Carib Scope

博客

  • Fort Young Hotel and Secret Bay art exhibitions explore nature and diversity in Dominica

    Fort Young Hotel and Secret Bay art exhibitions explore nature and diversity in Dominica

    As Dominica prepares to mark its annual Independence season, two distinct art exhibitions have launched at iconic local venues, inviting both island residents and international tourists to dive deep into the Caribbean nation’s unique natural environment, rich cultural heritage, and evolving creative voice.

    The first of these showcases, titled *Waters We Become*, is organized by the Waitukubuli Artist Association (WAA) and hosted at Fort Young Hotel’s beloved Old Oven Art Gallery. Running from October 12, 2026 through January 4, 2027, the exhibition opens its doors to visitors daily, centering the theme of water that is both life-giving and transformative for the island nation.
    Every work in the collection draws inspiration from Dominica’s sprawling coastlines, rushing mountain rivers, and quiet inland streams, with artists probing the deeply intertwined relationship between local communities, the land they call home, and the water that sustains it. Curators and creators behind the exhibition do not shy away from complex, nuanced perspectives: they highlight water’s serene beauty and critical abundance, while also confronting its devastating destructive force, seen in the hurricane storms, flash floods, and deadly landslides that have repeatedly impacted the island. The show also turns a critical lens on human activity, examining how unregulated deforestation, industrial pollution, unplanned overdevelopment, and systemic environmental neglect have thrown the fragile historic balance between land and water off kilter.
    Beyond pressing ecological themes, the artworks in *Waters We Become* also carry deeply human stories. Water serves as a metaphor through which creators explore generations of local experiences, from cross-border migration and backbreaking labor to joyous cultural celebration, crippling grief, hard-won survival, and hopeful community renewal.

    A short distance away, at the Bwa Denn Art Gallery located within Dominica’s luxury eco-resort Secret Bay, a second major exhibition is set to open its doors on October 16, 2026, running through January 31, 2027. Titled *Diversity*, this showcase is a solo retrospective of works by celebrated Dominican artist JeanClaude Elias Nassief, and is also open to guests daily.
    The exhibition brings together more than six years of Nassief’s creative output, pulling together paintings created between 2020 and 2026 that span distinct artistic periods, geographically diverse inspirations, and separate evolving artistic series from the creator. The core goal of the show is to celebrate the wide range of cultural, natural and personal influences that have shaped Nassief’s unique style, highlighting how varied approaches to visual expression have contributed to his growth as an artist.
    In comments on the exhibition, Nassief explained that the title *Diversity* was chosen to reflect the wide range of contexts and experiences that led to the creation of each work in the collection. He encourages visitors to engage with each painting individually, rather than seeking a single unified narrative, and to reflect on how varied creative perspectives not only enrich artistic practice as a whole, but also foster deeper connection and a shared sense of belonging across different audiences.

    Taken together, the two autumn and winter 2026 exhibitions offer a rare, layered opportunity to experience contemporary Dominican art through deeply rooted local perspectives. Visitors can walk away with new insights into the island’s complex relationship with nature, evolving questions of cultural identity, and the shared human experiences that bind local communities together during the country’s annual Independence celebration season.

  • More than 5,000 tourism jobs offered at employment fair in La Romana

    More than 5,000 tourism jobs offered at employment fair in La Romana

    LA ROMANA — A large-scale tourism-focused employment fair hosted by the Dominican Ministry of Labor has opened more than 5,000 formal job positions for local Dominican workers, bringing over 50 leading tourism sector companies together to connect directly with qualified candidates.

    Hosted at the city’s Eleoncio Mercedes Sports Center, the event “Your Job Is Here: in Tourism” was designed to tackle two pressing priorities: meeting the accelerating hiring demands of one of the country’s most vital economic sectors, and removing barriers for Dominican job seekers to access stable, formal work. The gathering created a collaborative platform where candidates could share their professional profiles, discuss open roles, and complete initial recruitment steps face-to-face with hiring managers from participating companies.

    Juan Bancalari, president of the Dominican Hotel and Tourism Association (Asonahores), emphasized the central role tourism plays in the national economy during the event. As the country’s largest source of revenue, Bancalari noted, the tourism sector continues to see consistent growth that outpaces the current supply of trained workers. He encouraged Dominican job seekers to pursue specialized technical and professional training programs to align their skills with the sector’s evolving needs for skilled talent.

