Tag Archives: caribbean

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Another Son of Ex-Panama President Pleads Guilty to U.S. Money Laundering Charge

REUTERS/Luis Echeverria

NEW YORK, Dec 14 (Reuters) – A son of the former Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli pleaded guilty on Tuesday to a U.S. money laundering charge linked to Brazilian construction firm Odebrecht, becoming the second of his children to admit wrongdoing.

Ricardo Martinelli, 42, who shares the same name as his father, entered his plea in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, after being extradited to the United States from Guatemala on Friday, prosecutors said.

He pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. His plea comes after his younger brother, 39-year-old Luis Enrique Martinelli, pleaded guilty the same charge earlier this month.

The U.S. Department of Justice alleges that the brothers were intermediaries for the payment of some $28 million in bribes from Odebrecht to a Panamanian official while their father was president between 2009 and 2014.

The elder Ricardo Martinelli has not been convicted of any crimes, but he remains under investigation in Panama due to a separate ongoing probe concerning Odebrecht.

The Brazilian firm pleaded guilty to bribery and money laundering charges in 2016 related to the payment of more than $700 million in bribes to officials across Latin America to win contracts.

Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York Editing by Marguerita Choy

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Harris: Making STEP Workers Permanent Is Our Commitment for 2022

BASSETERRE, ST. KITTS — Prime Minister and Minister of Finance the Hon. Dr. Timothy Harris, who also has responsibility for the Skills Training Empowerment Programme (STEP), has announced that the Team Unity Government is committed to making permanent, in 2022, all STEP workers in the government service.

Prime Minister Harris made the announcement on Tuesday December 14 when he laid before the National Assembly, at a special sitting held at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort’s Ballroom, the Appropriation (2022) Bill, 2021, under the theme ‘Investing in Our People – Putting St. Kitts and Nevis back on track’.

During the presentation of the EC$952,200,453 budge, the Prime Minister announced the payment of double salary for all government employees including the approximately 2,800 STEP workers this December. He then posed: “Mr Speaker, what else can we do at this particular time?”

He answered by saying: “We can stay firm to our commitment, and in the last General Election the people on Skills Training Empowerment Programme (STEP) said that they no longer want to continue indefinitely to be part of a workforce in no man’s land.”

According to the Honourable Prime Minister, when STEP workers go for a loan to a financial institution they are turned down as they are not permanent. He also added that the same thing happened when they would go to apply for a visa where they would also be denied as they did not have permanency in their jobs.

“So, for 2022 we will move forward in our commitment to make STEP workers permanent,” assured Prime Minister Harris, who is also the Minister of Human Resource Management and Information. “Permanent, Mr Speaker, part of the government employee base, but we will do so in a phased basis.”

The Prime Minister recognised the Accountant General Mr Levi Mr Bradshaw who was present as he is the chairman of the STEP Regularisation and Pensions Reform Committee.  Members include Forensic Auditor and Director of Audit, Mrs Carla Pike; Chief Personnel Officer, Ms Sheridane Warner; and Permanent Secretaries Ms Sharon Rattan, Mr Ron Collins, and Mr Andrew Skerritt.

Others in the committee are Mrs Versilie Francis, representative of the Ministry Finance; Mrs Nisharma Rattan-Mack, Representative of the Legal Department; and Mr Emile Greene, Director of the Skills Training Empowerment Programme (STEP).

“Our first phase will involve those in the government service, Customs, the ministries, prisons, wherever they work, because we have immediate control,” stated Dr Harris. “Our first phase would look at those who have been doing a wonderful job, and we will give them the benefit of moving forward. That is our commitment for 2022.”

He observed that there are STEP workers in the private sector, who are not within the reach of the government. While government cannot direct private companies to employ the STEP workers attached to their establishments, it can only make such request.

“In addition, the Government Auxiliary Employees, our commitment to them will continue to be satisfied in 2022,” further announced the Prime Minister. “We said that we will allow them to continue to receive the honorarium until they were regularised. It was a promise made by the past administration which it never fulfilled. Team Unity is doing it. So, in addition to getting their double, they will also receive their honorarium this year, thanks to Team Unity Government.”

