04272023 NEWS AND SPORT

Established

Laroda warns nIB runnIng on fumes

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

MYLES Laroda said the National Insurance Board fund is “basically running on fumes” and can only be stabilised when the contribution rate is increased by 1.5 per cent for the third or fourth time in the future.

He said extending the retirement age, cutting benefits, or combining these two options would not address the problem.

His comments came during a Progressive Liberal Party Elizabeth constituency branch meeting on Tuesday night.

“When (NIB) started out, you were collecting benefits on $400 a week; now it’s almost $700 a week,” he said. “You were paid out to a few thousand pensioners; now you’re paying out to 43,000 pensioners. We’re paying benefits even though you did not increase the amount that was due into

SEE page Three

Human RigH ts Committee Resolution passed in Hoa

By JADE RUSSELL AND LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporters

ELECTED officials passed a resolution in the House of Assembly yesterday to establish a Human Rights Committee to monitor and protect the enforcement of human rights in The Bahamas.

Legislators highlighted numerous issues relevant to the committee, from marital rape and gender-based violence to police-involved

killings and the treatment of people in custody or prison.

The committee will comprise five members of the House of Assembly and three members of the Senate.

The resolution said: “(The committee would) assess and evaluate all matters related to the protection and enforcement of human rights in The Bahamas; determine the level at which such rights

SEE page Three

Govt would ‘absolutely’ address frontinG issue

By LETRE SWEETING Tribune Staff Reporter lsweeting@tribunemedia.net

LABOUR Minister

Keith Bell said immigration officials are reviewing Chief Justice Ian Winder’s recent ruling on “fronting”, adding the government would “absolutely” address the controversial, long-standing practice.

Chief Justice Winder ruled last month that “illegality was a major part” of a Bay Street retail fronting deal involving the

Skandaliaris family, a prominent Greek-Bahamian family.

He ruled that a company owned and controlled by the family signed an agreement with two US investors to circumvent the National Investment Policy’s stipulation that retail businesses are reserved for Bahamian ownership only.

The ruling shone a rare light on the practice of

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE BAHAMIAN entrepreneur seeking to restore Paradise Island’s lighthouse yesterday blasted that it was “a damn lie” for Royal Caribbean to assert his project will have a higher guest density than its own.

Toby Smith, the Paradise Island Lighthouse and Beach Club principal, vehemently rejected assertions by Jay Schneider, the cruise giant’s chief product and innovation officer, that his venture was seeking to host some 1,000 visitors per day on a threeacre Crown Land parcel he has been trying to lease.

Mr Schneider, in an

smit H RejeC ts rci density Claim, C alls it ‘a damn lie’ a not HeR man muRdeRed last nigH t in Kennedy sub

A MAN was shot multiple times as he sat outside his apartment complex and died as he tried to flee to safety last night in the country’s latest murder. The victim died in his home as he tried to evade his attackers, who shot him as he sat outside a complex in Lily Way in the Kennedy Subdivision. Police were alerted to the shooting shortly before 11pm by ShotSpotter technology. Police at the scene last night said they were stepping up patrols in the

page Five

front Porch

focus on education and literacy may hel P addRess CRime issues page eigH t

He adds ‘the first rate increase is not going to save the fund’

GB Chamber head ‘totally convinced’ economic resurgence is coming

By DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

GRAND Bahama

Chamber of Commerce

President James Carey

is “totally convinced” the economic resurgence of Grand Bahama

is inevitable and calls for everyone to be ready to do their part.

However, he stressed the level and quality of service in Grand Bahama has to be improved.

“We need to pay some attention to the level and quality of our service,”

he said during the Chamber’s monthly business luncheon meeting on Wednesday at Pelican Bay Resort.

Central Bank governor

John Rolle was present and spoke on the Sand Dollar, a digital iteration of the Bahamian dollar.

“We hear a lot of the investments that are coming; all of us are waiting with anticipation and hope for economic resurgence for GB. I am totally convinced that it is coming,” Mr Carey said.

“We want to encourage you to do your part. And

all of us have a part to play - every business house, every resident, there are things we can do to contribute to what is coming.”

He urged small and medium-sized enterprises to continue to equip themselves for what is likely to come.

On digital currency, he said: “It is here, and the way we did business in the past just would not work in 2023 and beyond.”

Mr Carey said service is a serious mantra of the Chamber this year. He said that service in “our city, island, and country is not of a standard conducive to the development of good business”.

“It is so easy to do, but we fail to do it,” Mr Carey said, sharing his encounter

with an employee at a fast-food establishment.

“This morning, I went on line to a fast-food establishment. There was a young lady outside taking orders; she never looked in my direction; she never said ‘good morning’; she never said ‘thank you’ when I placed my order; she said to drive up to the next window.

“How difficult it is to offer some level of service, but that is what we are dealing with, that is the norm we come to expect.

“We have forgotten what it means to give service. We talk about Bahamians being nice people. I believe we are, but service is a key ingredient to what we need to do.”

URGENT NEED FOR BLOOD DONATIONS

Doctors Hospital is in urgent need of blood donations of all types.

The hospital urged people to "come on down and give a pint of blood at the Doctors Hospital Blood Bank".

The Blood Bank is open

from 9am-7pm weekdays and 9am-3pm on weekends.

In a statement, the hospital said: "Don't delay; it could be a friend or neighbour in need of this life saving gift. Thank you for your continued support.

During a meeting of the Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce Central Bank governor John Rolle spoke to members about the Bahamas’ digital currency, the Sand Dollar.

Photo: Vandyke Hepburn

Laroda warns NIB running on fumes

the fund. And so the reality is something has to be done if this is going to be saved.”

Mr Laroda said some recommendations for saving the fund would not suffice.

“We can extend the retirement age. You could cut some of the benefits. You could do a combination of both, and you know, once you give Bahamians things, you can’t just go and take it back. But that won’t be addressing the problem either, so the government has made a decision, and that decision will be in shortly,” he said.

“The reality is that the rate increase that was proposed by the National Insurance Board — the first rate increase is not going to save the fund. The second one isn’t going to save the fund. It won’t be until about the third to fourth increase at 1.5 per cent per year (that NIB would be stabilised).”

“Steps have to be made now. Like I said, the bleeding is not going to stop with the first rate increase. The bleeding is not going to stop. We’ll be bleeding less but we’re talking about looking at around the third increase which will be six years from now where

we’re looking for things to stabilize.”

Recommendations for a rate hike were outlined in the 11th actuarial review of the National Insurance Board, which predicted the fund could be depleted by 2028.

Mr Laroda referred to the actuaries as “professionals who have no ties in The Bahamas and who (are) just looking at the facts of saying we should do two per cent per year for 20 years. So that’s actually ten increases”.

Mr Laroda, a State Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister responsible for the National Insurance Board, said the can has been kicked down the road for too long on NIB.

“We’re taking in around $23 (or) $24m a month, and we’re paying around $28m a month,” he said. “That creates a deficit of $4m per month on the pension side alone and in the 49 years of the fund, we have had one rate in increase. That was in 2010.”

Mr Laroda has repeatedly warned about the NIB fund.

The Nassau Guardian reported earlier this year that Cabinet had approved a 1.5 per cent rate increase which would

take effect on July 1.

Asked about this, Mr Davis told reporters: “As is my mandate, I continue to say that I’m going to try to

resist putting more burden on our poor working class. We have looked at the matter.”

“We understand that we

have to do something, and we are trying to identify exactly what to do, and increasing the rate is one of the options that we are

looking at.” The Davis administration has yet to confirm any future contribution rate increases.

Human Rig H ts Committee R esolution passed in H oa

are in compliance with regional and global obligations; report to Parliament every six months on human rights matters; make recommendations to guide the legislative process to improve human rights in the Bahamas; investigate alleged human rights violations through parliamentary inquiries, holding public hearings on human rights related issues, with power to send for persons and papers, with leave to sit from place to place, and with leave to sit during recess.”

Long Island MP Adrian Gibson identified police conduct as a problematic area.

He highlighted numerous incidents when police officers allegedly misused their power.

“Many policemen and women are upstanding Bahamians who love their countrymen (and) love their country and strive to abide within the realm of the law. However, we’ve all heard the violations of human rights by certain officers who’ve been accused of near systemic patterns of police brutality, verbal abuse, and outright misconduct clearly in violation of citizen’s rights,” he said.

Mr Gibson said there have been many allegations of police brutality. He said some officers had been accused of displaying “vile” and “sadistic” behaviour.

“Some Bahamian officers have gained the reputation for bludgeoning citizens and using excessive force, carrying out false arrests,

psychological intimidation, and expletive-filled verbal assaults,” he said.

“Certain groups of rogue officers have demonstrated, or seem intent on demonstrating, their power by conducting themselves like rude brutes and often being unpleasant in their quest for a person’s subjugation and or control. That cannot be accepted in a modern day.”

Mr Gibson said allegations of cruel interrogation tactics used to obtain

involuntary confessions had also been concerning.

He said he had heard of the mistreatment of suspects at the Central Detective Unit.

“(There have been) allegations of waterboarding, supposedly or allegedly hitting women on their breasts, to battering persons with phone books or their fists or feet and allegedly placing guns to the forehead or a revolver in the mouth of suspects,” he said.

National Security

Minister Wayne Munroe, who led the debate on the resolution yesterday, said the committee would not undermine the judiciary’s powers.

“From the wording of the resolution, there is no attempt to evade the jurisdiction of the judiciary via this legislation,” he said. “They will still be left as the guardians of our laws and the guardians of our rights.”

The committee will report to Parliament every six months.

State Minister for Public Service Pia Glover-Rolle discussed marital rape while underscoring the need for such a committee.

“There is no need to wait until we figure every last aspect of every sub-issue out to begin taking action to protect women. Sometimes action must be taken

in stages,” she said. “We can take the first critical steps and figure out the other policies along the way. When an issue is urgent enough, that is often necessary. So there is not only a need to be quick and comprehensive, there is a need to be decisive and practical.”

Myles LaRoda spoke about the National Insurance Board yesterday at an Elizabeth constituency community meeting. He warned that increases are needed as NIB is ‘running on fumes.’

Photo: Austin Fernander

PriMe Minister Philip ‘Brave’ Davis, Minister of Education Glenys Hanna Martin and Minister of Social Services Obie Wilchcombe have a chat on the side during a break at the House of Assembly today where a resolution was passed to establish a Human Rights Committee.

Photo: Austin Fernander

RCI following same developer rules as

Atlantis and Baha Mar, says Cooper

EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter Ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

ROYAL Caribbean

International (RCI) is following the same environmental protocols for its Paradise Island project that Atlantis and Baha Mar followed for their multimillion dollar ventures, according to Tourism Aviation and Investments Minister Chester Cooper.

He said if those guidelines and protocols worked for the “billion dollar investments” of the two resorts, he is confident they will work for RCI’s $100m investment.

The minister was reacting to RCI’s environmental plans amid pushback from Atlantis executives and environmentalists.

