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Volume: 121 No.23, December 21, 2023

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LEFT STRANDED

BY BAHAMASAIR Passengers stuck without help or place to stay - and Romer says ‘no excuse’

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net BAHAMASAIR passengers travelling to North Eleuthera were stranded in Rock Sound on Monday after they were forced to disembark their plane without warning or help with accommodations.

Chaos unfolded as some chased expensive taxis and

argued with staff about getting their luggage.

A Bahamasair official told The Tribune the airline would respond to questions about the episode but couldn’t say when.

Dr Kenneth Romer, deputy director of tourism, said the matter prompted an urgent meeting of various agencies,

The sound of Christmas music

THE ROYAL Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) Marching Band perform during the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) Annual Christmas Beat Retreat yesterday.

SEE PAGE THREE for more.

Photo: Dante Carrer

SEE PAGE FOUR

HOLIDAY HEARTACHES FOR THE FAMILIES OF THOSE STILL MISSING

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net THIS Christmas season is anything but merry for families still hoping for the return of their missing relatives.

Kyle Carey and Daniel Padilla, Jr, disappeared on May 11 and October 2, respectively.

Their families are facing the holidays with lingering questions about their whereabouts.

Mr Carey’s relatives felt the weight of his absence hard on his November 14 birthday.

Although his family’s search efforts are continuing, his mother,

Blue Lagoon ferry back in service ‘Whatever is

By RASHAD ROLLE Tribune News Editor rrolle@tribunemedia.net TRANSPORT Minister JoBeth Coleby-Davis said the Port Department has approved Blue

Lagoon Island to restart its ferry services “subject to the revised operational protocols”.

Her ministry had suspended the excursion company’s commercial ferries pending an

investigation into the nearsinking of one of its boats, the Islander III, which led to a tourist’s death on November 14.

The company’s licence SEE PAGE FIVE

SEE PAGE FIVE

Spreading Christmas cheer

THE TRIBUNE Santa Claus Committee, as part of a partnership with BACSWN, Kelly’s and Super Value, last night distributed toys to children in the Englerston community, with local MP Glenys Hanna Martin, the Minister of Education and Vocational Training, in attendance. See PAGES 2, 30 & 31.

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

needed’ Will BE SPENT ON CARIFTA COSTS

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net YOUTH, Sports, and Culture Minister Mario Bowleg said the government would spend whatever is necessary to make certain next year’s CARIFTA Aquatics Championships is “great”.

“We are still working on the overall cost as it relates to what this CARIFTA games is going to cost us,” he said, “and at the end of the day, the cost doesn’t matter because it’s an investment in the young people and that’s what this SEE PAGE THREE

PAGE 2, Thursday, December 21, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

MAKING CHRISTMAS SPECIAL

THE TRIBUNE Santa Claus Committee, as part of a partnership with BACSWN, Kelly’s and Super Value, last night distributed toys to children in the Englerston community, with local MP Glenys Hanna Martin, the Minister of Education and Vocational Training, in attendance. See PAGES 30-31 for more.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 21, 2023, PAGE 3

Christmas Beat Retreat on Bay Street

OFFICIALS including Ann Marie Davis, the wife of Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, Governor General Cynthia ‘Mother’ Pratt, Chief of Police Clayton Fernander and other officials attending the Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) Annual Christmas Beat Retreat yesterday.

Photos: Dante Carrer

‘Whatever is needed’ Will be spent on Carifta Costs from page one minister is all about, investing in the young people and we could never put a dollar value on developing our young Bahamian athletes.

“So, when you are looking for a cost, the cost is whatever it costs to make them great.”

Mr Bowleg recently said $10m stadium repairs will be completed before next year’s CARIFTA swim championships and IAAF World Relays.

Repairs to the Thomas A Robinson Stadium and the Betty Kelly-Kenning National Swim Complex have been ongoing.

In September, Mr Bowleg said roughly $2m would be budgeted for infrastructure

development for CARIFTA. “Let me first say for the media, when this government decides to upgrade this facility, the investments in the National Sports Authority and all of our facilities are for the athletes of The Bahamas to ensure they have the best facilities in order to maintain their level of preparation and performance at the international level,” he said yesterday.

“At some point, we have to do this with all the facilities and so when you see the investment made in all the facilities, it’s investing in the young people for the betterment of their development and their discipline, whichever discipline it may be, and that’s what’s going on.”

PAGE 4, Thursday, December 21, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

Left stranded

by Bahamasair from page one including Bahamasair, the Airport Authority, Bahamas Air Navigation Services Authority and the Ministry of Tourism.

“There is absolutely no excuse when any agency drops the ball,” he said.

A plane was expected to travel from New Providence to Rock Sound to North Eleuthera to New Providence, but the first flight was reportedly delayed by an hour and a half, leaving around 4.30pm.

Those who expected to fly from Rock Sound to North Eleuthera were shocked to suddenly learn of the cancellation of that leg of the trip, according to Sophie Melissa Taylor, who wrote about the incident in a public Facebook post.

She said staff initially prevented passengers from getting their luggage.

“I was travelling alone with my two-year-old son, his asthma medication/ machine is in the luggage as well as other must have items checked in,” she said.

“How do you mean we can’t get our luggage!? And how do you mean there are no taxis available?!”

She said at least five infants were on the plane.

SCREENSHOT of a video taken by one of the passengers of a Bahamasair flight to Eleuthera that went sour when the airline made people disembark at a stop before their final destination.

She said it felt like a “war zone situation” when people started disembarking the plane, only to stand

on the tarmac demanding their luggage, which staff initially refused to give them.

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“If they knew this was a thing,” she wrote, “why didn’t they tell us this before the flight took off,

or mid-flight? Or even when we landed and allowed us to get off the plane with ample time like scheduled Rock Sound passengers?”

Describing the experience as dehumanising, she said passengers got their luggage but were forced out of the airport building and into the “cold dark” outside.

She said she and her son eventually rode to Governor’s Harbour thanks to a couple on their honeymoon, where they waited until a passing friend took them to North Eleuthera.

Another passenger who spoke on the condition of anonymity said taxis were charging $150 per passenger to get to North Eleuthera.

She said she had frantically tried to catch a Southern Air flight, the last of the day, after leaving the Bahamasair plane.

She said she doesn’t usually fly on Bahamasair, but started doing as a result of concern about the safety of other airlines.

“People drove down for the flight and they were like, I don’t have nowhere else to go,” she said.

In an interview on Beyond the Headlines on Eyewitness News last

night, Dr Romer said the crew skipped North Eleuthera because time was running out and the plane had to finish its operations before sunset.

He said Bahamasair had two aircraft out of service that day, impacting its schedule. He said the Airport Authority also identified “precision approach indicator lights” issues that contributed to the debacle.

“What was communicated? When was it communicated, and most importantly, how was it communicated? We might overlook some of the issues as it relates to equipment, but we cannot overlook the interactions,” he said, suggesting staff interaction with the frustrated customers was poor. “We can control how we speak to them.”

He said officials would retrain staff and put people on the ground to ensure better customer interactions.

“Persons who travel again expect that their travel is safe, and they expect that persons will handle them appropriately as it relates again to service,” he said, adding stakeholders were told to implement a plan to prevent similar episodes.

PARTICIPANTS OF BAHAMASAIR PLANE DESIGN COMPETITION UPSET OVER CHOSEN ARTWORK

By EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter ebowleg@tribunemedia.net THE decoration of a new Bahamasair plane sparked complaints from artists who submitted designs for a competition.

People were invited to submit work to decorate the plane for the 50th anniversary of independence celebrations.

Participants said the airline did not communicate with them properly before it ultimately chose the official logo embraced by the National Independence Secretariat.

“We still have another half a year left and so the airplane will display the national design for the 50th anniversary celebration,” Tracy Cooper, the airline’s managing director, told Eyewitness News on Tuesday.

Marcus Miller, one participant in the competition, said he was disappointed because better designs were submitted than what was chosen.

“Even if it was too expensive, they could have come to one person and be like, hey, we want you to design, but can you tweak it a little bit to make it more affordable?”

He said when he submitted his design earlier this year, the email identified on the competition flyer wasn’t working.

“I was like, they aint serious about it,” he said. “I was like, let me do it any which ways so I can just post it on my social media and I can just put it in my portfolio.”

Joel Murray said he also experienced issues submitting his application. He said communication was poor.

“They said, wait to hear back from them in two weeks, but I never did,” he said, adding the airline should have said what design was chosen.

QUAKER BRAND GRANOLA CEREALS RECALL OVER POTENTIAL SALMONELLA CONTAMINATION A PRODUCT recall has been issued for granola bars and granola cereals from the Quaker Oats Company.

An extensive list has been published at www. quakergranolarecall.com including Big Chewy Bars, Chewy Bars, Chewy Dipps, Puffed Granola Cereal, Simply Granola Cereal Protein Granola Oats, and granola bars in various snack boxes.

The products are being recalled, says the company “because they have the potential to be contaminated with salmonella, an organism that can cause severe infections and, occasionally, fatal outcomes in young children, frail or elderly people, and others

with weakened immune systems”.

The statement from the company added: “Healthy individuals infected with salmonella typically experience fever, diarrhea (which may be bloody), nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, Salmonella infection can lead to the organism entering the bloodstream and causing more serious illnesses, such as infected arteries (ie, infected aneurysms), endocarditis, and arthritis.”

The products listed were produced in the United States and distributed to The Bahamas. The company urges consumers to check their pantries for

any of the listed products and discard them.

Consumers with any of the mentioned products can return them to the store where they were purchased, presenting their purchase receipt. For additional information, consumers can contact consumers.1800@pepsico. com To date, Quaker has not received reports of illnesses related to the products covered by this market withdrawal.

Quaker has reported these actions to the relevant local authorities.

The withdrawal only applies to the specific products listed on www.quakergranolarecall.com. No other Quaker product is affected.

THE TRIBUNE

Holiday heartaches for the families of those still missing from page one

Tracey Carey, said this season is difficult.

“We are still hopeful that he is going to be okay and return, but it is very difficult right now because it’s Christmas, but you know we’re just depending on each other and just trying to stay positive,” she told The Tribune yesterday.

“It’s just extremely hard we had to go through the birthday and now with the holidays, but we are just relying on each other and staying strong and trusting in God. That’s the main thing and the only thing that’s been getting us through this.”

She described Kyle’s disappearance as a gap

in the family. The family has no significant leads and is offering $25,000 as a reward for anyone who can lead them to him.

“His family misses him.

We love him, and we are just waiting for him to come back home,” she said.

Stephen Sands, Mr Padilla’s uncle, similarly feels the pain of not knowing what happened.

Daniel, 29, was last seen on October 2 in a grey Ford Fusion, license plate AX5837. He was wearing long trousers and a navy and white striped buttondown shirt.

“He is still missing. We are taking it one day at a time,” Mr Sands said yesterday.

“For this family, it’s not

a ham and turkey Christmas for us. It’s a Daniel Christmas for us. That’s the kind of Christmas we are having.

“Maybe one bag of nuts may be in the house, but no ham, no turkey, no Christmas tree, no Christmas lights because we are still wondering where he is. Is he all right?

“Whoever got him, are they treating him well?

Or has he already left us? It’s so many different thoughts, and because of these thoughts going through our head, we are not stable in nothing we could say.”

“It’s so hard to say what it is. Every night, I go to bed waiting for an answer to come so I can understand.”

DANIEL PADILLA JR

Blue Lagoon ferry back in service from page one was suspended for at least one month.

Although it is unclear what new operational protocols the company must follow, Mrs Coleby-Davis said a comprehensive review of the operations and safety inspection of the company’s vessels were undertaken.

“The licence holder fully cooperated with the port and implemented a number of adjustments to the operations following the review,” she said.

Acting Port Controller Lieutenant Commander

Berne Wright told The Tribune last month that the catamaran that teetered fully complied with sector regulations, as did the captain.

He said the boat had the required number of life preservers, the vessel was registered with the Port Department, the captain was licensed, and the boat’s registration and insurance were up to date.

Passengers on the catamaran complained that staff panicked and didn’t help them as the ship sank.

Lt Cdr Wright said while this may become apparent

as investigations continue, staff conduct is a matter for the company and its internal operating procedures, not something addressed by existing laws and regulations.

Gayle Jarrett, 75, died during the incident. Her relatives told news organisations they were considering legal action.

Ms Jarrett had used her inheritance money to take her family on a five-day Caribbean trip honouring a family matriarch who had passed away before her gesture ended with her own death.

Thursday, December 21, 2023, PAGE 5

KYLE CAREY

PAGE 6, Thursday, December 21, 2023

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THE TRIBUNE

PICTURE OF THE DAY

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

LEON E. H. DUPUCH,

Publisher/Editor 1903-1914

SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH,

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

Publisher/Editor 1919-1972 Contributing Editor 1972-1991

RT HON EILEEN DUPUCH CARRON,

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

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As we celebrate, don’t forget the hurting IN yesterday’s Tribune, columnist Alicia Wallace reminded us that Christmas can be a hard time for some people.