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Former Pres. Lula Maintains Dominant Lead in Brazilian Election, Poll Shows

BRASILIA, Dec 14 (Reuters) – Brazilian former leftist leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has a comfortable lead in the polls heading into next year’s October presidential election, with right-wing incumbent Jair Bolsonaro nearly 30 percentage points down, according to a poll released on Tuesday.

If the vote were held today, 48% percent of respondents said they would vote for Lula, as the former president is widely known, while 21% would vote for Bolsonaro, according to the survey by pollster Inteligencia em Pesquisa e Consultoria (IPEC), which was published on news website G1.

Sergio Moro, a former anti-corruption judge who helped put Lula in jail before joining Bolsonaro’s administration only to fall out with the conservative leader, came in third with 6% of the vote.

In a second scenario in which minor candidates were not listed as options, Lula received 49% of the hypothetical vote versus 22% for Bolsonaro. Moro came in third with 8%.

The poll is largely in line with an IPEC poll released in June and shows Bolsonaro struggling to regain traction with voters after his popularity tanked earlier this year, in part due to his handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed over 600,000 Brazilians.

It also highlights Lula’s striking reversal of fortunes in recent years. In jail when Bolsonaro was elected in 2018, Lula, who governed Brazil from 2003 through 2011, has since had his corruption convictions thrown out by the Supreme Court, allowing him to run for another term.

IPEC interviewed 2,002 people from Dec. 9-13 in 144 towns throughout Brazil. The survey has a margin of error of 2 percentage points.

Reporting by Maria Carolina Marcello in Brasilia and Gram Slattery in Rio de Janeiro; Editing by Leslie Adler

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US Sports Bodies in $380m Settlement of Gymnastics Sex Abuse Claims

USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee have agreed to pay $380 million and meet several other nonmonetary provisions to settle lawsuits filed by the survivors of former Olympic team doctor Larry Nassar.

The settlement agreement came after the latest round of mediation in Indianapolis and closes a major chapter in a legal battle that started more than five years ago when former Olympian Jamie Dantzscher filed the first civil lawsuit against the convicted serial sexual predator. More than 500 others eventually filed similar claims against Nassar’s former employers.

Coupled with the $500 million settlement from Michigan State University in May 2018, the total of $880 million in settlements is the largest involving a single perpetrator in a sexual assault case, according to plaintiff’s attorney John Manly.

“This settlement is the result of the bravery of hundreds of survivors who, despite legal obstacles, long odds and the best corporate legal talent money can buy, refused to be silent. The power of their story eventually won the day,” Manly said.

While settlement talks had been ongoing for years, a formal agreement was reached Monday, according to a number of people — including Manly, who represents more than 180 Nassar survivors. He refused to discuss details of the mediation talks beyond the timing, but said, “I’ve done thousands of cases in my life. This is the one I’m most proud of.”

Nassar worked as a volunteer with USA Gymnastics for more than two decades, including serving as the national team’s medical coordinator starting in 1996. He pleaded guilty in 2017 to possession of child pornography and, in early 2018, pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting his former patients. He was sentenced to more than 100 years in prison for his crimes. Multiple investigations found that officials from USA Gymnastics, the USOPC and Michigan State University failed to stop Nassar’s abuse despite years of complaints and warning signs.

A source with knowledge of the mediation talks said a committee of survivors of Nassar’s abuse, which included former Olympians Aly Raisman, Kyla Ross and Tasha Schwikert as well as attorneys Rachael Denhollander and Sarah Klein, had rejected earlier settlement offers.

“This settlement occurred because of a five-year, bare-knuckled legal fight the USOPC and USA Gymnastics decided to initiate against me and 500-plus sister survivors,” Klein, who served as co-chair of the survivors committee, told ESPN Monday. “After thousands of hours of this survivors committee’s time, blood, sweat and tears, today we prevailed.”

Denhollander, the first woman to publicly accuse Nassar of sexual assault in late 2016, commented on the historic settlement on Twitter.

