Archive for February, 2013
UK wants CI election watched
(CNS): The overseas territories minister has asked the local government to allow official observers to cover the Cayman Islands' general election. Premier Juliana O'Connor-Connolly has said that Mark Simmonds made a formal request when the new government delegation went to London at the beginning of this year for a team to be present in May, although no specific concerns were raised. The premier stated that CIG was not opposed in principle but observers could not be allowed to cast a shadow of suspicion over Cayman's long held successful election record because of perceptions over the government transition in December. She said the attorney general was checking if the election law would need to be changed to facilitate the watchers but early indications were that the decision lay in the hands of the elections supervisor.
At the Thursday morning press briefing O'Connor-Connolly said that with a good track record of free and fair elections for many decades, the idea of having observers in Cayman could not be allowed to tarnish that image. The premier read from correspondence between herself and the UK minister on a number of issues, including the desire on the part of the FCO that observers were welcomed by CIG for the upcoming elections.
Simmonds said he supported the invitation of observers as it was good for the democratic election process. The FCO minister pointed out that observers had taken part in the elections in both the BVI and TCI and he believed that the officials there could attest to the success.
O'Connor-Connolly said that no decisions had yet been made and the governor was discussing the issue with all parties, in particular the supervisor of elections, as it would probably be his decision in the end. The premier said she did did not get the impression from her meeting with the UK minister that his request for the observers to attend the Cayman elections were as a result of any specific concerns about past elections or any potential issues with this one, as Cayman had a reputation for holding successful free and fair elections.
Nevertheless, while these days observers were generally invited into countries where democracy prevails, because of the timing so soon after the local transition of government, O'Connor-Connolly said she did not want people to feel that the observers were coming because something was expected to go wrong.
The timing referred to by the premier relates to former premier McKeeva Bush's arrest on suspicion of theft and offenses under the anti-corruption law which resulted in an opposition no confidence motion in the Legislative Assembly, supported by some members of the then government. This resulted in the collapse of the UDP administration led by Bush and a transition to the now minority government and its very public split from the UDP.
O'Connor-Connolly said it was important that the success to date, and the high standards set by the Elections Office, under the supervision of her former chief officer Kearney Gomez, was acknowledged. She said Cayman had set the standard in the Caribbean for elections and the team had done “a wonderful job”.
The premier said that having observers would be a new element to the election but there was no fear about them on the part of government. However, she said, there had to be level playing field and she wanted to ensure the observers were not limited to the UK personnel but included commonwealth members and that there were no hidden agendas.
“We wouldn't want anyone to think there is evidence of a need for observers,” she said. “We need to weigh in the issue of interpretation when balancing the decision.” The premier warned that the very act of “sunshine” on the election would be undermined if it brought cloudiness.
Deputy Premier Rolston Anglin added that while election observers may have been something that signaled concerns or only invited to attend elections in fledgling democracies, in recent years they have attended elections in major democracies, including the UK, France and the USA, because having observers around elections now was a demonstration of transparency.
Anglin confirmed that the issue had first been raised at the Joint Ministerial Council with the Overseas Territories in London before December so there was no direct connection to what happened in December.
Youth centre under review
(CNS): The planned new young offenders and remand facility is facing delays as a result of budgetary constraints. Despite the need for the centre to be finished by 6 November of this year to meet the government's constitutional and human rights obligations, the new minister responsible, Dwayne Seymour, said that the project is under review in an effort to find possible cost reductions or get approval from the UK. Although the foundations have already been completed at the site and a tender process on the main building started, the development is on hold until the government can either cut the costs or get permission to spend the more than $10million that the centre will cost to complete.
The project is being managed by the community affairs ministry and was started by the former minister, Mike Adam. However, speaking at the weekly post-Cabinet press briefing on Thursday morning, Seymour, who is now the new minister in charge, said that while the project was not being stopped, it was under review because of the costs and the requirements of the Framework for Fiscal Responsibility (FFR) agreement with the UK, which is now part of the Public Management and Finance Law.
Sources had advised CNS that tenders had been sought and submitted at significant cost to the contractors involved but they were not being informed about the current situation, leading to fears that the project may have been shelved indefinitely.