    Beyond recruitment activities, the Ministry of Labor presented special honors to two key figures for their longstanding contributions to the Dominican tourism industry. Bancalari was recognized for his work driving sector growth and expanding job opportunities across the country, while Rafael Blanco Canto was celebrated for his decades-long career and impact strengthening the industry’s national standing.

    Ministry officials highlighted that this employment fair is part of a broader, ongoing government strategy to upgrade national employment intermediation services. The initiative aims to bring job opportunities directly to local communities, reduce barriers to workforce entry, and boost the share of Dominican workers employed in the formal labor market, supporting long-term economic stability for workers and the tourism sector alike.

    For additional reporting on the Dominican tourism industry and its economic impact, visit DominicanScope.

  • Dominican Republic presents declaration to promote sustainable sargassum solutions

    Dominican Republic presents declaration to promote sustainable sargassum solutions

    At the closing ceremony of the High-Level Global Forum on Energy Transition, a landmark initiative has been launched to tackle one of the Caribbean’s most pressing transboundary environmental challenges. Hosted as a core event of the 11th Santo Domingo Energy Week, the Dominican Republic formally presented the Santo Domingo Ministerial Declaration on the Sustainable Valorization of Sargassum, reaffirming the nation’s dedication to cross-border innovation and regional collaboration to address massive, widespread sargassum inundations.

    Massive accumulations of the brown macroalgae have plagued coastal regions across the Caribbean for years, disrupting fragile marine ecosystems, devastating tourism-reliant coastal communities, and dragging down cross-border economic activity. Energy and Mines Minister Joel Santos emphasized that this shared threat cannot be addressed by individual nations acting alone, making coordinated regional action non-negotiable.

    Santos pointed to an unexpected opportunity hidden within the crisis: rather than treating sargassum solely as environmental waste to be disposed of, it can be reimagined as a valuable resource for the circular economy. The declaration outlines a framework for developing approaches to sargassum management and utilization that are grounded in solid science, feasible from an economic perspective, and protective of natural ecosystems, with promising potential applications including energy generation.

    Foreign Minister Víctor “Ito” Bisonó explained that the declaration moves beyond symbolic political commitments, aiming to translate pledges into tangible, on-the-ground action through targeted regional coordination, expanded scientific research, collaborative project development, and targeted investment attraction. The framework brings together a multi-stakeholder coalition spanning national governments, academic research institutions, private sector enterprises, and civil society organizations, all working together to upgrade every link of the sargassum value chain — from real-time monitoring and large-scale collection to industrial processing to final valorization.

    To advance these goals, the Dominican Republic is already exploring a wide range of potential agricultural, industrial, and materials science applications for processed sargassum, alongside continued investigation of its utility for energy production. All potential uses are required to meet strict technical, environmental, public health, and economic performance standards before being scaled up.

    A critical step to boost industry growth is the recently secured $6.3 million financing package, developed through a partnership between the European Investment Bank, the European Union, and Adopem Savings and Credit Bank. This funding will provide both accessible financing and targeted technical assistance to micro, small, and medium-sized Dominican enterprises that operate along the sargassum value chain, helping to build a robust, inclusive local industry.

    Ultimately, the declaration calls for deeper, more structured collaboration across all key stakeholders: national governments, academic research centers, multilateral development banks, private businesses, and international organizations. The coordinated effort will align scientific research progress, sustainable harvesting practices, enabling public policies, accessible financing channels, and expanded market access, all while upholding strict environmental protection standards to guard against unintended harm to ecosystems.

  • NIB benefits “not being used to pay elderly relatives’ care home bills”

    NIB benefits “not being used to pay elderly relatives’ care home bills”

    A private senior care facility in the Bahamas is grappling with severe financial strain after accumulating more than $200,000 in unpaid accommodation fees, with a significant number of these debts linked to family members who collect their elderly relatives’ National Insurance Board (NIB) benefits but fail to pass the funds on to the facility.

    Patricia Moxey, owner and operator of Pat’s Senior Citizens Home, is publicly appealing to indebted families to settle their long-overdue accounts, highlighting how the ongoing unpaid balances are crippling the facility’s ability to deliver high-quality care to its more than 40 residents. In an interview yesterday, Moxey explained that many families allow bills to accumulate for years, often making empty promises to resolve the debt after a resident passes away.

    “They let the bill run up, and if the person happens to pass away they say ‘oh after the funeral I’ll sort you out,” Moxey said. “But you’ll never hear from them again.”

