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BPL BAHA MAR BILL PAID IN FULL

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

THE Baha Mar Claims Committee, established to oversee the payments of funds provided ex-gratia by the Export Import Bank of China (CEXIM), has paid in full the money owed to Bahamas Power & Light, Committee Chairman James Smith said yesterday.

The Water & Sewerage Corporation (WSC) and the SEE PAGE SIX

Economic blow as S&P downgrades nation to junk status

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net LEADING global credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) yesterday handed the Bahamas an unwanted Christmas present a downgrade to “junk� status, reflecting the country’s worsening economic and fiscal position.

S&P’s action, based on The Bahamas’ weaker economic growth and slower fiscal consolidation pace, means that the country has lost its all-important ‘investment grade’ status, which is potentially highly damaging for the nation and its economy as it signals to the international capital markets that its creditworthiness is slipping into dangerous territory.

The Government said last night that it was “disappointed� with the development, claiming “it is most unfortunate that S&P did not seem to fully consider the impact of the many

growth generating initiatives underway�.

The latest downgrade will immediately send a negative message to the investors in both Bahamian government debt and the economy, potentially impacting every Bahamian.

The Government will likely have to pay more for current and future debt issues, raising its debt servicing (interest) costs and sucking money away from essential public and security services.

S&P justified the downgrade to BB+ (speculative or “junk� grade) from BBB- (investment grade) on the basis that it is now projecting the Bahamian economy will only grow by 0.3 per cent this year, down from its 1.2 per cent estimate in April.

The rating agency added that lower Gross Domestic Product (GDP)/economic growth would also negatively impact the Government’s tax revenues and fiscal SEE PAGE SIX

PSYCHIATRIC STUDY FOR MAN ACCUSED OF KILLING MOTHER

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

A PSYCHIATRIC evaluation has been ordered for a man who was arraigned in Magistrate’s Court yesterday in connection with the fatal stabbing of his mother in their family home.

Tamaal Adderley, 35, of Turnquest Avenue was brought into the Nassau and South Streets complex under heavy police guard to

appear before Chief Magistrate Joyann FergusonPratt on a charge of murder concerning the death of 61-year-old veteran educator Lauramae Adderley.

The accused appeared dejected and withdrawn when addressed by the arraigning magistrate. “Mr Adderley could you give me your date of birth please?� the chief magistrate asked.

SEE PAGE SEVEN

SENATOR Rodney Moncur speaking to reporters yesterday.

MONCUR AGGRESSIVE OVER VIEWS ON MARITAL RAPE

By KHRISNA VIRGIL Deputy Chief Reporter kvirgil@tribunemedia.net  NEWLY appointed Senator Rodney Moncur was combative and aggressive yesterday when he was questioned about how his controversial views on marital rape among other things would fall in line with the views of Leader of the Official Opposition Loretta Butler-Turner.

The moment when the controversial radio talk show host appeared to come unhinged and went on to berate The Tribune unfolded at the Senate, during a press conference moments after he was officially sworn in.

The impromptu press conference, which was called after reporters requested an interview

with Mrs Butler-Turner to respond to criticisms on her appointment of the 60-year-old turncoat, quickly disintegrated into a strong showing of Mr Moncur’s anti-feminist disposition as the Long Island MP looked on, seemingly embarrassed.

She was asked to explain the dynamics of his appointment to the Senate given that Mr Moncur was fiercely opposed to the Marital Rape Bill, which she tabled in Parliament in 2009. She was in support of the proposed legislation and campaigned to have it pass in the House of Assembly.

The Bill was shelved after pushback from the community; Mr Moncur was one of those who did not support the legislation.

However, as she an-

swered in an attempt to convince Bahamians that she and Mr Moncur’s differing points of view were not problematic, he sat quietly.

It was after the press conference ended that Mr Moncur stood to angrily berate The Tribune. “This young lady is questioning my position on marital rape,â€? he said, referring to The Tribune. “I am a 60-year-old man and if I climb on top of my wife, she better‌â€? the community activist shouted, as he beckoned someone in the room to close the door of the room. “You asked about my position on marital rape?

Well what was my position? What was my position?�

SEE PAGE THREE

Photo: Aaron Davis

BUTLER-TURNER DEFENDS CHOICE OF CONTROVERSIAL ACTIVIST AS SENATOR

By KHRISNA VIRGIL Deputy Chief Reporter kvirgil@tribunemedia.net  OPPOSITION Leader Loretta Butler-Turner yesterday suggested that Senator Rodney Moncur was among the “best� this country had to offer as she defended her appointment of the community activist to the upper chamber, insisting that she respected him for publicly stating his contentious positions when others were not bold enough to do so.

Responding to critics who have questioned the logic of her choice, given the fact Mrs Butler-Turner and Mr Moncur have differing views on marital rape and gender equality, the MP said it was “reprehensible� and “frightening� that there were those who secretly campaigned SEE PAGE THREE

CONFUSION OVER APPOINTMENT OF WOMEN’S RIGHTS OPPONENTS

By SANCHESKA DORSETT Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia.net  ACTIVIST Ternielle Burrows yesterday questioned why Official Opposition Leader Loretta ButlerTurner, who campaigned for wom-

en’s rights, would appoint two men to the Senate who “are opposed to everything she believes in�.

In an interview with The Tribune, the independent candidate for Elizabeth said she did not understand why Democratic National Alliance (DNA) Leader Branville McCartney

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

and controversial radio talk show host Rodney Moncur were chosen to be senators when both men have actively campaigned against women’s rights.

Ms Burrows questioned whether SEE PAGE TWO

PAGE 2, Wednesday, December 21, 2016

THE TRIBUNE THE TRIBUNE

LEADER of the Opposition Loretta Butler-Turner and Governor General Dame Marguerite Pindling with new senators, from left, Jude Knowles, Monique Gomez, Branville McCartney and Rodney Moncur.

Photo: Aaron Davis

CONFUSION OVER APPOINTMENT OF WOMEN’S RIGHTS OPPONENTS from page one

the Long Island MP changed her views on gender equality.

Mrs Butler Turner was an advocate for the vote ‘yes’ campaign ahead of the gender equality referendum. In 2009, when she was minister of state for social development in the Ingraham administration, she tabled a bill that would have made marital rape a crime. That bill was shelved after pushback from the community.

Mr Moncur and Mr McCartney did not support the legislation.

Mr Moncur called for all Bahamians to vote “no� in the June referendum in order to “save women� from themselves and to “stop foreign men from having the same rights as Bahamian men.� He called the process “witchcraft�.

Meanwhile, Mr McCartney also voted “no� to the all four of the referendum questions.

Both men received their

letters of appointment to the Senate yesterday. “I am concerned with the appointments, not just Senator Moncur but also Senator McCartney,� Ms Burrows said. “Both men held a standpoint that seemed to oppose Mrs Butler-Turner. That is where I am confused. Has her position changed or what progress did she have in mind when choosing the people she did when she understands their stances related to gender equality and marital rape? While Mr Moncur is more outlandish and Mr McCartney is more easy on the eyes and palatable, I do not disassociate them. I cannot separate the two or say one appointment is less valid than the other.�

Ms Burrows questioned whether the move was “an act to shut the Free National Movement (FNM) down.�

Mrs Butler-Turner was appointed Official Opposition leader after she and six other FNM MPs wrote

a letter of no confidence in party Leader Dr Hubert Minnis to the governor general, asking for his removal.

Dr Minnis remains leader of the FNM. In a statement while announcing the Senate appointments, Mrs Butler Turner said: “The choices for the Senate reflect a recognition of the need to collaborate, find common ground, and in particular, give voice to the difficulties and hardships experienced by every part of society, especially the most vulnerable individuals and groups in our country. “There is strength in diversity, and it is a testament to their love of country that these Senate appointees agreed to collaborate in the interest of a common goal, namely rescuing the Bahamas from the quagmire of corruption and incompetence of the PLP.�

Senator Monique Gomez and political newcomer Jude Knowles have also been appointed to the opposition’s Senate bench.

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THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, December 21, 2016, PAGE 3

Bran: Senate more interesting with Moncur

By SANCHESKA DORSETT Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia

NEWLY appointed Senator Branville McCartney said while he does not agree with the view and opinions of his parliamentary colleague Rodney Moncur, the Senate will be “a lot more interesting” with the talk show host in it.

In an interview yesterday on Hot 97 FM’s “The Morning Madhouse” with host “King C Note,” Mr McCartney said he believes that Mr Moncur will eventually retract some of his controversial statements and in the process encourage more persons to “tune into” the proceedings in the upper chamber.

On Monday, after foreshadowing that some of her Senate picks were likely to shock the public, leader

of the Official Opposition Loretta Butler-Turner announced that she had selected Mr Moncur, a controversial justice of the peace, to be appointed to the upper chamber.

Mrs Butler-Turner also revealed that she had appointed former Senator Monique Gomez and political newcomer Jude Knowles to the opposition’s Senate bench.

She announced last week that Mr McCartney, leader of third party Democratic National Alliance (DNA), had been appointed leader of opposition business in the Senate.

Host of the radio talk show “Freedom March”, Mr Moncur has recently used the platform to advise people not to register to vote or take part in the 2017 general election.

He was also a vocal critic

of the June gender equality referendum, calling the exercise “witchcraft” and erecting a billboard outside his office urging people to vote ‘no’ to all four questions.

Mr McCartney said yesterday he was not surprised

by Mrs Butler-Turner’s Senate picks, as the two have had “intensive conversations” on the prospective senators.

