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Volume: 121 No.38, January 17, 2024

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FAMILY IS LEFT TO SLEEP ON GROUND Mom and six kids left homeless as demolitions resume

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net ROSELYN and her six children slept outside on the ground on Monday after their home was demolished in the unregulated All Saints Way community.

She told The Tribune her family had nowhere to go.

“The situation is stressful,” she said sitting on a bucket near someone else’s home, combing her daughter’s hair as a foul

A TRACTOR knocks down a structure in the shanty town known as All Saints Way yesterday.

Photo: Moise Amisial

SEE PAGE TWO

TOURISM CHIEF CALLS SHARK BITE Govt releases crime plan, FNM ‘unfortunate’, atlantis silent dismisses it as a ‘glossy brochure’ ATLANTIS representatives did not respond to questions before press time yesterday after a tenyear-old American boy was bitten by a shark at the resort.

Tourism Director Latia

Duncombe said the incident was “unfortunate”, but further details were not available.

Police said the ten-yearold Maryland boy was SEE PAGE FOUR

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net THE Davis administration said it would increase pay and benefits to legal officers to attract and retain top talent and hire more

prosecutors to manage the demands of the justice system –– two of many steps it hopes will help reduce crime after 2024 began with eleven murders in two weeks.

However, Free National Movement chairman Dr

Duane Sands dismissed the administration’s muchtouted crime plan, released yesterday, as a “glossy brochure” with vague details and recycled information.

The administration SEE PAGE FIVE

FTX’s Bahamian liquidators are asserting the settlement with their US adversary “represents the best deal” possible given that lengthy legal battles would slash creditor recoveries “possibly to extinction”.

Brian Simms KC, the

BRIAN SIMMS KC Lennox Paton senior

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

partner, in a January 12, 2024, affidavit filed with the Supreme Court alleged it is “extremely unlikely that more favourable terms could be achieved” with John Ray given that the Bahamian liquidation is in a “much weaker financial position” than their Chapter 11 counterpart.

A FENTANYL overdose killed a 23-year-old Abaco man in Grand Bahama earlier this year, the latest known death from the drug in The Bahamas.

Robin Jeantil, also known as “Tubby” from Hope Town, was found unresponsive at a nightclub in Grand Bahama on January 7 after he reportedly ingested an unknown pill.

Police said he was taken to the Rand Memorial

FULL STORY - SEE BUSINESS

SEE PAGE SEVEN

ftX settlement ‘represents the best deal’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

abaco man’s death was by fentanyl, say police

Nassau & Bahama Islands’ Leading Newspaper

Family is left to sleep on ground PAGE 2, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

from page one

scent polluted the area while demolition activities resumed.

She declined to give her full name but said her children range in age from two to 22. One had special needs and sat laughing and talking while she explained how much she needed help.

At least four of her children are school-aged, but did not go to school because of their precarious living situation.

Another woman in the area was surrounded by her four children, including two, ages five and eleven.

Last week, the Ministry of Education invited the public to report students missing from school on a

THE TRIBUNE

newly launched hotline, but some children in shanty town communities affected by eviction or demolition practices regularly miss classes.

Many residents –– some sad, others angry –– looked in disbelief as bulldozers tore down structures in their community yesterday.

Kelly, a 34-year-old mother of four and a longtime area resident, blamed the landowner for her predicament, saying he took money from them and gave false hope.

“For tonight, I don’t know where I going yet,” she said, citing the high cost of living. “From November, I was looking for place SEE PAGE THREE

DEMOLITION of shanty homes continued yesterday at All Saints Way. Photos: Moise Amisial

BUILDINGS CONTROL OFFICER CRAIG DELANCEY

as shanty demolition continues THE TRIBUNE

from page two to move because I couldn’t take the stress.”

She claimed a woman went insane after losing her home.

“It’s sad,” she added.

Government officials have repeatedly said that living accommodations will only be provided to Bahamians displaced by demolition activities.

Social Services Minister Myles Laroda added yesterday that 52 rooms will be made available to displaced Bahamians at the Poinciana Inn on Bernard Road and not just those who were shanty town residents.

Mr Laroda said Roselyn, the mother of six, might be a rare case of someone who couldn’t find accommodation and didn’t meet the government’s requirement for assistance.

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 3

He said people who lack status often find housing on their own.

“When those homes are demolished, the numbers that come to social services are relatively small because they find adequate housing elsewhere, especially if they are illegals,” he said.

Buildings Control Officer Craig Delancey said the demolition activities should be completed by the end of the week. More than 50 structures are being targeted. Forty have been demolished so far.

He said some indicated they were still looking for a place but packed up and were prepared to move.

“We have a few that are still saying that they still need more time and we’re trying to urge them to try move on as quickly as possible,” he said.

DEMOLITION of shanty homes continued yesterday at All Saints Way. Photos: Moise Amisial

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PUBLIC NOTICE The Public is hereby advised that

Clemmeth Eneas Jr.

is NOT AUTHORIZED to do any Real Estate Business on behalf of Clemmeth Eneas Sr.

PAGE 4, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

University of The Bahamas undergoing audit as they seek accreditation by Fall

THE TRIBUNE

TOURISM CHIEF CALLS SHARK BITE INCIDENT ‘unfortunate’, ATLANTIS SILENT from page one

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net UNIVERSITY of The Bahamas acting President Janyne Hodder said the institution is undergoing an audit as it seeks accreditation.

She said the university will mark a significant milestone later this Fall

when it formally submits its candidacy for accreditation.

The university is seeking accreditations through the National Accreditation and Equivalency Council of the Bahamas, America’s Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the European Union, the United Kingdom and others.

Ms Hodder noted that the institution has 5,000 students and the university intends to expand some of its programmes.

“We are trying to expand some of our programmes, keep our baccalaureate degrees, expand in offering short courses and short credit courses as well to serve a greater range of

Bahamians who might not be interested in doing a full degree programme or could be interested in shortening credit courses,” she said. “And we also grow in our graduate programmes.”

She said the university is trying to ensure the curriculum meets the needs of employers and helps with national development.

UNIVERSITY of The Bahamas (UB) Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr Maria Oriakhi, Acting UB President Janyne Hodder and Regional Director of Public Affairs Disney Cruise Line Joey Gaskins during a press conference to announce an environmental conclave at the University of The Bahamas yesterday. See PAGE 11 for more on the environmental conclave.

UNIVERSITY of The Bahamas acting President Janyne Hodder said the institution is undergoing an audit as it seeks accreditation.

Photos: Dante Carrer

participating in an expedition in a “shark tank at a local resort on Paradise Island” when the incident happened.

Atlantis offers a snorkelling programme where people can swim alongside sharks and other animals.

NBC News reported yesterday that Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings said: “I’m a police officer on the island, and I have never been over to the aquarium that they’re referring to.

As for how it’s set up, you’ll have to speak to personnel at the resort.”

The shark attack comes amid increased attention to such incidents.

Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) president Robert Sands said in December that a task force would examine watersports and beach activity concerns after a shark killed an American woman in waters near the Sandals resort that month.

REGIONAL Director of Public Affairs Disney Cruise Line Joey Gaskins.

Govt releases crime plan, FNM dismisses it as a ‘glossy brochure’ THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 5

FREE National Movement chairman Dr Duane Sands dismissed the Davis administration’s much-touted crime plan, released yesterday, as a “glossy brochure” with vague details and recycled information.

from page one said its plan is based on a five-pillar strategy of prevention, policing, prosecution, punishment and rehabilitation.

“While a slick and glossy product with beautiful graphics, it was short on granular details,” Dr Sands said. “In all, given the severity of the problem being faced in the country, a glossy brochure as the basis of the way

forward confirms that this is more about PR than governance.”

Dr Sands said the government’s crime plan seemed like an expansion of its Blueprint for Change pre-election manifesto.

“We are in crisis,” he said. “This document is not comprehensive. It is not fleshed out. It was a hastily crafted media piece to make good on the promise made during the PM’s lacklustre address. And it is not

worth the glossy paper that it is printed on.”

Much of what is in the plan was previously announced by Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis or highlighted by other national security officials.

According to the document, the Davis administration will seek to prevent at-risk youth from being involved and affiliated with gangs by providing scholarships to atrisk youth for the Bahamas

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Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI).

The plan said saturation patrols would be expanded, and facial recognition CCTVs would be introduced.

New sentencing guidelines will be introduced to “reflect current societal norms and legal priorities,” the document says.

More public defenders also will be hired “to ensure equitable legal representation for all individuals regardless of economic status,” and more pathologists will be hired to reduce delays in forensic examinations and autopsy reports, “which are crucial for criminal investigations and legal proceedings.”

Laws will impose “severe penalties for gang affiliation and activities,” and penalties for firearm possession will be reviewed.

Cognitive behavioural therapy will be expanded to help rehabilitate convicts, and private sector partnerships will be sought to provide jobs for ex-offenders, according to the plan.

PAGE 6, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

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Publisher/Editor 1903-1914

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

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How 2023’s record heat worsened droughts, floods and bushfires around the world (This article is by Albert Van Dijk, Professor, Water and Landscape Dynamics, Fenner School of Environment & Society, Australian National University for THE CONVERSATION) 2023 was a year of record-breaking heat, devastating storms and floods, deepening droughts and raging wildfires. These events showed how climate change is affecting the global water cycle and our livelihoods.

Our international team of researchers has released a report, the Global Water Monitor, documenting the impact of the record heat in 2023 on the water cycle. We used data from thousands of ground stations and satellites to provide real-time information on various environmental parameters.

The report summarises conditions and events in 2023 and long-term trends. We found global warming is profoundly changing the water cycle. As a result, we are seeing more rapid and severe droughts as well as more severe storms and flood events.

Scores of countries had record average annual temperatures in 2023. Severe droughts hit three continents. The world’s largest forests suffered, with Canada battling huge fires and the Amazon hit hard by drought.

Heat is drying out the world The most obvious sign of the climate crisis is the unprecedented heat waves that swept the globe in 2023. Earth’s hottest year on record gave us a glimpse of what a typical year with 1.5°C of warming may look like. Global warming consistently more than 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels is expected to have extreme and irreversible impacts on the Earth system.

Some 77 countries experienced their highest average annual temperature in at least 45 years.

Temperature records were shattered from Canada to Brazil, Spain to Thailand.

The high temperatures were often accompanied by very low air humidity.

The relative air humidity of the global land surface was the second-driest on record in 2023.

Rapid drying of farms and forests caused crops to fail and forests to burn. Lack of rain and soaring temperatures intensified multi-year droughts in vulnerable regions such as South America, the Horn of Africa and the Mediterranean.

The past two decades have significantly increased air temperatures and reduced air humidity. This continuing trend toward drier conditions is threatening agriculture, biodiversity and overall water security.

These conditions heighten heat stress and increase the water needs of people, crops and ecosystems.

Scorching conditions inflicted extensive damage on the world’s largest forests. Massive wildfires ravaged Canada during the northern summer. Later in the year the Amazon rainforest and rivers descended into severe drought.

The world’s forests have been soaking up a lot of our fossil fuel emissions.

That’s because plant photosynthesis absorbs carbon dioxide from the

atmosphere. Large disturbances like fire and drought reduce or even reverse that function.

Water cycle changes fuel intense storms A change in circulation and sea temperatures in the Pacific Ocean to El Niño conditions influenced the global water cycle in 2023.

But this happened against a backdrop of increasing sea surface temperatures due to global warming.

Rising sea surface and air temperatures have been intensifying the strength and rainfall intensity of monsoons, cyclones and other storm systems.

We saw this happen close to home.

Cyclone Jasper battered northern Queensland and severe storms formed in south-east Queensland, leaving a trail of destruction.

The cyclone moved much slower than expected, causing torrential rains and widespread flooding.

In 2023, we also saw other cyclones behave in unexpected and deadly ways.

A cyclone travelled across to New Zealand. The longest-lived cyclone ever recorded battered south-eastern Africa for weeks. And a cyclone developed in the Mediterranean Sea, crossing from Greece to destroy reservoir dams in Libya, killing thousands.

The estimated global damage from cyclones in 2023 surpassed US$45 billion.

Warmer sea temperatures fuel such freak events.

As the climate crisis deepens, we can expect more unprecedented storms.

Outlook: 2024 and beyond At the start of 2024, the greatest risk of developing or intensifying drought appears in Central and South America (except southern Brazil and Uruguay), southern Africa and western Australia.

Regions that received much rainfall towards the end of 2023 are unlikely to develop drought for at least several months.

These include the Sahel region and the Horn of Africa, northern Europe, India, China and South-East Asia.

The events of 2023 show how the threat of ongoing climate change to our planet and lives is growing by the year.

There were many such events in 2023, and the human and economic toll was large.

These events should not be viewed as isolated incidents but as part of a broader emerging pattern.

Globally, the frequency and intensity of rainfall events and flooding are increasing.

At the same time, there are also more and faster developing droughts, or flash droughts, that can cause crop failure and destructive wildfires within weeks or months.

With the global food challenge, biodiversity crisis and an extremely urgent need to reduce carbon emissions, these droughts and fires are among our greatest global threats.

Overall, 2023 provided a stark reminder of the consequences of our continued reliance on fossil fuels and the urgent need but apparent inability of humanity to act decisively to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

UNNECESSARY AND AVOIDABLE DANGER TO PATIENTS AT PMH EDITOR, The Tribune.

I WAS recently an inpatient at PMH. I quickly observed that young doctors, I believe Interns, were on uninterrupted duty, which they refer to as being “on call”, for 32-36 hours at a time without respite or going home. One could easily tell after 15-20 hours, that they were absolutely exhausted and essentially out on their feet.

I was very sick at the time, and yet found myself feeling sorry for the poor kids. They are kids. Most of them are in their twenties and genuinely trying their best. I think this is untenable and a major risk to the health and even lives of patients. Eight hours work a day is a reasonable average. 12 hours is a lot.

But 32-36 hours is excessive, insane and inhumane. No one can function properly after so many hours without sleep. And it is even more concerning because these

are individuals dealing with life and death decisions and procedures.

An error or oversight due to sleep deprivation could easily cost someone their life. That is just unacceptable. How many of us would like a pilot who has not slept in over 24 hours to fly us anywhere? This situation is similar, except the patients are mostly unaware of it.

The administrators at the hospital are aware of it, and either they are incompetent, inept, simply don’t care or are just plain ruthless and mean-spirited. Whatever it is, they should be ashamed of themselves for instituting or permitting, it thereby betraying the trust the public reposed in them. It is bordering on criminality.

The law in the Bahamas, I believe stipulates a 40 hour week, yet these young doctors are being made to work almost that in one shift and more than double that in a week, it is my understanding

that these Interns are contracted and paid for 40 hours work per week, yet they are being forced to do more than double that for the same money.

That is not only exploitation and abuse, but absolutely inhumane. It is pure slavery, disguised as dedication and call to duty.

It needs to stop immediately.

Apart from this very unfair and inhumane treatment of these doctors by the Hospital Authority, they are seriously endangering the lives of patients and causing preventable deaths.

This situation must be addressed and this ridiculous practice must stop immediately. The doctors should not work more than 12 hours in a single shift (which is a lot) without at least an eight hour rest in between.

A ROLLE Nassau, January, 2024.

WAVES crash on the frozen shore of Lake Michigan in Evanston, Ill., Tuesday.

(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Not a good way to start what we hoped would be a peaceful year EDITOR, The Tribune.

ON Thursday, January fourth Guardian headline read two more shot dead.

Four murders in three days Tribune reads Two murdered in broad daylight.

Not a good way to start what we were praying to be the beginning of a peaceful year in the Bahamas.

This is frightening and it is time for some self-examination.

Our question is where are all of the killings done and who is killing whom?

If we are to be true to ourselves we would admit that everything that is happening is all characteristics of our environment.

The robbery and killing did not start yesterday. It all started when we turned a blind eye to dope selling in our community. When parents and guardians traded morals and values for extravagant novelties from our unemployed youth who is wearing two hundred dollar Nike sneakers.

Teenagers charged with carrying arms and taking marijuana-laced brownies to school are nothing to be taken lightly. But then again it is a way of life in the hood. My uncles are my heroes.

The addiction to gambling did not start with the webshops. It all started when we played cards under the tamarind tree and shot dice under the lamp poles.

This is what we did while growing up. let’s face it the webshops are just feeding an insatiable need that is ingrained in us.

Babies having babies are all protégées of the environment.

For the greater part, the person we are has a lot to do with where we grew up. Our behavior is influenced by the environment we were brought up in.

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net

That doesn’t mean everyone who came from a home of domestic violence is destined to become a wife-beater. But there is a probability that one of the children falls into that category.

Most Children who grew up in Christian homes because of their upbringing are unlikely to become victims of peer pressure. We did say most.

Nor does it mean there is no way out of the hood.

Because The majority of our influential people in society are from the hood.

I know I’m going to get slapped around for saying this but a lot of the influentials who leave the hood pretend they never lived in the inner city.

Can’t say we blame them.

And then again as few as it may be, there are some who make it their number one priority to go back to their roots and give back.

Walter Hanchel, Alfred Stewart, Kirkland Murphy, and Raymond Wells are men of the cloth who strive daily to make a change.

These men, these under Shepherd are products of the hood who have maintained their conviction to God and the church to feed their flock and take care of the orphaned and the widow.

The inner city which is rife with corruption and crime can only be defused by greater police presence.

We are not talking commando-style but community policing.

Churches where are you this battle is in your community at your closed front doors.

More and more The policemen are deemed

enemies of the people.

That stigma can only be broken by frequent presence and involvement.

Even little children are saying they don’t like the cops.

Commissioner, you can’t have roadblocks once in a while and expect changes.

Roadblocks must be consistent.

Walkabouts must be consistent.

I said it before and I’m saying it again this is war.

And all hands must be on board. This is not just a battle for the police.

The police have their role to play and we have ours.

Be reminded that we are not fighting flesh and blood but powers and principalities in dark places. So when we go to war we are armed with our Bibles, our faith, our love, and our tears.

2 Chronicle 7:14 “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land”.

We must stop the enemy from taking our children away from us.

Breaking News, Police” say a sixteen-year-old female has been shot dead in Nassau Village.

