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Letter to the Editor: What about Beaches Turks & Caicos?

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#October 28, 2020 – Letter to the Editor

The Editor, I listened to the press conference today (October 27 – Premier Press Conference) and heard a lot about nothing at all. The TCIG continues to act like an ostrich with its head stuck in the sand, talking a whole lot of fluff while not talking about the one thing people want to hear about which is, when will Beaches opening and what are you doing to get Beaches open.

Everywhere you go the talk is about when Beaches will open, but not one word in today’s press conference until the reporters had to ask. Why is the government acting blind to the suffering of people who are without jobs, and without incomes. Why is it always kicking the can down the road, and acting clueless whenever someone ask about the closure of the hotels particularly Beaches.

People are fed up. People want to get back to work and people want to see money flowing again. It is no wonder that the people in Beaches are fed up too, and you can see it in the public statements the resort is making. So why did Beaches have to take off its gloves to get any response from the TCIG. It is like the what Magnetic Media wrote just a few weeks ago this is the no reply government.

All the talk of what a good job the government has done and diversification and reserves and all of that is just fluff, it does not impress  anybody, and certainly not those people who have no job to go to when tomorrow comes. It is almost insulting to hear the TCIG say that this process is going as fast as it can. The media personnel themselves seemed taken aback by this response, because if this issue can’t be resolved after three or four years then heaven help us.

As for continuing to blame COVID for all the problems, well while that may have been true early in the year, the fact is that hotel sector in countries all over the Caribbean are opening up now and guess who is leading the charge to open, none other than Sandals and Beaches.

Antigua is open. Jamaica is open, Barbados, Grenada, Saint Lucia. Beaches and Sandals have brought back out thousands of people in those islands, and they had to work with those governments to get it done. So when they complain of incompetence on the part of the TCIG is it so hard to see why. The TCI has the biggest and best of the resorts but yet we can’t get it reopened. That means no airlift, no jobs and no revenue.

Saying you care about restoring the economy is one thing, but being able and competent enough to do it is another. From all we have heard about this issue it seems like a very straightforward matter. It does not seem to be as impossible as the government continues to claim.

People are tired of hearing about matters before the courts, and now we hearing of mediation. In fact with respect to the mediation Beaches said it was ready for November 8th and then we hear TCIG pushed it back November 18th. If the resort is to open on November 18th,  how could you push back the mediation to November 18th, Make no sense. Is the TCIG serious? Isn’t this exactly what the resort has complained about?

In any event mediation does not promise a solution; it just promises that this matter is going to drag out further, because if it has to go to Cabinet and to the House of Assembly as is reported, then we may not see Beaches reopen this year AT ALL. Let that reality sink in, because the TCI could be facing a very blue, blue Christmas and an uncertain New Year.

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.

News

Turks and Caicos Islands school sports season 2023/24 officially opens in September

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Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands, September 19, 2023 – After an active summer of events, Turks and Caicos Islands School Sports (TCISS) season 2023/24 will open with TCISS Football for Boys and Girls on September 30, 2023.

The opening ceremony of TCISS Football will take place at the TCI Football Association on Venetian Road, Providenciales and we will commute to the National Stadium for the games. Games will take place weekly on Fridays and Saturdays. After making their debut last year, TCISS Girls Football will run concurrently with Boys Football on a split pitch from September through October. The championship games are slated for October 28, 2023.

Last year’s Girls’ football champions were the Marjorie Basden High School after defeating the British West Indies Collegiate 2-1. The Boys’ champions were the Clement Howell High School who beat out the Elite High School who forfeited the game 1-0. All current students, fans and alumni are encouraged to watch the games weekly each Friday and Saturday, with tickets for Adults $5 and Children $3.

TCISS Boys Basketball quickly picks up after the Football season ends, spanning from early November 2023 to January 2024. Home and away games are one the highlights of this event, affording all teams a chance at a ‘home-court’ advantage throughout the season. As is tradition in TCISS, schools will be randomly selected and placed into pools to compete. Ultimately the strongest teams will meet at the championships. The reigning champions are the Clement Howell High School who defeated the A. Louise Garland Thomas High School 92-56 for the gold.

In a double-team affair, TCISS Girls Softball will launch a few weeks post Boys Basketball’s commencement, for a season which lasts from November 2023 – January 2024. This means softball and basketball seasons will run concurrently like last year, and tickets will allow entry to both games. The reigning champions are the HJ Robinson High School who won the championships 14-6 in their hometown Grand Turk against the Wesley Methodist High School. The championships will return to the nation’s capital next year, in honour of last year’s champions.

Ending the TCISS season will be the Track and Field events also known as Athletics. The Athletics opener will be the Track and Field Development meets. Historically this has been segmented into two meets: Sprints and Throws, Distance and Jumps.

Following will be the TCISS Inter-High Track and Field Championships also known as Nationals in March 2024 then the TCISS Inter-Primary Track and Field Championships also in March. Last year’s champions of Inter-High was the A. Louise Garland Thomas High School and for Inter-Primary the Ona Glinton Primary School. After being implemented last season, TCISS Track and Field champions are determined by a medal count with gold holding the most weight.

