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Time for Truth: We know 1,300+ people are not missing; something more unspeakable has happened

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PHOTO BY DEANDREA HAMILTON TAKEN FROM HELICOPTER OVER MARSH HARBOUR ABACO ON FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 13, 2019

#TheBahamas – September 25, 2019 — Are we expected to believe that there are over one thousand, three hundred people wandering around in remote parts of Abaco and Grand Bahama or that there are over one thousand, three hundred people swimming in the open Atlantic Ocean or that there are over one thousand, three hundred people trapped under some fallen structure alive and well?

PHOTO BY DEANDREA HAMILTON, MAGNETIC MEDIA – MARSH HARBOUR, ABACO

It is the question I toss to the wind when I view what the Bahamas Government continues to put forth, not when it comes to the death toll but as it relates to the individuals recorded as still missing.

It has been 24 days since Hurricane Dorian pulverised the heart of Abaco.  It has been 23 days since Hurricane Dorian submerged Grand Bahama in unrelenting surge waters.   

As a Christian nation, Bahamians do believe and hope for miracles of all sorts on a daily basis.  This day in my nation’s history would be no exception. 

PHOTO BY DEANDREA HAMILTON, MAGNETIC MEDIA – MARSH HARBOUR, ABACO

It would inspire a national day of rejoicing if the over 1,300 who are registered as still missing since the hurricane were to turn up, be found alive or located among the 1,600 who are living in shelters.  Truth be told, we would rejoice over even one who is found at this stage.

The official death toll report of Hurricane Dorian is a contention in The Bahamas. 

Just over 50 people killed in the historic, catastrophic hurricane conveys the Government, despite the rebuke from residents and citizens and those in the international community over the low figure. 

To those who were there, it is a ridiculous sham to hide the truth.  What’s the point they wonder?  And so do I? 

I think the extreme protectiveness being exercised about this detail is prohibitive to the grieving and healing process.

I also think the aim of government to protect our hearts from the burden of the truth has run its course. 

Three weeks on, The Bahamas is ready to know the truth, ready to prove that Bahamas strong is more than a trending hashtag; it is what and who we are.  The hashtag mantra is especially noticeable in moments like these and with our global friends lending a hand, a bounce back for The Bahamas is inevitable. The peculiar cocktail to be prepared first requires that the truth to be known,  that there is acceptance of that truth, allowance for the range of emotions as we cope with the truth and then the hardest part: letting go and moving ahead.

PHOTO BY DEANDREA HAMILTON, MAGNETIC MEDIA – MARSH HARBOUR ABACO

We will be crushed for a while and yes, some of us for a good long while, when we finally hear the count of the lives lost in the hurricane from hell, as it was appropriately dubbed.  But we will do what we have proven we do best.

We will surround and shelter and support the broken-hearted.  We will listen to their agonizing accounts of the day they lost so much and we will let their tears fall until or if they run dry.  We will ensure there is dignity and empathy and help, lots and lots of good old fashioned, help.

We will pray for and with them and they, through the mercies of God will find that their hearts are healing.  We will ensure they also eat, play, school, work and we will be there when they are ready to rebuild their lives.

It is clear and admitted, even by the country leaders who will not say it precisely, that the lives we have lost in the islands of Abaco and Grand Bahama are far more than 53 people. 

Deandrea Hamilton, Magnetic Media, CEO

Three weeks later over one thousand, three hundred people are still missing and we do not need to be a Minister of Health, Director of NEMA, Police Commissioner or Prime Minister to know what has happened here…

My plea is simple and shared.  Let the truth come forth and let the healing and rebuilding begin. 

Magnetic Media is a Telly Award winning multi-media company specializing in creating compelling and socially uplifting TV and Radio broadcast programming as a means for advertising and public relations exposure for its clients.

Bahamas News

Earth Day celebrations  

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Dana Malcolm  

Staff Writer  

 
 

#TurksandCaicos, March 31, 2023 – Earth Day is coming up on April 22, 2023, and the Department of Environment and Coastal resources is hosting a poetry competition for TCI youth to mark the event.

Students of all ages are encouraged to write a sonnet to celebrate the TCI’s natural beauty; the winning poem will be published in the Times of the Island Magazine. 

The deadline for poems to be submitted is April 30, 2023, and students should submit their poem via email to aavenant@gov.tv or in person to any DECR office. Entries must include the student’s name, age and school.  

The department promises that there are prizes to be won for the top poets. 

April 22 marks the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement 53 years ago and helps demonstrate support for environmental protection. The theme for this year is “Invest In Our Planet.” 

This year‘s theme follows years of missed climate action goals by governments globally, including poor climate financing. The Turks and Caicos and other small island developing states are particularly at risk environmentally because of the growing threat of climate change. 

Currently the country is working through the Environmental Health Department DECR, Fisheries Department, and more to create sustainable fishing, farming, and marine practices that will benefit the country economically, but also protect its natural flora and fauna.  

