05122023 NEWS, SPORT AND BUSINESS

OFFICER TELLS OF AZARIO SHOOTING

Police witness said an officer yelled ‘he has a gun’ before they fired on him

By PAVEL BAILEY Tribune Staff Reporter pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A POLICE officer at Woody’s Bar on Fire Trail Road when Azario Major waskilledsaidfourofficers shot the 31-year-old after one shouted: “Gun, gun, hehasagun!” Inspector Dejaneau Forbes’ testimony came as the Coroner’s Court inquest into Azario’s police-involved killing on December26,2021,continuedyesterday.

InspForbes,whowasnot one of the shooters, testified that Azario came to the bar that night looking

foranofficercalled“Slim”.

He said he saw Azario interact with “Slim,” identifiedasSergeantSweeting, an officer who ultimately shot the deceased alongside Sergeant Rolle, Inspector Saunders, and SergeantJohnson.

Insp Forbes alleged that Sgt Sweeting first told Azario:“Whoareyou,and why are you looking for Slim?”

He claimed the officer then said: “I am Sgt 3235 Sweeting, also known as Slim. Why are you looking forSlim?”

HeclaimedAzarionever

Citizenship ruling will affeCt 1,500 appliCations

By LETRE SWEETING Tribune Staff Reporter lsweeting@tribunemedia.net

IMMIGRATION Minister Keith Bell said about 1500 applications for Bahamian citizenship at the Department of Immigration would be affected by last week’s landmark Privy Councilruling.

Officials have struggled to determine how many people now expect to be recognized as citizens

because their unwed father is a Bahamian and their mother is a foreigner. Mr

Bell’s comments are the firstindicationofhowmany peoplewhohavestartedthe citizenship application process are immediately affectedbytheruling.

He spoke about the matterataneventhostedby the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC) onThursday.

“Approximately 1500 applications have been

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE government is “targeting extreme cases” who have totally disregarded their tax obligations for up to 10-20 years with yesterday’s warning that it will start to seize and sell-off their properties to recover allarrearsowed.

John Williams, the Department of Inland Revenue’s communications chief, told Tribune Business that the notice revealing it now plans to exercise its “power of sale” enforcement tool was intended for targetlistoflatetaxesowed.

seizure of property only meant for extreme Cases late realtor has $4.8m legal viCtory overturned

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

APROMINENTlaterealtor’s $4.8m legal victory over the government has been overturned as “a last resort” andsentbacktotheSupreme Court for a fresh trial more thantwodecadesafterhelost useofsome192acres.

The Court of Appeal, in a unanimous verdict, said it had no choice but to send the eight year-old claim by the late Charles Christie, founder and president of the C A Christie real estate brokerage, for a new hearing to “unravel” a case that stemmed from the Ggovernment’s alleged compulsory acquisitionoflandinwestern NewProvidence.

IS NAMED IN CORONATION

BEST-DRESSED TOP 20

DAME Marguerite Pindling turned heads during her visit to the coronation of King Charles III in London - and has been named on a list of the top 20 best-dressed people at the event. The website Veranda listed her as the 16th best-dressed at the coronation, praising her quilted bag, bowed hat, pleated skirt and neck scarf, placing her just above Queen Rania of Jordan and beating the likes of Princess Anne and US First Lady Jill Biden. Dame Marguerite also reminisced during the trip about a dance she shared with Prince Charles back in 1973, when the future king came to visit The Bahamas.

Main photo: AP

WOMAN KILLED AS CAR HITS TREE

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

A WOMAN has died in Grand Bahama after the vehicle she was driving hit a tree early Thursday morning in the Lucaya area.

The accident occurred around 1am on Seahorse Road, in the area of the Seahorse Shopping Plaza, involving a blue Nissan Cube.

Police reported that the female driver was travelling in the northbound lane when the vehicle struck a tree in the centre median.

The Nissan Cube was

extensively damaged. Fireman had to use the jaws of life to free the victim.

EMS personnel took the victim to the Rand Memorial Hospital, where doctors pronounced her dead. Police are urging motorists to drive with care and attention on the streets.

Almost two weeks ago, a young woman was also killed when her vehicle crashed into a concrete utility pole on Balao Road. The vehicle, a grey Honda Civic, was also extensively damaged. Police have not yet determined the cause of these accidents.

Officer tells of Azario shooting

from page one

responded.

Insp Forbes said another officer, Inspector Saunders, also asked Azario why he was looking for “Slim”, but got no response.

He said it was then that officers advised Azario to leave.

He said Azario left but returned with an empty Guinness bottle.

Insp Forbes claimed he intercepted Azario as he tried to approach Sgt Sweeting again. He said he took Azario’s bottle and once again told him to leave.

He claimed he heard Azario say, “I gon‘ come back,” at which point Sgt Rolle attempted to take a photo of Azario’s licence plate.

Insp Forbes claimed that when officers saw Azario return a second time, driving slowly in a white Hyundai Elantra, officers became suspicious. He said as officers approached the vehicle, Azario was silent. Insp Saunders soon shouted: “Step out of the vehicle, step out of the vehicle!”

Insp Forbes claimed he heard Inspector Saunders, who was closest to the driver’s door, scream: “Gun, gun, he has a gun!”

He said four officers subsequently opened fire on Major, causing him to fall out of the door he had just opened.

Under cross-examination, Insp Forbes said he saw a gun on the floor of the driver’s side of Major’s car after the shooting.

He said Azario had appeared “angry” that night.

He disagreed with the suggestion that Azario knew Sgt Sweeting. However,heagreedthatAzario

THE FAMILY of Azario Major who was shot and killed by police in December 2021 arrive to court for the coroner’s inquest into his death. A police officer testified yesterday that he heard an officer scream ‘gun, gun, he has a gun!’ before four officers opened fire on Major, who was still in his vehicle. He also testified that after the shooting a gun was seen inside the victim’s vehicle.

walked straight towards Sgt Sweeting when he waslookingforhim.

When David Cash, the lawyer representing Azario’s estate, suggested that Azario was

complying with orders before officers shot him, Insp Forbes said he didn’t see Azario exit the vehicle as demanded.

He said officers were in fear of their lives when

they shot him.

Insp Forbes said he never saw Azario raise a gun. However, he said Insp Saunders obscured his vision and blocked his line of sight.

deportation of Jamaican national in court on two separate charGes beinG investiGated

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security

Minister Wayne Munroe said the Bahamas Department of Corrections is investigating whether a prisoner awaiting trial for firearm possession was deliberately or accidentally deported to Jamaica.

“The institution’s Internal Affairs department is investigating it,” he said yesterday. “Basically, the investigation is focusing on did it happen deliberately or whether it was just a slip in the process. If it happened deliberately, then of course the police will be called in to investigate it and to hold people to account. Already, the Deputy Commissioner and I are addressing systems that could prevent it (from) happening.”

ThecaseinvolvesJamaican national Ramone Haughton, 25.

Mr Munroe said: “There was a Jamaican national whoendedupgoingtotwo separate courts, one for an overstaying offence and one for a firearms offence.

“Hecameuptotheinstitution with two warrants, one for the overstaying (and) one for the firearms. Hecompletedhissentence on the overstaying and he wasthenreleasedfromthe facility because that warrant was spent.”

“He ought not to have been released because there was another warrant for the firearms. And consequent to him being released for overstaying, Immigration then deported him back to his home country.”

Asked about the man returning to The Bahamas for trial, Mr Munroe said

officials must locate him first.

“Once he is located, then firearms offence being one that is extraditable, we would have to seek his return from his home country in Jamaica,” he said.

Mr Munroe said a more automated approach is needed to manage inmates’ records and warrants.

“We have to get to the point that we manage peoplewiththesameautomated system where, with

the press of a button, you could see he has been here before, he’s here now, and therangeofwhathe’shere now for,” he said. “There (shouldbe)analertbefore you release somebody that they are wanted for something else.”

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

A SUPREME Court judge will rule on Monday whether Adrian Gibson’s ex-fiancee can testify virtuallyinhiscorruptiontrial.

Justice Cheryl GrantThompson will also rule on a constitutional motion MrGibson’slawyer,Murrio Ducille, KC, filed to stay proceedings.

The two sides argued about Mr Gibson’s applicationonWednesday.

Mr Ducille insisted his client’s right to a fair trial would be breached if Ms Mackey did not testify in person.

By contrast, the Crown saidMrsMackeyappliedto testifybyvideolinkbecause she no longer lives in The Bahamas, and it would cause her “hardship” to return to the country while her application for US residencyispending.

Mrs Mackey also alleges that the Long Island MP abused her so her testimony would be diminished if it occurred in person. Mr Ducilledismissedherabuse claimsas“contrived”.

Mr Gibson is facing corruption charges in connection with his tenure as executive chairman of the Water and Sewerage Corporation.

The charges stem from hisallegedfailuretodeclare his interest in contracts the WSCawarded.

The FNM politician is charged with WSC’s former General Manager, Elwood Donaldson Jr; Gibson’s cousin, Rashae Gibson; Joan Knowles; Peaches Farquharson and Jerome Missick.

Together, the group face 98 charges, including conspiracy to commit bribery, bribery, fraud, receiving andmoneylaundering.

LONG Island MP Adrian Gibson will hear Monday whether his exfiancee will testify in court or virtually.

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe said the Bahamas Department of Corrections is investigating whether a prisoner awaiting trial for firearm possession was deliberately or accidentally deported to Jamaica. “Basically, the investigation is focusing on did it happen deliberately or whether it was just a slip in the process,” he said.

Photo: Moise Amisial

Juvenile detention facility opened at Bahamas Department of Corrections

GOVERNMENT officials opened a juvenile detention facility at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services yesterday.

National Security Minister Wayne Munroe said the new facility would be a short-term residential facility for male youth offenders awaiting court proceedings or placement in a long-term facility.

He said the facility includes classrooms for continuing learning, physical activities and exercise programmes, recreational programmes, library services, medical and mental health services and treatment, technical and vocational training and religious services.

“The creation of the Juvenile Detention Centre is designed to provide treatment and support for our incarcerated youth because rehabilitation without treatment is counterproductive,” he said during a ceremony yesterday.

“While the juvenile offenders will be held accountable for their offences, the intent is to help them to get back on the right path. Hence, it is indeed our job to ensure that they are rehabilitated because at some

point they will re-enter society and form a part of our communities.”

Mr Munroe said high incarceration rates of men between 15 and 29 is now considered a public health crisis. He said there are 13 juvenile inmates at the correctional facility, 12 of whom are males.

“We, as a government, understand that the majority of our youth are academically focused and/or are active members of our labour force. We also understand that we cannot ignore the scourges of youth violence which dominates the news and everyday conversations. If ignored, youth violence has the potential to permeate and overwhelm our collective advancements as a nation,” he said.

“Ultimately, our vision is to transform the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BDOCS) into a true correctional facility that focuses on the rehabilitation and reintegration of its inmates rather than solely on punishment. Today is a testament that we are committed to this track and have taken one step closer to achieving our goal.”

Investor forum puts Grand Bahama In the spotlIGht

By DENISE MAYCOCK Tribune Freeport Reporter dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

THE eyes of the world are on The Bahamas when it comes to investment and conservation, a conference in Grand Bahama heard thisweek.

The three-day Forum

For Impact (FFI) Americas opened on Wednesday at the Pelican Bay Resort, with about 60 to 80 investors from the US, Canada, Europe and Latin America attending. The theme is

“TheConvergenceofResilience, Conservation and Investment”.

FFI co-founder Michael Meehan said the contributions of The Bahamas, especially Grand Bahama, are significant around the world. He said: “It is really an interesting time for The Bahamas because everybody is watching what is happeninghere.”

He said: “We chose to come to Grand Bahama … because of the potential for investment in the region, especially around

resiliency. It is an economy that is bouncing back and thewholeworldiswatching The Bahamas in general, but especially this region aroundtheblueeconomy.”

Mr Meehan believes a major advantage that Grand Bahama has surrounds blue carbon – the carbon captured by the world’s oceans and coastal ecosystems, including mangrovesandseagrasses.

He said: “You got most of the pieces in place to be able to create some really amazing projects,

Funeral Service for

SHIRLEY MAE RUSSELL, 70

ofElizabethEstates, willbeheldonSaturday, May 13th, 2023 at Kemp Road Ministries, Kemp Road at 11:00a.m. Officiating will be Bishop Sean McKenzie, assisted by other ministers if the gospel. Cremation will follow

She is survived by her Husband: Nathaniel Russell; Daughter: Natasha Poitier; (2) sons: Napoleon and Haratio Russell Sr.; Adopted daughter: Christa Ellis-Rolle;

(6) Grand children: Lukeisha, Lushanda, Kimberly, Keva, Shandone and Haratio Jr.;

(13) Great-grandchildren:Anthorn,Lamont, Makhai, Liyah, Mark Jr., Adrian Jr., Mandriell, Mandre, Taurie, Laiquan, Naevia, Yukymea and Yukai; (4) Brothers: Anthony Hanna, Stephen, Valentino and Bernard Brown; (4) Sisters: Emily Walkes, Barbara Musgrove, Antoinette Brown-Moss, Barbara Brown-Farrington and Daphne Munroe; Adopted Father-in-law: Charles Clarke;

(7) Brothers-in-law: Andre Musgrove Sr, Frank Moss, Sonny Russell Sr., Carlton Ferguson, Ambrose Moss, Bain and Stanford Roberts; (5) Sisters-in-law: Bloneva, Rosemary and Kendra Roberts, Sheila Brown, Joyce Ferguson; Nephews: Bishop Shawn McKenzie, Dr. Sullivan McKenzie, Andre Jr., Valentino, LaRhondo, Ron, Frederick, Dwayne, Julian, Frantz, Sonny Jr., Marvin, Marco, Antonio, Freddy, Gary and Valentino Moss; Nieces: Georgina, Stacy, Monalisa, Rev. Sheria Dorsett, Phillipa, Bridgette, Lavonia, Ketamara, Ashia, Shavanda, Anthonique, Felicia, Marilyn, Kimberly, Rachel, Valencia, Devonique, Donesha, Tawana and Latoya Ferguson. Numerous grand nieces, nephews and In-laws Special friends: Aldora Curtis & family, Thelma Wright & family, Hanna Family, Genesta Bethel, Albertha Williams & family, Geraldine Pyfrom, Marilyn Munroe, Judy Butler, Lloyd Family, Annamae Forbes, James and Catherine Wells, Cynthia Maynard, Angie Cartwright, Grants Town Wesley Methodist Church (Rev. Carla Culmer) Dr. Sonia Marshall, Avis Thompson, Philip Higgs, Griffy Moxey, the SturrupandJohnsonFamily,JackieSair-Styles&family,CurleanFox,The Kemp Road Union family (Rev. Dr. Ivan Butler Sr. and Jr., Dr. Joanne Butler, The Sunrise Ministries family, Rev. Tina Bain and a host of other relatives and friends.

Relatives and friends may pay their last respect at Evergreen Mortuary located on Village & Parkgate Roads on Friday from 10:00a.m.- 5:00p.m. and again at the church on Saturday from 10:00a.m. until service time.

with enough transparency that institutional investors can really participate. And that is not the case in a lot of economies around the world.”

The forum’s first discussions looked at rebuilding Grand Bahama “through the lens of conservation, resilience and investment”,featuringMinister for Grand Bahama Ginger Moxey and Rupert Hayward, a director at the GB Port Authority and a founder of Blue Action Lab.

Ms Moxey noted in her welcome address that hurricanes in recent years have reminded Bahamians of the fragility of the environment, the importance of conservation and resilience, and the need to embrace investmentandinnovation.

Forums such as this one, she said, provide the government and stakeholders an opportunity to share ideas, learn from one another, and chart the way forward.

“We are at a crossroads where the choices we make will determine the future of our island and our people,” shesaid.

Mr Hayward is pleased that Grand Bahama is at the centre of the conversationinthisyear’sFFI.

“For an island nation that is definitely suffering after climate change and big storms, to come up with solutions, and have

those solutions driven and embedded and grown here in GB, and the rest of The Bahamas, is huge for us,” hesaid.

Mr Hayward stressed that strengthening the partnership between the government and the GBPA isverycritical.

“It is incumbent on government and the GBPA, as leaders in the community, both national and local, to come together to create the solutions and a framework and the future that Grand Bahamians deserve,” he said.

Yesterday, Economic Affairs Minister Michael Halkitis led discussion on “Building resilience to promote sustainable economic growth: the confluence of policy, innovation, and investmentinimpact”.

Hetoldtheinvestorsthat thecountryismovinginthe rightdirection,saying:“The economyismoving;tourism is doing well throughout the country; investments are looking strong; and the government’s fiscal targets in terms of its budget are lookingbetter.”

Mr Halkitis said that through increased revenue, debt to GDP is also coming down.

He commended FFI and impactinvestorsforcoming again to The Bahamas and holding its conference this timeinGrandBahama.

When asked about the Bahamas’ plans in terms

of blue carbon, the minister indicated it is an exciting area that the countryisexploring.

He said The Bahamas is in the process of mapping out and verifying 30 blocks of sea meadows, which are eachabout5,000sqkm.

Three blocks of it have already been mapped out and are in the process of verification.

“We are about 15 to 24 monthsawayfromcompleting that process and we will be able to market; we have gotten some preliminary interests,”hesaid.

The minister said two groups are involved in the verification process, Verified Carbon Standard, and Hexagon, which recently received the Geospatial World Leadership Award with its partner Beneath The Waves for advancing sustainability with the Blue Carbon initiative in The Bahamas.

He said the country has put in legislation for the trading of carbon credits and legislation for the management.

“So,itisanexcitingarea and we want to be among the first countries to take advantage of it. It will take sometime,butwearecommittedtoit,”hesaid.

On Friday, Ann Marie Davis, wife of Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis, will deliver an address following the planting of breadfruittrees.

ECONOMIC Affairs Minister Michael Halkitis led discussion on “Building resilience to promote sustainable economic growth: the confluence of policy, innovation, and investment in impact”. Halkitis is pictured here with FFI co-founder Michael Meehan.

Photo: Vandyke Hepburn

MINISTER of National Security Wayne Munroe was on hand yesterday to opening the new juvenile detention facility at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. He was accompanied by the Prime Minister’s wife Ann Marie Davis, and Minister of Eduction Glenys Hanna Martin and other governmetn officials.

Photos: Moise Amisial

Denalee E. Penn Mackey | Terrance Mackey CEO & President Manager & Funeral Director

Fiancée and family concerned about missing man in Bimini, Kasyam Smith

By LEANDRA ROLLE Tribune Staff Reporter lrolle@tribunemedia.net

CONCERNED relatives of Kasyam Smith are offering $1,000 to anyone aware of the Bimini resident’s whereabouts.

MrSmith’sfiancée,Lolita Davis,saidshelastspoketo MrSmith,55,onMay4.

Ms Davis, who lives in California, said she typically speaks to her fiancé about five times daily, but he hasn’t responded to her calls or calls from other relativesinaweek.

Shesaidlocalpolicehave told her she must come to The Bahamas to file a missingperson’sreport.