However, government has an obligation as a result of the implementation of the bill of rights to ensure the separation of young offenders from adult prisoners and to providea secure safe place for young people held on remand when accused of a crime. The youth centre was supposed to be open by 6 November, a date which is now very unlikely to be met.
Seymour said the project was still on-going but government was seeking legal opinions on the ramifications of the centre not being ready on time in relations to its obligations. But in the face of the FFR and budget restrains, Seymour said, the centre needed to get approval from the FCO and the governor was looking into the relevant issues which had come up and the cost. Seymour said the ministry had to demonstrate value for money with the project and all angles were being examined to justify the need for the centre to the UK's officials.
Chief Officer Dorine Whittaker said the ministry was meeting with public works to examine where cuts could be made but she confirmed that the centre would still follow the Missouri Model and the costs issues would not impact the goals to introduce the modern and much lauded system for dealing with young offenders.
Airport boss report leak
(CNS): The suspended CEO of the Cayman Islands Airport Authority is facing a long list of accusations relating to serious mismanagement at the airport and the misuse of public money. From boozy lunches for staff who were on duty, as well as flying lessons for an employee running a private flight school to unexplained thefts, hundreds of thousands of dollars appear to be misappropriated, according to a confidential report. The document and a bundle of supporting evidence was leaked to MLA Ezzard Miller, who says he is deeply concerned that more than two months after Jeremy Jackson was suspended no action has been taken against the airport boss and no information given to the public about the serious allegations.
Miller, who represents the district of North Side as an independent MLA, said the report and the stack of evidence was placed in a sealed brown envelope and left in his truck recently. He passed the documents to CNS because he said he was concerned that after so long knowing about these issues and in the face of damning evidence, the board has still not acted.
Although the financial officer was fired from the airport in December, Jackson remains on suspension. CNS contacted the board, the acting airport manager and the minister who is now in charge, but both Richard Arch, the board chair, and Kenrith McCoy, the acting CEO, made no comment when asked if Jackson was still receiving his full salary, whether the findings in the board’s report had been passed to the police or when the public were likely to be informed about what had gone on at the authority, which is one of the few government owned companies that is profitable.
It seems, however, that the CIAA could be even more profitable if money had not been misused over the last four years, as documented in the confidential report.
The report details the failure of the airport boss to deal with a theft of some $100,000 from the airport. The CEO had told the board that the person who was suspected of stealing the money had been terminated and he had left it at that. However, because the staff member was terminated on the grounds of poor performance, she left with a cheque from the authority of over $16,000. In addition, following her departure a further $21,000 was stolen without any explanation. None of the incidences of the theft were brought to the board’s attention, no investigation was carried out and no disciplinary action taken. The report also notes that theft is still prevalent at the airport.
The report lists a catalogue of expenditures which should not have been made or authorized by the CEO, from the use of various contractors without any contractual agreements or approval by the airport board to the financing of the former chief financial officer’s permanent residency at a cost of $15,500. The security unit was also making up its own working conditions, which the CEO had condoned, despite the fact it was costing the airport significant sums of money as staff were working a favourable shift pattern of four days on, three days off, forcing the recruitment of more people to cover the airport security, which the board said was one of its most costly areas.
The CEO also approved a significant amount of expensive overseas training programmes for airport staff which were not relevant for their jobs, including enhanced flight training for a private pilot who was making money from his license outside of his job by giving flight lessons.
The report also lists a catalogue of expenses run up by the staff, all of which were signed off by the CEO, on overseas staff jaunts and retreats. Many of the expenses signed off by Jackson included expensive liquor bills, which is against government policy. In one case the bar bill at a staff safety training meeting was over $17,000, an irony not lost on the board.
Regular development lunches at restaurants all over Grand Cayman were also paid for on the airport credit card, which included booze, despite the fact staff were returning to work. The report shows that the CEO was authorizing his own credit card payments, and before her departure the CFO was also signing her own cheques, including the one for her PR application, the document reports.
Miller told CNS that he was very disappointed that the board has refused to make any comment about the situation, which is evidently very serious, and he said action had to be taken.
