TCWN June 28 - July 4, 2014

Weekly News Volume 28 | No. 26 | June 28 - July 4, 2014

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Grand Turk Fishing Tournament raises $20,000 for high school

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PAYROLL

TAX DENIED – Gov’t pleas fall on deaf ears

Even though the Payroll Tax Bill was not taken to a vote in the House of Assembly on Monday (June 23), the two Governor’s appointed members stood with the Opposition in showing no support for the Government touted bill, effectively killing it. PAGE  5

One of the catches from the day

No jury trial for accused MINISTERS

PAGE  4

Gov’t throws out PDM alternative PAGE tax plan 4

New high school to be built in Long Bay Hills

PAGE  7

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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

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NEWS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

No jury trial for corruption accused – Volume of evidence, lengthy trial and inconvenience cited

NINE defendants accused of Government corruption along with ex-Premier Michael Misick will not face a jury come October 6 when trial is set to begin, barring any further delays.

Instead, Justice Paul Harrison, who was appointed by former Governor Ric Todd, will decide their fate.

The decision was handed down on Monday (June 23) to a packed courtroom in the Providenciales Supreme Court.

Harrison, who heard arguments on an application for a trial without a jury, in his decision stated the interest of justice requires that a judge, without a jury, preside over the trial.

Although the media is barred from publishing the reasons that he came to this conclusion, Harrison said that upon considering the factors in a section 4(3) of the Trial Without

A Jury Ordinance he is satisfied that a judge alone should try the defendants.

He listed examples such as the fact that the allegations are of wrongdoing by prominent public figures, including politicians and their activities and interaction with members of the public throughout the TCI over the years 2003 to 2009, culminated in the Auld Inquiry and Report.

Additionally, there was pretrial media publicity that was adverse to the prosecution and defence since the 2009 Commission of Inquiry Report, up to January this year.

“This could not have failed to influence adversely the minds of the potential jurors in the small jurisdiction of TCI,” the judge decided.

He also listed the complexity of the charges, which allege payments of millions of dollars by various

Ex-Premier Michael Misick

means and channels to various accounts and to numerous recipients.

“Inevitably this would involve a heavy volume of documents, both

at pre-trial and at the trial, more appropriately dealt with by a judge alone.”

He said the trial is estimated to last for months, which would involve dislocation of the lives of potential jurors, their loss of earnings and the disadvantage and inconvenience this would place on employers.

“The probable delays from adjournments and time off for jurors for various reasons, is also inevitable,” Harrison decided.

The media is still barred from reporting the submissions made by the defence attorneys on the application made by Andrew Mitchell QC of the Special Investigation and Prosecution Team (SIPT) in January.

The reason given is that there is still a chance of a jury trial as the defendants have a right to appeal the judge’s decision, and that publicity of the arguments could prejudice potential jurors.

The lawyers have until September

1 to apply for an appeal. The case will be called again on September 15.

The other defendants are former Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance Floyd Basil Hall, former Minister of Natural Resources McAllister Eugene Hanchell, former Minister of Education Lillian Elaine Boyce, former Minister of Works Jeffrey Christoval Hall, former PNP leader and attorney Clayton Stanfield Greene, attorney Thomas ‘Chal’ Misick, Lisa Michelle Hall, attorney Melbourne Arthur Wilson and Earlson McDonald Robinson.

They are charged jointly with Michael Misick for multiple offences ranging from conspiracy to receive bribes, fraud and numerous counts of money laundering, all committed while Misick was the Premier of the TCI. (DI)

Gov’t throws out PDM alternative tax plan THE OPPOSITION is not too pleased that the Minister of Finance has publicly mocked their alternative tax plan while they have not been afforded an official response since it was presented in May. During the House of Assembly sitting on Monday (June 23), Minister Washington Misick thanked the PDM for their proposal, before ruthlessly tearing it apart.

Misick reported that the PDM has suggested refinancing the TCI’s current debt by rolling the Providenciales airport loan into the TCI Government’s debt, and borrowing $200 million against the

airport revenues.

He said they are unable to adopt this.

However, PDM chairman, Clarence Selver, intervened, stating that the party did not propose taking over the revenue streams from the airport authority.

“We recommended one revenue stream which is just the departure tax,” he stated.

However, the minister said he is not misrepresenting what is contained in the plan.

“We are unable to adopt the proposals provided to us by the Opposition for these reasons –

Published by Turks & Caicos News Company Ltd. Cheshire House, Leeward Highway, Providenciales P.O. Box 52, Turks & Caicos Islands, BWI W. Blythe Duncanson - Publisher/Editor-in-Chief Faizool Deo - Sports Editor (At Large) Daisy Handfield - Staff Reporter Cord Garrido-Lowe - Graphics Consultant (At Large) Dilletha Lightbourne-Williams - Office Manager Email: (Advertising) tcnews@tciway.tc, (News) tcweeklynews@yahoo.com, tcweeklynews@gmail.com Tel. 649-946-4664 (office), 649-232-3508 (after hours) Website address: www.tcweeklynews.com

it contravenes the framework document agreed with the UK; it also contravenes the Public Finance Management Ordinance.”

He said to take a larger loan would incur penalty – payments for breaking the current bond and other debt obligations before the maturity date.

This would increase the debt service cost even more and extend the period of the debt to be paid by our children and our grandchildren, he added.

“The notion that we could reduce the financial obligations by borrowing, not $50 million, not $100 million, but $200 million more as the way out of our financial predicament, just does not add up.

“This would not increase our revenue but only increase our liabilities and recurrent expenses, leaving less available to deliver services to our communities.”

He said the Government is saving $5 million annually by utilising the UK credit rating, and that it is better to continue to do this until 2016.

The Opposition proposes a further increase on departure tax of $2 annually for the next three years.

“This certainly provides an opportunity for an increase in revenue, however, we are operating in a competitive environment, one in which the demand for our destination is dependent on pricing.

“Therefore, an increase in departure tax will have an impact on our tourism product; it would also affect relationship with our travel partners,” Misick told the house.

However, he said they might wish

PDM chairman, Clarence Selver

to compromise with the Opposition on the issue of a minimal inward bound fee to cover operational expenses of civil aviation.

This could come in the form of a corresponding decrease in the payroll tax rate, if the Opposition wishes to consider it further, he proposed.

“It is unwise to implement the Opposition’s suggestion of a draw down in excess of $10 million more per year from the airport beginning in this year when the funds are needed to complete this project (airport) and to carry on further extension to the facility,” he pointed out.

Following his presentation, Leader of the Opposition, Sharlene Cartwright Robinson expressed her disappointment in the minister’s remarks.

“There is obviously a serious misunderstanding. We struck a bargain with the Government that we won’t have gone public until they would have the opportunity to furnish

us with additional information which we did not receive and also that they would look at it and respond to us.”

She said they first heard reaction to their proposal on a television show.

“And today, yet again not speaking directly to the Opposition, not responding officially to an official meeting or official plan, we get the Government’s response again.”

She added that during the meeting in May, the PDM shared an alternative plan that had at its core an existing tax that would have been a broader base, capturing thousands more persons than the payroll tax.

The plan presented a way to take certain contingent liabilities off the books in order to refinance so that the bond can be paid off and give the Government some breathing space, allowing for relief to over taxed residents and businesses.

She added that the suggestions in the plan would also allow the Government to invest in areas to market and grow the economy.

“I commit today, since we have gotten the response officially that we would lay out our full plan to the people of the TCI. “We have waited patiently on the Government’s response, we got it today.”

She said the party agreed to keep the plan out of the public domain because they did not want to politicise it.

The party leader said there are real alternatives to the payroll tax, but that the Government is not prepared to meaningfully consult or hear others. (DI)

June 28 - July 4, 2014

NEWS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

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Opposition keeps promise to kill payroll tax – Gov’t pleas fall on deaf ears

EVEN though the Payroll Tax Bill was not taken to a vote in the House of Assembly on Monday (June 23), the two Governor’s appointed members stood with the Opposition in showing no support for the Government touted bill, effectively killing it.

The bill was supposed to have gone through all three readings and taken to a vote, but after the debate, Minister of Finance Washington Misick who moved the bill, absented himself from the assembly and subsequently the Premier asked for an adjournment.

Misick’s departure came shortly after the massive opposition to the controversial bill, which the People’s Democratic Movement (PDM) has long since promised to kill.

In spite of his and Premier Ewing’s urgings for members to “do the right thing,” all ten members paid no heed to the pleas.

Misick even went so far as to invoke the name of the late Chief Minister and PDM leader, JAGS McCartney, pointing to his legacy and dream, in a futile effort to sway the Opposition members.

“I respectfully suggest that we all owe it to honourable McCartney’s legacy and dream … to support this Government’s bold step to move this country forward to financial independence,” Misick urged.

“Today we stand at a crossroads – we can choose to deny our people an improved quality of life by spending their money on debt service costs or we can choose to put in place a system that would support their financial independence and social development.

“Honourable colleagues, I plead with you to choose the latter. Seize this once in a generation opportunity to get this right.”

He reminded members that the passage of the tax bill would positively influence what the Government can do for the country.

These positive measures are outlined in the 2014/2015 Budget, which was only sent to the Appropriations Committee last month, after lengthy delays.

The tax would curtail Government expenditure on debt servicing and improve the credit rating of the

country.

It is also essential to the success of each of the three pillars upon which the forthcoming budget is formulated – debt management, revenue reform and economic growth, Misick said.

“The truth of the matter is that it wouldn’t have been any different had the other side been on this side,” he opined.

He is of the belief that rejection of the tax will put the TCI on the same footing as Bermuda and Barbados whose credit ratings were downgraded earlier this month.

He further called the rejection of the tax “petty party politics” and said the tax is too important to be subjected to that.

However, unmindful of the dire warnings and pleas, Leader of the Opposition, Sharlene Cartwright Robinson led the resistance in the assembly.

She stated that the tactics used by the Government to push the bill through are “poor and distasteful”.

“The official page of the Premier’s office on Facebook today (June 23) says that a vote against payroll tax is a vote for value added tax.

“You see this is the type of tactics that we are up against,” the party leader said.

She pointed out that the Opposition is not oblivious to the pressures the Government faces, and that they know that monies must be raised.

She again congratulated the Minister of Finance on preparing a strategy, but stated that the plan is void of real numbers that are logically and reasonably calculated and informed.

The leader said that the party is “absolutely certain” that payroll tax is not what the people want.

“Today, almost mid-term, our own locally elected Government continues to tax us mercilessly and without real or meaningful consultation in most instances.”

She said the opposition to the bill transcends political party lines, and restated the party’s official position on the bill: “No to payroll tax”.

REASONS Listing her reasons for this position Cartwright Robinson noted: “As

Premier Rufus Ewing

Leader of the Opposition, Sharlene Cartwright Robinson

the minister has admitted, there are alternative revenue measures.

We should be absolutely satisfied that any tax being considered is absolutely necessary.

“And that the introduction of taxes in this climate is counter-productive to what the Government is trying to achieve in raising revenue.”

She said there are signs of recovery in the economy and that the Government must be careful not to negatively impact this rebound by its decisions.

The PDM leader said the tax would negatively affect already over taxed businesses sending some out of business while increasing the underground business world.

She added the bill does not address the broadest base possible as it would tax a very small pool of residents and would be labour intensive and very difficult to police.

She also believes that the concept of employers being included in payroll tax and benefits is philosophically wrong, that the bill has conflict of interest issues and that the Government has not demonstrated that it is serious or wants to collect its arrears.

The failure by the Government to address measures to cut expenditure in healthcare and their sluggish approach to conducting audits that would move the cost overrun from TCIG to InterHealth is a major cause for concern, the party leader said.

She further listed the Government’s failure to present a

sound inward investment strategy, which would include clear rules, simpler processes and aggressive marketing.

The Opposition leader believes that the three per cent rate would increase as soon as the Government sees that it does not yield as much as they intend and that with the proposed plan to get rid of revenue for business licence rates, this would result in loss of millions of dollars.

Mismanagement of the new tax, too much power invested in the minister, many loop holes, and the belief that the tax is actually income tax were some more reasons for the outright rejection of the bill.

“We further believe that a change from our no direct taxation status cannot be decided upon willy-nilly and especially in the absence of laying all of the alternatives on the table,” the Opposition leader said.

She called the Government’s attempt to tax its way out of the current financial mess flawed, lazy and without innovation.

She said real efforts must be made to stimulate the economy and encourage spending, rather than taking away spending power.

Governor’s appointed member, John Phillips took what he called a pragmatic view in his opposition to the tax.

Phillips said the TCI has a workable system and the country has existed quite well on a consumerbased system.

Like the Opposition, Phillips

stated that the tax being proposed does not appear to be payroll tax, but income tax from what he has read of its definition in the bill.

He said that with this tax the Government would trap the poorer people in, whilst the wealthy people know how to get around it by moving their business interests and operating from overseas locales.

“Therefore when we look for inward investment, we may still get some investment but it may not base itself here; it would base itself elsewhere and work into here.

“We need in my mind to continue on the route we’re on. Let’s look at consumer based tax.”

According to Phillips, the benefit is simple.

“In a direct tax system government are seen as dictators, they decide how much they would take out of your pay packet because they think they know better than you do, how to spend it.

“When you move to a consumer based system that person still spends that money but he spends it on what he wants to spend it on…”

The Governor appointee said that any country that is trying to develop or improve its economy, the first thing they try to do is reduce direct taxation and depend more on consumer taxation.

“We cannot call this payroll tax a broad-based tax; it’s a very narrow based tax… and in effect it would only be effective with few employers - the main resorts, the few larger companies, companies of such significance as to pay attention and pay contributions correctly for National Insurance Board (NIB) and National Health Insurance Plan (NHIP).

“Cash based businesses don’t do that, worldwide. And we are very much a cash based economy.”

Phillips concluded that he could not in good conscience support the bill.

The other Governor appointed member, Lillian Misick went a step further in her opposition by informing the house that they were misguided in rejecting value added continued 

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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

A Weekly News column that puts you on the spot for your opinions on the issues of the day

Fast track work permits?

DURING a recent House of Assembly sitting Minister of Labour DonHue Gardiner revealed that employers of foreign workers can pay $500 to get their work permit applications fast tracked.

He said that the Immigration Board meets every Wednesday to review fast track applications and the process is completed within seven days – compared to at least 50 days for regular permits.

Do you think the Government should be offering a fast track process? Or perhaps you think this will have a detrimental effect on the normal applications?

Bad for Belongers

All applications should be treated the same unless you are talking about healthcare workers, teachers and policemen.

This fast track process will only benefit the privileged and Belongers wouldn’t even know that there are or were job vacancies that need to be filled.

Another Belonger unemployed! Wake up MY people.

Cash for staff

I agree with the fast track however I believe that at least $200 of the $500 should be given to the workers in the Immigration Department as extra pay so that they can receive a better wage.

Short-sighted

This misses the larger issue: ALL work permits should be fast-tracked. Why delay a work privilege that is hugely beneficial to the nation?

Indeed, the nation has to decide whether it wants real economic progress that significantly raises the standard of living for everyone, or be left behind and sink into economic stagnation and decline.

There is serious competition out there in the world for good workers.

We need to stop clinging to the outdated notion that making it hard for foreigners to work here somehow benefits Turks and Caicos Islanders.

Quite the opposite and short-sighted, especially since most foreigners want to make TCI their country too.

Makes no sense

If the fast track system proves that work permits can be efficiently issued in seven days, why should normal applications take any longer than two weeks maximum, instead of the minimum of the two months they require now?

This just extends the history of the Immigration Department process under

which a prospective employer is often required to purchase a number of temporary work permits for his foreign applicant, usually not because of any deficiency in the initial application’s paperwork, but because the Immigration Board won’t meet often enough to deal with applications on a timely basis.

And even after these expensive temporary permits are purchased, they do not add the extra time to the term of the initial work permit, but instead just generate extra revenue for Government.

Where else but in this country can a Government department or agency earn more money by being less efficient?

Too many leaving

Work permits for what? With the state of the economy combined with pending taxation, more people are leaving.

Maybe they should hassle them at the airport for an exit tax. They are daft enough to try it.

Greedy Government

This minister is out of touch with reality. He claims that the average work permit renewal takes 50 days and it takes five to seven months.

Put others on a fast track ahead in line and this will slow the process further. The whole concept of immigration is separate from temporary foreign workers.

An immigrant comes to stay and build up the population and consequently the economy.

A foreign worker comes to fill a need and export as much of his income as possibly home to support his family back home.

Millions of dollars are exported from our economy each year because we have a policy of discouraging immigration.

The fast track programme is just another way of raising money for a greedy Government.

What is the management record of Minister DonHue? He was a highly paid adviser to

Uncle Mike who wrecked the TCI.

No difference

If they can’t do it in a reasonable time for regular price, how is $500 going to speed it up?

Approved corruption

Instant gratification is the name of the game for this Government and the rise in work permit costs is just a continuation of bad policies on immigration and labour.

After doubling and tripling work permits costs now they want to put another $500 in the ministers’ pockets to put certain foreign workers first in line.

Fast track has always been present you simply pay an underpaid civil servant under the table to walk the permit through the system.

The question for the voters of North and Middle Caicos is what is Mr Gardiner doing for them?

According to a record published in this paper this minister was paid $90,000 in one year to advise his uncle.

Now he wants the foreign workers’ employers to pay this back. Raising permit costs raises the cost of living for everyone.

Selling out natives

The PNP Government is hard at it betraying the TCI people and selling them out. Yet will we ever learn?

Can we get a fast track to scholarships for our youth, access to lands, access to bigger classrooms, access to quality teachers?

The natives can apply to the Government for a licence, a job, whatever and the process takes years.

Now they want to fast track the selling of jobs and work permits. As long as the Government sees work permit fees as a source of revenue this process of selling the native TC Islander will continue and increase.

A native has mouth, his idea of rights, so the native is not one suited for the expat controlled job market.

These immigration practices and policies are not good for the TCI and they are hurting us all.

The PNP Government has gotten that message so they are doing whatever they can to please these people.

So they will sell the native out in the job market, increase our taxes.

Backlog

There is no excuse for regular permits to take so long. Imagine it takes up to six months to get something that the Government can actually produce in seven days.

The processing of permits has been in backlog for years and many persons receive their documents when they are near expiration.

The introduction of the fast track permit has taken precedence over the processing of regular permits.

Key persons are constantly tied up in meetings and are not available to complete work that was already backlogged for months.

Unless the Immigration Department adds more signatories, work that was moving at a snail’s pace is now coming to a halt since the introduction of the fast track system.

The truth is work permits are so costly and they should all be treated with professionalism and efficiency when being processed.

No incentive

Why in the world does the Immigration Board even have to review a routine application for a renewal work permit?

Provided the labour clearance is in place, and the pre-requisite medical and police record forms attached, why cannot over 90 per cent of renewal work permit applications just be signed off by an appropriate Immigration Department staff member, without having to tie up the board?

Seems to me to be an obvious way to speed up the system, reduce the level of anxiety for both employees and employers as to the status of work permit renewals, and free the Immigration Board to deal with first-time applications and those few renewals for which there are unusual circumstances or conditions.

Notwithstanding the current Government’s desperate search for revenue, nothing is more frustrating (and typical Turks and Caicos Islands) than paying someone an extra fee or ‘incentive’ to do no more than they were hired to do in the first place!

System overhaul needed

Why charge an extra $500 to fast track work permits at the expense of regular renewals now left to linger in the system for up to three months.

Why not commit the extra resources then to fast track all of the work permits which is what is required to improve the process?

I can never figure out these simple solutions to simple problems. Maybe it’s a revenue generator for TCIG and if no why not then review the work permit fees and charge the extra $500 to ensure that the process is efficient and every application is fast tracked.

This would send the right message to investors that we are really serious about business.

The members of the Immigration Board are all persons in the private sector. How can they afford to meet so frequently at the expense of their own businesses?

Maybe we should create a statutory body, employ full time persons and give them clear policies and criteria for work permit approvals and allow them to manage this process.

If there is an appeal then we use the board to deal with those matters.

 Become a contributor Want to become a contributor or have a suggestion for a Talk Back topic for us? What questions do you think we should be putting to the public? And what are your thoughts on it?

Call our news team on 946 4664 or email tcweeklynews@gmail.com

June 28 - July 4, 2014

NEWS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

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Opposition declares victory on payroll tax debate – But calls out Government on wastage THE PEOPLE’s Democratic Movement (PDM) considers Monday’s (June 23) session and the ten-member opposition to the three per cent payroll tax as a victory for the people of the Islands.

In a statement to the press this week, the party said they are awaiting Finance Minister Washington Misick’s alternative plans.

“We remain prepared to assisting wherever allowed to address the challenges we face. We will announce shortly the date as to when the full details of the plan presented to the Government will be released.”

The statement came on the heels of an adjournment, sine die (until

further notice) of the House of Assembly after Misick failed to wrap up the debate on the bill.

The Opposition is perturbed at the fact that adjournments of the House of Assembly are constantly being called for without them being able to put forward a number of motions that have been on the order paper for some time now.

In addition, questions for the Government have been put off for several sittings as the Premier consistently moves for the assembly to address the business of the Government before any other.

However, when the Government’s business is concluded, a motion for

Opposition keeps promise to kill payroll tax continued FROM 

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tax (VAT).

She said the country would not be in the dilemma it is now in if the Government of the day, led by the Opposition had not unanimously voted against the implementation of VAT - a broad-based tax which is deemed by experts to be the most viable solution even now.

She added that even though payroll tax is considered a broadbased tax, she does not believe that it is broad enough.

“With a population of less than 40,000 of which at least 50 per cent comprises expatriates who have the option to leave and reside where ever they choose, the tax burden is going to fall on the very few TC Islanders, and this is not sustainable.”

She also drew attention to the Government, which is the largest employer in the Islands, stating that the tax would undoubtedly hurt civil servants who have been waiting since the re-grading exercise in 2012 for the new salaries to bring them to a standard of living that is acceptable to all.

“It is noteworthy though, that whereas the Government and the Opposition were unanimous in their decision to reject VAT… they are miles apart with regard to the implementation of a remuneration tax as a broad based tax.

“There is no meeting of the minds.”

Misick said that while in private many have acknowledged that it was a mistake in rejecting VAT, because it is not deemed politically correct, there is reluctance to acknowledge it

publicly.

She said it is should come as no surprise that she is rejecting the bill, as she had shepherded VAT because she thought it viable option to the seeming unending round of taxes being imposed on the country.

“Take the egg on your face like a real man and take VAT off the shelf,” Misick advised the finance minister.

In his contribution, Premier Ewing again expressed his confidence in the bill, stating that it was the most appropriate decision under the current circumstances.

“The decision may indeed be far from popular, but I continue to urge our people to be mindful that our nation was set against near impossible odds that practically engineered fiscal economic failure following the return to democratically elected Government.”

He spoke to the issue of accountability for the debt accumulated by the country over past years, pointing out that the country must collectively bear the responsibility for the direct and indirect inactions and seek the best course of action to overcome the economic challenge.

“If this Government’s hands were not unfairly tied by the Public Financial Management Framework, then the Government would have had the capacity to do many things differently to improve the country’s economic position.”

He also gave assurances that the Government’s intentions are honourable and that its decisions are driven by a desire to ease the burden of the people and to see a more rapid return to prosperity. (DI)

adjournment is often sought and granted without the Opposition being addressed.

At Monday’s sitting, when the Premier made a similar motion that was subsequently granted, the Opposition protested.

However, Speaker of the House Robert Hall said he would intervene when he believes the rights of the Opposition are being trampled.

However, the PDM believes that their rights are being curtailed and that Hall is not properly playing the role for which he was appointed.