She reminded us that some are in need of extra love and care at this time – including those who are grieving a lost loved one, those who are struggling financially, those who are separated from their families, those who experience violence at home.

There are more, of course, who need support.

In today’s Tribune, relatives of two people who went missing this year and who have not been found spoke of the challenge of facing the holiday season with no resolution to their search.

Kyle Carey disappeared on May 11.

There is a $25,000 reward for anyone who can lead his family to him – although there are no significant leads.

His birthday was on November 14, and his mother said: “It’s just extremely hard, we had to go through the birthday and now with the holidays, but we are just relying on each other and staying strong and trusting in God.” Daniel Padilla, Jr, disappeared on October 2. He was last seen in a Ford Fusion car, dressed in long trousers and a navy and white striped button-down shirt. And then he was gone.

His uncle, Stephen Sands, said: “For this family, it’s not a ham and turkey Christmas for us. It’s a Daniel Christmas for us. That’s the kind of Christmas we

are having.

“Maybe one bag of nuts may be in the house, but no ham, no turkey, no Christmas tree, no Christmas lights because we are still wondering where he is. Is he all right?”

For those of us in the midst of our celebrations of the Christmas season, we may all know someone who is experiencing a loss, who is looking at an empty chair around the Christmas table.

This is the time for many of us to be celebrating, but as we mark this Christian holiday, we should also act with care and love for those in need.

That might be passing on any information or clues about the missing men. It might be reaching out to hold a hand of someone suffering. It might be a phone call. It might be listening.

For those fortunate enough not to know someone experiencing a troubled Christmas, it might be dropping some money into a charity donation bucket so the charities can help those who need that helping hand.

It might be volunteering at a charity event. A church event.

For if there is one thing we should do more than anything else at Christmas, it is to show love. For those who need that love more at this time than any other, we can be there for them to show they need not feel alone.

We wish the best Christmas there can be to all, in the knowledge that for some that is a harder journey by far.

A VOLUNTEER for the Salvtion Arm seen ringing the bell outside the Mall at Marathon on Monday.

Charities have noted that donations have decreased.

Photo: Dante Carrer

Our passive response is concerning EDITOR, The Tribune.

Why corporate income tax?

EDITOR, The Tribune.

WHY is the Governor of Central Bank with his past experience as Financial Secretary promoting a Corporate Income Tax? Remember he was FS when VAT came into force which is the biggest Government revenue collecting agency ever … remember.

All taxes are paid by the consumer - joe public you and I … why can’t the Governor realise indirect revenue sources are the key?

If everyone paid their quota of taxes will there be need to tax more? PM Ingraham said a mouthful in 1994...’pay all your

taxes we can easily reduce them.’ $864 million taxes arrears...it would seem so.

Didn’t Government give civil service a pay increase?

That now translates to increased revenue-spend.

M THOMPSON Nassau, December 15, 2023.

Is our law enforcement impotent?

EDITOR, The Tribune.

IN many churches over the air waves we are hearing the words of Christmas Carols proclaiming Peace On Earth, but doubt we will hear those sentiments on our streets — nearly 100 murders this year. We are no longer shocked...almost a daily occurrence and seems Law Enforcement totally impotent.

Commodore of RBDF says migrant activity in the

north of the country has appreciably increased but that means the migrant sloops — go-fast boats pass under the eyes of RBDF Inagua and sail through the Bahamas unseen. Seems only when the US Coast Guard arrests we have any form of policing.

Headline Criminal granted Bail now applies to have that cancelled. He says ‘safer in jail!’ Where on God’s earth would you also hear that cry?

Conclusion failure, total failure daily one-two-three dead shot, is it time for location lockdowns with road blocks in the known crime areas? Crisis? No one, even the most profound politician, can continue to spin out of this...migrants seem to have free flow...criminal elements have created their own Justice system!

F HUMES Nassau, December 15, 2023.

THE Bahamian business community now appears alarmingly complacent in the face of escalating government overreach. It’s as though we’ve surrendered our spirit of defiance, meekly swallowing whatever directives and mandates are imposed upon us by policymakers.

This worrying trend of passivity, where voices that used to question and challenge now remain eerily silent, is reshaping our business landscape.

Outlandish policies are now met not with uproar, but with a disheartening acquiescence. Underlying this shift might be a pervasive fear of backlash – a concern so potent that I find myself, like many others, compelled to voice my concerns from behind the veil of a pseudonym. Or perhaps it’s a deeper, more existential malaise – a fading belief in our collective power to effect change. Either way, the once vibrant tapestry of our business community’s discourse is being muted, thread by thread, into a monochrome of resigned acceptance.

The latest episode in the saga of poor policy and overreach, now reaching its climax, is the controversial and impending audit requirements. This topic has been met with a disquieting hush, bordering on submission, rather than the fervent debate it deserves.

Alarmingly, only a handful of business leaders have dared to raise their voices.

The broader response from the public realm? A deafening silence, revealing a troubling passivity.

Turning our gaze to our supposed champions in community representative groups, the picture grows even more disconcerting.

The Bahamas Chamber of Commerce, which boasts of being the ‘voice of the business community,’ recently issued a statement that can only be described as pitifully tepid. They called merely for a postponement

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net of these audit requirements, tiptoeing around the urgent necessity for outright cancellation. This half-hearted approach falls embarrassingly short of the decisive action needed.

Equally disappointing is the stance of other organisations like the Organisation for Responsible Governance. Priding themselves as ‘fostering accountable governance in The Bahamas,’ where is their response to this critical issue? In a time when boldness and clarity are called for, these organisations’ failure to step up is not just disheartening; it’s a glaring testament to the erosion of proactive leadership in our business community.

The government’s handling of this entire affair seems to be marred by a series of missteps and questionable decisions. Their approach, characterised by a muddled stream of convoluted press releases and announcements, has only added to the confusion and frustration within the business community. The distribution of inconsistent and often conflicting statistics and insights further compounds the issue, leading to a sense of bewilderment and distrust.

Moreover, the government’s attempt to downplay the impact of the policy, asserting that it will affect only a small number of businesses, has been met with scepticism and criticism. If the policy’s reach is indeed as limited as claimed, it raises the question: why not directly engage with those affected entrepreneurs? Why not invite them to the table to voice their concerns and offer their perspectives?

This would seem a logical step in understanding the real-world implications of such a policy - a policy which, by the handling

thus far of the government, screams distrust and aggression towards the business community.

Instead, there appears to be a conspicuous focus on consultations with accountants, arguably the only group besides the government itself that may stand to benefit in the long run from these new audit requirements. This selective engagement raises questions about the government’s intentions and its commitment to genuinely understanding the policy’s impact on the broader business community.

The real tragedy unfolds in the human stories behind these soon-to-be affected businesses. Audits, known for their hefty price tags, both in direct costs and the hidden toll of man-hours and resources, are now a looming specter over the heads of low-margin businesses surpassing the $5 million threshold. It’s a financial albatross that threatens to strangle the life out of their operations.

Imagine the heartbreak of entrepreneurs, who, after pouring their passion and resources into their ventures, now face the grim prospect of laying off their loyal staff, or worse, pulling the plug on their dreams.

The Bahamas is rapidly transforming into a dystopian landscape for entrepreneurship — a graveyard where business dreams meet their demise.

Entrepreneurs already navigate a treacherous terrain fraught with excessive bureaucracy, protracted processes, and dubious dealings; and are now forced to push their dwindling entrepreneurial spirit even further. In this narrative, The Bahamas emerges not as a nurturing ground for business growth, but as a harsh terrain that seems almost designed to quell the fires of innovation and ambition.

C O WILLIAMS Nassau, December 13, 2023.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 21, 2023, PAGE 7

GBPA Workers Union concerned over safety and insurance for all at Grand Bahama Shipyard

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net COREY Cartwright, president of the Grand Bahama Port Authority Workers Union, expressed concern about an industrial accident involving a contract worker at the Grand Bahama Shipyard.

Although the victim, Graham Pinder, 23, is not a member of the GBPAWU, Mr. Cartwright said the incident was unfortunate and highlighted issues concerning safety and proper insurance coverage for all workers in the industrial sector.

“We are sorry that happened and extend our sincere well wishes to him in this incident, but it is an incident that will continue to happen if not addressed,” said Mr Cartwright.

He said the shipyard must prioritise the training of both contracted and permanent workers instead of only focusing on cost-saving.

Mr Pinder, a contract

worker, was cleaning a tanker when he fell some 60ft to the ground. He suffered a fractured skull and multiple injuries. He is hospitalised in New Providence.

Mr Cartwright indicated that most of the issues and incidents that have been occurring involve contract workers, not permanent workers at the shipyard.

Union leaders have expressed concern about casual employment because they believe it is a form of union busting.

Contract workers do not receive the same benefits as permanent workers, such as vacation leave and medical insurance.

The GBPAWU does not support casual employment at the shipyard.

“I believe casual workers should not be casual workers; they need to ensure anybody within the industrial workforce has proper insurance coverage and is knowledgeable about their work environment and aware of the dangers that go along with it,” Mr Cartwright said.

POLICE TRAFFIC DIVISION LOOKING TO INTRODUCE RED LIGHT CAMERA TECHNOLOGY

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net THE top traffic cop said yesterday that police want to introduce red light camera technology to improve the enforcement of road rules, but additional dialogue between police and lawmakers is needed to determine if the technology will be embraced.

“We haven’t started issuing tickets using traffic light cameras or anything,” Chief Superintendent of Police David Lockhart, the officer in charge of the Traffic Division, told reporters at the annual Police Beat Retreat yesterday.

“We are just issuing fixed penalties notices right now for persons found failing to stop in obedience to the traffic light.”

Some social media users have been concerned about what the technology would

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mean for those who run red lights early in the morning during low-traffic times.

The technology is used widely in the United States and other developed countries and was also introduced in Trinidad and Tobago to crack down on those who run red lights.

The technology provides 24-hour monitoring at traffic intersections for drivers who break red lights. If a vehicle is captured on camera running the red light, a photograph and video recording of the offence is sent electronically to the traffic enforcement centre, where it is analyzed and reviewed to determine or confirm whether there was a breach of the red light.

‘Christmas in the Gardens’ hosted by the Governor General

GOVERNOR General Cynthia ‘Mother’ Pratt takes a photo with children at ‘Crhistmas in the Gardens’ at Government House on Monday. Children were treated to popcorn, cotton candy, sweet treats, ice cream, hot cocoa, cookies, delicious Christmas dinner, face painting, artistic performances, a photo booth with Santa, and hoopla.

Photo: BIS

GOVERNOR General Cynthia Pratt hosted over 400 children from the Urban Renewal programme to ‘Christmas in the Gardens’ at Government House on Monday.

There were music performances by the National Children’s Choir, Keisha Baisden with a violin selection, and the ISBET Children’s Choir.

The Royal Bahamas Defence Force performed, with a special feature –– the Shabach Gospel Choir.

Lighting of the Christmas Tree was performed

by Mrs Pratt. The distribution of gifts gave the children early Christmas delight.

The decor team was led

by Mr Gregory Wilkinson, and logistics by Ms Cynette Archer. The National Independence secretariat team planned and executed the event on behalf of the Governor General, with gifts donated by the Christmas Committee and generous support from StarApple.

Children were treated to popcorn, cotton candy, sweet treats, ice cream, hot cocoa, cookies, delicious Christmas dinner, face painting, artistic performances, a photo booth with Santa, and hoopla.

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PAGE 8, Thursday, December 21, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

‘Until then it is still night’ THERE is an allegory that serves as a prism for some of the light and meaning of the Incarnation and Christmas: “An old Hasidic rabbi asked his pupils how they could tell when the night had ended and day begun, for daybreak is the time for certain holy prayers. ‘Is it,’ proposed one student, ‘when you can see an animal in the distance and tell whether it is a sheep or a dog?’ ‘No,’ answered the rabbi. “‘Is it when you can clearly see the lines on your own palm?’ ‘Is it when you can look at a tree in the distance and tell if it is a fig or a pear tree?’ ‘No,’ answered the rabbi each time. “‘Then what is it?’ the pupils demanded. ‘It is when you can look on the face of any man or woman and see that they are your sister or brother. Until then it is still night.’”

For several days recently it rained heavily on a number of islands in the country.

Storm clouds obscured the horizon. Driving was difficult. Already shorter days seemed even shorter. One is never certain how long storms will last.

It is difficult and at times impossible to see, to imagine, to wonder, in both senses, when surrounded by darkness.

The darkness that engulfs, depresses and paralyses the human soul often provokes a profound blindness that makes us incapable of seeing what is directly before our

blinkered eyes, whether shuttered or partially opened.

The darkness of sin and self-absorption sometimes makes us callous and indifferent to spouses, partners, children and other family members. It shields us from seeing the poor and vulnerable. Like a calcified cataract, it blinds us from those whom society treats with contempt.

It helps us to justify our behaviours, compulsions, and patterns of sin crying out for conversion and redemption.

Individuals, communities, tribes and nations can be blinded by conceit, racism and benighted nationalism.

The depth of blindness convulsing Sudan, the Middle East and other regions is staggering.

