pages on Lighthouse Point talk about how they’re going to be respectful to the environment… and on one hand, they push out a lot of good information but then they’re not walking the walk when it comes to their own development.”

A Disney spokesperson was contacted about the petition but provided no comment up to press time.

Those sounding alarm against the project include the Bahamas Reef Environment Education Foundation, EARTHCARE, reEarth, as well as its partners Waterkeepers Bahamas and Save the Bays.

The environmental watchdogs are concerned

about the negative implications the project could create for the area’s environment and want more sustainable development options for South Eleuthera and its residents.

Reiterating activists’ longtime concerns in a statement yesterday, Ms Duncombe added: “We are deeply concerned about Disney’s plans for a massive cruise ship port at Lighthouse Point that threaten this unique natural place treasured by generations of Bahamians and visitors from around the world.

This is not the place where an environmentally-responsible corporation would choose to develop a massive cruise ship port.”

In 2019, the government and Disney Island Development Ltd signed a Heads of Agreement for

Photo: Barefoot Marketing the construction of a $250m to $400m cruise port and entertainment facility at Lighthouse Point.

The deal allows for the conveyance of 190 acres of land along the southernmost point of the property — a $6.29m value — to the government for establishment of a national park.

Some 120 Bahamians are expected to be employed directly during the construction of the project, which will begin after the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) – which was submitted last December — and Environmental Management Plan (EMP) has been approved by the government.

Public consultation must also be completed, and all other necessary government permits and approvals granted.

ACTIVISTS WANT CRUISE RETHINK THE Global Cruise Activist Network announced the launch yesterday of its “Rethink Cruise Tourism” campaign to compel cruise customers, investors and governments to imagine a socially and environmentally responsible cruise industry, before restarting the cruise ships sector following its COVID-19 hiatus.

As part of the campaign, GCAN released two videos - “Rethink Before Rebook” and “Rethink Before Reinfect” - along with a series of graphics and fact sheets to provide policy makers and would-be cruisers with a vision of what a transformed cruise industry could look like.

In September 2020, GCAN, whose membership includes cruise port residents, civil society organisations, and labour and crime victim advocates, published its “Principles for Responsible Cruise Tourism,” which provides a roadmap for a transition to the socially and environmentally responsible future GCAN members want to see.

The principles address a range of concerns ranging from the cruise industry’s negative impacts on local communities to labour,

climate change, air and water pollution, environment and biodiversity, public health, and crime victims.

In a press release issued yesterday, local activist Sam Duncombe, of reEarth, said, “Our goal is an equitable and responsible system of leisure travel that optimizes economic benefits to all stakeholders, and that eliminates the negative social, public health, and environmental impacts of cruising on port communities, workers, and passengers.”

Arlo Haskell, of Key West Committee for Safer, Cleaner Ships in Florida, said the cruise industry’s business practices have put the social fabric, economic integrity, public health, and environment of host communities at risk for decades.

“Cruise companies have failed to act responsibly, from burning huge volumes of highly polluting fuel to dumping in the ocean, underpaying its lowestpaid workers, exposing passengers and crew to air pollution, and avoiding labour, tax, environmental and criminal laws. Governments will have to regulate this rogue industry in order to protect people, communities and the environment

we depend on,” he said.

GCAN’s campaign launch comes just days after the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued a travel advisory recommending that “all people avoid travel on cruise ships, including river cruises,” worldwide “because the risk of COVID-19 on cruise ships is very high.”

Other countries around the world have issued similar warnings. According to the CDC: “Cruising safely and responsibly during a global pandemic is very challenging” because “cruise ship travel facilitates and amplifies transmission of COVID-19”.

According to GCAN, within the last few weeks, most major brands (Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, MSC, Disney) announced a suspension of operations and cancellations of many of their upcoming cruises through 2020 and beyond.

“Despite these dire international warnings, the industry continues its relentless drive to expand the industry by continuing with development plans for new cruise terminals, including in the Bahamas, United States, Belize, and the United Kingdom,” GCAN said.

Giving an update on the process during a Ministry of Environment press conference in September, officials said they were still in the process of finalising the document, noting it will be released to the public soon.

However, environmentalists say Disney’s EIA appears to be “missing in action.”

“It seems like Disney’s EIA is missing in action,” Ms Duncombe stressed to this newspaper. “We were told it was submitted ten months ago and then we were told it was more submissions happening. None of it has been released to the public.”

“The environmental regulations that (were) passed a few months ago, we were asked to comment. We did and they didn’t take any of our considerations. Our fear is given the fact that

the whole world is literally suffering from this pandemic that this is just going to be rushed blindly ahead and let so many things go.”

Activists also said Disney’s EIA “must address the realities of climate change, COVID, and systemic injustice and provide an opportunity for meaningful public participation.”

They continued: “Disney has the opportunity to show real leadership in making the transformation to a new model of lowerimpact, lower-carbon, and higher-community-benefit tourism. Let’s make Lighthouse Point a beacon of hope for the future.”

Disney Cruise Line has previously said that the company will only proceed with the project if it can be done in an “environmentally responsible manner.”

“Previous development proposals for Lighthouse Point, which was privately owned for decades before Disney’s purchase included plans for hundreds of homes, condominiums, villas, a hotel and a 140slip marina construction.” the company said on its website.

“What Disney Cruise Line plans to do is much different and is designed to have as little impact as possible on the natural environment.

“In fact, the project will leave the overwhelming majority of the site undeveloped... Disney is also donating more than 190 acres, including the site’s southernmost point and a significant amount of beachfront proper, to the government and people of The Bahamas.”

PAGE 4, Thursday, December 3, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

When will we get it? from page one Pfizer’s promising COVID-19 vaccine must be stored at minus 70 degrees Celsius (-94 degrees F) .

Reuters reports that these frigid requirements “pose a particularly daunting challenge for countries in Asia, as well as in places like Africa and Latin America, where intense heat is often compounded by poor infrastructure that will make it difficult to keep the

‘cold chain’ intact during deliveries to rural areas and islands.”

Moderna’s vaccine, however, needs to be frozen only at minus 20 Celsius (-4 degrees F), about the temperature of a regular freezer.

The Tribune asked Dr Delon Brennen, deputy medical chief medical officer, how the country was preparing to receive the COVID vaccine, how and where medicine will be stored, and

if special freezers would be purchased, etc.

Dr Brennen, who is said to have direct oversight of arranging logistics for the vaccine as far as The Bahamas is concerned, said a committee has been appointed to do the same.

“There is a national committee that has been formed to finalise those details,” Dr Brennen, who is working remotely from the United States, said.

“The committee has not formally met yet, so no one

can answer those questions yet.”

Last week, Mr Wells said the government has made a down payment for 80,000 doses of a COVID-19 vaccine — when one becomes available. At the time, he said the country is aiming to vaccinate 20 percent of the population initially.

He also revealed that his ministry has already drafted a “fully functional, laid out vaccination plan” developed over the past two months.

Yesterday, he said the government has the right to purchase more doses than the initial 80,000.

“We have the right to purchase vaccines beyond that 80,000 doses from any of the other companies, so it’s not just going to be 80,000 doses. The Oxford vaccine is somewhere around two (British) pounds which is somewhere around $4 per dose,” he said.

Pfizer has formally submitted a request to the US Food and Drug Administration

(FDA) to authorise its COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use. The FDA plans to meet on December 10 to discuss approval for the Pfizer vaccine.

Moderna, also seeks permission for emergency use.

The FDA will meet again on December 17 to discuss Moderna’s request.

PAHO has said the vaccine is expected to be quite pricey, but the organisation is committed to seeing that all countries in the region receive the drug.

FORBES: DON’T BE TOO CONFIDENT - IT’S STILL OUT THERE

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Tribune Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

WITH COVID-19 infections now in single digits, the country’s top infectious diseases expert has again urged Bahamians not to be overly confident or come to the false conclusion that the deadly disease has left the country.

Dr Nikkiah Forbes, director of the National HIV/AIDS and Infectious Disease Programme at the Ministry of Health, reminded people that the number of confirmed cases everywhere is always less than the actual number of infections, adding 40 percent of cases are in asymptomatic carriers.

As these people are still infectious, following health protocols should remain a focus of all, she said.

Recent international epidemiological models have estimated that the number of locally confirmed cases is far below the actual number.

Health officials said only two new cases of COVID19 were confirmed in the country on Tuesday.

The cases were in New Providence.

DR NIKKIAH FORBES “The first thing to know there are asymptomatic is that the number of lab persons. Up to 40 percent confirmed cases of COVID- of people with COVID-19 19 everywhere is always less can be asymptomatic and than the true number of they would have no inclinainfections,” Dr Forbes said tion that they would have yesterday, “Simply because COVID-19 because they

have no symptoms. However, they’re still infectious so they would not come to the healthcare system because they have no symptoms, so they are in the community.

“There are persons who may have mild symptoms, who may not come in to get tested and so it’s a fact globally everywhere that the number of confirmed cases is lower than the number of actual cases.

“Now, as it relates to modeling, you’ll see that there are several different projections and they have different numbers for the model and there are many models that can be used to project what could be the number of cases of anything in a country.”

She continued: “We have to keep in mind that these models can vary widely and we can see that the numbers that you have there also vary and that is because some of these models are not a good fit for smaller sized populations. They are often for very large countries with millions of people and so there is a margin of error.

“So, what is the news that you can use? I always say

that the news you can use is this: be assured that there are more persons than the lab confirmed cases in country and what does that mean? It means that we cannot be overly confident and come to the false conclusion that COVID-19 has gone away because we have single digits or a few cases that are reported.

“We have to remember that there are still cases that are not coming into the healthcare system and it can spread again if it is that we don’t continue to follow the precautions.”

If Bahamians return to business as usual, Dr Forbes predicted a rise in cases.

“There are still people who are asymptomatic.

There are still persons who have COVID-19 and if we go back to business as usual, we’re going to see a spike and a surge in the number of cases and that’s something that we have been knowing and documenting and following global experiences and individual countries over the past year since we’ve known about COVID-19 and this is what is true and just about everywhere.

“When things go back

to business as usual. When people are moving around and we’re back to our daily movements as usual - opening up borders and people going back to their usual activities and not following the public health protocols that is what leads to waves and surges.

“In many countries when you look at the epidemic curve in 14 days, two to three weeks, you can start to see an increase in cases unless people follow the public health recommendations and strategies to mitigate the spread.”

As cases are at an alltime low in this wave of the pandemic, officials here are encouraged by a COVID19 vaccination coming on stream.

Yesterday, Britain became the first country in the world to authorise a rigorously tested COVID-19 vaccine and could be dispensing shots within days — an historic step toward eventually ending the outbreak that has killed more than 1.4 million people around the globe.

In The Bahamas, Dr Forbes said a vaccine could be in the country by as early as the spring.

in The Bahamas, persons coming in with hospitalisations and the like so the death rate has increased based on the fact that persons are not being able to be treated or just admitted into the hospital based on the fear of COVID.” In October, health officials admitted that tough decisions will have to be made concerning the patients that will be given priority care if the country’s healthcare system continues to operate beyond its current capacity amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, since then, the country has seen a sharp decline in both COVID-19 numbers and hospitalisations.

While COVID-19 cases have since trended downward, overall deaths in the country have not – a situation that has led to overcrowding in both hospital and funeral homes’ morgues, The Tribune was told.

The latest COVID-19 measures for New Providence and several other Family Islands on funerals limit services to graveside or internments only, with a maximum of ten attendees present outside of those officiating and mortuary workers.

