New PM Moved in Yet?

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The Star (St.Lucia)

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2018

New PM Moved In Yet?

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$2.00

Nothing blue here. With talent such as former President Bill Clinton around, who better to help you sing Happy New Year?

• Tel: (758) 450-0021 / 31 / 728 1000 • Fax: (758) 450-0092 • Email: info@bluewatersslu.com • Website: www.bluewatersslu.com

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02 LOCAL

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DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

Special Needs Children enjoy Christmas at Government House T

he annual Prime Minister’s Christmas celebration for children with special needs was held at a different venue this year, much to the delight of students and teachers as they got to experience Government House in a unique light.

On Monday December 10, 2018, His Excellency Sir Emmanuel Neville Cenac, Governor General of Saint Lucia, warmly opened up the Official Residence of the Governor General, Morne Fortune, where the event was held for the first time.

With wider grounds to utilize, as well as the interior of the house, organisers went all out in ensuring that the children had the best time ever with fun and games, bouncing castles, Disney characters Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Santa Claus himself, and a photo booth by Wavemaker Photography.

There was even a movie-room and a grand Christmas tree for photo ops, and the children

Minnie Mouse made an appearance at Government House to hang out with the children.

PM Chastanet joins Santa in handing out presents to children.

and teachers who came from different parts of the island were treated as VIPs at the GG's residence.

While some of the children lounged under tents in the shaded spots, some took to making the area their dance floor, showing off their moves to the music from the DJ. The children and teachers also got to hang out with the Governor General and Lady Cenac and with Prime Minister Allen Chastanet, his wife Mrs. Raquel Duboulay-Chastanet and their son, Braden. The Minister for Infrastructure, Ports, Energy and Labour, Stephenson King, who initiated the event as prime minister several years ago, also stopped by to help with gift

distribution.

According to Saint Lucia’s prime minister, who was beaming with joy, “Every year this is one of the events that I look forward to the most. It brings me such happiness, just to see how this simple gesture brings a smile to the faces of those children among us who we may consider different.

Yet their genuine nature, their warmth, their presence . . . words are not enough to describe how easily they bring a smile to our faces in return, which should be the true spirit of Christmas. And so I believe that they deserve a special place in our hearts, not just at this time but throughout the year.”

The prime minister went on to thank all the teachers of special needs children in Saint Lucia, whom he said are true heroes, often going beyond their call of duty to ensure that the children are not only cared for but are safe.

He also expressed gratitude to the Governor General of Saint Lucia, for graciously opening up his residence and taking time out to interact with the children, teachers and volunteers.

“My staff, the volunteers and all of those who contributed to this wonderful event here today deserve special mention and I would like to thank them all,” said the Prime Minister.

Before the event was over, all of the children were presented with their Christmas gifts. The hard-working teachers were also recognized for their dedication and commitment.

Through the support of Peter & Company Distribution’s brand manager, Germaine Serieux, all of the teachers received tokens of appreciation on the day.

The Office of the Prime Minister thanks the Embassy of the Republic of China (Taiwan), Ferrands Dairy, Peter and Company, OJO Labs, Wavemaker Photography, Brice and Company Ltd, Mr. Christopher Mitchell and The Embassy of Morocco for helping to make the event a success.

FIVE DEATHS DURING THE CHRISTMAS SEASON

O Bouncing castle fun at Government House.

Teachers of special needs students received Christmas tokens from Peter & Company Distribution.

n Monday, December 24, 2018 about 3:15 p.m. officers attached to the Canaries Police Station responded to a report of a suspected drowning at Seaside, Canaries.

Robert Joseph, also known as Jilien, a fifty-two-year-old resident of Extension Area, Canaries, reportedly went swimming near the Canaries jetty, when he encountered difficulties returning to shore.

Some persons assisted in bringing him ashore, where efforts were made to resuscitate him, but to no avail.

On Wednesday, December 26, at about 10:15 a.m. officers attached to the Police Marine Unit responded to a report of a suspected drowning at Choc Beach, Castries. A member of the public had identified a

female body off the coast of the Choc Beach and the Police Marine Unit was summoned.

The body was recovered and later identified as Keiron Benoit, a fifty-two-year-old resident of Faux-a-Chaud. A medical practitioner later pronounced her dead at the Victoria Hospital.

A post mortem examination is scheduled for a subsequent date. Police are continuing investigations into this matter.

Also, on Wednesday, December 26, at about 3:30 p.m. officers attached to the Gros Islet Police Station, responded to a report of a suspected drowning at the Gros Islet Beach, near Chapel Street, Gros Islet.

Christopher Benoit Bruno, a sixty-two-year-old resident of Gros Islet, reportedly went into the water and failed to

resurface. His body was later recovered by people in the vicinity.

Police are also investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of two individuals on Wednesday December 26, 2018, about 7:45 p.m. along the Roseau-Anse La Raye Highway.

Twenty-one-year-old Ruben Flavius and twenty-year-old Keiran Sexius, both residents of Bois Den, Jacmel, were on a motor scooter, travelling in a southerly direction along the Roseau Highway, and collided with an omnibus, which was travelling in a northerly direction.

This incident brings the number of road fatalities recorded for the year 2018 to twenty-five. All mentioned victims were pronounced dead by medical practitioners at Victoria Hospital.

THE STAR

DECEMBER 29, 2018

LOCAL

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03

PWA Demands IMPACS Resolution By Early 2019!

Joshua St. Aimee

W

Travis Chicot, President of the Police Welfare Association (left) and Ajariah Francois, Secretary. Chicot says his association will always stand by its accused members—until proven guilty.

Police Officer Launches His Second Safety Tips Handbook

S

hervon Matthew is a member of the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force and is currently stationed at the Babonneau Police Station.

Although he reports for duty when required and performs all the necessary tasks, Matthew’s work does not stop at just what he’s paid for. On Thursday 20 December he launched the second part of a handbook series, Personal Safety. The handbook provides safety tips and advice for a myriad of different situations in which any citizen might find themselves. Topics range from date rapes to safety when jogging. The book is being made available by Mathew to anyone who wants to learn more, at no cost at all.

This latest handbook is the most recent of a string of projects that Matthew has embarked on to sensitize people of his country on safety from his perspective as a police officer. It started off with a bookmark that he distributed, followed by part one of Personal Safety. Then he did public service announcements over radio broadcasts and even some interactive videos with local artists. It’s his way of giving back, Matthew says. “If someone wants to assist me or give me something for what I’ve been doing, I will accept it

Shervon Matthew’s book, Personal Safety, is just another way he tries to protect citizens in Saint Lucia.

but it’s not my intention to make money out of it; it’s my way of giving back to the community,” he said.

Matthew’s inspiration is not far-fetched. He says that he has been a victim of crime himself and, in most instances, it was because he was not prepared enough. So, he hopes that he can help citizens to be ever-ready with the information provided in his handbooks.

As for why he has taken it upon himself, Matthew believes

that this initiative has to start from somewhere, and with endorsement from the RSLPF and the Commissioner of Police, he’s putting in that extra work and is ready to welcome anyone who wants to help.

The next project Matthew has in mind is to create an app that anyone can access to learn his tips on demand and share with others. He hopes that companies like Digicel or Flow would come on board to assist him.

hen a 2015 inquest declared the death of 23-year-old Chakadan an “unlawful police killing,” his mother, Frances Daniel, considered her prayers answered. However, there remained one small hurdle.

“The matter now goes to the High Court,” she said in 2015, “and you can never tell how long this matter will last.”

It had appeared for some time that Chakadan’s untimely death while in police custody would end up among the 400 or so cold cases on police record.

But, on December 5, five years after the police claimed Chakadan had been found hanging in his cell at the Micoud police station on October 23, 2013, the officers in whose custody he had been, were brought in for questioning.

At the time of writing, no charges have been laid.

At a recent press conference to announce that the Police Welfare Association had readjusted its relationship with the Trade Union Federation, the PWA president, Travis Chicot, said that while the Association had no quarrel with the coroner’s report on the Chakadan matter, the implicated officers will remain on the force until the case has been judicially resolved.

He said: “What is required of the Welfare Association at this time is that we continue to show support, to continue to meet with the officers and to ensure that what they need is in place for them, such as counselling, and the opportunity to secure proper legal representation that is needed.”

Chicot also addressed the IMPACS matter and made this promise to reporters:

“Come January 2019, we intend every week to issue a statement on IMPACS. We’ve had support from attorneys from Trinidad who were here with us, and they’ve pledged to assist our members. The PWA supports prosecution based on evidence; the PWA will support the prosecution of any police officer once there is sufficient evidence before the court.”

He added: “We believe no court in Saint Lucia should be used for show business, and if we are going to prosecute people based on pleasing anybody, we ought never to use the courts for that.”

The president repeated William Ewart Gladstone’s admonition: “Justice delayed is justice denied,” and called for a final decision early in the new year about the future of IMPACS. --- Joshua St. Aimee

04 LOCAL

www.stluciastar.com

DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

Short Story

The Golden Coin

was smiling as he replaced the receiver. Perhaps it was true hey’d been tempestuously after all, that time was indeed the great healer. married for nearly seven

Five months earlier they years when she calmly had exchanged Christmas announced the thrill had gone greetings.

He had phoned out of their almost daily warring from L.A. to speak with their and the follow-up make-up young son in Barbados and was kissing and cuddling. She surprised when she answered said she had landed a job as secretary to some New York big his call. She said she was sorry things hadn’t worked shot. The pay was great, she’d be taking their four-year-old son out for them, often she had wondered how he was making to live with her. Several weeks out in California. On one or earlier she had written from two occasions she’d actually New York to say the child was with his maternal grandparents found herself missing him. He wondered: Was she flirting with in Barbados.

They had never bothered to him? Before she put their son on the line she wished him a divorce. For almost three years they had simply carried on their happy Christmas and the best for the coming year. separated lives on separate

Outside the Golden Coin coasts, she in the east, he in the usual traffickers were Los Angeles. Now that he was hawking their suspect wares at visiting New York, she came to irresistible prices: Rolexes at a mind. He called her. Would she fraction of the regular cost, tape care to join him for lunch? At recorders shaped like ballpoint first she sounded hesitant; he blamed it on surprise. She’d had pens, porno flicks, tickets to live sex shows, packaged no way of knowing he was in marijuana . . . At a quarter to New York. But then she got all two he glanced at his watch giggly and said why not, lunch and was surprised to catch would be just fine, it would be super to see him again after all himself smiling at the discovery that she still had not acquired this time. Perhaps they could a respect for time. Their worst meet at the Golden Coin, a Japanese restaurant on Second wars had broken out of that particular Pandora’s Box. Avenue, say about 1.30. He

By Rick Wayne

T

The trick is to know what has been joined and who was the joiner!

Shortly after two o’clock, she showed up. At the last minute her boss had required her to do some typing, she explained. He said he hadn’t minded the wait, he had nothing better to do, and anyway the sidewalk con artists had provided much free entertainment.

They both ordered a steaming potpourri of clams, steak, shrimp and vegetables.

And a bottle of her favorite California wine. Over lunch they chatted pridefully about their son. Only a few weeks earlier he had won several school

awards for his athleticism.

She produced from her wallet several pictures of him frolicking at the beach, splashing around at the water’s edge, attempting handstands, watering flower plants. He was reminded of good times on the island’s west coast, before marriage intervened.

He switched channels, complimented her on how well she looked, pretended he had not noticed the extra weight around her waist and cheeks, or that her hazel eyes, once so full of life, now seemed to be

drowning in a sea of telltale red.

She quickly concurred when he told her she seemed very happy.

Three times he reminded her it was getting close to four o’clock. He didn’t want her getting into trouble at work on his account. Each time she tapped his hand and smiled, said work could wait, she was in no hurry to end the best lunch she’d had in a long time. They ordered more wine and he permitted himself to half-believe she may have been speaking truth when she said she missed him. Then she glanced at the restaurant’s entrance, somewhat impatiently, checked her watch had said he was probably right; she’d better be heading back to her office.