He said: “I have not had a chance to look at the environmental plans yet of RCI. Suffice to say, they are following the same protocols, which are the standard programme protocols in Department of

Environmental Planning and Protection.”

The minister acknowledged the commentary surrounding the project and invited individuals to give their suggestions to the DEPP.

“I am confident that these protocols and laws and the professionalism and expertise of DEPP will continue to prevail. I keep saying that if these guidelines and protocols were good enough for the billion dollar investments of Atlantis and Baha Mar and they worked, I’m confident they will work for the $100m investment of RCI,” Mr Cooper said.

“I think, you know, there’s some anxiety. We need to allow the professionals to do their work. If we have any concerns, we ought to express those concerns. Notwithstanding their expertise, they might miss something. But what we want to do is to ensure that the public is heard and therefore DEPP through their public consultation is

always interested in legitimate feedback.”

“So if there’s an environmental concern, it will be heard – it will be addressed. If there’s a suggestion from anybody in the public,

rF bank anD t rust l enDs support to reaCh

RF Bank & Trust is supporting REACH and the autistic community during Autism Awareness month.

The RF Donations committee said it has highlighted REACH as a “community partner”.

Rachael Allahar, RF marketing manager, said: “The work REACH is doing impacts, and ultimately improves, the lives of not only those on the spectrum but also their families in the support they provide.”

REACH is the Bahamas resource and educational source for autism and other related challenges in The

Bahamas. In addition to a cash donation, RF has provided T-shirts for the REACH Fun Run Walk

on Saturday at Montague Park. To take part, call 328-4123 for more information.

DEPP will consider those adjustments and will ensure that they are addressed in the best interests of the Bahamian people. We are all Bahamians. We all love our country.”

Artist rendering of RCI’s proposed Beach Club

“We all want the best for our country and I hear some environmental pundits who may have some expertise in the area making that commentary publicly. I would invite

them to send their suggestions to DEPP so that they can be properly considered and the responses can be measured and deliberate and ensuring that we address the issues.”

Demolition has starteD on Downtown buil Dings

EARYEL BOWLEG Tribune Staff Reporter Ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

DEMOLITION of buildings has started downtown, with Tourism, Aviation and Investments Minister Chester Cooper revealing that about six have been knocked down so far.

Mr Cooper spoke about the revitalisation intuitive for downtown, saying that there has already been an increase in a “significant way” to clean-up and maintain the area.

He said: “We are undertaking some beautification projects. We’re looking at the old traffic studies at the moment that talked about diverting some traffic and making some streets pedestrian only. And what we are also doing is a significant push to demolish dilapidated buildings. So far, I believe we’ve done about six of them. There are about nine more on our radar.”

“There is a process that must be undertaken. The owners must be given notice and if and when they respond their responses are carefully considered. So if you give notice to someone to demolish and they come back and say, ‘No, wait a minute I’m fixing this. I’m gonna start soon’.”

“The appropriate thing to do would be to engage. So this is what we’re doing. We want it done and we want it done fast but we also have an

appreciation for private ownership rights, etc. But we are resolute that some action is going to be taken.”

Mr Cooper added there are some investment projects in the pipeline by Bahamians to create new businesses in the area east of East Street.

He said his ministry, through its Tourism Development Corporation, is developing two of these spaces as incubation centres for small businesses.

He said officials are ensuring there is a space for tour operators –– small ones who might need to have an office presence downtown. They are also looking for a space for the creative arts.

“We’re looking to see how we can do some beautification. Again, along with the creative arts community, whether it be murals they are putting in place, some proposals at the moment to see

exactly what we can do,” Mr Cooper said.

“I’ve asked them to look at it in small chunks. So firstly, we’re looking at the area between East Street and Victoria Avenue. They are presenting a proposal and once we get that proposal we’re going to move forward swiftly.”

“Finally, we are looking at legislation. We’re looking at the new Mental Health Bill to see how we can help to manage vagrancy. We’re looking at the new City Management Bill; that’s with the Attorney General’s office.”

“We’re reviewing some of these items and that will go to Cabinet in due course, and we are consistently looking for even more meaningful ways to improve the downtown area. So these are some of the short and medium term things that that we’re doing.”

Deputy Prime Minister Chester Cooper says demolition has begun as part of the down town revitalisation initiative; so far six buildings have been knocked down.

rF Donations Committee members alongside directors from REACH. From left, Jontra Harvey - regional investment banking manager at RF Bank & Trust, Greer Bain Symonette - REACH board member, Guerda Culmer – REACH board member and Rachael Allahar - marketing manager at RF Bank & Trust.

Government would ‘absolutely’ address fronting issue, says Minister of Labour

Bahamians fronting for foreign investors so the latter could secretly operate businesses in sectors reserved only for local ownership.

Critics see a double standard in the government’s immigration practices — a quickness to deal with some issues involving immigrants but a slowness to address a more complex and impactful problem like fronting.

“I don’t remember no other judgements, no other cases where the court actually steps out on a limb and did what (the Chief Justice) actually did,” Mr Bell said yesterday. “We know it’s there whether the Chief Justice says something or not. We all know that’s what needs to be done. It was just a clear obvious case, I think that’s why he said it.”

Mr Bell said his ministry is “aware of a few” businesses operating illegal fronting arrangements.

“I think you’re going to see more and more as we make inroads,” he said.

“When you go up to these companies, you have to remember these companies, these aren’t just fly by night, these are companies that have money, that have deep pockets and resources.

“There are a number of ongoing investigations.

There are some matters we are looking at.

When you go up there, you have to make sure that you

cross your I’s and dot your T’s. And those cases are not the easiest to solve and prosecute.”

When asked if the issue would finally be addressed, Mr Bell said: “Absolutely”.

He said there are several ways to deal with illegal fronting operations.

“First of all, go to the

business licence department and ask them to cancel their business licence,” he said.

“That’s the first component. Everyone who works within that company, who are not Bahamians, not permanent residents or citizens, then we can look to cancel those permits. “So, there are ways in

which we could look at it, within the ambit of the law. There are also some charges which could be put before the court, if we decide to go that way.”

The case involving the Skandaliaris family only came to light as a result of the two foreign investors, Tal Nemzer and Zvi Yosifon,

initiating Supreme Court legal proceedings against them in 2017 for alleged breach of the two sides management agreement and purported “negligence” in living up to its terms.

While Chief Justice Winder gave the Skandaliaris family and their ZRK vehicle some credit for

bringing the parties’ business relationship to an end, so as “to avoid becoming further embroiled in violations of the law”, he added that their involvement in an “invalid” deal “cannot be denied or ignored”.

Mr Bell spoke to reporters after a Bahamas Contractors Association meeting.

‘Get your house in order’, says Bell warninG of clamp down in illeGal practices

By LETRE SWEETING

Tribune Staff Reporter lsweeting@tribunemedia.net

LABOUR Minister

Keith Bell vowed to clamp down on unlawful work permit practices and illegal fronting operations in the construction sector yesterday, telling contractors: “Get your house in order.”

Mr Bell emphasised the Davis administration’s enforcement of the country’s labour laws during a speech at the Bahamas Contractors Association’s (BCA) monthly meeting yesterday.

He said amendments may be required to increase penalties for people who violate the laws.

He said from April 2022 to April 2023, the Department of Labour granted 102 approvals to nonBahamians to fill vacancies in the construction industry at senior operational levels.

Additionally, 175 labour certificates were issued to non-Bahamians in non-managerial disciplines during that period, including A/C technicians, joinery technicians, skilled carpenters and marble tile layers.

Mr Bell said officials had found dozens of cases where work permits were obtained for entry-level jobs even though the employees were highly trained and paid.

“If you are doing this, stop. Submit the proper documentation to the government and pay the correct fees,” he said.

He said farm labourers should not work on construction sites.

“Contractors know that

a construction site is not a farm and a building contractor is not a farmer,” he said. “Persons who have been issued permits to work on farms found working on construction sites are liable for deportation.”

He said: “When those persons come back to us, they will not be classified as farm labourers or handymen anymore. They’d be classified as skilled labourers, so the fees would be twice as much. Instead of being $2000 it’ll be $4000.”

Mr Bell said officials had increased their scrutiny of the permit process to ensure it reflects genuine efforts to recruit Bahamians in a way consistent with the country’s market realities.

He said some businesses have offered “inordinately low salaries” to people before complaining they received no application from Bahamians.

“Interestingly, we have found several examples where persons have advertised positions at one salary locally only to hire a non-Bahamian at a significantly higher salary than the one advertised,” he said. “Schemes such as this do not conform with the regulations and will not be permitted.”

Mr Bell said permits for people working outside the scope of their licence would be cancelled, not “fixed”, and the permit holders would be prosecuted and possibly deported.

“I believe,” he said, “it is important to specifically warn you as contractors who employ persons on work permits, get your house in order! The law is clear on what is required.”

Mr Bell also said officials would crack down on illegal fronting operations in the construction sector.

a nother murder last niGht in Kennedy suB

from page one

community, which the said was a quiet area normally.

Chief Superintendent Chrislyn Skippings, speaking at the scene, said: “This incident in this particular community tonight is very unfortunate because this is a very quiet community, this community we don’t come to – we haven’t seen incidents of this occurring so we’re definitely going to beef up our patrols in this particular community.”

She called on everyone

to play their part in fighting crime, saying: “This is our country. Things can only get better when we work hand in hand. The police cannot do it alone, the community cannot do it alone, the other agencies cannot do it alone, it has to be a collective effort.

I’m asking you to let’s get together, let’s hold hands, let’s pull our communities back together.

“Pick up the phone, call CID, call 919, let us know where that weapon is. We need to get that weapon off the street.”

The victim’s age was not known at the time of going to press, and he was not known to police. It was not known how many attackers there were.

CSP Skippings noted the impact of saturation patrols in taking guns and ammunition of the street, and added that shortly before this incident occurred, patrols yielded a young man being found in possession of a handgun and ammunition on Claridge Road unconnected to this shooting.

“Contractors would be aware that this sector is reserved for Bahamians,” he said. “Yet (there are) numerous reports of fronting operations where employees are really owners and have

arrangements with Bahamian citizens to submit inaccurate documents to facilitate approvals. This is where contractors must speak up. The system cannot function if we allow persons to corrupt the

system by making illegal fronting arrangements. Equally, tourists should not be managing construction firms or projects. If they have no permit, they should not be working here.”

Minister of Labour Keith Bell yesterday addressed issues relating to fronting operations. He said that the government ‘absolutely’ would deal with these businesses, adding that they are aware of some businesses engaged in frontingwhich are being investigated.

Photo: Moise Amisial

Minister of Labour Keith Bell addressed the Bahamas Contractors Association yesterday during a luncheon

Photo: Moise Amisial

The Tribune Limited

Munroe right on legal limit to bail restrictions

IN this column yesterday, The Tribune offered a rebuke of sorts towards National Security Minister Wayne Munroe for ducking the issue of marital rape on the pretext that it was not in the PLP’s election manifesto – its Blueprint for Change.

