business@tribunemedia.net
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2021
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Bahamas in ‘dire straits’ without urgent reforms By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net ANTI-CORRUPTION campaigners yesterday warned that mere political promises will not cut it as The Bahamas faces “dire and irreversible circumstances” unless the next administration adopts urgent reforms. The Organisation for Responsible Governance (ORG), issuing a call to action for all candidates seeking to become MPs at the upcoming September 16 general election, urged them to commit to policies that would deliver the “transparent and accountable governance” that The Bahamas desperately needs to rebuild its economy and society in the wake of COVID-19 and Hurricane Dorian’s devastation.
• Anti-corruption group: ‘Promises won’t cut it’ • Urges all election hopefuls to commit to change • ‘Sub-standard governance’ worsened by COVID Asserting that this is no time for empty words and rhetoric, the six-page “open letter” identified a series of policies the group said should be priorities for the next administration as it urged: “ORG stresses the
obvious to all candidates: Promises sound good, but solid plans lead to meaningful, inclusive and positive growth.” Matt Aubry, ORG’s executive director, told Tribune Business that the intention behind publishing the letter
ADRIAN FOX.
COVID delays Island Luck co-founder’s US sentencing MATT AUBRY was to “create a dialogue that starts to move from promises to a plan”. He explained that the group was trying to drive political candidates to commit to implementing reforms
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Super Value: We won’t break law on COVID tests By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net SUPER Value’s newlyappointed president yesterday promised it will not make employees pay for weekly COVID-19 tests if this is deemed to violate the law. Debra Symonette told Tribune Business that the 13-store chain, which also trades under the Quality Supermarkets brand, had yet to determine whether it would pay for these rapid antigen tests or if it would require unvaccinated staff to do so.
“This company hasn’t made a decision as to whether they’re [employees] are going to pay or not,” she affirmed. “What we’ve decided to do is wait until the end of September, which is the deadline given for employees to get vaccinated. We specifically said they’re going to have to take the test, but didn’t say they have to pay. “That is when we will make them do the test, and decide whether to make them pay. Hopefully it will be cleared up by then because if it’s not lawful we won’t do that. The labour people said they are
Airport bidders called on to give credentials By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Government will require interested bidders on airport upgrades collectively worth near $400m to present their credentials by September’s second week, its top aviation official revealed yesterday. Algernon Cargill, director of aviation, told Tribune Business that the Government is holding a pre-qualification phase for its Grand Bahama International and Family Island airport private-public partnerships (PPPs) in an effort to separate qualified bidders from those that lack the qualifications and track record to succeed. “The request for qualification notice will be issued by the second week of September,” he affirmed,
ALGERNON CARGILL “where we pre-qualify the bidders and qualify them for the Request for Proposal (RFP) phase. This project is independent of the election. We are proceeding because this is a government initiative, not a political initiative.”
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AML targeting slash to $6.8m shrinkage By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net AML Foods is targeting an improvement in inventory shrinkage during its current 2022 financial year after failing to achieve the anticipated reduction
during the 12 months to end-April 2021. The BISX-listed food retail and franchise group, in its 2021 annual report, revealed that shrinkage for that year was equivalent to almost 4 percent of
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looking into it, so hopefully they will come back and let us know.” Super Value earlier this week was revealed to have written to all employees informing them that if they were not vaccinated by September 30 they would have to take weekly rapid antigen tests to confirm they were free of the COVID-19 virus. Mrs Symonette, in an August 26, 2021, memorandum wrote: “We estimate that less than 30 percent of our staff have been vaccinated, and we have set an ambitious goal to have all staff take their first shot by
the end of August and be completely vaccinated by the end of September. In the interest of your safety and the interest of the company, our customers and the country, we expect your full cooperation. “There is a new ‘Delta plus’ variant that spreads 60 percent faster and is more contagious than the (old) ‘Delta’ variant. In order to save your life, keep the economy going and avoid a permanent lock down, all employees should get vaccinated immediately.... After September any employee that is not
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• Adrian Fox tested positive for virus August 31 • Judge puts hearing back 30 days to October 15 • US travel protocols block September 15 date By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A CO-FOUNDER of the Island Luck web shop chain has persuaded a US federal court to delay his sentencing by 30 days because he has become ill with COVID-19. Attorneys for Adrian Fox, in a September 2, 2021, letter to Judge Denise Cote had initially requested that sentencing be put back by 28 days until October 13, 2021, as their client’s illness meant he would not be able to comply with US COVID entry guidelines in time for the original September 15 hearing.
However, the judge in the southern New York district court granted Mr Fox an additional two days until October 15, 2021 according to documents obtained by Tribune Business. “Defendant Adrian Fox respectfully requests that his sentencing be adjourned for 28 days (until October 13, 2021). The [US] government has informed defense counsel that it assents to this request,” his attorneys wrote. “Mr Fox, who lives in The Bahamas, was scheduled to travel to New York on September 15, 2021, for a Rule 11 hearing followed immediately
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