THE VINCENTIAN PDF - 20-12-24-PART 1

ARREST IN PRECIOUS’ CASE:

POLICE MAKE CONFIDENCE APPEAL

Trevor ‘Buju’ Bailey, Assistant Commissioner of Police/Crime, has urged the public to maintain confidence in the police.

Left: Rolando ‘Dinero’ Cato was arraigned on a murder charge on Tuesday.

Stories by DAYLE DASILVA

THE ROYAL ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES POLICE FORCE (RSVGPF) have moved to assure those persons who have lost relatives to violent crime, that they are working to bring the perpetrators to justice.

And in support of this assurance, Commissioner of Police (Ag) Enville Williams,

disclose at a media briefing last Monday, Dec. 16, that the police had made a breakthrough in the 2022 case involving 17-year-old Precious Williams, resulting in the arrest of Rolando Cato, a 25-year-old labourer of Ratho Mill, and who has been charged with the offence of murder.

Continued on Page 3.

Enville Williams, Acting Commissioner of Police (CoP) has identified the mentality of settling disputes directly and with force as a major cause of the violent crime here.

GANGSTER MENTALITY RULES

Continued on Page 3.

TOO MANY YOUNG MENin the country are adopting a foreign, gangster mentality, which leads them to accept that they had to settle their differences with the use of firearms.

Commissioner of Police (Ag) Enville Williams, who led A Police media briefing last Monday, Dec. 16, alluded to recent crime statistics which suggested that there was a problem in St Vincent and the Grenadines, as far as the way individuals related to each other.

Drones light up the sky

THE NIGHT SKYover the Arnos vale Playing Field and Arnos Vale generally on Sunday 15th December, 2024, took on a whole new and different look as this country experienced its first ever drone display.

The display coincided with the first of three T20 (cricket) encounters between Bangladesh and the West Indies and that was perhaps as good an occasion as any to launch this first-time experience, as the Arnos Vale

Playing Field was ram-packed with spectators, with many would-be patrons having to be turned away.

Here is a just a glimpse of some of the displays that lite up the skies last Sunday.

V News 3

Police/ public charter coming

THE GENERAL PUBLICwill have a better understanding of their responsibilities and that of the police when the Citizens Charter is published in 2025.

“The charter will outline basic responsibilities for the general public and the police; things that cause friction between the police and the general public,” ACP Bailey said.

For example, he said, one of the items that will be covered is the proper

Trevor Bailey, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) with responsibility for Crime, told a media briefing on Monday that he was with the Legal Research and Policies Unit (LRPU) and the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) towards completion of the document. The Citizens Charter is part of the Royal St. Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force (RSVGPF) strategy to strengthen the bond with the public.

2021 marked a period of heightened animosity between the police and sections of the public who took to open protests and street demonstrations.

procedure involved in the execution of a search warrant.

Bailey said that the RSVGPF has received complaints from citizens that officers did not identify themselves or they failed to read or show a search warrant during raids.

“Now, in the Charter that will be clearly spelt out … that is a must — the police must do that,” Bailey committed.

The Charter will also deal with the issue of executing an arrest, with Bailey outlining that the police had no right to meet an individual on the road and arrest them without the arresting officer, especially if they are in plain clothes, identifying themselves as police officers and pointing out to the individual what they were being arrested for.

“We just can’t meet

Arrest in Precious’ Case

Continued from Frontpage.

Cato, aka ‘Dinero’, is currently incarcerated at His Majesty’s Prison in Belle Isle where he is serving an 18-year sentence for the offence of robbery.

He was arraigned on Tuesday, December 17, 2024, at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court.

Readers will recall that the body of Precious Williams was discovered in a gutter adjacent to Joyette’s Auto Collision in Richmond Hill, concealed in a bag, with multiple injuries about her body.

She is believed to have been brutally attacked and murdered sometime between May 9th and May 12th, 2022.

A post-mortem examination conducted on May 16, 2022, revealed that her death resulted from multiple sharp injuries.

This is the second major homicide that the police have successfully pursued to the point of making an arrest.

Rion ‘Pittbull’ Cole, a labourer of Paul’s Avenue, was charged with the murder 43year-old Keisha ‘Veronica’ Small which occurred between August 24 and 25, 2022. He is currently on remand ar His

During a press briefing in November 2023, Assistant Commissioner of Police with responsibility for crime Trevor ‘Buju” Bailey told reporters that investigations into the deaths of Small and Williams were ongoing, and that the public should maintain its confidence in the police to investigate crimes.

On Monday he told the media briefing, “The announcement of the closure of the case of who killed Precious Williams is a testimony to the hard work of the men and women in the Royal St Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, and by extension the Major Crimes Unit in collaboration with society.”

He went on to say that the cracking of the Williams case was an example of the success that comes when the police and community collaborate.

And to those persons who await some closure on cases of murder of their loved ones, bailey assured them that the police were working assiduously to bring the perpetrator(s) to justice.

Precious Williams was 17 years old at the time of her death.

“Sometimes the result does not come with the snapping of a finger, but it really comes with a lot of painstaking hours,” ACP Bailey contended.

Bailey, in fact, echoed an earlier sentiment expressed by the CoP (Ag) who committed to “pursuing to the very end perpetrators of crime and violence and these acts of murder.”

He commended the staff at the Major Crime Unit (MCU) whom he said continues to be valiant in the effort aimed at giving to families the justice they deserve following such acts of violence.

you on the street arbitrarily and lock you up like that and say we are going to keep you for 24 or 48 hours,” he said.

And as work continues on the Charter that will endeavour to demarcate the responsibilities of the public and the police, Bailey made an appeal to the public.

“We want to hear from you, areas that we are lacking or areas where we can strengthen

the relationship,” he said. Notwithstanding that, the relationship between the public and the police needed to be improved, ACP Bailey spoke “quite a number of mediations held between the public, who made complaints against the police and ..matters dealt with.”

Much is expected in the New Year when the Citizens Charter is disseminated. (DD)

Gangster mentality rules

He explained that his reference was to crimes of wounding, assaults, bodily harm and the like, i.e. of crimes committed by individuals against other individuals.

And while these types of crimes continue to increase, the CoP (Ag) said, “…. crime against property, theft and the like, continue to drop.”

He said that in relation to the recent deadly shootings, the police were working hard to establish motive(s), and he emphasised that proper motive needed to be established, even if it is that the police may have their suspicions and hunches.

Investigations, Williams said, pointed to increasing disagreements between persons whom he said were unable to come up with others ways to settle their disputes.

So, until the police were able to establish a motive for a crime, then the working theory is that people do not know how to resolve their differences, Williams reiterated.

The CoP (Ag) further argued that despite whatever may have led to the dispute in the first place, those involved were unable to arrive at a place where they were able to settle their differences amicably.

They do not know how to come to the police or access help from someone in society who can act as mediator, i.e. to sit down and trash out the issues.

“And that is what we are saying…. we need to come from a societal standpoint where we know how to settle interpersonal differences,” the CoP (Ag) said.

Without a mechanism for people to settle differences, then individuals will resort to everything else to settle the dispute.

He appealed to the perpetrators of these types of offences to think about their action before committing them.

“I want to appeal to us as a people as we are in this time of peace, to look at how we react to situations,” Williams said.

Continued from Frontpage.

Majesty’s prison awaiting trial. Small’s lifeless body was discovered on the tarmac of the decommissioned E T Joshua Airport.

Cybercrime offenders fined and confined

by HAYDN HUGGINS

SENIOR Magistrate Tammika Da SilvaMcKenzie has sent a strong message to persons who use or intend to use computer technology for purposes of defaming and libeling others.

The signal came when she fined and confined two cybercrime offenders at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday. They were both unrepresented.

Reno Roberts, a 27-year-old unemployed man from Georgetown, who is the ex-boyfriend of the complainant, Claudia Castello of Belair was fined $15,000 to be paid by December 1, 2026, or one year in prison for intentionally and without lawful excuse or justification, and without the consent of Claudia Castello, used a computer system to distribute sexual explicit images of Castello which contained Castello’s personal identification information, contrary to Section 16 (1) of the Cybercrime Act, 2016.

Roberts was also fined $10,000 payable by April 30, 2026, or one year in prison for transmitting the sexual explicit images of Castello.

Both offenses each carry a maximum penalty of $100,000 or two years in prison or both.

Roberts was additionally ordered to pay compensation to Castello in the sum of $12,500 by October 31, 2025, or one year in prison.

In addition, he was sentenced to ten months in prison, but the Magistrate took into account the two weeks he spent on remand, awaiting sentencing, resulting in him having to serve nine and a half months behind bars.

The alternative sentences are to run consecutively if the fines are not paid, and consecutively with the mandatory prison sentence.

On the other hand, Zarietta Zavisha Wilson, a 34-year-old woman of Ottley Hall, who was charged separately but slapped with two similar counts, arising from the same matter, was fined $15,000 to be paid by September 30, 2026, for distributing the images, and $10,000 by March 31, 2027 or one year for transmitting them, by using a computer system.

All four offenses were committed on Whatsapp, on October 10, 2024.

Wilson was also sentenced to nine months and three weeks, but after the Magistrate considered the two weeks she spent on remand, the sentence was reduced to nine months and one week.