The incident pushes the murder count to eight web shops for 2024” Mathew 2:18 “In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are no more.”

God save our children God bless the Bahamas ANTHONY PRATT Nassau, January 7, 2024.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 7

Students displaced after fire damages four classrooms at SC McPherson

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Staff Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

OVER 100 students and several teachers have been displaced at the SC McPherson Junior High School after a fire ripped through four classrooms last week.

Dominique Russell, acting Director of Education, said investigations are ongoing to determine the cause of the fire that broke out in one classroom after school and spread to three others last Friday.

She said a meeting took place on Monday with all stakeholders, including the unions, the district superintendent at the Ministry of Education, the principal, and the school board.

She noted that a plan of action was discussed and agreed by all.

In the meantime, the school principal has identified alternative accommodations on campus for both students and teachers.

Displaced students and teachers have relocated to the agriculture room and auditorium, and crews have conducted smoke remediation and clean-up at the site.

Ms Russell said the principal also met with the four affected teachers to ascertain their needs. She said the school board is buying new curriculum materials to replace those destroyed in the fire.

“From where we sit, we

believe what was planned and what is being implemented now is exactly what should have transpired,” said the director, responding to concerns expressed by the Bahamas Union of Teachers.

Ms Russell said repairs will begin at the school following the investigations.

She could not provide the estimated cost of the damage.

BUT President Belinda Wilson said 140 students and eight teachers were directly affected.

She said during Monday’s meeting with the school principal and other stakeholders, “commitments were made, most of which were not met thus far.”

“Today, BUT as a followup, I tried to speak with the principal to address the outstanding matters, and the principal walked out of her office and the matters have not been satisfactorily addressed,” she said.

Ms Wilson said the BUT has written a letter to the acting director with its concerns.

“We are only interested in a viable plan to ensure teachers can teach and students can learn in a safe, healthy environment,” she said.

“The principal has not communicated satisfactorily with the teachers or parents so that all stakeholders will be able to work together toward a swift resolution.”

Police autopsy reveals fentanyl overdose killed Abaco man in GB from page one hospital in a private vehicle, but was pronounced dead by a local doctor.

A police official confirmed yesterday that an autopsy concluded he died from a fatal drug overdose linked to fentanyl.

This comes as concerns mount over the use of illicit fentanyl in the country.

Fentanyl is prescribed to treat severe pain, typically from acute traumatic pain or advanced cancer. Illicit fentanyl is a synthetic opioid. Officials say just two milligrams or a drug tablet can be lethal.

Police Chief Superintendent Earl Thompson, director of the police force’s Scientific Support Services, said since 2018, six deaths had been attributed to illicit fentanyl up to the time his press conference was held last July, with two of the people Bahamians.

Police said they’ve seen an increase in fentanyl pills imported into the country over the last five years, finding them in nightclubs and at parties.

“We don’t want our nation to be destroyed because of this drug use and we’ve seen fentanyl, it is here,” said Police Chief Superintendent Roberto Tyrone Goodman, officer-in-charge of the Drug Enforcement Unit.

Noted Bahamian psychiatrist Dr David Allen has said the country cannot afford a fentanyl epidemic.

The Nassau Guardian reported another fentanyl-related death in October, which also happened in Grand Bahama.

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ROBIN ‘TUBBY’ JEANTIL

Crime issue requires long-term plan, there are no quick fixes PAGE 8, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

CRIME seems to confound the people of this country. It happens, and often. When crime is reported, people shake their heads, grumble, and start blaming. The young people, the mothers (never the fathers), and, for more often than one might expect, the victims. Hands are thrown in the air, accompanied by exclamations that it is too far gone, there is nothing to be done, it will never get any better. At the end of the year, everyone bemoans the murder count. At the start of another year, everyone is shocked by the first murders that occur in January. There are calls for the government to do something about it.

Maybe we get a statement or two, but we usually do not see a real plan. Is this year any different?

Commission of Police says the Bail Act needs to be amended because some people charged with serious crimes were out on bail within two or three months.

The Attorney General says there is nothing wrong with the Bail Act, and suggests that the prosecution and judges need to do a better job. The Minister of National Security says the public needs to help law enforcement.

The police and the antirights group met with gang members and tried to pose questions, as though there is a relationship or any degree of trust between them, considering their broadcasted

THE TRIBUNE

By Alicia Wallace

positions. The prime minister called for a national day of prayer (which, of course, received an enthusiastic support and was immediately actioned, unlike other, more practical and productive recommendations).

These people, who all know each other well and are largely a part of the same administration do not seem to speak to each other on the issue of crime, much less agree on what needs to happen. Even the Opposition, in its tantrum, failed to articulate even a part of a plan. Everyone, it seems, is lost.

By now, we should know that there is no quick fix for crime.

When we talk about many issues, including crime, an argument that is often brought is that “we can’t expect the government to do everything.” What we see happening around us and what is reported in the news is all related to what the government does and does not do. We have expectations of the government that are largely based on what political parties promise when they want to win leadership

in general elections. Other factors that shape our expectations include taxation and what we understand to be public goods and services.

Public goods and services benefit all members of society, provided “free”— funded through taxation.

They include education, healthcare, infrastructure, law enforcement, and parks.

Individuals do not need to and would not be able to purchase them. This is one of the main purposes of the government. There are significant issues with public goods and services in this country, and this is not separate from the scourge of crime which is, obviously, linked to poverty.

We can look at just one public good as an example.

The education system is not producing the informed, engaged, confident citizens we need. Civic education is severely lacking. Life skills are not being taught, so people are leaving school, at 17 and 18 years of age, without knowing how to open a bank account, how to write a resume and cover letter, what the voting process is like, or how to properly put on a

‘By now, we should know that there is no quick fix for crime.’ condom. There are nationwide complaints, every year, about the D average in the BGCSEs and there seems to be no analysis of the examinations, especially against the curriculum, and what is actually covered in different schools—because it varies from one school to another.

There must be numerous factors that are contributing to this effect.

Some schools are not comfortable environments, some schools lack proper equipment, some students need specific interventions, some home situations affect the ability of students to study, complete assignments, and even pay attention during the school day. Schools are a great place to begin to get an understanding of Bahamian society and what is happening in households. We have been, for years, missing the opportunity to be attentive and responsive to students and their needs, and to appropriately intervene where there are pressing issues including poverty, violence, mental health challenges, and specific learning needs. Instead, students— who are still children—are judged, and harshly.

We already know that young people are targeted by gangs, and early. They have needs that seem to be more obvious to gang members than they are to teachers and other people around them, so those needs are leveraged. They come to believe that they need the protection and supplication that gangs say they can provide. Some young people have said that it is next to impossible to avoid being recruited. This is one of the reasons that some families struggle to do certain things that outsiders see as living beyond their means, from sending their children to private schools to buying a cars to drop and pick them up so they do not have to walk which increases the chances of them being approached.

Already, there are layers here to peel back. From education to gang recruitment to low income to debt to judgment.

We can easily connect the education issue with the employment issue.

Upon completion of high school, whether or not it is with a diploma, many young people need to find a job.

What is available to them is often limited. Minimum wage jobs can even be difficult to come by, and when one is secured, the young person has to figure out how they can live on that level of income. If it is a night job, how will they get to and from? If they have a child, because they never had comprehensive sexuality education which includes information on contraception, they have to budget for food, diapers, and other necessities. If they live at home, they have to contribute to bills, or the bills may be almost entirely their own responsibility due to other

circumstances.

We can make the connection, now, to social services.

It should be common knowledge that the assistance provided by social services is nowhere near enough. We have seen news stories on women living in cars with the children, people displaced

by Hurricane Dorian, and people whose homes were demolished. Different people get different levels and types of support. Some may have family to call on. Some may get the attention of an organization that can assist. Some may be lucky to find a job that pays a living wage. Some may have savings. Some, without a doubt, become involved in criminal activity.

It would be too general to say that people blame families for both poverty and the criminal activities of individuals. The blame is not generally laid on parents either, but on mothers.

Even when references are made to parents and families, it is implied that women are responsible for raising children and, even further, policing their adult children.

Women and families, unfortunately, do not receive the support that would enable them to do all of the work that is expected of them to build a nation.

Some women engage in sex work which, it must be noted, is not limited to the outright buying and selling of sex, but the transactional relationships that enable many, many families in The Bahamas to eat. This may sometimes result in an unwanted pregnancy. All women are not able to access abortion due to the criminalization and cost, so many are forced to seek unsafe abortions or to have unwanted children they cannot afford. Having more children than one can afford is not looked at kindly by the general public, largely made up of people who would not and do not show up of for the protection of sexual and reproductive rights, bodily autonomy, and the right to chose. Paid maternity leave is only granted under certain circumstances, so some women have to forgo leave or forgo pay. You may not like that sex work is work, and you may not like that abortion is, in fact, healthcare; these are the facts.

Gender issues are connected to economic issues.

The economic situation in The Bahamas dictates that, in most households, both people in a relationship have to work. This does not leave much room for direct engagement with and supervision of children. This is especially true and challenging where tourism is the number one industry, and requiring work around the clock which means many people must work shifts. Everyone does not live a 9-to-5 life. What does this mean for children after school? It is important to remember

POLICE at the crime scene where a grandmother was killed and a four-year-old boy was shot in the head. that millennials do not have the luxury of leaving their children with their own parents because they, too, are still working. Who is supposed to step in? How do we keep ourselves from raising little criminals when we do not have the quality time to spend at home during their waking hours?

These are the issues that we need to discuss. They may seem heavy, deep, or rabbit-hole-like, but they are closely connected with the issue at hand. There is no quick fix for crime. Capital punishment may be fun for some to say, but it is against international human rights standards and, perhaps more importantly to those proposing or thinking about it, it is not effective. Gun fights, going to jail and coming out to seek retribution, murdering people while on bail and the like do not suggest the fear of death or repercussions of the act that is being assumed of murderers.

Punishment is not prevention. It is what happens, if the law enforcement and court systems work, after the crime is committed. It is something, but it is not everything. It cannot be the solution. There is work to do outside of the punishment. It begins with assessing, repairing, and building systems, ensuring that they work for people—not for political parties or other institutions.

It also begins with us, looking at our own behavior, our own complicity, and our own responsibility to do better.

Yes, we need changes in law. Yes, we need policies. Yes, we need a national development plan. Yes, we need short-term interventions. None of that will solve this problem without a longterm plan, properly executed, that engages with government-controlled systems that we depend on, whether or not we actively use them.

RECOMMENDATIONS UÊ Ê Ì iÊ 7 i ½ÃÊ Wednesday’s session on eating well with health coach Ashley FoulkesMoss at 6pm. Equality Bahamas will be in conversation with her about nutrition, dieting, setting realistic goals, prioritizing health, and enjoying food. Register at tiny.cc/ wweatwell.

UÊ Ê i ÃÌÊ Ê Club, hosting by Equality Bahamas and Poinciana Paper Press. The first meeting this year will be held on Wednesday, February 21 at 6pm, both in-person at Poinciana Paper Press at 12 Parkgate Road and online.

Blind Days by Ian Chinaka Strachan and Citizen

by Claudia Rankine will be discussed at that meeting. Register at tiny.cc/ fbc2024.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 9

ROBOT BARISTAS AND AI CHEFS CAUSED A STIR AT CES 2024 AS CASINO UNION WORKERS FEAR FOR THEIR JOBS

TECHTALK

SYNOPSYS BUYING ANSYS IN $35 BILLION DEAL, CREATING AUTOMATION AND ENGINEERING SOFTWARE GIANT

By RIO YAMAT Associated Press LAS VEGAS (AP) — The barista tipped the jug of smooth, foamy milk over the latte, pouring slowly at first, then lifting and tilting the jug like a choreographed dance to paint the petals of a tulip.

Latte art is a skill that can take months if not years of practice to master — but not for this barista powered by artificial intelligence.

Robots of all kinds caused a stir on the show floor this week at the annual CES technology trade show in Las Vegas.

It’s innovations like this that worry Roman Alejo, a 34-yearold barista at the Sahara hotel-casino on the Las Vegas Strip, who can’t help but wonder if the clock is ticking on hospitality jobs in the age of AI. “It is very scary because tomorrow is never promised,” he said.

“A lot of AI is coming into this world. It is very scary and very eye-opening to see how humans can think of replacing other humans.”

The world’s largest tech show put those fears back under the spotlight just a little over a month after the casino workers union in Las Vegas ratified new contracts for 40,000 members, ending a bitter, high-profile fight that called attention to AI’s threat to union jobs.

“Technology was a strike issue and one of the very last issues to be resolved,” said Ted Pappageorge, the Culinary Workers Union’s secretary-treasurer who led the teams that negotiated new five-year contracts, narrowly averting a historic strike at more than a dozen hotel-casinos on the Strip.

A BARISTA robot designed by Richtech Robotics performs during the CES tech show last week, in Las Vegas.

(AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

Hospitality workers told The Associated Press in interviews over eight months of bargaining that they were willing to take a cut in pay while on strike to win stronger job protection against inevitable advancements in technology. That includes technology already at play at some resorts: self check-in stations, automated valet ticket services and robot bartenders known as “tipsy robots.”

Pappageorge said the emergence of robotics in the hospitality and service industry has been on the union’s radar for years. The difference now, he told The Associated Press this week, “is the combination of artificial intelligence and robotics.”

Experts say that breakthrough in AI technology has forced labour unions to rethink how they negotiate with companies.

Bill Werner, an associate professor in the hospitality department at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said unions now have to be “much more deliberate” in their negotiations for job security.

The types of casino union jobs at risk could look drastically different five years from now, for example, when the Culinary Union’s contract ends.

“What is going to happen to these people

THE YO-Kai Express robot chef machine, made in partnership with Pulmone, is displayed during the CES tech show. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)

THE ARTLY barista robot serves a drink during the CES tech show.

(AP Photo/Ryan Sun) and what rights do they have?” he one of the more than 4,000 exhibisaid. “And what happens to them tors at CES this year, said he isn’t if they lose their job to a robot?” in the business of eliminating jobs.

In its latest contract, the union Wang said Artly’s autonomous cushioned its so-called safety barista bots can help fill a labour net for workers, winning $2,000 shortage in the service industry. in severance pay for each year “Baristas have a hard job. It’s worked if a job is eliminated by very labour intensive, long hours. tech or AI, as well as the option The pay is not that good,” he to try to move to a different said. “What we are doing is not department within the company. replacing jobs. We are filling the Pappageorge said they had to need in the market and we are “develop new language” that pro- bringing specialty coffee to more tected workers both from today’s places.” technology and “technology that But Werner said AI poses a we don’t even know is coming.” real threat to casino union jobs “This idea that technology, that don’t require face-to-face robotics and artificial intelligence interaction with customers — is just running wild with no con- housekeeping, food preparation trol at all can do incredible and cooks, for example. damage,” Pappageorge said. “So “When the industry doesn’t what we have to do is get ahead have to worry about the effect on of the curve, and CES is where customer service, then that takes it’s at.” a lot of the risk out of automaMore than 100 union mem- tion,” he said. That’s especially bers attended the trade show this true for a people-pleasing tourweek to scope out emerging tech ist destination like the Las Vegas that could put more casino jobs Strip, where customers expect at risk. top-notch service and experiAnd there was plenty new on ences, including the latest trends the show floor: Friendly-faced in technology. robots that complete deliverThat makes Las Vegas “a good ies in hotels and restaurants. place to test these things and see A robotic masseuse. Bots that how customers react to it,” he can prepare and serve coffee, said. ice cream or boba. AI-powered The Culinary Union and its smart grills that can handle tasks members, like Alejo, the barista, like broiling and searing without acknowledge that the hospitality a human in the kitchen. And industry is ever-evolving. chef-like robots teasing a future “The innovations are incredwith “autonomous restaurants,” ible,” Alejo said. “But it is very as one company put it. scary that in today’s world, eveMeng Wang, co-founder of rything seems to revolve around food tech startup Artly Coffee, technology.”

SYNOPSYS is buying Ansys in a cash-and-stock deal valued at approximately $35 billion, the first big buyout attempt of the year that would join two big automation and engineering software companies.

Ansys shareholders will receive $197 in cash and 0.3450 shares of Synopsys common stock for each Ansys share.

“This transformative combination brings together each company’s highly complementary capabilities to meet the evolving needs of today’s engineers and give them unprecedented insight into the performance of their products,” Ansys CEO Ajei Gopal said in a prepared statement Tuesday.

The companies said that their businesses complement one another and the acquisition will enhance Synopsys’ Silicon to Systems strategy both across the core electronic design automation segment and in other areas such as automotive, aerospace and industrial, where Ansys has an established presence and successful go-tomarket experience.

Ansys is heavily involved in automotive, aerospace and defense, construction, energy, materials and chemical processing. The biggest customers for Synopsys include Advanced Micro Devices and Intel, designing chips for a multitude of sectors.

Analysts with Baird this month pointed out tremendous growth in the sector, highlighting Synopsys. Shares of both companies have soared this year with significant advances in artificial intelligence, particularly Synopsys.

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4. Shadowrocket, Shadow Launch Technology Limited 5. MONOPOLY, Marmalade Game Studio 6. HotSchedules, HotSchedules 7. Bloons TD 6, Ninja Kiwi 8. Papa’s Freezeria To Go!, Flipline Studios 9. The Wonder Weeks, Domus Technica 10. Plague Inc., Ndemic Creations

PAGE 10, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

Airport, Airline and Allied Union executives pay courtesy call on DPM

THE TRIBUNE

ELEUTHERA MAN CHARGED WITH POSSESSION OF EIGHT POUNDS OF HEMP AND GUN

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN was granted bail after he was allegedly found with a loaded firearm and eight pounds of marijuana in Eleuthera last weekend.

Acting Chief Magistrate Roberto Reckley charged Daxton Gibson, 33, with possession of an unlicensed firearm, possession of ammunition and possession of dangerous drugs with intent to supply.

Quinton Percentie represented the defendant.

Police allegedly found

Gibson with a black Austria Glock 9mm pistol and over 40 rounds of ammunition at Three Island Dock in North Eleuthera on January 12.

Gibson also allegedly had eight pounds of marijuana with an estimated street value of $8,000.