“We were in conversations about the appointments, as to who was going to be an appointment and what reason,” Mr McCartney said. “There has been intensive collaboration up to yesterday. Let’s put it this way, the Senate won’t be boring any more. We always talk about needing change in this country, now this is change. It will take change, it will take different, it will take ‘what has

happened there, what is that person thinking’ for change to happen,” Mr McCartney said.

“The Senate is going to be very interesting, I think more people will watch. The bottom line is, what has happened with the Senate and the Senate picks, you now have complete diversity, you don’t have everyone speaking the same language. It is quite diverse, it could be healthy in terms of him (Mr Moncur) revisiting certain things. We will see what happens, it is going to be interesting in the long run to see whether or not he continues to encourage people not to vote.

“Wouldn’t it be good for Mr Moncur who said those things previously to come around and say I take it back? I do not subscribe to anything he says but what

you see with him is what you get. Stay tuned to the Senate.”

Mr McCartney also denied that he and Mrs Butler Turner have “teamed up” to bring down the Free National Movement.

“What is happening in the FNM is their business, I have nothing to do with that,” Mr McCartney said.

“There has been no teaming up, there has been an appointment made to the DNA leader. There is no teaming up, no discussion in terms of teaming up, that has not happened. We have talked about policies with the country and being on the same page with that and moving in a united opposition force but not to oppose for opposing sake.

We have some bills that are going to be debated today and tomorrow and they are something we are sup-

porting the government in.

You will see I get straight to the point and I don’t like to waste time, we will get it done.”

Mrs Gomez, an attorney, resigned from the Senate two weeks ago, shortly after Mrs Butler-Turner and six other FNM MPs removed Dr Minnis as leader of the Official Opposition through a petition to Governor General Dame Marguerite Pindling. She resigned because she was one of four senators who were appointed to the upper chamber by Dr Minnis. Mr Knowles is a fisherman and contractor who hails from Long Island.

Mr Moncur is former leader of the now defunct fringe party, the Worker’s Party. He also ran and lost on the DNA’s ticket for the Bain and Grants Town constituency in the 2012 general election.

ther of two adults. I have had one wife in 60 years. I haven’t smoked dope yet and when it comes to job stability I have been consistent with my work.

“God save the Queen! I have been married for 37 years. My wife professed Jesus Christ and I profess Jesus Christ.

A decent married man cannot commit rape against his decent married wife,” he said.

On Monday, Mrs ButlerTurner announced that Mr Moncur was among the four people who she appointed to the Senate.

She foreshadowed last week that the Senate choices were likely to cause shock and awe.

Mr Moncur has not been shy in vocalising his conservative views. He has called birth control pills

“evil” and “cancerous” and has frequently marched for all convicted murderers to be hanged.

Host of the radio talk show Freedom March, Mr Moncur has recently used the platform to advise people not to register to vote or take part in the 2017 general election.

When he was pressed about this yesterday, Mr Moncur said: “Listen.

There are thousands of Bahamians who are disappointed with these irresponsible politicians and they want to go on the beach and I am the beach leader. I am marching to the Senate and as I march to the Senate perhaps somebody will convince me as to why I should say to my people, the Negro people why we should not go to the beach.”

MONCUR AGGRESSIVE OVER VIEWS ON MARITAL RAPE from page one

When The Tribune responded that his opposition to a marital rape law was well known and a matter of public record, Mr Moncur shouted: “See there that is what is wrong with you now, you can’t answer. I am a 60-year-old man (and) you are dangerous, you must know how to frame your questions before you come to me.”

The Tribune replied: “I will not allow you to disrespect me. You have just been appointed to Senate, I’ll allow you to ride on the high of your appointment.”

Some gathered in the room accused this newspaper of showing disrespect to Mr Moncur.

Before this spectacle, and

RODNEY Moncur pictured yesterday. shortly after he received his his appointment, sparked Senate instruments at Gov- by discourse from people ernment House, Mr Mon- who believe his public comcur, during an interview ments on national issues are with the press, sporadically bizarre. He was also asked shouted “God save the whether his position on marital rape would change Queen.”

At this point he was with his ascension to the asked by a reporter to re- Senate.

Mr Moncur replied: “Is spond to controversy over

Photo: Aaron Davis there a controversy? No one has told me. Honestly I have been so busy getting dressed, preparing and reading bills. What are Negroes saying?”

He added: “I’m 60. I’ve been married for 37 years. I am the father of three adult children and the grandfa-

BUTLER-TURNER DEFENDS CHOICE OF CONTROVERSIAL ACTIVIST AS SENATOR from page one

against these issues.

Pressed further, Mrs Butler-Turner said she does not listen to words,but values actions, saying that in his acceptance of the Senate appointment, he was following her lead. She added that this demonstrated Mr Moncur’s commitment to his country.

She maintained that his appointment to the Senate, along with that of former Senator Monique Gomez and political newcomer Jude Knowles to the opposition’s Senate bench, represented a microcosm of society. She announced last week that Democratic National Alliance Leader (DNA) Branville McCartney would be the leader of the Opposition business in the Senate.

“I think the most egregious assertion that is being made is the fact that Mr Moncur in particular has been so adamant about positions that I personally and politically have been very passionate about,” Mrs Butler-Turner said during a press conference following the official swearing in of the new Senators.

“I can say this much. I respect Mr Moncur for publicly stating his positions.

There is no question that he did not agree with the Gender Equality Bill.

“I think what I find most reprehensible are the individuals that pretended that they might have supported it or those who secretly campaigned against it and were not man enough to say they didn’t support. Those are the people that frighten me most.

“So when we look at this team of individuals that brings diversity and difference I believe that whether

it’s because of the difference of our political colours DNA and FNM or whether it is because of the differences on some policy or fundamental issue, the real proof is being able to have that representation at the table.

“I am strong enough and I am bold enough to agree to disagree and to embrace differences and this is what The Bahamas is made up of. So, essentially, if we are able to bring the voice of those who do agree and those who do not agree and they can see that we are leading by example, then, of course, they know that we are mature enough to make the differences that this country needs.”

She said the appointments were about advancing the country and that many people had also questioned how other people in her caucus, like Fort Charlotte MP Dr Andre Rollins, are able to get along.

“The country needs the best that we have and it needs representation from every quarter and if Loretta Butler-Turner, Branville McCartney, Andre Rollins, Rodney Moncur, Monique Gomez, Richard Lightbourn and the whole crew of us for the people that we represent come together, this is not about either of us but it is about advancing our country.”

In his first Senate address, Mr McCartney said he was aware of the noise in the market over his appointment to high office, but he said it should be viewed as an answer to calls for opposition forces to unite.

“Over the last four years and over the last week or so I had to ask myself some tough questions,” he said in the Senate yesterday.

“What does it mean to be a politician in this modern

day Bahamas? What does true representation and true leadership look like?

“As members of the voting public preparing for the most historic elections of our time, I am certain that you have asked yourself the same questions and as I stand here today in this place where scores of people before me have been called to serve here in the public arena I can say with confidence that true leadership transcends politics and rhetoric it is far more elemental.”

He added: “It requires an unprecedented level of awareness and empathy.

Effective leaders are passionate, courageous and patriotic and understand that the rights of no single individual can come before the rights of the collective. At its core true leadership is brave. Even in the face of the storm and those of us who have taken on the role of political leadership must confront that storm.

“I am not so naive to believe that this appointment to the Senate does not raise its share of questions. In the last week many have questioned the motives the state of the DNA and the future of our country as a whole. The Senate appointment provides a public platform something that was not possible before,” he said.

“Despite the noise in the marketplace, I think it is important to note this appointment to Senate as a member of the Democratic National Alliance finally answers the question or the call of thousands of wouldbe voters who have demanded that the country’s opposition forces and po-

litical leaders put aside difference in order to advance the country.”

For his part, Mr Moncur thanked “decent” Mrs Butler-Turner for his appointment. He said it was his hope that he would be allowed to be a “free” Senator.

“I thank decent Loretta Butler-Turner, the Leader of her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition, for appointing me to the Senate. I thank my colleagues who are here to share this opportunity with me.

“I regret that my wife was disobedient. I told her not to go away, but she went away so she’s not here to witness this grand occasion.

However, when she left, I was not a Senator. When she returns I shall have security and I shall be a Senator.

“God save the Queen and, of course, it is my hope

and prayer that I shall be a free Senator to express my views on the issues for I am a man with the gift of discernment. God save the Queen and I am honoured to be among you,” he said.

A justice of the peace, Mr Moncur was a vocal critic of the June gender equality referendum, calling the exercise “witchcraft” and erecting a billboard outside his office urging people to vote “no” to all four questions.

Mrs Butler-Turner campaigned for the “yes” vote.

In June, she told The Tribune that Free National Movement Leader Dr Hubert Minnis should accept some responsibility for the referendum’s failure.

While she was minister of state for social development in the Ingraham administration, Mrs Butler-Turner tabled a marital rape bill in Parliament, which pro-

posed to make spousal rape a crime. After loud outcry and pushback from various sectors in the community, including Mr Moncur, the bill was shelved.

Mrs Gomez, an attorney, resigned from the Senate two weeks ago, shortly after Mrs Butler-Turner and six other FNM MPs removed Dr Minnis as leader of the Official Opposition through a petition to the Governor General. She resigned because she was one of four senators who were appointed to the upper chamber by Dr Minnis. Mr Knowles is a fisherman and contractor who hails from Long Island.