We noted that of course there are many other things not in that manifesto but it hasn’t stopped the party moving to act on a number of issues, and indeed dealing with other matters as they arise.

For example, our lead story on our front page today talks of the need to deal with the NIB Fund – but hunt through the Blueprint for Change and you won’t find a policy on that laid out for the voters.

But today we want to praise Mr Munroe – for his straight answer when it comes to the likelihood of restricting bail.

Mr Munroe laid out quite clearly that any such move would have to stand up against a likely legal challenge that would go all the way to the Privy Council – and others have tried and failed in that regard.

He said that Trinidad created a law that prevented bail being granted in cases of murder – and that law lasted less than a year before being struck down first by the Appeal Court in Trinidad and then reinforced by the Privy Council.

Mr Munroe said: “We know that you cannot simply remand somebody because they’re charged with an offence – no law will permit that.

“Everyone has tried for the last 30 years; no law permits that. What the law does say is that we can remand you if your release is likely to pose a danger to the public.”

At the heart of the reasoning for this is that, of course, someone being charged is not someone being found guilty. All suspects – from the lowliest of traffic offences to the highest of crimes – are innocent until proven guilty. Depriving anyone of their liberty is a serious decision, and to do so automatically for

a chosen category of crime, before any assessment of the strength of the case against them, is a measure that could in the worst circumstances be abused by authorities.

Bear in mind that for most of these cases, it can be years before they are heard by our sluggish court system. If bail was denied until the person was found not guilty, they could be locked away for four, five, six years – more. The Tribune has reported on cases that have been a decade old. It is implausible that someone not convicted of an offence could spend so many years of their life in prison.

Mr Munroe does suggest an argument has been made over public safety when it comes to approving bail – saying that “we appear to have capital punishment being carried out on our streets without trial, without appeals” and citing the “collateral damage”, saying releasing people creates a danger to the public.

That argument has gone to the Supreme Court, and may well go further if it fails to win favour – but it is a way around the current legal framework rather than changing the laws to lock up everyone in a certain category.

What is most needed is for those cases to be heard faster – for investigators to have the resources to gather the evidence they need, for there to be enough courts to handle the case load, for there to be enough magistrates and judges and prosecutors and defence lawyers to ensure justice happens in a timely fashion.

Otherwise we end up with what we are seeing – suspects released on bail being gunned down on the streets. Revenge killings and gang violence.

Before we talk about the prospect of keeping people locked away until their case is heard, we need to solve the problem of years-long cases in our courts.

We have said it before in this column, that old adage that justice delayed is justice denied. In the case of cases that last for many years before a verdict, too often there is no justice at all.

High profile investigations by the police

EDITOR, The Tribune.

OUR Police Force over the past decades has been active in investigations, arrests, and prosecutions of offenders, which included various high-profile residents and included several politicians in the government and opposition.

I was involved in a large number of these matters during my 25 years in Criminal Investigation Department. There were politicians arrested, charged, and prosecuted for various crimes, including sedition, election bribery, stealing by reason of employment, and bribery of a magistrate. All of these matters were heard in our courts.

There were acquittals and convictions and I recall a politician being imprisoned.

Persons reading reports in papers and hearing statements made by prominent citizens of our country would believe that we have a corrupt police service, that is controlled by political parties, which based on their records would be

The future of conch is at risk

EDITOR, The Tribune.

THE Queen Conch is approaching extinction in The Bahamas. A bold statement? Hardly! The science clearly states that we are watching a continuing decline in conch populations year after year. Worse, we know that conch require a certain number of individuals in a given area to successfully reproduce.

I find it incredible that people who claim to “follow the science” are unable to see how we are dooming the remnants of our remaining Queen Conch population to extinction. Even a casual look at the status of conch in the Caribbean should be enough to convince the responsible thinking individual of the urgent need to end the export of conch from The Bahamas.

I suppose it is all tied together. The love of money, the poor educational outcomes, petty politics, and a lack of vision beyond our own selfish, short lives.

not understand it. Conch are disappearing and are in danger of becoming extinct. How compromised do you have to be not to see this?

“Conch have been depleted by heavy harvesting to the point of emergency throughout much of their range.” Nixon Griffis – January, 1983.

“One recently-published paper predicts overfishing could spell an end to Bahamian conchs in as little as 10 years.” National Geographic - January, 2019.

“Overfishing is being blamed for plummeting ocean stocks which saw conch off the menu at several restaurants across Providenciales.” BBC News - Feb. 2020.

that the queen conch (Strombus gigas), economically important as food and for its decorative shell, is facing unprecedented fishing pressure throughout its Caribbean range.” Mongabay - Feb. 2018.

There is almost nowhere a science-oriented person could look where the alarm bells are not sounding.

Yet, we still have people in positions of power who seem in denial of, perhaps ignorant of, the true science regarding the Queen Conch.

The representatives of the fish houses (stakeholders as they are called) see only money. So, we cannot expect a reasonable, educated and responsible position from them. They seem willing to sell out the country for their own shortterm profits. How else to see it?

We talk about education.

proven to be untrue. In recent years, there have been arrests and prosecutions of politicians and other high-profile offenders. It must be understood, that after the arrest and charges it is the responsibility of the Attorney General and staff to deal with these matters in the courts.

Except for summary prosecutions in the Magistrates’ Courts, where the prosecutors are police officers. The complaints of rape, violent assaults, and threats of death made by Jane Rolle are being investigated by the Grand Bahamas Police Assistant Commissioner BK Bonamy, an experienced, efficient/effective, and dedicated police officer. The demeaning allegations and accusations being made by prominent citizens and politicians will not deter him from ensuring that the investigation is thorough and the interrogation of the suspect in the matter occurs when the investigators are ready to do so. This is not an ordinary case of rape and violence in which the persons involved are

strangers. The victim and suspect are generally wellknown to each other.

The interviews of witnesses on this occasion and any previous occasions and medical reports should be on file for the apprehension and interrogation of the suspect.

It would be expected, that the suspect in this matter may be accompanied by his attorney. It must be anticipated, that this matter would be submitted to the Attorney General for his information and directions.

The anxiety of those persons, who have already declared a guilty verdict will be further delayed. The public must have faith in its police service whose performance over the decades has been commended by Royalty, Presidents, and Prime Ministers. I am proud to have been a member of this Police Force. We Served with Honour.

We Remember with Pride. PAUL THOMPSON, Sr, KPM. CPM. ACP-Ret. Nassau. April 21, 2023

We show no concern for being good stewards of God’s creation. We seem to have no concern for future generations of Bahamians. We refuse to imagine our country without this important food source. Our Fisheries experts repeatedly exhibit their own professional failings, and assumed ignorance. They seem to not care that our national food security is being sold at rock bottom prices to foreigners. They seem not to read the science. Or, perhaps they do

“The queen conch (Strombus gigas) is a prized delicacy long harvested for food and is revered for its beautiful shell. Second only to the spiny lobster, it is one of the most important benthic fisheries in the Caribbean region. Unfortunately, the species faces a challenge of survival: how to endure and thrive, as populations are in a steady state of decline from overfishing, habitat degradation and hurricane damage. In some places, the conch populations have dwindled so low that the remaining conch cannot find breeding partners. This dire situation is urgent in ecological and economic terms.” Science

Daily – Feb. 2021

“But new research finds

Yet here, where critical thinking and wisdom should meet, we cannot even recognise and admit that the export of conch should be banned immediately. This is a national failure.

It seems as if we have no responsible national leadership whatsoever.

“When there is no vision, the people perish.” Proverbs 29:18.

Can there be a better example of a lack of vision than allowing the continued export of conch from our Bahamian waters?

NORMAN TRABULSY Jr Mangrove Cay, Andros.

April 26, 2023.

Road markings

EDITOR, The Tribune.

I WOULD like your urgent assistance with regards to having the markings installed and repainted on the roadways in New Providence. I remember when we did the basic things well, but recently many don’t see dirt or simple improvements to be made.

It appears once the road is paved or a new one added, they do not paint the necessary reflective markings. Examples are Gladstone Road, Carmichael Road and many

interior roads. They are signals like “stop”, the median for the middle of the road, double lines, intersection, T-junction and so on, which are guides for drivers and pedestrians to follow. Without these markings our roads become more hazardous. The yellow painted speed bumps need to be painted at roundabouts, especially at the dangerous intersections like Frank Watson entering onto South Ocean Blvd near Albany, which is a near death experience daily. Not only applying on Cable Beach strip by Baha Mar,

which are now fading. I don’t know who is responsible for the upkeep and maintenance, but they are asleep on the job! No excuses, as many signs and pedestrian crossings were painted by hand, or use stencils.

Taxes are being collected from the licensing of vehicles, so they must continue to install them and reflectors to minimise accidents and tragic deaths.

A CYCLIST in Downtown Nassau.

Photo: Austin Fernander

Munroe: Moves to limit bail for murder will be struck down $6,400 FINE AS PIT BULLS KILL SHIH TZU

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS Tribune Staff Reporter lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe said there is no way to restrict bail grants through legislation, noting past efforts have failed throughout the region.

His comment came before two men on bail were killed on Tuesday, bringing the murder tally for the year to 43.

Police Commissioner Clayton Fernander revealed on Monday that while murders up to April 23 had declined by 16 per cent compared to the same period in 2022, eight victims were being electronically monitored and 11 were on bail.

Mr Munroe told reporters on Monday: “There are some realities. If I wanted to play games with the public, I could say we’re going to pass a law that you can’t get bail for murder.

$2,000 FINE FOR FOUR CURFEW BREACHES

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A MAN charged with murder was fined $2,000 after admitting to breaching curfew four times.

Jacob Rolle, 29, was charged with ten counts of bail violation yesterday. The Supreme Court granted him bail after he was accused of killing Randy Rolle on Balfour Avenue on October 24, 2017.

While on release for that charge, Rolle allegedly failed to charge his electronic monitoring device

(EMD) on six occasions between December 21, 2022, and February 8, 2023.

Between January 27 and February 6, he breached his nightly residential curfew four times.

The prosecutor withdrew the six EMD charges after concluding the device was malfunctioning.

Rolle then pleaded guilty to the four curfew breaches.

Rolle’s attorney, Glendon Rolle, said his client was taking his wife to the hospital at the time of the charge on January 27. He said the remaining curfew breaches were because the defendant was

THREE CHARGED OVER TRAFFIC FATALITIES

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

TWO MEN and a woman were charged yesterday with vehicular manslaughter after separate traffic fatalities in Eleuthera and New Providence.

Ashanti Johnson, 25, of Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera, stood before Magistrate Kara Turnquest-Deveaux.

It is alleged that on December 11, 2022, at about 3.15am while driving south along Queen’s Highway in Eleuthera, Johnson lost control of her black Honda Stream and collided with a wall and tree. While Johnson only suffered minor injuries from this crash, her male passenger, Kendrick Moss, died of his injuries at the crash site.

It is further alleged that during this incident, Ms Johnson was driving a vehicle not covered by third-party risk insurance and was not the holder of a driver’s licence.