After pleading not guilty to the charges, the defendant’s bail was set at $9,500 with one or two sureties.

Under the terms of his bail, Gibson must sign in at the North Eleuthera Airport Police Station every Friday.

His trial begins in Harbour Island on February 28.

WOMAN ACCUSED OF INSURANCE FRAUD SCHEME GRANTED BAIL AIRPORT, Airline and Allied Union (AAAWU) executives paid a courtesy call on Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism, Investments and Aviation Chester Cooper at

the Office of the Prime Minister, yesterday.

Dr Kenneth Romer, Deputy Director General and Director of Aviation, was also present at the event.

IN photo, from left: Oliver Pinder, Trustee; Karea Turnquest, Asst. General Secretary; Susan Culmer, Trustee; Dora Missick, Treasurer; Jewel Fountain, President of AAAWU; Pedro Richards, General Secretary; Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper; Dr.Kenneth Romer; Tonique Mcintosh, Vice President; Terico Laing, Trustee; and Corla Sabala, Treasurer.

Photo: Kemuel L Stubbs/BIS

MAN ON BAIL FOR MURDER PUT ON PROBATION AFTER CURFEW BREACH

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A MAN on bail for attempted murder was placed on probation after admitting to breaching his curfew last Sunday.

Acting Chief Magistrate

Roberto Reckley charged Kino Knowles, 35, with violating his bail conditions.

While on release for a pending attempted murder trial, Knowles breached his court-ordered nightly residential curfew on January 14 in New Providence.

After pleading guilty,

Knowles was placed on a twelve-month probation period.

Another man on bail for murder was fined $2,500 after he admitted to failing to obey his curfew five times.

Assistant Chief Magistrate Carolyn Vogt-Evans

charged Richard Rolle, 55, with five counts of violating bail conditions.

While on release for a pending murder trial, Rolle is accused of breaching his nightly residential curfew five times between October 23 and December 27, 2023, in New Providence.

Following his guilty plea, Rolle was ordered to pay a fine of $2,500 or risk a sixmonth prison term.

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net A WOMAN was granted bail yesterday after she was allegedly involved in an insurance fraud scheme where she attempted to steal over $9,000 in the last two months.

Acting Chief Magistrate Roberto Reckley charged Marlissa Joseph, 24, with two counts of conspiracy to commit fraud by false pretences and attempted fraud by false pretences.

Joseph and her accomplices allegedly planned and attempted to defraud

TEEN GRANTED $5,000 BAIL AFTER STEALING FROM SCHOOL

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

First Insurance Company Limited of $9,839.94 from a Bank of the Bahamas account on December 29, 2023.

Joseph also allegedly tried to defraud the insurance company of the same amount of cash on January 9.

After pleading not guilty to the charges, Joseph was granted bail at $9,500 with one or two sureties. She must sign in at the East Street South Police Station every Friday by 6pm.

She must appear before Magistrate Kendra Kelly on March 8 for the continuation of her case.

A 16-YEAR-OLD boy was granted $5,000 bail after he was accused of breaking into a primary school over the Christmas break and stealing $800 in school property.

The teenager, whose name is being withheld because he is a minor, was charged before Magistrate Algernon Allen Jr. with shopbreaking, stealing, receiving and causing harm.

The juvenile was arraigned in the presence of his guardians.

The juvenile is alleged to have injured a fellow RM

Bailey High School student during a fight on June 14, 2023.

The accused is also alleged to have broken into Sadie Curtis Primary School on Charles Saunders Highway between December 20 and 21, 2023, stealing $827 worth of government property.

Following the defendant’s not-guilty plea to the charges, he was informed that he must obey a 4pm to 7am daily residential curfew as part of his bail conditions. He was warned that breaching these conditions would result in him being sent to the Simpson Penn Centre for Boys.

The accused must return to court on March 27.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 11

Bahamas Immigration Department holds its Annual Prayer Breakfast

UNIVERSITY OF THE BAHAMAS ANNOUNCES UPCOMING CONSERVATION CONCLAVE

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@ tribunemedia.net THE University of The Bahamas announced the launch of an environmental conference-style conservation conclave in partnership with the GEF Small Grants Programme and Disney Conservation Fund yesterday.

The two-day event scheduled for February 1 and 2 will engage a cross-section of environmental stakeholders in dialogue on climate change mitigation.

UB’s acting president Janyne Hodder said the dialogue would culminate in a white paper that would advise the development of a national policy on conservation, with recommendations for adoption by the government.

“Public policy experts, scientists, activists, community stakeholders, and industry partners will gather to address a shared concern,” she said yesterday.

“How do we best protect and conserve the vulnerable landscapes, seascapes, and the environmental integrity of The Bahamas?

“The format will engage participants in a deliberative dialogue to find the best way forward.

“We at UB recognise that we must have the broadest possible conversation on this issue, which is vital to our very existence.

“Increasing our conservation capacity, coupled with climate change mitigation and national development, we recognise that the fabric of these issues is complex, and a national university is the right place to deconstruct and solve complex challenges.”

Ms Hodder is hopeful the conclave will become an annual event.

The Bahamas Immigration Department held its Annual Prayer Breakfast on Monday at Immigration Headquarters to the theme, “Refocused and Realigned in 2024”. Guest speaker was Apostle Benjamin Smith, with remarks by Director of Immigration William Pratt. Blessing of Food and Closing Prayer was

by Immigration Officer Kelson Lightbourne.

(BIS Photos/Anthon Thompson)

“Increasing our conservation capacity, coupled with climate change mitigation and national development, we recognise that the fabric of these issues is complex, and a national university is the right place to deconstruct and solve complex challenges.”

UB acting president Janyne Hodder UB Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dr Maria WoodsideOriakhi, called it a “landmark event”.

“Our overarching goals include developing a shared understanding of the challenges we face, building consensus on proposed solutions, and formulating an action plan for conservation, scientific research, data sharing and environmental protection policy,” she said.

Some partners for the event include the Bahamas National Trust, the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, the Department of Environment and Public Planning, the Ministry of Agriculture and NGOs.

Why ‘viability’ is dividing the abortion rights movement PAGE 12, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

JEFFERSON CITY Associated Press REPRODUCTIVE rights activists in Missouri agree they want to get a ballot measure before voters this fall to roll back one of the strictest abortion bans in the country and ensure access.

The sticking point is how far they should go.

The groups have been at odds over whether to include a provision that would allow the state to regulate abortions after the fetus is viable, a concession supporters of the language say will be needed to persuade voters in the conservative state.

It’s a divide that’s not limited to Missouri.

Advocates say the disagreements there and in other states where activists are planning abortion-rights measures this year have resurfaced long-brewing ruptures among reproductive rights advocates. The divisions are most acute in Republican-leaning or closely divided states, where some worry that failing to include limits related to viability will sink the measures.

The conflict has been especially sharp in Missouri, where dueling strategies have complicated efforts to push ahead with a ballot measure seeking to reinstate the right to abortion.

“The movement is grappling with its value system,” said Bonyen Lee-Gilmore, the Kansas City-based vice president of communications for the National Institute for Reproductive Health, which opposes viability clauses.

Viability is used by health care providers to describe whether a pregnancy is expected to continue developing normally or whether a fetus might survive outside the uterus. It’s generally considered to be around 23 or 24 weeks into pregnancy but has shifted downward with medical advances. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists opposes viability language in legislation or regulations.

Some say it creates an arbitrary dividing line and stigmatizes abortions later in pregnancy, which are exceedingly rare and usually the result of serious complications, such as fetal anomalies, that put the life of the woman or fetus at risk.

The Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision established a constitutional right to abortion but also created a framework that allowed states to regulate abortions at certain points during pregnancy. Since the current court overturned it in 2022, “Roe is the floor, not the ceiling” has become a rallying

PEOPLE rally in support of abortion rights, July 2, 2022, in Kansas City, Mo. A divide between abortion rights activists over whether to include restrictions related to the viability of the fetus on planned state ballot measures is roiling the movement. The conflict has been especially divisive in Missouri, where conflicting strategies are complicating efforts to push ahead with a ballot measure in a state with one of the nation’s strictest abortion bans.

Photo: Charlie Riedel/AP cry for activists who vowed to rebuild access, especially for marginalised communities, according to Pamela Merritt, executive director of Medical Students for Choice, a group that opposes viability clauses.

Yet measures proposed for this year’s ballot in Missouri, Florida and Arizona have been replicating Roe’s viability framework, as did an Ohio constitutional amendment guaranteeing the right to abortion that passed last year.

Shortly after that election, a Black Ohio woman who miscarried in her bathroom was charged with abuse of a corpse. The amendment’s viability clause was cited as justification for allowing the case to move forward, though a grand jury ultimately dismissed the case.

The charges are part of a larger effort by anti-abortion forces in Ohio to use the viability clause to limit the reach of the amendment, said Merritt. Many of these efforts will wind up in Ohio’s largely conservative court system, she added.

“When you hand them the scalpel, you can’t turn around and be surprised when they start cutting,” Merritt said.

In South Dakota, the local Planned Parenthood affiliate has pulled out of ballot measure efforts for a proposal that allows lawmakers to restrict abortion after the first trimester. In a statement, the group said the proposal fails to protect abortion rights.

In Oklahoma, viability has been central to conversations about a potential ballot measure to repeal the state’s abortion ban, said Rebecca Tong, co-executive director of Trust Women, which provides abortion care.

Tong said viability is “not something we want written into the Constitution in Oklahoma.”

But Lauren Brenzel, campaign director for Floridians Protecting Freedom, said viability has not been a major focus in conversations around ballot measure language in a state that currently bans the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy. The campaign recently reached the necessary number of verified signatures to qualify an abortion-rights measure for this year’s ballot that includes a viability clause.

“Viability is the framework that Florida had used until the legislators started passing abortion bans,”

Brenzel said. “What we know is that voters understand this, and we see it as clear and concise language that matches with what the standard was in Florida for a long time.”

Viability language in Florida’s proposed measure has already opened the door to a legal challenge from the state’s Republican attorney general, who has asked the state Supreme Court to keep the measure off the ballot because of vagueness over the meaning of the term.

A few states, including California and Vermont, have enshrined abortion rights in their constitutions without viability limits. Proposed amendments in Maryland and New York also don’t mention viability.

Missouri has found itself in the centre of the national debate over the issue as abortion-rights groups have split over which of 11 versions of a measure to support for the ballot. The petitions have been tied up in court for months after being challenged by Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft.

Complicating the effort is another initiative petition — one proposed by a

Republican, strategist Jamie Corley. It would allow abortions up to 12 weeks into pregnancy and include exceptions for rape, incest or to protect the life of the mother until viability.

Corley said those restrictions are what’s feasible to pass in Missouri, where Republicans banned abortions except in medical emergencies.

“Pro-life, anti-abortion voters, a lot of them are still OK with legal but limited access,” Corley said.

Some reproductive rights groups advocating for versions of a more permissive ballot measure with a viability clause raised concerns that anti-abortion forces would attack proposals without one by saying it was an attempt to legalize abortion “up until birth” or “abortion on demand,” terms considered misleading by medical experts.

Sarah Standiford, national campaigns director of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said reproductive rights groups must balance their desire for the most expansive access with proposals that can withstand legal challenges and qualify for the ballot.

She acknowledged that such an approach “may ultimately advance a policy that is far short of the ideal.”

Other activists say they’re increasingly frustrated by compromises they see as based on fear and repeating past mistakes in Roe v. Wade that prevented abortion access for the most vulnerable, including people with higher-risk pregnancies, those with lower incomes, people of colour and people living in rural communities.

“It is a restriction under the guise of reproductive freedom,” said Jennifer Villavicencio, senior director of public affairs and advocacy at the Society of Family Planning.

In Missouri, it’s yet to be seen how and if activists divided over viability will come together. To many, there’s a sense of urgency to restore at least some rights.

“Real lives are on the line, and that has to be part of these political considerations,” said Mallory Schwarz, executive director of Abortion Action Missouri. “We have to consider both what is politically possible and also look at why that is possible in that moment.”

SPORTS PAGE 13

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024

NBA, Page 14

Bohan Adderley signs with New York Mets

By TENAJH SWEETING Tribune Sports Reporter tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

B

ohan Adderley, International Elite (I-Elite) Sports Academy Class of 2024 prospect, had reality set in last night when he became one of 20 international prospects to officially sign with the New York Mets.

The shortstop and centre fielder relished in the joyous moment as he became I-Elite’s first international signing with the Mets and their second athlete to ink a professional contract during the 2024 MLB International Signing period.

The 17-year old’s journey to signing the dotted line yesterday was not a seamless one as he did not want to play the sport initially.

He first played baseball for approximately three weeks at Freedom Farm and then opted to stop for a few years.

After observing his older brother Bakari Adderley and friends develop in the sport, it piqued his interest and made him give it another swing in 2015.

Three years later, he transitioned to the Junior Baseball League of Nassau (JBLN) alongside Tovano Baker, Trent Wilson, Javado “JT” Bain Jr, Rohan Culmer and Edwin Darville, who all signed contracts for 2024.

Following his tenure with JBLN, he joined I-Elite and now the rest is history. “I-Elite was where the rubber hit the road.

Long summer travel ball, early beach workouts and hot Pinewood practices while trying to keep up with my schoolwork.

“I had a dream and only hard work would make that dream a reality.

“My gratitude is pure and my heart is full. Everyone who is seated here today at some point played a pivotal role in my journey.

You are my village and for that I am grateful. “First I thank my source, the giver

of life the Almighty God, my trust in you fuelled my journey. Coach Geron and coach Albert you saw great potential. You pushed me to heights I never dreamed possible. You taught me the various aspects of the game, thank you coaches for advancing me in my baseball career,” Adderley said.

He offered a special appreciation for the New York Mets organisation for granting him the opportunity and believing in his potential as a baseball player.

Geron Sands, co-founder and head coach of I-Elite, was emotional as he shared his experience over the years with the 6-foot-3 shortstop.

“From the first day I met Bo I saw something special. He had the look and walk of a big leaguer…Bo has been with us for the past four plus years and has gotten better each and every year.

“It is a bittersweet moment to have him leave us because you wish for kids like him. You wish for the kids with maturity, the character, but at the same time you are happy to see him leave because he is going on to the next chapter.

“It has been a pleasure to have been a part of Bo’s process…I would like to thank Thomas Tanous, Luis Scheker, David Keller and the New York Mets for believing in our programme and our country.

What a way to start a lasting relationship,” Sands said.

David Keller, special advisor for pro player personnel and international/ amateur assignments, was excited to play a role in the life-changing opportunity.

“With the New York Mets, we are well aware of the rich athletic history on this island of The Bahamas.

We are excited to be here and be a part of that history. We would like to thank Geron and I-Elite for their hospitality while we have been here. The

By BRENT TUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net WITH the Ministry of Education putting a little more focus on Bahamian history being taught in the high school curriculum, Wellington Miller is calling for a renewed sensitisation of the students to the achievements of so many great sporting icons, including former world boxing champion Oswald ‘Elisha Obed’ Ferguson.

“It is our hope in the Bahamas boxing fraternity that Elisha Obed’s historic achievement in November of 1975 will now find its place written in Bahamian history for the children to read and learn about,” said Miller, a former heavyweight boxer and a past president of the Bahamas Amateur Boxing

SEE PAGE 16

RUNNING IN LOVE 2 ON TRACK FOR FEB. 10

By TENAJH SWEETING Tribune Sports Reporter tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

BOHAN ADDERLEY, an International Elite (I-Elite) Sports Academy Class of 2024 prospect, last night became one of 20 international prospects to officially sign with the New York Mets in the Major League Baseball. room is filled with family and friends, you all have taken a part in this journey and we are so excited to be here for the celebration

SPORTS CALENDAR

Jan. 2024

today and officially welcome Bo to the New York Mets family,” Keller said.

Adderley’s signing yesterday marked the second

one by an I-Elite athlete following Bain.

He signed with the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday.

encourages fans and those who want to discover the love of tennis, to come come out, cheer, enjoy and even hit a ball or two.”

BASKETBALL NPBA ACTION THE New Providence Basketball Association will continue its regular season action this week with the following games on tap: Wednesday’s schedule at CI Gibson Gymnasium - 7:30pm - Javon Medical Shockers vs Cyber Tech Blue Marlins (DII).

8:30pm - Zula Media & Symphony vs Sand Dollar High Flyers (D1).

Friday’s schedule at Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium - 7pm - Your Essential Store vs BIBT Grat Whites (DII). 8pm - University of the Bahamas Mingoes vs Zula Media & Symphony (D1)

SEE PAGE 14

Valentine’s Day is less than a month away and so is the second edition of the “Running in Love” Fun, Run, Walk, Push and Roll extravaganza.

The lovers themed event is the first of four seasonal races to be hosted by Four Seasons Race Management in 2024 and is slated to get underway at 6am on February 10.

Although the fitness event may seem to only cater to couples, Four Seasons Race Management owner and certified race director Marcel Major said it is also open to nonromantic duos.

“The event is not only for couples, it is where romance, love and

SEE PAGE 16

FORMER OUTSTANDING VOLLEYBALL PLAYER PATRICK SMITH ‘LOVED HIS FAMILY’

By BRENT TUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

TENNIS Inaugural Valentine’s Doubles Classic Open Invite THIS February, during the season of love, Insurance Management and The Gym Tennis Club of Winton invite tennis players in the country to experience the “love of the game” with their inaugural Valentine’s Doubles Classic Tennis Open Invitational.

The tournament will begin on February 10 and tennis players from all around the island will converge at the Gym Tennis Club in Winton to battle it out in a “doubles” only tournament featuring four categories, including: Men’s, Ladies, Over 55, and the always entertaining Mixed Doubles category.

Interested players should e-mail “gtctourbah@gmail.com” to get their registration forms. Insurance Management and the Gym Tennis Club

CALL FOR ELISHA OBED TO BE REMEMBERED

THE volleyball fraternity lost one of its former outstanding players, who switched from bumping, spiking and blocking the ball to devoting his time and energy to proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ as an associate pastor.

Patrick Smith, one of the most talented hitters in the New Providence Volleyball Association and a member of Macedonia Baptist Church in the Baptist Sports Council, passed away on Monday at Doctors Hospital after being diagnosed with cancer.

