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A L L T H E N E W S Y O U N E E D T O R E A D I N T H E M O R N I N G

VOL. 31 - NO. 88 75 CENTSWEDNESDAY - MAY 22ND, 2019

MINISTER BACKS POLICE IN SHOOTING DEATHS

He accepts it was unfortu-nate situation, but accord-ing to National SecurityMinister Marvin Damesofficers did what theyhad to do in the case ofFriday’s police involvedshooting that ended fatal-ly for three suspects.

“It was an operationcarried out by the police,unfortunately some per-sons would have lost theirlives.

“I believe the policemay have recovered somefive weapons from thatscene in addition to aquantity of drugs andaccording to the police,they were fired on and ina situation like that bylaw, they did what theyhad to do,” MinisterDames said.

BY BERTHONY MCDERMOTTJournal Staff Writer

4 National Security Minister, Marvin Dames

Henfield Wants ChinaU.S Trade War SettledThe Bahamas has appar-ently been dragged intothe worsening trade dis-pute between The UnitedStates and China, accord-ing to one mediumreporting on the issue .While the Bahamiangovernment and theOpposition may notalways see eye to eye onmany issues, they sharethe same view when itcomes to One AmericaNews Network’s recentreport alleging that Chinais using the absence of aU.S Ambassador to


g See page 3... 4 Foreign Affairs Minister, Darren Henfield g See page 3...

NIB WORKERS PEEVEDEmployees of the

National Insurance Board(NIB) throughout thecountry reportedly usedtheir morning tea breakyesterday to vent their

frustrations. Speaking onthe front lawn of theCorporation’s Baillou HillRoad Headquarters, thePresident of the Union ofPublic Officers, MarvinDuncombe told theJournal that the majorbone of contention is an

unsigned five-yearIndustrial Agreement.

Mr. Duncombe said,“We are dissatisfied withthe operational practicesof National Insurance andthe disingenuous nature inwhich the Board is operat-ing. We continue to see,

every single day, thatwhatever they put on thetable or offer our offer topeople, is removed offvery quickly, and we don’tunderstand exactly who’sleading the NIB.

BY LISA KNOWLESJournal Staff Writer

g See page 4...

The week of labour activ-ities is scheduled for June2 to June 7, culminatingwith the annual Labour

Day parade under thetheme, ‘One for All, Allfor One: Securing theProtection of BahamianWorkers for FutureGenerations.’

According to Bahamas

Financial Services UnionPresident TheresaMortimer no trucks willbe allowed on this year’sparade.

“We are so pleased thatwe would have had a

meeting with the police onFriday past and we’rehappy to say that thePolice Force will beemphasizing safety and


VEHICLES RESTRICTED FOR LABOUR DAY PARADE

g See page 4...

DAVIS CALLS PM’S NATIONALADDRESS “A FLOP”The Leader of theOpposition, Philip“Brave” Davis yester-day said, “the nationaladdress of the PrimeMinister was a flop andfell flat, just like thehopes and dreams ofthousands of Bahamianswho were duped by thisdeceitful Minnis FNMinto believing it wastheir time.”

In a press statementMr. Davis said, “for thesuffering and strugglingBahamians who tuned into listen to the national

BY LISA KNOWLESJournal Staff Writer

g See page 4...

4 Leader of theOpposition,

Philip “Brave” Davis

Section A REGULAR_Section A Tues 5/21/2019 11:23 PM Page 1

Chief Executive Officerof Jetlink Adventurers,Lincoln Deal yesterdaytold graduates of theBahamas Technical andVocational Institute thatdespite the odds and dis-appointments, they canachieve what they want.

As a young entrepre-neur, who has first handexperience of defying theodd and attaining hisdreams, Mr. Deal gavethe graduates timelyadvice.

"As I look into yourfaces and I see sheerdetermination, anunquenchable thirst forsuccess and an unrelent-ing spirit of self disci-pline. I am reminded ofthe traits that define myentrepreneurial journey.

"It brings such joy tomy heart to see currentand future entrepren eurs.So many young peopledetermined to define theirown lives by using theirown talents and uniquegifts.

"Graduates you cannothave the promise withoutthe process. Often timesyou become anxious inthe middle of the process.We want the degree, butnot the courses inbetween. We want theskills, but not the train-ing involved.

"We want to be ourown boss, but not withthe sacrifice needed tomake it happen, and with-out the process, you willnot learn how to appreci-

ate the promise," Mr.Deal said.

Having been rejectedon several occasions,before obtaining his busi-ness license, Mr. Dealtold the graduates that hemay not have been wherehe is, if he was not per-sistent.

"Without all thosecourses, you could notappreciate the success ofgraduation. Withoutthose exams and practi-cals, you wouldn't be thegreat technician you aretoday. It's all a part of it,so build character," Mr.Deal said.

