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TUESDAY, MARCH 7, 2017

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Foreign creditor outrage on 2% Baha Mar offers By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Baha Mar’s outraged foreign creditors were last night talking of class action lawsuits, after being offered claim settlements as low as 2 per cent of what they are owed. James Smith, the committee’s chairman, confirmed that the settlement offers were as low as those indicated on documents passed to Tribune Business yesterday. He emphasised, though, that the foreign creditor recoveries were similar to what would likely have been obtained had Baha Mar

Slam ‘cents on the dollar’ settlements as ‘ridiculous’ Talk darkly of class action lawsuits Claims chief: Remember ‘exgratia’ payment nature James Smith gone through the US Chapter 11 bankruptcy process. And the former finance minister reiterated that the claimants should be grateful for what they were receiv-

ing, given that the payments were coming from the $100 million made available by the China Export-Import Bank, which has no obligation to take responsibility

for Baha Mar’s debts. Mr Smith was commenting after Tribune Business obtained documents confirming that some foreign creditors will recover little to nothing of what they are owed. A Latin American creditor, whose name is being withheld by this newspaper, was offered a small fourfigure sum as compensation for a debt confirmed as being in the high five-figures. This worked out as equivalent to $0.02, or two cents, out of every dollar owed. The settlement offer, which was only received this week despite being dated November 20, 2016, was See pg b4

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FINCO cuts staff 70% in five years By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net FINCO has slashed staffing levels by 70 per cent over the past five years, as it continues to outsource back office functions to its parent in a bid to cut costs in a low growth environment. The BISX-listed mortgage lender, which is 75 per cent owned by Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), revealed in its just-released annual report that staff numbers have declined from 97 in 2012 to just 29 at the 2016 year-end at October 31. Last year’s employee headcount also represent-

RBC outsource drove 54% worker slash in 2016 Lender warns on Homeowner Bill ‘uncertainty’ Mortgage delinquencies ‘unacceptably high’ ed a 54 per cent reduction on 2015’s 63, although it is unclear whether all were made redundant or merely See pg b5

New Environment Bill ia ‘an empty promise’ Providence boss in landfill talks Sarkis calls out Govt on

Baha Mar sale details

By NATARIO McKENZIE

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Prime Minister yesterday confirmed he has become personally involved in selecting a new manager for the New Providence landfill, with a well-known Bahamian financial executive involved in one of the groups the Government is talking to Mr Christie said: “I recently involved myself as Prime Minister in the process of selecting a new management company for that entire area, and for the more effective management of the site, introducing greater levels of technology and resources. “We had meetings with a foreign entity with the capacity and assets that they manage in the US, and we met with a Bahamian group who advanced a foreign partnership with the expertise and resources. They are

Baha Mar’s original developer last night urged the Government to “end the speculation” by releasing all agreements related to the project’s opening, as his verbal battle with the Government re-ignited following a lull of several months. Sarkis Izmirlian and his BMD Holdings vehicle said they “stand by” their previous statement that Baha Mar is a ‘Potemkin hotel’ being used “to deceive Bahamians into thinking the situation is better than it really is”, as the Christie administration pushed back hard. A Government statement, which appeared to come from the Attorney General’s Office, challenged Mr Izmirlian’s assertion that the Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection process he initiated would have produced a speedier resolution to Baha Mar’s woes than the Supreme Court-supervised mechanism eventually used. The Government, again playing up the sovereignty/ nationalist line, described Mr Izmirlian’s weekend assertions as “unpatriotic”, and argued that his decision to head to Delaware meant “he lost all credibility as someone who could claim to have the interest of his Bahamian employees or contractors at heart”. Arguing that Mr

Urges: ‘End speculation’ by revealing agreements Govt blasts developer’s Chapter 11 devotion Downplays delayed Spring 2018 Rosewood open Izmirlian’s Chapter 11 restructuring plan had been “devoid of details”, the Government said this exposed the fact that the original developer lacked the necessary financing to complete Baha Mar and bring it out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Questioning how Mr Izmirlian would have obtained new debt financing, given that all Baha Mar’s assets had been mortgaged to its $2.45 billion lender, the China Export-Import Bank, the Government said the constant statements to the media were merely attempts to deflect from his “failure”. And, taking on Mr Izmirlian’s statement that he remained “ready, willing and able” to purchase Baha Mar, the Government cast doubt on whether the original developer had since obtained the necessary See pg b6

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemdida.net

PM ‘personally involved’ in new manager search

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The promised Environmental Planning and ProBill was yesterday Minister: Funding to tection slammed as “an empty and come through PPP vacuous promise” by Save the Bays’ legal director, who argued it could have represented by one of the prevented the current landfinancial leaders in the pri- fill inferno if implemented vate sector, Kenwood Kerr earlier. Fred Smith QC, the Calof Providence Advisors. “Together, we were ap- lenders & Co attorney partproaching the final sort of ner, told Tribune Business concluding aspects of deter- he had little faith the Govmining a new management ernment was serious about company, and the introduc- greater environmental protion of the measures that tection given the timing of we believe would in fact the Bill’s unveiling. The draft Bill, unveiled eliminate forever and forever the kind of tragic cir- by Kenred Dorsett, miniscumstances that took place ter of the environment and housing, last week, comes out there.” Mr Kerr declined to as the Christie administracomment when contacted tion enters the final months by Tribune Business yes- of its five-year term in ofterday, but it is understood fice. For that reason, Mr Smith that the ‘foreign’ element to his group is connected to described the Bill, which See pg b4 See pg b5

Timing means Save the Bays QC has ‘no faith’

Earlier enactment could have stopped landfill inferno Warns against making BEST new enforcer

Fred Smith QC

PAGE 2, Tuesday, March 7, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

$35m Rosewood spend prior to 2018 opening Baha Mar’s prospective owner yesterday confirmed that the project’s Rosewood hotel will now open in Spring 2018, following a $35 million investment to ensure the property exceeds guest expectations. The opening date confirmation from Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE) came in a Rosewood press release that announced Luigi Romaniello as managing director for its Baha Mar property. “CTFE has scheduled the opening of Rosewood

Chain reaffirms opening in Spring next year Baha Mar for spring 2018, with an additional $35 million investment to ensure the property experience exceeds the expectations of Rosewood guests,” Rosewood’s statement said. “The investment will include enhancements of guest rooms, suites, public

spaces, additional swimming pools, and expanded culinary offerings.” Tribune Business last week revealed that the opening date for Rosewood, which is owned by CTFE, had been pushed back to Spring 2018, having originally been scheduled for November/December 2017. Mr Romaniello was saidto have begun his career with Rosewood Hotel Group in 1999 at Caneel Bay, a resort in the US Virgin Islands.

He then relocated to the US to oversee operations at the then-Rosewood Crescent Court and, in 2007, was appointed general manager of the then-Mansion on Peachtree, a Rosewood Hotel in Atlanta. Most recently, he opened Rosewood Abu Dhabi in 2013. “We are committed to introducing Rosewood Hotels & Resorts to the Bahamas. Rosewood Baha Mar will celebrate the welcoming, friendly spirit of the Bahamians, along with their rich culture, to deliver

LPIA rated region’s second best airport Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) was yesterday named by Airports Council International (ACI) as the second best airport in the Latin America and Caribbean region. This is the first year that LPIA placed in the ‘top three’ rankings for the region. Ecuador’s Guayaquil Airport took the top spot, with LPIA and Punta Cana airports in a tie for second place. In February 2014, ACI awarded LPIA ‘Best Improved’ airport in Latin America and the Caribbean, based on survey results in-

dicating passenger preferences. The win comes as the Nassau Airport Development (NAD) Company commemorates its 10th anniversary as LPIA’s operator. “This award from the Airports Council International affirms the collective goals that all of the partners and stakeholders at LPIA have been working towards for the past 10 years,” said Vernice Walkine, NAD’s president and chief executive. “The win speaks to our commitment, as a destination, to providing a tourism product with service stand-

High satisfaction in customer service at LPIA ards aligned with what our guests have come to expect and what they demand.” She added: “We are very proud to be ranked as the second highest airport in the region, and this distinction comes directly from the

feedback of passengers who use our facilities every day. As NAD celebrates our 10th anniversary at LPIA, we will continue to challenge the airport community to the ultimate goal of being the best and top airport in this region

Commonwealth to pay extraordinary dividend Commonwealth Bank Limited has declared a final extraordinary dividend of $0.06 per share based on its $57.4 million net income for the 2016 fullyear. The extraordinary dividend, approved at the bank’s February 2017 Board meeting, will be payable on March 22, 2017, to some 6,000 shareholders of record as at March 15. This will take total dividend payments to $0.36 per share for 2016, and contin-

ues a trend of quarterly plus extraordinary dividends that is designed to build sustained value for the bank’s share price. “The bank believes it is important to share its success with shareholders, especially in these challenging times,” said Commonwealth Bank’s executive chairman, William B. Sands. “This extraordinary dividend is based on our 2016 results, although for accounting purposes it will be

recorded in our 2017 financial year. The extraordinary dividend is in keeping with the long-established policy of the bank paying out an average 65 per cent of its earnings after preference share dividends to its over 6,000 common shareholders.” Despite the challenging economic environment, Commonwealth Bank’s total assets climbed to over $1.6 billion, an increase of 5 per cent compared to 2015, while net income of $57.4

million almost matched the prior year’s $57.7 million. “I am extremely proud of Commonwealth Bank’s performance in 2016. Despite the slow economy coupled with the impact of Hurricane Matthew, the bank was able to sustain its long-standing pattern of growth and profitability by following its proven business model,” said Mr Sands. “The bank finished 2016 with an extremely strong balance sheet and continued to maintain strong cap-

the genuine and refined service that is at the very forefront of our brand,” said Mr Romaniello. “I am truly honored to be part of this very special Rosewood resort, within the spectacular Baha Mar beachfront destination in Nassau. I look forward to creating new and thoughtful programming, while developing a very engaging, service-oriented family who is dedicated to Rosewood’s principle of relationship hospitality and exacting focus on details providing ex-

ceptional experiences.” Graeme Davis, president of Baha Mar’s Bahamian subsidiary, said: “I am thrilled to welcome Luigi Romaniello and his family to the beautiful island of New Providence and Baha Mar. “Luigi is a seasoned veteran in luxury hotel operations, bringing with him more than 18 years of Rosewood Hotel Group experience and repeated successes. I look forward to collaborating on his third Rosewood opening.”

and in the world.” The LPIA announcement was made as the ACI unveiled the winners of its 2016 Airport Service Quality (ASQ) Awards. LPIA introduced quarterly ASQ surveys in 2011 to test how the airport matches up against regional and global rivals. Angela Gittens, ACI World’s director-general, praised the top-ranking airports for their commitment to understanding how best to serve their customers through the ASQ Programme. “These airports have dedicated themselves to delivering a stellar customer experience,” she said. “Promoting a culture of continuous service improvement has become a matter of gaining competitive advantage and optimising non-aeronautical

revenue performance. “ACI proudly recognises these accomplishments, and we look forward to seeking more effective, efficient and profitable ways of serving the flying public together.” LPIA served more than 3.29 million visitors in 2016, and safely handled more than 81,000 aircraft take-offs and landings. Over the past decade, more than 30.5 million passengers from 67 domestic and international destinations have flown in and out of LPIA. ASQ Awards are presented to airports whose passengers have rated them highest over the course of a year. The categories are designated to recognise the achievements of airports of different sizes and in different regions.

ital and liquidity positions, both greatly exceeding statutory reserve requirements. “Our level of nonperforming loans is less than one-third of the industry average, and speaks to the quality of loans written by the bank. Those factors make us well-positioned to continue building on our past successes and take advantage of new opportunities.” Mr Sands added: “A core element of the bank’s continuing success is our team of dedicated employees, without whom we would not

have achieved such great results in 2016. “While it is clear that 2017 will be a challenging year, our internal assessments confirm that we remain on the right path to allow the bank the best opportunities to maximise shareholders’ returns. We will continue to build on the fundamentals that have assisted the bank in achieving its leadership position and sharing our success with Bahamians.” Commonwealth Bank operates 11 full service branches in New Providence, Grand Bahama and Abaco, and employs more than 540 persons.