Mr Moncur is former leader of the now defunct fringe party, the Worker’s Party. He also ran and lost on the DNA’s ticket for the Bain and Grants Town constituency in the 2012 general election.

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CORRECTION A HEADLINE on a report about Labour Minister Shane Gibson blaming the Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Workers Union for the termination of 61 One&Only Ocean Club employees in The Tribune yesterday incorrectly referred to Sandals. We are happy to make clear it was not Sandals to which Mr Gibson was referring and apologise for the error.

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Standard & Poor’s Christmas gift to The Bahamas WHAT a gift to be dropped into The Bahamas’ Christmas stocking a mere five days before Christmas!

It was announced yesterday that The Bahamas’ international credit rating has been downgraded to junk status.

“The international credit rating agency S&P, today, downgraded The Bahamas’ credit rating, from BBB- to BB+, although upgrading the outlook from negative to stable,” government announced in a press release yesterday. “Other countries,” it said, “rated BB+ include Indonesia, Portugal, Russia and Bulgaria. In its statement, S&P noted that this rating decision stems from lower than expected GDP growth, fiscal consolidation results that are developing at a slower pace than anticipated and certain structural weaknesses that negatively impact economic growth.”

No wonder government has expressed disappointment in this development. Able to sweet talk Bahamians into a lethargic state of hope, it has had no such luck with S&P’s rating experts. Government said it was of the view that “S&P’s decision does not give appropriate weight to important developments on the ground, nor The Bahamas’ strong commitment to address its economic and fiscal challenges.” This is the comforting talk that has lulled Bahamians into self-satisfied expectations, but S&P cannot be fooled. The promises have gone on too long — with the promised “important developments” gradually disappearing over the horizon. Even Bahamians are awakening to the fact that our beloved country is in plenty of trouble and in five months we have to make drastic decisions or drown in our own folly.

According to government “The Bahamas’ short to medium-term prospects for placing the economy on a stronger growth trajectory are more encouraging than they have been since the recent economic and financial crisis, and it is most unfortunate that S&P did not seem to fully consider the impact of the many growth generating initiatives underway.”

Government saw “no uncertainty regarding the restart and completion of the Baha Mar project which, alongside the other foreign investment-related projects underway, will help to ignite growth, boost employment, improve business and consumer confidence and contribute to government revenue.”

According to government, the “facts are compelling that The Bahamas remains an attractive jurisdiction for foreign investment”.

However, this is not what we hear. Investors – both Bahamian and foreign – complain that the Bahamas is not an easy jurisdiction in which to do business.

In October this year, Tribune Business Editor Neil Hartnell reported that the Bahamas was “perilously close to dropping into the bottom third of the World Bank’s ‘ease of doing business’ rankings, after the country was ranked 121st out of 190 nations when it comes to facilitating private sector activity…

“And the reason for The Bahamas’ slump was made abundantly clear, the World Bank stating bluntly: ‘The Bahamas made paying taxes more complicated by introducing a Value-Added Tax.’ “It estimated that Bahamian VAT registrants, on average, spent about 157 hours per year - equivalent to almost 20 working days - calculating, collecting, filing and remitting the tax’s payments to the Government.”

The World Bank also noted the difficulty with dealing with construction permits; getting electricity; getting credit; and protecting minority investors. The Bahamas fell in the rankings by between one to six spots, it said.

“The World Bank’s report again indicated that The Bahamas continues to ‘stand still’, while rivals make improvements and leapfrog ahead of it on regulatory efficiencies and systems - key determinants in attracting capital investment,” Tribune Business reported.

The report continued: “While the rate of slippage has slowed, the World Bank has again dropped The Bahamas’ ranking, sending a potentially negative message to international investors assessing whether to deploy their capital in this nation.

“And, yet again, the findings suggest that repeated promises by Prime Minister Perry Christie, and several of his Cabinet Ministers, to improve the ‘ease of doing business’ in The Bahamas continue to sound somewhat hollow.

“The Bahamas was initially ranked at 106th in last year’s ‘Doing Business’ rankings, but the World Bank yesterday said ‘data revisions and changes in methodology’ had subsequently dropped this nation even further - to 120th spot.” That statement was reported in October.

And this was Moody’s assessment in August: “Structural constraints that limit potential growth include relatively high energy costs, a bureaucratic burden that hinders doing business and labour market rigidities. These constraints are reflected in, for example, the prevalent high rate of unemployment and non-performing loans in the banking system, and have also negatively affected the competitiveness of the tourism sector – a mainstay of The Bahamas’ economy – that accounts directly and indirectly for about 50% of GDP,” it said. “While authorities have implemented some measures to address these issues and have put forward a progrowth reform agenda via the National Development Plan, progress has been slow so far.”

Given those issues, Moody’s said it considered that The Bahamas’ economic strength will remain “low” – the lowest score among Baa-rated sovereigns which have an average score of “moderate”.

On the debt issue, Moody’s noted that while government has reduced the fiscal deficit for three consecutive years, the government debt to GDP ratio continued to rise to an estimated 66.1% by the end of 2015/16, from 60.2% in 2013/14.

Despite all of the negativity, a hopeless government drowning in rising debt, has expressed confidence that “as S&P monitors the impact of these various macroeconomic and fiscal measures and projects over the next six to 12 months, the Government is confident that The Bahamas will be able to secure an improved rating outcome.”

Unfortunately, government has promised this for too long for Bahamians to put much faith in it. In five months, voters will have to decide their future. More and more Bahamians are saying they have lost faith in their government. It is hoped that members of the Opposition can now put their selfish personal ambitions aside and come together to rescue the nation.

This is the gift that all Bahamians now desire. They not only want to secure their future, but that of their beloved country.

What does that poll really show?

EDITOR, The Tribune.

Poll in favor of FNM and Dr Minnis I AGREE with your writer S Hutchinson’s opinion . It is so simple to design a poll where you can plan what the results are if you use the system the pollster the FNM contracted to use.

The Poll people said they used a random dialing sys-

tem to make the calls - so I picked the 327 and 324 prefix numbers and completed 200 calls in each district - 327 is out west Killarney, FNM and 324 is east Montagu-St Anne’s, both FNM. The chances that you will get a very favourable response to the FNM and the then leader pre-Black Wednesday is exceptionally very high.

Mr Hutchinson is very right the Poll was taken before Black Wednesday when Ms Butler Turner dropped it on Dr Minnis.

I also suggest this has really killed-muted any possible chance for the PLP Leader outsider - Alfred Sears.

MARVA ALBURY Nassau, December 15, 2016.

Best of the Best regatta EDITOR, The Tribune.

THE recent Best of the Best Regatta was a huge success in the eyes of the sailors and sailing fans.

In light of this great event, I felt obliged to provide our esteemed politicians with some numbers.

Based on my unscientific study (I do know numbers though), during a typical regatta in George Town, there will be 2500 visitors by air and a further 300 by boat along with the typical 300 sailing yachts that are moored in Elizabeth harbour during this time.

Add to this the 1500 or so locals that also support the regatta. This translates to approximately 20,000 visitor nights during the entire regatta.

With the average person spending $75 per day on food and drinks (I’m sure it’s much higher). Let’s say 25% of those people rent

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net cars at $85 per day and rent a room at $250 per night.

Plus, the 2500 people that fly in at $200 per ticket.

This all adds up to an economic impact of $2.5 to $3 million dollars. That averages to approximately $40,000 per participating boat.

We have about ten major regattas per year, attracting 250 boats total. That all adds up to an economic impact of approximately $10 million. Let’s say it’s a little less than that because not as many fans are attracted to some of the smaller regattas.

The government allocates a grand total of less the $1 million dollars toward regattas each year.

That’s a return of invest-

ment of 1000%.

Tell me where I can get a return like that and I’ll sign up yesterday.

Now how much did we spend on Carnival again?

There are numerous businesses and people that depend on this economic injection every year just to break even.

There are many sailors discouraged by this measly pittance that the government puts up to keep these regattas going. It is getting more and more difficult to afford to travel to these events.

I hope the voices of our sailing community can be heard in this upcoming year. We need the government to do better!

CHRISTOPHER WELLS Whitty K, C Class Champion Nassau, December 18, 2016.

Poor service in The Bahamas EDITOR, The Tribune.

OH CABLE BAHAMAS... why do you have to wait anything from 30-50 minutes to get to a Customer Service operator?

All I can say to Cable Bahamas – they know their service to Grand Bahama is heavily challenged as they would like to say with hundreds of customers without service but what does Cable do?

All the service calls continue on one server so the Nassau customers the majority of their customers are grossly, unacceptably in convinced... the brilliance is extraordinary!

REAL PROPERTY VALUATION people - Ministry of Finance anyone received your as-

sessment for 2017? If they mailed them you might be lucky to see them way in January, 2017. Now they say you can pay on-line but for the owner-occupier, pensioner, to get the discount given last year believe me you have to apply again! A pensioner is over 65 years - have a heart!

Can someone in Government confirm what is the obvious - not a single Ministries’ computer system talks to any of the other Ministries’ computers.

Remember all the chat about the new vehicle licensing system, $8 million of it - believe me once you have one of the new discs no one knows who is legitimately the owner of the vehicle even the police - boy

that was a paradigm shift backwards! Kudos Minister.

A warning to anyone getting into the smallest of accident - call the police. You are warned.

The Insurance Cos must be cringing on this mess.