“(An officer) from the police department went to the place where he last was becausehesaid‘oh,Iknow where he last was.’ He said I’m going over there and did some other things.

When I started asking him ‘well, did you check the GPS and check the location, he was like ‘okay, we need you to file a missing person report in person,” shesaid.

Ms Davis said she and her fiancé talked as usual on May 4th and he assured her he would call her the nextday.

When that did not happen, she became concerned.

“We talked every day about four, five times a day at minimum,” she told The Tribune. “We text each other all day. He’s there in Bimini. I’m here in (California) so we have a lot of phone conversations, and

the last day I talked to him wasMay4th.

“He was in a good mood. He had watched the game, and he went to a little restaurant across from a little club there in Bimini. The game was over. We talked a little while. It was about 11.30pm my time and so by the time we got done talking, it was maybe about 2.30am and he just said ‘babe, I’m getting ready to turn in to get some rest, I’ll talk to you tomorrow’ which we always did every day, and then that Friday, I did not hear from him at all.”

Ms Davis described Mr Smith as an “introvert”, saying he moved to Bimini overayearagoandworked asatattooartist.

“Hisphonejustwenttoa message and it kept saying something about the cellular customer you reached is temporarily unavailable and I kept getting that message and this is so not like him,”MsDavissaid.

She said her relationship with her fiancé is good and thattheyarehappy.

“We’re in a good place. We’re happy so I don’t knowwhereheisrightnow, and his mom, sisters, brothers are here and he would not call them. This is not likehim,”shesaid.

Her family has sought legal advice and plans to visit The Bahamas to find him.

The family can be reached by anyone who might have some information at lokay1984@yahoo. com.

KASYAM SMITH, also known as ‘Tatt Man’ and ‘Smitty’ has not been heard from by family members and his fiancee since May 4.

citizenshiP ruling will affect 1500 aPPlicatiOns

Official launch Of Disaster PrePareDness anD health exPO, tO be an annual event

from page one

Margaret Hospital, the birth will be recorded, you will have a birth certificate,”MrBellsaid.

“But you do have many cases of persons who are born and the birth certificates, the birth is not registered, and so at some point you have to get a birthcertificate.

IMMIGRATION Minister Keith Bell said about 1500 applications for Bahamian citizenship at the Department of Immigration would be affected by last week’s landmark Privy Council ruling. made in the system that will be impacted in some way or the other,” he said. “I think Bahamians are warming to what the impact of the citizenship ruling is, and so let me just indicate what it is: this is something for all of us to get involved in and collaborate and make your recommendationstous.”

“The impact of the Privy Council decision is there is no need to apply to Immigration anymore. They can go straight to the Passport Office and get their documentation and so forth and etc.”

While the courts have affirmed that children are Bahamians at birth if their father is Bahamian, regardlessoftheirmother’s nationality, how to determine paternity in such casesisunsettled.

“You will find that generally, a person born in the Bahamas at Princess

“What is significant as Bahamians though — the judgement is important, it is online and I invite you to read it –– Chief Justice Ian Winder, when he determined that case, the case reallywasaboutthreeindividuals who had applied for citizenship and these persons applied by way of affidavitevidence.”

“Over the years I used to work in the CommercialCrimeUnitatCID.We had substantial fraudulent affidavits and in one case one of the affidavits was not made up until three years after the person was born and it is not recorded until ten years later. In that particular case, the father

is nowhere in the picture atall.

“So the honourable Chief Justice did not make a ruling in respect to the cases. He made a ruling in respect to the constitutional point as to whether or not a child born to a Bahamian man is entitled to citizenship as a right. That’s what he made a decisionon,notthespecific cases. “So as Bahamians then, we have to ask ourselves and you have to advise your government as to whether or not in such instances whether we require further evidence in the absence of birth certificatesandwhetherornot we ought to ensure that thereisproofofpaternity.

“Should there be DNA evidence to ensure that we minimize fraud? Those are the matters we have to determine as a society with respect to that. It definitely impacts the labour force and it definitely impacts immigration.”

A DISASTER Preparedness and Health Expo was held yesterday by the Ministry of Health and Wellness. Health Minister Dr Michael Darville spoke at the event, which included presentations by a number of organisations. The event comes as the country starts to approach hurricane season, which traditionally begins on June 1, and had the theme “Are you ready? Be prepared!”

The Tribune Limited

NULLIUSADDICTUSJURAREINVERBAMAGISTRI

“Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master”

LEON E. H. DUPUCH, Publisher/Editor1903-1914

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

Publisher/Editor1919-1972

ContributingEditor1972-1991

EILEEN DUPUCH CARRON, C.M.G.,M.S.,B.A.,LL.B.

Unequal treatment even after ruling

SINCE the landmark citizenship ruling by the Privy Council was handed down, there has been considerable discussion about what comes next.

The ruling declared that the childrenbornoutofwedlocktoBahamian men and foreign women are entitled to citizenship from birth.

It was widely hailed as an important shift – a move towards greater equality, with further moves urged to equalise the rights of women in terms of being able to pass on citizenship in areas where the rules differ from men.

However, after that ruling, a significant amount of discussion has turned to questions of how it can be proven that Bahamian men are indeed the fathers.

DNA testing has been mentioned on several occasions. Indeed, in today’s Tribune, Minister of Immigration Keith Bell said DNA testing must be considered to mitigate fraud.

He said: “As it stands now, persons in those categories have to apply on their 18th birthday to Immigration to be naturalised. Given the Privy Council’s ruling, Immigration would no longer play a role. That individual would then be able to now go directly to apply for a Bahamian passport, national insurance, etc.”

Mr Bell said where people lack official birth certificates, DNA testing might be necessary. In truth, some have suggested testing even where there are proper birth certificates.

Mr Bell added: “The major concern for us is that where children who are born in The Bahamas and their births are not necessarily registered at the Princess Margaret Hospital, or there are issues and they have to present affidavitevidence,wehavetomitigate against fraud and deception.

“So it raises fundamental questions as to what would be our requirement in respect to instances where persons are born in The Bahamas and they are seeking to be registered as Bahamians on the strength of an affidavit.”

Withoutsayingitinsomanywords, the focus of this conversation seems to be on those children who are born to Bahamian men and, we believe reading between the lines, Haitian women.

However, it is interesting that hot on the heels of a landmark ruling for equality, we seem to be focused on introducing DNA testing rules for just this one segment of society. It seems assoonasthisgrouphaswontheright to be treated equally, it is going to be treated differently from everyone else again.

There is no DNA test required for a regular birth certificate to be issued –and given the culture of sweethearting in our nation, no one should be surprised that there will be cases where the father named on a certificate is certainly not always the real father, in cases across the board, no matter the nationality of the parents.

Soifthegovernmentgoesaheadand introduces DNA testing for some parents, but not for others, it seems ripe for a legal challenge. Indeed, it certainly seems such a challenge would have strong prospects for success. You simply cannot treat one group differently from another. Equality should mean just that, equal treatment.

If there are suspicions of fraud in specific cases, then investigate accordingly – but treating everyone as if they are committing fraud to start with is going to create resentment among those who have done no such thing.

The outcome of this ruling should see our nation welcoming those who are now entitled to citizenship from birth, instead we seem to be putting another set of barriers in the way.

How will our nation be harmed by accepting the ruling and treating people affected the same as we do others? That has not been made clear.

For the sake of those who have waited long enough for the citizenship they are entitled to, making that clear should be a priority.

Letter to the King on crown land

EDITOR, The Tribune.

BEFORE London’s Big Ben strikes midnight on Sunday, a letter addressed to King Charles III will be hand delivered to Buckingham Palace expressing the hope that the King will be able to celebrate the Bahamas’ 50th anniversary of independence in this country.

The letter, written to King Charles III by Captain Toby CS Smith of Nassau, thanks His Majesty for “welcoming our Prime Minister on his official trip to Your Majesty’s Coronation” and congratulates His Majesty on “ascending to being King”.

In his letter Capt Toby Smith then says: “I wish to alert Your Majesty of a travesty occurring in the Commonwealth of The

GB wants the govt ‘boot off our neck’

EDITOR, The Tribune.

How should Bahamians think about the Prime Minister’s announcement that his government will take out a $200m (or is it $400m?) loan from our former colonial masters to build a new airport for Grand Bahama? Is the Davis administration really the knight in shining armor that will ride in and deliver our poor suffering island fromallitswoes?

Clearlythat’sthemessage this announcement aims to send,butlookalittlecloser. Thetruthis,oneofthemain reasons for the stagnation of Grand Bahama would havebeentheactionsofthe governmentitself.

LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net

Bahamas; I write with extreme concern. As you are aware, Crown Land is placed in the trust of the Government of The Bahamas, by Your Majesty, to exercise care and control, with the fiduciary responsibilitytoutilisetheCrown Land for the benefit of the people of the CommonwealthoftheBahamas.

“I wish to formally advise you that Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines are attempting to now receive even more Crown Land despite already receiving many tens of acres.

“The Government of The Bahamas have demonstrated facilitating requests for Crown Land by foreigners, without delay, while there are more than 35,000 applications made by Bahamians whomustformadifferent, segregated queue. Being

subject to this segregation and as a Bahamian I bring my concern to Your Majesty, having been granted a Crown Land Lease by ex-PM Hubert Minnis, after eight years of begging, only for the same Crown Land to be double dealt to Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines.

“I sincerely hope Your Majesty is able to celebrate the 50th anniversary oftheBahamas’independence in The Bahamas. The Paradise Island Lighthouse and Beach Club seeks to fully restore the Hog Island Lighthouse, the oldest in the West Indies, built in 1817 and we look forward to welcome Your Majesty for a personal tour.”

Captain Toby CS Smith, ParadiseIslandMay10,2023.

For example, under the Hawksbill Creek Agreement the Freeport area, the center of business and commerce on the island, is the sole responsibility of the Grand Bahama Port Authority. Regulations under this law allow for the Port Authority to maintain, improve and develop the Freeport area, however these have been woefully out of date for years. But every attempt to update these regulations and allow for the much needed rejuvenation of the port area and by extension the entire island, have been blocked by guess who? That’s right: noneotherthanthegovernmentofTheBahamas.

Also, by law the Port Authority is supposed to carry the full responsibility for approving new developments in the Freeport area. Yet the government has insisted that the Department of Environmental Planning and Protection must also approve of any newprojects,andtheBahamas Investment Authority (which answers to the Office of the Prime Minister) must also sign off. This amounts to inserting the central authority of Nassau into the business of Grand Bahama, in violation of the law. It also makes attracting developments that will

create new jobs for Grand Bahamians nearly impossible, as developers have to jump through multiple hoops and get approved separately by three different authorities, each of which is using a different set of rules and standards. Of course this drives away foreign investors, who can simply take their money elsewhere. It makes doing business for all Grand Bahamians extremely difficult,eventhoughthewhole pointofFreeportisthatitis supposed to attract investment and development becauseitiseasytodobusinesshere.

Soeffortstoimproveand rejuvinate are blocked, and investment and development is discouraged. The predictable result it the sad state that communities in Grand Bahama, especially those in the East and West, find themselves in today. I do not believe these moves on the part of the governmentareunintentional.

Now the government wantstorideinonitswhite horse and play savior. But save us from what, when it is their boot that has been pressing down on the neck of Grand Bahama in the first place? Why not just remove the boot and allow things to operate as they wereintendedtointhefirst place? If government simply got out of the way, any number of investors would be interested in building a new airport for the island.

Instead, they propose to beset the public with an additional $200 million dollars in debt when families across the nation are struggling to make ends meet, our international borrowing status is in deep trouble and the National Insurance Board is going broke. Why should the suffering taxpayers be stuck with yet another huge burden?

And where did this $200m number (or is it $400m?) come from anyway? How can they know how much it will cost when no plans exist yet for the constructionwork?

It is no secret why this is happening, and the Davis administration is by no means solely to blame. Going all the way back to Independence, successive governments have always had a problem with the ‘freedom’ of Freeport, and have tried to force it under their control. It is on the agenda of government to make things as bad as possible for Grand Bahama, so they can then make a big show of swooping in to the rescue. I’m not saying the Port Authority’s record doesn’t have its share of huge mistakes and failures. But is government control of Freeport really the answer?

Look at the total disaster ofgovernment’sattemptsto controlthetourismindustry throughtheBahamasHotel Corporation in the 1970s and 1980s. Look at the state of our public corporations today, which continue to lose huge amounts of money year on year, meanwhile they can hardly keep the lights on, or the water pressure up, or a Family Island flight on time. Look at the government’s failed attempts to sell the Grand Lucayan Hotel, or the empty promises that the British Colonial Hotel in Nassauwillreopensoon.

The people of Grand Bahamadon’twantthegovernment to ride in and save us. We don’t think they are uptothejobandwebelieve government control will only make a bad situation even worse. What we want isforthemtogettheirboot off our neck and get out of theway.

A Grand Bahamian in Economic Exile May10,2023

MURAL painted on a wall on West Hill Street near Graycliff Restaurant.

Photo: Timothy Roberts

Defence Force Commodore has seen a ‘marked reduction’ in Haitian migration

By JADE RUSSELL Tribune Staff Reporter jrussell@tribunemedia.net

DEFENCE Force Com-

modore Raymond King said there had been a notable decline in the number of undocumented Haitian immigrants trying to enter The Bahamas in the last two months.

“There has been a regression in terms of migration generally in this area,” Commodore King said.

“We have seen a marked reduction in the numbers of Haitian migrants attempting to leave Haiti for The Bahamas or the United States. We’ve also seen a downtrend in the movements in the Cuban migrants moving towards the United States.”

Mr King attributed the decline to US policies such as the expiration of Title 42, a pandemic-era policy that immediately expelled migrants without providing asylum hearings.

“Now you have a number of migrants from the region moving towards the Mexican-US border,” he said.

“That has taken some of the persons away from the normal traditional routes coming through The Bahamas to the United States otherwise, and so migration

movement has moved towards that border.”

He added: “Secondly, the United States has implemented an immigration policy whereby persons from four countries, Cuba, Haiti, Venezuela, and Nicaragua, 30,000 persons per month,oncetheyarevetted –– security vetting –– and they have a sponsor in the United States, they can reside in the United States for up to a two year period, so we have that incentive now seeking to demotivate persons from making that treacherous voyage to The Bahamas to the United States.”

Commodore King said visa waiver programmes countries like Jamaica have implemented have helped.

“Youhavethevisawaiver programmes through Jamaica. The Cubans are now using that means and moving through Belize to get to the United States and so we have a number of factors. It is pleasing to me that people are looking at other options.”

Immigration Minister Keith Bell recently said nearly $1m had been spent on repatriations this year.

“I would have signed in excess of 200 repatriation orders,” he said.

Free NatioNal

MoveMeNt leader atteNds coroNatioN oF KiNg charles iii

DEFENCE Force Commodore Raymond King said yesterday “We have seen a marked reduction in the numbers of Haitian migrants attempting to leave Haiti for The Bahamas or the United States.” He said he believes ‘visa waiver programmes countries like Jamaica have implemented have helped.’

FREE National Movement leader Michael Pintard posed for photos with Bahamian and British officials last week ahead of King Charles III coronation ceremony.

Unlocking the power of corporate social responsibility

IN today’s interconnected world, companies are increasingly expected to be socially responsible and accountable for how their practices impact society and the environment.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) refers to the concept that a business is responsible for more than just creating value and wealth for shareholders but should also seek to benefit the broader community in whichitexists.

Far from new, this concept emerged in the 1950s and 1960s and was championed by American economist Howard R Bowen. In his book “Social Responsibilities of the Businessman”, published in 1953, Bowen proposed that businesses should operate in a manner that benefits not only shareholders but also other stakeholders, including employees, customers,andthecommunity.

Over the past three decades,theamountofinterest and engagement surrounding Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has increased significantly, and for good reason. More business entities at home and abroad understand the powerful dynamic and benefits of “doing good” while “doing good business”.

CSR has become not just a respected business practice but a consumer-driven demand that can increase sales and customer loyalty, improve employee retention, and drive positive changes in communities, companies, and countries worldwide.

As consumers become more socially conscious and globally minded, they want to know that the businesses they support are not just in it for the money but arecommittedtothecauses that concern them. Likewise, it’s becoming more apparent that these values matter to employees too.

As such, CSR is not only a moral imperative but can beastrategicimperativefor businesses seeking to thrive in the modern marketplace and build a legacy business that employees are loyal to and consumers are proud

Andros Crab Fest

CrabFestisknownasthe largestfamilyislandfestival inTheBahamas.

In addition to providing Bahamians and visitors with three nights, two days and one midnight to dawn of unlimited entertainment, delicious crab dishes and cold beverages the new, young and energetic elected executive team of the Central Andros Crab Fest Committee has announced that unlike in the past this committee will provide transparency in all the financial matters of Crab Fest. The Central Andros community which has elected the new executives and the Local Government committee have given their blessing to our new and vibrant group of young Androsians by granting them permission to host the 25th Anniversary Celebrations of Crab Fest at the Crab Fest site. The new executive team that will lead the Crab Fest communityeventin2023is:

AllanciaEmmanuel-Gaitor, chairperson; Enan Hanna, deputy chairperson; Carol Taylor-Forde, treasurer; Shantel Minnis, assistant treasurer; Teedra Hinsey, secretary; Kenrico Marshall, lead entertainment coordinator; Kenroco Marshall, lead entertainment coordinator, public relations; Prince Rahming Jr. andGarethRolle.

Andros’ Crab Fest had its first official festival 25 years ago on the Crab Fest site, Queen’s Park in Fresh Creek, Andros. It was hostedbythecommunityof Central Andros to display the many ways of preparing the land Crab. Allancia

By Yolanda Pawar

tosupportwiththeirbuying power.

To unlock the power of CSR, businesses must take astrategicapproachtotheir initiatives.Thismeansidentifying the most relevant issues to their operations and stakeholders, setting measurable goals, and integrating CSR into their overall business and communicationsstrategy.

CSR involves a wide range of initiatives and practices that businesses can adopt to tackle social and environmental issues and contribute to the greatergoodofsociety.The fourmaincategoriesofCSR areEnvironmental,Ethical/ Human Rights, Economic, andPhilanthropic. Environmental CSR refers to a company’s commitment to sustainability, environmentally sound operations, and stewardship. For instance, climate change, pollution, and resource depletion are significant global challenges we are facing. Businesses can play an essential role in addressingthesechallenges. Environmental CSR initiatives can be geared toward improving sustainability practices, implementing renewable energy, reducing harmful carbon emissions, and increasing recycling, to name a few. These efforts can all help to mitigate the negative environmental

impacts of business and have a long-term, cumulative effect that benefits the planet. Examples of global companies leading in Corporate Social Responsibility

One company making headway in this CSR arena is Coca-Cola. As a brand, Coca-Cola is prioritising sustainability with a focus on climate, packaging, agriculture, and water security asapartofits“WorldWithoutWaste”vision.

Inlate2021,thecompany launched its first 100% plant-based plastic bottle. Dana Breed, Global R&D Director of Packaging and Sustainability, said: “Our goal is to develop sustainable solutions for the entire industry. We want other companies to join us and move forward collectively. We don’t see renewable or recycled content as areas where we want competitive advantage.”

