Archive for February 21st, 2014
Starving dog, near death left at animal shelter
(CNS): Staff, volunteers and board members at the Humane Society were all horrified Friday morning by the terrible condition of an emaciated and starving dog left in the charity's dog drop-off kennel. It is unknown whether the owners had taken the dog there overnight or whether a concerned member of the public, who may not have wanted to get involved, rescued the animal, which the society vet believed had been chained up for some time. Michelle Sabit, a director on the charity’s board, said the level of cruelty involved to keep a dog chained up without food or water until it had almost starved to death was unimaginable.
The dog was taken to the vets for intense IV treatment and the Humane Society is appealing for donations and a foster home for the little brown mutt, which, with some care and attention, could still live. The vet explained that the dog's organs may have been impacted as it was evident the animal had gone without food or even water for many days. But with intravenous feeding and some care and attention he may make a full recovery.
Sabit said she had serious concerns about the continuing level of cruelty and neglect the society was seeing, as she urged people to report abuse to the authorities as there are laws in place to prosecute people who either neglect or abuse animals. Despite the legislation, no one is able to say if anyone has ever been prosecuted, even though reports about significant acts of abuse and cruelty are routinely reported. However, the society is calling for action in the face of animal cruelty and for the authorities to enforce the law.
In recent weeks local activist Sandra Catron has also raised the issue about neglected and dangerous dogs. She has called for accountability from owners and for the police to act when owners are neglecting animals and when dogs become a danger. Catron eventually pressed the authorities to remove a dog from her neighbourhood in Newlands after her own pet was attacked four times by a dog that had become very dangerous.
Texan cruise visitor dies after snorkelling trip
(CNS): A 78-year-old man who was visiting Grand Cayman yesterday on a cruise ship died soon after he was rescued from the ocean, having lost consciousness in the water. Loyd Wayne Loudamy of Mansfield, Texas, who was a passenger aboard the Navigation of the Seas, was on a snorkelling trip with his wife and his friend at the Callie dive site in the vicinity of the Royal Watler Terminal, an RCIPS spokesperson said. He and his friend were in the water for less than 10 minutes before he got into difficulty and lost consciousness in the sea. He was lifted out of the water onto the tourist excursion vessel, where chest compressions and CPR were administered by two other snorkellers on the same trip, one of whom was a nurse here on vacation.
During the administering of the CPR, Loudamy regained consciousness for a while and the harbour patrol boat was summoned to the location to help take him to the Royal Watler Terminal, where the paramedics were waiting.
The nurse and snorkellers continued the chest compressions and CPR on the harbour patrol boat, but Loudamy lost consciousness once again. He was taken to the George Town Hospital by ambulance and at 11:58am he was pronounced dead.
Although police enquiries are continuing, there appears to be no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death.
Cayman Pirates invade Florida
(CNS): Next weekend a band of Cayman Pirates will invade the south-eastern peninsula of the United States with the aim of pillaging and plundering and running off with the prize of Champions of the Fort Lauderdale Ruggerfest Touch Tournament 2014. A merry band of 12 marauders will embark on their third annual trip to this tournament aiming to improve on their semi-final position in 2012 and hopefully to capture the trophy for the first time. Sponsored by Trident Trust and promoted by the Cayman Touch Association the Cayman Pirates go to the event in fine fettle.
Coached by Aussie legend (at least that’s what his girlfriend calls him) Shaun Hardcastle, the Pirates are led onto the field by the wonderfully-named Captain Morgan – Morgan Shelver that is. He may lack the flowing locks andcocked-feather-in-hat of the infamous buccaneer but his play is as intoxicating as the eponymous rum and certainly makes his opponents heads spin.
Every year in Cayman the standard of Touch (similar to rugby league but without the tackles) increases as more and more people are drawn to the sport. It is a high energy game with limited player-to-player contact and is just right for guys and girls looking to get involved in a fast-paced ball game.
The Cayman Pirates will be challenging teams from New York, Washington DC, the East Coast and Florida but most of all they will be looking to develop their teamwork and playing style ahead of other tournaments in the US later this year such as the National Touch Championships and the Touch World Cup in Australia 2015.
The team has been training for several weeks and is looking to build on work done earlier in the year combining a game of innovative attacking moves with a balanced defence. It is a work-in-progress but looking at the roster there is a heady mix of blistering pace, astute play-making and sage-wisdom.
Tour Organizer Chandra Friesen said, “Touch is one of the fastest growing team sports in Cayman and we love the chance to experience playing other teams from overseas. It’s a challenge which we’ll enjoy and if we can bring back the trophy it will be even better!”