At age 60, Smith was the parts manager at the Auto Mall, having worked for Executive Motors for the past 31 years. He served as a devoted member and

REV PATRICK SMITH an associate pastor of St Paul’s Baptist Church, Fox Hill, where he worshipped with his family, including his wife Felicia Smith, two daughters Alicia and Alia, one son Patrick Smith Jr, and two grandchildren Taylor Grace Godet and Brayden Henfield.

“He was a humble man, a loving man, who loved his family but, most importantly, he loved the Lord and who lived a life according to God’s word,” was how his wife, Felicia, described her husband.

Rev. George Bodie, a former long-time public relations officer of the Baptist Sports Council, and the soon to be newly installed pastor of St Paul’s Baptist Church, said in addition to being elevated as an associate pastor, Rev. Smith was also one of their organists and was also responsible for Bible Study.

“He was one who knew the word, lived the word and preached the word,” said Rev. Bodie, who will take over from the retired Senior Pastor Bishop J.

SEE PAGE 16

PAGE 14, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

Embiid outshines Jokic in NBA MVPs matchup, leads 76ers past Nuggets 126-121

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid had 41 points and 10 assists to lead the Philadelphia 76ers past Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets 126-121 last night in a battle of the last two NBA MVPs. Jokic held up his end of a heavyweight showdown with 25 points and 19 rebounds, including 11 offensive boards.

Tyrese Maxey scored 25 points and Tobias Harris had 24 for the Sixers.

Embiid got the better of Jokic late, buoyed by a three-point play that stretched the Sixers’ lead.

Embiid was fouled on a bucket and crotch-chopped in celebration toward the fans. He made the free throw for a 118-113 lead.

Embiid followed with a

3-pointer for an eight-point lead and showed the Sixers are as good as any team when he’s healthy -- even against the NBA champs.

Embiid gave the Sixers a scare when he fouled Michael Porter Jr. on a 3-point attempt with 26.6 seconds left. Porter hit the three free throws that pulled the Nuggets within four. Time simply ran out on a comeback.

Anyone care for a rematch in June?

Jokic won two straight NBA MVP awards and was beat out last season

by Embiid for the honour.

Embiid, a two-time defending scoring champ, again leads the league in scoring.

Jokic averaged 25.5 points and had Denver rolling with one of the best records in the NBA. Embiid had his 18th straight 30-point game,

tying Hall of Famer Elgin Baylor for the sixth-longest streak in NBA history.

“The card tonight is more than just the big heavyweight matchup,” 76ers coach Nick Nurse said ahead of tipoff. “There’s a little bit more going on. I think it’s going to be worth going out there for tonight to watch it.”

He was on target.

The 76ers and Nuggets played one of the most entertaining halves of the season, a 78-all tie, and jolted another packed house onto their feet from the tip.

With a national audience watching and Julius Erving in the house, the stars delivered. Embiid and Maxey combined to make 6 of their first 9 shots for 14 points. Jokic and Murray kept pace, and neither team led by more than six.

PHILADELPHIA 76ers’ Joel Embiid, right, posts up with Denver Nuggets’ Nikola Jokic during the first half of an NBA basketball game last night in Philadelphia.

(AP Photo/Matt Slocum) The MVPs showed why each could win another one this season. Embiid buried a 3 that cut it to 30-29 only or Jokic to come back and lay it up over the 76ers center for a 32-29 lead.

Embiid placed his hand on Jokic’s back when the Serbian dribbled toward the bucket. Embiid was whistled for a reach-in foul and threw his arms in the

air in protest. Nurse barked at the officials. The crowd unkindly chanted at the refs what they thought of them.

Kelly Oubre Jr. and Harris finished consecutive alley-oops that sent the crowd into a frenzy. When Murray hit a 3 at the horn, the teams went into halftime tied. Embiid scored 23 points and the 76ers shot 67% from the floor. Jokic

had 15 and Denver shot 58% in the half. The teams combined for 17 3s and both shot over 53% in a half with a frantic, videogame feel. “This is my first time with this team against these guys,” Nurse said. “Where are we compared to these guys? What’s it look like up close? I hope we can get something out of that.”

Philly sure did: a W.

Alcaraz’s win makes it record 30 seeds in Australian Open men’s 2nd round

By JOHN PYE AP Sports Writer MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — The extra-day experiment for the first round finished on time on the Australian Open’s two main courts, with Jessica Pegula converting her second match point just before midnight to conclude the programme yesterday.

In a bid to reduce the number of late finishes, organisers extended the Australian Open to 15 days — one more than usual.

It started on a Sunday for the first time, and spread the first round over three days.

It didn’t prevent Days 1 or 2 going well past midnight.

But Elena Rybakina and Carlos Alcaraz advanced in straight sets in night matches on Rod Laver Arena on Day 3, and Pegula finished off the Margaret Court Arena programme to make show-court deadline by 10 minutes.

Wimbledon champion Alcaraz’s 7-6 (5), 6-1, 6-2 win over 37-year-old Richard Gasquet and Olympic champion Alexander Zverev ‘s 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (3), 6-3 victory over Dominik Koepfer meant a record 30 seeds advanced to the men’s second round.

Sumit Nagal prevented it from being 31. He became

SPORTS NOTES

FROM PAGE 16 9pm Caro Contractors Shockers vs Commonwealth Bank Giants (D1).

Saturday’s schedule at Kendal Isaacs Gymnasium - 7pm - Discount Distributors Rockets vs Mekaddish Millionaires (DII). 8pm TMT Giants vs Brandon Deli Kings (D1).

9pm - Island Development Rebels vs Discount Liquors Rockets (D1).

GSSSA ACTION THE Government Secondary Schools Sports Association continues its regular season action this week at both the CI Gibson and DW Davis Gymnasiums.

Here’s a look at the schedule of games: Wednesday CI Gibson at 4 pm Anatol Rodgers vs AF

the first Indian male to beat a seeded player at a Grand Slam event since 1989 with a 6-4, 6-2, 7-6 (5) triumph over No. 31 Alexander Bublik.

“The tour has great players, a lot of them that can beat anyone,” Alcaraz said.

“So I think it’s really, really open. But, 30 from 32, I think they deserve it.”

His opinion on the threeday first-round format?

“It’s better for the players ... better for everyone,” the 20-year-old Alcaraz said.

“For the crowd to have more days to have matches, for the tournament as well.”

The fifth-seeded Pegula started her day watching TV coverage of the Buffalo Bills beating the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-17 in an AFC wild-card playoff.

She finished it by beating Canadian qualifier Rebecca Marino 6-2, 6-4, and acknowledged some Buffalo fans in the crowd holding up “Billieve” signs.

“I see some Bills fans over there. It was on at 8:30 this morning,” she said in a post-match TV interview.

“I’m happy I could finish the day with a win. It was a good day for Buffalo!”

The only match still in progress after hers finished just after midnight, with local hope Ajla Tomljanovic recovering a break in the third set to beat Petra Martic 7-6 (3), 4-6, 6-4 in almost three hours.

CARLOS ALCARAZ, of Spain, plays a backhand return to Richard Gasquet of France during their first round match at the Australian Open tennis championships at Melbourne Park, Melbourne, Australia, yesterday.

(AP Photo/Andy Wong) Top-ranked Iga Swiatek respect to her,” Swiatek Kerber was one of three survived an early test in said. “I managed to get my past champions making her bid for a fifth major level up in the second set.” their returns to Melbourne title when she held off 2020 Swiatek faces another Park for the first time as champion Sofia Kenin 7-6 ex-Australian Open finalist mothers. She joined four(2), 6-2 in the opener on next. time major winner Naomi Rod Laver Arena.

Danielle Collins, runner- Osaka as a first-round exit.

Kenin served for the first up here two years ago, beat Caroline Wozniacki, the set at 5-4 but could not 2016 champion Angelique 2018 winner, has reached close it out. Swiatek rallied Kerber 6-2, 3-6, 6-1. the second round. to take it in a tiebreaker “A tough little bracket Last year’s runner-up and then broke serve five that we have!” Collins Rybakina advanced 7-6 games later. said. “I was like, ‘wow, I (6), 6-4 over former No. “It wasn’t easy to find my get really great draws now. 1-ranked Karolina Pliskova. rhythm. I felt a little bit off But if you’re trying to win Victoria Azarenka, who and Sofia did everything a Grand Slam, you have to won back-to-back titles to keep it that way, huge beat everyone.” here in 2012 and 2013, won

a hard-hitting contest with Camila Giorgi of Italy 6-1, 4-6, 6-3.

Sloane Stephens picked up her first victory at the Australian Open since 2019, beating wild-card entry Olivia Gadecki 6-3, 6-1.

Among the other men advancing, 11th-seeded Casper Ruud beat Albert Ramos-Vinolas 6-1, 6-3, 6-1, No. 13 Grigor Dimitrov overcame Marton Fucsovics 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (1), 6-2 and Cameron Norrie defeated Juan Pablo Varillas 6-4, 6-4, 6-2.

There were some player complaints about the relaxing of rules that now allow fans to enter and exit arenas after every game, rather than just at the changeovers. But everyone has been warned now. Meanwhile, opinion is divided on the two-level bar beside Court 6.

Regardless, the second round will get underway today. Three-time major finalist Ons Jabeur is first up on Rod Laver against 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva and fourthseeded Jannik Sinner opens the programme on Margaret Court.

Defending champions Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka headline the night matches, three days after wrapping up the first-ever first Sunday at Melbourne Park.

Adderley junior girls and boys.

DW Davis Gymnasium at 4 pm - CR Walker vs Government High senior girls and boys.

Thursday CI Gibson at 4 pm - LW Young vs TA Thompson junior girls and boys.

DW Davis Gymnasium at 4 pm - CI Gibson vs CC Sweeting senior boys.

Friday CI Gibson at 4pm - CH Reeves vs DW Davis junior girls and boys.

DW Davis Gymnasium at 4pm - CV Bethel vs Anatol Rodgers senior girls and boys.

BASKETBALL BAISS ACTION The Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools will continue its basketball regular season this week with the following games on tap: Wednesday at 4 pm Senior boys - St Augustine’s College at Charles

W Saunders; St John’s College at Queen’s College; Kingsway Academy at St Anne’s; Aquinas College at Jordan Prince Williams; Nassau Christian Academy at Bahamas Academy.

Junior girls - Queen’s College at Aquinas College.

Thursday at 4 pm Senior girls - Kingsway Academy at St Augustine’s College; Queen’s College at Aquinas College.

Junior boys - St Augustine’s College at Temple Christian Academy; St John’s at Bahamas Academy; Nassau Christian Academy at Queen’s College; Aquinas College at Charles W. Saunders and St Anne’s at Kingsway Academy.

Friday at 4 pm Senior boys - St Augustine’s College at Nassau Christian Academy; Kingsway Academy at St Andrew’s School; Jordan Prince Williams at Bahamas Academy; Charles

– Jordan Prince William vs Achiever’s Christian Academy. JB – ISBET vs Akhepran International Academy. INT – ISBET vs Teleos Christian School.

SB – Akhepran International Academy vs Genesis Academy.

Thursday’s schedule, starting at 4 pm JG – C. W. Saunders vs Achiever’s Christian Academy.

JB – Teleos Christian School vs Achiever’s Christian Academy. JB – Freedom Baptist Academy vs Greenville Preparatory Academy. JB – ISBET vs Jordan Prince William.

SB – Akhepran International Academy vs Boost Academy. SB – Genesis Academy vs Mt. Carmel Preparatory Academy.

SB – Greenville Preparatory Academy vs Teleos Christian School. AD – Akhepran International Academy vs St. John’s College.

W Saunders at Aquinas College.

Junior girls - Queen’s College at St John’s College.

VOLLEYBALL NPVA ACTION The New Providence Volleyball Assocation will continue its regular season action this week at the DW Davis Gymnasium with just games being played on Wednesday at the Davis Gymnasium.

In the ladies’ opener at 7:30pm, the Panthers will take on the Lady Techs and in the men’s feature contest, the Intruders will face the Warhawks.

No games will be played on Friday or Sunday.

MD – Temple Christian School vs Hillcrest Academy. PG – Freedom Baptist Academy vs Temple Christian School. PG – C. W. Sawyer Primary vs Freedom Baptist Academy. PM – Temple Christian School vs Hillcrest Academy. JB

– Jordan Prince William vs Teleos Christian School. JB – Akhepran International Academy vs Freedom Baptist Academy. SB – Mt. Carmel Preparatory Academy vs Boost Academy. AD – Teleos Christian School vs St. John’s College.

BASKETBALL BSAA ACTION The Bahamas Scholastic Athletic Association will continue its basketball regular season action this week with games played every day at the Hope Center’s Michael ‘Scooter’ Ried Basketball Corts, with the following games on tap; Wednesday’s schedule, starting at 4 pm MD – C. W. Sawyer Primary School vs Hillcrest Academy. PG – Sandilands Primary School vs Teleos Christian School.

PB – Genesis Academy vs Temple Christian School.

JB – Teleos Christian School vs Greenville Preparatory Academy. JB

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 15

BAHAMAS SCHOLASTIC ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION BASKETBALL REGULAR SEASON HIGHLIGHTS THE Bahamas Scholastic Athletic Association continued its basketball regular season action on Monday at The Hope Center’s Michael ‘Scooter’ Reid Basketball Courts with a host of games played in all of the divisions.

UÊ iÀi½ÃÊ >Ê Ê >ÌÊ Ì iÊ results of those matches: Results for Monday, 15th January 2024. Games were played at The Hope Center located University Commons and Bahama Games Blvd.

Mini Division Game Temple 19, Queens College 5: Lyndon Nicholls scored six points in the win and Khalel Miller scored all five in a losing effort.

Primary Boys Games Kingsway 19, Jordan Prince William Team B 8: Yorrick Carroll had a game high 13 points to pace the winners. Charmon Jennings had six in the loss.

Temple 23, JPW Team A 18: Gianno Coakley scored seven to lead the winners in a balanced scoring attack.

Kyran Robinson had a game high 11 points in a losing effort.

Super Mini Division ISBET 10, Queens College 4: Andoni Zericuzelaya scored four points

for the winners. Shiraz Syed matched that effort in the loss.

Intermediate Division Teleos 35, Greenville 9: Ronald Napleon poured in a game high 10 points with five rebounds in the win.

Marvin Pratt had six points and three steals in a losing effort.

Senior Boys Games Greenville 45, Akhepran 37: Semaj Thurston had a side high of 15 points with six rebounds and three steals in the win. Evan Hanna had 15 points with

five rebounds and a steal in the loss.

Akhepran 50, Boost Academy 44: Delroy Mackey pumped in a game high 28 points with three rebounds and a steal for the winners. Keon Mott had 22 points, five rebounds and three steals in the loss.

Affiliated School Game Mt. Carmel 56, Teleos 55: D’Nagia Fowler produced 21 points in the win, but Martino Butler had a game high 22 points in the loss.

MEMBERS of the DTSP Wolf Pack track club along with founder, president and head coach Larry Clarke (centre) holding up their signature wolf-sign.

Photo: Addis Huyler

DTSP WOLF PACK PROMISE TO DELIVER AT THEIR 6TH ANNUAL TRACK CLASSIC RUNNING, jumping and throwing are one thing, but to fiercely compete is another. The DTSP Wolf Pack 6th annual track classic, “Catch Me If U Can” to be held Saturday, January 20, 2024 promises to be a display of intense athletic performance.

Founder, president and head coach Larry Clarke is excited to bring DTSP Wolf Pack’s enthusiasm and excitement to the old Thomas A. Robinson stadium starting at 9am.

“We have a club of less than 50 athletes, so yes we are small and hosting a meet is a huge undertaking for us but, with the assistance of our parents, athletes and volunteers we have been able to pull it off for five years and counting,” Clarke said. “Our athletes feel immense pride when they are running at their club’s meet, they all become hungry to put on their best performance. Giving our athletes that moment of pride and a stage for them to set their mark is why we host a meet each year. In the event that

we secure a major sponsor, any profits we make from the meet goes towards building our programme with things like exercise equipment and holding workshops with world class collegiate coaches for our athletes,” he concluded.

Each year DTSP Wolf Pack, popularly known as Wolf Pack in the track and field world, honours a person from the track and field community at their meet. This year Wolf Pack declared Mrs. Beverly Wallace Whitfield as their meet’s honouree.

The 96 year-old dynamite is a lady many would claim as the godmother of track and field in The Bahamas.

Wallace Whitfield knew she was to be honoured but was pleasantly surprised when the club formally announced her as their honouree at their annual pre-season church service followed by a wellness seminar at Holy Cross Anglican Church on December 10, 2023.

“I knew that I was being honoured by them, they

DTSP Wolf Pack’s track classic 2024 honoree Mrs. Beverly Wallace Whitfield seated in the middle surrounded by athletes and Heach Coach Larry Clarke at the track club’s annual church service held at Holy Cross Anglican Church.

Photo: Sonia Gill had already asked me, but Clarke says will be their personally or you’re just I had no idea that they best meet yet, he wants a lover of the sport, take created such a beautiful to remind the coaches, time to visit the old stavideo to be played during parents and athletes to dium on Saturday, January the service announcing me register.

20 to soak in the talent and as the honouree, I was so Donations are still being competition. touched. Of course they do accepted, any monetary If you or your business everything well,” Wallace amount from businesses or is interested in donating, Whitfield said. individuals are welcomed. please contact Gail Clarke, As DTSP Wolf Pack Most importantly, whether secretary at dtspwolfcounts down to what coach you know an athlete pack@outlook.com.

WEST HAM, BRENTFORD OUSTED FROM FA CUP AS 5TH-TIER EASTLEIGH’S DREAM OF PLAYING MANCHESTER UNITED ENDS

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer PREMIER League teams West Ham and Brentford exited the FA Cup yesterday as fifth-tier Eastleigh’s dream of hosting the mighty Manchester United in the fourth round was extinguished.

West Ham lost 1-0 at second-tier Bristol City in one of five third-round replays, with the only goal coming in the third minute following a defensive mistake from Konstantinos Mavropanos. The visitors also had Said Benrahma sent off early in the second

half for kicking out at an opponent.

