12132018 NEWS

THURSDAY i’m lovin’ it!

HIGH 81ºF LOW 72ºF

The Tribune Established 1903

24/7 BREAKING NEWS ON TRIBUNE242.COM

Biggest And Best!

VOLUME:116 No.266, DECEMBER 13TH, 2018

OBITS OFFICIA

CLASSIFIED TRADER: CARS, CARS, CARS & MORE CARS

$1

INSIDE

L SOUR CE

Man shot dead as he walks in on raid

Killing comes just a day after brother of Marco Archer slain

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net A MAN was shot dead as he walked unsuspecting into an armed robbery of a store last night - a killing that comes just a day after the murder of the brother of 11-year-old Marco Archer, who was killed seven years ago.

The latest killing came at a business on First Street, Coconut Grove, where, shortly before 6pm, two armed men entered and held the employees at bay while they robbed the store

of an undetermined amount of cash.

The shooting came as the raiders fled - when a male customer entered the building as they were leaving.

One of the gunmen shot the man as the robbers departed. Paramedics responded to the scene and transported the victim to hospital, where he later died of his injuries.

The man shot dead outside of his North Street home on Tuesday is Rico Archer, brother of 11-yearold Marco Archer.

SEE PAGE THREE

G. LUCAYAN PAYOUTS ‘BEFORE CHRISTMAS’

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net THE government is working on completing voluntary separation payouts for Grand Lucayan staff before Christmas, according to Finance Minister K Peter Turnquest, who yesterday insisted there was an agreement with the workforce’s trade unions.

Mr Turnquest suggested negotiations between those groups were ongoing up

until Tuesday as he fielded questions about the process outside Parliament.

His comments came after Tribune Business exclusively published an interview with Michael Scott, chair of the special purpose vehicle that controls the resort, who said the payouts will proceed without such an agreement.

However, the board’s decision will need to be approved by the Minnis SEE PAGE SEVEN

MARCO ARCHER, left, who was killed seven years ago, and Rico Archer, who was shot dead on Tuesday.

CHARITIES REPORT DONATIONS DECLINE

IS POST OFFICE NOW SHREDDING OUR MAIL?

By RIEL MAJOR

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

CHARITY organisations such as the Children’s Emergency Hostel, Persis Rodgers Home for the Aged and the Ranfurly Home for Children have all reported their donations for the Christmas season are down.

Leslie Smith, administrative assistant of Children’s Emergency Hostel, said: “Donations have been slow and there has been a decrease this year compared to last year. Please don’t forget the Children’s Emergency Hostel.”

SEE PAGE FIVE

TRANSPORT and Local Government Minister Renward Wells yesterday announced his ministry has launched an investigation into claims of a mass shredding exercise underway at

the General Post Office.

Mr Wells could not provide any details outside Parliament yesterday when asked by reporters whether shredding had been outsourced to a private company, adding the ministry would release a press SEE PAGE TEN

GREEN’S THE DREAM IN $7M REVAMP

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A BAHAMIAN entrepreneur yesterday said he plans to create the country’s “first 100 percent green resort” through a $7m investment to revive the last Hotel Corporationowned property.

Burton Rodgers

THE LIGHTHOUSE Yacht Club. confirmed to Tribune Business that his group has been selected as the preferred

purchaser for Andros’s Lighthouse Yacht Club and Marina, and is now working feverishly to close the deal within the next six weeks.

The businessman has teamed with some of the investors who worked with him previously to purchase Exuma’s Club Peace & Plenty hotel and other resort deals on that island.

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

DIANE PHILLIPS: I’M BEING ROBBED - AND IT’S DRIVING ME MAD SEE PAGE EIGHT

PAGE 2, Thursday, December 13, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

35-YEAR-OLD ARRESTED OVER BREAK-IN AT ROYAL BANK OF CANADA BRANCH

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A 35-year-old man was arrested in connection with last week’s break-in at the Royal Bank of Canada’s Freeport branch.

Assistant Superintendent Terecita Pinder reported that shortly after 6pm Tuesday, officers of the Central Detective Unit arrested a man in the Coral Road area, in connection with the bank break-in.

According to police reports, last Friday morning police were alerted to an incident at a financial institution

on Explorers Way and the Mall Drive. When officers arrived at the scene shortly after midnight, they discovered that a large eastern glass window was smashed and that someone had gained entry into the bank.

There was extensive damage inside, but bank representatives reported that no cash was stolen.

ASP Pinder said the suspect is expected to be arraigned this week in connection with the incident.

BUCKETS 10 PIECE CHICKEN 2 LARGE SIDES 4 BISCUITS

8 PIECE CHICKEN 1 LARGE SIDE 4 BISCUITS

15 PIECE CHICKEN 3 LARGE SIDES 6 BISCUITS

20

STARTING AT

$

(INCL. VAT)

THE TRIBUNE

Seven poachers stopped at sea

By MORGAN ADDERLEY Tribune Staff Reporter madderley@tribunemedia.net

THE Royal Bahamas Defence Force apprehended seven Dominican poachers off Little Inagua on Tuesday afternoon.

While the RBDF could not confirm the size of the haul, the agency noted the fishermen were found with a “quantity” of crawfish and scaled fish.

The poachers will be transported to New

Providence and charged. “(The RBDF) apprehended seven Dominican fishermen aboard two small go-fast type boats around noon on Tuesday. . . in the area of Little Inagua,” a statement from the RBDF noted.

“The two Dominican boats were apprehended just off Little Inagua by RBDF patrol craft P-129, coxswained by Petty Officer Edison Rolle, while on routine patrol. On board were seven Dominican fishermen, along with a quantity

of scaled fish and crawfish.”

When asked for an update on the size of the haul, a RBDF official could not confirm up to press time.

“The Dominicans were taken into custody and handed over to police and immigration officials at Great Inagua and will be transported to New Providence where they will be charged for various fishing offences.”

The statement also reiterated the RBDF’s successes for 2018.

“Prior to this incident, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force had apprehended a total of 172 Dominican poachers and four Dominican fishing vessels with over 100,000 pounds of fisheries products,” it said.

“They were charged and found guilty by the courts for various fishing violations, and sentenced to time ranging from six to 18 months at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services; total fines awarded were approximately $7m.”

Thursday, December 13, 2018, PAGE 3

A BOAT seized by the RBDF.

Photo: RBDF

TRIO FACE COCAINE RETRIAL IN FEBRUARY

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

THE retrial of a former woman police officer, her brother and another man in connection with a $64,000 cocaine seizure at Lynden Pindling International Airport five years ago has been adjourned to next year.

Acting Deputy Chief Magistrate Subusola Swain adjourned Toni Sweeting’s, Delano Sweeting’s and Conrad Campbell’s trial to February after defence attorney Murrio Ducille indicated his legal team is engaged in certain legal discussions with the Crown.

Mr Ducille, as well as lead Crown attorney Eucal Bonaby, indicated that due to those discussions, they would need an adjournment in the matter, leading to the case being set down for February 11. The three accused remain on bail in the interim.

In August 2017, former appellate President Dame Anita Allen, and fellow appellate Justices Jon Isaacs and Roy Jones, ordered the trio should be retried over allegations they were found with 3.275 pounds of cocaine at the

FROM left, Toni Sweeting, Delano Sweeting and Conrad Campbell.

LPIA Departure Lounge Shakiel Riley, stated that on April 19, 2013.

Toni Sweeting resisted According to the facts of and during the course of the matter, on the date in the struggle a package fell question, officers attached from her person. Insp Riley to the Drug Enforcement testified that during the Unit (DEU) were at LPIA struggle, Toni Sweeting’s observing the actions of phone rang and she was two persons later identi- able to shout into it: “The fied as Toni Sweeting and police got me! The man Delano Sweeting, the latter them got me!” of whom is a pageant coach Toni Sweeting was subwhose Bahamas Beauty dued and searched, after International organisa- which officers found a packtion had at the time been age taped to her body. She awarded the Miss Earth was subsequently taken to Bahamas pageant franchise. the Central Detective Unit Two officers approached (CDU) after being booked in Toni Sweeting, then a at the Airport Police Station. police constable, who was Two other officers in uniform and on that approached her brother, day assigned to the United Delano, in the transit States pre-clearance area, lounge, where he was said and escorted her to a bath- to be carrying one carryroom where they attempted on item at the time. He was to search her. subsequently arrested and The officers, one of transported to CDU via the whom was Inspector Airport Police Station.

Sometime later that day, DEU officers visited Campbell’s home, where they spoke to a woman who identified herself as Campbell’s wife. The woman told the officers her husband was not at home, after which officers searched the house and took away a number of items, including paint cans, rolls of plastic and tape.

About a week later, Campbell, a Jamaican national, was arrested. The trio were subsequently interviewed by officers and subsequently charged with drug trafficking related offenses.

Toni Sweeting was dismissed from the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) hours before her initial arraignment on April 22, 2013.

The three were convicted in January 2017.

FAMILY’S AGONY AFTER MARCO BROTHER SLAIN from page one The elder Archer, according to police, was found shot to death in a yard in the Fort Fincastle community shortly after 8pm.

On Tuesday night, as the hearse carrying the body departed the scene, family members had to be restrained from grabbing on to it.

One of his relatives could be heard screaming: “Y’all killed Rico, y’all kill my brother, they kill Rico, y’all kill my brother, y’all gon’ sleep good tonight, I hope y’all sleep good tonight.”

