News for Friday, April 28, 2017

Dr Nottage 'resting comfortably' after health concerns

PROGRESSIVE Liberal Party Chairman Bradley Roberts confirmed on Friday that National Security Minister Dr Bernard Nottage was "resting comfortably" after his performance at Thursday's Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) campaign rally at R M Bailey Park raised concerns for his health.

Collie denies Izmirlian financially backing FNM

FREE National Movement (FNM) Chairman Sidney Collie on Friday denied that former Baha Mar developer Sarkis Izmirlian was financially backing the opposition party.

PSA Chairman: Officers happy after PM announces 12-hour shift pay

POLICE Staff Association (PSA) Chairman Inspector Dwight Smith on Friday heralded Prime Minister Perry Christie's announcement that officers will be paid for working 12-hour shifts in 2013 and 2014, saying that officers now feel "valued" for their efforts four years ago.

DNA 'will restore magic to Freeport'

BRANVILLE McCartney told Grand Bahamians that a Democratic National Alliance (DNA) government will restore the magic that was once Freeport, introduce new industry and seek to revive the island’s stalled tourism industry.

Jamaican woman begs for 'lenience' before drug smuggling sentence

A JAMAICAN woman begged a Magistrate for "lenience" before being sentenced to over a year in prison for smuggling over three pounds of drugs into the Bahamas inside of her abdomen.

INSIGHT: Festival chaos should have been avoided

Since the wee hours of Friday morning, Bahamians from all walks of life have been venting their anger at the astounding level of disrespect displayed by the shambolic organisation and incompetence displayed by the Fyre Festival organisers, all whilst left scratching their heads in disbelief that our Ministry of Tourism would aid and abet such efforts during Exuma Regatta week.

‘April is not over yet’ says AG over release of Baha Mar documents

ATTORNEY General Allyson Maynard-Gibson remained tightlipped yesterday when asked about the government’s pledge to have the sealed Supreme Court documents on the Baha Mar sale made public this month, saying “April is not over yet.”

Registered voter total rises to 181,000

THE NUMBER of registered voters for the upcoming general election is just over 181,000, according to Parliamentary Commissioner Sherlyn Hall, who said his team was still hard at work weeding out the names of deceased people from the register before it is certified next week.

'Heartbroken' Ja Rule: Fyre Festival was not a scam

AMID ongoing chaos at the Fyre Festival in Exuma, “mortified” co-organiser Ja Rule pushed back on Friday against mounting claims that the luxury music festival was a scam.

Embattled minister says to ignore ‘innuendos’

MINISTER of Education Jerome Fitzgerald yesterday called on Bahamians to ignore “public clutter, innuendos and distractions” as he pushed back against controversy over the fact that his mother’s insurance firm was appointed as a “broker of record” at the National Insurance Board (NIB) shortly after he took office in 2012.

Fyre Festival chaos in Exuma

THE Fyre Festival, a much-hyped luxury music event in Exuma with tickets costing up to $12,000, has been branded a “disaster” and postponed indefinitely, with reports of infrastructure and accommodation not ready, no security, cancelled flights and stranded passengers.

PM announces police overtime payment to come on May 29

PRIME Minister Perry Christie announced last night that the government will finally pay Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) officers for working 12-hour shifts in 2013 and 2014, with the first payment of the outstanding sum to be issued on May 29.

Nottage taken ill at PLP rally

INCUMBENT Bain and Grants Town MP Dr Bernard Nottage had to be seen by a doctor last night for “dehydration” after slurring and stumbling over his words during his speech at a Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) campaign rally at RM Bailey Park.

Dame Joan: Fitzgerald has no justification

AMID continued silence from Prime Minister Perry Christie over Jerome Fitzgerald’s admission that he solicited lucrative contracts from Baha Mar, former President of the Court of Appeal Dame Joan Sawyer insisted there is no way the Cabinet minister can justify his actions, which she sees as an alleged breach of the Prevention of Bribery Act.

Portability launch ‘as big as coming Aliv’

The Bahamas’ new mobile operator believes yesterday’s number portability launch is “as momentous a milestone” as its creation, given that it can now target an extra 100,000 subscribers.

Landfill bid opening delayed until today

The opening of bids for the New Providence landfill’s management and remediation contract has been delayed by 24 hours until this morning, Tribune Business can reveal.

Plane makes emergency detour to land at LPIA after smoke in cabin

AN Air Canada plane carrying 138 people from Kingston, Jamaica, to Canada had to make an emergency landing at the Lynden Pindling International Airport yesterday after smoke was observed in the cockpit of the plane.

A COMIC'S VIEW: PLP sinking in the age of pulling files

Instead of ripping off Loretta Butler-Turner’s ‘Forward Together’ campaign slogan (which she ripped from Hillary Clinton), the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) should change it to one that is more fitting these days: Hear No Evil, See No Evil, Speak No Evil.

Candidates battling it out in Grand Bahama

WITH the general election two weeks away, Grand Bahama is festooned with party flags, paraphernalia, posters and billboards of political candidates vying for the five parliamentary seats on the island.

Bahamas’ top triathletes get set for Caribbean Championships in Florida

ONE of the fastest growing sports in the country, the Bahamas’ top triathletes are preparing to face the competitors from around the Caribbean this weekend.

Sports Notes

THE Financial Bowling League completed its quarter-final round last night with Leno Corporate Services vs Deloitte & Touché & Rubis Oil Stars taking on the defending champions Moonlight Strikers.

RoyalStar: 15% of profits from ‘bad mortgage’ link

RoyalStar is aiming to “diversify” by building a closer relationship with its mortgage restructuring affiliate, its top executive yesterday revealing this will generate 10-15 per cent of its profits within the next three years.

‘Disconnect’ over NHI doctor sign-up

The Medical Association of the Bahamas (MAB) was yesterday seeking to clarify which doctors have signed on for the National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme, its president saying “some type of misrepresentation is going on”.

FNM chairman criticises Prime Minister’s silence over controversies

FREE National Movement (FNM) Chairman Sidney Collie has again hit out at Prime Minister Perry Christie’s silence over controversies ensnaring several of his Cabinet ministers, specifically the drama surrounding Education Minister Jerome Fitzgerald.

EDITORIAL – Wanted: Politicians with integrity to end corruption

WITH LESS than two weeks until the general election, the outcome remains hard to predict in the absence of any meaningful testing of public opinion in advance by pollsters who are so much a part of the political scenery in America and Europe.

Copycat slogan

THE PLP’s 2016 campaign slogan Forward Together Bahamians reminds me of its 2012 Believe in Bahamians slogan. The 2012 campaign propaganda helped to etch in the minds of angry Bahamians that the Free National Movement was, derisively speaking, the Foreign National Movement.

Low growth causes ‘major brain drain’

The Bahamian economy’s inability to grow over the last four years is exacerbating the “brain drain” of this nation’s brightest minds and talents, the Democratic National Alliance’s (DNA) leader warned yesterday.

MEDITATION: The Lord’s Prayer

Luke 11: 4: “He said to them, ‘When you pray, say Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.’ This is a shorter and older version than the one in Matthew 6: 9-10 This, then, is how you should pray:‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven’.”

News for Friday, April 28, 2017

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