A full report of the Pirates’ progress will be made next week.
Cayman Pirates 2014 Squad – Morgan Shelver ©, Neal Ainscow, Marc Randall, Nic Swartz, Richie Gordon, Brad Stephenson, RileyMullen, Brandon Smith, Guy Major, Chandra Friesen, Jax McCarty, Evelyn Ritch.
Webb points to economic and social value of sport
(CNS): Local and regional football boss Jeffrey Webb told a conference audience Thursday that sports tourism is the fastest growing sector of the global travel industry and equates to $600 billion a year. Investment in facilities, human capital and infrastructure has contributed to various nations becoming international destinations of choice. He said that the sport was an economic driver of prosperity as football unquestionably injects nations with a platform for exposure through participating in and hosting international tournaments. Speaking at the Fidelity CEO conference, the head of CONCACAF and the man tipped to be the next FIFA president said the value of sport extends well beyond the economy.
He told a packed house that sports brings benefits to communities and individuals, such as improving health, education and safety, while also increasing skills, employment, growth and providing new opportunities for youth.
“These are positive effects money cannot buy. But it takes greater participation from the community, and the right partnerships, for the sustainable development of sports. Investment in football is investment in human capital,” he added.
Nevertheless, the economic value is high and Webb’s position, which enabled him to bring two international football tournaments to Cayman, has already generated some $5 million for the local economy. According to a PricewaterhouseCoopers report, it is projected that global sports market revenues will rise at a compound annual growth rate of 3.7 percent from US$121.4 billion in 2010 to US$145.3 billion in 2015.
Within football, the World Cup is the principal source of revenue. The 2010 edition in South Africa generated total revenue of US$ 3.6 billion and it continues to be the most viewed sporting event in the world. In 2002 World Cup viewership reached an astounding total cumulative audience of 28.8 billion people, making it the most viewed event in television history. No other sport is as universal.
Webb encouraged business leaders to invest in Cayman’s youth, to provide greater opportunities for future generations, recognizing that football should not only accompany the development of society but also endorse messages that improve health, education and crime prevention.
“We can learn. We can follow. Or, we can lead,” he concluded.
Dump row escalates
(CNS): The president of the Chamber of Commerce has hit out once again at government over the dump, escalating the row, following comments made by the premier in his address at the Fidelity CEO Conference on Thursday. In a letter to the Chamber membership berating government for moving too slowly, Johann Moxam said the Framework for Fiscal Responsibility (FFR) process shouldn’t be used as the excuse for delaying action. However, the governor has also emphasised the need for the requirements of the FFR agreement with the UK to be met to make sure government does the right thing for the long term and that any solution offers value for money and can be afforded by the Caymanian taxpayer.
The Chamber boss hit out at the premier for stalling and described the situation at both the George Town and Cayman Brac dumps as “disgraceful examples of our Islands' lack of leadership, planning and urgency”. “Cayman cannot afford the multiple excuses, egos, and political rhetoric,” he said, as it would not fix the literally burning issue.
Moxam also took aim at Premier Alden McLaughlin for revealing that he (Moxam) had been involved in the original bid and suggested that the premier was implying his position on the dump might be because of commercial interest – although McLaughlin made no such reference.
Moxam said it was correct that he had been involved in a bid but he found it “disturbing and irresponsible for thepremier” to have revealed the confidential information about his business interests and said the comments led him to believe McLaughlin was “attempting to imply that I was using this high office to further my business interests and personal agenda,” which Moxam denied.
He said he and all the Chamber members had a right to point out the delays towards a solution for Cayman’s waste management were not necessary and that there was enough information out there already on which to base the business case.
During his speech at the conference, McLaughlin said the fires had brought the issue of waste management into sharp focus and the government was facing calls for an immediate solution to a problem that is the result of many years of unsustainable waste management practices.
“While we fully acknowledge the urgency of this issue, we cannot be reasonably expected to resolve it overnight. The procurement process for major projects like this was outlined in the FFR, and has been enshrined in our Public Management and Finance Law. We do not have a choice,” he said.
“The processes that are in place under the Public Management and Finance Law are there in large part because of the disastrous consequences of the last tendering exercise conducted by government for a waste management solution. I am sure my good friend, the President of the Chamber, will recall this well, as he was involved in that tendering exercise,” McLaughlin added.
He said the process would ensure transparency and accountability in the procurement process this time round.
His comments were supported by the governor, Helen Kilpatrick. Responding to CNS questions, she said that she was committed to working with the CIG to find an effective long term response.