Brentford was beaten 3-2 after extra time by Wolverhampton in an allPremier League matchup at Molineux. Brazil striker Matheus Cunha scored the clinching goal from the penalty spot in firsthalf stoppage time in extra time, with the match finishing 2-2 in regulation.

Wolves will play local rival West Bromwich Albion next.

Luton was the other topflight team in action and had to come from behind to win 2-1 at third-tier Bolton. Tahith Chong and

Chiedozie Ogbene scored for Luton.

Eastleigh, which is in 11th place in the National League, was looking to set up a lucrative meeting with Man United and one of the most mismatched games in the recent history of the competition.

However, a 3-1 home loss to Newport County means it will be the fourthtier club from Wales taking on Erik ten Hag’s team on Jan. 28. Newport, which is in 17th place in League Two, lost to Tottenham in the fourth round in 2018 and Manchester City in the fifth round in 2019.

WOLVERHAMPTON Wanderers’ Nelson Semedo scores their side’s first goal of the game during the English FA Cup third round replay soccer match against Brentford yesterday.

(Nick Potts/PA via AP)

SPORTS NOTES

FROM PAGE 13 Friday CI Gibson at 4pm - CH Reeves vs DW Davis junior girls and boys.

DW Davis Gymnasium at 4pm - CV Bethel vs Anatol Rodgers senior girls and boys.

BASKETBALL BAISS ACTION The Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools will continue its basketball regular season this week with the following games on tap: Wednesday at 4 pm Senior boys - St Augustine’s College at Charles W Saunders; St John’s College at Queen’s College; Kingsway Academy at St Anne’s; Aquinas College at Jordan Prince Williams; Nassau Christian Academy at Bahamas Academy.

Junior girls - Queen’s College at Aquinas College.

Thursday at 4 pm Senior girls - Kingsway Academy at St Augustine’s College; Queen’s College at Aquinas College.

Junior boys - St Augustine’s College at Temple Christian Academy; St John’s at Bahamas Academy; Nassau Christian Academy at Queen’s College; Aquinas College at Charles W. Saunders and St Anne’s at Kingsway Academy.

Friday at 4 pm Senior boys - St Augustine’s College at Nassau Christian Academy; Kingsway Academy at St Andrew’s School; Jordan Prince Williams at Bahamas Academy; Charles W Saunders at Aquinas College.

Junior girls - Queen’s College at St John’s College.

VOLLEYBALL NPVA ACTION The New Providence Volleyball Assocation will continue its regular season action this week at the DW Davis Gymnasium with just games being played on Wednesday at the Davis Gymnasium.

In the ladies’ opener at 7:30pm, the Panthers will take on the Lady Techs and in the men’s feature contest, the Intruders will face the Warhawks.

No games will be played on Friday or Sunday.

MD – Temple Christian School vs Hillcrest Academy. PG – Freedom Baptist Academy vs Temple Christian School. PG – C. W. Sawyer Primary vs Freedom Baptist Academy. PM – Temple Christian School vs Hillcrest Academy. JB – Jordan Prince William vs Teleos Christian School.

JB – Akhepran International Academy vs Freedom Baptist Academy. SB – Mt. Carmel Preparatory Academy vs Boost Academy. AD – Teleos Christian School vs St. John’s College.

BASKETBALL BSAA ACTION The Bahamas Scholastic Athletic Association will continue its basketball regular season action this week with games played every day at the Hope Center’s Michael ‘Scooter’ Ried Basketball Corts, with the following games on tap; Wednesday’s schedule, starting at 4 pm MD – C. W. Sawyer Primary School vs Hillcrest Academy. PG – Sandilands Primary School vs Teleos Christian School. PB – Genesis Academy vs Temple Christian School. JB – Teleos Christian School vs Greenville Preparatory Academy.

JB – Jordan Prince William vs Achiever’s Christian Academy.

JB – ISBET vs Akhepran International Academy. INT – ISBET vs Teleos Christian School.

SB – Akhepran International Academy vs Genesis Academy.

Thursday’s schedule, starting at 4 pm JG – C. W. Saunders vs Achiever’s Christian Academy. JB – Teleos Christian School vs Achiever’s Christian Academy. JB – Freedom Baptist Academy vs Greenville Preparatory Academy.

JB – ISBET vs Jordan Prince William.

SB – Akhepran International Academy vs Boost Academy. SB – Genesis Academy vs Mt. Carmel Preparatory Academy.

SB – Greenville Preparatory Academy vs Teleos Christian School. AD – Akhepran International Academy vs St. John’s College.

PAGE 16, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

ELISHA OBED

FROM PAGE 13

OFFICIALS from Our TV and 10th Year Seniors have formally entered a dynamic partnership aimed at establishing the foremost sports brand in the country, in a landmark collaboration.

Our TV and 10th Year Seniors forge strategic partnership to elevate Bahamian sports broadcasting landscape NASSAU, BAHAMAS – In a landmark collaboration, officials from Our TV and 10th Year Seniors have formally entered a dynamic partnership aimed at establishing the foremost sports brand in the country.

The groundbreaking announcement was made during a press conference yesterday at Cable Bahamas Limited (CBL) Group headquarters, where ALIV CEO John Gomez expressed his confidence, the alliance would redefine the sports narrative in The Bahamas.

“When you look at the brands – Our News, Our TV and 10th Year Seniors, and what you all bring from an online presence and the number of followers and

subscribers that we have, we are now going to be able to offer more to our viewers globally in terms of sports perspective,” Gomez said.

“We will showcase what our young and seasoned athletes are doing so the story that’s going to be told is going to be a tremendous one for all to witness.”

David Burrows, vice president of media for CBL, emphasized the partnership’s significance in fortifying the network’s local sports influence.

“While we bring sports, it’s local sports where I really think that we’re going to engage the young people,” Burrows explained. “It’s where we need to be for GenZ

moving forward. This partnership to me is huge from that perspective.”

Acknowledging the collective efforts that have propelled 10th Year Seniors to its current standing, Renaldo Dorsett conveyed gratitude to the brand’s audience for their unwavering support.

“I just want to say thank you to anyone that liked a photo, watched a video, listened to a podcast, shared any content that we have put out, you are the reason we are in this place now,” said Dorsett. “Since we started, we have always been disrupters in this industry, and I say that as a good thing and sometimes you have to do just that to stray away from the norm.”

Highlighting the authenticity that defines 10th Year Seniors, Dorsett emphasized the brotherhood that has been integral to their success.

“I think people respond to that authenticity and that’s how we were able to grow this brand. We always thought that growing the brand was the most important thing to expand our reach and now this partnership with Our News and Our Sports brings us to an entirely new audience.”

John Marc Nutt echoed this sentiment, underscoring the seriousness with which they approach their role in shaping the sports broadcast landscape.

“We have taken this very seriously,” he said. “A lot

RUNNING IN LOVE 2 ON TRACK FOR FEBRUARY 10 FROM PAGE 13 friendship meets the asphalt. We are encouraging persons who are in love with themselves or in love with anybody else to sign them up. It is a very fun-filled, family-oriented couples event but we are not only encouraging couples, we are encouraging best friends, co-workers and anyone dating to register as a duo and enjoy this valentines themed event,” Major said.

The route is 3.1 miles long for participants and begins from Arawak Cay to the go slow bend and back.

Duos that cross the finish line together in first, second or third place will be presented fun run awards and others will receive a medal and shirt for their efforts.

The first seasonal event for the organisation will be sponsored by City of Hope for a second consecutive year and a part of the event’s proceeds will go to cancer survivors Dr Nevillene Evans and her husband Leon Evans.

Tina Lightbourne, a representative of City of Hope, was elated to contribute to a worthy cause as this year’s title sponsor.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Marcel Major and Four Seasons for allowing us to give back to the Bahamian community.

“We have been in The Bahamas since 2012 and over the years we have seen many Bahamian patients and we were able to help many Bahamian patients…

I would like to thank the

Bahamian population for using our services and making us a part of their cancer journey.

“This is our way of giving back by sponsoring Running in Love which is a couples event,” Lightbourne said.

“The event organisers were extremely grateful for the sponsorship by City of Hope and so were charity recipients, Mr and Mrs Evans.

“We really want to say a special thank you to City of Hope, who are sponsoring this event, and also a special thanks to Mr and Mrs Major who have selected both of us who are cancer survivors.

“We thank God that we are here today and are in love as cancer survivors.

That is a big thing. We also

intend to participate at the event. We are very humbled by the gesture to have been selected as recipients for this good event,” Mr Evans said.

His wife said she was looking forward to February 10 and encouraged those in a battle with cancer to have unwavering faith in a higher power, to be mindful of diet and place an emphasis on exercising.

Interested individuals can register at www.fourseasonsracemanagement.com or contact 804-8595/601-0006 for further assistance.

The cost to register is $60 per couple.

However, the early bird special which started on January 13 and ends at midnight on Wednesday, January 31 offers 20% off for participants.

of people may look at us trying to figure out what is this brand, but we take our job very seriously. We are not the kind of people who take things for granted, and I’m glad we can partner up with like-minded people where we both can see each other’s visions and bring everything together to be the biggest sports brand in The Bahamas.”

The official commencement of the partnership is slated for February, featuring segments from 10th Year Seniors integrated into the Our News broadcasts at 7pm and 7:30pm.

Additionally, their contributions will extend to Our News Digital spaces and http://www.ournews. bs/

Federation and the Bahamas Olympic Committee.

“This coming November 12th will mark 49 years since Obed made history for his beloved country, and today only a handful of Bahamians know about that historic feat.”

While winning the world title over Miguel de Oliveira was his highlight, Miller noted that Elisha Obed made history again on February 28, 1976 at the Queen Elizabeth Sport Centre when he defended his Junior Middleweight Championship in his home town against Toney Gardiner.

On April 24 that same year, Elisha Obed went overseas and once again made a successful defence of his title in the Ivory Coast against Sea Robinson where he proudly carried the Bahamian flag as he’s done throughout his career.

Elisha Obed, however, would travel to Deutschlandhalle, Charlottenburg where he fought and lost his title to Eckhard Dagge on June 18, 1976.

“Last year marked our 50th anniversary as an independent country and Obed’s 48th anniversary since he became the first Bahamian to win a World Boxing Championship the (WBC),” Miller recalled.

“So far in our Independence celebrations, nothing is mentioned about Elisha Obed’s accomplishments.

Why? Obed was the first Bahamian to put the Bahamas on the world stage after Independence. What a proud time that was for our little nation.”

Miller is calling on the Bahamas Government to name a street after Elisha Obed and he suggested the East West Highway, which has an overview of two schools in RM Bsilery Secondary High and CH Reeves Junior High, helping to keep his memory alive. Elisha Obed, who fought up until March 5, 1988 when he beat James “Killer” Coakley, finished his career with a 91-22-4 win-loss-draw record. He died on June 28, 2018 at the age of 66.

EAGLES CENTRE JASON KELCE INTENDS TO RETIRE AFTER 13 NFL SEASONS PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jason Kelce stood on the sideline in tears as the final seconds ticked off in his likely final NFL game. Kelce embraced his long-time offensive line coach.

He removed his helmet once the game ended — a Philadelphia Eagles loss that completed a harrowing season-ending collapse — and extended his hand to his wife and his father in the stands.

What Kelce knew then — what the gregarious centre couldn’t bring himself to say when he declined to speak to the media in the aftermath of the defeat — was that his football career was over.

The 36-year-old Kelce

has wavered on retirement over the last few seasons.

Coach Nick Sirianni added to Kelce’s lore by shipping a keg of beer to the centre’s home to entice him to return in 2022.

He has been the heart of the Eagles, a hero on the Philadelphia sports scene, a Super Bowl champion.

But after 13 seasons, 156 straight starts and six All-Pro Team selections, Kelce has told teammates he intends to retire, three people informed of the decision told The Associated Press.

They spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Tuesday out of respect for Kelce’s decision, which he has not yet made public.

FORMER OUTSTANDING VOLLEYBALL PLAYER PATRICK SMITH DIES FROM PAGE 13 Carl Rahming as the new pastor of St Paul’s in an official service on Sunday, January 28 at 3:30pm.

“I can tell you this. We will really and truly miss Rev. Patrick Smith. He is a good supporter. Whatever the former pastor or myself presented to him, he would support it. We will really miss him and we pray for him and his family.”

Although he spent a lot of time in church, Rev. Bodie said he remembered Rev. Smith was a sports enthusiast, who loved to play volleyball.

“He was a great volleyball player, but when he left the sport, he decided to devote a lot of his time to the church,” Rev. Bodie said. “He would lead us in our Baptism class. He was always around doing a lot

of things in a small way. We will dearly miss him.”

While St Paul’s didn’t have a sporting programme at the time, Rev. Smith gladly accepted the invitation to play for Macedonia Baptist Church in the Baptist Sports Council, under the leadership of senior sports reporter Brent Stubbs. He played with players such as Jason Saunders, Carl Cooper, Jeffery Wilkinson, Fred Demeritte and John Taylor, who won numerous titles or played and lost against Pilgrim Baptist Temple in one of the great rivalries in the sport.

Peter Ferguson, who played on Pilgrim’s team, noted that his relationship with Rev. Smith began from the 1980s when they first met in Grand Bahama and it flourished when they played together with the Technicians in the NPVA.

“Pat and I played volleyball together until I injured my knee. After a short comeback I decided to coach the Technicians and Patrick played for me as a middle player.

“Patrick was a Christian that stood strong in his faith, he loved no one like he did God and his family.

Patrick protected his family from start to finish. But he was a warrior on the volleyball court.

“There were so many memories.”

Ferguson said he will never forget the epic match-ups his Pilgrim team had with Macedonia and how after each game, they would embrace and reflect on their performances.

They also got to travel as members of the Technicians to travel to Florida, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands to compete. They were separated after Ferguson

moved to Exuma in August, 2023, but he noted that on a visit to Nassau, they reconnected.

“We spoke in his work place for about half an hour talking about family and God, we embraced and said we must do better at communicating,” Ferguson said.

“We texted a few times since then but I never saw this.

“Patrick has never changed, you will always see him with a serious look but welcoming and will stand and share a word with you always no matter what.

He did a very good job of masking any pain or sickness he had.

Ferguson noted that Rev. Smith’s smile and his greeting with a hug will be missed, along with his encouragement in the Lord and his positive attitude on and off the volleyball court and in the church setting.

PAGE 18, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

JETBLUE’S $3.8 BILLION BUYOUT OF SPIRIT AIRLINES IS BLOCKED BY JUDGE CITING THREAT TO COMPETITION

By DAVID KOENIG AP Airlines Writer A FEDERAL judge on Tuesday sided with the Biden administration and blocked JetBlue Airways from buying Spirit Airlines, saying the $3.8 billion deal would reduce competition.

The Justice Department had sued to block the merger, saying it would drive up fares by eliminating Spirit, the nation's biggest low-cost airline.

U.S. District Judge William Young, who presided over a non-jury trial last year, said Tuesday that the government had proven that the merger "would substantially lessen competition" and violated a century-old antitrust law.

In his ruling, which ran more than 100 pages, the judge gave a nod to the Justice Department's argument that Spirit is particularly important to travelers looking for an alternative to pricier airlines.

"Spirit is a small airline.

But there are those who love it," he wrote. "To those dedicated customers of Spirit, this one's for you."

Young said that a JetBlue-Spirit combination "would likely place stronger competitive pressure on the larger airlines in the country. At the same time, however, the consumers that rely on Spirit's unique, low-price model would likely be harmed."

Shares of Spirit Airlines Inc. plunged 47% after the ruling, while JetBlue shares gained 5%.

A JETBLUE airplane is shown at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, March 16, 2017. A federal judge is siding with the Biden administration and blocking JetBlue Airways from buying Spirit Airlines, saying the $3.8 billion deal would reduce competition. The Justice Department sued to block the merger, saying it would drive up fares by eliminating Spirit, the nation’s biggest low-cost airline.

Photo:Seth Wenig/AP JetBlue and Spirit said they disagreed with the ruling and were considering whether to appeal.

New York-based JetBlue had argued that it needs the deal to grow in one move and better compete against bigger rivals that dominate the U.S. air-travel market.

"We continue to believe that our combination is the best opportunity to increase much needed competition and choice by bringing low fares and great service to more customers in more markets," the airlines said in a statement.

The ruling was a victory for the Biden

SHELL WILL SELL BIG PIECE OF ITS NIGERIA OIL BUSINESS, BUT ACTIVISTS WANT POLLUTION CLEANED UP FIRST

administration, which has moved aggressively to block consolidation in several industries.

"Capitalism without competition isn't capitalism — it's exploitation," President Joe Biden said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

"Today's ruling is a victory for consumers everywhere who want lower prices and more choices. My Administration will continue to fight to protect consumers and enforce our antitrust laws."

For JetBlue, the ruling was its second major setback in federal court in less than a year. Another judge in the same Boston

courthouse killed a partnership in the Northeast between JetBlue and American Airlines.

JetBlue, the nation's sixth-largest airline by revenue, now must come up with another growth plan.

That will be an assignment for incoming CEO Joanna Geraghty. Next month she will replace Robin Hayes, who had engineered both of the deals that have now been blocked in court.

Tuesday's ruling could open the door for Frontier Airlines to make another attempt to buy Spirit. The two budget airlines announced a

By TAIWO ADEBAYO Associated Press

limit its exposure in the West African nation amid long-running complaints of environmental pollution caused by the oil industry.

Shell called it a way to streamline its business in a country it has operated in for decades, facing pushback about oil spills

SHELL said Tuesday it agreed to sell its onshore business in Nigeria's Niger Delta to a consortium of companies in a deal worth $2.4 billion, the latest move by the energy company to

cash-and-stock deal in 2022, only to have JetBlue make an all-cash offer and win a bidding war for Floridabased Spirit.

Spirit's CEO and board initially opposed a sale to JetBlue, arguing presciently that regulators would try to block a deal that would eliminate a low-cost carrier from the U.S. landscape — JetBlue planned to repaint Spirit's planes and remove some seats to match JetBlue's roomier interior.