He was helping her into her coat when suddenly she turned around planted a quick peck smack on his lips. She must’ve noticed his look of surprise. She lifted her mouth close to his ear and whispered: “C’mon, you know I still love you, right?”

They had just stepped onto the sidewalk when she asked for a minute to speak with a man who was leaning against a nearby lamppost a foot or so from a busy newsstand.

He wore a hat and a crumpled gray suit two sizes too large

that brought to mind magazine pictures of Dr. King and other front-line members of the NAACP. While she talked with the stranger, he kept on walking, slowly. He wouldn’t want her to think he might be snooping on her private conversation, like a jealous husband. He was but a few feet when she called his name. He stopped, waited for her and her friend to catch up.

By way of introduction, she cooed, “Darling, you remember Dennis, don’t you? He used to visit us in the old days, whenever you were in Barbados.” He had no such recollection but offered his hand anyway. Instead of grabbing it Dennis passed him a large brown envelope, turned around and was on his way without uttering a single word. For a split second she seemed embarrassed. Then she smiled, kissed him lightly on the cheek. “Bye darling,” she said, indicating the envelope in his right hand. “Wait till you get back to your hotel to open it.”

He flagged a taxi. While instructing the driver where to take him, he tore open the envelope, flattened out its folded content, then started to read: “Action for divorce . . . You are hereby summoned to appear . . .”

‘Charley’ on tour with Festival International du Conte

A

ugustine Julian, affectionately known as Charley, has returned from a successful tour of French Guyana where he was featured as one of the headliners for the 15th edition of the Festival International du Conte.

This world-renowned festival takes place annually in French Guyana and exhibits the talents of artistes and artisans on a global scale. The Festival International du Conte is mainly a festival of storytelling but also includes music, circus, paintings and craft. This year Charley was invited as a storyteller and musician.

The headliners of the

Charley was in French Guyana to display his talent as a storyteller and musician.

festival included performers from Brussels, Germany, Chad, Martinique, Cameroon, Guadeloupe, Suriname, Burkina Faso, France, Saint Lucia and, of

course, French Guyana.

This was the second time that Charley had been invited as a participant of the festival.

His last visit was in November

2009.

This time the festival tour took him to many locations in French Guyana, as the performance venues were

miles apart. He was able, for the second time, to explore many areas and to exhibit his talents in storytelling and music to a wide variety of audiences that came out to support the Festival International du Conte. Some of the venues were in Mana, Awala and Javouhey, Kourou, Macouria, Matoury, Roura and the capital Cayenne.

Charley is known in Saint Lucia as the leader of the Mamay La Kay Folk Band.

Although recognised as a violinist, he plays a number of instruments such as the harmonica, banjo, shak shak, cuatro and guitar. He is also a maker of banjos.

Charley has represented his country with his band and as an individual storyteller in

many parts of the world.

He has travelled with Mamay La Kay to Spain and to the USA where they took part in the Fiddle Tune Festival in Port Townsend, Seattle, Washington and, in 2015, at the World of Music Community Development through The Arts & Humanities in Buffalo, Wyoming.

On his own, Charley has represented Saint Lucia in Canada, London, Martinique, Dominica and Guadeloupe where he has performed as a musician and a storyteller.

This son of the soil proudly represents his country wherever he goes and looks forward to many more opportunities to do so.

THE STAR

DECEMBER 29, 2018

LOCAL

www.stluciastar.com

05

A Widow continues her Campaign for Justice!

Claudia Eleibox

W

e planned to meet a month or so ago, when Margaret Pratt emailed from the UK to say she would be in Saint Lucia to keep an appointment with the island’s prime minister. It would be her first visit since her husband Roger was killed aboard their boat, Magnetic Attraction, on January 17, 2014, when the couple was on holiday here.

We met at a restaurant where she and her husband had often dined together. She told me she had booked at the same hotel whose staff had shown her much kindness at the time of her husband’s murder. She was pleasantly surprised that they remembered her. They even arranged for her to be in her old room.

Although I was familiar with her story, this was our first meeting. She had good reason to be angry with Saint Lucia but Margaret proved most convivial.

She wore a loose dress and a sunhat which gave her the appearance of a regular tourist, at least to the uninformed observer.

For possibly the millionth time in her quest for closure, Margaret revisited the horrific details of her husband’s death.

Four men—Richie Kern, Fanis Joseph, Jermoine Jones, and Kervin Devaux—were arrested and charged with Roger Pratt’s murder. They have not yet appeared before a judge and jury. Meanwhile Margaret continues her campaign, on social media as well as in the regular press, determined that Roger will not be denied justice.

“When I left Saint Lucia at the end of January 2014, I was

really reassured that progress was being made, that four had confessed to the crime and there was really strong forensic evidence. The most disappointing thing is that since then, communications have not been good. I’ve not been kept apprised of what’s afoot. I still don’t understand what the problems have been, why it’s taken so long.”

She said the forensic samples were collected at the scene and sent to an overseas lab for testing, but she learned about eighteen months later that “all the forensics had been contaminated and were of no use.”

As for her dealings with the Director of Public Prosecutions, Daarsrean Greene, Margaret said: “I think he’s moved it forward. We’re now talking about a trial date but there’s still a long way to

Margaret Pratt recently visited Saint Lucia for the first time since her husband’s 2014 murder.

The authorities brought her no tidings of joy.

go. If someone tells me what’s going on and why, even though I may not entirely get it, at least I’ve got something to hold on to. When everyone goes quiet, when there’s radio silence, I don’t get that at all and it’s very unhelpful.”

Margaret and Roger Pratt were married when she was 22 and he 25. Their doomed sailing adventure to Saint Lucia in 2014 was to celebrate another milestone in their lives: Margaret’s 60th birthday. In the years since her husband’s death Margaret has learned strategies to celebrate as a widow, whether or not at Christmastime. “You find ways . . . being with people who understand your situation. I think that’s the easiest way of explaining it. The pain never really goes away. But you do find strategies for . . . just coping really.”

06 COMMENT

www.stluciastar.com

DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

MARKING 40 YEARS OF INDEPENDENCE decision to seek independence came after the West Indies Peter Josie Federation collapsed, and proposals by Sir Arthur Lewis for a federation of the Windward and Leeward Islands and Barbados, (called “the begin with a word on the Little-Eight”) failed to get off state and its right to the ground. Each of the “Little determine its own path to Eight” pursued independence political, social and economic separately. Development future. It also determines who economists like Sir Arthur held are its friends. In this regard, grave doubts for the economic the state is an organised and social development of political community under such small, resource-poor one government, determined countries. The psychological by the people, and declaring issues and economic themselves as such, within a dependence that history given land space or country. had bequeathed these islands By this definition Saint Lucia were serious challenges, not is a state. As we prepare to to be discounted. There are mark 40 years of political still some in the international independence, it is a good arena who exploit these time to pause and review islands, keeping them poor and the premise on which this independence was pursued. The dependent.

I

THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN SUPREME COURT IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE (SAINT LUCIA) CLAIM NO: SLUHMT2018/0122 BETWEEN: JULIE CECILE GARNIER of La Croix Maingot,

Castries, but who presently resides in Maryland, USA Petitioner and

KINGSLEY JOSEPH (deceased)

(by his Estate) of Dauphin, Babboneau, but who

resided in Maryland, USA Respondent TO: The Heirs to and/or Representatives of the of the Estate of KINGSLEY JOSEPH (deceased), late of Maryland, USA, but whose last known address in Saint Lucia was Dauphin in the Quarter of Babboneau.

NOTICE TAKE NOTICE that a Petition No. SLUHMT2018/0122 has been filed in the High Court of Justice, Saint Lucia against the Estate of the Respondent by the Petitioner, JULIE CECILE GARNIER. AND SERVICE of the Petition and Affidavit in Support and all other proceedings in this matter will be effected on you through advertisements in two issues of the Official Gazette and in two publications in a newspaper circulating in Saint Lucia.

IF YOU DESIRE to defend this action or to be heard you must within twentyeight (28) days of the last publication file an Affidavit in Answer at the Registry of the High Court of Justice, La Place Carenage, Jeremie Street in the City of Castries in this Island.

IN DEFAULT of filing Affidavit in Answer within the time stipulated, the Court may hear the case in your absence without further notice and Judgment may be granted in favour of the Petitioner.

THE Petition and Affidavit in Support may be viewed and/or copies of same can be obtained from the High Court Office at La Place Carenage, Jeremie Street, Castries, Saint Lucia telephone number 468-7500, Fax 468-7543 or email stluhco@eccourts.org. The Court Office is open between 9:00a.m. and 2:00p.m. on Mondays to Thursdays and between 9:00a.m to 3:00p.m on Fridays except public holidays.

Dated the 19th day of November, 2018

George & Co. Chambers

Per:………………………………..

Ms. Sherene S. Francis

Legal Practitioner for the Petitioner The Court Office is at La Place Carenage, Jeremie Street, Castries, Saint Lucia telephone number 468-7500, Fax 468-7543, E-mail: stluhco@eccourts.org. The office is open between 9:00a.m. and 2:00p.m. on Monday to Thursday and between 9:00am to 3:00pm on Fridays except public holidays.

This Notice is filed by George & Co. Chambers, Solicitors for the Petitioner, Suite 101 Cox & Company Building, Corner of Cadet and Jeremie Streets, P.O. Box 1388, Castries. Telephone Number: 1758-458-1754, Fax Number: 1758-541-7701 or Email: chambers@agcolaw.com.

A year of activities has been planned to mark Saint Lucia’s 40th year of Independence. What struck me was the absence of detailed dates for the events planned for each month, as advertised.

Citizens and overseas-based friends who may wish to visit for a few days to participate in the year-long programme would be better served with definite timelines and dates attached to these activities.

Let me be clear: Independence meant that we were in a position to choose for ourselves the best and most efficient way to social and economic progress. This may therefore be an opportune moment to review and analyze the two very different proposals for the redevelopment of Hewanorra International Airport (HIA).

I have, from Day One, supported Allen Chastanet as political leader of the UWP, even as I respected Sir John’s choice of his replacement at the time he did. As long as the PM continues to make sensible, unselfish, long-term decisions to transform the country, rather than merely seeking to improve the piecemeal social and economic situation of the people from day-to-day, he will have my support. Bread and butter issues must fit into an overall transformational vision of the country, setting aside narrow short-term partisan conflicts for a greater long-term good. That is more difficult than the tentative appeasement of supporters interested only in the next meal. The better leader rallies people around a cause; the opportunistic mechanical leader rallies people around him.

Take the approaches to funding the redevelopment of HIA. The SLP opposition believes in the capitalist model of placing the entire HIA airport development, including airport tax collection, in the hands of a foreign company that will replace the Saint Lucia Air and Sea Ports Authority. Under that arrangement, the foreign entity would construct a new terminal building and operate it for 30 years, as the sole owner. After

This coming year marks Saint Lucia’s 40th anniversary of independence and the author offers food for thought with regard to where we go from here. He also invites fellow Saint Lucians to publish their own ideas!

30 years the foreign company would walk away with profits estimated to be in the region of US$650 million. A gross income of some US$900 million in airport taxes over 30 years would have been collected by that foreigner.

The other model, supported by Chastanet’s UWP government, involves a bank loan of US$100 million, with a 20-year repayment schedule after a short grace period. That loan would be repaid after 20 years. The government would therefore save the additional 10-year payment to the foreign company that the SLP plan would have employed. The saving of some US$650 million by the UWP government can be used to build a four-lane highway from HIA to Soufriere and from HIA to Castries and Gros Islet.

We note that some socalled economic development experts have also proposed a one-airport model for Saint Lucia. They claim the island is too small to support both HIA and George F. L. Charles airports. They suggest the

closure of the last mentioned. I disagree! It is remarkable that these same experts did not tell us what the money we save, from borrowing US$150 million and building the HIA airport ourselves, should be used for.