According to a statement on the company’s website, by 2030, Coca-Cola “pledges to collect back the equivalent of every bottle it sells, so none of its packaging ends up as waste and oldbottlesarerecycledinto newones.”

Prioritising recycling and reducing plastic waste is critically important for archipelagic states like ours, where the health of our marine ecosystems is directly linked to our food supply, fishing, and tourism industries. According toaCNNreportreleasedin March,“Theworld’soceans are polluted by a “plastic smog” made up of an estimated 171 trillion plastic particles that, if gathered, would weigh around 2.3 million tons.” Upgrading recycling to reduce the volume of plastics headed to landfills is a step in the rightdirection.

Another familiar brand that demonstrates a longterm and deep-seated approach to CSR, particularly in the Ethical/Human Rights category, is Starbucks. This type of CSR hones in on a company’s promise to operate in an ethicalmannerthatupholds human rights principles, fairtrade practices, and equality. As Starbucks puts it, “We believe that conducting business ethically and striving to do the right thingarevitaltothesuccess ofthecompany.”

Fairtrade practices contribute to sustainable development and help to reduce poverty by supporting marginalised producers and empowering them to strengthen their operations and improve their livelihoods and the quality of life for their workers. This is especially beneficial in developing countries where commodities and raw materials are sourced, and povertymaybeprevalent.

The Fairtrade America site said: “Starbucks has been working with Fairtrade globally since 2000. Starbucks was the first private enterprise to invest in the Fairtrade Access Fund in 2012. Today the fund, supported by Starbucks and others, has loaned over $15m to smallholder farmers, helping them to create theneededinfrastructureto protect and improve their crops.”

Economic CSR refers to a company backing its financial decisions in its commitment to do good and not just generate more revenue. It can encompass all the various CSR categories, as demonstrated in the Starbucks example in the preceding paragraph. The bottom line for the company is ensuring that its operations positively impact the environment, people, and society. An example would be when a business chooses to purchase from a supplier that uses sustainable materials, even at a higher cost. Another initiative would be instituting an equitable salary system that fairly compensates all employees

and helps to reduce any pre-existing gender or race wagegaps.

It is important to note that although intertwined, CSR and corporate philanthropyarenotsynonymous. CSR is broader in scope and encompasses many ways that businesses can do social good. Corporate philanthropy is one pathway and refers to providing funding, resources, time, and expertise. Corporate philanthropy can include donations made to nonprofits. Via this means, companies can partner to help nonprofits achieve their missions more effectively and drive positive, sustainable change within localcommunities.Thiscan be particularly advantageous when the nonprofit is on the ground, connected, and keenly aware of the community’sneeds. A good example of this would be the “Learn and Earn” technical training programme operated by One Eleuthera Foundation’s sister organisation, the Centre for Training and Innovation (CTI) in Rock Sound, Eleuthera. This programme offers a bridge to empowerment for young people by providing NAECOB-certified courses in in-demand trades like Basic Culinary, Carpentry, Electrical, Hospitality, and Massage Therapy, etc. The programme is free to students in South Eleuthera, where job opportunities are limited and high school dropout rates continue to increase. The 12-week programme maintains a 95-97%graduationrateand provides each student with a modest weekly stipend. For a company committed to youth and education, sponsoring a student or cohort could be the right CSRfit.

Businesses can also use their CSR portfolio to create a positive social impact and improve the quality of life for their employees and communities.Inadditiontothefour main categories outlined here, there are numerous other areas where companies can focus on being

socially responsible for the benefit of their workforce and society. This includes, but is not limited topromotinggoodgovernance, supporting diversity and inclusion, creating employee well-being initiatives, supporting employee volunteerism, becoming active in community clubs like Little League and Junior Achievement, and supporting local charities and charitable events. Depending on which activities align with your company’s ethos and mission, you can plan for and customise your Corporate Social Responsibility footprint while making a positive contribution right in your local neighbourhood or hometown.

By embracing Corporate Social Responsibility, businesses can demonstrate theircommitmenttoethical and sustainable practices, enhance their reputation andsales,andfosterstronger relationships with customers, employees, and other stakeholders.

As businesses continue to evolve and respond to changing social and environmental challenges, so will the landscape of CSR as new and innovative approaches emerge to help companies do their part in creating a better and more equitablesocietyandworld.

• Yolanda Pawar is the chief communications officer at the One Eleuthera Foundation. Established in 2012, the One Eleuthera Foundation (OEF) is a nonprofit organisation located in Rock Sound, Eleuthera. For more information, visit www.oneeleuthera.org or email info@oneeleuthera. org. The Centre for Training and Innovation (CTI) is the first and only postsecondary, non-profit education and training institution and social enterprise on Eleuthera. CTI operates a student training campus in Rock Sound, Eleuthera, with a 16-room training hotel, restaurant and farm. For more information about CTI’s programmes, email: info@oneeleuthera.org.

after the concert, the Crab FestAfroBeatsAfterParty kicksoffattheFreshCreek dock until the break of dawn.

For more information, go to Andros Crab Fest on Facebook or email crabfestinfo@gmail.com.

The Avengers Flag Football Club

Emmanuel-Gaitor said: “The community remains faithful to celebrating this cultural event. This year, we are heading back to the Crab Fest site to celebrate with Bahamians near and far, our culture. For the 25th year, our committee will celebrate 25 days of Crab Fest. We plan to partner with local businesses throughout the month on June celebrating in true Bahamian style with events plannedfromStaffrdCreek toCoakleyBight.”

TheCrabFesteventswill begin on June 1, leading up to the actual Crab Fest festivities from Thursday, June22,toSunday,June25. In addition to established Bahamianstarsperforming, the Central Andros Crab Fest Committee will bring totheCrabFeststageanew and younger generation of up-and-coming Bahamian artists that the Crab Fest hasbeenaskingforyears.

On day one, June 22, DJ Godson will host the “First We Praise” Gospel concert,

headlinedbyhitperformers the singing Bishop, Lawrence Rolle, and Cara T Newton, admission is free and the show starts at 7pm. Stand-up comedy along with up to $750 worth of onstage giveaways follows, with Bahamian comedians Sawyer Boy and Basil “Bee Jay”Armbrister. OnFriday night, the official opening and the releasing of the crabs will take place. On thisnightwillbegintheAllBahamian Concert, with some of the best Bahamian performers backed by the RhythmBandandtheSpice Band, hosted by Sawyer Boy. On Saturday, June 24, the morning will begin with breakfastandtheGHSPop Band, “Magic Ivy”. From 1pm, entertainer Das Quay will start off the afternoon with up to $1,000 worth of onstage giveaways of $25, $50 and $100 every 25 minutes. The second night of the All-Bahamian Concert will begin at 9pm with even more Bahamian singing superstars. Immediately

The Avengers Flag Football Team was formed in 2013 with the Avengers men being entered as a team in that years Bahamas Flag Football League’s season. With the addition of the Lady Avengers, in 2014, they became a club. Both teams are entered in the current season, and are sponsored by Caro Contractors.

Staying on theme, most players adorn a name across their jerseys with a Marvelcharactertheythink theyidentifywith.Overthe years, the Avengers Flag Football Club has participated in many community outreachprograms.

For the current 2023 season, the club decided to make their presence stronger in the community by ramping up their service efforts.

Withthemindsetofbeing ‘bigger than football’ and taking our reach ‘further than flag’ Those efforts started this past February when they partnered with the Rotaract South East Nassau Centennial club for their ‘Gift Of Love’ event. The purpose of the successfuleventwastogiveouthot breakfast and hygiene kits to the less fortunate that frequentPotter’sCayDock.

The club joined in by not only donating items for the kits, but also helping with distribution.

The partnership did not stop there. In the following weeks, we participated in a ball donation to the Simpson Penn Boys Industrial Schoolandhygieneproduct distribution at the Willie Mae Pratt Centre for Girls. Next on our list, is to help organiseakidssportsdayat alocalchildren’shome.

We also involved ourselves in awareness efforts via our social media platforms throughout this current season. On March 21, the Ladies joined in with the world to celebrate World Down Syndrome Day. They wore bright, festive and mismatched socks attheirweeklypractice.

For the month of April, Autism Awareness Month, the entire club participated. With World Autism Day (April 2nd) being a Flag Football Sunday, the ladies adorned puzzle ribbons during their game and the guys watched from the sidelines with autism awareness bands purchased from REACH. The awareness initiative continued every Sunday thereafter for the rest of the month. Both

of these are documented, in reel form, on our social mediaplatforms.

Notably, the men’s team capturedtheChampionship title for the 2022 season, while the women have their sights set to join them in the ranks this season. Along with our schedule of games, we can be found on Instagram and Facebook at @avengersffc or every flag football Sunday at the WintonRugbyField.

•OurClubsandSocieties page is a chance for you to shareyourgroup’sactivities withourreaders.

To feature on our Clubs and Societies page, submit your report to clubs@tribunemedia.net, with “Clubs Page”inthesubjectline.

of One Eleuthera Foundation

YOLANDA PAWAR

FROM left, Crab Fest committee members Carol Taylor-Forde, treasurer; Allancia Emmanuel-Gaitor, chairperson; Shantel Minnis, assistant treasurer; Oran Davis, entertainment; Prince Munroe Jr, public relations; Kenrico Marshall, lead entertainment coordinator. Missing from the photo is Enan Hanna, deputy chair; TeEdra Hinsey, secretary; Latia Smith, asst secretary; Jarret Rolle, asst public relations and Adonis Johnson, entertainment.

THE AVENGERS church service at Bahamas Harvest and, below, wide receiver Malaikes Chase in action.

‘I miss you everyday’ A letter to my mother

By Diane Phillips

Dear MoM, Sunday is Mother’s Day. I wish you were here.

So much has changed in the world since you left.

We walk around now grasping small devices we call cell phones, but they are much more than a phone. The entire world’s knowledge is available through them. enter a question, Google the answer. Google is new, too. It’s harder to explain than the hardware it lives on, but it is the goofy sounding name for the software that searches for whatever you ask it to. It is a truly amazing tool that lets you research everything and anything -- the number of fish in the sea, the latest science on DNa, the decline of coral reefs off the coast of australia -- as easily as making a reservation online at your favourite restaurant.

I just remembered you probably don’t know what online means, either. online when you were alive was where we hung our clothes outside, especially the ones we wanted to dry bright white in the sun. Nowadays, everyone is afraid of the sun because of its UVa and B rays that reportedly cause wrinkles and skin cancer. Just between you and me, I think our personal love of the sun will win out in the long run since who doesn’t relish the feel of the sun’s warmth shining on their face? I remember how much you loved it. You’d raise your face to the sun and just go quiet for a moment like if you spoke you would interrupt the flow of energy into your body that would fail you way too early.

There’s this other thing about the sun, too.

We now have something called climate change. It’s way more significant than season change when we put away sweaters and pulled out lighter weight sheets. Climate change is impacting the world. Last winter we didn’t even have one, a

winter that is. at least not in The Bahamas. Ice caps are melting faster than anyone predicted, storms are more intense, ocean temperatures are rising and since no one really believed all this could happen in our lifetime, most people ignored the warnings and figured someone would fix it before it was too late, like we fix a clogged sink or other problems. We didn’t want to relate to something that seemed so distant. Now our grandchildren may be looking at only certain places they can live or, if still in The Bahamas, on boats or those islands that have not been swallowed by the ocean. Can you believe there are pioneers looking for places to live or vacation in space? I am not kidding.

It IS a very different world.

remember when I mentioned online before? There is now this thing called social media. It allows you to connect with people you don’t know and send hate mail that can lead them to kill themselves. That was not what it was designed for, of course. It was supposed to let us connect with people and build relationships and rapport, to link up for business purposes or simply to be social, just like its name implies. But somehow it got out of hand so now you can go online and use it for good or evil.

online is really handy in a lot of ways. For instance, let’s say you want to make a great spaghetti sauce. You Google it and get 4,610,000 recipe results in the flash of a second (I just tested it.) How are you supposed to choose which one is best? It’s hard enough to choose between two.

We can order everything and pay our bills online. We don’t have to physically take cash or cheques to people we owe or pay utility bills or stores anymore, we transfer money miraculously online. It is hard to believe how much that one word “online” (meaning internet) has changed our lives. Some people shop

for new homes online and everyone books their vacations that way. But the danger with online, so far as I can tell, is that it doesn’t do what it’s supposed to do which is free us up to spend our time in more rewarding, valuable and kind ways. It frees us up to spend more time online.

There are those who use it for all the wrong reasons, too, like learning how to build a homemade bomb which reminds me that since you left this world, it has gotten a lot more violent. In this little once almost idyllic nation except for truly awful socio-economic differences, thousands and thousands of people are carrying guns. remember the police did not even have guns a few decades ago? Just Billy clubs. Now, just about every business has security cameras. People in every kind of neighbourhood have double locks on their doors. We all but lock our car doors when we get out to walk around to the other side. It’s scary.

I had not realized until I started this letter to you how much that has happened since you left this world way too early that has made it a less gentle or safe place.

We know more than we did before, but we behave worse. We have instant access to a host of strangers, but we don’t treasure those closest to us. We enjoy more conveniences than ever, but we have lost touch with the reward of doing something ourselves.

It’s not all bad.

There are lots of good things happening, like finding new relatives through DNa. In The Bahamas, there is a renewed sense of pride in farming, maybe because of the supply shortage we experienced during a recent pandemic or because of the high cost of importing so much food. Solar power – that’s electricity produced by the sun and stored in battery banks – is finally catching on. one day soon, they won’t be making

gasoline-powered cars and that little tin model Texaco gas station you and Daddy gave me for Christmas one year will be worth a few coins at an antique show. I drive an electric vehicle now. You would love it. I can ask my onscreen assistant to lower the passenger window just in case I am too busy driving and talking on Bluetooth, which is not a new dental term, to do it myself. That’s two conversations at once. In your day if you held two conversations while driving, we’d have thought you were done for mentally.

Yes, there has been a world of change and that change has created a more complicated and burdened society. It’s little wonder holidays make us sentimental.

So maybe when I long for your company and the hour to just sit and talk with you, I am longing for a simpler, kinder, gentler time along with the wisdom you quietly offered after listening intently as if you genuinely cared about the questions I asked.

We never paid enough attention to what you were asking for silently. You never complained, even when you must have been suffering intense pain.

You were so thoughtful and giving to others, we just took your character for granted and thought you would be there forever, a steadying, generous in spirit and time and lovingly calming voice.

and only at the last moment before you closed your eyes for the last time did we pour out all the love in our hearts.

This you should know. It isn’t only Mother’s Day when I wish you were here, but every day. You would be shocked – I can just see the wideeyed expression on your face – yes, shocked to know that in all the years you’ve been gone there has not been a single day without my missing you and wishing you were here.

PHOTO:GUILLE POZZI

Migrants rush across US border in final hours before Title 42 expires

MEXICO

Associated Press

Migrants rushed across the Mexico border thursday, racing to enter the Us before pandemicrelated asylum restrictions are lifted in a shift that threatens to put a historic strainonthenation’sbeleagueredimmigrationsystem.

the imminent end of the rules known as title 42 stirredfearamongmigrants that the change would make it more difficult for themtostayintheUs

With a late-night deadline looming, migrants in Mexico shed clothing before descending a steep bank into the rio grande, clutching plastic bags filled with clothes. One man held a baby in an open suitcase onhishead.

On the Us side of the river, migrants put on dry clothing and picked their way through concertina wire. Many surrendered immediately to authorities and hoped to be released while pursuing their cases in backlogged immigration courts,whichtakesyears.

it was not clear how many migrants were on the move or how long the surge would last. By early thursday evening, the flow seemed to be slowing in some locations, but it was not clear why or whether the number of crossings would increase again after therestrictionsexpire.

a Us official reported that daily encounters on tuesday hit 10,000 — nearly twice the level from March and only slightly belowthe11,000figurethat authorities have said is the upper limit of what they expectaftertitle42ends.

“Our buses are full.

Our planes are full,” said Pedro Cardenas, a city commissioner in Brownsville, texas, just north of Matamoros.

President Joe Biden’s administration has been unveiling strict new measures to replace title 42, whichsinceMarch2020has allowed border officials to quicklyreturnasylumseekersbackovertheborderon grounds of preventing the spreadofCOViD-19.

the new policies crack down on illegal crossings while also setting up legal pathways for migrants who apply online, seek a sponsor and undergo background checks. if successful, the reforms could fundamentally alter how migrants arrive at the UsMexicoborder.

But it will take time to see results. Biden has conceded that the border will be chaotic for a while. immigrant advocacy groups have threatened legal action. and migrants fleeing poverty, gangs and persecution in their homelands are still desperate to reach Us soil at any cost.

William Contreras of Venezuela said title 42 was good for people from his wracked south american country. He heard that many migrants before him werereleasedintheUnited states.

“What we understand is that they won’t be letting anyone else in,” said Contreras’ friend, Pablo, whodeclinedtogivehislast

name because he planned tocrosstheborderillegally.

“that’s the reason for our urgency to cross through thebordertoday.”

While title 42 prevented many from seeking asylum, it carried no legal consequences, encouraging repeat attempts. after thursday, migrants face being barred from entering the Us for five years and possible criminal prosecution.

Holding facilities along the border were far beyond capacity, and Border Patrol agents were told to begin releasing some migrants with instructions to appear at a Us immigration office within 60 days, according to a Us official. the official wasnotauthorizedtospeak publicly about the matter and provided information to the associated Press on conditionofanonymity.

agents were also told to start releases in any area where holding facilities were at 125% capacity or the average time in custody exceeded60hours.inaddition, releases could begin if 7,000 migrants were taken into custody across the entireborderinoneday.

More than 27,000 people were in Us Customs and Border Protection custody, theofficialsaid.

Homeland security secretary alejandro Mayorkas warned of more crowded Border Patrol facilities to come.

“i cannot overstate the strainonourpersonneland our facilities, but we know how to manage through suchstrain,”hetoldreportersthursday.

He said the vast majority of migrants would be placed in “expedited removal” proceedings and would be expelled quickly if they don’t qualify to stay intheUs

“We have confidence in the lawfulness of our actions,”hesaid.

the stopping of about 10,000 migrants by the Border Patrol on tuesday

made for one of the agency’s busiest days ever, according to a second Us official who provided information to the aP on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to speak publiclyaboutthematter.

the daily average was about 5,200 in March, according to the latest publiclyavailabledata.

On thursday, about 400 migrants huddled in strong windswhippingupthesand on the bank of the rio grande east of El Paso as groups of texas national guard soldiers constructed concertinawirebarriers.

a couple from Colombia approached the wire asking if they could start a fire because a 10-year-old was shivering in the desert cold. Most migrants huddled together under thin blankets.

Maj sean storrud of the texas national guard said histroopshaveexplainedto migrants the consequences ofcrossingillegally.

“the migrants don’t really know what’s going to happen,”storrudsaid.

Even as migrants were racing to reach to Us soil before the rules expire, Mexican President andrés Manuel lópez Obrador said smugglers were sending a different message. He said there had been an uptick in smugglers at his country’s southern border offering to take migrants to the United states and telling them the border was openstartingthursday.