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, March 7, 2017, PAGE 3

Local app developer in ‘overwhelming response’ By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

A Bahamian App and mobile marketing company yesterday said it had experienced an “overwhelming response” to its first consumer-based offering, describing it as a location-based deal hub. Keith Russell, owner and lead App developer at the Bahamas Apps & Mobile Marketing Co (BAMMCO), said the DealTrackr app is its first consumerbased offering for the five year-old firm. The App allows local businesses to issue real time notifications to mobile users throughout the Bahamas. “We got started on the DealTrackr App last September,” said Mr Russell. “It’s a location-based deal hub. Persons can go to their favourite stores and, while they are there, all of the deals and specials would pop up on their smartphones. “A person could also just be in the area. If they’re subscribed to the business as they’re driving past a Wendy’s, for example, alerts would show up on their phones to say what deals are going on. “That’s essentially what

the app does,” he added. “It triggers notifications when a customer is in the vicinity of a business, which in turn helps drive people in stores. If you can target people in your location, it’s a greater chance that they will actually come in and utilise whatever deal and special it is.” As a person walks past or steps into participating businesses, a beacon, placed discreetly inside, can deliver targeted messaging to their smartphones. Meanwhile, a geofencing virtual trigger can push notifications to smartphones within a set range of each business. “We have had an overwhelming response,” Mr Russell said. “It actually surprised us. It’s the strongest response we have had to any of our products. This is the first consumer-based product we’re actually putting out; everything else was just behind the scenes for businesses. “Businesses are excited. They can find out who is interested in the product, who is their base, and target people interested in their offering. It takes out the guesswork in marketing.” The DealTrackr App is available for free in the Google play store and Apple App Store.

Union in plea to financial workers By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas Financial Services Union (BFSU) yesterday issued an “open invitation” to industry employees, particularly those at Scotiabank and Royal Bank of Canada, to join it. Theresa Mortimer, the BFSU president, told financial services workers that it was better to have union representation and not need it, rather than need it and not have it. In her statement, Ms Mortimer referenced RBC’s recent announcement that it plans to close four branches, namely locations in Bimini and Spanish Wells, as well as at Lynden Pindling International Airport (LPIA) in Nassau and Treasure Cay. Ms Mortimer said: “We encourage all employees to join the union today so that you’re a part of the representation in place for you before the employer says your services are no longer required. “We cannot prevent the changes at the company, but we can sit at the table and negotiate benefits that will be better than the law, and sufficient notice

so that you can- properly prepare your family and not be blindsided.” She added: “We especially pledge to the employees within RBC Royal Bank and Scotiabank to help yourselves and participate as the architects of your future,and urged employees “Take control of your future. It is far better to have a union and not need one than to need one and discover that you don’t have one.” RBC told Tribune Business that all four branches will be consolidated with remaining locations, starting with the Treasure Cay branch, which will be merged with Marsh Harbour on April 7, 2017. That will be followed by the LPIA branch’s consolidation with RBC’s Cable Beach operation on May 19, with the Bimini and Spanish Wells locations to be merged with Freeport and Harbour Island, respectively, on May 26 and June 23. RBC declined to confirm how many staff will be terminated as a result of the consolidation, although sources suggested it was designed to minimise redundancies, especially at LPIA and Treasure Cay.

LPG firms keep ‘close eye’ on landfill blaze By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) companies based on Gladstone Road yesterday said they were keeping a “very close eye” on the fire at the New Providence landfill, with one shutting its doors and another adding: “We’re very concerned”. Charles Moss, a manager at Moss Gas, said the company was open for business but was very concerned

about the landfill fire. “We are very concerned about the fire because we’re right in the back of the dump, south of where Phil’s used to be,” he said. “We’re monitoring that because we have all the tanks and stuff with gas in the back. “The smoke isn’t really affecting us directly because it’s breaking more to the south, but we’re keeping an eye on it. We have to keep a close eye on it especially dealing with propane.” Another company, Car-

ibbean Gas, said it had shut down yesterday as a result of the smoke coming from the landfill. “We closed down the office because of the fire,” Tribune Business was told by an employee, claiming to have answered an emergency line. Bahamas Food Services general manager, Don Carnine, told Tribune Business that due to the direction of the winds, the Gladstone Road-based company’s operations had not been adversely impacted. “The wind luckily is

bowing towards the south. Unless the wind shifts we haven’t been adversely affected by the smoke at all,” said Mr Carnine. Residents of the nearby Jubilee Gardens community were forced to evacuate their homes Sunday after the massive fire at the New Providence landfill blanketed the community in thick, black, hazardous smoke. An evacuation order for Jubilee Gardens remained in effect yesterday as most of the area was still covered in smoke.

Bahamians should have got landfill chance ‘long ago’ By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Government should have given “serious consideration a long time ago” to proposals by Bahamian waste service providers to takeover the management and remediation of the New Providence landfill, the Democratic National Alliance’s (DNA) leader argued yesterday. Branville McCartney said: “I know that there are a number of persons who are interested in remediating or fixing this dump that the Government just pushed on the side. This is not rocket science. It happens around the world.” Kenred Dorsett, minister of the environment and housing, told Tribune Business last week that his Ministry was reviewing proposals by a Bahamian consortium and other groups in bid to resolve the New Providence landfill’s environmental and health hazards “in the shortest possible time”. Renew Bahamas walked away from its contract in Hurricane Matthew’s aftermath, after it was unable to generate the necessary income to sustain itself amid a decline in world commodities prices, and a fire that rendered its materials recycling facility inoperable for several months. Tribune Business then revealed last week that the 10-strong Waste Resources Development Group (WRDG) has met several times with the Government, which is increasingly eager for a solution to the landfill’s woes ahead of Baha Mar’s April 21 opening. Mr McCartney yesterday launched into a scathing criticism of both the for-

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Branville McCartney mer government and the Christie administration for the failure to address what he says has become a “travesty”. He questioned what became of the $23.5million loan from the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDB) in 1999 for a solid waste management programme, something he claims he never knew of while a member of the Ingraham administration. “Nothing was done with that. We are paying that

loan back and the dump still burns today, and we still have health problems,” the DNA leader added. Mr McCartney yesterday called for persons affected by the landfill fire to file a class action lawsuit against the Government. “That is a travesty. Had Baha Mar been open, the guests and employees would have been welcomed by a burning dump,” he said. “Every year around this time the dump burns. The PLP has done nothing in terms of remediating and fixing this dump. The only thing we have had is the LOI scandal. They also dealt with Renew Bahamas. Bahamians never knew what the deal was surrounding that. They have been a complete failure.” Graeme Davis, the top Bahamas-based executive for Baha Mar’s new owner, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE), recently went public with his concerns over the landfill. “It’s a huge concern for us, as it is for many businesses and persons,” Mr Davis said of the landfill on ‘The Revolution’ radio show. “The last thing we want is a toxic plume of

smoke coming over the golf course on the day we open. “We’ve already encouraged and spoken to the existing government that they need to address it, and they’ve made a commitment to address it. We’re all concerned, and want to make sure it is addressed and goes away.” DNA deputy leader Chris Mortimer yesterday reiterated that the DNA would seek to put out a request for proposal (RFP) for the construction of a scalable waste-to-energy facility at the New Providence landfill, starting at 85 megawatts (MW) The deal, which would be structured in the form of a public-private partnership (PPP) with an initial public offering (IPO) of shares to Bahamians, will allow for the Government to take full ownership of the plant after a set period. “It will create an environment that is healthy and great-paying jobs for middle class Bahamians. It will ultimately phase out the eyesore that we experience every year,” said Mr Mortimer.

PAGE 4, Tuesday, March 7, 2017

New Environment Bill ia ‘an empty promise’ From pg B1 would create a Department of Environmental Planning and Protection (DEPP), as “a political sleight of hand designed to attract the environmental vote” to the Government’s side in the upcoming election. Questioning why the Christie administration had waited so long before moving on greater environmental regulation and enforcement, the outspoken attorney suggested its earlier enactment could have prevented the ongoing crisis surrounding the New Providence landfill. He urged impacted Nassau residents to initiate both civil and criminal actions for “damage and negligence” by the Government and Department of Environmental Health Ser-

vices (DEHS), the landfill’s manager, due to the impact on their health and quality of life. “I think that it is an empty and vacuous promise being made on the eve of a general election to try and give some credibility to a series of government administrations that have, for decades, failed to protect the Bahamian environment, both for human beings and nature, on land, air and sea,” Mr Smith told Tribune Business. “It is an insult, and the height of hypocrisy, to present the fourth version of an Environmental Protection Bill on the eve of a general election, when Save the Bays, reEarth, Responsible Development for Abaco, Save Guana Cay Reef and other environmental NGOs

Foreign creditor outrage on 2% Baha Mar offers From pg B1 accompanied by a ‘Deed of Assignment’ stipulating that foreign creditors must transfer the rights to their full claim to Perfect Luck Claims Ltd. That is the China Export-Import Bank’s special purpose vehicle (SPV) through which the $100 million payout fund is being administered. “The Settlement Sum will be paid to you in return for the transfer by you of your claims against Baha Mar to Perfect Luck,” the letter, signed by Mr Smith, stated. The Deed of Assignment seen by Tribune Business,

which is itself dated November 2, 2016, calls for foreign creditors to “absolutely and irrevocably” assign their full claim to Perfect Luck in return for the measly sum on offer. “The Creditor shall not commence or continue any legal action or proceedings against Baha Mar in relation to the claim, or seek to file or file any proof of debt or seek to vote or vote in the liquidation of Baha Mar in respect of the claim,” the Deed of Assignment added. The settlement offers, though, were already igniting foreign creditor fury last night, as several contacted Tribune Business to express

NOTICE BENTON HEIGHTS S.A. Pursuant to the provisions of Section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000, notice is hereby given that the above-named Company has been dissolved and struck off the Register pursuant to a Certificate of Dissolution issued by The Registrar General on the 24th day of February, A.D., 2017. Dated the 7th day of March, A.D., 2017. Kobi G. Dorenbush LIQUIDATOR 1033 West Bay Road SMB, PO Box 32348 Grand Cayman Islands KY1-1209 NOTICE EXXONMOBIL IRAQI KURDISTAN VENTURES (CLASS E) LIMITED Pursuant to the provisions of Section 138 (8) of the International Business Companies Act 2000, notice is hereby given that the above-named Company has been dissolved and struck off the Register pursuant to a Certificate of Dissolution issued by The Registrar General on the 27th day of February, 2017 Dated the 7th day of March, A.D., 2017. T.A. Parmenter Liquidator of EXXONMOBIL EXPLORATION AND PRODUCTION FRANCE LIMITED