“This chapter is finally closed. Now the hard work of reform and rebuilding can begin. Whether or not justice comes, and change is made, depends on what happens next,” Denhollander tweeted.

Monday’s settlement includes litigation against former USA Gymnastics CEO Steve Penny and former national team coaches Bela and Marta Karolyi, who for decades led Team USA gymnasts to gold at multiple Olympic Games. Penny, who led USA Gymnastics from 2005 through 2017, was charged with evidence tampering as part of the Nassar investigation. He pleaded not guilty, and his case is pending.

“USA Gymnastics is deeply sorry for the trauma and pain that Survivors have endured as a result of this organization’s actions and inactions,” USAG president and CEO Li Li Leung said in a statement. “The Plan of Reorganization that we jointly filed reflects our own accountability to the past and our commitment to the future.

“Individually and collectively, Survivors have stepped forward with bravery to advocate for enduring change in this sport. We are committed to working with them, and with the entire gymnastics community, to ensure that we continue to prioritize the safety, health, and wellness of our athletes and community above all else.”

As part of the settlement, USA Gymnastics agreed to set up a restorative justice program that will give survivors significant influence over how the organization addresses sexual assault issues in the future.

“The restorative justice process that’s part of this plan, you can’t buy that,” said attorney Mick Grewal, who represents more than 100 women in the case. “It will be the gold standard for every institution that has a sexual assault problem.”

Grewal said the two parties initially proposed a $400 million settlement in October, but USA Gymnastics had not secured funding for that full amount. He said part of the compromise that led to Monday’s settlement was making sure that the nonmonetary provisions helped bring about future change in the sport.

“I am proud of the nonmonetary reform commitments in particular — this represents so much hard work from members of the committee and I am eager to see these changes through,” Denhollander said on Twitter.

Grewal and Manly said their clients plan to continue to fight to hold others accountable for failing to stop Nassar’s abuse sooner. In October, the Department of Justice said that it would be reviewing the possibility of bringing charges against former FBI agents who received complaints about Nassar in 2015. A report from the Justice Department’s inspector general, published this summer, found that the agents made several egregious mistakes in how they handled the case, allowing Nassar to continue abusing patients for more than a year before he was arrested by university police at Michigan State.

“Yet again, we have done our jobs. However, Attorney General Garland has not done his job,” Klein said Monday. “Not one of the officials at USOPC or the FBI, who allowed Nassar to molest us as children, has been criminally charged. I will not rest until that happens.”

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Haiti: Death Toll in Gasoline Truck Explosion Now at 75

CAP-HAITIEN, Haiti (AP) — A gasoline tanker overturned and exploded in northern Haiti, unleashing a fireball that swept through homes and businesses on its way to killing at least 75 people Tuesday, according to local authorities, in the latest tragedy to befall the Caribbean nation.

The blast occurred shortly after midnight in Cap-Haitien, Haiti’s second-largest city, along the northern coast. Hours later, buildings and overturned vehicles were still fuming as firefighters covered the burned bodies of the young victims in white sheets and loaded them onto the back of a construction truck.

Hundreds of Haitians — who aren’t easily shocked amid their country’s multiple misfortunes — looked on from rooftops in disbelief at the loss of so much life. Prime Minister Ariel Henry, himself a physician, visited a hospital where victims bandaged head to toe were fighting for their lives amid a shortage of medical supplies and health workers.

“It’s horrible what happened,” said Patrick Almonor, deputy mayor of Cap-Haitien, who said late Tuesday that 75 people had died.. “We lost so many lives.”

Among survivors who spoke with the prime minister was Riche Joseph, who spent hours on the floor of Justinien University Hospital, the city’s largest, connected to an IV while he waited for a bed.

His sister, Bruna Lourdes, said her brother stepped out of the house late at night where they lived together with their mother to look for something to eat. When she heard the explosion, she rushed down from the hillside shantytown in panic.

“I’m praying to God that he won’t take his life,” said Lourdes, who is studying to be a nurse and plans to spend the night by her brother’s beside to offer whatever assistance she can to the overstretched medical staff.