On Wednesday, Homeland security announced a rule to make it extremely difficult for anyone who travels through another country, like Mexico, or who did not apply online, toqualifyforasylum.italso introduced curfews with gPs tracking for families released in the Us before initialasylumscreenings.

theadministrationsaysit isbeefinguptheremovalof migrants found unqualified to stay in the Us on flights

like those that brought nearly 400 migrants home to guatemala from the Us onthursday.

sheidi Mazariegos, 26, arrived with her 4-yearold son, just eight days after being detained near Brownsville.

“iheardonthenewsthat there was an opportunity to enter, i heard it on the radio, but it was all a lie,” she said. smugglers got her to Matamoros and put the two on a raft. they were apprehended by Border Patrolagents.

Mazariegos, who said she migrated because she is poor, hoped to reunite with

her sisters living in the Us she left her ill husband and two other children behind inguatemala. at the same time, the administration has introduced expansive new legal pathwaysintotheUs

Up to 30,000 people a month from Haiti, Cuba, nicaragua and Venezuela can enter if they apply online with a financial sponsor and enter through an airport. Processing centres are opening in guatemala, Colombia and elsewhere. Up to 1,000 can enter daily though land crossings with Mexico if

they snag an appointment onanonlineapp. in san Diego, more than 100migrants,manyofthem Colombian families, slept under plastic tarps between two border walls, watched over by Border Patrol agents who had nowhere to takethemforprocessing. albino leon, 51, said the end of title 42 prompted his family to make the journey.

“With the changes they are making to the laws, it’s now or never,” said leon, who flew to Mexico from Colombia and got past a first border wall to reach Ussoil.

Musk says hE’s found a nEw CEo to lEad twittEr - a woMan

Elon

Associated Press

ElOn Musk said thursday he has found a new CEO for twitter, or X Corp. as it’s now called — and it’s a woman. He did not name her but said she will be starting in about six weeks.

Musk, who bought twitter last fall and has been running it since, has long insisted he is not the company’s permanent CEO. the tesla billionaire said inatweetthursdaythathis role will transition to being twitter’s executive chairman and chief technology officer.

in mid-november, just a few weeks after buying the social media platform for $44 billion, he told a Delaware court that he does not want to be the CEO of any company.

While testifying, Musk said “i expect to reduce my time at twitter and find somebody else to run twitterovertime.”

More than a month later, hetweetedinDecember:“i will resign as CEO as soon as i find someone foolish enough to take the job.”

the pledge came after millions of twitter users asked him to step down in atwitterpollthebillionaire himself created and promisedtoabideby. in February, he told a conference he anticipated finding a CEO for san Francisco-based twitter “probably toward the end ofthisyear.” shares of tesla rose about 2% thursday after Musk made the announcement. shareholders of the electric car company have been concerned about how much of his attention is beingspentontwitter.

last november, he was questioned in court about how he splits his time among tesla and his other companies, including spaceX and twitter. Musk had to testify in the trial in Delaware’s Court of Chancery over a shareholder’s challenge to his potentially $55 billion compensation plan as CEO of the electric carcompany.

Musk said he never intended to be CEO of tesla, and that he didn’t wanttobechiefexecutiveof any other companies either,

preferring to see himself as an engineer. Musk also said atthetimethatheexpected an organisational restructuring of twitter to be completed in the next week or so. it’s been nearly six monthssincehesaidthat.

Musk’s tenure at twitter’s helm has been chaotic, and he’s made various promises and proclamations he’s backtracked or never followed up on. He began his first day firing the company’s top executives, followed by roughly 80% of its staff. He’s upended the platform’s verification system and has scaled back content moderation and safeguards against the spreadofmisinformation.

Bantering with twitter followers late last year, Musk expressed pessimism about the prospects for a new CEO, saying that person “must like pain a lot” to run a company that “hasbeeninthefastlaneto bankruptcy.”

“no one wants the job who can actually keep twitter alive. there is no successor,” Musk tweeted atthetime.

HAITIAN migrants wade through water as they cross the Darien Gap from Colombia to Panama in hopes of reaching the US, Tuesday. Pandemic-related US asylum restrictions, known as Title 42, expired yesterday.

Photo: Ivan Valencia/AP

A TWITTER logo hangs outside the company’s offices in San Francisco. Elon Musk said yesterday, that he has found a new CEO for Twitter, or X Corp. as it is now called. He did not name the person but she will be starting in about six weeks.

Photo: Jeff Chiu/AP

MIGRANTS walk across the Darien Gap from Colombia to Panama in hopes of reaching the US Tuesday. Pandemic-related US asylum restrictions, known as Title 42, expired yesterday.

Photo: Ivan Valencia/AP

FRIDAY, MAY 12, 2023 Celtics, Page 15

Ayton injured, Suns eliminated in Game 6

PHOENIX (AP) — Nikola Jokic scored 32 points in another tripledouble, Jamal Murray added 26 and the Denver Nuggets advanced to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2020 by beating the short-handed Phoenix Suns 125-100 in Game 6 last night.

Denver’s series victory comes two seasons after the Nuggets were embarrassed in a second-round postseason sweep by the Suns. This time, it was the Suns getting blown out on their home floor to end the season for the second straight year.

The Nuggets will play in the conference finals for the first time since they lost to the Lakers in five games in the Florida bubble during the COVID-19 pandemic. They have never reached the NBA Finals.

The top-seeded Nuggets used a 23-2 run during the latter part of the first quarter to take a 44-26 lead and never looked back.

Kentavious CaldwellPope — averaging 9.5 points in the playoffs — scored 17 in the first quarter while Jokic added 14. Caldwell-Pope finished with 21 points. Jokic shot 13 of 18 from the field and added 12 assists and 10 rebounds.

Denver’s offensive onslaught continued in the second as the lead grew to 81-51 by halftime, leading to boos from Suns fans as players made their way to the locker room. The second half was essentially an afterthought.

SUNS centre Deandre Ayton watches from the bench during the first half of Game 6 of their NBA basketball Western Conference semifinal game against the Denver Nuggets last night. (AP Photo/Matt York)

Cameron Payne scored 31 points for Phoenix, hitting 7 of 9 3-pointers. Kevin Durant added 23.

The Suns were playing without injured starters Deandre Ayton and Chris Paul. Ayton sustained a rib contusion in Tuesday’s Game 5 while Paul has been out the past four games with a strained left groin.

Phoenix was eliminated in the Western Conference semifinals at home for a second straight season despite a blockbuster trade deadline deal for Durant,

a 13-time All-Star and one of the game’s most prolific scorers. The 34-year-old had some good moments in the playoffs, but made just 1 of his first 10 shots yesterday as the Suns fell into a huge hole.

Suns guard Devin Booker was brilliant in most of the postseason, averaging 36 points per game on 60% before Game 6. But the three-time All-Star finished with just 12 points last night. The home team won the first five games of the series until the Nuggets broke through in Game 6.

NFL season kicks off with Super Bowl champion Chiefs hosting Lions and Rodgers on Monday Night Football

A TRAINER tends to Phoenix Suns centre Deandre Ayton (22) after he was injured in the first half of Game 5 of an NBA basketball semifinal playoff series on Tuesday night in Denver.

DEJA VU

For the Suns, the loss was eerily similar to Game 7 of last year’s Western Conference semifinals.

Phoenix, with the NBA’s best record, fell behind Dallas by 30 points by halftime and ended up losing 123-90 to end its season.

In the shot clock era, the home team has trailed by 30-plus points in a potential

playoff elimination game just three times. Phoenix is now responsible for two of them. The other was the Bucks in 2015.

TIP-INS

Nuggets: Murray was listed as questionable before the game with a nonCOVID illness.

checked out of the game for the final time. Suns: Jock Landale finished with 13 points and five rebounds, starting in place of Ayton. Hosted their 80th consecutive sellout crowd, counting regular season and postseason games. The Suns have never won a title since coming into the league in 1968.

1.5 MILLION OLYMPIC TICKETS ON SALE IN NEW LOTTERY ROUND FOR 2024 PARIS

GAMES

By SYLVIE CORBET Associated Press

Coming off their second championship in four seasons, the Chiefs will host the Lions on September 7 on “Thursday Night Football.”

The Lions finished 9-8 last season after a 1-6 start and knocked Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers out of the playoffs with a 20-16 victory at Lambeau Field in the final regular-season game.

Mahomes, the two-time NFL MVP, led the Chiefs to a 38-35 comeback win over the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl.

Fans will get their first look at Rodgers in his new green-and-white No. 8 Jets jersey when New York hosts Josh Allen and the Bills in an AFC East matchup on September 11, according to early details

NEW York Jets’ quarterback Aaron Rodgers smiles during an NFL football news conference at the Jets’ training facility. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

released yesterday on this year’s NFL schedule.

Other games revealed yesterday include a rematch of the NFC championship game in Week 13.

Jalen Hurts and the Eagles will host the San Francisco 49ers on December 3.

The Eagles knocked quarterback Brock Purdy out of the conference title game on their way to a dominant 31-7 win.

Purdy had elbow surgery in the offseason but should be ready by the time the teams meet again.

Mahomes and the Chiefs will host AFC West rival Las Vegas in the early game on Christmas Day

and the Dallas Cowboys will visit San Francisco on “Sunday Night Football” in Week 5.

The New England Patriots also announced seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady will be honoured at the team’s home opener. Brady, who led the Patriots to six Super Bowl titles, retired in February after spending the last three seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

On Wednesday, the NFL announced that Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars will

PARIS (AP) —

The second round of ticket sales for next year’s Paris Olympics started yesterday with only the lucky winners of a lottery being able to buy about 1.5 million seats for the most prestigious competitions, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies.

The Paris Games, which run from July 26 to August 11, 2024, will feature 32 sports across 37 sites.

HOW IT WORKS

Four million of people applied for the online lottery, organisers said.

Winners in the random draw have a 48-hour timeslot to make their choice on a single online platform open to all fans worldwide.

They receive an email two days beforehand and can buy up to 30 tickets per person — but no more than six per event, limited to four for the most popular finals and the opening and closing ceremonies.

ones — are expected to sell out quickly.

“We put on sale the most emblematic tickets of the games,” Aloïsio said, adding that Olympic fans who accessed the platform yesterday “are over the moon.”

“But those who will be drawn in the next few days will obviously have much less choice,” he said.

CHEAP TICKETS

Tickets for the women’s 100-metre final on August 3 are 690 euros ($752) for the best seats. For the men’s 100 final the next day, it’s 980 euros ($1,069). Skateboard and breakdance range from 24 to 160 euros ($26 to 174).

“The whole challenge of ticketing is to be able to balance our budget without losing price affordability,” Aloïsio said.

Michael Aloïsio, the deputy general manager of the Paris Olympics, said the system is made so that winners can easily buy seats for family and friends. Tickets in many sports — especially the cheapest

Tickets are available in several categories according to price range. About 10% have been set to the lowest price of 24 euros ($26). The same proportion is above 200 euros ($218), Aloïsio said. Top prices include prestigious athletics, swimming and basketball finals.

Ticket sales represent about a third of the budget for the Paris Olympics, which is estimated at 4.4 billion euros ($4.8 billion).

NEXT PHASE

It’s too late to apply for the draw, but there will be further ticket opportunities

SEE PAGE 13 SEE PAGE 15

(AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

PATRICK Mahomes and the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will kick off the 2023 season against the upstart Detroit Lions in a matchup of highpowered offences while Aaron Rodgers will make his New York Jets debut on “Monday Night Football” against the Buffalo Bills.

By ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer

Denver blows past Phoenix 125-100 to advance to Western Conference finals, Deandre doesn’t play with rib contusion

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer

Glory Basketball Jamboree to award $5,000 cash prize

By TENAJH SWEETING tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE Glory Basketball Jamboree made its return to the capital last night for the second consecutive year at the Kendal GL Isaacs Gymnasium.

Day one saw basketball played by the Tucker Boys, Abaco’s Three Ounce Athletics, Filipinos all-star team, 242 Ballers, the Great Whites, the Ball Hogs, the Pirates and the defending champions Rockets.

All teams brought their A-game on day one as they are all vying for a chance to claim this year’s cash prize of $5,000.

In game one of the tourney, the 242 Ballers defeated the Tucker Boys in a tightly contested game 47-46. The game came down to the wire with the 242 Ballers leading 27-28 going into the final period of the game. The Tucker Boys advanced their lead by one point following a three-point play.

However, the 242 Ballers quickly answered back with three points of their own after a bucket by the opposing team.

The trend continued as both teams exchanged multiple threes backto-back. Ultimately, the matchup ended with the Tucker boys falling to the 242 Ballers.

Dastyn Baker, head coach of the 242 Ballers, said it felt very good to get the win and it was a good experience for his team with most of them still being in high school.

He said his coaching strategy to the guys was to run and use their athleticism against the much older team, leading to the win.

In game two, the Abaco Three Ounce Athletics dominated the Filipinos all-star team 59-39. The matchup got underway and going into the second half

Abaco led 33-25. The team advanced by 10 points following a free throw by Latrell Poitier who was also instrumental in making some big offensive plays throughout the game. After a stylish crossover followed by a three-point bucket by Cleo Sears, the team expanded their lead to 18 points en route to a comfortable win.

Latrell Poitier, point guard of Three Ounce Athletics, said the win felt good as the team was getting back comfortable playing with each other.

He said his individual strategy was to take the open shots as they became available and to follow the coach’s advice to not take anything for granted.

The Ball Hogs took down the Great Whites in game three of the Glory Basketball Jamboree. On the night, the Ball Hogs secured a 58-47 win over the Great Whites.

The team opened up the game with a hot start and advanced out to a 32-18 lead. However, following a flurry of threes by a few

of the Great Whites’ players, the team was able to get back into the game. In the final period, the Great Whites got the score within eight points, trailing 50-42. Despite a trying effort from the Great Whites down the stretch, they were unable to stop the Ball Hogs.

The final game of the night saw the defending champions close out the

Pirates 43-40 in a nailbiting game. The teams opened up the first period with the Pirates leading 11-8. The Pirates continued their first quarter progress following some timely free throws and buckets by Randy Miller to lead 21-14 at the halftime mark. The second half saw the basketball action pick up for the Rockets as the

MAN CITY LEADING ARSENAL IN THE EPL TITLE RACE

By STEVE DOUGLAS AP Sports Writer

THE title race between Manchester City and Arsenal is headed to the wire. The fight for Champions League qualification has tightened up. It’s surely down to two from a group of four teams for relegation. There’s so much still to play for in the Premier League with only two weeks remaining.

• Here’s a look at the state of play at the top and the bottom:

TITLE RACE

As many expected, defending champion Manchester City has produced its trademark end-of-season burst to move into first place ahead of long-time leader Arsenal, which stuttered just when a first title since 2004 was looming into view.

City — enjoying a 10-match winning run in the league — leads by one point with four games left, one more than Arsenal.

defending champions poured in 16 third quarter points compared to the Pirates’ nine.

Ultimately, the Rockets were able to claim victory after a big second half at the free throw line.

Day two of the Glory Basketball Jamboree will start today at 4pm. Tickets are priced at $10 per person.

It’s far from over, however. City has the tougher run-in, with games to come at an Everton team fighting relegation, at home against Chelsea, and then at Brighton and Brentford — two of the more surprising teams this season with good home records. City also has the second leg of the Champions League semifinals against Real Madrid to plan around next week.

Arsenal is at home against Brighton, at Nottingham Forest and closes with a home match against Wolverhampton.

If Arsenal wins its final three games, City will need three victories in its final four games to guarantee retaining the title.

Kentucky Derby winner Mage is on track to run in the Preakness, pursue Triple Crown

By STEPHEN WHYNO AP Sports Writer

KENTUCKY Derby

winner Mage remains on track to run in the Preakness Stakes in Baltimore next week to continue a pursuit of horse racing’s first Triple Crown since Justify in 2018, with a final decision expected today.

Ramiro Restrepo, part of the ownership group, said yesterday those in charge of deciding Mage’s next race wanted to see one final workout before making that determination.

“Everything is just patience and temperance on our end,” Restrepo said on a conference call with reporters. “The plan is that if on Friday he trains satisfactory like he’s been training all week, then we would make the announcement that we would go to the Preakness.”

Mage would be the first unquestioned Derby winner to go to the Preakness with a chance to win the Triple Crown since Justify five years ago. In 2019, Maximum Security

was disqualified and Country House elevated to first with neither running in the Preakness; in 2020, the Belmont Stakes was run first because of the pandemic; in 2021, Medina Spirit failed a drug test after winning the Derby and was eventually DQed; and in 2022, the owner and trainer of long shot Rich Strike decided to skip the race.

While the two weeks between the Derby and Preakness make for an unusually tight turnaround for top thoroughbreds in North America, Restrepo downplayed that concern, citing trainer Gustavo Delgado’s experience.

“He’s won two (Venezuelan) Triple Crowns with similar timeframes, so as far as being prepared and being able to know all the things that Mage needs to check off the list to be able to participate his best for the Preakness, we have that in play and we’re quite comfortable with it,” Restrepo said.

Logistical preparations are already underway to get Mage from Churchill

Downs in Louisville, Kentucky, to Pimlico Racecourse in Baltimore.

Restrepo said he and the other owners will make the best decision for the lightly raced colt who has so far made only four career starts.

“Every decision that is made on our end, Mage makes that decision for us,” he said. “All indications are that Mage is feeling good, doing well on the racetrack.”

Mage won the Derby at odds of 15-1 after a tumultuous 10-day stretch at Churchill Downs during which seven horses died and five were scratched from the $3 million race, leaving a field of 18 to run instead of the usual 20.

Forte, the morning line favourite, was scratched hours before by Kentucky Horse Racing Commission

MAGE (8), with Javier Castellano aboard, wins the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby horse race at Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 6 in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

veterinarians who had concerns about a bruised right front foot.

Barring an unexpected change by Maryland officials, Forte won’t be able to run in the Preakness after Kentucky racing officials put him on a mandatory 14-day veterinary list earlier this week.

Fourth-place Derby finisher Disarm is expected to join Mage in the Preakness field.

“Very pleased with how he’s come out of the race,” said trainer Steve Asmussen, who is also planning to saddle Red Route One in the Preakness.

“(Disarm has) been back to the track a couple of days now. Will not need much at all from him from a training standpoint.

“Just want him to continue to be loose and comfortable.”

Brad Cox, who had four horses in the Derby, will not bring any of them back for the Preakness but instead intends to challenge Mage this time with First Mission.

Shug McGaughey has his first Preakness horse in a decade in Perform, and Chad Brown is planning to enter Blazing Sevens in the race. It was not clear if Bob Baffert, who was not allowed to train horses for the Derby in 2022 or ‘23 because of Medina Spirit’s failed drug test but is now cleared to do so in the Preakness, will decide to go for a record-breaking eight victory in the race with National Treasure.

JAVIER Castellano celebrates after riding Mage to win the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby horse race at Churchill Downs on May 6, 2023, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

ON THE REPLAY: The Ball Hogs take on the Great White Sharks and Abaco Showtime Ballers faced off against the Filipinos all-star team during the Glory Basketball Jamboree at the Kendal GL Isaacs gymnasium last night.