THE TRIBUNE

have for decades called on successive governments to pass legislation and properly fund the Department of Physical Planning.” Taken at face value, the creation of a DEPP represents a significant upgrade over the Bahamas Environment, Science and Technology Commission (BEST), which is supposed to act as the primary environmental regulator. However, BEST has no statutory basis in law and, as a result, has no enforcement or regulatory teeth to impose decisions on developers and businesses negatively impacting the environment. It can only advise, and make recommendations to, the Government on environmental matters. Mr Dorsett, though, last week said the DEPP would be the exact opposite of BEST, its existence underpinned by statute law, thereby giving it enforcement “teeth”. However, Mr Smith ar-

gued that successive governments, including the current Christie administration, had frequently sought to bypass the Bahamas’ existing environmental laws and processes via “executive diktat” - particularly the Heads of Agreements entered into with numerous developers. “So I have no faith in this vacuous promise, which I think is a sleight of political hand to attract the environmental vote in favour of the current administration,” he told Tribune Business. “This promise of an environmental Bill rings hollow, especially in the wake of a Freedom of Information Act, which has yet to be debated in the Senate or brought into effect. Again empty, vacuous promises. “I have no faith in the Minister’s sudden epiphany in the environment through the announcement of this Bill.” Arguing that the Christie administration was ‘late

again’, Mr Smith said had an Environmental Protection Bill been passed at the beginning of its term in office, the current blaze at the New Providence landfill - and associated impacts may have been prevented. “The toxins and poisons belching from the dump today could have been avoided if, five years ago, the Government had legislated an Environmental Protection Act and got rid of BEST,” he told Tribune Business, “setting up an environmental agency that was not a toothless tiger like we’ve had for so many decades. “What is happening at the landfill could have been prevented many years ago, and I don’t understand why people in Nassau don’t sue civilly for damage and negligence, and bring private prosecutions for negligence resulting in damage to their health.” Mr Smith said “the big problem in the Bahamas

was that while Parliament frequently passed laws that were sound in principle, “there is not the willpower” to execute, implement and enforce them properly. Laws and regulatory agencies often suffered from a lack of funding, impeding the execution of their responsibilities, while some legislation was enforced “selectively or when it is politically expedient”. Mr Smith pointed to the Planning and Subdivisions Act as an example where the regulatory agency, the Department of Physical Planning, lacked the necessary funding and resources to effectively carry out its mandate. He also opposed any move to transform BEST into the DEPP, on the grounds that the former had never functioned as an “independent regulator”. Mr Smith argued that the DEPP should be built anew, so that it did not inherit BEST’s traditions.

their displeasure and consider taking legal advice. “We, as many others, were royally swindled (for lack of a better word ), and a payment of 3-4 cents in the dollar is insulting,” one creditor, speaking on condition of anonymity, e-mailed Tribune Business. “We received this ridiculous settlement offer today, but strangely dated November 2016. Did you [Tribune Business] receive any information about any foreign creditors entering into a class action against them? We would gladly be part of this action, if it ever happens.” Another Baha Mar creditor, based in the UK, upon hearing the news, also asked this newspaper: “Do you know any creditors planning or creditor groups planning action? “As one of the companies that was left completely unpaid by Baha Mar, I was heartened to see the process of settling claims and the information suggesting that foreign employees and companies that provided services would be reconciled with a “high figure”, but now see we are potentially being offered 3-4 cents in the dollar.” The danger here for the Bahamas is international

reputational damage due to the discriminatory nature of the creditor payout process based on nationality. The Government’s agreement with the China Export-Import Bank stipulated that the claims of Bahamian contractors and vendors, together with those of the 2,000 former Baha Mar staff, be prioritised, with their foreign counterparts having to stand at the back of the queue. In effect, foreign creditors are having to fight over the scraps from the $100 million left over by Bahamians, with the payout process run contrary to normal liquidations, where unsecured creditors are treated equally. However, the Baha Mar payout has been able to operate differently because it is taking place outside the normal liquidation process, with the funding coming from the project’s secured creditor, the China ExportImport Bank on an ‘ex-gratia’ basis. And, despite the threats of class-action lawsuits, there is likely little tangible action that foreign creditors can take, given that their only alternative course of action would be to reject the settlement offer and make a claim against Baha Mar. It, though, has liabilities that massively exceed assets with no prospect of recovery. Mr Smith yesterday told Tribune Business that while he “understood the disgruntlement” of the foreign creditors over the relatively low settlement offers, they had to realise the Chinese bank had no obligation to finance the payments.

“That will be what it works out to about, after all the priority [Bahamian] settlements are made,” Mr Smith replied, when this newspaper asked him to confirm the ‘two-four cents on the dollar’ settlements. “It’s my understanding that it’s similar to the range they’d end up getting if it went through the US courts. Not that we were aiming for that, but that’s how it ended up.” Acknowledging the anger caused, he added: “It doesn’t hurt to remind the creditors, especially the foreign creditors, of the exgratia element to this. “I can understand, like everyone else, the disgruntlement, but we shouldn’t lose sight of the nature of the payment. I can’t speak for the Government, but I think I can venture a guess that it interpreted its mandate as not to venture beyond its own citizens.” The Government yesterday said all Baha Mar’s former Bahamian employees had received their full severance entitlement, and added that “more than 90 per cent of all Bahamian creditors have been paid in full, with the balance having received (or having been entitled to receive) significant compensation in respect of their claims”. Many Bahamians will likely care little as to the fate of Baha Mar’s former foreign employees and overseas creditors, but this nation’s reputation as a safe, attractive destination for expatriates and foreign direct investment (FDI) faces another potential hit. One former foreign employee told Tribune Busi-

ness: “I have been waiting patiently for months/years now to receive what is owed to me. I took time to fill out the forms and file them by the date requested (twice). “I received confirmation that all claims would be paid out by December 31, 2016. I then received an e-mail all claims would be paid by the end of January 31, 2017. I now do not receive any replies from the claimsspv.net website. The last reply was received on December 20, 2016.” Another added: “I am a Baha Mar expatriate employee that would just like to know what I can expect. I have been responded to on several occasions with emails giving me dates when I could expect action. “Each time a new e-mail would come on or before that date pushing back that time. The most recent said the committee would make a decision by January 31. “Repeated e-mails to the committee asking for an update on my claim have been unanswered. I have requested at least a courtesy response with still no response.” Mr Smith yesterday estimated that more than $90 million in total had been paid out to Bahamian creditors, and said of the offer to their foreign counterparts: “It’s something.” He added that the payout committee had held its last meeting, with its final instructions being to make the foreign creditor settlement offer and pay those who accepted. “There are no more deliberations that we really need to go over,” Mr Smith said.

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THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, March 7, 2017, PAGE 5

FINCO cuts staff 70% in five years From pg B1 transferred to RBC as its affiliate strives to generate efficiencies and shareholder returns. “The significant decrease in the number of employees year-over-year was attributed to RBC FINCO continuing to leverage the relationship with the majority shareholder, RBC Royal Bank,” FINCO said. “All of RBC FINCO’s branches are shared locations with RBC, and its customers can now do all their over-the-counter banking transactions at any RBC branch. “Additionally, all of the background operational functions have been outsourced to RBC. Where there have been job losses, staff were treated fairly, with dignity and utmost respect, and there are no issues in this regard.” Fanchon Braynen, FINCO’s managing director, said its core mortgage lending business would continued to be pressured by the absence of a Credit Bureau, plus the “uncertainty” created by the Homeowners Protection Bill. “Our mortgage lending business in the Bahamas continues to be challenged by deteriorating economic conditions, strong competitive pressures, the impact of Hurricane Matthew, higher level of household indebtedness, the absence of a Credit Bureau and potential uncertainty associated with the proposed Home Ownership Protection Bill,” Ms Braynen told shareholders in the annual report. Her comments further indicate that the legislation, recently introduced in the House of Assembly to make delinquent Bahamian bor-

rowers more secure in their homes, could result in unintended consequences and make Bahamas-based commercial banks even more reluctant to engage in mortgage lending. Ian Jennings, the Clearing Banks Association’s (CBA) chairman, recently told Tribune Business that the legislation, which inserts the courts into the contractual relationship between borrower and lender, had several areas of uncertainty that would need to be clarified by judicial rulings. The Government has also opted to bring the more populist Homeowners Protection Bill forward first, ahead of the Credit Bureau legislation, which is also ready to go. This will enable banks to better assess borrower creditworthiness and risk, and price loans accordingly, through an agency that will possess the necessary information to conduct an accurate assessment. “In order to address these challenges, RBC FINCO has taken deliberate steps to maintain a leading market share while ensuring strong credit quality and competitiveness,” Ms Braynen wrote. “In 2016, we improved our mortgage management processes, centralised insurance claims and centralised our customer inquiry process to increase efficiency and improve overall client experience. “In addition, we were able to more effectively target our high-value clients by executing on a more focused retention strategy, leveraging referrals, campaigns and by strengthening key partnerships.” Robert Johnston, FINCO’s chairman, said the

COMMONWEALTH OF THE BAHAMAS IN THE SUPREME COURT Common Law & Equity Side

mortgage lender’s earnings “continue to be volatile and under pressure” from “unacceptably high levels of delinquent and non-performing mortgages”, as well as low market growth and interest rates. Mr Johnston said FINCO’s non-performing loan ratio was now slightly higher than the commercial banking industry’s average. “Non-performing mortgages of $119.4 million (2015: $102.5 million) as a percentage of the portfolio was 13.95 per cent at the end of the fiscal year. This result is compared to 11.52 per cent at the end of fiscal 2015, and compared to the industry at 13.29 per cent as of October 2016,” he said. “Operating in the context of the flat to low recovery in the economy and high unemployment rate, RBC FINCO would continue to be challenged with allowances for credit losses resulting from the stubbornly high level of non-performing mortgages.” FINCO had previously blamed Hurricane Matthew for the $16 million increase in non-performing loans, as 2016 full-year profits slumped 54.7 per cent. It said the net income decline to $11.604 million was driven by a 56.7 per cent year-over-year increase in loan loss provisions. These rose from $15.967 million to $25.017 million at end-October 2016, the close of FINCO’s financial year, with most of the provisioning increase taken in the fourth quarter. Loan loss provisions for the three months to endOctober 2016 more than tripled, rising from $4.419 million in the 2015 comparative period to $14.501 million. This produced an $11.4 million ‘swing’ into the red, with FINCO recording a $5.804 million loss for the fourth quarter.

2016/ CLE/gen/No.00740

IN THE MATTER OF the FATAL ACCIDENT ACT, Chapter 71 of the Statute Laws of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas AND IN THE MATTER OF the Survival of Action Acts Chapter 79 of the Statute Laws of The Bahamas AND IN THE MATTER OF the HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK ACT Chapter 321C of the Statute Laws of The Bahamas AND IN THE MATTER OF the ESTATE OF BARRINGTON CONOLLY B E T W E E N: SIMONE SMALL Dependent of the Deceased and Administrator of the Deceased’s Estate And SIMONE SMALL As Next Friend of JORDON BARRINGTON CONOLLY (a Minor) son of the deceased Plaintiffs AND DOIMONT HANNA First Defendant AND KNOWLES CONSTRUCTION COMPANY LTD Second Defendant AND CCA (CIVIL) BAHAMAS LTD. Third Defendant AND BAHAMAS ELECTRICITY CORPORATION Fourth Defendant MINISTRY OF WORKS AND TRANSPORT Fifth Defendant NOTICE TO:

DOIMONT HANNA Nassau, the Bahamas

TAKE NOTICE THAT: 1. An action has been commenced against you by Simone Hall, Administrator of the Estate of Barrington Conolly, in the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas by Writ of Summons and Statement of Claim filed on May 13, 2016 and Amended Writ and Statement of Claim filed on February 21, 2017, being Action Number 2016/CLE/gen/00740. 2. It has been ordered that service of the said Writ of Summons be effected on you by virtue of this advertisement. 3. You must within Fourteen (14) days from the publication of the advertisement inclusive of the day of such publication, acknowledge service of the said Writ of Summons by filing a Memorandum if Appearance at the Registry of the Supreme Court, in the British American Building, Marlborough Street, Nassau, The Bahamas and by serving the said Memorandum of Appearance on the Attorneys whose name and address appear below, otherwise judgment may be entered against you. Dated the 21st day of February A.D., 2017 MURRIO DUCILLE CHAMBERS SUITE #9 BAYPARL BUILDING 18 PARLIAMENT STREET NASSAU, N.P. THE BAHAMAS ATTORNEYS FOR THE PLAINTIFFS