In addition, Wilson was ordered to compensate Castello in the sum of $14,000 or one year behind bars for unlawfully publishing defamatory comments of her, to wit, “Any man want pussy to buy, go bike bar and ask for ‘Barbie’, that bitch love f…”, contrary to Section 19 (1) of the Cybercrime Act, 2016.

The maximum penalty for that offense is $50,000 or two years in prison or both.

Wilson’s alternative sentences will also run consecutively if the fines are not paid and consecutively with the mandatory prison sentence.

McKenzie said she was guided by a case in Jamaica, with similar circumstances, in arriving at the penalties but she also had to take into account all the factors of the matter, at hand, including the impact on society, and look at the submissions from the

Jail term for possession of firearm

ADONIS FRANCIS, a 35-year-old resident of Redemption Sharpes, will spend the next three and a half years in prison for illegal possession of a firearm. Francis appeared at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court before Senior Magistrate, Tammika Da SilvaMcKenzie on December 10, 2024, where he pleaded guilty to a charge of illegal gun possession and was promptly sentenced to prison. He was expected to return to court at a later date to be sentenced on a possession of ammunition charge, to which he had also pleaded guilty.

The court heard that at approximately 9:15 PM on December 9, a party of Special Service Unit (SSU) officers, headed by Sergeant

Lewi, was on mobile patrol along the main road of Lodge Village, when they noticed Francis acting suspiciously as he walked in a direction towards the SSU party. The police approached him, identified themselves, and requested a search to which he consented. A silver and black .357 Magnum revolver was found on his person. He was arrested on suspicion of possession of an unlicensed firearm and was taken to the Central Police Station, where an additional search uncovered nine rounds of ammunition in his back pocket. Further checks at the Firearm Registry revealed that Francis did not have a license to keep firearms and ammunition and he was subsequently charge for

Prosecution.

Both defendants had pleaded guilty to the charges when they initially appeared at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court about two weeks ago, but McKenzie adjourned sentencing so that she could look at the written submissions from the Prosecution, and consider all the factors of the case.

In handing down the penalties, McKenzie, reflecting on the facts, told the defendants, “Two of you decided to spread these images to the whole world”.

Roberts responded, “It was a mistake”.

But the Magistrate, told him, “It is a mistake you are going to learn from”.

Referring to Castello, McKenzie said, “She can’t walk the road, her phone is being bombarded left, right and centre”.

She told Wilson, “He (Roberts) had no right to share them (images) with you in the first place.

Referencing the electronic evidence, the Magistrate said, “You (Roberts) shared it (images) with a sex group. … You wanted to illustrate your initial knowledge of ‘Barbie’ by sharing those photographs. You took photos of her without her consent”.

The Magistrate added, “You saw what Miss Wilson posted….. Instead of sending her (Wilson) a picture of her (Castello) face, you sent her pictures of all parts of her body”. McKenzie said, adding that Wilson decided to re-post them.

Roberts told the Court he did not know what Wilson was going to re-post them, and that she (Wilson) was told by family members not to.

But the Magistrate told him, “You are not accepting your fault in all this, you are trying to put the blame on somebody else”.

The lead-up

The facts presented at an earlier hearing of the matter, showed that Castello, who worked at a bar in Kingstown, and Wilson, whom she had known for about a year, was her friend.

Around 10:30 p.m. on October 9, Wilson came to Castello’s workplace and accused her of having an intimate relationship with her ex-boyfriend, Juenaldo Hamilton, Castello’s co-worker.

An argument ensued between and Wilson threw some Carib beer in Castello’s face, in Hamilton’s presence.

Around 6 p.m. on October 10, Castello was at work when Hamilton some nude photographs he had received via WhatsApp from Wilson. Castello recognized them to be photo of her by the face, and distinguishing marks (tattoo and piercings). Castello was surprised to see them because she knew it was her ex-boyfriend, Reno Roberts, who had taken them, without her knowledge, while they were in a relationship. Roberts had threatened to post them on Facebook if she ended the relationship.

Adonis Francis has already begun a jail sentence for illegal possession of a firearm.

illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition. In a statement following Francis’s arrest, the police assured the general public that “the RSVGPF remains vigilant in its efforts to address gun-related offenses and encourages the public to report suspicious activities involving firearms.”

But Roberts denied that he was trying to put the blame on anyone, and reiterated, “I didn’t know she (Wilson) was going to do that”.

McKenzie said she found that the aggravating factors outweighed the mitigating for both defendants, on all the charges.

On October 11, Castello received several phone calls from co-workers and family members, informing her that nude photographs were posted on Wilson’s WhatsApp status. Castello also received a screenshot with Facebook post saying, “Any man want ….. to buy, go ‘bike’ bar, and ask for ‘Barbie’, that bitch love f…”. Castello, embarrassed and violated, and well aware that she was the only person in the bar known as ‘Barbie’ and had the name Barbie tattooed on her chest, reported the matter to the police and Roberts and Wilson were arrested and charged.

Magistrate: Courts need updating

SENIORMagistrate

Tammika Da SilvaMcKenzie says she looks forward to the day when the Magistrate Courts in St. Vincent and the Grenadines are equipped with recording devices, so that she can go back to what was said in Court.

McKenzie added that she also looks forward to the day when the Magistrate Courts are equipped with screens.

She made the observation that while every year Emancipation Day is being celebrated in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Court system remains in need of being updated to suit the times.

The Magistrate voiced her feelings while presiding over a matter at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.

She lamented the fact that there is only one electronic system that is used

Tammika Da SilvaMcKenzie, Senior Magistrate, wants the Magistrate Courts here to be brought up-to-date with conveniences of the 21st century.

in all the Magistrate Courts, with the exception of the Family Court, for the showing of electronic evidence which is crucial to the administration of justice.

Attorney Grant Connell who was at the Bar table agreed that the Court system needs to be updated. Connell said that in this day and age Magistrates still have to write, and when you have to appeal, the transcripts are crucial. It is often said that the Court is the bowels of society, in that practically everything passes through the Court System.

Zarietta Wilson

Christmas Message from the Prime Minister

V Together at Christmas in Peace, love, faith and fresh hope

by DR. THE HON. RALPH E. GONSALVES

PRIME MINISTER OF ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES

CHRISTMAS 2024

OUR CARIBBEAN CIVILISATION, inclusive of its magnificent Vincentian component, embraces the commemorative birthday of Jesus Christ with a traditional spirit of togetherness in peace, love, faith, and a renewed sense of hope. It is a time when we rightly prioritise family get-togethers, good neighborliness, community spiritedness, national unity, and individual reflections on life and living now and for the future. It is a season to engender joy and happiness even amidst personal pain, community travails, national challenges, and global turmoil. We especially acknowledge that whatever the ups and downs of the past and present, only the future is ours to desecrate. So, we seek to ensure that we are on the right track going forward, individually and collectively, with the power of an amazing grace.

Always, our Christmas celebrations, reflective of our values and traditions, flow from the genius of our people: Nine Mornings; joyous church services; lighting-up of homes and communities; the special foods and drinks, even in the humblest abodes; parang and soca especially created for the season; the beach and river festivities; sports and games of one sort or another; giving and sharing selflessly in innumerable ways with neighbours and strangers; eating in, eating out; helping coworkers who are in difficulties; decorating locallysourced Christmas trees; making the children, the wife, husband, partner, mother, father, grandparents, especially happy, showered with abundant love; and much, much more.

Oft-times we take all of this for granted until we begin bit-by-bit to lose it all under the weight, attractions, and distractions, of a globalised culture which threatens through the external media and consumerism, to impose a cultural homogeneity and rob us of our especial Caribbean and Vincentian distinctiveness, but especially so at Christmas which admittedly is a universal celebration. The necessity and desirability is to ground the universal within the context of our own particularities, in our own image, likeness, sense, and sensibility.

This year it has been wonderful to welcome our friends from Bangladesh in the T-20 Cricket Series against our West Indies on December 15th, 17th, and 19th at the majestic Arnos Vale Sporting Facility, under the lights. This year, too, is the first time ever in the Caribbean, or perhaps elsewhere, for a Prime Minister in concert with celebrated local artistes to create and produce in song a very popular soca parang hit entitled “Tell me what you want for yoh Christmas”. It is bringing joy, and fun, to almost everyone, save and except those permanently and unchangeably unhappy souls stuffed with political bile, grounded in an angry partisanship, in a perpetual war with themselves.

CHRISTMAS IN THE SHADOW OF BERYL

Christmas 2024 is celebrated in the shadow of Hurricane Beyl which severely damaged St. Vincent and the

Grenadines as a whole, and devastated particular areas especially the Southern Grenadines. The government in tandem with a resilient people, in partnership with some friends from overseas, are in the long and arduous task of relief, recovery, and reconstruction. Significant progress has been made through multiple initiatives, including those in housing, production and income supports. Still, much more work is to be done; and we will get there, day-by-day sweet Jesus. It is necessary and desirable for all of our nation to remember the thousands of affected, and displaced, persons, including the 500 or so who are still in shelters and the approximately 600 who are in touristic accommodation (guest houses and apartments), courtesy of a caring government. The children and the elderly among the displaced are daily in my thoughts and actions.