Attempts by The Tribune yesterday to speak with the grieving family were unsuccessful.

When contacted for an update on the case, Chief Superintendent Solomon Cash confirmed that one person was in custody and another was being sought in connection with the matter.

According to CSP Cash, both are considered persons of interest in the case.

“We are following a number of leads, significant leads and we are working to have this matter resolved,” he told The Tribune.

Of the deceased, CSP Cash said the victim was not known to police and was believed to be a resident of Fort Fincastle community.

Tuesday’s murder marked the 84th for the year so far.

Archer’s family is no stranger to tragedy.

In late September 2011, young Marco’s body was found covered in bushes behind an apartment complex on Yorkshire Drive in western New Providence.

It was determined he died as a result of blunt force trauma to his head. His death unnerved the nation and was cited as a reason to strengthen laws and mechanisms for the protection of children.

Kofhe Goodman was originally convicted of murdering Marco on August 2, 2013. That conviction and death sentence were overturned by the Court of Appeal in 2016 due

to pre-trial publicity, the behaviour of Goodman’s former lawyer and a jury irregularity.

In a retrial, he was represented by Wayne Munroe.

In May, Goodman was sentenced to 55 years in prison for the killing.

Marco’s death sparked amendments to the Sexual Offences Act and the Child Protection Act, which were supposed to create a sexual offenders register, and a MARCO Alert for missing children, respectively.

The sexual offenders register would place all persons

who are convicted of sexual offences on the proposed list.

The Child Protection Amendment Act 2014 came into operation on August 26, 2015. The government implemented the MARCO Alert system in July 2016; however, a sexual offenders register has not been introduced to date.

Meanwhile anyone with information on Tuesday’s murder is asked to contact the Central Detective Unit on 502-9991/2, Crime Stoppers on 328-TIPS (8477) or the nearest police station.

Galleria Cinemas

Galleria Cinemas The Mall-at-Marathon BOX OFFICE OPENS AT 10:00 AM DAILY The Mall-at-Marathon

BOX OFFICE OPENS AT 10:00 AM DAILY

EFFECTIVE DECEMBER NEW 1:05 3:25 SPIDERMAN INTO THE SPIDER NEW 1:00 3:50 MORTAL ENGINES NEW 1:00 3:25 THE MULE 1:10 3:45 C THE POSSESSION OF HANNAH 1:05 3:25 C ROBIN HOOD 1:00 3:25 C WINDOWS 1:15 3:35 A THE GRINCH

14TH, 2018 N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

380-FLIX

6:00 6:30 6:00 6:15 6:05 6:00 6:15

8:25 N/A 8:20 8:45 8:25 8:20 8:30

10:45 10:05 10:45 10:45 10:40 10:45 10:30

Use your e-card to reserve tickets at 380-3549 or visit us at www.bahamaslocal.com

PAGE 4, Thursday, December 13, 2018

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

LEON E. H. DUPUCH,

Publisher/Editor 1903-1914

SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH,

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

Publisher/Editor 1919-1972 Contributing Editor 1972-1991

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) 322-1986 (242) 502-2394 (242) 502-2386 (242) 328-2398 (242)-352-6608 (242) 352-9348

WEBSITE, TWITTER & FACEBOOK www.tribune242.com

@tribune242

tribune news network

It’s a wonder The Bahamas has any viable business A RECENT Industrial Development Bank survey reports that the functional capacity of The Bahamas’ civil service scores 19 out of 100 on the charts, showing “that the Bahamas has significant room for improvement”.

Can you imagine your child coming home with a report card showing a 19 out of 100 score, and you not getting out of the comfort of your armchair to seek immediate remedial help? In fact there was a time when such a grade was put into an unclassified category so as not to give the child an inferiority complex.

With such an embarrassing score there is little wonder that The Bahamas ranks so low on the ease of doing business charts. In fact it holds the world’s 118th position, two points below the war-torn West Bank and Gaza strip, the centre of Palestinian unrest. Like it or not, that is The Bahamas’ reputation in the world of business.

Add that level of dysfunction to the hostage type tactics that our unions employ and our country has a recipe for disaster. Undoubtedly this statement will produce an extreme reaction, but such a reaction can be dismissed as a sign of immaturity by less than rational thinking.

Take for example the dilemma in which Atlantis now finds itself in a dispute filed by the Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU).

We now have a copy of a chart of guidelines as it applies to attendance, which was distributed to the hotel staff.

Anyone objectively studying the new guidelines can see that the union staff is left at a disadvantage to non union staff — but that is what the union wanted. We understand that the union’s reason for rejecting the new — and more favourable plan for all staff — was that the union was not consulted. We have heard that reasoning before, but we soon discovered on the earlier occasion that not only was it not true, but the only problem was that the union had not conceived the idea first.

It is inconceivable in the Atlantis case that the union was not informed of the contemplated changes. However, let us assume that for some reason Atlantis did not so much as send a letter of notification — which in the circumstances is highly unlikely – wouldn’t the union excuse such a snafu if the proposed changes benefited the employees?

Nevertheless, the union agreement, which had expired, stated that the resort had a right to make changes as long as

those changes did not have an adverse affect on employees and the union was given notice. How can increasing the number of times an employee can be late without being written up adversely affect an employee?

We now understand that Atlantis has agreed to revert back to its practice of allowing union employees to be late only twice before they are written up. This seems to be beyond rational thinking, but rational thinking does not appear to be a trademark of the unions.

The union also has an issue with the hotel implementing additional shifts to the housekeeping department so that the hotel can have better coverage for their guests. As is the usual tactic of the union, they have conflated the two issues so as to create confusion during the negotiation process. The resort, however, has suspended implementation of the additional shifts and has told the union that they would wish to continue meeting with them to come to an understanding, thereby removing the issue from the table for now. It will now be interesting to see what else they can conjure up so that they can continue to fuel their zeal for unrest, It is no wonder that we are rated below the Gaza strip for doing business.

The business environment here is hostile, irrational and dysfunctional in at least 93 out of 100 cases, according to the IDB. No wonder eyebrows are raised when in labour relations an employer is raked over the coals when he wants to be more lenient with employees who on occasion are late for work. What the Bahamas now has is an environment where the ability to conduct business is impeded by a government process, or lack of process, and further hampered by the inability for businesses to manage its affairs in an effective and efficient way. In fact we understand that the BHCAWU is teetering on bankruptcy despite collecting tens of millions in dues over many years. Yet they want to flex their muscles to override prudent management decisions by Atlantis and other resorts. It is no wonder that the recently opened Bahamar is doing all that it can to keep the union out.

And so the next time you are late for work, remember it was your union that made certain that if you were late a second time your name would appear in the book of forbidden sins — which could start you on the road to a bleak future. Of course, as you start to sink, we hope you will remember to thank the union for its brilliant bargaining powers.

THE TRIBUNE

CARTOONIST JAMAAL IS AWAY

Time we had a more efficient taxation system EDITOR, The Tribune AS A way to raise revenue for The Bahamas, I can think of no worse way than the current customs duty regime. I say this the day after coming through customs at LPIA. I am convinced that this form of taxation has substantially contributed to widespread corruption in this country.

As I watched the “tourists” being waved through, I also watched the customs agent open our bags, looking at the first layer, ignoring the majority of what was contained in our many bags. At the other customs offices in Nassau, and at our ports, the temptation is only greater.

Forget the insult of having someone looking at your personal belongings in the first place, making me stand there, wasting my time as this goes on. The utter inefficiency in this way of taxing our people, as admitted by our own government, is bad enough. Further, what a waste of otherwise talented personnel, and the temptation for dishonesty at the interchange between our citizens.

As an employer, it is a given that the best way to keep your employees and customers honest is to remove the temptation to be dishonest. Leave unaccounted piles of cash laying on the table, and only a fool would expect it all to still be there when you return. Likewise, allowing people to “declare” what they bring into the country, so that you can then tax them, is simply a recipe for dishonest behaviour. So too is the idea that customs agents won’t be pressured into accepting “a little something” for simply turning their heads when the time is right, and the price is right. Would it not make sense to bring in jewellery and other expensive items by paying for the tickets of “tourists” who are simply waved through the customs line?

To think that the acknowledged pervasive corruption involved in the

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net customs duty regime in this country has not permeated all other aspects of life here, is simply naive.

The next question that arises from this way of raising revenue for the government besides “is it efficient?”, should be, “Is it fair and equitable?” Isn’t it clear that the richest among us will have at their disposal the money and the means to avoid some of the duty that is imposed on the rest of us?

They not only have the cash to bribe the customs agents, but they have access to the yachts and private planes which come in and out of this country with little to no oversight on a daily basis. The richest also own the big businesses that collect millions upon millions of dollars of VAT money, whether or not if they paid it themselves. In effect, the customs duty is a regressive tax. Hitting the poorest and the most vulnerable the hardest.

There has been discussion of needing to find a new source of taxation, mostly due to the proposed joining the WTO by The Bahamas. Though I firmly believe that joining the WTO is a bad decision for the majority of our citizens, the idea of a different way of raising revenue for running the government is a good one.

Income tax may seem like it is on the cards according to the financial gurus in this country, but there are also problems and pitfalls in using this approach, as we see clearly in the case of our neighbour to the north. Also would come the diversion of our limited educated talent pool, the accountants and lawyers, who will swarm to the aid of the richest among us, for the sole purpose of manipulating the loopholes in the law in favour of those paying their large salaries.

