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Volume: 121 No.16, December 12, 2023

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CRUISE LINE PLAN FOR GB REVEALED Xanadu hotel acquisition part of Royal Caribbean goal to transform harbour

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net ROYAL Caribbean Cruise Lines is eyeing the potential acquisition of Freeport’s long-closed Xanadu Beach Hotel as part of plans to develop a resort and water park destination, it can be revealed.

Multiple well-placed

sources, speaking to Tribune Business on condition of anonymity, also disclosed that the cruise giant’s ambitions extend to “all the tracts of land down to Princess Isle” that are presently controlled by Irish-headquartered Harcourt Developments, the Royal Oasis owner.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

CEO dEniEd MajOr’s rEquEst as infOrMatiOn ‘nOt rECEivEd’

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net THE CEO of Family Guardian insisted yesterday that his company denied Alana Major’s request to work from home during her difficult pregnancy because she didn’t get back to them with sufficient information about her doctor’s advice.

Mrs Major, who was a

senior executive at the company, is suing her former employer, claiming work stress contributed to her miscarriage in 2019.

Her doctor had recommended she work from home because of her highrisk pregnancy. Family Guardian did not facilitate her request.

She miscarried her son, SEE PAGE FOUR

Promotion day smiles NEW ACP Ashley Rolle smiles as he receives his promotion from National Security Minister Wayne Munroe while standing next to Police Chief Clayton Fernander yesterday.

See story PAGE FIVE. Photo: Moise Amisial

Munroe criticises UN Working vidEO shOws Group report on Detention Centre addErlEy lungEd at rbPf OffiCEr

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe criticised a United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention’s report about the country’s

detention systems, saying the experts did not provide proof of many of their accusations about the country’s criminal justice system.

After the WGAD visited ten facilities and reportedly interviewed over 134 people, it released a report that found numerous faults.

Mr Munroe said the government will comprehensively respond to the report after the full report is released. He did not address all of the report’s conclusions during a press conference yesterday.

SEE PAGE THREE

Bahamas Humane Society president Kim Aranha has since called on people to stop chumming in public swimming areas.

Stuart Cove, an excursion business, offers patrons a chance to interact with sharks.

Mr Cove acknowledged safety issues regarding chumming, but said not all

BODY camera footage of the fatal police-involved shooting of Royal Bahamas Defence Force leading seaman Rodney Adderley, Jr, showed the marine lunged at an officer before he was shot.

The footage was shown at the inquest into his death, which began in the Coroner’s Court yesterday, with acting Coroner Kara Turnquest-Deveaux presiding. A five-person jury was empanelled to make a finding after police shot Adderley, 39, on January 10, 2022.

K Melvin Munroe

SEE PAGE FIVE

SEE PAGE SEVEN

COvE: ChuMMing nEEds tO bE COntrOllEd

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net AN operations manager at Stuart Cove stopped short of calling for chumming to be outlawed, but said the practice needs to be controlled.

Travis Cove’s comment came after 44-year-old newlywed Lauren Erickson Van Wart of Massachusetts was

LAUREN ERICKSON VAN WART killed while paddle boarding at the Sandals Resort when a shark bit her.

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

PAGE 2, Tuesday, December 12, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

Junkanoo Legends Award ceremony at Govt House

A JUNKANOO legends induction ceremony was held yesterday evening at Government House. Recipients were awarded for their contributions to the cultural expression.

Photos: Moise Amisial

Munroe criticises UN Working Group report on Detention Centre THE TRIBUNE

from page one The Working Group found that detainees are often detained for significantly longer than 48 hours without court-granted extensions.

“They speak about persons being detained for more than five days,” Mr Munroe said in response.

“Well, anybody who does the math would know that if you are charged on a Friday having been in custody for five days, there is no court to bring you before on a Saturday or a Sunday, and so you will end up being in custody for seven days.”

The group found the country is not doing enough to ensure forced confessions to crimes are not impeding people’s right to a fair trial.

The body also said people are too often arrested without a warrant, and arrests are sometimes based on outdated or expired warrants.

Mr Munroe said: “My question would be, who is giving them this alert?

If it is the person who is arrested, that’s not an actual responsible way to go about critiquing persons.

“If you say that persons have been arrested on outdated warrants, it behoves you to produce the proof of it.”

“If you say I arrest someone on an outdated

Tuesday, December 12, 2023, PAGE 3

warrant, that’s a piece of paper that exists as a fact.

I’m not a betting man, but I’m almost willing to bet that they didn’t look at one actual warrant.”

Mr Munroe said he found the report alarming, adding that it had inconsistencies.

“This report says that the evidential threshold to prove that a confession was a result of ill-treatment is high. The group reports that an accused has to prove that he was beaten.

That is not the law in this country as you all know.

The law in this country is that we must prove beyond reasonable doubt that the confession was taken without oppression.”

He urged Bahamians to trust law enforcement and not the “adverse” report findings.

“One thing I would advise the public against, If you have to choose who you believe, you do yourself a disservice if you choose to believe an adverse report against the very persons who you will call when somebody is at your door, who you will call when you hear gunshots in the night, who you will call when you feel threatened,” he said.

“So, when you decide whose account to believe, I just want you to take into account that the prisoner, the criminal, would always like you to silence your watchdog.”

Correctional officers with pending promotions will be back paid, says Munroe

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe said correctional service officers with pending promotions would receive back pay dating to 2020.

He called on hopeful officers to “exercise discipline” until the announcements are made.

Correctional officers are often concerned about how long it takes them to get promoted compared to police and defence force officers.

Last month, Public Service and Labour Minister Pia Glover-Rolle said promotions for more than 400 Bahamas Department of Corrections officers won’t happen before the end of the year because officials must process each application.

Yesterday, Mr Munroe said he had a three-hour meeting with prison officers to discuss the promotion process.

“Anyone in this room would be quite happy to get a promotion backdated to 2020, which means they will be entitled to backpay

for about three years,” Mr Munroe said. “The public service has its processes, and we’re going through that.”

Mr Munroe said the Department of Correctional Services should act like the disciplined force it is, adding that some believe promotions must be given at a particular time.

“I would hate to think that our correctional service officers cannot exercise discipline for four to five weeks that it may take to process their promotions,” he said.

Mr Munroe said prison officers reportedly called in sick recently because of the promotions issue, which has caused low morale among staff.

Mr Munroe said officers abuse sick leave every year, with officers taking all of the sick days they have left at the end of November. “It happens at the end of every year, simply because you have some public servants, some correctional service officers, who wrongly believe that they have a right to take every single sick day every single year,” he said.

NATIONAL SECURITY MINISTER WAYNE MUNROE

“The whole of the inside of my home is wrecked’ PAGE 4, Tuesday, December 12, 2023

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A BENEFICIARY of the Urban Renewal Small Homes Repair programme claimed a contractor failed to complete repairs to his house, which now has a collapsing, leaking roof.

Robert Thompson, 86, said he and his wife cannot entertain relatives or sleep in their bedroom because their house in the Kool Acres community is unsafe.

The Urban Renewal’s small home repair programme responds to hundreds of homeowners who are struggling and in need of home restoration.

Officials said in September that nearly 200 homes had received repairs since the programme’s launch.

Mr Thompson owned a tour company before the COVID-19 pandemic and said he applied to Urban Renewal for help last May after falling on hard times.

He said the process was tiresome because it took over a year to hear back from the organisation.

“The main issue was the roof,” he said of his housing problem, “and there were other things inside the house that was cracked and stuff like that, and some of it was from the age of the house.”

Mr Thompson said he and his wife had high hopes after workers finally started work on their home in May. But as work progressed, the couple became agitated by how the contractor performed.

Mr Thompson said workers left the house messy and would sometimes not show up when expected.

He said he and his wife endured rain leaking through the roof one

weekend after contractors removed shingles.

“The tarp they put on it didn’t completely cover the roof,” he said. “It didn’t leak where the tarp covered, but on the sides, where they hold it down with rocks and cans and everything so the wind don’t blow it, all of that side leaked.”

The couple said not only is the work unfinished, but they also haven’t seen the workers since one tried getting them to sign a paper declaring the job finished.

“I mean, the whole of the inside of my home is wrecked, and every time it rains, my wife got to put eight and ten bottles on the side to catch the water and cans, and my wife just had a cancer operation,” Mr Thompson said. “We can’t walk around in the house because the roof keeps falling down on things, and a big slab fall the other day, and if my wife was home because she’s only five foot two, it would’ve killed her.”

The resident said they failed to reach Urban Renewal officials with their complaints.

Stephen Dean, chairman of the Urban Renewal Commission, pledged to investigate the matter.

He said Urban Renewal repaired Mr Thompson’s roof.

However, he said sometimes homes needing repair require additional work beyond a contractor’s scope.

“For the most part, the contractors have been doing a good job,” he told The Tribune. “That’s why we have inspectors because the home has to be signed off first by the homeowner and the contractor. If there is any legitimate concern, it’ll be addressed.”