VIOLENT CRIME AT CHRISTMAS

In the run-up to the Christmas season, there has been a spike in the number of killings, committed by a minority of young males in associational groups who have chosen this violent path, seemingly as a way of life, financed largely by the trafficking in cocaine and marijuana, weaponised by illegally imported guns and bullets. The evidence that their young lives end up in jail or the cemetery, appears not to deter them in their criminal recklessness, destruction of other lives and theirs; they erroneously think that lady luck would save them from jail and likely death-byreprisal, but they are reassured that their necks will not end up in the hangman’s noose because of the unfortunate decisions of our Court of Appeal and the Privy Council in respect of the nonapplication of the death penalty on the statute books for the crime of murder in its mandatory aspect. It is evident to all, save and except political opportunists and some wrongheaded social scientists, that the war against violent crime and violent criminals is a complex one demanding an allof-society corrective approach. The non-state institutions (parents, family, communities, churches, nongovernmental groups, the media, the legal progression, etc.)

Right: Prime Minister Dr. Hon. Ralph Gonsalves

have critical roles to play; so, too, the state institutions (the Parliament, the Cabinet, the Police, the Coastguard, Prisons, Customs and Immigration Departments, Prosecutors, the Magistracy, the Supreme Court, the schools, and various Ministries touching and concerning rehabilitation and social supports). These considerations are at the heart of an all-of-society approach pursued by the government. And the state institutions must work optimally in the fight against crime.

But let us be clear: Violent criminals who commit these cold-blooded killings do so out of choice, grounded in greed, fueled by money from drug trafficking and crimes against property; those who are mentally ill are an exception here for differential treatment. Thus, criminal conduct of the mentally sound must never be excused on the grounds of supposed poverty or unemployment; that is dangerous, sentimental mush with no credible scientific basis. It is a cop-out that justifies the choices of the violent criminals. Our society must be clear on this! The violent criminals must not be permitted to secure public acceptance of their efforts to socialise their choices and privatise their greed and gains.

FORWARD TO 2025

Early next year, the Estimates of Revenue and Expenditures will be presented to Parliament for debate and approval on January 3rd; and on January 6th, the Appropriation Bill will

be presented to Parliament, kicking-off “the Budget debate”; consequent upon these deliberations the Bill is expected to be approved.

I assure everyone that the Estimates and the Appropriation Bil are crafted to suit our precise circumstances in every material particular. Like Issachar, the leader of one of the twelve tribes of Israel, who in the Book of Chronicles was esteemed because “he knew the times and acted accordingly”; so, too, will our government. Immense progress is being made for, and by, St. Vincent and the Grenadines despite our challenges and limitations. Our possibilities and our strengths propel us; we are on the right track. Let us so continue in peace, love, faith, and renewed hope.

Happy Christmas 2024! Let us make the New Year for more peaceful and more prosperous for all!

The National Newspaper of St. Vincent and the Grenadines

Managing Director: Desiree Richards

Editor: Cyprian Neehall

Telephone: 784-456-1123 Fax: 784-451-2129

Website: www.thevincentian.com

Email: thevincentianpublishing@gmail.com

Mailing Address: The Vincentian Publishing Co. Ltd., P.O. Box 592, Kingstown, St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Editorial

What we want for Christmas

ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINESis a place like no other.

We have a heavenly blessed mix of nature, contrasting from scorching black sand to dazzling white sand beaches; from an active volcano to the soothing waters of numerous water falls; hotels that span the exclusive world of a Sandals Resort, to the homely atmosphere and pleasantries of a Fort Charlotte Inn; from daily ferries that cross the distances the between mainland and the Grenadines to light aircraft that can do the same in so much less time; from festivals like carnival which we share with other islands, to our own, the unique Nine Mornings festival.

Yes, and we are a special place, for we have had the same political party in government since 2001, with the same prime minister, something of a Caribbean record, and stand a good chance of continuing with that governing party and prime minister for another five years.

And we, 150 square miles in area, with a 103,698 population (2023), are not to be outdone, not to be taken lightly; for we punch above our weight class, as can be seen by our serving as a member of the “mighty” UN security Council.

After all, our Prime Minister is a ‘World Boss’ who gets down with his people even if, when it serves him, he turns on the might of the state machinery on those who would dare show dissent.

But the crowning thing that sets us apart from others is the recent move by our Prime Minister into the recording studio, not to record one of his speeches/lectures but to demonstrate how “rootical,” how much of a people’s person he is, by joining with a group of popular local soca artistes to record a parang soca number for release during this Christmas season.

Who stood the cost for the recording is anyone’s guess but we are wont to say, in as much as others might think otherwise, that we are confident no state funds went into the effort.

The Prime Minister releases the number under the sobriquet ‘Santa

World Boss’, and with his focus on the next general election, and as though to hint that this (2024) could well be the last Christmas before the next general election, he appropriately entitles his release, ‘Tell me what yo want fo you Christmas’.

So, in the spirit in which our Prime Minister beckons for us to tell him what we want for Christmas, and in the true spirit of what Christmas means, here goes, in the least:

We want, Mr. PM, that you withdraw the appeal of the judge’s ruling against your government in that Vaccine Mandate case, and reinstate all those public servants who were dismissed under guise of that Mandate.

We want, Mr. PM, some meaningful relief from the spiraling cost of living that weighs so much more on the poor and working people of this land. Remember, Mr. PM, cost of living relief is much more than a monetary handout that is temporary in nature. Real and extending actions might require some fiscal adjustments.

We want, Mr. PM, that you refrain from using innuendos and unbecoming language to refer to those who would oppose you. These are citizens/nationals of this country, and entitled to the same rights and protection that you, your family and your party faithful enjoy.

We want, Mr. PM, that all aid/monies received for relief and rehabilitation after the volcanic eruption and the passage of Hurricane Beryl be properly and openly accounted for, in a manner that all can understand not in some academic, highfalutin manner which your MP are wont to do prone in parliament.

We want, Mr. PM, that you invite His Majesty’s Opposition and other relevant interest groups to a table around which a comprehensive plan can be devised for combating crime in the country.

We want, Mr.PM, that you desist from acting in a manner and making pronouncements that are belittling to the intelligence of Vincentians.

Oh, what a Merry Christmas we would have.

NEIGHBOUR, NEIGHBOUR,wake up, wake up, it’s Nine Mornings. Okay, according to the original song, that should be Christmas morning. But my message to you is the same: it is the season for giving and forgiving. It is a time of reflection and hope.

Reflecting on our past year, I realize we have much for which to be thankful. We survived the hottest January through March in recent memory, a category four hurricane in July, more rain in November than anyone can remember, and as many senseless killings as we can afford.

I am thinking of all the people limping through the Christmas season with a heavy heart, feeling like they are carrying the world on their shoulders, and so few hours of sleep that it feels like they are sleepwalking. I am increasingly thinking of the many fellow Vincentians with nowhere to go, no table to sit at, and no family to share a meal with this Christmas. And then there are those with a table who fear inviting anyone because they fear the conversation will end along the partypolitical divide. The thought that hurts the most is the family with an empty chair because they lost a loved one this year, either through natural causes or senseless killing. Assuming everyone senselessly killed over the last two years had ten close friends and relatives, that means over one thousand people this season would have an empty chair at their table on Christmas day.

No matter if you are a Christian or not (I know most of us are), you must agree that this is a season when most people seem to be their better selves; for that reason alone, it is a reason to be hopeful. We have become a politically polarized nation at the ripe old age of forty-five. The one thing I say we have going for us this year is a budding new crop of footballers to make us proud and bring us back together. Please, Mr. Prime Minister, do not politicize the people’s game. This Christmas season, we also have cricket. Hopefully, the West Indies will provide us with a distraction. I hate to mix Christmas and

politics but bear with me for a moment. I do not want to be the person who will say let’s leave politics out of the season because I know it will not work. So, my version of a Christmas story goes like this: Christmas marks the birth of Christ, one of the most significant change agents we ever saw. The basic tenets of our democratic system we profess to hold so close to our guiding principles are rooted in Christ’s life. I hear a voice saying leave the preaching to the preachers. So, I will do that and return to my Christmas greetings and reflection of hope and dreams for the season. I hope the unity and respect we generate for each other this season will take us through 2025.

Could we find some time this season to shine some light on each other, even if it’s just through a small crack in our armor? And I am urging everyone, because you can care, to make room for someone new at our table this Christmas… someone you will not typically have room for on most ordinary days. Make room at your table, allow yourself to relax, and welcome someone to join you at your table. Allow yourself to say everybody matters; for now, everything is forgiven. Come as you are, and let’s work on getting to know each other.

Let us walk in and out of this season knowing we all matter. We will lay down our swords and disagree on some matters but never hate each other. We will allow each other to speak our minds and not judge, and most of all, we will all know that we all matter. There will always be room for one more; come as you are, pull up a chair.

So today, allow me to say thank you for the blessings you have given me this year. Thank you for looking out for me and my loved ones; your help, thoughts, and praises are greatly appreciated. May each of you find a table where you are welcomed and accepted for who you are.

Merry Christmas.

Horatio.

DigiFish Project launched

LASTMonday, December 16 saw the launch of the DigiFish Project at the Fisheries Division Conference Room.

Chief Fisheries Officer

Jennifer CruickshankHoward is delighted that The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Rural Transformation, Industry and Labour is working along with St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ Environmental Fund,

National Fisherfolk Organisation, and the Pelagic Data Systems in a project aimed at improving the conditions under which local fishermen indulge in their chosen trade.