Early reports indicate that the tanker was trying to avoid an oncoming motorcycle when it flipped. Onlookers then rushed to the scene with buckets to scoop up what they could of the tanker’s valuable cargo, likely for resale on the black market, as the fuel spilled toward a nearby pile of smoldering trash.

“It was after midnight and I heard a loud noise so I asked one of my boys to go and look. He told me a gasoline truck exploded,” said Abraham Joanis, 61, as he carried around a guitar rescued unscathed from the charred remains of his home, one of 50 gutted by the blaze.

“Right away, I left with my family, and I headed the other way to the bridge,” he added.

Contributing to the high death toll is the desperation that has forced impoverished Haitians in recent months to scramble for gasoline due to severe shortages that have shuttered gas stations, sent fuel prices on the black market spiraling and forced businesses to close as the U.S. and Canadian governments warn their citizens to leave while they still can.

The shortages are the latest manifestation of a society that has been on the brink since the July 7 assassination of President Jovenel Moise and a 7.2 magnitude earthquake a few weeks later that killed more than 2,200 people and destroyed tens of thousands of homes.

The country of more than 11 million people also has been hit by a spike in gang-related kidnappings, including 17 people with a U.S. missionary organization who were abducted in mid-October. Five of them have been released but another 12 are still being held.

“It’s terrible what our country has to go through,” said Dave Larose, a civil engineer who works in Cap-Haitien.

Hospitals in Haiti’s second-largest city seemed ill-equipped to deal with the disaster and 15 victims had to be evacuated by air to hospitals in the capital, Port-au-Prince.

Some of the burn victims were being treated by teams from Doctors without Borders.

“Surviving and recovering from a severe burn is a difficult process that requires specialized medical care, often for weeks or months,” Jean-Gilbert Ndong, the group’s medical coordinator. “We will continue to receive patients according to the needs and our capacity.”

Burn victims at Justinien hospital screamed in agony as they pleaded for basic supplies and more medical staff.

Henry, wearing a biohazard suit, clasped his hands and leaned over to console one man collapsed on the hospital’s concrete floor because there were not enough beds in the historic city’s largest hospital.

The prime minister promised more help in the form of field hospitals and a contingent of medical professionals. But minutes after he left the facility, five more patients died.

“The entire Haitian nation is grieving,” Henry said on Twitter while declaring three days of national mourning. “It is with a torn heart that I see the critical condition of some of our compatriots admitted to this facility.”

Haiti has been crippled by a severe fuel shortage that has led to power outages and protests.

Cap-Haitien is the country's second-largest city.

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Pfizer Pill Dramatic Results, Omicron Growth in US, Covid Passes for England, World Stats

Pill lowers risk of hospitalization, death: study

Pfizer logo provided by Pfizer Media Relations on Jan. 7. 2021.
 

© Pfizer Media Relations via AP

Pfizer announced Tuesday that a study found that its oral, antiviral COVID-19 pill Paxlovid reduced the risk of hospitalization or death by 89 percent in high-risk patients.

Pfizer said that the 2,246 patients in the study were given the pill within three days of symptom onset, adding that they had mild to moderate symptoms as well as an underlying medical condition or an increased risk of becoming severely infected by COVID-19.

The company said the results have been shared with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a part of the company’s request for emergency use authorization. Pfizer requested emergency use authorization from the FDA for Paxlovid in mid-November.

Takeaway: Health officials stress the pill is not a substitute for the vaccine, but it does have the potential to significantly cut down on hospitalizations and deaths, assuming people start taking the pill within three days of their symptoms starting.

Pfizer added that it believes that the pill will work on the new omicron variant, but additional studies are underway.

“This news provides further corroboration that our oral antiviral candidate, if authorized or approved, could have a meaningful impact on the lives of many,” said Albert Bourla, Pfizer’s chairman and chief executive officer. “Emerging variants of concern, like Omicron, have exacerbated the need for accessible treatment options for those who contract the virus, and we are confident that, if authorized or approved, this potential treatment could be a critical tool to help quell the pandemic.”