Providence boss in landfill talks From pg B1 the network involved in the Providence Energy Partners Holding Group, which he put together to offer generation capacity to Bahamas Power & Light (BPL). There are also thought to be links between Mr Kerr and the Waste Resources Development Group (WRDG), the 10-strong consortium of Bahamian waste providers that is among the groups contending to take over the landfill management. Tribune Business was yesterday told that there is “a hornet’s nest” of activity within the Government over the New Providence landfill, as the Christie administration become ever eager to find a solution that will prevent further infernos such as the one experienced at the weekend. It is under pressure on multiple fronts to come up with answers, both from Baha Mar’s impending opening and new owner, and Bahamian residents in

nearby communities - especially with a general election coming up. Mr Christie stressed that the Government had to move faster in making a decision on the landfill manager, following last October’s pull-out by previous incumbent Renew Bahamas, placing the site back into the care of the Department of Environmental Health Services (DEHS). An evacuation order for Jubilee Gardens remained in effect yesterday as most of the area was still covered in smoke. Residents of the community were forced to evacuate their homes on Sunday after a massive fire blanketed the community in thick, hazardous smoke. Kenred Dorsett, minister of the environment and housing, said yesterday that the fire did not originate at the landfill, but the facility will remain closed with respect to incoming waste. “We will resume activities on Wednesday morning,” he said. “We are taking drone aerial pictures

throughout the course of the day, monitoring those hotspots, and the technical team will make a determination as to where new incoming waste streams will go.” As for the selection of a new landfill manager, Mr Dorsett said: “We were already in a heightened position regarding a selection. As far as we are concerned we hoped that that was going to happen very soon. “The remediation plan for them was prepared by Carlos Palacious and his engineering firm, together with their international experts. The Government has approved that remediation plan and we are in heightened discussions with a private entity not only to execute it but to fund it through a public-private partnership.” Renew Bahamas, the former landfill manager, walked away from its contract in Hurricane Matthew’s aftermath, after it was unable to generate the necessary income to sustain itself amid a decline in world commodities prices, and a fire that rendered its materials recycling facility inoperable for several months.

PAGE 6, Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Sarkis calls out Govt on Baha Mar sale details Fro m pg B1 financing, suggesting neither itself nor Baha Mar’s receivers had seen any proof of funding or “credible offer”. However, Mr Izmirlian and BMD Holdings last night held their ground, reiterating that Baha Mar’s

physical construction had yet to be completed amid ongoing uncertainty over when the multi-billion dollar development will be fully open. “The fact is Baha Mar is not completed and there is no clear, definitive commitment or assurance that

is available to date before the public when Baha Mar will be completed and really opened, if at all,” the original developer said. “The issue is not the Chapter 11 process, which was the necessary and the appropriate path to pursue in order to be able to move forward to complete and open Baha Mar as quickly as possible. “The issue is Baha Mar is not open, not completed,

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and no one is saying if and when that will truly happen. The easiest way for the Government to put a definitive end to the speculation is to release all agreements for the completion of Baha Mar with CCA, CTFE and China Export-Import Bank. The facts can speak for themselves.” Mr Izmirlian’s final statement deliberately targets a sensitive spot for the Christie administration, namely its failure to deliver on recent promises to ‘unseal’ its agreement with the China Export-Import Bank for Baha Mar’s construction completion. Prime Minister Perry Christie recently said he had asked Allyson MaynardGibson, the attorney general, to begin the process of obtaining Supreme Court permission to release those documents. However, they have yet to be produced to the Bahamian people. And, given that Chow Tai Fook Enterprises (CTFE) has yet to complete Baha Mar’s purchase from the China Export-Import Bank, it is also unclear whether a completed Heads of Agreement between the former and the Government will be available. The Christie administration, meanwhile, sought to downplay Tribune Business’s revelation last week that the opening date for Baha Mar’s 200-room Rosewood property has been pushed back from November/December 2017 to Spring next year. “The fact that independent operators of other parts of the resort have suggested deferred or staggered opening dates with respect to their hotel brands does not in any way detract from the extraordinary effort and progress that has been made toward the completion of construction and opening of the resort, nor does its cast any doubt on the target date for the soft opening of other parts of the resort,” the Government said. “It is simply a reflection of the commercial realities that exist, due largely to the state in which the hotel was left by the former developer after filing for bankruptcy, and the need by these brands to ensure that they are in a position to meet the qualitative expectations of their clientele when they do open.” Rosewood yesterday said CTFE was investing a fur-

THE TRIBUNE ther $35 million in its Baha Mar resort to ensure it exceeded guest expectations, confirming the Spring 2018 opening. The Government then took issue with Mr Izmirlian’s claim that the two-year delay in Baha Mar opening has cost the Bahamas $4 billion in revenues, together with 15,000 direct and indirect jobs and $500 million in tax revenues. It argued that these estimates were “meaningless”, given that the original developer and BMD Holdings did not know how long the Chapter 11 process would have taken if it had continued to the end. Stating that Mr Izmirlian had “well over 18 months” to submit a bid to reacquire Baha Mar, the Government said no offer was submitted. “The Government has never seen a credible offer at all from BMD, nor any evidence of funding, and apparently neither have the receiver-managers as part of the Supreme Court supervised process for the sale of Baha Mar,” the Government statement said. “The irresistible inference, indeed the inescapable conclusion, must be that there is no such funding, and therefore BMD’s motivation to continue to ventilate these issues in the press is little more than petulant annoyance in not having succeeded in delaying the project indefinitely in Chapter 11 proceedings in the US. “Indeed, once Mr Izmirlian decided to file for bankruptcy in a foreign court, he lost all credibility as someone who could claim to have the interest of his Bahamian employees or contractors at heart.” Whether the Chapter 11 process would have produced a faster, more equitable resolution of the Baha Mar dispute is now impossible to determine, given how events have played out over the past two years. Another key, unresolved question is whether Mr Izmirlian had the necessary financing, or would have been able to obtain it, to get Baha Mar out of Chapter 11 protection and complete the project. The Government’s argument is that he did not, and that the invoking of Chapter 11 was merely a strategic move to gain negotiating leverage over the China Export-Import Bank in a bid to force it to take a ‘haircut’ on the debt owed to it, and also to remove CCA as the project’s contractor. Allowing Baha Mar to stay in Chapter 11 would have tied the project up “for years and years”, the Government said yesterday, a development that could have threatened its re-election prospects given how much the economy was depending on this project. What Chapter 11 would have done, though, was enable Mr Izmirlian to remain

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in control of the development rather than it be put into provisional liquidation, then into the hands of the China Export-Import Bank. While the Government yesterday accused him of protecting his “self-interest”, with an $800-$900 million investment by his family at stake, and CCA’s failure to complete bleeding him dry financially, Mr Izmirlian could hardly be faulted for this. “The constant references to the ‘Chapter 11 reorganisation process’, as if this were some silver bullet for rescuing the project, also needs to be put down,” the Government said yesterday. “As the Government has indicated on more than one occasion, Baha Mar’s ‘plan’ for the restructuring of the resort in Chapter 11 was devoid of detail, and brought into stark focus the fact that the original developer did not have the funding required to complete the resort. “The plan called for nothing more than the immediate closure and shuttering of the site, whilst the developer sought new sources of finance, however long this would have taken, with thousands of jobs being lost in the meantime,” it added. “The plan did not directly address how the developer would deal with its secured creditor, CEXIM Bank, who had extensive security over the resort for the lending they had made in sums exceeding $2.4 billion. Given an opportunity to do so, BMD did not and could not have proposed a viable path to complete and open Baha Mar.” The Government also noted how, out of the $80 million in financing offered by Mr Izmirlian’s Granite Ventures vehicle to finance Baha Mar while in Chapter 11, just $30 million was approved by the Delaware court. And only “a paltry” $15 million was eventually forthcoming. However, this assertion neglects to mention that the $80 million promised by Mr Izmirlian was impeded by the Government, as the necessary Central Bank and Investments Board approvals were never given. The Government also argued that the proceeds of Baha Mar’s $192 million claim against CCA’s parent, initiated in the UK high court, would have gone to the China Export-Import Bank - rather than Bahamian creditors - once the project was in provisional liquidation, then receivership. Mr Izmirlian and Granite Ventures tried to acquire the rights to these proceedings, but were refused by the Supreme Court. The Government said it would have been too expensive, and risky, for the provisional liquidators to pursue a claim touted by Mr Izmirlian as one of the creditors’ best recovery sources.

NOTICE Notice is hereby given that MEMLX LP commenced dissolution on the first day of March, 2017. The Liquidator is Moore Advisors, Ltd., of One Montague Place, East Bay Street, PO Box N-4906, Nassau, Bahamas.

Glinton Sweeting O’Brien, Counsel to MEMLX, LP

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that RUFUS RUDY DEAN of Rock Crusher Road, P.O. SP-61176 Nassau, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 7th day of March, 2017 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

NOTICE

NOTICE is hereby given that LOUSHY ALCIME of P.O.Box N-7060, Nassau, Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for registration/ naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 28th day of February, 2017 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, Bahamas.

PAGE 8, Tuesday, March 7, 2017

THE TRIBUNE

House GOP releases bill replacing Obama health care overhaul WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans on Monday released their longawaited plan for unraveling former President Barack Obama’s health care law, a package that would scale back the government’s role in health care and likely leave more Americans uninsured. House committees planned to begin voting on the 123-page legislation Wednesday, launching what could be the year’s defining battle in Congress and capping a seven-year Republican effort to repeal the 2010 law. Though GOP leaders expect their measure to win the backing of the Trump administration, divisions remain and GOP success is by no means ensured. The plan would repeal the statute’s unpopular fines on people who don’t carry health insurance. It would replace income-based subsidies the law provides to help millions of Americans pay premiums with agebased tax credits that may be less generous to people with low incomes. Those

payments would phase out for higher-earning people. The bill would continue Obama’s expansion of Medicaid to additional low-earning Americans until 2020. After that, states adding Medicaid recipients would no longer receive the additional federal funds the statute has provided. More significantly, Republicans would overhaul the federal-state Medicaid program, changing its openended federal financing to a limit based on enrollment and costs in each state. In perhaps their riskiest political gamble, the plan is expected to cover fewer than the 20 million people insured under Obama’s overhaul, including many residents of states carried by President Donald Trump in November’s election. Republicans said they don’t have official estimates on those figures yet. But aides from both parties and nonpartisan analysts have said they expect coverage numbers to be lower. House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said the bill

would “drive down costs, encourage competition, and give every American access to quality, affordable health insurance.” He added, “This unified Republican government will deliver relief and peace of mind to the millions of Americans suffering under Obamacare.” But besides solid opposition from Democrats, there were signals galore that Republican leaders faced problems within their own party, including from conservatives complaining that the measure isn’t aggressive enough in repealing parts of Obama’s law. “It still looks like Obamacare-lite to me,” said Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., among three Senate conservatives who have criticized the emerging GOP bill. “It’s going to have to be better.” The Republican tax credits — ranging from $2,000 to $14,000 for families — would be refundable, meaning even people with no tax liability would receive the payments. Conservatives have objected that that fea-

ture creates a new entitlement program the government cannot afford. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, wouldn’t rule out changes in the measure by his chamber, where significant numbers of moderate Republicans have expressed concerns that the measure could leave too many voters without coverage. “The House has the right to come up with what it wants to and present it to the Senate by passing it. And we have a right to look it over and see if we like it or don’t,” Hatch told reporters. Underscoring those worries, four GOP senators released a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., shortly before the bill was unveiled. They complained that an earlier, similar draft of the measure “does not provide stability and certainty for individuals and families in Medicaid expansion programs or the necessary flexibility for states.” Signing the letter were Sens. Rob

Portman of Ohio, Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, Cory Gardner of Colorado and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia opted to expand Medicaid coverage under the law and accept beefed-up federal spending for the program. Around half those states have GOP governors, who

bids people receiving tax credits to help pay premiums to buy coverage under a plan that provides abortions. Republicans said they’d not yet received official cost estimates on the overall bill from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. That office’s projections on the bill’s price tag and the number of people the meas-

“The House has the right to come up with what it wants to and present it to the Senate by passing it. And we have a right to look it over and see if we like it or don’t” are largely reluctant to see that spending curtailed. In another feature that could alienate moderate Republicans, the measure would block for one year federal payments to Planned Parenthood, the women’s health organization long opposed by many in the party because it provides abortions. It also for-

ure would cover could be key in winning over recalcitrant Republicans, or making them even harder to win over. A series of tax increases on higher-earning people, the insurance industry and others used to finance the Obama overhaul’s coverage expansion would be repealed as of 2018.