"God isn't just prepar-ing the blessing for you,

but he is preparing youfor the blessings," headded.

Mr. Deal encouragedthe graduates and toldthem that all things arepossible.

"No matter how strongyour opposition is, if Godbe for you, who can beagainst you.

"I want to admonishyou to first and foremost,be bold and take risks. Lifeis about risking it all for adream that no one else cansee but you.

"The hardest part aboutchasing your dreams grad-uate, is in being bold. Inbeing bold, it's trying tounderstand if God is giv-

ing you signs to stop or ifhe's testing your faith tokeep going.

"Don't let the no's of life

hold you back. As you bebold and take risks, theremay be failure, but failureis not final," Mr. Deal said.

BTVI graduated 300students in their 2019Class, 50 more than it didin 2018.

A2 NationalNEWSThe Bahama Journal

Wednesday - May 22nd, 2019

300 Graduate From BTVI The Bahamas Technicaland Vocational Institute(BTVI) has improved itsquality of education, hav-ing received regionalawards and examinationaccreditation.

President of BTVI, Dr.Robert Robertson,addressing graduates atthe Institute'sC o m m e n c e m e n tCeremony yesterday,said the institution con-tinues to build its brandto address the skills gap,having received two topRegional awards andCity and Guilds accredi-tation.

"In 2016, when Idelivered my inauguralgraduation speech asBTVI's President, I saidto that graduating classthat BTVI is 'not a dump-ing ground for low-achieving students or

those who are not collegematerial'.

"Three years later, twoconsecutive TopRegional Awards and theattainment of City andGuilds accreditation, notonly in my viewremained the same, it hasbeen proven by our manysuccess stories," Dr.Robertson said.

Three hundred skilledand trained students fromBTVI entered the jobmarket yesterday fol-lowing their graduationfrom the institute.

Dr. Robertson told theclass of 2019 that theynow begin their individ-ual journeys.

"Class of 2019, wel-come to the first line inyour stories of success tobuild your brand and thatof BTVI.Congratulations!

"Though thisC o m m e n c e m e n tCeremony for some of

you mark the end of yourjourney at BTVI, theword commencementitself means the begin-ning of something.

"I don't want you tobelieve that this is wherethe hard work ends orthis is the time to becomecomplacent. In fact, it isquite the opposite; this isthe moment where allyour hard work and per-sistence mean the most.

"It is now that you willput those salon manage-ment, practicum andentrepreneurial work-force prep lessons to thetest; those coupled withyour internship experi-ence," Dr. Robertsonsaid.

With BTVI former stu-dents working throughoutthe United States ofAmerica, Dr. Robinsonsaid BTVI's vision goesbeyond just TheBahamas.

"This week the Wall

Street Journal ran a seriesof articles titled ‘WhatEmployers Want FromYoung Hires’.Specifically, employersare looking for communi-cation skills, listeningskills, numeracy andadaptability.

"The skills gap is glob-al; it is real, and it is par-ticularly about technicaland vocational skills...welive in changing times.

"We have graduateslike Princeton Boston,who graduated from ourAuto Mechanics programin 2012 and is now aMechanical Engineer atBenteler Automotive, aGerman manufacturer forexhaust systems inMichigan.

"Like Princeton, thepossibilities for youbecame endless themoment you submittedyour application anddecided that technical andvocational training was

your ticket to success,"Dr. Robertson said.

BTVI's Chairman,Kevin Basden, applaudedthe Class of 2019, addingthat the stereotype abouttechnical and vocationaltraining must be eradicat-ed.

"You are graduating ata time when the skills gapin our Bahamas needs tobe filled. Properly trainedplumbers, electricians,welders and other tradesin the construction indus-try are needed.

"The same is true in theIT, business, cosmetol-ogy, message therapy,fashion and design andother technical and voca-tional areas.

"You are also graduat-ing at a time when pro-ductivity needs to beimproved. Be at work ontime, whether you are anemployee or as anemployer who has anappointment with a client.

Give it your best and dis-play excellence at alltimes. Good customerservice is vital," Mr.Basden said.

Established in 1949,and originally known asThe National TechnicalSchool, BTVI is a pub-licly funded institute, gar-nering support from com-munity supporters includ-ing the D'Aguilar family,and William Birchall,who at BTVI's Freeportgraduation, agreed todonate "$70,000 per yearfor two years to assist theFreeport campus in devel-oping a formal Co-opProgram to prepare stu-dents for the workforce".

BTVI has developedand executed training pro-grams for big nameemployers such as theGrand Bahama Shipyard,Freeport Container Portand CommonwealthBrewery.