“We are disappointed but not surprised that the Premier continues to display such immature behaviour by continuing to adjourn the house with items on the agenda and wasting the tax payers’ monies.

“There have been two motions on the agenda for several months relating to crime fighting and marine products, and another two motions… for three and two agendas on minimum wage and business licences.”

The party said that this leaves the people’s business unattended and is a waste of much needed resources.

“Being asked in this climate to support taxes when the best fiscal prudence is not being practised in

the clear view of the public seems reckless to us and we may be deemed to be behaving as we see the Government’s actions to be.”

The Opposition said that they are taking their complaints to the next level, as several letters to the Speaker about their rights being flouted have gone unheeded.

“Only last week did we write a four page letter to the Speaker about areas of concern and we

have not had the benefit of an acknowledgment.

“We will now take this matter to the next step to ensure that the people’s house is properly managed and that all voices are respected.”

The PDM said that members are quite pleased with the stance against payroll tax and now await the Government’s next move.

The next sitting of the House of Asembly is set for mid-July. (DI)

Road safety officer to appear before Supreme court A ROAD safety officer, who was slapped with eight counts of corruption by the Integrity Commission, will appear in Providenciales Supreme Court to face the charges.

Dereck Dean faced resident magistrate Jolyon Hatmin in the Graceway House Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday (June 24) morning where the charges were read to him.

The 42-year old Blue Hills man was arrested by the commission on June 13 and charged with eight offences which are said to be contrary

Under the tree

to section 44 of the Integrity Commission Ordinance.

Dean is alleged to have accepted bribes rather than hand out tickets to drivers who were not complying with TCI law between April 2013 and September 2013.

According to a press release from the Director of TCI Integrity Commission, Eugene Otuonye, QC, Dean was granted $5,000 police bail with one surety.

He is set to appear in Supreme Court on August 1 for his sufficiency hearing.

By Benneth Williams

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NEWS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

New high school to be built in Long Bay Hills – But development on hold due to budget delays A 13 acre plot of land in Long Bay Hills has been earmarked for the development of a new Government high school, according to the Minister of Education.

Akierra Missick made the announcement during a House of Assembly sitting earlier this month, but added that the build is on hold due to a delay in the new budget.

The financial document was earmarked for completion in April but it was only tabled in parliament on June 11 and six weeks of scrutiny means that it will not be debated by members until July.

“The country should note that one of the major challenges that we have to deal with is the situation regarding adequate school spaces on the island of Providenciales,” Missick said during her House of Assembly address.

For years children of high school age have been packed into Clement Howell High School in Blue Hills leading to severe overcrowding.

According to Government figures there are currently more than 930 pupils being educated at the facility which was originally built for about 300 students.

The cramped conditions have created a plethora of problems including accelerated wear and tear of the buildings and furniture, lack of resources and teachers, huge class sizes and increased student disruption.

As a result early last year Missick announced plans to split the school in two and move half of the pupils into another facility.

Breaking Clement Howell High School up into a separate junior and senior school and employing more staff would help to even out the ratio of students to teacher, she explained.

A property was identified a few months later, but the split never went ahead – as the minister said resources should be concentrated on the creation of a new school.

Since the decision was made, Government officials from the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Government Support Services have assessed various plots of land for a build.

“The Long Bay Hills area which is not in my constituency was identified as a 13 acre spot of land which can allow us to phase through the development of a high school over three years,” Missick said.

“This will assist and make it easier for children who live in my constituency, Leeward, Long Bay,

Long Bay Hills proper, Juba Sound, the Bight, Richmond Hills, Venetian Road and Glass Shack areas but would also have to reduce the burden placed on Clement Howell High School.”

But due to a number of issues including a budget delay the school will not be ready by September as was in the original plans, Missick said.

“Nonetheless as an update to the members of the house and the country on a whole, we have finalised the phase concept designs.”

She added that officials are cognisant of the challenges they face with the budget and procurement regulations - “a process that entirely takes too long.”

“The teams are proposing to prepare the relevant tender documents so that as the budget is presented to the House of Assembly and, fingers crossed, passed we would be able to move to the next steps and keep the wheels in motion.”

A MATTER OF URGENCY Leader of the Opposition Sharlene Cartwright Robinson spoke to the Weekly News earlier this year about the crowded facility.

“Children go to school and stand up. There is not enough desks and chairs. They sit on cupboards, they sit along wherever they can – there’s not enough seating. That’s unacceptable.

“The root of the problem at Clement Howell High School is you’ve outgrown your space. Point blank. You’ve outgrown your space.”

She added that the way that additional buildings were added to accommodate the students makes it feel like a prison, “because it’s so enclosed”.

The student teacher ratio at the Government’s largest high school is far too high leading to a lack of attention for students, Cartwright Robinson said.

“When you have smaller classes and smaller schools you can impact lives even greater.

“The intimate relationship that a teacher would have with a child in a smaller school is lost when you have 1,000 children.

“So that level of caring can’t be exhibited as much as some teachers would like.”

The Opposition leader said that the only solution has to be a serious investment in breaking up the population.

“That school initially started as a junior high school. What needs to be done is to determine that’s where

Clement Howell High School is severely overcrowded

they need to return to.

“And there has to be sacrifices made in the budget. There is no need for no new tax. You have to do a cost

review.”

She said that there are buildings that are readily available and purpose designed for the transfer of students.

“I don’t understand why the Government does not understand the emergency, the urgency. I don’t get it.” (RB)

Media not banned from parliament - but no video recording allowed IN A move which has left many, both in the media and the Opposition, scratching their heads in puzzlement, the Speaker of the House banned the press from video recording in the House of Assembly.

He cited flimsy complaints that a lone camera man is distracting members, who themselves are constantly being scolded by him for their own disruptive and distracting behaviour when the assembly is in session.

His ban came just days before the controversial Payroll Tax Bill was up for debate, and which the mover of the bill, Finance Minister Washington Misick, left hanging in limbo as he unceremoniously exited the building after massive opposition.

Last Saturday (June 21), correspondence sent through the Government press office stated that video recordings of house sittings will not be allowed, but that requests for footage may be made via the technical officer, Kirkley Parker.

The release also stated that any

requests to shoot video footage of any sitting of the house should sent by email to the Speaker or the clerk.

When the Weekly News spoke with him on Friday (June 20), Hall singled out the 4NEWS camera man, Ralston Humble as the distraction in the chamber.

However, Humble refuted this, and stated that he is always in the section designated for the media when filming.

During Monday’s session, Hall again alluded to complaints of distractions from some members.

He also made it clear that the press is not being barred from attending sessions, just not to video record them.

He said: “All meetings of the legislature are important. Today’s meeting has added significance, in that it is the first time a bill proposing direct taxation is being introduced, apart from the value added tax (VAT), which this house has voted against.

“Let me make it clear that I

am full believer in the freedom of the press and as long as I am the Speaker, those principles would be adhered to.”

He said the media would not be hindered in carrying out its lawful responsibility.

“Perhaps what caused this commotion was that a suggestion was made that rather than two or three cameras in the back there - which could sometimes be distracting and members have spoken to me with regard to one the suggestion was that since the Government Information Service covers it, all of them could get live feed through that means,” Hall said.

He instructed that the feeds must not be interrupted.

“No one has the right to tell the radio station or TV what to broadcast or what not to broadcast emanating from this house and for sure as Speaker I don’t intervene in that regard… so whether it is something that perhaps for some is unpleasant, the public has the right to see and know,” Hall said. (DI)

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Premier attends ‘frank, honest and engaging’ talks in UK ENERGY and security were two hot topics of discussion during Premier Rufus Ewing’s recent visit to the United Kingdom.

TCI’s leader met with UK government ministers and fellow Caribbean premiers, chief ministers and foreign ministers at the bi-annual ‘UK-Caribbean Ministerial Forum’.

The forum was led by UK Foreign Secretary William Hague and Guyana’s Foreign Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett.

It provided an opportunity for government officials from the UK and Caribbean to discuss a number of challenges that impact the region.

Governor Peter Beckingham said: “I am delighted that Premier Ewing was able to attend this important dialogue with UK and Caribbean leaders and ministers.

“The forum covered a lot of ground that is of interest to Turks and Caicos, notably energy and security.”

During the event new terms of engagement between the UK and the region were suggested, particularly in relation to economic assistance, development, investment and immigration.

Ewing spoke about the high electricity costs in the Turks and Caicos Islands at a session on energy security, led by UK Minister for the Overseas Territories Mark Simmonds.

Attendees agreed that the Caribbean is in a unique position to better harness solar energy and other natural resources.

Other issues tabled at a separate session with Simmonds included the need to implement a broad based tax in the Turks and Caicos Islands, while providing fiscal relief and reducing the overall taxation burden.

Illegal immigration, education and healthcare were also discussed.

The Premier along with Head of Secretariat Ronlee James and UK based delegates Tracy Knight and Kimo Tynes also participated in a forum session on developing education and skills for economic development.

This focused on training and scholarship resources for students from the Caribbean.

Ewing committed to ensuring that Turks and Caicos Islands’ students who choose to study in

NEWS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Premier Rufus Ewing

the United Kingdom are aware of the full range of benefits and possibilities that this can offer them.

He then met with Hague, Simmonds and the All Party Parliamentary Group where the need for greater political and financial autonomy for the Turks and Caicos Islands was considered.

UK Minister for the Department International Development (DFID) Alan Duncan, joined the Premier in discussions on the financial outlook for the TCI. They spoke about the $260m UK loan guarantee, broadening the Turks and Caicos Islands tax base and financial policies that could be of mutual benefit to the Turks and Caicos Islands and UK. Ewing said: “My discussions with Minister Duncan were frank, honest and engaging.

“I outlined my Government’s position and we both agreed that we will continue to look at ways that we could come to an agreement to pay down our debt while lessening the burden that this places on the country.”

The visit to London concluded with the Premier attending the ‘UK-Caribbean Trade and Investment Forum’ and a session on tackling crime and improving security in the Caribbean.

The events took place at Lancaster House in London, England, from June 14 to 17 and the Premier returned to the TCI on June 18.

Governor Beckingham said that he looks forward to discussing next steps with the Premier and his team.

9

‘I was there’ – Washy refutes rumours of payroll tax walkout

ALTHOUGH not directly acknowledging defeat after the lack of required support for the Payroll Tax Bill, Minister of Finance, Washington Misick has stated that the Government is now considering its options.

When the Weekly News contacted the minister on Thursday (June 26), Misick gave assurances that he was right next to the Premier when an adjournment was called for, contrary to reports that he walked out and left the bill hanging.

On Monday after members made their contributions to the debate and some signalled, yet again, their intention not to support it, the minister did not wrap up the debate as was expected.

At the start of the session, the Premier asked for the Standing Orders to be put aside to allow the bill to go through all three readings.

This was granted, making way for a vote to be taken on the bill the same day.

But this did not happen.

After repeatedly asking if anyone else had any other contributions to make, Speaker Robert Hall asked the Premier, when he finally indicated that he was going to speak, if he was wrapping up the debate as the minister was not present at the time.

However, the Premier indicated that he was only making his contributions, following which he asked for an adjournment.

“I don’t run away from anything.

Minister of Finance, Washington Misick

I was right beside him, I had come back in the room by then and I was sitting right beside the Premier,” Misick told the Weekly News on Thursday.

Asked why he did not wrap up the debate, the Minister said the Government has some decisions to make.

“It didn’t happen because the Government decided that it wants to have another look at the options before it continues with the debate or whether it would make a decision to withdraw the bill. That is why the decision was made to discontinue the debate.”

He said the Government needs more time to reconsider the bill.

He however refused to concede that the bill was in effect defeated on Monday.

“You could infer that if you like, defeat happens when you go to a vote, and there has been no vote in the House,” he responded when pressed.

In spite of the minister’s refusal to accept that the bill faces certain death, ten members on Monday voiced their total lack of support for the tax and indicated that they were not going to vote in favour of it.

When the bill was tabled, Misick shot down other tax options, while explaining why the payroll tax is good for the TCI. The other taxes are value added tax (VAT), general services tax (GST) and property tax.

“This House joined together to reject VAT, the specific proposed model of which together we decided was not suited for this country,” he reminded members.

Pointing to property tax, which the Government first brought to the public’s attention the same time payroll tax was put forward, Misick said the tax would hurt Turks and Caicos Islanders more than it would hurt anyone else.

As such, the Government is not in favour of it.

“A levy on property, whether developed or not is paid by the owner of the property and is usually based on the appraised value of the property.

“Effective administration of a property tax requires the presence of a robust land registry to specifically identify land parcels, the lawful owners of the property must also be clearly stated, and aware of their responsibility.”

As for GST, the minister said they are not favour of this tax as it is regressive and unduly harms poor people.

GST is a tax applied to goods sold, which are not specifically exempted.

It takes two forms - VAT or retail sales tax. (DI)

Dolphin Cove development in TCI to begin next year CHAIRMAN of Dolphin Cove, Stafford Burrowes has stated that the million dollar developments in the Turks and Caicos Islands will commence in 2015.

According to reports in the Jamaica press, Burrowes said the three locations – Grand Turk, Providenciales and St Lucia – will cost between four and six million dollars in total to get off the ground.

The chairman made the statements following the annual general meeting held at the Courtleigh Hotel in Kingston on Monday (June 23).

“We don’t want to bite more than we can chew,” he reportedly said.

“It will be financed by a mix of debt and equity,” Burrowes told the Jamaica Observer.

“We already bought the land... all three totalled $1.5 million. We bought it at a good time so we got some good deals.”

The company formed Balmoral Dolphins in April 2012 and Cheshire Hall in June 2012 with the intention to develop attractions in TCI. The company also formed SB Holdings Limited in November 2013, with a wholly owned subsidiary Marine Adventure Park Limited for a park in St Lucia.

Burrowes expects to begin

development in 2015 for the projects, which are already delayed by nearly two years.

He again blamed the delays on red tape surrounding environmental and planning permission, reports said.

The company currently operates three locations - Montego Bay, Ocho Rios and Hanover.

The tourist attraction’s March 2014 quarterly net profit totalled $148 million or 26 per cent higher year over year.

Revenues increased by 11 per cent over the period to $436 million led by Ocho Rios, earning nearly three-quarters of that amount.

10

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

We welcome letters from all members of the public on a variety of topics Please note that all submissions are subject to editing in keeping with defamation laws and newspaper style. Letters should be accompanied by the author’s full name, location and phone number. Names will be withheld if requested.

Challenge of the taxes Dear Editor, As a last ditch effort to educate, inform and enlighten the residents of the Turks and Caicos Islands and the wider world and in spite of my promise of hiatus, I now go back on my word and with prejudice give this review on the Payroll Tax Bill 2014.

What is the real issue?

Review of the ‘A strategy for recovery’ document was presented by the Honourable Washington Missick, MP, Minister of Finance to the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands as a marketing tool to sell a payroll tax scheme only.

But from the inception the Progressive National Party (PNP)’s plan was a deceptive effort of lies, lies and lies, supported by unprepared half-truths and more lies.

The document throughout, though not supported, mentioned only payroll tax but in the end and when the resultant legislation was prepared for debate in parliament, it was titled Payroll Tax Bill 2014 (Bill) but within, references of remunerations and total compensation were cited.

Lies, lies, and more lies.

Who are the key players?

In parliament the PNP and the PDM have eight and seven members respectively and right now only the two Government appointed members consciences really matter.

What is really at stake with these members? One of the two must consider the ‘beholden’ image, the other, self-interest.

But in the end for the bill to be successful or die only one vote really counts and that vote is the vote of the beholden.

Too much personal gains to lose in this instance and thus the bill will surely pass, which it should but with due considerations for the below ‘what was left out’ listed concerns, coupled with options.

Then what are the motives?

In addition to the above omissions and/or lacks it is very clear and the evidence has supported this statement that it is the PNP’s intentions to gain sovereign rating, pay off the minimal required debit to have the guarantee

removed, and then be able to borrow on the open market - and borrow they will to the detriment and demise of this country.

And for those reasons, and those reasons alone, absent contra and best practices as listed above, the ill-conceived and incorrectly named Payroll Tax Bill is not safe for the people of the TCI. Win, lose or draw, the question or puzzle is now out there!

Would our elected representatives please step forward and establish an engaged and inclusive electorate for the betterment of the country?

Regards, Edward E Smith Long Bay, Providenciales

We welcome letters from all members of the public on a variety of topics Please note that all submissions are subject to editing in keeping with defamation laws and newspaper style. Letters should be accompanied by the author’s full name, location and phone number. Names will be withheld if requested.

Send letters to tcweeklynews@gmail.com

The Haitian revolution - Part 2 Dear Editor, So what are the lessons from that brief history lesson?

One, Haiti was systematically targeted to fail. They took over 100 plus years to pay off the debt.

Also, they had to be made to be seen as a failure so that other colonies did not try to rebel on mass.

This for the most part - largely worked owing to the fact that other colonial countries did not start seeking to gain their independence until over 150 years later.

I can’t think about a worse time for a country to go into independence with the conditions Haiti had to endure.

So a desire for independence in the TCI is more real and viable than many think.

We merely have to have that resolute determination and spirit to plan and fight for it. And the burning desire and belief that it will be ours.

At the very least any national conversation should start with us at a minimum striving to have the level of autonomy as Bermuda.

Remember the old adage ‘he who pays the piper calls the tunes’; let us imagine what Haiti could have been without being isolated and saddled with such a debt from the very outset.

The equivalent of $150 million gold francs in 1825 would be in the

neighborhood of several hundred billion dollars if not more today.

Imagine what the TCI will be once we remove this British loan guarantee and are able to chart our own economic course once more.

Also, we must be mindful that the Haitian Revolution was a 13-year struggle and not an overnight affair.

The moral to this story is that great feats can be accomplished by a people who have an unbreakable spirit.

With all that the people of Haiti have endured over two centuries, it is hard to find a prouder people in the Caribbean Diaspora, if not the world.

I’m sure Jamaicans may have something to say about this, but I digress.

The point is not to confuse lack of pride with doing whatever it takes to survive and make a way for you and your family.

This includes going to another ‘man’s’ country and doing jobs that he would not himself do.

None of this is to downplay the roles of bad Caribbean leaders over the years, but to say you may be a queen in your game of chess but just a pawn in someone else’s.

Stay blessed, Jamell Robinson Leeward Palms, Providenciales

COMMENTARY

Doomsday, politics and loyalty

WITH Royal American colonies on the verge of becoming democracy USA, patriot Benjamin Franklin said that democracy was flawed because as soon as the people discovered they could collectively vote themselves money, a financial doomsday would arrive.

Now financial doomsday looms in the TCI and it only took six years, August 2003 to August 2009.

Little TCI owes an accumulated one billion, $500,000 payback over the next 20 years!

Now Britain and USA

democracies owe trillions. They have prolonged doom because they have credit and print their own money.

This disguises the process of Government outspending their income. Now Speaker Robert Hall does his PNP thing and prevents the private media from recording the actions of the parliament as they pass the right to tax workers to death.

Three per cent today, 30 per cent tomorrow!

It is technology, industry and automation that has improved the standard of living for the citizens of the big democracies.

Now industry and technology shifts to Asia and the big democracies will

SPACE IS LIMITED!

have to reinvent themselves. It will be up to US and British politicians to try to get it done at home.

It is PNP politics which have destroyed little TCI. It was not the people that voted themselves money it was the politicians who absconded with it.

We need to ask ourselves who bought a mansion, owns the casino, who really owns Provo Stevedores and created the hospital deals?

Who takes numerous trips and vacations on the people’s money?

JAGS McCartney was a humble man who rode on a donkey. Our current leaders ride in fancy autos and live a life of luxury.

By David Tapfer

David is a retired mobile hydraulic engineer and business executive. He has been married to Middle Caicos native Yvette Robinson Tapfer for 25 years and has lived in Conch Bar, Middle Caicos, since 2002. David formerly served as branch chairman of the PDM from 2008 to 2011

Did the TCI people benefit from the PNP governments? Now we have to pay for our incompetent ministers acting like kings and queens while we go back to farming, fishing, cheap food and walking.

No jobs and little of those inflated dollars to spend is the people’s fate.

We can’t afford a donkey so we hike.

A government run on the principle of me first, not serve the people first is doomed. Mismanage, have fun and forcing the people to pay for it ends up in a broken society.

Schools are the future. How many schools have been built between 2003 to 2009 or 2012 to 2014? Are any in

the formal planning stage? Talk is cheap. Action requires work!

Loyalty is an important principle of politics and of all political parties.

If a former leader cannot accept the emergence of better informed younger generation of leaders and support and uplift them with his experience and wisdom then he needs to just stay quiet.

The Lord requires faithfulness, (loyalty), and you should not preach the lessons of our saviour and God without living your life conforming to his lessons.

Lessons of loyalty.

Please keep your letters to a maximum of 450 words or we may not be able publish it.

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Driver’s licences now processed in North Caicos ROAD users in North and Middle Caicos can now have their licences processed much more conveniently following the opening of new local facilities.

Since last Friday (June 20) driver’s licence applications and renewals are being handled the District Commissioner’s office located in Bottle Creek, North Caicos.

Previously residents were forced to travel to Providenciales or Grand Turk to remain compliant with road safety regulations.

Amanda Missick, Minister of Environment and Home Affairs, said: “I am happy that we were able to overcome the IT-related challenges that essentially delayed this move and that residents of North and Middle Caicos can finally renew and apply for driver’s licences conveniently, and within their own community.

“Accessibility to essential Government services such as this is critical to improving the lives of our people.

“We, the Government, will continue to re-establish essential services to the residents of our family islands as a part

of our national agenda for the advancement of our people and the sustainable re-development of a Turks and Caicos Islands that we all can be proud of.”

Driver’s licences are issued after successful completion of a written exam and road test.

Belongers must be at least 17-years-old and in possession of a valid passport or birth certificate.

Non-Belongers must provide copy of their passport or birth certificate, along with a copy of their work permit or contract.

Applicants under the age of 18 years must provide proof of endorsement on their parents’ or guardians’ work permit.

Licences are renewable every four years on the holder’s birthday - it is an offence to drive or operate a motor vehicle without a valid document.

The District Commissioner’s office is open between the hours of 8.30am and 3.30pm from Monday to Friday.

Donna Gardiner, District Commissioner for North and Middle Caicos, can be contacted on 247-8642 for more infromation.

Telecoms regulators advance competition among networks NEW rate regulations will promote competition among cell phone network carriers and keep call prices low.

That’s according to the chairman of the Turks and Caicos Telecommunications Commission, Heather Allen, who announced the changes last Friday (June 20).

The ‘Telecommunications Decision 2014’ establishes a new interconnection rate plan.

This regulates the wholesale rate that Lime, Digicel and Islandcom will be allowed to charge each other for terminating mobile and fixed telecoms services over the next three years.

The commission has recommended to Cabinet that regulations be amended to introduce the planned new rates which are expected to come into effect on July 1.

Allen said: “We are very pleased that the commission was able to continue with pricing reforms that will benefit all Turks and Caicos Islanders, and in these difficult economic times, provide some relief from price increases that are hitting so many essential services.”

The reduction in the interconnection rates aim to foster stronger competition among the carriers and lower prices for calls across local telecommunications networks.

“The commission will continue

to strive to motivate improvements in services from the telecom sector, and to press the operators to ensure that TCI leads in the region in terms of the availability of state-of-theart new digital communications services demanded by consumers and businesses as well as by global visitors and businesses seeking to invest in our country,” Allen said.

The Turks and Caicos Telecommunications Commission is responsible for regulating the telecommunications operators in the TCI as set out in the Telecommunications Ordinance 2004.

It aims to maintain effective and fair competition in the telecom sector that will benefit consumers and ensure that rates, conditions and quality of the services provided to consumers are reasonable, bearing in mind that the operators are private businesses with a right to a fair profit on their investments.