Because of the strict protocols, Mr Ferguson said some families continue to

delay or postpone services for their loved ones.

“The situation has improved but families are still a bit apprehensive with just planning a service and setting a definite date. It’s almost like a wait and see game,” he said. “…We’ve had bodies in mortuaries like mine in particular for over two to three months. It could swing into next year but at the same time, families are not coming in presently and saying, ‘We want a funeral early January or February.’

“But you know the standard wait time was two weeks but that’s prior to COVID but now you see that turn around being four to six weeks in the first instance and it is adding to the backlog at funeral homes in particular.”

While Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis has already noted funerals to be a “greater risk of socialisation”, some observers still question the rationale behind his decision to keep restrictions imposed on funerals especially considering the fact that church services can now be held.

Asked about the association’s thoughts on the matter, the BFDA president replied: “We can’t give a scientific explanation of that other than it’s what the emergency orders call for.

We would like for it to be otherwise, but we are under the mandate of what the law prescribes to us.

“Now, because funerals are considered public gatherings — social distancing can be practised in churches — but the science behind it I can’t speak to it because it’s obviously much more than we are being told. So, we’re just going with what is generally put to us which is graveside services.”

However, he added the organisation has already contacted the Prime Minister concerning their recommendations for funerals to be held in the sanctuary and are still awaiting to receive a response.

“From day one when this pandemic came upon us, we were in constant communication with the PM’s office and the like and from the Prime Minister’s own declaration in the House of Assembly or I think it was a press conference when he said he would be reaching out to the funeral directors association. We have been constantly sending our communication to the PM for recommendations we think would be most adequate for families here in The Bahamas, but to date, there we haven’t received any response, none whatsoever unfortunately.”

HAS COVID-19 CAUSED DEATH RATE INCREASE? from page one His comments came as the country continues to see a decline of confirmed COVID-19 infections as well as virus related deaths.

As of Tuesday, the COVID-19 death tally in The Bahamas stood at 163, with 23 deaths still under investigation.

The last day the country recorded a COVID death was on November 9; the patient was a 78-year man from Grand Bahama. His death was announced in

the Ministry of Health’s November 14 briefing.

However, Mr Ferguson said in recent weeks, funeral homes have seen a surge of non-COVID related deaths, inclusive of people dying from common illnesses.

He believes this increase is a direct result of the COVID-19 crisis and its strain on the healthcare system.

With so much attention fixed on the pandemic, the BFDA president said he believed many deceased victims were ill patients

who were not able to receive proper hospital care due to COVID-19 fears.

“From our perspective as mortuary administrators, even though there is a decline in COVID deaths, because the health care system was already overtaxed, we’re seeing more deaths coming to us for persons who are not being properly cared for such as heart ailments, strokes and the like,” he said.

“I don’t think the proper care is being administered based on the severity of COVID cases

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 3, 2020, PAGE 5

Parliamentary Elections Bill will create voter register

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Senior Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Marvin Dames yesterday tabled the Parliamentary Elections (Amendment) Bill in the House of Assembly, which will create a permanent voter register once passed.

Currently, the voter register expires every five years.

The bill says: “A person registered as a voter entitled to vote at an election on the current register, shall remain registered as a voter entitled to vote at an

election on the continuous register, unless his name is removed from the register by the parliamentary commissioner.”

The parliamentary commissioner can remove a person from the register if it is determined that the person has, among other things, died; is deemed to be suffering from a legal incapacity and is not entitled to be registered as a voter or to vote at any election; is found not to be entitled to register as a voter or to be retained on the register of voters upon a revision of the register; or

has had an objection to his registration as a voter.

The bill allows biometric voters’ cards to be issued in place of the traditional paper voter cards and counterfoils.

“The bill also seeks to allow registered voters who are 65 years and older on the day appointed for the taking of the poll, to vote as special voters in the advanced poll,” the bill says.

The creation of a continuous voters’ register has caused some to speculate Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis will call

MINISTER of National Security Marvin Dames.

Speaking to reporters an election before May 2022, imitating some of on the sidelines of a Small Development his counterparts around Business the Caribbean who called Centre grant presentaelections this year during tion at Gladstone Road Terminal last the COVID-19 pandemic Freight month, Dr Minnis said: crisis.

Dr Minnis sought to “Election is due on, I temper such speculation think, May 2022. That’s why I know, so ‘the’ last month.

election is not due until May 2022. So, they can talk whatever they want to, that’s when it is due.”

In September, he told reporters he was committed to saving lives and restoring the economy amid the pandemic and was not focused on an early election.

NEW OPERATING THEATRE FOR RAND

BY DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A NEW fully-equipped modular operating theatre donated to the Rand Memorial Hospital by Direct Relief (DR) was officially turned over to the Ministry of Health on Wednesday.

During an official ribbon-cutting and blessing, Minister of State for Grand Bahama Senator Kwasi Thompson said the donation has greatly assisted the Rand in providing “a safe and sterile environment for surgeries to be performed” post Dorian.

“We are grateful to DR for the donation of the operating theatre container; it was needed and timely,” said Mr Thompson, who spoke on behalf of Minister of Health Renward Wells.

Also present was Minister of State for Disaster Preparedness, Management, and Reconstruction Iram Lewis.

Canon Norman Lightbourne performed the blessing.

The Urgent Care Operating Theatre was installed adjacent to the hospital’s Accident and Emergency Department on August 19, and came equipped with all the equipment required to perform general surgeries.

Todate, some 81 cases were performed there between August to October, according to Minister Thompson.

“It is now a permanent fixture and once the main operating theatres are certified, we would have five public health operating theatres on GB,” he said.

“We are pleased to be able to bless this theatre and commend DR for their gracious service to our community; we thank DR for their gift to The Bahamas,” the minister said.

Robert Sweeting, of DR, said they are happy to provide support to the public health care system in The Bahamas.

“We are very honored to formally present this turnkey operating theatre to the RMH. It’s been getting a lot of use which we are glad to

see,” he said.

Mr Sweeting said Direct Relief continues to offer support to McLean’s Town Clinic, High Rock Clinic, and healthcare in the Abacos. DR is a non-profit organisation with mission to improve the health and lives of people affected by poverty or emergency situations by mobilizing and providing essential medical resources where needed.

Minister Thompson stated that other projects at the Rand have progressed and are already operational, including the kitchen, cafeteria, and Medical Surgical Ward Three, also known as the new COVID-19 Unit are completed.

The COVID Unit, he said, provides seven additional beds to help in the fight against COVID. Mr Thompson also indicated that the main hospital’s four operating theatres – some of the most advanced in the region - are also completed and awaits certification and equipment for occupancy.

“Contractors are working to complete the newly renovated Pharmacy, Pediatric Unit, Surgical Medical Unit, ICU, and the lobby, which should be ready soon.”

He noted that commencement of expansion and renovation of the morgue will begin and allow for more storage space and a bigger viewing area for the public.

Expansion is also well underway at the Cancer Association Building, which is also being used to care for COVID-19 patients.

Mr Thompson said the hospital ongoing process toward restoration and rebuilding continues in Grand Bahama.

“We are making our way steadily to full restoration,” he assured.

He commended staff at the RMH. “They are our local heroes who are fighting on the frontline of the pandemic for the better part of this year, all the while working to rebuilding their facility.

“I wish to highlight and salute every nurse, every doctor, every technician,

DRUGS AND GUN FOUND BY POLICE

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

GB POLICE recovered dangerous drugs and a high-power weapon that were thrown by a male suspect in bushes near a public school in the Freeport area.

Superintendent of Police Terecita Pinder reported that officers of the Predator Unit were on mobile patrol shortly after 5pm on Tuesday in the area of Jack Hayward Senior High School, where they

observed a man walking in the area.

On seeing the officers, the man ran. Ms Pinder said officers chased the male suspect, who was observed allegedly throwing an object into the bushes.

The suspect escaped, but officers were able to recover an AK-47 assault rifle with one magazine containing 23 live rounds of ammunition, along with a clear plastic bag containing suspected marijuana.

Investigations are continuing into the matter.

FROM left, Minister of State Iram Lewis and Minister of State for Grand Bahama Kwasi Thompson attend the ribbon cutting for a new container operating theatre at Rand Memorial Hospital.

Photo: Denise Maycock every member of the staff at the hospital, security, and administration; it has been a challenging time for you especially.

“You had to deal with having your place of work destroyed by the storm, and then having added pressure and risks of dealing with COVID-19, all while being called on to serve with excellence in life and death situations. The island salute’s you.” Mr Thompson said.

Catherine Weech, managing director of the Public Hospitals Authority, said Direct Relief has been a “blessing” to the public health care system in the Bahamas.

“We are grateful to have forged a relationship with DR over the last 18months.

We been the recipient of many gifts through their organisation,” she said.

“We thank you for seeing our needs at a time when we were truly distressed having

to deal with Hurricane Dorian, the worst hurricane I have been able to witness in my entire lifetime. It destroyed the essence of what we know to be a health care system in GB where over the many years it provided health care to numerous citizens and visitors.”

“As managing director of PHA, I continue to ensure we provide the same level of commitment and service to ensuring the ongoing development of what I believe is

necessary in terms of having a major second hospital, a primary care facility in GB,” she said.

Ms Weech said that they look forward to continued relationship with DR, which also provided support to the Abacos, and donating equipment and supplies to Nassau. “The PMH benefitted from many beds that came at a time when we desperately need it, and for that, I say thank you,” she said.

PAGE 6, Thursday, December 3, 2020

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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A long road back from the brink IF there was any doubt about the economic mountain we have to climb to recover from COVID-19, the International Monetary Fund ought to have put paid to it yesterday.

The fund again cut its predictions for the Bahamian economy, and called us “one of the hardest hit countries in the Caribbean”.

That last part is perhaps no surprise given how heavily we lean on tourism, an industry that ground to a halt this year the world over.

But the recovery is not expected any time soon – with the IMF predicting only a two percent growth next year, and saying it would take four years to get back to where we started before the pandemic.

That will mean some tough questions ahead – not least of all about how we pay for the debts we are incurring now as the deficit balloons.

We have already seen the problems of a lack of income for the government and essential services, while at the same time officials paying out more to keep people going through unemployment and to pay for food parcels.

Less money in and more money out means the debt goes up – and that will have to be paid for at some point.

With a four-year recovery time predicted, and an election due in 2022, a large share of that will fall on the next government, whichever party forms that.

There will be questions about increased taxes, payment of existing taxes that have gone unpaid, paying back student loans, and even the prospect of new taxes – such as an income tax. That’s a discussion which will cause a significant backlash, particularly among residents of richer communities.

We can’t pretend the economy is healthy, though. We know unemployment has soared – although the government has not provided exact numbers after postponing its unemployment survey. There has been talk of 40 percent unemployment, but we would not be surprised if it were more – or at least had been at some stage of the pandemic.

The glimmer of light is that hotels are starting to reopen, and businesses are starting to take workers back on after their extended furlough. We shouldn’t focus on the glimmer and neglect the storm cloud, but any ray of sun is welcome after so long.

Every election is about the economy – but the 2022 vote will focus on that more so than ever. The winner will have a great burden to carry thanks to COVID19 – so a clear plan will be more crucial than ever before.

Not just for the electorate, not just for the nation’s funds, but also so international organisations can see we are moving in the right direction. We really have no choice but to get it right – even if that means asking the toughest questions.