TCISS 2023/24 Sport Schedule

  • TCISS Inter-High School Football Boys, TCISS Inter-High School Football Girls – September 30, 2023 – October 28, 2023 (Providenciales)
  • TCISS Inter-High School Basketball – November 2023 – January 2024 (All-Island)
  • TCISS Inter-High School Softball – November 2023 – January 2023 (Season Games – Providenciales. Semi-finals & Championships – Grand Turk)
  • Track and Field Development Meets – February 2024
  • TCISS Inter-High School Track and Field – February – March 2024 (Providenciales)
  • TCISS Inter-Primary School Track and Field – March 2023 (Providenciales)

The full TCISS event schedule and further updates will be found on the TCI Sports Commission’s website www.gov.tc/sports/.

For the latest news on the TCISS, fans can follow on Instagram (@tcisportscommission) and Facebook (Turks and Caicos Islands Sports Commission). To share your experience with TCISS on social, use the hashtags #TCISS and #morethanjustsports.

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Court Ruling leaves Young Son without Mother, Father killed in 2022 violence

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Wilkie Arthur

Freelance Court Reporter

 

#TurksandCaicos, September 19, 2023 – A young son is left without a father, taken through gun violence and his mother, now deported back to her home country of Jamaica.

A Jamaican woman, ANDREA ROSE MARIE ATKINSON, now in her late fifties, who was married to a Wheeland, Blue Hills, Providenciales native, appeared before the Hon. Chief Magistrate Mr. Jolyon Hatmin.

Atkinson was charged on August 7th with remaining in the Islands beyond the permitted time.  The Chief Magistrate (CM) asked the lady if she would like an opportunity to get legal representation?  She said, your Honour, I just want to get this over with because “mi can’t take da cell no more” “mi bin lock up now fa sa much days, mi just a plea guilty and go back to mi Yard.”

The lady, communicating in her native, raw Jamaican patois tried to explain to the CM that she once had a permanent resident certificate (PRC) but after the divorced she was trying to get a work permit.

She said, yes, she overstayed but she was trying to make herself legal.

The woman asked the CM for some time to sort out her son and her things before they send her home.  The mother of a boy child told the chief magistrate that she didn’t know where her child was because since law enforcement arrested her and took her into Immigration lock-up and since, she has not seen or heard from her son.

This matter was heard in August.

Investigation by this reporter uncovered that the son, a Turks and Caicos Islander, was taken in by one of the deceased sisters; therefore an aunt to the boy.

The CM sentenced the Jamaican woman ANDREA ROSE MARIE ATKINSON to a fine of $2,000.00 to be paid immediately in default, she will serve 90 days imprisonment.

He also recommended deportation; giving the former PRC holder seven days to sort out her son and her belongings.

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Government

REOPENING OF THE TURKS & CAICOS ISLANDS HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY

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The First (1st) Sitting of the First (1st) Meeting of the Third (3rd) Session of the Twelfth (12th) Legislature of the House of Assembly of the Turks & Caicos Islands

 

 The Opening Ceremony for the First (1st) Sitting of the First (1st) Meeting of the Third (3rd) Session of the Twelfth (12th) Legislature of the House of Assembly occurred on the 14th September at 10 o’clock in the forenoon with its usual pomp and fanfare.

During the proceedings, the Honourable Premier and Minister for Public Policy, Hon. C. Washington Misick, moved the motion that the House of Assembly be suspended to allow for the reading of the Speech from the Throne, presented by Her Excellency, the Governor Dileeni Daniel-Selvaratnam.

The Speech from the Throne, having highlighted some of the Government’s accomplishments since being elected to office on 19th February 2021, culminated with the proposed Legislative Agenda to be considered for the upcoming legislative year which included, but is not limited to:

Constitution (Amendment) Order;

Retiring Allowance (Amendment) Bill;

Community College (Amendment) Bill;

Gaming Control (Amendment) Bill;

Business Licensing (Amendment) Bill;

Real Estate Licensing Bill

Immigration Bill; and

Crown Land (Amendment) Bill

The Speech from the Throne took a long-term perspective and placed emphasis on fulfilling the objectives of the Vision 2040 document and the Government’s strategic plan to move the Turks and Caicos Islands towards developed country status within the next two decades by investing in projects and policies that will result in a more robust triple-bottom-line economy.

The Speech from the Throne also addressed short to medium term deliverables; highlighting that the Government has twelve (12) high-priority projects being progressed.  It posited that the National Delivery Unit (NDU) is tasked with assisting project owners and implementers advance the Government’s priorities. The value added by this Unit is the facilitation with streamlining of project management processes to ensure the most efficient timelines and use of available resources – all for the ultimate benefit of the citizens of the Turks and Caicos Islands.

The day’s proceeding ended with a motion entitled: Write-Off of TC Invest/TOLCO Loan that was tabled by the Minister of Finance, the Honourable E. Jay Saunders. The motion which sought to write off $10.8 million in debt accumulated by scores of borrowers was passed.  This write-off was a welcomed intervention by many Turks and Caicos Islanders, laden with debt obligations for over 11 years following the divestiture of the former TC Invest Agency.  The write-off directly affects over 150 borrowers but is indirectly beneficial to many more.

For some, giving them a second lease on life, which, when property ownership is considered can be extended to inter-generationally.

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