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The Chase Files Daily Newscap 12/13/2018

Good MORNING #realdreamchasers! Here is The Chase Files Daily News Cap for Thursday 13th December 2018. Remember you can read full articles for FREE via Barbados Today (BT) or Barbados Government Information Services (BGIS) OR by purchasing by purchasing a Daily Nation Newspaper (DN).

WE WILL NOT BE BULLIED! – Government will not be bullied or held to ransom by Innotech. This was made clear by Minister of Water Resources Wilfred Abrahams, who told THE NATION the construction company had been trying to “strong-arm” the administration into continuing with lopsided contracts agreed to by the previous Government. “The Government of Barbados cannot and will not condone bullying,” he said yesterday in an interview. “Innotech, by virtue of the contracts they have with us, especially with the building, have been trying to leverage their position of power to force the [Barbados] Water Authority (BWA) into certain things. “Innotech attempted to strong-arm the Government by threatening to lock out workers. That didn’t work. Now they are using the most vulnerable people as a pawn for Innotech to get leverage,” he added. Innotech Aquaserve Ltd continued its clampdown on the BWA by removing several community tanks on Tuesday after the state-owned agency defaulted on the lease payment on its $44 million headquarters in The Pine, St Michael. (DN)

INNOTECH’S TANK GRAB RAPPED – A businessman is throwing cold water on the actions of Innotech Aquaserve Ltd for seizing community water tanks. James Edghill, manager of Caribbean Consultants Ltd, said such a move was not in keeping with corporate social responsibility. “We do not believe these actions are reflective of corporate Barbados. We think the private sector needs to work more with Government, especially in these times, and this is a small gesture of us leading by example,” he said. Edghill was speaking after he donated 12 water tanks procured from Rotoplastics (Barbados) to the Barbados Water Authority (BWA). The business manager said this was the time of year where companies should be seeking to help families, so when he heard about the seizure, his heart went out to those affected. (DN)

ANOTHER VAT ONLINE DELAY - VALUE ADDED TAX (VAT) on foreign online transactions will not start this Saturday as scheduled – the third time the commencement date has been deferred. The delay this time is due to Government’s urgent need to meet the December 31 deadline to pass legislation for the convergence of local and international tax rates to bring them in line with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) initiative, or incur severe sanctions. A Ministry of Finance official confirmed yesterday that given its importance to Barbados’ viability, the OECD matter had superseded Government’s proposal to apply the VAT on foreign online transactions measure. So pressing was the OECD issue that debate started two days ago in the House of Assembly with the first reading of 11 bills to effect the change. Tomorrow, the House will engage in what is termed a cognate debate, where the 11 bills will be discussed at the same time, but each passed individually. The Senate will debate the measure next Wednesday. (DN)

INCOME TAX AMENDMENT BILL PASSED - Against strenuous objections from a member of the Upper House, who labelled changes to the Income Tax Act“unconstitutional”, senators approved the amendments this evening. Opposition Senator Caswell Franklyn took issue with the bill’s validation clause, noting that “the provisional collection of taxes gave four months from the date of the budget on June 11 to implement it. After October, according to Section 5, these taxes should cease and money already taken in should be refunded. So you have taken people’s property away without the legal provision to do so. This validation clause is contrary to the constitution.” Senator Monique Taitt had voiced a similar concern. “My challenge is the satisfaction of Section 3, “Subject to this act the imposition of a tax or increase in the rate of a tax contained in any budgetary proposal, from the date mentioned the imposition should be as effective as if the act has been passed and payable from the specified date. Increase in rate should be effective from the specified date and increases paid from then. “My problem is with Subsection 2, which states “it shall cease to be payable if act for payment of tax or increase is not enacted in the house within four months of the specified date”. It has now been six months since this measure was mentioned in the Prime Minister’s mini-budget on June 11.” Senator Lindell Nurse said he disagreed with the practice of backdating laws. “Essentially we are trying to legitimize something which has expired, and I am not in agreement with making laws and backdating them as we are trying to do here”. He acknowledged, however, that a section had been inserted to cover up any potential oversight in that respect. “So when I saw a validation note in the bill, which said, ‘all taxes paid or collected from the first day of August 2018 until the commencement of this act should be considered paid’, I understood why it was included.” Several senators expressed concern that some taxpayers would now be placed in a higher tax bracket. Senator Taitt said, “I have colleagues and friends who because of the five per cent increase were put into a different income bracket, so the tax has them geting less money than before. Ideally they should be getting the same thing or a bit more.” Senator Kevin Boyce added, “I think there should be some sort of tax incentive to those who have been hit with an increased band of payment.” He also called for Government to give timelines as to when these rates should be reviewed. Senator Nurse was concerned about the fact the “same people, specifically the middle class, are getting hit with the taxes harder than anyone else,” and said since people no longer could claim their credit union savings or savings in a registered retirement savings plan on their tax returns, Government could consider other measures, such as an Education Savings Fund, which in his view would help Government meet its obligation in providing free tertiary level education. Senators’ main concerns centred on changes that would place a greater burden on middle-income and working class Barbadians who already paid the bulk of taxes. Senator Franklyn, the bill’s most strident objector, accusing the Barbados Labour Party administration of taking a “scattershot” approach to implementing legislation. “This policy will put a bigger burden on the middle classes and working classes who are getting devastated now, because they will be paying the majorty of the taxes in this country.” He also claimed that Government would introduce these policies now, only to change them again four years down the road when it was time for General Elections again in the hope that the electorate would have forgotten them by that time. The Opposition Senator questioned another element of the bill which writes off any outstanding sums owed between 1968 and 2000, as well as waiving any penalties associated with that debt. Senator Franklyn, in referring to it as a “friends and family agreement,” countered, “Let us say you have been living and working here, and owe the Government money. One person pays his taxes every year, while another one refuses to pay. How is this fair to someone who has been paying taxes all along, when the one who did not pay will now benefit? How do you recover the assets of the defaulters, especially if some of those people have since died? To my mind, this is a friends and family amendment. If you cannot pay all of the outstanding taxes one time, make an arrangement with the Barbados Revenue Authority.” But many of Senator Franklyn’s counterparts did not see the amendment in that light. Barbados Workers Union General Secretary, Senator Toni Moore, declared that “If we cannot provide simple answers to where we were over the last five years, how can we expect to provide answers to what happened 50 years ago?” Said Senator Rawdon Adams: “Sometimes these longstanding debts are hard to ‘chase down’ owing to the amount of time that has passed, and evidence has shown that writing off old debts is beneficial eventually.” Senator Moore added that Barbados was in urgent need of tax reform, especially in light of new working arrangements in which former full-time employees would possibly be re-hired on a contractual basis. “Many of us know of situations where governments of Barbados have engaged entities or individuals to provide contracts for services. Government saved money by not having to make the NIS payments or income taxes for these people, but still had a problem tracking whether these individuals met their statutory obligations. Unless we completely overhaul our tax system, we are going to keep revisiting this issue.” (BT)