Are we about to celebrate a holiday - a season as in seasonings we use when cooking or the Birth of Christ?

It seems we have gone heathen.

Kudos to US Presidentelect Trump he is criticising everyone who uses Happy Holiday - Season Greetings rather than the correct greeting!

W THOMPSON Nassau, December 17, 2016.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, December 21, 2016, PAGE 5

OFFICIALS NOT WORRIED OVER REPORTED HACK OF CCA SERVERS

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter rrolle@tribunemedia.net

FOLLOWING reports of a hack into China Construction America’s servers, a top Baha Mar representative said yesterday that officials

are not worried that unflattering information will be released to the public.

CCA is the mega resort’s general contractor.

According to an article on the website Techcrunch. com, an American hacker allegedly gained access to

material stolen by another hacker showing that CCA was a victim of a hack.

The report said CCA paid 24 bitcoins, digital currency which is the equivalent of $17,500, on November 27 “to decrypt some 60 servers infected with the same ran-

somware, after successfully haggling the hacker down from his original demand of 40 bitcoins”.

Some have expressed concern that in hacking CCA’s servers, confidential correspondence involving the Bahamas government

and Baha Mar may have been compromised.

However, a top-ranking Baha Mar official, who wished to remain anonymous, said yesterday that Baha Mar executives are not concerned.

“We are not aware that

the systems really were hacked and neither are our computer persons,” the source said. “It has nothing to do with The Bahamas and we are not aware that anything has been compromised and we’re not concerned.”

Moore slams Butler-Turner for appointing Moncur to Senate

By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net THE appointment of controversial talk show host and activist Rodney Moncur to the Senate by Opposition Leader Loretta Butler-Turner has been branded a “failure of ingenuity and promised political advancement” by one of the Free National Movement’s (FNM) founders.

Maurice Moore, regarded as one of the party’s founding fathers, yesterday condemned the appointment as a blight to the legacy and core nature of the FNM. Mr Moore told The Tribune that his long-held belief of Mrs Butler-Turner has finally been supported by merit and public action.

“She wants to see the party destroyed,” he claimed.

The Long Island MP assumed the post of Official Opposition leader after spearheading a parliamentary revolt against current party leader, Killarney MP Dr Hubert Minnis, earlier this month.

RODNEY Moncur at his appointment to the Senate with Governor General Dame Marguerite Pindling.

Photo: Aaron Davis Mrs Butler-Turner, along with six of her parliamentary colleagues submitted a letter of no confidence to the governor general and House Speaker Dr Kendal Major blasting Dr Minnis as a poor leader.

Addressing Mrs ButlerTurner’s Senate appointments yesterday, Mr Moore issued a strong rebuke of the Long Island MP, insisting that her “poor, vindictive and spiteful concept of

politics is now up-front and obvious.”

“She can’t hide it anymore,” Mr Moore added.

“This act was spiteful and nothing about it showed she is aware of what goes into leading this country.

“When you make moves like this, this appointment, the country can see that you are lost as you can be. There is no recovery from this.

“Dr Minnis, yes you two had issues, but he offered

an olive branch on several occasions and all you did was stab that man in the back and for what, to get in the big chair and run our party through the mud?”

He added: “That is why I laughed when they compared the selfish, ego-driven actions to what we did back in the day. This party was established by men who made extreme sacrifices.

That is what we did, it had nothing to do with any of us wanting to take (former Prime Minister Sir Lynden) Pindling’s spot. We want our country to improve, be better for our kids and an overall betterment of our society.”

The FNM was established through dissension within the first independent Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) government.

Mr Moore joined seven of his colleagues known as the “dissident eight” to take issue with how Sir Lynden and his Cabinet managed the country after Majority Rule.

The current parliamentary dissenters, known as the

“rebel seven,” now face disciplinary action that could lead to expulsion from the party.

In a statement earlier this month, the MPs slammed the party’s response to their actions.

The statement said: “To be clear, it is absurd and perverse that our party would entertain the thought of expelling us for taking the same actions that the dissident eight – the founders of the FNM – took against Sir Lynden Pindling and the PLP in response to our country’s first preoccupation with the cult of personality in a post-Majority Rule Bahamas.”

Mr Moore continued yesterday: “Our motive back then was completely different. We were a part of the government, our attitude was that (Bahamians) had the control of their resources for the first time, we thought the government ought to have put more into our educational system and training systems.

“We were leaving a party that could destroy our lives

and our families for generations to come. Don’t give me that nonsense about what you did being on par with what we did then.

“We put our lives on the line, all we had worked for on the line. We knew it was up to us to put principles first and put in place a guard against the PLP and what the wanted to do.

That was the Free National Movement. “(Mrs Butler-Turner) will do anything for power and political fame. She and everyone else association with her needs expelled because all she is doing is strengthening the PLP. Every move, all her actions have been to make a mockery of the FNM. This must stop. She has gone too far this time.”

On Monday, Mrs ButlerTurner appointed Mr Moncur; former FNM Senator Monique Gomes and Long Island native, Jude Knowles to the Senate. Democratic National Alliance (DNA) Leader Branville McCartney was appointed leader of opposition business in the Senate last week.

POWER COMPANY PLEDGES STABLE ELECTRICITY COST FOR FIVE YEARS

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net THE Grand Bahama Power Company (GBPC) has said the 60,000 customers throughout the island can expect stability in their electricity costs for the next five years.

A five-year plan by GBPC - approved by the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) on December 14 - will allow for restoration costs from Hurricane Matthew to be offset by savings that will be mined from fuel costs and operating expenses.

In a statement issued this week, the company noted it submitted a Hurricane Damage Assessment Summary to the GBPA outlining a five-year plan to recover storm restoration costs from customers while resulting in no increase in the total cost of electricity when compared to 2016 costs.

It is projected that the restoration costs - which will be included in the ‘fuel/ other costs’ portion of customers’ bills starting in January 2017 - will be fully recovered by January 2022.

“The recovery of restoration costs will be spread

over five years, as established by the GBPA in our regulatory framework, and will result in no increase to the total cost of electricity that customers pay today,” the company said.

“At GBPC we are customers too, and we know that any increase in the total cost of electricity would be concerning for residents.

We also appreciate the influence that rising electricity costs can have on an economy.”

Last week, GBPA ViceChairman Sarah St George, the sector’s regulator, reported that power restoration costs incurred by GBPC post Hurricane Matthew amounted to $27.5 million. She said it was strongly expressed during a meeting with GBPC executives that hurricane restoration costs should not result in an increase in energy billing to customers.

GBPC is confident that with prudent operating cost management and fuel purchasing, it can generate sufficient savings in its business to offset the storm restoration costs.

The company said that the total cost customers pay for power for the next five years will remain consistent with what they paid in 2016.

PILOT RESCUED BY BOATERS AFTER PLANE CRASHES IN SEA AVIATION officials are investigating a plane crash that occurred in waters near Eleuthera on Monday.

According to the Bahamas Air Accident Investigation Department, at approximately 3.20pm, a single engine Piper Cherokee aircraft, registration N8700Q, crashed into waters shortly after takeoff from the North Eleuthera

Airport en route to Abaco, investigator Kendall Dorsett Jr said.

The pilot was the sole occupant and was successfully recovered from the waters near Pigeon Cay by nearby boaters.

The department is investigating the crash.

Anyone with questions or concerns about the crash should call 242-376-1617 or 1-242-397-5513.

MURDER VICTIMS IDENTIFIED POLICE have officially identified two men who were killed in separate incidents this week.

The man who was found dead in a car on Baillou Hill Road has been formally identified as Berchinal Martin, 23, of Baillou Hill Road.

Martin’s body was found after 2am Monday, slumped inside his white 2000 Honda Accord.

The man who was shot inside a nightclub on Tonique

Williams Darling Highway has been identified as Maurice Johnson, 22, of Baillou Hill Estates. He was shot after 10pm Sunday and died in hospital a short time later.

Police also said the woman who died in a suspected suicide last Wednesday is Sheila Rolle, 51, of Pinewood.

She was found hanged in a bathroom of her home by relatives.

Investigations into these incidents continue.

“We believe this is welcome news to the business community, to potential investors in Grand Bahama, and to residents who may be struggling to recover from the devastation of Hurricane Matthew,” said Archie Collins, GBPC’s president & CEO.

“We want our customers to know that we are taking concrete steps toward long term rate stability, while improving service and strengthening our grid,” said Tony Lopez, CFO. “Over the past five years, we have worked hard to reduce our cost structure

through operational efficiencies, implementation of a fuel hedging programme and effective workforce planning. These efforts support the long-term rate stability commitment we are making today.”

GBPC, which employs 200 Bahamians, says it has

one of the lowest electricity rates in the Caribbean.

PAGE 6, Wednesday, December 21, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

SEAN MOREE, Director (left), and Philip Smith, Executive Director, receive a donation to the Bahamas Feeding Network from Angela Moree, Chairwoman of the Women’s Corona Society of the Bahamas.

Photo: Cay Focus Photography

CORONA SOCIETY HELPS TO SUPPORT BAHAMAS FEEDING NETWORK THE Women’s Corona Society of The Bahamas, an international women’s club providing support and promoting friendships of women of all nations, has made a generous donation to the Bahamas Feeding Network (BFN).

In expressing his gratitude to the Society, Sean

Moree, Director of the BFN, described the donation as “significant as it is from a group of exceptional women who have long made it their mission to be an inspiration in their communities”.