The commission is also responsible for managing the radio waves and the use of the radio spectrum by the cellular operators, radio and television stations, private radio systems used by businesses and industry, and making sure that the users do not interfere with the radio frequencies assigned to others.

Copies of the decision can be obtain from the commission’s office or can be downloaded from its website at www.telecommission.tc.

NEWS 11

Taxi driver dies after serious car crash FAMILY members and friends of taxi driver Nelson Musgrove are mourning after he tragically died following a car collision in Providenciales.

Senior firefighter for the Turks and Caicos Islands Fire Department, Aubrey Felix, told the Weekly News that on Friday (June 20) at about 5pm, he and his team responded to the incident which took place on South Dock Road.

Musgrove ran his SUV into a huge rock on the left side of the road heading toward South Dock, causing him to be trapped inside of the vehicle.

Felix said that doctors pronounced Musgrove dead at Cheshire Hall Medical Centre.

Police were unable to give any further concrete information on the situation, except that it was currently under investigation.

President of the Taxi Drivers Association, Toussaint Capron, said that Musgrove did not work directly with them, but instead was contracted by Parrot Cay Resort to drive their guests.

Parrot Cay representatives declined to comment on the incident.

Information on the autopsy results and a tribute from the family will be included in next week’s edition of the newspaper.

This is the second serious car crash to take place on the South Dock Road in the month of June so far.

The late Nelson Musgrove

The first incident took place on June 9 at about 12.45pm, where a car ran into a ditch sending the driver out of the vehicle.

He was alone and was found by

firefighter officials after a thorough search of the area.

The passenger suffered nonlife threatening injuries and is now in a stable condition. (DH)

Give blood to save mothers’ lives – Health Minister “LET us join together and do our part to save our mothers, families and friends by giving blood which is a gift of life.”

In recognition of World Blood Donor Day, which takes place every year on June 14, Minister of Health and Human Services Porsha Stubbs-Smith urged residents to donate blood to assist mothers in need.

World Blood Donor Day was instituted in 2005 on June 14 which is the birthday of Nobel Prize winner Karl Landsteiner, who discovered the ABO blood group system.

The event raises awareness of the need for safe blood and blood products and to thank voluntary unpaid blood donors for their lifesaving gifts of blood.

This year’s theme was ‘Give blood for those who give life: Safe blood for saving mothers’.

Every day, about 800 women die from pregnancy or childbirth-related complications - most of these deaths occur in developing countries.

More than half of them occur in sub-Saharan Africa and almost one third in south Asia. The risk of maternal mortality is highest for adolescent girls under 15 years of age.

Severe haemorrhage during delivery and after childbirth is a major cause of mortality, morbidity and long-term disability.

Blood transfusion has been identified as one of the eight key lifesaving interventions in health centres that offer emergency obstetric care during pregnancy, childbirth or the postpartum period.

“Transfusion of blood and blood products helps save millions of lives every year,” Stubbs-Smith explained in her speech.

“It can help patients suffering from life-threatening conditions live longer and with higher quality of life, and supports complex medical and surgical procedures.”

Blood transfusion also has an essential, life-saving role in maternal and perinatal care.

However, in many countries, there is not an adequate supply of safe blood, and blood services face the challenge of making sufficient blood available, while also ensuring its quality and safety.

An adequate supply can only be assured through regular donations by voluntary unpaid blood donors.

Residents can give blood at the blood bank located at Cheshire Hall Medical Centre in Providenciales.

Blood bank technician Latricia Ingham told the Weekly News on Wednesday (June 25) that the most sought after blood group is O positive.

Anyone between the ages of 18 and 65, weighing over 110lbs, and has not drunk excessive alcohol or taken aspirin in the prior 24 hours can give blood.

The facility is open from 9am until 4pm from Monday to Friday.

For more information donators can call the hospital on 941-2800 and ask for the blood bank or email tcibloodbank@gmail.com.

12 NEWS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Graduating class of 2014 which includes the fifth form students and A-level students of the British West Indies Collegiate (BWIC)

Director of Education, Edgar Howell presents valedictorian trophy to fifth form student Devonte Smith

Ryesha Higgs receives a trophy from Spanish teacher, Nelson Jimenez, for school’s top performer in Spanish

Students graduate from British West Indies Collegiate

BY DAISY HANDFIELD THIRTY-ONE students of the British West Indies Collegiate turned a chapter in their lives after graduating from the school last weekend.

The graduation ceremony took place in Brayton Hall, on the school grounds in Providenciales on Saturday (June 21) at 4pm.

More than 100 people attended the event including family members, teachers and supporters of the graduating class.

The 31 students that graduated consisted of 19 fifth form students and 12 advanced level (A-level) students.

Turks and Caicos Islander, Devonte Smith, was announced as valedictorian for the fifth form class and Tochukwu Otuonye for the A-level class.

When Smith took the podium, he had the crowd cheering and laughing with his colourful speech.

The young aspiring lawyer thanked his teachers, family and his principal, Sylvie Wigglesworth, who all have helped groom the entire graduating class into becoming the

young men and women that they are today.

“To my fellow graduates, yes it is time to wake up and pay attention, life is much like a book, every minute of every hour of every day we scribble a new paragraph onto a page.

“Although today may seem like the end of the best days of our lives, before you let your tears run away with your makeup my sisters I can assure you that high school is only the introduction of your novel - or more familiarly known as the part of the book that hardly anyone ever reads.”

He encouraged his peers to use this day as a day to reminisce on all the good times that they had together as a class.

Some of the fifth form students will return in September to further their education with the A-level programme while others will move on to do other things with their lives.

The collegiate exists to contribute to TCI’s economic and social development by providing students with a progressive academic education in a safe and stimulating environment.

Among attendees were parents, teachers, family members and proud supporters of the graduates

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

NEWS 13

Precious Treasures to become internationally accredited school

BY DAISY HANDFIELD PRECIOUS Treasures Preparatory School in Providenciales will see changes in the school’s curriculum and name, going forward into the 2014-2015 academic school year.

Co-owner of the school, Allen Eden-Hutchinson, told the Weekly News on Wednesday (June 25) that the school is embarking on a new strategic initiative to transform the institution into a world-class international school that prepares students for world citizenship and lifelong learning in the 21st century.

He said: “What we have realised is that given what has happened globally, we are not satisfied with where our school is and what we are giving the kids.

“We are not just looking at our kids being prepared for Turks and Caicos.

We have almost 28 nationalities in the school and as a result, a lot of those kids are transits.

“We want to make sure that even when they leave Precious Treasures, wherever they go, they must be able to be benchmarks with their peers.”

This international curriculum is said to be levelled to the highest international standard and used in more than 1,600 schools in 92 countries across the world.

Eden-Hutchinson said that this initiative will place a strong focus

on the integration of information and communication technologies into all aspects of teaching and learning.

As part of the change, there will be an implementation of an iPad programme that will require students and teachers to use iPads in school to enrich the learning environment.

The iPad system will be implemented for students as early prekindergarten up to the grade six level.

Key person responsible for helping with the changes, Courtney Brown, said that this curriculum will include more subjects such as international history, languages and different cultures among others.

“We expect our teachers to grow professionally and be able to teach more effectively.

“We expect the school to also contribute to the national development of the Turks and Caicos Islands in preparing young men and women to do well.”

Another major change that will compliment this initiative is the change of the school’s name from Precious Treasures Preparatory School to ‘Precious Treasures International School’.

Principal and co-owner of the school, Yvonne Hutchinson, said that she was very excited about the new initiative and believes that their objectives will be met and that they will see a brighter future for Precious

Co-owner of Precious Treasures International School, Allan Eden-Hutchinson, co-owner and principal of the school, Yvonne Hutchinson and new key team member, Courtney Brown

Treasures and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

“It is a positive step for the school and it is very timely, we think that the country needs this at this time, we believe that we are going to have another boom and that education will be better in the Turks and Caicos Islands in the near future.”

The teachers of the school will undergo one week of training as soon as the summer break kicks in and a second week during the first week of the new school year.

They will have the opportunity to revise the curriculum and the iPad system during the summer break.

The school has been in operation now for some 25 years, evolving from a day-care to a preschool and now a primary school.

Deadline extended for input on draft energy policy MEMBERS of the public have another month to submit their feedback on the TCI’s draft energy policy.

The deadline has been extended from June 13 to July 14, according to a press release from the Ministry of Government Support Services.

The draft policy establishes a roadmap and strategy for the creation of a more sustainable energy framework.

It focuses on energy efficiency and energy conservation improvements, the incorporation of renewable energy as well as alternative fuels.

The paper also looks at institutional strengthening, external collaboration, and other

measures that will reduce the TCI’s dependency on imported fossil fuels.

In a nutshell the overall objectives of the policy are to reduce electricity costs and prices, as the absolute priority, improve energy security, and increase local and global environmental sustainability.

Members of the public are urged to engage in the consultation process by making written representations addressed to the email tcienergypolicy@gov.tc.

The entire document can be downloaded from ‘What’s New” section of the Government website www.gov.tc/pressoffice.

Student takes part in National Trust internship programme A SIX form student from the British West Indies Collegiate (BWIC) concluded a one week internship at the TCI National Trust in Providenciales last week.

Through its Public Education and Outreach Unit, the trust gave Jatavia Howell an opportunity to learn about environmental education, and heritage sites management and administration.

One of the areas where Howell worked was at Cheshire Hall Plantation, a recognised place of historical interest in Providenciales.

Here, she participated in tours and made suggestions on how to improve the visitor experience at the site.

She said that visiting Cheshire Hall was a great experience for her.

“The property itself was clean and well kept. It was quite interesting to see how almost every tree had signs on them, providing visitors with its scientific names.

“The tour of the area was properly conducted making it very interesting and engaging.

“The only query I would have

Students attentively listen to Howell as she makes the presentation

Jatavia Howell makes a presentation at Shining Stars Preparatory School

with the area is that the main office needs a touch of culture and colour to make it more appealing.”

The intern also went to Bird Rock Point and Little Water Cay to get first-hand experience at habitat preservation and wildlife appreciation.

She made a presentation to the students of Shining Stars Preparatory School, interacted with the students and proposed environmental activities.

The internship programme ran from June 17 to the 20.

A spokesperson from the TCI

She described the experience as an adventure that allowed her to fully appreciate the value and beauty of the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Aside from site exposures, Howell also had the opportunity to be immersed within the educational aspect of the trust’s remit.

National Trust said that they were happy to partner with BWIC through the Sixth Form University Preparation Programme, thanks to Lettice Malcolm.

The Public Education and Outreach Unit of the National Trust manages the student internship programme which gives student trainees a unique experience and allows them to attain newfound competencies.

Interns are exposed to on-the-job challenges as they work on hands on tasks, undergo training for work assignments, and resolve real work issues.

The Turks and Caicos National Trust is a small organisation that has a big responsibility of safeguarding the historical, cultural and natural heritage of the country.

For those interested in taking part in the National Trust’s internship programme, applications and requests can be sent to tc.nattrust@ yahoo.com or the TCI National Trust office at Town Centre Mall, Downtown, Providenciales from 8.30am to 4.30pm.

14 NEWS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Beaches workers drop 48lbs for fitness competition THREE employees at Beaches Turks and Caicos were recognised by the company for a job well done during their participation in the fourth annual ‘Fit to Serve’ fitness competition.

A cocktail reception was held at the resort on Wednesday (June 25) to celebrate the weight loss of the staff members.

The resort once again joined forces with the Graceway Sports Centre to launch the bi-annual fitness challenge geared towards empowering, encouraging and inspiring employees to get fit and lead a healthy lifestyle.

This year’s competition saw three employees go head-to-head for the title.

Top prize went to the resort’s airport representative Waynette Hendfield who beat out two tough competitors by shedding an astonishing 22lbs during the competition.

Housekeeping room attendant Stacie Roxbourogh-Virgo was crowned first runner up for her

19lbs weight loss, while bartender Shandira Rigby took third prize.

Hendfield said earlier in the competition that the motivation behind joining this fitness challenge was to gain control of her weight.

“I have been trying to lose this weight for a long time. This competition has given me an extra dose of self-confidence and the extra push I needed to start the journey to creating a better me.”

The goal of the fitness challenge is to motivate employees to eat well and be more active while learning important healthy habits that can be applied to their everyday lives.

Adina Ciurar of Graceway Sports Centre who partnered with the resort in designing a workout programme and also worked closely with the competitors, said that consistency and discipline were the key to this fitness challenge.

“We offer our professional assistance by providing a fitness assessment for the individuals, as well as a personal trainer to help

monitor their eating and maintain a regular workout schedule.”

General manager of the resort, Don Dagenais, was delighted by the initiative the three team members had taken.

In response to the positive turnout for the challenge he said that the faculty was very proud of the success of the staff throughout the competition.

“Leading a healthy lifestyle is not only for the work environment, but it is a lifetime commitment, I applaud these ladies for taking the first step towards becoming better and healthier individuals.”

All three contestants have lost a combined weight of 48 lbs.

Runner-ups Roxbourogh-Virgo and Rigby were awarded gifts such as certificates, movie tickets and spa passes, while top prize winner Handfield took home lavish gifts including, $300 for a new wardrobe, a professional photo-shoot and photos courtesy of the Resort Snap Shop, a day at the RedLane Spa and a professional mountain bike.

Airport representative for Beaches, Waynette Hendfield lost 22 lbs

Wheeland basketball court sees renovations WHEELAND’S Member of Parliament (MP) Vaden Delroy Williams, together with residents of Wheeland embarked on the refurbishment of the local basketball court.

The renovation commenced on Saturday (June 21) where Williams and residents of all ages cleaned the immediate area and painted the surface of the court.

Williams said that this event brought residents together in true community spirit that still exists strongly in the area.

He said that it was only phase one of the project and that by Saturday (June 28) at 6am, they will complete the project by painting the other half of the court and erecting the rims.

“The vision is eventually to fence in the area, erect bleachers, and hold basketball tournaments and other community events there.

“I want to thank those who made donations. Our corporate sponsors are Gordon’s Supply, Conservative Architects and TCI Paint for the paint supply and the Amanyara Resort for the rims and the residents who donated their time and talents.

“I wish to also extend an invitation to others to come out on Saturday as we continue.”

Williams referred to the court as ‘their court’ and said that it belongs to the whole community.

He added that he wanted to ensure that children have a safe place to play especially during the long summer.

Williams received support from his parliamentary colleagues and took the time to shoot hoops in a short challenge between himself and his Blue Hills MP colleague, Goldray Ewing.

Williams remains excited, but tight lipped about his future plans.

Renovations continue to take place at the Wheeland basketball court

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

NEWS 15

Grand Turk Fishing Tournament raises $20,000 for high school LAST weekend’s Grand Turk Fishing Tournament raised $20,000 which will be used to purchase new computers for the HJ Robinson High school.

A large number of residents supported the tournament on Governor’s Beach between Friday, June 20, and Sunday, June 22.

One of the event organisers, Seamus Day, said that they all had a great time.

The weekend kicked off with fundraising activities at the Salt Raker Inn with host Ericka Faller.

Initiatives throughout the night included a raffle, silent auction and live auction for an array of excellent prizes donated by their generous sponsors.

The auction was topped off with the traditional boat bidding, where each captain spoke to the enthusiastic crowd to sell their boat and crew skills in an attempt to attract the highest bidders.

The following day Saturday, June 21, fishing started at 5am sharp, but competitors were met with squally weather and relatively high seas.

However despite the less than ideal conditions most of the 13 boat fleet hooked up and weighed in a mixed catch of wahoo, various tuna species and king fish.

Providenciales boat ‘Intu $ ition’ took the lead on day one with a nice 37.4 pounds yellow fin and a 27.4 pound wahoo and various smaller tunas.

Second on day one was local boat ‘Pappy’, with ‘Ma Berry’ close behind in third position with a nice wahoo and a good sized

kingfish.

Day two of the fishing tournament on Sunday, June 22, was a little calmer, but still unsettled with a south east wind gusting to 18 knots on occasion.

The Intu $ ition maintained their lead on day two and took the entire tournament, winning all categories, but giving several prizes back to further support the high school computer initiative.

On both days of the fishing tournament, a fish auction was held immediately after the fishes were weighed, which generated more funds for the cause.

Minister of Government Support Services, George Lightbourne, and former TCI Premier, Galmo Williams also came along to join in on the fun.

Governor Peter Beckingham and Everette Freites, who won the Calcutta auction by betting on the winning boat presented the prizes to the winning team.

Local food vendors, DJ music, dancing and a beach volleyball match all added to the festival atmosphere and rounded off a tremendously successful weekend, which the organising committee hope to repeat next year and support another local good cause.

Day said that none of this would have been possible without their generous sponsors, the number and diversity of which demonstrates the true commitment of the entire TCI community in supporting this fast growing event.

On Governor Peter Beckingham’s blog on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website,

Captain of Intu $ ition, Pierre Magnier, Governor Peter Beckingham, Dr Francois Bourne, Scott Hinson and Craig Haile

he reiterated that the event was a success, stating that they far outnumbered the visitors from the

cruise ships who regularly stroll on the beach.

“Like all successful events their

Summer activity camp for TCI students

STUDENTS who are looking for something to do during the summer break now have the opportunity to participate in a weeklong summer camp.

The 2014 Youth Leadership and Culture Camp is a collaboration between the Turks and Caicos National Trust and the Edward C Gartland Youth Centre.

This year through the collaborative efforts of these two dynamic organisations, a weeklong programme has been developed, consisting of environmental explorations, heritage and culture workshop, entrepreneurial smarts, basket weaving 101 and a field trip to

Little Water Cay. This event is scheduled to take place from July 7 to 11 at the Edward C Gartland Youth Centre in Providenciales between the hours of 2pm and 5pm.

Parents with youths ages 12 to 18 can register them at the youth centre in Downtown Providenciales.

Organisers say that the students will be given a sense of community leadership and more knowledge about the Turks and Caicos Islands culture.

For existing members the fee for the week is $10 and for nonexisting members there will be a charge of $25.

Jamie Holmes standing behind a huge hanging tuna

problem will be that everyone who took part will be anticipating an even bigger party next year!”

16 NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Resort staff help to clean up Grace Bay A TEAM of Seven Stars employees volunteered in a clean-up operation around Grace Bay beach last weekend.

The initiative included litter collection and the promotion of ocean preservation measures in an effort to maintain the beach’s image as one of the best and most beautiful in the world.

Managing director for Seven Stars Resort, Ken Patterson, said that his staff were keen to ensure that they did their part in helping to keep the beach clean.

“Our staff was eager to take time out of their day to give back, and I couldn’t be more proud of their contributions to help preserve our shorelines.

“We look forward to continuing with these monthly clean-up efforts in the future.”

With the support of Amy Avenant, environment outreach coordinator for the Department of Environment and Maritime Affairs (DEMA), and its ‘Beach Clean Up’ campaign, 12 members of staff from Seven Stars Resort were led by landscaping manager Kevin McKintosh, to assist in cleaning up part of the Providenciales coastline.

The team did their part by collecting litter all along the beach starting at the Regent Grand and working their way down to Seven Stars Resort.

Along the stretch of beach covered by the team, more

Seven Stars Resort staff collect rubbish on Grace Bay beach

than 20 bags were filled, and an assortment of broken and discarded beach chairs were collected.

McKintosh, said that as a proud resident of Providenciales, and as a staff member of Seven Stars Resort, he loves the beaches and was happy to join his colleagues in the clean-up effort.

“It is important for visitors to know and appreciate the pristine beauty of our beach, which is unlike any other in the world.”

In addition to the monthly beach clean-ups, Seven Stars

employee volunteers also lend their time and effort to protecting the Providenciales environment by regularly taking part in the resort’s ‘Keeping Provo beautiful’

initiative.

This includes trimming and maintaining vegetation and gathering rubbish on and along vacant lots neighbouring the resort along Grace Bay Road.

South Caicos student wins internship in law firm A MARJORIE Basden senior student is the winner of Griffiths and Partners’ first writing contest.

Ravyn Cooke will get the opportunity to work at the law firm for a week long paid internship where she will experience what it is like to be a lawyer.

This internship provides an excellent opportunity for Cooke to gain hands on experience in the legal field that she cannot get in a classroom.

The competition was launched at the Shore Club’s career fair on January 17.

High school students ranging in age from 15 to 18 were invited to submit their essays of no more than 500 words under the theme: ‘Why I want to be a lawyer.’

Eighteen-year-old Cooke was delighted to be chosen as the winner and cannot wait to begin working at the law firm this summer.

“I am excited to attend my first court hearing and employment tribunal and I am prepared to work long hours if need be.”

Cooke who hails from Grand Turk but lives in South Caicos where she attends Marjorie Basden Senior High School, is looking forward to gaining first-hand experience working in a law firm.

She said that she dreams of one day making a difference in the lives of many by helping those who cannot afford legal representation.

In her essay she said that she hopes to become a

Ravyn Cooke will get the opportunity to work at Griffiths and Partners for a week long paid internship

criminal defence lawyer to fight for justice and equality.

Cooke derives personal satisfaction from helping others.

She is active in her church and in her leisure time, she enjoys composing and playing music with her three younger sisters.

Representative of Griffiths and Partners’, BerthaLee Belle, said that the establishment was reaching out to the community and building a great relationship with schools by making internships more available to students.

Griffiths and Partners are attorneys based in the Turks and Caicos Islands

with internationally qualified lawyers.

The experienced legal professionals have experience in advising international clients and law firms in Turks and Caicos Islands law.

Their expertise includes: banking, finance and regulatory advice, corporate and commercial matters, real estate, litigation and contentious matters, and trust and private client services.

Griffiths and Partners are regularly involved in the most complex and high profile transactions, commercial matters and litigation in the Islands.

June 28 - July 4, 2014

NEWS 17

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Pageant showcases island culture STUDENTS of Charles Hubert James Primary School (CHJPS) in North Caicos took to the stage in a cultural extravaganza which saw the Horse stable Beach Complex full to capacity.

The event which commenced at 7pm on Saturday, June 13, was the ‘Little Miss Culturama’ pageant.

Five contestants, each representing individual islands showcased the TCI history, culture and heritage by competing in areas such as the depiction of an indigenous character synonymous with each represented island, talent presentations, appearances in their Sunday-best outfits, and also modelled their island costume.

Additionally, contestants were judged based on their responses to a question given in an on-stage interview as each paraded in their Sunday-best outfits.

Contestants vying for the crown had to demonstrate specific qualities and attributes.

Among these were intelligence, talent, cultural awareness, poise, stage presence, dynamism and creativity, and the ability to articulate themselves.

Emceeing the event was Marguerite Anderson, coordinator of the Raymond Gardiner High School’s Performing Arts Club.

The opening act was a dance by the five contestants and this set the stage for the evening’s festivities of cultural displays and talents.

Judging the contestants were Director of Culture, David Bowen, singer and song-writer, Lovey Forbes, and hairstylist and North Caicos resident, Patti DesLauriers.

The diversity of the cultural dress, costumes, talents, and overall displays served as an informative literature of the islands being represented.

Contestants appeared in characters such as the salt raker, the fisherwoman, the farmer’s wife, the

basket weaver and the sailor.

The contestants were Miss Grand Turk, Jakenia Louis, Miss South Caicos, Synthaia Saintil, Miss Middle Caicos, Xaria Johnson, Miss North Caicos, Alecia Edwards, and Miss Providenciales, Dasharia Gardiner.

There were a number of other items in the entertainment package.

These were a fashion show from grade six students of the Charles Hubert James Primary as they modelled summer wear clothing, instrumental renditions from saxophonists, McKeever Lewis of the Raymond Gardiner High School, cultural dance and song from other students of CHJPS. Additionally, the school’s principal Comoncieta CampbellMorley along with teachers added to the delight of the audience with a medley of folk songs.