THE TRIBUNE

Homeowner complains over unfinished roof repairs provided by Urban Renewal programme

A BENEFICIARY of the Urban Renewal Small Homes Repair programme claimed a contractor failed to complete repairs to his house, which now has a collapsing, leaking roof.

CEO dEniEd MajOr’s rEquEst as To advertise in The Tribune, infOrMatiOn ‘nOt rECEivEd’ contact 502-2394 from page one

Che Karson Major, on July 31, 2019.

Family Guardian CEO Glen Ritchie testified yesterday that sometime in early 2019, he and Dr Kerry Higgs, a senior VP of human resources, met with Mrs Major, where she told them that her pregnancy was high risk. He said during the meeting that the three devised a plan for how work would continue in her absence.

Mr Ritchie agreed with Mrs Major’s lawyer, Sharon Wilson, KC, that the plan covered maternity leave and absence due to illness.

On June 21, 2019, both Mr Ritchie and Dr Higgs received an email from Mrs Major’s OBGYN recommending she take bed rest and work from home if both parties agreed. The letter mentioned that the complainant was experiencing complications at that stage in her pregnancy.

Mrs Major worked a regular 9 to 5 job from Monday to Friday, and her work hours sometimes exceeded this.

Mr Ritchie said that the company requested

clarification on the timing and extent of bedrest, claiming the doctor’s wording was unclear.

While Mr Ritchie agreed that Mrs Major directly reported to him because she was a senior VP, he said Dr Higgs primarily handled Human Resources issues and liaised with Mrs Major concerning her request.

Mrs Major later sent another email asking for a response to the first email.

Mr Ritchie agreed the email showed she was trying to engage him as her supervisor.

Mrs Major clarified in the email that she was not sick, but pregnant. She once again requested to work from home.

Although Mr Ritchie maintained that the request for bed rest was vague and needed clarification, he agreed that Mrs Major was offering a solution to change her work regimen.

A week after the second email, Mr Ritchie talked with Mrs Major and reportedly said Dr Higgs would handle the matter.

On July 17, the complainant sent another email asking for a response to

the July 9 email, to which Mr Ritchie responded that they’d meet on July 19.

Mr Ritchie said that throughout that month, he was busy with work engagements.

The July 19 meeting was delayed when Mrs Major told him she was travelling abroad to meet a specialist concerning her pregnancy.

While the meeting was rescheduled to July 23, it was delayed twice, first to July 29, then to July 31, six weeks after Mrs Major made her request to meet with Mr Ritchie.

When Mrs Wilson asked him if he provided a timely response to Mrs Major’s request in keeping with company policy, Mr Ritchie said yes, given his various responsibilities.

When asked if Mrs Major ever told him that her work load was too much, Mr Ritchie said she might have but that the structure in place then was the same as it is now.

The CEO admitted that Mrs Major performed her duties to the company without an assistant vice president and that she had around 50 employees under her purview.

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, December 12, 2023, PAGE 5

Cove: Chum practices need to be controlled from page one

people throw food into the water with sharks in mind.

“Chumming is with the intent of bringing sharks, and you know, I’m not saying these fishermen or anybody that is dealing with fish is intentionally trying to bring the sharks to them,” he said. “Obviously, if you got a dead fish carcass, just throw it into the ocean and feed our environment. I wouldn’t say that’s chumming.”

“I mean, there could be a better way to go about it, but chumming itself with the intention of riling up the sharks is not always the safest and needs to be in a controlled way.”

“You get a lot of foreigners coming into the country wanting the crazy videos and such of the sharks, and we refuse to allow them to put any chum-sickles.

“Whether that’s a frozen block of fish in the water or shooting any sort of blood or anything in a non-controlled manner because the last thing we want is to lose control because it’s hard to even grasp that in the first place.”

“So we want to make sure that we’re limiting the risk at all costs. What we do with the fish in the water is we have a singular pieces of

fish that have been actually pre-soaked in the water.”

Mr Cove said shark attacks have adverse impacts on his business.

“Nobody wants to see this in the industry, and a lot of the weight falls on our shoulders because we’re doing the practice of feeding the sharks,” he said. “So it’s very easy to put a lot of blame on us despite us being pioneers in the field and having a lot of knowledge. I think the best thing we can do is provide knowledge about the sharks.”

He said calls to kill sharks are dangerous and fail to grasp the important role sharks play in waters.

“When you’re killing the predators that are weeding out the sickly fish, the diseased fish, when you do that, you’re taking out the regulation of the ocean and it’s going to affect our fisheries,” he said.

“It’s going to affect the fishermen who are relying on fishing and such and having a healthy environment to support their families and such. I think it’s important that we need to get educated before we make decisions.”

Mr Cove emphasised that sharks have no interest in human blood or flesh, but are attracted to fish.

AN OPERATION manager at Stuart Cove says calls to kill sharks are dangerous and fail to grasp the important role sharks play in waters.

NINE CHIEF SUPERINTENDENTS PROMOTED TO ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF POLICE

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net NINE chief superintendents of the Royal Bahamas Police Force have been promoted to assistant commissioner after their predecessors retired or took pre-retirement leave, with Shanta Knowles making history as the first woman officer in charge of the Northern Bahamas.

Commissioner Fernander expressed confidence in the appointees during a press conference yesterday, saying the team is best suited to support his vision to win the war on crime.

Roger Thompson will take command of the legal team; Warren Johnson is in charge of the Criminal Investigation Department; Roberto Goodman will oversee operations and drugs; Earl Thompson will oversee forensics; Dwight Adderley will have remit for the Security and Intelligence Branch; Training and school-based policing will fall under Chadwick Hanna; Damien Robinson will be in charge of saturation patrols; Anthony Rolle has been appointed head of Urban Renewal and Janet McKenzie will oversee the Human Resource and Domestic Violence Unit.

The officers are taking the place of several senior police officers who have retired or pre-retired from the force, COP Fernander

said.

Deputy Commissioner Loretta Mackey and Assistant Commissioners Ashton Greenslade, Theophilus Cunningham, Ken Strachan, Craig Stubbs and BK Bonamy are the retirees.

Kirkwood Andrews was promoted from assistant commissioner to senior assistant commissioner of police. Corporate services remain his area of focus.

Commissioner Fernander said the now vacant positions will be filled by the end of the week. He said a succession plan to bring more structure to the senior ranks will be implemented through an understudy programme.

“Let me say congratulations to the officers who have been promoted and let me say this to the officers who have not been promoted, a great problem in this institution is that we have an embarrassment of riches,” National Security Minister Wayne Munroe said. “It would be a much simpler matter if we only had one or two people who had a stellar performance.

“It is indeed a difficult task to choose when you have so many people operating at such a high level, and so let me be very clear about this, we continue to be plagued in this institution happily so with an embarrassment of riches, of talent available, to be used to advance this organisation.”

NEW ACP Janet McKenzie receives her promotion from National Security Minister Wayne Munroe yesterday; Police Chief Calyton Fernander stands at her left. She will oversee the Human Resource and Domestic Violence Unit.

Photos: Moise Amisial

NEWLY promoted ACP Warren Johnson is in charge of the Criminal Investigation Department.

PAGE 6, Tuesday, December 12, 2023

The Tribune Limited

THE TRIBUNE

PICTURE OF THE DAY

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

LEON E. H. DUPUCH,

Publisher/Editor 1903-1914

SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH,

Kt., O.B.E., K.M., K.C.S.G., (Hon.) LL.D., D.Litt .

Publisher/Editor 1919-1972 Contributing Editor 1972-1991

RT HON EILEEN DUPUCH CARRON,

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

Published daily Monday to Friday

Shirley & Deveaux Streets, Nassau, Bahamas N3207 TELEPHONES News & General Information Advertising Manager Circulation Department Nassau fax Freeport, Grand Bahama Freeport fax

(242) 322-2350 (242) 502-2394 (242) 502-2386 (242) 328-2398 (242)-352-6608 (242) 352-9348

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Exciting news for GB, as long as locals benefit from it IN XANADU did Royal Caribbean a stately pleasure dome decree.

THE announcement of Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines’ plans for Freeport – including the purchase of the Xanadu Beach Hotel – is exciting indeed for Grand Bahama.

The plan would extend over what could be 50 acres, and will include a resort and water park destination, if all goes ahead.

Today’s Tribune Business reports on the details of the scheme – with the caveat that parts of the deal still have to be concluded.

But if it all comes off, it will be extra investment for Grand Bahama, which sorely needs it.

The Tribune has reported frequently on the economic challenge facing Grand Bahama, even before the effects of Hurricane Dorian.

The prolonged delay in a resolution for the Grand Lucayan property has helped no one, so the prospect of a redevelopment of Xanadu signals the likely influx of tourist dollars.