GOV’T DEPTS MAY GO DIGITAL – Government could soon be using digital technology across a number of its ministries including housing, finance and immigration, in an effort to get a better handle on tracking transactions. This indication was given recently as top government representatives met with blockchain technology experts in an initial consultation, aimed at finding more efficient and secure systems that could be applied to various sectors in Government. Coordinator of the Innovation Seminar in the Ministry of Innovation Science and Smart Technology, Rodney Taylor, said by having a better understanding of the blockchain technology, Government could now explore areas for its implementation. “We were able to discuss different applications within real estate management and housing, the tracking of financial payments within government, as well as the tracking and issuing of work permits and the various applications received via the Immigration Department,” he said. Opting not to give details, officials said coming out of the session, a report identifying at least three projects that could be implemented or supported better by the use of blockchain technology would be offered for consideration. Founder of Bitt Inc., Gabriel Abed, participated in the inaugural ‘knowledge café’. Pointing out it that it would be a first for Government if the technology is used as a solution on various projects and governmental initiatives, he said, “It is promising because they’re interested in learning more about the capabilities of blockchain and seeking to implement applicable solutions that can be useful in the short and long-term,” said Abed. Abed, a recognized leader in the blockchain industry, was joined by representatives from Ernst and Young Barbados, IBM and Aion Technologies. By design, a blockchain is resistant to data modification, thereby offering greater security to database management, records and transactions. (BT)

BHTA WANTS EASE ON GSC LEVY – Members of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) are eager to get the millions of dollars in Value Added Tax (VAT) refunds owed to them by Government. At the same time, officials of the association have indicated that they would continue to lobby Government to give them a decrease in the recently introduced Garbage and Sewage Contribution (GSC) levy. Regarding the VAT refunds, Chief Executive Officer of the BHTA Senator Rudy Grant said he would continue to press Government to pay up what was owed. He said the BHTA sent out a recent survey to its over 300-strong membership but only about 14 members responded and indicated that they were collectively owed millions. “Those totalled some $8.9 million, and those 14 members represent about five per cent of the accommodation and direct tourism services members. If that is only five per cent you can understand what the outstanding amount is. But we really want to encourage our members to submit the information so that we can properly lobby on your behalf,” said Grant. Pointing to the levies that were imposed on the sector in the June budget, Grant acknowledged that they would come to an end on January 1, 2020, and at that time the VAT on the sector would be increased from 7.5 per cent to 15 per cent. However, Grant said the BHTA had recently outlined some concerns to Minister of Tourism Kerrie Symmonds regarding the pending VAT increase. “We are concerned about increasing the cost to persons coming to our destination. We would have a consultation with members as well, and I want to give you the assurance that we will continue our discussions,” he told the general meeting. In the case of the GSC which took effect on August 1 at a rate of $1.50 per day for households and 50 per cent of the existing water bills of corporate entities the hoteliers said it is financially burdensome. Hoteliers have complained about skyrocketing bills with some hotels on the west coast which normally paid as much as $40,000 per month for water are now having to pay $60,000 for the service. Prime Minister Mia Mottley had indicated that tourism and industrial businesses could receive an ease, hinting that a cap on payments could be implemented. However, there has been no ease so far. During the BHTA’s fourth annual general meeting at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre on Wednesday, Chairman of the BHTA Stephen Austin continued to make a case for hoteliers to get a reduction in the new tax, stating that west coast hoteliers had a private sewage system and used private waste haulers. “However, they are now faced with thousands of dollars more in costs due to the GSC. We are working with Government and lobbying for them to have a look at the challenge in offering ease of at least 50 per cent to businesses faced with this increase and still having the cost of running their own services,” he said. Half the funds collected will go to funding the Sanitation Services Authority (SSA) and the other half will go to the Barbados Water Authority (BWA). “We understand the need for establishments and for Barbadians to pay their way but we believe it would be fair if a reduction is offered in this way [to the hoteliers],” said Austin. “We recognize this is an urgent matter because members are already starting to engage in discussions with respect to setting rates. So we are treating to this urgently and it is our desire to continue to have those discussions and be able to come back to you some time soon with a decision,” he promised. He said the BHTA would also continue its lobbying efforts to get Government to make good on a promise to allow hoteliers access to concessions under the Tourism Development Act (TDA) and the Tourism Development Amended Act (TDAA) with the same level of ease with which Sandals accessed those concessions. It was at the end of October that Prime Minister Mottley made the promise, saying she would ensure there was a “level playing field” across the tourism industry. Grant said the Minister of Tourism had agreed on the process and a meeting was scheduled for next week so that the Barbados Revenue Authority, Customs, the Barbados Tourism Investment Inc., the Ministry of Tourism and the BHTA and Intimate Hotels of Barbados could discuss the matter. “We will seek to ensure that there is a level playing field,” he said, adding that the BHTA would also be making a case for stand-alone restaurants to be given the same privileges as hotels when it came to concessions. “As you know under the TDAA stand-alone restaurants do not benefit from any waiver of duties and taxes . . . The Minister has indicated that he would wish to treat to that as a phase two element. We will continue to keep that at the forefront,” said Grant. (BT)