POPE Francis blows a candle on a cake as he celebrates his birthday with children assisted by the Santa Marta dispensary during an audience in the Paul VI Hall, at the Vatican, Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023. Pope Francis turned 87 on December 17.

Photo: Alessandra Tarantino/AP The pain and rage are so woman and see that they are any single group of people. national dish of the country: searing that it is difficult to your sister or brother. Until We are all chosen by God’s stew chicken, rice and peas have a conversation or to then it is still night.” Night love. This includes our worst and potato salad. Around enemies, those to whom we lunch time she would shout speak mindfully to others can last for generations.

Because Christmas is a bear grudges, and those who across the street: “Come for about the savagery of war and violence killing and time of light, joy, celebra- have betrayed us, often in your dinner!”

Under a net to keep away maiming thousands, so often tion and fellowship, storms the most vicious ways.

The Incarnation is not a the flies, the friend’s porin the name of religion and feel even heavier when juxtaposed to the season. It is Hallmark moment. It is the tion of the meal was there God. As the rabbi proclaimed: difficult to celebrate when most radical expression of Sunday after Sunday. Mrs one loses a beloved mother love that breaks through the Olive made him feel special.

“It is when you can look or sister to cancer, or feels most profound darkness and Yet, over time, he realized on the face of any man or the sting of death of a friend even the searing and dark- that her small acts of generof a lifetime, whose generos- est nights of our individual osity permeated the poorer ity knew few bounds. souls. neighbourhood. There were How does one celebrate We cannot see our own many special people who amidst the loss of a job or face except through a mirror, dwelled in her kindness and income that has made the and even then, sometimes generosity. year a slog of worry and only a mirror dimly. The School children, neighfear? How does one cele- first mirrors of a newborn bours, and others were brate amidst a difficult health are parents. In turn, they see recipients of her small acts diagnosis or the increasing themselves literally and figu- of kindness. Such small acts fragilities and limits of an ratively in the face of a child. multiplied constitute a revoageing body and mind? How When we gaze upon the lution. Given the incivility, does one celebrate absent faces of others, be they harshness and indifference a spouse who has passed family, friend, stranger, or that sometimes inhabits away? neighbour, we see ourselves daily life, greater kindness is We all navigate the dark- and we see the face of the potentially revolutionary. ness with different lamps divine in whose image we The donations that bubble or aids. Yet there are some are all wonderfully made. up in a Salvation Army kettle flickering lanterns we all And through the person of at Christmas multiply the share. These aids will not Jesus Christ we embrace generosity of the religious remove our pain and strug- eternity and the faces of all group. The additional volgle. But they may help to humanity. unteers who work at Project ease our burdens, to give us What blinds us and blocks Read Bahamas increase the greater perspective, to shine our ability to truly see number of children, youth some beams or rays into the others? We live in all manner and adults who may enjoy difficult and dark places. of bubbles, collectively and greater opportunity through There is a brief video on individually. Often, we live in literacy. The blood donations the Vatican News website our heads disconnected from that increase at the Blood that may also be viewed on others, suffering from spir- Bank help to save lives and YouTube of Pope Francis itual or moral claustrophobia to heal bodies. celebrating his 87th birth- from which we achingly long A daily communicant, day on Sunday of this week. to be free.

Mrs. Olive possessed Despite the burden of declinThe Incarnation is God’s extraordinary wealth: a love ing health and the demands liberation of humanity. of neighbour conjoined to of his office, Francis joyously Through the life, witness and a spirit of abiding generoscelebrated his birthday with resurrection of Christ we are ity that may liberate us all a group of children. offered the paths of liberafrom the prison of constantly It is uncertain from the tion and love. video who was having more The Incarnation is an invi- staring at our own face and fun. What is striking is the tation to fellowship and to problems, while failing to see diversity of faces and chil- generosity, incarnations of the faces of others more fully.

“It is when you can look dren at the birthday event. which may be expressed in Francis is welcoming of myriad ways, such as simple on the face of any man or all: the homeless, refuges, acts of kindness. Kindness is woman and see that they are various ethnicities, rich and the lifeblood of love. Recall your sister or brother. Until poor, disabled individuals. the numerous acts of kind- then it is still night.”

With Charles Wesley, in The Pope, like many ness received this year. others, exemplifies that our We might also recall when Join All Ye Joyful Nations, darkness is often lifted when we could have been kinder we rejoice in the Light that we extend generosity and a through an act of love or an penetrates the darkness, welcoming spirit to others. act of restraint. Often biting enabling us to see and to Generosity is one of the our tongue when we wanted embrace the countenance of greatest balms for grieving to respond to an insensitive others.

“Join, all you joyful or anxious or self-pitying comment is best. nations, souls.

A friend recalls a grandThe acclaiming host of As Pope Francis has mother figure he came to heaven! shown in his ministry of love love during volunteer service This happy morn and care for the poor, for in a Caribbean neighbour.

A Child is born, those in the LGBTQ+ com- Mrs Olive, his adopted sepTo us a Son is given: munity, and myriad others, tuagenarian grandmother, The messenger and token the darkness of exclusion lived simply. Most of her Of God’s eternal favour, is dispelled when we treat needs were taken care of by God has sent down each other as brothers and her children.

To us his Son, sisters.

She spent many days on A universal Saviour!

As the rabbi proclaimed her front porch convers“The wonderful Messiah, (and as Francis would ing with family and friends, The joy of every nation, undoubtedly confirm): “It monitoring the daily grind Jesus His name, with God is when you can look on the and shenanigans of the face of any man or woman neighbourhood. She had the same, The Lord of all creation. and see that they are your her struggles, her health The counselor of sinners, sister or brother. Until then challenges, her regrets, her Mighty to deliver, it is still night.” disagreements with neighThe Prince of Peace, We can be pathways of bours. But she tried to keep darkness or daybreak for her world big, open, welcom- whose love’s increase, Shall reign in man others. God did not so love ing, inviting. the world through the IncarEvery Sunday, Mrs Olive’s forever.”

Blessed Christmas. nation of Jesus Christ for daughter brought her the

PAGE 10, Thursday, December 21, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

Could Colorado Supreme Court ruling lead to the end of Trump’s campaign?

STATESIDE IT looks like history may be about to repeat itself in the US presidential election. A Colorado Supreme Court decision on Tuesday makes it quite likely that, as in 2000, the highest American court will be obliged to issue a decision that could determine the outcome of next year’s vote.

This all started when then-US president Donald Trump on January 6, 2021, incited a mob of his supporters to assault the US capitol and interrupt a ceremonial vote count that would confirm the election of his opponent Joe Biden.

Everyone reading this can recall the shocking televised images of the subsequent mayhem at the citadel of the world’s most formidable democracy.

The avowed purpose of all this sedition was to retain Trump as the American president, in defiance of the fair election of its citizenry.

Could the actions of Trump and his mob be characterized as insurrection?

Can there be any doubt that the answer to that question is yes? We all saw it with our own eyes.

For most American voters, no amount of evasive verbiage and outright prevarication from Trump and his timid, venal band of supporters in the media and in his own, whollyowned Republican Party can change that.

For Trump’s dedicated supporters, whether or not it was insurrection is not the point. The point is to assure their own return to political power in Washington, with all its attendant rush and renewed access to great wealth and influence

with Charlie Harper in what has become a thoroughly corrupted political process that presides over the world’s most vibrant, wealthy economy.

If the situation were reversed, would Democrats behave any differently?

That’s actually a good question. But since the current president’s behaviour in no way resembles Trump’s conduct in and out of office, that point is moot for now.

In the three years since Trump’s insurrection, we have seen a skillfully staged Democrat-led congressional investigation that clearly implicated Trump in insurrection. We have also witnessed a laboriously crafted federal case against Trump led by special prosecutor Jack Clark.

If America is really guided by the rule of evidence and law, Trump is toast. But wait. Law is research and words. Trump has over many years hired a full regiment of crafty lawyers to defend his outrageous, often illegal-seeming behaviour. He has been successful.

Now there is a new challenge. And it seems certain to be adjudicated by the US Supreme Court.

On Tuesday, the Democrat-majority Colorado Supreme Court affirmed a state district judge’s opinion that Trump’s actions before and on January 6,

FORMER President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally on December 16, 2023, in Durham, N.H. Photo: Reba Saldanha/AP 2021, constituted engaging in insurrection, and that courts had the authority to enforce Section 3 of the 14th amendment of the US constitution against a person whom Congress had not specifically designated – in this case, Trump.

“A majority of the court holds that President Trump is disqualified from holding the office of president under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution,” the Colorado justices wrote.

“Because he is disqualified, it would be a wrongful act under the Election Code for the Colorado secretary of state to list him as a candidate on the presidential primary ballot.”

“We do not reach these conclusions lightly,” a fourjustice majority wrote, with three justices dissenting.

“We are mindful of the magnitude and weight of the questions now before us. We are likewise mindful of our solemn duty to apply the law, without fear or favour, and without being swayed by public reaction to the decisions that the law mandates we reach.”

The dissenting justices didn’t necessarily agree that Trump is not guilty

of insurrection.

Their objections were mostly procedural, as had been the views of justices on several other state supreme courts that have already declined to issue such a stark judgment on Trump’s behaviour.

The US Supreme Court will almost certainly have to take this case, and if they uphold the Colorado judgment, Trump will probably have to be removed from the GOP primary ballot across the country. No one knows anything for sure in all of this. It’s never happened before.

In 2000, the US Supreme Court had to intervene to decide the presidential election contest between George W Bush and Al Gore. That issue involved the vote in Florida, now reliably red but still at that time a “swing state” whose voter preference was uncertain prior to major elections.

But Bush and Gore were in many ways the same person. Each was the son of a political scion, raised and nurtured in political power and sufficient wealth, educated at Yale and Harvard, their success in life virtually guaranteed unless they erred catastrophically. Neither was, nor would likely have been, anything special as president.

Want some evidence of that? How about this: Bush accepted stupendously misguided advice and launched a pointless, costly and ultimately failed war against Iraq early in

his administration, perhaps trying to emulate his father’s successful but wisely more limited campaign against the same adversary twenty years earlier.

And Gore, while vicepresident 30 years ago, instituted a silly, duplicitous federal budgetary cost-cutting exercise that compelled the US to decommission and dismantle the symbolically effective counter-drug aerostat balloon programme here in The Bahamas. These budget cuts were mostly designed to buttress Gore’s own eventual presidential candidacy, but caused some real harm here and elsewhere.

Now, on the eve of the Iowa GOP caucuses next month, the runaway frontrunner for the Republican nomination for president may suddenly be yanked from ballots across the country. In 2000, the Supreme Court admitted that its prompt decision was necessary to stave off precisely the kind of confusion and chaos that Trump stimulated twenty years later.

The high court, now firmly conservative but far from fawningly Trumpian, may decide to allow similar considerations to temper and perhaps influence its decision on whether to take the case (most feel they will) and perhaps issue a ruling that might surprise us.

It will all be highly dramatic. It might even be really, really important.

OPPORTUNISTIC MADURO TAKING ADVANTAGE OF GUYANA WHILE US DISTRACTED WITH WARS IT’S about 1,800 miles from Nassau to Georgetown, Guyana. That’s about the same distance as from Nashville, Tennessee to Los Angeles, or from Miami to Minneapolis. So Nassau and Georgetown aren’t exactly neighbours. How concerned should we be if our CARICOM allies in Guyana are threatened by a much larger neighbour?

It’s plausible to believe that this is now happening.

The big neighbour is Venezuela, which shares a long border with Guyana and covets oil assets recently discovered in the Caribbean Sea in Guyanese territorial waters but adjoining Venezuelan territorial waters.

Indeed, Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro has advanced claims on some of the Guyanese sea bottom.

This long-simmering dispute is all about oil.

Maduro, having implausibly survived dogged but ultimately ineffective efforts by the US to knock him out of power in Caracas, might be forgiven for thinking of himself as the second coming of Fidel Castro in Cuba.

He continues to defy

PRESIDENT Nicolas Maduro gives at a press conference.

Photo: Matias Delacroix/AP the US. And he continues to remain in power. That combination runs counter to most modern Western Hemispheric history.

Maduro is at least theoretically buttressed by rhetorical support – and sometimes more – from noted American antagonists like Russia, Iran and Cuba. The US is tied up in political knots over how to deal with the unprecedented threat to traditional government represented by Trump.

The Americans are also profoundly distracted by Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine and the sneaky Hamas attack on southern Israel and resulting Israeli counter-assault.

Maduro might well conclude that this is the perfect

time to make a grab for the Guyanese oil. But most experts doubt there will be a Venezuelan invasion, even though the mercurial Maduro doesn’t always act the way the experts think he will.

Furthermore, Maduro and Guyanese president Irfan Ali met last week in St Vincent and the Grenadines to forswear war.

Maduro, likely still deciding whether invading his neighbour is worth the risk, alleges that an 1899 decision by the British unfairly took about two thirds of what is now Guyanese territory from Venezuela and allotted it to Guyana.