The suggestion is that the plan would involve Royal Caribbean affiliate Celebrity Cruises, which is at the high end of the range for travellers.

That could mean a higher return on tourist spending, which would benefit craftspeople and tradespeople alike – putting money into the island.

One source called the scheme a “wonderful plan”, adding: “It looks too big to me to just be a water-based adventure or theme park. That would be a major first step for Freeport.

We’d have the Shipyard investment, the new harbour docks for the mega

cruise ships, be it Royal Caribbean, Mediterranean Shipping Company or whoever else, and then the 50 acres on the beach. This could also be the impetus for the airport to get done.”

The Xanadu resort has been closed for 12 years – and keeping its doors shut leads to nothing more than further disrepair.

One thing to beware of is to avoid this being a closed environment for cruise passengers – as one source told Tribune Business, “all these cruise lines want their own little beach area for people to have fun and play, and the money stays on the ship”.

Money staying on the ship will not help Grand Bahama. So the approvals given ought to ensure that the community benefits too.

But if this proposal can bring the glory days back to Xanadu – once famed as a venue for Frank Sinatra’s Rat Pack and a penthouse home for Howard Hughes – then it can perhaps bring some of the magic back to the Magic City.

The next step of course would be to build on that success. Freeport still has plenty of potential with the infrastructure it has on offer already.

But potential is one thing, performance is another. The island has been up against it for many years. For now, this project might help start the turnaround.

We look forward to hearing more details as they emerge – and we are sure that Grand Bahamians will be eager to ensure that the project benefits everyone, not just the cruise line.

people work for the government. Bahamasair has over one hundred employees per plane when the industry average is about twenty three I think.”

AFTER it was reported that there has been a drop in recruitment to the RBDF after it was announced that there would be a deployment to Haiti, readers of www.tribune242.com had their say on the issue.

Sickened said: “We don’t know what our boys will be asked to do but we’re sending them anyway. I’m not sure our commodore should be a commodore if he is accepting a mission, recruiting for a mission and training for a mission, but doesn’t know what the mission is. Are we providing oversight (i.e. need sharp shooters) and we’re sending chaplains? Or are we helping distributing food and we’re sending computer technicians?”

Bahamianson added: “United states tries to not put boots on the ground and we do. If any of our officers die , it will become political and bad for the PLP.” Stillwaters added: “Mr King said the RBDF had not received explicit instructions regarding its role or functions in Haiti, but would send three platoons of 50 people to Hait. Wow...........I am speechless.”

Concernedcitizen said: “I hope recruitment drops.

We have way too many civil servants. We have been absorbing our birth rate with civil service jobs for fifty years, everyone is taxed to death to afford it. One in four working

TalRussell said: “If I may be trusted to submit alongside RBDF Commodore Raymond King’s struggle to recruit. --Three Fighting Platoons from the colony’s entire popoulaces’ --- With the Willingness to go risk their lives on the foreign soil of Haiti, ----- Could easily become unhampered by the RBDF recruitment efforts, --- Doing a deep dive to unlock the Same Fighting Willingness from within the 37% (2353) percent of Bay Street’s prime Junkanoos’ viewings’ locations seating at Rawson Square and in front of Scotiabank – Of which (870) of such reserved seats are, --- Exclusively Reserved for Members the Ruling Government’s House-elected, Politically Appointed and Anointed and Enjoined. --- Let’s see, if RBDF’s Commodore King, will meet with success in recruiting a single Fighting Platoon of (50) Haiti Bound Soldiers..

--- Yes?” Birdiestrachan said: “It is wrong to send bahamians to die for Haiti because nothing will change the Plp is settling themselves up to loose the election.”

SP added: “Firstly, sending troops to Haiti to deal with gang activity is pointless without a clear strategy of removing the major underlying cause of Haiti’s problems, which is the corrupt elite and political class that have had a strangle hold on Haiti for generation!

“This corrupt elite and political class conglomerate manage and facilitate

all levels of nefarious activities in Haiti.

“Unless they are also dismantled or neutralized, the situation in Haiti has zero chance of sustainable improvement.

“The United States interest in Haiti is the ongoing “continued” pilferage of its $20 billion gold deposits and Haitis’ vast quantities of Oil and Natural Gas reserves that are confirmed to be some of the largest oil reserves in the world.

“The corrupt elite and political class facilitate Canada and the United States exploitation of Haiti’s natural resources, maintaining the countries currant destabilized condition and dire financial state it now faces.

“Western powers have employed the same tactics across the African continent for generations.

The worst offender being France, having a well documented history of gross exploitation and horrendous atrocities in Africa in its bid to steal its natural resources.

“The broader questions of any stabilization of Haiti are, what will happen the day after a peace keeping force leaves? How will Haiti divest itself of the corrupt elite and political class that facilitates foreign exploitation of its natural resources that hinders its economic stability and sustainable development?

“Without the answers to these questions, sending in troops to quell gang activity in Haiti is a total nonstarter that would unquestionably end in the unnecessary deaths of any number of troops and civilians.”

HOME to kaleidoscopic-colored coral reefs and an abundance of diverse marine life in the Islands of NEOM. Photo: NEOM, Saudi Arabia

Ruled by slackness and mediocrity EDITOR, The Tribune.

AS 2023 is heading towards its end, I truly wonder whether there is any hope that 2024 will bring Bahamians muchneeded relief.

During November, it was particularly frustrating trying to deal with utility services and banks.

I reached the limit of my patience once again, and unfortunately I know I am not alone! The mind boggles when constant and continuous inefficiency from “service” providers causes Bahamian businesses - their customers who are paying for a service that seems to be non-existent - to waste valuable time and energy dealing with untrained and uncaring representatives from these companies who plain and simple are not doing their jobs!

This is a pathetic state of affairs in this country that continues to block our progress, and it is a mirror image of our lousy leadership from both sides of the aisle who continue to allow patronage, slackness, and mediocrity to rule the nation and lead us nowhere fast!

How can we function if, when a thunderstorm comes, the potholes turn into craters, the electricity goes off, the internet gets zapped, the phone lines don’t work, the credit card machine can’t work, and maybe you would do well to put your buckets out to collect some of the rain that’s falling in case the water goes out too!

The banks continue to hold us hostage. They have closed so many branches on the Family Islands and in Nassau, and the ones that remain open have reduced staff for counter service, if at all. These same banks encourage their customers to bank digitally and are charging ridiculous fees for the service, yet it takes forever to complete the paperwork to open an account, or over six weeks to get your account online, or the ATM machines don‘t work, nobody answers the phones, or there are

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net no properly trained staff members to attend to your issues. I guess we should be thankful for small mercies since the Central Bank’s decision to do away with paper cheques at the end of 2024 has been rescinded.

Whilst our “leaders” sing praises about reaching an eight-million visitors mark, and brag about all of the new foreign direct investment projects coming off the drawing board to save our country, we, the people, can’t get utilities to work in spite of the regulatory bodies formed to do just that! How can “da gubment dem” encourage more development when the basic infrastructure doesn’t even work properly? As my dear friend, Patricia Glinton Meicholas, uses as an example of basic common sense: How can you make a sandwich when you ain’ gat no bread or filling, only condiments like mustard and ketchup?

We citizens, customers, consumers, and taxpayers deserve better and must demand better!

I continue to talk to deaf ears about “overtourism” which the Cambridge Dictionary describes as: “the situation when too many people visit a place on holiday, so that the place is spoiled and life is made difficult for the people who live there … Giant cruise ships are a contributing factor when it comes to overtourism.”

Why can’t we see this happening right in front of our eyes, especially in the Family Islands? Giant resorts - same formula over and over: dredge the seabed for docks and harbours, mow down the native forest and coppice, and dig up the mangroves for inappropriate overscaled residential buildings for visitors that do not reflect a sense of place.

Who truly benefits from these escapades?

Meanwhile, how many

Bahamians can afford to buy land in their own country anymore, and how many houses are being built for Bahamians? What would the Ministry of Works records show in relation to what percentage of construction being done in the country is by Bahamians for Bahamians? The other day there were even some foreign architects living in the Family Islands happily marketing their design services to ‘foreign’ and planning to build homes for them to come and take up residence!

Another scathing example is negatively affecting the residents in Adelaide (whose MP is the Minister of the Environment) who have been crying out for weeks for relief from 24/7 construction and destruction taking place in their heretofore quiet community as huge tractors rip up the mangroves and tear down the pine forests and pollute our water tables for the purposes of ‘development’. These very actions are the harbingers of the climate disasters our Prime Minister is railing against all around the world, yet allowing to happen in his own country!

Other developers are planning to build huge inappropriate over scaled nine and ten storey residential towers in regulated residential communities. It is unconscionable that the voices of Bahamians are ignored whilst “foreign” can come into our country and do whatever they want!

Who in authority is checking for the wellbeing of Bahamians whilst these abuses take place? Is there any small wonder that the Freedom of Information legislation isn’t operational yet?