Their item was complemented by the appearance of the riveting Corn Shuck Rushers who joined the

teachers on stage in the second half of their performance.

The judges had a tremendous task, given the impeccability of the performances from the contestants.

Nonetheless, the most outstanding contestant emerged in the person of Miss Middle Caicos, Xaria Johnson who won the crown of ‘Miss Culturama 2014’.

She was flanked by first runnerup Miss Grand Turk, Jakenia Louis, second runner-up Miss South Caicos, Synthaia Saintil and third runner-up Miss North Caicos, Alecia Edwards.

There were also sectional awards for Best Island Costume, Best Stage

Presence, Most Articulate, Best Talent, Best Indigenous Character and Most Photogenic.

Miss Middle Caicos’s Xaria Johnson claimed the prize in all the segments except for the latter.

The Most Photogenic award went to Miss Grand Turk, Jakenia Louis.

The satisfied audience belted out their applaud when the announcements were finally made.

The event proved to be a success and the principal extended appreciation to the staff who groomed and prepared the contestants and also to the sponsors who funded the prizes and awards or who assisted in many other areas.

The Towers of Babel “An ancient city in the land of Shinar in which the building of a tower intended to reach heaven was begun and the confusion of the language of the people took place.” Gen 11:4–9.

The Towers of Babel is a collective of voices consisting of various artists prepared to display their exceptional art forms and foster the inner artist in other individuals; providing a venue for the outpouring of their undeniably unique gifts.

This group brings to the stage and page productions rarely displayed on stages in the Turks and Caicos Islands melding with some of the most unique artists the country has to offer.

For more information email towersofbabel101@gmail.com or visit www.towersofbabel.weebly.com

I know why the caged bird must sing A tribute to Maya Angelou

By Before Sunrise I know why the caged bird must sing...

We must sing because we are lost in a time of loss.

We’ve lost the courage and strength to live a life of integrity and pride.

We need to sing because our voices are stifled by doubt and by hate, so much of it self-inflicted.

We need to sing because we are the legacy of great men and women who survived being sold but never sold their souls.

We need to sing on this long journey to brotherhood, to nationhood.

We need to sing because our silence is not loud enough.

We need to sing for our children to follow our deep, delicate and loving melodies down the road to self-confidence and self-love. Down that circular road that will surely lead us back to our brightest days.

I know why the caged bird must sing...

Today we must sing because after six years of being mute, Maya spoke...

Her voice was like a gentle breeze across the cheek of the world, reminding us of God’s goodness and love for us.

For God so loved this world that he has filled it with such great men and women who help us to see its beauty.

A great woman who used words as a healing ointment to heal our wounds rather than as a sword to cut us deeper.

A great woman of the world, the whole world, who beckoned us to rise...

A great woman whose life’s testimony was to show us that we are here not to just survive but to thrive.

A great woman who uncaged herself so that we could all soar.

Miss Middle Caicos Xaria Johnson is crowned Little Miss Culturama

Lifestyle...

18

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

GARDENING 

How does your garden grow

The brown recluse spider THE EXOTIC brown recluse spider is uncommon in the Islands.

However, some people have been bitten by one.

The physical reaction to a brown recluse spider bite depends on the amount of venom injected and an individual’s sensitivity to it.

Some people are unaffected by a bite, whereas others experience immediate or delayed effects as the venom kills the tissues (necrosis) at the site of the bite.

Many brown recluse bites cause just a little red mark that heals without event. The vast majority of brown recluse bites heal without severe scarring Initially, the bite may feel like a pinprick or go unnoticed. Some may not be aware of the bite for two to eight hours. Others feel a stinging sensation followed by intense pain.

The bite of the brown recluse spider can result in a painful, deep wound that takes a long time to heal.

Fatalities are extremely rare, but bites are most dangerous to young children, the elderly, and those in

poor physical condition.

When there is a severe reaction to the bite, the site can erupt into a ‘volcano lesion’ (a hole in the flesh due to damaged, gangrenous tissue).

It is difficult for a physician to accurately diagnose a brown recluse bite based simply on wound characteristics. It is absolutely necessary to have the spider for a positive identification.

Many people mistakenly suspect to have been bitten by the brown recluse. Media attention and public fear contribute to these misdiagnoses.

The brown recluse is not a huge spider, but it is big enough to startle most people.

Their body is only 3/8 of an inch long, but when you include their legs they can span up to 1 ½ inches.

As their name implies, they are brown in colour, and are characterised by a violin shape on their back.

Although the brown recluse is dangerous, it is not an overly aggressive spider, and will not hunt humans.

Most bites occur when the spider

Weekly Recipe

Jelly drops These biscuits are simple to make and perfect with a cup of tea after a tiring day with your toddler!

INGREDIENTS • 1/2 cup (1 stick) sweet butter • 2/3 cup sugar • 1 egg • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour • 1/2 tsp baking powder • 1/4 cup of any flavour jelly/jam that you like!

METHOD • Preheat oven to 350F. Line two baking trays with greaseproof paper.

• Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat well.

• Sift flour and baking powder and stir into mixture.

• Roll mixture into balls and place at least two inches apart on baking tray.

• Press a finger into each ball and fill the hole with a little jelly/jam. Bake ten minutes until golden.

• Add a little more jelly while the cookies are still warm! Cool in a rack.

• Can be stored for four to five days.

is disturbed and bites in self-defence If bitten, remain calm, and immediately seek medical attention (contact your physician, hospital and/or poison control centre).

Apply an ice pack directly to the bite area to relieve swelling and pain.

Collect the spider (even a mangled specimen has diagnostic value), if possible, for positive identification by a spider expert.

A plastic bag, small jar, or pill vial is useful and no preservative is

BY DENIS Belanger - NATURE SPLENDOR

Denis is a passionate landscape architect who enjoys the creative process and his clients’ joy when projects come to life. Contact Denis at Nature Splendor for your landscaping, installation or garden maintenance needs.

For more information call 332-3381 or email denis@naturesplendor.net.

necessary, but rubbing alcohol helps to preserve the spider.

An effective commercial antivenin is not available. The surgical removal of tissue was once standard procedure, but now this is thought to slow down wound healing.

Some physicians administer high doses of cortisone-type hormones to combat haemolysis and other systemic complications.

Treatment with oral dapsone (an antibiotic used mainly for leprosy) has been suggested to reduce the degree of tissue damage. However, an effective therapy has not yet been found in controlled studies.

There are several things that you can do to avoid brown recluse bites.

-Shake out clothing and shoes before getting dressed.

YOUR DIET  Tamika has a Master’s Degree in Dietetics and Nutrition from Florida International University and is a registered dietician with the American Dietetic Association (ADA). She is currently executive director of Nutrition in Demand, a non-profit aimed at increasing awareness to health and healthy eating. For more information email tamikahandfield@yahoo.com or visit www.nutritionindemand.com.

-Carefully check the outside of your home for possible entry points.

Pests like spiders commonly enter through rips in screens or openings around pipes or vents. Repairing or blocking these openings can greatly reduce the risk of pests entering your home.

-Inspect bedding and towels before use.

-Wear gloves when handling firewood, lumber, and rocks (be sure to inspect the gloves for spiders before putting them on).

-Remove bed skirts and storage boxes from underneath beds. Move the bed away from the wall.

-Exercise care when handling cardboard boxes (recluse spiders are often found in the space under folded cardboard flaps).

ASK TAMIKA

BY TAMIKA HANDFIELD

The heat is on!

NO, I am not talking about the Miami Heats but the temperature that has been climbing since midApril. It is evident that we are in for one extremely hot summer.

Every year we make certain preparations for summer: stock up on bug repellent, prepare to pay higher than usual water and power bills, get ready for hurricane season and the list goes on.

However, there is one everyday task that is extremely important during the summer - staying properly hydrated.

Drinking enough water and other fluids should always be a priority but especially so during the hotter months of the year because we can become dehydrated so much faster.

Water is an essential nutrient - yes, it is a nutrient. Water is a nutrient that the body needs more than any other nutrient.

As a matter of fact we can survive for weeks, months or even years with a deficiency in other nutrients but can only go a few days if we don’t get enough water. Therefore, it is important that we focus on drinking water.

A very common question is: “How much water should I drink?”

Well, when it comes to your water requirement, there is not a ‘one size

fits all’ formula.

The amount of water you need to function every day depends on your diet, activity level and pattern, gender, environmental temperature and humidity.

However, the common recommendation of eight cups of water per day does not hurt.

Even though I have been focusing on water alone, it is possible to stay hydrated by drinking other liquids such as milk, 100 per cent juices and teas.

Let me be quick to add though, these other liquids do not take the place of water and cannot fulfil the many roles water play in the body.

For example, water helps keep your muscles and skin tone, assists in weight loss, transports oxygen and nutrients to cells, eliminates toxins and wastes from the body, regulates body temperature and maintains blood volume which influences blood pressure.

Additionally, while other beverages, such as milk, may be a healthy choice, they all add extra

calories to our day - calories that many of us just can’t afford.

During the summer months, many persons’ beverages of choice are lemonade, iced tea and let’s not forget the beloved soda.

Maybe indulging in one of these drinks won’t be so bad but because it is so hot here, we need to constantly reach for a drink to cool off.

Here is the problem. A can of soda has anywhere from 140 to 220 calories and around 35 grams of sugar.

If you drink just three sodas during the day that can easily add up to 500 plus calories and over 100 grams of sugar!

Remember, we haven’t factored in the other drinks - this is just the sodas. Water on the other hand, is calorie free with no other additives.

Am I saying you are to never have another soft drink? Of course not!

However, you should choose your drinks wisely.

Always drink for your health today; you can drink for pleasure another day.

Nutrition in Demand. A non-profit organisation helping you to 'Eat healthy today...live longer, better tomorrow'. Call 242-3978 or 442-3978.

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Lifestyle...

FASHION AND BEAUTY 

19

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

By Easher Parker

Easher is a Turks and Caicos Islands native with a natural talent for writing and a love for all things beauty and style. If you have any questions or suggestions for a topic email easherparker@gmail.com. To find out more visit itseasher.com or follow twitter or Instagram @itseasher for fab instant updates.

Looking to venture from your lipstick norms?

THERE’S a saying that goes “the smallest details we make changes to can make a tremendous difference”.

That is actually something I continually chime to my gal pals when it comes to beauty.

In this case, we’re talking about lipstick. Plus, if you have been keeping up with me then you know that I am a real lip colour enthusiast.

At some point in time, we have all found ourselves in a lipstick rut. This is the ‘phase’ where we’d use just one or two particular colours for months on end.

Usually this tends to be a nude or neutral colour to stay on the safe side.

Then suddenly one day, we become inspired and want to venture out of our comfort zone.

Is this your story? I am here for you because I can relate. I went from nudes to wearing purple lipstick. Trust me, it is not as scary as it sounds.

What I love about lipstick is that it can really pull a look together and if you select the right shade, it can even be paired with little to no makeup.

This is great news for those who hardly wear any.

The million-dollar question now is: how do you figure out which shade is best for your complexion?

Thea Gangasingh, a local professional makeup artist, was elated to weigh in on this one.

She provided a great skin-tone guide to help steer you towards a colour that would instantly give that face a fresh look outside of the norm.

However before I wish you a happy hunt, I must update you on this season’s trending colours: orange and berry.

Gangasingh gives the thumbs up on these two spicy hues being worn either in the day time or evening.

Take a look at this simple system to give you a clear idea on choosing a fab new shade.

Fair - pale pinks, pale peach and bright reds.

Medium - pink, orange, peach, warm reds.

Olive - plums, dark browns, berry, deep reds, dark orange.

Dark - dark plums, deep reds, dark berry, dark raisin, chocolate.

Once you have narrowed down which shades compliment your skin tone, it’s time to go lipstick hunting.

Gangasingh also advises those with a very fair complexion, to stray away from very deep shades which can cause ageing.

If you are of dark complexion, choosing a pale lip colour can make your lips appear ashy. So ladies, tread cautiously!

With that said, happy hunting! Remember you can always share your looks with me via social media, all you have to do it tag @itseasher on which ever platform you love the most!

The Dentist and you  Mark Osmond BDS (Lond) LDS RCS (Eng). Mark Osmond Dental Clinic - (649) 432 3777, drmosmond@gmail.com or Find us on Facebook

By Dr Mark Osmond

No more fillings?

WITH the rising popularity of general cosmetic procedures for the entire body, there has also been an increase in cosmetic dental procedures and new technologies are in development to enhance this area.

There has recently been discussion in the UK press about a new technology in development which is hoping to replace traditional fillings and works by encouraging the teeth to repair themselves.

This idea is still in development (at least three years from launch) but it’s an interesting concept to consider and one that may benefit the health of the teeth as well as the aesthetic appearance.

The new treatment, called electrically accelerated and enhanced remineralisation (EAER), accelerates the natural movement of calcium and phosphate minerals into the damaged

tooth and is actually being developed at King’s College London, the university at which I studied.

At the moment, the current practice for treating tooth decay is to remove the decay by drilling, after which the cavity is filled with a material such as amalgam (metal) or composite (‘white’ tooth-coloured) resin.

Professor Nigel Pitts, from the London University’s Dental Institute, said: “The way we treat teeth today is not ideal.

“When we repair a tooth by putting in a filling, that tooth enters a cycle of drilling and re-filling as, ultimately, each repair fails.

“Not only is our device kinder to the patient and better for their teeth, but it’s expected to be at least as cost-effective as current dental treatments.”

A two-step process first prepares the damaged area of enamel, then uses a tiny electric current to push minerals into the site to be repaired.

If successful, this treatment would make the use of drilling as part of the filling process obsolete. (For many patients the whirring and grinding noise of the drill is enough to evoke fear and even enough prevent them from coming to the dentist in the first place.)

The hope is that the new technology would also require no anaesthetic, therefore eliminating another factor that some patients find scary - the injection.

The idea still has several years of development yet and then has to be made into a commercial format that dentists can use. However, we’ll wait with interest to see how this technology develops.

POLICE SAFETY TIPS

Four reasons why megapixels matter for surveillance cameras BLANKETING a property with lowresolution cameras in the hopes of catching suspicious activities in action constitutes the usual approach to video surveillance.

With today’s advances in technology, there has to be a better way, right?

After all, high-resolution pointand-shoot cameras deliver more megapixels than ever before to improve image quality.

In everyday applications, this means you can zoom in or enlarge a picture without distorting its appearance. Imagine the possibilities when this technology is applied to video surveillance!

If you’re tired of grainy images and unhelpful security system footage, take a look at these four benefits of higher megapixel surveillance cameras.

The first and most obvious reason megapixels matter is because more megapixels mean a better image quality.

Better quality means you need fewer cameras to cover the same amount of space, which simplifies your security efforts and saves you money.

No more pan, tilt and zoom: PTZ cameras have poor eyesight, so they must pan, tilt and zoom this way and that to get a decent look at the space

By Audley Astwood Audley is a former police detective and broadcaster. He is currently the public relations officer for the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force. and has dedicated his time at work and much of his free time focusing on crime prevention and community policing. For more information call 941-4448 or visit www.tcipolice.tc.

and people passing through it.

The problem is that while the PTZ is looking to the left, something important could be happening over on the right.

A high megapixel camera fitted with a wide angle lens catches it all without losing footage detail.

If a suspicious person entered your building two hours ago and merchandise was discovered missing shortly after, the only way to track down the perpetrator is to review security camera footage.

With a low-res camera, you may see the theft take place, but the blurred image doesn’t make identification easy.

On the other hand, you can zoom in with a high-res camera without distorting the image, potentially revealing a defining feature about the perpetrator that would have otherwise gone unseen.

Since high-resolution cameras capture and record it all, there’s no need for a human operator to watch surveillance monitors all night.

This saves you money by reducing the number of man hours you need to accomplish adequate security.

Still, you’re not left in the dark about your business’s current situation.

Motion sensors, glass-break alarms and other security measures can trigger a video recording to be sent directly to your mobile device, not to mention the monitoring centre, so you remain in the loop and police can act fast.

Lighting is always a factor for surveillance footage. You need ample light for video footage to be any good.

Therefore, you should couple your security camera with a motion light or buy an infrared camera to cover any poorly lit areas.

When it comes to identifying a perpetrator and making an arrest, a higher resolution is almost always more important.

For more crime prevention tips, visit us at www.tcipolice.tc

20

Regional News

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Lawyers say UN head served papers in suit by Haiti cholera victims LAWYERS for the Haitian plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the United Nations say Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has been served with papers ordering him to appear in court, but the UN is denying it.

The UN had been resisting lawsuits from Haiti cholera victims who claim that UN peacekeepers caused the 2010 epidemic that is still ravaging the French-speaking Caribbean country.

“This is a significant development in the fight to hold the United Nations responsible for the tragic events in Haiti,” said Stanley N. Alpert, one of the lawyers representing more than 1,500 Haitians who have filed a suit against Ban and the United Nations in Federal District Court in Brooklyn, New York.

The suit is seeking compensation, which could theoretically run into

UN officials are denying that their head Ban Ki-Moon saw the papers.

billions of dollars.

But Ban’s spokesman Farhan Haq denied that the secretary general saw

the papers which an unidentified person had tried to give him as he was walking towards the Asia Society on Manhattan’s East Side on Friday morning to deliver a speech.

Haq said one of Ban’s security aides intervened and declined to accept them.

Cholera has killed more than 8,300 Haitians since it first appeared in the country.

Forensic studies, including one ordered by the United Nations, have identified the cholera bacteria as an Asian strain carried by Nepalese members of a United Nations peacekeeping force there, the New York Times reported.

United Nations officials have described the epidemic as an enormous tragedy and have set up a fund to help but have said the organisation bears no legal responsibility for causing it. (CMC)

Key: Haitian descendants born in Bahamas should get citizenship PEOPLE born in the Bahamas of Haitian descent are Bahamians and should have citizenship, according to Central and South Abaco MP Edison Key. In an interview with The Tribune, Mr Key slammed successive governments for failing to address the long-standing immigration issue that has led to the marginalisation of a large group of people as “scapegoats of labour”.

He called on the government to move quickly and humanely to address the growing problem that he feels will soon become unmanageable.

Mr Key said: “These people, particularly the people that live in the Mud and Pigeon Peas, that’s my constituency. These are people that have children born there now who are doctors, lawyers, defense force officers, police, nurses.”

“They make a contribution and I blame all the governments for the situation they have to live in. They are human just like me and you and everybody else.

“There should be a more humane approach,” he said, “you’re born in a country, you don’t have no passport, and when you’re 18 you can only apply and they don’t have to give you any consideration for citizenship.

But yet you are Bahamian if you look at it by your birth certificate.”

Earlier this year, an official from the Haitian Embassy urged the government to address practices regarding the process of regularising persons of Haitian descent.

Wallenson Nobert, first secretary of Legal Affairs at the Haitian Embassy, said the “real problem”

Central and South Abaco MP Edison Key says the failing to address the long-standing immigration issue that has led to the marginalisation of a large group of people as “scapegoats of labour”.

faced by the Haitian-Bahamian community in the Bahamas stems from the absence of a clear legal framework to process migrants.

In response to a panel discussion hosted by the College of the Bahamas on the complex issue of statelessness within the Bahamian context, Mr Nobert said the use of the term “stateless” to describe unregularised persons of Haitian descent was “inappropriate” given Haiti’s citizenship laws.

Instead, he said, there was an inherent “hypocrisy” in the Bahamas’ handling of citizenship that allowed for a peculiar stratification of rights, adding “either you’re a part of a country, or you’re not”.

Outside the House of Assembly on Wednesday, Mr Key said: “I think the government should look at these

people and sort this situation out.

Let’s say it’s 60,000 foreign women in this country in this same situation and they each have five children – that’s 300,000 people. One day, it’s going to catch up with us. We need to deal with this situation now and don’t let it get any further.”

Mr Key referred to the recent spate of fires that have negatively affected shanty town populations in Abaco.

Last year, a mother and her yearold son were killed in a fire in the Pigeon Pea area in Marsh Harbour.

More than 80 homes were burned to the ground on that occasion, leaving more than 500 people homeless.

Following the December 31 fire, Deputy Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis told Abaco residents the government would do all that it could to ensure a situation like that did not happen again, adding that members of such communities must make certain their homes are up to standard.

Last month in another shanty town on the island, more than 70 homes were wiped out in a blaze that consumed the Sand Banks area, and which police believe was arson.

Mr Key said consideration should also be given to regularise the parents of Bahamas-born children, who have worked in the country for more than 40 years.

When asked whether or not he had a solution to the issue, Mr Key said: “I don’t really know, but I know if I was in charge of the country or Immigration I would sort this out, especially with the children, but not only that, the parents. Some of them have been here 40, 50 years.

Alexander Clack goes to court. Insert his wife, Nexann Downes-Clack and the grave where her body was found.

British national accused of murdering his wife to undergo medical examination A 32-YEAR-OLD British national charged with murdering his 27-yearold wife, whose body was found in a shallow grave last weekend, is to undergo a medical examination on Tuesday after his attorney told the court that he had been beaten while in police custody.

“He is injured and he alleges that his injuries were sustained while in police custody and just about the time when a statement was forced out of him so we need to see the results of that assessment,” attorney Anslem Clouden told reporters after his client, Alexander Clack made his first appearance in court on Monday.

A large crowd gathered outside the St. George’s Magistrate Court when Clack, a businessman, made his appearance charged with murdering his wife, Nexann Downes-Clarke, whose decomposing body was recovered in a suitcase from a shallow grave in Mt. Moritz, St.

George, west of here, on Friday.

An autopsy revealed that she died as a result of blunt force trauma to the head and asphyxiation by strangulation.

Some members of the crowd hurled abusive remarks at Clack, who has been charged with non-capital murder.

Legal observers say the charge means that he cannot be given the death sentence if found guilty. They also objected to the court allowing him to be medically examined.

But Clouden told reporters “that’s what the law is and as I stand before you now, that presumption operates in his favour.”

Last week, the police said they had also detained “a teenaged female” in connection with the disappearance of the woman, raising speculation about a love triangle gone sour.

Clack has been remanded to the Richmond Prison and will return to court on July 10. (CMC)

DR: UN urges restoration of citizenship for unregistered A GROUP of United Nations human rights experts is urging the Dominican Republic to “adopt the necessary legal measures to restore Dominican citizenship for all those born in the country but not registered at birth.”

The call by the UN’s Working Group of Experts of People of African Descent came after the Dominican Republic recently enacted a law to provide for a path to citizenship for those born to migrants in the country.

The law came after a controversial constitutional court ruling last year that effectively stripped as many as several hundred thousand Dominicans of Haitian descent of their citizenship, on the grounds that they had been born to non-resident migrants in the

country and were thus not citizens.

In a statement, the group said the Dominican Republic’s recent law was an “important step towards rectifying the situation by which tens of thousands of persons of Haitian descent born in the Dominican Republic were rendered stateless by a ruling of the Constitutional Court on 23 September 2013.”

“However, it is crucial to restore citizenship of those born in the Dominican Republic who were not registered at birth, and who represent a large majority,” said Mireille Fanon Mendes-France, who leads the working group. “It is essential to have an effective and transparent process to ensure that the citizenship of these people is restored at the earliest.”

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Regional News

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Jamaica court sets date for five men charged with beheading mother and daughter FIVE men charged with beheading a woman and her daughter in July 2011, will go on trial November 17.

The men, Adrian Campbell, Fabian Smith, Kemar Riley, Rushane Goldson and Sanjay Ducally, are accused of entering the home of Charmaine CoverRattray, 49 and her 19-year-old

daughter, Joeith Lynch on July 20, 2011 and committing the act.