Toward this end, thirty fishing vessels have been fitted with tracking devices that provide information on “changes through space and time, and support monitoring and

surveillance in Marine Protected Areas.”

Addressing the launch, CruickshankHoward pointed to “technologies which provide accurate insights into fish stock health, fishing patterns, and environmental changes, allowing for better resource management and making sure that fish is available.”

She alluded to climate and weather forecasting

Fishing boats get tracking devices

THIRTY FISHING

BOATShere have been equipped with tracking devices to help ensure the safety of fishermen while at sea.

This pilot project, launched last Monday, December 16, is an initiative of the National Fisherfolk Organization (NFO) in partnership with the SVG Environment Fund.

Louise Mitchell, Executive Director of the SVG Environment Fund, stated that the project aims to assist fishermen while they are at sea.

The tracking devices will allow for real-time monitoring by the SVG Coast Guard, the Ministry of Fisheries, the SVG Conservation Fund, the National Fisherfolk Organization, and the company manufacturing the devices, Pelagic Data Systems.

And Winsberth Harry, president of the National Fisherfolk Organisation wants his organisation’s membership to get onboard with the project.

Harry admitted that fishermen are going further and further away from land as emerging factor, including the Sahara dust drive fish stocks away from traditional sites. This increases the chances of mishaps at sea making the devises important for tracking the route and location of fishing boats. Instances of boat theft can be reduced when the gadgets are installed, Harry believes. He admits that he serving as a “mentor” to boat owners whom he describes as “skeptical” in hooking up with the technology.

He was part of the consultations at Barrouallie, Kingstown, Calliaqua, and the Grenadines in laying the framework for the DigiFish Project.

Harry took the opportunity of last Monday’s function to appeal to sea moss harvesters and those who fish in rivers, to become members of the Fishing Organisation.

The National Fisherfolk Organisation “will work with anybody to promote fishing as a business,” he assured, including those involved in repairs and maintenance.

Fisherman Julian Fairbaine is happy with the device in that it adds security for seafarers.

Reuben Bradshaw, captain of the boat ‘Aquaholic,’ is satisfied those on land can have “peace of mind” keeping contact. He sees the device as “beneficial.” He and crew took this year’s Fisherman of the Year title.

Winsberth Harry, President of the National Fisherfolk Organisation, pictured with device in hand, fully endorses the installation of the tracking device.

Winston Edwards is a long line fisher and thinks that the devise should be on every vessel, so that in case of an emergency, “the Coast Guard will know where you are.” Edwards wants persons to “use it wisely.”

weather which helps those depending on the sea for a livelihood to “adopt to extreme conditions and plan safer, and more productive fishing trips.”

Improving market access and economic opportunities for small scale fishers, are spillover of the technological era.

“Online platforms, mobile communication tools and block chain technology improve connectivity with markets, reduce dependency on intermediaries, and ensure product traceability,” Cruickshank-Howard dished out.

Stephan Hornsey, manager of the Environmental Fund, pointed to the easy access to the information the device provides, and echoed the call for “the fisher folk to be involved.”

He adds that “fishermen can use the

(L-R): Chief Fisheries Officer Jennifer Cruickshank-Howard, President of the National Fisherfolk Organisation Winsberth Harry, and Chairperson of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ Environmental Fund Louise Mitchell, at last Monday’s launch of the DigiFish Project.

devices to their advantage.”

Fisheries Minister Saboto Caesar reflected on the warning of his great grandmother that “sea water has no back door.”

He pointed to the elimination of “fear’ of the sea with the digital transformation that is

engulfing the new generations.

Caesar the advances that the technology encourages and urged boat owners to “take care of the device.” He considers it “important that there is a partnership to get this thing to work.”

Message from the Leader of the Opposition

V Let us support one another in the Spirit of Christmas

FELLOW VINCENTIANS AND FRIENDS,

LET US COME TOGETHERand celebrate the Christmas Season and do so with the certainty that despite our challenges, by the grace of God,

better days will come. While the past year has been difficult, the Season offers the opportunity to pause and spend time with loved ones. And it is a time to reflect on God’s enduring love for us.

The Christmas season calls on us to think about others; to ask ourselves what we are doing to connect with those around us, what we are doing to support each other, and what we are doing to build each other up.

As this is a particular time to connect with one another, I send greetings to friends and relatives in our diaspora, across the globe. You may be far away from us this Christmas time but you are in our thoughts and prayers.

The last year has been a testing time for our beautiful nation. The cost-of-living crisis continues to put severe pressure on families, who try to cope despite low wages and increasing taxes. For many people, the search for

meaningful jobs seems endless and bleak. The scourge of crime has blighted too many lives and homicides have become weekly tragedies. And of course, the damage wrought by Hurricane Beryl is still with us. For many families who lost homes and livelihoods in the unprecedented hurricane, this will not be a normal Christmas but, hopefully, they will be able to find some joy in it and see the promise of better days ahead.

Against the backdrop of challenges, I am nevertheless inspired by the people I meet and the stories about their lives that they share with me. Stories of caring and support, of lifting each other up in times of need and loss. As a people our generosity and kindness are enduring and well-known. Let us call upon these positive attributes every day, for they are our strength. When severely tested, it may be tempting to surrender

to negativity and become resigned to accepting limited prospects as our permanent condition. But we must never yield to such temptation. The Christmas miracle that began over 2,000 years ago in a manger in Bethlehem is a reminder to us all that there is always hope that we can change the world for the better.

The coming year will be a year of change, with numerous opportunities to build a brighter future. My colleagues and I are committed to leading that change and to bringing more jobs with better wages to our country, and to tackling head-on the dreadful spectre of crime that haunts our communities. I know that if we all hope together, plan together and work together, we

can make our country a place of peace, prosperity and opportunity for all.

My dear people, in a world of strife, we must more than ever work for better understanding and for peace and love everywhere as Christ teaches.

I wish you and your family joy now and hope for the future. Let us come together and look to 2025 as a year where we bring hope, opportunity, and real change to SVG. May God bless us all.

Dr. the Honourable Godwin Friday Leader of the Opposition

Leader of the Opposition Dr. Godwin Friday

V Social media slaves

MR. EDITOR,this world has changed and changed radically.

I mean, once we human beings would meet, talk, listen, argue at our homes, in bars or whenever the opportunity presented itself for us, to interact.

Now, instead of meeting face to face, we post, share, like, or dislike on some social media platform. We now stay in our own chambers, feel protected, and listen to only what we want to or support. There is no longer that human element. This could not be a good thing.

We no longer interact in a real way with people whose ideas and

positions we do not share. This type of “involvement” is not what makes us social beings. It is our face-to-face interaction that makes us social beings.

Recently, someone brought my attention to a documentary on the USA television/movie network NETFLIX. The documentary apparently records the effects of social media on young minds —suicide, mental health problems, and more frightening things.

This information apparently drove Florida to ban social media use by children under 16 and as I read last week’s VINCENTIAN,

Australia is also moving in that direction.

And don’t think for a moment that adults are not affected. We have become so “accustomed” to the “freedom” that social media offers us, we no longer feel obligated to justify our opinions — often offensive opinions, giving rise to what is popularly referred to as “conspiracy theories”.

The truth as I see it is that we are yet to “emancipate ourselves from mental slavery”. In fact, we have become slaves to a new master we call social media.

Elliot

Taking care of its own

THERE IS NOother leader in the world who can create posts for his party faithful, as our leader can.

You hear about directors of this, coordinators of that, advisor to that, etc. Since 2006, every ex-member of Parliament, exsenators, losing candidates of the ruling party, and retired public servants who are known party supporters, have

all been given highpaying jobs with perks. Many (if not all) of these ‘faithful’ are receiving a monthly pension from their previous jobs. Some of them have nothing to do. It is ‘jobs’ for the ‘family’. I wonder if some of these salaries end up in the party’s war chest. I don’t know if there is still a legal advisor to the Ministry of Health. There was an advisor,

and it was not the Attorney General. That’s how ridiculous it gets.

The legal advisor was a female lawyer who said if you cut her, you would find Labour flowing in her veins.

She was probably rewarded; after failing to win the constituency she contested early in the administration.

Concerned Citizen

Christmas and Christianity: Brief truths

THERE IS NOlogical evidence that the Messiah was born on the 25th of December.

Nowhere in the bible is the time of his birth mentioned. However, as is our tradition, we celebrate this time.

(Nine mornings are a good representation of the nine months in the womb.)

Now, the name Christians was first given to the early believers of Yeshua at Antioch in Syria, about AD43 (Acts 11:26). It was perhaps contemptuous at first but was later accepted by the believers as a fit title (1 Peter 4:16). The term Christian only accrued those two times in the Bible. And no one would have called the Messiah Jesus Christ in those days.

Yes, the child was to be born according to the Prophet Isaiah and his character is mentioned in Isaiah 9: 6-7 as a political personality and not a man of religion.

This was confirmed by Angel Gabriel, “Behold, you shall conceive in your womb and bring forth a child….. And he shall reign over the house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom there shall be no end”. Luke 1:31-33. His birth was a threat to the political leadership of the day and thousands of male children two years and under were put to death by Herod in an attempt to kill Yeshua. But his parents were guided to North Africa, Egypt, for rescue. When he was mature, he went into Palestine with a Bang. After John the Baptist was put in prison, Yeshua turned the key. “The time is fulfilled, and kingdom (government) of Heaven is at hand, change your mindset and believe the good news” Mark 1: 1415; Dan. 2: 44. That was not a gospel to establish a religion. Strange that those in opposition to the

Messiah were the religious and political leaders?