    Moxey noted that roughly 15 percent of the facility’s residents have family members that have stopped paying care fees. Many of these residents are in fragile health — some are bedridden, others live with diabetes, and many lack the cognitive ability to understand that their families are no longer covering their care costs. In a number of cases, Moxey claims families have secretly moved their relatives to the gerontology ward at Sandilands Rehabilitation Centre specifically to avoid paying what they owe.

    Complicating the issue, many residents have authorized their NIB benefits to be deposited directly into joint or family-owned bank accounts, meaning the facility never sees a cent of the money meant to cover accommodation and care costs. Despite the mounting financial pressure, Moxey says she cannot bring herself to evict vulnerable elderly residents who have nowhere else to go.

    “We can’t just take the people and throw them out,” she said. “I feel as if they’re doing this now then that means they can’t properly take care of their loved ones.”

    Moxey’s revelation of widespread non-payment and potential financial exploitation comes just one week after Bahamian Parliament passed the landmark Older Persons Rights, Protection, Care and Support Bill of 2026, a piece of legislation crafted explicitly to address gaps in elder protection — including exactly the type of abuse Moxey describes.

    The new law creates a legal duty for next of kin to ensure their elderly relatives maintain an adequate standard of living, covering access to safe housing, nutrition, clothing, medical care, and long-term or palliative support. Most critically, it codifies financial exploitation of elders as a specific criminal offense, covering the improper or dishonest use, control, or withholding of an older person’s money, property, pension, NIB benefits, or other assets.

    Convictions for financial exploitation can carry penalties of up to a $50,000 fine, five years imprisonment, or both. The legislation explicitly lists collecting an older person’s benefits without using those funds for their care as a form of criminal exploitation, alongside other abuses such as unauthorized withdrawals, forgery, coercion around property transfers or will changes, and preventing elders from accessing their own funds.

    Under the new law, authorities including police, the NIB, and other relevant government bodies gain the power to investigate suspected exploitation cases, and can compel individuals suspected of mismanaging an elder’s finances to produce receipts and financial records accounting for how funds were spent. The legislation also introduces new accountability requirements for anyone formally authorized to manage an elder’s affairs, requiring that such authorization be given voluntarily, in writing, free of coercion, and witnessed by an independent third party.

    For facilities like Pat’s Senior Citizens Home, the new law offers a potential path forward to address the growing crisis of unpaid care costs and elder financial abuse, though Moxey’s plea makes clear that the burden of solving the immediate crisis still falls on the families who owe the facility money.

  • Rastafari group plans protest during King Charles’ visit

    Rastafari group plans protest during King Charles’ visit

    As King Charles III prepares for his upcoming visit to The Bahamas, a prominent Rastafari organization is making preparations to stage a public rally to amplify longstanding demands for reparatory justice and a formal apology from the British Crown for systemic injustices against people of African descent. The Ethiopia Africa Black International Congress (E.A.B.I.C.), led by Royal Ambassador High Priest Richmond McKinney, has drafted a formal petition to deliver directly to the monarch during his trip, expanding the demands to include support for African repatriation, increased sovereign independence from the United Kingdom, and the establishment of a permanent, structured dialogue between the group and British officials.

    This planned demonstration is not an isolated action: it aligns with a growing, region-wide movement pushing for reparations for the harms of slavery and colonialism, and a growing push to cut formal ties with the British monarchy. Just recently, The Bahamas National Reparations Committee (BNRC) publicly stated that the Royal Family should not arrive in the country without addressing historical harms, repeating its calls for a clear apology for the transatlantic slave trade and colonial rule, and reaffirming its push for The Bahamas to transition to a republican form of government that removes the British monarch as head of state.

    McKinney emphasized that the Rastafari community in The Bahamas has been a leading voice in advocating for reparations and self-determination for more than 50 years, pointing to shifting momentum across the Caribbean that has brought these long-sidelined demands into the mainstream. He highlighted regional precedents, including Barbados’ historic transition to a republic in 2021 and ongoing political efforts in Jamaica to remove the British monarch as its head of state, as proof that the movement for full sovereignty is gaining traction across the region. “We can’t claim to be a truly independent nation when our political system still requires us to swear allegiance to the British monarchy,” McKinney noted in an interview outlining the group’s plans.