Their bodies were later found some distance away from the murder scene.

The Home Circuit Court set the new date after the men were originally scheduled to have gone on trial Monday. (CMC)

Small earthquake shakes Cayman Islands A RARE earthquake caused light shaking in the Cayman Islands on Saturday morning, according to the United States Geological Survey.

The 4.3-magnitude quake, which struck at around 7:53 AM local time, occurred at a depth of 10 kilometres.

Its epicentre was about 51 kilometres south-southwest of George Town and about 58

kilometres south-southwest of West Bay. It was about 364 kilometres southsouthwest of Trinidad, Cuba.

The quake was felt across the islands chain, with reports of lightto-moderate shaking in George Town and weaker shaking elsewhere.

There were no reports of damage or injuries. (Caribjournal)

The mosquito borne disease was first detected in the Caribbean in December of last year.

Haiti records nearly 40,000 chikungunya cases HAITI has recorded nearly 40,000 cases of chikungunya, according to figures released on Friday last by the Ministry of Public Health and Population (MSPP).

It said that as a result of the 39,343 cases of the mosquito borne disease, MSPP officials met with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO-WHO), UNICEF, the Embassy of Taiwan and other organisations to determine what assistance could be given to the French-speaking Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.

PAHO-WHO, through its representative, Dr. Jean Luc Poncelet, has donated three million doses of paracetamol for the management of patients with the Chikungunya epidemic, while Taiwan said it would provide US$100,000 to support the fight against the virus.

On June 13, PAHO reported that

there were 12,000 chikungunya cases in Haiti.

The mosquito-borne illness was first detected in the Caribbean in December 2013, in St Martin, and to date the virus has been confirmed in Anguilla, Aruba, Virgin Islands, Dominica, Dominican Republic, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, St Barthelemy, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Maarten (Dutch) and St Martin (French) among several other countries.

The Trinidad-based has said the chikunguyna virus has reached epidemic proportions in the Caribbean. Symptoms include a sudden high fever, severe pain in the wrists, ankles or knuckles, muscle pain, headache, nausea, and rash.

Joint pain and stiffness are more common with chikungunya than with dengue.

21

Lady Pindling’s tax bill paid in full THE Ministry of Finance has received full payment for the more than $300,000 real property tax bill on the home of Dame Marguerite Pindling after it was revealed that she had not paid taxes on the home for 14 years, The Tribune understands.

According to a well-placed source, the Ministry of Finance received a cheque for the bill between Thursday and Friday.

Last Thursday, The Tribune revealed that Dame Marguerite had outstanding real property taxes amounting to $306,831.73 on her home in western New Providence.

Dame Marguerite is the widow of the first Bahamian Prime Minister, Sir Lynden Pindling who died on August 26, 2000, of prostate cancer.

The documents show that the arrears began in 2000.

Revelations over her outstanding tax debt drew scathing criticisms of the media from PLP politicians, who defended Dame Marguerite as the retired wife of the first prime minister of the Bahamas.

However, earlier this week former PLP Cabinet minister George Smith told The Tribune he saw nothing wrong with the media’s reporting of Dame Marguerite’s tax debt.

“I don’t think anybody in the Bahamas is above criticism,” Mr Smith said. “I don’t think the Queen is above criticism, I don’t think the pope is above criticism. People have a right, within the realm of good taste, to express their views. The press has got to exercise judgment about whether the way it is done is distasteful (but) it’s a democracy.

“You cannot deny people the right

Dame Marguerite Pindling might be in line to become Governor General once Sir Arthur Foulkes demits office.

to express their view because you might not like it. The prime minister is the victim of a lot of criticism, some people think it’s fair, I think it’s unfair many times. But that comes with the territory that comes with the office. If you want to be in public life and public office and you can’t stand the heat get out of the kitchen.”

GOVERNOR GENERAL? However, Mr Smith expressed fondness for Dame Marguerite adding that once the matter is resolved it should not impact the prime minister’s consideration to appoint her as successor to Governor General Sir Arthur Foulkes. Sir Arthur will demit office next month. Dame Marguerite is deputy governor general and is rumoured to the be front-runner to replace Sir Arthur.

“I would only wish to say that Sir Lynden is my leader and I think he has made great contributions to this nation as the father of the nation and I have tremendous personal fondness of his widow and his family,” Mr Smith said. “It saddens me that any matter would come forward that would cause her anxiety. I hope the matter would be cleared up and if it is the prime minister’s desire to recommend her to Her Majesty I would wish her well. She is an outstanding Bahamian woman.”

Mr Smith said he hoped the controversy surrounding Dame Marguerite would die down quickly so the nation could focus on more pressing issues like poverty and economic recovery.

In an interview with The Tribune on Thursday, Prime Minister Perry Christie said he was unaware of the outstanding debt, adding that what he saw as a politically-motivated leak of her tax information was “impeccably” timed.

Mr Christie said he would first have to review the matter before it could be determined whether the revelation will affect his consideration of her possible appointment to the post of governor general.

He confirmed that there was “no question” that Sir Lynden’s widow would be up for consideration.

Documents obtained by The Tribune show that in the absence of payments over the past 14 years, interest charges on Dame Marguerite’s outstanding taxes swelled annually from $431.70 after the first year of non-payment to $16,259.25 as of June 18.

Texaco planning to add solar panels to gas stations in Jamaica Texaco is planning to retrofit all of its service stations in Jamaica with solar energy.

The company has already invested about $45,000 adding solar panels to its Molynes Road operation in Kingston, something which has cut the company’s energy bill by about half.

The plan is to expand the programme to all 67 of Texaco’s service stations in Jamaica.

“We are pleased that Texaco has invested in renewable energy,” said Julian Robinson, State Minister in Jamaica’s Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining.

“They have indicated that it has had a very direct impact on their electricity consumption, and the bills.”

Robinson said “the less you can spend on electricity, the more you can spend on improving your competitiveness.”

“With their partners, we will see more service stations and more importantly other businesses and

State Minister in Jamaica’s Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining Julian Robinson at a Texaco station (JIS Photo).

consumers doing similar projects,” he said.

Jamaica’s government has been on a stated push to develop the green fuels sector on the island, with the Development Bank of Jamaica offering energy loans to purchase

green systems like solar panels and wind turbines, among others.

“All these have been put in place to facilitate easier uptake of energy loans,” said Ernesto Wignall, account executive for loan origination at the DBJ. (CJ)

22

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

23

24 NEWS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

The Band Boyz celebrates winning the grand prize and the People’s Choice Award

Islandcom hosts another successful battle of the bands

AN ECLECTIC selection of music from some of the islands’ most popular bands and performers entertained the massive crowd that attended Islandcom’s fourth Battle of the Bands competition on Saturday, June 21, at the Turtle Cove Marina.

The free event, which marks the company’s fifth anniversary celebration, saw an overflow of residents as well as tourists as six bands competed for cash prizes, Samsung phones and gift certificates.

Lined up for performing that night were the Grand Land Band, Harbour

Catch, Obstak, Island Boys, Karib Band and Band Boyz.

After some intense performances, the Band Boyz walked away the big winners, taking the grand prize of $5,000, a year of service from Islandcom, the People’s Choice Award for $1,000 and the chance to record a song with producers Keno and Kazz.

In second place, winning $2,500 and six months of Islandcom service was Island Boys while the Grand Land Band came third place and won $1,000.

Other special awards won

Islandcom’s anniversary celebration attracts one of the largest gatherings on island

Whitfield Robinson from Island Boys wins Best Showmanship

Vivacious performers keep the crowd hype and entertained

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

A massive crowd indulges in the evening’s eclectic mix of music

by individuals included Best Showmanship, won by Whitfield Robinson from Island Boys, Best Vocalist snagged by Kacey Lewis of Band Boyz, and Breakout Musician Sherlock Joseph of Band Boyz.

The winners of the night were determined by the judge’s decision while the People’s Choice Award was chosen through text message votes from the audience.

Judges, which all possess some musical background and talent, were Noel Brown, Robin Hinds, Urmas Karner, Marguerite Anderson and Benjamin Lewis.

Each band performed their best, entertaining the crowd and judges for 30 minutes each with their own style of music, mixing it up with popular existing and original songs.

The show opened with 2013 Battle of the Bands Winner, Q-Band Links, who warmed up the audience for with a medley of pop, reggae and soca favourites.

Following Q Band Links’ performance was the first competing band, Grand Land Band. They got the crowd going with popular pop, Spanish and Creole songs, as well as a selection of original songs such as Bambarra Rum. Harbour Catch was up next, then the Kompa Band Obstak.

The fourth group, Island Boys, entertained the crowd with a completely different sound from the other bands of the night with their use of bongos and ripsaw.

Karib Band performed a diverse selection of songs as well that included soca, pop songs, as well as

a few Spanish selections.

The final band to perform, and big winners of the night, Band Boyz took the stage to cheers and applause from the crowd. They wowed with a medley of musical selections including slow R&B, old school, rake and scrape, and their own rendition of Happy by Pharrell.

During the event the crowd was then treated to performances from two local divas, Crystal Charles and Tiffany Thomas.

They kept the crowd hyped up with their vocal skills, choreography and stage performance.

The event, which has become one of the largest in Providenciales, is growing annually and has surpassed the expectations of the Islandcom team.

The idea of the celebration, said Islandcom’s Lee Ingham, was that they wanted to do something different, “not just to celebrate and promote ourselves but the country and culture as well”.

Chandra Craigg, of Islandcom’s marketing team said that they were very happy with the way everything turned out.

They, along with The Wine Cellar, Got You Covered and a number of other entities put a lot into the event.

She said a special thank you to Turtle Cove Marina, TCI Waste, Blue Loos, CSS Security, Leyshan Sounds, Life Productions, Trail Enterprise, Coral Gardens Hotel, Fresh Catch Restaurant, Smart Choice, Graceway Sports Centre, photographer Li Welch, PABA Association and the bands. (KH)

There was something special for music lovers of all ages

Attendees indulge in an evening of music, food, fun and culture

Crystal Charles and her dancers’ high energy performance excites the crowd

Concertgoers delight in the rhythms of their favourite band

Band Boyz wows the audience with a medley of musical selections

NEWS 25

26

Entertainment

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Brown rejects no-jail plea deal in D.C. assault case, will go to trial in September CHRIS Brown got a September trial date Wednesday after rejecting a no-jail plea deal in his Washington assault case.

The Grammy winner was close to striking a pact with prosecutors Tuesday, but talks broke down over what he would acknowledge happened during the alleged sidewalk scuffle outside the W Hotel last October.

His camp was pushing for an Alford plea that would have allowed him to maintain his innocence while agreeing prosecutors had sufficient evidence to convict, a source told the Daily News.

Prosecutors want Brown to “accept responsibility,” a source inside the courtroom Wednesday told The News.

“They wanted him to read from a script that wasn’t true,” Brown’s prominent criminal lawyer Mark Geragos told the Daily News after the hearing.

The “Run It” singer, 25,

The Grammy winner Chris Brown was close to striking a pact with prosecutors Tuesday, but talks broke down over what he would acknowledge happened during the alleged sidewalk scuffle outside the W Hotel last October.

was in court in the nation’s capital wearing white jeans, a black leather jacket and a black tie.

His trial on one count of simple assault was set for Sept. 8.

Sources said the plea

deal that expired at noon Wednesday included agreements that he receive no jail beyond time already served and that he be spared any type of supervised release.

One source said prosecutors were willing to waive extra

jail because Brown recently spent almost 12 weeks in jail for a probation violated related to the alleged incident in Washington.

Brown is on felony probation for his 2009 beating of Rihanna and was arrested and hauled to the pokey March 14 after he was kicked out of the anger-management rehab program that his Rihanna judge ordered pending resolution of the Washington case.

Washington prosecutors charged Brown with misdemeanor assault after a 20-year-old man claimed the pop star and his bodyguard Christopher Hollosy punched him in the face when he tried to crash a fan photo just blocks from the White House.

The alleged victim, Parker Adams, said the melee landed him in the hospital with a fractured nasal bone.

A photo of his alleged injuries used at Hollosy’s trial showed blood trickling out of his nostril and on his chin.

Brown pleaded not guilty and insists he never touched Adams.

Kim Jong-un took power after his father Kim Jong-il died in 2011, which prompted a change in the film’s script.

North Korea threatens war on US over Kim Jong-un movie North Korea has promised “merciless” retaliation if a forthcoming Hollywood movie about killing Kim Jong-un is released, say agencies.

A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman said in state media that the movie’s release would be an “act of war”.

He did not mention the title, but a Hollywood movie called The Interview with a similar plot is due in October.

Hollywood actors James Franco and Seth Rogen star in the action-comedy film.

Rogen, who is also one of the directors of The Interview, has since

responded on Twitter saying: “People don’t usually wanna kill me for one of my movies until after they’ve paid 12 bucks for it.”

Franco and Rogen play a talkshow host and his producer who are invited to interview Kim Jongun, and are subsequently recruited by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to assassinate the leader.

The film’s teaser trailer, posted on Youtube, shows a lookalike actor playing Kim Jong-un, as well as fight scenes involving what appear to be North Korean tanks and helicopters, and a nuclear missile launch.

R. Kelly speaks for first time about his daughter coming out as transgender

Only

$35 Call 941-3020 or stop by our Grace Bay store tomorrow to get yours.

R. KELLY rarely holds his tongue, but there’s one thing he won’t say and doesn’t want anyone else to utter either.

“You don’t really wanna open it up by saying my daughter is becoming my son,” he said during a WCGI radio interview Monday.

The R&B singer’s youngest child came out as transgender on Thursday via the social media site Ask.fm. Jay, 13, who was born Jaya, said that he has identified as a boy since the age of “6 or 7.”

“I came out through a text to my mum and then I told her when I got more comfortable,” the teen wrote, sharing his experiences with other users.

Although he felt comfortable opening up to his mother, Andrea Kelly, who has reportedly known about his sexuality for a year, Jay did not directly share the news with his father.

“I told her because I knew she would love me no matter what, she has not once judged me in life,” he wrote. “She always told me that she loved me and to be who I truly am.”

Born biologically female, R. Kelly’s daughter Jaya now identifies as Jay, a transgender male.

The 47-year-old singer, who divorced Andrea in 2009 after nearly 13 years of marriage and three children, including eldest son Robert Jr. and daughter Joann, didn’t seem to believe the reports to be true, despite the fact that his

child confessed online.

“Don’t even give the blogs that kind of credit,” he said in the first discussion he’s had about Jay when the interviewer informed him that she was quoting the reports currently circulating online.

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Entertainment

27

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Brazil mocks Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger for World Cup picks

Sam Smith debut record In the Lonely Hour, has sold 166,000 copies in its first week of release in the US and more than one million copies worldwide.

Smith enjoys US chart success with debut album BRITISH singer Sam Smith has mirrored his UK chart success on the other side of the Atlantic by entering Billboard’s Top 200 at number two.

The 22-year-old’s debut record, In the Lonely Hour, has sold 166,000 copies in its first week of release in the US and more than one million copies worldwide.

Smith was only held off the top spot by the latest release from Lana Del Rey. Ultraviolence, the US singer’s third studio album, sold 182,000

copies to claim pole position in the chart.

Smith’s record, which topped the UK album chart earlier this month, sold more copies in its first week on US release than any other debut album by a UK male artist.

According to Billboard, In the Lonely Hour also scored the largest US debut for a solo artist’s first album since November 2012.

Smith was named the winner of the BBC’s Sound of 2014 in January and collected the Critics’ Choice award at the Brits the following month.

THE Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger can’t get no football satisfaction.

In what’s becoming something of a modern World Cup tradition, Brazilians are closely following every team the 70-year-old rock star supports with an eye at mocking him for apparently casting bad spells on his picks.

Italy was the latest victim of what local media have taken to calling Jagger’s “pe frio” - a term describing the bad luck that he brings teams that translates literally as “cold foot.”

At a concert in Rome on Saturday night, Jagger predicted to 70,000 fans that four-time World Cup champion Italy would pull off a clutch victory over Uruguay to advance to the knockout phase. The Italians lost 1-0 Tuesday and were headed home after the tournament’s first round.

At a show in Lisbon in May, the singer predicted that Portugal, led by Cristiano Ronaldo, the game’s top player heading into the World Cup, would win it all at the monthlong tournament in Brazil. Portugal was (up to press time) on the brink of elimination after failing to win in its first two group matches.

Earlier in the World Cup, Jagger suffered some good-hearted ridicule after taking to Twitter on June 19 to urge on his native England in a game, also with Uruguay. “Let’s go England! This is the one to win!!,” he wrote. England lost.

While Brazilians may laugh at Jagger, they love his music. The Stones’ 2006 concert on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro drew an

Brazilians are closely following every team the 70-year-old rock star Mick Jagger supports with an eye for mocking the alleged spell he casts on every team he picks.

estimated 1 million people, a lot more than the 20,000 or so that pack the beach now to watch World Cup games on a giant screen.

Jagger also loves Brazilians, having fathered one 15 years ago with former Brazilian model Luciana Gimenez.

Brazilians’ obsession with Jagger’s soccer insights, or lack thereof, began four years ago at the World Cup in South Africa.

Searching for an explanation for their country’s stunning quarterfinal loss to the Netherlands, Brazil’s fans settled on Jagger, who showed up at the stadium accompanying his son dressed in a Brazilian jersey.

Bob Dylan wrote the song in 1965 at age 24.

Dylan’s Like a Rolling Stone lyrics fetch $2m record

The Queen was presented with a miniature version of the Iron Throne, which features in Game of Thrones.

Queen and Prince Philip visit Game of Thrones film set THE Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh have met cast and production members from Game of Thrones during a tour of the Paint Hall Studios in Belfast.

The US television series is partly filmed in the city’s Titanic Quarter, and is a focal point for Northern Ireland’s burgeoning film industry.

The Royal couple began their second day of engagements at Crumlin Road Gaol in north Belfast.

They are on a three-day visit to Northern Ireland.

As well as meeting cast and production staff, the Royal couple were also given a short overview of the series and the impact it has had on Northern Ireland, not only in terms of employment, but also in the creative arts field.

The Queen and Prince Philip also viewed some of the props that have featured in the hit fantasy show.

Before leaving, they were presented with a miniature version of the infamous Iron Throne, which appears in the series. (BBC)

The late Steve Irwin’s teen daughter, Bindi, is growing up to be quite the conservationist. She’s also advising girls her age to dress more conservatively.

Bindi Irwin wants young girls to dress their age BINDI Irwin has a message for girls her age: Cover it up.

The teen daughter of the late “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin said in a recent interview with News Corp Australia that she is “a big advocate for young girls dressing their age.”

“I mean, for me, I look around at a lot of young girls that are my age and they’re always trying to dress older,”

said Irwin, who turns 16 on July 24. “Whether it’s wearing revealing clothes or hardly wearing any clothes at all, I feel really bad for them.”

Irwin, who has picked up the wildlife conservation advocacy legacy of her father and grew up at the Australia Zoo, said she considers herself to be an old soul who “loves a cup of tea and a good book.”

A WORKING draft of one of Bob Dylan’s most popular songs, Like a Rolling Stone, has set a record at auction for a popular music manuscript.

The manuscript, said to be the only known draft of the final lyrics, garnered $2m (£1.2m) at Sotheby’s.

Dylan wrote the song, about a debutante cast from upperclass society who becomes a loner, in 1965 at age 24.

It was immortalised in pencil on four sheets of stationery from the Roger Smith Hotel in Washington DC. Aside from the wellknown lyrics - including “No direction home Like a complete unknown Like a rolling stone” - the manuscript also contains margin notes of song references, reminders and personal appointments, according to Sotheby’s.

28

World News

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

UK loses allies in bid to block Juncker’s EC presidency DAVID Cameron’s bid to block Jean-Claude Juncker becoming the next European Commission president looks set to fail after his allies changed tack.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel had given the British prime minister hope after agreeing to a vote on the issue if there was no consensus.

But both the Netherlands and Sweden now say they will back Luxembourg’s ex-PM. Mr Cameron says Mr Juncker’s nomination ignores the “pro-reform message” sent by European voters last month.

The EU summit was schedule to start on Thursday after leaders first commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War in Ypres.

That ceremony was expected to be followed by a working dinner on the EU’s long-term policy agenda in Brussels, before EU leaders make a decision on the Commission presidency on Friday.

Mr Cameron has said he will

Jean-Claude Juncker is confident he will become the next EC president if “common sense prevails”

demand an unprecedented vote if Mr Juncker’s name is tabled so that EU leaders are forced to justify their support for the veteran politician in public.

The UK prime minister believes Mr Juncker is too much in favour of closer political union and might block reform of the EU.

He also objects to the idea that EU leaders are allowing the European Parliament to effectively make the choice, since Mr Juncker was the leading candidate of the centre-right group that topped May’s polls.

The UK’s Europe minister David Lidington said choosing the Commission president from among those leading candidates risked making the EU executive a “creature of the European Parliament”.

Previously, the job at the head of Commission has only been given with the unanimous agreement of at least the EU’s bigger countries, including Britain.

But with Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban now Mr Cameron’s only supporter, correspondents say Mr Juncker is likely to be overwhelmingly backed as the nomination, even if it does go to a vote.

Chancellor Merkel said on Wednesday that it would be “no tragedy” if Mr Juncker won the Commission’s top job with less than unanimous backing.

Released Sudanese Christian woman faces two new charges A SUDANESE Christian woman who was sentenced to die for refusing to renounce her faith -- and then released -- has been charged on two criminal counts after trying to leave the African country for the United States, her legal team said Wednesday.

Meriam Yehya Ibrahim, who was detained with her American husband, Daniel Wani, and their two children at an airport in Khartoum on Tuesday, is accused of traveling with falsified documents and giving false information, according to her legal team.

The family is currently being held in a Khartoum police station and has been refused bail.

Ibrahim’s legal team told CNN that Daniel Wani is being held as an accessory.

The family was stopped at the airport after what Ibrahim’s lawyers described Tuesday as an alleged “irregularity with her documentation.”

Ibrahim has a U.S. visa and was headed to the United States with her family, her legal team said.

The U.S. State Department said Tuesday that Ibrahim and her family had been “temporarily detained at the airport” for questioning over issues relating to their travel and documentation.

“They have not been arrested.

Meriam Yehya Ibrahim was released from prison after weeks of international controversy over her conviction on apostasy and adultery charges.

The government has assured us of their safety,” U.S. State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said then.

Harf said that the U.S. Embassy “has been and will remain highly involved in working with the family and the government,” saying “we are engaging directly with Sudanese officials to secure their safe and swift departure from Sudan.”

Sudanese authorities said Ibrahim had been detained because of the documents she submitted.

Sudan’s National Intelligence and Security Services said that she had South Sudanese travel documents, despite not being a citizen of South

Sudan, and she was heading to the United States, which is not her native country.

“This was considered illegal by the Sudanese authorities, who have summoned both the U.S. and South Sudanese ambassadors,” the agency said in a message posted on its media Facebook page early Wednesday.

The airport detention came a day after Ibrahim’s legal team announced the 27-year-old woman had been released from prison after weeks of international controversy over her conviction on apostasy and adultery charges.

The unanimous decision is a win for privacy advocates that argued searching mobiles was an unreasonable intrusion.

US court backs mobile phone privacy The US Supreme Court has ruled police cannot search the digital contents of mobile phones of those arrested without a warrant.

The unanimous decision is a win for privacy advocates that argued searching mobiles was an unreasonable intrusion.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in his opinion that mobiles “hold for many Americans the privacies of life”.

The high court had weighed appeals by two people convicted based on evidence found on their phones.

Both were convicted of crimes for which they were not initially arrested.

Under the fourth amendment to the US constitution, police and other government officials generally need to obtain a warrant from a judge

before they can conduct a search.