Vaccines for all

At last, vaccinations are about to begin – but not for The Bahamas. Not yet.

Indeed, while the United Kingdom is the first out of the gate with offering vaccinations, The Bahamas will have to wait until Spring.

It’s going to be very hard indeed watching as we see other countries around the world getting their jabs while we sit and wait.

It could be even worse too – if we start to see exorbitant prices being charged here for early access to the vaccine for the rich and well-connected.

We hope the roll-out is not uneven, and that a clear plan is in place for distributing the vaccine. We would suggest, in fact, that we’ve known all along who should get the vaccine first. It’s those on the list of essential workers – the healthcare workers, the supermarket staff, the gas station attendants… all the people who have kept us going while we’ve been waiting indoors. That’s who should get it first, not those of us who can wait a while longer indoors until more supplies are available, and not those who can jump the queue with a wave of the chequebook.

Turnquest falls to political cannibalism?

EDITOR, The Tribune.

IT IS noteworthy that only Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis, National Security Minister Marvin Dames, St Anne’s MP Brent Symonette, Free National Movement (FNM) Chairman Carl Culmer and former FNM Leader Tommy Turnquest are the only prominent FNMs, to the best of my knowledge, to issue public statements to the media regarding the resignation and legal issues of former Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest.

The silence of the overwhelming majority of the members of Minnis’ Cabinet is indeed deafening.

I am left with the impression that the East Grand Bahama MP has been hung out to dry by his party.

Unfortunately for Turnquest, he’s already being unfairly litigated in the court of public opinion, due to the barrage of serious and unproven allegations being levied against him by

a biweekly tabloid that has been for decades considered an FNM propaganda mouthpiece.

This disturbing fact alone, coupled with the revelation that a prominent FNM’s law firm filed the writ of summons against Turnquest’s former business partner, is evidence that the relentless attacks against him are coming from within his own political party. The Turnquest camp cannot blame the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) for what appears to be concerted attempts to derail his political career.

Moreover, with the shifting population in East Grand Bahama proper, owing to Hurricane Dorian, in addition to the excessively high unemployment rate on Grand Bahama, it could be argued persuasively that Turnquest’s constituency, long considered an FNM stronghold, is now in play for the PLP. What’s more, one has to factor into consideration the FNM Central Council’s current perception of

Turnquest as a standard bearer in the upcoming general election. It’s fair to ask, is Turnquest even a viable and attractive candidate at this stage in his career, considering how Bahamians have a penchant for swallowing hook, line and sinker salacious allegations about public figures on Facebook and tabloid publications?

Politicians are hardly given the benefit of the doubt in this country. There seems to be no solidarity within the FNM, unlike the PLP that typically circles the wagon around its beleaguered members. I have been following frontline politics since 1987. What is happening to Turnquest, I’ve never seen happen before. This entire ordeal reinforces the perception among Bahamians that politics is a dirty game.

Peter Turnquest, in my opinion, has fallen prey to political cannibalism.

KEVIN EVANS Freeport, Grand Bahama.

December 2, 2020.

The wisdom of Simon Potter EDITOR, The Tribune.

THANK you for allowing me to respond to the breathtaking wisdom of Bahamas Petroleum Company CEO Simon Potter, who has once again demonstrated that he knows what is best for Bahamians, far better than we ever could.

Speaking on behalf of the “silent majority” of Bahamians who secretly support BPC’s gamble to enrich its overwhelmingly foreign shareholders while we absorb all the considerable risk, Potter is kind enough to inform us that we “have a right to know” whether there is oil here.

A right to know! Well, imagine that. How selfless, how generous of Mr Potter to stand in the breach championing our rights for us, without even being asked.

While he’s at it, I wonder, could Potter also confirm whether or not we have a right to determine our own future and not have it held ransom by condescending overseas petrol-colonialists?

What about a right not to see the 130,000 jobs that rely directly on our pristine environment put at risk just so Potter’s shareholders, who should be ashamed

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net of themselves, can make a quick buck?

What about our right not to be treated like ignorant natives to be pacified with arrogant, specious arguments and ready-made sound bites?

“Look!” we are told, “The people of Mexico, Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname and Guyana are all benefitting from petrodollars! That could be you!!”

Could it really?

When not a single one of those countries can boast anywhere the percapita income that the Bahamas already enjoys today thanks to tourism – not even close?

Are we really supposed to put it all on the line, risk our Golden Goose, allow our pristine waters to be turned into a toxic wasteland, all so we can be just like… Suriname? Fascinating logic.

Potter goes on to helpfully inform us that the dangers of offshore oil drilling are really not as serious as they have been made out to be. What a relief!

Good to know that the

thousands of scientific studies, press reports on spill disasters, testimonials from locals whose environment has been ruined around the world, don’t carry any weight – or at least, not as much as the word of a professional oil opportunist with an admitted vested interest.

The Wisdom of Potter does stumble at one point, when he claims that citizens who challenge his drill plan are interfering with the Bahamas government’s “sovereign right” to allow for oil exploration.

I’m not sure how it works in Britain, but around here, sovereignty rests with the people of the Bahamas, not elected officials, and if it turns out that Potter is wrong about the sentiments of the silent majority, this administration will swiftly find itself back in the wilderness from whence it came.

Which of course, would suit Potter and his associates just fine. One political party is as good as the next to them. None of what happens here really matters – they are just in it for the drill.

ESSY BOOTLE Nassau, December 2, 2020.

Don’t ruin this beauty EDITOR, The Tribune.

THE American astronaut, Scott Kelly, fell in love with the Bahamas from space.

Drinking in the extraordinary blues that make up the Bahamian sea – from the cobalt ocean to the dazzling turquoise of the shallows – Kelly reached out to his more than 421,000 followers.

The Bahamas, he tweeted, is “the most beautiful place from space”.

It is this beauty that draws millions of visitors

to the Bahamas every year (barring 2020) and drives our main economic engine.

It is the sea that provides our main source of food.

The sea and beaches are our most valuable resources.

The risks associated with oil drilling just aren’t worth it.

It’s been ten years since the Deepwater Horizon explosion and scientists still don’t know the full impact of the BP EXPLORATORY disaster in the Gulf.

How can anyone forget the images of the oil

belching into the ocean and the oil and tar balls that polluted an estimated 1,100 miles of shoreline? Clods of crude are still buried in the beaches and may be for decades.

The mess stretched from the shores of Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.

How can we forget the images of all the dead fish and birds and their habitat…the blow to the fishing and tourist industries?

ATHENA DAMIANOS Nassau, December 2, 2020.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 3, 2020, PAGE 7

Dominican trio fined $1,000 each

By FARRAH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

THREE Dominican men who attempted to enter the country with fraudulent visas have each been fined $1,000.

Julio Plasencia, 38, Miguel Rosado, 59, and Andry Abreu, 33, were arrested after they

presented fake Bahamian visas to officials at the Lynden Pindling International Airport on November 29.

They each pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a forged document during a hearing before Deputy Chief Magistrate Andrew Forbes.

The court was told that the accused arrived in the

country from a flight from Cap-Haitien, Haiti around 5pm.

When they presented their passports to a senior immigration officer at the airport, their documents were found to be fraudulent.

The prosecution said the first assistant secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was

contacted and copies of the defendants’ visas were sent over for verification.

It was then confirmed the visas were forged.

As a result, officials refused Plasencia, Rosado and Abreu leave to land, cautioned them and turned them over to the Carmichael Road Detention Centre for further processing.

PATRICIA MINNIS VISITS CENTRE FOR GIRLS

When given an opportunity to speak during the hearing, the men, speaking through a Spanish interpreter, told the magistrate they bought the visas for $500 in the Dominican Republic. They claimed the man they received the visas from told them he worked in the Bahamas Consulate’s office on the island and assured them

HAITIAN MAN FINED $1,000 OVER EXPIRED WORK PERMIT

By FARRAH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

PATRICIA Minnis chats with the staff at the Willie Mae Pratt Centre for Girls.

AS part of the 16 Days of Activism against Genderbased Violence (International day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) Patricia Minnis made a special visit to the Willie Mae Pratt Centre for Girls on Tuesday.

Representing the Office of the Spouse of the Prime Minister, Mrs Minnis gave the young ladies an inspiring pep talk during her one-hour visit, reassuring them that they can be whatever they want to be.

She also encouraged the girls to believe in themselves, remain focused and strive to reach their goals.

Mrs Minnis was accompanied by staff of the Office of the Spouse including Dr Ann Higgins, special projects manager, and Mavis Vanderpool, office administrator.

Also joining Mrs Minnis were Kim Moultrie, wife of

the Halson Moultrie, Speaker of the House of Assembly, Natasha Rahming, wife of Reuben Rahming, High Commissioner to CARICOM and Kathryn Campbell, wife of the Frankie Campbell, Minister of Social Services and Urban Development.

Other officials and stakeholders were also present.

Mrs Minnis presented the girls with care packages which included hygiene kits.

In return, the residents serenaded the audience with musical tributes and a liturgical performance.

In recognition of International Men’s Day, observed on November 19, the Office of the Spouse, in partnership with the International Men’s Day Organisation, also presented care packages to Programme SURE and the Simpson Penn Centre for Boys.

20-YEAR-OLD FINED FOR MARIJUANA

By FARRAH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

A 20-YEAR-OLD man who was found with more than two ounces of marijuana was fined $300 in court yesterday.

Shaquille Powell was arrested after police found 2.78 ounces of Indian hemp in his jacket and car on November 27.

He pleaded guilty to two counts of dangerous drug possession with intent to supply during a hearing before Deputy Chief Magistrate Andrew Forbes.

The court was told that on the day in question,

officers on mobile patrol on Chestnut Street approached the accused and informed him that he would be searched for dangerous drugs and firearms. During their investigation, officers found a bag with 20 grams of suspected marijuana in Powell’s jacket. The prosecution said the officers also found another quantity of marijuana in a derelict car in the yard of the accused while $258 was also seized from the accused as the proceeds of crime.

After accepting Powell’s guilty plea, Magistrate Forbes told him he should rethink the decisions he was making to avoid

having to appear in court.

He subsequently fined him $300 or one month in prison.

In a separate incident, 21-year-old Rashad Black appeared before Magistrate Forbes after he was found with 1.18 ounces of Indian hemp on November 26.

The prosecution said around 7.35pm that evening, officers on mobile patrol said Black appeared to look in their direction before acting in a suspicious manner. The court heard when officers attempted to approach the accused, he ran. When they gave chase, they observed Black throwing a bag on the top

of the roof of a building that he ran past. Officers eventually apprehended the accused and took him back to the place where he threw the bag. When they retrieved it, they discovered 22 small clear Ziploc bags each containing a quantity of suspected marijuana.

Black was subsequently arrested and charged.

During the hearing, Black pleaded guilty to dangerous drug possession with intent to supply and insisted he “felt awful about the situation” and was “very sorry” for his actions.

As a result, Magistrate Forbes fined him $200 or two months in custody.

BOUND TO KEEP PEACE AFTER BREAKING WINDOW

By FARRAH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

A 23-YEAR-OLD man who broke a window at the mother of his child’s home during an argument was bound to keep the peace for one year.

Police arrested Carlton Newry after he caused $412 worth of damage to his child’s mother’s window on September 15.

He pleaded guilty to one count of damage during a hearing before Magistrate Samuel McKinney.

The prosecution said around 4.30am, Newry came to the woman’s residence and damaged her front glass window. As a result of her complaint, the accused was arrested.