We do not need more and we do not need bigger, we simply need better for our own selves!

Open your eyes Bahamians, and speak up because “piratis” have not been “expulsis!” Happy holidays!

PAM BURNSIDE New Providence December 12, 2023

Video shows Adderley lunged at RBPF officer THE TRIBUNE

from page one

represents Corporal Rashad Pratt, the officer whose actions are the subject of the inquest. Bjorn Ferguson represents the deceased’s estate.

Inspector Deon Rudon, the system administrator of the police body cams, showed footage from CPL Pratt’s body cam, which showed the officer approaching the deceased’s silver coloured Mazda Demio as he was parked in a vacant lot on Dunmore Avenue near Strachan Street west.

The lights of the officer’s marked police car flashed in the clip.

Cpl Pratt approached the car with his gun drawn and ordered Adderley to get out of the car.

Although the deceased hesitated, he initially

Tuesday, December 12, 2023, PAGE 7

complied with the officer’s demands and placed his hands on the hood of the car.

After Cpl Pratt circled the vehicle, he searched the deceased and pulled out his wallet from his right pocket.

While the officer looked at the man’s ID, Adderley lunged towards him, seemingly trying to grab his weapon. The officer then ran back shouting for Adderley to “get back”.

While trying to evade the advancing Defence Force officer, he opened fire at him, causing him to fall to the ground.

In his call to dispatch after the shooting, Cpl Pratt said the deceased was reaching for his gun.

In the aftermath of the shooting, Adderley’s body bled while he lay facedown in the sand in a

black coloured shirt and sweatpants.

Rodney Adderley, Sr, the deceased’s father, became emotional and put his head in his hands as footage of his son’s shooting was played.

Mr Adderley, Sr, had described his son to the court as an easygoing boy and a good son who cared for his mother.

During questioning from Mr Ferguson, Inspector Rudon confirmed that Cpl Pratt was the only officer at the incident with a body camera.

PC Phillip Deveaux, Cpl Pratt’s partner on the night of the shooting, testified that the two officers were on mobile patrol when they received a call of a suspicious vehicle in the Chippingham area.

PC Deveaux said he saw Cpl Pratt instruct

the deceased to get out of his vehicle. He also said he saw the deceased try to grab the officer’s weapon.

The officer said there was a brief struggle between the two over the gun, which he claimed lasted about two to six seconds before Adderley was shot and killed.

Both officers gave their firearms to Inspector Mario Durell after CSI arrived.

PC Deveaux said he was in fear for his life during the incident, but never discharged his weapon.

He also said the deceased was within arms reach of Corporal Pratt just before their scuffle.

PC Deveaux could not say if it was standard protocol for an officer to conduct a search with their gun drawn.

It was suggested to the officer that he never fired his weapon because he was not afraid for Cpl Pratt’s life. PC Deveaux denied this.

The officer said nothing illegal was recovered from the scene and the deceased was unarmed.

When asked by Mr Ferguson if he had nonlethal weapons during the incident, PC Deveaux said no. He further said that he was unaware of whether Corporal Pratt had non-lethal weapons such as a mace or a baton.

ASP Garnell Rolle read into the record the report of retired Detective Corporal Rudolph Sweeting, a former CSI officer.

DC Sweeting wrote that he went to the morgue at PMH on January 18, 2022, and spoke to forensic pathologist Dr Caryn

Sands.

He then observed the body of the deceased, which he recalled having two gunshot wounds to the chest and one to the abdomen just below the navel.

The deceased also had two apparent gunshot wounds to his upper back and one to his hip.

In addition to photographing the deceased, DC Sweeting received tubes of blood and vitreous humor fluid from the body, which was sent abroad for further analysis.

Mr Adderley, Sr, confirmed yesterday that a photo showing the deceased at the morgue was similar to the photo he was shown when he identified his son’s body.

Angelo Whitfield marshalled the evidence.

FOUR MEN ON BAIL FOR MURDER CHARGED WITH SPREE OF SHOP BREAK-INS IN GB

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Staff Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net FOUR New Providence men on bail for murder were charged on Monday with a spree of shop breakins and stealing incidents on Grand Bahama.

Magistrate Charlton Smith charged Kirkland Bullard, 32, Roobens Elusme, 32, Renard Taylor, 28, and Cleophus

Smith, 31.

Paco Deal represented Bullard and Elusme.

The men are accused of committing eight offences and stealing over $4,000 between November 24 and December 4.

Between November 24 and 25, the men allegedly broke into the 700 Wines and Spirits on Queens Highway, Freeport, intending to steal.

They are accused of

stealing $3,950 from an Island Luck kiosk and breaking into two other establishments, the J&J Plaza and Chances in Hunters, on November 28.

The men also allegedly broke into the Island Luck and the Express Food Mart on Balao Road, Freeport, on December 2 and the Hawksbill Service Station on December 3.

In Freeport on December 4, the men allegedly

Fifteen immigrants from Dominica charged with illegal embarkation

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Staff Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net FIFTEEN immigrants were charged in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday with breaching the Immigration Act. Magistrate Simone Brown charged the group of 11 men and four women.

They all pleaded guilty to illegal embarkation.

The nationals were from the Dominican Republic and Ecuador. They all left Grand Bahama in early December on a vessel to Florida in an attempted human smuggling incident.

US Coast Guard officials intercepted two groups at sea in US waters. One group was discovered 15 miles east of Miami, and the second was found 11

miles off Key Biscayne, Florida.

US officials detained a Bahamian man and an Italian national in connection with the incident.

The immigrants were taken back to Grand Bahama to face charges.

Magistrate Brown imposed a fine of $300 each or six months imprisonment and ordered their deportation.

Man charged with armed robbery, stealing a wallet at gunpoint

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was in custody yesterday after he allegedly robbed someone at gunpoint, taking their wallet containing $300.

Magistrate Algernon

Allen, Jr, charged Dante Williams, 30, with armed robbery.

Williams, armed with a black handgun, allegedly robbed Keyo Knowles of a black wallet containing $300 cash along with his NIB card on December 2.

The accused was informed that his matter would be

moved to the Supreme Court through a voluntary bill of indictment (VBI). The defendant will be sent to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services until the higher court grants him bail.

Williams’ VBI is set for service on March 1, 2024.

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Interested persons should submit resumes to employment@bahamaslaw.com by Friday December 16th, 2023.

stole a mobile kiosk valued at $7,000, containing $856 cash, the property of Armelek Fountain.

Taylor pleaded guilty to all eight counts. Bullard, Elusme, and Smith pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutor Fynes accepted Taylor’s guilty plea, but told the court that the prosecution would continue to proceed with charges against the three men.

The prosecutor objected to bail, adding that the three men all have antecedents of a similar nature.

Taylor, a jet ski operator on Cabbage Beach, asked the magistrate to exercise leniency when passing the sentence, adding that he is the father of three young children.

He said he accepted sole responsibility for the crimes. He then told the

magistrate that he was on bail in the Supreme Court for conspiracy to commit murder.

Magistrate Smith convicted Taylor and sentenced him to 36 months imprisonment on each count to run concurrently.

Bail was denied to Bullard, Elusme, and Smith. The matters were adjourned to March 26, 2024.

Krista Barr-Bastian encourages all women to ‘push powerfully’ PAGE 8, Tuesday, December 12, 2023

IF you are a woman feeling overwhelmed and exhausted by life, there is a Christmas angel looking out for you. Krista Barr-Bastian knows what it is to feel as if she is losing the will to fight back when what she really wants to do, deep down, is to win at life.

Krista was hit by a series of tragedies that could have sent her in a downward spiral. She had to dig deep to find the strength within to overcome them and in the process, she found her true purpose in life. She empowers women who are at the same critical juncture - the point where they feel like giving up - and helps them push powerfully past their pain to find their purpose.

Her life lessons inspired her to write: “Woman! Push Powerfully” - a new book released this December 2023, just in time to help women fill their hearts with joy for the holidays and make a powerful push into 2024.

A special holiday edition of “Woman! Push Powerfully” has been released and a 12-day campaign will commence on December 14 ending on Christmas Day, December 25, 2023.

During this 12 Days of Christmas Campaign, Krista wants to give away 120 books as gifts to women across the city of Nassau.

In order to fulfill this, she is inviting individuals or companies to help her to share the life-giving messages in her book to women in the capital. During each of the 12 days, she will also share a powerful message each

THE TRIBUNE

Face to Face

By FELICITY DARVILLE

day on her Instagram page, @eventsbyKrista, with the hopes of inspiring as many women as possible. After all, women are mostly the ones making Christmas meals, purchasing items for the home and gifts for others, and making arrangements for their families to have a merry Christmas.

Women tend to bury their feelings or troubles and put everyone else first; so Krista decided to put women first this Christmas. This transformative campaign, she hopes, will inspire women and help them to enjoy the season as much as everyone else.