Photos by Tenajh Sweeting

Let’s Swim Bahamas: Dignitaries get ‘first-hand experience’ at UB pool

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

FOR the past 15 years, the husband and wife team of Andy and Nancy Knowles have been stressing the importance of “learning to swim” through their Let’s Swim Bahamas programme. Yesterday at the University of the Bahamas pool, the Knowles and their organisation got to give a first-hand experience to a number of dignitaries as they got set to complete the programme that coincides with the academic school year.

The programme is designed for primary school students in their bid to get the younger children learning how to swim so as to provide them with the necessary skills to take through the rest of their lives.

“We build a foundation with the kids on the bus as we read a scripture, say a memory voice and we sing some songs,” Andy Knowles aaid.

“When they get to the pool, we teach them the basic fundamentals of learning how to swim. “We are the most beautiful country in the world with the most beautiful water,” Knowles said. “We took the kids snorkelling last week and many of them have never been on a boat.

“Many of them have never seen marine life with turtles and groupers all swimming around. So we’re teaching them how to swim, which is a life-saving skill, they will learn to appreciate the beauty of the Bahamas and we have it all structured with Nancy.”

On their way back to school, Knowles said they

instil the importance of water safety.

At the end of the programme, Knowles said each participant will get a certificate, indicating that they would have completed the course offered by Let’s Swim Bahamas.

The programme will take a break until September when it will resume.

Hopefully then, Knowles said they will be able to reach the other primary schools that they haven’t done as yet with the goal of trying to incorporate all primary schools in New Providence.

Among the dignitaries on hand was Minister of National Security Wayne Munroe who said he was pleased to see how actively involved the Royal

Bahamas Defence Force is in the programme.

“This is a part of the Defence Force mission that is undertaken by them and embraced by them,” he said. “So on the approach, I knew the commodore and his team would be receptive to it.

“I’m impressed with what I heard about the children coming here on the bus and singing the songs of God. Without God, you can’t do anything successfully and so it’s quite impressive to see the discipline in the children.”

Munroe not only commended the divers from the RBDF, but the Knowles for their initiative in getting the programme started without any help from the government. But because

NBC WILL AIR MOST OF MARQUEE OLYMPIC EVENTS FROM PARIS LIVE DURING DAYTIME

By JOE REEDY AP Sports Writer

SWIMMING, gymnastics and track & field fans can rejoice. For the first time in a European Olympics, those event finals will be televised live on network television in the United States.

NBC will have at least nine hours of weekday daytime coverage, expanding to at least 11 hours on weekends.

With Paris six hours ahead of New York, the marquee finals will air live in the morning or late afternoon.

NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service will have every sport and event live, including all 329 medal events, from July 26 to August 11, 2024.

“The Paris Olympics are going to be the most bingeworthy event of 2024,” said Pete Bevacqua, Chairman, NBC Sports.

“For those wanting to watch the competition as it happens, Peacock will have everything live, creating the greatest single destination in sports media history.”

Most fans have wanted to watch Olympic events live.

NBCUniversal has done that in the past with most sports, using its sister channels for around-the-clock coverage, but has kept the marquee events and finals for primetime.

OLYMPICS

FROM PAGE 11

at the end of the year, organisers said. The exact date has not yet been set. In addition, an official ticket re-sale platform will open next spring.

Tickets for the Paralympics go online on October 4 but not in a lottery, with about three million tickets

During the Tokyo Games two years ago, the only way to watch gymnastics finals live was on Peacock or other NBC Sports digital platforms. This will be the first time since 2012 that a Summer Games are being held in Europe. The London Games marked the first time NBC had a site devoted to streaming every event live by using the Olympics world feed. That meant track fans could stream the 100 metre finals live while most waited until watching the taped coverage on NBC in primetime. While some may look at this as an evolution in NBC’s coverage, Molly Solomon, the executive producer and president of NBC Olympics Production, termed it as a better way of taking advantage of the time zone.

“I believe you take each Olympics separately. I love after you finish an Olympics, you get to start with a clean slate for the next one,” she said. “To bring the Olympics to the greatest number of people, how can we take advantage of the time zone? And so what we did when you look at six hours ahead, we’re like we can take over NBC in the daytime, and have live competition all day long, including the most popular sports, their finals in the afternoon on NBC.”

expected to be sold. Those games will take place from August 28 to September 8.

A total of 3.25 million tickets were sold in the first phase earlier this year, featuring packages for multiples sports. Some fans then expressed frustration with the system, pointing to limited choice and high overall costs. “The event is so much awaited that we unfortunately know that

of the impact that they are making, he said the government is definitely going to continue to throw theirsupport behind it.

Commodore Dr Raymond King said the RBDF is excited about partnering with the Knowles to bring more awareness to the Bahamas in their Learn to Swim programme. This programme, according to King, is just one of the three pillows that the RBDF has embarked on making their contribution to the community and they are delighted to provide the complement of divers to assist in the training regimen of the participants.

“It’s a wonderful opportunity and it’s a mutually beneficial opportunity,” King said. “Our divers are

able to learn what it is to be a coach. We are surrounded by water, so everybody should learn how to swim, especially from our primary school level.”

With a complement of 30 swimmers assigned to the programme, chief petty officer Thomas Williams said the RBDF officers are not only learning to perfect their diving skills, but they are learning to become professional swimmers and instructors. “My job is to make sure that it’s carried out and make sure that my men get better and they can come back and better help the Defence Force out,” Williams stated.

Naria Holbert, principal at Eva Hilton Primary School, joined her second grade students as they

completed their eighth lessons with Let’s Swim Bahamas and are on their way to earning the Swim America award of achievement. “We’re very grateful for the partnership with this community organisation as it encourages water safety,” Holbert said. “My school has been a part of this initiative since 2018 and to date, more than 50 percent of our students have been immersed in water safety through the Let’s Swim Bahamas organisation.

“So this morning, I’m very grateful to the Ministry of Education for taking on this partnership and for allowing, not just the students of Eva Hilton, but through the length and breadth of New Providence to participate in this important programme.”

Holbert said some of their students were afraid of the water, but now they are “blowing bubbles, learning to kick” and some have completed up to the 10th stage of the Let’s Swim Bahamas programme.

She pointed out that at least 1-4 of their students have successfully completed that phase of the programme and they are grateful to the partnership presented by Let’s Swim Bahamas, which also provides scriptures and songs to sing as they make their way to and from school to UB. “Swim Bahamas has been a real blessing to us and I want to thank the parents for their strong support of the programme,” Holbert pointed out.

“It’s through their strong support and their trust in Let’s Swim Bahamas that we have been able to reach such a large number of children participating in the programme.”

The prime time show will show replays of the important events from the day while adding storytelling and other features.

“So really prime time in Paris will be the best of the best. And the time zone gives us the opportunity to create an amazing storytelling event,” Solomon said.

“This gives us the opportunity to reimagine and contemporize coverage.”

Prime time host Mike Tirico also will be used during the morning and weekday coverage when there are marquee finals.

Besides streaming every sport and event, Peacock will have on-demand replays and original programming, including preview and recap shows spotlighting marquee sports.

This will be third Olympics for Peacock, which launched in 2020, although the first Summer Games in which it has all events.

“I think this is going to be a chance for fans to engage in ways that they haven’t really been able to before, because you’re going to have all of these content options,” said Peacock president Kelly Campbell.

“We’re giving people this flexibility to watch and enhance the viewing experience.”

U.S. viewers streamed 5.5 billion minutes from Tokyo, a 22 percent increase over

many are going to be disappointed,” Aloïsio said.

“People have seen the images of the (Olympic) sites that are extraordinary, from the beach volleyball at the foot of the Eiffel Tower to horseback riding at the Palace of Versailles and all urban sports at the Place de la Concorde, everyone wants to get hands on tickets,” he said. “But it’s not over yet.”

UNITED States’ Deedee Trotter, right, United States’ Sanya Richards-Ross, front centre and United States’ Allyson Felix, back left, celebrate winning gold in the women’s 4x400-metre relay final during the athletics in the Olympic Stadium at the 2012 Summer Olympics, London, August 11, 2012. Swimming, gymnastics and track & field fans can rejoice. For the first time in a European Olympics, those events finals will be televised live on network television in the United States.

Rio in 2016, according to NBC and Nielsen. NBC is hoping the expanded hours will help ratings rebound after the Tokyo and 2022 Beijing

winter games, which were held in pandemic conditions without fans.

Tokyo averaged 15.6 million prime-time viewers, including cable and

J Phillip)

streaming. That was down 42 percent from the Rio Olympics. Beijing fared worse, with a combined average of 11.4 million.

US LAW PASSED TO STOP DOPING NETS ITS FIRST GUILTY PLEA

By EDDIE PELLS AP National Writer

A MAN charged with providing banned substances to Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare and another athlete have pleaded guilty, marking the first conviction under a landmark U.S. law designed to target wideranging doping schemes across the globe.

Eric Lira pleaded guilty for his role in helping Olympic athletes obtain performance-enhancing substances before the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.

The U.S. attorney in Manhattan, Damian Williams, called the plea “a watershed moment for international sport.”

“Craven efforts to undermine the integrity of sport subverts the purpose of the Olympic

games: to showcase athletic excellence through a level playing field,” he said in a news release. “Lira’s efforts to pervert that goal will not go unpunished.”

Williams’ office did not provide any information about the terms of the plea by the 43-year-old kinesiologist and naturopathic doctor from El Paso, Texas.

Violations of the law, called the Rodchenkov Act and named after the former Moscow lab director-turned-whistleblower in the Russian doping scandal, carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

An indictment unsealed last year revealed texts between Lira and Okagbare, who is serving an 11-year ban for taking human-growth hormone and the blood booster

erythropoietin (EPO) and also for failing to cooperate with the investigation. The news release said a second athlete receiving drugs from Lira competed for Switzerland and also has been banned for PEDs.

Williams’ office said Lira advised the athletes they should blame their positive tests on contaminated meat “knowing full well that the drug tests had accurately detected the presence of banned, performance-enhancing drugs.”

The case stemmed from information whistleblowers provided to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which worked with the FBI to investigate Lira’s system of channeling drugs from Central and South America to the athletes and others.

(AP Photo/David

LET’S SWIM: A number of dignitaries got a first-hand experience of the Let’s Swim Bahamas programme at the University of the Bahamas pool yesterday.

AZARENKA

STEPS UP HER CLAY GAME BY DEFEATING SLOANE STEPHENS

By ANDREW DAMPF AP Sports Writer

PRE-MOTHER’S DAY CARDIOCLINIC ALL SET FOR SATURDAY

By BRENT STUBBS Senior Sports Reporter bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

IN an effort to provide an opportunity to bring the community together, the newly formed Paradise Sports Consultants will hold a pre-Mother’s Day Cardio-clinic on Saturday.

The event will take place from 8am to noon at the Harrold Road Tennis Center on the Tom ‘The Bird’ Grant Park and is open to all mothers and their children to participate in a fun-filled day, according to organiser Derron Donaldson.

Donaldson, who has founded the Paradise Sports Consultants group, said they consult for sports management, sports education and teaching instructions as well as providing opportunities to assist in the growth and development of the athletes. “There will be lots of prizes and surprises, food and drinks and a kids’ clinic, so mother’s don’t feel like you will come to the clinic and there’s no one to watch your kids. We will have pros to play with your kids. This is open to all levels of people to participate.”

Domino’s, Vitamalt, Heineken Zero will be providing some refreshments and physiotherapist Cordero Bonimy and Jenny Gibson will be on hand to provide their expertise. Also collaborating in the effort is Member of Parliament for Mt Moriah McKell Bonaby, who provided their full endorsement.

“On Saturday, May 13, the game of tennis will be played on Tom ‘the Bird’ Grant Park,” he said.

“So we want to see you here. We are prepared to help all those who want to learn the game of tennis,” he added.

Impact Tennis, headed by Ricardo Demeritte Jr, will be providing the tennis lessons free of charge to all participants.

“Only don’t need any tennis experience. We are putting a twist to it to make it exciting for everyone,” Demeritte Jr said. “It’s very simple with

about 80 percent forced on the cardio side of it with 20 percent on tennis instructions.

“On top of that, we will be having a kids’ clinic where we will be instructing tennis from a beginner’s level from 3-14 years where everybody can come out and get involved.”

As a physical therapist, Gibson said she wants to provide tips on injury prevention.

She works along with Bonimy at Finesse Motion Therapy, located in 14th Terrance, Collins Avenue.

“We have a nice Mother’s

Day tennis playing clinic. We want to ensure that they are hydrated and they prevent any injury from occurring and to answer any questions that they might have on how to stay healthy and active.” she said.

Bjorn Ferguson, who serves as the legal advisor for Paradise Sports Consultants, said their whole aim is to provide the opportunity for mother’s to get some special care before their big day on Sunday.

“We have a wonderful faculty here with these

green spaces, so we want to fully optimise its use and also provide opportunity to grow the sport of tennis on the island,” Ferguson said.

And Ken Kerr, an advisor for Paradise Sports Consultants, said the event is fully supported by the Bahamian community, the players and corporate Bahamas.

“It’s going to be a grand day for tennis and we don’t want any mother who is looking for something wholesome to do to miss this opportunity to join us on Saturday,” Kerr explained.

ROME (AP) — Fresh off a doubles title in Madrid, Victoria Azarenka stepped up her singles game on the red clay courts at the Italian Open by defeating Sloane Stephens 6-4, 6-3 in her opening match yesterday. Stephens was coming off a singles title at a smaller clay-court event in Saint Malo, France, while Azarenka lost her singles opener in Madrid.

“I was definitely quite nervous before the match,” Azarenka said. “I felt like I didn’t have too many matches under my belt and Sloane just won the tournament, so I knew she’s in a good form, so I just tried to kind of stay focused on myself.”

The strategy worked, as Azarenka overpowered Stephens with baseline winners, plus a drop-shot winner to conclude a long rally midway through the second set when she broke for a 4-2 lead.

Azarenka is making her 14th appearance at the Foro Italico, having reached the final in 2013, when she lost to Serena Williams.

“It feels like it was such a long time ago,” Azarenka said. “Time goes by fast. I try to appreciate every moment I have on the court. I’m not sure how long I will play longer, so I want to enjoy it. But I still feel like I can be very competitive.”

This year, Azarenka has reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and won the doubles title last week with Beatriz Haddad Maia, who she’s partnering again in Rome.

Last year’s French Open runner-up, Coco Gauff, routed Yulia Putintseva 6-0, 6-1. “I usually have long matches with her. I was fully prepared for that. But I told myself to play on my terms, not her terms,” Gauff said.

“She’s obviously a tricky player, has some big wins. Made the quarters of the French a couple times. I know clay is her surface. It’s also kind of mine, too, so it was a good match today.”

Karolina Pliskova, the 2019 Rome champion and two-time runner-up, was eliminated by Hungarian qualifier Anna Bondar 7-6 (5), 6-2; Wang Xiyu defeated Madrid quarterfinalist Irina-Camelia Begu 6-4, 7-5; and 11th-seeded Veronika Kudermetova won.

Djokovic expects to rev up his clay-court game at Italian Open

By ANDREW DAMPF AP Sports Writer

ROME (AP) — Novak

Djokovic is right where he wants to be after a slow start to his clay-court season.

Back at the Italian Open — the clay event where he’s had his most success.

The top-ranked Serb is a six-time champion in Rome and six-time runner-up.

“Historically throughout my career, Rome has always been a very nice tournament for me,” Djokovic said yesterday. “Hopefully

it can serve, again, as a great, great springboard for me to what’s coming up in Paris where I want to play my best.”

The French Open, the clay-court Grand Slam, starts at the end of the month, and Djokovic is hoping to add a third title at Roland Garros after his victories in 2016 and 2021.

Djokovic is returning after three weeks off due to a lingering issue with his surgically repaired right elbow.

In his previous two tournaments on red clay,

Djokovic had consecutive early exits.

He lost in the round of 16 at Monte Carlo to Lorenzo Musetti. Then Dusan Lajovic beat him in the quarterfinals of the Srpska Open in Bosnia and Herzegovina, dealing him his first loss to a countryman in 11 years.

“It’s all good,” Djokovic said of his elbow. “I mean, there’s always some things here and there that bother you on this level. It’s normal.

“Also when you’re not 25 anymore, I guess you experience that a bit more than what used to be the case,” added Djokovic, who will turn 36 the day after this tournament ends. “It takes a little bit more time to recover.”

Djokovic, who won the Australian Open at the start of the year, is clearly aiming to peak around the Grand Slams.

After a first-round bye, he’ll open with a night match today against Tomas

Martin Etcheverry, an Argentine who reached clay finals in Santiago, Chile, and Houston earlier this year.

No matter his results at the Foro Italico, Djokovic will cede the No. 1 ranking back to Carlos Alcaraz after this tournament.

Alcaraz, who is making his Rome debut, is seeded

second and in the opposite side of the draw from Djokovic.

While they have been trading the top spot back and forth, it’s the first time this year that both Djokovic and Alcaraz have entered the same tournament.

Alcaraz missed the Australian Open due to injury and Djokovic missed the

Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells, California, and Miami, because he was prevented from entering the United States since he is not vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Then Djokovic missed the Madrid Open because of his elbow. Alcaraz won the tournament on Sunday.

“It is strange that we haven’t been in the same draw since the beginning of the season. Due to the circumstances on both sides, that didn’t happen,” Djokovic said. “He’s been playing some very impressive tennis, a great level. He’s the player to beat on this surface, no doubt.

“Of course, it depends if (Rafael) Nadal is going to play in (the) French Open or not. But Alcaraz is one of the top favourites without any dilemma.”

Nadal, who holds the record of 10 titles in Rome, is not playing as he remains hampered by a nagging hip injury, leaving his status for Roland Garros in question.

NOVAK Djokovic smiles during a press conference at the Italian Open tennis tournament, in Rome, yesterday. (AP Photo/ Alessandra Tarantino)

SHOWN, from left to right, Ricardo Demeritte Jr, Petra Haven, Kenn Kerr, Jenny Gibson, Derron Donaldson and Bjorn Ferguson.

KEN KERR, Derron Donaldson, MP McKell Bonaby and Bjorn Ferguson pose above.

Tatum’s 4th quarter 3s push Celtics past 76ers 95-86, force Game 7

By DAN GELSTON

AP Sports Writer

PHILADELPHIA

(AP) — Jayson Tatum missed his first six 3-pointers before he drilled two straight clutch ones late in the game that pushed the Celtics past the Philadelphia 76ers 95-86 last night to send the Eastern Conference semifinals back to Boston for Game 7.

The defending conference champs are in familiar territory. Boston trailed 3-2 last season in the second round against Milwaukee before it won Game 6 on the road and the clincher at home.

Game 7 is Sunday.

Tatum, who averaged 30.1 points in the regular season, never stopped shooting even as the misses kept coming.

He missed 14 of his first 15 shots overall from the floor and his ineffectiveness was a key reason the Celtics couldn’t hold a 16-point lead.

With a shot at their first conference final since 2001 at stake, the Sixers slogged through the first half before Joel Embiid flashed his MVP form and rallied the Sixers to a fourth-quarter lead.