“I don’t see why the board has not acted, given the serious misappropriation of public money,” Miller said. “I do not see why this is being kept in the dark and it is unfair to everyone involved to allow these issues to drag out without resolution. I am also disappointed that despite being asked, the board and management are not prepared to offer an explanation about what is going on,” the MLA added.
First Baptist donates to Crisis Centre
(CNS): First Baptist Wee Care made its annual Christmas donations to the Cayman Islands Crisis Centre recently, to go towards its operations and support of Cayman’s women and children who are working towards a life free from domestic abuse. Children and Youth Programme Case Manager at the Crisis Centre, Meila Johnson, accepted the donation. She said, “This is a wonderful donation particularly because we were able to get all of the children involved. It is important for children to understand personal boundaries and also to have empathy for the plight of others. This was an extraordinary gift.”
A second donation of clothing and a financial contribution was also received from CNA HealthPro and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Glen Ellyn Area Alumnae Chapter. Crystal Brown of CNA HealthPro was visiting the island on a conference and reached out to Crisis Centre Executive Director Ania Milanowska-Sedgley to make the donation. “The unexpected gifts are sometimes the most appreciated. This was a lovely and welcomed surprise”, said Milanowska-Sedgley.
The Cayman Islands Crisis Centre is the territory’s only women’s shelter and houses approximately 100 women and their children each year and answers more than 130 calls on the 24-hour help line (949-CICC ((2422)). The Centre was completely renovated in 2012, making it a comforting place of healing and refuge for those in need.
For more information on the Crisis Centre or domestic abuse in general, visit www.cicc.ky.
Supermodel’s busy life leaves no room for romance
(CNS): Cayman’s supermodel Selita Ebanks is believed to have split with her TV personality boyfriend as a result of their busy careers. The New York Post gossip column and other entertainment media in the US are reporting that Ebanks, who celebrated her 30th birthday this past weekend, has parted ways with Terrence J. The couple are apparently having “scheduling conflicts”, not least because of Ebanks’ new career directions, including acting and singing. This weekend, the model was trailed by cameras for a new TV show. Ebanks and Terrence Jenkins, the former 106 & Park host, began dating in late 2011, but romance appears to be over as "Selita is just so busy", a source told the Post.
Jenkins recently scored a primetime gig as host of E! News after a long stint on BET's 106 & Park and relocated to the west coast. He's also been pursuing a career in acting and is a spokesman for Crown Royal Life.
Man admits 3 kilo coke deal
(CNS): A 28-year-old man has been convicted of conspiring to supply up to three kilos of cocaine after he was caught in an undercover police drug operation with another local man. Camilo Naranjo pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to sell the drugs to the undercover cops for $54,000 but the drugs were not recovered because he claimed he was never able, or intended, to supply such a large amount but had instead hoped to steal the money. However, the crown claimed that Naranjo was not only planning on supplying the large quantity of the class A drug but was a wholesaler of cocaine in Cayman and a significant player in the local illegal drug market.
Naranjo was arrested outside Calico Jack's Beach Bar in November 2010 after the police sting operation came to a head but before the drugs were supplied to the undercover officers, the court heard Wednesday. Naranjo became part of a sting operation after RCIPS drugs officer originally from the UK went undercover, posing as real estate developers to investigate the sale of cocaine in local bars.
They first met with a man called Osman Bonilla at Royal Palms, who they were aware was involved in drugs, and began buying small quantities of cocaine from him, building up trust and leading up to a half kilo purchase.
However, when the undercover cops began indicating they wanted to buy much larger quantities of drugs with the intention of trafficking to the UK, Bonilla, who was convicted and sentenced to eight years in jail last year, introduced the men to Naranjo. This introduction by Bonilla was clear evidence, the crown said, of Naranjo’s position as a more significant dealer and an indication that he was much “higher up the drug dealing chain” and a wholesaler rather than a low level street dealer.
During a number of meetings, all of which were taped by the undercover officers, Naranjo incriminated himself when he said he controlled the cocaine market in Cayman and that he had earned in excess of a half million dollars a year selling drugs. He also advised the UK cops how to smuggle as much as two kilos of cocaine on the body without getting caught using women’s stockings.