In an interview with police at the Wulff Road police station he admitted to the offence.

He said that morning, he stood outside of his “baby mother’s” house where they had a heated argument through the window. He said when she attempted to close the window, he pulled on it in an attempt to get her to stop, but ended up

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damaging the window.

During the hearing, Newry told the magistrate that he had already paid

for the window’s repair. As a result, Magistrate Mckinney bound him over to keep the peace for one year.

He warned him that if he didn’t, he would be fined $500 or risk spending three months behind bars.

THE PAINT DEPOT

they would be able to go through him to get the documents.

After listening to their explanation, Magistrate Forbes fined them $1,000 each.

He warned them if they failed to pay the fines, they would spend 12 months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services.

A MAGISTRATE handed down a $1,000 fine to a Haitian man yesterday who was residing in the country on an expired work permit.

Isnert Blanc, 53, was charged with overstaying after he was found in the country past the expiration time granted to him by the director of immigration.

The court was told that officials found Blanc on a property near Love Beach around 8pm on November 25.

The prosecution said when immigration officers approached the accused and asked him to identify himself, he was unable to do so. He was then cautioned and taken to the Carmichael Road Detention Centre for further processing.

When officials made checks there, they discovered Blanc had a work

permit which had expired on June 17 this year. The court was told the accused made no attempts to renew his permit.

During the hearing, Blanc’s counsel told the magistrate his client had been living in The Bahamas for 24 years. He claimed Blanc’s wife had status in the country and that all three of his children were born here.

In response, Magistrate Forbes said Black placed himself in a “precarious situation” by failing to follow the laws of the country, adding that 24 years gave him ample time to apply for permanent residency.

As a result, he fined Blanc $1,000 or 12 months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. He said once the fine was paid, Blanc would be released to the director of immigration who would determine whether the accused would be deported or allowed to apply for status in the country.

PAGE 8, Thursday, December 3, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

13 MARINES COMPLETE TECHNICAL TRAINING COURSE

THIRTEEN marines from the Royal Bahamas Defence Force were recognised after completing their technical training course last month.

As a result of the 12-week training at the RBDF base, the marines have prepared themselves in various technical specialisations to perform routine maintenance, repairs, and service RBDF fleet and buildings.

Led by Petty Officer Renaldo Farquharson, instructor, they were trained in mechanical, electrical,

hull, radio and air-conditioning and mechanical courses. The Base Engineering Department, an essential area of the force, responds to the demands of operational deployment.

During the brief graduation ceremony, Captain Glenn McPhee, acting captain of the Coral Harbour base, congratulated the participants.

He also expressed confidence that because of their training, the operational capabilities of the RBDF fleet are in great hands.

The graduating class includes marine mechanics: Andre Rahming, Deneiro Campbell, Quron Rolle, Jeremiah Farrington, Deonta Coakley, Ryan Lewis, Anwar Lockhart, Stephon Russell, Rudy Stubbs, Jermaine Johnson, and Ricardo Knowles. The lone female participant was Woman Marine Shonique Thompson.

The successful candidates were presented with certificates for their achievements at the conclusion of the ceremony.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 3, 2020, PAGE 9

CHASING A TITLE OF SORTS

HEY MR TRUMP, WHERE’S ALL THIS MONEY GOING TO END UP? I

T SHOULDN’T have really surprised anyone. But it did.

When you consider the chaos, cynicism and confusion in the American government over the past four years of Donald Trump’s crazy presidency, what has been going on in the month after the election that terminated his White House tenure was probably inevitable. But still.

Unwilling to cede to anyone or anything else the front page of big newspapers and the Breaking News crawl on TV, Trump has enlisted squads of attorneys and consultants to challenge and impugn the justcompleted election.

Of course, it hasn’t worked. With almost no exceptions, the lawsuits and complaints filed in several battleground states on Trump’s behalf have failed.

Often, when these challenges wind up in federal court, they are dismissed, with scathing denunciations, by judges installed during Trump’s administration.

It is turning out that redoing the election may not have been the

only point of this seemingly endless exercise.

The purpose of all the noisy litigation appears to have been at least partially to raise money for the embattled President, who reportedly owes more than $400 million to various, often foreign, creditors.

While the national media were all focused on the silliness and humiliation of such a cascade of defeats for Trump’s peevish refusal to admit defeat, he was quietly tapping his millions of supporters for millions of dollars.

There have been numerous reports that his efforts have netted $170 million since the election, and the fundraising continues apace.

“I need you now more than ever,” Trump pleads in a widely

reported fundraising appeal. “Our democracy and freedom are at risk like never before, which is why I’m reaching out to you now with an URGENT request,” Vice President Mike Pence wrote in anther fundraising message. “President Trump and I need our STRONGEST supporters, like YOU, to join the Election Defence Task Force.

This group will be responsible for DEFENDING the election from voter fraud, and we really need you to step up to the front lines of this battle.”

These appeals have been significantly successful.

Much of the money raised so far is coming from thousands of small grass-roots donors across the country.

GETTING DOWN TO BUSINESS

P

RESIDENTELECT Joe Biden has been naming his senior staff and cabinet choices in a calculated, choreographed process that clearly aims to emphasize diversity while elevating those with whom he is personally familiar and comfortable.

It feels like Biden, in his careful and modulated way, is presenting himself as the anti-Trump. While a couple of his choices, including his pick to head the powerful lead government budget office, have attracted criticism from Republicans, most so far seem unlikely to be seriously challenged for confirmation.

Pundits looking past January 20, 2021 wonder how much the new President will be able to accomplish if the Senate remains in Mitch McConnell’s hands, even if all of his major nominees are confirmed.

Actually, the new President will be able to do a lot.

McConnell himself acknowledged well before November’s election that Biden could fairly quickly undo a lot of Trump administration policies in areas such as the environment, immigration and foreign policy. In a widely quoted remark, McConnell said the only enduring major accomplishment of the past four years would be the appointment of hundreds of conservative-leaning federal judges, including the three new members of the Supreme Court.

But as the American death toll from the coronavirus pandemic passes 270,000 and daily reported infections scarily rise, it seems inevitable Biden’s biggest early challenge will be to manage distribution of the vaccine or vaccines that now seem to be nearing an acceptable degree of reliability in tests.

There are existing contracts providing for government purchase of up to 600 million doses of vaccine.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, passed eight months ago long before partisanship precluded further Congressional relief to businesses and individuals, ensures that funding for

distribution will be available to the new administration without further reference to McConnell & Company.

Trump and his allies have infamously trivialized the advice of the nation’s leading public health experts on COVID-19, exacerbating the pandemic’s social and economic effects. It turns out that the US Public Health Service Act of 1944 gives broad power to the Centers for Disease Control to step in and impose sensible measures to stem and stifle the spread and impact of this deadly disease.

Trump, of course, limited the CDC’s ability to exercise that power. But Biden will let the scientists and experts do their work.

What a concept. After all the malicious nonsense of the past year, many Americans may have forgotten it is possible for federal, state and local governments to intervene at least occasionally in the public interest.

Biden is widely expected to unleash the positive power of the federal government to accelerate the extirpation of the virus.

Under the direction of new climate change czar and former senator, Secretary of State and unsuccessful 2004 presidential candidate John Kerry, Biden’s administration is expected to immediately rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement, again without the need to consult with the Senate.

Kerry, since leaving the State Department in 2016, has been a vocal and passionate advocate for mitigating the effects of climate change, and his acceptance of this new position from Biden signals the new administration’s intent to reclaim global leadership on this issue. Reinstalling rigorous automobile fuel emissions standards and regulations on the electricity industry are also expected in the early days of Biden’s presidency.

The often amended Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 does not oblige Biden to secure congressional approval to restore or expand Obama-era refugee immigration ceilings of around 110,000 per year.

(Trump’s administration has limited these to 15,000.)

Many observers feel Biden will quickly adjust these ceilings upward.

It is not unreasonable to anticipate that as the pandemic ultimately is neutralized by the coming vaccines and then subsides, the climate for visitors to come to the US will improve markedly.

Won’t that be something to look forward to?

PRESIDENT-elect Joe Biden. (AP)

A

Some of the funds have reportedly been directed to a leadership political action committee that could be used at his discretion to personally benefit the President after he leaves the White House, according to news reports.

Brendan Fischer, director of a federal regulatory work at the Campaign Legal Centre, which supports greater restrictions on the role of money in politics, said that “small donors who give to Trump thinking they are financing an ‘official election defence fund’ are in fact helping pay down the Trump campaign’s debt or funding his postpresidential political operation.”

Such behaviour by a candidate after an election is hardly unprecedented.

Political campaigns rack up massive debt, and in the aftermath of victory or defeat, debts accumulated during the heat of battle must be paid.

But the scale of this President’s activity is unusual, and it does fuel suspicions that he is still trying to use his current office to help pay for past bad business decisions.

S MUCH as COVID19 has played havoc with American professional sports this year, it has affected college football much more severely. Dozens of games, many between national powerhouse programmes, have been postponed or cancelled altogether.

The behemoth Big 10 Conference, which reaches from Nebraska to New York City, decided August 11 to scrub its 2020 season altogether, then reversed course five weeks later and is now scrambling to stage a credible December championship game between two division titlists who will have played at least six games.

Threshold Prohibitive conference favourite Ohio State has cancelled two straight games due to COVID-19 and needs to play its last two to reach the threshold of six.

Oddly, amid all this upheaval and turmoil, the ranking of the four teams who will participate in college football’s annual championship final four play-off has been remarkably consistent.

Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Clemson have monopolized the top four spots all season. Notre Dame has beaten Clemson once already, and the two will likely meet again in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game, so one of them might not make the play-off.

That might open the door for Florida, which has quietly had a terrific season, marred only by a loss at Texas A&M early in October.

Untroubled by state government health concerns, the Gators should complete a normal regular season complement of games.

PAGE 10, Thursday, December 3, 2020

COVID-19, lifeboat ethics and conspiracies

SIR Cosmo Edmund Duff-Gordon.

An empty head is not really empty; it is stuffed with rubbish. Hence the difficulty of forcing anything into an empty head.

- Eric Hoffer THERE is a well-known episode from the 1912 sinking of RMS Titanic involving the wealthy Scottish landowner Sir Cosmo Edmund Duff-Gordon (1862-1931).

Sir Cosmo, his wife and her secretary, Laura Mabel Francatelli, survived the sinking of the superliner on its maiden passenger voyage by escaping on Lifeboat No 1, which had the capacity for 40 people.

The small company of three was among only 12 people in the lifeboat, despite the capacity for 28 more. Approximately 1,500 perished in the infamous disaster, while 705 survived.

Many of those who died in the brutally cold waters of the North Atlantic, froze to death or drowned after passing out from the cold.

The inquiry into the maritime mishap found that a number of the lifeboats turned away from drowning passengers and the plaintive cries for help from some in the ocean and the pleading of some on the lifeboats to go back to rescue others.

A number of the lifeboats had the capacity to rescue more of those struggling in the nighttime waters. One of these was the lifeboat carrying Sir Cosmo, his wife and her secretary.

An inquiry after the

THE TRIBUNE

accident heard claims that Sir Cosmo paid or bribed its crew not to turn back for other passengers, a contention he forcefully denied and for which no evidence was found by a Board of Trade inquiry.

“Sir Cosmo denied his offer of money to the lifeboat’s crew was a bribe, and the [Board’s] inquiry into the disaster accepted his explanation that it was a charitable contribution for crew members who had lost not only their possessions but their jobs.