Tyrese Maxey hit two free throws with 5:25 left for an 83-81 edge.

And that was it for Philly.

Tatum buried one 3 for the 84-83 lead and a second that made it 87-83 and put the Celtics in firm control of Game 6.

Embiid and Tyrese Maxey each scored 26 points for the 76ers.

76ers coach Doc Rivers has blown three 3-1 series leads over his playoff career.

While the 76ers never got that far ahead, this is their second loss at

NFL season kicks off with Super Bowl champion Chiefs hosting Lions and Rodgers on Monday Night Football

FROM PAGE 11

become the first NFL team to play two international games in the same season when they spend back-to-back weeks in London.

The Jaguars will host the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium on Oct. 1 and visit the Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Oct.

8. The Jaguars were set to play two designated home

Bucks’

Holiday selected NBA teammate of year for 2nd straight season

games in London in 2020 but the pandemic canceled those plans.

The NFL also announced dates for three other international games. The Tennessee Titans will host the Baltimore Ravens at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Oct. 15.

The Chiefs will host the Miami Dolphins in Germany at Eintracht Frankfurt Stadium on Nov. 5. The New England

Patriots will host the Indianapolis Colts on Nov. 12, also in Frankfurt.

The league also revealed Wednesday that Rodgers and the Jets will host the Dolphins in the first Black Friday game on Nov. 24. The Eagles will host the New York Giants on Christmas Day and the Chiefs will host Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals in a rematch of the AFC championship game in Week 17.

MILWAUKEE

(AP)

— Milwaukee Bucks guard Jrue Holiday has been selected the NBA’s teammate of the year for the second straight year and third time in the last four seasons.

The NBA announced yesterday the voting results for the Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award, which recognises the player deemed the best teammate based on selfless play, leadership and dedication to a team.

Current players voted on the winner from a list of 12 finalists.

The finalists were determined by a panel of league executives.

Brooklyn’s Mikal Bridges finished second and Golden State’s Stephen Curry was third in the voting.

The other finalists, in order of finish, were New York’s Derrick Rose, Miami’s Udonis Haslem, Portland’s Damian Lillard, Sacramento’s Harrison Barnes, Phoenix’s Damion Lee, Cleveland’s Darius Garland, Boston’s Grant Williams, Memphis’ Jaren Jackson Jr. and Denver’s Aaron Gordon.

Lillard won the award in 2021, the only time in the last four seasons it hasn’t gone to Holiday.

Holiday won the award as a member of the New Orleans Pelicans in 2020 before earning it again with the Bucks the last two seasons.

The award is named after Jack Twyman and Maurice Stokes, who were Cincinnati Royals teammates from 1955-58.

Stokes suffered an injury during the 1957-58 season that led to him falling into a coma, becoming permanently paralysed and being diagnosed with post-traumatic encephalopathy, a brain injury.

Twyman became his legal guardian and advocate.

KANSAS City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) waves after the Chiefs defeated the Denver Broncos in an NFL football game Saturday, January 8, 2022, in Denver. The Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs will host the Detroit Lions on September 7 to kick off the 2023 NFL season. And NFL fans will get their first look at star quarterback Aaron Rodgers in a Jets uniform when New York faces the Buffalo Bills on “Monday Night Football” on September 11.

PEDERSEN WINS 6TH STAGE, LEKNESSUND STAYS IN LEAD

NAPLES, Italy (AP)

— Mads Pedersen won the sixth stage of the Giro d’Italia yesterday after a two-man breakaway was caught with the line in sight.

Andreas Leknessund kept hold of the pink jersey.

Pedersen beat Jonathan Milan and Pascal Ackermann in a bunch sprint at the end of the picturesque 162-kilometre (101-mile) route that started and finished in Naples.

It looked as though Alessandro De Marchi and Simon Clarke were going to contest the victory after they were in a breakaway that went early in the day, but they were swallowed up less than 300 metres from the end.

De Marchi shook his head and they embraced each other as they crossed the line. “I’m very happy.

That’s what we came here

for,” Pedersen said. “It was difficult to catch the breakaway riders. We had to use all our teammates early.” There were two categorised climbs along the stage that went around Mount Vesuvius before going through Sorrento and along the Amalfi coast on a relatively calm day.

That would have come as a relief to the riders after miserable weather the previous day caused several crashes. Pre-race favourite Remco Evenepoel was in a lot of pain after being involved in two of those incidents but he appeared not to be too affected by that as he finished safely in the peloton yesterday to remain 28 seconds behind Leknessund.

Aurélien Paret-Peintre was third overall, 30 seconds behind Leknessund. The colour of the Giro is pink but the streets in and around Naples were festooned with blue in honour of the city’s soccer team after Napoli ended its 33-year wait for the Serie

A title last week. Despite the crashes the previous day, the only rider not to start was Clément Russo after testing positive for coronavirus.

The Giro hits the high mountains on today’s seventh stage with the edition’s first finish above 2,000 metres.

The 218-kilometre (135mile) route from Capua ends in a daunting top-category climb on the Gran Sasso d’Italia to Campo Imperatore.

“Today was a really nice day for being in the Maglia Rosa,” Leknessund said.

“We also wanted to go for the stage win with Marius Mayrhofer but it didn’t work. “I feel ready for the mountain stage tomorrow. I’ll do my best to keep the Maglia Rosa.” The Giro ends in Rome on May 28.

(AP Photo/ Jack Dempsey)

CYCLISTS pedal during the sixth stage of the Giro d’Italia, tour of Italy cycling race, from Naples to Naples, Italy, yesterday.

(Fabio Ferrari/LaPresse via AP)

Wall Street edges lower following inflation data, drops for Disney, banks

By STAN CHOE

AP Business Writer

WALL Street edged lower Thursday, weighed down by a sharp drop for The Walt Disney Co. and flaring fears about the health of some U.S. banks. The S&P 500 lost 7.02 points, or 0.2%, to 4,130.62, with two out of every three stocks in the index falling.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 221.82, or 0.7%, to 33,309.51, while the Nasdaq composite rose 22.06, or 0.2%, to 12,328.51.

Disney was one of the heaviest weights dragging on the market. It dropped 8.7% after it said it lost streaming subscribers in the U.S. and Canada last quarter, surprising analysts. That was despite its earnings and

revenue for the latest quarter roughly matching Wall Street's forecasts.

Some banks beaten down by the industry's mini-panic were also under heavy pressure again, and PacWest Bancorp sank 22.7% after saying it saw 9.5% of its deposits leave last week.

It said the majority of the flight occurred in two days after news reports said

the bank was talking with potential investors and partners, raising worries for its customers.

Investors have been hunting for the next possible victim in the U.S. banking industry after high interest rates helped lead to three high-profile failures since March.

Also falling was Peloton Interactive, which dropped

8.9%. It's offering free seat posts after recalling 2.2 million of its exercise bikes. The assembly can break while someone's riding it.

Helping to limit the losses for the overall market was a report showing inflation at the wholesale level was a bit cooler last month than economists expected.

It followed a report from the prior day that showed

Make property tax sale power ‘even-handed’

who have made no effort to settle their tax arrears for a decade or more (see article on Page 1B).

His initial voice note, warning Bahamians that “they are coming for your money”, provoked a fiery exchange with his PLP counterpart, Fred Mitchell, also minister of foreign affairs, who accused Dr Sands of being “alarmist” in suggesting that the Department of Inland Revenue was “seeking to take the property of Bahamians”.

The Department of Inland Revenue notice, which Mr Mitchell conceded could have been more carefully and clearly worded, stated that the tax authorities will exercise their ‘power of sale’ enforcement measures as permitted under the Real Property Tax Act from June 2023 onwards.

It added that delinquent commercial, residential, foreign-owned land and foreign-owned owneroccupied properties would be subject to the ‘power of sale’, and could run afoul of the Department if they have been in arrears “for more than seven months”.

This caused confusion on two counts. Many appeared

to interpret “residential” as including Bahamian-owner occupied properties, even though these are protected by law and excluded from the “power of sale” by the Real Property Tax Act. The Act specifically states that last year’s reforms “expand the exercise of the power of sale for tax arrears to all property except owner-occupied property beneficially owned by Bahamians”.

Many Bahamian-owned residential properties, especially those in the middle and lower income brackets, also fall below the $300,000 exemption threshold where they pay no property taxes. And Department of Inland Revenue officials explained that, while the seven month timeline is stipulated in the Act, in reality the ‘power of sale’ exercise is targeted at “extreme cases” who have not paid for up to 10-20 years and have rebuffed all efforts to encourage them to settle.

Echoing this, Mr Mitchell argued that Dr Sands should have checked “before jumping to a false conclusion”. He added: “The ad was inartfully written and gave rise to the misinterpretation. The sentence construction listed the

descriptions disjunctively instead of conjunctively.

“The economic affairs minister [Michael Halkitis] and the finance minister [Philip Davis KC] have assured me that the idea is to seek to collect monies from non-Bahamian landowners and entities who have tied up lands from development but owe substantial taxes. I have asked the tax authorities to clarify this position by releasing a corrected ad.”

PLP supporters on social media also attacked Dr Sands, alleging that he was giving a free pass to tax dodgers and evaders. However, the FNM chairman refuted this as “absolutely” untrue. But, while acknowledging the Government’s need to collect all due and owing taxes, he said there were concerns over the process being used to enforce the ‘power of sale’, its timing with many Bahamians and businesses still struggling to make ends meet, and the lack of public dialogue.

“I think we all acknowledge that the country needs revenue in order to function,” Dr Sands said, “but this has been the year of the highest ever expenditure, the biggest Budget ever,

and just a tremendous grab to get whatever revenue they can get their hands on.

“We’ve seen real property tax rates go up by triple digit percentages without any notice. We’ve seen additional expenditure, and they’ve just levied fee increases across many, many government services. Notwithstanding that the Real Property Tax Act allows for the Government to sell or garnish a piece of property, this is an historic approach.

“Are they going to be fair and equitable in their approach, and are they going to acknowledge that people sometimes may need to pay their real property tax over the course of the entire year because of the additional expenses persons are experiencing because of the higher cost of energy,” he continued.

“A dollar doesn’t extend as far as it used to in this era of incredible inflation, and here we have the Government of The Bahamas wanting you to pay them first even if you don’t have it. There’s no consideration of how difficult, how trying it is for many persons out there. This one, without any discussion, any debate, just shows how far they want to go after this revenue.”

The Opposition has blamed the Government’s failure to execute the lowcost oil purchase trades to undergird Bahamas Power & Light’s (BPL) fuel hedging strategy for the up to 163 percent increase in fuel costs that businesses and some residences will see on their bills during summer’s peak consumption. And Dr Sands yesterday accused the Government of failing to do its part by reducing, or controlling, its spending.

Arguing that it has been “spending money left, right and centre” on “the backs of the Bahamian people”, he added: “I don’t know that Bahamians will have any confidence that there will be an even-handed enforcement of this [power of sale] rule.”

Conceding that real property tax compliance, and collection, has been a challenge for all administrations including the one he served in, Dr Sands said there was “no question” that taxpayers have to meet their obligations but there was no recognition by the Government that “some people have to eat, sometimes they have to buy medication and sometimes they have hardship through no fault of their own”.

inflation at the consumer level was also behaving largely as forecast. The reports helped reaffirm expectations on Wall Street that the Federal Reserve will hold off on hiking interest rates again at its next meeting in June. That would be the first time that's happened in more than a year.

He also voiced concern that application of the ‘power of sale’ will take a summary, as opposed to legal, approach and questioned whether it would target specific groups. The FNM chairman also contrasted the Government’s demands for instant payment of taxes with the fact its creditors, including Bahamian vendors, sometimes had to wait years to receive what was due to them.

“What we are watching is this money grab,” he argued. “This is an insatiable desire to get as much money out of your pocket, a tax here, a tax there, come get this money, take this money, and then we’ll spend it how we see fit. The Government has to acknowledge its complicity in creating a very challenging economic environment because of its own errors.

“It seems to be saying: ‘Oh, well. No big deal. You can pay that, and we are coming after you under threat of garnishing your bank accounts and selling your property. In the last year-and-a-half, some persons have seen their real property tax bills go up by several hundred percentage points without any advance notice.” Many of those properties, though, may have been under-valued for years.

Late realtor’s $4.8m Gov’t win ‘unraveled’

Supreme Court verdict was totally contradictory. “The problem with the learned judge’s decision is that her finding of trespass, and her award of damages on account thereof, is incompatible with her finding at paragraph 11 that she had ‘no doubt that the subject land was compulsorily acquired by the Government under the Acquisition of Land Act’,” Justice Crane-Scott wrote.

“It need hardly be said that where land is compulsorily acquired, trespass on the part of the Crown cannot arise as the Crown takes possession of the land by operation of law under the coercive powers conferred by the Acquisition of Land Act. Furthermore, the owner of the land so acquired will be entitled to compensation in accordance with the Acquisition of Land Act, and not an award of damages for trespass.”

The Court of Appeal judgment, though, provides further insight into just how long many Bahamians have to wait - sometime for decades - to receive their rightful compensation for land taken by the Government to facilitate public infrastructure development

and other projects deemed to be in the public interest. The “notice of acquisition” for the disputed land, and other real estate required by the New Providence Road Improvement Project, was published as early as October 2, 2000, according to evidence contained in the Court of Appeal judgment. And the late Mr Christie, clearly having run out of patience, launched his claim some eight years ago on March 4, 2015.

He sought a declaration that the compulsory acquisition of the 192 acres “without prompt, proper, adequate or any compensation is contrary to the provisions and spirit” of the Acquisition of Land Act. Other Supreme Court declarations requested included himself and his companies being “constitutionally entitled to prompt payment from the defendant [Government] of adequate compensation to be assessed by the court”, plus repossession in the event of non-payment.

The Attorney General, and treasurer, responded by seeking to strike out Mr Christie’s action on the grounds that it was statutebarred under the Limitation

Act 1995, which required that he launch proceedings within 12 months of his cause of action occurring. This, the Government defendants argued, was October 2, 2000, meaning that the action should have been launched in early October 2001 rather than 2015.

While this was not pursued, the Government then moved on July 8, 2019, to strike out the action on the basis it “discloses no reasonable cause of action, is scandalous, frivolous or vexatious and/or is otherwise an abuse of the process of the court”.

This was supported by an affidavit from Charles Zonicle, acting director of physical planning, which made no reference to the Acquisition of Land Act claim but, instead, focused on a 100-foot wide road reservation that Mr Christie and his company were supposed to convey to the Government so JFK Drive could be linked with Skyline Drive.

Not surprisingly, the late Mr Christie said this had no relevance to his claim, and responded by arguing that the Government “appear to have forgotten the genesis of these proceedings

both procedurally and factually”. The Government’s strike out application was dismissed by the Supreme Court, and Mr Christie and his companies later amended their claim by including “damages for trespass” by the Government as an alternative to the Acquisition of Land Act grounds.

Meanwhile, Joy John Mwalugaja, senior transportation engineer at the Ministry of Works, and the New Providence Road Improvement Project engineer, alleged in a November 29, 2019, affidavit that the project’s corridor sevenwhich Mr Christie alleged was built on his 192 acres - was removed from the project and taken over by Baha Mar under its Heads of Agreement with the Government. It became Baha Mar Boulevard.

Mr Mwalugaja said information from Donald Thompson, a licensed surveyor, showed that just 1.698 acres of Mr Christie’s land was impacted by Baha Mar Boulevard. And the Government, in its original Supreme Court defence, said corridor seven was not gazzetted or included in the compulsory acquisition as alleged by Mr Christie.

$10m PI restaurant to create 120 local jobs

FROM PAGEA24

diners can expect Bahamian touches and inspiration at the new location. “At the new Carnivale Bahamas, every dining experience will be unique, full of incredible food and flavours, in a colorful and romantic ambiance, with the hottest music playing both indoors and outdoors,” he added.

Carnivale operates with the motto “live a colourful life” and “love always wins” in its Chicago version, and Mr Marovitz said the same approach will shape the culture and atmosphere in The Bahamas. “Carnivale‘s ambience will be second to none. The restaurant will be fun and entertaining from

the moment you walk in the door to the moment you leave,” he said.

“Music, including live concerts, will be an important element of the restaurant. Guests can expect the best food, service, and atmosphere when they come to Carnivale. We’re spending over $10m on this project we’re going to employ over 120 Bahamians. I think it’s going to be something that you’re all going to want to come to and bring your friends and your clients and your relatives.”

Khaalis Rolle, president of Sterling Global Advisory Services, the Hurricane Hole developer, said the addition of the new restaurant to the super yacht marina and Paradise Landing will provide

another boost to the economy and job market.

“We’re excited to welcome Carnivale Bahamas to our upscale and rapidly growing neighbourhood on Paradise Landing,” Mr Rolle said. “It’s another example of a Sterling Global project in The Bahamas that backs up our commitment to being a responsible developer while helping to grow the country in a positive way.”

Chester Cooper, deputy prime minister and minister for tourism, investments and aviation, said: “What I liked about these new developments here is the strengthening and strengthening of the product here on Paradise Island, and I noticed it’s now being

recorded with downtown Paradise Island and, I hope folks on Bay Street, the real downtown, will soon be inspired to also invest millions and millions of dollars.

“I will challenge them that downtown Paradise Island has come to take over and they shouldn’t let it happen.”

It claimed his evidence instead included the notice for a different corridor, corridor six.

Competing valuations had also been produced for Mr Christie’s properties. Wilshire Bethell, his appraiser and consultant architect, gave the fair market value as being $3.244m. However, the late Peter Galanos, the Government’s expert witness, valued them at $551,850.

Appeal justice Evans, expressing regret that the “substantial factual disputes” were not properly addressed at the Supreme Court trial, said “the main issue” - whether the disputed properties were the subject of a compulsory acquisition - was never decided by former justice Bowe-Darville who “sidestepped” the matter to focus on the alternative trespass claim.

And, while the claim related to 192 acres, the Supreme Court judgment referred to the Government taking possession of just 4.615 acres. “There is no clear understanding of the status of the remainder of the property which was alleged to have been acquired under the Acquisition of Land Act, but not

taken possession of for the construction of the road,” appeal justice Evans added.

“Mr Mwalugaja’s evidence was that he conducted an assessment as to the impact of the road on the respondents’ property, and that the result of that assessment determined that the lot number 13 plus a 20-feet wide buffer strip of land for a total of 1.698 acres was impacted by corridor seven upon which Baha Mar Boulevard was built.

“It is significant that it appears that the appellants’ [government] focus was on the property said to be covered by corridor seven. It is clear that the acquisition notice was wider than the property under corridor seven. The result being that the judgment does not assist with answering the question as to whether and to what extent other properties belonging to the respondents were taken under the acquisition.”

As a result, appeal justice Evans said a new Supreme Court trial was necessary to determine if the disputed land was compulsorily acquired and what was the scope of the acquisition before any trespass claim is addressed.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that ROSE JOHNSON, of Market Street #222, Nassau, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 5th day of May 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE is hereby given that JEAN YVES GELIN, P.O. Box SS19009 of #37 Jackson Street, Nassau Village, New Providence, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/ naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 5th day of May 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that LOUBENS GUERINE, Father Calnan Road, New Providence, The Bahamas applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 12th day of May 2023 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

BISX-listed firm ‘resolves’ qualified audit fear woes

and avoid external auditors qualifying its accounts for the second successive year.