These are some of his last words to his disciples before they executed him as a political troublemaker….. “I appointed unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me, that you may eat and drink at the table in my kingdom, and judging the twelve tribes of Israel”, Luke 22: 29-30. For those of you who read this article, read also Daniel 2 and 7 and pass on this valid information as we mobilize and organize to take the kingdom of heaven. This is a briefing of the birth and philosophy of the Messiah whom the songwriters said was called Jesus.

Let us go fearlessly through the season, with the power of the kingdom of heaven.

Making use of the Sargassum

IN SEPTEMBER this year, Barbados launched the world’s first vehicle powered by renewable natural gas (RNG) derived from sargassum seaweed, rum distillery wastewater, and Blackbelly sheep manure.

This project, a significant development, was highlighted by international news services like the BBC.

The initiative, as I understand it, helps to address the environmental challenges posed by the sargassum weed, by making use of its properties. It is a case of turning what is a nuisance into a useful item.

Subject to correct, but I have not heard of any other Caricom country showing any interest in joining the Barbados effort to turn the sargassum seaweed into a useful item.

I was hoping after I heard what Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi offered, that we would have been prodded into some action as far as the sargassum seaweed is concerned. Prime Minister Modi offered the Caricom Heads assistance with dealing with the sargassum that continues to plague our shores/beaches.

From what I have read, India has long had a seaweed industry which produces phycocolloids or gum, derived from algae that are used in a variety of applications, including food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals. Among the seaweed used in this industry is the sargassum seaweed.

PEOPLE ARE ASKING:

* When are we going to get the ‘true’ story about that mystery plane that landed at the Canouan Airport from which nothing was taken off and nothing loaded? When and if we get the ‘true’ story, will the ‘truth’ cause a ‘storm’?

So, India with its pharmaceutical industry stands in a very good position to help the Caribbean to develop industries in which they can use the sargassum seaweed and other species.

* Why in today’s world of fast-moving technology and advanced systems does it take six weeks before a foreign cheque can be honoured, regardless of the amount, at BOSVG?

* What is the difference between a Press Secretary and a Press Officer?

* Is there a concerted effort to de-populate the Southern Grenadines before the next general elections?

* Why is it we never hear about how many people who arrive on each of those flights from the USA and Canada, who actually stay in SVG? And why do the authorities get so excited whenever Vincentian pilots, who have been flying for years, land a plane at AIA?

* Why did the police take so long to act to remove the barricades used to block that road in Paul’s Avenue? The blocking had started quite some months before the recent action by the police. Why did the police not respond to complaints then?

* Why are the persons who took down the traffic lights and dash them down in the Public Works Yard in Arnos vale, not charged for damage to government property?

* Would the opposition promise an increase in NIS pensions in the first hundred days, should they form government?

* When is the last time any of our radio stations played one of those Christmas songs and traditional carols on which about half of the population grew up?

We have to stop lazing around, get off our backsides and accept the help that is out there. Who knows, a sarggusmm seaweed project could be more directly beneficial than the offer of land in Venezuela.

Thomas

V A Great Gift: Adoration

(First published in the December 20, 2013, issue of THE VINCENTIAN newspaper)

“We are all making a crown for Jesus out of these daily lives of ours, either a crown of golden, divine love, studded with gems of sacrifice and adoration, or a thorny crown, filled with the cruel briars of unbelief, or selfishness, and sin. . ..” - Aimee Semple McPherson (1890–1944) US religious leader and evangelist

THE CHRISTMAS SEASON has arrived! Many individuals think of Christmas as the season for carolling and merriment. With the recent proliferation of FM radio stations, we are exposed to a multitude of Christmas music of varying types. Many enjoy the traditional Christmas carols while others prefer the local and regional calypso and parang; the popular folk music originating from Trinidad and Tobago that was brought to that nation by Venezuelan migrants who were primarily of Amerindian and African heritage and now commonly heard throughout the CARICOM region.

Over the years, Christmas has also become associated with the giving and receiving of gifts. Family members, especially children, experience a heightened sense of excitement as efforts are made to anticipate the items they may receive. And as we lead up to Christmas Day the giftgivers may be equally nervous as they trust that their gifts will be appreciated.

Each year it appears as though more effort is exerted in lighting homes, workplaces, and neighbourhoods — and this is commendable. It appears that little attention may be paid to the cost of such lighting structures and the electricity that they will consume. After all, it is considered insignificant when we think of the purpose of the celebration; the commemoration of the first coming of the Christ Child ... and remembering the star that guided the wise men to the place where the Christ Child lay.

However, Christmas is more than carol singing, gift-giving, giftreceiving, and lights. And while each of these have their value we must not lose sight of the real purpose and meaning of Christmas. This is the time of year that we set aside to remember His coming to earth some 2,000 years ago. The wise men followed the star. The angels declared the good news to the shepherds. These flock-keepers ran to see the baby Jesus as He lay in the manger (because there was no room for Him in the inn). And that same Jesus Christ, who Isaiah the prophet had prophesied would come, graced us with His presence and made it possible for mankind to be cleansed from sin. There was, and is, no other way for sins to be forgiven. And so, as we celebrate His coming, let us pause

to adore Him for doing so. Had it not been for this same Jesus Christ of Nazareth mankind would be totally lost. We adore Him as a Christ Child but more so, we adore Him as the Saviour and King who made redemption possible. We adore Him! As Christmas approaches and we make our homes ready by cleaning, painting, changing curtains, changing carpets and rugs, and all the other good things that we traditionally do at Christmas, let us exert the effort and energy to also do some “inner cleaning”: ridding ourselves of feelings of resentment, bitterness, envy, greed, malice, and so on. All of us are prone to harbour such negative feelings. We sometimes hold on to them for so long that we no longer notice that they exist ... until we do the introspection and personal cleaning exercise. Such a cleaning exercise is absolutely essential if we are to present our Lord with a clean gift of adoration. So come let us adore Him! Let us adore Christ the King with pure hearts and clean hands! He came so that whosoever believes in Him will have eternal life. What a gift! This realisation should usher us into ever greater feelings of admiration and adoration. His gift of peace and reconciliation to mankind (reconciling mankind back to God) reminds us that we should also be instruments of peace and reconciliation — especially as we celebrate His coming. Strained family relationships can be mended. Broken friendships can be repaired. He can make all these possible ... so come let us adore Him, Christ the King.

Charles Wesley (1707-1788) the English evangelist and co-founder of Methodism with his brother John, was a prolific hymn and chorus writer. He penned the words to the Christmas carol “Hark! the heraldangels sing” in 1743. The lyrics in that well known Christmas carol remind us of the need to adore Christ, the everlasting Lord; and to hail the incarnate Deity and heaven-born Prince of Peace.

Amidst all the hustle and bustle we should pause to adore Him. Amidst the various trials and tests of life we should pause to adore Him. Amidst the sickness and loss, we should pause to adore Him. Amidst the feelings of failure and self-pity we should pause to adore Him. As we celebrate our various victories/successes let us pause to adore Him. He is wonderful ... and it is all because of Him that we can have hope in the now and the hereafter. Oh, come let us adore Him!

Send comments, criticisms & suggestions to julesferdinand@gmail.com

Thinking about God again

‘A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land: 31 The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way. But what will you do in the end?’ Jeremiah 5, 30 -31.

EXCEPT FOR THE DAYS when I imagined a socialist world in my lifetime, no subject area has engaged and arrested my mind more than religion. A new and better world is still possible, necessary, and inevitable, but it appears that this effort will be much more long-term and protracted than I imagined when social consciousness arrested, detained, and condemned me to a ‘life sentence’ (Sulle’s coinage) of commitment to struggle and commitment for SVG.

This fascinating journey has taken me far and wide. I have immersed myself in the Bible, reading it cover to cover. I can best describe it as a foreboding text that makes one want to scream, cry, shrug, acclaim, proclaim, deny, and wonder.

Why would an all-powerful God who knows and sees all things, even our most secret thoughts, test us as God does with Abraham and Lot? Or order Joshua to kill all of his enemies without regard to the feeble, weak or children? Or destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, killing even innocent children? Or destroy so many human beings and countless life species with the great flood of Noah? Why is God jealous, and of whom is God jealous?

I feared math and the sciences in high school and truly perceived them as ‘hard.’ By the time I got to Brooklyn College, math, biology, chemistry, physics, and geology were compulsory requirements for graduation. These subjects opened new vistas that pointed to the secrets of life and the universe. Life’s complexity and the vastness of the universe compelled one to seek more knowledge and greater understanding. And so issues related to physics and biology grabbed my attention.

The universe is releasing its secrets fast and furious. We now know that biological scientific knowledge doubles every 18 months. Scientific research tells us that Pluto is no longer considered a planet, but stronger telescopes and more careful study have discovered hundreds of planets and other suns. Yes, the universe has more than one sun.

Life, too, has its intrigues. It can exist in extreme conditions and temperatures, such as hot springs on ocean floors or under the deepest Arctic ice.