A warrant requires evidence that a crime has been committed by the suspect.

Justice Roberts wrote in his ruling for the court that constitutional protection applied to the contents of mobiles, as they “differ in both a quantitative and qualitative sense from other objects that might be carried on an arrestee’s person”.

“Modern cell phones are not just another technological convenience.

With all they contain and all they may reveal, they hold for many Americans the privacies of life,’’ he wrote.

In the first, prosecutors used video and photographs found on David Riley’s smartphone to persuade a jury to convict him of attempted murder and other charges.

Donald Tusk, right, pictured with Interior Minister Bartlomiej Sienkiewicz, has faced calls to resign.

Poland leaks: PM Donald Tusk wins vote of confidence POLAND’S coalition government has won a parliamentary vote of confidence sparked by a scandal over leaked tapes of senior officials.

PM Donald Tusk had told parliament that without a pledge of majority support he would not be able to effectively represent Poland in the European Union.

The apparently secret recordings have been released by Wprost magazine.

In one, Foreign Minister Radoslaw

Sikorski allegedly says that Poland’s alliance with the US is worthless.

In another, Central Bank head Marek Belka and Interior Minister Bartlomiej Sienkiewicz are apparently heard discussing how the bank could help the governing party win re-election in 2015; such action would be in violation of the bank’s independence.

All have said their words were taken out of context and they deny any wrongdoing.

June 28 - July 4, 2014

World News

29

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Phone-hacking scandal could ‘kill’ News Corp if corporate charges are sought

Gloria S. Jones, 23, was convicted Tuesday of trying to poison her twin infant girls by mixing rubbing alcohol into chocolate milk in their sippy cups.

Missouri woman convicted of poisoning twin babies with rubbing alcohol A 23-YEAR-OLD Missouri mother, who told authorities she was overwhelmed with caring for her twin babies, was convicted of poisoning her daughters by mixing rubbing alcohol into their chocolate milk.

A jury recommended Gloria S. Jones serve five years in prison for the charges of endangering the welfare of a child after authorities said she put the potentially fatal mixture into her children’s sippy cups, the Clay County Prosecutor’s Office said in a release.

The twins were taken to a Kansas City hospital in October 2012 and one was considered near death and had to be put on a ventilator, the office said. The two children, now 3, do not appear to have lasting effects from the alcohol, the office said.

Jones admitted to officers she made the concoction because she felt overwhelmed by caring for them and she thought it would calm them down from their whiny behavior.

According to the police report Jones gave one child more milk than her sister and the children’s father came home and bounced her on his knee after she took a nap.

The 1-year-old then threw up on the father - who noticed the vomit smelled like alcohol.

The kids were taken to the hospital.

Jones told police she did not intend to harm the children and this was the first time she had done something like this.

Prosecutor Daniel L. White said in the statement rubbing alcohol can be lethal in doses as low as 8 ounces in adults.

“It doesn’t take much to put a child at risk,” he said.

Jones faced a possible prison sentence of 4 to 14 years based on the charges but a jury recommended she serve no more than 5 years, the office said. She will be sentenced Aug. 7. (NYdailynews)

US prosecutors announce fraud charges against Barclays FRAUD charges against Barclays in the United States have been announced by New York state prosecutors.

A lawsuit alleges that the bank falsified documents and misrepresented systems in place to protect certain investors from aggressive trading.

It relates to the bank’s “dark pool” trading operations, which allow clients to trade large blocks of shares while keeping prices more private.

Barclays said it was taking the allegations “very seriously”.

Prosecutors said Barclays misrepresented the kinds of investors that were using the dark pool.

New York Attorney General Schneiderman said: “The facts

alleged in our complaint show that Barclays demonstrated a disturbing disregard for its investors in a systematic pattern of fraud and deceit.”

“Barclays grew its dark pool by telling investors they were diving into safe waters.

According to the lawsuit, Barclays’ dark pool was full of predators - there at Barclays’ invitation,” he said. he lawsuit said that Barclay’s marketing material was misleading over the extent of high-frequency trading in its dark pool.

High-frequency traders use fast, sophisticated trading software and can make large profits on very small moves in share prices.

An internal analysis by Rupert Murdoch’s international media conglomerate shows corporate charges over the News of the World phone-hacking debacle could be devastating and put 46,000 jobs in the balance.

A lawyer for Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp pleaded with British police and prosecutors not to file corporate charges in a phonehacking scandal, arguing it would be “apocalyptic” for the company, according to a report.

News Corp brass so feared prosecutors would hold the company liable for the phone-hacking mess, they ordered up an analysis that showed such a move would likely doom the media giant.

The consequences of a corporate charge could “kill the corporation and 46,000 jobs would be in jeopardy,” the News Corp analysis concluded, The Independent of Britain reported Wednesday.

The scandal has already cost News Corp a whopping $535 million, including financial settlements with 718 phone-hacking victims, according to figures reported to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in May. Word of the turmoil inside News Corp leaked out a day after it was revealed that Scotland Yard detectives have asked to interview

Rupert Murdoch’s media empire can be destroyed by the phonehacking scandal, an internal News Corp analysis warns.

Murdoch “under caution” — a warning given to suspects.

On Tuesday, one of Murdoch’s former top honchos, Andy Coulson, was convicted on phone-hacking crimes that occurred under his editorship of the News of the World.

Coulson’s conviction and Murdoch’s pending grilling indicate prosecutors are pursuing corporate charges against Murdoch’s company and could prosecute the 83-year-old media baron himself.

Prosecutors could go after Murdoch under section 79 of Britain’s

Regulation and Investigatory Powers Act, which holds company directors liable if evidence shows they consented or connived with the misdeeds of employees.

Shortly after the company was informed it was under suspicion in 2012, News Corp sent its top lawyer to London to get Metropolitan Police and the Crown Prosecution service to back off on seeking corporate charges, The Independent reported.

Gerson Zweifach, News Corp’s general counsel, told authorities it would not be in the “public interest” to put thousands of jobs at risk.

“Crappy governance is not a crime. The downstream effects of a prosecution would be apocalyptic,” Zweifach told authorities, according to The Independent.

“The U.S. authorities’ reaction would put the whole business at risk, as licenses would be at risk,” Zweifach said at the meeting.

Scotland Yard wanted to grill Murdoch as a suspect last year, but agreed to postpone the interview until after the trial of Coulson and others, including Rebekah Brooks, the former News International chief executive.

Brooks, 46, who edited the News of the World from 2000 to 2003, was acquitted of phone hacking and bribery charges.

Malaysian court to Christians: You can’t say ‘Allah’ MALAYSIA’S highest court has rejected a challenge from the Catholic Church seeking to overturn a ban on non-Muslims using the word “Allah” to refer to God. But after the Federal Court announced its verdict on Monday, the government released a statement saying that the ruling would only apply to the Church’s newspaper, which has been at the center of the court battle since Malaysian authorities ordered the publication to cease using the Arabic word in 2007.

Malaysian Christians will still be able to use the word “Allah” in church, the government’s statement said.

“Malaysia is a multi-faith country and it is important that we manage our differences peacefully, in accordance with the rule of law and through dialogue, mutual respect and compromise,” the statement said.

The conflicting interpretations of the ban have only added confusion to a debate that has inflamed religious tensions in the Muslim-majority country in recent years.

The editor of the the newspaper, the Herald, said it remains unclear what the implications of the court’s verdict would be for the Christian community.

Muslim activists wait outside Malaysia’s highest court in Putrajaya for the verdict on June 23, 2014.

“We are in limbo,” Father Lawrence Andrew told CNN. But the chairman of the Christian Federation of Malaysia, Reverend Eu Hong Seng, said in a statement that Christians will continue to use the word “Allah” in bibles and during church gatherings.

The dispute began in 2007 when the Malaysian Ministry of Home Affairs, which grants publishing licenses, threatened to withdraw the Herald’s permit for using the Arabic word in its Malay-language edition, on the grounds of national security and public order.

Malaysian authorities say nonMuslim literature that contains the word could confuse Muslims and cause them to convert away from Islam, which is a crime in many parts of the country.

Christian leaders argue that the word “Allah” predates Islam, and has long been used in Malay-language bibles and other texts to refer to God. The dispute has sparked violence in recent years against Malaysia’s Christian community, which accounts for around 9% of the country’s population of 29 million, while more than 60% are Muslim.

30

Job Listings Services Auto sales real estate AGNES SWANN Is looking for a

Classifieds TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

FLOWER GIRL

Is looking for a Part-time

Labourer To work 5 days per week salary $5.50 per hour.

contact: 246-4769

delivery driver With own transportation who is interested in making extra cash.

Contact: 231-3788

FOR SALE

June 28 - July 4, 2014

946-4664 Fax: 946-4661

Email: tcnews@tciway.tc

Website: tcweeklynews.com

PARADISE ENTERTAINMENT (PHILIP HAWKINS)

MASON $8-$10 PER HOUR RESPONSIBLE TO PUT DOWN BLOCKS, PLASTER ETC.

CONTACT: 231-1429

Construction scaffold and roof tiles for sale CONTACT: 431-1591 OR 231-3788

June 28 - July 4, 2014

31

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

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32 CLASSIFIEDS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Come and join our winning team!!!

Beaches Turks & Caicos Resort Villages and Spa, the only 6 Diamond all inclusive property in the Caribbean is inviting applications from suitably qualified Turks and Caicos Islanders for the following vacant positions.

Applicants must have a clean police record and a good command of the English language both written and spoken. In addition candidates must be able to work nights, public holidays and week-ends.

The Resort thanks everyone for their interest in advance and advises that only short listed applicants will be contacted for an interview.

Housekeeping Department requires:

• Room Attendants/ Domestic Worker • Housemen • Public Area Attendant/Cleaner Requirements include but are not limited to: • One years experience in a hotel environment an asset.

• Physically fit The rate for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $5.50 an hour.

Linen Room Controller/ Attendant

Requirements include: • Knowledge of inventory, stock and par levels • Computer literate • Physically fit The rate for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $7.00 an hour.

Housekeeping Supervisor

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Supervises and may participate in housekeeping services including cleaning, mopping, scrubbing, sanitizing the floors and other surfaces as well as the refinishing, waxing and polishing of floors, tile work and other various floor and wall surfaces in stairways, hallways, restrooms, offices, laboratories, recreation and locker rooms.

The rate for the position listed above is $6.00 to $8.00 an hour.

Laundry Department requires: • Supervisor • Laundry Attendant

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Physically fit • Previous experience in commercial Laundry an assist The rate for the position listed above is $5.00 to $7.50 an hour.

Kitchen Department requires: • • • • •

Kitchen Helper Cooks (Grade 1,2 and 3) Chef Garde Manger Supervisor

Requirements include: • Must have worked in a Resort kitchen or medium to large sized restaurant • Must have over three years’ experience • No food allergies • Professional qualification an asset The range in the rates for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $10.00 an hour.

Stewarding Department Requires:

• Steward • Wedding Steward (attached to Weddings Department)

Requirements include but are not limited to: • No Food or chemical allergies • Physically Fit • Ability to carry out labour intensive cleaning task

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Physically Fit • Ability to carry out labour intensive task The rate for the positions listed above is $6.00 to $12.00 an hour

The rate for the position listed above is $5.00 to $5.50 an hour.

Watersports/ Catamaran Department requires:

The Gift Shop Department requires:

• Lifeguard

• Shop Attendant

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Ability to Swim • First aid/ CPR Certification

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Physically Fit • Ability to conduct inventory

Beach and Pool Attendants

The rate for the position listed above is $5.85 to $5.50 an hour.

Engineering Department requires: • • • • • • • • •

Supervisor Shift Leader Mechanic Senior Stove Technician Electrician or Plumber Carpenter Room Technicians Sewage Plant Operator Pool Operator

The rate for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $10.00 an hour.

• Painter • Labour Requirements include but are not limited to: • Physically Fit • Ability to carry out labour intensive task

Requirements include: • International Dive certification required • An outgoing personality required • Strict adherence to safety procedures • Ability to swim

• • • •

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Boat Captain license (for boat captain position) • Ability to Swim • Knowledge of a boat and its handling operations • First aid/ CPR Certification

Grounds Departments requires:

Butler

Supervisor

• Requirements include but are not limited to: • Minimum 2 years supervising a team of grounds man • Experience with tropical or subtropical plants, Greenhouses and Irrigation • Physically Fit The rate for the position listed above is $6.50 to $8.00 an hour.

Offsite Properties requires: • Carpenter • Labour/ Care taker

• Dining Room Cleaner • Labour

The rate for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $5.75 an hour.

Front Office and Concierge Department requires: Requirements include but are not limited to: • Member of the Association of English Butlers • Ability to go above and beyond for guest • Bellman • Mini Bar Stocker/ Attendant

The rate for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $5.50 an hour.

Requirements include but are not limited to: • One year’s experience in a restaurant with seating for over 100 persons an asset.

• No food allergies • Ability to work in the sun • Physically fit

• Dive Instructor • Dive Master • Supervisor

The rate for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $10.00 an hour.

Grounds man/ lady Grounds Keeper Requirements include but are not limited to: Physically fit Ability to carry out labour intensive task

Servers

Requirements include but are not limited to: • No food allergies • Ability to work in the sun • Physically fit

The rate for the position listed above is $5.00 to $5.50 an hour.

• •

• •

The rate for the positions listed above is $6.00 to $11.00 an hour.

Requirements include: • Assist with the maintenance of the pool.

• Keep the pool area tidy and well stocked • Ability to swim

• Deck Hand • First mate

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Knowledgeable of in related fields both in theory and practical

• Excellent customer service skills • Knowledge of wines

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Experience with inventory and maintaining stock levels • Physically Fit • Outgoing and friendly attitude The rate for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $7.00 an hour.

Food and Beverage Department requires:

Bar Department requires: Bartenders Bar Porters Beach/ Pool Server Cocktail Server

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Ability to mix a variety of drinks alcoholic and non-alcoholic.

• Outgoing personality • Ability to work in the sun • Physically fit The rate for the positions listed above is $5.00 to $5.75 an hour.

Supervisor

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Knowledge of stock ordering and maintenance of par levels • Ability to mix a variety of drinks alcoholic and non-alcoholic.

• Outgoing personality • Ability to work in the sun • Physically fit The rate for the position listed above is $6.50 to $10.00 an hour.

Entertainment Department requires: • Kids Counselor/ Attendant

Requirements include but are not limited to: • An outgoing personality required • Certificate in early childhood education an asset • First Aid qualification an asset

Choreographer

Fun pals/Players/ Dancers/ Clowns

• Dining Room/ Room Manager • Supervisor • Shift Leader

Requirements include but are not limited to: • An outgoing personality required • Ability to sing and dance

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Three years supervising a restaurant with seating over 100 persons an asset.

The rate for the positions listed above is $5.15 to $5.70 an hour.

Applications giving full details of qualifications and experience should be sent to: mmvaughn@grp.sandals.com or Fax to: 941-4870 Attn: M McClean-Vaughn The Human Resources Department Beaches Turks and Caicos P.O. Box 186 Lower Bight Road

and and should reach not later than June 30 2014.

The Labour Commissioner Labour Department Providenciales Turks and Caicos Islands 9985

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

CLASSIFIEDS 33

Come and join our winning team!!!

Beaches Turks & Caicos Resort Villages and Spa, the only 6 Diamond all inclusive property in the Caribbean is inviting

applications from suitably qualified Turks and Caicos Islanders for the following vacant positions.

Applicants must have a clean police record and a good command of the English language both written and spoken.

In addition candidates must be able to work nights, public holidays and week-ends. The Resort thanks everyone for their interest in advance and advises that only short listed applicants will be contacted for an interview.

Stewarding Department Requires:

• Spa Attendant • Spa Therapist/Technicians/ Cosmetologist • Hair Braider

Stewarding Manager

Requirements include but are not limited to: o Knowledge of the clean requirements of kitchen and environs o Ability to supervise a teams located in three or more kitchens

The ideal candidate must satisfy the following criteria: • Certification in one or more of the following areas: Massage, Esthetics, Body treatments, Hair services, Tattoos and Nail services.

• Must be sales driven with proven customer service skills, upgrading of services/ retail.

The Grounds Department requires: Assistant Grounds Manager

Requirements include but are not limited to: o Minimum 2 year diploma in related field. o Experience with tropical or sub-tropical plants, Greenhouses and Irrigation

Remuneration: Bi-weekly base pay plus commission

The Food and Beverage Department requires:

• Executive Assistant Manager

• Food and Beverage Manager • Assistant Food and Beverage Manager • Restaurant Manager

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Experience in the areas of Housekeeping, Front Office, MOD and Night management.

• Due to the physical layout of the property, applicants should be in good physical condition

The Administrative Department requires:

Rooms Division Department Requires:

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Experience in managing multiple Restaurant outlets with seating of over 200 • Five (5) years relevant experience in Fine Dining, Al La Carte and Buffet

• Executive Housekeeper • Assistant Executive Housekeeper

The Administrative Department requires:

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Oversee the financial processes of budgeting, purchasing, payroll and inventory control.

• Maintain all safety and security policies. Minimum of 3 years housekeeping management

Director of Guest Services/ Guest Services Manager Requirements include but are not limited to: • Experience in solving guest concerns to resolution including compensation • Knowledge of and a ability to interact with Rooms, Kitchen, Dining Room (this list is not exhaustive) • Five (5) years relevant experience

The salary for the positions listed above is negotiable

The Photoshop Department requires:

The Kitchen Department requires:

• Photoshop Manager

Assistant Executive Chef

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Experience managing multiple photo retail outlets • Experience meeting sales targets • Ability to cross and up sell • Three (3) years relevant experience

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Maintain control of the standards for purchasing and receiving items.

• To create recipes and production methods, as well as compile new banquets methods when required.

• Oversee the training and development of all kitchen staff.

• Experience in managing over four (4) kitchens

• Executive Sous Chef • Tandoori Chef

The salary for the positions listed above ranges from $25,000 to $65,000 per annum

Photoshop Department requires: • Photographer

Requirements include but are not limited to: • To create recipes and production methods, as well as compile new banquets methods when required.

• Oversee the training and development of staff.

Information Technology Department requires:

Requirements include but are not limited to: • 2 years’ experience in field • Ability to sell and make quotas The rate for the positions listed above is $6.00 to $9.00 an hour.

Laundry Department requires:

• Director of IT • Assistant Information Systems Manager

• Laundry Manager

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Knowledge of a PBX system • A recognized IT professional qualification such as Degree/Advanced Diploma in IT or Computer Science & Technology • Due to the physical layout of the property, applicants should be in good physical condition.

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Physically fit • Previous experience in commercial Laundry an assist

Entertainment Department requires:

The Spa Department requires:

• Assistant Entertainment Administrative Manager

• Spa Manager

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Conceptualize and bring to production entertainment at the Resort

Requirements include but are not limited to: • Ability to manage Spa, Gym and Tennis Portfolios • Ability to meet sales targets in areas indicated above • Five (5) years relevant experience

Engineering Department requires: • Assistant Maintenance Manager Requirements include but are not limited to: • Knowledgeable of in related fields both in theory and practical

The salary for the positions listed above ranges from $25,000 to $65,000 per annum

Spa Department Requires

The salary for the positions listed above is $25,000.00 to $40,000.00 per annum.

Applications giving full details of qualifications and experience should be sent to: mmvaughn@grp.sandals.com or Fax to: 941-4870 Attn: M McClean-Vaughn The Human Resources Department Beaches Turks and Caicos P.O. Box 186 Lower Bight Road

and

The Labour Commissioner Labour Department Providenciales Turks and Caicos Islands

and should reach not later than June 30th 2014

9985

34 CLASSIFIEDS

LAS BRISAS RESTAURANT Is looking for a

barber

LABOURER

waiter

contact: 242-3747

Contact: Paola Hidalgo at 649-331-197710014

CONTACT: 2313184

contact: 946-5306

Dorothea Cox

MARTHA BEAUTY SALON

contact: 231-6667

Must be willing to work 5 days per week salary $5.50 per hour.

To work full time salary $6.00 per hour.

Leeward Highway Providenciales Telephone: 231- 6710

Housekeeper/

Margaritaville seeks to identify

Domestic Worker

DINING ROOM CAPTAIN and more

Salary starts at $5.00 per hour.

10018

SUMMARY:

Oversees the duties and responsibilities of the service staff and has responsibility for maintaining an efficient operation. Coordinates and monitors the activities of the overall restaurant floor operation including the service employees, staff performance, quality of service, troubleshooting and expediting as needed to ensure a positive guest experience. Provides service standards training and ensure compliance of standards.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE: Associates or Bachelors’ degree preferred; three years prior server, at least 3 years supervisory, management experience in a recognized high-volume food and beverage industry preferred; or equivalent combination of education and experience; HACCP training and proper food handling techniques would be a plus

REQUIREMENTS:

- Knowledge of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint) - Able to read and interpret documents such as safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals. Able to write simple correspondence.

- Able to apply common sense understanding to carry out detailed but uninvolved written or oral instructions.

- Must be physically able to stand for periods of up to 8 hours or longer - Able to work flexible hours including, weekends, night shift and public holidays - Energetic & people oriented, reliable with problem solving skills We are also accepting applications for the following positions for the upcoming season in October 2014: Bartenders, Servers, Stilt Walker and Kitchen Helpers.

APPLICATION PROCESS:

Application along with resume must be submitted by 8th July, 2014 to the office of :

Margaritaville Grand Turk Grand Turk Cruise Center South Base, White Sands Beach Grand Turk, T.C.I.. B.W.I Belongers only, need apply. While we welcome and appreciate all applicants, only persons short-listed for an interview will be contacted.

TO WORK 5 DAYS A WEEK. SALARY $6.00 PER HOUR

To work 6 days per week salary $5.50 per hour.

ROBIN’S WELDING SHOP Is looking for a

Is looking to fill the following positions:

Nail Technician Hairdresser Must be willing to work 6 days per week. Salary $6.00 per hour.

Contact: 343-6631

laboUrer To work 5 days per week salary $6.00 per hour.

contact: 342-4067 or 246-3120

10005

ARCHITECT POSITION AVAILABLE Fully qualified Architect required for the following role: Job Summary • The successful applicant will be expected to undertake the traditional role of a professional Architect.

• This includes detailed architectural design work, planning submissions, preparation of tender documents, construction contract administration, contract cost control and direct liaison with clients, consultants and contractors.

Essential Skills/Experience • RIBA Parts 1-111 Professional Qualification • Fully qualified RIBA/ARB registered Architect.

• Minimum 5 years post-professional qualification experience as Project Architect with direct Client liaison.

• Minimum 5 years experience in contract administration and cost control on JCT contracts.

• Minimum 5 years experience in managing an architectural team.

• A strong background of technical detailing.

• Excellent skills in AutoCAD, Autodesk Revit, Photoshop, Sketch-up, Excel and Word a pre-requisite.

• Experience in the design and production of presentation and marketing materials including website programming.

Salary rated according to experience, between $4k & $6k per month.

Interested applicants should contact Mr. C Davies via e-mail by July 10, 2014 with current CV to info@coasttci.com or in writing to the address below.

Only applicants meeting the minimum requirements listed above will be contacted for interview within 5 days of receipt of their application.

10016

10016

To work 5 days per week salary $5.50 per hour.

10004

IS LOOKING FOR A

JAY M STUBBS

gardener WANTED

LABOURER

Must have a minimum of 5 years experience Must be willing to work evenings, weekends and holidays.

IVAN’S BARBER SHOP Is looking for a

Is looking for a

Chef Baker Contact: 432-2355

DOREAN WILLIAMS

9617

Is looking for the following persons:

CARIBBEAN NURSERY & LANDSCAPING

10012

BAY BISTRO

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Only suitably qualified Turks & Caicos Islanders need apply.