Krista inspires women who are in the trenches of life, helping them to overcome and step fully into the purposes of God. She is no stranger to the strife of life.

She has had to navigate a broken marriage which left her a single mother to four children - Chloe, Dawson, Kruiz and Kole. This was compounded by the death of her mother and grandmother, which happened just nine days apart during 2020.

“These difficult and painful life changes led me to give birth to a new and purposeful life; a fruitful life,” Krista said.

“Although I was stripped of the people who were critical to my life, I decided to continue to push powerfully! I decided to partner with God as I continue to walk this journey of life.”

A former certified public accountant, Krista now inspires women from all walks of life, encouraging them to rise above their difficulties and serve with excellence in the positions that they occupy - whether it be in the home, in the workplace or in their community.

She has had the

opportunity to lead professional conferences and talks with women in the educational and healthcare systems and also women who are engaged in church ministry.

and the reason her faith is where it is today. Krista went to church with her every Sunday and she ensured that Krista and her siblings were involved and present.

Krista’s paternal grandmother was Effie Walkes, a woman of boldness and strength: “She was significantly involved in Majority Rule Day and was said to be the only one in the room of men at the time the decision was made to take the drastic actions to ensure the voice of the majority of people was heard and

KRISTA at her university graduation with her mother, Helen Barr.

Krista believes that the future of the world is highly hinged upon how women decide to show up in their spaces, irrespective of the difficulties that confront them.

“I have a vision to see the world filled with fruitful women birthing the purposes of God for the prosperity of the world and the advance of the Kingdom of God,” she said.

“Hence, Woman! Push Powerfully is a big part of that mission to achieve this vision.”

Krista was born and raised in Nassau, Bahamas.

She came from a two-parent home and grew up in a close knit, traditional structured family. Her father is Dencle Barr, mother is the late Helen Barr. She is the eldest of three children.

Her mother and grandmothers served as powerful inspiration in her life. They are all now deceased. Her maternal grandmother was Kathleen Adderley, a woman of great faith

respected! She was a fighter at heart and stood ten toes down always! Just brave and bold!”

“My mother - Helen Barr - was just a complete gem!

The epitome of generosity and forgiveness! She was all about love and peace. She had a tremendous heart for people and was much like a saint! A pure heart of gold that was open to everyone.”

“Their impact and influence in my life was truly significant and it’s why I am so adamant on serving full in this life! Their lives and their sacrifices, especially towards me, must be honoured through my life!”

Krista is a graduate of St John’s College and continued her education at the University of The Bahamas and Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She became a certified public accountant and practised in the field for more than fifteen years. The shift to speaker and author came in 2021, when she left the field of accounting to pursue her passion, which is to inspire women to step into fruitfulness.

“I had always felt that my career wasn’t hitting my heart as it should, even though I was progressing as I wanted to,” she shared.

“As I began to have children, it became difficult to keep up in a very fast paced, demanding environment. Then, as I lost my husband, then grandmother and mother, I truly had no support. It was then that I took it as a clear sign to exit

a space I could no longer participate in effectively. It was a very strange opening to pursue what my heart truly desired... to live the life I truly desired within.”

She successfully coauthored the anthology “Keep Going!” - an inspiring book published by Universal Impact Press (UIP) that shares the stories of women who overcame adversity to succeed.

Then, Krista worked with UIP’s president, Aisha Wonderfull, to produce her own book.

Krista’s book presents five “push” principles which help women to fasten their faith in God and enter a dynamic divine partnership with Him so they can overcome the difficulties and pain of life and birth their “divine fruit”- the purposes of God in their life.

She brings women to the understanding that the pain is necessary.

“At the core of their trials and troubles is a call to transform their lives, their impact, and their leadership,” she explained.

The five push principles

what the world needs to thrive and prosper as God has planned. Women must show up strong and not allow the troubles and challenges of life to stagnate them and keep them barren. They must be determined to impact the world with their divine fruit!

They must push to shift, shake and transform their spaces. The ‘new’ that the world is waiting for is in the womb of women. This book will serve as her midwife, leading her into a fruitful mindset that will equip her to ‘push’ and birth into the world just what it needs from her to prosper and progress as God intended.

Just as a woman is critical to the progression of the human race through childbirth, she is important to the advancement of the plans of God on the earth.

She was created as incubator and keeper for the purposes of God. By divine design she is a Heaven-sent helper, and she must show up as such by any means possible. The fighting spirit she needs is in this book!

This book is her path to vic-

KRISTA Barr-Bastian with her children: (back left to right) - Chloe, Krista, and Kole. (front left to right) Dawson and Kruiz. are: powerful person; powerful purpose; powerful presence; powerful perspective; and powerful patience.

“These principles allow for a strength of mind that will usher women past their pain and into their purpose,” she said.

“The fruitfulness of a woman is what God desires most. Fruitful women are

KRISTA has blossomed from a CPA to a sought-after women’s empowerment speaker.

tory! Her victory is in her fruitfulness!”

Those wishing to support her 12 Days of Christmas Campaign by donating a book to a woman who truly needs it, or for those just wanting to purchase books as gifts for their loved ones this season, contact the author at kristabarrbastian@gmail.com.

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, December 12, 2023, PAGE 9

UK COVID inquiry - useful or pointless?

THE British government’s public inquiry in to the COVID-19 pandemic is now under way. Local reaction so far has been mixed.

Critics are calling it a total waste of time and money that will end up as an “appalling establishment sham”. But others believe it is essential to conduct a comprehensive examination of what happened in order to identify and take account of policy failures.

The inquiry’s terms of reference are to consider and report on the preparations for the pandemic and the response and longterm impact, and to learn lessons for the future. It is said that the proceedings could last until 2026 though an interim report is expected early next year.

It is worth noting that in the UK a Public Inquiry is a major independent investigation set up in response to public concern about a particular event or set of events. Established and funded by the government, such inquiries are led by an independent chair - in this case a former judge.

Inquiries can demand evidence and compel witnesses to attend, but no one is found guilty or

The Peter Young column innocent though the conclusions are published for all to see.

Interestingly, the critics have been notably vocal.

One UK journalist, who is known normally for his moderate and pragmatic approach to controversial issues, has called the inquiry a “lumbering juggernaut living down to the lowest of expectations” – adding that its extravagant cost, with lawyers and others making a killing, “is not matched by a clear uplifting purpose”.

This is pretty strong stuff, and some of his colleagues have written in similar vein.

Others have been more restrained, saying that the aim of the inquiry ought to be to learn lessons about the interplay between scientific knowledge and public policy so that Britain will be better prepared to cope with the next pandemic. It is being said, however, that the proceedings have already descended in to nit-picking lawyers regurgitating facts that are already in the public domain and witnesses seeking to justify themselves and their actions in order to deflect any personal blame. In light of this, some people are now pointing to the danger of the proceedings acquiring the trappings of a political show trial.

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson has already appeared as a witness.

He faced a detailed cross examination while speaking with frankness and some emotion as someone who himself had contracted the virus and had been hospitalised. It seems that he handled the gruelling questioning well. He began

his evidence by apologizing for the “pain and the loss and the suffering” and issued a fulsome apology for mistakes made, saying that “there were unquestionably things we should have done differently”, and he admitted that he and his colleagues had underestimated the scale and the challenge posed by the pandemic.

Other critics are now expressing fears that the inquiry will end as a whitewash of many bad decisions made by both scientists and panicking politicians. I, for one, think that there is little real point in looking in much detail at the quality of the scientific advice since those concerned with producing it will always argue over the accuracy of the science, as academics and technical people normally do.

What surely matters is whether the policy-makers acted coherently, correctly and reasonably in reaction to the advice they received, and did they choose the right solutions in dealing with the virus, both in seeking to prevent its spread and in looking after the most vulnerable. To the layman, those appear

to be the basic questions.

From what I have been able to glean from the evidence so far, the received wisdom is that lockdowns were the right action to take to try to limit the spread of the virus and that the Johnson government should have imposed them earlier. But, if so, it appears already from the evidence that there was no effective pre-planning for strict and comprehensive lockdowns and no one had thought through their likely longer term impact.

Furthermore, had anyone really considered and evaluated what the alternatives might have been?

Commentators are now saying that what is needed is a rational and honest assessment of whether shutting everything down was justified given the huge and devastating affect on everybody – described by some as an ‘outrageous cruelty’ inflicted on the British people for more than a year. Many believed at the time that, rather than trying to stop the spread of COVID by saddling society with damaging restrictions affecting the whole country, greater emphasis should have been

placed on protecting the vulnerable at higher risk of contracting the virus and therefore spreading it – including those with relevant medical pre-conditions - in the same way that they were more likely to get the flu in winter than those who are generally fit; and, on that argument, the decision to discharge COVID-19 positive patients into residential care settings for the elderly now seems to have been sheer lunacy.