With nearly 13 per cent of the population living in poverty, the BFN, estab-

lished in December, 2013, seeks to alleviate the pain of hunger through distribution of food items among the churches and soup kitchens that make up the 100 plus network.

“Donations like these allow us to continue to assist in feeding the thousands of men, women and chil-

dren who, due mainly to economic forces, are food insecure - meaning they do not have access to a constant supply of food, a basic human need,” said Philip Smith, Executive Director of the BFN. “We are in the midst of the holidays and while the majority of families

are planning socials and exchanging gifts, many families among us will be facing major challenges.

Additionally, due to school closures, there will be an increase in the number of hungry children as they will be removed from the school environment where they would have received meals

through various feeding programmes.”

In the nearly three years since BFN has been distributing food and funding to feeding centres in the Bahamas, the programme has donated more than $350,000 to its 110 partners with the aid of contributions.

Economic blow as S&P downgrades nation’s credit rating to junk status from page one consolidation plans, which were already progressing

more slowly than expected.

Echoing the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) recent warnings, S&P said government spending was

Patricia Edithmae Price 56

of Davis Street, Oakes Field, who died on 7th December, 2016, will be held on Thursday, 22nd December, 2016, at 11:00 a.m., at City of Praise, Cowpen Road. Officiating will be Pastor Arthur Duncombe, assisted by other Ministers of the Gospel. Interment will follow in Lakeview Memorial Gardens & Mausoleums, John F. Kennedy Drive & Gladstone Road.

Precious memories will forever remain in the hearts of her Loving Husband: James Louis Jolton Price; Two (2) Daughters: Precious and Viola; One (1) Son: Ronield; Four (4) Grandchildren: Trevor Johnson, Aliannah and Alrick Campbell Jr., and Ronield Price Jr.; Two (2) Adopted Sons: Luke and Ricardo Frazier; One (1) Sister: Sharon Melter; Five (5) Brothers: Gregory, Kevin, Kent, Bursil Clarke and Dencil Munnings; Three (3) Aunts: Rev. Culina Cox, Inez and Evangelist Petrona Ferguson; Uncle: Edward Johnson Couise; Sisters-in-law: Geneva McIntosh of Miami, Florida, Josephine Price, Margaret Stevenson, Marvelous Marva Pryce, Audreyemna and Desiree Clarke; Brother-in-law: Philip Cox; Nieces: Vangerine Nairn, Chavana Barr, Erica, Victoria, Tamani, Catherine, Regina, Santina, Quincy, Anastacia, Ray and Tika; Nephews: Roston, Henry Jr., Taffy, Rico, Leon, Ohandy, Marko, Shavon, Omar, Christopher, Antonio, Dineo and Cameron; Cousins: Clarence, Altamese, Bernice Cox, Malrie, Pedro and Charlene Darling, Elkin, Beryl, Lenford, Hensil, Rosemary, Evelyn, Lorene, Pamela and Beverly Collie, Marlene Decosta and Family, Anniemae Butler and Family, Jenniemae and Family, Wilfred Hanna and Family, Patricia, Freda, Joseph, Cynthia, Valarie and Christine Johnson, Eric Ferguson, Cedric Deveaux and Helen Johnson; Other Family and Friends: Anita Rolle and Family, Stacy Williams, Dr. Cyprian Strachan, Pastor Arthur Duncombe and Family, the City of Praise Family, Rona Major and Family, Jodi Sawyer, Latoya Archer, Sebas Bastian and the Electronics Doctors Family, the Real Deal Family, the Real Deal Shockers Family, the Real Deal Rangers Family, the Clarke Family, the Collie Family, Dervin Rolle, Lesley Jones, Anthony Rolle, Paula Josey, Don Thompson and Family, Trevor Carey, Terrance Carey, Frank Mackey, Barcus and Kim Rolle, Freddie Lightbourn, Sherman Johnson, Desmond Thompson, the McDonald’s Restaurant Family, Carla Wells, Michelet Meronard, Perry Thompson and Family, Rolland McPhee and Family, Mable Higgs and Family, Curleana Higgs, Maxine Marc, the Commando Security Family, the Pryce Family of New York and New Jersey and the entire Oakes Field Community.

Relatives and friends may pay their last respects at Newbold Brothers Funeral Chapel, Palmetto Avenue & Acklins Street, off Market and East Streets (TODAY) Wednesday, 21st December, 2016, from 12:00 noon until 5:00 p.m., and on Thursday at the church from 10:00 a.m., until service time.

still outpacing revenues despite the introduction of Value-Added Tax (VAT), with Hurricane Matthew restoration costs set to inflict “further pressure” on expenditure in 2017.

“At the same time, we believe that this lower growth trend will challenge the government’s ability to meet its fiscal projections, likely resulting in rising debt,” S&P said. “The erosion of the Bahamas’ creditworthiness reflects these growing vulnerabilities within a context of a weak external position with growing levels of external debt, double-digit unemployment, high nonperforming loans in the banking system, and high household indebtedness.”

S&P added that Baha Mar was unable to come to the Bahamas’ rescue in time to avoid a downgrade, effectively dismissing the $3.5 billion development’s economic impact for much of 2017. “The country’s largest tourism project, Baha Mar, is set to open in phases beginning in 2017. We believe that it will take time before the resort is able to operate at full capacity,” the rating agency added.

However, in a statement last night, the Government slammed S&P’s latest downgrade, saying it did not “fully consider” initiatives that were already underway to generate greater economic growth.

Its statement, though, did not identify specific initiatives by name other than Baha Mar, indicating that all the Government’s growth and job creation hopes are pinned on the Chinese government and the project’s new owner, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE).

“Definitive public statements have now been issued by the new owners of Baha Mar, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises’ (CTFE) Bahamian subsidiary, and almost 1,000 workers are currently on-site engaged in completion activities,” the statement said. “With the first phase of Baha Mar’s opening, slated for April 2017, CTFE estimates that, starting next month, 1,500 jobs will be generated for Bahamians, and grow to 3,300 through August 2017.

Building on the more than $100 million ex gratia payments made to former em-

ployees and creditors, this restart comes with additional capital investments approaching $1 billion that will have significant direct and indirect impacts on the economy.”

Despite admitting unforseen events such as the two recent hurricanes, Joaquin and Matthew, had placed additional strain on the Government’s resources and added to the debt stock, the Government said that the country’s short-to medium term prospects “are positive, and the immediate focus of policy makers is on ensuring that the many growth promoting initiatives underway take root and yield the expected dividends”. It said it is confident that the Bahamas will be able to secure an improved rating outcome.

S&P at least decided to place a ‘stable’ outlook on The Bahamas and its credit rating, with the agency implying that - barring major negative shocks to the economy - no further downgrades are likely over the next two years.

Moody’s, the other leading rating agency, is keeping The Bahamas at ‘invest-

ment grade’, taking a more relaxed view on Baha Mar and the Christie administration’s fiscal consolidation efforts.

Private sector and political reaction was swift, all interpreting it as a strong signal that The Bahamas rapidly needs to alter its fiscal and economic course.

Edison Sumner, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s (BCCEC) chief executive, said: “It has to be seen as a real wake up call.

It’s not good news for anybody.”

Kenwood Kerr, chief executive of Providence Advisors, said: “It just raises the uncertainty, and with oil prices rising, it’s going to have a knock-on effect for us. It was not unexpected, but is not welcome.”

Loretta Butler-Turner, the Opposition’s leader in the House of Assembly, responded: “Oh my God, this is not a good Christmas. We’ve obviously gone over that precipice that I’ve been talking about for some time.”

Full analysis, see Business

BPL BAHA MAR BILL PAID IN FULL from page one

National Insurance Board (NIB) have also been paid in full.

Although government agencies were expected to receive payments from the process, Prime Minister Perry Christie had previously suggested that the government would only be paid back some of the money owed it.

Earlier this month, for instance, Mr Christie said

in Parliament: “…The government of the Bahamas and the Bahamian utility companies, such as Bahamas Power & Light, have received payment from EXIM Bank for some of their unsecured outstanding claims against the Baha Mar companies.”

Based on the most recent documents filed in the Supreme Court last year, Baha Mar owed BPL more than $20 million.

Mr Smith could not say yesterday how much money

was paid out to BPL, although he said it was a substantial amount.

A spokesperson for BPL also declined to disclose the amount paid to the company, citing policy requiring that financial information of clients not be disclosed.

“BPL, WSC, NIB, the utility companies and other government agencies were paid 100 cents on the dollar,” Mr Smith said yesterday. “The utility companies have to continue to provide services so they had the ability to say, if you don’t want to pay me, I’ll cut you off.”

He said those companies were paid the money owed them within the last “two to three weeks.”

His comments came as the Claims Committee begins to wind down its work.

According to officials, more than 90 per cent of employees and contractors

owed money by Baha Mar have had their claims dealt with through the ex-gratia process.

Mr Smith said: “Right now we’re negotiating, making an offer or trying to get more information. Regarding Bahamian employees and companies, there has been a very high settlement rate.”

Although companies were initially slow to come forward with claims, Mr Smith said this changed in recent weeks, with most companies owed money coming forward to collect payments.

The committee is now dealing with former foreign employees and companies of Baha Mar owed money.

“Some of the former foreign employees stayed, some left, some left and came back. Some didn’t submit a claim but we are attempting to make a broad settlement for all who applied,” he said.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, December 21, 2016, PAGE 7

Triple shooting suspects to face Supreme Court next month

By LAMECH JOHNSON Tribune Staff Reporter ljohnson@tribunemedia.net TWO men awaiting trial in connection with a triple shooting that occurred in September will be called on to answer to murder and attempted murder charges when they are formally arraigned in the Supreme Court next month.