Survey finds pervasive corruption in Asia hindering progress TOKYO (AP) — A survey by the anti-graft group Transparency International shows that bribery and other forms of corruption are hindering poverty alleviation and hurting public health in Asia by channeling resources away from those who need them. The survey, released Tuesday, estimated that more than 900 million people in the region had paid bribes in the past year to obtain basic public services like schooling and health care. Nearly seven in 10 Indians surveyed had paid such bribes. The heavy reliance of cash payments in corruption was a major factor driving Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision in October to scrap as legal tender the 500- and 1,000-rupee notes that made up 86 percent of the country’s currency. While the rate of corruption was much lower in

many countries, such practices were found even in relatively law-abiding nations like Japan, where many surveyed said they believed the government was doing a poor job of preventing corruption. Only one in five of the 21,861 people surveyed in 16 countries or territories said they believed corruption had declined, while about 40 percent believed it was increasing. Nearly three-quarters of all Chinese said they believed corruption had grown worse recently, despite the ruling Communist Party’s perennial anti-graft campaigns. The issue remains a problem even in Hong Kong, which has a reputation for clean governance, and where a former leader of the city, Donald Tsang, was sentenced recently to 20 months in prison for misconduct. A similar proportion of South Koreans also took a dim view of their govern-

ment’s handling of graft — possibly reflecting widespread anger over an influence-peddling scandal that led to the impeachment of President Park Geunhye and the indictment of Samsung’s de facto chief, Lee Jae-yong, on bribery charges. Across the region, nearly a third of those surveyed had paid a bribe to a police officer in the previous year, while 22 percent had made such payments for schooling, and 18 percent paid them to access a public hospital. Berlin-based Transparency International said it conducted the survey of randomly selected people between July 2015 and January 2017. The group urged government leaders to deliver on promises to substantially reduce bribery and corruption by 2030 made as part of their commitments to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

MARKET REPORT MONDAY, 6 MARCH 2017

t. 242.323.2330 | f. 242.323.2320 | www.bisxbahamas.com

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX: CLOSE 1,905.96 | CHG -0.07 | %CHG 0.00 | YTD -32.25 | YTD% -1.66 BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 4.38 17.43 9.09 3.56 4.70 0.12 7.20 8.50 6.10 10.60 15.27 2.72 1.60 5.83 9.75 11.00 9.25 6.90 12.01 11.00

52WK LOW 2.70 17.43 8.19 3.50 1.77 0.12 3.80 8.15 5.50 7.72 11.00 2.18 1.31 5.80 6.78 8.56 6.60 6.35 11.92 10.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

900.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

PREFERENCE SHARES

1.00 106.00 100.00 106.00 105.00 105.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

1.00 105.50 100.00 100.00 105.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Bank of Bahamas Benchmark Cable Bahamas CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Colina Holdings Commonwealth Bank Commonwealth Brewery Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Famguard Fidelity Bank Finco Focol ICD Utilities J. S. Johnson Premier Real Estate Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A Commonwealth Bank Class E Commonwealth Bank Class J Commonwealth Bank Class K Commonwealth Bank Class L Commonwealth Bank Class M Commonwealth Bank Class N Fidelity Bank Class A Focol Class B

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00 100.00 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00 100.00 100.00

SYMBOL AML APD BPF BWL BOB BBL CAB CIB CHL CBL CBB CWCB DHS FAM FBB FIN FCL ICD JSJ PRE CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA CBLE CBLJ CBLK CBLL CBLM CBLN FBBA FCLB

SECURITY Fidelity Bank Note 17 (Series A) + Fidelity Bank Note 18 (Series E) + Fidelity Bank Note 22 (Series B) +

SYMBOL FBB17 FBB18 FBB22

Bahamas Note 6.95 (2029) BGS: 2014-12-3Y BGS: 2015-1-3Y BGS: 2014-12-5Y BGS: 2015-1-5Y BGS: 2014-12-7Y BGS: 2015-1-7Y BGS: 2014-12-30Y BGS: 2015-1-30Y BGS: 2015-6-3Y BGS: 2015-6-5Y BGS: 2015-6-7Y BGS: 2015-6-30Y BGS: 2015-10-3Y BGS: 2015-10-5Y BGS: 2015-10-7Y

BAH29 BG0103 BG0203 BG0105 BG0205 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0303 BG0305 BG0307 BG0330 BG0403 BG0405 BG0407

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing) 115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

113.70 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.03 3.92 1.94 169.70 141.76 1.47 1.67 1.57 1.10 6.96 8.50 6.30 9.94 11.21 10.46

52WK LOW 1.67 3.04 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.41 1.61 1.52 1.03 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57

LAST CLOSE 4.38 15.85 9.09 3.54 1.77 0.12 4.60 8.50 5.83 10.48 11.86 2.15 1.55 5.83 9.75 10.00 9.25 6.90 12.01 10.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.01 LAST SALE 100.00 100.00 100.00 105.09 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

CLOSE 4.38 15.85 9.09 3.54 1.77 0.12 4.60 8.50 5.83 10.48 11.86 2.07 1.55 5.83 9.75 10.00 9.25 6.90 12.01 10.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 -0.08 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 100.00 100.00 100.11 100.00 100.00 100.00 10.00 1.01

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

CLOSE 100.00 100.00 100.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00

105.26 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

0.17 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund FG Financial Preferred Income Fund FG Financial Growth Fund FG Financial Diversified Fund FG Financial Global USD Bond Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Equities Sub Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - High Yield Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Alternative Strategies Fund

VOLUME 115

4,599

VOLUME

NAV 2.03 3.92 1.94 168.44 141.76 1.47 1.64 1.56 1.04 6.96 8.50 6.30 9.80 11.13 9.63

EPS$ 0.029 1.002 -0.144 0.170 -0.130 0.000 -0.030 0.607 0.430 0.450 0.110 0.102 0.080 0.300 0.520 0.960 0.820 0.294 0.610 0.000

DIV$ 0.080 1.000 0.000 0.210 0.000 0.000 0.090 0.300 0.220 0.360 0.490 0.060 0.060 0.240 0.400 0.000 0.330 0.140 0.640 0.000

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

P/E 151.0 15.8 N/M 20.8 N/M N/M -153.3 14.0 13.6 23.3 107.8 20.3 19.4 19.4 18.8 10.4 11.3 23.5 19.7 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

INTEREST 7.00% 6.00% Prime + 1.75%

MATURITY 19-Oct-2017 31-May-2018 19-Oct-2022

6.95% 4.00% 4.00% 4.25% 4.25% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.00% 4.25% 4.50% 6.25% 3.50% 3.88% 4.25%

20-Nov-2029 15-Dec-2017 30-Jul-2018 16-Dec-2019 30-Jul-2020 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2018 26-Jun-2020 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2018 15-Oct-2020 15-Oct-2022

YTD% 12 MTH% 4.30% 4.30% 3.82% 3.82% 2.73% 2.73% 3.95% 3.95% 6.77% 6.77% 0.40% 4.04% -1.76% 1.06% -0.34% 2.70% -0.95% 1.55% 4.35% 4.69% 4.13% 4.28% 4.22% 4.64% 6.19% 3.43% 2.77% 2.98% -3.66% -3.90%

NAV Date 31-Dec-2016 31-Dec-2016 31-Dec-2016 31-Dec-2016 31-Dec-2016 31-Jan-2017 31-Jan-2017 31-Jan-2017 31-Jan-2017 30-Nov-2016 30-Nov-2016 30-Nov-2016 30-Nov-2016 30-Nov-2016 30-Nov-2016

MARKET TERMS BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00 52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks 52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume Change - Change in closing price from day to day Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings

YIELD 1.83% 6.31% 0.00% 5.93% 0.00% 0.00% 1.96% 3.53% 3.77% 3.44% 4.13% 2.90% 3.87% 4.12% 4.10% 0.00% 3.57% 2.03% 5.33% 0.00%

YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths NAV - Net Asset Value N/M - Not Meaningful

TO TRADE CALL: CFAL 242-502-7010 | ROYALFIDELITY 242-356-7764 | FG CAPITAL MARKETS 242-396-4000 | COLONIAL 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225

discontinued Indian currency notes of 1,000 denomination are seen after they were exchanged at a bank in Bangalore, India, in a government effort to crack down on corruption by banning high-denomination currency notes. A survey by the anti-graft group Transparency International shows that bribery and other forms of corruption are hindering poverty alleviation and hurting public health by channeling resources away from those who need them. The survey, released today, estimated that more than 900 million people in the region had paid bribes in the past year to obtain basic public services like schooling and health care. (AP Photo) COMMONWEALTH OF THE BAHAMAS CLE/Qui/2014 IN THE SUPREME COURT QUI/No. 149 COMMON LAW AND EQUITY SIDE BETWEEN IN THE MATTER OF THE QUIETING TITLES ACT 1959 AND IN THE MATTER of Petition of “PRAYER AND PRAISE ASSEMBLY” a company incorporate under the laws of and being involved in religious worship AND IN THE MATTER of ALL THAT piece parcel or lot of land being Lot No.3 of Block No. 72, Englerston Addition Subdivision containing 4,967 square feet and situate on the Eastern side of Ragged Island Street approximately 100 feet South of Cordeaux Avenue in the Southern District on the Island of New Providence one of the Islands of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas NOTICE TAKE NOTICE PRAYER AND PRAISE ASSEMBELY claims to be the owner in fee simple in possession of the said land and has made application of the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas Under Section 3 of the Quieting Title Act, 1959 to have its tile to the said land investigated and the nature and extent thereof determined and declared in a Certificate ‘of Title to be granted by the Court in accordance with the provision of the said Act. A plan of the said land may be inspected during normal working hours at: (a) The Registry of the Supreme Court, New Providence in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and the Chambers of V. Alfred Gray & Company, Dowdeswell House, Dowdeswell and Armstrong Streets, New Providence; NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that any person or persons having dower or right of dower or an Adverse Claim or Claim not recognized in the Petition shall on or before the 25th day of March A.D., 2017 file in the Supreme Court in New Providence aforesaid and serve on the Petitioner or the undersigned a Statement of their claim aforesaid on or before the 25th day of March, A.D. 2017 or it will operate as a bar to such claim. Dated this 22nd day of February A.D., 2017 V. ALFRED GRAY & CO. Chambers Dowdeswell House Dowdeswell & Armstrong Streets Nassau, The Bahamas Attorney for the Petitioner

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, March 7, 2017, PAGE 9

b o dy an d min d

Photos/Shawn Hanna

Anniversary shows how far ‘Walk in Paradise’ has come By ALESHA CADET Tribune Features Reporter acadet@tribunemedia.net