To understand and appreciate what is coming in this century, there is no better text than John Maddox’s ‘What remains to be discovered.’ The former editor of the world’s premiere scientific magazine, Nature, identifies new areas of discovery in physics, biology, health, intelligence, the origins of life, and the beginning and end of the universe. For me, this book sits next to Ray Kurzweil’s ‘Age of the Spiritual Machine’ for an insightful look at what awaits us. Think artificial intelligence.

But back to religion, Karen Armstrong’s ‘History of God,’ ‘The Battle for God’ and ‘The Case for God’ are all classic works that lend foundation to the biblical text. Armstrong is important because she says that the notion of the literal interpretation of the bible as the word of God is a recent development. Armstrong tells us that earlier writers say the bible was viewed as Logos (mind and reason) and mythos

(myths). Importantly, Armstrong argues that we may have to give up religion to find God.

Bart Erhmann’s Lost Christianities, The Battle for Scriptures and the Faiths We Never Knew and Lost Scriptures: text dwelling on books that did not make it into the New Testament are revealing if only in so far as they point to reasons why Christianity won the battle for souls and became world dominant.

On a political level, Tariq Ali’s Clash of Fundamentalisms is absolutely indispensable if we are to understand the many long-standing religious conflicts and why the more radical and fundamentalist fringe in religion always seem to win battles, with the attendant loss of lives and destruction of cultural treasures. Syria is a most recent exhibit.

The books that have enthralled me in recent times, causing me to break my jogging regiment, wake me up at night, and prevent me from going to bed are Francis Collins ‘The Language of God and Richard Dawkins ‘ The God Delusion.

Collins, the former head of the American effort to decode the genome and the National Institute of Health, attempts to show that there is no dividing line between Science and religion. Collins, a scientist, says that the universe is too ordered for it not to have been designed by a superior intellect. He takes up many of the objections to ‘God’s design’ and explains them away.

Collins fears leaving decisions, especially ethical ones, to scientists, among whom he is pre-eminent because he is mortally afraid of the scientific mind habit or compulsion to play God. Evidently, he was too arrogant to heed his own advice because during the Covid plandemic he led the charge to smear dissenting scientists and blocked their views from contending in the marketplace of ideas.

Dawkins says that natural selection, as opposed to mere chance, is responsible for the universe and life. He says that Darwinian natural selection is more easily seen in regard to living things, but he argues that the reality of the physical world also calls into question the design notion on which creationism is premised.

Apart from sharp disagreements with persons of faith, Dawkins maintains that the world is too complex to have been designed. If the universe was designed, says Dawkins, then it stands to reason that the designer (God) has to be even more complex. This begs the question of where this initial complexity originated.

All of these readings were augmented by Sam Harris’ The End of Faith’ and Basil Charles’ From Atheism to Christianity. Martin Amis ‘Koba the Dread,’ a book on Stalin’s crimes, tops off a literacy journey for knowledge and information.

At the end of it all, one thing was confirmed: reading is fundamental.

This column was first published on January 20, 2012.

Christmas Message from the Commissioner of Police (Ag.)

V A Season of Peace, Renewal and Unity

by MR. ENVILLE WILLIAMS, Commissioner of Police (Ag)

TO

THE BELOVED PEOPLE of our nation, residents and visitors,

As the light of Christmas morning shines across our blessed Hairouna, let us pause and consider its deeper meaning. This day springs from a message as old as mankind, a call to live in harmony, a call that beckons each of us; without exception, to uphold goodwill and to walk in peace.

The toll of violence weighs heavily upon us. It robs families of their joy, silences laughter, and casts shadows where light should dwell. But this Christmas, let us reject the futility of strife and discord. On a day when we celebrate love’s triumph over darkness, let us recognize that true safety and comfort cannot flourish in a climate of strife. Peace on Earth must not remain a melody of the season; it must become the principle by which we live. It begins in the quiet recesses of the heart, shaped by the thoughts we harbor and the words we choose. From there, it flows outward, touching our homes, strengthening our neighborhoods, and uniting us as a people determined to chart a course of harmony and understanding.

As we rejoice in this season, consider that the Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force is not simply an institution; it is made up of men and women who share your collective dreams of a secure

future. We have families we hold dear; we understand your longing for quiet evenings untroubled by danger and your desire that your children might grow without fear. While we cannot erase the past, we can shape a future where calm waters replace turbulent tides. The work before us is not easy, and we do not stand apart from you; we stand with you. When you see the uniform, know that it should speak of refuge, fairness, and a promise that we hold ourselves to a standard of honor. The striving for that standard is ongoing, and we welcome the reminder that we must always improve.

To the officers across our islands, who venture out in the quiet hours of morning and the darkest hours of night, I extend my gratitude. Your sacrifices often go unseen, but the hours you pour into safeguarding our citizens, residents, and visitors matter profoundly. You face and surmount daily challenges without fanfare, and I commend your earnest efforts to protect the most vulnerable and to stand firm in the face of danger. Let this season’s spirit inspire you to carry forth your duty without prejudice, and with kindness and resolve. When we walk together in truth, when we uphold respect for all, then the shield we hold between order and chaos becomes stronger, more worthy of our people’s trust.

This Christmas, let us

hold close the ancient promise that guides our steps and opens our hearts: “Peace on Earth, goodwill to men.” In these words, we find a timeless call; one that asks us to rise above the tempests of anger and suspicion, and instead embrace that higher path illuminated by mercy, understanding, and the bonds of true fellowship. Indeed, as the Good Book reminds us, “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” In striving for peace, we affirm the noblest part of our shared humanity.

Now more than ever, we must set aside the notion that fear or vengeance should define how we live or how we view our neighbors. Hatred breaks the human bond; fear dims the spirit’s light. But each time we welcome forgiveness, each time we uphold integrity, and each time we lift one another from despair, we affirm that no darkness can prevail over a nation determined to stand together as one. It starts within the quiet chambers of our own hearts. It begins in our homes, in our friendships, in the way we greet the stranger, and in the choices we make when the world’s eyes are not upon us. Let these individual sparks grow until they merge into a flame that warms not just the days of December but every season hereafter.

We must also acknowledge truth as unyielding as the tides against our shores: the security of our nation

forms the bedrock of every dream we dare to dream. Without safety, the aspirations of our children fade. Without order, the hope of prosperity dwindles to an empty promise. Let there be no uncertainty: national security is no abstract notion. It is the shield that guards our laughter, the watchman who preserves our rest, the strong arm that ensures commerce may thrive and families may find comfort.

But our security is not only the charge of our uniformed few. True peace, peace that lasts beyond the turning of a season, is a covenant that binds us all. This Christmas, I call upon every soul who shares this blessed land to reflect on what true peace requires. From the farmer who tills the soil to the teacher who shapes young minds, from the businessman who fuels our economy to the parent who nurtures

the next generation, each of us has a role to play.

As we close this year and step boldly into the next, let Christmas remind us of what we are capable of achieving together. Let us dedicate ourselves to shaping a nation where peace is not an aspiration but a reality, where every life is valued, and where unity guides our every step. May this season renew our courage, strengthen our resolve, and fill our hearts with the unshakable hope of a brighter, more harmonious tomorrow.

On behalf of the Royal Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Police Force, may this Christmas fill you with resolve, with faith in our collective strength, and with a hope as boundless and enduring as the sea that surrounds our blessed homeland. May peace guide our steps, now and forevermore.

Let us rise above division and pettiness, joining together in a spirit of reason and goodwill, to forge a nation where harmony is not a fleeting dream but a lasting reality. To those who have taken up arms or harbored bitterness, I implore you; lay them down. Let us rise above quarrels that neither heal nor build, and instead embrace the promise of peace, where understanding and unity triumph over division and despair.

Mr. Enville Williams

ECGC docks largest grain vessel

THE EAST CARIBBEAN GROUP OF COMPANIES

(ECGC), the OECS’ biggest exporter of Flour, Rice and Animal Feeds, welcomed the arrival of its largest grain vessel in 22 years at the Campden Park port.

The impressive 600feet long vessel, carrying a substantial cargo of wheat, corn, and soya, docked at the ECGC port, marking a significant milestone in the company’s commitment to regional food security.

This groundbreaking ship size, at 600 feet in length, was facilitated with vessel owners United Bulk Carriers (UBC), and is monumental for the OECS, underscoring ECGC’s ongoing transformation. By securing larger

shipments and sharing grain vessels with other producers in the region, ECGC is further strengthening supply reliability, and price stability for its flour and feed customers in the OECS region.

“This is a proud moment for UBC,” said Amr Mostafa, President of United Bulk Carriers (UBC,) who is in St. Vincent & the Grenadines where he visited the ECGC Port.

“Facilitating the efficient transport of essential grains plays a crucial role in strengthening regional food security. We are committed to working with partners like ECGC to optimize shipping efficiencies and contribute to stable and affordable food supplies.”

ECGC CEO, J. Robert

Cato, echoed this sentiment, stating, “We are proactive in ensuring food security in the OECS. By leveraging larger vessels, we optimize our supply chain and ultimately contribute to consistent availability and affordable food prices for our customers.”

ECGC sources premium wheat, soya and corn from the USA, which is shipped to the company’s port facility in Campden Park. The

SVBL enhances its soft drinks line

ST. VINCENT BREWERY LTD. (SVBL) has introduced an exciting transformation with three fresh features to its line of Hairoun soft drinks.

The three fresh features include: reimagined innovative names, a sleek new design, and–for the first time–a full nutritional panel, providing transparency for today’s consumers’ value.