Personally, I see the need

for us to use our limited talented human resources to rapidly refashion our country into one that actually works. A country that isn’t continually lagging, falling behind, perhaps even taking the lead in economic and social development.

The two, economic and social development, must go hand in hand.

We have a big job to do in the next few years, despite the failures of the FNM and PLP. We, the Bahamian people, have a lot of work to do, just to survive as a country. Can anyone argue with that last statement?

We must not simply just replace one failed revenue raising scheme with another. Remember now, the Bahamian government estimates it collects about 30% of the taxes due it.

Could we get this to 90%?

We must get much more efficient. We must consider the suffering of our people and begin to make taxation fair. We cannot ignore the very real increases in the cost of living lately, with no increase in wages. We must see the continued increases in taxation as a war against the people, which it really is, when so many Bahamians cannot make ends meet now. To ignore the plight of the majority of our people is criminal. To date, no government here has taxed the people fairly.

If The Bahamas did institute an income tax, I have no doubt that the web shop owners would hire some really good foreign lawyers who would figure out how to legally claim that they were among the lowest paid employees in this country.

Happens all the time in the US. Look at President Trump.

In a supposedly Christian nation, that we have not figured out how to fairly tax our people as a whole, speaks either to the power of the moneyed interests over our government, or to the weakness of the church, or both.

Jr

NORMAN TRABULSY Andros, December 11, 2018.

Downtown redevelopment: Why is it taking so long?

EDITOR, The Tribune DOWNTOWN Nassau continues to be a terrible eyesore and a stain upon our national reputation. When the request for proposals to redevelop the Prince George Wharf was announced, those of us who live and work in the area were ecstatic. It was hoped that this move would spur a wholesale redevelopment of the entire downtown area.

Such a rebirth is desperately needed.

Even though there are more cruise ships in port now, fewer and fewer passengers

bother getting off and exploring the town.

Why would they? Everything they need is for sale on the ship, which seems to have better stores, bars and dining options than Bay Street. The idea that anyone would leave Atlantis or Baha Mar to come downtown is just laughable.

The need for change is obvious. So, what is taking so long?

RICARDO JOHNSON Nassau, December 10, 2018

We’re stuck talking loud but saying nothing EDITOR, The Tribune AS 2018 draws to a close there are several questions which we, as a people and a nation, must ask ourselves.

Unemployment and under employment continue to be problematical for the FNM. Apart from a handful of economic foreign direct projects, initiated by the Christie-led government, there is nothing ‘new’ in sight. Yes, the Disney Project is being fleshed out and, yes, the superbly conceived hotel/condominium down at West Bay Street by The Sun Group, is coming out of the ground. Over at Paradise Island The Sterling Group has also now broken ground on a new marina and residential complex.

Apart from the above, however, the FNM administration, led by Dr the Most Honourable Hubert Alexander Minnis (FNMKillarney), is still searching for a sustainable and viable economic plan for The Bahamas and the almost ‘forgotten’ unwashed

masses. It is now commonly accepted that we have to wean ourselves of financial services and tourism but no one, inclusive of the bulk of our politicians, seems to know what the hell to do.

Mind you, infrastructure; liberalisation of Crown Land; modernisation and the ease of Bahamians doing business in The Bahamas; establishment of an appropriate nonpartisan ‘Small Business Development Fund’; legislation to set up a proper Land Registry and enabling Generation Property’ to devolve marketable title to grantees; establishment of local government in New Providence and, last, but not least, the expansion of subsidised college

level education and BTVI for vocational and technical skills.

One need not be a rocket scientist to understand and appreciate the rationale and necessity of the above.

Our educational system is terrible, despite the well intentioned promises made by the FNM, particularly my good friend and mentor, the Hon Jeffrey ‘Moon Beam’ Lloyd, Minister of Education (FNM-South Beach). Apart from some very expensive contracts to known FNM cronies for renovations and construction at some of our schools, the curriculum remains, basically, the same. It is not helping that the teachers’ union and the

administration are at odds, on a non stop basis.

Education, however, is not just ‘the problem’ of the government, but all Bahamians who are parents or guardians. We must and should become more involved. The universal grade ‘D’ must be upended and upgraded, no pun intended. More attention must be paid to the sciences and vocational skills. BTVI should be expanded into the Western Campus to be located in the former Phil’s Food Service Building on Gladstone Road.

Relative to crime, it must be understood that no administration, on its own, will ever be able to ‘solve’ the same. The hands of the

The only thing we have to fear ...

EDITOR, The Tribune Re: PM: Public’s not afraid any more, The Tribune, December 7.

We will probably soon hear some neuron-deficient official glibly proclaim (again): “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”!

KEN W KNOWLES, MD Nassau, December 9, 2018

church and civil society, to a large extent are also circumscribed, by denominational and internal differences.

The family is mandated to ‘rear up a child’ but so many lazy and good for nothing fellow Bahamians are so ‘busy’ with their own personal agenda that they do not have time to check on their children’s holistic development.

I am now more than persuaded that The Bahamas is at a crossroad. We can go left or right but unless and until our political leaders connect with the real world and facts on the ground, we will continue to labour in vain and tread a tread mill, like so many mice.

Indeed, like the late great James Brown, we continue ‘talking loud but saying nothing’.

2019 can be a better year for all Bahamians but the biggest obstacle will be the dearth and paucity of vision within the voluminous and oftentimes miniature heads of our leaders, across the board. The cross road

symbolises a double minded individual. The one ‘good’ thing about The Bahamas is that we are not a ‘revolutionary nation’ like Haiti or France In Haiti last month, citizens rioted and burned down buildings and vehicles to protest the increase in fuel prices. This month people of France ‘rebelled’ against the imposition of a fuel and oil tax and are on the streets of that nation.

Minnis, the Most Honourable, and Peter ‘The Grim Reaper’ Turnquest, DPM, (FNM-East End, Grand Bahama) unilaterally, almost, raised VAT dramatically. Other user fees and charges under these people have gone off the chart. Yet, there have been no violent rebellions or protests here at home, thank God. I’m any event, crossroads and all, in all things, be the glory.

Jr

ORTLAND H BODIE, Nassau December 10, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 13, 2018, PAGE 5

Charities report donations decline from page one

HANDEREA Alexious Rolle at a previous court appearance.

Photo: Terrel W. Carey/Tribune Staff

‘MISS FLORIDA’ TO FACE DRUGS TRIAL NEXT YEAR

By NICO SCAVELLA Tribune Staff Reporter nscavella@tribunemedia.net

INTERNET sensation Handerea “Miss Florida” Rolle’s criminal trial alleging that she was caught with $1,700 worth of marijuana, intending to supply it to others, will continue early next year,.

Police prosecutors told The Tribune that the case is due to start on February 26, 2019 when Rolle, through her lawyer Jomo Campbell, will have the opportunity to lead a defence against the allegations stemming from the February 13 incident.

Rolle, who is currently on bail, is expected to return to court on that date.

In February, Rolle, 41-year-old Kenneth Moncur of Smith’s Lane, and Ilano Noel of Market Street were arraigned on allegations that they were found in possession of 13 ounces of marijuana with an estimated street value of $1,700.

Noel, the father of Rolle’s child, pleaded guilty to the charge and was sentenced

to 18 months in prison, while Rolle and Moncur pleaded not guilty.

During the trial earlier this year, Assistant Superintendent Zhivargo Earns testified how he had caught Noel trying to flush a bowl of weed on the date in question, moments after he and two other officers broke down the door to a home on Smith’s Lane.

ASP Earns said after catching and subduing Noel, who has since been sentenced in connection with the discovery, Rolle and the owner of the residence, Kenneth Moncur, were found hiding in two separate rooms in the home.

Another senior officer, Detective Sergeant Anthony Allen Jr of the Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU), said Rolle indicated in her initial interview that she was only present at the residence in question because she went there to get some money from Noel, her boyfriend, concerning their child.

Det Sgt Allen said Rolle claimed ASP Earns and other officers arrived

shortly after she had arrived at the home.

However, Det Sgt Allen claimed that both Rolle and Moncur admitted in their respective records of interview to being aware that Noel was in possession of suspected marijuana, adding that Moncur had said he had agreed to let Noel operate from his home in exchange for payment.

Rolle gained local internet fame and the nicknames “Miss Florida” and “Boss Lady Florida” when a video of her surfaced on the internet in which she seemed not to know that Miami was located in the state of Florida.

She repeatedly said the word “Florida” to indicate where she was, and followed it up with the now famous statement, “Broke people go Miami, I in Florida.”

Another video surfaced shortly afterwards in which Rolle could be seen enjoying herself in a shopping mall, proclaiming: “Boss lady making boss moves. Make that U-turn baby.”

She said officials from the children’s home are praying for more donations to come in. The orphanage is need of food items and cleaning supplies.

“Donations have been very minimum…it has been very, very slow,” said the home’s human resources administrator Janice Mackey.

“If we get donations I’m sure that will assist us with helping about 50 persons.

We would accept any type of food item, toiletries, cleaning items, but the basic need right now is food and water.”

She said last year, the organisation received a lot of donations during the hurricane season.

“There was an (uptick) hurricane time, once that has passed there is nothing much happening with donations at this time.”’