Supply is expected to be extremely limited at first. The company is expected to deliver only enough of its pills to cover 300,000 Americans before the end of February

CDC: Omicron now 3 percent of US cases

 

The omicron variant now represents about 3 percent of domestic COVID-19 cases, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Tuesday, showing the new variant is starting to rise in the U.S.

The CDC estimated omicron was 2.9 percent of sequenced U.S. cases for the week ending Dec. 11, up from 0.4 percent one week earlier. In New York and New Jersey, the CDC said omicron is already at 13 percent of sequenced cases.

The number is expected to rise quickly given the sharp spikes in omicron in other countries. For example, officials in Britain have estimated omicron will be the dominant variant there within days. The U.S. trajectory appears to be somewhat behind.

How we got here: Omicron is highly transmissible, helping fuel its rapid rise and displacing some of the delta variant, which has been fueling a spike in the U.S. even before omicron’s foothold.

There is some early evidence that omicron could be less severe, though. On the other hand, it does significantly weaken the power of two shots of the vaccine in preventing infection, though protection against severe disease could hold up better.

That is why health officials are urging all American adults to get a booster shot.

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England: Covid Pass Needed to Enter Certain Venues

BBC- Adults in England must now show a Covid pass to enter nightclubs, big sports matches and other large events – despite nearly 100 Conservative MPs voting against the government’s plans.

The new rules – which kick in today – require proof of double-vaccination, or a recent negative test, to enter certain venues.

MPs approved the measure in Tuesday’s vote on England’s new Covid rules.

Despite the revolt by 99 Tory MPs, the plans passed thanks to Labour support.

The Commons also backed – with smaller Conservative rebellions – the continuation of mandatory mask-wearing in most indoor settings, and compulsory vaccination for NHS workers in England.

The scrapping of self-isolation for fully vaccinated Covid contacts – in favour of daily lateral flow tests – passed unanimously without a vote.

The rebellion on Covid passes was by far the biggest since Boris Johnson took office.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said it was a “very significant blow to the already damaged authority of the prime minister”.

“It confirms that he’s too weak to discharge the basic functions of government,” he claimed.

One Tory rebel, Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, said the scale of the revolt meant a leadership challenge to Mr Johnson had “got to be on the cards” next year.

And former Tory chief whip, Mark Harper MP, said: “You either listen and you respond and you do things differently – or you ignore what you have been told and you plough on regardless, and then this will happen over and over again.”

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What are the new Covid pass rules for England?

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On Tuesday, England’s chief medical officer, Prof Chris Whitty warned senior ministers that hospitals were facing a significant increase in the number of people being admitted with the Omicron variant.

Speaking at the same virtual cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned of a “huge spike” of infections – but Downing Street has insisted no further Covid restrictions are being planned.

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Not just a slap on the wrist

Boris Johnson didn’t lose. But no prime minister wants to feel they’re losing the argument in much of their own party.

And the scale of the rebellion is even worse than predicted. Not just a slap on the wrist for Mr Johnson, but a very serious rejection of his plan.

Something that can’t be dismissed, despite his own personal appeals to his ranks.

  • Read more from Laura here
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On Tuesday, the UK recorded 59,610 new Covid cases, the highest number since January, along with 150 deaths within 28 days of a positive Covid test.

The UK Health Security Agency said 633 further UK Omicron cases were reported on Tuesday, taking the total number of confirmed cases of the variant to 5,346.

Meanwhile, a total of 513,722 booster and third doses were given across the UK on Monday.

In Scotland have been urged to limit socialising to three households at a time, with shops and hospitality venues to be told to reinstate physical distancing and protective screens.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the advice would not apply on Christmas Day and that plans should not be cancelled.

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WORLD STATS

Coronavirus Cases:

271,781,704

Deaths:

5,337,994

Recovered:

244,375,126
Highlighted in green
= all cases have recovered from the infection
Highlighted in grey
= all cases have had an outcome (there are no active cases)

[back to top ↑]

Latest News

December 15 (GMT)

Updates

  • 9,076 new cases and 54 new death

The post Pfizer Pill Dramatic Results, Omicron Growth in US, Covid Passes for England, World Stats appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

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More Than 50 Dead in Haiti Gasoline Truck Explosion

Blast occurred in the city of Cap-Haitien

The Associated Press · Posted: Dec 14, 2021

A truck carrying gasoline exploded in northern Haiti, killing more than 50 people and injuring dozens of others, officials said Tuesday.