“Our new visual identity reflects our commitment to quality and celebrates the flavors of St. Vincent and the Grenadines,” said Mr. Lamont Medica Commercial Manager at St. Vincent Brewery Ltd. “We wanted to bring our Carbonated Soft Drinks to life in a way that resonates with everyone who loves these refreshing drinks, from our local fans to consumers worldwide.”

Driven by consumer insights and feedback, SVBL’s Commercial team conceptualized Island Flavours and Island Mixers as a cohesive pair. Now branded as Island Chill and Island Mix, these titles capture the essence of the Caribbean: Island Chill includes classics like Kola Champagne, Mauby, and Bitter Lemon, perfect for fans seeking pure refreshment; while Island Mix which includes Ginger Ale, Soda Water, and Indian Quinine Tonic brings enjoyment for those who appreciate them on their own but also love mixing it up with their favorite spirits.

Ms. Shafia London, Country Manager at the St. Vincent Brewery Limited also shared that “today’s health-conscious consumers want transparency, so we are proud to

(Photo Source: SVBL)

provide clear, easy-to-read nutritional labels on every bottle. Each bottle highlights sugar content, calories, and potential allergens, empowering consumers to make informed choices while enjoying the same great flavors they know and love”.

Addressing the nutritional label, Ms. London acknowledged that she was approached about one year ago by Chief Health Promotions Officer, Ms. Shanika John, about the absence of a nutritional label. This spurred a discussion and subsequent action to close this critical but overlooked label requirement gap. The company quickly made the changes to adhere to the standards of nutrition labels so they can help consumers make informed choices about the soft drink line. As such, the St. Vincent Brewery will debut Island Mix Ginger Ale, Island Chill Bitter Lemon and Island Chill Kola Champagne in their new look. (Source: SVBL)

vessel docked at the ECGC port has a capacity of 38,000 metric tons of grain. (Source: ECGC)

Below: Overhead shot of the 600-foot-long ship, the UBC Halifax at ECGC’s Campden Park Port. (Photo Source: ECGC)

Island Mix Ginger Ale, Island Chill Bitter Lemon and Island Chill Kola Champagne in their new look.

SVG Christian Council’s Christmas Message

Luke 2:7 “And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”

DEAR BROTHERS AND SISTERS, Christmas greetings in the wonderful name of Jesus Christ, our Risen Lord and Saviour!

ON THIS GLORIOUS CELEBRATION of the Nativity of Jesus, togetherness is the central theme as we make every effort to mingle and jingle with family, friends and the wider community. We have even immortalised in various songs the story of Jesus’ birth, with Vincentian calypsonian Alston ‘Becket’ Cyrus singing thus in the wellloved “Sing we Noel”. “Sing we Noël, sing we joyously Noël! Joyously sing of the news we have to tell! Born to us in the little village of Bethlehem on this day, is the little Christ Child so pure and holy; he’s sleeping there in the hay. Poor little baby, no other place was found, except in a manger with

cows and sheep around. Yet the story of this wee baby was told by angels so fair, there were wise men, shepherds to pay Him homage and bring him presents so dear.” Beyond the melodious rendition and beautiful music of Becket’s song, there is a serious message on which we will do well to ponder.

The writer of Luke’s gospel tells us that Jesus was born in a manger because there was no room in the inn, with the Greek word being kataluma. In fact, the updated edition of the New Revised Standard Version uses the term guest room instead of inn. In our modern commercialized world, we may easily regard an inn to be a motel or hotel; however, research of the then Jewish lifestyle will reveal that inhabitants stayed at relatives when they

travelled from one location to another. To accommodate such, they culturally built houses with deliberate upperlevel guest rooms, kataluma, for visiting family members and lower-level dwellings with an area for their animals to be housed. This very much reflects our community life and family interactions. In the case of Mary and Joseph, when they arrived the guest rooms may have already been filled, so they were accommodated downstairs. As such the story of Jesus’ birth is not about highlighting an insensitive innkeeper; but rather reflecting the fact that Jesus was born in humble circumstances of lower-level dwelling, with this babe being laid in a manger, the animal feeding trough.

Importantly, Jesus was birthed in a community setting among family.

Vitally though, despite the circumstances of Jesus’ birth, God was still able to carry out his intervention into human inhabitant as Emmanuel, God is with us. In fact, all through the centuries, before and after the birth of Jesus, God the mighty redeemer was able to do his will, and I believe desires to do the same among us.

Due to the passage of Hurricane Beryl, this Christmas there will be many from the Grenadines who will be residing with family, friends and others in mainland St. Vincent. At the same time, those who remained in the devastated circumstances in the respective Grenadine Island will spend Christmas in a

restrained manner.

Furthermore, because of unemployment or hardships of one kind or another, some will have little income, and we must be very concerned for these our brothers and sisters. With the opportunity provided, we therefore ought to continue to joyfully help wherever necessary and share one another’s burden, as we strive for wholistic living.

Praise God, at Christmas we celebrate the birth of Jesus our Saviour and not the circumstances of his then dwelling. So, like Becket we too can acclaim, “Sing we Noël, sing we joyously Noël! joyously sing of the news we have to tell!”

Fellow Vincentian citizens, residents and visitors, please mingle and jingle with each other in love, peace,

respect and harmony. Destroy the guns, refrain from anger, stop the abuse, and praise God for his great love and rich mercy in Jesus Christ. Let us live beyond the striving for mere material acquisitions that leave us stressed, angry and insensitive to the needs of others. Let’s join in worship and making room for Jesus, rejoice in singing “Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King; Let every heart prepare him room, and heaven and nature sing, and heaven and nature sing.”

A Very Happy and Blessed Christmas to you, my mother, father, brother, sister, son and daughter!

Dominica Port Workers received settlement

A SUM OF FOUR MILLION DOLLARShas been paid to port workers in Dominica who were in a long-standing salary dispute with the Dominica Air and Seaport Authority (DASPA).

This follows 24 years of an impasse between longshoremen and stevedores and the Board of Directors and Management of DASPA, when the salaries of stevedores and longshoremen were reduced by 33 percent.

On Tuesday, December 17, the government announced that following a process of mediation led by Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit, an agreement was reached.

DASPA has disbursed the cheque of EC$4 million to port workers affected by the salary matter.

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit expressed gratitude to the port workers, the representatives of the Waterfront and Allied Workers Union (WAWU) and DASPA for their constructive engagement in the

Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit must have felt that he was responsible for ‘righting an historical wrong’. (Credit: CNG)

mediation process.

Over 100 port workers were affected by the impasse and are eligible to benefit from the settlement. (Loop News)

Bonus for St. Lucia’s public sector workers

ST. LUCIA’S SECTOR WORKERScan look forward to some added cash in their pockets for Christmas.

This expectation was heightened when on December 18, 2024, Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre announced that in addition to their monthly salary payments, public sector workers will each receive a one-off $500 bonus from the Government of Saint Lucia.

The one-off $500 bonus will release over $6 million in the local economy heightened expectations of bumper commercial activity this Christmas season.

The historic one-off $500 bonus payments will be deposited into the bank accounts of over 12,300 active public sector workers, contracted government workers, and government pensioners by December 20, 2024, in time for the Christmas holidays.

In a statement accompanying the announcement, the St Lucia Labour Party (SLP) government said, “The needs of Saint Lucians and the development of our country take precedence in Prime Minister Pierre’s Cabinet. By implementing targeted

Prime Minister Phillip Pierre. Who is also St. Lucia’s Minister of Finance, made the announcement himself.

(YouTube Photo)

economic policies, the government is positively impacting the lives of ordinary Saint Lucians.”

(Loop News)

Do our political leaders have the integrity to represent us globally?

by LEROY PROVIDENCE

ST. VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES has been an independent state for just over forty-five years and we are classified as a ‘democracy’. We were a colony of Britain for several hundred years during which they dominated here having overwhelmed the indigenous people, the Caribs. They brought Africans whom they had enslaved to work on the fertile lands on which they planted crops, the incomes from which fortified their socioeconomic platform which enhanced their global influence which they are still enjoying today.

After the abolition of slavery when the British land owners here could no longer own slaves their government compensated them for their loss of income. That amounted to millions of pounds. The freed slaves who had worked on those lands generating that wealth, received, not ‘a black cent’!

Coming into our own –Adult Suffrage

The riots of 1935 which were widespread throughout the English Caribbean, prompted the British government to send the MOYNE Commission which resulted in the recognition, that the treatment of the people was unjust. Effort were made to correct that and as a result, there was the introduction of Adult Suffrage in 1951. It seemed then, that we were hopefully on our way to becoming a democratic state.

In that period, immediately post 1951, Ebenezer Theodore Joshua and George Charles were prominent players in sensitizing the society of the progeny of ex-slaves, whose very survival was anchored on their access to, and employment on land which they produced healthy foods and raised animals. In the villages,

the men so engaged left their homes in the mornings between six and eight o’clock, some of them having to travel as far as five to six miles to get to their farms. They generally returned just before sunset.

From the mound on which I sit, I think it is important to document here, that even after the British farmers had ceased using the lands here, the British administrators continued to keep the farm roads in good repair so that our farmers had no difficulty getting to their farms.