Coast Architects, 82 Cherokee Road, PO Box 941, Providenciales, Turks & Caicos Islands

June 28 - July 4, 2014

MEP SOLUTIONS

PAUL A. GARDINER is looking for a

Is looking for a

Must be willing to work with little to no supervision.

Must have at least 4 years experience. Salary commensurate with experience

Contact: 242-2054 Is looking for

LAUNDRY SUPERVISOR To work 6 days per week salary $5.00 per hour.

contact: 232-5262

10006

plumber

ROBUST CONTRACTING

ROYAL ESSENCE NAILS & SKIN CARE SALON is looking for a

Carpenters Must be fluent in English, and Spanish is a plus.

Must be willing to work 6 days per week. Salary commensurate with experience.

Contact: 2422289 or 342-1291 10003

CLASSIFIEDS 35

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Nail Technician To work 6 days per week salary $6.00 per hour.

contact: 342-2472

SALES!!!

Due to change of season we are selling lots of items at discount prices. Towels, curtains, bathroom sets, bathroom coordinates, napkins, cups and glasses, canisters, mixing bowls, serving trays and much more for your house.

DUNCANSON & CO. Barristers & Attorneys

PUBLIC NOTICE DUNCANSON & CO. Barristers & Attorneys are pleased to announce the re-opening of our Leeward Highway Office for ongoing legal services to the public. We are located in our own building across the street from the Supreme Court complex, next door to the offices of TC Weekly News and between that and the St. Monica's Anglican Church.

Job Description Summary: Misick & Stanbrook is seeking to recruit an experienced Paralegal.

The successful applicant for this job will perform a variety of paralegal activities related to assisting attorneys and administrative professionals in various aspects of legal work, including but not limited to, case preparation, legal research, drafting and preparing legal documents.

The position requires: • Upper Second Class Degree (2:1) in Law • Successful completion of the BVC/BPTC or the Legal Practice Course • Minimum 2 years experience as a paralegal doing complex white collar crime, civil and public law work • Excellent drafting skills • Strong computer and research skills • Knowledge of legal documents, forms and databases • Ability to work with minimum supervision Knowledge of legal terminology and style Good communication and organization skills

Closing date for applications: Apply with resume, quoting reference “Paralegal” to

Deveraux C. Malcolm MISICK & STANBROOK P.O. Box 127, Providenciales fax: 946 4734 E-Mail: info@misickstanbrook.tc

We specialize in: • Civil Litigation (Particular competencies: Judicial Review and other claims against TCI Government/Departments, Mareva and other Injunctions, Land, Trust & Bank disputes) • Property Matters, Planning Department & Development Issues • Business Law • Immigration • Labour Disputes Telephone: (649) 941-4444 Telefax: (649) 941-4235 Cellphone: (649) 245-1314 email: berynd@yahoo.com DUNCANSON & CO. Barristers & Attorneys

PO Box 52, Cheshire House East 1315A Leeward Highway, Providenciales

VALUE FOR YOUR MONEY!!

the largest readership in the turks & caicos

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

GNIWE CONTRACTOR

Y.A.3.B CONSULTANCY

With Deep

Is looking for a

Acting on behalf of our clients:

Gratitute

M.B.A. CONSTRUCTION

The family of the late Ivy May Lightbourne would like to thank you for your kind expressions of sympathy on our recent loss.

Our family deeply appreciate all those who sent flowers and/ or cards, gave gifts, donated personal services, called with the kindest words and thought of us in those days.

Your thoughts and efforts were greatly appreciated.

THANKY YOU! On behalf of the family 100013

Tile Layer Salary $7.00 per hour

TRAGOS

Bartender 2 Waitresses Salary $6.00 per hour

PROVO ENTERTAINMENT

Staff Tile Setter

2 Bartenders 2 Waitresses Salary $6.00 per hour

To work 5 days per week salary negotiable.

GRACE BAY TOTZ Domestic Worker Salary $5.50 per hour

contact: 346-8896 THIS IS FOR WORK PERMIT RENEWAL

Requires qualified and experienced

Electricians

Qualifications: • Must have at least 10 years experience in the restaurant industry • Ability to wok online and prep all types of food • Must be able to work under pressure with the ability to work independently and as part of a team • All applicants will be willing to work 7 days per week including weekends and holidays Salary $5.50 per hour.

Applicants MUST have completed an Electrical Apprenticeship and have a qualification from a recognized governing body and also have at least 10 years experience on large commercial projects. Salary negotiable depending on level of experience.

Please fax resume to 941 7626

Interested person may apply to: info@portsofcallresort. com or drop off a resume at anytime 10028

Is looking for a

domestic worker To work 5 days per week salary $5.50 per hour.

9995

Please send detailed resumes and cover letter to bistroshannon@yahoo.com only applicants that send resumes will be considered

5-6 days a week Pay rate: $6.00 per hour Hours work: 6am1pm. Must be fluent in English and good communication skills.

SIMEON CAMBELL

MEPCO International (T&C) Ltd.

Is looking to fill the following positions:

Assistant Manager Kitchen Helper

Is looking for a

Breakfast

Contact: 344-4540

SHARKBITE BAR & GRILL AN ESTABLISHED HIGH VOLUME RESTAURANT

PORTS OF CALL RESORT

contact: 241-9626

9996

36 CLASSIFIEDS

SAILROCK DEVELOPMENT LIMITED Is seeking qualified candidates for an immediate opening of

SENIOR CONSTRUCTION MANAGER

to act as Owner’s representative during construction of infrastructure, hospitality and residential components of Sailrock Development. Job responsibilities include developing and monitoring project budgets and schedules, developing and implementing a quality assurance program and acting as Owners representative to all parties involved in the construction process including vendors, contractors, design professionals and government entities.

Applicant will have a minimum of 10 yrs experience in delivering infrastructure, commercial, residential and hospitality projects. Applicant will have a minimum of 5 yrs experience managing multi-discipline design teams as a Construction Project Manager or Site Engineer. Applicant will also have experience in “out-island development” in the Caribbean. Experience required in design, sustainability and green development, construction management, as well as civil, site and infrastructure development. Applicant will have a solid background in estimating, budgeting, bidding, contract management, scheduling, project planning and quality control. Applicant must be fluent in Microsoft Office Suite, and either Primavera or Microsoft Schedule, and AutoCAD Applicant must have a degree in Architecture, Engineering or Civil Engineering. Applicant must be willing to establish permanent residency on South Caicos for duration of employment.

In addition to the above qualifications, applicants must have strong verbal and written communication skills and be highly organized. Candidates must be able to work well independently and in a team environment, exhibit a positive attitude and an outgoing professional manner.

Salary and benefits will be commensurate with experience.

Qualified candidates should email a CV to tweldon@southcaicos.com on or before July 18, 2014. Inquires will receive a response within 48 hours.

The Somerset Resort Management Ltd. is seeking Labour Clearance for the positions listed below. Suitably qualified Belongers who possess the requirements listed are encouraged to apply. Ideal candidates should possess luxury resort experience, be professional in attitude and demeanor and must read and speak English fluently. Positions require a flexible schedule which includes holidays, weekends and evenings, and extended hours on occasion. Salaries are based on experience and qualifications.

Resort General Manager

To oversee all aspects of Property Management in accordance with Company mission statement, including maximization of financial performance, guest satisfaction, and staff development within established quality standards, implementing strategies for meeting goals in the areas of revenue generation, market share performance, Guest satisfaction scores, associate opinion scores, and net operating income.

Requirements:

Minimum five years experience as General Manager within the hospitality industry, High ethical standards, analytical ability, excellent communicator, diverse experiences in sales, management and administration knowledgeable of all company policies and procedures included but not limited to accounting, human resources, operations and sales. Computer Literacy, decisive, educated facilitator experienced in resolving conflicts between different parties in a dispute.

Qualified Belonger candidates can complete an application form in person at The Somerset on Grace Bay or submit a resume by e-mail at somerset@thesomerset.com. Tel: 649-339-5900. Fax: 946-5839. The closing date for applications is July 20th, 2014

10015

T. C. INDUSTRIAL Is looking for the following persons:

Electrician Welder Must be willing to work 5 days per week. Salary $10.00 per hour

Contact: 231-1205

9857

37

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

V.O. Malcolm Is looking for one

GRANT’S PETROLEUM Is looking for

Contact 245-5949

To work 5 days per week salary $5.00 per hour. contact: 346-4666 or 941-5804

Acting on behalf of our clients Williams Construction

– laboUrer

New Hope Baptist Church

Meditation Centre Turks and Caicos Islands

– Janitor/ Cleaner

Telephone 946-4760 & 332-4101

www.bkwsu.com Email: bkpadma@bkwsutci.com FLOWER GIRL

Wanted urgently

EXPERIENCED worker required

Floral Designer

to assist with the running of programs at the Youth Centre.

Must be available to work holidays and weekends. Full and Part-time positions available

Must have thorough knowledge in the floral business with 3-5 years experience.

100029

REQUIREMENTS: • Degree in teaching or similar field • At least 3 years experience working in a related field • Computer literate, creative and energetic qualities • Excellent skills of working with youth • Salary dependent on experience Deadline for applications is 11th July 2014

Email your resume to roxann@ecgyouthcentre.com or contact 331-9602.

Brama Kumaris

Raja Yoga

labourer labourer Weekly salary of $5.00 per hour.

C & J CONSULTANCY SERVICES

Call: 231-3788

World of Girlz Boutique

– Cashier

Salary $5.50 per hour

Contact: 347-6642

10019

June 28 - July 4, 2014

FRESH FISH AND J & A CONSTRUCTION

Is looking for Experienced

Labourers Must have knowledge general construction and dealing with fish Salary $6.00 per hour.

contact: John Garland (Mac) at 241-5678 or 342-8937 10033

Resident Maintenance Technician Seven Stars Resort is seeking suitably qualified persons to fill the positions outlined below. Ideal candidates should possess luxury resort experience, be out-going and friendly, with a professional demeanor and must be fluent in English, be a team player with a strong work ethic, available for work on public holidays, weekends and evenings. Salaries are based on experience and qualifications. Suitable candidates must have a minimum of 2 years’ experience working at a 5 Star Resort in a similar role. Must have a strong attention to detail and exceptional ability to maintain the highest standards of quality required.

• Security Officer • Floor Crystallizing Specialist • Stock Controller • Housekeeping Attendant • Housekeeping Manager • Pool & Bar Attendant Closing Date June 27, 2014 Suitably qualified candidates should apply via email to Seven Stars at:

hr@sevenstarsgracebay.com for consideration Candidates must possess relevant skills, experience, and a clean police record.

ONLY CANDIDATES MEETING MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS WILL BE CONTACTED.

• We are seeking a well-qualified candidate for the position of Resident Maintenance Technician. We require an all-round Maintenance Technician with strong experience and knowledge of air conditioning and refrigeration. Also but not limited to, experience in plumbing and electrical repairs, painting, pool maintenance, tool and equipment maintenance, Klargester sewage systems, woodwork and general labour. Candidate must be prepared to work weekends and holidays, be on-call evenings and will be required live on property.

• Wages range: $5 to $9 per hour depending on experience and qualifications.

Chef • We are seeking a skilled Sous Chef who can provide excellent International culinary skills, strong management and training skills and effective communication skills. The position involves working in the resort’s two restaurants, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.

• The successful candidate will be a chef who can bring variety, style and a high level of professionalism in order to achieve the highest possible culinary standards- an all- around of many cuisines with a background in International boutique properties.

• In addition to formal professional qualifications, the successful candidate will have at least three years’ experience in luxury resorts or award winning restaurants.

• Experience in matching food and wine would be great asset.

• Annual salary range: $20K to $27k (plus service charge) commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Belongers only need apply Closing date: 1st July 2014 Please apply in writing to: Point Grace, PO Box 700, Grace Bay, Providenciales.

Email: humanresources@pointgrace.com or Fax: 946-5097

9981

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Labourer

Salary $6.00 per hour.

Contact 232-7827

9987

D.S.Y. RESTAURANT Is looking for the following persons

Housekeeper

Domestic Worker Salary $5.50 per hour.

Contact: 332-0771

9996

Diamond Development Ltd. Has a vacancy for a

MISICK AND STANBROOK Is seeking to fill the following position:

CORPORATE COMMERCIAL ATTORNEY • The successful Candidate must have at least twelve years experience in a range of complex Corporate and commercial matters.

• Salary range $90,000 to $108,000 commensurate with experience • Closing date for applications: June 30th, 2014

Applicants should please send detailed CV with the names of two referees to Deveraux Malcolm, Misick and Stanbrook, via fax (649) 946 4734 or e-mail to info@misickstanbrook.tc.

9989

CERTIFIED IKO/PASA LEVEL 2 KITEBOARD INSTRUCTOR • must be qualified as a level 2 kiteboard instructor with no less than 3 years experience • must be willing to work weekends and public holidays to accommodate tourist needs Salary commensurate with experience

Contact: 242-2927

D.S VARIETY STORE Is looking for 1

Labourer

Applicant must be honest, Reliable, hard working and Fluent in English and French Salary $5.00 per hour

Contact: 245-1183

9974

38 CLASSIFIEDS

Imperial Laundry wishes to recruit:

General Manager Applicants must have the following: • 10 years operational and commercial experience in the laundry industry with 5 years in a management position.

• Knowledge and experience of: laundry production methods; operation and service of production equipment; sales and marketing; customer relationship management; staff training and development; project management; financial management and control, administrative management.

• Degree level qualification.

Applications must be made by 5 July 2013 to:

PM - Gas (TCI) Ltd. PM Industrial Gas, a leading producer and distributor of industrial Medical, recreational, and specialty gases, as well as welding And medical products and related equipment, is seeking an experienced and proven leader.

Applications are invited from suitably qualified Candidates for the following position:

Operation Supervisor Duties of this position include: handling, filling and delivery of cylinders; general maintenance of premises and equipment; customer service and quality control; and safety compliance.

Requirements include: at least 5 years relevant experience, a clean police record and driver’s license with a successful drug screen; excellent health mobility, allowing for the handling and delivery of heavy cylinders; at least a high school diploma; possess a good employment track record with demonstrated superior customer service skills, supervision of plant workers and delivery drivers; importing of cryogenics; knowledge of U.S. pharmacopeia standards.

Salary: commensurate with experience.

Applications comprising a letter, resume, references, Police record etc. should be sent to: The Manager PM - Gas (TCI) Ltd. C/o P.O.Box 127, Richmond House Leeward Highway, Providenciales Tel: (649) 946-4734 0r Fax (649) 946-4732 Email: marsha@misickstanbrook.tc

implrec2013@gmail.com

NOTICE

PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT AT BLOCK 60807, PARCEL 28, Providenciales The Physical Planning (Development Permission) Regulations, 1990 Regulations 7, Schedule 2 Applications.

An application registered PR: 11906, for construction of a Cell Site have been submitted to the department of Planning for consideration of Detail development permission by ISLANDCOM TELECOMMUNICATIONS LTD. The location is PARCEL 60807/28, which is in The Bight & Thomas Stubbs Area of Providenciales.

Anyone wishing to make any representation(s) may do so in writing to the Director of Planning South Base, Grand Turk or through the Department of Planning, Providenciales, within 28 days of the publication of this notice.

Date Posted June 17, 2014 Date Notice Received by

9991

D BELLE BEAUTY FASHION SALON NAIL CENTER

Proprietors Strata Plan #41 Management Co. Ltd.

Is looking for

Seeks to fill the following position

Housemaids 9988

labourer contact: 941-3739

10024

To work 5 days per week salary $6.00 per hour.

Busy Restaurant in Providenciales need

Kitchen Helper/ Dishwasher.

Contact 9418408

10027

ELITE LANDSCAPING Is looking for a

labourer To work 6 days per week salary $5.00 per hour must have experience in landscaping and irrigation.

contact: 332-5646

Hair

dresser Salary: $5.00 / Hour

Contact: 649-3458282 / 649-346-8003

KATIUSCA RODRIQUEZ

ISLAND SOLUTIONS LIMITED

Electrician Mechanical Must be willing to work 6 days per week. Salary commensurate with experience.

Contact: brian@tciway.tc or 649-232-4110

9977

GARDENER NEEDED For a private home in Providenciales. A hardworking person needed to work six days a week . Must likes animals. Must speak English. Must be Fit and able.

Wages $5.00 a hour. Belongers Apply.

If you fit the above qualifications please send your resume to the following address:

PO Box 560, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands.

9990

10021

Is looking for a

I.G

CHURCH OF GOD OF PROPHECY

Is looking for 1

Is looking for a

domestic worker Domestic To work 5 days per week salary $5.00 per hour.

contact: 344-4540

Worker

Pastor

Contact: 342-4935

contact: 343-4618

To work 6 days per week Salary $5.00 per hour

Salary $500.00 per month

9991

email: info@ portsofcallresort.com

Interested person must be willing to work hard, must be responsible, reliable & trustworthy. Must be willing to work with little or no supervision.

Schedule work hours are 7am to 5pm. Applicant must be willing to work on holidays and weekends. Salary US$400.00 per week

9968

Pay $5.50 per hour. Working 5-6 days a week.

NURSERY COORDINATOR REQUIREMENTS • Minimum 4 years experience in operations/ coordination role • Excellent English verbal and written skills • Comprehensive experience using QuickBooks for financial accounting, generation financial reports and analysis • Experience dealing with high-end clients • Willing to work outdoors and irregular hours including weekends and holidays if needed • Preferable a Bachelor’s Degree in environmental law • Relevant qualification in Environmental Studies or protection • Understanding of plants in indigenous Environmental application • Salary $3,600 per month

Please bring all applications to Flowers by environmental Arts located at U102 Venture House, Grace Bay Road, Providenciales or email to: ops@ environmentalarts.tc. Successful applicants will be notified by phone for interview. Please provide relevant reference from previous employer

Qualified PADI/NAUI SCUBA Instructors Needed

Successful candidate will be a PADI MSDT with current membership and insurance, resort operations experience including advanced level instruction, dive accident management, compressor maintenance, equipment and engine maintenance and repair. Captain’s license and STCW95 qualification preferred, or applicant must be willing to train.

This is a tourism related job and will include all aspects of the company’s daily routine including but not limited to, teaching all levels of instruction, guiding dives, boat and vehicle operations and working the front office. The work schedule will include weekends, public holidays and occasional night dives.

Starting Salary $380 - $500 per week based on experience and qualifications.

Contact David Volkert at 946-4232 or info@provoturtledivers. com Positions available starting November 1 2014. Please submit applications before July 23, 2014 10032

10026

Seeking

9974

Ports of Call Resorts

TAYLOR’S VARIETY STORE Is looking for a

CLASSIFIEDS 39

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

COMPUTER TECHNICIAN REQUIRED • Minimum 5 years’ experience • Microsoft & CISCO certification required • IT Systems & Network Administration required • Computer Programming Required Send Resume to info@jafooe.com

10023

June 28 - July 4, 2014

40 CLASSIFIEDS

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Career Opportunities Grace Bay Club is looking for candidates that have the requirements listed along with an outgoing professional manner. They love to work with different types of people, meet challenges with a positive attitude and live the standards of our organization. Their management style is one that balances a commitment to people and their development with business/financial accountability and delivers an exceptional guest experience.

Housekeeping Supervisor

service, and the ability to provide our guests with an outstanding dining experience.

Servers should be industry professionals with excellent food and wine knowledge.

Requirements:

Job Requirements:

• Possess 2 years experience in a Supervisory role at a high-end resort • Possess knowledge of proper cleaning techniques, requirements, and use of equipment • Assisting the Executive Housekeeper in the day –to-day management and operation of the Housekeeping Department • Possess knowledge of proper cleaning supplies and chemical handling.

• Assist the Executive Housekeeper to supervise the Housekeeping Staff, ensuring the standards of the hotel are met • Assist with administration duties, such as timesheets and tracking lost and found property.

• Perform the Executive Housekeeper’s duties when not unavailable Qualified Belongers need only to apply Salary Range: Commensurate based on qualification and experience

Pastry Chef Job Requirements: • • • • • •

High school diploma or equivalent vocational training certificate.

Certification of culinary training or apprenticeship.

Dependable, organized, team player.

Sanitation certificate.

Must read and speak English fluently. Additional languages an asset.

Prepares, bakes, and finishes all breads, breakfast pastries, cookies, and other specified baked goods.

• Decorating and plating various pastries and desserts • Overseeing kitchen staff • Ordering supplies • Keeping the kitchen organized Qualified Belongers need only to apply Salary Range: Commensurate based on qualification and experience

Director of Reservations Requirements: • A Degree in Hotel Administration or equivalent work experience • Previous experience in Reservations Department • To efficiently manage the Reservations Department with minimal costs and maximum profitability through proficient management of staff, internal controls, administration of company policies & excellent guest service.

• At least 2 years of direct related experience as a Director of Reservations for a 5 star luxury property • Participate in hotel MOD program. Conduct department meetings as required and attends staff hotel meetings.

• Communicates with all hotel departments and staff to ensure the efficient operation of Reservations Department.

• Energetic, positive visionary leader, dedicated to motivating and developing team members.

Qualified Belongers need only apply Salary Range: Commensurate based on qualification and experience

Restaurant Servers Job Overview:

Qualified individuals should have a minimum of 3 years restaurant experience. Individuals must possess strong work ethics; have a working knowledge of fine dining steps of

• Responsibilities include setup, organization and cleanup of service areas.

• Responsible for staying current with daily menu items and changing wine lists.

• Must be able to work as part of a motivated, high energy team that takes pride in their work.

• Lifting of trays loaded with food, plates and glassware required.

• Responsible for responding to any situation at any given time in a professional and courteous manner. This may include answering any questions posed by guests • Stack, lift and carry trays in a systematic and safe manner • Clean and retrieve tables in a neat, timely and professional manner.

• Receive, process, and present all food and beverage orders according to Grace Bay Club standards • Responsible for using suggestive selling techniques, when appropriate and doing so in a courteous manner to up sell and in turn increase the average check Qualified Belongers need only to apply Salary Range: Commensurate based on qualification and experience

Director of Guest Experiences Requirements: • • • •

Wide knowledge of the Rooms Division operations.

5 – 10 year experience in a Hospitality industry in Management position.

Knowledge of Hotel Operating system (Opera, Fidelio, Visual One) Experience in dealing with guest enquiries, problems or complaints in an efficient and professional manner without detriment to the Hotel and / or its reputation.

• To be constantly proactive in anticipating guest needs & requirements and to demonstrate a high & consistent level of service at all times.

Qualified Belongers need only to apply.

Salary Range: Commensurate based on qualification and experience

Cook Job Requirements: • • • •

Middle level culinary skills Dependable, proactive, organized, team player Education from a formal culinary program At least two to three years cooking experience; preparing international breakfast, lunch and dinner in regional cooking environment • Sanitation certificate • Ability to plan, organize and execute meal plans • Must speak and read English fluently • Additional languages an asset Qualified Belongers need only to apply Salary Range: Commensurate based on qualification and experience

Kitchen Steward Job Requirements:

• Washes dishes, utensils and cookware following established procedures • Place clean dishes, utensils, and cooking equipment in storage areas.

• Maintain kitchen work areas, equipment, and utensils in clean and orderly condition.

• Assists in performing cleaning tasks as needed in the kitchen • Assists the cook(s) with food preparation as requested Belongers need only to apply Salary Range: Commensurate based on qualification and experience

Interested persons can contact our Human Resources Department no later than July 4th 2014.

@ (649) 946-5050 Ext. 1050 Email: veronica.clare@gracebayclub.com Fax: (649) 946-5758 P.O. Box 128 Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands, British West Indies

10025

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

CLASSIFIEDS 41

Blue Mountain Management Ltd Require

Housekeepers - be available to work seven days a week and able to speak English.