Such advice is proffered by the same mindset that supervised the cyclical recessions in the capitalist economic system (remember the U.S. in 1933 and 2018), and that keeps poor countries poor and backward.

In their discussion, no one mentioned the Vieux Fort river and the threat it continues to pose to HIA during the peak rainfall season. The unpredictability of rainfall events that seem to accompany global warming must be kept in mind.

In addition, those who mentioned the number of hotel rooms in the north of the island, and try to make a case for a major highway from HIA to these hotels, refuse to, or cannot, visualize the day when a southern arc from Micoud to Soufriere will house many more hotel rooms than does the north of the island.

There is more. We can visualize a future when visionary leaders will rise and decide once and for all to put their petty nationalism aside and form a federation within the Eastern Caribbean, with Vieux Fort as its capital. HIA may then be shared with the federal state (after a lease/ payment deal with Saint Lucia), and George F. L. Charles would remain the property of Saint Lucia. That, plus the use as a private/public entity, is another reason the airport at Vigie must be improved, with a new terminal building where the banana fertilizer sales depot once stood.

Long-term visionary concepts need to be constantly explained to the people for whom the state pursues social and economic development.

As we prepare to enter the year-long Independence activity in 2019, we ought to consider what roles courage, vision, character and temperament play in the life of a leader. We must ponder whether these qualities are less important than academic qualifications, and whether there is a place for humility, passion and love within the breast of a leader!

We may also need to study other countries of similar size and see how they compare in terms of economic progress and social stability.

We must decide what in these countries is worthy of emulation, what we may fashion in our own image.

One prays for God’s blessing as we look forward to the future with greater confidence. We pray, too, that the people will always choose their leaders wisely, whether in sport, business, or politics.

Finally, we must remember that if we do not know how the state was first formed, we may not know how to build a more prosperous, egalitarian future.

It is my hope we will create opportunities in our 2019 Independence agenda to discuss some of what I’ve written here and what others may wish to contribute in the best interests of our nation.

THE STAR

DECEMBER 29, 2018

www.stluciastar.com

07

08 LOCAL

DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

www.stluciastar.com

NATIONAL INSURANCE CORPORATION VACANCY

DEPUTY DIRECTOR The National Insurance Corporation is seeking to fill the position of Deputy Director to complement its management team at its Head Office in Castries.

Will Pierre Lead The Charge Against PM?

JOB SUMMARY 1. To assist the Director in the performance of his or her duties in accordance with Section

12(2) of the National Insurance Corporation Act; 2. To oversee the strategic planning process; 3. To support the Board and management in promoting sound risk governance while

ensuring an effective risk management framework is maintained; 4. To spearhead the implementation and monitoring of recommendations towards fostering

a continuous improvement culture within the Organization; 5. To perform the duties of Director in his or her absence as directed by the Board in

accordance with the National Insurance Corporation Act. DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Responsibilities include: 1. Lead and drive the continuous improvement process throughout the organization

in consultation with the Director through the implementation of management audit

recommendations including but not limited to:

a) Monitor the Strategic Plan;

b) Map the strategic ecosystem landscape – identify stakeholders and link with strategy; c) Implement a strategy radar - formalize existing tracking and institute systems

following strategy development;

d) Engender a culture of innovation and participation as Chairperson of the Innovations Committee; e) Act as change agent to facilitate a continuous improvement culture throughout the organization

f) Facilitate the NIC adopting the practice of change management; g) Establish metrics as needed and monitor performance and improvements in key metrics

h) Review NIC’s annual performance vis-a-vis the actuarial recommendations; i) Ensure the development of relevant policies inclusive of the Corporate Social

Responsibility Policy; j) Responsibility for ensuring the adherence to acceptable business ethics within the organization; k) Establish and maintain lines of communication to facilitate effective stakeholder engagement;

l) Prepare necessary reports to the Director inclusive of progress reports on the projects

being undertaken by the organization;

m) Attend meetings of the Board as required.

2. Develop and implement a risk management plan and support the respective Heads of

Department in the identification and reporting of risk, including;

a) Coordinate the risk management activities across the organization, including quarterly

risk management meetings; b) Coordinate the communication of risk results to the Audit and Risk Management Committees; c) Coordinate the annual risk assessment relating to the annual strategic planning process;

d) Maintain the Risk Register;

e) Ensure that there is regular reporting against the significant risk that NIC has agreed

to actively manage;

f) Oversee the process of reviewing and updating risk policies while recommending risk

management training as necessary;

g) Chair management’s Risk Management Committee and attend Group Audit Committee

meetings of the Board when required.

3. Serve as an Alternate for the NIC Director on the boards of subsidiaries; and 4. Perform any other job-related duties duly assigned from time to time.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE Qualifications 1. MBA with strong finance and/or strategy and/or change management component or

comparable qualification, with at least 10 years of relevant experience; 2. Minimum of 5 years of senior management experience; 3. Minimum 3 years of process improvement experience in a related environment; 4. Continuous improvement, quality management system, or project management training

and certification a plus; 5. Experience with identification of inefficiencies, process mapping, and appropriate

statistical and reporting tools; 6. Strong coaching, counseling and interpersonal skills; 7. Committed to continuous personal development; 8. Excellent public speaking and writing skills.

HOW TO APPLY Applications along with a detailed Curriculum Vitae, certified copies of qualifications and two referees, should be addressed to: The Human Resources Manager Position of Deputy Director National Insurance Corporation Francis Compton Building Waterfront, Castries Deadline for applications is January 4th, 2019.

Please note that only suitable applications will be acknowledged.

Local MPs are soon to debate a no confidence motion filed earlier this month with the House clerk by opposition leader Philip J. Pierre (pictured).

M

aking regional as well as international headlines over the last weekend was the successful vote of no confidence against Guyana’s coalition government that comprised A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance for Change (AFC).

The motion was brought by the main opposition, the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) which won 32 of the 65 seats in the 2015 general election.

With the passing of the motion, the people of Guyana must now head to the polls no later than March 2019. Elections were constitutionally due by August 2020, until the no-

confidence motion that resulted in a 33-32 count, thanks to government MP Charrandas Persaud’s voting with the opposition. Reportedly, Persaud has since fled Guyana for his own safety.

Immediately following the vote count in Parliament he was ambushed by reporters. He told them he was “extremely disappointed in the AFC team and had no confidence in what they were doing”.

Additionally: “We are sitting in parliament as yes-men to the APNU. We’ve not blended with the APNU. Why are we doing everything they want us to do?

We are not opposing anything,

we’re not even saying no to anything. That’s the problem. I can’t stand that. There are times when you have to vote according to your conscience and not because of party affiliation. This is a conscience vote.”

Meanwhile on Monday in neighbouring Saint Kitts & Nevis, the opposition Saint Kitts and Nevis Labour Party’s noconfidence motion was debated but failed to pass. Here in Saint Lucia, the word is that a noconfidence motion filed with the House clerk by opposition leader Philip J. Pierre at the last sitting of parliament will likely be heard in early January.

---Joshua St. Aimee

BILD Students say: Give Back!

A

timeless aphorism by Pat Nixon says, “Caring for others is the spirit of a nation” and who are we if we care little for those who are unable to care for themselves? The BILD (Beckwith International Leadership Development) students of the Babonneau Secondary School believe that all should embrace this spirit of humanitarianism.

The BILD programme for youth is the brainchild of Sir Charles Beckwith and has recorded successes in Ghana, Tanzania and Saint Lucia.

On 2 December 2018, the BILD students, who are actively involved in sporting, fundraising and community development initiatives regularly, shared the spirit of caring at the St. Lucia Celebral Palsy Association’s Christmas Party. This was a novel experience for some and an opportunity for outreach for others. Kayla Alexander, a BILD student, vividly remembers the experience as an “eye-opener”.

She said, “It touched me and made me see things differently.” Taquilla David, another BILD student, recalls the moment as emotional as she had a cousin who died from cerebral palsy.

Every season is a season of caring and giving and so the BILD students of the Babonneau Secondary School would like to encourage all, especially the youth, to give back to their communities or encourage and help someone, and volunteer in community groups.

Students from Babonneau Secondary School’s BILD programme made contributions to a fun Christmas party for cerebral palsy patients.

THE STAR

DECEMBER 29, 2018

www.stluciastar.com

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09

10 REGIONAL

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REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST SAINT LUCIA SAINT LUCIA HEALTH SYSTEM STRENGTHENING PROJECT Credit No..: Preparation Advance No: V2110-LC Assignment Title: PROJECT MANAGER Reference No. 003/CS/HSSP/18 Saint Lucia has received financing from the World Bank towards the Health System Strengthening Project, and intends to apply part of the proceeds for consulting services for engagement of a Project Manager to provide overall and day to day management of the project activities to be implemented and to provide the necessary supervision of staff, consultants and others engaged under the Health System Strengthening Project and ensure full compliance of all parties to their contractual commitments. The services are full time and will be based the based in the Project Implementation Unit (PIU) to be established within the Department of Health and Wellness with frequent site visits to health facilities to support project understanding and implementation.

DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

Range Developments' Park Hyatt St Kitts Named

“Caribbean Hotel of the Year”

The consulting services (“the Services”) include Preparation of annual plan of activities and ensuring its implementation.

Coordination and assignment of responsibility amongst team members and ensure timely reporting and preparation of project documentation as needed particularly with respect to World Bank Project reporting requirements and requests for No Objection and approvals from the respective tenders’ board.

Providing overall oversight and guidance to the project team including personnel assigned to the Project during implementation of the Project to ensure the successful and effective attainment of the Project Development Objectives and Key Performance Indicators established for the Project.

Providing advice and regularly reporting to the Permanent Secretary on project implementation activities, program plans and recommend project implementation strategies.

Ensuring Project Implementation Unit’s conformity with the tenets of the Project Operational Manual.

Coordinating effectively with Team of the Project Implementation Unit and the Accountant at the Department of Health and Wellness and Financial Management Specialist to develop annual and quarterly work plans.

Reporting and monitoring of project performance The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment can be found at the following website; www. govt.lc/consultancy or can be obtained at the address given below.

The Department of Health and Wellness now invites eligible Individual Consultants (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services; (Curriculum Vitae, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, clients’ references etc.).

Interested Consultants should have the following requisite minimum qualifications and professional experiences listed below for undertaking the assignment.

QUALIFICATION Minimum required education and experience Academic: - Master’s Degree in Health Administration and Management/Social Projects, Public Health or related area.

Professional Experience: - Have proven knowledge and understanding of project planning, coordination and implementation and good analytical capacity - Proven ability to promote and contribute to a collaborative team environment, build trust among colleagues, work effectively even with senior officials and effectively deal with conflicts.

Experience: - Minimum five (5) years of project management experience with International Funding preferably in projects financed by the World Bank or other international donors/partners.

- Knowledge and experience in National Health Policies, programmes and dynamics of the Institutional functioning of the Department of Health and Wellness.

- Knowledge and experience of ICT-based Office applications and tools (word processing, spreadsheets, and data processing, PowerPoint).

The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” July 2016, revised November 2017 (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Individual Consultants Selection method set out in the Procurement Regulations.

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office 8:00 a.m-4:30 p.m. (0800 to 1630 hours).

Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form to the address below (in person, or by mail, or by e-mail) by January 8, 2019.

Project Coordination Unit Department of Economic Development, Transport and Civil Aviation Attn: Project Coordinator 2nd Floor, Finance Administrative Centre Pointe Seraphine Castries, Saint Lucia Tel: 1-758-468-2413 E-mail: slupcu@gosl.gov.lc

Range Developments’ Park Hyatt in St Kitts continues to win awards after Range pulled out of a major Saint Lucian investment earlier this year.