(Present-day Guyana was a British colony until independence was granted in 1966), Traditional territorial irredentism also undergirded similar military adventures by Iraq against Kuwait in 1990 and

by Argentina against the Falkland Islands in 1982.

Putin’s current war against Ukraine is based upon similar premises.

Those actions also surprised most of the “experts”.

THE TRIBUNE

Govt to take ‘aggressive’ approach to building airports, says Romer

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net THE construction of some Family Island airports is set to be completed by 2025 as the government takes an “aggressive” approach to the building process, according to Dr Kenneth Romer, deputy director general of the Ministry of Tourism and Aviation.

“Even though you might not see airports being constructed, it doesn’t mean the process is not active,” he said, adding that some airports on Family Islands have been prioritised because of the volume of work required.

“In 2024, I think you’re

going to see a very aggressive approach to airports coming out of the ground,” he said.

The government launched the $260m Family Island Renaissance Programme to transform 14 Family Island airports. Exuma and North Eleuthera are expected to require the most money.

North Eleuthera Airport’s state of disrepair has been a major challenge, especially because it’s one of the busiest airports in the country. In September, temporary facilities were set up for the North Eleuthera airport to provide relief.

Dr Romer said that providing a new airport in North Eleuthera is

ongoing, noting it was a part of an RFP process.

Dr Romer said next year will be filled with action of physical movement as officials hope for several airports to be completed soon.

Currently, the government is seeking private partners to develop, upgrade, finance, and manage the 14 selected airports via public-private partnership (PPP) agreements with the winning bidders. They will be granted 30-year PPP leasehold concessions similar to that for LPIA. Shortlisted parties will be invited to participate in the Request for Proposal (RFP) stage, which is tentatively scheduled to be released in May 2023.

Thursday, December 21, 2023, PAGE 11

PAGE 12, Thursday, December 21, 2023

East GB MP and residents call on govt to repair seawall destroyed by Dorian

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net KWASI Thompson, MP for East Grand Bahama, has called on the government to restore the seawall in High Rock.

He said it is crucial to protect the lives and property of residents against coastal erosion and flooding.

During recent bad weather, the Bayshore road in High Rock was flooded by seawater due to the severe coastal erosion in the area caused by Hurricane Dorian.

“It is dangerous, and when Dorian came, 17 people lost their lives in this very same area,” Mr Thompson said.

“We want to bring this very important issue to the attention of government and the entire Bahamas.

We need to make sure this gets to the attention of the government because this is something that has to be addressed to protect lives.”

Mr Thompson said the FNM government had constructed the seawall in High Rock, but it was destroyed during Dorian.

“We had a by-election in West Grand Bahama recently and what that

EAST Grand Bahama MP Kwasi Thompson points to a section of seawall in High Rock, Grand Bahama that was destroyed by Hurricane Dorian in 2019.

Photo: Vandyke Hepburn by-election showed us was move. They had an entire that government could Cabinet meeting, and they move when they want to had all kinds of Cabinet

ministers who were here,” he said.

“Well, we in East Grand Bahama need to have this seawall restored. We need to have this protection in place for the people.”

Rueben Roberts, a resident of High Rock and owner of Bishop’s Restaurant, said nothing had been done to restore the seawall in the past four years.

“We are part of The Bahamas, and we pay taxes like everybody else, and nobody has come to our rescue,” he said.

“We had about 10 to 15 homes destroyed with nobody living there right now, and nobody comes to our rescue. It is about time that somebody comes and shows some concern.”

McDonald Cooper, a resident of Freetown, said the government has neglected East Grand Bahama.

He said there is no seawall or proper medical facility in East End. “As soon as we can have this seawall reconstructed, it would provide security for the families trying to rebuild,” he said.

“We would appreciate if the government could step in and do its part because we deserve better.”

THE TRIBUNE

THREE YEARS JAIL FOR WOMAN IN $30K VEHICLE IMPORT SCAM

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A WOMAN was ordered to spend three years in prison yesterday after she failed to repay almost $30,000 in a vehicle import scam in 2020.

Felicia Wilmott, 33, appeared before Magistrate Raquel Whyms after she was arrested on a warrant for outstanding payments on charges of fraud by false pretences and three counts of stealing by reason of service.

Between July 1, 2019 and February 3, 2020, Wilmott was accused of defrauding $29,494 from Mark Farrington, Vonette

Saunders, Savannah Laroda, Deangela Johnson and Johnny Farisen. In these four separate incidents, she was accused of fraudulently claiming to be able to buy and import vehicles from the US and Japan. However, she is accused of not providing the cars after receiving payment.

Magistrate Derence A Rolle Davis found the accused guilty of the charges and ordered her to repay the complainants.

After failing over two years to make payments and evading police until recently, Wilmott was sentenced to three years at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services.

MAN ACCUSED OF INJURING TWO WOMEN IN EXUMA GRANTED BAIL

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was granted bail after he was accused of injuring two women at a restaurant in Exuma and violently resisting arrest last weekend.

Magistrate Kendra Kelly charged Oscar Cartwright, 44, with grievous harm and threats of death.

While Cartwright was initially charged with assault, this was upgraded to causing harm.

Cartwright faced additional charges of aggravated assault, resisting arrest, disorderly behaviour and disorderly behaviour in a police station.

Ian Jupp represented him.

Cartwright is accused of seriously injuring and threatening to kill

Shaquanya Baker at the Hasty’s Home Plate Restaurant in George Town, Exuma, on the night of December 17.

During the same incident, Cartwright allegedly injured Reshmi Davis.

Cartwright is also accused of behaving inappropriately at the Fish Fry in George Town, allegedly cursing and assaulting PC 4166 Munroe while resisting arrest. Following his arrest, the accused allegedly continued to act inappropriately at the George Town Police Station.

After pleading not guilty to all the charges, Cartwright was granted $3,000 bail for the attack on the two women and $2,000 bail for resisting arrest. Under the terms of the bail, he must sign in at the George Town Police Station every Monday and Friday.

MAN HELD ACCUSED OF HAVING UNLICENCED GUN A SECOND TIME

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was sent to prison until the new year after facing a gun-related charge less than three months after being charged with a similar offence.

Magistrate Shaka Serville charged Berkley Fowler, 34, with possession of an unlicensed firearm and possession of ammunition yesterday.

Police arrested Fowler after finding him with a black Austria Glock 27 .40 pistol with nine rounds of .40 ammunition in New Providence on December 2.

After the

defendant pleaded not guilty to the charges, the prosecution objected to his bail, citing his prior gun charge from September.

The defendant’s lawyer, Alphonso Lewis, said his client never breached bail conditions and attended his court dates.

Magistrate Serville delayed Fowler’s bail hearing to January 4, 2024, when he will be remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. The accused was also informed of his right to apply to the Supreme Court for bail.

Before being taken into remand, Fowler was allowed a brief moment in court with a relative.

MAN GIVEN ANKLE MONITOR OVER HOUSEBREAKING CHARGE

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was granted $5,000 bail after being accused of a recent housebreaking in New Providence.

Senior Magistrate Carolyn Vogt Evans charged Roy Emery, 60, with housebreaking and stealing.

Emery is accused of

breaking into the residence of Meoshe Bullard and stealing $400 in cash.

After pleading not guilty to the offence, Emery was informed that he must be fitted with a monitoring device, and sign in at the East Street South Police Station on the last Sunday of every month until his trial date, which is scheduled for March 17, 2024.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 21, 2023, PAGE 13

Disney Cruise Lines crew ‘spreading joy’ across communities for the holiday season DISNEY Cruise Line (DCL) cast and crew members are spreading joy across the cruise line’s port communities in The Bahamas this holiday season.

Disney teams visited communities in Nassau, where DCL ships visit regularly, Abaco, where its private island destination Castaway Cay is located, as well as in Eleuthera, where DCL is creating its new island destination, Disney Lookout Cay at Lighthouse Point. DCL worked with community partners to identify specific needs of local schools and students, such as academic workbooks, reading books and computers, as well as other necessities, like sporting equipment, safety resources and kitchen appliances at local schools.

“Supporting young people all year-round, and especially during the holidays, is so important to us,” said Joey Gaskins, director, public affairs, DCL. “Disney Cruise Line is committed to investing in youth programmes in these communities, and we will continue to do our part to make a lasting impact and spread a little Disney magic along the way.”

Earlier this month, while the Disney Wish was docked in Nassau, DCL cast and crew members spent the day at the Ranfurly Homes for Children, a local non-profit foster care organisation. The volunteers created some Disney magic at the children’s learning lab, donating laptops and equipment, as well as decorating the space with Disney-themed decals and inspiring quotes for the children to see each day.

“This newly renovated learning lab is going to make a huge impact on these children, especially

for completing homework and studying,” said Ingrid Sears-Deveaux, administrator, Ranfurly Homes for Children. “I can’t explain how grateful we are for this project and Disney’s support,” she added.

In Eleuthera, the DCL team visited Tarpum Bay, Rock Sound, Green Castle, Wemyss Bight and Deep Creek Primary Schools to deliver academic workbooks and reading books for students to use in school and at home. School leaders said the support will go a long way for families in need throughout the community.

“It’s hard to get resources on Eleuthera. Not all of our students are fortunate enough to have these important educational tools. Having an organisation like Disney Cruise Line fund these items and deliver them to us is greatly appreciated,” said Endranique Thompson, president, Parent Teacher Association, Wemyss Bight Primary School. The school’s principal, Katrina McKinney, added, “I want to say a big thank you to Disney Cruise Line for donating workbooks to every student in our school.

It means so much to us that Disney Cruise Line is supporting our schools in the Eleuthera district.” During the visit, DCL also distributed school supplies to faculty and staff.

Crew members who work on Castaway Cay and call Great Abaco home, donated their time volunteering in their community.

The team distributed reading books and other necessities, such as fire extinguishers and microwaves, as well as sports gear and outdoor games for students at Cherokee Sound Primary School to enjoy.

DCL volunteers read to school students in Eleuthera.

DCL volunteers visit a school in Abaco.

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

DISNEY Cruise Line cast and crew members visit The Ranfurly Home in Nassau.

St. Francis Xavier Cathedral Mass Schedule for Saturday, 23rd December, 2023 to Sunday, 7th January, 2024 Saturday, 23rd December 2023

–

Vigil for Sunday at 6 p.m.

Sunday, 24th December 2023

-

Mass at 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.

Sunday, 24th December 2023

-

NO VIGIL AT 6:00 P.M. Night of Miracles at 11:00 p.m.

Nativity of Our Lord Christmas Mass at 12:01 a.m.

Monday, 25th December 2023

–

Nativity of Our Lord Christmas Day Mass at 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.

Tuesday, 26th December 2023

–

NO MASS - PUBLIC HOLIDAY

Wednesday, 27th December 2023

–

Feast of Saint John, Apostle & Evangelist – Mass at 7:00 a.m. and 12:10 p.m.

Thursday, 28th December 2023

–

Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs - Mass at 7 a.m. and 12:10 p.m.

Friday, 29th December 2023

–

Mass at 7:00 a.m. only

Saturday, 30th December 2023

–

Vigil for Sunday at 6:00 p.m.

Sunday 31st December 2023

-

Feast of The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph Mass at 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.

Sunday, 31st December 2023

–

New Year’s Eve – Watchnight Service at 11:00 p.m.

Monday, 1st January 2024

–

Solemnity of Mary, The Holy Mother of God – Mass will begin at 12:01 a.m.

PUBLIC HOLIDAY

Tuesday, 2nd January 2024 Thursday, 4th January 2024

-

Mass at 7:00 a.m. and 12:10 p.m.

Friday, 5th January 2024

-

Mass at 7:00 a.m. only.

Saturday, 6th January 2024

-

Vigil for Sunday at 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, 7th January 2024

–

Solemnity of The Epiphany of the Lord – Mass will be celebrated at 8:30 a.m. and at 11 a.m. – RED MASS

PAGE 14, Thursday, December 21, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

Israel uncovers major Hamas command centre in Gaza City as cease-fire talks gain momentum

have died in captivity.

UN Security Council members are negotiating an Arab-sponsored resolution to halt the fighting in some way to allow for an increase in desperately needed humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza.

A vote on the resolution, first scheduled for Monday, was pushed back again on Wednesday in the hopes of getting the US to support it or allow it to pass after it vetoed an earlier cease-fire call.

JERUSALEM Associated Press THE Israeli military on Wednesday said it had uncovered a major Hamas command centre in the heart of Gaza City, inflicting what it described as a serious blow to the Islamic militant group as pressure grows on Israel to scale back its devastating military offensive in the coastal enclave.

The army said it had exposed the centre of a vast underground network used

by Hamas to move weapons, militants and supplies throughout the Gaza Strip.

Israel has said destroying the tunnels is a major objective of the offensive.

The announcement came as Hamas’ top leader arrived in Egypt for talks aimed at brokering a temporary cease-fire and a new deal for Hamas to swap Israeli hostages for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.

Israeli leaders have vowed to press ahead with the two-month-old offensive, launched in response to a bloody cross-border attack by Hamas in October that killed some 1,200 people and saw 240 others taken hostage.