The blast occurred late Monday in the city of Cap-Haitien, Prime Minister Ariel Henry said. He went on to say that he was devastated.

“Three days of national mourning will be decreed throughout the territory, in memory of the victims of this tragedy that the entire Haitian nation is grieving,” he tweeted.

Henry said his administration was deploying field hospitals to the area to help those affected.

Dozens of bodies lay on the street hours after the explosion as a small crowd stood around them.

No further details were immediately available. Police didn’t immediately return calls requesting information.

Homes burned

Patrick Almonor, deputy mayor of Cap-Haitien, told The Associated Press that at least 53 deaths were reported and more than 100 people were injured in the explosion that burned around 20 homes near the site. He said he expects the number of deaths to keep rising because people who died in their homes have not yet been counted.

“It’s horrible what happened,” he said. “We lost so many lives.”

Almonor said a local hospital is in dire need of more nurses, doctors and basic medical supplies to help those injured.

“We are overwhelmed,” a person identified as Dr. Calhil Turenne told Le Nouvelliste newspaper.

Dave Larose, a civil engineer who works in Cap-Haitien, told The Associated Press that he was driving when he saw ambulances and a crowd of people gathered along a road around 1 a.m. local time.

Fuel shortage

He said he observed how some people were using buckets to scoop up gasoline from the truck and the street to take back to their house. The explosion occurred as Haiti struggles with a severe shortage of fuel and spiraling gas prices.

“It’s terrible what our country has to go through” Larose said.

Former prime minister Claude Joseph also mourned the victims, tweeting: “I share the pain and sorrow of all the people.”

CBC’s Journalistic Standards and Practices|About CBC News

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Govt. to pay double salary

Today is Budget Day in St Kitts and Nevis where Prime Minister and Minister of Finance  Dr Timothy Harris will present the Annual Financial Statement and Budgetary proposals for 2022.

Stay tuned to this article where we will provide updates on the major elements within the presentation.

Refresh regularly to see the latest updates.

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1:00- That is all from us for today’s presentation tomorrow the opposition leader will have his chance to respond to the PMs presentiation.
12:26- Fiscal Measures and Interventions 
All civil servants will before Christmas receive a double salary Dr Harris announced to loud cheers.
“This is a historic development and I want to commend them for saying how please they are. The entire country looks forward to this.”
He said they do so for a number of reasons but importantly but mainly for being a “compassionate government.”
“We understand even as we meet here thousands of persons are still suffering. Thousands are still not fully engaged in our hotels and our restaurants we appreciate that and they need some help.”
12:22-He said they are positive about 2022.
“Positive in the context of the predictions of the IMF and the statistics department the country will grow in double-digit terms.”
Dr Harris noted that total revenue and grants will be comprised of just over $430M and from taxes, we will generate $460M and $15.5M via development aid and is not anticipating having to take on debt
On the expenditure side $910 million by the end of 2022. $728.6M for recurrent expenditure and $180.9M for capital expenditure and net lending.
“If all things remain the same we anticipate we will realise an overall surplus of 4M a primary surplus of 21.8M for the fiscal year 2022.”
He anticipated they will eliminate the need to borrow and we will allow the government to attain the goal of a 60% debt to gdb ratio by 2023.
12:16– He said they are reasonably projecting that in 2021 there will be a surplus
“Over the period 2022 to 2024 it is projected would on average result in an overall surplus of about $900,000.”
Recurrent revenue he said is projected at around $853M and recurrent expenditure is projected at $723M.
He said they are on target to realize a comeback in the economy and it will be in a better place.