R

ange Developments, the leading developer of luxury branded hotels in the Eastern Caribbean, is delighted to have been named “Caribbean Hotel of the Year” in the Caribbean Travel Awards 2018. The awards, organised

by Caribbean Journal, reward excellence in travel and tourism throughout the region.

"When it debuted at the end of 2017, the Park Hyatt St Kitts, the Park Hyatt's first ever Caribbean hotel, was something new for the region," said the awards panel. "The design was world class, disruptive, climate resilient and, well, spectacularly beautiful. Now a year later, the Park Hyatt has risen to the pantheon of the region's greatest hotels, with a mix of thoughtful design, impressive amenities, and a kind of cosmopolitan international energy, that is a welcome addition to the Caribbean's luxury sector. Even more? The hotel has been a game-changer for the island of St Kitts, now on the map in a new way for

the world's most sophisticated travellers."

"We are delighted to have been honoured with this prestigious award," said Mohammed Asaria, founder of Range Developments. "It's a tribute to all the hard work that the people of St Kitts & Nevis put into the project during construction, when we employed more than 500 people, but also the continuing dedication of more than 300 staff who keep the place running to the highest standards with outstanding efficiency and a ready smile."

Range Developments employs more than 1,000 people in the Caribbean, with a second project, the Cabrits Resort Kempinski, Dominica due to open next year. The Cabrits Resort Kempinski, Dominica has been designed and built to the same high standards as Park Hyatt St Kitts. The opening of the Cabrits Resort Kempinski, Dominica in 2019 will firmly place Dominica on the luxury tourism map.

In addition, Range will shortly announce a number of new projects in the region.

"This is an exciting time to be in the Caribbean," said Mr Asaria.

"With the right professional approach and a willing local workforce, this is a place brimming with potential."

As well as Range's focus on delivering for the customer, Range also runs a prolific Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme. By working with local communities at a grassroots level to tackle various social issues, it aims to become an integral part of society. Its CSR portfolio focuses on four core areas: children, families, entrepreneurs and community.

In April this year, Prime Minister of St Kitts & Nevis, Dr. Timothy Harris, presented an award of appreciation to Range Developments for its continued contributions to the country's Citizenship by Investment Programme.

---PR Newswire

THE STAR

december 29, 2018

www.stluciastar.com

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comment

www.stluciastar.com

december 29, 2018 THE STAR

Yea Rick Wayne

U

nless something from outer space should land on us, say between now and Monday, something like what had decimated the dinosaurs but not the far more dangerous ubiquitous rats, cockroaches and mosquitoes, it’s a safe bet the lights will go down on 2018 in much the same way they had in 2017 and every other year going back one hundred years, at the very least.

This time around, as I mentally prepare to write my customary end of year review, several names come to mind. Some had been my close friends, acquaintances, controversial holders of public office, writers, avid readers, presumed contributors to our society—all of them now ghosts, memories, some more distant than others: Allen Lewis, Allan Louisy, George Odlum, Eden Hinkson, Pat Brown, Derek Walcott, Suzie d’Auvergne, John Compton, Sessenne, Kenneth John, Irvin Reid, Vincent Floissac, Heraldine Rock, Father Reginald John, Henry Giraudy.

I am thinking, too, of some I came to know only because fate had plucked them from relative obscurity and deposited them in the discombobulating glare of news headlines, if for only a short time: the monstrously ravaged child Trisha Dennis; Valerie Lorde, Mary Racliffe who was decapitated by her live-in lover after she reported to the police his brutal rape of her virgin child; 13-year-old Verlinda Joseph battered on her way to school, raped, forced to drink a killer herbicide; Jezelle Georges, raped and killed at her parents’ Bonne Terrre residence at lunchtime; Yamaha, shot by police and thrown off a Vigie cliff into the sea; 18-year-old Terry James whose Yesterday, today, tomorrow! It’s all the same to those who long ago abandoned their right to determine their own destinies. body was cut in half by blasts from police shotgun fire as he lay on his (Pictured, they always tell it like it is, Dr. Winston Parris.)

THE STAR

december 29, 2018

comment

www.stluciastar.com

2018:

13

ear in Review back half-naked and unarmed.

I dare to say few living today can readily recall the listed names, let alone how they departed this life. Mine is not to reason why it doesn’t seem to matter. What’s indisputable is we are together in an acknowledged dark place by the minute growing darker, largely because too many cannot remember the past that actually is our present.

Imagine the mass resurrection of the above-named. (Which should not be difficult for those who believe all things are possible with faith, including walking on deep water though none would try even for money!) Would our latter-day Lazaruses turn around and head for the nearest graveyard? Or would they marvel at the improvements to life on the Rock of Sages in their absence? But enough of the dead brought back to life, let us return to the reality of the living. Consider this true story starring Dr. Winston Parris. It had been ten years since he gave up his local practice and relocated with his young family to Nashville, Tennessee, to undertake a plum position at Vanderbilt University that required his involvement in what he described to me during an interview as “important medical research.” He also operated his own lucrative practice, yet had ample left-over time to be a good husband and father. He had returned home, he explained, because “all the money in the world would not be enough to keep me away from Saint Lucia at carnival time.”

I wondered if he regretted leaving home. It seemed my question took him off guard.

“Regret? I’m so happy I left,” he assured me. “For nearly five years I served as resident anesthetist at Victoria Hospital. But for the sake of my sanity, my growth and my intellectual development I had no

other choice but to leave.”

Money had little to do with his decision, he said.

While he certainly was not earning a king’s ransom, he was happy. He had a thriving private practice. What he could not handle was “the official contempt for locals.”

He proffered an example: “Outside the hospital’s operating room there was an air-conditioning unit that leaked, as do most of these things. Consequently there was a slimy and slippery area right at the entrance to the main operating room. It is no secret that the porters who wheel the patients in from the wards tend to take a shot or two between deliveries, which does not help. But even the most disciplined teetotaler could’ve slipped on the slime outside the operating room, with horrible consequences both to himself and his patient.”

In the best interests of all concerned, Dr. Parris wrote to the permanent secretary at the health ministry. “He wrote back calling me a troublemaker,” Parris recalled bitterly. “He said Dr. King, the surgeon, had never complained. It was clear to me the ministry did not appreciate my concern for my Victoria Hospital patients. I attended to over six thousand cases at Victoria without an electrocardiogram, including my own mother, sister and son.

At Vanderbilt, I am required to use an electrocardiogram— even during research involving dogs. My understanding is that conditions at Victoria Hospital are worse today than when I worked there. Those who say Saint Lucia needs a hospital far more urgently than it needs an office block are absolutely

correct. It’s as if no one cares about the country’s health.”

The recalled interview was conducted in 1988—30 years ago. Conditions at St. Jude were worse then than at Victoria Hospital.

A year or so before he left for the States, Winston Parris and I had shared a rented two-storey residence at Sans Souci and often bumped into each other as we set off for work each morning, he at Victoria Hospital, I at the Voice newspaper. Sometimes we killed a few minutes talking about my stories, in particular those related to the nation’s health services. One item had given Dr. Parris much cause for pause. It centered on a Saturday afternoon road accident halfway between Castries and Dennery: a bulldozer had somehow flipped over on its side, pinning the driver to the dirt road. It was almost an hour before an ambulance arrived at the scene with three individuals aboard, including the driver. A few minutes was all the time it took to establish the man had expired. Then off they went, leaving him face down in the hot dirt. It emerged that existing hospital regulations prevented ambulance personnel from picking up road fatalities; that special privilege was reserved for hearse operators. It had taken more than four hours from the time of the accident—which I came upon by happenstance while en-route to Vieux Fort—to the removal of the casualty to the Victoria Hospital mortuary.

(I suspect, dear reader, you may at this point be recalling other road kills and deciding how much had changed in 30 years or more!)

So much for back in the

day healthcare, healthcare in 2018 and in the foreseeable future. Are we better off today than were our conveniently conjured ghosts in their lifetime?

We turn to crime. By recent police account their records show over 400 unresolved homicides; cold cases. While the killings did not occur all at once, we have been averaging for several years around twenty-something homicides annually. There were 42 by gun and by blade in 2018.

Remarkably, our police seem to consider homicides “resolved” once suspects have been arrested, seemingly oblivious of our constitution that holds all suspects “innocent until proven guilty.” Some murder suspects have been sixteen years at Bordelais awaiting trial—in blatant defiance of our constitution—mainly because of state shortcomings. Some readers might conclude from all this that never before was it as easy to get away with murder. I, for one, would not challenge the observation.

But let us not imagine killers are our only problem. The record shows it’s just as easy to get away with molesting or impregnating eight-year-olds, rapes in the noonday sun, at our incomparably beautiful but under-patrolled beaches, even during regular work hours.

So commonplace are such incidents that most victims consider it pointless to report the assaults to the police.

Just over a month ago the wife of a police sergeant, presumably while preparing herself and two young children for bed, was fatally shot in the head. Her husband was reportedly not at home. To

date, no arrests. As for our politicians, if we were to judge them by the fruits of their labor alone, it would be difficult not to consider them aiders and abettors of crime. They talk today as they had talked when our imagined resurrected were still alive—and look where the political claptrap got them.

The weight of IMPACS has been dragging us deeper and deeper into deep do-do, with no relief in sight. Meanwhile, the people have for three administrations been calling for information, at the very least, concerning the birth of

the monster known simply as Grynberg—to no avail.

Which is what usually happens when suspect politicians are free to be their own judge, jury, and executioner. As for my review of the year 2018, I could continue underscoring the inconvenient truth that little has happened since the early nineties that might not be considered déjà vu and therefore worthy of record, save for the horrifying fact itself: we are where we were in the early 1900s, headed downhill in reverse—and gaining momentum!

In Next Week’s Issue

STAR PERSON OF THE YEAR!

14 LOCAL

www.stluciastar.com

december 29, 2018 THE STAR

Last Call for Bananas

and the Dominican Republic.

However, in spite of the market outlook targeting regional markets, even trading between lmost a week ago, neighbouring islands has proven Winfresh, the sales and to be difficult. marketing organisation

Another possibility for of Fairtrade bananas in Saint Lucia, produced a 2019 market banana expansion listed in the report was in general wholesale outlook for Saint Lucian in the UK. However, Saint Lucian bananas. Suffice it to say, the bananas have a poor reputation outlook was dismal. According for low demand and inferior to the report, the demands quality; moreover, the pricing for Saint Lucian bananas in of wholesale bananas sells at the United Kingdom would be a much lower price than the reduced from 15,000 cases Fairtrade brand and would per week to 6,000 cases per be an unattractive option to week, following the loss of producers. one customer to Fairtrade At this point, Saint Lucian organic—which is not produced bananas need nothing short in Saint Lucia. This came as of a Christmas miracle before a surprise to many banana 2019. Even a recent study from producers who were looking Duke University highlighted that for possible opportunities on weaknesses in the Saint Lucian the horizon of Brexit and renegotiated trading agreements banana industry far exceeded the strengths. with the United Kingdom. This Although it is unfortunate market outlook painted a bleak that once again the outlook picture for banana producers for bananas is depressing, it and it unsurprisingly noted that regional markets were the does open the door to new most attractive options despite opportunities and the chance to find creative solutions. While competition from Suriname

incapable of producing on a sizable scale like Latin America, it still makes me question why our producers are still relying on exporting and lining the aisles of English supermarkets with bananas while our own vegetable and fruit aisles are boasting produce from foreign countries. Instead of looking at the Winfresh report as a doomsday call, maybe it really and truly is time to adapt to compete in our own markets.

By Keithlin Caroo

A

According to a recent Winfresh report, sales for Saint Lucian bananas in the United Kingdom will be greatly reduced in 2019.

bananas have been a part of the growth of Saint Lucia’s economy, like any business venture, it is time to adapt to new circumstances and move on towards addressing the

UNWTO and European Travel commission on Health Tourism

T

he World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), together with the European Travel Commission (ETC), launched a new report on health tourism. As part of their joint research programme, the study is the first attempt to set a coherent conceptualization of health tourism and define the motivations behind travellers looking for health-related services.