    The protest will also draw attention to what the group frames as ongoing systemic injustices facing Black communities in The Bahamas and across the global African diaspora, connecting historical harms to present-day inequalities. Beyond a formal apology from the British government, the petition calls for substantial reparatory compensation and targeted structural reforms to redress the intergenerational damage caused by centuries of chattel slavery and colonial rule. It also lays out a call for practical, supported pathways to enable any person of African descent who wishes to repatriate to the African continent to do so with dignity and full institutional support.

    McKinney praised the recent formal engagement of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in the reparations movement, noting that the regional bloc’s efforts to advance this cause align with a mission that Rastafari activists have championed for generations. “We give thanks that CARICOM is on board now for reparation,” he said.

    In the text of the petition, E.A.B.I.C. makes the case that the 19th century abolition of chattel slavery did nothing to repair the cumulative harm of generations of forced labor, forced family separation, mass displacement, and economic exploitation that defined colonial rule. The group argues that meaningful reparations must extend far beyond symbolic gestures of recognition, requiring concrete financial investment and systemic change to address lasting inequalities.

    The organization is requesting formal acknowledgement of the petition from King Charles III’s office, and that the document be forwarded to relevant British government and diplomatic bodies for review, with a formal written response that outlines clear pathways for ongoing negotiation and engagement. McKinney estimates that the Rastafari community now makes up approximately 15% of The Bahamas’ Black population, reflecting significant growth of the movement in recent decades. He framed E.A.B.I.C.’s action as part of a broader global struggle to secure justice, restore African cultural identity, and achieve full self-determination for Black communities across the Caribbean and the entire African diaspora.

  • Laroda defends prison medical care after inmate’s death

    Laroda defends prison medical care after inmate’s death

    A controversy over inmate medical treatment has emerged in the Bahamas following the death of Thomas Jean-Baptiste, a prisoner who passed away earlier this month after three weeks of hospitalization. National Security Minister Myles Laroda has publicly defended the care provided by correctional services, maintaining that prison leadership is confident Jean-Baptiste received all necessary and adequate treatment before his death.

    Minister Laroda told reporters he has been briefed by the Commissioner of Corrections on the details of Jean-Baptiste’s time in custody. According to the commissioner’s account, Jean-Baptiste already had pre-existing health conditions when he was admitted to prison, and was promptly referred to a local hospital for initial care. After treatment, he was returned to the facility, but when his health declined again, he was transferred to Princess Margaret Hospital, where he remained for approximately three weeks before his death on October 4. Jean-Baptiste, who had been diagnosed with diabetes, morbid obesity, and a history of life-threatening blood clots, had been back in custody since July, when the Court of Appeal rejected his legal challenge to his original prison sentences and revoked his medical bail.

    During his statement, Minister Laroda noted that correctional officials arranged for Jean-Baptiste to be housed in a dormitory located close to the prison infirmary, rather than a standard cell, and that he had consistent access to his prescribed medication. “The commissioner and other senior prison officials are confident that Mr Jean-Baptiste received adequate, appropriate care throughout his time in custody,” Laroda emphasized.

    However, the official account of the incident is directly contested by Jean-Baptiste’s family. His sister, Alicia Jean Baptiste, has publicly alleged that her brother received grossly inadequate care after he was ordered back to prison. She claims that in the weeks leading up to his hospitalization, Jean-Baptiste repeatedly complained about poor medical treatment and insufficient access to food. When asked if she believed prison officials did everything reasonably possible to save her brother’s life, she responded firmly: “Absolutely not, they made no efforts, period. The court order did not matter. It did not stand. They took no care, no concern.”

    Ms Jean Baptiste further outlined specific allegations of negligence. She claims that despite a requirement for Jean-Baptiste to be housed in the prison infirmary due to his health status, he spent nearly a month in the facility’s intake unit before being transferred to another general section. That unit, she alleges, lacked working air conditioning, experienced frequent power outages, and was located far from the infirmary, making it difficult for Jean-Baptiste to access care quickly. She also claims that the medication Jean-Baptiste had purchased before returning to custody was not consistently administered to him, contradicting the government’s claim that he had regular access to medication.

    Jean-Baptiste was serving concurrent sentences of three years for illegal possession of a firearm and two years for possession of ammunition. His appeal, launched on the grounds that his serious underlying medical conditions justified reducing his sentence or replacing it with a non-custodial sentence, was rejected by the Court of Appeal in July, leading to his return to state custody and the events that followed his death.