At this early stage of the inquiry, it would clearly be unwise to speculate about possible findings. But, from the evidence so far, the idea that government ministers should have channelled resources first and foremost in to protecting both the old and the vulnerable of all ages, which is what in effect the vaccine has now done, may just be gaining ground. Be that as it may, most people will surely hope that the eventual report of the inquiry will not simply end up traducing politicians for their failings and lack of judgement but also produce valuable lessons for handling similar disasters in the future.

TORIES SUFFERING INTERNAL DIFFERENCES YET AGAIN New role for former PM

FOR fear of repetition, I hesitate to raise again the contentious issue of immigration which I wrote about only two weeks ago. Incidentally, a friend has helpfully pointed out, among other things, that the record figures for net migration to the UK which I wrote about last time fail to reveal - unless broken down by category - the positive side of immigration; for example, those who come to Britain to work in the National Health Service and especially the nurses from overseas who always seem to be in great demand. I was grateful to him for this and other relevant feedback.

Immigration has remained at the fore as a contentious issue in the UK because of the illegal side of it – specifically, the continuing dangerous attempts of large and growing numbers of migrants to cross the English Channel from France in small boats in order to enter Britain illegally. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak made his pledge to “stop the boats” one of his main priorities; indeed, this phrase has become part of his political lexicon.

His original plan was to transport them to Rwanda for processing in the hope that the knowledge that they would be sent immediately to Africa might deter would-be migrants from trying to make this perilous journey to the UK. But this scheme was declared unlawful by the UK Supreme Court on the grounds that Rwanda was not a safe country.

Now, his government has tried again with new emergency legislation which supposedly meets the UK’s commitments

BRITAIN’s Prime Minister Rishi Sunak gives an update on the plan to “stop the boats” and illegal migration during a press conference in the Downing Street Briefing Room in London, Thursday Dec. 7, 2023.

Photo: James Manning/AP to international law, and is due to be debated in the House of Commons this week. However, the Conservatives are deeply split on the issue. The minister responsible for immigration, who had been a trusted and close ally of Sunak, has resigned and the party is divided between right and left.

The latter are concerned that the government is overriding the UK’s obligations under international law – in particular the European Convention on Human Rights and judgements from the ECHR’s Court – and seeking to clip the wings of unelected judges as well as the UK’s own Human Rights Act. By contrast, those on the right fear that the new legislation does not go far enough in strengthening the nation’s borders.

In particular, by allowing migrants to lodge legal challenges against removal to Rwanda, the system will be hit with further delays and, in practice, will be unworkable and doomed

to failure. As some of these are now saying, the law-abiding general public clearly wants illegal immigration to be controlled. So they ask who is governing the country. Is it the British people through their elected representatives?

Or is good governance being replaced by slavish adherence to what is being called the “vague, shifting and unaccountable concept of international law”?

By all accounts, this important issue has come to a head this past weekend as Tory MPs mull over how to vote sometime this week on Sunak’s new Bill. It has shown up the deep divisions and intense friction within the Tory Party to such an extent that some observers believe that, severely split as it is, it is no longer in a position to govern.

There is no space today to go more thoroughly in to the reasons for such disunity. Suffice it to say that, reportedly, if the Prime Minister fails to get his Rwanda legislation through, he will be in a perilous position and could face a leadership challenge. Most people agree that this would be disastrous for the Tories and could lead to oblivion at the next election.

I hope that, given Britain’s prominent position in the world, especially its enhanced global standing as a separate independent nation after leaving the European Union, it will be interesting for readers to follow such developments concerning the country’s domestic political situation. Stability and strength at home provide the basis of the nation’s international role and underpin its achievements on the global stage.

AT THE time last month of the appointment of former British Prime Minister David Cameron as Foreign Secretary after a Cabinet reshuffle, many in the UK regarded his return to government as a retrograde step and hardly fitting after his controversial record during six years in office as PM. In particular, he will forever be seen as the leader who presided – some say needlessly and even recklessly - over a referendum in 2016 to determine whether Britain should continue its membership of the European Union or to leave the bloc.

The result was a victory for the “leavers” by the narrowest of margins – 52 per cent to 48 per cent – and the creation of enormous divisions within the country.

Cameron was criticised for poor judgement in putting the matter to the test, for which many argued there was no compelling reason. He immediately resigned, and there followed years of argument and bickering over Brexit that resulted in continuing political uncertainty and endless conflict.

Another reason for people’s doubts was that he is known for being left of centre politically and there were doubts about whether that might be out of step with the current mood in the Conservative Party, not least in relation to foreign aid.

To add to those doubts was that the former prime minister was no longer in the House of Commons so would not have to face a regular grilling by MPs as part of the legislature’s scrutiny of the executive under the Westminster system.

Thus, he would have to be

FORMER British Prime Minister David Cameron.

Photo: Matt Dunham/AP made a peer and sit in the House of Lords. But that could work in practice, as shown by Lord Carrington who served as foreign secretary under Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s.

Despite all these doubts, however, I suspect that anyone who witnessed Britain’s new foreign secretary in action during his visit to Washington last week will cast aside any thought that somehow this was not an appropriate – and indeed a very good - appointment.

Those watching the TV coverage of his address to the Aspen Security Forum in Washington will have witnessed an exemplary lesson in how to describe Britain’s standing in the world and its foreign policy – succinct but comprehensive and in considerable detail when needed -- while also appealing in a most persuasive manner to those concerned in Washington to continue to support Ukraine politically, diplomatically and militarily. In a most impressive performance, showing a skilled grasp of international affairs, Lord Cameron spoke for ten

minutes – spontaneously and without standing at a podium and using notes. He was received warmly and clearly had the undivided attention of everybody in the room.

I later watched him being interviewed on CNN in another bravura performance which must have surprised his interlocutors, accustomed as they surely are to a lower quality of interviewee. Then, there was a televised press conference with US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, at which, to my eye, he outshone his American counterpart at every step.

The only downside of all this is that on current estimates the Tories are likely to lose the coming UK general election and Lord Cameron will be out of office far too quickly. Nonetheless, in the meantime the UK will surely benefit considerably from his stint as foreign secretary – and, reportedly, people are already talking of him as a possible successor to the current Secretary General of NATO.

PAGE 10, Tuesday, December 12, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

BTVI’s Devard Knowles heads MP for Marathon spreads winning team at DisruptHR Christmas cheer to students and Nassau 2023 competition staff at Claridge Primary School

MEMBER of Parliament for Marathon Lisa Rahming (2nd from left) presented staff of Claridge Primary School with Christmas gifts.

THE students and administrators of Claridge Primary School got a taste of Christmas cheer early this year, as Member of Parliament for Marathon Lisa T Rahming visited the school to motivate the students and celebrate the staff before school closes for the Christmas holidays.

Rahming and her team served hot breakfast to the entire school and faculty before participating in a special assembly ahead of the Christmas holidays.

Pastor Practon Patton

placed a covering over all of the children, praying for their protection and for blessings for them and their families during the Christmas holidays.

Claridge Primary Principal Mrs. Hutchinson and the entire school faculty also received Christmas gifts from MP Rahming, who said their contributions to the education of Bahamian children are invaluable.

Rahming told the children of Marathon that she, too, grew up in the

Marathon area and that education was critical to her success.

She said by applying herself in all of her studies, she was able to take advantage of opportunities that put her on the path for success.

She informed them that she and her team have been busy going door to door in the Marathon constituency, bearing gifts for all the children. With that, she wished them a merry Christmas and a happy new year.

BENEFITS manager of the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute, Devard Knowles.

BENEFITS manager of the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute, Devard Knowles, was a member of the DisruptHR Nassau 2023 competition winning team, where he skillfully displayed his human resources knowledge and skills.

Mr Knowles was one of 12 speakers recruited to participate in the competition in which participants were divided into four teams of three.

On Mr Knowles’ team were HR Officer of Bahamas Air Navigation Services Authority, Mercedes Morley and Talent Development Manager at Rosewood Hotel, Khadijah Young. Held at Crypto Isle, each speaker had five minutes to make his or her presentation with the aid of 20 slides. The three judges – senior HR industry leaders evaluated the presentations through a question and answer component.

Originally founded in Cincinnati in 2013, DisruptHR is a global information exchange designed to inform and empower HR leaders, business professionals and community leaders.

The Bahamas Society for

Human Resource Management (BSHRM) and Wellington Hepburn International (WHI) partnered to facilitate DisruptHR Nassau 2023 under the theme Plugging the Brain Drain. The ultimate focus was to present strategies that disrupt the traditional view of the HR field, encouraging some of the best and brightest of Bahamian talent to remain home or return.

Mr. Knowles’ topic was Flex Your Times or Lose Your Dimes. He discussed choosing which type of flextime to offer employees, determining guidelines and non-negotiables, and including important details and making them official.

“I spoke to how flextime should not only be available to senior employees. I gave three practical solutions to show how they could be implemented tomorrow.