“Benchmark (Bahamas) wishes to advise the investing public we have requested, and received, from The Bahamas International Securities Exchange (BISX) an extension for filing our 2022 audited annual financial statements to allow further research into a difference in the ‘due to clients’ account in the statement of financial position,” the company revealed.

“We are working to eliminate this difference by providing sufficient support to determine the adjustment and avoid a qualified opinion. The statements will be filed on or before May 31, 2023.” Mr Brown’s messaged rely to Tribune Business seemed to indicate that the technology woes behind the ‘due to clients’ difference have been resolved, and that Benchmark (Bahamas) will avoid a qualified audit opinion on its 2022 results, although it was not entirely clear. For the same problems were at the root of the qualified audit opinion that Benchmark (Bahamas)

received on its 2021 audited financial statements last year. Mr Brown, in a September 22, 2022, interview promised that the issue would be “cleared up” in time to avoid a repeat with the 2022 audited financials, which has seemingly either not happened or is taking until the last minute to be addressed.

Back then, he blamed the switch to a new reporting platform for PKF Bahamas’ revealing there was an “unreconcilable” $337,369 discrepancy in the $18.439m sum owed to the financial services provider’s clients.

The accounting firm and its lead audit partner, Renee Lockhart, in the opinion attached to Benchmark’s full-year financial statements that were signed-off by its directors on July 31, 2022, declined to provide a clean bill of health due to the absence of sufficient supporting records on that matter.

“The group is carrying a balance due to its customers’ account amounting to $18.44m in the consolidated statement of financial position at December 31, 2021,” PKF informed all Benchmark shareholders and other interested parties. “We were unable obtain

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL

The Public is hereby advised that I, CRYSTAL STUBBS of Minnie Street, New Providence, Bahamas, Parent of EVANO LIVINGSTON STUBBS A minor intend to change my child’s name to EVANO LIVINGSTON JOHNSON If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Deputy Chief Passport Officer, P.O. Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

NOTICE

THE MATTERHORN ELBERT FOUNDATION (In Voluntary Liquidation) Foundation No. 550 F ++++++++++++-+++

NOTICE is hereby given that an Extraordinary General Meeting of the above-named Foundation will be held at the Registered Office of the Foundation, Poinciana Annex, 2nd Floor, East Bay Street, Nassau, Bahamas on the 2nd day of June, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. for the purpose of considering and approving the Report of the Liquidator on the manner in which the winding-up has been conducted and the property of the Foundation disposed of.

World Class Charter Sailing Company is seeking to fill the following positions with qualified, energetic, and enthusiastic professionals to join our team:

• Diesel Marine Technicians

• Marine Technical Specialists

Interested persons can apply online at: bahamasmarinehr.com

sufficient appropriate audit evidence to reconcile this amount to the underlying accounting records, specifically the subsidiary ledger.

“The unreconciled difference between the consolidated statement of financial position and the subsidiary ledger amounted to $337,369. Consequently, we were unable to determine the adjustment that is necessary to be posted to the said account.”

BISX-listed companies are supposed to publish their annual financials within 120 days of year-end, and end-May would be past that timeline.

A “qualified” report is issued whenever auditors find discrepancies or anomalies with particular aspects of a company’s financial reporting and accounts that warrant attention and questions being raised. The 2021 financial statements gave no further explanation for the anomaly, and PKF said its inspection of Benchmark (Bahamas) financial statements proved satisfactory in all other respects.

Capital markets sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, yesterday said a repeat of the same issues with the 2022 audited financial statements, together

with the potential for another qualified audit, “doesn’t bode well for a broker/dealer”. Benchmark (Bahamas) is one of BISX’s five authorised broker/ dealer members.

“There’s obviously more than a little smoke around that issue,” one contact said. “I’m sure there’s some validity to the issue.”

Another suggested that the Securities Commission, the capital markets regulator, should take a look at the situation. “The regulator should have been on top of that,” they added. “If they had a qualified last year, they should be following that up to make sure that’s addressed.”

The audit issues, and extension, have arisen just as Benchmark (Bahamas) has been mulling the creation of an investment fund that it says will enable Bahamians to participate in the ownership of major foreign direct investment (FDI) projects in this nation.

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL

The Public is hereby advised that I, ASHKEL DINIA KHAMREL SMITH of Russell Town, Eight Mile Rock, Grand Bahama, Bahamas intend to change my name to ASHKELL DANIA KHAMRELL SMITH. If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O.Box N-742, Nassau, New Providence, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

Legal Notice NOTICE

WHIRLWIND MANAGEMENT INC.

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN as follows:

(a) Whirlwind Management Inc. is in voluntary dissolution under the provisions of Section 138 (4) of theInternational Business Companies Act 2000.

(b) The dissolution of the said Company commenced on the 11th day of May 2023.

(c) The Liquidator of the said Company is Delco Investments Limited of Deltec House, Lyford Cay, P.O. Box N-3229, Nassau, Bahamas. Dated this 12th day of May A.D. 2023

Delco Investments Limited Liquidator

“Benchmark wants Bahamians to gain a bigger participation in future investment opportunities made by the FDIs in our GNP (gross national product),” it said in recent promotional literature. “We believe it’s what the Bahamian people deserve. After all, it is our land.

“Benchmark is creating a Benchmark Bahamas Real Estate Investment Trust (BBREIT) to allow Bahamians the opportunity to invest small sums of money consistently in the growth and expansion of our real estate properties by FDIs in our GNP. The BBREIT can be offered to small, medium, and large size Bahamian investors, which will allow Bahamians the opportunity to mobilise capital of significant value

to participate with or without an FDI in our GNP.

“The BBREIT will have the opportunity to participate in exponential returns while, at the same time, generating consistent income for its investors.

The BBREIT will be a new opportunity for Bahamians to begin to once again build wealth for themselves and for future generations, the same as it is presently doing for the FDIs.”

Mr Brown yesterday said the plan was still very much at the concept stage, telling Tribune Business: “We are doing our analysis on a Bahamian real estate investment trust concept. Once done we will determine the direction.”

ENTREPRENEUR LAUNCHES DIGITAL ADVERTISING FIRST

A BAHAMIAN entrepreneur has launched Freeport’s first digital billboard advertising firm with help from changes to the city’s bye-laws and $100,000 in financing facilitated by the Small Business Development Centre (SBDC).

Advertére Marketing, founded by Andros native Brandon Hall, offers digital billboard advertising services for businesses/ advertisers of all sizes after it won a bidding process initiated by the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) that started back in 2019. The process involved reforming Freeport’s bye-laws, which previously prohibited digital advertising.

The start-up then received around $100,000 to fund the majority of its project through $78,200 in loan financing from the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), and a matching grant of $20,000 from the SBDC’s Access Accelerator.

Now, its dual-sided billboard is situated between the two largest commercial zones on the island (Downtown Freeport and Queen’s Highway), along a major transit highway in and out of the city en-route to the

airport, is and surrounded by schools, grocers, hardware stores, government complexes, a gas station and a densely-populated community all within a halfmile radius.

“Our reach is what makes it so effective,” Mr Hall said. “With our billboard site being located in a prime transit and business centric location, a huge amount of people interact with these engaging messages on a daily basis through this literal ‘in your face’ approach. Bringing a heighten sense of awareness to the public about various products and services that local businesses offer, enabling increased traffic, revenue and subsequent growth for them.

“Billboards help to widen the sales funnel for businesses. Think about a funnel with the wide end, which is your potential customers. As you go down the funnel it narrows, and the actual buyers are at the bottom. How do you create more buyers? By widening that funnel.”

Mr Hall said the idea for his venture came while studying abroad in Canada.

After graduating from Acadia University, and

waiting to move to Freeport to start his career, he started researching the digital billboard industry and the reasons why The Bahamas was not in this industry. It was then he realised this activity was not allowed by law.

“All I can say is that the Lord saw it fit to put me in the right location at

the perfect time to be able to have access to a great opportunity, something many do not say much when talking about modern day Freeport,” Mr Hall added.

“I went through every emotion due to the lack of progress, constant delays and frustrations with doing business, but also extremely

Property taxes sell-off targets ‘extreme cases’

FROM PAGE A24

This made clear that the tax authorities cannot seize, and sell, Bahamian-owned

residential property that the owners are living in. This was likely done to ensure Bahamians are secure in their own homes,

and also possibly with one eye on votes. Yet with the real property tax exemption threshold now increased from $250,000 to $300,000,

many middle income Bahamians - as well as those earning lower incomes - are paying no tax at all and not affected by the latest move.

Still, the wording of the Department of Inland Revenue notice - stating that delinquent commercial, residential, foreign-owned land and foreign-owned owner-occupied properties - would be subject to the ‘power of sale’ appeared to cause confusion for some. Many appeared to interpret “residential” as including Bahamian-owner occupied properties, even though these are protected by law.

However, “residential” applies to duplex and triplex-type complexes that are rented out by their owner landlords who do not live on property. Mr Williams said the Department of Inland Revenue’s notice was intended to reinforce, and drive home the message, that the Ministry of Finance and its agencies are serious about collecting all past due tax arrears and will use every measure in their arsenal to achieve this.

“These are really extreme cases,” he reiterated. “For situations like this, they would have received bills, notices, communications to come in with no response, and as a result we have no option. We’re at this stage. The notice is out there because in another couple of weeks, some time in June, we’ll officially put out the first list of properties that will be under the power of sale.”

Shunda Strachan, the Department of Inland Revenue’s acting controller, last month said outstanding real property tax arrears had risen to a collective $600m. Mr Williams, though, yesterday said he was unable to say how many properties will be included on the ‘power of sale’ list, or the total amount of past due taxes they represent, because the list is still being refined as persons are provoked to come in and either settle their obligations or agree a payment plan.

“We want persons to come and understand they need to pay their taxes, and the Government is definitely serious and they are acting on it,” Mr Williams told Tribune Business. “It’s the extreme cases. We’re looking at 10 years, 15 years, 20 years. We don’t want to do some of these things, but if you’re not checking for it, you’re just walking by with that and not giving it any regard, we have to take certain measures.”

He agreed that The Bahamas must do more to foster a tax-compliant culture among tax-paying

them going after ideas they truly believe in. “I was fully funded by the SBDC at the time of approval, and then just a few months later, inflation skyrocketed the project far beyond anything that could be reasonably projected,” he said.

“I literally had to figure out where tens of thousands of dollars in increases was going to come from. But I held firm, took some time and, more importantly, trusted in my faith whiles fasting and seeking guidance from the Most High. And eventually it all came together.

discouraging when so many roadblocks/denials kept happening. Personal struggles, Hurricane Dorian, COVID-19 and inflation compounded this even more. But, step by step, it all came together. Very sequentially as well.”

Mr Hall encouraged other entrepreneurs not to allow anything to stop

businesses and homeowners, saying: “We have to establish that culture, and even if it’s a situation where we have to start from a young age and have it introduced in our schools so that when they become adults they know that paying taxes is part of normal and adult life.

“We have to get used to paying. When we travel throughout the world we pay taxes without trouble.”

Mr Williams added that Bahamians need to equate the payment of taxes as fostering improvements to public infrastructure and other aspects of daily life, as it would lead to “the betterment of the Government, the country and everybody that thrives in The Bahamas. We have to have a little bit of comfort with paying it”.

The Government is thus seeking to reverse decades of lax and/or selective tax enforcement and compliance through increasingly aggressive measures as it seeks to narrow, and ultimately close, the space that tax dodgers and operators have been able to operate in for so long. Many taxpayers have come to view non-payment as having no consequences, and as a result treat compliancepaying in full, and on time - as optional.

Many observers, though, believe the Government is being forced to do so, and is only acting now after the $3bn-plus debt blowout produced by Hurricane Dorian and COVID-19 merely accelerated existing woes by taking the national debt to over $11bn at present. As a result, the Ministry of Finance and its agencies are especially eager to gain every cent due and owing to the Public Treasury.

The ‘power of sale’ warning notice follows the Department of Inland Revenue’s move, begun last month, to garnish the bank accounts of delinquent tax-paying companies and especially those that owe VAT. That is a tax paid by consumers, rather than VAT registrants, who act as the Government’s collection agents in remitting the monies to the Public Treasury. As a result, they have no good reason to hold on to these funds or use them for operational purposes in the business.

Mr Williams said the garnishing was “not necessarily a freeze” but more imposing a hold over the accounts of delinquent companies with significant tax arrears. Notices to effect this are being sent out to the relevant financial institutions and, in cases where businesses do not respond, funds are being garnished and remitted to

“Funding for start-ups is extremely difficult in The Bahamas. Banks require 100 percent secured loans, willing investors are hard to access and grant opportunities are often not large enough for capital heavy ventures. So how does one turn a dream into reality without a rich uncle?” Up and coming entrepreneurs get very little courtesy and access. I had to build up a tough skin. However, the SBDC curated many relationships that once seemed out of reach for myself and my business.”

the Department of Inland Revenue.

Once the arrears are paid off, or a payment plan agreed, the hold is removed. “Sometimes when businesses get this notification from the bank, the bank advises them to contact us, and sometimes they are able to resolve the situation immediately with us, so that would be the end of it right there,” Mr Williams explained. “They’re holding it [the VAT collected] or not reporting it properly.”

The Department of Inland Revenue is thus making good on Ms Strachan’s promise last month that it will now implement its enforcement tools such as garnishing and ‘power of sale’. Referring specifically to the latter, she said at the time: “The Act really allows for the Department of Inland Revenue to sell all properties, except properties that are owneroccupied and owned by Bahamians. That’s a big.... that’s a big power that we have.

“Now, it’s also one that we have to use very carefully. And so it has taken us some time to get to this point. But we are at this point where we will begin to initiate power of sale auctions. It’s not only foreign-owned properties that the Department has the right to initiate power of sale on. And so we have given property owners a very long period in which to satisfy or to get their real property tax obligations, I guess, in check.

“And so we are now at the point where we are moving to ‘power of sale’...... I think the power of sale is going to be in the next month. You’re going to see some things. We were supposed to set up our ‘power of sale’ tab on our real property tax website. So when that goes live, then you know it’s show time; it’s business time. There again, we’re not only dealing with foreign-owned properties, but there are quite a number of Bahamian-owned commercial buildings,” Ms Strachan added.

“There are residential properties, and I say residential in that you may have a property owner who owns a four-plex or duplex, but they don’t reside there.” Ms Strachan reassured that the Department of Inland Revenue will not be using the seven-month arrears period that triggers the ‘power of sale’ as set out in the Act.

“We have accounts that have never been paid,” she added. “Right, and I’m talking about large buildings, apartment complexes. But the key for us will be as long as the owner does not reside at that location. And the taxes are in arrears. For a couple of years or more, I will say that I won’t use the seven months, but we’re not going to use it lightly. It’s a serious act when you move to power sale. But it will be serious cases, and I would say any account that is in arrears or more than five years is fair game.”

BRANDON Hall founder of Advertére Marketing poses with the first digital billboards installed in Freeport by his company.

NORTH ANDROS RESIDENTS SUFFERING FOUR-HOUR ATM TRAVEL FRUSTRATION

By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter

SOME North Andros residents are enduring frustrating four-round trips to visit the area’s sole automatic teller machine (ATM) only to frequently find it is not working. Several told Tribune Business that the Scotiabank ATM has been experiencing technical issues for the past four weeks and, while bank personnel have been onsite for the past several days attempting to solve the problem, the machines are still out of order.

With many families and individuals still heavily

reliant on cash, residents from the Behring Point area have to commute two hours each way to Nicholls Town to use the Scotiabank ATM. It is the only financial services access point available to those who are unable to take a ferry or plane into South Andros, where Bank of the Bahamas has a presence. A North Andros business owner, speaking on condition of anonymity, stressed that companies and personal banking customers are experiencing difficulties without access to the ATM. She said: “Businesses and regular customers in North Andros, all the way to Behring Point, need this service. We are truly hurting without this ATM. Persons have to travel

SKILLS COUNCIL TO ASSESS INDUSTRY’S LABOUR NEEDS

FROM PAGE A23

asked to identify the skills needed in their sectors and create the occupational profiles for the relevant sectors. Undergirding all of this work will be the review and revision of the Apprenticeship Act, which was last revised in 1983. The consultations for that review have already begun, and we will be continuing to move as quickly as possible. “

The National Apprenticeship programme is expected to launch within the next year. Mr Bell maintained that it differs from existing initiatives by offering participants the opportunity to become certified in their field of choice.

He said: “A very significant difference of the Government’s goal is that every apprentice not only finds full-time employment, but becomes certified in their field of endeavour. There will be continuous monitoring and evaluation of the programme and training of the apprentices, even after their final certification.

“The implementation of this programme cannot happen overnight. The

regulatory framework of enacting a new Bill and establishing the National Apprenticeship Programme will take at least 12 months.” Mr Bell said the initiative is designed to assist disadvantaged groups, such as disabled persons and persons with low educational attainment, attain the necessary skills needed to complete recognised industry certifications. He added: “It is designed to be accessible to marginalised and disadvantaged groups, including the Family Islands, people with disabilities, and youth with low educational attainment. The highlights of the new programme include definition of the apprenticeship programme, which entails a job that includes structured, on-the-job training, combined with a share of related technical off-the-job training to learn a skilled occupation that is certified and recognised by the industry upon completion.

“The apprentice training plan combines training in the workplace with the professional master and related in-class training. A written contract of employment will

to Nassau and spend over $200 on airfare just to get funds to pay their local bills. It’s really been too long we need help.

“Due to the ATM being out of commission so many businesses are suffering due to no cash flow on the island. The pensioners who rely on this service are suffering even more.” The North Andros business owner blamed these woes for an increase in theft and other social ills. She also stressed that with Andros being the largest island in The Bahamas, commuting times and distances tend to be longer.

“Stealing has also increased as we have had major break-ins lately because of this issue. The

normally exist between the employer and the apprentice. The apprentice takes an assessment to receive a recognised certification or acquired qualifications upon completion of the apprenticeship.”

Mr Bell acknowledged that many companies have their own apprenticeship programmes. However, the Government wants these consolidated and for participants to obtain professional certifications. Firms that sign on to the National Apprenticeship programme are expected to pay participants’ salaries at minimum wage, and select an employee that the apprentice will shadow. The company will hire the apprentice upon successful completion of the programme.

“We do have a number of a lot of splinter programmes but, at the end of the day, the individual is not certified,” Mr Bell said. “It’s not only important for certification, but it’s also important for accreditation, where they can actually use what they have obtained from all of us to obtain higher education, to obtain a job or even to start their own business.

“There are three key stakeholders - the employers, the apprentices and the training providers. The programme cannot, and will not, work without buy-in and

communities are too small to have such an inconvenience. When [the ATMs are] in service, which only sometimes last for one day, the lines are long with no shade and people tend to get very irate. We should be far beyond this kind of issue as no other Island is going through this sad inconvenience,” the business owner added.