BY LICEC BASTIANJournal Staff Writer

Young EntrepreneurChallenges Graduates

BY LICEC BASTIANJournal Staff Writer

4 Chief Executive Officer of Jetlink Adventurers, Lincoln Deal

GOT NEWS?call The Journal

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A3The Bahama Journal

Wednesday - May 22nd, 2019NationalNEWS

THE MINISTRY OF FINANCIALSERVICES, TRADE & INDUSTRY

THE PORT DEPARTMENT, MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT & LOCAL GOVERNMENT

MINISTER BACKS POLICE IN SHOOTING DEATHSHenfield Wants ChinaU.S Trade War Settled

Based on the reportPolice gave the media,they were tipped off thatthe suspects were at theNewgate Road homeearly Friday morning.

According to Chief

Superintendent SolomonCash, once on the prop-erty, they were confront-ed by two of the sus-pects, who opened fireon the officers.

In fear of their lives,the officers returned fire,fatally injuring the two.

A similar chain of eventsreportedly played out inthe case of the third sus-pect.

“These are the timesthat we’re living in todayand unfortunately you’regoing to have from timeto time situations like

this, but we’ll see whathappens.

“The matter is beingprepared for the coronerscourt and we’ll allow theevidence to come out andthe determination madeas to what happened,why it happened and to

get the outcome,” hesaid.

In the days followingthe incident, there havebeen growing argumentsthat the suspects werenot armed at the timepolice stormed theEastern Road home.

Meantime, four adultswere on Monday chargedin the Magistrate’s Courtwith two counts of pos-session of an unlicensedfirearm and possessionof dangerous drugs witha street value of $23,000.

influence The Bahamas.“The Bahamas govern-

ment would like to see anytrade issues between thetwo largest economies inthe world settled as quick-ly as possible, because itdoesn’t bode well for theeconomic situation any-where in the world.

“Invariably it willimpact negatively on The

Bahamas, as I understandsome reports are indictingthat it’s impacting nega-tively on those two coun-tries at the moment,” hesaid.

Hitting back at theassertion that China’smany investments in thelocal economy is beingused as influence, ForeignAffairs Minister DarrenHenfield stressed that TheBahamas is an ally of both

countries, adding that alarge portion of our econ-omy comes from foreigndirect investment.

“The Bahamas hasbeen a long time historicaland traditional partnerwith The United States ofAmerica. Bahamians feelan absolute right to beable to go to America on adaily basis and to be ableto interact withAmericans.

“Americans form alarge part of the economicdevelopment of TheBahamas through tourismand since 1992, TheBahamas has recognizedChina’s One China poli-cy.

“We are friends withboth nations, we arefriends with both Chinaand the United States ofAmerica. A large platformof our economy comes

from Foreign DirectInvestment and we con-sider Foreign DirectInvestment from any-where in the world.

“If it’s good for TheBahamas, we will look atit seriously and considerwhether or not we willaccept it,” MinisterHenfield said.

As for The Bahamasbeing without a U.SAmbassador, Minister

Henfield said the govern-ment’s hoping the U.S rat-ifies someone as soon aspossible.

The last person nomi-nated to assume thatposition was U.S RealEstate Investor andBillionaire DougManchester.

However, Mr.Manchester has encoun-tered issues with his nom-ination.

gg Continued from / PAGE 1...



A4 The Bahama Journal

Wednesday - May 22nd, 2019 NationalNEWS

NIB WORKERS PEEVED

VEHICLES RESTRICTEDFOR LABOUR DAY PARADE

DAVIS CALLS PM’S NATIONAL

“I can tell you our peo-ple, we are presently innegotiations, and we’vebeen negotiating for thelast six weeks, and itappears to me as if everytime they offer something,they are being disingenu-ous and taking it backfrom the people.”

Mr. Duncombe claimedthat NIB is prepared togive the Union nothing in

years one through four ofthe Agreement and per-haps in the fifth year, a$2,000 lump sum pay-ment.

“They had initially puta much more decent offeron the table, but the nightafter they made the offer, Igot a call from theDirector to say that theyhad made a bad mistakeand that that offer is nolonger available. We hadalready written to our

membership to say that weare prepared to meet withthem and to discuss theoffer. We find that it isvery disingenuous forthem to do what they havedone, this continues to bethe modus operandi of thisparticular Director,” saidthe Union leader.

NIB workers are alsosaid to be peeved over aslow processing claimssystem.

Mr. Duncombe said,

“we’re standing up andsaying that we are not pre-pared to allow The Boardto treat us as if we are mis-takes or illegitimate chil-dren. We have workedvery hard. We have carriedour system, the V-3System, three years ago,what was brought to us. Itdoes not work, people arenot able to get their claims,and yet we are bearing theburden of it, trying to helpthe claimers get their ben-

efits and yet, they continueto say that they are goingto fix it. It has not beenfixed.