‘FIX IT!’ – Taxi drivers are calling on Government for long-term fix to the impasse at the Bridgetown Port in which taxis have been moved from their usual parking spaces. Treasurer of the Bridgetown Port Taxi Services Limited, Vill Greaves, has said the “reprehensible” situation has been a “sour point” for taxi drivers, for over a decade. For the second week in a row, taxi drivers have been asked to move from the parking lot, which they would usually share with port workers as the winter cruise season nears its peak. Scores of taxi operators have since poured into the roadway outside the Port’s entrance, where they are slapped with tickets by traffic wardens. In an interview with Barbados TODAY, Greaves accused port authorities of engaging in a longstanding pattern of treating taxi drivers like “second and third-class citizens”. Taxi operators, many of whom are not registered to operate at the Port, have been parking indiscriminately in the area allotted for port workers, Barbados TODAY has learned. While Greaves acknowledged that some unauthorized taxis were making things bad for the registered ones, he argued that with Barbados on the verge of a bumper tourist season, authorities needed to take the plight of transit operators more seriously. “Nobody listens. From on high [Government] to the port management, nobody takes you on, so that is how taxi operators have felt for the longest time; as though they are second and third-class citizens in the whole tourism operations. I think we should be helping them to improve their lot in life,” he said. Greaves indicated that decade ago, before Trevor’s Way became the well-manicured open space that it currently is, taxi operators would park parallel to the coastline. “Then one smart person decided that they wanted to extend Trevor’s Way, to the exclusion of people who are looking for a daily living. So you’ve forced them to now park on the road and things like that; and it was sad. “Nobody objected to them beautifying the whole area as it was part of the whole tourism package, but what was wrong with creating a nice atmosphere that the guys [taxi operators] could still drive down?” he asked. Since then, he noted efforts were made to allow some operators to park their vehicles in the compound. But unregistered taxi drivers encroached on the port. “When there’s a ship in the Port, you have an influx of taxi operators who are not seaport taxi operators coming down to ply, to get some of the business . . . . You’ve found that then authorized seaport taxis are parking in what is the workers’ compound and then cause problems for the workers themselves . . . . So the management has decided, this is foolishness. “It is sad that it has come to this,” he said, indicating that registration fees had increased sharply over the past few months for taxi operators at the Port. When Barbados TODAY contacted Divisional Manager for Corporate Development and Strategy at the Bridgetown Port, Karl Branch, he said he was in no position to comment on the matter. But Greaves offered what he considers a simple solution in which a driveway is built along the stretch of Princess Alice Highway leading to the Port’s entrance. “It doesn’t take much time to build a drive-way, you can do it quickly,” he said. Greaves also suggested Government take seriously the idea of a taxi-operated park-and-ride system for transporting city workers to offices and stores to avoid “unnecessary clutter.” “Taxi operators are legitimately looking for work and trying to get more foreign exchange into the country, so their issues should be given priority,” he declared. (BT)

GOVT TO SAFEGUARD AGAINST OVERCROWDING – As public sector job cuts continue, vendors are bracing for more competitors in high foot traffic areas and likely overcrowding that Minister of Small Business Dwight Sutherland is seeking to prevent. Bustling Swan Street was the focus of Sutherland’s attention as he toured the City street mall this morning. “When we walk Swan Street we can see that it is a little cramped and I know BARVEN (The Barbados Association of Retailers, Vendors and Entrepreneurs) has raised the matter of space as a critical issue. Space utilisation will be critical going forward,” said Sutherland, who was visiting vendors and stores along Swan Street this morning. The minister noted that while Government plans to build out new designated spaces for vending, entrepreneurs must think beyond the conventional commercial methods. “There is a type of vending that utilises car parks. I know BARVEN has a plan where vending in car park spaces will become one of the key aspects of the sector in Bridgetown. We still have other spaces that we need to utilise. I understand it is tough times and people have been laid off but we should not limit vending to the streets. People who were laid off could drive around selling their products from their vehicles,” said Sutherland. The minister said the policy will extend beyond Swan Street and the capital City. “Another area that is under utilized is beach vending. So we the Government has to help to create the infrastructure.” The Minister of Small Business is of view that in order to encourage more out-of-the- box thinking, the antiquated mind set towards the sector has to change. He declared that gone are the days when vending was seen as a last resort for person who had no other employment options. He pointed out that university graduates were now looking to vending as the gateway to their business aspiration and these new entrants were incorporating technology into their trade. “We need to empower vendors and we need to create the atmosphere whereby technology in vending is the norm. We are speaking about creating a smart Bridgetown but what would a smart Bridgetown look like without vendors? So we need the vendors to utilize technology to provide customers with options. Vending has reached a stage where it has to be innovative and creative and it has to fit with the country’s development,” said Sutherland. “There are university graduates who are vendors so gone are days where vendors are seen as persons who buy potatoes or yams from a plantation.” (BT)