The offensive has devastated much of northern Gaza, killed nearly 20,000 Palestinians, and driven some 1.9 million people — nearly 85% of the population — from their homes.

The widespread destruction and heavy civilian death toll has drawn increasing international calls for a cease-fire.

The United States, Israel’s closest ally, has continued to support Israel’s right to defend itself while also urging greater effort to protect Gaza’s civilians.

But in some of the toughest American language yet, Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday called on Israel to scale back its operation.

“It’s clear that the conflict will move and needs to move to a lower intensity phase,” Blinken said. He said the US wants to see “more targeted operations” with smaller levels of forces focused on specific targets, such as Hamas’ leaders and the group’s tunnel network.

“As that happens, I think you’ll see as well, the harm done to civilians also

HUMANITARIAN CRISIS

CARMIT DVORY, visits the ruins of a house belonging to members of her community in Kibbutz Be’eri, Israel, yesterday. The kibbutz was overrun by Hamas militants from the nearby Gaza Strip on Oct.7, when they killed and captured many Israelis.

Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg/AP decrease significantly,” he said.

His comments were more pointed than statements by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who in a visit to Israel this week said the US would not dictate any time frames to its ally.

TUNNEL NETWORK The Israeli military escorted Israeli reporters into Palestine Square in the heart of Gaza City to show off what it described as the centre of Hamas’ tunnel network.

Military commanders boasted that they had uncovered offices, tunnels and elevators used by Hamas’ top leaders. The military released videos of underground offices and claimed to have found a wheelchair belonging to Hamas’ shadowy military commander, Mohammed Deif, who has not been seen in public in years.

The army’s chief spokesman, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, said the army had located a vast underground complex. “They all used this infrastructure routinely, during emergencies and also at the beginning of the war on Oct. 7,” he said. He said the tunnels stretched

across Gaza and into major hospitals. The claims could not be independently verified.

Hagari also indicated that Israel was winding down its operations in northern Gaza, including Gaza City, where it has been battling Hamas militants for weeks.

He said the army had moved into a final remaining Hamas stronghold, the Gaza City neighbourhood of Tufah.

But the army also acknowledged a significant misstep. An investigation into its soldiers’ mistaken shooting of three Israelis held hostage in Gaza found that, five days before the shooting, a military search dog with a body camera had captured audio of them shouting for help in Hebrew.

Hagari said the recording was not reviewed until after the hostages were killed while trying to make themselves known to Israeli forces.

The incident has sparked an uproar in Israel and put pressure on the government to reach a new deal with Hamas. The military chief has said the shooting was against its rules of engagement.

The Israeli military

campaign now is largely focused on southern Gaza, where it says Hamas’ leaders are hiding.

“We will continue the war until the end. It will continue until Hamas is destroyed, until victory,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a video statement. “Whoever thinks we will stop is detached from reality.”

CEASE-FIRE TALKS GAIN MOMENTUM As Netanyahu vowed to continue the war, there were new signs of progress in cease-fire talks.

Hamas’ top leader, Ismail Haniyeh, travelled to Cairo for talks on the war, part of a flurry of diplomacy.

In recent days, top Israeli, American and Qatari officials have also held cease-fire talks.

“These are very serious discussions and negotiations, and we hope that they lead somewhere,” the White House’s national security spokesman, John Kirby, said aboard Air Force One while travelling with President Joe Biden to Wisconsin.

Biden, however, indicated a deal was still a ways off. “There’s no expectation

at this point, but we are pushing,” he said. Asked about the rising death toll in Gaza, Biden said: It’s tragic.”

Hamas says no more hostages will be released until the war ends. It is insisting on the release of large numbers of Palestinian prisoners, including highlevel militants convicted in deadly attacks, for remaining captives.

Osama Hamdan, a senior Hamas official in Beirut, said the efforts right now are focused on how to “stop this aggression, especially that our enemy now knows that it cannot achieve any of its goals.”

Israel has rejected Hamas’ demands for a mass prisoner release so far. But it has a history of lopsided exchanges for captive Israelis, and the government is under heavy public pressure to bring the hostages home safely.

Egypt, along with Qatar and the US, helped mediate a weeklong cease-fire in November in which Hamas freed over 100 hostages in exchange for Israel’s release of 240 Palestinian prisoners.

Hamas and other militants are still holding an estimated 129 captives, though roughly 20 are believed to

Mobile phone and internet service was down across Gaza again on Wednesday.

The outage could complicate efforts to communicate with Hamas leaders inside the territory who went into hiding after Oct. 7.

The war has led to a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Tens of thousands of people are crammed into shelters and tent camps amid shortages of food, medicine and other basic supplies. Israel’s foreign minister travelled to Cyprus to discuss the possibility of establishing a maritime corridor that would allow the delivery of large amounts of humanitarian aid to Gaza.

At least 46 people were killed and more than 100 wounded early Wednesday after Israel bombarded the urban Jabaliya refugee camp near Gaza City, according to Munir alBursh, a senior Health Ministry official.

At least five people were killed and dozens injured in another strike that hit three residential homes and a mosque in Gaza’s southern city of Rafah Wednesday, health officials said.

The Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Tuesday the death toll since the start of the war had risen to more than 19,600. It does not distinguish between civilian and combatant deaths.

Israel’s military says 134 of its soldiers have been killed in the Gaza ground offensive. Israel says it has killed some 7,000 militants, without providing evidence.

It blames civilian deaths in Gaza on Hamas, saying it uses them as human shields when it fights in residential areas.

China’s earthquake survivors endure frigid temperatures and mourn the dead CHINA Associated Press SURROUNDED by destruction, survivors of an earthquake mourned the dead and endured a frigid cold in temporary shelters Wednesday, unsure how to rebuild their lives in the remote mountains of northwest China.

“Look at this,” said Han Zhongmin, retrieving some belongings with his wife from the ruins of their house, built six years ago in Yangwa village.

“My house turned into this overnight.”

Houses caved in and crumbled in a Monday night earthquake that killed at least 134 people and injured more than 900 others. Most of the casualties were in Gansu province and the rest in the neighbouring province of Qinghai.

In the predawn darkness, Ma Lianqiang stood next to the body of his deceased wife wrapped in blankets in a tent-like temporary shelter lit by a single overhead light. His wife was hit and buried by debris in her mother’s house, where she had gone to stay because she was ill.

Ma and other members of his extended family survived despite extensive damage to their house in Yangwa, which is in Gansu province. His father pulled Ma’s son, whose back was slightly injured, out of the rubble. His uncle said they heard the earthquake and then the house started collapsing.

“We crawled out in fear,” the uncle, Ma Chengming, said.

Nearly 15,000 homes collapsed in Gansu and more than 87,000 people have been resettled, provincial officials said at a Wednesday news conference. Many spent the night in shelters set up in the area as temperatures plunged well below freezing.

To the north, searchers in Qinghai were looking for 13 people missing in an area where landslides inundated two villages, partially burying homes.

Excavators dug at the sea of soil, and rescue workers tried to break into some buried houses from the rooftops.

The number missing was down from 16 earlier Wednesday. The death toll in the province had gone up again Wednesday

afternoon according to a CCTV report.

Gansu officials said their search and rescue effort had basically been completed by mid-afternoon Tuesday. The province’s death toll remained at 113 and the number of injured rose to 782. Together with 198 in Qinghai, that brought the total injured close to 1,000.

Villagers in Yangwa bundled up against the cold and ate instant noodle soup being served in a tent of translucent green plastic sheeting. Han Fujun said more immediate concerns were on his mind than what to do about his destroyed home.

“It’s still a problem to get enough to eat and stay warm,” he said inside the makeshift shelter.

The earthquake struck in a poor, rural area that is on the eastern edge of the Tibetan Plateau and populated by several predominantly Muslim ethnic groups. It is about 1,300 kilometres (800 miles) southwest of Beijing, the Chinese capital.

People wept as the body of Ma Lianqiang’s wife, covered with a carpet, was carried away on what looked like a metal bed

TEN years old Ma Yuanke griefs as his mother Han Suofeiya who died in the earthquake is taken for burial in Yangwa village near Dahejia town in northwestern China’s Gansu province, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. A strong overnight earthquake rattled a mountainous region of northwestern China, authorities said Tuesday, destroying homes, leaving residents out in a below-freezing winter night and killing many in the nation’s deadliest quake in nine years.

Photo: Ng Han Guan/AP frame after Muslim funeral rites held outdoors.

The death toll was the highest from an earthquake in China in nine years. Experts blamed the

high toll on several factors, including the shallow depth of the quake and the lower quality construction in the poor region.

“Now our lives are what matters a lot,” Yangwa resident Ma Bajin said.

“If we are not here, then there’s no such thing as survival.”

SPORTS PAGE 15

Ayton, Page 18

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2023

CARIFTA countdown

By TENAJH SWEETING Tribune Sports Reporter tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

T

he countdown is now officially on for the 2024 CARIFTA Aquatics Championships slated to be held right here on home soil at the Betty KellyKenning Aquatic Centre March 28 to April 7.

The event was launched yesterday during a press conference held at the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture as preparations are now being made to have a good hosting next year.

With plans now in motion for next year’s swimming showdown, the Local Organising Committee (LOC) along with the Bahamas Aquatics Federation are making an appeal to corporate Bahamas and

By TENAJH SWEETING Tribune Sports Reporter tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE 2024 CARIFTA Aquatics Championships is all set for March 28 to April 7, 2024 at the Betty Kelly-Kenning Aquatic Centre. citizens to aid them in raising $1 million as they look to win their sixth consecutive title on home turf.

Algernon Cargill, president of The Bahamas Aquatics Federation, spoke on the continued success of Team Bahamas on their journey to potentially winning another

championship. “It is no secret that we are the only federation in The Bahamas to win five consecutive CARIFTA titles and winning any of these titles was not easy. We have convincingly won seven of the last eight CARIFTA Aquatics Championships. We are the only country that

can boast of this outstanding CARIFTA swimming record and Team Bahamas will continue this legacy in 2024.

“Winning our sixth title at home will not be easy and we will certainly need the support of Bahamians, particularly corporate Bahamas, to support the

marketing efforts of the Local Organising Committee. “Our goal is to raise $1 million and while this has never been done before by aquatics, we believe that it is indeed possible. We ask corporate Bahamas and every Bahamian citizen to

SEE PAGE 18

‘Buddy’ Hield scores 25, Pacers snap four-game losing streak

By CHRIS GOFF Associated Press INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Chavano “Buddy” Hield scored 25 points, Tyrese Haliburton had 19 points and 13 assists and the Indiana Pacers snapped a four-game losing streak, routing the Charlotte Hornets 144-113 last night behind 61% shooting.

“Our offence looked better,” Haliburton said.

“We got a lot of good looks. I thought we went back to the basics on a lot of stuff (in practice), and it helped. A good win for us.

Just figured out a way to win.”

The Pacers made 28 of 30 free throws and led by 33.

Aaron Nesmith added 19 points, Myles Turner had 18, Bennedict Mathurin 14 and Jalen Smith and Isaiah Jackson 10 apiece.

T.J. McConnell had nine points, nine assists and five rebounds.

Terry Rozier had 25 points, nine rebounds and seven assists for Charlotte, and rookie Brandon Miller

SEE PAGE 19

TENNIS PLAYERS ADVANCE TO THE FINALS

CHARLOTTE Hornets’ Terry Rozier (3) goes to the basket against Indiana Pacers’ Buddy Hield (7) during the second half of an NBA basketball game last night in Indianapolis.

(AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

SPORTS CALENDAR BAAA Odd Distance Track and Field Meet Date: Friday, December 22 Venue: The original Thomas A Robinson Stadium The Bahamas Association of Athletic Associations (BAAA) is set to host their first track and field meet of the season on Friday from 1-6pm at the aforementioned venue. The event will feature divisions, including under-7, under-9, under-11, under-13, under-15, under-17, under-20, and open.

BASKETBALL HENFIELD WINTER BASKETBALL CAMP THE Marvin Henfield Winter Basketball four-day training camp is scheduled to wrap up today with three different sessions being held daily.

Participants from ages 6-10 will be trained from 9am to noon, 11-15 from

Dec 2023

1-4pm and 16-years and older from 4:15-7:15pm.

Returning players will be charged $100 or $35 per day, while new players will be charged $150 or $50 per day.

Interested persons can register online at www.marvinhenfield.com or WhatsApp 242-828-2353 or 242-424-2353 for more information.

Henfield, however, noted that the Saturday Basketball and After-School Basketball is now closed for 2023.

MACEDONIA BAPTIST CHURCH FAMILY FUN WALK THE Men’s Department of Macedonia Baptist Church is scheduled to hold a Family Fun Walk Race to kick off the new year and the beginning of its Men’s Anniversary at 6am on Saturday, January 6. The event will honour the late Minister Charles Albury, who passed away this year.

FOUR players advanced to the 2023 Giorgio Baldacci Open National Tennis Championships yesterday at the National Tennis Centre (NTC), in addition to qualifying to represent The Bahamas at the Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup tournaments.