“The inquiry nonetheless concluded that, if the lifeboat had returned to the wreck site, it might have been able to rescue others.”

The notion of lifeboat ethics is a classic in ethics courses. There are a number of case studies and scenarios employed to probe how students or participants view a particular ethical dilemma or trilemma. There are also a number of well-known films which invite viewers to do the same.

The COVID-19 pandemic has produced volumes of ethical case studies in medical ethics and bioethics, resource and food distribution and the availability of health care.

In terms of social ethics there is a surplus of social questions concerning the many societal deficits and the needs of the poor, minorities and the most vulnerable during the pandemic.

From Pope Francis to

the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and others have come impassioned pleas about galloping inequality and access to basic goods, medicine and vaccines for the developing world and the poor.

But alongside the meta and major ethical questions to which the pandemic has given rise, are the individual ethical choices which confront us all.

While governments can mandate various public health measures, it cannot force citizens and individuals to make choices that will redound to the greater good.

The state of Florida has now passed one million COVID-19 cases, with one person in America dying every minute as the virus spreads like a climate change-induced season of

wildfires during an autumn that is growing deadlier by the day.

Dr Anthony Fauci, Director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, repeatedly asked, begged, pleaded with, invited and warned Americans not to travel over Thanksgiving because such travel would make a dire public health crisis exceedingly worse.

He feared there would be a surge on top of a surge.

While some listened to the respected Fauci, others simply didn’t give a damn. They are in their individual lifeboats watching as the Titanic collapses around them, indifferent that their behaviour may endanger or kill others, including their loved ones.

We are living through a period when many are in their secure and secured lifeboats, while many others suffer from the metaphorical Titanics caused by COVID-19, which continue to sink because of the many icebergs and dangerous waters of the pandemic.

A supernova level of selfishness and herd stupidity are endemic in peoples around the world and here at home. Whether at a nightclub on New Providence or a private party in Lyford Cay, a self-absorbed mindset reigns.

Such a mindset will never ever yield to the pleading of public health or government officials or religious leaders.

There is a diabolical self-absorption and indifference from some whose empathy appears to end no farther than the reach of their fingertips. This is a part of the human condition with which public officials must perennially contend.

Calls for a common good or even an enlightened altruism simply fall on the deaf ears of those who have not heard the pleading of hospital patients dying alone on their beds or whose eyes refuse to see the massive economic depression and dislocation visited on their neighbours and fellow-citizens.

Meanwhile, in Florida, residents of that state and visitors, including a good

number of Bahamians, are distracting themselves with retail therapy and magical thinking.

A friend recounted the observation of another in the United States over that country’s recent Thanksgiving holiday, who noted the number of people not wearing masks nor physically distancing in stores.

The Florida visitor, who wears his mask, has been startled by the number of non-mask-wearing individuals who have verbally abused store entrance security personnel and clerks who have requested potential shoppers to don a mask before entry.

Of course the reply is: “My right to not wear a mask supersedes your right or need to remain healthy and to stay alive.” When such a mindset is blended with a penchant for conspiratorial thinking, there is an explosively unhealthy dynamic in an individual and in a country, whether in the U.S., The Bahamas or elsewhere.

If one grows up in an environment that ascribes outcomes to some unseen malevolent hand and comes to believe that one is powerless as opposed to someone who believes that they live in an environment that suggests causes and effects are knowable and therefore predictable, preventable or mitigable, the worldview of two such individuals will be markedly different.

Another friend recalled the remarks of an acquaintance who told him that a general election campaign he was involved in was a brilliant campaign – but just not for The Bahamas.

After he absorbed her critique, she went on to explain that she was an “expert” on the content of local talk shows and if they reflected any significant proportion of the views in the country, then his party’s messaging did nothing to address the spate of conspiracies that filled the airwaves.

She observed that there are large numbers of people in The Bahamas who were far more comfortable jumping from conspiracy to conspiracy without any evidence, and anyone who offered evidence to the

contrary was surely among the conspirators.

She was convinced that far too many Bahamians are “trained” to believe in conspiracies from a very early age. By “training” she meant that there is constant reinforcement in one’s environment of such beliefs early on in life, reinforced by a herd mentality of misinformation, disinformation and sometimes sheer stupidity and mass hysteria.

Some believe that to spout conspiratorial thinking makes them look clever or in the know, though in truth what they claim is often asinine and dangerous.

A former newspaper editor continues to be amazed at the level of supposedly educated Bahamians who will receive a poorly worded, misspelt, grammatically incorrect message on WhatsApp or dubious Facebook post, who rushes to believe what they just read and to quickly pass it on.

But presented with a well-written and documented article from a reputable magazine, that same individual will express doubts and wonder whether the article is part of a larger conspiracy by the elites.

And many friends report that when they correct a post by others in various chat groups that may be riddled with errors, the person who originally posted the piece never admits they were wrong or corrects themselves. They just keep returning with more errors.

So what is the next battleground for selfish lifeboat thinking and conspiracy theories? Well, the COVID19 vaccine of course. Eric Hoffer, the social philosopher cum longshoreman was spot on: “An empty head is not really empty; it is stuffed with rubbish.

Hence the difficulty of forcing anything into an empty head.”

There are vaccines, good treatments and cures for various diseases. But curing or treating conspiratorial and magical thinking and virulent selfishness is a decidedly more difficult task for Homo sapiens, the latter designation of which often appears dubious and questionable.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 3, 2020, PAGE 11

A YOUNG BLACK SLAVE’S DEATH IN A 1714 EPIDEMIC RESONATES DOWN THE CENTURIES

By NICOLE S MASKIELL Assistant Professor of History, University of South Carolina

ordinary and extraordinary – it looked like other tombstones in the graveyard, but this one memorialised a young black girl.

I wondered about Cicely.

She most likely did domestic work in and around Harvard, as her enslaver was a Cambridge minister and a tutor at the college.

But what else did she do during her short life, and why did her enslavers memorialise her with a tombstone? These questions and the mystery of her life inspired me to become a historian. Over the years, I have been passionate about piecing together fragments of her and Jane’s lives.

Jane’s enslaver kept a diary that provided some details about her life, but I found little written about Cicely beyond her adult baptismal record, dated just two months before her death.

WHAT I believe to be the oldest surviving gravestone for a black person in the Americas memorialises an enslaved teenager named Cicely.

Cicely’s body is interred across from Harvard’s Johnston Gate in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

She died in 1714 during a measles epidemic brought to the college by a student after the summer recess of 1713. Another tombstone in the same burial ground remembers Jane, an enslaved woman who died in 1741 during an outbreak of diphtheria, or “throat distemper.”

When diseases struck in the Colonial era, many city residents fled to the safety of the country. Poor and enslaved people, like Jane and Cicely – the essential RACIAL UNREST frontline workers of the time – stayed behind.

AND DISEASE Why were Cicely and Jane memorialised when Cicely lived and died so many other enslaved during a time of racial people were not? The archi- unrest and disease. A slave val record doesn’t provide revolt in 1712 in New York a clear answer, City led to but the question ‘Cicely lived several brutal of who should executions and be remembered and died during deportations. with monuments a time of racial News of the and commemo- unrest and revolt spread rations is timely. throughout the disease. A slave Colonies, stokThroughout the United revolt in 1712 ing concerns of States, as in New York a wider uprising.

COVID-19 Colonists armed affects front- City led to themselves in line workers several brutal fear. and communi- executions and Slavery ties of colour existed in every far more than deportations.’

Colony, includother demoing the North. graphic groups, and At the time of the revolt, protesters agitate for racial the Northern Colonies – justice, American society from Nova Scotia down is wrestling with its racial to Delaware – were home memory and judging which to around 9,000 enslaved monuments and memorials people, representing a third deserve a place. of the enslaved population Against this backdrop, of the British mainland colI believe it’s important to onies. New York City had look back at how a few 5,841 residents, of which marginalised and oppressed 975 were held as slaves. people who served on the Boston had roughly 400 front lines of prior epidem- enslaved people. ics have been treated and Racial unrest was quickly remembered. After all, followed by contagion. A those whom society chooses measles outbreak the next to memorialise reflect what year followed the same accomplishments – honour- path up the coast as news of able or horrific – society the revolt had travelled. values.

The epidemic started in Newport, Rhode Island, in the summer of 1713 and hit UNSUNG SACRIFICES Cambridge, Massachusetts, The lives, labour and that September. It broke sacrifices of women and out at Harvard before girls of colour have been spreading to Boston. More overlooked for centuries. than 400 Bostonians died Of the 3.5 million books in – about 18 percent of them Widener Library – the cen- people of colour – at a time trepiece of Harvard’s vast when black people were library system – I found only four percent of the that not one was devoted total population.

Racial discord and to Cicely or Jane, and few disease continued throughfocus on women like them.

For early-American his- out the Colonial period. torians of Northern slavery Between Cicely and Jane’s like me, such fragmentary deaths in 1714 and 1741, and untold stories are both a smallpox crisis gripped intriguing and challenging. Boston, inflaming racial An enslaved But this particular story tensions. was also personal, because person named Onesimus when I first stumbled on helped introduce an early Cicely’s tombstone, I was also a black teen.

I was a sophomore studying history at Harvard when I came upon the headstone while wandering in the Colonial-era graveyard adjacent to campus. It had a carving of a death’s head on top and winding vines down the sides. It was both

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form of inoculation called “variolation”. This technique was practiced on both white and black Bostonians, to the consternation of many. On its heels, a fiveyear diphtheria outbreak ravaged New England, killing 5,000 people, including Jane.

HISTORY REPEATS Much like today, Colonists received mixed messages during disease outbreaks, with some leaders touting the value of inoculations while others stood fast against them. As Jane toiled in the shadow of Harvard in 1740, the male landowners of Cambridge held a contentious election that saw very high voter turnout amid a diphtheria epidemic.

History can show us how diseases disproportionately harm vulnerable and marginalised populations; how discord and strife lead to racial antipathy; and how epidemics are managed and mismanaged.

Cicely’s and Jane’s lives mattered outside of the value they provided to their enslavers.

In a time of disease and racial unrest that echoes the experiences of generations past, the lives of oppressed people like Cicely and Jane are worthy of remembrance.

• Originally published on theconversation.com

PAGE 12, Thursday, December 3, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

FACE masks to curb the spread of coronavirus are displayed for sale on a stall in Oxford Street, London, yesterday.

Photo: Matt Dunham/AP

Britain approves Pfizer vaccine - and will begin shots in days LONDON Associated Press BRITAIN became the first country in the world to authorise a rigorously tested COVID-19 vaccine Wednesday and could be dispensing shots within days — a historic step toward eventually ending the outbreak that has killed more than 1.4 million people around the globe.

In giving the go-ahead for emergency use of the vaccine developed by American drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech, Britain vaulted past the United States by at least a week. The US Food and Drug Administration is not scheduled to consider the vaccine until December 10.

“This is a day to remember, frankly, in a year to forget,” British Health Secretary Matt Hancock said.

The announcement sets the stage for the biggest vaccination campaign in

British history and came just ahead of what experts are warning will be a long, dark winter, with the coronavirus surging to epic levels in recent weeks in the US and Europe.

Officials cautioned that several tough months still lie ahead even in Britain, given the monumental task of inoculating large swaths of the population. Because of the limited initial supply, the first shots will be reserved for those most in danger, namely nursing home patients, the elderly and health care workers.

Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency recommended the vaccine after clinical trials involving tens of thousands of volunteers showed it was 95% effective and turned up no serious side effects. The vaccine is still considered experimental while final testing is done.

“This is an unprecedented

piece of science,” given that the vaccine was authorised less than a year after the virus was discovered, said David Harper, senior consulting fellow in global health at the Chatham House think tank.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared that the “searchlights of science” had picked out the “invisible enemy”, which has been blamed for close to 60,000 deaths in Britain.

He said that in developing the vaccine, scientists had performed “biological jujitsu” by turning the virus on itself.

Other countries aren’t far behind: Regulators not only in the US but in the European Union and Canada also are vetting the Pfizer vaccine along with a shot made by Moderna. British and Canadian regulators are also considering a vaccine made by AstraZeneca and Oxford University.

Amid growing concern

in the US that Americans will greet vaccines with skepticism, US Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said Britain’s decision “should give Americans additional confidence in the quality of such a vaccine”. The virus has killed more than 270,000 in the US. Hancock said Britain will begin receiving the first shipment of 800,000 doses from Belgium within days, and people will start getting the shots as soon as it arrives. Two doses three weeks apart are required.

The country expects to receive millions of doses by the end of this year, Hancock said, though the exact number will depend on how fast it can be manufactured and checked for quality.

BioNTech, which owns the vaccine, said it has so far signed deals to supply 570 million doses worldwide in 2021, with options

to deliver 600 million more.

It hopes to supply at least 1.3 billion in 2021.

That is only a fraction of what will be needed as public health officials try to vaccinate much of the world’s population. Experts have said several vaccines will be required to quickly end the pandemic that has infected more than 64 million people globally.

In Britain, the first shots will go to nursing home patients and those who care for them, followed by everyone over 80 and health care workers. From there, the program will be expanded as the supply increases, with the vaccine offered roughly on the basis of age groups, starting with the oldest people.

Amid the burst of optimism, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla warned governments against any immediate move to relax restrictions and reopen their economies.

“The time that we will have to go back to normality is not far away,” he said.

“But it is definitely not now.”

Despite the speed with which they approved the vaccine, and the intense political pressure surrounding the worldwide race to solve the crisis, British regulators insisted “no corners have been cut” during the review process.

The MHRA made its recommendation following a so-called rolling review that allowed it to assess information about the vaccine as it came in, starting back in October.

“The safety of the public will always come first,” said Dr June Raine, the agency’s chief executive.

“And I emphasise again that this recommendation has only been given by the MHRA following the most rigorous scientific assessment of every piece of data.”

SWAMPED HOSPITALS IN AMERICA SEEK MORE NURSES OMAHA, Nebraska Associated Press

US HOSPITALS slammed with COVID19 patients are trying to lure nurses and doctors out of retirement, recruiting students and new graduates who have yet to earn their licenses and offering eye-popping salaries in a desperate bid to ease staffing shortages.

With the virus surging from coast to coast, the number of patients in the hospital with the virus has more than doubled over the past month to a record high of nearly 100,000, pushing medical centers and health care workers to the

breaking point. Nurses are increasingly burned out and getting sick on the job, and the stress on the nation’s medical system prompted a dire warning from the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“The reality is December and January and February are going to be rough times. I actually believe they are going to be the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation,” Dr Robert Redfield said.

Governors in hard-hit states like Wisconsin and Nebraska are making it easier for retired nurses to come back, including by waiving licensing

requirements and fees, though it can be a tough sell for older nurses, who would be in more danger than many of their colleagues if they contracted the virus.

Some are taking jobs that don’t involve working directly with patients to free up front-line nurses, McMillan said.

Iowa is allowing temporary, emergency licenses for new nurses who have met the state’s educational requirements but haven’t yet taken the state licensing exam. Some Minnesota hospitals are offering winter internships to nursing students to boost their staffs.

The internships are typically offered in the summer

but were canceled this year because of COVID-19.

Methodist Hospital in Minneapolis will place 25 interns for one to two months to work with COVID-19 patients, though certain tasks will remain off-limits, such as inserting IVs or urinary catheters, said Tina Kvalheim, a nurse who runs the program.

“They’ll be fully supported in their roles so that our patients receive the best possible, safe care,” Kvalheim said..

Landon Brown, 21, of Des Moines, Iowa, a senior nursing student at Minnesota State University, Mankato, recently accepted an internship at the Mayo

Clinic Health System in Mankato. He was assigned to the pediatric unit’s medical-surgical area but said he might come across patients with the coronavirus.

Brown’s resolve to help patients as a nurse was reaffirmed after his 90-year-old grandfather contracted the virus and died over the weekend.

“The staff that he had were great, and they really took a lot of pressure off of my folks and my family,” he said. “I think that if I can be that for another family, that would be great.”

The University of Iowa’s College of Nursing is also trying to get graduates into the workforce quickly. It

worked to fast-track students’ transcripts to the Iowa Board of Nursing so they could get licensed sooner upon graduating, said Anita Nicholson, associate dean for undergraduate programs.

Nicholson said the college also scheduled senior internships earlier than normal and created a program that allows students to gain hospital experience under a nurse’s supervision.

Those students aren’t caring for coronavirus patients, but their work frees up nurses to do so, Nicholson said.

“The sooner we can get our graduates out and into the workforce, the better,” she said.

SPORTS

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 3, 2020, PAGE 15

AUSTRALIAN OPEN: START DATE NOT CONFIRMED DESPITE REPORTS

Justin Roberts eliminated in singles, doubles

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

IN his return to the Dominican Republic for his first tournament outside of the United States this year, Justin Roberts fell short of advancing in the main draw of both singles and doubles.

Playing at the M15 Santo Domingo Men’s Tournament, Roberts lost his opening match in the round of 32 to American No. 8 seed Roy Smith 6-4, 6-2 that took one hour and 44 minutes to be completed.

“I think I played better than I played in Arkansas,” said Roberts of his previous tournament in the USA last month. “I still have some more ways to go.”

Looking back at the match, Roberts said everything was going okay until he got beaten by Smith.

He had a chance to get the break back, but fell short at the end of the first set.

“In the second set, I didn’t serve great. I didn’t make enough first sets and he continued to serve well,” Roberts pointed out. “It was a tough match, but I think my tennis is getting better.”

Despite the loss, the Bahamian top ranked international player in the International Tennis Federation said he’s heading into the right direction

as far as his game is concerned. “Mentally, I wasn’t as focused. I think my mind wondered a bit and I was having a hard time staying in the match,” he said.

“I just have to continue to stay focused and keep going when I play in tournaments like this.”

Before the day was done, Roberts and his long-time friend and partner Jody Maginley from Antigua were ousted in the first round of the main draw in doubles as well as they went down 6-3, 6-4 to Gonzalo Lama from Chile and Antonio March of Ecuador in a match that lasted 1:06.

“It was close. We had a lot of break-point chances,” said Roberts of the match that lasted just over an hour. “We didn’t play bad.

We had a few loose points here and there. “But I thought we played a very good match. It just kind of went their way today.”

The 23-year-old Roberts and 25-year-old Maginley, however, will have the rest of the way in the Dominican Republic to recuperate and get ready for their final tournament for the year next week.

Hopefully, he said they can put it all together and advance further than they did in their first tournament there yesterday. Maginley, by the way, also got eliminated in singles.

JUSTIN ROBERTS, of the Bahamas, playing at the M15 Santo Domingo Men’s Tournament in the Dominican Republic for his first tournament outside of the US this year, lost his opening match in the round of 32 to American No.8 seed Roy Smith 6-4, 6-2.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Tennis Australia is still awaiting confirmation from the Victorian state government on its plans for the Australian Open amid reports that the seasonopening major will be delayed by three weeks and not start until February 8.

“There have been many reports, but we don’t have final details yet signed off by the Victorian government yet,” a Tennis Australia spokeswoman told the Associated Press.

Melbourne’s The Age newspaper and others reported a letter sent by Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley to players which made reference to a February 8 start date. The tournament was scheduled for January 18-31 at Melbourne Park, which is the tournament’s regular slot late in the southern summer holidays.

“It’s taken a while, but the great news is it looks like we are going to be able to hold the AO 8 February,” Tiley was quoted as saying.

Players will have to quarantine for two weeks from January 15, but the Victorian Government has reportedly agreed to special conditions for players. Organisers also are offering to pay for charter flights, quarantine costs and accommodation.

Tiley had previously said players will likely quarantine in a downtown hotel and ride sealed transport to Melbourne Park so they could train during a 14-day quarantine period ahead of the tournament.

Having the tournament any earlier than the second week of February would reduce the chances of having any competitive leadup matches before the Grand Slam event.

Last week, the Victorian sports minister Martin Pakula said the Australian Open would “most likely” be delayed by a week or two.

“There’s a number of potential dates on the table. I’ve seen reports that suggest that it’s likely to be delayed by a week or two. I think that’s still most likely,” Pakula said.

Victoria was hard-hit by a second wave of COVID-19, forcing the city of Melbourne into a lengthy lockdown, a night curfew and travel and other restrictions in the state. But despite more than 800 deaths during that time, the state has had no new infections for 34 consecutive days.

The delay and quarantine period would place into doubt many of the warmup tournaments ahead of the Australian Open.

FANTASY PLAYS: PLAYERS TO START AND SIT FOR NFL WEEK 13

By BRANDON C WILLIAMS RotoExperts WEEK 13 marks the end of the regular season for most fantasy leagues. All logic is thrown out of the window for fantasy owners who realise this week means either life in next week’s playoffs or time to start studying fantasy basketball rankings.

START: Justin Herbert, QB, Chargers: Even against a Patriots team ranked 10th in fewest fantasy points allowed per game to opposing QBs, Herbert is still a solid play, having had 300plus passing yards in three of his past four games.

Week 12 was the first time since Week 4 that Herbert failed to throw multiple touchdown passes, and with his high volume of pass

attempts, it’s hard to envision him doing it again.

SIT: Carson Wentz, QB, Eagles: Playing Wentz at this point of the season is unwise in fantasy leagues.

Not only does Wentz lead the league with 15 interceptions, he’s second only to Denver’s Drew Lock in lowest rate of pass attempts on-target, a paltry 71.1%.

Add the fact the Packers are seventh best in fewest fantasy points allowed per game to opposing quarterbacks, and the result is: stay away.

START: David Montgomery, RB, Bears: Overlooked in Chicago’s blowout loss at Green Bay in Week 12 was the fact Montgomery had his first 100-yard game of the season. Montgomery now faces a Lions defense that’s the worst in the league in

CHARGERS QB Justin Herbert passes during the first half game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T Barnes) fantasy points allowed per game to opposing running backs, which presents him a solid opportunity for a repeat effort.

SIT: Zack Moss, RB, Bills: Moss has averaged at least 5.8 yards per carry in his past five games, but the lack of touches dampens his potential. The 14 carries Moss had in Week 8 was the only time this season he’s had double-digit carries, so it’s unlikely he’ll top fellow RB Devin Singletary and QB Josh Allen in rushing attempts when the Bills meet the 49ers.

START: Justin Jefferson, WR, Vikings: Only five other receivers have more passing yards traveled in the air before being caught than Jefferson’s 625. Keep that number in mind as the rookie standout could take advantage of deep shots against a Jaguars pass defense that is eighth worst in fantasy points allowed per game to opposing wideouts.