CARIBBEAN ISLANDS RECORD SERIES OF EARTHQUAKES – Several Caribbean islands were rocked by earthquakes during a six hour period overnight, the Trinidad-based Seismic Research centre (SRC) of the St Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI) reported Wednesday. It said there were no immediate damage or injuries as a result of the quakes, but terrified residents in Dominica and some other islands reported being shaken by the tremors. Some people took to social media to relieve the experiences. The first quake, with a magnitude of 4.0, occurred at 9 p.m. on Tuesday night and was felt in Dominica, Antigua and Barbuda and the French island of Guadeloupe. It was located at latitude: 16.74N, longitude: 59.58W and at a depth of 10 kilometres. The SRC said that it was felt 224 km east north east of Point-a-Pitre, the capital of Guadeloupe, 255 km east of the capital of Antigua and Barbuda and 257 km north east of Roseau, Dominica. Dominica and Guadeloupe were also rocked by another earthquake, 17 minutes later that also affected Martinique. According to the SRC, the quake which occurred at 9.17 pm (local time) with a magnitude of 3.7, was located latitude: 15.37N, longitude: 61.32W and at a depth of five km. It was also felt 11 km north east of Roseau, 89 km north, north west of Fort-de France, Martinique and 100 km south, south east of Point-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe. The third earthquake recorded by the SRC occurred early Wednesday morning and had a magnitude of 4.0. The SRC said that the quake which occurred at 3:05 a.m. was felt in Barbados, St Vincent and the Grenadines and St Lucia. It was located latitude: 12.78N, longitude: 60.39W and at a depth of 10km. The SRC said that it was felt 94 km south west of Bridgetown, Barbados, 102 km south east of Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and 153 km south east of Castries, St Lucia. Earlier this week, the head of the SRC Dr Joan Lutchman, reiterated a call for the region to be prepared for a major earthquake as several parts of the Caribbean were jolted by earth tremors last weekend. Over the weekend, the SRC said that a burst of 54 earthquakes occurred north of St Kitts during a 21 hour period. The biggest had a magnitude of 4.1. Lutchman, who has for months now been warning that the Caribbean is long overdue a “big one”, said that several tremors have since been recorded following the weekend activities. (DN)

DEATH MYSTERY –There is still no word from the nursery following the death of three-month-old Neymar Renaldo Andre Jules who was discovered unresponsive in a crib on Monday. Three days after the shocking turn of events, relatives of the infant are demanding answers from the St James day care facility about what went so tragically wrong on only his third day at the facility. Relatives say the development has plunged them into one of the saddest periods of their lives. At a Boscobelle, St Peter home shared by Neymar’s mother, Mishika Jules and his father Andre Skeete, the grieving parents said they were too distraught to sit down for an interview with Barbados TODAY. However, they both confirmed they were yet to hear a word from the owners of the day-care, which their son had only attended for three days before he died. The close-knit and private family declined to release photos of Neymar and asked that their faces not be shown, but said they were in desperate need of closure. With the permission of Neymar’s mother, his aunt, Timisia Skeete spoke to Barbados Today on her behalf. “We still looking for information and nobody knows, because nobody from the nursery came forward and explained to her [Neymar’s mother] what happened. Nobody offered condolences on behalf of the nursery. The same way they knew her number to let her know what happened, the owner of the nursery should have come forward and at least offered condolences to her as the mother and also to my brother as the father,” she said tearfully. Skeete said the only contact between the family and the nursery came through a worker, who had a personal relationship with Neymar’s mother. “We want to know what happened from the head of the nursery. You are the owner, it is your place to address the parents. This is not a toy; this is a child. This is someone’s child. You have to address the parents,” said the frustrated aunt. “You need to state what happened, you need to offer condolences to the family . . . you can’t leave it there as if nothing has happened,” she asked. Fighting to hold back tears, Skeete recounted the moments after she received the news that her nephew had passed away. “I was on my way home from work and I thought he was joking, but I know him and I know he is not going to joke about something like that. He kept saying ‘the baby’ but he did not name the baby. So I kept asking him ‘whose baby died?’ Then he told me Neymar and I just paused in traffic. The light turned to ‘go’ and I could not move. I just started screaming in the car,” she recounted, as Neymar’s mother began sobbing loudly in the background. Skeete said the news was the last thing she was expecting to hear as she had kept the baby as recently as Saturday. She explained that when they assembled at the Sandy Crest Medical Center, where young Neymar was carried and later pronounced dead, there was hysteria. Skeete told Barbados TODAY that she saw Neymar as a son after she lost one of her own and says the pain has now doubled. “He was my baby, I love him to death and everybody knows how I feel about him. He is always on my [social media] statuses; he was my baby, because honestly I lost a baby and I was in the hospital…but it’s like when he [Neymar] came, I fell in love with him from day one. He brought me comfort . . . and helped soothe me from how I felt after losing my baby,” she said. Family members say they are awaiting an autopsy to find out the cause of death, but would only reveal that at the time of death, Neymar “was full of vomit.” Switching their attention back to the nursery, family members called on the day-care’s management to come clean, noting that Neymar was a miracle for the family, given that his mother, Mishika Jules had complications during her pregnancy. “This was his third day at this nursery. She even had reservations about going back out to work and securing a nursery, because as a mother, you are going to be protective… and then this happens,” said Skeete. When Barbados TODAY visited the nursery on Wednesday afternoon, they appeared to be operating as usual. Staff said the owner was not on the compound and that they would be offering no comment on the developments. Neymar’s maternal grandmother, Janice Edwards was reluctant to comment as she was “angry inside.” “I was looking to spend Christmas with my grandchild; and you carried my grandchild healthy, after his father had him in the morning, kissing him and holding him and playing with him. Something is wrong,” she said. (BT)