According to Alexandria

Mallis Lynch, president of the board of directors for Ranfurly Home for Children: “It’s slow but we aren’t ungrateful for whatever we get. We are well aware of what the country is under. We always count on people helping us and I wouldn’t expect it to be any different. Bahamians are still very generous people… things are tough right now.”

However, she admitted there is a “slight decrease compared to last year” in donations.

“We have a wish list on our website for what we need but we are always in need of support so we can afford to pay our staff properly and pay our bills properly. If people didn’t want to give us the money but put something on our BEC bill we are happy for that too. We have the same bills as a normal house and that’s times 30,” she said.

Shirley Clarke, assistant administrator of Persis Rodgers Home for the

Aged, said: “People are still bringing in (donations) now and then. It has decreased (compared) to last year.

“We need food, cleaning supplies…we don’t need any clothes. People who can come and volunteer, we (have) building repairs that need to be done.”

She said despite charitable donations being down this holiday season, the senior citizen’s home is still hoping for more people to come in and give them a hand.

An administrator from the Elizabeth Estates Children’s Home, who preferred to be unnamed, said: “(Donations) could have been better but I thank God for the people making donations. Compared to last year, donations have been about the same.”

The administrator said the home is need of personal items such as toothpaste and tooth brushes, among other items.

PAGE 6, Thursday, December 13, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

Minnis defends changes to Business Licence Act

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

MONTHS after passing amendments to the Business Licence Act, which angered many in the private sector, the government made a U-turn on the decision by reverting to the former regulations yesterday.

In his defence of the move, Prime Minister Dr Hubert Minnis insisted the decision reaffirmed the government’s commitment to making operating a business easier for Bahamians in their own country.

Dr Minnis told Parliament business owners will now face prompter service and less government bureaucracy.

For his part, Finance Minister K Peter Turnquest said officials realised the practical challenges with the amendments implemented on May 30 regarding the practice of some business owners in commingling business and personal accounts. He advised against the practice, saying there should be separation.

However, before the Business Licence Amendment Act 2018 could be passed there were several heated arguments between government and Official Opposition Members of Parliament. At one point, House Speaker Halson Moultrie was forced to stand to his feet to gain order in the House.

In this instance, Elizabeth MP Dr Duane Sands was contributing to the amendment, but was heckled by a seated opposition member.

The amended regulations, which were put into effect almost unnoticed on May 30 amid the general outcry over the budget’s VAT hike to 12 percent, required companies with an annual turnover of $10m or more to provide audited financial statements that will confirm their prior year earnings.

But for those businesses earning between zero to $10m, the regulations stipulate that “a financial statement” confirming their

HUBERT Minnis insists the decision reaffirms the government’s commitment to making operating a business easier. turnover must be supplied to the Department of Inland Revenue (DIR). This, though, also had to be accompanied by “a certified bank statement” covering each bank account held in the business’s name and any other accounts “that are used in transactions” on its behalf.

“As you would recall, the Parliament approved a range of amendments during the recent budget exercise, the aims of which were to provide an enhanced level of oversight on certain matters, while at the same time ensuring that the government advances its ease of doing business initiative, to make it easier for persons to get into business and to stay into business,” Dr Minnis told the House yesterday.

“The most significant adjustment we are proposing is to roll back the planned amendments

to the recently passed business licence regulation that would have required audited financials and bank statements. We have determined that given where we are – and the likely need for further reform of the tax system in light of the recently debated legislation around our offshore sector, we will defer these and other planned changes to the reporting regime until such is considered in the broader tax reform effort.

“This will mean that, we shall revert to the status quo before July of this year, which required businesses with a turnover of $100,000 or greater, to submit with their renewal application, a certified statement of attestation, signed by a licenced member of the Bahamas Institute of Chartered Accountants.

“This will ease the concerns raised to me by any number of

businesses – particularly small businesses. I do wish to advise though that notwithstanding this revision, the Department of Inland Revenue has been tasked to increase their vigilance, and audit activities, to discourage fraudulent statements. A word to the wise is sufficient: we expect all businesses to file honest, accurate statements – as most reportedly do already. Because the pace and frequency of VAT and other audits will increase,” the nation’s leader said.

“It will be no use to come running to me – or any other politician – if it is found that you are one of those who choose to file incorrect information. Just as importantly, these final set of amendments reaffirm our commitment to making it easier for Bahamians to do business in their own country.”

An amendment was also made to paragraph four of the law and now means that persons filing for a renewal of a business licence does not have to go through the full process of obtaining the regulatory approvals once again from all of the regulators. Before, the government had used the Business Licence Unit as the enforcement arm for all regulators.

“But that simply is not best practice and it served only to frustrate the businesses and the business licence process,” Dr Minnis said. “Thus, this move means that the Business Licence Unit will do its job – which is to license businesses. The regulators will provide the Business Licence Unit with information it has on delinquent licencees before the licencing period, or be required themselves to address the businesses otherwise within the parameters of the law. But the Business Licence Unit will no longer serve as the de facto policemen for these other agencies. They will have to fulfil their own obligations as it should be.”

Dr Minnis said as businesses go in to license their business in 2019, they will face prompter service and less government bureaucracy.

The Department of Inland Revenue is committed to ensuring that businesses feel the difference this coming year, he said.

The processes have been streamlined and the department is instituting a game plan to ensure that it can address businesses promptly and reduce the time to get a business renewal, the prime minister told the House.

The provisions that were approved already in June to allow for new businesses to get a “provisional licence” will come on stream early in 2019.

This means that for most simple and straightforward businesses, you will be able to get a provisional licence to begin operation for up to 90 days once you have submitted a completed application.

Government has ‘egg on its face’ after not listening

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net BRANDING the Minnis administration “wayward” and “stubborn,” Exuma and Ragged Island MP Chester Cooper said a failure to listen about changes to the Business Licence Act was an embarrassment that did nothing to support government’s pledge to improve the ease of doing business in the country.

In a harsh rebuke yesterday, Mr Cooper told Parliament the government now had “egg on its face” in an attempt to clean up a mess before any real damage was done.

The government yesterday passed an amendment to revert to the previous version of the Business Licence Act. The previous changes were made on May 30 almost without notice.

The amended regulations required companies with an annual turnover of $10m or more to provide audited financial statements that will confirm their prior year’s earnings.

But for those businesses earning between zero to $10m, the regulations stipulated that “a financial statement” confirming their turnover must be supplied to the Department of Inland Revenue (DIR).

This, though, was also to be accompanied by “a certified bank statement” covering each bank account held in the business’s name and any other accounts “that are used in transactions” on its behalf.

Mr Cooper said these requirements did nothing to improve ease of doing business.

“It is my honour to point out to this wayward, stubborn government the error of its ways as it now scrambles to undo what many,

many people told them should have never been done in the first place,” Mr Cooper told Parliament yesterday.

“It is an honour for me to speak here today but for the other side I struggle to identify the honour in wasting people’s time.

“We will support the Bill.

It was just last week that members opposite, including our esteemed minister of finance, took great umbrage as I explained to them that in my view the downfall of this administration will be its failure to consult.

“The failure apparent today was also apparent on Monday when the attorney general, whom I suggested members opposite consult, delayed for a week the Non-Profit Organisations Bill due to concerns from the church and civil society, in his words so that they might consult. Some might find that strange, however I don’t.

“One would think one would get tired of telling this government ‘I told you so’ but one does not because again I did tell you and again you did not listen and again you end up looking like you don’t know what you (are) doing because somewhere in your heads you cannot fathom

MP CHESTER COOPER

that grown men and women who have invested lifetimes in many of these businesses have their own good senses to know what is good or bad for their business and their interests.”

Mr Cooper said there have been too many instances where the government has failed to listen to the concerns of Bahamians.

“It’s because you did not listen to the business community, like you did not listen to the business community on VAT, now you struggle to meet your projected targets.

“You did not listen to the (Bahamas) Christian Council and the non-profits, now you seek to rush their participation in the revamped bill before the end of the year.

“You did not listen to us on Grand Lucayan. Now here we are using the people’s tax dollars to fix up the hotel and make it somewhat attractive to investors. Here we are settling with government money severance costs for those employed for years by a private business, all because you negotiated poorly on behalf of the Bahamian people.

They call that fattening frog for snake.

“And, of course, you did not listen to the business community on your illthought out plan to make it harder for business to do business. Isn’t it hard enough already?”

Many accountants and private sector executives viewed the new regulations as “overkill” and an incursion into corporate privacy, especially since business licence fees are currently calculated based on just one indicator: top-line turnover.

Accountants verify this, with businesses submitting such attestation along with their filings and payment by end-March every year.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 13, 2018, PAGE 7

G. Lucayan payouts ‘before Christmas’ from page one

Cabinet, Mr Scott said, as he revealed his fellow directors “will not let me advance a dollar more” on what they considered “a fair and reasonable offer” to both unions.

“As far as I know they have been negotiating right up until yesterday and there is an agreement on how it will be settled.

As far as I’m aware we’ve come to a position with respect to it and those payouts should happen very, very soon,” said Mr Turnquest.

When asked about total costs for the exercise, he said: “I really don’t remember but I think we had suggested somewhere around $5m in total.

“I think that number is still in play, I don’t know where exactly but we

should make that target.

“It will be a full settlement,” he said when asked whether back pay will be included in payouts. “It should happen before Christmas, we are working on that.”