Quinton Johnson, 31, of Lower Bogue, Eleuthera, also appeared before

Magistrate TurnquestDeveaux on a charge of vehicular manslaughter.

It is alleged that on December 11, 2022, at around 11.50am while driving a truck north on Queen’s Highway, passenger Jamal McNair, 30, died as he fell off the back of Johnson’s truck as he attempted to overtake another vehicle.

Michael Fox, 61, was the final person charged with vehicular manslaughter before Magistrate Turnquest-Deveaux.

On January 20, around 4.45am, while driving north along East Street in an allegedly reckless manner, Fox caused the death of Opal Campbell-Hamilton. It is further said Fox was not covered by third-party insurance at the time.

All three were informed their matters would be transferred to the Supreme Court by a Voluntary Bill of Indictment (VBI). The three accused were granted bail at $9,000 each with one or two sureties.

Service of the VBIs in these matters is slated for August 2.

working late. He also said Rolle was remorseful for his actions.

Senior Magistrate Carolyn VogtEvans took issue with Rolle taking on a late working shift while having a curfew and without informing the court first.

Attorney Rolle told the magistrate his client had quit his job to accommodate his curfew.

The defendant was fined $2,000 for the offence and will face one year in prison if he does not pay the fine. Following his sentencing, he was warned that he would receive no future consideration for further bail violations.

“They did that in Trinidad. The law lasted less than 12 months before the Court of Appeal of Trinidad struck it down and the Privy Council upheld the invalidity of the law. We know what you cannot do. We know that you cannot simply remand somebody because they’re charged with an offence — no law will permit that.

“Everyone has tried for the last 30 years; no law permits that. What the law does say is that we can remand you if your release is likely to pose a danger to the public.”

Last week, St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves drew rebuke for criticising how many Bahamian judges grant bail to people accused of serious crimes. Mr Munroe has repeatedly said that denying bail to some people accused of serious crimes is best for everyone’s safety.

“The point that we seek to make now is in the circumstance that we appear to have capital punishment being carried out on our streets without trial, without appeals, and people are being killed in the presence of other people and there’s collateral damage, that releasing persons creates a danger to the public,” he said.

He added officials have made this argument in the Supreme Court and are awaiting a ruling. If the result is unfavourable to the government, he said the matter would be appealed to the Court of Appeal because the law permits people who pose a danger to society to be remanded until their trial.

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A WOMAN was fined

$6,400 on Wednesday after admitting her two pit bulls attacked and killed her neighbour’s Shih Tzu dog.

Tina Walkes, 43, stood before Senior Magistrate Carolyn Vogt-Evans on nine charges, including failing to ensure animals were properly licenced, enclosed or trained.

On April 19, on Eneas Avenue in Stapleton Gardens, Walkes allowed her two brown pit bulls to attack and kill her neighbour’s dog. The Shih Tzu belonged to Sonteino Coakley and was valued at $1,800. Walkes pleaded guilty to all charges and apologised. She said the dogs were secured, but escaped when BTC workers came to her house. Magistrate Vogt-Evans told her she doesn’t know the trauma her neighbour must be experiencing after losing a pet. She told Walkes it could have been a child or person that had been mauled.

Magistrate Vogt-Evans ordered Animal Control to keep custody of the pit bulls, and the director of animal control was ordered to advise whether the animals pose a danger and should be euthanised. Walkes was ordered to pay $1,800 in restitution and fined $6,400 for the offence or risk a six-month prison term.

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe.

Photo: Austin Fernander

Focus on education and literacy a step toward addressing crime issues

“At that time, 2005, everybody was thinking, oh, it only occurs in certain areas and if you don’t live a certain lifestyle or associate with certain people you were going to be all right. Well, we’re not all right, we know now that was a lie, and so we are reaping the bitter fruits of our neglect.”

– Rev CB Moss (2014)

Throughout his time as a pastor and community activist committed to tackling the root causes of crime, Rev CB Moss insisted that one of the most under-utilised strategies of crime prevention is social intervention.

Rev Moss spoke from conviction and the experience of watching violence and crime escalate to unprecedented proportions over the decades. He warned the country repeatedly of the hellish behaviour and crime we would reap by failing to address a number of root causes. Rev Moss’s views on social intervention were echoed as way back in 2004 in the “Diagnostic of Citizen Safety in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, A Report Submitted to Inter-American Development Bank” drafted by former Financial Secretary Marlon Johnson, the then Director of SAFE Bahamas. That was 19 years ago. Crime has worsened in the intervening years.

The report stated at the outset: “Across the world, there have been many thousands of initiatives developed to address citizen safety issues similar to those in The Bahamas. A considerable number of studies have been carried out to determine which types of programmes work to prevent or mitigate crime, and which simply do not have any measurable impact on crime either immediately or over time.”

The report indicated three levels of strategies and programmes that have enjoyed success across cultures and jurisdictions. One of these is social intervention.

The report notes: “Sustained and targeted intervention strategies –for programmes targeted at modifying destructive behaviour patterns in individuals, there is a need for specificity in what behaviour patterns are being addressed, as well as for constancy in the intervention programmes.”

Here are the key elements: “specificity in what behaviour patterns are being addressed”, and “constancy in the intervention programmes”. Behaviour is another word for habits. The Chinese philosopher Confucius had a deep and fundamental understanding of human nature: “The nature of man is always the same; it is their habits that separate them.” This is as true for individuals as it is for societies.

In addressing crime and violence, the country requires social development and social intervention strategies which address specific behaviours as well as cultural norms and habits which give rise to certain crimes.

Of course, the best strategies aim for prevention.

And, our number one tool is education broadly, but more specifically, greater functional literacy and greater rates of graduation in government-operated high schools. Easily said; not so easily attained.

While there are many excellent targeted social intervention programmes, the most sweeping and effective is basic education. Unless we fix this, our other measures are higher level orders of prevention and more expensive and difficult cures, if we are so fortunate.

Japan and Finland share reputations for excellent schools. Yet, they vary in approaches to learning.

The reason Japan, Finland and other countries succeed, is because education is highly valued at every level of society. Educational reform requires a complex of strategies. There are no magic bullets. Still, there are strategies elemental to

any improvement in levels of achievement. There are also fundamental requirements, one of which is the question of culture, and what a people value.

While we pay plenty of lip service to the importance of education, we poorly value the basic building blocks of learning: literacy and mastering the language, without which students will fail in a slew of subjects, and fail to graduate.

Literacy is not solely about getting a job. It is also about critical thinking, the ability to access the world’s treasury of knowledge through one of the most elemental tools of human being: language, which helps to socialise and civilize a people.

On evening news programmes and local journals, in the pulpit, in Parliament, we are often treated to an embarrassing assault on the basics of English. Learning

the language is not an important cultural value for far too many Bahamians.

Many parents surmise that they can secure good or adequate jobs or sources of income, despite a lack of proficiency in English. Not only do they pass on this mindset to their children, they are often complacent or indifferent if their children leave school without a diploma or proficiency in English.

In many other countries, parents would be raising hell about low graduation rates and low levels of achievement in government-operated schools. There would be tremendous pressure on political leaders, teachers unions and the educational bureaucracy.

There are many parents in our government-operated school system who are concerned, and who ensure that their children succeed, which is precisely the point. Still, these parents appear to be in the minority.

Across jurisdictions, there is a clear correlation between literacy, graduation rates and criminal conduct. If Bahamians are horrified by crime, we should also be horrified by the low levels of educational achievement in many of our schools.

It is not only a national embarrassment. It is a

testament to entrenched social dysfunction.

Last year, The Bahamas recorded 128 murders, ranking, according to a report in The Nassau Guardian, “eighth on InSight Crime’s 2022 Homicide Round-Up of countries across Latin America and the Caribbean, though a few countries, including Haiti, were not ranked because there was no reliable data on the number of homicides last year”.

In addressing crime, especially its prevention and causes, political leaders and others should be asked for the specific strategies they have to improve literacy and graduation rates, to improve teaching and learning methods, to expand experiential learning, and to find ways to encourage parents to value literacy, such as, potentially, cash transfer programmes.

To be fair, a number of education ministers and various officials have sought to address a number of these matters. But getting buy-ins from parents, various union leaders and quite a number of teachers, is often difficult.

Many delight in the upcoming annual prom season and enjoy the trappings of school-leaving ceremonies. But in the end, they are empty rites

of passage if most students in our government-operated school system fail to achieve a diploma, and fail to achieve competencies which may afford them greater opportunities throughout life.

Those who fail to attain a diploma and competency in the language often have less opportunities and avenues for success. A number of such individuals then turn to criminal enterprise in order to gain material success.

“The nature of man is always the same; it is their habits that separate them,” advised Confucius. One of the best habits we should insist on is more of our young people graduating high school, literate and confident. This is a matter of great urgency in the case of our young men who are dropping out of school at an alarming rate.

In the end, a diploma represents not only competency in certain subject matters. It speaks also of discipline, a feeling of accomplishment, genuine self-esteem, delaying certain gratifications in order to achieve an end, and other values, all of which are excellent crime prevention tools.

‘...there is a clear correlation between literacy, graduation rates and criminal conduct. If Bahamians are horrified by crime, we should also be horrified by the low levels of educational achievement in many of our schools.’

One of the best habits we should insist on is more of our young people graduating high school, literate and confident.

US ALLOWS STUDENT VISA APPLICATIONS A YEAR IN ADVANCE

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

US Embassy Vice Consul Lance Peterson said that “a great change” in applying for a US Student Visa is that candidates may now do so a year before their programme’s start date.

“You are now able to apply for a student visa 365 days in advance, which is a great change,” the Embassy official said, compared to the previous 120 days.

Mr Peterson was speaking at a town hall meeting in Grand Bahama on Tuesday evening at the Pelican Bay Resort.

Mr Peterson indicated

the new extension gives students more time to get ahead of the game. He said that one mistake would be waiting until the last minute to apply for the visa.

Even though students can apply 365 days ahead, he said it does not change the rule that they can enter the US 30 days before their programme. He noted that students must ensure they remain in status during the programme and return home 60 days after the end of the programme. “We don’t want anybody overstaying without status,” he said. “It is not an issue. But, if there is a case of

that, a lot of times, it is because they are not aware. So, it is good to get out here and talk about these dates and numbers, so they are aware, especially if they are talking about extending their programme.”

Students must be accepted at the school and get an I-20 form which is proof of acceptance for a Bonafide student. They can then complete the student visa application online and pay associated fees, including the application and SEVIS (Student and Exchange Visitor Information System) fees.

Once all fees are paid, the applicant can make an

appointment, and bring their form to the interview.

“Make sure you apply within a realistic time to meet your programme start date. If the programme start date is in the past, we will ask you to get a new I-20 with a new programme start date. So, it is not a showstopper, but it makes the process much smoother,” he said. Students must also bring some financial documents to show that they can fund that first year at school, and those funds need to be readily available.