Health, wellness, and medical tourism have grown exponentially in recent years to become increasingly relevant in many destinations.

It is an emerging, global, complex and rapidly changing segment that needs to be better understood by destinations willing to leverage opportunities and better address challenges.

“Exploring Health Tourism” proposes a comprehensive taxonomy with a consistent terminology to define and describe the intricate system of travelling for health purposes and provides a practical toolkit for

gaps. If Saint Lucians were to be honest with themselves, they would admit that the banana industry and its growth was all as a result of preferential treatment and

Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Forty Recommendations — National Cooperation and Coordination

By The Attorney General’s Chambers and the National Anti-Money Laundering Oversight Committee

T Medical or health tourism has been growing and the UNWTO is attempting to make provisions for this.

National Tourism Organizations (NTOs) and Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) wanting to develop health tourism.

As defined in the report, health tourism covers those types of tourism which have as a primary motivation, the contribution to physical, mental or spiritual health through medical and wellness-based activities.

The report sheds light on the factors shaping health tourism such as technological

developments, personal health, data protection and urbanization. It also explores the market, the demand and the supply of health tourism and provides examples of marketing management. Finally, the study proposes a set of recommendations ranging from improved data collection and more accurate measurement to more accessible and sustainable health tourism, calling for further partnerships.

---eTurboNews

not of a competitive edge or higher quality. Now while we can highlight that preferential treatment aids in accessing and protecting markets for small islands like our own which are

Helen's Daughters is a Saint Lucian non-profit with a special focus on rural women’s economic development through improved market access, adaptive agricultural techniques, and capacitybuilding. It was formed in 2016 in a winning proposal for UN Women’s Empower Women Champions for Change Program. To learn more about the initiative, visit: Facebook: Helen’s Daughters Instagram: helensdaughters.slu Website: helensdaughters.org

he mandate of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to control the scourge of money laundering, terrorist financing and financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction is one of great importance to us in the Caribbean. Caribbean States are members of the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF)—a regionalstyled body bounded by the Forty Recommendations. Full compliance by member states requires a clear understanding of the Recommendations.

This article will examine Recommendation 2: National Cooperation and Coordination.

Recommendation 2 calls for countries to have national anti-money laundering/ countering financing of terrorism policies. These policies should be informed by the risks identified when

the country conducts its risk assessment as required by Recommendation 1, and should be reviewed regularly. It is also recommended that there be a designated authority overseeing the implementation of the policies, or have coordination or other mechanism that are exclusively responsible for these policies.

Saint Lucia should ensure that policy makers, enforcement authorities, the Financial Intelligence Authority, supervisors and all other relevant competent authorities coordinate with each other from a policy and operational level to combat money laundering, terrorist financing and financing of the weapons of mass destruction. Additionally, these institutions should have mechanisms in place which are effective enough to allow them to cooperate which each other regarding the development and implementation of policies and activities to nullify these three problem areas.

This recommendation calls for a collaborative approach

between the stakeholders in the private and public sectors and demonstrates the gains that can be made when working together.

In September 2019 Saint Lucia will have its on-site visit by the assessors from the CFATF, who will be on island interviewing stakeholders. In addition to the other thirtynine recommendations, an examination will be done of how effectively Recommendation 2 has been implemented and a rating will be assigned. One of five ratings can be received: Compliant, Largely Compliant, Partially Compliant, Non-Compliant or Not-Applicable. It is the primary objective of the National AntiMoney Laundering Oversight Committee (NAMLOC) to prepare for this assessment.

Every Saint Lucian is encouraged to learn more about combatting money laundering, terrorist financing and financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and to cooperate with agencies in this fight.

THE STAR

DECEMBER 29, 2018

LOCAL

www.stluciastar.com

15

PM proposes new law for wannabe MPs O

n Tuesday, April 23, 2013, via her Throne Speech, the governor general made the following pronouncement: “Legislation governing our electoral process should not be left for enactment on the eve of a general election. This only induces suspicion and cynicism.”

Which you’ll admit, dear reader, is nothing but the truth, though not necessarily the whole truth. Indisputably, several other factors account for our wall-to-wall distrust of our lawmakers and protectors— Grynberg and ALBA among them—but that’s for another inquiry.

Besides, Dame Pearlette had a cure-all, alas prescribed by one of our more prominent House doctors.

“My government therefore intends to proceed with several amendments to the Elections Act, as recommended by the electoral commission.” And that was just the beginning.

She went on: “My government is desirous to keep its commitment to the electorate and will enact new legislation to render it unlawful for individuals who have committed crimes from participating in elections without frank and full disclosure of their criminal record to the electorate.”

Frank and full disclosure!

What about that other multimillion-dollar commitment to the private sector? What about those countless jobs-jobs-jobs?

But then you say there ain’t nuthin’ criminal about elections and false promises that go together like marriage and adultery.

By all the Dame promised, her government would “make it necessary for all intending candidates to declare whether they are in possession of a passport issued by another country or state.” (Even the media association would know who that one was customdesigned for . . .)

Okay. Now let us imagine this scenario. Yes, I know it’s quite a stretch. But we are a people not short of imagination.

Or is it Walcott creativity we have in abundance? No

Kenny Anthony: It is anyone's guess how he would react should three MPS move from Allen Chastanet to the other side following the debate of Philip Pierre's no-confidence motion.

matter, consider this scene: At a televised press conference convened by the commerce minister at the plush premises of the calculatedly reconstituted GIS, a reporter puts up his hand.

His signal catches the minister’s eye. “Go ahead,” she says, channeling the Mother Theresa in her soul. “Ask your question.”

The reporter gets straight to the point, none of the customary wimpy waffling. Just two months earlier, the prime minister had kept the governor general’s promise.

No more holding secrets from the electorate. No more after-the-fact Bruce Tucker-type shockers. Election candidates are now required by law to come clean about all aspects of their lives, whether or not criminal. Reporters are now free to read dicey Internet stories of public interest over the airwaves.

Hallelujah!

“Thank you, Madam Minister,” says the reporter, confident gaze locked on the nation’s commerce captain.

“With elections around the corner, and in the best interest of transparency and accountability, would you please let voters know where you purchase your underwear?”

Dear reader, what do you suppose might be Emma Hippolyte’s response? Would she fall over in a dead faint?

Would she reach for her faux-snakeskin handbag for something comforting? How would the rest of the press corps react, in particular, female members?

Come to that, what are you, dear reader, thinking right now about my invented reporter? That he’s an uncouth son-of-a-bitch deserving of immediate banishment by the media association? That he’s been programmed by

the opposition? Stephenson King? Allen Chastanet? Gale Rigormortis? Whoever?

Let’s stretch our imaginations some more. What if the shocked and bewildered commerce minister should demand an immediate apology?

Should the reporter then fall on his knees and blame his vieux-negre manners on Ms Hippolyte’s coiffure? Should he cite the erotic impact of her exotic perfume that had disturbed the balance of his mind?

What if the reporter had instead prefaced his question with a softener? For example: “Ms Hippolyte, on my way here a woman who operates a lingerie store at the Baywalk mall complained to me that not one MP, male or female, had ever purchased an item from her establishment.

“She named three other stores that specialized in cosmetics, quality men’s clothing and hair products, respectively. Their owners and employees had expressed the same complaint about our MPs. They talked the ‘buy-local talk,’ said my informant, but never shopped at Baywalk or any other local store. So now, I ask you, Madam Minister of Commerce, where do you buy your, er, underwear?”

Still think the question is out of place? Would it still be embarrassing if, say, a reporter asked Dame Pearlette where her hats came from? After all, what local shop features her Budget-time headgear?

Can you conceive of a Saint Lucian media worker asking an election candidate if he or she had ever been in trouble with the law? Remember what happened in 2011, when it was superfine to publicly speculate on why the US Embassy had revoked a particular candidate’s visas but altogether out of place to ask the same question of another candidate’s mama?

Remember what happened when one candidate cited rape charges against his opponent?

The accused immediately threatened libel and slander, that’s what happened.

The point is this: the proposed new electoral laws

would easily pass through both Houses without a single nay.

Count on it, no MP would want to be seen or heard resisting the need for full disclosure, regardless of whether pertaining to criminal charges that for whatever reasons went nowhere, or concerning their attitude to local manufacturers and other innovators, whether or not blond.

On the other hand, I can’t help thinking we’ve heard the last of the cited Throne Speech promise—and not only because it was made in the month of fools. In the first place, a law that demands election candidates voluntarily confess their sins before the electorate would be unconstitutional.

Our legal system does not require citizens to indict themselves. Quite rightly, the burden of proof in criminal matters always rests on the shoulders of the prosecution.

And no one would know that better than our chief lawmaker, in private life an attorney specializing in constitutional matters.

Then again there were Section 361, the so-called no-bail law, etcetera, etcetera,

etcetera. Obviously, it’s one thing being a law lecturer at UWI and quite another when it comes to performing in a real court of law. Which may or may not account for a certain ubiquitous legal eagle and would-be vendor of OECS passports!

In all events, there is no need for more laws when it comes to election candidates.

The people, whether individually or via ballsy press reporters, have every legal right to ask any question of would-be members of parliament, regardless of embarrassment potential. Candidates are also free to stonewall, to say nothing, or to make threats in response. Or they may have nothing to hide. Meanwhile, it is up to the electorate to place in parliament both trustworthy citizens and individuals of sordid repute. After all, not for nothing are our MPs referred to as representatives of the people. In other words, show me your parliamentary rep and I’ll know who you are!

---Rick Wayne First published April 2, 2014

A CULTURAL EXPLOSION FOR ASSOU SQUARE 2019

T

housands are expected to converge on Castries for the annual Assou Square celebrations. The activity will run from 10a.m.-11p.m. on January 1 and 2, 2019 at Derek Walcott Square. The Castries Constituency Council will once again host the event.

According to the Mayor of Castries, His Worship Peterson D. Francis, “Assou Square has always been a family affair hosted as a new year’s fair focused on children, and in 2019 it will be no different. For decades it has been one of the island’s premier events on the calendar, celebrating a rich culture and folklore, and we are bent on improving the general ambience.”

Traditionally, Assou Square has been an event built around the old-style cuisine of the holiday season, children’s toys, games, rides and displays, clothing and cultural entertainment presentations.

This year’s event will feature a wide-ranging variety including cartoon characters, face-painting and bouncing castles for children, masquerade parade, trolley train ride and a heavy line-up of entertainment for the two-day period.

Assou Square 2019 will continue the tradition of being an experience which the entire family will enjoy.

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DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

THE STAR

DECEMBER 29, 2018

REGIONAL

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17

NEW YEAR’S MESSAGE FROM SECRETARY GENERAL, CARIBBEAN TOURISM ORGANIZATION Despite all there is to celebrate in 2019, we must also approach the New Year with a degree of caution since there’s still much work to be done. While preliminary data from our member countries revealed increased demand for travel to the vast majority of the 24 reporting countries, and despite a 9.1 per cent increase in arrivals in September 2018 when compared to the same month in 2017, overall our performance was still down in 2018. A third quarter decline of 3.2 per cent made this our best quarter, and the rate of tourist arrivals is now expected to slow to -1.0 per cent to -2.0 per cent – a definite sign

By Hugh Riley

A

s the Caribbean tourism sector prepares to welcome the New Year, we look forward to 2019 with a sense of optimism, excitement and much hope.

We are optimistic because we are seeing signs that the lows which Mother Nature imposed upon us during the latter part of 2017 into 2018 are being reversed. We are excited about our prospects because of the incredible turnaround that we are seeing in the most impacted destinations. And we are hopeful that the progress of our member countries and supporters can continue unabated, to maintain the momentum they developed since the storms of 2017 when everyone rolled up their sleeves and got down to work to build an improved and more sustainable product.