Meanwhile Mr Scott told Tribune Business that despite “bending over backwards” in negotiations, and attempting to be “as generous as we could,” the board could not meet the unions’ demands given their limited taxpayerfinanced budget.

He confirmed the board had retreated to its previous fall-back position of a “take it or leave it” approach.

Cheques will be made available, and all those declining to accept them will be deemed as having decided to stay and be required to report to work as normal, he said.

The VSEPs matter was raised in Parliament by Englerston MP Glenys Hanna-Martin, who called on the government to account for why staff have not yet been paid.

She suggested information concerning negotiations has not “trickled down” to employees.

“I believe there is some concern with the people of Our Lucaya, they have not been paid,” Mrs HannaMartin said.

“The people of Our Lucaya, the staff have not been given their payout and they are very concerned about it. I was asked to raise it in this house - the fact that this administration has not yet paid out their redundancy payments…

I’m asking the government to account to these people, who you said the government has bought the hotel for.”

THE GRAND Lucayan Resort.

CHIPMAN AND McALPINE STAND WITH OPPOSITION ON HOUSE RULING

By KHRISNA RUSSELL Deputy Chief Reporter krussell@tribunemedia.net

TWO Free National Movement MPs stood alongside the Official Opposition yesterday against the House of Assembly proceeding with its normal agenda after the issue of opposition question time was raised during the sitting.

Centreville MP Reece Chipman and Pineridge MP Frederick McAlpine were the only two government MPs to stand with the four opposition members

of Parliament on a trivial matter, which simply came down to the accommodation of a question period.

Mr Chipman first stood on a point of privilege and asked House Speaker Halson Moultrie to clarify which House agenda was being followed in accordance with Section 39 (2) of the rule book.

The rule states that unless the House determines otherwise, it shall proceed to following business on the second Wednesday in each month provided the House is sitting during that month, then it lays out the order

of business for the second Wednesday.

Following this, Bamboo Town MP Renward Wells, leader of government business, moved that Parliament continue with its normal agenda.

When the motion was put forward, the two government MPs along with the opposition stood. However the motion was successfully carried in accordance with Rule 39 (1).

Later, Speaker Moultrie revealed Official Opposition Leader Philip “Brave” Davis wrote a short letter dated November 26, giving

the chair formal notice of the minority’s intention to invoke question time beginning the first day of December 2018 and for the duration of the current legislative session.

In response, on November 30, Speaker Moultrie responded.

“While I admire the spirit as expressed in your letter and appreciate that it is in harmony with both the spirit and intent of the Westminster model, the unfortunate fact is that the very letter of the rules expressly forbids you from proceedings as you seek to

do unless, of course, both you and the House are in like spirit on the second Wednesday of each month,” the Speaker wrote.

“Accordingly, you are directed to note that Article 55(1) and Rule 59(1) must be read in conjunction with Rule 39. With respect to the ‘order of business,’ Rule 39(1) and 39(2) state very clearly that you can proceed as the intent in your letter implies; ‘unless the House determines otherwise.

“Clearly the rules intend question times as an accommodation exercise rather than an unfettered

right. Rule 59(1) and its proviso is a rather unfortunate written construction as it appears to run counter to the essentials of transparency and accountability. It is also incredible that the framers of the rules in 2005 did not see the particular rendering in rule 39 and rule 59 as possible mischief to be avoided at all cost.”

The Speaker said the matter underscored the need for action on the part of the House Rules and Business Committee, adding there was much work to be done.

PAGE 8, Thursday, December 13, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

I’m being robbed and it’s driving me mad T

HERE are 18 thieves in my house, maybe more, five in my bedroom alone, another six in the kitchen. I have tried to ignore them, shut my eyes and pretend they are not there. I have willed them away and tried cover-up tricks to get rid of them, but I can’t. Most of them are smaller than a fingernail but thieves they are. They steal my sleep and run up my BPL bill.

They are the little lights that shine defiantly on appliances, air conditioners, television sets, portable telephones, demanding my attention even when I want to shut them out. And all I can say is whoever decided you needed a light on the bottom portion of your TV to tell you that it is not on qualifies for the Most Annoying Person in the World award.

I will name the inventor of lights you don’t need as Dummy because I cannot explain to someone who is currently nameless where he went wrong and how it has affected millions of lives. People have been jailed for lesser crimes.

Look, Dummy, every day I leave for work early in the morning. You take it upon yourself to keep the lights burning for me in standby mode.

If I had money to spare, I would donate it to a worthy cause like the Bahamas Feeding Network or Conchservation or Brighter Bahamas instead of to Bahamas Power & Light. I have less money to spare because, in your ultimate wisdom, you decided I needed the assurance that my microwave oven should welcome me home with its standby light burning.

Just below the small microwave the clock on my oven tells me what time it is and uses a light to do so and another one to say nothing else in it is running and therefore everything that is oven-related is okay.

Am I supposed to feel better about that? I’d feel a lot better if all you Dummy lights just burned out one time and forever. I can see the sense of having a light turn on to tell you that you’ve successfully managed to push the power button to turn on your TV, oven or AC - that’s fine. But when did we decide we have so much energy to spare we should use it to tell us

when we are not deploying their services?

To be honest, it is less about the cost than the waste, less about the pennies than the disturbance.

Sleep habit research has demonstrated what we all know. We sleep better with no electronics in a room and in darkness which evokes a sense of tranquility.

So why, if I elect to keep my room quiet and dark, do you, Dummy, have the right with your LED bulb or LCD panel to disturb that tranquility? It is cool at night. I do not need a red light burning on the bottom portion of my air conditioning blower unit to tell me I am not using it. I know I am not using it because I am trying to save electricity.

It is no wonder they call it vampire energy or phantom electricity. It is an uninvited guest. You want to know what I want for Christmas? A magic wand that sends the thieves in my house packing and I’ll be happy to take it to your home, too. We all deserve a rest from the LCD panels in our lives.

Why it’s time to make sailing our national sport IF EVER needed proof that sailing should be recognised as our national sport, all you had to do was cast your eye on Montagu Bay last week. During the earlier part of the week, some 108 sailors from around the world competed in the waters off Nassau for the coveted Star sailors League Finals.

That’s the same class boat the late Sir Durward Knowles and Cecil Cooke competed in more than 50 years ago in Seoul, South Korea, bringing home The Bahamas first Olympic gold medal.

On Thursday, with Star sailors out further on the horizon because of their deeper draft, the guns went off to start sloop

racing in the 2018 Best of the Best Regatta. For four days, boats in Class A, B and C plied the waters marrying traditional style with a modern will to win that has altered the material of sails and turned what were working boats into sleek racing machines.

There was no denying the sense of pride with which each boat and its crew regarded itself, how seriously they took each race, how hard they fought for clear air and maneuverability around a buoy. Skipper Lundy Robinson, who took second in B Class and 4th in C, said organisation of the regatta was like none he had seen before.

The vendors, entertainment, operations management with crowds that reached the thousands and the largest C class anyone can recall – 34 boats competing – were social media masterpieces. Sure, there were a few rumblings about some of the calls and running, according to a few other sailors, but overall the level of participation, skill, energy and enthusiasm could have left little doubt in anyone’s mind that sailing should be the national sport of The Bahamas.

Hundreds of participants.

Thousands of spectators. Sights of massive sails billowing, then filling, powering traditional style work boats through the water, all

set against an azure blue sky, were a videographer’s dream.

From the start, sailing has been the national sport whether we recognised it officially or not. The Bahamas, the gateway to the New World, was discovered because an explorer named Columbus sailed into her waters and was the first to declare once is not enough.

Throughout the ages, men like Lundy’s father made their living from the sea.

Sailing, so much a part of our soul that we cannot imagine life without the sights, sounds, the firing guns at the start, the horn at the finish line, the cheers, the emotion, the sheer exhilaration of it.

PUBLIC NOTICE Mr. Demetrius Bastian is no longer employed by Sunshine Finance Ltd.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 13, 2018, PAGE 9

Complaint over Ocean Club manager - but workers speak up in support

By MORGAN ADDERLEY Tribune Staff Reporter madderley@tribunemedia.net THE Department of Labour has conducted an investigation into complaints by middle managers at Four Seasons Ocean Club that a foreign senior manager was “verbally abusive” to Bahamian staff.

Labour director John Pinder confirmed the investigation to The Tribune, saying it began three weeks ago and culminated in a meeting last week where senior managers from the company were flown in regarding the issue.

Mr Pinder could not confirm whether the senior manager was ultimately fired or penalised, but he did note in the past a similar situation occurred with another senior manager – who was ultimately transferred out of the country.

The Labour director added it was recommended the current senior manager at the centre of this dispute communicate through middle managers instead of going directly to line staff.

However, in the last few days The Tribune has been swamped with calls from Ocean Club staff saying it is not the senior manager, John Barnes, who is the problem but the Bahamian middle managers who have made the complaints against him.

The employees, who wished to remain anonymous, have praised Mr Barnes and are vowing to go to the Labour Board themselves to voice their support for him.

“The complaint we dealt with would have been some middle managers complaining about the style of a more senior (foreign) manager, so we would have done an investigation and discovered he was being very abusive,” Mr Pinder told The Tribune.

He said 12 middle managers at Ocean Club complained about this manager’s style and his “approach to people”.