To overcome that resistance, JetBlue agreed to pay Spirit a reverse breakup fee of $70 million and pay Spirit shareholders $400 million if the deal failed because of government opposition.

Helane Becker, an airline analyst for the financialservices firm Cowen, said Spirit will likely now search for a new buyer, but it's more likely to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring.

Both JetBlue and Spirit have struggled to recover from the pandemic while their bigger rivals have returned to healthy profitability. JetBlue has lost more than $2 billion since the start of 2020, and Spirit — weighed down by higher costs and weaker demand — has lost more than $1.6 billion in that time.

That generated some sympathy for a merger between them — and criticism of the judge's ruling.

"Blocking a merger of smaller competitors trying to combine resources and scale up to compete with the top four airlines makes little sense," said Jessica Melugin, an antitrust

expert at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, which opposes government intervention in the market. "It risks making both Spirit and JetBlue less able to compete with the big guys and ultimately leaving the airline industry less competitive, harming consumers."

But the decision was praised by critics of mergers over the past 15 years that have eliminated Continental, Northwest, US Airways, AirTran and Virgin America.

"This is an enormous victory for travelers, workers, and local communities, and another huge win for antitrust enforcers" at the Justice Department, said William McGee, an air-travel expert at the American Economic Liberties Project.

The government's victory could make it more likely that it will challenge Alaska Airlines' proposal to buy Hawaiian Airlines for $1 billion and pick up about $900 million in Hawaiian's debt.

"The days of relentless consolidation are over. We hope to see judges presiding over future airline mergers, like Alaska-Hawaiian, follow Judge Young's lead," McGee said.

The government hasn't said whether it will sue to stop Alaska from buying Hawaiian. The administration might have tipped its hand, however. "The Justice Department will continue to vigorously enforce the nation's antitrust laws to protect American consumers," Attorney General Merrick Garland said.

that have fouled rivers and farms and exacerbated tensions in a region that has faced years of militant violence.

"This agreement marks an important milestone for Shell in Nigeria, aligning with our previously announced intent to exit onshore oil production in the Niger Delta," Zoe Yujnovich, Shell's integrated gas and upstream director, said in a statement. This will help in "simplifying our portfolio and focusing future disciplined investment in Nigeria on our deepwater and integrated gas position."

The buying consortium is Renaissance, which consists of ND Western, Aradel Energy, First E&P, Waltersmith and Petrolin, Shell said. After an initial payment of $1.3 billion, the London-based energy giant said it would receive an additional $1.1 billion.

The assets that Shell is selling are largely owned by the Nigerian government's national oil company NNPC, which holds a 55% stake. To finalize the agreement, the government must give its approval. Shell operates the assets and owns a 30% stake, with the remaining share held by France's TotalEnergies at 10% and Italy's Eni at 5%.

The assets include 15 onshore mining leases and three shallow-water operations, the company said.

Activists in the Niger Delta, where Shell has faced decadeslong local criticism to its oil exploration, plan to ask the government to withhold its approval if the company does not address its environmental damage.

"It would be a matter of very grave concern if the obvious legacy issues,

especially the environmental and decommissioning issues, are not adequately and transparently addressed before and by any eventual divestment," said Ledum Mitee, a veteran environmental activist and former president of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People.

Nigeria heavily depends on the Niger Delta's petroleum resources for its earnings. However, pollution from oil and natural gas production has prevented residents from accessing clean water, hurt farming and fishing, and heightened tensions.

Militants have exploited the situation, and at one time almost halted the oil industry with attacks on facilities and kidnappings of foreign citizens for ransom before a government amnesty package.

Despite joint military operations and a government benefits program for former militants that accompanied the amnesty deal, the Niger Delta remains volatile. The oil industry faces risks of violence, including pipeline vandalism by oil thieves, whom companies often blame for oil spills.

Fyneface Dumnamene, director of the Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre, urged the Nigerian government to require Shell and the new buyers to provide a plan for addressing environmental damage and compensating communities before granting approvals.

Shell told AP in a statement that the sale has been designed to preserve the company's role to "conduct any remediation as operator of the joint venture where spills may have occurred in the past from the joint venture's operations."

A MEMBER of Shell staff on the Bonga offshore oil Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel off the coast of the Niger Delta in Nigeria, Monday, Dec. 26, 2011. Shell said Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024 it agreed to sell its onshore business in Nigeria’s Niger Delta to a consortium of companies in a deal worth $2.4 billion, the latest move by the energy company to limit its exposure in the West African nation amid long-running complaints of environmental pollution caused by the oil industry.

Photo:Sunday Alamba/AP

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 19

FTX liquidators prevent $8m GoldWynn ‘forfeit’ FROM PAGE A24 satisfy the Bahamian subsidiary’s demands.

Meanwhile, Mr Simms revealed that he and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) accounting duo, Kevin Cambridge and Peter Greaves, have “indemnified” Wynn Development, as GoldWynn’s developer, against any costs or damages it may incur should a former FTX Digital Markets executive seek to challenge the seizure and sale of one particular condo whose purchase was put in their personal name.

The Lennox Paton senior partner disclosed that the Bahamian liquidator trio acted after Wynn Development’s attorney, Alistair Chisnell of Graham, Thompson & Company, served them on December 5, 2023, with a “notice to complete” the eight condo transactions for which sales agreements were signed on February 22, 2022, and March 4, 2022.

Seven units were to be acquired by FTX Property Holdings (PropCo), the vehicle used by the crypto exchange to make its Bahamian real estate buys, with the remaining condo’s purchaser named as Weiyi Xia, an FTX Digital Markets employee.

Deposits and stage payments, ranging from $507,168 to $1.305m, had been made on all eight condos when the “notice to complete” was served, and failing to close would

have placed this collective near-$8m sum in jeopardy of being lost as a recovery source for FTX creditors and investors.

“The joint official liquidators and debtors [Mr Ray] were keen to avoid the forfeiture of the sums paid towards the purchase of the units - the sum of $7.718m,” Mr Simms said. To close the deals, FTX Digital Markets and FTX Property Holdings agreed a deed of assignment on December 19, 2023, whereby the latter - which is under Mr Ray’s control - assigned all the sales agreements to the Bahamian subsidiary.

It was thus FTX Digital Markets that completed the GoldWynn purchases, and Mr Simms added: “The PropCo GoldWynn units have since been conveyed to FTX Digital Markets, which FTX Digital Markets acting through the joint official liquidators holds in accordance with the deed of assignment and declaration of trust dated December 19, 2023.”

This will allow the Bahamian liquidators and their agents to sell the GoldWynn units under the terms of the agreement struck with Mr Ray that now awaits approval from both the Supreme Court and Delaware Bankruptcy Court. A separate approval will also be sought from the Supreme Court for the GoldWynn transactions, with hearings on these matters likely to take place next week.

TOURISM CHIEF ‘DOESN’T SEE’ US CRIME TRAVEL ADVISORY FROM PAGE A24 “I don’t think it’s the time to cry wolf at this particular point,” he said.

“As we work to mitigate against further incidents in this area, I think we’re doing the best we can in the circumstances. I do not see the current incidents of crime, which are most egregious and most concerning, having an impact on the tourism sector that it becomes a matter of major concern at this point in time.”

Asked whether the soaring murder rate in early 2024 could provoke a US travel advisory, or warning, to Americans visiting The Bahamas, the BHTA president said this was unlikely and pointed out that none of the recent high-profile crimes had involved or impacted visitors.

“I don’t see that happening at this point in time,” Mr Sands said of a US travel advisory. “These are not random incidents of crime that have happened.

These are all inter-related as identified by the police and authorities. These are all related to one or two incidents. Hopefully the Government has it under control at this point in time.”

Timothy Ingraham, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s (BCCEC) chairman, told this newspaper that the private sector body is monitoring the crime situation closely but has not heard of “any negative fall-out” for members thus far.

“Obviously the Chamber is watching this,” he said.

“We are hopeful that action can be taken to bring this under control as quickly as possible. We are all people who live in this community, and from the perspective of community first we want all of our citizens to be living in

a safe environment and not be concerned about crime.

“Obviously the headlines at the moment, the murders going on, we are certainly hopeful the situation is brought under control very quickly and citizens feel safe going about in their day-to-day lives. I have not heard any of our members mention any negative fallout at this moment.

“Places that cater to where people go at night may feel the impact if people feel unsafe going out at night. We wish everyone remains safe and we’re hopeful we will be out of this cycle as quickly as possible.”

Business owners have told this newspaper that all Bahamians and residents are literally paying the price for crime. The extra costs associated with hiring security firms/officers, installing surveillance systems, window/door bars and other protection and preventative measures are ultimately passed on to consumers through higher prices for the goods and services they purchase.

This, private sector operators said, adds further to the cost of living crisis facing middle class and lower income Bahamians with one company yesterday telling Tribune Business that security-related costs were “next to salaries our biggest expense” in 2023.

Crime and related violence has blighted Bahamian society for decades with the issue regaining prominence following the bloody start to 2024. The murder rate for the year’s first two weeks represented a 150 percent year-overyear increase, and a decade high, amid a spate of what are believed to be retaliatory killings, gang-related violence, personal feuds and the settling of scores, and an inability to resolve conflict.

ACCOUNTING URGED OVER ROAD REPAIR CANCELLATION FROM PAGE A23 Andros and “everyone depends on it”, Mr Gibson added. “People have to drive over these roads.

Businesses, places are waiting for people to patronise their business, and if the roads are bad, people turn back, not wanting to drive up to the establishment,” he said.

“Fishermen have to go back and forth on the road from home to the dock.

This is not like in Nassau where you have more than one main street, you have a couple of streets that you can go on and, if one is blocked, you can go another way.

“There is only one road in Andros and, if that road is bad, then you are up the creek.” South Andros residents now hope another contractor will be hired by the Government to complete the project.

As for the unit that was to be acquired by Weiyi Xia, Mr Simms asserted there was evidence that the $1.1m deposit and stage payments were paid by FTX Digital Markets and thus should be recovered by the latter for the benefit of creditors and investors. However, Wynn Development had sought protection against any legal claim by the former FTX employee.

“It was necessary for FTX Digital Markets to execute the indemnity agreement as a condition of Wynn Development completing the sale of the Xia GoldWynn unit,” Mr Simms explained.

“Wynn Development wished to be indemnified from any adverse costs, damages or expenses that may be incurred in the event that proceedings are commenced by Weiyi Xia as a result of the sale and purchase and completion of the GoldWynn unit to FTX Digital Markets.

“In summary, the joint official liquidators caused FTX Digital Markets to execute the indemnity agreement on the basis that, among other things, FTX Digital Markets may have a proprietary traceable interest in the Xia GoldWynn unit in that FTX Digital Markets made payments on behalf of Weiyi Xia in the amount of $1.1m to Wynn Development.

“The books and records of FTX Digital Markets show that FTX Digital Markets provided the funding for the installment

payments for the Xia GoldWynn unit similar to the other properties purchased in The Bahamas by PropCo and/or other employees of FTX Digital Markets,” the Lennox Paton senior partner added.

“If Weiyi Xia does seek to challenge the conveyance to FTX Digital Markets of the Xia GoldWynn unit, FTX Digital Markets will wish to protect the funds paid

by FTX Digital Markets and resist the challenge. If Wynn Development was drawn into the dispute, it wanted to make sure that it was indemnified for any costs.”

Under the terms of their overall settlement, Mr Ray and the Bahamian liquidators have entered into “The Bahamas’ properties exclusive sales agency agreement” that has to be approved by both the Supreme Court and Delaware Bankruptcy Court.

Mr Simms asserted that the agreement “is advantageous for FTX Digital Markets because it gives control of marketing and sales of PropCo’s properties to the joint official liquidators, who have a greater familiarity with the real estate market in The Bahamas than the debtors.

“Further, as the global sales agreement provides for FTX Digital Markets to be paid in excess of $256m from the sales of PropCo’s properties, it is reassuring that FTX Digital Markets has a large measure of control over the way the

properties are marketed and the selling prices”.

With all FTX’s Bahamas property purchases financed by the local subsidiary, Mr Simms added: “The liquidators took steps to preserve and protect the properties as relevant by way of insurance renewals, repairs and liaising with One Cable Beach to place four properties into the rental pool to cover ongoing holding costs...

“These costs, to-date, have been met at the expense of FTX Digital Markets’ estate...on the basis that FTX Digital Markets is expected to be indemnified out of the sales proceeds.” He said the settlement with Mr Ray avoids “what would otherwise have been protracted legal argument over the ownership and liabilities associated with the 41 properties”.

“The properties will be sold - subject to the approval of both courts promptly in The Bahamas for the ultimate benefit of the respective estates. It is expected that the claim of FTX Digital Markets for approximately $256m will be satisfied to a great extent from the sake of these properties,” Mr Simms said.

“Again, this will hopefully facilitate the prospect of an early distribution which would not have been likely or feasible without the global sales agreement.”

The deal involves PropCo appointing FTX Digital Markets, and

the Bahamian liquidators, as its “exclusive agent with powers to conduct the management, preparation for sale, marketing and sale of The Bahamas properties”.

The trio will have “the full exclusive powers, as the agent of FTX PropCo, to appoint and engage real estate agents to market The Bahamas’ properties for sale; elicit or encourage expressions of interest or bids for the disposition of The Bahamas’ properties; and conduct negotiations with any potential purchaser or other interested person for any disposition of The Bahamas’ properties”.

However, FTX PropCo, which is under Mr Ray’s control, “has the sole and exclusive right to” approve both the disposition of one of the 35 properties or entering into a sales agreement for any of them.

Without its approval, any sale will be “null and void”.

And, while FTX Digital Markets can recommend a sale and enter into a binding agreement for such a deal, it must back this up by giving Mr Ray “all offers received by the liquidator; a broker price opinion including a comparative property sale analysis produced by a well-respected real estate broker; (any valuation reports available to the liquidators; and any other information or documentation that FTX PropCo may reasonably request”.

SUPREME COURT REBUFFS APPLE'S APPEAL ON APP PAYMENTS, THREATENING BILLIONS IN REVENUE

By MARK SHERMAN and MICHAEL LIEDTKE Associated Press THE Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed a court order to take effect that could loosen Apple’s grip on its lucrative iPhone app store, threatening to siphon billions of dollars away from one of the world’s most profitable companies., The justices rejected Apple’s appeal of lowercourt rulings that found some of Apple’s app store rules for apps purchased on more than 1 billion iPhones constitute unfair competition under California law.

Apple outlined in court documents filed late Tuesday how it plans to change in-app payments, while indicating it will preserve most of the fees it collects from developers who make money from their services provided on iPhones and iPads. The proposal provoked claims that Apple is acting in bad faith and set

the stage for more legal sparring.

The rejected appeal to the Supreme Court stemmed from an antitrust lawsuit filed in 2020 by Epic Games, maker of the popular Fortnite video game.

Epic lost its broader claim that Cupertino, Californiabased Apple was violating federal antitrust law, and the justices also rejected Epic’s appeal Tuesday.

But in turning away Apple’s effort to maintain exclusive control over in-app payments, the court lifted a hold on an order to allow app developers throughout the U.S. to insert links to other payment options besides its own within iPhone apps.

That change would make it easier for developers to avoid paying Apple’s commissions ranging from 15% to 30%.

In its Tuesday court filing, Apple said it will now allow app developers to provide payment links to external

websites but would still seek to collect commissions ranging from 12% to 27% from them to prevent “free-riding” on the software system that powers its iPhones and iPads.

Apple also plans to impose a potentially cumbersome approval process before the external links or buttons can be placed within iPhone and iPad apps in an effort “to minimize fraud, scams, and confusion.”

The protections also will include a so-called “scare screen” warning to consumers who click on a link for an alternate payment system saying that Apple is “not responsible for the privacy or security of purchases made on the web.”

In a series of social media posts, Epic CEO Tim Sweeney attacked Apple’s plan with as “badfaith compliance” and maintained the revised commissions remain anticompetitive. He vowed to

oppose Apple’s proposal in federal court.

Apple has strong incentive to maintain as much of its commissions on in-app transaction as possible.

Those fees have turned into a significant part of Apple’s service’s division, which generated $85 billion in revenue during the company’s last fiscal year ending in September. The specter of consumers being able to defect to other payment channels for in-app transactions is one of several factors that has been weighing on Apple’s stock, which has declined 5% so far this year.

The drop has enabled Apple’s long-time rival, Microsoft, to eclipse it as the world’s most valuable company. Apple’s shares dipped 1% Tuesday leaving the company with a market value of slightly more than $2.8 trillion. Microsoft, whose stock has edged up 4% so far this year, is valued at $2.9 trillion.

PAGE 20, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

FTX Bahamas: ‘Best deal to avoid asset extinction’ FROM PAGE A24 liquidators to settle with Mr Ray, who heads the 134 FTX entities currently in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware, Mr Simms nevertheless hailed what he described as a “landmark deal” that will speed up asset recoveries for the near-61,000 creditors who have filed claims against The Bahamas’ estate.

“In the joint official liquidators’ considered view, the global settlement agreement is a landmark deal which will pave the way for the return to customers of the proceeds from assets recovered for the insolvent estates much earlier than otherwise would have been the case,” Mr Simms alleged in his affidavit, filed in support of the liquidators’ bid for Supreme Court approval of their deal with Mr Ray. “Absent the global settlement agreement, it is unlikely that recoveries after the costs of necessary legal actions would have been sufficient to make any distribution of any significance to customers and creditors of FTX Digital Markets.

“The global settlement agreement addresses many of the complex cross-border legal issues and other issues raised following the collapse of the FTX group. It provides for assets across the estates of FTX Digital Markets and the debtors to be pooled for distribution to FTX.com customers in a way that ensures customers” gain “substantially identical recoveries” whether they claim in The Bahamas or Delaware.

Mr Simms’ affidavit confirms that the Bahamian liquidators, as well as Mr Ray, faced equal forces driving them to settlement.

While the FTX Digital Markets trio feared being financially starved into submission, due to the relatively meagre resources in their possession in comparison to Mr Ray, the latter was worried The Bahamas “could be awarded” a material sum on its $9bn-plus Chapter 11 claim.