THREE CHARGED WITH MURDER – Police in the Northern Division have arrested and charged three people with the murder of Ricardo “Bumbles” Rock, whose body was discovered in a bathroom at the defunct Alma Parris Memorial School in Speightstown, St Peter. They are Corneil Baggott, 38, of Major Walk, Regina Danielle-Boyce, 22, of Six Mens, and Fabian Omar Devonish, 33, of French Village, all in St Peter. The trio appeared at the Holetown Magistrate Court on Thursday, November 29, before Magistrate Wanda Blair. They have been remanded until Friday, January 4. (DN)

REPUTED THIEF JAILED UNTIL JANUARY – He initially pleaded not guilty, but after failing to find a surety reputed thief Arleigh Patrick Todd wanted to change his plea. “You want to plead guilty, or you want to give me some time to think about this case over the Christmas season,” Magistrate Douglas Frederick asked him. “I will give you some time to think Sir,” was Todd’s response. The magistrate then remanded him to HMP Dodds until January 9, 2019. The 64-year-old Todd of Upper Collymore Rock, St Michael, had initially denied stealing a chair and tables valued $290, on or between December 5 and 6, the property of Shawn Knight when he appeared in the District ‘A’ Magistrates’ Court today. Despite having over 60 convictions, the majority for theft, Todd told the magistrate he had been trying to stay out of trouble since he was released from prison last year. “I haven’t been in jail for over a year. I have stayed out of trouble since then. I am trying hard,” he promised. And while Frederick lauded him for walking the straight and narrow, he told him that he would prefer for him to be off the streets at this time of the year. “You are a reputed thief so it is a remarkable achievement that you have not been in trouble for over a year. “But this time of the year isn’t a time I want you to be on the streets. I’d prefer you to be on remand over the Christmas period and let me think about what I should do with you when you come back,” the magistrate told him. (BT)

COLUMBIAN BAILED – Having been remanded on her previous two court appearances, a Colombian woman finally secured bail on her third attempt. Maria Theresa Machina, 25, was granted bail in the sum of $5,000 with two sureties by Magistrate Laurie-Ann Smith-Bovell when she appeared in the District ‘F’ Magistrates’ Court yesterday. She was charged with assaulting Immigration Officer Carlisle Murray on November 13. However, she was not required to plead to the indictable offence. Prosecutor Station Sergeant Glenda Carter-Nicholls maintained the Crown’s objection to bail on the grounds that Machina was a non-national and a possible flight risk. However, Machina’s new legal team of Queen’s Counsel Andrew Pilgrim and Neville Reid, who took over the matter from Queen’s Counsel Michael Lashley, argued that the month which the Colombian had already spent on remand was equivalent to that of a sentence for a common assault. Additionally, Pilgrim said his client had been charged with a bailable offence and that she has viable sureties who are Barbadians and who have status here, as her mother is married to a Barbadian and has lived here for the past 15 years. As a result, he said there was no reason to keep his client on remand at HMP Dodds. Pilgrim also questioned a deportation order which was produced by the Crown. He said the order had been signed by the minister on November 12, even before Machina had been charged. Pilgrim said they would be looking into the validity of that document. After listening to both submissions the Magistrate released Machina on bail with conditions. She must report to Oistins police station every Monday and Friday before 10 a.m. and she must reside with her mother at her Christ Church home. It was disclosed that Machina’s passport was already in the possession of immigration officials. She is scheduled to return to court on January 24, 2019. (BT)

BFA SCORES BIG – The Barbados Football Association (BFA) yesterday scored its biggest goal for the year after a meeting with the president of the Argentine Football Association (AFA), Claudio Tapia. President of the BFA Randy Harris and Argentine Ambassador to Barbados Gustavo Martinez Pandiani, made a courtesy call on Tapia at the AFA’s Buenos Aries headquarters. The meeting was scheduled as part of the itinerary of the Barbados Under-17 national team delegation, currently on a week-long visit at Boca Juniors, one of Argentina’s most famous clubs. Following a short closed door meeting, Tapia told NATION SPORT it was the starting point of a great relationship. “This is a very important meeting for our association. I think is a starting point for the cooperation of the two associations. We will contribute the resources that we have to the Federation of Barbados not only in sports but also in cultural terms,” he pledged. (DN)

