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Volume: 113 No.26
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WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2016
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PROPERTY GUIDE INSIDE
PM’s election wait for voters Christie wants rise in registration before naming 2017 poll date By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net
WITH the country set to move into an election year in the next few days, Prime Minister Perry Christie has indicated that a potential election date could hinge on voter registration in the coming weeks, implying that he could make a determination as early as February “if we get the numbers right”. The next election must be called by May 2017. Mr Christie, speaking to voter registration numbers on the sidelines of the 2016 Boxing Day Junkanoo Parade, admitted to The Tribune that the process has been “a struggle” for his administration, push-
ing officials “back to the drawing board” as they look for ways to encourage voters to “support the process”. According to Parliamentary Commissioner Sherlyn Hall, a slight increase in registration in late November placed the registered voter count to just around 67,000; roughly half of what it was at the same point in 2011. Mr Christie told The Tribune that “surprising forecast” has led his administration to steer “tremendous resources” towards voter registration with the hopes of “convincing eligible voters to first register and secondly, take part in this vital process”. SEE PAGE FIVE
TWO DEAD, FOUR HURT IN HOLIDAY SHOOTINGS
By SANCHESKA DORSETT Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia.net ONE MAN is dead and four others - including three women - are in serious condition in hospital after they were shot multiple times in a drive-by shooting on Boxing Day. And last night another man was found shot dead at Millennium Gardens. SEE PAGE FIVE
A MAGICAL NIGHT FOR ONE FAMILY
GOVT ON ‘COURSE OF CORRECTION’ AFTER DOWNGRADE ANNOUNCEMENT By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net THE
government is charting a course of correction and fiscal responsibility, Prime Minister Christie insisted earlier this week as he cautioned those who may be alarmed over the recent decision by international credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) to downgrade the country’s credit rating to “junk” status. In an interview with The Tribune during the Boxing Day Junkanoo Parade, Mr Christie called for calm
amidst the concern that has arisen in the wake of S&P’s announcement. He said his administration “sits comfortable” with the move as it sees it as a “simple misunderstanding with timing”, contending that S&P sees positive economic growth on the horizon for The Bahamas, but not until 2018. Mr Christie said: “Our detractors will push the doom and gloom message, but when we look closer at this, it comes down to a difference in timing. “Standard and Poor has, SEE PAGE FIVE
A STUNNING costume inspired by Disney as part of the One Family Junkanoo parade. Photo: Shawn Hanna/Tribune Staff
By RICARDO WELLS Tribune Staff Reporter rwells@tribunemedia.net MAGIC was certainly on the side of the One Family Junkanoo group during the 2016 Boxing Day Parade, with the group capturing its first parade victory since 2014 under theme, “Disney - Let the Magic Begin”.
The group finished Monday’s parade with an overall score of 80.85 points, beating out second place finishers, the Shell Saxon Superstars by .82 points. Roots finished third with 78.10 points, category A newcomers Genesis Warhawks took fourth with 76.82 points, and the Valley Boys, winners of the last three ma-
jor Junkanoo parades, closed out the category with 74.95. Chairman of One Family Christina Fernander said Monday’s victory was special for the group as it marked the first win since she was named chairman this past spring.
FNM ‘WILL PRIVATISE CARNIVAL AND INVEST IN JUNKANOO’ By SANCHESKA DORSETT Tribune Staff Reporter sdorsett@tribunemedia.net FREE National Movement Leader Dr Hubert Minnis said yesterday that his party will “privatise carnival” and invest the coun-
try’s money into Junkanoo and other cultural events if elected in the next general election. In an interview with The Tribune, Dr Minnis said the FNM will not cancel the controversial event but rather “take it out of the
hands of the government” and turn it over to the private sector. He said he will focus on “advancing our own identity” and letting someone else “throw a big party”. SEE PAGE THREE
Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper
SEE PAGE TWO, PICTURES ON P6-10
19 BRAZILIANS FEARED DROWNED OFF THE BAHAMAS AT LEAST 19 Brazilian migrants are feared drowned off the Bahamas as they tried to cross illegally to the United States, officials in Brasilia, the capital, said on Monday according to a report by Agence France-Presse. SEE PAGE 12