We are pleased to report that tourism accommodations are being rebuilt and reopened, airports are receiving their full schedule of flights with the return of airlines in full force and the diverse product offerings within our destinations are being restored.

At the same time, increases in the number of available seats, positive messaging and promotions in the marketplace have enabled the unaffected destinations to register continuous growth.

The demand among international visitors is strong and Caribbean nationals have continued their quest to explore and enjoy the pleasures of their neighbouring destinations.

Regarding the cruise sector, most ports have been repaired and cruise calls have already returned to normal levels. Indeed, regional cruise visits grew in each month since May, with the region registering growth of 13.7 per cent during the May to September period and 17.1 per cent in the third quarter of 2018.

Hugh Riley, Secretary General of the CTO, looks onto the 2019 horizon with high hopes for Caribbean tourism.

In October, the region launched a digital awareness campaign, ‘The Rhythm Never Stops’, on social media platforms such as YouTube and Facebook, coinciding with augmented airlift for the 2018/19 tourist winter season.

Travel professionals and their clients received the message that the Caribbean is a resilient region with an unstoppable resolve to succeed and to keep on moving in the right direction.

For 2019, the outlook is bright for our destinations.

We’re quite excited about declaring 2019 as the “Year of Festivals” in the Caribbean.

Simply stated, there’s a rhythm to the region that cannot be replicated anywhere on earth.

There’s no escaping the melody of nature, as gentle

breezes and free-flowing fronds combine beautifully in perfect harmony; no getting away from the heavenly choruses of tides caressing magnificent world class beaches; no missing the cadence of our conversation, the tempo of our movement.

The Caribbean is a festival of rhythms and a home of festivals – music, art, literary, sailing, lights, food, rum, religious, dance – all with their own attractive rhythms.

The Year of Festivals will focus on the fascinating events that have become an integral part of the Caribbean tourism calendar. Festivals help to energize communities across the region, while giving visitors more reasons to enjoy our destinations.

that the tide is turning. Cruise passenger arrivals are projected to grow at an accelerated rate of around 6 per cent to 7 per cent.

Without doubt, our region is in a stronger position than it was a year ago. We are encouraged by the prospect of even greater collaboration with our partners in the industry, including the Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association, the Florida Caribbean Cruise Association, and a range of travel professionals and industry partners who consistently offer Caribbean holiday experiences to their best clients. Our confidence is buoyed by the progress our region is making to combine its resources to bolster

our competitive position internationally. The evidence is clear that a strong, unified Caribbean gives the region a global advantage which individual membercountries on their own have little chance of attaining.

The success of our countries rests upon our ability to speak as a region with one strong voice.

On behalf of the CTO Council of ministers and commissioners of tourism, the board of directors, members and staff of the Caribbean Tourism Organization, I thank you for all your commitment, hard work and support in 2018, and wish you a New Year of rich blessings and prosperity.

18 HEALTH

DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

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THE FUNNIES!

KIM’S KORNER

May Your Goals For The New Year Be SMART Ones!

A

CALLS FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST DO YOU HAVE A BUSINESS PROPOSAL, PROJECT CONCEPT OR PRODUCT AVAILABLE FOR INVESTMENT?

GO TO:

www.investstlucia.com FOR MORE INFORMATION

nother end of year is upon us and we turn our minds to the wonderful things that 2019 has in store for us.

It’s the time when we ponder what needs to change in our lives, when we set New Year’s resolutions while solemnly promising ourselves, as usual, to keep them this time. We set our sights on good health, wealth and happiness but by the end of January most of our good intentions have already fallen by the wayside. So just how do we make resolutions that we will keep? The answer is to think SMART! Now I am not saying you are not intelligent, so, before you come for me, read on.

Setting SMART goals is a good way to set realistic, achievable goals that we can keep: Specific – Make it clear, to help you keep your focus.

Measurable – Set goals that you can track and that help keep you motivated.

Achievable – Sometimes these can be set to push beyond your current abilities but not so ambitious that they are hard to achieve.

Relevant – Smaller goals that will help you achieve the final goal.

Timed – The long-term target date for reaching your final goal.

If you have decided that 2019 is the year you’ll get fit and pay more attention to your health, be more specific. Getting fit is vague and it is harder to achieve goals that can’t be measured and monitored. So instead, decide what you want to achieve. Do you want to change to a healthier diet? Do you want to be able to climb the stairs without getting out of breath? Or do you want to be able to climb the Pitons, or run a marathon? Once you have decided what you want, you need to set yourself small goals to be able to achieve that one big goal. Break it down into bite-size pieces.

If your goal is to lose weight, first decide: do you need to lose a certain amount of weight or do you want to fit into that favourite outfit you bought last summer? This is vital if you want to see results that keep you motivated and moving forward. If your goal is to lose weight to achieve the perfect BMI, then choose your

a new hobby or start to exercise, spend time with non-smoker friends or visit the cinema where smoking is not permitted.

Remember to throw away your cigarettes and lighters.

Maybe after one hangover too many you’ll want to stop drinking. But hangovers aren’t the only reason to want to quit alcohol. Maybe you have a serious health condition, or you are on medication; you may even feel you have developed an unhealthy dependency.

Whatever the reason, it may take a lot of patience and With every new year willpower. Some people find it come some unrealistic easier to gradually cut down on resolutions but, by their daily intake while others being SMART, you may prefer to quit completely. be surprised what you

First, let us look at what is achieve in 2019. exercise plan wisely. Remember the safe daily/weekly alcohol consumption. Because of the that lifting weights will help supposed health benefits, it is you tone but can also increase always easy to find an excuse to your weight; muscles weigh drink. Be strong and, if you want more than fat. If your goal is to quit, well, just do it. Giving to lose inches, throw away the scales and use a tape measure up alcohol, like smoking, is best done if you avoid places where instead. If you want to lose you could be tempted to imbibe. weight, aim for about one to Instead of having that glass of two pounds per week. More than that may be detrimental to wine in front of the TV, replace it health. The perfect combination with a fresh, healthy fruit juice to achieve this is a healthy diet, or a cup of tea. Instead of going to the bar after work to unwind aerobic and weight training exercises. The best combination after a long hectic day, head instead to the gym. will depend upon your final

Remember to set yourself goal. goals, whether on a daily,

Maybe you want to give weekly or monthly basis, and up smoking. Smoking is an make the goals realistic. Maybe addiction and not a choice, no your goal is just to be happier matter what you tell yourself, and enjoy life more. Start and giving it up is no easy each day by giving thanks and task. Around the world there finding things you are grateful are helplines and apps to help for. In a world where we are you kick the habit. Scientists surrounded by doom and gloom, have even identified various methods, applicable to different this can seem a daunting task sometimes, but just waking up situations. Some people just is a wonderful reason to smile decide to stop while others and start the day on a positive need to gradually wean off. To make it easier there are patches note. If you look hard enough, you can always find reasons and gums. Some people even to be grateful! Whatever your look to counselling, hypnosis resolutions for 2019, set SMART and acupuncture. The key is to goals and stick with them for a keep busy and avoid triggers. happier, healthier New Year.

So you might decide to take up Kim Jackson is a UK-trained physiotherapist with over 20 years’ experience. She specialises in musculoskeletal pain and dysfunction including back pain and sciatica, stroke and other neuro conditions plus sports physiotherapy, having worked with local, regional and international athletes and teams treating injuries and analysing biomechanics to improve function and performance. She is registered with the Allied Health Council and is a member of PASL. She currently works at Bayside Therapy Services in Rodney Bay, O: 458 4409 or C: 284 5443; www.baysidetherapyservices.com

THE STAR

DECEMBER 29, 2018

INTERNATIONal

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Men should stop smoking cannabis for at least SIX MONTHS before trying to start a family

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REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST SAINT LUCIA SAINT LUCIA HEALTH SYSTEM STRENGTHENING PROJECT Credit No.: Preparation Advance No: V2110-LC Assignment Title: Procurement Specialist Reference No. 002/CS/HSSP/18 The Government of Saint Lucia (GOSL) has received financing from the World Bank toward the Health System Strengthening Project, and intends to apply part of the proceeds for consulting services for engagement of a Procurement Specialist to manage and oversee procurement activities for the implementation of the Saint Lucia Health Systems Strengthening Project.

The consulting services (“the Services”) include Procurement Planning • Assist in the preparation and update of the Operational Manual for the Projects to serve as a reference guide for project implementation.

• Work with the Financial Management team in developing and updating the Procurement Plan.

• Work with Financial Management team to ensure budgetary allocations are made for all items to be procured as per the Procurement Plan.

• Update and Maintain the Procurement in the approved form (STEP) agreed to with the Bank • Review procurement documents (TOR, Contracts etc) prior to uploading unto STEP

Research indicates that using cannabis lowers a man’s sperm count.

M

en should stop using cannabis for at least six months before they hope to father children, scientists have warned. Researchers took sperm samples from 12 men who used the drug at least once a week and found it altered the DNA of their swimmers.

Changes were found in the DNA that codes for both growth and organ development, with such genetic mutations even being linked to cancer. Although unclear whether these changes may be passed on to their children, the scientists behind the study have advised men to assume the worst.

The study, published in the journal Epigenetics, was led

by Dr Susan Murphy at Duke University. In the first study of its kind, sperm samples were taken from healthy men—aged 18-to-40—who claimed to use cannabis at least once a week for the past six months.

These samples were compared against the sperm of 12 men who had not used cannabis in the past six months and had used it a maximum of ten times throughout their lives. Urine samples confirmed their marijuana use. Results supported past findings that cannabis users have significantly lower sperm concentrations than non-users.

When the DNA of the participants’ sperm was analysed, the researchers found

cannabis is linked to genetic changes. And the higher the amount of THC in the men’s urine, the stronger the changes of carrying mutations were.

It is unclear whether these changes influence a man’s fertility or get passed on to his children — the affected sperm may not even be healthy enough to fertilise an egg. But the affected genes are linked to organ development and growth, and have been associated with cancer if they become disregulated.

Although concerning, the researchers note not many men were included in their study and that other factors — including nutrition, sleep and alcohol — can also affect sperm. They plan to carry out a larger trial that also investigates if the effects of cannabis on sperm get reversed in cannabis users if they stop taking the drug.

The scientists also hope to test the umbilical cord blood of babies born to fathers with cannabis-alerted sperm to determine if any DNA changes are passed down.“We know that there are effects of cannabis use on the regulatory mechanisms in sperm DNA but we don’t know whether they can be transmitted to the next generation,” Dr Murphy said.

“In the absence of a larger, definitive study, the best advice would be to assume these changes are going to be there.

“We don’t know whether they are going to be permanent.

I would say, as a precaution, stop using cannabis for at least six months before trying to conceive.”

“What we have found is that the effects of cannabis use on males and their reproductive health are not completely null,” said study co-author Dr Scott Kollins.

“There’s something about cannabis use that affects the genetic profile in sperm.

“We don’t yet know what that means, but the fact that more and more young males of child-bearing age have legal access to cannabis is something we should be thinking about.”

More than 180million people use cannabis around the world, the authors wrote.

The drug is legal for either medical or recreational use in more than half US states.

Among 26-to-34 year old men, 20.6 per cent admitted to using cannabis in the past year, The National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported in 2015.

“Since mean paternal age for first child in the United States is 27.4 years, a substantial number of males of child-bearing age may have recent exposure to cannabis at or around the time they conceive,” the authors wrote.

---Mail Online

Bidding Process • Oversee, draft, coordinate, review and/or assist in the preparation of the following documents: Request for Bids and Purchase Orders for procurement of goods Solicitation documents including Bidding Documents and Request for Proposals Terms of Reference for Project implementation as required Contract Documents.