The FTX US chief also hinted that his plan to bring the crypto exchange out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection could be blocked without a deal with the Bahamian liquidators, meaning both sides had sufficient leverage over the other to make a settlement

NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that MARIO PIERRE of Misty Garden, Nassau, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 17th day of January 2024 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE

Lerwick Capital Investments Ltd.

___________________________________

Pursuant to the Provisions of Section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000 notice is hereby given that the abovenamed Company has been dissolved and struck off the Register pursuant to a Certificate of Dissolution issued by the Registrar General on the 2nd day of October 2023.

Crowe Bahamas Liquidator of Lerwick Capital Investments Ltd.

the common sense solution “in the best interests” of all former customers and creditors.

“The most significant factors are the delay, legal and other professional costs, and potential risks to creditors and customers of FTX Digital Markets,” Mr Simms said of the factors that influenced his and the PwC duo’s approach.

While there were “strong arguments in FTX Digital Markets’ favour”, the Lennox Paton senior partner added that this was no guarantee of success in their multiple legal battles with Mr Ray and his Chapter 11 team in the Delaware Bankruptcy Court.

“Due to the complexity and novelty of the issues in dispute, in addition to the various interlocutory applications which will likely be required, there will not be a final determination, inclusive of appeals, relative to the issues in dispute between the parties for many years,” Mr Simms added.

“It is also of note that the vast majority of the costs in the liquidation of FTX Digital Markets to-date have been incurred in relation to disputes with the debtors and their Chapter 11 cases.

The joint official liquidators have always had in the forefront of their deliberations the fact that spending very large sums of creditors and customers’ monies on litigation with the debtors

which, however strong the arguments, FTX Digital Markets might ultimately lose carries with it considerable risks”.

These “risks”, Mr Simms added, will be eliminated if both the Supreme Court and Delaware Bankruptcy Court approve the two sides’ deal and it is executed as stipulated. He said the Bahamian liquidation’s future costs, fees and expenses will be “significantly reduced” once the legal battles are ended.

“Further, the two estates and their creditors and customers will have the prospect of a distribution much earlier than if the joint official liquidators had to prosecute claims and counter-claims against the debtors,” Mr Simms continued.

“If the global settlement is not sanctioned by this honourable court, FTX Digital Markets and the debtors are very likely to continues in highly acrimonious and protracted litigation until the Bankruptcy Court [in Delaware] determines whether the migration of customers occurred and determines the ownership of the assets.

“As a necessary consequence of continuing to litigate, FTX Digital Markets will incur major expenses on litigation for the foreseeable future which, unless FTX Digital Markets is successful in the litigation, will reduce

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, FREDRANIQUE RICHAY SHIRLEY BOWE of Winton Meadow, Dove Drive, New Providence, Bahamas, Parent of GIANO AMIER MOSS A minor intend to change my child’s name to GIANO AMIER BOWE If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Deputy Chief Passport Officer, P.O. Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

NOTICE PURSUANT TO SECTION 218(1)(e) COMPANIES ACT, 1992 SUNNY TOURS LIMITED (the “Company”) (IN VOLUNTARY LIQUIDATION)

the available assets for distribution to creditors and customers,” he added.

“As this court is aware, there are limited funds available to FTX Digital Markets and the joint official liquidators in part due to the seizure of the funds frozen by the Department of Justice in the amount of $143.2m.”

This was divided between $50m held at Moonstone Bank, and $93.2m in Silvergate Bank, with the federal authorities grabbing these monies to compensate Sam Bankman-Fried’s victims. Part of the settlement will see Mr Ray and his team assist in securing the release of this $143.2m from the US Justice Department.

“It is, therefore, conceivable that if the litigation with the debtors were to continue the funds available to FTX Digital Markets would be diminished possibly extinction on legal and professional expenses in the US with no end in sight of the litigation with the debtors,” Mr Simms warned.

“The joint official liquidators are live to the point that legal fees are expensive in the US and there is rarely, if ever, recovery of legal costs by the successful party. Further, even if there were funds available to make distributions to customers and creditors at the end of the litigation, any prospect of an early distribution would have long since evaporated.

“In the joint official liquidators’ commercial view, given that there is a mutually-bargained settlement alternative, expending the necessary resources to advance the litigation would lead to a regrettable state of affairs and wholly detrimental to FTX Digital Markets, its creditors and customers.”

Concluding his analysis, Mr Simms asserted: “The terms of the global settlement agreement represent the best deal that the joint official liquidators have been able to achieve after protracted and

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difficult negotiations with the debtors.

“Given the limited assets presently under the joint official liquidators’ control, any future litigation would likely require the assistance of litigation funding, which raises concerns as to costs and the legality of any funding arrangement in The Bahamas.

“The joint official liquidators have negotiated strongly with the debtors for months and repeatedly pushed back in relation to various proposals that were unacceptable. At this stage, the joint official liquidators do not consider that we can achieve any further improvement in the terms that we have managed to negotiate in circumstances where the financial position of FTX Digital Markets is much weaker than the debtors.

“It is, therefore, extremely unlikely that more favourable terms could be achieved beyond those as set out in the global settlement agreement.” Both sides, as part of their deal, have agreed to use best efforts to employ similar asset valuations and settlement offers when assessing/granting creditor claims in their respective liquidation proceedings.

And the Bahamian trio will “take the operational lead in managing the valuemaximising disposition of real estate and other assets in The Bahamas”. Mr Ray and his team will lead all asset recovery elsewhere, including the possible sale of FTX’s exchange platform, technology and related intellectual property rights.

The Bahamas will also spearhead “pursuing specific litigation and avoidance actions identified in the global settlement agreement as part of the ongoing efforts to maximise recoveries for customers and creditors”, which seems to imply Mr Simms and the PwC duo will be in charge of efforts to recover the $100m obtained by 1,500 “Bahamian” customers in violation of the asset freeze when FTX imploded.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that on 5 January 2024 the Company was placed into voluntary liquidation.

The Liquidator is Kim D. Thompson of Equity Trust House, Caves, Village, West Bay Street, P.O. Box N-10697, Nassau, Bahamas and can be contacted on/via 242-676-8188 and kthompson@equitybahamas.com.

Signed: Kim D. Thompson

NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that LIVITA DEZULME of Wilton Street, Nassau, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 17th day of January 2024 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE

Lerwick Capital Ltd.

___________________________________

Pursuant to the Provisions of Section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000 notice is hereby given that the abovenamed Company has been dissolved and struck off the Register pursuant to a Certificate of Dissolution issued by the Registrar General on the 7th day of December 2023.

Crowe Bahamas Liquidator of Lerwick Capital Ltd.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 21

Commission ‘content’ to hand over $426m FTX digital assets Digital Markets liquidation. They will only be able to claim in the FTX Digital Markets liquidation. Under this arrangement non-customer creditors are entitled to their pro rata share of such pool up to the amount of their admitted proof.”

While voicing hope that joint claims hearings involving the Supreme Court and Delaware Bankruptcy Court will resolve any objections by Mr Ray to creditors claiming in the FTX Digital Markets liquidation, Mr Simms said “the safeguard is a pool of $75m provided by the debtors to assist in paying all disputed claims” in the Bahamian liquidation.

“Insofar as those claims exceed the $75m pool, there will be a dilution of the FTX Digital Markets estate and the amounts that the FTX Digital Markets customers will receive compared to those that claim through

the Chapter 11 process,” Mr Simms warned.

“Without the global settlement agreement there was an appreciable risk that FTX Digital Markets would have been left with scarce resources with which to make any distributions to those wishing to prove in The Bahamas, leaving customers with no option but to claim in the Bankruptcy Court in the US. “Ordinary creditors would have had to prove against FTX Digital Markets in The Bahamas whose resources would have been heavily diminished.” The 60,933 potential creditors of FTX Digital Markets must submit their claims by May 15, 2024, if they wish to recover their assets and receive a distribution.

FISHERMEN READY TO PROTEST BOAT REGISTRATION FEE HIKES

improve its services to boat owners, including facilitating registration applications online, he added that the turnaround time for most commercial vessel submissions has already been “drastically reduced” to 30 days or less in most instances.

FROM PAGE A24 Digital Markets] was presented in this honourable court by the Securities Commission, the Securities Commission took control of a quantity of digital assets as a means of preventing unauthorised withdrawals by unknown persons,” Mr Simms recalled.

“The [Delaware] bankruptcy court has already authorised a series of thorough procedures proposed by the debtors for monetisation of digital assets.

Accordingly, as part of the compromises contained in the settlement agreement, FTX Digital Markets, acting by the joint official liquidators, has agreed to seek the return of the digital assets currently held by the Securities Commission and transfer them to the debtors.

“The joint official liquidators have liaised with the

FROM PAGE A24 have paid it, but I haven’t paid it and have no intention of paying it. You cannot justify, in my situation going up over 1,000 percent, and for some 3,000 percent,” he added.

“I acknowledge we were paying the old fees for a very long time, but if you want to increase it, increase it by 100 percent or 75 percent. People who have a boat they might use two to three times a year to go to the beach on Rose Island, if they had a 20-footer the fee has gone from $20 to $700.

Anywhere between 35 feet and 50 feet has gone from $100 to $1,650.

“Ninety-five percent of the fishermen, probably 98 percent of the fishermen, are complaining about it everywhere you go. The price of lobster has dropped to $10 per pound, and the price of diesel fuel is between $5.50 and $6 per gallon. Some of the guys are making it, some are only paying their bills and some will probably go out of business.”

Mr Carroll said the higher boat registration fees are kicking-in at a time when fishermen are having to also contend with Business Licence fee filings/payments and a multitude of other fee rises. He added that his “FDC”, a fishing licence, had risen from $20 to $200, while permits for lobster trapping had increased from $10 to $50.

While the fishermen have written letters to the Government imploring it to change course over the boat registration fees, the NFA president said nothing concrete had been heard back although some MPs have suggested Prime Minister Philip Davis KC is “looking into it”.

As to whether fishermen may protest, Mr Carroll added: “We’re planning on doing something now, but half of the fishermen are at sea because lobster season is on now. The boats have

Securities Commission in connection with this term of the global settlement agreement and, as at the date of this affidavit, my understanding is that the Securities Commission of The Bahamas is content to transfer the digital assets to FTX Digital Markets to be dealt with on the terms of the global settlement agreement.”

Mr Simms added that “the Securities Commission intends to seek an Order from” the Supreme Court that will grant permission to effect this transfer. The senior Lennox Paton partner also revealed details of how creditors will be compensated and recover their assets, including the creation of a $15m fund to satisfy the claims of FTX Digital Markets’ non-customer creditors.

The latter group will include the likes of trade,

gone out after Christmas, so we don’t have as many people on land as we would like.

“We saw nothing about these fee increases until we read it in the paper.

Nobody consulted us; nothing. We’ve had the bonefish guides in the Family Islands complaining. Some heard about this when they went to get their boats licensed a few days ago. A fisherman from South Andros called me saying they heard nothing about it until they went to get their boat licensed at the end of the year.

“As far as we’re concerned, the fees still stand.

A lot of boats are not going to register. I don’t know what the Government is going to do about it. I don’t think there’s anywhere in the world that fees went up like this on boat registration. I don’t think fees have gone up like this anywhere in the world. We’ll see what happens.”

Mr Maillis added: “We have a lot of friends in the Government, and a lot of them don’t agree with what’s happened. They are bearing the full brunt of our frustration when, in reality, these decisions happened at the Cabinet level and with financial officers and others who have no understanding of the maritime sector.

“All they saw were dollar signs, and they are so afraid to upset our foreign guests and frustrate our attempts to become a vessel registration hotspot that they have basically sacrificed us to achieve this end.”

The NFA secretary added that the Association and wider fisheries industry were never consulted over the increase in boat registration fees even though the Fisheries Act 2020 “speaks very clearly to the establishment of the National Fisheries stakeholder forum”.

“We are viewing this as a blatant disregard for the law; for the policy that the Government has itself

government and other unsecured creditors. “The global settlement agreement provides for creditors proving in the FTX Digital Markets liquidation other than customers to be paid from a specific and segregated account that will be funded by a sum of $15m to be provided by the debtors [Mr Ray],” Mr Simms revealed.

“Presently the joint official liquidators consider that this amount should be sufficient to satisfy all the ordinary creditors of FTX Digital Markets.

Another justification for the differential treatment of non-customers was the concern of the joint official liquidators that the debtors would be reluctant to provide any funding for noncustomers at all or for FTX Digital Markets to pay a distribution to non-customers from assets in their hands.

espoused and committed to follow, and we want there to be greater accountability,” Mr Maillis added, pointing out that the fee increases “do not just impact high-end yachts, but small boaters who have vessels under 20 feet, too.

“A lot of fishermen use their boats for inter-island travel. They use them for subsistence fishing, they use it for semi-intensive commercial fishing,” he continued, describing the magnitude of the fee hikes as “insane”.

Mr Maillis said: “I’ve spoken to people in the insurance industry, and especially with these commercial vessel operators in the recreational sector, and they’re saying that the port fees are higher than it takes to have your vessel insured every year.

“That speaks to a level of insanity and incoherence that you can have your insurance policy be equal and, in some instances, lesser than it takes for your annual vessel registration....

Fishermen I have spoken to said that they would have been happy with a 100 percent increase, but to jump from $20 to $700 for a 20 foot vessel is utter insanity.”

Tavares LaRoda, the New Providence Port Authority’s chairman, previously told this newspaper that the increases to fees that have not been adjusted for two decades were designed to try and catch up with, but not exceed, inflation that has occurred over that period as the Government seeks to incentivise more boat owners to register their vessels in The Bahamas.

Outlining the Davis administration’s strategy, amid the outcry over both the first-time and annual registration fee increases, he argued that the hike in the former category was more than offset by the elimination of an effective 20 percent tax rate on boat owners importing their craft to The Bahamas for the

“Such an outcome would have been very unfair and was not one to which the joint provisional liquidators could agree.” However, Mr Simms said he and his PwC colleagues realised that without a compromise they faced “years of very hostile and expensive” litigation with Mr Ray that could consume all FTX Digital Markets’ assets and leave all creditors - customers and non-customers - with nothing.

“Eventually, the debtors agreed to the creation of the FTX Digital Markets noncustomer claims pool to be funded by $15m so that distributions could be made to all non-customer creditors proving in the FTX Digital Markets liquidation,” Mr Simms said.

“Non-customer creditors will not be able to elect whether to claim against the debtors or in the FTX

first time via the removal of VAT and Customs duty.

As for the introduction of inspection fees, Mr LaRoda told this newspaper that The Bahamas had to introduce a mandatory annual check of all private craft

because the present voluntary regime was simply incompatible with the wellregulated, blue chip image this nation has in the global maritime industry.

Confirming that the Authority is seeking to

PAGE 22, Wednesday, January 17, 2024

THE TRIBUNE

Social spending better than price controls on living cost

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Government’s former top financial official yesterday argued that increased social spending would better help Bahamians struggling with the cost of living crisis than the imposition of price controls.

Marlon Johnson, exacting financial secretary under the Minnis administration, told Guardian Radio yesterday that the Government would be better able to target support to those who need it via increased social welfare spending.

He argued that price controls, and tax cuts such

as the elimination of VAT on so-called ‘breadbasket’ food items, would be a more inefficient method for delivering this assistance because they will benefit the wealthy as well as those struggling to cope with the cost of living.

“All governments are challenged, but they want to respond because they recognise that they have to certainly help marginalised people. We get enamoured with believing that we can control prices to do such and such, but it can actually have the unintended impact,” Mr Johnson said.

“Most economists will tell you that rather than trying to control prices..focus on providing support, direct support for the families that need it.” He explained

that when governments apply price controls and tax breaks, they are also reducing taxes for higher earners that do not need the concession, thus making it more efficient to increase social spending and direct it to the persons requiring help.

Mr Johnson said: “So my earning levels are such that I don’t need my food prices to be artificially controlled. I can afford to eat… so rather than do that, it may make more sense to say to people who are under a certain threshold that we will provide the right support to them to help them be able to eat rather than making the prices artificially low for me who don’t need the subsidy…

“We cut tax, cut duty and such, and I always ask the

question: When you’re cutting duty, or you’re cutting VAT, you’re giving not only the working class and the poor a break, you’re giving a break to the rich who could afford to pay.

“So it may make more sense if you charge the appropriate tax level, and provide the support to the families and individuals who can’t make it and that’s a much more efficient way to be able to get it done” Mr Johnson said the demand by petroleum retailers for an increase in fixed price-controlled diesel and gas margins is understandable given the impact of high inflation and escalating operational costs.

“I think, as a general rule, we have got to understand that we’ve had price

inflation just over the last two or three years,” he said. “That, compounded, is probably somewhere around close to 20 percent.

So it’s kind of hard to ask the guys to work on the same margin when price levels generally, for the things that they have to consume, when minimum wage etc, has gone up, so their cost components have gone up. I don’t think it’s unreasonable for them to look at it.”

Mr Johnson said consideration should be given to smaller grocers, especially those on the Family Islands, when considering adjusting the price of breadbasket items as they already face higher import and operational costs while providing a smaller selection of goods.

MARLON JOHNSON He added: “On the food price controls, one of the interesting things I think you have to bear in mind is notwithstanding whatever government may want to do in policy, if your price controlling a sum of items, just think about it.

“If you have a small merchant, whether they’re in a Family Island, where it’s very more expensive and you’re selling a smaller basket of goods... the ability for you to be able to make market margins on other things is limited.”

GB CHAMBER CHIEF OPTIMISTIC PHARMACHEM WILL ‘RISE AGAIN’

By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter jsimmons@tribunemedia.net GRAND Bahama’s Chamber of Commerce president yesterday said he is optimistic that PharmaChem Technologies’ plant will “rise again” as the company now begins its winding-up James Carey conceded that the pharmaceutical manufacturer’s closure represents “a step back” for Grand Bahama’s economy but voiced hope that its owners will be able to restructure and re-establish their operation following the present entity’s liquidation.

Given that the PharmaChem facility recently underwent a $400m expansion, he added that its principals including

entrepreneur Pietro Stefanutti - may find it difficult to “walk away” from a business that they made such a large investment into.