He told the officers he was able to secure significant quantities and when a deal was arranged he agreed to supply the officers with three kilos. On the day of the deal, however, suspicions were raised and when a police patrol car drove through Calico Jack’s car park Naranjo tried to move the drop location to George Town. However, in the end the cops moved in, and although he did not have possession of the drugs, Naranjo was arrested.
After various legal difficulties he eventually pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy and his case was laid out before Justice Charles Quin on Wednesday morning.
Naranjo’s defence attorney, Clyde Allen, said that his client was not a wholesaler of drugs but had over-stated his importance in the local drug market in order to con the police and had intended to steal their money. He said his claims were fanciful and, given that he was working as a waiter and living at Treasure Island, it was apparent that he was not really a major player in the illegal drug market.
Allen also noted that his client was born and bred in Cayman, where he had gone to school, but because of a difficult divorce between his parents he no longer had Caymanian status and was a Honduran national, despite never having lived there. Allen said his client had worked at Pappagallo Restaurant on and off since he was twelve years old as a result of family hardships.
Naranjo was remanded back in custody to HMP Northward, where he has been since November 2010, until 13 March, when Justice Quin is scheduled to hand down sentence. The maximum penalty for conspiracy to supply class A drugs is ten years, and given the circumstances of the crime, Allen suggested the judge’s starting point before any discounts for his plea and mitigating or aggravating factors were considered should be six years.
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Construction starts on East End health project
(CNS): Work has finally begun on the much anticipated first phase of Dr Devi Shetty’s medical tourism project in East End. According to the local partners, some 40 workers, most of whom are said to be Caymanian, are now on the Health City Cayman Islands construction site, where the 140-bed hospital is expected to open in early 2014. Concrete is being poured and the first part of the work by general contractor Cayman Healthcare Construction Group is now well underway. The number of jobs is expected to increase to as many as 300 over the next two months.
The project director said the work going to local people as opportunities for Caymanians, both during the construction phase and on an ongoing basis once the facility is operational, is a priority for the development.
The first ever Planned Area Development (PAD) approval in the history of the Cayman Islands for the project was granted in January and planning approval for the 107,000 square foot hospital building was given the go-ahead earlier this month. The 'first pour' of cement took place last week.
Officials said that innovative technologies would be used at the Health City to mitigate the infrastructure impact of the project; waste from the hospital would be reduced and managed through recycling, reduced use, onsite sterilization of medical waste, incineration, and shredding.
Rain water will be used for non-potable purposes and sewage, which will be treated on site, will be used for the drought-resistant local flora and fauna that will make up the surrounding landscape.
A non-commercial onsite nursery is in the process of being set up to propagate local plants and trees and to recycle felled trees into peat. A road infrastructure plan has also been designed to address phase one and future phases of the development. In addition, officials claimed that the electrical load will be minimized through Salt Water Air Conditioning (SWAC) and high-efficiency building design using insulated concrete forms (ICF).
Despite claiming green credentials, however, there has been no environmental impact assessment on the project, even though it will have a significant impact on the surrounding area and in particular what had been, until the project began, undisturbed habitat home to a significant amount of locally endangered flora.
Nevertheless, both government and the officials on the project have pointed to the significant benefits the project is expected to bring to the Cayman Islands. From the fees paid to government during the planning process of more than CI$300,000 to the purchase of building materials bought locally, officials said the benefits were already apparent.
“Construction workers, attorneys, accountants, architects, consultants, hoteliers, restaurants, and otherproviders of essential products and services have already begun to benefit,” a release about the start of construction stated.
Recruitment gatherings in several districts have taken place and applications for both the construction trades and the eventual hospital operations have been accepted.
The project is said to be valued at around US$2 billion and will be built in phases over 15 years. Eventually it will include 2,000 beds across a multi-specialty health city, providing services not currently widely available in the region, such as open-heart and bypass surgery, angioplasty, heart-valve replacement, cancer treatment, and organ transplants.
For more information go to www.healthcitycaymanislands.com.
Stop the fighting, we are watching!