“We are not prepared towork with this system any-more. They must fix it, ormake a decision on whatthey’re going to do,whether they are going toget a new one or not, butwe are not prepared towork with it, while theycontinue to tell us thatthey’re making mistakes

after mistakes, after mis-takes. We are standing upstrong and firm in thismatter.” he said.

Mr. Duncombe haspromised that his memberswill continue to do what-ever is necessary to ensurethere is a decent offer onthe table and their con-cerns are addressed.

Calls were made to NIBDirector Nicola Virgil-Rolle, those calls were notreturned up to press time.

enforcing the rule of novehicle in between theworkers on the parade.

“There will be vehiclesat the back of the paradeand there will be busestaking folks that cannotmarch,” she said.

This year, several activ-ities are planned in honour

of the four who lost theirlives in last year’s parade-Tabitha Bethel- Haye,Tami Williams- Gibson,Dianne Gray- Ferguson,and Kathleen Rodgers-Fernander.

Also being honored isthe late JacquelineFawkes, wife of the lateSir Randol Fawkes.

“On Sunday June 2ndat 11am, there will be a

church service at ZionBaptist Church, East andShirley Street.”

“Immediately follow-ing the church service, anunveiling ceremony ofthe memorial plaque onthe eastern wall of thechurch in dedication ofthe four honourees willtake place.

“Her Excellency theDame Marguerite

Pindling will join us atthe church service and theunveiling. The service isopen to the public,” saidSherry Benjamin, ThirdVice President of theNational Congress ofTrade Unions.

The honorees nightwill take place in June 4that the BCOPU’sWillamae BridgewaterConvention Center and a

lecture series on the WTOon June 5th at the HarryC Moore library at theUniversity of TheBahamas. Then theparade in June 7th whichwill start at 8am.

“This year’s paradewill leave the historicWindsor Park at 8:00AMtraveling north to EastStreet to Bay Street, Weston Bay Street to Navy

Lion Road, south onNavy Lion Road turningonto West Bay Street,west on Bay Street andconcluding at the site onArawak Cay,” she said.

As their will be notrucks with music thisyear, parade organizersare appealing all march-ing bands to come outand participate in thisyear’s parade.

address by the PrimeMinister, they walkedaway as hopeless as theywere before watching hisaddress.

“In the end, half ofBahamians earning$30,000 or less still can-not make ends meet. Thespeech changed nothingfor them.

“No doubt many ofthose affected Bahamiansturned in, looking forhope and help, only tohave those hopes dashed,”said Mr. Davis.

He said,“the PrimeMinister presented noth-

ing new, transformative orempowering for the hope-ful masses ofBahamians.”

“We abhor the use ofscarce governmentresources to announceroutine infrastructureworks and general day today operations such asroad paving and construc-tion of public buildingsthat were long overdue.This comes across as abu-sive.

“While we welcomethe announcement at longlast of the construction ofthe $2.5 million clinic inRagged Island, I call onthe Prime Minister to

explain the status of theclinics in Cat Island start-ed under the PLP, but can-celled by the FNM gov-ernment for no apparentreason.”

The PLP leader said,“the Prime Ministeroffered no timelines formany of the public proj-ects announced and didnot say broadly how hisgovernment expects topay for these big ticketitems.”

“I note that in the cur-rent fiscal year, revenuecollection in down, thegovernment will miss itsrevenue target by at least$400 million and has

intentionally starvednational public capitalworks to meet some elu-sive deficit target.”

“He now comes to theBahamian people with anambitious and aggressivecapital works agenda. Inlight of the forgoing, thePrime Minister does notcome across as credible orbelievable.”

“The Solar Farm at theThomas A. RobinsonNational stadium and thecarbon war room chal-lenge for renewable ener-gy for our family islandswere all negotiated by thelast PLP governmentwhen then Environmental

Minister, KenwoodDorsett, served as the co-chair of IRENA,” saidMr. Davis.

He said, “many of theprojects announced wereold PLP projects that theMinnis Governmentintentionally delayed.The $14.7 million road-works announced forNorth Andros is a primeexample. Those roadworks started several pro-gram for North Androsincluding the constructionand establishment ofBAMSI.

“In Grand Bahamawhere the FNM won allfive seats, last night’s

words from the PrimeMinister ring hollow.There is a mass exodus ofpeople leaving that islandto find work elsewhere inThe Bahamas,” said theCat Island and SanSalvador MP.

Mr. Davis appealed tothe Government again toensure that this2019/2020 national budg-et works for theBahamian people and notfor foreigners, the FNMdonor class and not toappease internationalagencies.

“Our resilient peopledeserve much more,” hesaid.





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