They aren’t ambitious,” said Mr Knowles.

“The event was one where we got to highlight our HR acumen to the public by discussing relevant issues and providing industry solutions to plugging the brain drain. I stayed on topic and time.

The goal was really to teach them something meaningful but make it quick,” he added.

Questioned as to his thoughts about being chosen to participate in the event, Mr Knowles said he was honoured.

“Honestly, I know it was an invitation I couldn’t underestimate.

They didn’t have to choose me.

It showed me that other HR professionals took notice of my talent,” said Mr Knowles who has been a HSHRM member since 2008.

BTVI’s interim president, Dr Linda A Davis congratulated Mr Knowles, noting that he is an example of the talent that exists at the organisation.

“We’re very proud of Mr Knowles’ performance.

To be selected as one of the 12 speakers for this event, which was held in cities worldwide, speaks volumes. Moreover, to be a member of the dynamic winning team is proof that he has transformative ideas that were accepted by veteran HR professionals who were judges. Mr Knowles represented his industry and BTVI well,” said Dr Davis.

UTEB calls for transparency over BTVI pick for president

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporters jrussel@tribunemedia.net THE Union of Tertiary Educators of the Bahamas (UTEB) is calling for “transparency” on behalf of its members at the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI), regarding who has been chosen as the new BTVI president.

UTEB said a BTVI Presidential Search Committee was initiated on November 25, 2022. But, despite the committee reportedly concluding its findings for the presidential position in April of this year, BTVI staff have not been informed of what decision was made by the committee.

“Nearly nine months later, the faculty and staff at BTVI remain uninformed about the

Committee’s official selection for the position or the rationale behind the Committee’s formation if its recommendation was not to be implemented,” UTEB said in a recent statement.

“UTEB expresses concern about the perceived lack of respect, transparency, and accountability in the treatment of BTVI faculty and staff by the Board of Directors and the Search Committee throughout the process.

In contrast to the University of The Bahamas (UB), where stakeholders, were invited and encouraged to meet Presidential finalists, BTVI did not extend a similar courtesy to its stakeholders, most importantly its management, faculty, students, and staff even though this criterion was stated in its presidential

search profile.”

UTEB added it has written to BTVI’s board of directors for an official response regarding the matter.

The statement continued: “In concurrence with the advertised presidential profile, UTEB certainly believes and hopes that in the very near future – whomever is the newly appointed president, he or she will be a TVET-qualified professional with a positive leadership track record known to foster productivity, increase morale, creativity, and unify employees, which is paramount for the institute going in the new year, 2024.”

UTEB noted it is looking forward to receiving the “long-awaited” official results of the search committee.

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, December 12, 2023, PAGE 11

As COP28 nears finish, critics say proposal ‘doesn’t even come close’ to what’s needed on climate DUBAI Associated Press COUNTRIES moved closer to reaching what critics called a watereddown final deal on how to act on climate change on Monday, to the disappointment and anger of nations who called to phase out planet-warming fossil fuels as the United Nations summit in Dubai neared its culmination.

A new draft released Monday of what’s known as the global stocktake — the part of talks that assesses where the world is at with its climate goals and how it can reach them — called for countries to reduce “consumption and production of fossil fuels, in a just, orderly and equitable manner.”

The release triggered a frenzy of fine-tuning by government envoys and rapid analysis by advocacy groups, just hours before the planned late morning finish to the talks on Tuesday — even though many observers expect the finale to run over time, as is common at the annual UN talks.

Anger grew as people had more time to read the document.

In a closed-door meeting late Monday, some country delegation chiefs needled COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber’s frequent calling of the goal to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) since preindustrial times

his “north star,” saying the president’s proposal misses that star.

“It is not enough to say 1.5, we have to do 1.5. We have to deliver accordingly,” Norway minister Espen Barth Eide said.

A person inside the room said several negotiating blocs, including those for small island states, Latin American countries, the European Union and developing countries, all spoke against the new draft, saying its ambition wasn’t strong enough. The person spoke on condition of anonymity in order to speak without fear of affecting the negotiations.

Some Pacific Island nations argued the text amounted to a death sentence.

The proposed text “doesn’t even come close to delivering 1.5 as a north star,” Tuvalu’s delegation chief Seve Paeniu said.

“For us this is a matter of survival. We cannot put loopholes in our children’s futures.”

Small island nations are some of the most vulnerable places in a world of rising temperatures and seas. Final decisions by COPs have to be by consensus and objections can still torpedo this. Activists said they feared that potential objections from fossil fuel countries, such as Saudi Arabia, had watered down the text.

German climate envoy Jennifer Morgan said

Europe is “extremely unified” in opposing the COP presidency’s text, calling it unacceptable.

“We’re prepared to stay as long as it takes to get the course correction that the world needs,” Morgan told The Associated Press as she walked into the heads of delegation meeting.

Zhao Yingmin, China’s vice minister for Ecology and Environment, said at the meeting that “the draft fails to address the concerns of developing countries on some key issues” and in particular the idea that greenhouse gas emissions must peak by 2025.

United States climate envoy John Kerry says the language on fossil fuels in the text “does not meet the test” of keeping 1.5 alive.

“I, like most of you here, refuse to be part of a charade” of not phasing out fossil fuels, Kerry said. “This is a war for survival.”

Kerry’s remarks received a round of applause from the room.

A combination of activists and delegation members lined the entry into a special late-evening meeting Monday of heads of delegations, with their arms raised in unity as delegations walked through, creating a tunnel-like effect. A few activists told delegates passing by: “You are our last hope. We count on you.”

Negotiators broke well after midnight, and it wasn’t clear when talks would resume.

SPAIN Deputy Prime Minister Teresa Ribera and Wopke Hoekstra, European Union commissioner for climate action, walk near activists raising their arms as negotiators head to a new session of talks at the COP28 UN Climate Summit yesterday in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Photo: Rafiq Maqbool/AP “We need to find a solution that has maximum ambition and maximum equity,” South Africa minister Barbara Creecy said as negotiators left the room. “One without the other will not solve the conundrum we face.”

In the 21-page document, the words oil and natural gas did not appear, and the word coal appeared twice.

It also had a single mention of carbon capture, a technology touted by some to reduce emissions although it’s untested at scale.

Activists said the text was written by the COP28 presidency, run by an Emirati oil company CEO — Al-Jaber — and pounced on its perceived shortcomings. It fell fall short of a widespread push to phase out fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal altogether.

Al-Jaber skipped a planned news conference and headed straight into a meeting with delegates just after 6:30 pm It was the second time for him to cancel a press briefing on Monday.

“We have a text and we need to agree on the text,” al-Jaber said. “The time for discussion is coming to an end and there’s no time for hesitation. The time to decide is now.”

He added: “We must still

close many gaps. We don’t have time to waste.”

Critics said there was a lot to do.

“COP28 is now on the verge of complete failure,” former US Vice President and climate activist Al Gore posted on X. “The world desperately needs to phase out fossil fuels as quickly as possible, but this obsequious draft reads as if OPEC dictated it word for word. ...

It is deeply offensive to all who have taken this process seriously.”

Jean Su from the Center for Biological Diversity said the text “moves disastrously backward from original language offering a phaseout of fossil fuels.”

“If this race-to-the-bottom monstrosity gets enshrined as the final word, this crucial COP will be a failure,” Su said.

But Mohamed Adow of Power Shift Africa said the “text lays the ground for transformational change.”

“This is the first COP where the word fossil fuels are actually included in the draft decision. This is the beginning of the end of the fossil fuel era,” he said.

Also on Monday, the latest draft on the Global Goal on Adaptation — the text on how countries, especially

vulnerable ones, can adapt to weather extremes and climate harms — was released on Monday.

The adaptation is “utterly disappointing” and “an injustice to communities on the frontline of the crisis,” said Amy Giliam Thorp of Power Shift Africa.

“The text is even weaker, more vague in many areas, and lacking in ambition,” she said. It’s “set to corrode trust between developed and developing nations. A framework focused on action without concrete targets, especially to support developing countries, is pointless and toothless.”

Cristina Rumbaitis del Rio, a senior advisor for adaptation and resilience at the UN Foundation said “the new text doesn’t have the strength that we were hoping to see.”

On Monday morning, visibly tired and frustrated top UN officials urged COP28 talks to push harder for an end to fossil fuels, warning that time is running out for action.

“We can’t keep kicking the can down the road,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said. “We are out of road and almost out of time.”

IndIa’s supreme Court upholds govt’s deCIsIon to remove KashmIr’s speCIal status INDIA Associated Press INDIA’S top court on Monday upheld a 2019 decision by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to strip disputed Jammu and Kashmir’s special status as a semi-autonomous region with a separate constitution and inherited protections on land and jobs.

The five-judge constitutional bench of the Supreme Court ruled that the region’s special status had been a “temporary provision” and that removing it in 2019 was constitutionally valid.