Sydney Clarke, the top seed in women’s singles along with third seed Simone Pratt will go headto-head in the finals today to be crowned the 2023 national champion in the women’s division.

Additionally, next year both ladies will play on the national team at the Billie Jean King Cup tournament.

Veteran tennis players Rodney Carey Jr and Baker Newman are due for a chess match on the tennis court today as the tournament’s more seasoned players meet in the finals.

The duo will represent Team Bahamas at the Davis Cup tournament.

The battle of the veterans is all set for today after Newman knocked off Howard University’s Michael Major Jr in the semifinals. The former, who was motivated after being sidelined due to illness last year, utilised his experience to drop Major Jr in straight sets.

He ran away with set one 6-2 and followed it up with a score of 6-3 to solidify a spot in the final round.

After being away from the sport briefly, he was happy to qualify for the national team to represent the country and make it to the final stage.

“It is always good to win, I am happy to join the team.

It is always good to play against a teammate to push each other and have fun.

For me personally it is nice, last time I lost in the semifinals so it feels good to be back in the finals,” he said.

Despite competing in a tough quarterfinals match against Donte Armbrister on Tuesday, the

SEE PAGE 18

I-BAP COLLABORATES WITH ELECTRIC CITY BOMBERS TO HOST CHRISTMAS CAMP

By TENAJH SWEETING Tribune Sports Reporter tsweeting@tribunemedia.net WITH 2023 now winding down, I-BAP (Bahamas Athletic Pride) in collaboration with New York’s Electric City Bombers intends to host a pop-up Christmas camp this Saturday at the Baillou Hills Sporting Complex.

The one-day event will be spearheaded by featured coach Brandon Barcomb, who leads a Top 10 United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA) programme.

Dachye Stubbs, director of softball for the International Elite (I-Elite) Sports Academy, shared what led to this collaboration between the two organisations for this weekend.

“Both organisations’ goals are similar. We want to give all athletes that we come across the opportunity to grow and develop no matter the skill level

or social class. It so happens that the sports we coach can award the kids the opportunity to get free education.

“Additionally, we understood the value of travel ball. Most kids here do not have the opportunity to travel abroad to play for long periods of time so we look forward to some of our girls having an additional level of exposure and playing in some more tournaments abroad,” Stubbs said.

With the softball season scheduled to start in January, registered participants will have the opportunity to hone their skills ahead of next month’s competition.

Athletes within the 8-16 age group will be afforded an opportunity to work with experienced softball coaches, work on agility, fielding and hitting drills, have the chance to experience international play opportunities and be exposed to recruiting

resources. The I-Elite softball director and event organiser is expecting Barcomb to impart useful knowledge into those that opt to partake in the preChristmas event.

“Coach Brandon coaches one of the Top 10 USSSA travel ball teams in the USA which means he has years of experience and a plethora of seeds to sow into players and coaches alike. He specialises in hitting and agility so kids can look forward to working on those elements of the game,” she said.

She added that it is not too late for interested individuals to register for the pop up camp. Additionally, local primary and high school coaches are invited to attend. Registration can be completed online via www.bapsoftball.com or by contacting 1-242-445-4551.

The cost of registration is $35. The event will run from 9:15am to 12:15pm this Saturday.

PAGE 16, Thursday, December 21, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

NEEDS LATE Liverpool routs West Ham BARCELONA GOAL TO BEAT LASTALMERIA 3-2 IN 5-1 and advances to the PLACE SPANISH LEAGUE AND END WINLESS STREAK League Cup semifinals LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — After finishing last season empty-handed, Liverpool kept its fourpronged trophy pursuit alive yesterday by advancing to the League Cup semifinals with a 5-1 win over West Ham. Curtis Jones scored twice, with Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah also getting goals in the largely one-sided game at Anfield.

Jarrod Bowen struck a consolation goal for West Ham. Liverpool will play Fulham in the two-legged semifinals, and seconddivision Middlesbrough will face Chelsea.

“The performance, the scoresheet, the result and the individual performances put together to make a team on the pitch,” Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said.

“We were brave in our positioning, our second ball game was exceptional.

It was a really, really good performance from start to finish.”

Liverpool can move atop the Premier League when it hosts first-place Arsenal on Saturday, is in the Europa League round of 16, and starts its FA Cup campaign next month.

The Merseyside club’s form this term is in stark contrast to last season when its inconsistency saw it miss out on qualification to the Champions League and fail to win a trophy.

Now it looks set to mount a serious challenge for the title and is one round away from

By TALES AZZONI AP Sports Writer

LIVERPOOL’s Curtis Jones celebrates scoring his side’s 5th goal during the English League Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Liverpool and West Ham United at the Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, yesterday.

(AP Photo/Jon Super) advancing to its first cup final of the campaign.

Having been held to a 0-0 draw by Manchester United on Sunday, the goals came flooding back for Klopp’s team against West Ham. Liverpool dominated the first half and took the lead through Szoboszlai in the 28th. The home team’s pressing paid off as West Ham struggled to get out of its half and Szoboszlai’s right-footed shot from about 25 yards (metres) powered into the bottom corner.

Liverpool could have scored a second later in the half, but Gakpo’s

header from inside the box bounced just past the post.

After the break, Darwin Nunez forced a save from Alphonse Areola with a shot that was headed for the top corner and Jones doubled the score in the 56th. Nunez’s clever pass split West Ham’s defence and put Jones in position to fire through the goalkeeper’s legs from a tight angle on the left.

Gakpo made it 3-0 in the 71st with a low shot from the edge of the area that nestled into the bottom corner. Six minutes, later Bowen pulled a goal back for West Ham when he turned Jarell Quansah in

the box and curled a rightfooted shot past Caoimhin Kelleher.

Liverpool should have restored its three-goal advantage when Nunez’s shot hit the post and rebounded into the path of substitute Salah. But the Egypt international fired wide from right in front of goal with Areola on the ground. He made no mistake in the 82nd — converting when he went one-on-one with the West Ham keeper.

Jones then got his second and Liverpool’s fifth in the 84th with a run into the box and a decisive finish.

MADRID (AP) — It was yet another lacklustre performance by Barcelona, drawing jeers from the home fans upset with the team’s struggles against the only winless team in the Spanish league so far.

Some of the jeers came even after Barcelona found a way to beat last-place Almeria 3-2 yesterday, a much-needed hard-fought victory that ended a threegame winless streak and moved the Catalan club back to third place.

“We understand why the fans aren’t too happy, we aren’t either,” Barcelona midfielder Sergi Roberto said. “But we have to be more united than ever now.

We need the fans behind us. Hopefully we will begin next year with the right foot.”

Roberto scored twice and Raphinha once for Barcelona, which moved three points ahead of fourthplace Atletico Madrid. The Catalan club trails Real Madrid by four points and leader Girona by six points.

Madrid visits Alaves today, while Girona is at Real Betis.

Almeria is the only team yet to win a Spanish league match this season. The Saudi-owned club hasn’t won in 21 straight league games, going back to last season.

Barcelona struggled to impose itself against its minnow opponent and needed an 83rd-minute winner by Roberto to secure the home victory after twice relinquishing a lead at the Lluis Companys

BARCELONA’s Sergi Roberto celebrates after scoring his side’s second goal against Almeria yesterday.

(AP Photo/Joan Monfort) Olympic Stadium in Montjuic.

Raphinha opened the scoring in the 33rd and Léo Baptistão equalised in the 41st. In the second half, Roberto put the hosts ahead again in the 60th before Edgar González evened the match in the 71st after Barcelona goalkeeper Iñaki Peña collided with defender Ronald Araujo while going for a ball inside the area.

Peña, who started in place of the injured MarcAndré ter Stegen, made a tough save in the 86th to help Barcelona preserve the lead.

“We suffered more than we expected and more than we deserved,” Barcelona coach Xavi Hernández said. “We had 30 shots on goal and gifted two goals.

The first half was unacceptable, but the second was better. It’s been like this for a month and a half or two.”

Masters has 77 eligible players. It’s shaping up to be one of the smallest fields

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The Masters already has the smallest field of the majors. The 2024 edition could be one of the smallest in years depending on the first three months of the PGA Tour season.

With no significant tournaments the rest of the year, it looks as though 11 players who finish in the top 50 will be added to the field.

That would bring the field to 77 players among those expected to compete.

That includes three players who will be making their Masters debut without ever having won on the PGA Tour or European tour — Adam Schenk, Eric Cole and Denny McCarthy.

Schenk qualified by reaching the Tour Championship for the first time.

The 11 expected to get in through top 50 in the world ranking are Ryan Fox, Min Woo Lee, McCarthy, Will Zalatoris, Justin Rose, Harris English, Cole, J.T. Poston, Adrian Meronk, Adam Hadwin and Nicolai Hjogaard.

Four players — Luke List, Erik van Rooyen, Camilo Villegas and Ludvig Aberg — earned invitations by winning PGA Tour events in the fall.

One additional player will be the winner of the Latin American Amateur Championship in January.

Otherwise, the pass down Magnolia Lane in April comes from winning a full PGA Tour event — there are 14 of them before the Masters — or being in the top 50 on April 7, the week before the Masters.

There also could be a special invitation for international players who are not PGA Tour regulars.

Augusta National prefers the field to be under 100, a number it last exceeded in 1966 when 103 players were

in the field. That would appear to be safe.

Among those narrowly missing out are Chris Kirk (No. 52) and Matt Kuchar (No. 54), the latter who is used to being on the bubble.

“I think I was really close last year, as well,” Kuchar said.

His hopes ended when he lost in the fourth round of the Match Play. The previous year, he was runner-up in the Texas Open when only a win would have gotten him back to Augusta.

Kuchar at least helped himself in the fall by becoming eligible for a pair of $20 million signature events at Pebble Beach and Riviera.

So he knows what he has to do. He’s just not overly consumed by it.

“I’ve never been one to think, ‘I need to play well this week because I’m 53rd in the world.’ If you didn’t tell me where I was in the world ranking, I could not have told you,” Kuchar said. “I’ve always thought your best chance to play good golf is to just go out and do it, and not because you have to do it.”

TIGER AND THE SWOOSH Speculation has been swirling about Tiger Woods and his relationship with Nike, which began when he turned pro in 1996.

Woods had no interest in the topic at the PNC Championship, saying only that “I’m still wearing their product,” and sternly repeating the phrase when asked if this was the end of his deal.

He has only played seven times (10 weekend rounds) since his February 2021 car crash. He returned from that wearing FootJoy shoes.

Nike put out a statement of support, but 18 months later, he still was only wearing the swoosh on his shirt, not his shoes.

TIGER WOODS, left, watches his son Charlie, right, putt ball during the final round of the PNC Championship golf tournament on Sunday in Orlando, Florida.

(AP Photo/Kevin Kolczynski) Another different look for the sixth time, only this was his son, 14-year-old time without his clubs. NBC Charlie, not wearing a red is going to try him out in the Nike shirt on Sunday but broadcast booth. a purple tone and the logo Kisner, who likes to say of Greyson Clothiers, a that golf “ain’t no hobby,” brand also worn by Justin will be the lead analyst for Thomas.

NBC at The Sentry, which Is that an NIL deal? is held Jan. 4-7. He also It sure looked that way will work the WM Phoenix when retired Arizona Open.

Cardinals receiver Larry NBC has been looking to Fitzgerald posted on Insta- replace Paul Azinger since gram of Charlie and wrote, the Ryder Cup when they “Welcome to the @greyson- couldn’t agree on a contract clotheirs family, Charlie.” renewal. Former Ryder Among golf ambassadors Cup captain Paul McGinfor Greyson are Thomas, ley of Ireland filled in at Ryder Cup captain Luke the Hero World Challenge Donald, Erik van Rooyen, in the Bahamas earlier this Luke List and Alison Lee month. on the LPGA Tour.

Still to be determined is As for Woods? He likely how much golf the 39-yearwon’t be at another tour- old Kisner plays. He shut nament until the Genesis down his tour schedule in Invitational at Riviera in the middle of June last year February. when he was playing poorly IS IT A HOBBY? and was torn by wanting to Kevin Kisner is starting be at home more often with the new year at Kapalua his three children in Aiken,

South Carolina. “We think his style will translate well to the viewers at home,” said Tommy Roy, lead producer for NBC’s golf coverage.

BIONDI PASSES ON MASTERS Fred Biondi already has his bachelor’s degree from Florida. He’ll wait to get his Masters, and that involves a different education.

Biondi won the NCAA individual title last year, making him eligible to play in the Masters as long as he stayed amateur. But the native of Brazil decided to turn pro instead. He was at Q-school for the PGA Tour and tied for 10th.

Because he was No. 1 in the PGA Tour University ranking, Biondi is assured of getting in the first 12 Korn Ferry Tour events.

“The Masters is the pinnacle of golf,” Biondi said.

“I sat down with my family and coaches to make a decision just for my own sake.

I was ready to turn professional. I got my degree from Florida. It made more sense to turn professional and start a new chapter.”

COGNISANT STEPS IN New Jersey-based Cognizant first got heavily involved in golf when it became a corporate partner of The Presidents Cup and a title sponsor for the Founders Cup on the LPGA Tour.