Parents Nerissa Russell, Tiana Collie, and Vangie McBride-Outten said the session was informative and helpful.

“I thought it was important to attend the meeting because as a facilitator I deal with athletes, and I wanted to get accurate information about the visa process and how to go about it, and what students should expect during the interview so that they are fully prepared,” Ms Russell said.

According to Ms Collie, the meeting was informative and gave her a sense of ease.

“It makes the process less intimidating. I have a daughter graduating high school in June, and we are working through the process now, and all of this makes it much easier and more calming.”

Ms McBride-Outten, who works with students, heard about the meeting two days earlier and brought a few of them with her to the

meeting.

“I thought it would be very enlightening for the students I am working with to find out all the information they need because some of them have been accepted to colleges in the US, and they need firsthand information. I think (the US Embassy) should continue doing this and keep coming back to GB. I thank them for doing such a great job for providing important information to parents and students.”

THE AUDIENCE listening to US Embassy Vice Consul Lance Peterson in Grand Bahama on Tuesday.

Recent firings at major news outlets do little to change the media’s landscape

AMERICA’S highly politicised, highly polarised cable TV networks regained centre stage once again this week, as both Fox and CNN fired popular stalwarts in the wake of accumulated indiscretions. It wasn’t surprising.

A bit disappointing, maybe. But not too surprising.

On Monday, Fox News fired Tucker Carlson, a mainstay of the company’s evening line-up who had seemingly found his sweet spot at the centre of a highly-successful cable news network. On the very same day, CNN chose to dismiss Don Lemon, in some ways the polar opposite of Carlson, but who also got the sack because his network bosses could no longer tolerate his casual provocations. In the days that have followed, Fox News and Fox Business have added Lemon’s dismissal to their steady diet of rants and bluster about Joe Biden’s age, failure at securing America’s southern border, and apparent disregard of the profligacy of his son Hunter. Fox rival Newsmax was full of Lemon-flavored reportage, too, bemoaning the fact that it took CNN 17 years to fire him and his misogyny.

Both CNN and MSNBC were no better, dwelling endlessly on Fox’s decision to get rid of Carlson, whose nightly audience consistently equaled one percent of the American population. That led cable news ratings for years, and Carlson’s show was perhaps strongest in the most lucrative audience demographic ranges.

But coverage was not limited to cable news rivals sniping at and enjoying their competitors’ misfortunes.

National TV and print media covered the stories extensively, especially the sudden axing of Carlson.

Other than being dismissed on the same day, these two TV personalities seemed to share very little. But neither grew up poor or especially disadvantaged. Lemon was reportedly the product of his mother’s affair with a prominent civil rights attorney. Black and openly gay, Lemon was born in Louisiana and attended LSU, where he was a Republican and voted for Ronald Reagan. He later graduated from college in New York City as a journalism major in 1996 at the age of 30. He worked for Fox TV stations in St Louis and Chicago for several years and was a correspondent for NBC stations in Philadelphia and Chicago.

So Lemon, earlier in his career, worked for the “opposition” Fox stations more than once. Carlson did similarly, logging several years at both CNN and MSNBC before landing at Fox in 2009. In a 2021 interview, Carlson recalled having a “kind of meltdown” after being fired from MSNBC in 2008, the latest of a string of failures, and having to sell his house. Speaking of the television industry, he said, “I was living in that world and I was not succeeding.”

Carlson attended pricey boarding schools in the US and Switzerland and got his BA degree at private Trinity College in Connecticut.

In important ways, “Me,

STATESIDE

too” led to the dismissals of both men, since evidence of gender-based scorn was often cited as a major cause for their firings.

Speaking of which, Donald Trump is about to face his own latest “Me, too” moment. His New York City trial on 30-yearold assault and defamation charges brought against him by journalist E Jean Carroll is about to get under way.

Anyhow, Lemon was host of a 10pm prime time CNN show for several years, and he was becoming widely known for his outspoken views and lengthy rants. Perhaps the beginning of the end for him at CNN came with his move last November to become one of the co-hosts of a new morning show, CNN This Morning. The show has struggled to gain a foothold in the highly competitive American morning TV market, but would have been given much more time to succeed except for a careless remark by Lemon.

In February, when former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley declared her presidential candidacy, she criticized both 76-yearold Donald Trump and 80-year-old Joe Biden for running for president at their “advanced” ages. Haley is 51.

Here’s what got Lemon moving on the slippery slope to dismissal: “This whole talk about age makes me uncomfortable. I think that - I think it’s the wrong road to go down. She says people - you know, politicians or something are not in their prime. Nikki Haley isn’t in her prime. Sorry. A woman is considered to be in her prime in her 20s and 30s and maybe 40s.” Whoops!

One of Lemon’s two cohosts, veteran CNN reporter Poppy Harlow, looked aghast on camera and was briefly speechless as she tried unsuccessfully to give Lemon space to rescue himself. It’s probably just as well that his other female co-host, Kaitlan Collins, was off on assignment that day. Collins, a rising star reporter who previously served with distinction as the network’s White House correspondent, had reportedly clashed with Lemon frequently over his habit of talking over her on the air.

As for Carlson, his indiscreet remarks about his Fox bosses reportedly played a role in his firing. But his careless texts about Trump and texted references to the illegitimacy of election fraud lies peddled for months by Fox after the 2020 election contributed as well. However, reports are now emerging that in the wake of Fox’s $787.5m defamation suit settlement, an ongoing lawsuit brought by a former Fox programme assistant against Carlson for overseeing a “sexist, misogynist” workplace environment also played a role.

In some of his texts that

were revealed in discovery during the defamation lawsuit brought against Fox by Dominion Voting Systems, Inc, Carlson revealed a strong personal dislike for Trump. This contrasted with his public posture of strong affiliation and even affection for the former president. New York Times columnist Michele Goldberg tried over the weekend to explain this apparent anomaly: “The similarity of Carlson and Trump’s sensibilities might derive from the similarity of their resentments. Both were children of privilege who sought the respect of the establishment but never got it. It’s worth noting, given his loathing of the putative ‘deep state,’ that Carlson tried to join the CIA but was rejected. He shifted his ambitions to cable news, but before landing at Fox News, he struggled to fit in.

“Like Trump, Carlson tapped into white viewers’ fears over the country’s changing racial demographics, which fueled Donald Trump’s rise in the 2016 election. He would regularly focus on the notion of the ‘great replacement,’ a racist conspiracy theory that claims elites are importing supposedly obedient immigrants to disempower native-born Americans. In 2018, Carlson argued that hordes of immigrants were making America ‘poorer and dirtier’.”

Liberals who think Fox News might be about to collapse may have to defer celebrating. The lucrative network has previously overcome the scandals and dismissals of such hard-right talkers as Bill O’Reilly, Lou Dobbs and Glenn Beck and the architect of the network, Roger Ailes. Still, another huge defamation lawsuit from another aggrieved voting machine company looms on Fox’s horizon.

Meantime, over at CNN, the network continues in this era of Trump to try to shift its coverage back toward the centre of the political spectrum. Many observers feel, however, that CNN and its corporate owners are so entrenched in their disdain for Trump that any centrist shift will have to await his departure from the national political scene.

Instead, the political centre on cable news might be occupied by two-yearold NewsNation, which is a reimaging of WGN America, a Chicago TV station that became a cable system staple by developing a lineup of reruns and appeared on most cable packages because subscriber costs were low.

“Rebranding WGN America as NewsNation underscores the network’s clearly defined mission of delivering fact-based and unbiased news, while making it easier for viewers to find this new informative source for news,” corporate president Sean Compton said.

A prominent personality at NewsNation is Chris Cuomo, former CNN primetime host who was fired for inappropriately seeking to aid his brother, then New York governor Andrew Cuomo.

“I’ll never be that again. That was taken from me, I believe wrongly,” Cuomo has said. “I’m not going to bitch about it in the press … I’m trying to remember what I’ve been through every day, and not forgetting and falling back into what works and what will rate more and what will get me higher on the media list and what will get more people talking about me.” Hmmm. We’ll see about that.

with Charlie Harper

Tucker Carlson was abruptly bounced from his popular primetime show early this week without any explanation from Fox. Brian Kilmeade took over Carlson’s hour, telling viewers that Carlson and Fox had agreed to part ways, “as you may have heard.”

Photo: Seth Wenig/AP

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy upbeat after talk with China’s Xi

UKRAINE Associated Press

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping had a “long and meaningful” phone call Wednesday, their first known contact since russia invaded Ukraine over a year ago, and Beijing appointed an envoy to pursue a “political settlement.”

The hour-long call came two months after Beijing, which has long been aligned with russia, said it wanted to act as a mediator and a month after Xi visited Moscow. The call also coincided with indications that Ukraine is readying its forces for a spring counteroffensive.

Zelenskyy was upbeat about the conversation, which offered him the chance to insert his views into what had been a bilateral dialogue between Moscow and Beijing. russian President Vladimir Putin is eager to keep Xi close as a counterweight to the United States, which has sided with Ukraine.

“i believe that this call, as well as the appointment of Ukraine’s ambassador to China, will give a powerful impetus to the development of our bilateral relations,” Zelenskyy said on Facebook.

an official readout on his website called the conversation “productive” and said it leads the way toward “possible interaction with the aim of establishing a just and sustainable peace for Ukraine.”

Zelenskyy emphasized the need to regain all Ukrainian lands and stated, “There can be no peace at the expense of territorial compromises.” in an indirect reference to US reports that China had

considered supplying weapons to russia for its war, Zelenskyy’s office said he asked countries to refrain from doing so because “any support -- even partial -- is converted by russia into the continuation of its aggression, into its further rejection of peace.” China has said it won’t supply weapons to either side in the conflict.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry said Beijing’s “core stance is to facilitate talks for peace,” announcing that an envoy — a former ambassador to russia — would visit Ukraine to seek a “political settlement.”

The ministry’s statement struck a positive tone, giving a nod to kyiv’s insistence that its territory cannot be broken up by russia’s annexations and making clear that Beijing values its long-standing ties with Ukraine.

“Mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity is the political foundation of China-Ukraine relations,” the statement said. “China’s readiness to develop relations with Ukraine is consistent and clear-cut. no matter how the international situation evolves, China will work with Ukraine to advance mutually beneficial cooperation.” analysts expressed skepticism about the prospects for peace.

The call balances China’s dialogue with russia by showing it is “recognizing Ukraine’s leadership and indicating Ukraine is an important entity,” said political science professor kimberly Marten of Barnard College at Columbia University in new York.

But, she added in an interview with The associated Press, unless undisclosed details reveal

otherwise, “it’s a nonstarter. it’s pro-russian. i would not guess that this holds a lot of significance for ending the war.”

She noted the Chinese statement didn’t call for russia to leave occupied areas or brand russia as an aggressor, and refers to the situation as “a crisis, rather than a war.”