“Matter of fact, two or three of the mangers even resigned before we (conducted) the investigation,” Mr Pinder added. “(They complained) about his style of management, talking down to people, abusive language, and threats and

LABOUR director John Pinder. all of that sort of thing.

“The result of that, we did do an investigation. We wrote our findings to the general manager. We told him that we needed him to understand that (you) can’t manage Bahamians in that way, because (they’re) not going to tolerate him verbally abusing people.

“And if he continues that way, he could end up finding his work permit being in jeopardy… if people complain to immigration about it.”

Mr Pinder said this meeting was held three weeks ago. He added this was not the first time the resort has had a senior foreign manager who did not mesh well with the employees.

“One manager was there already who, as a result of his abusive style the company had transferred him back to where he came from,” Mr Pinder said.

In the current situation, Mr Pinder said senior management flew in last week “to understand what was going on”.

Mr Pinder said at that meeting, which was held last Thursday, labour officials “stated the position”, explained the investigation and their findings.

However, Mr Pinder could not say what the outcome at the resort was for Mr Barnes.

“I know there has been some bit of… proceedings to speak to him about his style of management. And there was a possibility of him being transferred to another area. We spoke about his style when it comes to managing Bahamians.

“So, I can’t say that they have moved him (off) the compound completely, but I

think there was some sort of changes made to him having full contact, because that’s what we recommended, him (not) having full contact with the (line) staff.

“We had advised that they go through another manager… because he’s a very senior person. He was not allowing the middle managers to manage. He was just going directly to the (line) staff.

“So as a result of that, I don’t know. I can’t say that they moved him from the property.”

He also underscored that no one in the Department of Labour has the authority to tell an individual to leave the country.

“That’s immigration’s portfolio. We only issue labour certificate and we deal with any complaints coming to us from persons in the work place, any dispute.”

However, some employees at Ocean Club have been very vocal in their support for Mr Barnes.

One long-serving employee told The Tribune: “John Barnes is the best thing that has ever happened to us.

“He stands up for what is right – he’s a fair man who treats everybody equally.

He has been here about a year and what he has done so far has been amazing.

“When he arrived, there was a huge problem with a new shift which had been introduced – 11am to 7pm which nobody wanted to do but the management just said we had to do it and that was it.

“Mr Barnes sat down and listened to us. He knew this place is quiet after lunch so what was the point having all these people on a shift when they weren’t needed?

No one else could be bothered to deal with us but he sorted it: a new shift – 6am to 2pm – and everyone was happy.

“The other managers didn’t like this. All they’d ever done is make our life miserable, so they turned against him.”

Another employee told The Tribune: “Things came to a head over the Butler’s Section. We had two teams of butlers, some for the villas and others for the main hotel and they worked separately.

One could be really busy while the other was quiet.

THE FOUR Seasons Ocean Club.

“Mr Barnes saw it made sense to make it one team, all on one level, but some of the butlers didn’t like this and went running to the Labour Board with all these complaints, saying he had made their lives miserable.

“Next thing we know the Labour Board is here saying he was a problem and we heard they’d told the company he would have to leave.

“The president flew down to meet with staff and asked us how we felt about Mr Barnes. He couldn’t believe it when we told him he was the best thing that had happened to the Ocean Club – all he’d been told was Mr Barnes was the problem.

“Right now, everyone is really angry about the way Mr Barnes has been treated and we are going to the Labour Board to put our side.

“He has always gone beyond what anyone could expect. It is right to fight for a man like that – all of the staff know the truth and we won’t stand by and see this happen. It is unjust what they are doing – they are wicked people letting this happen.”

The Tribune did not receive comment from the Ocean Club general manager regarding this dispute up to press time.

PAGE 10, Thursday, December 13, 2018

THE TRIBUNE

Is post office now shredding our mail? from page one

statement on the matter.

The claim was lodged by Bahamas Public Services Union (BPSU) president Kimsley Ferguson in a report by Eyewitness News this week.

Mr Wells said: “I am being advised that there is a process by which all post offices discard certain kinds and types of mail, as minister I’m drilling down into that. The ministry will be making a statement very soon, so we will be passing that out to the media hopefully by the end of the day on the situation. I can’t speak to the claims made by the union and others, but the ministry will be putting out a formal statement.

“I don’t believe that there will be any officer in the post office that will do anything untoward,” Mr Wells continued, “that is not in the legal framework

THE POST Office building. of the way the post office operates. So the very assertion that members would be shredding important mail is concerning because I do not believe that that speaks to the character of the workers in the post office that I have seen.

“We will be getting back to you with all of the facts in a written statement and then we will be able to proceed from there,” Mr Wells said.

Meanwhile, Mr Ferguson told reporters earlier this week: “Instructions were

given by the postmistress to bring mail from various post offices to the East Hill Location to have them shredded. This is indeed a concern because I’ve been having challenges with my mail personally and so has the union.

“We haven’t been getting them in a timely fashion.

The concern is, they are pertinent documents that may be in the mail that may have been pending for some time that may either take the life of an individual into destruction or that

can take them in a positive direction. I would like this information confirmed as to who would’ve given instructions.”

Mr Ferguson also said the backlog of mail has been “tremendous”, saying “the accumulation of mail is to the extent where there is a mountain of it to the floor and you have to walk around it”.

When asked whether the backlog was insurmountable, Mr Wells said: “I don’t know if I would use the term ‘insurmountable’ but the backlog was extreme, as we all know, excessively extreme, and as I said I’d like to commend the postal workers who have been working extremely hard and the difficult circumstances to alleviate that situation.”

Operations at the General Post Office are expected to move from East Hill Street to the Town Centre Mall early next year.

READERS REACT TO IMF ASSESSMENT OF ECONOMY AFTER Deputy Prime Minister Peter Turnquest said the IMF gave the Government a much-needed “boost of confidence” with an upbeat assessment of its economic and fiscal reform progress, readers gave their reaction on tribune242.com.

Joeblow said: “Every time we get the approval of the IMF for complying with the requirements of the OECD our financial services sector suffers more

loss. This is good news for those trying to take down this country’s financial services sector, not for the country!”

John posted this response: “Has anyone

noticed there’s been ZERO travel advisories since the FNM came to power? Now they can comfortably brag about an 18% increase in stopover visitors.”

Well_mudda_take_sic had this to say: “Our government looks to the IMF for approval ... not the Bahamian people.”

And there was this comment from ThisIsOurs: “Yep, right on track with every other country they

advised to introduce austerity measures.”

Labour Minister Dion Foulkes said this week the government is still looking to pin down a firm date to rework the Heads of Agreement for the Oban Energies deal.

That prompted this response from Porcupine: “Each day the world community speaks louder on this issue. The vast majority of scientists now see

getting the drastic rise in CO2 emissions under control as humanities first and most urgent priority. This is not alarmism, as claimed by some. It is not alarmism when you yell ‘fire’ in a crowded theatre, when the theatre is on fire. Same here. As one of the most threatened countries on this planet due to increasing sea level rise, it would do us good to start reading on the subject and learning what is

going on. Oban under any name is not the way smart states move into the future.

Quit forcing me to waste my time arguing against this ill-fated scheme. The end of fossil fuels is coming to an end. Wake up and smell the coffee. No to drilling for oil in Bahamian waters. No to Oban in any form.”

• Don’t miss your chance to join the debate on tribune242.com.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 13, 2018, PAGE 11

Road chaos hits Nassau East Bay Meeting Street: Will be paved in new year

Street: Anger over daytime works

By MORGAN ADDERLEY Tribune Staff Reporter madderley@tribunemedia.net

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

ROADWORKS on East Bay Street are angering some residents and business owners, reigniting longstanding concern that highway repairs typically take place during the day rather than at night.

The works began on Monday as the Ministry of Works continues its repairs to all major roads on the island.

“I’m a Bahamian and I do not understand what is the problem why our people cannot work at night or early morning,” said a manager at Poop Deck. “This is absolutely ridiculous. My partner sitting down there, upstairs here we could still hear the noise going on outside and it’s not very nice trying to have a lunch with all the noise outside. I know things have to be done but even out west, big BEC truck blocking the traffic, 10am this morning, what is their problem they cannot work at off hours? It just boggles my mind. You know what our traffic is like right now? It’s terrible.”

Mike Hanna, a sales representative at Marlin Marine, complained that customers and watercraft have been left swamped in dust from the works.

“The rocks are actually flying,” he said. “People who told them do this job, they should know business hours would be the worst time for this. It should take place in the early morning.

ROADWORKS on East Bay Street.

Photos: Koy Martin It’s like we selling dust machines right now.”

Ian Rademaker, president of Harbourside Marine, wondered why the repairs are happening in December during the busy Christmas season. “I went out there and started making noise to these guys (on Monday) and I said ‘listen, this is like the worst time of the year, why don’t you start in January?’” he said. “They said it’s what their boss told them do.

They said they’ll be done

by Wednesday, which (was yesterday), so I said alright, but if this rolls through the weekend that’ll be a nightmare.” In fact, the repairs were not completed yesterday. A weekend public notice said the works would persist for five working days, starting December 10. The repairs are taking place between 9.30am and 2pm.

Attorney Wayne Munroe, whose law firm is on East Bay Street near Double

Dragon, took aim at the timing of the repairs as well.

“As envisaged traffic is backed up all directions,” he said on Facebook. “Took the 45 minutes of the hour break I had for lunch from court to come back to office in a line on East Bay Street. But hey we are just complainers.”