  • Laroda defends police promotions amid vetting and board concerns

    Laroda defends police promotions amid vetting and board concerns

    Amid growing public and political scrutiny over the promotion of hundreds of police officers – including some with ties to court judgments and a high-profile bribery scandal – Bahamas National Security Minister Myles Laroda has publicly defended both the vetting protocol for elevated officers and the composition of the promotions approval board.

    Speaking to reporters this week, Laroda confirmed he received direct assurances from Police Commissioner Shanta Knowles that every officer advanced in the latest round of promotions went through mandatory background reviews by the police service’s internal complaints and anti-corruption units, and all were cleared to move up. The minister noted that the round of promotions included more than 830 regular officers and 550 reserve officers, totaling roughly 1,300 personnel advancing across ranks from corporal all the way to chief superintendent. The full promotions list has not been released to the general public, a lack of transparency that has fueled questions about appointments for officers with documented past legal issues.

    The most high-profile controversy centers on the promotion of Jerone Thompson, who was elevated from inspector to assistant superintendent despite a Court of Appeal ruling that rebuked Thompson for excessive force – specifically kneeling on a suspect’s neck – that resulted in a $103,000 public damages award against the Bahamian government, paid by taxpayers. Opposition leaders have seized on this case to demand stricter oversight of promotion decisions, arguing that officers with a record of misconduct that costs public funds or harms civilians should not be eligible for advancement.

    Additional scrutiny has fallen on the makeup of the promotions board itself, after local media reported that Superintendent Terico Sweeting – a key prosecution witness in a 2025 police bribery scandal – was a serving member of the panel. According to prior reporting from The Nassau Guardian, Sweeting admitted receiving $10,000 in connection with the bribery scheme in 2026 and was granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for his testimony. Three other individuals – former Chief Superintendent Michael Johnson, attorney Bjorn Ferguson, and Sergeant Deangelo Rolle – currently face charges linked to the bribery case. Johnson additionally stands accused of involvement in the theft of $90,000, part of $1.475 million stolen during an airport bank security heist while the funds were held in police custody.

    Responding to questions about the promotions board’s membership, Laroda pushed back against claims that any charged officers participated in the approval process. He pushed back on a reporter’s description of Sweeting as having confessed to involvement in a major crime, questioning the accuracy of that framing and cautioning against misleading wording. The minister reaffirmed that no officer facing pending criminal charges was part of the promotions tribunal. This is not Laroda’s first defense of the latest promotion round, having previously argued that long-serving officers are entitled to career advancement recognition for their contributions to public safety.

  • Davis announces historic $39.3m fiscal surplus

    Davis announces historic $39.3m fiscal surplus

    Nassau, The Bahamas – Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis made a historic announcement to the House of Assembly yesterday, confirming that The Bahamas has recorded its first fiscal surplus since gaining independence more than half a century ago. For the 2025/2026 fiscal cycle, the country closed its books with a $39.3 million surplus, a milestone that caps years of gradual deficit reduction following the dual economic shocks of Hurricane Dorian and the global COVID-19 pandemic. But the celebratory tone of the announcement quickly dissolved into partisan confrontation, as opposition lawmakers launched fierce claims that the government manipulated accounting standards to inflate the country’s fiscal health by omitting hundreds of millions in public spending.

    Presenting the Ministry of Finance’s June 2026 Monthly Fiscal Summary Report to the chamber, Davis framed the surplus – which equals 0.2% of the nation’s gross domestic product – as a dramatic reversal of the country’s recent fiscal trajectory. Just five years prior, in 2020/2021, The Bahamas grappled with a $1.3 billion deficit, driven by catastrophic disaster recovery costs and widespread pandemic-related economic shutdowns. Since that peak, the government has steadily narrowed the gap: the deficit fell to $721.7 million in 2021/2022, then $534.6 million in 2022/2023, $194 million in 2023/2024, and $84.8 million in 2024/2025, before tipping into surplus for the current reporting period. Davis added that the country recorded consecutive monthly surpluses from January through June 2026, with the final quarter of the fiscal year delivering a $196.6 million surplus to push the full-year result into positive territory.