Elizabeth Wishnick, of the US-based think tank Cna and Columbia University’s Weatherhead East asian institute, noted in an email to aP that the Chinese statement about the call contains “no mention of a russian troop withdrawal, which, to my mind, makes this a less than serious initiative and unlikely to contribute in any major way to ending the war, which will likely be decided on the battlefield.”

in Moscow, russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova commended China’s approach, praising Beijing’s “readiness to strive to establish

a (peace) negotiations process,” while slamming kyiv’s “rejection of any sound initiatives aimed at a settlement.”

The White House described it as a positive development, allowing Xi to hear Ukraine’s view of the “illegal, unprovoked invasion.”

“We think that’s a good thing,” White House national Security Council spokesman John kirby said.

Talks between the two leaders had been anticipated for weeks, after China produced a 12-point proposal to end the fighting, although it did not contain details.

russia and Ukraine are far apart in their terms for peace. The kremlin wants kyiv to acknowledge russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and the Ukrainian provinces of Donetsk, kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia, which most nations have denounced as illegal. Ukraine has rejected the demands and ruled out any

talks with russia until its troops pull back from all occupied territories.

Zelenskyy said in an interview with the aP last month that he hadn’t spoken with Xi since the war began and invited him to visit Ukraine.

China has announced it was keen to act as mediator in the war that has re-energised naTO. Xi’s position reinforces China’s claim that it’s neutral in the war, despite blocking Un efforts to condemn the kremlin’s invasion.

While Zelenskyy has moved his country closer to naTO and persuaded alliance members to send Ukraine sophisticated weapons to help defeat russia, Beijing has echoed the kremlin line in accusing the West of provoking the conflict and “fanning the flames” by arming kyiv.

When China called in February for a cease-fire and peace talks between Ukraine and russia, Zelenskyy cautiously welcomed

Beijing’s involvement but said success would depend on actions, not words. Putin warmly welcomed Xi to the kremlin, in what was seen as a powerful message to Western leaders that their efforts to isolate Moscow over the fighting in Ukraine have fallen short. also on Wednesday, Zelenskyy used the 37th anniversary of the world’s worst nuclear disaster at Chernobyl to repeat his warnings about the threat of a new atomic catastrophe during his country’s war with russia.

Zelenskyy drew a parallel between the Chernobyl accident on april 26, 1986, to Moscow’s brief seizure of that plant and its radiationcontaminated exclusion zone following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“Last year, the occupier not only seized the (Chernobyl) nuclear power plant, but also endangered the entire world again,” Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post in English.

A UkrAiniAn soldier walks [left] in Avdiivka, at the site of heavy battles with Russian troops in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, Tuesday. [inset]

China’s President Xi Jinping (left) talked yesterday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (right) by phone appealing for negotiations in Russia’s war against his country. The conversation was long-anticipated after Beijing said it wanted to act as peace mediator. Photos: AP

Athletes depart for Penn Relays

By TENAJH SWEETING tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

With the athletes fuelled by the momentum coming off some big performances at the 50th Oaktree CARIFTA Games, they will now look to make their mark internationally.

St Augustine’s College, St John’s College and Queen’s College athletes will all put their talents on display at this year’s Penn Relays high school invitational this weekend in Philadelphia.

The teams left yesterday and will be competing April 27-29. The Big Red Machine athletes will compete in six events, Comets in five events and SJC in

SEE PAGE 15

Chisholm Jr hits home run but Braves rally past Marlins 6-4

By CHARLES ODUM AP Sports Writer

ATLANTA (AP) —

Vaughn Grissom had two hits, including a single to drive in the go-ahead run in Atlanta’s four-run eighth inning, and the Braves rallied to overcome a strong start by Miami’s Sandy Alcantara and beat the Marlins 6-4 last night.

Dylan Floro (1-1) blew a 4-2 lead in the eighth, which began with Matt Olson’s seventh homer. Grissom’s single to right field drove in Eddie Rosario, who tripled, for a 5-4 lead.

Marcell Ozuna’s grounder was fielded by Floro in front of the mound, but Floro’s wild throw past catcher Jacob Stallings for an error allowed Ozzie Albies to score.

Alcantara was sharp in his return after missing one start with right biceps tendinitis, allowing two runs on four hits in 5 2/3 innings. Alcantara, the 2022 NL

Cy Young Award winner, faded in the sixth, when he allowed both runs.

Miami’s Jesús Sánchez blasted a 437-foot homer off Bryce Elder over the second-deck restaurant in right field in the second inning. Jasrado Chisholm Jr added a 428-foot homer to the second level of seats in left field in the third, and Avisaíl García homered to open the fourth.

Ronald Acuña Jr led off the sixth with a linedrive homer to left-centre for Atlanta’s first run off Alcantara, who couldn’t make it through the inning.

Austin Riley doubled before Alcantara walked Rosario and Albies to load the bases.

Grissom’s single to left field off Huascar Brazoban drove in Riley, but García threw out Rosario, who was trying to score from second, at the plate.

Elder had not allowed a homer in 23 2/3 innings over his first four starts before allowing a seasonhigh four runs on five hits,

including three homers, in 5 1/3 innings. Elder was pulled after loading the bases in the sixth.

Michael Tonkin walked

Jon Berti to force in a run. Tonkin (2-1) threw 2 2/3 scoreless innings in relief of Elder. A.J. Minter pitched

the ninth for his fifth save in eight chances.

UP NEXT Marlins LHP Braxton Garrett (1-0, 2.84 ERA) will face Braves RHP Kyle Wright (0-1, 5.93) today as the four-game series concludes.

By TENAJH SWEETING tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE New Providence Public Primary Schools Sports Association (NPPPSSA) made its return to the original Thomas A Robinson National Stadium yesterday for their annual track and field meet.

After being shelved for two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the primary school students and officials were excited to be back on the track and field for competition.

With 19 of the 22 expected schools ready for action, Claridge Primary leads all schools with 27 points going into day two of the meet.

Second place belongs to the defending champions Cleveland Eneas, who sits one point behind with 26. Uriah McPhee is positioned in third place with 16 points after one day of primary school competition. Latoya Sturrup, president of the NPPPSSA, talked about the excitement and morale at this year’s return meet.

The president said it was a beautiful feeling to see the children have a good time and display their talents. She said the student athletes were super excited to be on the track for the first time and others after more than two years.

This year’s event started with lots of camaraderie and new experiences for the primary school students.

Although the rainy day mostly featured prelims for the young athletes to qualify for Friday’s finals, day one still had the excitement of everyone.

The day’s finals included the girls and boys 1,200m run for the B division, and the long jump field events for the A and B division.

On the track, Carlton Francis’ Talisha Racine took home the victory in the girls’ 1,200m run for the B division. She capped off the first place victory with a

EUNICE OLIVER: ‘BOXING WAS HIS WORLD’

By TENAJH SWEETING tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

MEMBERS of the Bahamas Boxing Federation (BBF) delivered their heartfelt sympathy and condolences in person to the Oliver family following the untimely death of boxer Tyrone Oliver Jr.

The 28-year-old father of one was murdered alongside his younger brother, Shakuar Oliver, last week Saturday in the parking lot of Solomon’s Super Centre.

The professional boxer was not only set to celebrate his birthday in two weeks on May 11, but the same day was supposed to be the wedding day of his younger brother where he would stand in as his best man.

In the boxing arena, Oliver had big aspirations as he was preparing and had high hopes of competing in the 2024 Summer Olympics Games to be held in Paris. Oliver’s next scheduled

boxing event prior to his death would have been the International Boxing Association’s (IBA) World Boxing Championships in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

The promising young boxer’s life is gone but his legacy remains as BBF members and his family had nothing but kind words and heartfelt memories to share as they spoke of the late Oliver.

Romell Knowles, president of the Bahamas Olympic Committee (BOC), shared his fondest memories of the promising boxer.

“It is quite sad, he was a very mannerly guy, some of the things I heard, that’s not the Tyrone I know, he was like a surrogate son to me and when he travelled to Africa I said, ‘Tyrone don’t go until you get your contract’ but he was so hyped and loved boxing so much, he went halfway around the

SEE PAGE 15

THE 18-member SAC Big Red Machine team prepares to leave for the Penn Relays.

GOING FOR THE GOLD: Queen’s College Comets athletes prepare to leave for the Penn Relays in Philadelphia this weekend.

MIAMI Marlins’ Jasrado “Jazz” Chisholm Jr reacts after striking out during the fourth inning in the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday in Cleveland.

(AP Photo/Nick Cammett)

three events. SAC head coach Jason Edwards talked about his expectations for this year’s Penn Relays. “My expectation is the same as it is every year, to go out and compete well and to make sure our kids get the exposure and opportunity they need, most times we go there a lot of kids end up with division one scholarships,” Edwards said.

Some Big Red Machine athletes have been competing hard since the BAISS championships in March straight throughout the 50th CARIFTA Games and will now lay it all on the line at the Penn Relays.

OLIVER FROM PAGE 14

world on a promise that this promoter would take care of him,” Knowles said.

Knowles added that Oliver would speak with him frequently for advice.

As he fought back tears, he recalled that when he received the news of the boxer’s death, he hugged his own son as if he was Tyrone.

In heartfelt words, the BOC president noted that young men are not easy to raise but Ms Oliver did a great job raising her late son.

Oliver was the type of young man that offered encouraging words to his peers and those around him that he loved, according to his dear friend Israel Johnson and fellow boxer of the national boxing club Matthew Damas. The young man had been enthralled by the sport of boxing since the tender age of 12 and never looked back. Oliver met one of his dearest friends through

NPPPSSA

FROM PAGE 14

“After the performances at CARIFTA, I am somewhat even keeled. Sometimes after two or three major championships it is rough to get the kids locked in, but we try to make it seem like a fun event and sometimes when kids relax and feel good about themselves they end up running well,” he added. The team has been working on baton exchanges for this year’s high school invitational, placing emphasis not only on speed but chemistry, timing and extending the exchange zone to ensure that everyone is at maximum speed when the baton is passed.

The Comets’ track and field athletes have also been on their A-game this track season. With the team fielding CARIFTA double gold-medallist Jamiah

Nabbie and Team Bahamas’ first gold medallist at the games Kaden Cartwright, expectations are high for the school at this year’s invitational.

Everette Fraser, head coach of the Comets, said his expectations are high as he is expecting some big performances in the field events from Kaden Cartwright in the javelin throw and from Annae Mackey in the girls’ shot put.

Despite the busy track season, Fraser added that the physical preparation of the athletes was the easy part of preparing for the high school invitational as the team had to sort out paperwork and logistics for the athletes ahead of their travels to Philadelphia.

This upcoming weekend Bahamians can look forward to seeing QC’s

athletes on display from 10am this morning. The first event will showcase CARIFTA gold medallist Kaden Cartwright in the javelin throw championships.