“I recognise the frustration that the issue is causing and I know that the Cabinet is doing what it can to contain the problem and work quickly towards finding a longer term solution for our waste management,” she said.
“The terms of the FFR are well documented and there is limited scope to increase government borrowing. It is critical that infrastructure projects move forward quickly in a way that meets these requirements. The UK Government stands ready to continue to work in partnership with CIG to help deliver key infrastructure projects. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has been in discussions with CIG about calling on the services of Infrastructure UK, the UK Government body with strategic capability for infrastructure delivery,” Kilpatrick told CNS.
She also said the services of UK waste management experts could be called upon by CIG and the UK government would be happy to help facilitate expertise as may be necessary.
LIME outsourcing deal good for consumers, says CEO
(CNS Business): Following news this week that LIME Cayman Islands will be outsourcing its field services to Ericsson from 8 March, the CEO of the local company said this partnership agreement is in line with how telecommunications around the world are evolving and that telecom companies want to focus on their corebusiness, which is delivering products to customers. In a video interview with CNS Business (which will be posted 24-28 February) Bill McCabe noted that Ericsson is a global business which has invested over a billion dollars in its services and employs around 100,000 people and that this move will be good for both customers and LIME. Read more on CNS Business
Go to the full article on CNS Business and comment
In the interview with CNS Business next week, McCabe also discusses improvements in customer service, the local demand for speed and connectivity, trends in consumer product demands, and in Friday’s video clip he looks at where the telecoms business is heading.
Related articles on CNS:
Football boss ‘more important than premier’
(CNS): The president of the Chamber of Commerce said that, as president of CONCACAF, Jeffery Webb is arguably in a more important job thanthe sports minister or the premier and if he were them he would be sitting down with the football boss and asking him what they should do about sport. During the much anticipated panel debate on the impact of sport on youth, education and crime, Johan Moxam said the government needed to do more to invest in sports, but he felt that the corporate community was already picking up too much of the tab – a point which his panel colleagues all disagreed.
The importance of sports to everyone had been highlighted during the conference when it was revealed that recent tournaments and conferences hosted by CONCACAF that had taken place in Cayman had generated more than $5 million dollars for the local economy.
Slough Sports Minister Osbourne Bodden was absent from the panel on the day, Colin Anglin, the director of sports, was left to defend government’s record on its investment, management and polices regarding sports. He pointed out that although there are a number of corporate sponsors that are fantastic supporters of many local sports, it was still only a limited number of businesses and many others are not involved at all.
Jeffery Webb, who is president of CIFA as well as being president of CONCACAF and vice president of FIFA, said if he were president of the Chamber he might have said what Moxam did. However, he said, while some corporate citizens were doing a great job, many others were hiding behind those that do give. But Webb’s main concern about the state of sport in Cayman was the lack of leadership and organisation to coordinate and drive programmes, especially at the grass roots.
Grizz Adams from the local rugby union agreed with Webb about the need for leadership and for much more clarity regarding grants and coordination of all the schools, as well as using the facilities more effectively.
Adams described how the soles on students’ running shoes melt on the asphalt that they are expected to play on at John Gray High School and lamented the lack of resources to pay for a bus to bring the students to his field so they could play there.
Tackling the myriad issues, Webb acknowledged that things in Cayman had improved over the years since his discussions back in the 1980s with ministers who told him that spending money on sport was a waste of money. He said things began to change when McKeeva Bush was sports minister and he began investing in facilities, which has continued ever since but a lot of work and investment was still needed.
Anglin promised that things were improving with the creation of a national sports policy and the key goal for his department was to now implement that policy.
Post office to charge for holding packages
(CNS): Recipients who leave their parcels at the post office for more than two weeks will be paying a ten cent a day fee to the post office starting next month, as the service begins enforcing an existing regulation. This fee, known as demurrage will be levied when customers exceed the standard time applicable to importing goods and the Cayman Islands Postal Service (CIPS) said it is part of the Postal Regulations – section 60 (2) . Postmaster General Sheena Glasgow said its enforcement is meant to encourage customers to collect their packages in a timely manner rather than be truly punitive.
“At ten cents per day per package, the demurrage fee could only be considered a token storage charge when a package has been uncollected formore than two weeks. The Airport Post Office now processes the incoming package traffic and even there, space is a finite commodity so long-term storage simply is not feasible,” she said.
Customers should also note that if packages remain uncollected after 35 days of the addressee first being notified, they are classified as undeliverable and may be returned to the sender – if the item bears such instruction — or handed over to the Customs Department for disposal.