E.T. Joshua’s overwhelming contribution

It must also never be forgotten that Ebenezer Theodore Joshua when he was Chief Minister, paid particular attention to the provision of roads and schools. So much so, that the main criticism of him for years was, “all he doing is building roads and school”!

We Vincentians seem to have forgotten, that Mr. Joshua was the leader of our government when the airport at Arnos Vale was built and commissioned.

Prominent players on that project were our own Mr. ‘Red’ John and the engineer Pitcain, a Lucian.

The surface was properly done, and no “basin-holes” appeared after a few years. It seems distinctly immature, that our present crop of administrators should be indifferent to the contribution that Ebenezer Joshua had made to the people, with the construction of that facility, which has served us so well. On the basis of the prevailing facts, how does the Joshua (Shopping Centre) compare with the Diamond Athletic Track?

I regard it as an insult to the Joshua family!

Ebenezer’s son, Dr. Michael Joshua and I were in class at the St. Vincent Grammar

School, together under the tutelage of the venerable W.M. Lopey and his illustrious staff.

Spiritual Baptist –Prominent players

It should also be remembered that it was Ebenezer Joshua who initiated the process which resulted in the deserved recognition of the Spiritual Baptist as an authentic religious organization of our society.

One can still remember that they used to be debarred from conducting their meetings in residential areas. Up to the 1940s, their meeting places were located in the mountains.

Fortunately, they were able to get to them fairly easily because of the quality of the maintenance of those farm roads, by the administrators in those times.

In those years the Spiritual Baptist organizations, ‘the Shakers’, were the predominant players, religiously, in the lives of the Vincentian community made up primarily of the progeny of ex-slaves, and they played a distinctly harmonizing role in the society.

Mr. Joshua’s contribution to the spiritual anchoring of this society is still clearly unmatched even after almost seven decades.

Dr. Michael Joshua, the son of Ebenezer Joshua is a worthy reflector of his father’s desire to make a positive impact on the development of our people.

From 1979 to now

On the 27th of October this year, we in St. Vincent and the Grenadines celebrated the forty-fifth year as an independent state and in the next few days, we will be observing the Christmas season, a time when there has been traditionally the

expression of societal cohesiveness, warmhearted generosity widely spread. In the old days the farming community, which was predominant and very active all year round, seemed to have the resources to satisfy their needs in this season. This is not so today!

Despite the fact that Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, who has had the responsibility of managing the affairs of our state, had been declaring that we have made good, commendable strides as a nation, the reality is that, we are distinctly not at the point which we ought to have been after forty-five years of being an independent state, managing our own affairs. On the basis of the facts palpably exhibited, there can be other reasonable conclusions.

And since Dr. Ralph Gonsalves has been heading our government he must be held to be accountable. He can hardly be expected to defend his distinct untrustworthiness in the remaining time he has. A painfully crippling expose of his untrustworthiness is the failure to have addressed the problems facing the agriculture sector. It is well remembered that when he sought the farmers’ support in 2001 he promised that he would address the Banana Industry and aggressively repair the feeder roads. He has not yet commenced that programme probably being so busy with his ‘World Boss’ commitments.

There are some other people who must also be held accountable for the social-economic strangulation which has been retarding us during the last twenty-four years. They were people who had the intellect and whom we thought were sincerely driven and ought to have offered mature counsel to Dr. Gonsalves, when he

seemed to be pursuing a path that was not in the best interest of the people of our nation.

One such person is Renwick Rose. When as leader of the ODD in 2001 he gave support to Ralph Gonsalves, he vowed to defend the interest of the people and they believed him because of his societal orientation. How painfully sad that he is now regarded as one of the prominent players in the crippling of the agriculture sector. Where is WINFA and where is the Banana Growers Association today? We still have fertile soil, do we not?

The members of Christian Council who have proclaimed themselves to be the representatives of Jehovah on earth, should be more assertive; our constitution declares that we believe in the supremacy of Jehovah the Creator and the freedom and dignity of man. Yet in recent years, we have been seeing our administrators nakedly exhibiting injustice

against peaceful citizens and there has been no strong response from the Christian Council.

THE NEWS Newspaper of Friday, November 1st reported on the Independence Day message delivered by Rev. Afesha Miller of the Methodist Church in Kingstown, in which she called on the church in St. Vincent to repent and not be “cold-hearted and selfish”, and she called for the addressing of the needs of those who are evidently suffering around us.

If our leadership is exhibiting such disdain for citizens who have been suffering over an extended period because of policy enforced by their own administrators, can we expect them to be successful in representing us on global issues which impact us economically?

This Christmas season, this is the question we should be seriously considering as we endeavour to pursue the path to Peace and Justice.

Christmas Message from the Spiritual Baptists

INMANY AND VARIOUS

WAYS God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son. Heb 1:1.

Christmas greetings my brothers and sisters at home and abroad. It’s the time for another celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, the provided voice speaking to us these last days instead of the prophets. Many were excited at the news of His birth, but, for the staff at the Inn, one wonders what went through their minds when they told His parents no room was

Let us share the message of Jesus Christ-The Saviour of the World

available except for the stable where oxen fed on hay; His parents made it a welcome place, a true reflection of a humble beginning, but He rose to supremacy, being part of the Godhead.

God spoke through the prophets concerning the birth of Jesus Christ, Isa. 7, 10-14, 9, 2-7, 11, 1-10, Zach. 2, 10-13, but, in this era, He speaks to us through his Son.

The excitement of many waiting with high expectations to hear what God was about to reveal through his Son must not be overlooked. Notice how they did it decently and in order, not the revelry and some of the lyrics we are fed with, in the name of Christmas Carols. Whether or not he was born on December 25th is not the point, but the fact is that he was born, and His birth is worth celebrating and must not be mistaken for another

Carnival.

I call on songwriters of Christmas Carols to be mindful of the reason for the season so keep it clean and uplifting. Focus on how those who took part in the first celebration did it.

The angels started the celebration by delivering what is still today the greatest news ever delivered. To the Shepherds, they herald, “Fear not behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people. Today is born in the City of David, a Savior which is Christ the Lord, born in a manger wrapped in swaddling clothes.” Luke 2, 8-12.

The angels were not alone, as the multitude of the heavenly host joined with their praises. “Glory to God in the highest and the earth peace goodwill to all men. Luke 2, 13 & 14. If we can only pursue

that peace which Jesus Himself left before ascending on high, then the world will not be filled with wars; Israel, Palestine, Gaza, Hezbollah, Lebanon, Ukraine, and others will resolve their conflicts; St. Vincent and the Grenadines will not be seeing headlines after headlines of another murder, (at the time of writing 52 murders too much) the hatred, malice, envy, backbiting and such like will be replaced by the peace that passeth all understanding. I call on those who are planning the demise of their brother or sister to put down the weapon and seek God’s face.

At the departure of the angels, the Shepherds went in search of the child and shared the good news. What is it you are sharing today? Is it just for likes and hearts? Is it the ones that belittle your people? Or is it that which sows seeds of discord in our society, the church or the country? Let us share the message of Jesus ChristThe Saviour of the World who still saves and satisfies as God speaks through Him; today if you hear His voice harden not your heart as in the days of provocation.

Jesus said, “I am come that they may have life and have it more abundantly.” He said, “Come unto me all ye weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest, I am come to seek and to save those that are lost.”

The wise men in

finding him opened their treasures offering him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

At his circumcision, Simeon said, “Lord now let thy servant depart in peace for mine eyes have seen all that thou has done. ”Luke 2, 28-32.

We are thankful to God the Father for embedding in our hearts the knowledge of His glory, His son as a servant, made in the likeness of men, and the Holy Spirit for overshadowing Mary to be the mother of Our Lord.

The Spiritual Baptist Fraternity once again thanks Prime Minister Dr. Hon. Ralph E Gonsalves for piloting a bill in Parliament to declare May 21st 2025 the First National Spiritual Baptist Day Holiday and by extension, the Parliament for their overwhelming support. We anticipate a grand celebration next year by the Spiritual Baptist Fraternity, with our main activities from the 15th to 21st May. All praise and thanks to God.

The Spiritual Baptist Archdiocese continues its journey towards the upliftment of the faith. The Archbishop’s visits to churches and shut-ins will continue in 2025 and new activities will be posted in January 2025 and our Religious Academy is set to re-open in February next year as enrollment continues.

I am pleased to announce that BishopElect Canon Micheal Foster will be

consecrated to the glory of God as Bishop of the Spiritual Baptist Archdiocese on Sunday 19th January 2025 at the Elizabeth Cathedral, Belmont at 9:30AM. As we come to the end of the year it is time to get rid of old baggage, and anything that is a deterrent to our progress; may the Lord guide us through this troublous life, until the shadow lengthens and the evening comes, when our work is done, then in His mercy He will grant us a safe lodging and a perfect rest at last.

I am grateful for all the prayers and support that I received throughout the year and look forward to your continuing fellowship as I continue to be your humble servant; I walk by faith, not by sight.

Let me thank the management and staff of NBC Radio for the opportunity afforded me to invoke God’s presence on mornings for 2024 to begin your broadcasting. May God continue to guide your programming. On behalf of the Archdiocesan council, my wife Chermar and children, and on my behalf to all Spiritual Baptists, friends and well-wishers at home and abroad, a Merry Christmas from our house to your house. May 2025 be a prosperous and spiritfilled year for everyone and may God bless us all.

Most Rev. Melford M. Pompey