SIT: CeeDee Lamb, WR, Cowboys: Lamb has touchdown receptions in two of his past three games, but the rookie has topped 64 receiving yards just once since Week 6. Those numbers don’t bode well for Lamb when he lines up against a Ravens defense that allows the third-fewest passing yards in the league along with being the fifthstingiest fantasy defense against opposing WRs going into Week 12.

START: Evan Engram, TE, Giants: Starting QB Daniel Jones (hamstring) could miss the game at Seattle, but Engram is still start-worthy after coming off a 129-yard effort against Cincinnati in Week 12.

Engram is averaging more than eight targets per game over his past five and could have the middle of the

field to himself against the Seahawks, who struggled against the Eagles TEs Dallas Goedert and Richard Rodgers in Week 12.

SIT: Jonnu Smith, TE, Titans: Despite the fact the Browns are the third worst in fantasy points allowed per game to opposing tight ends, starting Smith is a risky proposition. The big-play luster hasn’t been there for Smith, who hasn’t topped 40 receiving yards since Week 5. The presence of RB Derrick Henry further dims hope of Smith being a factor near the goal line.

START: Austin Ekeler, RB, Chargers: So much for easing Ekeler back into the lineup, as he finished with 25 touches (11 receptions) in Week 12, his first appearance since Week 4.

He’s a potential big play in PPR formats, especially if the game against the Patriots becomes a high-scoring matchup.

SIT: Christian Kirk, WR, Cardinals: Since his 123yard performance against the Dolphins in Week 9, Kirk has become an afterthought in the struggling Cardinals offense, producing a combined 96 receiving yards in his past three games. Don’t bank your playoff hopes on starting Kirk against the Rams, who allow the fewest fantasy points per game against opposing wideouts.

START: Ryan Fitzpatrick, QB, Dolphins: The best streaming option at the position, Fitzpatrick has thrown multiple touchdowns in three of his past four games.

He’s quietly ninth-best in on-target passes and will thrive in a matchup against the Bengals, who are 10thworst in fantasy points allowed per game to opposing passers.

SIT: Cam Newton, QB, Patriots: Newton is 28th in intended air yards and has yet to throw multiple touchdown passes this season.

The running threat isn’t enough of a bonus to go with Newton, even against a Chargers defense that is sixth worst when it comes to stopping fantasy production against opposing QBs. START: Miles Sanders, RB, Eagles: Sanders leads all running backs with 3.8 yards per carry before contact and is in position for a huge game against the Packers, who are second worst in fantasy points allowed per game to opposing running backs.

SIT: Benny Snell Jr., RB, Steelers: With starter James Conner possibly missing the game, expect the Steelers to utilize a committee that will see Anthony McFarland

sharing touches with Snell, who has just 82 yards on 38 carries since his 113-yard outing in Week 1.

START: Brandin Cooks, WR, Texans: The suspension of WR Will Fuller and the injury to Randall Cobb leaves Cooks as the top option for QB Deshaun Watson.

Cooks has just one game of better than 10 targets this season, yet is a likely candidate to top his season-best 12 targets when the Texans face the Colts.

SIT: Noah Fant, TE, Broncos: Denver should have QB Drew Lock this week, but it’s not enough to feel encouraged about playing Fant, who has not found the end zone since Week 2.

There’s little reason for fantasy owners to place their postseason hopes with Fant in the lineup.

SPORTS

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 3, 2020, PAGE 17

NBA: 48 PLAYERS POSITIVE FOR CORONAVIRUS AS TESTING RESUMES NEW YORK (AP) — The NBA said yesterday that 48 players have tested positive for the coronavirus since testing resumed last week.

The league and National Basketball Players Association said 546 players were tested between November 24-30 in the initial phase of testing after returning to team markets. That means about 9 percent of the tests were positive.

Any player with a confirmed positive test is isolated until cleared by rules established by the league and union, in accordance with CDC guidance. The league’s

health and safety protocols for this season say that anyone with a positive test in this pre-camp phase “must receive medical clearance from a team-designated physician and a league-designated physician prior to entering a team facility, participating in in-person team-organised activities, or interacting in-person with other” members of their team.

The league, in its preseason guidance to teams sent late last week, made clear that some players testing positive was to be expected.

“During this pandemic, all this stuff is going to be different this

season,” Dallas All-Star Luka Doncic said Tuesday.

“Some players might get corona, get sick, not be able to be with the team for 10 days. So, I think that’s going to be a big part — which team is not going to have positive people. It’s going to be a lot of time together. I think that’s going to be key.”

Players needed three negative PCR tests between November 24-30 before they could be cleared to start individual workouts, which will last throughout this week. A handful of teams are expected to be cleared to start group sessions or 5-on-5 practices

Friday, most others on Sunday and Golden State will on Monday.

Anyone with a confirmed positive test will also need to successfully complete a cardiac exam before being able to return to play. It’s a possibility that some of the 48 positive players would not be cleared before the NBA’s preseason schedule starts December 11. The regular season begins on December 22.

“I’m confident that the league is going to do everything in their power to do things the right way and to protect us, protect the players and the staffs. Then, who the hell knows?” Golden State

coach Steve Kerr said Tuesday, prior to the Warriors revealing that two players had positive tests.

“I mean, it’s 2020. I think we just have to go into it with an open mind and do our best and see what happens.”

The NBA had no players test positive once they entered the bubble at Walt Disney World for the season restart near Orlando, Florida last July. A very small number of individuals tested positive after arriving at Disney but before they were released from quarantine and into the bubble, a sign that the NBA pointed to as proof that its system worked.

AGENCY: LEBRON JAMES INKS CONTRACT EXTENSION WITH LAKERS ROCKETS TRADE LOS ANGELES (AP) — LeBron James has agreed to a contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers.

James’ agency, Klutch Sports, confirmed the deal yesterday during the first week of training camp for the NBA champions. The Lakers are still finalising their new contract with Anthony Davis, who is also represented by Klutch CEO Rich Paul.

The Los Angeles Times reported James’ extension is a two-year, $85 million deal through the 202223 season. The four-time NBA champion is getting the maximum deal to extend his tenure in Los Angeles, where he moved two seasons ago after his second stint with his hometown Cavaliers.

James’ previous contract ran only through the upcoming season with a player option for 2021-22, allowing the third-leading scorer in league history to become a free agent next summer if he chose.

Instead, James reportedly committed to play through his 20th NBA season with the Lakers, where he moved in 2018 after title-winning tenures in Cleveland and Miami.

James turns 36 years old in four weeks, but the 16-time All-Star’s level of

play hasn’t dipped even slightly after 17 seasons in the league. Davis and James teamed up last season to win the franchise’s 17th championship in the bubble in central Florida. James averaged 25.3 points and led the NBA with 10.2 assists per game last season before winning the NBA Finals MVP award while beating the Miami Heat in a sixgame series.

The Lakers are returning this winter with a roster that looks even better than last season’s group on paper, with veterans Dennis Schröder, Montrezl Harrell, Marc Gasol and Wesley Matthews joining the rotation around James and Davis.

Under the terms reported by the Times, James will make more than $39 million this season, more than $41 million next season and more than $44 million in the final year of his new deal, during which he will turn 39 years old.

The Lakers have a history of rewarding superstars in their later seasons, allowing them to finish with the franchise rather than forcing Lakers icons to make difficult decisions about how they will wrap up their careers. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, Magic Johnson,

LAKERS forward LeBron James drives to the basket against the Miami Heat during the first half in Game 4 of the NBA Finals in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

(AP Photo/Mark J Terrill) Elgin Baylor, Jerry West and Kobe Bryant all finished their Hall of Fame careers with the Lakers rather than making a late money-grabbing pit stop with another franchise.

Los Angeles famously gave a two-year, $48.5 million extension to Bryant when he was 35 years old in November 2013. The deal was criticised at the time for its largesse compared to Bryant’s diminishing

dominance, but owners Jeanie and Jim Buss felt the contract was an appropriate reward for Bryant’s contributions to the franchise.

The new deal for James currently carries none of those concerns, since he is still a matchless player even after spending half of his life in the NBA. James has career averages of 27.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 7.4 assists

over his 17 seasons, and he stayed close to those marks in points and rebounds last season despite becoming a 6-foot-9 point guard who won his first NBA assists title.

James and his family already appeared to be comfortable with a long-term future in Los Angeles. James is increasingly involved in media production in Hollywood, while his oldest son, Bronny, is on track to graduate from private Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth in 2023.

Davis is all but certain to re-sign with the Lakers this week, and the delay is widely interpreted as part of talks between Davis and the Lakers about the best way to keep the team in championship contention over the next few seasons.

For instance, Davis could structure his deal to allow Los Angeles to pursue a third superstar in free agency next summer.

James’ agreement on an extension guarantees Davis will have an invaluable teammate for at least the next three seasons if Davis chooses to stay that long.

James made remarkable alterations in his game last season to become a playmaker running the Lakers’ offence and clearing space for Davis to excel.

WESTBROOK TO WIZARDS FOR JOHN WALL

By KRISTIE RIEKEN AP Sports Writer

HOUSTON (AP) — The Houston Rockets have traded Russell Westbrook to the Washington Wizards for John Wall and a future lottery-protected. firstround pick.

Both teams announced the trade Wednesday night.

The move ends Westbrook’s tenure in Houston after just one disappointing season. Westbrook was traded from Oklahoma City or Chris Paul and draft picks in July 2019.

The Rockets had hoped that the 32-year-old Westbrook would be the final piece they needed to win their first title since winning back-to-back championships in 1994-95. But instead were eliminated from the playoffs by the Lakers in the Western Conference semifinals.

Westbrook was the 2017 NBA MVP and is a ninetime All-Star.

Wall, the first overall pick in the 2010 draft, has spent his entire career in Washington. He’s a five-time All-Star.

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SACRAMENTO Kings guard Buddy Hield celebrates after teammate Bogdan Bogdanovic scored a three-point basket during the first quarter of a preseason game against the Phoenix Suns in Sacramento, California, on October 10, 2019.

(AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

BUDDY FROM PAGE 20

his pre-training camp media availability. “I think Buddy is going to look really good in [the offence], excited to see him in training camp and how he can progress there. I have the utmost confidence Buddy will continue to play hard every night, like he always has.”

While reports have emerged this offseason that Hield has not spoken with Walton, McNair said the organisation and the fifth year shooting guard are on “the same page” with each other.

“I’ve talked with Buddy as well as his agent, I think we’re all on the same page,” McNair said. “I think we’re really excited to see Buddy kind of let free in this system. I think he’s going to be fantastic.”

Despite coming off the bench for 28 games, Hield was second on the team in scoring at 19.2 points per game. Hield was removed from the starting lineup in favour of Bogdanovic

in January and continued to see inconsistent minutes for the duration of the season, culminating in season low minutes when the NBA resumed play at the “bubble” in Orlando, Florida. Bogdanovic signed with the Atlanta Hawks this offseason and most NBA pundits interpreted that as a sign the organisation would move forward with Hield as the team’s starting shooting guard.

Walton addressed Hield’s role during a Zoom conference call in his media availability ahead of training camp.

“We’ve got a lot of new faces here, so we have to continue to look at what’s going to be best for our team. Even last season, Buddy started more than half of the season, and when he didn’t start, he played a huge role for us coming in off the bench and being a dynamic 20-point-anight scorer,” Walton said.