T

HE display of togetherness and cheer on Saturday at the Marina Village was a clear indication that it has been an amazing ride so far for the organisers behind the “Walk In Paradise” event. This event themed “Pink It In Paradise” this year featured numerous fun family-oriented activities with goodies on sale like cotton candy, a bra-decorating contest hosted by the Enigma Carnival Group, a Dunkin’ for Boobies dunk tank and a prize awarded for the wackiest dressed person in attendance. Ten years ago, the Atlantis Paradise Island’s marketing team was approached by Andrea Sweeting and other representatives of the Sister Sister Breast Cancer Support Group to host an activity of sorts in support of breast cancer awareness. The local chapter of Sister Sister had connected with a group of women from Florida who were breast cancer survivors and others who were still fighting the disease. They had decided to take a cruise to the Bahamas which they dubbed ‘Cruise for the Cure and this would be an activity in which these ladies, who were going through so much, could find an escape, albeit brief, from their struggles with breast cancer. Impressed with Sister Sister’s mission to not only provide a shoulder to lean on, so to speak, for women in the Bahamas dealing with breast cancer, but also their resolve to try and provide the costly Port-a-Cath device to these women who were going through chemotherapy, it was easy for the Atlantis team to agree to collaborate in the event. Through ‘Walk In Paradise’ they have been able to help foster special bonds of friendship between breast cancer survivors here in the country and those who cruise to the Bahamas every year from Florida. “It is an awesome feeling and I can tell you truthfully that Atlantis has been a very good corporate sponsor because of the mere fact that we have the

opportunity to walk their property,” Ms Sweeting, President of the Sister Sister Breast Cancer Support Group, said. “The event gives women an opportunity to know that there is still life and hope, and life should be enjoyed. It brings out another part of them to understand that they are not the only ones going through this, there are so many others. There are friends, family members, and sisters who can come together to enjoy this and really give thanks to the maker for having us here another year. Katie Longley, Public Relations Director at Atlantis, remembers the event years ago starting as a simple walk through the Atlantis property, allowing the ladies to see the beauty and wonder of the resort, from the architectural detail to attractions like The Dig aquarium, and Aquaventure waterscape. Five years ago they decided to step things up by adding in help from Atlantis’ Guest Services Division. From that collaboration the simple walk evolved into a fun scavenger hunt which encourages participants to find clues along the route in order to solve a bigger puzzle at the end. “Each year there is a different theme and type of puzzle to solve. We usually wrap up with a Survivor’s Ceremony complete with testimonials from breast

cancer survivors, live performances by school choirs and the Royal Bahamas Police Force Pop Band. This year marks the tenth anniversary of Walk In Paradise and again we felt it necessary to take our efforts up a notch, so not only did we host the fun scavenger hunt and Survivor’s Ceremony, we decided to make it a fair event,” said Ms Longley. She believes breast cancer affects all, whether you are the one suffering from its ill effects or you are a family member or friend of someone suffering or who has passed on. Everyone has been touched by the awful disease. “Sister Sister’s mission is a very important one in this fight to find a cure and end the suffering as they offer support to all. Walk In Paradise/Pink it in Paradise is meant to be a fun event for the whole family, but that isn’t its only function. Through this effort, we are hoping to spread awareness and raise much needed funding for Sister Sister and their mission,” said Ms Longley. Andrea Sweeting’s goal is to see the event succeeding long term. “It gives such a peace and pleasure to see these survivors smile and to know that this can happen. With this event, know that you have assisted in helping one woman and that is what we want to come away with as a community,” she said.

PAGE 10, Tuesday, March 7, 2017

Obesity and cancer Obesity affects many people worldwide. In fact, 1.1 billion adults and 10 per cent of children are either overweight or obese. As for us in the Bahamas, the obesity rate is an alarming 42.5 per cent in women and 29.7 per cent in men. The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines overweight and obesity as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health. A commonly used measure of overweight and obesity is body mass index or BMI. BMI is a simple index of weightfor-height used to classify a person as underweight, healthy, overweight, obese or extremely obese. A BMI of 25-29 is considered overweight and 30 or more is considered obese. Excess body weight is strongly linked to diabetes, high blood pressure, osteoarthritis and some cancers. After tobacco use, obesity is the second most contributing factor to developing cancer. Similar to tobacco use, our diet and physical activity level are modifiable- things that we control and thus factors we can change if we choose to. Obesity is responsible for cancer death in 14 per cent of men and 20 per cent of women. The cancers most often linked to obesity include colon, esophageal, endometrial, kidney and postmenopausal breast cancers. In men, weight gain causes increased risk of colon and es-

Dr Felicia Adderley Physiotherapist ophageal cancer and in women, an increase in post menopausal breast cancer of 30-50 per cent. Renal cell or kidney cancer is 1.53x higher in the overweight and obese when compared to people of a healthy weight. In a 40-yearold obese person, life expectancy is reduced by seven years. Cancer survivors that have an increased weight at time of diagnosis tend to have poor breast cancer outcomes. An increase in weight by more than 2kg/m after being diagnosed increases the relative risk for death in the nine years following breast cancer compared to women that maintain a healthy weight. Weight loss after menopause significantly reduces the chance of post menopausal breast cancer.

It’s time to make a change. Better eating habits and engaging in more physical activity as a part of weight management could reduce the chance of developing cancer and add years to one’s lifespan. Two important healthy eating habits that should be established are eating breakfast daily and having at least one serving of fruit daily also. 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise aerobic physical activity per week can reduce risk of breast and colon cancer by 21 per cent to 25 per cent. That’s just 30 minutes five times a week or 50 minutes three times a week. It doesn’t have to cause any expense at all. You can jog/ run in the neighbourhood or at the local park. Or if you prefer take a class at a local gym. Having an accountability partner helps keep you consistent and gives you that extra push when your resolve falters. Don’t try to overwhelm yourself by changing everything at once. Make one lifestyle change at a time. Perhaps remove soda and sugary drinks from your diet as a first step. Then reduce how often you eat rice or substitute wheat bread for white. The other part of course involves us moving more. Park a little further away from the entrance to the grocery store or take the stairs instead of the elevator.

Irresponsible masculinity We have taken to referring to most young men as being violent, and a threat to national security. To be sure, there is an unprecedented level of crime and violence on New Providence and most of it reverberates from particular quarters. It is interesting though, that if we stop and think about it, most of those violent quarters, or what has been referred to as the ‘native quarter’ by current politicians and colonial governments, to read Franz Fanon, we see this boldly in his discussion. Yet no one challenges the use of these terms or why these quarters are producing violence. We simply accept that what the authorities say is so. These young boys are terrible and the young women breed too much. They act independently of each other and the rest of society, according to officialdom. However, when we examine international studies, we see that the trends we are experiencing are not unique to our small islands but are transnational. When we talk about men and their irresponsibility, do we not stop to examine the ways leaders carry themselves? They seem to think that their performance of masculinity, the same performance they decry in the ‘poor folk’ as being unacceptable, is admirable, exemplary, cool. They can attack people in public, they can draw blood with words, they can rain down hell and brimstone on their adversaries, and they can even break the law and nothing will happen to them. They pay no consequences for their actions. However, get a poor boy from Nassau Village, Kemp Road,

Dr Ian Bethell-Bennett Simply accepting what our leaders tell us is aggravating the problems in Bahamian society Quakoo Street, John Close or somewhere in Pinewood or Jubilee, and we will see the difference. Sure, they are not as educated in conducting scalpel-like incisions with their tongues as are their leaders, but it the same monkey and the same circus. We are quick to condemn the young men for being troublemakers, uneducated and unsocialised, when all they see around them is that kind of behaviour, only in a different costume. A large number of the selfproclaimed saviours of the people are like the worst kind of junkyard potcakes. They attack and destroy, but claim no responsibility. They breed and multiply, womanise and strut their cocksure feathers, but preach the gospel and all we can see is their underwear as they

stand in the pulpit, and people tweet about whose is bigger than whose (local masculinity defined). These are the exemplars of masculinity. Their example is of the worst and very kind of dangerous, irresponsible and destructive self-assured, self-aggrandising masculinity around. In a study produced about trauma and mental health in some South African towns and cities, the researchers demonstrate that links to violence lead to this kind of dissociative and irresponsible behaviour and no medical intervention, usually because most people who live in the heavily affected areas cannot afford it. Similar studies have been conducted in the region, but we refuse to use their findings or adapt their best practices. Further, the cocksure and hensure leaders who espouse seriously flawed beliefs about violence, especially condoning and celebrating gender-based violence have a great deal to answer for. Their leadership style has aggravated an already serious problem in our society. They lead by their flaws. Why define woman and girl beating as acceptable when we understand that in homes where this is practiced, it becomes a cross-generational trend? We can show that verbal abuse is as corrosive as physical abuse, except when our leaders indulge in it. We expect women to take blows from the celebrated masculine males we promote, but this causes huge national debt and negatively impacts national mental and psychological health as well as national productivity and income. We move the so-called ‘poor people’ to the worst land, the worst hous-

It’s really about making better choices and making steps towards that healthier lifestyle. We don’t have to completely deprive ourselves of the things we like, but instead enjoy them in moderation. A little change can go a long way.

THE TRIBUNE

• For further information or

inquiries, contact Dr Felicia Adderley at Adderley Physiotherapy, 8th Terrace Centreville, at 326-3052, via e-mail adderleypt@gmail.com, visit Adderley Physiotherapy on Facebook, Twitter (@Adderley Physio) and Instagram (@adderleypt) for more information.

ing, the worst areas, they inhabit the spaces with the worst environmental damage and contamination, such as carcinogenic smoke and dust from fires that then light their homes. Officialdom sends them to areas with the worst education, unless they are exceptionally self-motivated to leave their conditions, and we wonder why they behave violently? Further, officialdom tells them that they must evacuate during these disasters, and many refuse because they have nothing and nowhere else; they will lose everything in these poorly thought out and planned impoverished areas, someone benefited from. We still blame them for their poverty, especially the women. Many times we tell them, pick better men. They have picked the best men, the only men, and usually the men have picked and then abandoned them. However, we blame the women. Then officialdom says that they must improve nourishment. We blame women for breeding and raising all dese no good chirren on dey own. It ain de men dem fault. We blame women for not being in the homes when their children are home because ‘they workin’. We blame women for poverty and not teaching boys to be good citizens. We blame women for not studying with their chirren dey raisin on dey own. We blame women for allowing their daughters to be raped. We blame women for not sending their children to school, or not buying them clothes, for not combing hair. In a country where more women than men are employed in the informal sector; where women are paid less than men, where employers can and do fire women for becoming pregnant, refuse to pay for maternity, and in homes where the level of education is low, the tendency

is to have a baby more often than insurance will pay out benefits, it is not surprising that more women than men live in poverty. More single-women-headed homes will be in the ‘worst’ areas. Has officialdom not connected the dots to why things are so bad? Do they not see their behaviour and their policies having the most significant impact on those who can barely take care of themselves? If we examine, for example, the famed breadbasket that officialdom boasts about where things are meant to be cheaper and price controlled, we see that the same $3.85, pushing up the amount slightly, that is said to feed a family will only feed them the worst food. The breadbasket is filled with the worst foods that have the lowest nutritional value. This most directly negatively affects women, and women are the most socially damned because they are not looking after their families. Lard, flour, sugar - most probably white sugar - margarine, corned beef, have been shown to be poor sources of nutrients other than fat. Fat does not allow children to excel in life. In fact, the same boasted about breadbasket creates the same deeply criticised high proportion of non-communicable diseases that plague our communities, especially our poor communities, and cause our health bills to rise. All of this negatively impacts public expenditure and is a result of public policy produced by the same officialdom who stand back and condemn women and irresponsible men for the problems in society, yet they flip birds and practice murderous deceit with charismatic nonchalance and impunity. So much for irresponsible masculinity!