On Thursday, the high school boys 4x100m relay team of Alexander Dean, Matthew Chandler, Tairjiv Armbrister and Zion Miller will compete in the heats at 12.04pm. On Friday, Lanaisha Lubin will compete in the girls’ triple jump championships and Annae Mackey will compete in the shot put championships at 9.30am. The 4x100m girls relay team will feature Lanaisha Lubin, Nia Richards, Jamiah Nabbie and K’Leigh Davis. The 18-member SAC team will be competing, starting today at 12.04pm in the boys’ 4x100m heats. The relay team will include

Khalon Christie, Andrew Brown, Trent Ford and Johnathan Fowler. The 4x400m boys will be in action at 3.15pm. This team will feature Tumani Skinner, Clinton Laguerre, Andrew Brown and Johnathan Fowler. The girls’ 4x100m heats relay team will be on display Friday at 11.15am.

Amari Pratt, Nya Wright, Darvinique Dean and Shayann Demeritte will look to leave it all on the track for this event.

On Saturday, the girls’ 4x400m relay team of Bayli Major, Ezthia Maycock, Darvinique Dean and Nya Wright will battle on the track at 11.14am.

In the field, CARIFTA record-setter and gold medallist Kamera Strachan will look for a win in the javelin throw on Friday at 10am.

Additionally, Bayli Major and Apryl Adderley will compete 9:30am Friday in the triple jump championships. The SJC 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams will compete today at 12.04pm and 3.06pm. The 4x100m relay team will include Tayshaun Robinson, Earle Johnson, Maxwell McNeil and Ishmael Rolle. For the latter, the team will be Maxwell McNeil, Zion Davis, Jayden Cooper and William Minors.

The school’s final event at the high school invitational will be the girls’ 4x400m relay. The team will display Kennedi Knowles, Ta’mia Taylor, Payton Knowles and Shania Major. Persons can tune in to watch the athletes via the Flo Track 2023 Penn Relays live stream.

late boxer Eunice Oliver said her son was the standard and the Bahamas will never see another like him.

Oliver said her son had a strong passion for boxing and would eat, sleep and wear boxing. His mother said the young man would adorn himself in boxing attire on a daily basis and for big matches would also need a new pair of shoes to put on a show.

She added that the family 100% supported his passion and for matches they would wear shirts in support of the promising young boxer.

Striker’s School of Boxing and they had been close ever since.

Damas talked about what it was like training with Oliver for the World Boxing Championships.

time of 5:06.77. Sciaka Eugene of Claridge Primary secured a second place finish in the event after clocking 5:07.24. Cleveland Eneas’ Iyanna Rolle followed behind for third with 5:23.50.

Rashad Francois of Gerald Cash Primary emerged victorious in the boys’ 1,200m run for the B division. Francois finished with a time of 4:40.33 to edge out his competitors. Thelma Gibson’s Jabez Winder claimed second place after notching 4:49.39 in the race. Deon Fowler placed third for Cleveland Eneas with a 4:55.26 finish.

Mariska Thompson, head coach of the defending champions, talked about how it felt to be back in action.

“Tyrone was a blessed soul, he really was, he had a big heart, a great one, during my time training with him he was always the person to pick up where I could not see my flaws,

“We are very elated to be back on the track, myself and the athletes are very excited,” Thompson said.

The head coach added that the school is ready to defend their championship and has conducted off season training sessions with the students since November leading up to this year’s event.

Despite not being in the lead after day one, her message to the athletes is to do their best, run hard and try to qualify for the finals.

On the field, Claridge Primary’s Tamia Brown nabbed first place in the girls B division high jump. Brown leaped to a height of 1.15m to hold off her competitors. She was followed by Eva Hilton’s Marvinique Perry who finished second. The pair were joined by Uriah McPhee’s third place finisher Ashley Ferguson.

he was just that wonderful person to come to you and talk to you about getting better every single day, it was always love,” he said.

The young professional boxer’s last professional

The boys’ A division long jump capped off with Uriah McPhee’s Jason Thompson bringing home the victory. Thompson jumped to a height of 4.29m.

Second place belonged to Tayler Johnson of Palmdale Primary who notched 3.81m in the event. Meanwhile, Claridge Primary’s Jaterro Moss notched 3.68m in the day’s finals.

With the majority of the event’s finals scheduled for the final day of the meet, the athletes spent the day trying to qualify.

In the A division, Ariel Thompson won the qualifier for the girls’ 800 metres. Second place was Eva Hilton’s Yeindera Martin with 2:48.06. Imani Collie of Gerald Cash came in third to book her ticket to Friday’s finals.

Those athletes will be joined by Cleveland Eneas’ Brittania Rigby, Thelma Gibson’s Aniyah

fight was July 31, 2021. He also had his sights set on the Central American and Caribbean Games for June in San Salvador, El Salvador.

Despite his shortcomings with partying, mother of the

Burrows, T G Glover’s Chasey Nelson, Serenity Cash of Gerald Cash and once again T G Glover’s Cindy Francois.

For the boys, the A division 800m qualifiers will include Patereco Sherman (Claridge), Rhamelo Bethel (Sadie Curtis), Ayden Rolle (Carlton Francis), Tavardo Brown (Sadie Curtis), Nateo Wilchcombe (Sandilands), Jason Moncur (Uriah McPhee), Kenson Sactel (Cleveland Eneas), and Kelson Grant (Palmdale).

Also, the A division 4x100 relay finals will feature Garvin Tynes, Uriah McPhee, Palmdale Primary, Cleveland Eneas, Gerald Cash, Albury Sayle, Sadie Curtis and Sandilands Primary.

In the girls B division 200m dash, Derricka Smith qualified for the finals while clocking 31.76 to secure first place. Second place belonged to Uriah McPhee’s

Members of the BBF, including president Vincent Strachan, former president Wellington Miller, president of the New Providence Boxing Association Valentino Knowles and BOC president Romell Knowles offered their sympathies and will look to honour the late Tyrone Oliver Jr at boxing matches and at his funeral.

The Tribune Sports Department extends its deepest sympathy to the Oliver family on their double loss.

Ashley Ferguson who will join Smith in the finals. Thelma Gibson’s Aeiyah Clarke came in third. The next five qualifiers will include Tianna Baker (Uriah McPhee), London Edwards (Claridge), Brianna Robinson (E P Roberts), Shakira Brown (Palmdale), and Tanae Fowler (Cleveland Eneas).

For the boys, the 200m finals will showcase Rico Strachan (Sandilands), Taharro Mackey (Uriah McPhee), Waiden Bain (Sadie Curtis), Travis Mesidor (Centreville), Breon Neely (Sadie Curtis), Jerome Brown (Claridge), Micah Watson (Cleveland Eneas), and Ashton Davis (Uriah McPhee).

Day two of the NPPPSSA track and field meet is scheduled to commence at 10am in the original Thomas A Robinson national stadium.

MAN CITY LOOKS LIKE CHAMPIONS IN WAITING AFTER ARSENAL ROUT

By JAMES ROBSON AP Soccer Writer

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — The Premier League title is now Manchester City’s to lose after a 4-1 rout of Arsenal yesterday.

Pep Guardiola’s team looked like champions-inwaiting with a ruthless win over the team that has led the way for much of the season.

Arsenal is still out in front in the standings, but by the time Erling Haaland completed the scoring in stoppage time, the Londoners’ title challenge looked effectively over.

City remains two points behind the league leader but with two games in hand appears to be on course to be crowned champion for the third year in a row.

“It is in our hands,” Guardiola said. “Until today, I preferred Arsenal’s position because if Arsenal beat us it is in their hands. Now it’s our destiny.”

After 17 games without defeat, it is hard to see City slipping up from here.

Arsenal, meanwhile, may struggle to recover from such a chastening loss, which came on the back of three straight draws that had taken the momentum out of its title charge.

Mikel Arteta’s team has exceeded all expectations

by taking the challenge this far, but the pressure appears to have taken its toll in recent weeks.

Two-goal leads were thrown away against Liverpool and West Ham, while it took a late comeback to salvage a point against lastplace Southampton last week.

That damaging sequence meant Arsenal needed to win against City to stay in control of the title race.

“Those players deserve a lot of credit after nine-anda-half months being here,” the Arsenal manager said. “And there are still five games to play. In 22 years in this country I’ve seen a lot of things and there are not two equal games in this league. “First we have to lift our players who suffered tonight, playing against an exceptional team. But we are an exceptional team as well.”

City could go top of the standings with a win against Fulham on Sunday.

The biggest test, however, has already been passed after beating Arsenal for the third time this season — including a win in the FA Cup.

While neither Guardiola nor Arteta would accept this match was a title decider, it put City firmly in control and it would take a major drop off for the defending champions to

hand the initiative back to Arsenal.

After struggling for consistency for the first half of the season, City has become stronger as the campaign has gone on — to the point that it seems unstoppable right now.

Haaland struck his 49th goal of the season yesterday, while Kevin de Bruyne was at his inspirational best, scoring twice.

“Kevin is a master of the assist with or without Erling,” Guardiola said. “Erling scores goals all the time with or without Kevin. But being together, when teams press so high and those balls with space behind, they are so dangerous and we use it.”

De Bruyne put City ahead in the seventh

minute, with John Stones doubling the lead in firsthalf stoppage time.

De Bruyne scored again in the 54th and Rob Holding pulled one back for Arsenal in the 86th before Haaland’s strike.

City remains in the hunt for a treble of trophies, having advanced to the semifinals of the Champions League and the FA Cup final.

For a long time, the Premier League seemed like it might be out of reach, given the pace Arsenal set in winning nine of its first 10 games of the season.

Even after losing to City in February, Arsenal recovered to win seven in a row in the league. But a combination of City’s relentless form and Arsenal’s stumble

has propelled Guardiola toward a fifth title since taking over at the club in 2016.

Arteta, meanwhile, has to lift his players for the final stretch, even if the wait for a first title since 2004 looks set to go on. “(We have to) Accept the reality and that is the best way to move forward,” he said. “They were better than us and deserved to win the game. We have to improve and be humble enough to accept that. To do that you will be better.”

RELEGATION

BATTLE

After 11 games without a win, Nottingham Forest climbed out of the relegation zone by beating Brighton 3-1 at the City Ground.

Steve Cooper’s team had seen Brennan Johnson’s early penalty saved and then had to rally from behind after Facundo Buonanotte struck in the 38th minute.

Pascal Gross’ own goal in first-half stoppage time evened the score and Danilo fired Forest ahead in the 68th. Morgan GibbsWhite’s stoppage-time penalty sealed the points to provide a major boost to Forest’s hopes of survival.

CHELSEA LOSES

AGAIN

Frank Lampard’s return to Chelsea is turning into a nightmare.

It’s now five losses from five games since he was appointed interim manager this month, with Brentford winning 2-0 at Stamford Bridge yesterday.

Cesar Azpilicueta’s own goal in the first half put Chelsea on course for its latest setback and Bryan Mbeumo scored a second for the visitors in the 78th.

With Mauricio Pochettino reportedly close to being appointed permanent manager, Chelsea’s American owners Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital may be tempted to try to convince the Argentine coach to take over immediately, rather than wait until the end of the season.

“This club has been through many, many good moments in recent times and this moment is tough,” Lampard said.