Rate $6.00 per hour

Resort Manager 10034

Please email resume by July 15, 2014 to emma@bluemountain.tc

Seven Stars is seeking suitably qualified candidates to fill the positions outlined below. The ideal candidate must possess experience in a luxury resort environment, as well as a professional, outgoing and friendly demeanor with a strong command of the English Language (oral and written). Salary is based on education, experience and qualifications.

FULL-TIME PHARMACIST Seeking a qualified applicant to be a

pharmacist

• Responsible for providing safe and appropriate pharmacy services in a retail pharmacy • Experience with and knowledge of computers • Excellent communication skills • Able to work independently Minimum Requirements: • Bachelor’s Degree in pharmacy from an accredited university • At least 5 years experience in retail pharmacy • Eligible for registration with the Health Practitioners Board Turks & Caicos Islands Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience

Fax resume to: 649-941-3338

Responsible for the day to day management of the Resort and its staff with accountability for planning, organizing and directing resort services. It will also be the responsibility of the Resort Manager to ensure Guest Satisfaction through Leadership, direction and management of the Resort Division. This includes Rooms Division, Spa, Security, Watersports, Kids Camp and a good knowledge of F&B. ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES • Responsible for the proper, efficient and profitable functioning of the Day to Day operations of the Hotel.

• Clarify duties and responsibilities of departments and ensure that work flows are in a logical and good order.

• Ensure that the hotel is clean and well maintained throughout.

• Ensure proper staffing levels.

• Ensure that hotel standards, policies and procedures are understood and followed.

• Control and analyze departmental costs to ensure performance is within budget • Oversees hiring, performance appraisals, training, disciplinary action, etc, for respective divisions.

• Attend/Lead daily morning briefings and any other meetings as scheduled • Develops annual priorities and operating plan and supports the hotel's long term strategy.

• Lead, motivate, and engage at all levels • Work on special projects as assigned by the Managing Director.

• Other duties and responsibilities may be assigned. The employee is expected to work in other areas of the hotel when needed to assist operations to perform job duties not necessarily contained in this job description.

REQUIREMENTS: • Required minimum of 5+ years’ experience at an executive committee level in a luxury hotel.

• Four-year degree in hospitality or other business related field preferred.

• Qualifications must include experience in financials, training, leadership and guest/associate relations.

• Excellent written and spoken English, fluent in at least one other European language is a must.

10038

MAINTENANCE CREW Is looking for an

electrician To work 5 days per week salary $6.00 per hour.

contact: 941-3063

10037

MERCEDES BEAUTY SALON

Recreation Manager

Is looking for a

The Recreation Manager develops, manages and supervises the entire recreation operations and staff of the following areas: Tennis, Pool and Beach, Water Sports, Fitness Centre and In-House Boat Excursions. The Recreation Manager organizes activities, special events and programs to increase the revenue in the above mentioned areas and ensure that effective and proper maintenance programs are in place for all the recreational equipment and facilities.

Nail

Technician

To work fulltime salary $7.00 per hour. contact: Katiusea M. Rodriquez at 649-343-4440 10035

VALUE FOR YOUR MONEY!! the largest readership in the turks & caicos

ESSENTAIL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES: • Directs day-to-day activities of the Fitness Centre, Tennis, Water Sports, Pool & Beach and in house Boat Excursions.

Ensures smooth, efficient and safe operations.

• Defines recreation standards, service, cleanliness, safety and ensures adherence to these.

• Regularly inspects all recreational facilities and equipment to ensure all are adequately maintained, safe and ready for use.

• Ensures proper usage of all equipment by training the staff and assisting the guests.

• Plans, develops and carries out recreation programs, including researching and creating programs, analyzing recreational needs and scheduling activities.

• Identifies and develops new service and equipment to enhance the product quality and meet the current and future needs.

• Control the stock of equipment in all the outlets of the Recreation Department with monthly inventory system.

• Responsible for preparing and administering assigned program budgets; submits budget recommendations; monitor expenditures and revenues.

• Ensures that all services offered in the Recreation Department are always available and carried out with outmost efficiency and courtesy.

• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with employees, members and guests.

• Supervises, evaluates, and ensures training/ career development plans of subordinates.

• Recommends changes in methods, equipment or staff to improve departmental standards and productivity.

• Constantly monitors key performance indicators for the department and takes corrective action.

• Maintain records and prepare reports.

• Deal tactfully and diplomatically with members and guests regarding rules, regulations, policies and procedures.

• Keeps the Resort Manager promptly and fully informed of all problems or unusual matters of significance.

• Responsible for the provision of First Aid on the Resort, including coordination of training and insuring all departments have adequate First Aid supplies.

• Performs other related duties as assigned or requested.

REQUIREMENTS: • 5 years Managerial experience in the Recreation Department of a Luxury Resort.

• First Aider • Boat Masters License • Diving Instructor – P.A.D.I Certified.

• Master Scuba Diver Trainer 10031

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June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Ricardo Fulford Consultant Services

on behalf of his clients: Taylor's Variety Store/Klass Enterprise is seeking employment for the following:

1) Sales Agent

Starting Salary is $5.00 per hour.

Interested candidate may contact 232-4868 for further details regarding employment.

Danny Buoys

The following vacancies currently exist within the Turks and Caicos Islands Public Service:

is seeking employment for the following:

1) Bar Tender

Grounds Maintenance Worker / Gardener

Starting Salary is negotiable with employer. Interested candidate must produce a certify Certificate for Bar Tender.

Please contact 946-5921 for further details regarding employment.

– Grand Turk (Deadline: July 4, 2014) Salary: $475.80 bi-weekly • This is a general support services position, to assist with cleaning and maintenance of assigned facilities and grounds so that they are clean and ready for use.

Clerical Assistants

– Grand Turk and Providenciales (Deadline: July 2, 2014) Salary: $15,720 per annum • The incumbent in this position will be responsible for clerical and administrative tasks to support the daily functions of the Office.

LIVE-IN COUPLE REQUIRED TO WORK IN PRIVATE VILLA A couple is required to work in a private villa, a cook and housekeeper. This is a live-in position and accommodation is provided for a couple possessing the following skills:

Procurement and Risk Manager

– Grand Turk (Deadline: July 8, 2014) Salary: $31,680 per annum • The Procurement and Risk Manager supports the Director of Contracts and Corporate Performance Management by applying a variety of Project / Programme Management Support and Risk Management principles to allow Ministers and Permanent Secretaries to make effective project and business decisions.

Tax Officer

– Grand Turk (Deadline: July 8, 2014) Salary: $30,024 per annum • The incumbent in this position is expected to conduct the necessary activities to get Taxpayers in default to comply with the requirements under the Revenue Ordinances and Regulations and maintain Compliance and Arrears cases assigned by the Assistant Commissioner/Senior Tax Officer.

VILLA COOK • Preferably at least 5 years’ experience in a luxury hotel, restaurant or as a personal cook in a private residence • He/she must possess the ability to prepare a range of international cuisines (Asian, fusion cuisine, French, Italian), as well as cater to guests individual dietary preferences that includes vegetarian, vegan, kosher, organic diets etc.

• Full ability and responsibility to take on menu planning and food preparation for house parties, BBQ’s, business meetings • Maintain the cleanliness and proper sanitation of kitchen at all times including deep cleaning of appliances, pots and pans, kitchen tools etc.

• Exercise good cost control, presenting monthly monitoring and replenishment of stocks and supplies • Computer literacy would be an advantage but not essential with the ability to record and present invoices and purchases in an accurate manner.

HOUSEKEEPER

Curriculum Development Officer

– Grand Turk (Deadline: July 9, 2014) Salary: $35,040 per annum • To coordinate the development, implementation and delivery and revision of Mainstream Education Curriculum, Technical and Vocational Curricula, Special Education Curricula, including Curricula for gifted students, and ensure that assessment procedures consistent with the various curricula, are conducted and constantly monitored at both Primary and Secondary levels.

Plant Health Officer

– Grand Turk/Providenciales (Deadline: July 8, 2014) Salary: $21,000 per annum • The incumbent in this position will assist in the implementation of the agricultural programme of work with a focus on the development to a phyto-sanitary regime.

Conservation Officers

– Several Islands (Deadline: July 8, 2014) Salary: $21,000 per annum • The incumbent in this position will be responsible for enforcing all pertinent environmental, fisheries and maritime laws in the TCI.

Prison Officers

– Grand Turk (Deadline: July 8, 2014) Salary: $21,000 - $22,800 per annum • To support the Superintendent of Prisons to maintain security, control, supervision and the safe custody of offenders. The successful candidate will be responsible for looking after Offenders and to help them lead law abiding and useful lives in custody and after release.

Interested persons are asked to visit www.gov.tc for job details and the application procedure.

10034

10030

• A self-motivated, highly detail oriented individual is require to work in a luxury villa • The successful candidate must demonstrate the ability to use their own initiative and have a good command of the English language as well as excellent communication skills • He/she must be prepared to sometimes work long hours, weekends and holidays • Housekeeping experience in a luxury or 5 star hotel or residence since attention to detail is essential • An awareness of cost control and energy saving • Ability to run errands, go shopping etc.

• He/she may be required from time to time to assist private cook in the serving of meals so an F&B background would be beneficial • Preferences will therefore be given to individuals who are flexible and able to multitask

BOTH CANDIDATES MUST ALSO: • • • • • •

Be willing to work flexible hours, weekends, holidays etc.

Be able to work within a team, be reliable and trustworthy Be extremely well presented and have a good command of English Must possess a clean driver’s license in order to run errands Must be prepared to carry out duties when guest are not in house Preference will also be given to individuals who have worked within a 5 star luxury environment • Salary dependent on experience • Note this is a live-in position only.

Suitable qualified candidates must apply in writing with resume details to P.O Box 143, Providenciales or Email: tcielite2014@gmail.com

VALUE FOR YOUR MONEY!!

the largest readership in the turks & caicos

June 28 - July 4, 2014

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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

Sports National Josh for Sports

Current events with previous conclusions A FURTHER call for investigation and resignation of the local Commonwealth Games Association and the TCAAA are totally in order and requires urgent attention.

Can someone please tell me what must I do and to what lengths must I go to get the government to investigate the anarchy that this country is subjected to as regards to the outrageous, blatant, distasteful mishandling of the above named, so called national associations, that claim to govern athletics and the Commonwealth Games in this, our beloved country.

For the more I find out, the less I know and the more I teach the public, the dumber I get.

FACTS For years now I’ve been complaining about the gross disrespect that has been perpetrated against this country as regards to the selection, management and training of our track and field teams to represent our country

As far as I’m concerned only three athletes deserve to be chosen at this time based on their constant, current achievements as are recorded in the US this season.

The athletes are Ifeanyi Otuonye, Kivarno Handfield and Angelo Garland.

By Joshua Gardiner

by the TCAAA and now the Commonwealth Games Association of the TCI. For years there have been alleged financial discrepancies by these bodies.

I beg to ask about the funds earmarked for various sports.

To my knowledge (and I’ve been digging) there is no accountancy or transparency in this regard.

The time will come when the truth will prevail. How can you choose athletes arbitrarily to represent us—who are not up to standard and who have not participated in a fair national trial selection process.

WEIGHT LIFTING Has there been a national competition to choose a team?

SHOOTING? What were the criteria for the selection for this sport?

CALL FOR INVESTIGATION As a result of the gross irregularities surrounding these two bodies, I’m calling on the Integrity Commission, the Attorney General’s Office, the Director of Sports, the Government and the Governor to investigate.

Enough for now AUTO RALLY For the past few years I’ve

NOTICE Regulation 7 of the Physical Planning (Development Permission) Regulations, 1990

An Application, (SC 708)*, by (Andrew's Communication Ltd.)* for the development of (Equipment building)*, has been submitted to the Department of Planning for consideration of Development Permission on (20207/31/1)*, (Highpoint)* on (South Caicos)*.

Anyone wishing to make representation(s) may do so in writing to the Director of Planning, South Base, Grand Turk or through the Department of Planning, Downtown, Town Center Mall, Providenciales, within twenty eight (28) days of publication of this Notice.

Notice dated: 12 June, 2014

applauded the honourable and exemplary accomplishment of Messers: Stan Hartling and co-driver Andy Proudfoot plus Paul Horton and Kris Yearwood as they continuously represent our TCI international in Canada and most recently in Barbados in auto rally.

These gentlemen have put our country on the map and deserve once again special accolades from the ministries of tourism, sports and also the foreign office for their unselfish and unsolicited contribution to the enhancement of our country’s image abroad.

I take this opportunity to personally applaud you gents

on behalf of our country and all of our “Josh for Sports” column readers. We are your die-hard fans and wish you every success in your future endeavours.

Once again thanks for the joy and pride that you have given us and our country, welcome home.

BASKETBALL The sport of basketball in the TCI has come a mighty long way. I don’t need to say too much at this moment for the epidemic basketball fever that has gripped this country speaks volumes on its own.

Keep up the good work.

THE DOWNTOWN BALL PARK

The Down Town Ball Park has deteriorated to a state of dis-repair, negligence, and unusable amenities that are disgraceful and unsanitary (health wise).

1. The toilets are reportedly none functional.

2. The carpet on the field needs urgent repairs.

3. There are pigeon droppings covering a portion of the grand stand.

4. All the seats need sanitising and scrubbing.

5. The ground beneath the seats is filthy.

Something needs to be done, the responsible person must answer.

Love Josh

TURKS AND CAICOS ISLANDS GOVERNMENT

VACANCIES The following vacancies currently exist within the Turks and Caicos Islands Public Service:

Grounds Maintenance Worker / Gardener – Grand Turk

(Deadline: July 4, 2014) Salary: $475.80 bi-weekly • This is a general support services position, to assist with cleaning and maintenance of assigned facilities and grounds so that they are clean and ready for use.

Clerical Assistants – Grand Turk and Providenciales

(Deadline: July 2, 2014) Salary: $15,720 per annum • The incumbent in this position will be responsible for clerical and administrative tasks to support the daily functions of the Office.

Procurement and Risk Manager – Grand Turk

(Deadline: July 8, 2014) Salary: $31,680 per annum • The Procurement and Risk Manager supports the Director of Contracts and Corporate Performance Management by applying a variety of Project / Programme Management Support and Risk Management principles to allow Ministers and Permanent Secretaries to make effective project and business decisions.

Tax Officer – Grand Turk

(Deadline: July 8, 2014) Salary: $30,024 per annum • The incumbent in this position is expected to conduct the necessary activities to get Taxpayers in default to comply with the requirements under the Revenue Ordinances and Regulations and maintain Compliance and Arrears cases assigned by the Assistant Commissioner/Senior Tax Officer.

Interested persons are asked to visit www.gov.tc for job details and the application procedure.

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Sports National

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Charlery stars with both bat and ball in Police’s win

CHABBIE Charlery has found form and the Lawmen are reaping the benefits.

In a key match against the dominant Quality Super Kings on Sunday last at the Downtown Ball Park in the TCI Cricket Association T20 competition the Police team recorded an easy win.

BOUNDARY LADEN Winning the toss it was Charlery

who led from the front. The former St. Lucian U-15 cricketer was ultraaggressive. In his stay at the crease he only scored two singles. Coming in at number four he was in boundary mode. He hit six huge sixes and eight fours all over the park in a quick-fire score of 68.

His aggression propelled the Lawmen to 206-8 from their allotted 20 overs.

Church Co-ed Softball League:

Harvest Bible record huge comeback win HARVEST BIBLE had a memorable game last Tuesday night when action in the Church Co-ed Softball League continued at the National Stadium.

Down 13-2 in the fifth innings to Methodist Church, Harvest Bible put on a batting clinic to win 14-13.

The night opened with St. Monica’s Anglican Church defeating the Roman Catholic Church 13-5.

On Monday Methodist Church gained a walkover victory from Abundant Life while Paradise Church defeated Harvest Bible 13-5.

Garvin Bruno, who scored a century in the previous clash, added 25. The Kings though had their moments of glory in the first innings: Ebbon Caesar finished with 2-15 from two overs while Damian St. Ange nabbed 2-36 from four overs, but the attention was on Charlery with the bat.

BOWLING DOMINANCE In the second period of the game Charlery was in the thick of things once again. His recent bowling form, one of the best this season, has produced results. In the first change over the left arm spinner who got a hat-trick in his previous match (four wickets in total) was again clinical.

He got four wickets in his first three overs to finish with 4-16 from four overs.

“I tried to put the ball in the right places,” he told the Weekly News.

The all-rounder said that he has been practicing and it has paid off.

Charlery’s four wickets and 2-9 from Hayden Spring (in three overs) restricted the Kings to 66 all out in 11.4 overs.

Chabbie Charlery has picked up eight wickets in his last two games.

Matsuzaki’s historic swim will hopefully spur growth of sport in TCI

The veteran, world renowned, swimmer will attempt to promote the sport to all TCI.

WHEN world renowned long distance swimmer Yuko Matsuzaki attempt to become the first person on record to swim from Sandy Point, North Caicos to Grace Bay next Wednesday (July 2) she will be doing so with the hope of promoting the sport of swimming to all TCI. TCI is a hub for water sports, but mostly at a recreational level.

Organisers of the “Race for the Conch” Ben Stubenberg and Chloe Zimmermann want to change this.

Bringing the 51-year-old Matsuzaki is important for the sport, since she is the epitome of courage and strength.

Originally from Tokyo, Japan, Ms. Matsuzaki is quite accustomed to challenging swim events, notably a world record 50 mile lake swim in Lake Pine, Florida. She competed several years on the professional swim marathon circuit on five continents, including 11.5 miles Jarak to Sabac (Serbia), 18 miles Kalamata

to Kroni (Greece), and 21.6 miles Capri to Naples (Italy). She is also the only Japanese swimmer to have been inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame.

Matsuzaki had previously stated that she was “very excited to be doing this first-time swim from North Caicos to Provo through the beautiful water of the Turks & Caicos,” and that “it’s a special way to highlight protecting the marine environment and encourage people to learn to swim.”

Ms. Matsuzaki will do the 15 miles swim under “English Channel Rules,” which means that she cannot touch the support boat. Rehydration drinks will be given to her from a pole.

She will start in Sandy Point, North Caicos. Local swimmers will escort her out of the harbour. She will turn north into the channel and then southwest, skirting the Caicos Cays inside the barrier reef past

Parrot Cay, Dellis Cay, Ft. George, Pine Cay, and Water Cay. She will then cross the Leeward Channel to Provo and continue swimming into Grace Bay to finish at the Grace Bay Club. Matsuzaki is expected to take approximately four to five hours for an 11:00h to 12:00h arrival.

Boat support will be provided

by Provo based Surfside Academy.

The swim will also be sanctioned by the World Open Water Swimming Association (WOWSA) and along with Race for the Conch, Provo based Caicu Naniki Sports Adventures is also organising the event.

On the evening of July 2, Ms. Matsuzaki will talk about the swim and the marine environment at a cocktail party fundraiser organised by the TCI Swim Federation and the Reef Fund at the Grace Bay Club Resort 6-8 pm. (Tickets are available at Marco Travel and Unicorn Bookstore)

June 28 - July 4, 2014

Sports National

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

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Missick confident of a “big jump” at Commonwealth Games DOMANIQUE Missick feels his best jumps are yet to come.

The national high jump record holder has been dormant for a while, but will use his opportunity this July 23-August 3 at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.

Missick dominated the sport a few years ago and made his best official jump in August of 2012, 2.20M—a national record to this date.

In 2011 he propelled TCI to sixth place at the Carifta Games after

winning a gold medal with a jump of 2.15M. These days the 22-year-old has refocused his energy and has been training hard in Grand Turk.

UNDERDOG Despite his accolades in the sport Missick still feels like the underdog.

“I always have something to prove, because I feel like the underdog.” This underdog is however confident that 2.20M would be a thing of the past when

Domanique Missick cleared 2.25M

he returns to the TCI from the Scotland competition.

BIG JUMP

Missick cleared 2.25M in practice last month, and he feels confident that he can reach 2.30M at the Games.

The national record holder is one of two high jumpers selected for the UK trip (Kivarno Handfield is the other).

Race for the Conch shaping up to be “biggest and best ever” – Windvibes will include Charity Challenge NEXT weekend (July 5-6) water enthusiasts are in for a treat. The “Race for the Conch” Eco-Seaswim and Windvibes have added delectable events and are gearing up to attract the largest amount of participants to date.

Race founders and co-directors of Race for the Conch Ben Stubenberg and Chloe Zimmermann said that the Saturday event was “shaping up to be the biggest and best ever” MORE PARTICIPANTS “Registrations are well ahead of last year, so word has really gotten out that Turks & Caicos is the place to be for world class open water swimming.”

This year the race directors are adding a 1/2 mile race (to the 1 mile and the 2.4 mile races and 100 metre Children’s Swim). Their objectives are “to get more people to give open water swim racing a go.”

The swim events will be followed by a 1/2 mile stand-up paddle board race—”Paddle for the Conch” – which race directors also hope will become an annual event.

TAKEN OFF The annual swim race began in 2010 with just 60 participants. It was started “just for the fun of it”.

Stubenberg and Zimmermann are not surprised the race event has taken off.

“Grace Bay, with its turquoise waters protected a huge reef, was made for open water racing and training,” says Stubenberg.

SPORTS TOURISM That vision has been echoed by The Daily News of Open Water Swimming, which has ranked the swim race as one of the Top 100 Open Water Swims in the World.

“The “Race for the Conch” has brought in around 500 additional visitors who would not otherwise have come,” says Zimmermann.

“So, it has become a small, but fast growing niche of sports tourism in the Turks & Caicos that benefits everyone.”

“We’re especially proud to be promoting our swim events with Windvibes,” Stubenberg said.

“Both events are so complimentary and a great showcase for the rapid development of water sports in the Turks & Caicos.”

Registration forms for the race can be picked up and dropped off at Marco Travel, Caicos Cafe Plaza in Grace Bay. On-line registration and more information on the “Race for the Conch” can be found at www. ecoseaswim.com.

WINDVIBES This is the first year that the two events will be held back to back.

Windvibes, which is into its

Organisers of Race for the Conch and Windvibes display one of two sign boards advertising next weekend’s big water events.

eighth year, is expected to splash off at Long Bay by Shore Club on Sunday from 10:00h.

The amateur watersports competition, involving kiteboarding, kayaking, stand up paddling, and swimming, is expected to be thrilling for the veterans and first timers alike.

Main organiser, ace kiteboarder, Hope LeVin told the Weekly News that the objective is to expose the various water sports to the general public.

She said she was happy that the events were a collaborative effort

this year.

“I’m very excited about running them (Windvibes and Race for the Conch) this way and I think we’re going to continue doing this in the future! By combining our efforts we’re raising more awareness of watersports in the TCI and getting more people involved in swimming and kiteboarding.”

Of the events kiteboarding is the only one that requires previous skills and equipment according to LeVin. NEW EVENTS

This year Windvibes will introduce “the Big Foot game” which has used the artistic skills of David Klinko and the Windvibes Charity Challenge. LeVin said that the challenge: “Is a relay event for teams of three consisting of SUP, kayaking, and swimming. Entry is $200 for a team and all the proceeds go to a local charity which will be chosen by the winning team.”

Blue Haven Resort is sponsoring the event, and the winner’s ceremony and party will be held at Salt from 7pm on Sunday.

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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014

LAND FOR SALE In beautiful Bottle Creek, North Caicos

.46 acres overlooking the creek, spanning King Road and Windsor Road

QUICK SALE

CALL 232-3508 or 946-4664

June 28 - July 4, 2014

TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

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TURKS AND CAICOS WEEKLY NEWS

June 28 - July 4, 2014