Request no-objection of procurement documents • Attend meetings of the Departmental Tenders Board, Central Tenders Board and record the proceedings for the purposes of preparing procurement reports • Coordinate the evaluation and selection of consultants, contractors and suppliers and prepare the necessary reports for approval • Ensure the Timely preparation of advertisement notices, general procurement notices, specific procurement notices, Request for expressions of Interest and Invitation for Bids for advertising for UNDB Online, St Lucia Gazette, local newspapers and circulation in the region • Prepare and oversee the preparation letters to contractors regarding award of contract, discharge of bid securities.

• Prepare and oversee the preparation of the notification of award of letters to unsuccessful bidders • Oversee the timely submission of signed contracts to the World Bank, Audit, Accountant General and the implementing agencies and to confirm receipt by the Procurement officers.

Monitoring and Evaluation • Monitor Project objectives.

• Use STEP to monitor and control procurement activities • Ensure that goods/services/works are procured in accordance with the approved Procurement Plans.

Maintain and update the Procurement Plan Work with Financial Management team to ensure that the Procurement Plan, Budget Estimates and Financial Statements are in agreement (for both planned and actual).

• Verify and monitor deliverables against all Approved Contract.

• Oversee the preparation of list of contracts (Goods, Works and Consultant’s Services) procured to be included into the Financial Statements Reporting • Prepare the Procurement Reports, including integrating and inputting information from different sources to generate status of contracts.

• Provide quarterly procurement reports • Provide explanation for any procurement activity not undertaken in accordance with the Procurement Plan.

• Provide guidance regarding the maintenance of Project records.

• Ensure accurate filing of Project related correspondence.

• Supervision of Procurement & Contract Management team assigned to the project • Maintain and update the Contract Registers and Fixed Assets Register The consultancy is full time and substantially will be performed on site at the Department of Health and Wellness.

The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment can be found at the following website; www. govt.lc/consultancy or can be obtained at the address given below The Department of Health and Wellness now invites eligible Individual Consultants (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services; (Curriculum Vitae, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, clients’ references etc.). Interested Consultants should have the following requisite minimum qualifications and professional experiences listed below for undertaking the assignment.

QUALIFICATION Minimum required education and experience Academic: - Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, Finance, Law, Business Administration, Engineering or related field.

Professional Experience: - At least 5 years of related working experience, of which at least three years must be at the managerial level The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” July 2016, revised November 2017 (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Individual Consultants Selection method set out in the Procurement Regulations.

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office 8:00 a.m-4:30 p.m. (0800 to 1630 hours). or by mail, or by e-mail) by January 8, 2019.

Project Coordination Unit Department of Economic Development, Transport and Civil Aviation Attn: Project Coordinator 2nd Floor, Finance Administrative Centre Pointe Seraphine Castries, Saint Lucia Tel: 1-758-468-2413 • E-mail: slupcu@gosl.gov.lc

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DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

IMPORTANT NOTICE SAGICOR FINANCIAL CORPORATION LIMITED

COMMITTED TO CREATING VALUE FOR OUR CUSTOMERS AND SHAREHOLDERS On November 27, 2018, Sagicor Financial Corporation Limited (SFC) announced that it had entered into an “Arrangement Agreement” with Alignvest Acquisition II Corporation (Alignvest) which heralds in yet another significant milestone in the long and storied history of our company. Through this transaction, Sagicor will acquire a listing on the Toronto Stock Exchange, where it will have international exposure, greater access to capital to fund its future growth, and very importantly, be exposed to proper price discovery for its shares, providing an opportunity to unlock fair value for all shareholders.

While this is an important step for Sagicor, it has no impact on any of our operations either in the Caribbean or the United States.

Your local executive team will continue to lead the company and your Sagicor policies, contracts, customer service representatives and financial advisors will remain unchanged. This transaction will make our already strong competitive position even stronger, as we continue to focus on our objective of being the “insurer of choice” in the regions where we operate.

Sagicor remains fully committed to the region and having been your financial partner for over 175 years, we are looking forward to continuing this journey with you. The proposed arrangement gives us the ability to explore new opportunities and solutions, which will allow us to provide even greater value to you. We have already begun to demonstrate this ability, through our recently announced, exclusive partnership with Bank of Nova Scotia, which will allow Scotia’s customers in Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago to access an enhanced suite of Sagicor products.

We appreciate that these announcements and transactions are often complex, and we are committed to providing as much information as possible to inform you of the merits of our decision. Further to the information available on our website, and subject to judicial approval under the Laws of Bermuda, we currently plan to provide Sagicor shareholders with an Explanatory Statement, in the course of February and we anticipate that a shareholders meeting will be convened by the end of March. Subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals, the transaction is expected to close by the second quarter (Q2) of 2019.

As a committed regional business serving the Caribbean proudly for more than 175 years, we will continue to strive for excellence on behalf of all stakeholders and hold steadfast to our vision - “committed to improving the lives of people in the communities in which we operate”.

We look forward to engaging our stakeholders over the coming months and will also continue to share information through traditional media, on our social media pages and at www.sagicor.com. Your feedback is very important to us and we invite you to share your comments and queries at SFC_GroupCommunications@sagicor.com.

We look forward to leading Sagicor on the next phase of our journey together as we grow from strength to strength.

Sincerely, Sagicor Financial Corporation Limited Dodridge Miller President & CEO About Sagicor Financial Corporation Limited Sagicor, a 178-year old entity, is the leading financial services provider in the Caribbean, and operates in 22 countries including the USA and Latin America. With total assets of US $6.8 billion, and US $1.3 billion in total capital as at December 31, 2017, Sagicor offers a wide range of products and services, including life, health, and general insurance, banking, pensions, annuities and real estate.

Additional information about Sagicor can be obtained by visiting www.sagicor.com

THE STAR

I

DECEMBER 29, 2018

Citizenship-by-Investment Programmes Offer the Super-rich an Opportunity to Acquire a New Nationality

t’s the must-have accessory for every self-respecting 21stcentury oligarch, and a good many mere multimillionaires: a second—and sometimes a third or even a fourth—passport.

Israel, which helped Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich out of a spot of bother this year by granting him citizenship after delays in renewing his expired UK visa, offers free nationality to any Jewish person wishing to move there. But there are as many as two dozen other countries, including several in the EU, where someone with the financial resources of the Chelsea football club owner could acquire a new nationality for a price: the global market in citizenship-by-investment programmes—or CIPs as they are commonly known—is booming.

The schemes’ specifics— and costs, ranging from as little as US$100,000 to as much as US$2.5 million—may vary, but not the principle: in essence, wealthy people invest money in property or businesses, buy government bonds or simply donate cash directly, in exchange for citizenship and a passport.

Some do not offer citizenship for sale outright, but run schemes usually known as “golden visas” that reward investors with residence permits that can eventually lead—typically after a period of five years—to citizenship.

The programmes are not new, but are growing exponentially, driven by wealthy private investors from emerging market economies including China, Russia, India, Vietnam, Mexico and Brazil, as well as the Middle East and more recently Turkey. The first launched in 1984, a year after young, cashstrapped St Kitts and Nevis won independence from the UK. Slow to take off, it accelerated fast after 2009 when passportholders from the Caribbean island nation were granted visa-free travel to the 26-nation Schengen zone.

For poorer countries, such schemes can be a boon, lifting them out of debt and even becoming their biggest export: the International Monetary Fund reckons St Kitts and Nevis earned 14 per cent of its GDP from its CIP in 2014, and other estimates put the figure as high as 30 per cent of state revenue.

Wealthier countries such as Canada, the UK and New Zealand have also seen the potential of CIPs (the US EB-5 programme

is worth about US$4 billion a year to the economy) but sell their schemes more around the attractions of a stable economy and safe investment environment than on freedom of movement.

Experts from the many companies, such as Henley and Partners, CS Global and Apex, now specialising in CIPs and advertising their services online and in in-flight magazines, say that unlike Abramovich, relatively few of their clients buy citizenship to move immediately to the country concerned. For most, the acquisition represents an insurance policy: with nationalism, protectionism, isolationism and fears of financial instability on the rise around the world, the state of the industry serves as an effective barometer of global political and economic uncertainty. But CIPs are not without their critics.

Malta, for example, has come under sustained fire from Brussels and other EU capitals for its programme, run

by Henley and Partners, which according to the IMF saw more than 800 wealthy individuals gain citizenship in the three years following its launch in 2014. Critics said the scheme was undermining the concept of EU citizenship, posing potential major security risks, and providing a possible route for wealthy individuals—for example from Russia—with opaque income streams to dodge sanctions in their own countries.

Several other CIPs have come under investigation for fraud, while equality campaigners increasingly argue the moral case that it is simply wrong to grant automatic citizenship to ultra-high net worth individuals when the less privileged must wait their turn—and, in many cases, be rejected.

The best-known and cheapest CIP schemes are in the Caribbean, where the warm climate, low investment requirements and undemanding residency obligations have long proved popular. Five countries currently offer CIPs, often giving visa-free travel to the EU, and have recently cut their prices to attract investors as they seek funds to help them rebuild after last year’s hurricanes. In St Kitts and Nevis a passport can now be had for a US$150,000 donation to the hurricane relief

INTERNATIONAL

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fund, while Antigua, Barbuda and Grenada have cut their fees to US$100,000, the same level as St Lucia and Dominica.

Almost half of the EU’s member states offer some kind of investment residency or citizenship programme leading to a highly prized EU passport, which typically allows visa-free travel to between 150 and 170 countries.

Malta’s citizenship-for-sale scheme requires a £675,000 (US$787,695) donation to the national development fund and a £350,000 property purchase.

In Cyprus the cost is a £2million investment in real estate, stocks, government bonds or Cypriot businesses (although the number of new passports is to be capped at 700 a year following criticism). In Bulgaria, £500,000 gets you residency, and about £1million over two years plus a year’s residency gets you fast-track citizenship. Investors can get residency rights leading longer term to citizenship—usually after five years, and subject to passing relevant language and other tests—for £65,000 in Latvia (equities), £250,000 in Greece (property), £350,000 or £500,000 (property or a small business investment fund), or £500,000 in Spain (property, and you have to wait 10 years to apply for citizenship).

Thailand offers several “elite residency” packages costing US$3,000-$4,000 a year for up to 20 years’ residency, some including health checkups, spa treatments and VIP handling from government agencies. The EB-5 US visa, particularly popular with Chinese investors, costs between US$500,000 and $1million depending on the type of investment and gives green card residency that can eventually lead to a passport.

Canada closed its CA$800,000 (US$616,880) federal investment immigration programme in 2014 but now has a similar residency scheme, costing just over CA$1million, for “innovative start-ups”, as well as regional schemes in, for example, Quebec. Australia requires an investment of A$1.5million (US$1.1million) and a net worth of A$2.5million for residency that could, eventually, lead to citizenship, and New Zealand— popular with Silicon Valley types—an investment of up to NZ$10million (US$6.9million).

---South China Morning Post

21

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST SAINT LUCIA SAINT LUCIA HEALTH SYSTEM STRENGTHENING PROJECT Credit No.: Preparation Advance No: V2110-LC Assignment Title: FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SPECIALIST Reference No. 001/CS/HSSP/18 The Government of Saint Lucia (GOSL) has received financing from the World Bank toward the Health System Strengthening Project, and intends to apply part of the proceeds for consulting services for engagement of a Financial Management Specialist to maintain the financial management system for the Project.

The consulting services (“the Services”) include Budgeting and Planning • Supporting the Project Team in preparing annual work plan for the project • Prepare project’s annual cash flow plan on the basis of the work plan and related procurement plan Expenditure/Payment Processing • Updating the financial management system for the project, utilizing standard accounting procedures and ensuring that the chart of accounts including revenues and expenditures posted are consistent with Project components and Procurement Plans which will ensure full documentation and recording of sources and uses of funds.

• Ensuring compliance with the internal control framework (Operations Manual and the Bank’s Fiduciary guidelines etc.) and GoSL’s rules and procedures when processing payments.

• Applying pre-audit checks on all payments before payment from designated accounts including budget availability, sanction of competent authority and compliance with applicable financial rules and regulations.