Some, like Maryann McSweeney, operations manager of Lightbourne

Marine, stressed that however inconvenient the repairs are, they are necessary to rid the road of its many potholes.

“It’s inconvenient more-so for my staff coming and going with the company vehicle in the traffic which can be a pain, but that road definitely needs paving,” she said.

Government officials have said milling and paving the road at night would be

too expensive. Director of Works officials explained earlier this year that they must be careful with government money, “because the extra money we would spend to do over-time work, we can pave another road.”

Bahamix General Manager Ryan Rahming added: “It would be perfect to deal with this sort of work at night when it’s off peak times, but one of the things we have to keep in mind paving, the lighting situation is different at night, illumination tends to put different shades on the ground at night and you want to be able to see perfectly when laying asphalt so we can maintain levels.”

MOTORISTS who frequent Meeting Street will have to endure poor road conditions for a little longer with Minister of Works Desmond Bannister telling The Tribune the street should be paved “early in the new year”.

Work has been ongoing in that area near the Ministry of Health for a few weeks, frustrating motorists. However Mr Bannister said the road will be patched in the interim.

“We expect that Meeting Street will be paved early in the new year,” Mr Bannister said.

“In the meantime, the road will be patched so that drivers are not unduly inconvenienced as a result of the water works that have been recently completed.”

Last month, businesses near Blake Road voiced concern about the impact a six-month long water and road improvement work will have on their establishments.

In interviews with The Tribune, some proprietors and employees expressed dismay at the length of time the work is expected to take. They also took issue with the fact that it is expected to occur during “peak” hours and questioned how this would affect traffic flow in the area.

CAVES VILLAGE Premium Office Space for Lease 850 sq.ft. 3 offices, reception, conference room, kitchenette and bathroom, IT closet $2,975.00 pm. Inc. CAM + VAT 1,056 sq.ft. 4 offices, conference room, reception, kitchenette and bathroom, IT closet. $3,696.00 pm. Inc. CAM + VAT Contact Mr. Simon Chappell on 327 1575 or 477-7610 Email: simon@cavesvillage.com

PAGE 12, Thursday, December 13, 2018

By SANDRA BROOKE Associate Research Faculty, Coastal and Marine Laboratory, Florida State University

W

HEN people think of coral reefs, they typically picture warm, clear waters with brightly coloured corals and fish. But other corals live in deep, dark, cold waters, often far from shore in remote locations. These varieties are just as ecologically important as their shallow water counterparts. They also are just as vulnerable to human activities like fishing and energy production.

Earlier this year I was part of a research expedition conducted by the Deep Search project, which is studying little-known deep-sea ecosystems off the southeast US. coast. We were exploring areas that had been mapped and surveyed by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s research ship Okeanos.

In an area 160 miles off South Carolina we deployed Alvin, a three-person research submersible, to explore some features revealed during the mapping.

What the scientists aboard Alvin found was a huge “forest” of coldwater corals. I went down on the second dive in this area and saw another dense coral ecosystem.

These were just two features in a series that covered about 85 miles, in water nearly 2,000 feet deep.

This unexpected find shows how much we still have to learn about life on the ocean floor.

Deep corals are found in all of the world’s oceans. They grow in rocky habitats on the seafloor as it slopes down into the deep oceans, on seamounts (underwater mountains), and in submarine canyons.

Most are found at depths greater than 650 feet (200 meters), but where surface waters are very cold, they can grow at much shallower depths.

Shallow corals get much of their energy from sunlight that filters down into the water. Like plants on land, tiny algae that live within the corals’ polyps use sunlight to make energy, which they transfer to the coral polyps. Deep-sea species grow below the sunlit zone, so they feed on organic material and zooplankton, delivered to them by strong currents.

In both deep and shallow waters, stony corals – which create hard skeletons – are the reef builders, while others such assoft corals add to reef diversity.

Just five deep-sea stony coral species create reefs like the one we found in August.

The most widely distributed and well-studied is Lophelia pertusa, a branching stony coral that begins life as a tiny larva, settles on hard substrate and grows into a bushy colony. As the colony grows, its outside branches block the flow of water that delivers food and

THE TRIBUNE

Deepwater corals thrive at the bottom of the ocean, but can’t escape human impact STYLASTER californicus at 135 feet depth on Farnsworth Bank off southern California. Inset: The NOAA ROV Deep Discoverer documents benthic communities at Paganini Seamount in the north-central Pacific. Photos: NOAA

oxygen to inner branches and washes away waste. Without flow, the inner branches die and weaken, then break apart, and the outer live branches overgrow the dead skeleton.

This sequence of growth, death, collapse, and overgrowth continues for thousands of years, creating reefs that can be hundreds of feet tall. These massive, complex structures provide habitat for diverse and abundant assemblages of invertebrates and fishes, some of which are economically valuable.

Other important types include gorgonians and black corals, often called “tree corals”. These species can grow very large and form dense “coral gardens” in rocky, current-swept areas. Small invertebrates and fishes use their branches for shelter, feeding and nursery habitat.

Organisms that live in deep, cold waters grow slowly, mature late and have long lifespans.

Deep-sea black corals are among the oldest animals on earth: One

specimen has been dated at 4,265 years old. As they grow, corals incorporate ocean elements into their skeletons. This makes them archives of ocean conditions that long predate human records.

They also can provide valuable insights into the likely effects of future changes in the oceans.

To protect these ecosystems, scientists need to find them. This is challenging because most of the seafloor has not been mapped.

Once they have maps, researchers know where to deploy underwater vehicles so they can begin to understand how these ecosystems function.

Scientists use submersibles like Alvin or remotely operated vehicles to study deep-water corals because other gear, such as trawls and dredges, would become entangled in these fragile colonies and damage them. Submersibles can take visual surveys and collect samples without impacting reefs.

This work is expensive and logistically challenging. It requires large ships to transport and

launch the submersibles, and can only be done when seas are calm enough to work.

The greatest threat to deep corals globally is industrial bottom-trawl fishing, which can devastate deep reefs. Trawling is indiscriminate, sweeping up unwanted animals – including corals – as “bycatch”. It also stirs up sediment, which clogs deep-sea organisms’ feeding and breathing structures. Other forms of fishing, including traps, bottom longlines and dredges, can also impact the seafloor.

Offshore energy production creates other problems. Oil and gas operations can release drilling muds and stir up sediments.

Anchors and cables can directly damage reefs, and oil spills can have long-term impacts on coral health. Studies have shown that exposure to oil from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill caused stress and tissue damage in Gulf of Mexico deep-sea corals.

Yet another growing concern is deep sea mining for

materials such as cobalt, which is used to build batteries for cell phones and electric cars. The International Seabed Authority, a United Nations agency, is working with scientists and non-government organizations to develop a global regulatory code for deep sea mining, which is expected to be completed in 2020 or 2021. However, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature has warned that not enough is known about deep sea life to ensure that the code will protect it effectively.

Finally, deep-sea corals are not immune to climate change. Ocean currents circulate around the planet, transporting warm surface waters into the deep sea. Warming temperatures could drive corals deeper, but deep waters are naturally higher in carbon dioxide than surface waters. As their waters become more acidified, deep-sea corals will be restricted to an increasingly narrow band of optimal conditions.

Vast areas of deep coral habitats are on the high seas and are extremely difficult to manage.

However, many countries have taken measures to protect deep corals within their territorial waters. For example, the United States has created several deep coral protected areas. And the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management restricts industry activities near deep corals and funds deep sea coral research.

These are useful steps, but nations can only protect what they know about. Without exploration, no one would have known about the coral zone that we found off South Carolina, along one of the busiest coastlines in the United States. As a scientist, I believe it is imperative to explore and understand our deep ocean resources so we can preserve them into the future *the conversation.com

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 13, 2018, PAGE 13

UK’S MAY WINS NO-CONFIDENCE VOTE BUT MPS UNHAPPY OVER BREXIT LONDON Associated Press BRITISH Prime Minister Theresa May survived a political crisis over her Brexit deal yesterday, winning a no-confidence vote

by Conservative lawmakers that would have ended her leadership of party and country.

But the margin of victory — 200 votes to 117 — leaves May a weakened leader who has lost the support of a big chunk of her party over her handling of Britain’s exit from the European Union. It also came at a steep price as she promised not to run for re-election in 2022. Britain’s Brexit problem, meanwhile, remains unsolved as May seeks changes to her EU divorce deal in order to make it

more palatable to Parliament.

May said she was “pleased to have received the backing of my colleagues” but acknowledged that “a significant number” had voted against her in Wednesday evening’s secret ballot.

“I have listened to what they said,” May promised as she stood in a darkened Downing St. after what she called a “long and challenging day.”

The threat to May had been building as pro-Brexit Conservative lawmakers grew increasingly frustrated with the prime minister’s handling of Brexit. Many supporters of Brexit say May’s deal, a compromise that retains close economic ties with the EU, fails to deliver on the clean break with the bloc that they want.

The balloting came after May’s Conservative opponents, who circled the beleaguered prime minister for weeks hoping to spark a no-confidence vote, finally got the numbers they needed to call one.

The vote was triggered when at least 48 lawmakers —15 percent of Conservative legislators — wrote letters asking for a noconfidence ballot.