12:05-National Security

He said that National Security continues to be a top prerogative of the team unity administration
“We have put forward 80.1M to assist that particular Ministry.”
Hoped national security head will use the investment well.
“We will continue our efforts to keep the country safe and none can deny that St Kitts and Nevis in 2021 is far more at peace and far safer than it was up to 2014.
“The primary responsibility of the state must be to protect the people from harm. When it comes to national security preserving the peace we make no apology for investing.”
Noon Healthcare
the Finance Minister said the money provided for healthcare will help to provide necessary resources to fund additional medical professionals and we need them.
 
A general surgeon, urologist, oncologist, orthopaedic surgeon, ear nose and throat specialist will all be recruited for the health institutions.
 
“We will provide me with diagnostic services with the introduction of a new MRI machine to be installed at the JNF General Hospital for the first time.”
 
He said support for health centres will continue including the renovation work of the health centre in Basseterre.
 
“The future for our health systems look promising and we can take comfort that our investments which have been proposed will lead to 2022.”
11:55 Cannabis
The prime minister said St. Kitts and Nevis are working hard to seize all opportunities within the cannabis industry.
“Our federation will seek to collaborate with neighbouring islands in the sub-region and wider Caribbean as well as to establish relationships with global cannabis professionals and entities to build a thriving cannabis industry here.”
11:50 CBI Programme
Dr Harris noted the ability of the Federation to weather the economic storm caused by the pandemic was significantly influenced by the continued success of the CBI program.
He added that the CBI program has maintained its ranking as one of the best in the industry.
The program he said received the highest score in the citizenship timeline pillar as a result of the accelerated application process.
“We have transformed our CBI we have come a long way from the difficult period in 2014. “
“The robust procedures that are embedded in the program have enabled us to maintain our platinum brand and has ensured we take a significant share in the major markets around the world.”

11:35- Tourism
He said this sector has borne the full brunt of the economic fall out of the pandemic.

Dr Harris noted experts in the travel industry who are hopeful for a return to pre-pandemic global travel levels by 2023.

“My government has initiated a strategy for putting the tourism sector back on track. Our strategy is designed to allow the sector to act as a catalyst for substantial economic growth and development through the creation of employment, spurring entrepreneurship and infrastructure development.”

11:30–Agriculture

He said the goal of the government is to produce more of what is consumed and it continues to align with the commitment to making strides in achieving sustainable development goals.

“The injection of boost the production of the agricultural sector ensure greater food security has helped in this regard. Month after month we have had strong positive returns in crops, livestock and in the fisheries sector.

“We are happy our stimulus package has aided our fisherfolk and farmers in making progress and earning better livelihoods.”

11:27– D Harris said in the medium term, the outlook for the construction sector is positive per cent expect to have a growth rate of 11.7 percent in 2022.
“We are working to ensure the construction sector is back on track in 2022 and sustained in the medium term.”

 

11:25– he said the economic challenges have had little impact on the public sector debt.

The prime minister announced that the debt to GDP ratio increased from 54.3% at the end of 2019 to 67.9% at the end of 2020.
“The 13.6 percentage point decline in economic activity in 2020 was the primary reason for the increase in the debt ratio. As a result of our stimulus packages we are already seeing a rebound in economic activity and this will bring a further positive re-alignment of our debt to GDP ratio.”
11:20–The Minister of Finance deficit of 63M in 2020 but deemed it necessary to continue programs that would result in job creation and spur economic activity in our key sectors.
This was a direct commitment to investing in our people even in the face of the worst health and economic crisis which resulted in diminished revenues and required a much larger outlay of expenditure in certain areas.

11:15–  Adress the Domestic Economy he said as the pandemic continues to test the fortitude and resilience of our citizens and residents and our economy at large.

He disclosed the Team Unity Administration maintained its record of being a good steward of government finances.
“Substantial stimulus packages and considerable capital projects remained that would boost economic activity”

11:13–Dr Harris says that in 2022 the global downside risk includes supply chain disruption, the ongoing social unrest in parts of the world. Geopolitical tensions that have emerged the cyberattacks on critical infrastructure and the impact of severe natural disasters.

He added that the economies in the ECCU recorded a decline in real GDP of 14% in 2020. The decline in economic activity was attributed to significant contributions in key sectors. Tourism fell by 63.2%.