TREAT FOR UNDER-17 FOOTBALLERS – Members of the Barbados Football Association Under-17 national team were treated to a recovery session usually reserved for international players earlier today. Their scheduled trip to the Boca Juniors Stadium to participate in and watch the annual football match for the Day of the Fan was cancelled as a result of security concerns, ahead of tomorrow’s match against their fellow Under-17 compatriots. As a result their coaches and Boca Junior coaches decided to give some much needed “R and R”, and invited them to use the facilities reserved for the Argentine Boca Juniors first team (national team). The young Bajan Tridents were able to enjoy the use of the pool, sauna and a cold jacuzzi, before finishing up the evening with a foot volley outside their accommodations. (DN)

TROTMAN WANTS BATS TO STEP UP –The batting department of the Barbados Pride is the biggest concern ahead of today’s start of the Regional 4-Day cricket match against the Jamaica Scorpions at the 3Ws Oval. However, head coach Emmerson Trotman believes the return of West Indies opening batsman Kraigg Brathwaite will be a major boost to the squad and should help alleviate the issue. “As far as our batting is concerned, it is necessary to be positive and play with some more intensity. “The main problem at the moment is that the guys are worried about getting out. They shouldn’t be worried about being out but about scoring big runs, but I’m pretty sure they will do a lot better,” Trotman said during a training session yesterday at Kensington Oval. “Kraigg is a fantastic player, he brings a lot to the changing room, so the boys are quite happy to see him around. He would ease a lot of pressure on the team because the guys really look up to him as a big performer, so it sets the team up nicely,” he added. (DN)

TUACH ON MISSION 2020 – Barbadian pro-surfer Chelsea Tuach is on a mission to qualify for the 2020 Olympics. The 23-year-old told media following her return from the Pan American Surfing Games in Peru that she was sincerely hoping to be a part of the Barbadian contingent for the global showpiece set for Tokyo, Japan. “It was my second time in the Pan American Games. I went last year as well and I was in the finals last year,” a smiling Tuach told reporters after emerging from the arrival hall of the Grantley Adams International Airport. “But this was a more important year because I needed to at least get to the semifinals to gain a spot in the Pan American Games next year and I did. It is going to be exciting for me to compete with our athletes, our swimmers in Barbados and I will be training hard for that. “If I win that it would mean that I would qualify for the Olympics which would be the first ever female surfers in the Olympics to qualify.” Tuach added, noting that reaching the finals of the recent competition had inspired her to continue going after her goals. One such goal is to be one of the 20 women who compete at the 2020 Olympics in the surfing discipline. Tuach once again produced a series of outstanding performances in Peru to finish fourth, and said the performance was a great way to end an already successful year. “It is definitely a big competition for me and I was really happy to get into the finals again,” she explained. “It was a nice way to end the year and it is giving me the motivation and the inspiration to just work harder in this off-season now and make sure that I am ready and not only in my professional career with the world surf league but also to get ready for the Olympics in 2020.” Tuach pointed out that qualifying for the Olympics would be a major feat but said she was aready focussed on the challenge “I will try my hardest to qualify for that,” she reiterated. “It is definitely a big feat as they are only 20 females in the whole world but I would like to represent this region and I would like to represent Barbados in the Olympics and that is a big goal and that is something that I am going to go to sleep thinking about.” Turning her attention to her return to Barbados in time for the Christmas holidays, Tuach said that since she had not been home since July, she was anxious to spend time with her family and friends. “I am going to go home now feed my dog, see my family and just relax,” Tuach quipped. “Well, relax as much as I can because I would still have to be training but going to the beach. I cannot wait to put on a bikini and have a sea bath and see my friends and everything that I miss. “See some good friends, eat some home-cooked meals, have some Chefette and everything — just some time to spend with family that is what I miss the most.” (BT)

ORGAN MASTER – If you ever visit All Saints Anglican Church in Pleasant Hall, St Peter, for a Sunday morning service, one of the things you will notice is the youthfulness of the organist and his obvious passion for job engagement. Like the priest, organist Demario Roach is much sought after. Choir members seek him out; and church members, old and young, jostle to engage him at the organ directly after service or in the aisles as he is leaving. And Roach makes time for all of them as he moves through the church like a breath of fresh air. This is one of the reasons the young organist is so hugely popular. In addition, at 22, he still says “yes, please”, is charming and well-spoken and his warm personality draws one in. Watching him at the organ, one can get carried away in his obvious pleasure. Roach’s involvement in music and church are intertwined. For him, churchgoing is also a family tradition. “I was interested in music from the time I was in primary school. I started out on the drums and I was also in the choir at the Ignatius Byer Primary School [in St Lucy] under the guidance of Mr Hugh Griffith. When I transitioned over to secondary school [Frederick Smith], I started to play the saxophone and keyboard under the guidance of Andre Ford, Mark Husbands and Shawn Holder.” With regard to church, his great grandmother, grandmother, mother and sister are members, so attendance every Sunday was a given. “From birth I was involved in Sunday school at St Philip-The-Less [Anglican Church in Boscobel]. As a Sunday school, we would minister to a lot of other churches and there was one occasion when we went to St Clements [in St Lucy] and we took along two buckets and sticks as makeshift drums,” he said. Roach became a member of the servers at St Philip-The-Less and later assistant organist there until his move to All Saints last year. He began to play the organ while at St Philip-The-Less after being approached by Rev. Davidson Bowen, who asked whether he would be interested. He and two others were sent to Julian Bowen, tutor/organist at St Peter’s Parish Church, and he received a scholarship through the church. He is preparing for the Service Playing Certificate under Bowen’s tutelage. Roach decided to become a full-time organist because he “fell in love with the instrument, hearing the hymns and chants being sung and chanted”. Meeting and interacting with other organists and encouragement from members of the church were also key factors. The young organist’s involvement with Sunday school teachers at St Philip-The-Less led to his further interest in youth work, and he is now the president of the St Peter Youth Council. “There is a large youth group at the St Philip-The-Less. There is a group of Sunday school teachers who seem to never get tired. They ensure that the youth participate in the youth choir, Sunday school and worship in general.” The youth department there plans the main events. A jazz concert was conceptualised by Roach and Meagan Foster, another young organist. “We try to get the youth of the church involved in a lot of things to help to keep them focused. We want them to feel as if they belong to the church. We also have a youth night, which is called Block Church, where we invite not only the youth of the church but other young people in the community, and we hold discussions, we play games, we even talk about the Bible. “We also lead worship every first Sunday and the whole month of August, so we try to get them in love with everything,” he said. Roach puts much effort into youth work because of what he sees as some of the challenges younger people face. These include not being understood or always being judged by older people; not taking their education seriously; difficulty finding a job; and some older people believing that youth were to be seen and not heard. His immediate plans include applying to the Barbados Community College to study for an associate degree in music. In the long term, he wants to become a professional musician and accountant. (DN)