Monitoring • Monitoring the posting of journals and statement of expenditures to determine the accuracy of expenditures and revenues on GOSL Integrated Financial Accounting System (SmartStream) on a quarterly basis • Making presentations on the financial status of Projects to Budget, the World Bank, Project Team and Department of Health and Wellness.

Financial Reporting • Prepare quarterly Interim (unaudited) Financial Reports for assigned projects by the 30th day following the end of the quarter • Preparation of Annual Financial Statements for assigned project by the 30th day following the end of the financial year • Prepare quarterly reports on performance of work assigned The consultancy is full time and substantially will be performed on site at the Department of Health and Wellness.

The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment can be found at the following website; www.govt.lc/consultancy or can be obtained at the address given below The Department of Health and Wellness now invites eligible Individual Consultants (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the Services; (Curriculum Vitae, description of similar assignments, experience in similar conditions, clients’ references etc.). Interested Consultants should have the following requisite minimum qualifications and professional experiences listed below for undertaking the assignment.

QUALIFICATION Minimum required education and experience Academic: - Level 2 ACCA or Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or related field.

Professional Experience: - Knowledge of Government Accounting Integrated Financial Management System - Knowledge and ability to use Accounting Software including Quick Books.

Experience: - At least five years working experience in financial management, accounting The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” July 2016, revised November 2017 (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Individual Consultants Selection method set out in the Procurement Regulations.

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office 8:00 a.m-4:30 p.m.

(0800 to 1630 hours). or by mail, or by e-mail) by January 8, 2019.

Project Coordination Unit Department of Economic Development, Transport and Civil Aviation Attn: Project Coordinator 2nd Floor, Finance Administrative Centre Pointe Seraphine Castries, Saint Lucia Tel: 1-758-468-2413 • E-mail: slupcu@gosl.gov.lc

22 INTERNATIONAL

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DECEMBER 29, 2018 THE STAR

Queen ATTACK: Republicans hit out at queen over moving Christmas speech for this reason

er Majesty shared a touching traditional message, speaking about the importance of family and unifying the nation, tying up with the Royal Family's annual Christmas celebrations in Sandringham. Broadcast at 3pm on Christmas Day, the head of state praised the Commonwealth for "the bonds of affection it promotes, and a common desire to live in a better, more peaceful world”.

But despite this, antiroyals took to Twitter after the 92-year-old shared her wisdom, branding her “out of touch” and “pathetic” for sitting beside a gold piano in Buckingham Palace as she spoke. One man posted: "Child poverty is at a modern high and Old Queen Lizzy is telling us all to stick together with her big gold piano and £365 million loft conversion paid by her struggling people."

One posted on Twitter: "Always warms an old republican’s heart to see the billionaire head of an antiquated institution, surrounding themselves with gold in their modest 775-roomed detached home, while others are f***ing struggling to make ends meet."

Others highlighted the plight of food bank users over

The Queen gives her annual Christmas speech in the Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace featuring many gold ornaments.

Christmas, with one writing: "Queen says, from her humble and modest surroundings, family kept her 'well occupied' over the year.

"I suspect the thousands of mums and dads that use food banks and struggle on Universal Credit each week could say the same."

And one Twitter user said: "I don't understand the criticism old Mrs Windsor is getting over her gold piano while she lectures her subjects.

It's a fairly standard piece of furniture. I keep mine next to my diamond encrusted microwave."

Others called the message

"pathetic", and "dire".

But Good Morning Britain presenter, Susanna Reid, jumped to Her Majesty’s defence on the social media website. Tweeting from her account @susannareid100, the ITV host said: “She’s the Queen.

She has many Palaces. And staff. And have you seen her

crown?

“She’s not ‘one of us’...and yet she brings us all together.”

Another Twitter user, called Shirley, wrote: “Get a life people, this is the Queen, why is it bad taste? Out of touch!

Out of touch why? It looks very comfortable there. I guess you are republicans, and nothing

would be ok for you!”

Firefighter trade union official Paul Embery joked on Twitter: “If she'd concluded her broadcast with a piano rendition of Lennon's 'Imagine', the virtuesignallers would have been happy.”

The Queen’s gold piano which caused offence is intended as a showpiece for the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace.

First purchased by Queen Victoria in 1856, the S & P Erard instrument is made of mahogany, satinwood and pine, with brass and gilt bronze mounts, gilded and varnished. It underwent a major restoration with cleaning and repair before featuring in a Victoria and Albert exhibition, held in The Queen’s Gallery in 2010, to remove substantial dirt from the two main lids and the upper surfaces, and to restore varnish.

The Royal Collection Trust describes the surface as "painted by François Rochard in polychrome colours with singeries and Berainesque motifs. The mouldings and rim of the piano are bronze, chased and gilt. It is supported on three incurving cabriole legs of gilded wood with heavy floral garlands and carved at the top with two scrolls flanking a prominent flower. Pedal section in form of lyre in gilded wood with foliate decoration."

---Express

Trump threatens closure of US border with Mexico

P

resident Trump wrote that "Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador are doing nothing for the United States but taking our money". In addition, he floated the idea of withdrawing from NAFTA, an agreement which led to free trade between the US, Canada and Mexico.

"Bring our car industry back into the United States where it belongs," he said, "Either we build (finish) the wall or we close the border."

He tweeted: "We will be forced to close the southern border

entirely if the obstructionist Democrats do not give us the money to finish the wall and also change the ridiculous immigration laws that our country is saddled with.”

Mr Trump is seeking $5bn for the wall as the attempts to stop what he calls Mexican "murderers" and "rapists" coming into the country. But opponents say that building a barrier along the 2,000mile border is impractical, and are refusing to grant funding.

The president claims, however, that closing the southern border would be a "profit making operation".

He wrote: "The United States loses so much money on trade with Mexico under NAFTA, over 75 billion dollars a year (not including drug money which would be many times that amount)."

He has retaliated against those opposing the wall by refusing to sign off a spending bill, leaving about 800,000 federal employees without pay and resulting in a partial government shutdown.

---Sky News

THE STAR

DECEMBER 29, 2018

Job Opportunity: Executive Assistant to the General Manager/ CEO Are you looking to join our team?

• • • • •

• •

Are you knowledgeable of office administration, procedures and protocols?

Do you possess a thorough understanding of the role of an Executive Assistant?

Are you able to maintain a high level of confidentiality in dealing with company matters?

Are you an individual who is detail oriented and able to prioritize?

Do you possess good customer service, problem solving, planning and organizational skills?

Are you able to communicate effectively via oral, written and interpersonal means?

Are you a flexible, positive individual, with great team spirit?

If so, and you possess the following experience and qualifications, then this opportunity is for you:

•

• •

classified 23

www.stluciastar.com

Post Graduate Diploma or Associate of Science Degree in Business Administration, Secretarial Studies of Business Management Minimum 5 years experience functioning as an Assistant Dependable, flexible, safety conscious, courteous, Independent thinker, Team player Applications should be addressed to: Senior Manager – Human Resources Saint Lucia Air and Sea Ports Authority Manoel Street, P.O. Box 651 Castries Or Emailed to: humanresource@slaspa.com Deadline for submission: Friday 4th January 2019

PROPERTY FOR SALE

FOR RENT

Property for sale in Soufriere 2600 Sq ft.

4-Bedroom, 1 bath, laundry/ utility extension. Great location close proximity to all available amenities.

Potential for commercial use

3-Bedroom unfurnished apartment with bathroom, bathtub and hot/ cold water.

Asking price: $450.00/month

Serious buyers/ enquirers only Call:

For details call:

286 6190

724-2888

Online Classifieds

FOR RENT:

Get maximum exposure for your dollar.

Place your classified ads in the STAR Newspaper and on our website: www.stluciastar.com Call the STAR at 450-7827 and ask for our sales department

BEAUSEJOUR Gardens Drive NEWLY RENOVATED, FULLY FURNISHED, 2-BEDROOM BOTTOM APARTMENT WITH MORDERN APPLIANCES in upscale residential area.

AMENITIES INCLUDE: SECURE & GATED FACILITY, AIR CONDITIONED BEDROOMS, AMPLE PARKING, WATER & GROUND MAINTENANCE. CALL:

720-4545/720-0333/720-2986

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

PROPERTIES OFFICER Invest Saint Lucia (ISL) is seeking a Properties Officer, on a temporary basis, to provide technical support to the Properties & Projects Department in project planning, design, costing and construction supervision.

KEY FUNCTIONS • Monitoring and oversight of maintenance and construction projects • Monitoring of contractors to ensure work is undertaken in accordance with drawings, specifications and approved construction practices • Completion of routine inspections of properties including industrial estates & submission of • inspection reports • Timely preparation of drawings and estimates of projects to be undertaken APPLICANT REQUIREMENTS • Bachelor’s Degree in Building Construction Technology, Estate Management, Quantity Surveying or related field, OR an Associate Degree in these areas with at least 3 years’ experience • Experience in Project Management, Design, Costing and Supervision • Excellent oral and written communication skills • Ability to work within a team • Proficiency in Microsoft Excel and Auto Cad Salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Applicants for the above post should submit a resume and certified copies of relevant qualifications to: PROPERTIES OFFICER VACANCY Human Resource Manager Invest Saint Lucia First Floor, Heraldine Rock Building P.O. Box 495, Castries, St. Lucia

or via email at hr@investstlucia.com Deadline for submission of applications is Friday January 4th 2019 Only suitably qualified applicants will be acknowledged

VACANCY NOTICE

Project Co-Ordinator for Crime Victimization The United Nations Development Programme Barbados and the OECS invites applications from Suitably Qualified Nationals of St. Lucia and Nationals of the OECS countries who hold the CARICOM Skills Certificate for the position of Project Co-Ordinator - Crime Victimization (Job ID 19364).

The position will be based in Commonwealth of St. Lucia and will be under a UNDP Service Contract.

The United Nations Development Programme Barbados and the OECS invites applications from Suitably Qualified Nationals of St. Lucia and Nationals of the OECS countries who hold the CARICOM Skills Certificate for the following positions: Remuneration will be in accordance with the established UNDP Service Contract Salary Scale for the OECS. The Terms of Reference for these positions can be obtained by visiting the UNDP website at: http://www.bb.undp.org/content/barbados/en/home/operations/jobs/ Applications must be submitted electronically to the relevant: ID 19364 – Project CoOrdinator Crime Victimization by visiting the above link.

Deadline for submission of applications is 31 December 2018. Applications will be treated in the strictest confidence. Only suitable applications will be acknowledged. The United Nations Development Programme does not as a rule acknowledge unsolicited applications.

Female candidates are highly encouraged to apply.

We shall only contact those persons who are short listed.

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2018

S&S

www.stluciastar.com

Watta Guy!

LAYAWAY NOW AVAILABLE AT S&S THE PRICEBUSTERS

NEW YEAR LED GLASSES

$5.00

Come and apply for your S & S Loyalty Card

$2.00

NEW YEAR HATS

$4.00

Bois D Orange • Castries • Vieux Fort www.facebook.com/the.pricebusters

NEW YEAR BANNERS NEW YEAR HELIUM BALLOONS $15.00 $2.25

6 NEW YEAR TIARAS

$8.00

6 NEW YEAR HORNS $4.00

Also on special: CHIRSTMAS TREE ICICLES $2, CHRISTMAS TREE BELS 9 FOR $2.75, POINSETTIA FLOWER

DECORATIONS 4 FOR $3.25, FOIL OFFICE STREAMERS FROM $3.25, WIRE GARLANDS FROM $9.50, CHRISTMAS STOCKINGS FROM $4.75, BATTERY OPERATED CHRISTMAS LIGHTS $14, CHRISTMAS CARDS $2.75, MERRY CHRISTMAS BANNERS $3.75, METAL GARLAND ROLLS $4.50, CHRISTMAS GIFT BAGS $1, CHRISTMAS TREE STARS $2.50

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