“Across the Currency Union member states suffered a decline in economic activity ranging from 2.7% to 23.8%.

“The 2022 growth prospects within the currency union are now at 6.9% and would be contingent on a number of variables.”

 

11:04-He said they are taking a cautiously optimistic view to 2022.

“These proposals are setting the wheels in motion to advance our plans to get St Kitts and Nevis back on track.”

11:00– He said it will not only assist the government assist investing in its people.

“When you have $100M investment in education you know we are talking people investment. When you hear $73M for Healthcare you know we are talking people investment.”

He said will build resilience in response to the pandemic.

10:55–  Recommended the following allocations which represent proposals for recurrent and capital expenditure and net lending and principal payments.

The Governor-General they have provided $1.73M; for the working of the Parliament $1.97M; the Audit Office $1.27M; Justice and Legal Affairs $12.3M; The Office of the Prime Minister $110M; National Security is allocated $80M; The Ministry of International Trade Industry $5.3M; The Ministry of Finance $300M; Social Development and Gender Affairs $42.7M; Agriculture, Fisheries and Marine Resources is allocated $20.2M; Tourism and Transport $32.7M; Public Infrastructure and Post 59M; Education gets $104M, Health gets $73M; Youth Sports and Culture get $11.7M; Sustainable Development gets $25M; Foreign Affairs and Aviation$25M; The Office of the Attorney General gets $12.3M; Labour gets $7.06M; Human Settlement and Ecclesiastical Affairs and National Health Insurance get $11.5M; Environmental and Cooperatives $2.9M; Entrepreneurship and Communications $9.28M for a total expenditure of $952M.

10:47–Dr Harris announces the allocation of $952.2M to support recurrent and capital expenditure as well as to cover our principal payments.

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Garth Dennis Of Black Uhuru Dead After Celebrating 72nd Birthday

by Ramona Samuels

 

CNW- n December 2, Garth Dennis, a founding member of Grammy award-winning reggae band Black Uhuru, celebrated his 72nd birthday in good spirits; a week later, he died suddenly.

His death was confirmed by international music business consultant Lloyd Stanbury who told the Gleaner that the news of the musician’s death is like a “double blow” amongst close friends.

“This is really difficult for everyone who knows Garth. Most of the musicians would have heard of Robbie Shakespeare’s passing two days prior, and they were united in many ways. Mykal [Rose], who was with the group, having just lost Robbie, was in great distress to hear of another on Friday,” he said.

Garth is known amongst his peers as a humble man. His contribution to reggae music came with the pioneering reggae band Black Uhuru in the 1970’s, with the original members who recorded the memorable hits “Folk Songs” “Time Is On Our Side” and “Slow Coach” before separating.

In 1984, Black Uhuru made history as the first Jamaicans ever to win the prestigious Grammy award for their album Anthem. Soon after, a falling out with a band member, caused him to move on to record with another group, the Wailing Souls, singing hits like ‘Things & Time’, ‘Jah Jah’ Give Us Life to ‘Live’, ‘Waterhouse Rock’, ‘Very Well’, ‘Sweet Sugar Plum Plum’, and ‘Old Broom’.

Several posts from his musical colleagues have been made on social media pages including that of reggae star Junior Reid who replaced the singer after leaving Black Uhuru. His former band members of the Wailing Souls have also been reminiscing about his life and stellar contribution to reggae music and the Jamaican culture on the international scene.

Garth has left behind his wife, two sons and grandchildren.

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Grenada: 7 Dead Adult Males Found Decomposed in a Drifting Dinghy

The Royal Grenada Police Force has officially confirmed that the bodies of seven adult males were found in a vessel drifting near Carriacou.

It states officers assigned to the Northern Division responded to a report of a drifting vessel in the vicinity of Gun Point, Carriacou on December 12.

The boat was retrieved and toured to Harvey Vale by the Grenada Coast Guard, where seven adult male bodies were discovered in a decomposed state.

Specialised units of the force are presently analysing personal effects and devices found onboard the vessel, following which, a comprehensive update will be provided.

Police investigations are ongoing.

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