Quentino Carey, 23,

and Jakota Johnson, 19, appeared in Magistrate’s Court on Monday for the presentation of a voluntary bill of indictment in the deaths of Mackenzie Telusnord and Mark Davis in Peardale.

They were to initially receive the documents in October and then again on December 5 but the documents were not ready and the matter was fur-

ther adjourned to December 19.

When the matter was called, the VBI which contained the Crown’s case against them were presented, bringing the matter to an end in the Magistrate’s Court.

The two men are now scheduled to stand before Justice Bernard Turner of the Supreme Court on January 20, 2017 where they will

be allowed to enter a plea to the charges they face.

Both men face two counts of murder and a charge of attempted murder. The murder charges fall under Section 291 (1)(B) of the Penal Code, meaning the accused will not face the discretionary death penalty if there is a conviction at the end of the Supreme Court trial.

It is alleged that the pair,

being concerned together on September 13, caused the deaths of Telusnord and Davis.

It is further alleged that they attempted to cause the death of eight-year-old Avanti Morley.

According to initial police reports, shortly after 7pm, a group of men were standing outside a home when three individuals emerged from nearby bush-

es, They all had handguns and opened fire into the crowd.

Telusnord and Davis were struck in the body along with young Avanti, who was also shot. Telusnord died at the scene while Davis died of his injuries in hospital three hours later.

Elsworth Johnson and Domek Rolle are the respective lawyers for Johnson and Carey.

PSYCHIATRIC STUDY FOR MAN ACCUSED OF KILLING MOTHER from page one

The accused did not respond and his head remained down.

“Are you able to assist me?” the chief magistrate asked, trying to get a response from the suspect.

“I’m trying to remember,” he muttered.

Chief Magistrate Ferguson-Pratt proceeded to read the charge and particulars brought against him.

Adderley’s murder charge falls under Section 291 (1)(B) of the Penal Code, meaning the accused will not face the discretionary death penalty if there is a conviction at the end of the Supreme Court trial.

It is alleged that he killed Lauramae Adderley on Monday, December 12.

According to initial reports from police, the victim was found dead in her home with apparent stab wounds. After the discovery, police said a male relative was helping in their investigation.

“Is it the intention of the Crown to proceed by way of voluntary bill of indictment?” the chief magistrate asked.

Police prosecutor Sgt Timothy Saunders said this

was the case.

Tonique Lewis, lawyer for Tamaal Adderley, made a request of the court for her client not to be remanded at the Department of Correctional Services.

“Given my instructions from the family, particularly the brother concerning his time in police custody, I’m requesting he not be ordered to DOCS but instead to Sandilands so he can be evaluated. I’m humbly making the request based on my instructions,” the lawyer stressed.

Sgt Saunders said he had no objection to the request but noted that the Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre did not have the facilities for an individual charged with that kind of offence.

“I believe I’ll have to agree with the Crown,” the chief magistrate said.

However, she added that she would note on his remand warrant that “he is to have a psychiatric evaluation”.

During the arraignment, Ms Lewis handed her client a tissue to wipe his tears.

A status hearing was fixed for January 4, 2017 with respect to the evaluation while the case is expected to be transferred to the Supreme Court on January 17, 2017.

TAMAAL Adderley pictured outside court yesterday.

43 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS HELD IN NORTHERN BAHAMAS ISLANDS

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

FORTY-THREE illegal immigrants were apprehended recently on two northern islands, including 16 this week in Bimini and 27 in Grand Bahama.

According to Grand Bahama police, a team of law enforcement officers acting on information went to a business in Alice Town, Bimini, around 6pm on Monday and discovered eight Chinese and seven Ecuadorian nationals. Police later arrested a Columbian man on Tuesday shortly after midnight in the area of the North Bimini Dock.

The immigrants were handed over to immigration officials and investigations are continuing into the matter.

In Freeport, immigration officials on Monday also apprehended a dozen Brazilians at an apartment in the

Hunters settlement, outside of Freeport.

Immigration officer Napthali Cooper reported that on Monday immigration officers acting on a tip went to an apartment complex, where eight men and four women were discovered.

The group was suspected of making preparatory steps to be smuggled into the United States. Mr Cooper said the Brazilians had arrived legally in The Bahamas, but overstayed their visitor’s stay and did not seek to have the clearance extended.

They were taken into custody and transported to immigration headquarters in Freeport for processing, and were flown to New Providence on Tuesday to the Detention Centre.

Last Friday, 15 Haitians were also discovered residing illegally in Freeport.

According to Mr Cooper, immigration officers

received information concerning some undocumented Haitians residing in the Freeport area.

Officers went to an abandoned apartment building in Freeport around 2pm to investigate and discovered 10 Haitians – five men, four women and one child - none of whom were in possession of documents to verify their legal status in The Bahamas.

A second group of five was discovered later in the evening around 9pm at an apartment on Settler’s Way. Immigration officers took three men, one woman, and one child into custody after they could not produce any documentation to verify their legal status in this country.

They were processed at Bahamas immigration headquarters and flown to Nassau, where they are being detained at the Detention Centre to await repatriation.

SOME of the migrants detained by authorities.

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MORE of the migrants who have been detained in the northern Bahamas.

FREEPORT COUPLE ARRESTED FOR ILLEGAL DRUGS AT HOME

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A FREEPORT couple was arrested on Sunday when police discovered a quantity of illegal drugs at

a residence in the Sergeant Major Road area. According to a police report, officers executed a search warrant shortly after 6pm at a residence, where they found a quantity of marijuana. A woman and man

who occupied the home were arrested and taken into custody for possession of dangerous drugs with intent to supply.

A formal arraignment is expected to take place early this week.

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PAGE 8, Wednesday, December 21, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

IN PRAISE OF ‘TOTERS’, A BAHAMIAN TRADITION

By LAVAUGHN A COOPER

WITH basically all of the year gone and the Christmas season here, taking home a lot of food with the small capacity to store it is still a usual thing.

You would think that ‘Aunty Sam’ and her extra phalanges had already gotten the memo by now because you intentionally didn’t buy any takeout plates and instead of having the extra pot of ‘peas ‘n rice’ on the stove, it’s in your bedroom closet for backup.

LAVAUGHN A COOPER The toting of food has become so common that it is now a confirmed Bahamian tradition! Almost every person invited has to take home something for their imaginary family, or the pet

dog Bingo who doesn’t eat dog food. Imagine having to tell ‘little Johny’ to take up an extra plate of food for the husband, cousin Mae never had; quite a conspiracy isn’t it?

Well that’s enough of that, let us chime for change. I myself have become so accustomed to the extra plates and pot cakes. So if you ask me, I’d prefer to attend parties and not host them. I have been taught to love my culture and accept it for what it is; toting is a part of that! My mother has trained me well. I can carry up to a

dozen plates of food in the wet truck of my old lady’s Honda in the blink of an eye. Although I specialise in the carrying of food, I am still not a ‘PCT’ - Public Certified Toter. Those are the people that will carry the food, the drinks, the plates, sanitary items and even the extra roll of tissue you left out for the guest.

The audacity of us toters!

I believe that Bahamian artist KB said it best.

“When the toters come to your party, they will cause you plenty of stress.” He was quite direct and blatant

about it in song. What better way to say it, than with the rhythm of Junkanoo blues and cowbells. He even made the toters like myself and others feel good about what we do. My apologies KB: it’s not my fault you prepared for your 50 invited guests and not 200. Attending a Saturday night party can eliminate so much stress on Sunday. It saves you money, cooking gas, time and, of course, food!

Now instead of preparing a five-course Sunday dinner, I can watch Channel 13 hoping I can find out which

politician had their hand in the ‘cookie jar’.

I’m quite certain you can see the benefits of fetching food back home. Oh what great joy of having mastered the skill of toting.

Question is … have you toted recently?

• This humourous article was first read by Lavaughn A Cooper, a student at the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute and employee at Dolphin Encounters, at the Apostles of the Endtime Church Youth Conference

SIR DURWARD KNOWLES, president of the BAPD.

YOUNGSTERS enjoying making music at the BAPD Christmas party.

SIR DURWARD AT BAPD CHRISTMAS PARTY THE Bahamas Association for the Physically Disabled (BAPD) held its annual Christmas party yesterday, a tradition which is supported by the Rotary Club of East Nassau, with

teachers and parents enjoying the pageant put on by the children.

After the performance, which included a demonstration by the resident physiotherapist and which was also

Photos: Aaron Davis

SANTA pays a visit to students at the party.

watched by BAPD President Sir Durward Knowles, Santa Claus distributed gifts to the students.

The BAPD junkanoo group, led by Barabbas, also performed on the drums.

ALL smiles at the BAPD Christmas party.

READERS DO NOT SUPPORT APPOINTMENT OF MONCUR IN The Tribune’s latest online poll, we asked readers if they supported Loretta Butler-Turner’s decision to appoint Rodney Moncur to the Senate.

At the time of going to press, 81 per cent of those voting did NOT support the appointment.

The poll is still open on tribune242.com, so don’t miss a chance to cast your vote.

Commenting on the issue of Mr Moncur’s appointment, Publius said: “Loretta is an embarrassment.”

Realfreethinker had this to say: “I guess the same amount of thought went into this selection as to what went into the decision to depose Minnis. Jokes.”