Avoid arguments and wear socks for a better night’s sleep You might think wearing bed socks will put a damper on your love life, but the experts believe it encourages a good night’s sleep. The Global Council on Brain Health has reported the need to sleep well to stay mentally sharp in later life. Experts provided some recommendations to help the over-50s sleep better. To prevent waking from cold feed they recommend wearing socks. They also suggest keeping the dog (and I would think any other furry friend) out of the bedroom. And allow 15 minutes of “worry time” before disconnecting from any problems. They also suggest avoiding food, drink and booze for three hours before bedtime and avoid arguments at night. And as I’ve suggested before, keep smart devices out of sight and try to replace blue lights with a more orange, restful glow. According to the council, which was established by AARP and Age UK, everyone should aim for seven to eight hours sleep each night. Although they noted that as people age, sleeping becomes more difficult. Long spells of poor sleep can increase the risk of heart disease, obesity, diabetes, falls and cancer. Professor James Goodwin, chief scientist at Age UK, said: “Sleeping is something we all tend to take for granted, but we really have to wise up to the fact that getting the right amount of good sleep is crucial as we age, helping to protect us from all kinds of problems that can affect

Instead of watching the clock as you try to get sleep, get up and find a quiet space elsewhere. Return to bed only when you feel tired.

Bettyjoe Cooper our brains as well as our bodies. “The message is that in order to stay mentally sharp in later life – something we all care passionately about – take care of your sleep. This Global Council report on sleep contains some excellent practical tips, all of them based on the best, most up-to-date evidence available from right across the world. It points out, for example, that letting your dog or cat sleep on your bed at night might be nice for them but if they disturb you it would be much better to shut them out,” he said. “In addition, many of us spend a lot of the day looking at screens on our phones, tablets and PCs, and then at the television in the evening, but to help us to sleep well it is better not to do any of these things once we get into bed.” Weight loss, exercise and giving up smoking also helps sleep in the long term. Enjoying natural light outdoors is also important

for sleep. But experts recommend that people don’t nap for more than 30 minutes during the day. People who can’t sleep when they go to bed should move to another room until they feel sleepy again. This is so that the bed does not become associated with sleeplessness.

14 tips for a good night’s sleep • If you are not sleepy, don’t stay in bed. Find a quiet space elsewhere and return to bed only when you feel tired. • Don’t spend more time in bed than you need to. If you sleep eight hours, don’t stay in bed for 10 hours. Quality time is better than quantity. • If you have cold feet, socks may be beneficial.

• Don’t engage in heated debates before bedtime. • If you are worrier while in bed, set aside 15 minutes “worry time” to focus on the matters bothering you at night; it may help to reduce nocturnal worrying. • Relax with therapies that include meditation and breathing as they can help to fall and remain asleep. • Take note of your most comfortable sleeping position and environment. Try different positions and pillows to investigate how you lie most comfortably. • If you take naps, limit them to 30 minutes in the early afternoon. • Check with your healthcare provider if you think your health is suffering through lack of sleep. • Keep smart devices and TVs, etcetera, out of the bedroom. Try to limit the bedroom for its in-

tended use. • At night, keep the bedroom dark and quiet. Use soft amber lighting in place of regular lights if you need to get up in the night. And replace white or blue lights with softer red or orange night lights. • Maintain a bedroom temperature that helps you to fall and stay asleep. • Keep disruptive pets out of the bedroom. • Limit fluids and food three hours before bedtime. • Bettyjoe Cooper is a self-published author and the founder of Brand New Mattress Company, a retailer of bedding products located in the Hummingway Plaza, Coral Harbour Road. Call 698 4609 for more information.

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, March 7, 2017, PAGE 11

Find the courage to stop sitting small career was locked into banking. One day, the bank was changing the computer system and we were all mandated to dedicate some time to use the training kiosk to learn the new system. My enthusiasm led me to use the kiosk more regularly than others in my department. Because of this, the Training Leader invited me to lead a training session for our department. However, my Supervisor was not having it. In front of everyone, she interjected that she had 25 years of banking experience and was not prepared to sit in a training session led by me, who had only three years. The Training Leader tried her best to explain that because I had advanced furthest in the kiosk, she thought it would be of value for me to share. It was not to be. My supervisor threatened to walk out of the session if I was going to lead. Recognising how adamant she was, I simply told the trainer not to worry about it: I would not lead the session. It was probably one of the most dejected experiences I’ve endured. This idea of

someone telling you to sit small until your name call can be very immobilising. However, I didn’t allow that awful experience to hold me back. Instead, I got busy working on myself, sharpening my communication skills and preparing myself to speak fearlessly. Today, I teach/coach the power of effective communication skills to a vast group of people. Leader to leader, don’t let others push you to sit small. Instead, find your firepower, develop your skills and get busy doing what you are passionate about. It is only when you get tired of sitting small that you find the courage to stand up for your own ideas. In so doing, you move with confidence to live an empowered life. Yes, you definitely can do it.

Essential must-have items for any mom

ing a big come back with today’s mama. Babies need and want to be with their moms. They spent nine months in their mother’s belly, and they are very connected to her. There is nowhere else your infant should be other than with you. You’re not going to spoil your baby by holding them, wearing them and being connected to them. You’re actually providing important emotional bonds with your baby that will last a lifetime. And here’s the bonus part, if you choose to wear or carry your baby around, they will cry less, and so will you. Ah, peace and quiet is possible.

Many have surrendered to the saying to ‘sit small until your name call’. This position causes people to feel invisible and disempowered. The thing that is most striking about this sit small statement is that invariably many people tend to believe it. Thus, they sit small based on the way they are treated; whether by words or body language. Nobody likes being made to feel stupid - or somehow not good enough. So, after a while of being the beneficiary of this behaviour, a lot of people begin to park their entire life in that space titled ‘sitting small’. Not because they have nothing to contribute or cannot do big things. They do so because they are living under the influence of words - opinions - and actions of others. This is especially true if that person has some authority or status. Teachers, parents, pastors, politicians, managers, supervisors and other community leaders can readily influence the way people feel about themselves and what they believe is possible

There are a lot of infant and maternity products on the market that all claim to be must-have items, but not all of what they promise holds true. In fact, the opposite might be true. You may be surprised that some items that you thought you didn’t need end up being complete life savers. Here are a few essential, must-have items from a relatively seasoned mama: • Functional and fashionable diaper bag is a must. OK, I just threw in the fashionable part because that’s kind of essential to me, but if you prefer practicality over looks, all power to you. Some super thrifty mamas might disagree with me here, but I can’t stand clutter and unorganised mess. I’m not saying I’m a perfect Martha Stewart, but there’s something to gain mentally by having a neat and organised diaper bag; a place where you can have harmony amidst occasional chaos. You know what I mean right, mama? If you can splurge a little bit, I would do it here. If

Michelle Miller Motivationals

Michelle M Miller for their lives. What’s important here, however is to understand that even though these influential folks may have some clout or status, they cannot control what you choose to believe about yourself or what you ultimately do with your life. Only you do. More often than not, those whose intention is to take power over others - by way of demotivation or disempowerment - are often standing on their own

Bun In The Oven

Bianca Carter you’re really lucky, invest in a nice and functional high-end diaper bag, like Gucci or Coach. It’s beauty and practicality all in one because you can re-use most of the high end diaper bags after the diaper bag stage is over by making it into an awesome travel bag. You need tons of pockets when you

foundation of arrogance, not confidence. Blindly accepting their perceptions and opinions of your perceived limitations is a major mistake. This is why I encourage you to figure out for yourself just who you are and what gifts/talents you bring to the table. People who have not worked on themselves to address their innate fears and challenges are in no position to tell you to sit small. What they’re really saying is ‘others made me feel small, invisible and irrelevant, so I’m going to do the same to you’. This is what we call projection. People often project the way they truly feel deep inside about themselves onto others. If you are unaware, you may mistakenly take on their stuff thinking it belongs to you. It doesn’t: it belongs to them. Here’s something of an experience I had a few years ago. I’ve always imagined myself teaching or speaking in front of a group. Even though at the time, I had a whole lot of developing to do in this area, deep within me that was my desire. At that time my

travel. See, it’s an investment! • Buy a wipe warmer. My mom, bless her traditional and practical heart, told me that I didn’t need a wipe warmer for my baby registry, and I believed-her! She said that I could warm the wipes in my hand by rubbing them really fast between my hands, like in the warming-your-hands-up-inthe-freezing-snow motion. And I believed her. Then I got home with my first-born and every time I wiped him with a cold wipe he screamed at the top of his lungs, which made me want to cry too, or he peed on me, which also made me want to cry. Then I got a wipe warmer and all was well in the world. And I’ve forgiven my mom. • Belly bands are your friend. I know some of you blessed little creatures didn’t even need to wear maternity clothes; you could get away with elastic leggings, skirts and oversized tops, some cute summer dresses. And that’s so sweet, but for the rest of the not so glamorous, belly-bulging

mamas that actually grew in more than one area during pregnancy, I’m talking to you. The belly band is a life saver, game changer, and mood enhancer all in one. It’s so simple, you’re going to wonder why you didn’t invent it. It’s essentially an elasticised band that fits around your mid-section and allows your pre-pregnancy pants and apparel to stay open underneath while you feel secure that your pants won’t fall down or shift out of place. To be honest, I think the slight compression and support around the belly feels good. You can even use them after pregnancy while you wait to get back into those size 4s or 8s, or whatevers. Oh, and they make them in the neutral tones – white, nude, grey and black. High-five, right? • Get baby wrap or carrier. You will soon realise that the more your hands are free, the more you can get done, and the faster, more efficient you can be. Baby wearing has been going on for generations and it’s been mak-

Success and the single mother From pg B12 sight she would have waited until finishing tertiary education to start having children. “I think it is very important for women and their partners to plan their families. Even though I was disobedient with doing this I strongly believe that children are to come in marriage. Yet, with the way the family dynamics are changing, many women start off with husbands but find themselves single at some point along the way. So yes, life does not happen the way we envision all the time but it is very important to have plan B ready to go into motion if plan A isn’t

working so that the person doesn’t fold up if they were to find themselves one day left with the children all alone. “I am hoping that by telling my story single women become encouraged. This story is not a story to make them feel unaccomplished when compared to me, but it is to inspire them to overlook the mistakes, see that they have a bright future, and that even with a child or children, if they have the tenacity to withstand challenges, they too can achieve their goals. My ultimate goal of this story is to provide hope for every woman out there who is seeking

Crochet braid is one of the hairstyles offered by The Forum Salon.