On Monday, May postponed a vote to approve the divorce deal to avoid all-but-certain defeat.

She has until January 21 to bring it back to Parliament after— she hopes — winning concessions from the EU. The result of the vote was announced to loud cheers from lawmakers gathered in a stuffy, ornately wallpapered room in the

BRITISH PM Theresa May yesterday.

House of Commons. Under party rules, May cannot be challenged again by fellow Conservatives for a year.

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, an ally, said the result showed that May “has the support of her party.”

“This is a clear statement by the parliamentary party they want her to go forward, they want her to lead us through Brexit,” he told Sky News.

But pro-Brexit lawmaker Mark Francois said the result was “devastating” for May, who has lost the support of a third of her party in Parliament. “If I were her, I wouldn’t be pleased with this at all,” Francois said. “I think she needs to think very carefully about what to do now.”

Ex-Trump lawyer Cohen gets three years in prison NEW YORK Associated Press MICHAEL Cohen, President Donald Trump’s one-time fixer, was yesterday sentenced to three years in prison for crimes that included arranging the payment of hush money to conceal his boss’ alleged sexual affairs, telling a judge that he agreed time and again to cover up Trump’s “dirty deeds” out of “blind loyalty”.

Separately, the legal and political peril surrounding Trump appeared to deepen when prosecutors announced that another major piece of the investigation had fallen into place: The parent company of the National Enquirer acknowledged dispensing some of the hush money in concert with the Trump campaign to fend off a scandal that could have damaged his bid for the White House.

Cohen, 52, shook his head slightly and closed his eyes as a judge pronounced his sentence for evading $1.4 million in taxes, lying about Trump’s business dealings in Russia and violating campaign-finance laws in buying the silence of porn star Stormy Daniels and Playboy centerfold Karen McDougal, who claimed they had sex with the candidate. Cohen and federal prosecutors have said the payments were made at Trump’s direction to influence the election.

“Time and time again, I felt it was my duty to cover up his dirty deeds rather than to listen to my own inner voice and my moral compass,” said a choked-up Cohen, a lawyer who once boasted he would “take a bullet” for Trump. “My weakness can be characterised as a blind loyalty to Donald Trump, and I was weak for not having the strength to question and to refuse his demands.”

The twin developments represented a double dose of bad news for the president, who ignored reporters’ questions about

MICHAEL COHEN, centre, arrives at court yesterday with his children Samantha, left, and Jake, right.

Cohen during an appearance at the White House later in the day.

Cohen is the first and, so far, only member of Trump’s circle during two years of investigations to go into open court and implicate him in a crime, though whether a president can be prosecuted under the Constitution is an open question.

In a possible sign of further trouble for the president, Cohen said he will continue cooperating with prosecutors, and one of his legal advisers said Cohen is also prepared to tell “all he knows” to Congress if asked.

At the sentencing, defense attorney Guy Petrillo pleaded for leniency for Cohen, saying, “He came forward to offer evidence against the most powerful person in our country.”

US District Judge William H Pauley III said the defendant deserved modest credit, but his assistance “does not wipe the slate clean.”

“Somewhere along the way Mr. Cohen appears to have lost his moral compass,” the judge said.

The judge also ordered Cohen to pay $1.39 million in restitution to the IRS, forfeit $500,000 and pay $100,000 in fines. He was ordered to report to prison March 6 and left court without comment.

The prison sentence was in line with what prosecutors asked for. Sentencing guidelines called for around four to five years, and the government asked in court papers that Cohen be given only a slight break.

The sentence was the culmination of a spectacular rise and fast fall of a lawyer who attached himself to the fortunes of his biggest client, helped him get elected president, then turned on him, cooperating with two interconnected investigations: one run by federal prosecutors in New York, the other by special counsel Robert Mueller, who is looking into Russia’s efforts to influence the presidential election.

VIRGIN GALACTIC AIMS TO REACH SPACE SOON WITH TOURISM ROCKET CALIFORNIA Associated Press

RICHARD Branson’s Virgin Galactic is gearing up to finally send its tourism rocket ship to the edge of space. If successful, it would be a major step toward the long-delayed dream of commercial space tourism.

The next test flight could come as early as today with two pilots taking Virgin Space Ship Unity high above California’s Mojave Desert.

CEO George Whitesides said yesterday they will try to exceed an altitude of 50 miles, which Virgin Galactic considers the boundary of space. Whiteside said that’s the standard used by the US Air Force and other US agencies.

That differs from a longheld view that places the boundary at 62 miles.

But Whiteside cited new

THE VSS Unity craft during a supersonic flight test in May. research that favours the lower altitude and said that as a US company it will use the US standard.

Reaching the threshold of space would demonstrate significant progress toward the start of commercial flights that were promised a decade ago. Virgin Galactic’s development of its spaceship took far longer than expected and endured a setback when the first experimental craft broke apart during a 2014 test

flight, killing the co-pilot.

“It’s a day that we’ve been waiting for for a long time,” Whitesides said.

Over 600 people have committed up to $250,000 for rides in the six-passenger rocket. They have been waiting years to feel the kick of the rocket’s ignition, a near-vertical high-speed ascent into the blackness of space and several minutes of weightlessness with a view of Earth far below.

XMAS MARKET GUNMAN YET TO BE CAUGHT STRASBOURG Associated Press HUNDREDS of security forces combed eastern France for a 29-year-old man with a long criminal record who shouted “God is great!” in Arabic and sprayed gunfire during a deadly rampage in Strasbourg’s famous Christmas market, officials said.

Tuesday night’s attack at the Christmas market in Strasbourg killed two people, left a third braindead and injured 12, and was a stark reminder to a nation wounded by previous assaults that terrorism remains a threat, even as anti-government protests roil the country.

National police distributed a photo of the wounded fugitive, identified as Cherif Chekatt, with the warning: “Individual dangerous, above all do not intervene.”

Interior Minister Christophe Castanersaid the French native, born in Strasbourg, had run-ins with police starting at age 10 and his first conviction at age 13.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 13, 2018, PAGE 15

BAHAMIAN AND JAMAICAN CHARGED WITH IMMIGRATION ACT BREACHES

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

TWO men - one Bahamian and the other Jamaican – were charged in the Freeport Magistrate’s Court this week for breach of the Immigration Act. Bahamian James Paul Jacques, 40, appeared before Magistrate Charlton Smith with harbouring an undocumented person contrary to Section 47A (1) a of the Immigration Act.

Jacques, who was represented by Carlson Shurland, pleaded guilty to the charge.

According to the particulars, on December 5, Jacques knowingly or recklessly or without reasonable cause, provided housing, board, and shelter to Cecil Reid, a Jamaican national.

Magistrate Smith ordered Jacques to pay a fine of $4,000 or serve a sentence of one year at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services in New Providence.

HAITIAN ADMITS SMUGGLING AFTER BEING CAUGHT IN STRICKEN VESSEL

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A HAITIAN man accused of human smuggling after being caught in Bahamian waters with several illegal foreign nationals onboard a disabled Bahamian registered vessel was charged in the Freeport Magistrate’s Court this week.

Jean Vera, aka Vera Bora, 36, appeared on Monday before Magistrate Rengin Johnson on charges of illegal landing, illegal embarkation and assisting illegal embarkation. He pleaded guilty to the charges.

According to the particulars, the accused was interdicted at sea around 3.30pm last Thursday, December 6, by the US Coast Guard about 23 miles west of Grand Bahama in a disabled vessel that is registered in Grand Bahama.

The vessel was reportedly taking on water and was being captained by Vera, who had seven other foreign nationals onboard with him. They were headed to the US after departing Grand Bahama.

On the charge of illegal landing, Vera was fined $300 or in default ordered to serve six months in prison. On the charge of assisting in illegal embarkation, Vera was fined $3,000

for each migrant onboard the vessel or in default serve 12 months in prison.

The sentences are to run consecutively. Vera was also ordered deported to Haiti on payment of the fine or completion of his prison sentences. The seven foreign nationals were also charged.

Ecuadorians Mario Guartantanga, 24; Pablo Quezada, 34, Cristhian Palaguachi, 18, and Claudio Loja, 30; pleaded guilty to the charges of overstaying and illegal embarkation.

They were ordered to pay a fine of $3,000 each or serve nine months in prison, and $300 each or serve three months, for each charge respectively.

Haitians Naomi Joseph, 25, and Jackson Perrilus, 22, pleaded guilty to illegal landing, overstaying, and illegal embarkation. They were ordered to pay a fine of $300 or serve six months in prison; a fine of $3,000 each or serve nine months in prison, and a fine of $300 each or serve six months in prison, respectively.

Dominican Miguel Negrette, 54, pleaded guilty to overstaying and illegal embarkation. He was ordered to pay a fine of $1,000 or in default serve nine months in prison; and ordered to pay a fine of $300 or in default serve six months in prison, respectively.

Reid, 58, was charged with illegal landing contrary to Section 19 (1)b and (2) of the Immigration Act. Reid pleaded guilty to charge.

The particulars are that on December 5, Reid was found in the Bahamas, having arrived in the country without the leave of an immigration officer.

JAMES PAUL JACQUES

CECIL REID

Magistrate Smith convicted Reid of illegal landing and ordered that he pay a fine of $300 or serve two months at BDCS. Both Jacques and Reid paid their fines. Reid was flown to the Nassau where he was detained at the Detention Centre to await deportation to Jamaica.