Licks2 thought Mrs Butler Turner had made a bad decision: “She is done . . . now watch for the ‘six’ to distance themselves from her, Mr McCartney and Mr Moncur. She bit off more than she could chew . . . now it will choke her to death politically. What ever happened to Mr Scott or Brent Symonette et al? This charade is a low blow to our country.”

Themessenger said: “Now we have the lunatics running the asylum . . . God help us all.”

ThisIsOurs thought Mrs Butler-Turner had got it “all wrong”: “The Senate is the

place for WISE men. Parliament is the place where you place people to ‘represent’ the common man.

Loretta has got it ALL wrong. Please Andre and ‘others’, write a letter to the GG posthaste to oust her as leader of the Opposition – either that or hopefully she decides to quit. Again.”

Economist said: “This should be interesting. How this plays out will give us a clear picture of how well she is capable of leading. It will either blow up in her face or she will clearly demonstrate leadership skills we need, if we are going to turn this country around. I wait with baited breath.”

There was this from Hallmark: “The Senate is a useless, rubber stamp institution anyway and the debates and discussions were as interesting as watching paint.

I will give them a chance.

Can’t do worse than that elitist, all for me baby crew in there now. God Bless them and keep them and grant them wisdom to continue to act on behalf of the Bahamian people.”

Emac did not support the move: “Well LBT just got a vote of no confidence from

me! This is too confusing.

Why would she put someone in this position who vehemently opposes her philosophies and someone who views are archaic and demeaning to women, to say the least?”

Voltaire said: “I am willing to give this a chance.

The political class of this country needs to be shaken up. It will not be shaken up by more of the same ‘honourable’ characters. Don’t get me wrong, this could all blow up, but I am with Economist. The lady has my attention now. Let’s see how she handles this new opposition . . .”

And DEDDIE5 had this to say: “Strange move indeed. If someone like Hubert Ingraham made such a move I would most likely give him the benefit of the doubt. LBT on the other hand is in the process of trying to establish legitimacy. I don’t see how this appointment aids her in the mind of right thinking voters.

Maybe right thinking voters are not her target with this appointment.”

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

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, December 21st, 2016, PAGE A9

‘SUPER MARIO RUN’ MAKES MISSTEPS

SUPER MARIO might be running, but a hefty price tag for a mobile game just won’t fly with the masses.

The world so far is underwhelmed by “Super Mario Run,” which Nintendo released for the iPhone last week. This is no “Pokemon Go,” which captivated millions of players in their quest to collect digital monsters at real-world locations.

Nintendo’s stock price has fallen 7 percent on the Tokyo Stock Exchange since the game’s Dec. 15 launch, and the game is rated just 2.5 stars out of 5 on the iPhone app store.

The problem, it seems, is not with the quality or design of “Super Mario Run.” Both are top notch, with enough elements of classic Mario to satisfy old-school Nintendo fans, alongside mobile-friendly features such as the ability to play with one hand.

Rather, Nintendo’s overly optimistic $10 price tag, as well as an inexplicable requirement for players to be con-

MARIO has returned to screens in Nintendo’s new iPhone game, which is the No.1 free app on iTunes.

WORLD UNDERWHELMED BY NO.1 FREE APP

stantly connected to the internet while playing, could be enough to turn off all but the most hardcore fans.

As of Monday, “Mario Run” was the top free app on iTunes. This, of course, is misleading, as the app isn’t free if you want to play beyond a few minutes.

AUDACIOUS PRICE TAG TEN dollars is too much for a latte and too much for a mobile game, even if it comes with truffle shavings in the case of the latte and the world’s best known video game character in the case of “Super Mario Run.” Players can download the game for free and play three of the 24 available “worlds.” This takes only a few minutes and leaves one extremely unsatisfied. It’s like dining at a pricey restaurant knowing you can only afford the appetiser.

THE FIX: Nintendo should slash the price in half and offer more content for free, says Jordan Edelson, CEO of Appetizer Mobile, a mobile app development agency in New York. Oh, and once the price is cut, it would be a good idea to make the game available on Android, too. After all, most people in the world have Android phones. Android users tend to be less willing than iPhone users to pay for apps, so a price cut is essential.

STAYING CONNECTED THE game requires a constant internet connection. It’s understandable with “Pokemon Go,” which uses your physical location as part of game play. There is no obvious reason need for it with “Mario,” and that just leads to frustrations. Why can’t one play on the subway? Or in airplane mode on the airplane as holiday travel season heats up? What if someone is away from Wi-Fi and has a limited cellular

A NEW battery based on nanotechnology is on display during the official start of a battery production line in Prague. The new battery developed by the HE3DA company is supposed to be be more efficient, long-lasting, cheaper, lighter and above all safer. It is designed to store energy from renewable electric sources and cooperate with smart grids. Next planned type will be suitable for electric cars. (AP)

PRODUCTION BEGINS ON BATTERIES BASED ON NANOTECHNOLOGY A CZECH company opened on Monday a production line for batteries based on nanotechnology, which uses tiny parts invisible to human eyes. The batteries are touted as potentially more efficient, longer-lasting, cheaper, lighter and above all safer.

The automatic line will operate for several months to get all necessary certifications. Then, Prague-based company HE3DA said Monday it is ready to launch other lines in a new plant built in eastern Czech Republic, and at a factory in Slovakia.

Nanotechnology can increase the size and surface of batteries electrodes, making them sponge-like so that they can absorb more energy during charging and ultimately increasing the energy storage capacity.

There’s an appetite for batteries that would hold more energy, last longer, be cheaper and safer, a crucial step key for the development and success of many technologies, from solar and wind en-

ergy to electric cars.

Several ways are being explored by researchers around the globe on how to achieve that. Tesla Motors has also been building a “gigafactory” to produce conventional lithium-ion batteries for use in its electric cars and potentially to store electricity for homes.

HE3DA president Jan Prochazka said he was confident his invention provides a solution other current products can’t offer.

“We don’t want to compete with anyone on the market,” Prochazka said.

“We’re building a new market.”

His battery is designed to store energy from renewable electric sources. Next planned type will be suitable for electric cars.

The price has not been set yet but it is supposed to be about a half of the cost of current lithium batteries of the same capacity.

Associated Press

data plan? Sorry!

In a statement, Nintendo said connectivity “allows us to offer a variety of features and services that enhance the play experience. ‘Super Mario Run’ is not a static experience, but rather one that players can continue to return to again and again to enjoy something new and unexpected.”

The features Nintendo cites include the ability to play across multiple devices, limited-time rewards and access to player data and scores for challenges with other players. None of these sound essential to an enjoyable playing experience.

THE FIX: Drop the connectivity requirement.

“If you are trying to position it as a casual game (that can be played) with one hand, you want people to be able to play it wherever they are,” Edelson says.

WHAT NINTENDO GOT RIGHT IF “Super Mario Run” gets over these two big hurdles, there is still a chance the game could be a success. After all, Nintendo fans have been waiting for a mobile Mario for nearly a decade, pretty much ever since mobile games have existed, so they are likely to give the Japanese gaming giant a second chance.

With this much waiting, expectations have understandably been high. Critics, who judge the game based on what it’s like to play it, have given it an average of 78 out of 100 on the game reviews aggregator Metacritic. This counts as “generally favourable.”

And they are right. Nintendo has done a good job translating Mario’s classic, side-scrolling world to a mobile screen. Mario runs without players needing to do anything, so they can focus on collecting coins and knocking out bigger enemies (usually by jumping on them). The music is music to the ears of any ‘80s and ‘90s Nintendo fan, and yes, you can play with one hand.

Users, though, have rated it 5.6 out of 10 on Metacritic. Many are angry about the price and the inability to play while commuting. And since it’s users and not critics who will go out and buy the game — or not — Nintendo may have a problem on its hands.

BARBARA ORTUTAY Associated Press

UBER WILL KEEP SELF-DRIVING CARS IN SAN FRANCISCO UBER’S self-driving cars will keep ferrying passengers around San Francisco, the ride-hailing company said Friday — a few hours before state prosecutors threatened to haul Uber before a judge if the service is not suspended immediately.

In a sharply worded letter, attorneys with the California’s Department of Justice demanded that Uber get a special state permit if it wants to continue. If not, “the attorney general will seek injunctive and other appropriate relief,” according to the letter.

Though there was no deadline in the letter, a spokeswoman for California transportation regulators, Melissa Figueroa, told The Associated Press in a text that the state would take action “early next week” if Uber doesn’t comply.

Uber began the pilot project Wednesday with a few Volvo SUVs that are tricked out with a suite of sensors allowing them to steer, brake and accelerate. A person sits behind the wheel, just in case.

Officials with Uber and the state have talked several times this week after the state Department of Motor Vehicles issued a similar legal threat. The leader of the company’s self-driving programme, Anthony Levandowski, described those as “frank conversations” which left him unswayed .

State lawyers insist that Uber’s cars are “autonomous vehicles” which need the permit to ply public roads.

Levandowski said he respectfully disagrees, arguing Uber does not require the permit that 20 other companies testing the technology in California have gotten because the Volvos have backup drivers behind the wheel monitoring the cars. That means the Volvos are not “autonomous vehicles” under the state’s definition, he argued.

Levandowski likened the Volvos’ abilities to those of Tesla cars that have the Autopilot feature which allows them to steer without a person touching the wheel and to brake and accelerate without a person touching the pedals. He questioned why the thousands of Teslas on California roads don’t need a permit if Uber’s cars do. San Francisco’s mayor has sided with the state. And a consumer advocacy group suggested that the state should do more than force Uber to stop.