Ms Bowleg, a North Andros resident, called for additional ATMs on the island to replace the current outdated models left behind by many commercial banks since they ended their physical branch presence and withdrew from many Family Islands. She said: “Apparently the ATM is an old model, and

participation from all of us. We will be relying on you to register with the National Apprenticeship Agency, pay 100 percent of the salaries of the apprentice at minimum wage, select and hire an apprentice, identify a mentor from within your company who will supervise, train and counsel the apprentice when necessary. T

“The mentor and the apprentice will together devise a training programme, provide the facility and tools that may be needed and, ultimately, hire the apprentice upon completion of his or her programme.” Training providers such as the Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI) and the University of the Bahamas (UoB) will co-ordinate with industry professionals to formulate a training programme for apprentices to follow.

“The apprentice will sign a contract with the employer to attend work daily, be punctual and, of course, productive,” Mr Bell said. “The role of a training provider as envisaged will initially be institutions including BTVI, the National Training Agency and, of course, the University of the Bahamas.

“If there are professions that they do not cover, then we will seek other training providers in the private sector. The training

the bank had a problem get-

ting a special replacement part, I was told. I was also informed that most banks feel this is not a profitable district so they’re not interested in coming. If this is indeed the case, Scotiabank should invest in additional ATMs and upgrade the current one in place. Perhaps install one in Central Andros.”

Another resident, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that if Bahamian commercial banks have chosen to only provide digital services in Andros they should ensure there are enough ATM machines available for consumers to conduct transactions. She said: “If we are going to

providers will will also, in conjunction with the private sector and the sector industries, create a curriculum for professionals that currently do not have a certificate programme. It is proposed that

settle for ATM machines as our banking systems, then there should at least be more than one ATM on the island.”

Ms Bowleg, though, acknowledged the difficulties in placing additional ATM machines in North Andros, and suggested upgrading the existing one as a first step to alleviating the island’s banking issues. She is eager for a credit union to be formed to provide banking services for the area.

“No, we shouldn’t settle, but we cannot get [an ATM] tomorrow, so upgrade what we currently have. That is my suggestion,” she said. “Let’s have a conversation about a credit union… my interest indeed.”

a new agency will be created, the National Apprenticeship Agency, to execute this programme which will be governed by a National Apprenticeship Board.”

POSTITION WANTED

SEEKING PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIAN

Montague Medical Clinic is seeking to employ full-time and part-time Primary Care Physicians, to work at our New Providence facilities.

Candidates with postgraduate qualifications in Public Health are also encouraged to submit their resume for special consideration.

Please forward all inquiries /resumes along with contact information to montaguemed69@gmail.com

A CABINET minister yesterday said The Bahamas is at a “crossroad” in combating work permit violations as he revealed the Government is mulling legal reforms to hold companies liable for breaches by their sub-contractors.

Keith Bell, minster of labour and Immigration, told a Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC) breakfast that there could be “a significant collapse in certain industries” if the Government and Immigration Department were to cancel the work permits of all those caught working for companies who did not sponsor, and pay for, the approval.

He described this as one of the “challenges” where the Davis administration is seeking feedback from the private sector as to how they should be addressed. Mr Bell also confirmed that the Government is exploring whether to amend the law to make work site owners, and project managers/lead contractors, liable for Immigration breaches by sub-contractors who may be employing illegal migrants or persons without permitssomething he supports.

STRIKES ‘CROSSROAD’ AS WORK PERMITS EARN $20M

And, while acknowledging that work permit fees have become a lucrative revenue stream for the Government, generating more than $20m in revenue during the 2023 first quarter, Mr Bell said he favoured more of the posts filled by expatriate workers going to Bahamians.

The minister said the Government received more than $20.6m from work permit fees during the year’s first three months. He added that, typically, some 15,000 permits are granted annually out of 30,000 applications for a 50 percent approval rate.

“For the period January to March of this year alone, $20.604m was collected for work permits so far, and that is good; we need the money,” Mr Bell said. “Imagine how much more beneficial it would be to our society to have the Bahamians working in these capacities.

“Immigration issues approximately 15,000 work permits every year in this country, and approximately 30,000 applications are received annually by the Department for positions across the country in areas where Bahamians are not qualified and where they are qualified.”

Mr Bell had previously warned Bahamian contractors against employing expatriates working outside the terms, and scope, of their work permit approvals, and also seeking to evade payment of the full due fee by

passing some off as unskilled farm labourers rather than skilled building personnel.

He yesterday admitted that revoking the work permits of such violators may cause significant labour shortages for certain industries, and encouraged business owners to submit suggestions on how the Government should proceed in tackling this issue.

“We have discovered that a substantial majority of persons are working for persons who are not their employers,” Mr Bell said. “And we will have had a number of meetings, particularly with the construction industry. And we do know this is something that we will have to debate and discuss, and we want input from all of us as Bahamians as to how we want to deal with it.

“Given the substantial number of persons who are working for other people, it’s impossible for the director now to come in and say I’m going to cancel all of these work permits because we could have a significant collapse in certain industries. How do we now address that? Do we charge an administrative fee to allow my persons to work for you?

Do we charge a flat rate?

How do we address that?

We’re looking for input from you”

Mr Bell maintained that business owners have a responsibility to ensure their expatriate employees and

sub-contractors have proper documentation to work in The Bahamas. He signalled that the Davis administration is seeking to introduce legislation to hold both owners and sub-contractors responsible for work permit breeches.

The minister said: “Many of us will say ‘it isn’t me’, but when Immigration goes to your workplace or work site we are discovering persons who are there not employed by you. If you own a company and you have a sub-contractor working on your site or your building, doing some work for you, then I am of the firm view that you, too, should also be liable. The owner and the occupier, and so we are looking at making recommendations and introducing legislation to that effect.

“So we need to hear from you as to how we ought to address and deal with these challenges. We’re at a crossroad in this country, and we have to determine how we now move forward with it.” Mr Bell said the Immigration Department has noticed a number of Bahamian employers applying for expatriates to receive work permits to fill positions that are reserved for Bahamians, while persons entering The Bahamas as ‘visitors’ and tourists are also obtaining permanent jobs.

He said: “We are seeing Bahamian employers apply for labour certificates in

areas which are reserved for Bahamians. Or are applying for labour certificates and work permits in areas where we do have skilled and trained Bahamians. We have discovered again that persons who appear as visitors are actually working in a number of areas, not just on the low end, but also the high end.”

Mr Bell reiterated that there is an issue with persons working outside of the scope of their permits in order to avoid full fee payment, and that a number of firms are abdicating their responsibilities when it comes to nominating Bahamian understudies who can be trained up to take over from expatriates when the latter’s work permit term ends.

He said: “We discovered that a number of persons are working outside the scope of their work permit to attract lower fees. And so, in many instances, we are discovering that a person is supposed to be a skilled worker, and in many instances, they are classified as an unskilled worker, which attracts a fee of $2,000.

“We are discovering they ought to be a skilled worker, which attracts $4,000 or $6,000. Or they may be an accountant or some other thing.. that attracts a fee of $12,500, and they are being charged $4,000 or $6,000. This is what we are discovering across the spectrum,

so we are looking to address that.

“We have also seen where Bahamian employers apply for work permits, and are granted work permits in certain high-end positions, and one of the conditions of the grant is they must have an understudy. But in many cases we have had understudies who don’t even know they are supposed to be understudying the person.”

Mr Bell said this practice allows companies to continuously reapply for work permits for expatriates and, after 20 years, these persons fulfill the requirements for residence and, subsequently, citizenship.

He said: “Right now in The Bahamas, there are two major debates going on: Crime and Immigration. But if the understudies are not identified, and do not know, and then are subsequently sidelined, then the individual who consistently and continuously gets that work permit, after 20 work permits, they are entitled to apply for permanent residence. After they get permanent residence, then they can apply for citizenship.

“So you can’t debate us and get mad with the Government if that happens because the reality is that is something of our own doing.”

GOING THE EXTRA MILE ON SAME-DAY DELIVERY

Over time, businesses have changed and redefined the meaning of success. Being successful during today's age of e-commerce requires convenience and immediacy for consumer. One of the lessons from COVID-19 was that companies must do everything in their power to ensure their goods and services are more accessible. Therefore, same-day delivery services can benefit companies while strengthening their customer relationships. It is an excellent addition to every business today. Our article this week focuses on the benefits of adding this service:

1. Attracts new customers

Offering customers sameday delivery services helps attract new people because same-day delivery services are one of the most convenient services you can offer customers. Implementing it can make deliveries efficient and quick. Offering a same-day delivery service is a great way to increase sales and attract new customers. It is a manifestation of going the extra mile for people. With a few considerations, businesses can successfully implement this type of service.

2. Satisfies existing customers

Satisfying existing customers is another benefit of offering a same-day delivery service. Not only will they appreciate the convenience, but they will also know you are willing to go the extra mile to keep them satisfied while allowing them to expect quick turnaround times. When customers get the satisfaction they expect from businesses, they are more likely to become loyal customers. In the long run, they will develop brand loyalty, keep returning to your business, and refer others to you.

3. Improves brand reputation

Same-day delivery service also improves brand reputation. When customers see that you are willing to go the extra mile to deliver items to them quickly, they will appreciate the convenience and will view your brand more favourably. In addition, customers will be impressed by the speed of your service and will appreciate your

dedication to customer satisfaction. As a result, they will be more likely to share their positive experiences with others, which will help to improve your brand’s reputation.

4. Increases sales Offering same-day delivery will also increase sales. Customers are more likely to purchase items from retailers that offer sameday delivery than those that do not. Customers will be more likely to buy multiple items from a retailer that offers same-day delivery than from one that does not. However, ensure your inventory is well-stocked and that you have enough staff to handle the increased volume of orders. It is best to communicate the process shift to staff so they can adjust to the changes as needed. Finally, consider promoting the new delivery option to encourage more customers to use them.

5. Boosts customer loyalty Offering same-day delivery will also increase customer loyalty. When customers know they can rely on you to deliver their items quickly, they will be more likely to continue to do business with you in the future. In addition, customers who have a positive experience with your same-day delivery services will be more likely to share their positive experiences with others, which will help to increase your customer base.

6. Shapes customer service

You also shape your company’s customer service when you offer same-day delivery to your clients. Customers who have a positive experience with your same-day delivery service will be more likely to recommend your company to others. In addition, when customers know you are committed to delivering their items quickly, they will be more likely to contact you with any questions or concerns they may have.

7. Control the consumer experience With an in-house delivery system, you are able to control the delivery experience from start to finish. From order placement to delivery, track the order in real-time every step of the way. On the back-end, you can assign orders, estimate delivery times and view driver progress on the road

SKILLS COUNCIL TO ASSESS INDUSTRY’S LABOUR NEEDS

By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

A CABINET minister yesterday revealed a Skills Council will be formed to assess the labour needs of each industry as he unveiled plans to combine various training schemes into one National Apprenticeship scheme.

Keith Bell, minister of labour and Immigration, told a Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC) breakfast: “In an effort to address the skills gap that exists in our labor force, the Department of Labour with the assistance of the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) was poised to implement an apprenticeship programme in 2019.

“The project was intended to provide apprenticeship opportunities to young people between the ages of 18 and 40. However, the programme was suspended due to budgetary cuts and responses to Hurricane Dorian and, of course, COVID-19. We also noticed that numerous ministries, corporations and companies have developed apprenticeship-style programmes, which we find very effective and very good.

“In many countries, including The Bahamas, vocational education and training is provided by a great diversity of institutions. Frequently, such diversity not only makes the training delivery complex, but also leads to duplication of efforts. In this regard, the Government

as they fulfill each online delivery. This ensures you can keep an eye on every aspect of your delivery operations, and make sure the customer is getting the best consumer experience possible.

• NB: Ian R Ferguson is a talent management and organisational development consultant, having completed graduate studies with regional and international universities. He has served organisations, both

locally and globally, providing relevant solutions to their business growth and development issues. He may be contacted at tcconsultants@ coralwave.com.

BY IAN FERGUSON

determined that there is a need to amalgamate these various programmes into one nationally-recognised programme to cause a deliberate, focused approach to be designed in line with national development.”

Mr Bell said a National Task Force, consisting of civil servants and industry representatives, and aided by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), have created a policy document for the national apprenticeship initiative that will be available in six weeks.

“In October last year, a technical body or commission termed the National Apprenticeship Programme Task Force was appointed to create a framework and policy document for the establishment of a national apprenticeship programme. The Task Force is comprised of all of the tripartite constituents of government workers and employer representatives,” Mr Bell said.

“During the past week, the Task Force was ably assisted by the International Labour Organisation’s international training set-up in Italy in creating the conceptual framework. I am advised that the policy document should be available in six weeks’ time.”

Mr Bell also revealed that the Apprenticeship Act, which is now 40 years-old, will also be reviewed and that a Skills Council will be formed to identify the needs of each industry

He said: “There will also be a sector Skills Council comprised of seven industry professionals, who will be

Property taxes sell-off targets ‘extreme cases’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE GOVERNMENT

is “targeting extreme cases” who have totally disregarded their tax obligations for up to 10-20 years with yesterday’s warning that it will start to seize and sell-off their properties to recover all arrears owed.

John Williams, the Department of Inland Revenue’s communications chief, told Tribune Business that the notice revealing it now plans to exercise its “power of sale” enforcement tool to recover outstanding real property taxes was published because the tax authorities plan to reveal the “first list” of targeted properties and real estate in early June 2023.

Although the notice’s disclosure caused some alarm and disquiet, he reassured that Bahamian owner-occupied properties are excluded

• Inland Revenue focusing on 10-20 year deadbeats

• Aims to publish first seized properties list early June

• Last resort measure for taxpayers just ‘not checking’

from the “power of sale” by the Real Property Tax Act. And, while the notice referred to taxpayers who have been in arrears for more than seven months, Mr Williams explained that timeframe was detailed only because it is stated in the Act. In reality, he told this newspaper that the Department of Inland Revenue is targeting long-standing bill duckers and tax cheats who have ignored all prior outreach efforts, tax amnesties, notices and communications urging them to bring their real property tax liabilities current and comply with the law. He described the

focus of the “power of sale” effort as persons who are “not checking for it, and just walking by and not having any regard” for paying their fair share.

The Department of Inland Revenue’s notice, warning locals and residents that it plans to use its “power of sale” to recover outstanding real property taxes, caused a political storm yesterday (see other article on Page 1B) as many interpreted it as applying to all taxpayers - including Bahamians residing in their own homes - and short as well as long-term arrears given the reference to seven months.

Late realtor’s $4.8m Gov’t win ‘unraveled’

However, Mr Williams told Tribune Business: “This would be the final step with regards to persons who are not paying or have not paid in a while. The notice says seven months, but that’s only because seven months is stated in the law. Really and truly, we are targeting extreme cases of persons in arrears for 10 years, 15 years, 20 years.

“Persons seem to think this is something new, but the ‘power of sale’ has been in the Act from 2009. The most recent amendment came in July last year. The only exception is Bahamian owner-occupied property.” The Real Property Tax Act reforms passed to accompany last year’s Budget sought to “expand the exercise of the power of sale for tax arrears to all property except owneroccupied property beneficially owned by Bahamians”.

BISX-listed firm ‘resolves’ qualified audit fear woes

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A BISX-listed firm last pledged it has “resolved” technology woes that forced it to seek more time to publish its 2022 financial statements and prevent a ‘qualified’ audit opinion for a second consecutive year.

Julian Brown, Benchmark (Bahamas) president and chief executive, in brief messaged replies to Tribune Business questions said the issues that forced the investment manager to request an extension from the Bahamas International Securities Exchange (BISX) have been addressed and the audited financials will soon be disclosed to shareholders and the capital markets.

“Technology upgrades created the issue, which we have resolved. Our accounts will be released shortly,” Mr Brown, who said he was off-island travelling, messaged. No further details or explanations were provided after it was disclosed earlier this week that Benchmark (Bahamas) was effectively trying to prevent lightning from striking twice

$10m PI restaurant to create 120 local jobs

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter aykemp@tribunemedia.net

A $10m restaurant investment that is aiming to create 120 Bahamians jobs by spring 2024 yesterday broke ground at Paradise Island’s redeveloped Hurricane Hole location.

Jerome Cataldo, president and chief executive of Hostmark Hospitality Group, the entity behind the Carnivale restaurant project, told Tribune Business he is “excited” to finally be in The Bahamas to launch the brand here.

“What better place than to do that in The Bahamas in such a beautiful

environment of the Hurricane Hole super yacht marina,” he said. “The concept is owned 50 percent by my family and 50 percent by Bill Marovitz, but we’re going to bring some local investors too if they would like to be a part of Carnivale Bahamas.”

Carnivale will open by spring 2024 with construction starting by next week. Mr Marovitz, co owner of Carnivale Bahamas, said the existing restaurant in Chicago, which opened in 2005, has celebrated colour, life, excitement and fun for 18 years.

With the same focus shaping Carnivale Bahamas,

SEE PAGE A18

Make property tax sale power ‘even-handed’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE FNM’s chairman yesterday argued that Bahamians lack confidence that the Government will apply “even-handed enforcement” as it moves to unleash its ‘power of sale’ on long-standing real property tax duckers.

Dr Duane Sands, a former Cabinet minister and MP, also accused the Davis administration of lacking “the intestinal fortitude” to discuss its ever-stricter tax compliance drive with the Bahamian people despite

the publication of yesterday’s warning notice that the Department of Inland Revenue intends to seize, and sell-off, properties belonging to delinquents

• Charles Christie’s claim back to Supreme Court as ‘last resort’

• Eight-year old case over 192 acres for roads project, Baha Mar

• Appeal court finds former judge ‘sidestepped’ compulsory buy

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A PROMINENT late realtor’s $4.8m legal victory over the Government has been overturned as “a last resort” and sent back to the Supreme Court for a fresh trial more than two decades after he lost use of some 192 acres.

The Court of Appeal, in a unanimous verdict, said it had no choice but to send the eight year-old claim by the late Charles Christie, founder and president of the C A Christie real estate brokerage, for a new hearing to “unravel” a case that stemmed from the Government’s alleged compulsory acquisition of land in western New Providence’s Prospect Ridge area.

Mr Christie and his companies, Westmor Ltd and C.A.C Properties Ltd, initiated their claim for compensation under the Acquisition of Land Act in 2015. They alleged that four land parcels, collectively covering 192 acres, had been seized by the Government under this Act for the purpose of constructing new roads under the New Providence Road Improvement Project. This included, they alleged, Baha Mar Boulevard, which connects the mega resort to JFK Drive and Gladstone Road.

However, appeal justice Milton Evans, in granting the Government’s appeal, found that the original trial judge, former Supreme Court justice Ruth Bowe-Darville, had gone “astray” in failing to address the Acquisition of Land Act claim by Mr Christie and his companies. Instead, she “sidestepped” the core issue and found that, by contesting its acquisition of the disputed land, the Government had admitted its presence on the property “constituted a trespass”. Appeal justice Stella Crane-Scott, adding to her colleague’s verdict, said the original

DR DUANE SANDS

$5.74 $5.74 $5.74 $5.95