The unprecedented move also divided the region into two federal territories, Ladakh and Jammu-Kashmir, both ruled directly by the central government without a legislature of their own.

It was the first time in the history of India that a region’s statehood was downgraded to a federally administered territory.

As a result, the Muslimmajority region is now run by unelected government officials and has lost its flag, criminal code and constitution.

But Chief Justice Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud said the government has promised to restore Jammu-Kashmir’s statehood and should do so as soon as possible.

Ladakh, however, will remain a federal territory.

He also ordered the country’s election commission to hold legislative polls in the region by Sept.

30.

The ruling is expected to boost the electoral prospects of Modi’s governing Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party in national polls next year.

The 2019 move resonated in much of India, where the Modi government was cheered by supporters for fulfilling a long-held Hindu nationalist pledge to scrap the Muslimmajority region’s special

INDIAN paramilitary soldiers patrol at the main market in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir yesterday. India’s top court on Monday upheld a 2019 decision by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government to strip disputed Jammu and Kashmir’s special status as a semi-autonomous region with a separate constitution and inherited protections on land and jobs.

Photo: Mukhtar Khan /AP status. which ended with both another and largely peace- testament to our collective But the judgment will countries controlling parts ful movements against resolve to build a stronger, disappoint many in Kash- of the territory, divided Indian control were more united India,” Modi mir, including the region’s by a heavily militarized harshly suppressed. Kash- wrote on X, formerly Twitmain pro-India Kashmiri frontier. miri dissidents launched a ter. He said the decision politicians who had petiA 1948 United Nations full-blown armed revolt in was “historic and contioned the Supreme Court resolution called for a ref- 1989, seeking unification stitutionally upholds the to reverse the deeply erendum in Kashmir giving with Pakistan or com- decision taken by the Parunpopular decision, which the territory’s people the plete independence. Tens liament of India.” was imposed under an choice of joining either of thousands of civilians, Mehbooba Mufti, unprecedented secu- Pakistan or India, but it rebels and government the region’s former top rity and communication never happened. The part forces have been killed in elected official who was clampdown that lasted of Kashmir controlled by the conflict. once an ally of Modi’s many months.

India was granted semiNew Delhi insists the party, said in a video When Britain divided autonomy and special Kashmir militancy is Paki- message on X that the its Indian colony into a privileges in exchange for stan-sponsored terrorism, “verdict upheld the cenHindu-majority India and accepting Indian rule. a charge Islamabad denies. tral government’s illegal a Muslim-majority PakiKashmiri discontent Most Kashmiris consider and unconstitutional step stan in 1947, the status of with India started taking it a legitimate freedom and is like news of a death what was then the princely root as successive Indian struggle. sentence not just for state of Jammu and Kash- governments breached the “The verdict today is not Jammu and Kashmir but mir was left undecided. pact of Kashmir’s auton- just a legal judgment; it is a also for the idea of India.”

India and Pakistan soon omy. Local governments beacon of hope, a promise Mufti, as well as Omar began a war over Kashmir, were toppled one after of a brighter future and a Abdullah, another former

chief minister of the region, said police put them under house arrest early Monday.

They uploaded pictures on social media that showed the main entrances of their residences locked.

Manoj Sinha, New Delhi’s top administrator in the region, told reporters that no one was arrested and that the claims were just “rumours.”

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, a key resistance leader and a Muslim cleric who was kept under house arrest most of the time since 2019, said the verdict was not unexpected and that the divided territory remains “humanitarian and a political issue.”

“Those people who at the time of the partition of the subcontinent facilitated the accession (of the region with India) and reposed their faith in the promises and assurances given to them by the Indian leadership must feel deeply betrayed,” he said in a statement.

Soon after the 2019 move, Indian officials began integrating Kashmir into the rest of India with multiple administrative changes enacted without public input, including a controversial residency law that made it possible for Indian nationals to become permanent residents of the region.

Many Muslim Kashmiris view the changes as an annexation, saying new laws were designed to change the region’s demography.

Members of minority Hindu and Buddhist communities initially welcomed the move, but many of them later expressed fear of losing land and jobs in the pristine Himalayan region.

In New Delhi’s effort to shape what it calls “Naya Kashmir,” or a “new Kashmir,” the territory’s people have since been largely silenced, with their civil liberties curbed and media intimidated, as India has shown no tolerance for any form of dissent.

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, December 12, 2023, PAGE 15

A platform to launch business THE Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute’s (BTVI) emphasis on entrepreneurship has provided Edwinique Culmer with the tools necessary to launch her business. Today, this 2021 graduate is the proud owner of Island Pro Executive Services, a company which offers consultation and management services for small businesses.

“For me, BTVI wasn’t just about obtaining the degree, but the wealth of knowledge imparted from the instructors. The education I received equipped me with the confidence to walk into any room as if God sent me there.

Based on Proverbs 3 verses 5 and 6, I am reminded to keep God first,” said the 34-year-old.

Edwinique is the holder of an associate of applied science degree in human resources management, an achievement she said has opened several doors of opportunity.

“I’m deeply grateful. Every lesson taught to me at BTVI played an integral role in shaping my life; there was no wasted information. While I sometimes felt overwhelmed with information during my BTVI classes, stepping into the professional world made me realise the purpose and value of each piece of knowledge received,” she stated.

“In many ways, I find myself

The BTVI Story applying the knowledge gained from the programme. Many of the classes at BTVI fueled my passion, and now, with several business ventures in the making, the world can anticipate more from me,” said the young entrepreneur.

After graduation, Edwinique secured a role at a resort as a human resources help desk agent.

She then earned a promotion to total rewards coordinator in the compensations and benefits department. However, after just over a year, the entrepreneurship bug bit.

“Driven by my passion for entrepreneurship, I took a leap of faith and launched my own business. This passion has opened up a door for me to teach part-time to the students at the International School of Business Entrepreneurship and Technology (ISBET).

What I love most about this opportunity is, I’m teaching the subject I’m most passionate about – Entrepreneurship,” she stated.

“My brief tenure in the HR field left a significant impact. The practical application of what I learned at BTVI became evident.

As an entrepreneurship teacher

and full-time business owner, I now share invaluable insights from my BTVI education with my students,” she added.

Additionally, during fall 2019 Edwinique had the opportunity to study at the College of the Rockies in British Columbia, Canada.

It was an exchange programme via the Emerging Leaders in Americas Programme (ELAP).

She considered it an “unforgettable experience”, leading to a deeper love of learning, cultural immersion and the creation of connections she still has to this day.

Questioned as to what she would say to people to convince them to ‘Discover the Possibilities’ at BTVI, she said, “I’d say, ‘Run. Don’t walk.’ I’ve shared my journey with friends and colleagues, and they too have benefited from the invaluable education offered. I encourage everyone to seize what’s available and explore the boundless possibilities,” she concluded.

“The BTVI Story” is a biweekly column which highlights the who, what and why of the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI), a tertiary institution where individuals ‘Discover the Possibilities’ related to various trades. The column is produced by BTVI’s Office of Public Relations.

QC salutes retiring staff

By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Education Reporter jsimmons@tribunemedia.net QUEEN’S College bids farewell to two exceptional leaders and alumni, High School Vice Principal Shawn Turnquest, with 24 years of service, and Primary School Vice Principal Sylvia Beneby whose career spanned an impressive 42 years.

The ladies have spent a combined total of 66 years dedicated to education and

have been instrumental in shaping the educational landscape at Queen’s College; leaving an indelible mark on the institution and the lives of countless students.

Their commitment, passion, and tireless efforts have not only contributed to the success of the school but have also earned them well-deserved National Merit Honours for their outstanding contributions to Bahamian education and society.

SINGING FOR THE SEASON

SYLVIA BENEBY, TOP, AND SHAWN TURNQUEST

THE Ministry of Education and Technical and Vocational Training held its annual Festival of Carols programme at Church of God of Prophecy, East Street.

The event featured music educators and students of all age groups from schools in New Providence and Central Abaco with a virtual presentation.

The theme of the programme was “The Reason He Came” and included a musical selection by a combined high school band, congregational singing, scripture readings, prayers, various school choirs, a hand bell selection, a

dance Christmas praise, an all-girls chorale by Centre for the Deaf, a solo and a skit.

Keynote speaker Rev. Joel Johnson, Youth Pastor of Salem Union Baptist Church, reminded the crowd of students about the birth of Jesus, as he is the reason for the season.

In attendance were Deputy to the Governor General, Ruby Ann Darling; Education Minister, Glenys Hanna Martin; Permanent Secretary, Lorraine Armbrister; Acting Director Dominique McCartney-Russell, and a host of past and present ministry officials.

PRINTER DONATED TO SCHOOL PALMDALE Primary School students received a generous donation from Aliv.

Aliv donated the staff and

students at Palmdale Primary School a professional printer valued at $6,000 to assist them on their educational journey.