Now it is extending itself even more as title sponsor of what for years was the Honda Classic.

The Cognizant Classic will be played from Feb. 29 to March 3 at PGA National, with Chris Kirk as the defending champion. The seven-year deal is through 2030.

It will be the first time since 1980 the south Florida event is not sponsored by a car. In another change, the tournament will be run by the tour’s “Championship Management” team.

What doesn’t change is the charity. The Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation will continue to be the primary beneficiary.

The tournament dates to 1972 when it was the Jackie Gleason Inverrary Classic.

American Motors became the title sponsor in 1981 and Honda took over the following year.

DIVOTS Raul Pereda has put the Mexican flag back on the PGA Tour. The 27-year-old from Mexico, who played at Jacksonville University, earned one of five cards through Q-school. Mexico did not have anyone with a full card since Abraham Ancer and Carlos Ortiz defected to Saudifunded LIV Golf in 2022. ... The LPGA Tour says the inaugural Arizona Championship will be held at Seville Golf and Country Club on March 28-31, a course located just southeast of Phoenix. ... British Open champion Brian Harman is playing the Dubai Desert Classic on the European tour. The tournament is two weeks after The Sentry at Kapalua and two weeks before the first $20 million signature event at Pebble Beach. Cameron Young also is playing in Dubai.

STAT OF THE WEEK Of the five players who earned PGA Tour cards through Q-school, Blaine Hale Jr. is the only one who has never played in a PGA Tour event.

FINAL WORD “He was a skinny rail of a kid. He wasn’t like he is now, built and strong and all that. But he was healthy, had tremendous clubhead speed and a hunger for the game. And you just knew he was going to do more than most.” — Bernhard Langer playing with an 18-year-old Tiger Woods for the first time in the 1994 Johnnie Walker Classic.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 21, 2023, PAGE 17

Pro Picks: Rams will improve their playoff hopes with a win over the Saints

By ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer REBUILDING the Rams took less than one season.

Sean McVay has Los Angeles in the mix for an NFC wild-card spot in a season that began with low expectations for the Rams (7-7).

They’ll kick off Week 16 hosting the New Orleans Saints (7-7) in a game with major playoff implications for both teams.

The Saints are battling Tampa Bay (7-7) for first place in the NFC South.

A healthy Matthew Stafford has played like the guy who led the Rams to a Super Bowl title. He’s thrown 13 touchdown passes and only two interceptions over the past five games while the Rams have won four of those.

Derek Carr is coming off his best game with the Saints, who’ve won two in a row.

The Rams are 4 1/2point favourites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

They are 17-4-1 against the spread in their past 22 games played in December.

Pro Picks expects them to improve that mark.

RAMS, 23-16 BUFFALO at LOS ANGELES CHARGERS Line: Bills minus 12 1/2 The Bills (8-6) are back in playoff contention and even have a shot at the AFC East after beating Kansas City and dominating Dallas. The Chargers (5-9) play their first game under interim coach Giff Smith after a lopsided loss got Brandon Staley fired.

BEST BET: BILLS, 34-13 JACKSONVILLE at TAMPA BAY Line: Buccaneers minus 1 1/2 Baker Mayfield had a perfect passer rating at Lambeau Field and the Buccaneers (7-7) have won three in a row to move into first place in the NFC South. They have an even bigger game next week against New Orleans.

The Jaguars (8-6) have lost three in a row to lose their grip on first place in the AFC South. Trevor Lawrence is in concussion protocol. The Jaguars, who are 9-1 against the spread in their past 10 road games, need Lawrence to snap a losing streak.

UPSET SPECIAL: JAGUARS, 24-23 CINCINNATI at PITTSBURGH Line: Bengals minus 1 1/2 Jake Browning has led the Bengals (8-6) to three straight wins and a spot in the wild-card race since losing his first start to Pittsburgh. The Steelers (7-7) have lost three in a row

since that 16-10 win in Cincinnati. Steelers QB Kenny Pickett returned to practice this week but Mason Rudolph is expected to start. The Steelers are 20-6-4 in their past 30 games as a home underdog.

BENGALS, 23-16 INDIANAPOLIS at ATLANTA Line: Falcons minus 1 1/2 The Colts (8-6) have won five of six to position themselves for a wild-card spot.

They’ve scored at least 27 points in six of their past eight games. Two straight losses have knocked the Falcons (6-8) out of first place in the NFC South and now they’re benching QB Desmond Ridder and going back to Taylor Heinicke.

FALCONS, 26-24 GREEN BAY at CAROLINA Line: Packers minus 4 1/2 The Packers (6-8) are reeling after two straight losses. They must win to climb back into the wildcard race. The Panthers (2-12) aim to ruin another team’s playoff hopes after beating Atlanta.

PACKERS, 24-16 CLEVELAND at HOUSTON Line: Browns minus 2 1/2 Joe Flacco has helped the injury-depleted Browns (9-5) stay in contention for a division title while leading the AFC wild-card race.

Cleveland has allowed more points on the road than any team this season and fewest at home. The Texans (8-6) are in a threeway tie for first place and again may have to rely on backup QB Case Keenum because C.J. Stroud was still in concussion protocol on Wednesday.

BROWNS, 23-21 DETROIT at MINNESOTA Line: Lions minus 3 The Lions (10-4) will clinch the NFC North with a win. They’re averaging 33 points per game indoors this season. QB Nick Mullens makes his second start for the Vikings (7-7) as they compete for a wildcard spot.

LIONS, 30-26 WASHINGTON at NEW YORK JETS Line: Jets minus 3 This is the worst matchup of the week. The Commanders (4-10) have lost five in a row. The Jets (5-9) have lost six of seven and will have to wait until next season for Aaron Rodgers to return.

COMMANDERS, 17-13 SEATTLE at TENNESSEE Line: Seahawks minus 2 1/2 Drew Lock led the Seahawks (7-7) on an improbable game-wining drive against Philadelphia on Monday night and back into the wild-card race.

JACKSON RETURNS TO PRACTICE FOLLOWING SECOND SUSPENSION

By ARNIE STAPLETON AP Pro Football Writer

NEW Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr throws during the first half of an NFL football game against the New York Giants on Sunday in New Orleans.

(AP Photo/Matthew Hinton)

The Titans (5-9) are much improved with Will Levis at quarterback.

TITANS, 23-20 ARIZONA at CHICAGO Line: Bears minus 4 1/2 The Bears (5-9) have won three of five with two one-score losses. They’ve been more competitive since Justin Fields returned on Nov. 19. The Cardinals (3-11) still have an outside shot at the No. 1 overall pick.

BEARS, 22-19 DALLAS at MIAMI Line: Dolphins minus 1 1/2 Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins (10-4) are still seeking their first win against a team with a winning record.

The Cowboys (10-4) are coming off a lopsided loss at Buffalo, but still have a shot at winning the NFC East. Dallas is 12-1 against

the spread after a loss since 2021.

COWBOYS, 30-27 NEW ENGLAND at DENVER Line: Broncos minus 6 1/2 Patriots (3-11) can’t even cover the spread, going 3-14-1 against the line over their past 18 games. Russell Wilson and the Broncos (7-7) can’t afford a slip-up as they compete for a wildcard berth.

BRONCOS, 20-12 LAS VEGAS at KANSAS CITY Line: Chiefs minus 10 The Chiefs (9-5) have averaged 35.5 points against the Raiders (6-8) in 11 games with Patrick Mahomes. After putting 63 points up against the Chargers, Las Vegas faces a much tougher defence.

CHIEFS, 27-16 NEW YORK GIANTS at PHILADELPHIA

Line: Eagles minus 11 1/2 The Eagles (10-4) have lost three straight games, they’re pointing fingers and their fan base is in panic mode. Here comes Tommy DeVito and the Giants (5-9) to provide relief.

EAGLES, 34-17 BALTIMORE at SAN FRANCISCO Line: 49ers minus 5 1/2 Potential Super Bowl preview featuring NFL’s two No. 1 seeds. The 49ers (11-3) have won six in a row and have a pair of MVP candidates in Brock Purdy and Christian McCaffrey. Lamar Jackson could bolster his chances with an impressive performance in this primetime matchup. Ravens (11-3) are 19-3-1 against the spread in their past 23 games as an underdog.

49ERS, 26-23

ENGLEWOOD, Colo.

(AP) — Denver Broncos safety Kareem Jackson, who has forfeited nearly $1 million in fines and paychecks over a series of over-the-top tackles this season, returned to practice yesterday after completing his second suspension.

After missing six of the Broncos’ last seven games, Jackson is eligible to return Sunday night when Denver (7-7) hosts the New England Patriots (3-11), although the Broncos have a roster exemption through Monday and could choose to sit him out this weekend.

His role is also uncertain because fourth-year safety PJ Locke has played well in Jackson’s absence opposite Justin Simmons.

Jackson could be used on early downs or in certain sub packages with Locke maintaining most of the snaps.

“It’s been four weeks,” coach Sean Payton said.

“All those things are possibilities. It’s still something that we’re kind of going through.”

Last time he returned from a suspension, Jackson was reinserted into the starting lineup right away, but his very first tackle resulted in another suspension and this time, the league declined to cut his four-game punishment in half.

As a converted cornerback, Jackson’s 5-foot-10, 183-pound frame puts him on the smaller size for NFL safeties, something he’s compensated for with his hard-hitting style.

Jackson was granted an audience with Commissioner Roger Goodell last month as he sought advice on how to quit running afoul of the league’s unnecessary roughness rules where hits that were once celebrated are now scorned.

Jackson said, however, that he only came away from that meeting with more questions.

“I was told that I’m responsible for the offensive guys’ protection,” Jackson said at his Christmas charity event this month. “So, I’m not really sure how I protect myself, make plays and protect them, as well. ... At the end of the day, I’m going to go out and I’ll play the game as I have since 2010.”

That’s worrisome for Broncos fans pining for an end to Denver’s eight-year playoff drought because Jackson said much the same thing after his first suspension and he got dinged again for his very first tackle upon his return.

Jackson has surrendered $837,000 in lost paychecks to go with $89,670 in fines for unsafe hits this season.

Tua Tagovailoa on outside criticism: ‘I am the worst football player, if that’s what you want’

By ALANIS THAMES AP Sports Writer MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) — Tua Tagovailoa has never liked to make things about himself.

Somehow, the Miami Dolphins quarterback is always a topic of discussion.

Tagovailoa has been one of the NFL’s most-discussed quarterbacks since the Dolphins selected him with the No. 5 pick in 2020, from debates about his health and work ethic to criticism about his arm strength and ability to lead the Dolphins for years to come.

Tagovailoa has insisted that he doesn’t care about those outside discussions, but Wednesday, he made it clear that he hears it.

“I understand that my platform and who I am in this league as a quarterback makes me, if you want,

polarizing,” Tagovailoa said. “Whether I’m the best, whether I’m the worst, I could care less.”

He added: “I keep receipts. We all have a way of how we do things.”

Tagovailoa entered the NFL with high expectations after leading Alabama to a national championship in college.

But his first two NFL seasons were wrapped in turmoil as Miami’s offense struggled and rumors swirled of a strained relationship between Tagovailoa and then-Miami coach Brian Flores.

Tagovailoa is having one of the best seasons of his career in 2023: He leads the NFL with 3,921 yards and is on pace to become Miami’s first 4,000-yard passer since Dan Marino threw for 4,116 yards in 1992. Tagovailoa also ranks second in passer

DOLPHINS quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) gestures before a game against the New York Jets on Sunday.

(AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell) rating (106.0), is tied for week’s win over the New fifth in passing touchdowns York Jets with an ankle (25) and is second in yards injury. per pass attempt (8.6).

Despite his gaudy stats, He and Tyreek Hill are some pundits and fans have one of the best quarter- questioned if Tagovailoa’s back-receiver duos in the performance this season NFL. Hill has caught 97 is more about the pieces passes and 12 touchdowns around him than his actual and leads the league in improvement. receiving yards (1,542) The Dolphins have one even though he missed last of the NFL’s most creative

play-callers in coach Mike McDaniel, are first in scoring and top five in the league in rushing, red zone efficiency, run defense and sacks.

Hill entered Week 15 on pace for the first 2,000yard receiving season in NFL history, and running back Raheem Mostert has boosted Miami’s run game with a league-high 20 total touchdowns and 966 yards rushing, which is third in the NFL. Tagovailoa has given his teammates praise for the success of the AFC-East leading Dolphins, but he’s also taken notice of the outside noise.

On Wednesday, as the Dolphins prepared to host the Cowboys in Week 16, a game that could clinch Miami a playoff berth with a win, Tagovailoa was candid about some of the

“narratives” he’s seen about himself.

“Yeah, sure, I am only good with Tyreek in,” Tagovailoa said sarcastically.

“You’re right. That is the only time I am at my best.

You’re right, I’m only good when Jaylen’s (Waddle) in. Like, I could care less about it. Like sure, if Jaylen and those guys aren’t out (there), I’m only as good as Raheem Mostert allows me to be.