“Every decision is always based on what I feel is best for the group and best for the team, and with this training camp, this is part of what we have to see: what do we have? What

groups are playing well together? Who complements who? And at the end of the day, every decision that gets made will come down to what I feel as the head coach is best for this team and giving us the best chance of winning.”

Hield enters the first year of his new four-year $86 million extension that could reach as much as $106 million.

“Buddy is a very talented player, I’ve always had a good relationship with him and we’re excited that he’s part of the group.”

Following the Kings’ regular season finale, Hield spoke with reporters on several topics, most noteworthy was his reply when asked whether he would be content to continue his role off the bench next season.

“Y’all know me, y’all know how I talk, y’all know how I feel with a lot of stuff, yall can read me well, so I’ll let y’all answer that for yourselves,” Hield said.

McNair singled out Hield at his introductory press conference to the franchise and called him an “elite shooter” whose spacing is important for the team.

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PAGE 18, Thursday, December 3, 2020

SPORTS

THE TRIBUNE

Matt Coleman in the clutch

By AARON BEARD AP Basketball Writer ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Matt Coleman III hit a stepback jumper with 0.1 seconds left to help No. 17 Texas beat No. 14 North Carolina 69-67 yesterday to win the relocated Maui Invitational.

Coleman finished with 22 points and was the tournament’s most valuable player for the Longhorns (4-0), who blew a 16-point lead late in the first half and fell behind with about 2½ minutes left. Coleman and Kai Jones both came up big in the critical moments for Texas, securing the Longhorns’ first Maui title in their fifth appearance in the tournament.

Jones had 12 points, including a tying jumper with 2:19 left and then a transition dunk with 41.2 seconds remaining that pushed Texas to a 67-65 lead. UNC’s Leaky Black answered with two free throws with 25.6 seconds left, only to see Coleman make a tough shot against RJ Davis that hit the rim, bounced off the backboard and dropped through the net.

Garrison Brooks had 18 points for the Tar Heels (3-1) despite playing through an ankle injury that sent him to the locker room at least twice.

The Longhorns — who had locked down on Indiana a day earlier — asserted control midway through the first half. Texas used a 26-5 run to turn a five-point deficit into a 36-20 lead on Greg Brown’s free throws with 3:50 left.

But the Tar Heels roared out of halftime with five straight scoring possessions, the start of an effort

TEXAS forward Jericho Sims (20) blocks the shot of North Carolina guard Caleb Love (2) as Texas forward Gerald Liddell (0) looks for the rebound in the first half yesterday in their NCAA college basketball game for the championship of the Maui Invitational.

(AP Photos/Kathy Kmonicek) that saw them do a better job of getting the ball inside and avoiding turnovers.

They clawed to within one five different times before finally tying it on Caleb Love’s free throw with 3:54 left, and then took their first post-halftime lead on Brooks’ contested turnaround with 2:35 to play.

Jones answered a tying jumper of his own on the next play, setting up the deciding final minute.

The tournament was played in the North Carolina mountains instead of its traditional Hawaii setting due to the coronavirus pandemic. That gave the Tar Heels three games in coach Roy Williams’ hometown, though with fan cutouts in the stands and crowd noise pumped in.

BIG PICTURE Texas: The Longhorns advanced to their first Maui title game by edging Davidson in Monday’s first round and locking down Indiana in Tuesday’s semifinals.

They went about doing the same to the Tar Heels for a half, harassing them into 39 percent shooting along

with 10 turnovers by the break. Then, after watching the Tar Heels climb all the way back, Coleman and the Longhorns came up with a series of clutch plays to beat the Tar Heels for the ninth time in 10 meetings.

UNC: The Tar Heels reached the final by overcoming a bad start in the first round against UNLV, then holding on down the stretch to edge Stanford in the semifinals. They dug themselves a huge hole in this one, but climbed back after having just four second-half turnovers — though they missed six of their last seven shots to close this one out. They also made just 18 of 32 free throws for a lot of missed opportunities in a game decided in the final seconds.

UP NEXT Texas: The Longhorns host No. 12 Villanova on Sunday in the Big 12-Big East battle.

UNC: The Tar Heels visit third-ranked Iowa on Tuesday in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

TEXAS guard Matt Coleman III (2) shoots for the winning basket over North Carolina guard R.J. Davis (4) in the second half yesterday. Coleman was awarded the MVP. Kai Jones in (background).

‘Coach Yo’ and Rebels open with 99-44 win over McNeese State

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

COACH Yolett McPhee-McCuin

COACH Yolett McPhee-McCuin’s cast of newcomers for the Ole Miss Rebels women’s basketball programme came into the season with lofty expectations and delivered at a nearly record-setting pace on opening night.

After their original season opener was cancelled due to positive COVID-19 tests among the Northwestern State programme, the Rebels began the campaign with a dominant 99-44 win over McNeese State at the Pavilion in Oxford, Mississippi.

“Just extremely grateful to be out here and play,” said McPhee-McCuin.

“Just an incredible story with McNeese being displaced by the hurricane, and them coming down and playing us. With our last game getting cancelled, my girls refused to get excited for the game until shootaround. I just remember calling (McNeese State coach) Kacie (Cryer) and saying, ‘If we can’t play you, my kids are going to take

me out.’ I was really glad that we passed the protocol, and everyone was safe. I’m just grateful for the opportunity to get out here and finally play a game.”

It marked the most points in an Ole Miss women’s basketball season debut since 2015 and the most points scored during McPheeMcCuin’s tenure as head coach.

McPhee-McCuin welcomes the No.1 recruiting class in the SEC and No.13 class in the nation. The team also welcomed the return of Bahamian recruit Valerie Nesbitt to the programme for her senior season. The class was highlighted by five-star signees Madison Scott and Jacorriah Bracey, and the addition of ESPN’s No. 1 rated transfer in 2020, Shakira Austin.

Seven of those newcomers, freshman and transfers, scored 88 of the 99 Ole Miss points against McNeese.

“We’re used to it,” McPhee-McCuin said of the new COVID-19 protocols in place. “The goal is for our players to be safe and for us to play basketball. I don’t care if I have to wear a hazmat suit, that’s what I’ll do to be able to do something that I love.”

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SPORTS

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Thursday, December 3, 2020, PAGE 19

INDIANA DEFEATS STANFORD 79-63 FOR 3RD PLACE

TEXAS celebrates and holds the trophy for the NCAA college championship game of the Maui Invitational after they beat North Carolina 69-67 yesterday in Asheville, N.C (AP Photos/Kathy Kmonicek)

JONES, COLEMAN AND NO. 17 TEXAS BEAT NO. 14 UNC 69-67 FOR TITLE AT THE MAUI INVITATIONAL

MATT Coleman III (2) drives the ball to the basket past North Carolina guard R.J. Davis (4) and North Carolina guard Leaky Black (1) in the first half.

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

K

ai Jones’ perfect shooting streak from the field came to an end, but the sophomore forward scored four of Texas’ final six points to lead them to a Camping World Maui Invitational Championship.

Jones finished with 12 points on 4-5 shooting from the field and tied a career high with eight rebounds for the second time this season in the No.14 Longhorns’ 69-67 win over the Tar Heels in the tournament finale last night at Harrah’s Cherokee Center in Asheville, North Carolina.

Matt Coleman hit a stepback jumper for the game winner with 0.1 seconds left to play, but Jones also made several critical plays down the stretch.

The Longhorns trailed 65-63 when Jones made a jumper to tie the game at the 2:29 mark. He followed with a transition dunk two possessions later to give Texas the lead (67-65) with 38 seconds left to play.

The Tar Heels evened the score with a pair of free throws from Leaky Black, setting the stage for Coleman’s heroics.

Texas improved to 4-0 and won their first Maui title in their fifth appearance in the tournament while the Tar Heels suffered their first loss of the season.

With his third double digit scoring effort this season, Jones has already surpassed his total from his freshman season when he reached that mark just twice.

Jones opened the Maui Invitational with 13 points on 4-4 shooting from the field, 2-2 from three-point range, in a 78-76 win over Davidson. He followed with just four points (2-2 field goals) and five rebounds in 13 foul-plagued minutes of

TEXAS guard Courtney Ramey (3) dances and holds an NCAA college basketball game championship poster for the Maui Invitational next to guard Matt Coleman III (2) yesterday. Coleman was the MVP with the winning basket and high score of 22 points.

TEXAS forward Jericho Sims (20) and North Carolina forward Armando Bacot (5) tip off yesterday for the start of the championship game. a 66-44 win over the Indiana Hoosiers.

In the Atlantic Sun Conference, Franco Miller Jr continues to see his production in his new role with the

Florida Gulf Coast Eagles.

Miller scored a career high 10 points and shot 3-7 from three-point range but his Eagles lost 76-57 to the South Florida Bulls.

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ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Trayce Jackson-Davis scored a career-high 31 points and Indiana responded to an ugly loss a day earlier by beating Stanford 79-63 in yesterday’s third-place game at the relocated Maui Invitational.

The Hoosiers (3-1) were coming off a 66-44 loss to No. 17 Texas in Tuesday’s semifinals. It marked the programme’s lowest scoring output since January 2010, while Indiana had more turnovers (14) than field goals (11) and shot just 24 percent.

This time, the Hoosiers never trailed after the opening minute and shot 53 percent against the Cardinal (1-2).

Jackson-Davis made 10 of 16 shots and 11 of 14 free throws to go with six rebounds. The 6-foot-9 sophomore had a fast start with 12 points by midway through the first half, including throwing down a whistle-drawing dunk and letting out an exuberant scream at the 15:12 mark.

His previous career high was 27 points against Minnesota in February.

Daejon Davis scored 18 points and Oscar da Silva added 17 for Stanford, which beat Alabama in Monday’s first round but lost to No. 14 North Carolina in Tuesday’s semifinal. Touted freshman Ziaire Williams finished with four points on 1-for-10 shooting before fouling out with 6:06 left.

Stanford shot just 36 percent, including going 5 of 20 from 3-point range for the second straight day. The Cardinal got within four midway through the second half but the Hoosiers pushed the margin past double figures for the final 7:15.

Indiana played without guard Aljami Durham, who suffered an ankle injury against Texas.

The tournament is being played in the North Carolina mountains instead of its traditional Hawaii setting due to the coronavirus pandemic.

SPORTS PAGE 20

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2020

Kai helps Longhorns win their first title

NFL, PAGE 13

‘BUDDY’ HIELD AND KINGS ‘ARE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE’

By RENALDO DORSETT Tribune Sports Reporter rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

TEXAS forward Kai Jones (22), of the Bahamas, grabs a rebound over North Carolina forward Day’Ron Sharpe (11) in the first half of their NCAA college basketball game for the championship of the Maui Invitational yesterday in Asheville, N.C. (AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek) SEE FULL STORY ON PAGE 19

THE growing speculation continues to mount about Chavano “Buddy” Hield’s future with the Sacramento Kings organisation after different messages emerged from the franchise’s head coach and top ranking executive.

New Kings General Manager Monte McNair expressed his excitement to see Hield “let free” in the team’s system, but head coach Luke Walton would not commit to Hield as a full time starter despite the departure of Bogdan Bogdanovic in free agency.

Hield was the team’s leading scorer in 2018-19 and its second leading scorer in 2019-20, but started just 44 of 72 games before he was relegated to a reserve role off the bench in favour of Bogdanovic.

“I think I’ve said in the past Buddy’s such an incredible talent, and especially his shooting at an elite level is something that we saw this offseason was at a premium. I think we’re really excited to see him in this system,” McNair said in

SEE PAGE 17