“Freeport seems to go from crisis to crisis almost,” Mr Carey said. “At the end of last year, I was feeling very optimistic about Grand Bahama. Business seemed to be up, there seemed to be more positivity in the air and PharmaChem is a step back.

“But the Grand Bahama business community and the population is very resilient.

We don’t know the final outcome, but I’m hoping that there is a possibility of a future for PharmaChem because they have spent a tremendous amount of money recently, and it’s difficult to imagine that they will simply walk away from such a substantial investment.

“I’m hoping that something will happen with that plant, and it will certainly rise again in the near term.

We’ve seen places, not so much in The Bahamas but particularly the United States, go into bankruptcy and rise again fairly shortly thereafter, so I’m hoping that that would be the lot for PharmaChem going forward,” Mr Carey added.

“I’ve not heard any reports of governmental issues with PharmaChem, so it’s all something going wrong with the business itself it appears. Let’s hope it can rise again.” The Bahamas, though, does not have the US Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection laws that allow companies to restructure while protected from their creditors and then re-emerge.

Mr Carey, meanwhile, said other international

PHARMACHEM PLANT drug manufacturers may be interested in purchasing the plant so it may not be out of operation permanently. He added: “Surely, having invested hundreds of millions, and the previous plant certainly had to be worth hundreds of millions as well, there has to be a

way to revive that plant for some other purpose.”

Howard Thompson, the Government’s director of labour, told Tribune Business that PharmaChem has given a “number” of nowformer employees their severance packages and the Department of Labour is working to redeploy the impacted workers.

He said: “Any number of them have gotten their redundancy packages.

PharmaChem has lived up to their obligation, and my department is actively trying to help redeploy those particular employees that we can replace with suitable jobs”

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, PAGE 23

CHAMBER CHIEF UNAWARE OF FREEPORT INVESTOR DETERRENT “So yeah, there is a bit of an encumbrance in getting businesses approved and done. But I’m really not familiar with any big businesses or investors having issues where they have decided not to come here any more. Not aware at all.”

Michael Pintard, the Opposition’s leader, said earlier this week that potential investors have been detered from doing business in Freeport by its “two-step approval process” and a lack of engagement from the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) and the Government.

Mr Carey said the approval process can be delayed due to the Government needing to ensure

continue to protect what is Bahamian and address environmental issues, which becomes more relevant today.

“The Port Authority has a responsibility but there’s certain actions that the Port Authority have said that they go through and, in some instances, appear to be repeated by the Government or the Government is not accepting the process of the Port Authority in vetting, etc.”

Mr Carey added that the Government and the GBPA should work together to find ways to streamline the process, and maintained he does not believe either party is intentionally

making the process difficult for investors.

He said: “So there are some issues, for sure, and I’ve on several occasions suggested that the Government and the Port Authority sit at the same table and look for ways to streamline the process to make it more simplistic.

“And, quite frankly, speaking with the minister of Grand Bahama, there is an appetite to make the process more streamlined and simplistic as one possibly can without compromising any of the requirements. So I’m reluctant to say that any of the parties is purposely stalling the process. It’s just if it can be made a little more simple.”

Accounting urged over road repair cancellation

haphazard manner where certain sections of the road were repaired but others were not. As a result, completed sections were not linked to one another, with unfinished segments in between.

“You have to have a start point and an end point, not jumping from one settlement to another settlement,” he argued. There is only one road in South

By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter jsimmons@tribunemedia.net GRAND Bahama’s Chamber of Commerce president says he is unaware of investors being deterred from coming to Freeport despite the “rather cumbersome” approvals process.

James Carey said: “One of the things that the Chamber is focused on, and has been for a while, is generally the ease of doing business in Freeport and Grand Bahama.

“I’m really not aware of any investors being put off because of the process, but I know the process can be rather cumbersome even

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net A SOUTH Andros businessman yesterday called for an accounting to determine how much taxpayer money has been wasted through the cancellation of

JAMES CAREY for certain types of Bahamian businesses because there’s an approval process from the Grand Bahama Port Authority, and then one has to go through several processes with different government agencies including Inland Revenue

a multi-million dollar road repair contract.

Julian Gibson, owner/ operator of Eula Nixon Convenience Store and Last Stop gas station, told Trib une Business he is satisfied that his vocal opposition to the contractor assigned to repair the roads in South Andros has paid off.

that investors adequately address concerns, but added that there have been instances where the GBPA has given the go-ahead but Nassau does not accept the due diligence its has performed.

He added: “The Port Authority boasts of its quick response to process and being available, so I don’t know how that works, but the governmental process seems to be a bit more involved. I’ve heard of instances where it does take a while to get certain approvals done.

“But what’s involved in that process, in terms of what the Government is looking for because they do have a responsibility to

“I heard the member of parliament (Leon Lundy) for this area mentioned it on a telecast, but I was waiting for it to be announced in a press conference where all of the news media would be there. So I’m waiting to see what other agencies run with this story, but for now it makes me feel good,” he added.

Mr Lundy, in a telecast on Monday, said the $8m roadworks contract assigned to KW Paving in summer 2021 prior to that year’s general election has been cancelled due to concerns over how the project has been handled.

Mr Gibson added: “But the Government needs to find out now, on behalf

of the people, how much money was actually paid out to these contractors. The taxpayers have lost money on this. If it was up to me I would have cancelled that contract two months after they got the job.”

Mr Gibson, an outspoken critic of the work performed, alleged that the work was performed in a

THE WEATHER REPORT

5-DAY FORECAST

ORLANDO

High: 57° F/14° C Low: 46° F/8° C

TAMPA

TONIGHT

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

Cloudy; breezy in the afternoon

Breezy early; otherwise, cloudy

Cloudy

Humid with a brief shower or two

Occasional rain, mainly early

Windy with areas of low clouds

High: 79°

Low: 71°

High: 80° Low: 70°

High: 83° Low: 70°

High: 77° Low: 66°

High: 72° Low: 65°

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

83° F

70° F

84°-73° F

90°-67° F

78°-63° F

69°-59° F

E

W

ABACO

S

N

High: 74° F/23° C Low: 68° F/20° C

10-20 knots

S

WEST PALM BEACH High: 68° F/20° C Low: 63° F/17° C

10-20 knots

FT. LAUDERDALE

FREEPORT

High: 70° F/21° C Low: 66° F/19° C

E

W S

E

W

High: 75° F/24° C Low: 64° F/18° C

MIAMI

High: 71° F/22° C Low: 66° F/19° C

10-20 knots

KEY WEST

High: 70° F/21° C Low: 66° F/19° C

NASSAU

Today

12:11 a.m.

12:26 p.m.

2.8 2.6

6:27 a.m. -0.1 6:49 p.m. -0.5

ALMANAC

Thursday

1:12 a.m.

1:25 p.m.

2.7 2.3

7:33 a.m. 0.1 7:45 p.m. -0.4

Statistics are for Nassau through 1 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 82° F/28° C Low .................................................... 70° F/21° C Normal high ....................................... 77° F/25° C Normal low ........................................ 65° F/18° C Last year’s high .................................. 72° F/22° C Last year’s low ................................... 54° F/12° C Precipitation As of 1 p.m. yesterday ................................. 0.00” Year to date .................................................. 0.18” Normal year to date ..................................... 0.68”

Friday

2:15 a.m.

2:27 p.m.

2.7 2.1

8:42 a.m. 0.2 8:43 p.m. -0.3

Saturday

3:18 a.m.

3:31 p.m.

2.7 2.0

9:49 a.m. 0.2 9:42 p.m. -0.2

Sunday

4:18 a.m.

4:33 p.m.

2.7 1.9

10:52 a.m. 0.2 10:39 p.m. -0.2

Monday

5:14 a.m.

5:29 p.m.

2.8 2.0

11:48 a.m. 0.1 11:33 p.m. -0.2

Tuesday

6:04 a.m.

6:19 p.m.

2.8 2.0

12:37 p.m. 0.0 ---------

Ht.(ft.)

SUN AND MOON Sunrise Sunset

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 73° F/23° C

N

S

E

W S

4-8 knots

6:57 a.m. Moonrise 5:43 p.m. Moonset

11:26 a.m. none

First

Full

Last

New

Jan. 17

Jan. 25

Feb. 2

Feb. 9

ANDROS

SAN SALVADOR

GREAT EXUMA

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 72° F/22° C

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 76° F/24° C

N

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 74° F/23° C

E

W S

LONG ISLAND

TRACKING MAP H

Low

CAT ISLAND

E

7-14 knots

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2024

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 74° F/23° C

N W

TIDES FOR NASSAU Ht.(ft.)

ELEUTHERA

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 71° F/22° C

The higher the AccuWeather UV IndexTM number, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.

High

The exclusive AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature® is an index that combines the effects of temperature, wind, humidity, sunshine intensity, cloudiness, precipitation, pressure and elevation on the human body—everything that affects how warm or cold a person feels. Temperatures reflect the high and the low for the day.

N

N

UV INDEX TODAY

TODAY

High: 59° F/15° C Low: 47° F/8° C

SEE PAGE A19

High: 82° F/28° C Low: 76° F/24° C

4-8 knots

MAYAGUANA High: 84° F/29° C Low: 74° F/23° C

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

CROOKED ISLAND / ACKLINS RAGGED ISLAND High: 81° F/27° C Low: 77° F/25° C

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 76° F/24° C

GREAT INAGUA High: 84° F/29° C Low: 76° F/24° C

N

E

W

E

W

N

S

S

4-8 knots

7-14 knots

MARINE FORECAST ABACO ANDROS CAT ISLAND CROOKED ISLAND ELEUTHERA FREEPORT GREAT EXUMA GREAT INAGUA LONG ISLAND MAYAGUANA NASSAU RAGGED ISLAND SAN SALVADOR

Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday:

WINDS N at 10-20 Knots ESE at 7-14 Knots NE at 7-14 Knots E at 6-12 Knots NNW at 4-8 Knots ESE at 8-16 Knots ESE at 7-14 Knots E at 10-20 Knots NW at 6-12 Knots ESE at 8-16 Knots N at 10-20 Knots SE at 6-12 Knots N at 4-8 Knots ESE at 7-14 Knots NE at 7-14 Knots E at 10-20 Knots E at 4-8 Knots E at 8-16 Knots SE at 7-14 Knots E at 8-16 Knots NNW at 7-14 Knots E at 7-14 Knots NE at 4-8 Knots E at 10-20 Knots NW at 4-8 Knots ESE at 8-16 Knots

WAVES 4-7 Feet 3-6 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-2 Feet 2-4 Feet 3-6 Feet 2-4 Feet 3-5 Feet 2-4 Feet 3-6 Feet 3-5 Feet 1-3 Feet 0-1 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-3 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-3 Feet 2-4 Feet 4-7 Feet 3-6 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-3 Feet

VISIBILITY 10 Miles 5 Miles 6 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 5 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 5 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles

WATER TEMPS. 75° F 74° F 76° F 75° F 77° F 76° F 80° F 80° F 77° F 77° F 76° F 76° F 78° F 78° F 80° F 80° F 80° F 80° F 79° F 79° F 76° F 76° F 80° F 80° F 78° F 78° F

business@tribunemedia.net

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2024

$5.30

$5.31

FTX Bahamas: ‘Best deal to avoid asset extinction’ t 'JOBODJBM TUBSWBUJPO GFBS ESPWF 3BZ TFUUMFNFOU t $SFEJUPS SFDPWFSJFT IJU JG AOP FOE JO TJHIU ùUP mHIU t -PDBM MJRVJEBUPST A)JHIMZ VOMJLFMZ HFU CFUUFS UFSNT

BRIAN SIMMS KC

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net FTX’s Bahamian liquidators are asserting the settlement with their US adversary “represents the best deal” possible given that lengthy legal battles would slash creditor recoveries “possibly to extinction”.

Brian Simms KC, the Lennox Paton senior partner, in a January 12, 2024,

$5.30 affidavit filed with the Supreme Court alleged it is “extremely unlikely that more favourable terms could be achieved” with John Ray given that the Bahamian liquidation is in a “much weaker financial position” than their Chapter 11 counterpart.

While he and his fellow FTX Digital Markets liquidators, the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) accounting duo of Kevin Cambridge and Peter Greaves, have “repeatedly pushed back” against “unacceptable” offers by the FTX US chief, Mr Simms signalled that “limited assets” presently available to the trio would be exhausted by continuing their courtroom fight “with no end in sight”.

With the Bahamian trio controlling just 30 percent of the local subsidiary’s cash

Fishermen ready to protest boat registration fee hikes

By NEIL HARTNELL and YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporters

GOLDWYNN RESORT & RESIDENCES

FTX liquidators prevent $8m GoldWynn ‘forfeit’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net FTX’s Bahamian liquidators prevented a near-$8m loss by completing the acquisition of eight condo units in the GoldWynn development at Goodman’s Bay, it has been revealed.

Brian Simms KC, the Lennox Paton senior partner, in a January 12, 2024, affidavit supporting the bid for Supreme Court approval of the settlement with their US adversary, revealed that failing to close purchases agreed prior to the crypto exchange’s November 2022 implosion would have cost FTX creditors and investors some $7.718m.

The closing of these transactions, which the

Bahamian liquidators for FTX Digital Markets will now also seek Supreme Court approval for, means all eight units will be included among the properties that they will seek to sell under the terms of their deal with John Ray, head of the 134 entities in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware.

The sales proceeds will then be used to reimburse victims of the crypto exchange’s collapse, and Mr Simms voiced optimism that FTX Digital Markets’ claim for $256m against the 41 Bahamian properties “will be satisfied to a great extent” from these disposals. Mr Ray had previously suggested that the sell-off “will not be sufficient” to

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Commission ‘content’ to hand over $426m FTX digital assets

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Securities Commission plans to seek Supreme Court approval to transfer some $426m worth of digital assets it is safeguarding into the care of the liquidators for FTX’s Bahamian subsidiary.

Brian Simms KC, the Lennox Paton senior partner, in a January 12, 2024, affidavit supporting the Bahamian liquidators’ bid for Supreme Court approval of the settlement with their US adversary, disclosed that the regulator is “content” to transfer the assets it secured in the aftermath

of the crypto exchange’s collapse to himself and his PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) colleagues.

This will enable the FTX Digital Markets trio to fulfill one part of their agreement with John Ray, head of the 134 FTX entities currently in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware, in that they would use “commercially reasonable efforts” to ensure the digital assets held by the Securities Commission are ultimately transferred to their US counterpart.

“Shortly after the winding-up petition [for FTX

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A SENIOR fishermen yesterday asserted he has “no intention of paying” a more than eleven-fold increase in boat registration fees with the industry said to be ready to protest in Rawson Square over the hikes.

Keith Carroll, the National Fisheries Association’s (NFA) president, told Tribune Business that the magnitude of the increase in first-time and annual renewals had hit the fishing industry “very, very hard” with the cost for his two 50 foot-plus fishing boats having jumped by more than 1,000 percent.

Suggesting that “there’s nowhere else in the world” where fees have risen to this extent, he added

that even increases in the 75-100 percent range would have been easier for Bahamian fishermen to absorb with multiple other permit and licence fees also rising.

And Paul Maillis, the National Fisheries Association’s secretary, told this newspaper that fishermen have been discussing how they can take “appropriate measures” that will signal to the Government just how harmful the fee increases have been. He added that they are prepared to apply for official police permission to protest in front of Parliament if the Government does not reverse, or lessen, the fee rises.

Mr Maillis said he has also been informed by Sylvanus Petty, the North Eleuthera MP, that the latter was advised by Prime Minister Philip Davis KC

to let as many fishermen know to “not pay the fees until such time as they have been adjusted”.

However, there has been no formal or official announcement of this by the Government. And, with their licences and registrations having expired at year-end 2023, commercial boat owners must pay their renewal fees now.

“If you’re used to paying, just with the small 20-foot dinghies, $20 you’re now paying $700,” Mr Carroll said. “My big fishing boats, I have one that is 55 feet and one that is 51 feet. It [the registration fee] went from $200 to $2,300. That’s for boats anywhere between 50 and 70 feet, and it costs $125 for an inspection fee as well.

“I went from paying a total $400 to register my two fishing boats to $4,600.

$5.30 assets, due in large measure to the US Justice Department’s seizure of $143.2m from its US accounts in late 2022, the Lennox Paton senior partner conceded that assets available to pay creditors would ultimately be exhausted by the legal sparring and they would have to seek litigation financing that comes with its own risks.

And customer and FTX group assets and liabilities are “so commingled” and “inextricably intertwined that it would be practically impossible”, in addition to creating enormous delays and costs, to try and “unravel” what belongs to which liquidation estate The Bahamas or Delaware.

Detailing the commercial rationale that drove the FTX Digital Markets

SEE PAGE A20 t "TTPDJBUJPO DIJFG IBT AOP JOUFOUJPO PG QBZJOH GPME KVNQ t 4BZT AOPXIFSF FMTF JO UIF XPSME XIFSF GFFT SPTF TP NVDI

t "EET UIBU A PG mTIFSNFO BSF DPNQMBJOJOH BCPVU SJTF The price of lobster is down and we have to pay these higher fees. They [the Government] want us to pay it. They said they were going to look into it and change it, so we’re waiting to see what they’re going to do. The Prime Minister hasn’t made an official statement yet.

“Some boats have paid it already. The guys in the Family Islands, I know some guys in Long Island

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Tourism chief ‘doesn’t see’ US crime travel advisory

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas is not presently in danger of suffering a US travel advisory over the recent murder spike, a senior hotelier asserted yesterday, adding that it was not yet “a major concern for tourism.

Robert Sands, the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s (BHTA) president, told Tribune Business: “As we’ve always stated, crime impacts everybody.

This is not just about the tourism sector, but The Bahamas as a whole. Our employees, who live in the country and we work alongside, are impacted by it.

“Yes, we are concerned about this present situation. At this point in time, we will continue to monitor the efforts of the Government and concerned citizens in this particular area. This

ROBERT SANDS whole issue of highlighting the concerns and the remedial actions being taken is a step in the right direction.”

Confirming that he was referring to Prime Minister Philip Davis KC’s national address on crime with his latter remark, Mr Sands told this newspaper that he believes the authorities are “doing the best they can in the circumstances” to prevent further murders and violent crimes from occurring.

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