“If that’s what the narrative needs to be, and we’re able to win games and we’re able to go where we want to go as a team, I am the worst football player, if that’s what you want. Like I don’t care. Whatever it is, whatever you need on your show, take clips out of what I just said. Do what you need to do. I’m just here to do my job, and my job is to help our guys win games.”

PAGE 18, Thursday, December 21, 2023

THE TRIBUNE

GIORGIO BALDACCI OPEN TENNIS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Tennis players advance to the finals FROM PAGE 15 experienced tennis player said he came out ready for his match against Major Jr. “I woke up a little sore but I had a good warm up, took a hot shower, got ready to play and I think I was a little more ready to start than MJ was today. The wind definitely played a factor, it was tough conditions. I think I just was tougher out there and with the third opponent being the wind, you just kind of had to use it to your advantage,” he said.

Carey Jr upset the defending champion Denali Nottage to make it back to his first Giorgio Baldacci finals since 2014, which he won. The victory was especially sweet for the former national champion as he was able to avenge last year’s loss to the same opponent in the semifinals.

He bested the Freeport native 6-2, 7-6(3).

“I knew it was gonna be a good match because I lost to Denali last year so I was expecting a tough match whereas last year I wasn’t really aware of how well he was playing so I might have underestimated him. This year I knew he was gonna come tough so I was ready

SYDNEY Clarke

SIMONE Pratt

RODNEY Carey Jr

BAKER Newman

for it. I think I came a lot more prepared because I wanted to give it my best shot to make the team,” he said.

With his latest goal now accomplished, he talked about how it felt to get it done and secure a spot in today’s finals. “This feels good, that is what we are here for, to try and represent the country. It is always an honour for me to be able to come out and make the team so I just wanna come out tomorrow and give it my best shot,” he said.

The highly-anticipated match between the

22-year-old Clarke and Takaii Adderley, who hoisted two trophies at the AID Junior Tennis National Championships, ended with the older athlete earning the win in consecutive sets.

She blanked Adderley in set one 6-0.

In the following set, the junior player regained her footing but it wasn’t enough to stop Clarke who won 6-4 to close it out.

Clarke, who attends the University of Alabama, enjoyed battling it out against a younger opponent. “It was really great.

It’s always great to play

against the younger players so I can see where I am at as well. Overall, it was a great match between both of us. My opponent played very well. I think she had a slow start but once she got into it and got used to the weather, things started to get interesting. I felt it came down to who would be mentally tough to stick it out at the end,” she said.

The multiple time national team member shared how it felt to once again have the opportunity to represent The Bahamas at the Billie Jean King Cup tournament.

“It is always a great feeling, I am always excited to represent my country any chance I get.

“I feel honoured every single time and grateful because a lot of people are vying for the spot so I feel very blessed to have this opportunity once again,” she said.

As for her finals matchup against the third seed, she is looking to come out aggressive, place more spin on the ball if the weather is windy and remain true to herself until the end result.

Pratt got to work against the former national

Trail Blazers erase 22-point deficit for 109-04 win over Suns

By ERIK GUNDERSEN Associated Press PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — DeAndre Ayton had a double-double of 16 points and 15 rebounds, Anfernee Simons had 23 points and seven rebounds, and the Portland Trail Blazers erased a 22-point deficit to beat the Phoenix Suns 109104 on Tuesday night to snap a seven-game losing streak.

The loss for the Suns was their fifth in seven games.

Phoenix’s Kevin Durant led all scorers with 40 points while Devin Booker had 26 points and seven assists.

Simons’ layup with 10.7 seconds left helped stop a late Phoenix rally after Portland pushed their lead to 14 in the 4th quarter.

“I was trying to decide whether to go up with two hands or shoot a floater and at the last minute I switched it to a floater,” Simons said of his final basket.

Ayton played a gamehigh 40 minutes and put up a season-high 18 field goal attempts against his former team. The former No. 1 pick downplayed any extra motivation against the team that drafted him.

“I’ve just been focused on being a Trail Blazer and establishing who we are in this league,” Ayton said.

“I’m too focused on that right now. They were just in the way.”

Blazers coach Chauncey Billups wanted Ayton focused.

“I ran some plays for him early to try and get him

CARIFTA AQUATICS FROM PAGE 15

support Team Bahamas by contributing any amount to this fund-raising goal,” Cargill said.

The Bahamas will host the CARIFTA Aquatics Championships for a fifth time. Over the years, the nation has proven itself to be a dominant force on the waters.

Team Bahamas claimed its first win at the event in 2007. Seven years later, the country earned a win in Savaneta, Aruba and won again the following year. After Martinique emerged victorious in 2016,

champion Elana Mackey, quashing her hopes of repeating at the end of year tournament. Mackey pushed her to the brink in set one but ultimately the third ranked athlete prevailed 7-5 to take it. She followed it up by a 6-3 win to make her second finals appearance since 2012.

She talked about what it took to dethrone the reigning champion on Wednesday.

“It was a little difficult to adjust because it was really windy so I had to move my feet a lot. It was up and down and I literally had to play ugly. I tried to be a little bit more aggressive, open up the court a little bit more and tried to go for my shots,” the finalist said.

Ahead of today’s big match versus Clarke, Pratt is ready to go.

“I am pleased and happy with the result, hopefully tomorrow I can play a little bit better. My mindset is to take it one point at a time, try to relax and play my game,” she added.

Due to the Island Luck food giveaway expected to bring traffic congestion near the NTC early this morning, matches will begin at 11:30am.

TRAIL Blazers centre Deandre Ayton, left, shoots over Suns center Jusuf Nurkic Tuesday.

(AP Photo/Steve Dykes)

aggressive and going,” Billups said. “Of course you will have extra juice against your former team. But I thought the last couple of days that I needed to start playing him more.”

Jerami Grant also had 22 points for Portland, while Malcolm Brogdon had 14 points and four assists off the bench. Brogdon started the second half in place of Shaedon Sharpe, who left the game with a groin injury.

Portland was hot from the 3-point line all night, making 14 of 28 3-pointers to just five for Phoenix.

“They made nine more 3s than we did. It was pretty much even everywhere else,” Durant said.

76ERS 127, TIMBERWOLVES 113 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid scored a season-high 51 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, and the Philadelphia 76ers used a big fourth quarter to close out the Minnesota Timberwolves for a 127-113 win on Wednesday night.

Tyrese Maxey scored 35 points as Philadelphia (19-8) won for the seventh time in eight games, bouncing back nicely after a 108-104 loss to Chicago on Monday night.

Minnesota (20-6) got 27 points from Anthony Edwards, 23 points from Karl-Anthony Towns and 21 from Jaden McDaniels.

The Timberwolves entered Wednesday night as winners of nine of its last 10 games and possessors of the league’s best record.

CLIPPERS 120, MAVERICKS 111 DALLAS (AP) — Kawhi Leonard scored 30 points, and the Clippers held on for their ninth consecutive victory.

Norman Powell scored 21 points off the bench with Paul George sidelined by an illness, and James Harden had 17 points and 11 assists.

The Clippers are on their longest winning streak since a 10-game run in 2015-16.

Dallas star Luka Doncic recorded his sixth triple-double by getting 10 rebounds and 10 assists.

KNICKS 121, NETS 102 NEW YORK (AP) — Julius Randle scored 26 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 23 and the Knicks beat the Nets for their first victory in Brooklyn in four years.

Immanuel Quickley had 19 points and Jalen Brunson finished with 16 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for the Knicks, who have swung New York’s NBA basketball rivalry back in their favor with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving no longer in town. The Knicks have won all three meetings since the Nets traded the two stars last season, after never beating the Nets when they were on the floor.

NUGGETS 113, RAPTORS 104 TORONTO (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 31 points and 15 rebounds, and Denver won for the fifth time in six games. Jamal Murray scored 20 points for

the Nuggets, who evened their road record at 8-8.

Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. each scored 12 points.

Jokic shot 13 for 23 and led the Nuggets with six assists, including a behindthe-back dish to Gordon in the first quarter.

Scottie Barnes had 30 points and 10 rebounds for Toronto. Pascal Siakam added 18 points.

HEAT 115, MAGIC 106 ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Tyler Herro had 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, helping Miami to the road win.

Bam Adebayo added 18 points and seven rebounds as Miami won for the fourth time in six games.

Haywood Highsmith made four of the Heat’s 15 3-pointers and finished with a season-high 15 points.

Miami played without Jimmy Butler, who has a strained left calf, and Kevin Love, who is out with an illness.

HAWKS 134, ROCKETS 127 HOUSTON (AP) — Trae Young had 30 points and 14 assists, and Atlanta held off a late charge by Houston.

It was Young’s fifth straight game with at least 30 points and 10 assists, the longest such streak of his career.

Houston used a 14-0 run to close to 127-123 with about 90 seconds to go. Atlanta’s Saddiq Bey made a big 3-pointer with 35 seconds left, and the Hawks held on for the win. Jabari Smith Jr. led the Rockets with a

career-high 34 points and also grabbed 13 rebounds.

Fred VanVleet had a season-high 32 points with 15 assists.

CAVALIERS 124, JAZZ 116 CLEVELAND (AP) — Sam Merrill set career highs with 27 points and eight 3-pointers, sending

short-handed Cleveland to the victory.

Merrill buried three 3-pointers during a 17-2 run to open the fourth quarter, giving Cleveland its largest lead at 109-95. The reserve guard finished 9 of 16 from the field, including 8 of 14 beyond the arc, in a careerbest 30 minutes.

Team Bahamas reeled off five straight wins with the most recent one secured in Curaçao. This time around they picked up a record number of medals with 85 in total, including 37 gold medals, 27 silver medals and 21 bronze medals.

Marvin Johnson, who racked up nine medals in Curaçao, will be competing in his final year at the CARIFTA Swimming Championships and wants Bahamians to come out and support.

“This year will be my last CARIFTA Games and I am fortunate to be at home in The Bahamas. It means a lot to me not only to represent The Bahamas but also to swim in front of my family and friends who

have never seen me do it before.

“I know swimming is not the most popular sport and we do not get as much recognition as we deserve but being on the team for the past five consecutive championships, I can tell you we are full of heart and we love to represent The Bahamas.

I do encourage you all to come out and support once the day has come. I promise you it won’t be a show that you would want to miss,” he said.

According to Cargill, at next year’s hosting of the swimming championships, senior athletes will have a unique opportunity to use the event as a qualifier for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games as well as

the 2024 World Aquatics Championships.

“What is exciting about these CARIFTA Games unlike any other CARIFTA Games is that The Bahamas has introduced an 18 and over category for events 50m, 100m and 200m in distance.

“This is going to give, our senior athletes particularly, an opportunity to compete along with the CARIFTA athletes at the 2024 championships here in Nassau,” he said.

The division will be open to all CARIFTA swimmers and will only be contested for medals not points.

Among those optimistic about the CARIFTA Aquatics Championships returning to home soil is

Minister of Youth, Sports and Culture Mario Bowleg.

“It is my great pleasure to declare that The Bahamas has been chosen as the host country for the upcoming CARIFTA Swimming Championships in the coming year. To us this is not just a memorable occasion, it is a testament to our commitment to youth, excellence, sportsmanship and the undeniable passion we have for sports in our country.

“As we prepare to host this exhilarating competition, we do so with the intention of defending our title with pride, determination, and the undeniable spirit that characterises The Bahamas. As we dive into the preparations for

the CARIFTA Swimming Championship, let us embrace the spirit of unity, sportsmanship and friendly competition.

“Let us come together as a community to support our swimmers, showcase the warmth and hospitality of The Bahamas and create lasting memories for all participants and spectators alike,” Minister Bowleg stated.

Individuals interested in making the road to a sixpeat at home more seamless can reach out to Jurelle Munnings, chief executive officer of the LOC, or Lynne Fraino, head of marketing and public relations, at 803-5762 or via email at CARIFTAXXX@BahamasAquatics.com

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, December 21, 2023, PAGE 19

BUDDY

FROM PAGE 15

added 21 points and six rebounds. The Hornets shot 47% from the field, making only eight 3-pointers to the Pacers’ 18.

“It just gets frustrating when they’re scoring like that,” Charlotte coach Steve Clifford said. “We don’t have a lot of room for error. Our guys know that.

Weak fouls, second-chance points, not getting matched up. It takes its toll.”

Playing without starting point guard LaMelo Ball and centre Mark Williams, the Hornets dropped their sixth in a row to fall to

PACERS’ Buddy Hield in action last night. (AP) 7-19. Ball, averaging 24.7 points, 8.2 assists and 5.5 rebounds, missed his 11th straight game because of a sprained right ankle. Williams, averaging 12.7 points and 9.7 rebounds, sat out

his sixth in a row due to a back contusion.

Indiana led 31-29 at the end of the first quarter, 71-60 at halftime and 107-86 entering the final period. Charlotte never led by more than two.

“Winning cures a lot,” Hield said. “Everybody’s relieved. Coming off the high of the in-season tournament, we rode the storm (out). (Thursday night at Memphis) we have another storm to weather. Ja Morant is back.”

UP NEXT Hornets: Host Denver on Saturday night.

Pacers: At Memphis tonight.