Projects include sargassum research, coral nurseries to rebuild the country’s coral reef, farming in schools, marine spatial planning to create an effective plan for the use of marine resources, participation in the UK Blue Belt program to protect local marine life, and much more.  

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Work of NAECOB critical in ensuring high standards in education, says Minister Hanna-Martin

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By KATHRYN CAMPBELLBahamas Information Services
NASSAU, The Bahamas, March 29, 2023 – Over 100 schools in New Providence, public and private, and some 30 plus schools in Freeport have been inspected by The National Accreditation and Equivalency Council (NAECOB) to ensure high quality standards for the delivery of education.
“We will cover every island, every cay in this country to make certain that the facilities that we send our children to are adequate, conducive for learning, safe and sound for education,” said Thelma Grimes, chairperson, NAECOB.
“We are going to head to Cat Island and all the others before June.This is our announced visit. They [schools] have a chance to get things fixed that are not finished and [afterwards] we will have the unannounced.”
The Council informed the media of its progress during a briefing Monday, March 20, 2023 at its headquarters, Tonique Williams-Darling Highway.
Howard Newbold, Inspector and Council Member explained that the council’s seven inspectors are tasked with visiting every site or virtual space operating the following: primary/secondary schools, private/secondary, post-secondary, recognized, training, allied health and business institutions among others.
 Mr. Newbold said inspections include an examination of:
 -Safety and security standards-Human security which begins at the entrance to the property’-Physical security: safety mechanisms including smoke detectors, fire alarms and extinguishers (service date verification, and evacuation plan)-Primary grounds, playground equipment, swing sets and slides-Curriculum-Information management system (student records, staff schedules, registration certificate with NAECOB, business license, photos of the national leaders etc.)
The Hon. Glenys Hanna-Martin, Minister of Education and Technical and Vocational Institute thanked NAECOB for their efforts. She described their work as “critical” and a part of an overall national thrust to ensure that the quality of education in the country is at a high standard.“We’re the Ministry of Education and they’re our schools. We are accountable to NAECOB. They ensure that what is happening on the campuses throughout the nation meets the physical standards and the qualitative standards of education. You would have heard classroom size and teacher/student ratio. We may have challenges, and we do at the Ministry of Education but when these issues are brought to our attention we are obliged and compelled to seek resolution to ensure that the standards are met.
“This is a quality assurance measure for the Ministry itself and our schools to ensure that public and private and public schools meet these standards. We value that. Because the objective of the Ministry is to ensure that we meet the standards so that our young people who enter these institutions are afforded the best opportunity possible.
 “Education is a cultural value; a norm. We submit ourselves to the work of NAECOB to ensuring what happens is done at least to make the acceptable standards of the delivery of education in our schools,” she said.
Cassia Minnis, registration officer, said “registration” certifies that a local educational institution/provider has met the criteria to offer an educational service in The Bahamas as outlined in the Education Act. She said it is mandatory that all educational institutions/provider offering/proposing to offer an educational service in the Bahamas must be registered according to the NAECOB Act and the Education Act.
 She said NAECOB is aware of “small” schools operating within residential homes and warned that this is in contravention of the law.
She encouraged the public to view listings of all registered institutions on the website at naecob.org
NAECOB is responsible for registering and accrediting primary schools, secondary schools, post-secondary schools, and any institution that offers training in The Bahamas.
 -30-
PHOTO CAPTIONS

BIS Photos/Mark Ford

Header: Seated at the table, from left: – Lorraine Armbrister, Permanent Secretary; Minister Glenys Hanna-Martin; Dominique McCartney Russell, Acting Director; Cassia Minnis, Registration Officer; Thelma Grimes, Council Chairperson; Howard Newbold, Inspector, Council Member; Shena Williams, Council and Inspector; Dorothy Anderson, Inspector; T. Nicola McKay, Deputy Chairperson;  (seated behind) Willard Barr, Council and Inspector.

1st insert: Thelma Grimes, Council Chairperson

2nd insert: Howard Newbold, Inspector and Council Member

3rd insert: The Hon. Glenys Hanna-Martin, Minister of Education and Technical and Vocational Training

4th insert: Cassia Minnis, Registration Officer

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Bahamas News

Bahamas Golden Jubilee Events Announced, Celebrations Across 33 Islands & Cays

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#TheBahamas, March 27, 2023 – As the 50th anniversary of our nation’s independence approaches, Bahamians everywhere are teeming with excitement and expectancy around the year-long celebrations set by The National Independence Secretariat.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister joined H.E Leslia Miller Brice, Chair of The National Independence Secretariat to unveil the Calendar of Events for the 50th Independence celebrations.

The calendar comprises a host of events, initiatives and recommendations for celebrations throughout all 33 islands of The Bahamas.

At this jubilant occasion the PM stated, “Celebrating independence is about acknowledging the greatness around us, the greatness within us, and the greatness ahead of us.

We are Bahamians. That identity is special.”

View the newly released calendar of events here:

https://celebrate-bahamas.com/calendar-of-events/…

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