As the youngest candidate so far who has made intentions to run for public office, I feel as though I have to speak up on behalf of the younger voters and a percentage of the mature voters when I urge that we keep the 2013 election campaign a clean one. As a voice for younger voters, we do not appreciate the personal attacks aired by some individuals in the political arena.
This is not limited to those who intend to run for the first time or the seventh but also the supporters of the political parties to include advocacy groups and independents (old-UPD, new-UPD, PPM, C4C).
We find that the lack of focus on the real issues, that are important to us, and the attention on the nit picking of personalities not only distracting but disrespectful to those who have chosen to run and also to the people of this country. These are serious issues we are dealing with — jobs, crime, education, economy to name but a few — issues which need to be taken seriously by ourpoliticians.
We need our young people to know they too should take politics seriously; the politicians need to set the standard. The in-fighting does not reflect well among the young voter base. Remember that many of us look up to you as leaders and role models. Truth be told, we just want a better Cayman and to hear the solutions you have which may solve the major issues affecting our nation, regardless of who or which party the ideas come from.
Yes, there is a need for a strong robust debate on what is the better way forward for the country. That can be accomplished without the negative shots against each other. This behavior is dividing us as a people.
It's going to take all of us to get Cayman back on track, so even after the May 2013 election has been and gone we all still need to be able to work together as we strive for a better Cayman.
Interim gov’t illegal says Mac
(CNS): The former premier has described the current minority government as illegal but McKeeva Bush said he and his remaining UDP colleagues, who are now in opposition, are not going to make a fuss about it as those government MLAs will soon be out of office. Bush said he was not going to be like the opposition was to him by causing trouble for the interim government, even though he claimed it was illegal and not really a government. “I don’t know what we’ve got,” he said Tuesday night at a public meeting to open the UDP’s new offices. However, he said it did not matter as they would all be gone in a few months when they were voted out by the people at the election and the UDP returned to office.
Although Bush has said that the UDP campaign has not yet been officially launched, the opening of the UDP’s new headquarters in the capital provided an opportunity for the beleaguered party leader, who remains on police bail and under suspicion of various offences, to laud his achievements in office and make promisesfor the future.
As a critical battleground in the 2013 election, the UDP made a major event out of the office opening, which attracted around 250 people, boosted by the congregation from the church Bush has recently begun attending in George Town, the Church of God of Prophecy, Victory Tabernacle.
The UDP has not yet confirmed the team it will be fielding in the battle for George Town and by extension control of government, but the appearance of Rayal Bodden on the platform alongside Mike Adam, Ellio Solomon, Renard Moxam and John Foster, who MC’d the event, has added fuel to the mounting speculation that he is the sixth UDP man who will be standing in the capital.
Governor wins legal review in Tempura secrets battle
(CNS): The governor has won the first round in his legal fight to keep details of a discredited internal police investigation secret. His office confirmed Tuesday that Justice Sir Alan Moses had stayed the release ofa document that Information Commissioner Jennifer Dilbert had directed should be given to an FOI applicant. The request was for a copy of a report relating to a complaint filed by Martin Bridger (left), the lead investigator on the ill-fated operation into potential police corruption. However, the governor is fighting to keep the report under wraps and out of the public domain. As a result, his office is the first government entity to attempt to overturn one of Dilbert’s decisions through the courts.
The British judge has approved the governor’s application for judicial review and the next step is to set a date for the substantive hearing, but in the meantime the report remains secret.
The document being sought by the applicant is a review of a complaint filed by Bridger, which cost the public purse around $300,000 to produce. Bridger has seen the document relating to his complaint, which was not upheld, but he is not able to release it as he was bound by confidentiality.
However, some of his complaints were reported in the UK Press and the former Scotland Yard cop's main gripe was his investigation was prematurely ended by the authorities in Cayman in what he claims amounted to an orchestrated cover-up of errors and bad decisions by the powers that be.
When a member of the public filed an FOI for this report it was refused. However, Dilbert in her decision overturned that denial and ordered the office to release the report. The governor then filed an application for a judicial review on the 45 day deadline, which has now been granted.
Given the efforts that the UK representative is making to in order to keep the content of the report secret, it is unlikely that the judicial review hearing will be open to the public.