• Michelle M Miller is a certified Life Coach and Communications/Leadership Expert. Questions or comments can be sent to coaching242@yahoo.com or telephone 429-6770 or visit www. michellemmiller.com or snail mail to PO Box CB-13060

Love and hugs! • Bianca Carter is a certified lactation counsellor and founder of Bun in the Oven. For more information, e-mail her at info@ babybunintheoven. com. Follow BITO on Facebook at babybunintheoven, and check out the BITO Blog every Monday and Thursday at http://babybunintheoven.com.

positive change. Ms Knowles’ eldest daughter Morgann is 24 and living and working in Dallas, Texas, after obtaining a degree in Business. She is pursuing a Master’s Degree in Theology. Her second daughter, Mia, attends the University of the Bahamas and is pursuing a teaching degree. In their private time Morgann is an avid activist against sex human trafficking, while Mia is being groomed to perfect her talents in the hair and nail industry. “After going through the storm for 25 years, I am proud to say that today I am still an employee of BPL, a company that I am proud to work for, a former unionist, the proprietor of The Forum Studio, and my latest venture as a part-time college lecturer. But most importantly I never forget my role as a

mother to three wonderful children, and a daughter to wonderful supportive parents. With my son as the new addition to the family, he will be reared in a solid foundation. She hopes that other single women will be built up and inspired to keeping going after hearing her story. “This story is not a story to make them feel unaccomplished when compared to me, but it is to inspire them to overlook the mistakes, see that they have a bright future, and that even with a child or children if they have the tenacity to withstand challenges they too can achieve their goals. My ultimate goal of this story is to provide hope for every woman out there who is seeking positive change,” she told Tribune Woman. • jgibson@tribunemedia. net

Some real-world twin tips for Amal Clooney, Beyonce NEW YORK (AP) — For a change, a few celebrities are chasing a trend rather than setting one — times two and three. We’re talking about the mini boom in Hollywood of expected twins, with the recent arrival of triplets for Pharrell Williams and his wife, Helen Lasichanh, thrown in as a happy bonus. Beyonce and Jay Z, along with George and Amal Clooney, have announced they’re expecting twins. It’s news that one obstetrician who has delivered hundreds of multiples said often initially stuns anxious parents-to-be. “When people are imagining a pregnancy, it’s usually a dream that involves just one baby,” said Dr Roger B Newman, a coauthor of the recently updated guide, “When You’re Expecting Twins, Triples or Quads: Proven Guidelines for a Healthy Multiple Pregnancy.” “To find out you’re carrying two almost always comes as a shock,” he said,

“but the vast majority of people are thrilled by the process. It just takes a while to soak in.” And it sometimes takes a village. Evan Weinberg, the father of six-year-old twin boys in Manhattan, said hiring a baby nurse might seem silly to some, “but trust me, it isn’t.” With a rate of cesarean sections at roughly 50 per cent for twins, compared to 20 or 30 per cent for singletons, mommy won’t be fast on her feet, he said. “It takes time to recover,” Weinberg said. “Daddy is going to be in charge of taking care of mommy and the two little ones. Our baby nurse did the midnight feedings, got them on a schedule.” Weinberg and his wife hired their nurse for one month and she stayed for four. “She became a part of our family,” he said. New parents bringing home multiples who can’t afford to hire help shouldn’t be shy about asking friends,

George Clooney and his wife Amal Clooney (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File) family, church groups or others for help, said Newman, in Charleston, South Carolina. He said some couples get creative, seeking out nearby college sororities to “adopt” their multiples as a project to help with baby-sitting and child care. So who’s having all these multiples we hear so much about these days? And why? Newman co-wrote the

book, out in February from William Morrow, with Barbara Luke, a professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive biology at Michigan State University in East Lansing, and health journalist Tamara Eberlein. It points to the advent of infertility treatments several decades ago as a major factor in the rise in multiples. Other factors include women having children later in

life. Biologically speaking, conceiving at 30 years of age or older makes women more likely to conceive multiples. Helen Holden in Los Angeles was 36 when she became pregnant with boygirl twins, now seven years old, through in vitro fertilisation. “I went back into the hospital when my twins were two weeks old, so we got a referral quickly for a nanny to help my husband out immediately,” she said. “Enlist family to help with things like grocery shopping and cleaning. My sister stayed with me for several weeks.” Having one boy and one girl inspired Holden to shoot for unisex-colored onesies in the beginning. “I just wanted to grab whatever from the drawer,” she said. In Ontario, Canada, parenting coach Debbie Fazio — with 16-year-old identical twin daughters and a 17-year-old— added: “Don’t expect to have every day perfect. Having twins is

messy.” Newman said the majority of twins are born prematurely, which adds a layer of medical complexity, and breast-feeding multiples makes the right kind of nutrition intensely important. The same is true during pregnancy, he said. “There are many obstetricians and other care providers who don’t recognise the increased nutritional needs that women carrying twins have. They will tell them to just eat well or maybe add an extra five pounds, or just eat when you’re hungry. Women carrying multiples get all kinds of fairly inappropriate and non-scientific information,” he said. The need for protein, for instance, goes up to about 175 grammes a day for women carrying twins, Newman said. Becca Robins, who has fraternal twin two-year-old boys and an older son, nearly seven, agrees with the messy part when it comes to bringing the babies home.

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TUESDAY, MARCH 7, 2017

Success and the single mother

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qila Knowles has something in common with many Bahamian women - she is a single mother of three who, despite hardships, has managed to accomplish her dreams and live a successful life. Like many of those women, Ms Knowles has to play the role of breadwinner, caretaker, ‘Mr Fix It’, counsellor, safety net for her children while also balancing her own life. Now she hopes her story is a source of encouragement to other single mothers who may be experiencing tough times, ready to throw in the towel or give up on their precious dreams. Ms Knowles is the proprietor of The Forum Studio, a thriving hair and nail salon in Nassau. The salon offers niche services catering to the crochet market through hair braiding. The Forum Studio caters to clients with natural or transitioning hair types. “While most of my business comes from crochet braiding, I also do lots of hair weaving and nail care,” she told Tribune Woman. “I made my first dream become reality in 2011 when I felt the need to venture into fulfilling one of my childhood dreams of owning a hair and nail spa. I invested lots of my savings knowing it would be a gamble. However, it was one of the proudest days of my life when I opened my doors in May 2011. As a new entrepreneur Ms Knowles discovered a number of challenges that come with owning a business. “But the biggest challenge was managing the ladies who I rented work stations to,” she said. “My vision for the salon was for every customer who walked through the door to see a salon of excellence, and one that valued the client. However, while that was my dream, it was very difficult selling it to persons who rented from me. After two years of ups and downs with renters, I actually came to my breaking point and realised the amount of stress that came with renting was just not worth it. So in April, 2013, I made the painful decision to close the business for the time being. While it was painful, I knew that some day the business would be brought back to life,” she said. Ms Knowles reopened the business - and it is thriving. But for a single mother, the journey provided difficult moments that brought Ms Knowles to her knees and to tears. However, she was determined to give a better life to

Balancing a career and raising a family alone is challenging but achievable. Jeffarah Gibson hears the encouraging story of one female entrepreneur whose hard work has paid rich dividends

Aqila Knowles extols tenacity as a necessary virtue for success her children. “I have to remember the road that was taken to get here as a single mother so that I encourage other women and single mothers out there who are encountering challenges as the road is never easy. In 1992, I learnt I was pregnant at 17-years-old, and at the age of 18 had a bouncing baby girl who was named Morgann in 1993. Not only did I disappoint my parents and family members, but I disappointed myself. After having the baby, I enrolled into college and worked at a hotel juggling work and school all at the same time. Life as a teenage mother and college student was rough. Two or three semesters into college I dropped out in the middle of the semester and decided to work full-time and take care of my daughter. s Knowles said her parents were again disappointed with her and made it known that if she wanted to attend college she would have to fund herself. “Four years later I found myself pregnant again and later gave birth to a baby girl that was named Mia. I was now a two-time single mother. However, with the help of my wonderful parents and family members I did my best to raise Morgann and Mia in a loving environment. The girls went to private Christian schools, were taken to church every Sunday

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and were taught Christian values throughout their years. While I was a single mother doing it all alone, my children always felt loved and that my life was centred on them. However, years of being a single mother, having to figure things out on my own, barely making ends meet, and going from one menial job to the next had begun to weigh me down. Day after day, I would pray, and read my Bible and motivational books. I became desperate for a better life. If there was one thing that I learnt from my parents it was the power of prayer and that things would one day turn around,” she said. As if things could not get any worse, Ms Knowles ended up losing her job. “I was called in on a Saturday to be informed that I would not have a job on Monday. However, when Monday came, I dressed the girls for school, dressed myself as if I was going to work and we jumped in the car as if it was a normal day. While I had no job to go to, I made up in my mind that I would give out 100 resumes that day and that I would find a job that very week because my girls were depending on me. And guess what? I did. “I began working at what was known then as the Bahamas Electricity Corporation in June of 2000 as a temporary employee. My first day on the job I made a private vow to God that I would work every day as if I was working unto the Lord. God honoured that vow and a year later I was transferred to the Human Resources Department. It was in that department I realised my passion was about to ignite and my life began to turn around when I was placed in the field I was meant to be. Ms Knowles was encouraged to pursue tertiary education at the College of the Bahamas. After completing a Bachelor’s Degree in Business she pursued a Master of Science in Strategic Human Resource Management at the University of Roehampton. Nearing the completion of that, Ms Knowles discovered at 40 she was again pregnant with Noah. “Believe me when I said I almost died having to tell my parents I was still single yet very much pregnant again out of wedlock. As a young woman,

“Believe me when I said I almost died having to tell my parents I was still single yet very much pregnant again out of wedlock. As a young woman, I thought of how I went against practicing what I preached to the young women I’ve mentored” - Aqila Knowles

Morgann and Mia are both pursuing degrees I thought of how I went against practicing what I preached to the young women I’ve mentored. But like most of my life, after my mistakes, asking God’s mercy, and re-evaluating things I got back on track and I began writing my thesis, on the topic “Does the WinWin labour relations Principle work in Practice?” The relevance of my thesis coincided with my six-year tenure as a union executive at then BEC and the question seeking to determine whether the union and the organisation can work together strategically to build a better organisation,” she said. While Ms Knowles said she has been able to accomplish much in spite of her hardships, in hindSee pg b11

Tools for a winning approach to life By ALESHA CADET Tribune Features Reporter acadet@tribunemedia.net IN AN effort to embrace, inspire and empower women from all walks of life, Bahamian Pastor Dr Judy L McIntosh-Smith will host for the first time a ‘Winning In Life’ seminar at the Southside Christian Church, #1 Dignity Gardens, on Friday at 7.15pm. In an interview with Tribune Woman, Pastor Smith said judging from the overwhelming requests for tickets, women are serious about what the event has to offer, from coaching and training sessions to counselling and mentoring for all in attendance. “We were sold out in the first 14 days after the advertisements about tickets went online and on social media. I am an advocate for the development and advancement of women. I believe every woman deserves a fair chance in life to be the best she can. I also

believe women should be given opportunities to advance and develop educationally - through degree programmes, certified courses, seminars and workshops. It continues to be my practice to encourage women to make time for reading, and to expose themselves to things that are important in life. WILFW (Winning In Life for Women) will also honour women and celebrate their achievements. I believe this plays an extremely important role in the enhancement of self worth,” said Pastor Smith. Highlights of the seminar will include guest presenter life-coach extraordinaire Dr Melisa Hall, prizes and surprises, the ‘Winning In Life for Women: Nuggets for Success’ book release, a saxophone performance by Makarios, dance performance by SCCI Perfected Praise Dancers, musical guests and more. The festivities will climax on Sunday, beginning at 10.30am at the church grounds with a worship service to feature

Prophetess Sharnette Kemp, CoPastor of Trinity City of Praise Outreach Ministries, Lower Bogue, Eleuthera. “I hold deep convictions about the spiritual development of women. For me, true spirituality is the foundation for women who seek to truly win in life. This is why the church service will allow women the opportunity for spiritual nurturing, growth and an encounter with God,” said Pastor Smith. She believes attendees will receive life transforming information and skills that will change the course and direction of their lives, saying that she and Dr Hall are both qualified and equipped with what is necessary to positively shift the mindset of women and help them begin the journey of excelling and soaring to greatness. Pastor Smith holds a Doctor of Philosophy Degree in Counselling, a Master of Arts Degree in Christian Education and a

Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology. She is also a trained Marriage and Family Counsellor, a certified Youth and Children’s Counsellor and Instructor, Mentor, Life Coach and Advisor. In addition, her concern for the overall physical health and wellbeing of people led her to pursue and complete training as a Certified Nutrition and Wellness Consultant. “Having worked with women for many years, I noticed that too many had become discouraged and distraught. They were giving up on life, letting themselves go, accepting mediocrity and living in a second class status. I believe that with a little encouragement, inspiration and motivation, a woman understanding who she is can become great and do great things. It was out of this deep concern for women, that Winning In Life for Women was birthed. I feel that no one should settle for less in life and I am determined to make a difference where I

Pastor Judy McIntosh-Smith believes every woman deserves a fair chance in life to be the best she can can in assisting, equipping and empowering women in their advancement,” she said. • WILFW seminar ticket information - 362-1357 or email at shantellscci@gmail.com.