For daily or breaking news reports follow us on Instagram, Tumblr, Twitter & Facebook. That’s all for today folks. There are 19 days left in the year. Shalom! #thechasefilesdailynewscap #thechasefiles# dailynewscapsbythechasefiles

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sdconnection-blog · 8 years ago

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Ken Williams | Editor

Urban Street Angels offer lifelines to homeless youth

Steven still has nightmares about the time, when he was only 3 or 4 years old, that his drug-addicted mother got really angry with him, grabbed him by the ankles, then held him upside down over the toilet bowl — his head inches from the water — as she flushed and flushed and flushed.

The little boy’s physical, mental and verbal abuse continued for many years. With no dad involved in his life, nor any adults who cared much about his health and welfare, Steven lived in a hellish world where “normal” meant constantly seeing a pile of drugs and needles on the coffee table and his mother strung out and violent.

Urban Street Angels reach out to homeless youth found on the streets of San Diego, offering food and shelter on Tuesday nights at a church in North Park. (Photo courtesy of Urban Street Angels)

When he turned 12, Steven left home, begging friends to let him temporarily stay with them. He dropped out of school. By age 17, he was on his own, living on the streets. But the cold, brutal Michigan winters took its toll, and Steven decided he wanted to live somewhere warm — and that’s how he ended up in San Diego around the time he turned 21.

With Steven’s luck what it was, he arrived in America’s Finest City during last year’s worst weather event. That’s when he made the call that would change his life.

Sheltering in North Park

“We rescued Steven in Ocean Beach during the three-day El Nino storm, along with his companion, his dog,” said Eric Lovett, founder and executive director of Urban Street Angels, a 5-year-old nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with a mission to help end youth homelessness in San Diego. Lovett shared the story of Steven, whose real name is being withheld to protect his privacy.

“We brought Steven to our shelter and we helped him out,” said Lovett, who has 25 years of experience working with the homeless.

Urban Street Angels operate an emergency overnight shelter on Tuesdays in space rented from Missiongathering Christian Church, located on Polk Street in North Park. Jerry Troyer, a longtime La Mesa resident who is one of the founding members of the Angels, is the shelter coordinator who has just been promoted to assistant director.

Troyer said the shelter takes in “transitional age youth” typically between the ages of 17 and 25, people like Steven who they find on the streets of San Diego or who desperately call them for help. The shelter can accommodate up to 24 youth at a time.

Jerry Troyer sorts clothes at the Tuesday night shelter for homeless youth. (Photo by Ken Williams)

“We feed them dinner, let them shower and clean up, offer them haircuts, provide medical services, give them clothing and hygiene supplies, and they have a warm and safe place to sleep for the night,” Troyer said. “We serve them breakfast Wednesday morning before they go back out in the world.”

Troyer emphasized that the Angels have no religious affiliation, unlike most local organizations that serve the homeless.

“We are not religious or spiritual,” he said. “We are not about saving souls or proselytizing. If you want to turn somebody off, hit them over the head with a Bible!”

Mind you that this message is delivered by a man whose background is the ministry.

“We are not a faith-based organization,” Lovett agreed, “but all of us come from that background.”

A home and a job

The Angels also operate a transitional housing and employment program for homeless youth called “8 West” — think Interstate 8 West to get to Ocean Beach, where a lot of homeless youth congregate.

At an undisclosed location in San Diego, they have a group home housing 10 young men and behind the main house is a “granny flat” housing six young women. Three house managers supervise the residents.

“These 16 young people are working toward preparing themselves for a productive life,” Troyer said, his voice cracking with emotion.

Homeless youth gather Tuesday nights at a shelter in North Park. (Courtesy of Urban Street Angels)

“About 80 percent of our homeless youth come from our shelter,” he said about the 8 West program.

More than 3,000 young people are living and sleeping on the streets of San Diego, out of an estimated 9,000 homeless people.

San Diego has the third-largest homeless population in the U.S., and the problem seems to be getting worse.