“We believe their activity is a criminal offence under the motor vehicle code, punishable with up to six months in jail,” John Simpson of the group Consumer Watchdog said in a written statement. “CEO Travis Kalanick should be arrested immediately.”

Associated Press

TECHTALK • FACEBOOK is taking new measures to curb the spread of fake news on its huge and influential social network.

It will focus on the “worst of the worst” offenders and partner with outside fact-checkers and news organisations to sort honest news reports from made-up stories that play to people’s passions and preconceived notions.

The social network will make it easier for users to report fake news when they see it, which they’ll be able to do in two steps, not three.

If enough people report a story as fake, Facebook will pass it to third-party fact-checking organisations that are part of the nonprofit Poynter Institute’s International Fact-Checking Network.

Five fact-checking and news organisations are working with Facebook on this: ABC News, The Associated Press, FactCheck. org, Politifact and Snopes.

Facebook says this group is likely to expand.

• AN encrypted messaging app often used by journalists and activists in Egypt has been blocked by authorities, its maker said late Monday.

Signal’s owner, San Francisco-based Open Whisper Systems, said that it had investigated complaints over connectivity issues from Egyptians and “have confirmed that Egypt is censoring access to Signal.”

In a statement posted to Twitter , the group that it would begin “deploying censorship circumvention” in the coming weeks.

It was not immediately possible to reach Egyptian officials for comment on the alleged ban Tuesday.

The Associated Press was unable to immediately verify whether the block was in place or how it worked. Although an AP journalist based in Egypt was unable to successfully make or receive calls over Signal late Monday, several AP journalists in Cairo were able to exchange calls and instant messages as usual on Tuesday.

• TWITTER’S video app, Vine, will live on as a simpler tool for the micromessaging service.

Twitter caused an uproar among Vine’s loyal users seven weeks ago when it said it would shut down the app, which plays six-second videos in an infinite loop.

Twitter said in a blog post Friday that the app will be renamed “Vine Camera” and will let users post the looping videos they make to Twitter or save them to a phone’s camera roll. Vine users will be able to link to a Twitter account so their followers can find them there.

Users can also now download videos they have made from Vine’s website and the existing app, until the new version comes out.

Vine Camera will be available in January.

PAGE 10, Wednesday, December 21, 2016

THE TRIBUNE

Renovated Wyndham re-opens

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net AFTER an extensive $4m hurricane restoration, Viva Wyndham Fortuna Beach Resort reopened its newly renovated property to guests and is expecting 90 per cent occupancy during the Christmas season.

The all-inclusive property welcomed its first group

visitors on Saturday with the arrival of 90 Canadian guests by Sunwing Airlines.

Viva suffered significant hurricane damage on October 6 caused by Hurricane Matthew. The resort was closed for more than two months.

Loyda Torres, of Viva, said: “There is a feeling of excitement throughout the property, especially after the break caused by Hurri-

cane Matthew.

“We are really happy to be back; you have to take the good things from the bad side but it helps us to improve, so 2017 will be great.”

Claudio Natella, general manager, said the resort has a really good local rate at $80 per person with single occupancy, which is allinclusive.

“In fact, for every adult paid, we allow one kid from

two to 12-years-old free,” he said.

The occupancy rate is around 32 per cent, but levels are expected to peak during the Christmas season to 90 per cent by December 22.

Viva is one of the few allinclusive properties open on Grand Bahama post Hurricane Matthew. It offers everything from food and beverages, nautical and

motorised sports, to theme nights and parties, as well as beach access.

Betty Bethel, director at the Ministry of Tourism in Grand Bahama, believes that Viva’s ability to offer an upgraded product for the arrival of the guests to Grand Bahama is very significant.

“Not too long ago, we didn’t think that we would have any winter service at

all, and here we are today.

Viva has opened with a brand new $4 million dollar injection into the property and they are receiving guests from Toronto via Sunwing,” she said.

Despite the many challenges in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, Ms Bethel said that the reopening of the resort proves that Grand Bahama still has a product to offer.

ISLAND LUCK HOSTS CARNIVAL EVENT

THE ISLAND Luck Cares Foundation held a Kids Carnival Event at the Carnival Grounds at the weekend, where thousands of children received free rides, food, drinks and gifts from Santa.

Photos: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff

MINISTRY HELPS YOUNGSTERS TO CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS ON THE CAY THE Ministry of Tourism is treating dozens of little ones from children’s homes and various communities to an exciting experience at “Christmas On Da Cay”.

Children from the Children’s Emergency Hostel, the Bilney Lane Children’s Home, Urban Renewal and the Ranfurly Home For Children all got to meet Santa Claus and enjoy mouthwatering Bahamian dishes at the Christmas Village on Arawak Cay. They also all enjoyed an evening of gifts, games,

treasure hunts and music.

The Children’s Emergency Hostel visited the Christmas Village on Tuesday, December 13; the Bilney Lane Children’s Home enjoyed a great Bahamian Christmas on Thursday, December 15 and the Ranfurly Home For Children had their evening of fun on Friday, December 16.

“This is exactly the type of atmosphere we’ve been looking for the children this holiday season. It is fun, safe and exciting and they are having a great time. We were thrilled to be invited

by the Ministry of Tourism and we will definitely be back at least once more this week,” said Ranfurly Administrator L Alexander Roberts.

More than 100 children from the Urban Renewal programme will visit the cay today.

“We are so honoured to give back to our little ones during this season,” said Carla Stuart, senior director of national planning and special markets. “The Ministry of Tourism envisaged Christmas on the Cay as a celebration of all

things Bahamian. It also aims to share that experience with our visitors and locals, particularly our children. This is an exciting development for us in the ministry and for the dozens of children we will host.”

The Christmas Village, which opened to the public on December 5, is an exciting venue for Bahamians and visitors to gather and enjoy a Bahamian Christmas.

The Christmas Village is open to the public every weeknight from 5pm – 9pm

showcasing authentic Bahamian gifts and Christmas decorations, mouthwatering holiday treats and great Bahamian entertainment.

Each night will showcase a new and exciting event for visitors and locals alike.

The highlight of each evening is the culinary demonstration where those attending can learn how to debone a turkey, make Bahamian eggnog and much more.

The Christmas Village at Arawak Cay is also a onestop shop for all of your holiday needs featuring a

variety of artisans selling unique Bahamian gifts and Christmas decorations.

The last night for the Christmas Village is Thursday, December 22.

The Ministry of Tourism wraps up its Christmas celebrations the day before Christmas Eve. On December 23, all roads lead to the Thomas A Robinson Stadium for the most exciting Christmas football game, the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl.

For more information, visit www.tourismtoday. com/events.

PASTORS CONDEMN SUPPORT OF APPOINTMENT OF EXPERT TO INVESTIGATE LGBT ABUSE

By AVA TURNQUEST Tribune Chief Reporter aturnquest@tribunemedia.net

LOCAL pastors yesterday continued their reproach of the position taken by the country on a United Nations resolution that sought to block the appointment of a UN independent expert to investigate worldwide cases of discrimination and abuse against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people.

Pastors Cedric Moss, Alfred Stewart and Lyall Bethel expressed disappointment over the country’s decision to side with a “slim majority” of nations to uphold Professor Vitit Muntarbhorn’s appointment, and accused the government of misrepresenting the views and wishes of the “overwhelming” majority of Bahamians.

The pastors raised alarm over the upcoming resolution in an e-mail, sent to Foreign Affairs and Immigration Minister Fred Mitchell last Friday. Mr Mitchell declined to comment on the matter yesterday.

In a follow-up e-mail yesterday, the pastors wrote: “We are disappointed that The Bahamas voted with a slim majority of countries

to allow without any deferment the appointment of Professor Vitit Muntarbhorn as the independent expert. Professor Muntarbhorn has publicly announced that he will use his appointment to promote LGBT ideology, so by supporting his appointment, it is clear that you and your government support his plans.

“This, we respectfully submit, is wrong and is yet another example of the Bahamas government’s misrepresentation of the views and wishes of the overwhelming majority of Bahamians at the United Nations.”

An international law professor from Thailand, Mr Muntarbhorn was appointed in September and given a three-year mandate to investigate incidents of discrimination and abuse around the world.

Monday’s resolution represented the second attempt

by The African Group, a regional bloc comprised of 54 member countries, to block the appointment.

Underscoring that there is no international consensus on sexual orientation and gender identity, the African bloc has argued that the expert’s mandate had no legal basis.

According to reports,

the UN human rights committee rejected an African draft resolution opposing the expert’s work on November 21.

The pastors’ e-mail continued: “Nevertheless, we take some comfort from the fact that these CARICOM countries demonstrated democratic representation and respected the views of their citizens by voting to prevent the appointment of Professor Muntarbhorn and the promotion of his LGBT ideology: Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Grenadines.

“We also note that Barbados, Dominica, Grenada, Haiti, and Trinidad and Tobago abstained in today’s vote, which would have a better option for The Bahamas than voting for the appointment of Professor Muntarbhorn.

“But our greatest comfort lies in the fact that there is a sovereign God who raises up and brings down political leaders and parties, and he always has the final say.”

The email added: “Finally, while we firmly disagree with you and your government on this issue, please be assured of our ongoing prayers for you as you carry out your stewardship of leadership on behalf of the Bahamian people.”