“We would love a magic wand and a magic moment but it doesn’t come in football because the Premier League is tough.

“We have to fight for our moment.”

LIVERPOOL FINDS FORM

Three straight wins have put Liverpool in contention for Europa League qualification and possibly more. Jurgen Klopp’s team is up to sixth after a 2-1 comeback win over West Ham at the London Stadium.

MANCHESTER City’s Erling Haaland celebrates at the end of the English Premier League soccer match between Manchester City and Arsenal at Etihad stadium in Manchester, England, yesterday. Manchester City won 4-1.

(AP Photo/Dave Thompson)

MEMBERS of the Bahamas Boxing Federation (BBF) delivered their heartfelt sympathy and condolences in person to the Oliver family following the untimely death of boxer Tyrone Oliver Jr.

Photo: Moises Amisial/Tribune Staff

Little faces shine bright at

original national stadium

ANNUAL SPORTS DAY WAS A BLESSING: Tambearly International School parents, teachers, faculty and students enjoyed their Annual Sports Day on Tuesday in the original Thomas A Robinson National Stadium. Tribune Sports Editor Samora St Rose captured the special moments on camera.

Morant, Grizzlies beat Lakers 116-99, stave off elimination

By TERESA M WALKER AP Sports Writer

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP)

— Desmond Bane had 33 points and 10 rebounds, Ja Morant added 31 points and 10 boards, and the Memphis Grizzlies staved off elimination last night, beating the Lakers 116-99 to force their first-round Western Conference series back to Los Angeles.

Jaren Jackson Jr, the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Grizzlies, who improved to 5-0 in Game 5s played in Memphis and cut the seventh-seeded Lakers’ series lead to 3-2. Memphis earned a second straight

No. 2 seed by posting the NBA’s best home record at 35-6.

Game 6 is Friday night in LA.

LeBron James started 1 of 7 from the field but finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds, a modest follow-up after the 38-yearold played 45 minutes in Monday night’s overtime win in Los Angeles and became the oldest player in NBA history to post at least 20 points and 20 rebounds in his 270th playoff game.

Anthony Davis led the Lakers with 31 points and 19 rebounds. Austin Reaves had 17 points and D’Angelo Russell scored

11. Davis stayed on the court for a few seconds after a layup with 6:01 left that pulled the Lakers within 106-91. When he got up, Davis grabbed at his back as he walked down the court.

The Lakers tried to rally, going on a 20-7 run in the fourth. They couldn’t get closer than 12, the last on a putback by Davis with 2:52 left. Memphis answered with eight straight to get fans chanting “Whoop

Knicks down Cavaliers 106-95, advance to the second round

By TOM WITHERS AP Sports Writer

CLEVELAND (AP) —

Jalen Brunson scored 23 points, RJ Barrett added 21 and the New York Knicks downed the Cleveland Cavaliers 106-95 in Game 5 last night to advance to the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs for the first time since 2013.

The Knicks easily controlled a series that was more one-sided than expected, even after Julius Randle aggravated his left ankle injury and missed the second half.

New York won the opener at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, overpowered the Cavs twice at noisy Madison Square Garden and then returned to Cleveland to finish the job.

The fifth-seeded Knicks will meet the Miami Heat next.

Brunson was the consistent ingredient throughout the series for the Knicks, who signed the stocky guard as a free agent last summer before their attempt to acquire Donovan Mitchell in a trade from Utah fell apart and he landed in Cleveland.

Brunson averaged 24 points in the series and led New York in scoring all four wins while outplaying Mitchell for the second straight postseason. Last year, Brunson was with Dallas when he got the best of Mitchell.

Mitchell scored 28 and Darius Garland 21 for the Cavs, who won 51 games during the regular season but whose inexperience showed throughout their

HEAT RALLY AGAIN TO WIN IN OT, ELIMINATE TOP-SEEDED BUCKS

By STEVE MEGARGEE AP Sports Writer

MILWAUKEE (AP) —

Jimmy Butler scored 42 points and the Miami Heat staged a second straight

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 38 points and 20 rebounds for the Bucks, though he shot just 10 of 23 on free-throw attempts. Khris Middleton added 33 points.

Milwaukee led 102-86 after three quarters but shot just 5 of 25 from the floor in the fourth quarter and overtime.

The Heat tied the game on two occasions late in the fourth quarter before Middleton made two free throws to put Milwaukee back ahead with 27.8 seconds left.

Then things really got interesting.

After calling a timeout, the Heat got the ball to Butler, whose 3-point attempt missed with 18 seconds left.

Holiday made two free throws with 14 seconds remaining to make it a fourpoint game, but Vincent’s 3-pointer cut the lead to one with 8.4 seconds left.

The Bucks had the ball in the backcourt when Holiday threw an errant pass that eluded Middleton.

Miami’s Kyle Lowry initially was called for a foul as he chased the loose ball, but the Heat successfully challenged the call and it was ruled a jump ball.

Brook Lopez tipped the ball to Antetokounmpo, whose pass nearly went out of bounds before Middleton saved it to Holiday. After getting fouled with 2.1 seconds left, Holiday missed his first free throw before sinking the second to make it 118-116.

After the Heat called timeout, Vincent stood in front of the Bucks bench and threw an inbounds pass to Butler, who was waiting under the basket to make the tying score.

seemed to be Cleveland’s toughness. The Cavs got pushed around and outrebounded in all four losses, including 48-30 in the clincher.

New York centre Mitchell Robinson finished with`18 rebounds — 11 offensive — in Game 5 and the 7-footer didn’t shy away from calling out the Cavs for being soft after Game 3, saying they appeared to be shaken.

Cleveland hoped to recapture some of its 2016 magic and overcome a 3-1 deficit like LeBron James and the Cavs did in the NBA Finals to shock Golden State.

But Brunson, Barrett and the rest of the Knicks had other plans.

They closed out the Cavs in the second half without Randle.

The All-Star forward left late in the second quarter after aggravating a sprained left ankle and didn’t return.

Obi Toppin started in his place and scored 12 points in the third quarter as the Knicks opened an 18-point lead.

New York never let Cleveland get closer than six in the fourth, much to the delight of several hundred Knicks fans who celebrated behind their bench.

Randle was moving as well as he had in the series before going down.

After trying to block Caris LeVert’s jumper, he landed awkwardly and stayed on the floor for a

few minutes while being

checked. Randle was helped to his feet but defiantly walked off the floor and to the locker room for treatment.

Turns out, the Knicks didn’t need him.

New York’s depth was also a huge factor in the series. Every time coach Tom Thibodeau turned to a reserve, they responded.

That wasn’t the case for the Cavs and coach J.B. Bickerstaff, whose bench was a problem all season and was further exposed when the games were more meaningful.

One sequence in the first half underscored Cleveland’s frustration.

Isolated on the wing against Brunson, Isaac Okoro refused to bite on a move and kept New York’s guard in front of him and nearly came up with a steal before fumbling it out of bounds with two seconds

CURRY LEADS WARRIORS PAST KINGS FOR 3-2 LEAD IN THE SERIES

By JOSH DUBOW AP Sports Writer

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Stephen

left on the 24-second shot clock.

New York inbounded and Immanuel Quickley hit a 3-pointer to put the Knicks ahead by 12.

TIP-INS Knicks: G Quentin Grimes missed his second straight game with a bruised right shoulder. He’s been out since absorbing a hit in the first half of Game 3. ... New York improved to 13-2 in the postseason against Cleveland, winning all four series (1978, 1995, 1996 and 2023).

Cavaliers: With 23 points adn 10 assists in Game 4 , Garland became the second Cleveland player to 23 or younger to post those totals in a playoff game. James did it eight times with the Cavs. ... Cleveland is 46-15 at home in the playoffs since 2008, losing elimination games in the arena in 2015, 2018 and 2023.

Curry scored 31 points, Draymond Green had his highest-scoring game in more than five years and the Golden State Warriors won the first road game of their series against Sacramento, beating the Kings 123-116 last night to take a 3-2 lead.

Green had 21 points and seven assists in his first game back in Sacramento since getting ejected and later suspended for stepping on Domantas Sabonis’ chest in a Game 2 loss.

Golden State now can try to wrap up the series with a fourth straight win at home on Friday night.

The defending champion Warriors withstood another raucous crowd in Sacramento and showed off their road mettle that had been missing so often this season.

Golden State won only 11 games away from home in the regular season and

lost the first two games in Sacramento before making the key plays in the second half to beat the Kings and extend their record to 28 straight playoff series with at least one road win.

The Kings trailed by 12 early in the fourth quarter after a layup by Curry but wouldn’t go away. They chipped away at the deficit behind 11 points in the next five minutes from Monk — who went down briefly with what looked like a left knee injury — to make it a one-point game with just over four minutes left.

But the Warriors pulled away late after Monk missed a potential gametying 3 with 1:04 to play.

Andrew Wiggins made a turnaround jumper to make it a five-point game and Curry put it away with a three-point play with 22.1 seconds left that made it 122-114.

Klay Thompson added 25 points, Wiggins had 20 and Kevon Looney matched his career-high with 22 rebounds.

NEW York Knicks’ Jalen Brunson (11) calls a play against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the second half of Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series last night in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Phil Long)

HEAT forward Jimmy Butler (22) dunks the ball against the Bucks during the first half of Game 5 in a first-round NBA basketball playoff series last night in Milwaukee.

(AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps)

GRIZZLIES guard Ja Morant (12) reacts during the first half of Game 5 of the team’s first-round NBA basketball playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers last night. (AP Photo/Brandon Dill)

Ayton and Suns to face top-seeded Nuggets in second round Saturday

BOOKER SCORES 47, LEADS SUNS PAST CLIPPERS TO WIN SERIES

PHOENIX (AP) — The Phoenix Suns will play the top-seeded Denver Nuggets in the second round of the NBA Playoffs.

Game 1 is Saturday in Denver.

On Tuesday night, Devin Booker unleashed a torrent of offence in the third quarter rarely seen in NBA playoff history, hitting shots

from every corner of the gym. Booker scored 47 points, including 25 in a spectacular third quarter, to lead the Suns past the Los Angeles Clippers 136-130 and win the Western Conference first-round playoff series in five games. The Clippers didn’t go quietly, nearly coming back from a 20-point deficit early

in the fourth, hitting four straight 3s at one point to quickly close the gap.

Los Angeles had multiple chances to tie in the final three minutes, but could never convert.

Durant made a layup to push Phoenix’s lead to 134130 and then made two free throws to put the Suns up six with 31.3 seconds left.

Durant finished with 31 points while Deandre Ayton had 21 points and 11 rebounds.

Booker shot 19 of 27 from the field, including 4 of 7 from 3-point range.

Durant’s final free throws capped a wild back-andforth second half that saw the Clippers take a 71-61 lead early in the third.

PHOENIX Suns centre Deandre Ayton (22) looks to shoot as Los Angeles Clippers centre Ivica Zubac defends during the second half of Game 5 of their first-round playoff series Tuesday night. (AP Photo/Matt York)