Lovett figures that about half of the homeless youth served by the Angels are from the San Diego area, while the other half come from out of town or another state. The Angels regularly find homeless youth sleeping in parks in Ocean Beach, North Park and Mission Hills.

Eric Lovett, executive director of Urban Street Angels (Courtesy of Strachota Insurance Agency)

Additionally, Lovett calculates that about 75 percent of the 8 West residents have come out of foster care, where youths are unceremoniously dumped out of the system when they turn 18. Most have no job skills or prospects and no money for housing and living expenses. Most end up living on the streets to survive.

“Many of the kids don’t know about California’s AB 12 law,” he said, adding that the 2010 measure extended state benefits to foster children to age 21.

Although LGBT Americans comprise about 10 percent of the population, an overwhelming number of homeless youths identify as a sexual minority. Lovett said the national average of LGBT homeless youth is around 43 percent, but in San Diego that number is more than 50 percent.

“And that is just the ones who identify as being LGBT,” Lovett said, noting that millennials tend to be gender fluid and reluctant to check off identity boxes. “At least 20 percent of our homeless youth chose not to tell us how they identify. If I had to guess, the figure might be 60 percent to 65 percent LGBT.”

LGBT teenagers who come out to their parents and friends don’t always get a warm and loving reaction. Instead of acceptance they get rejection. Lovett and Troyer hear all the time from LGBT teens who were kicked out of their homes after coming out to their families.

“We are the only [county-funded] homeless housing program in San Diego that welcomes transgender people in the gender with which they identify,” Troyer said. The San Diego LGBT Community Center also takes in transgender people in its youth housing program.

It’s difficult enough to be homeless, but adding the extra layer of being LGBT makes their lives even more challenging. Some faith-based agencies, for example, refuse to serve LGBT clients.

Because almost all of the homeless youth are suffering from some form of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the Angels provide outpatient therapy.

“They need a safe place to talk about their feelings,” Lovett said. “Most have PTSD, are depressed and have a lot of anxiety. Most have never been taught how to deal with these issues. That’s why therapy is so important.”

Why they do it

Troyer and Lovett get emotional talking about their lifesaving work. Troyer had to pause twice during the interview to compose himself as he brushed away tears in his eyes.

Eric Lovett chats with a homeless youth in an encounter in 2015. (Courtesy of Urban Street Angels)

“The point I want to make,” Troyer said, “is that we are in the business of providing unconditional love, which is something that some of these kids have never experienced. That’s our business.”

But that’s not all.

“The reason we do this for this particular age group,” Troyer said, “is because they are incredibly underserved by programs that deal with the homeless. Most of the other programs in San Diego deal with either homeless veterans or chronically homeless people who have addiction problems.

“We believe that if we get homeless youth off the streets before they reach the age of 25,” he continued, “we can break the cycle and help reduce the number of chronically homeless people.”

Lovett added that it is a difficult challenge to get older homeless people off the streets.

“When somebody has been on the streets for 20 years,” he said, “it is hard to get them to change their ways.”

As for homeless youth, Lovett said the key is building trust.

“I cannot help someone who cannot help himself,” he said. “If you are willing to change, we can help you. If you are willing to move forward, we can help you. We can show you: This is what your worth is. You may fall, and most of us will, but we will be there to pick you up.”

The youths who are accepted into the 8 West program must make a number of important commitments, including remaining clean and sober, but the most important of which is to agree to earn a GED if they dropped out of school and/or attend community college classes. They also must agree to find a job or work in the program’s “high-end soap-making business,” Troyer said. The handmade soap is sold online at 8west.org and raises money to help sustain the program.

Success stories like Steven’s are mounting, Lovett and Troyer said. But neither man is resting on his laurels.

“Our goal, within three years, is to house 50 young men and 50 young women,” Lovett said. “And in five years, we want to house 100 young men and 100 young women.”

The immediate objective, they said, is to persuade six other churches to join their cause and sponsor a nightly emergency shelter for homeless youth.

“We would like to have a shelter every night a week at seven different churches,” Lovett said, noting that the Angels are in talks with a church in Pacific Beach and another church in North Park about joining their cause.

A happy ending

“Steven joined our housing program in March,” Lovett said. “Since then, he has gotten a full-time job and is now the manager of a high-end carwash. He has also earned his GED.”

Lovett said he is so pleased to see Steven thriving. He knows how hard it is for homeless youth, who have difficulty trusting adults after living in abusive situations in their childhood, to express their emotions. Just the other day, Lovett said he pulled into the carwash to get his vehicle cleaned and got a chance to speak with Steven. He learned that Steven is doing so well at his job that he might get to run his own carwash franchise.

“For the first time, Steven said thank you for helping me,” Lovett recalled, his voice choking with emotion. “And he said, ‘I love you.’

“I must say, his pathway forward is very inspiring.”

—Ken Williams is editor of Uptown News and can be reached at [email protected] or at 619-961-1952. Follow him on Twitter at @KenSanDiego, Instagram at @KenSD or Facebook at KenWilliamsSanDiego.

Tax-deductible donations by check can be mailed to: Urban Street Angels, 3090 Polk Ave., San Diego, CA 92104.

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Original Article Provided By: SDUptownNews.com Saving lives Ken Williams | Editor Urban Street Angels offer lifelines to homeless youth Steven still has nightmares about the time, when he was only 3 or 4 years old, that his drug-addicted mother got really angry with him, grabbed him by the ankles, then held him upside down over the toilet bowl — his head inches from the water — as she flushed and flushed and flushed.

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