    Breaking down the numbers outlined in the fiscal report, total annual revenue jumped 16.6% year-over-year to hit $3.96 billion, coming in 1.7% above the government’s original budget projections. Total expenditure rose 12.6% to $3.92 billion. Tax revenue grew 13% to $3.42 billion, led by a 14.9% increase in value-added tax (VAT) collections that reached $1.65 billion. Non-tax revenue saw a far steeper 45.4% climb, hitting $543.3 million. Davis attributed the revenue growth to enhanced tax enforcement and stricter compliance measures, noting that a new Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax applied to large multinational corporations operating in The Bahamas generated an extra $68.6 million in revenue in June alone. Recurrent public expenditure rose 9.7% to $3.51 billion, while capital expenditure grew 45.2% to $414.9 million, and annual public debt interest payments totalled $674.7 million. Davis also highlighted that international financial institutions have already recognized the country’s fiscal progress: Moody’s upgraded The Bahamas’ credit rating to Ba3 with a stable outlook in April 2026, and S&P Global issued a similar upgrade in September 2025.

    Opposition lawmakers immediately rejected the government’s framing, dismissing the result as a misleading “false surplus” designed to distract from ongoing economic struggles facing ordinary Bahamian households. Kwasi Thompson, Member of Parliament for East Grand Bahama and a former finance minister, questioned whether a $310 million capital investment project referenced by Finance Minister Simon Wilson was intentionally excluded from the year’s expenditure calculations. Thompson argued that the government failed to account for all public spending, and raised suspicions that hundreds of millions in outstanding public bills were intentionally left unpaid at the end of June to inflate the surplus result. He further called out the government’s management of the $700 million National Investment Fund (NIF), demanding full public disclosure of all outstanding government obligations by the end of June to verify whether unpaid liabilities actually exceed the reported $39.3 million surplus. Beyond the accounting questions, Thompson challenged the government’s decision to celebrate the milestone at all, pointing to ongoing struggles with skyrocketing fuel costs and a persistent national cost of living crisis. “The cost of living is continuing to hammer our people. Inflation continues to increase, and so I think it should not be celebrated until we are able to solve sufficiently the cost of living crisis,” Thompson stated.

    Davis pushed back firmly against these criticisms, emphasizing that all fiscal data is available for independent review, and accused Thompson of rejecting the government’s accounting without conducting a proper review of the released materials. He defended the career Ministry of Finance officials who compiled the report, noting that many of the same civil servants held their positions when Thompson served as finance minister. Thompson countered that the decision to omit the $310 million in capital spending was a political policy choice, not an error by career public servants.

    The partisan clash quickly expanded beyond the surplus numbers to a broader confrontation over the work of parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which is chaired by Opposition leader and Marco City MP Michael Pintard. Davis criticized Pintard for discussing the committee’s ongoing investigations into public fund management publicly before the probe is completed, arguing that all questions about the NIF should be resolved through the PAC process. Pintard rejected the criticism, arguing that the committee has already shown significant restraint in its public updates and has not disclosed any confidential information. He added that the PAC has twice written to the Speaker of the House requesting permission to broadcast its committee meetings live to the public, arguing that open hearings would allow all Bahamians to judge testimony about public fund management for themselves. Pintard joined Thompson in dismissing the surplus as “contrived”, arguing that all NIF spending must be included to get an accurate picture of the country’s overall fiscal position, noting that “The NIF is an account created by the Prime Minister, and it is the Ministry of Finance and the Treasury that’s managing that.” Davis denied that he pressured the Speaker to block live broadcasts of PAC proceedings, though he agreed with the Speaker’s decision, accusing the Opposition of attempting to turn the public hearings into a political “reality show” for partisan gain.

    Tensions boiled over earlier in the parliamentary session when Thompson interrupted Kingsley Smith, MP for West Grand Bahama, during his remarks on the PAC dispute. Deputy Speaker Sylvanus Petty repeatedly ordered Thompson to return to his seat, triggering a walkout protest: all Free National Movement (FNM) opposition MPs stood in solidarity with Thompson as he challenged the ruling that Smith be allowed to continue speaking. Petty warned that non-compliant members would be removed from the chamber, forcing a two-minute suspension of parliamentary proceedings to de-escalate the confrontation.

    Despite the heated partisan clash, Davis reaffirmed that the published fiscal figures can withstand full independent scrutiny. He noted that the first surplus in a generation will strengthen The Bahamas’ ability to respond to future national emergencies, reducing the need to rely on high-cost emergency borrowing to address crises. Even so, the prime minister acknowledged that further fiscal reforms remain necessary to address the country’s ongoing public debt burden, improve performance at state-owned enterprises, and strengthen overall fiscal transparency for the Bahamian public.

  • Surge in child neglect cases exposes social worker shortage, urgent recruitment underway

    Surge in child neglect cases exposes social worker shortage, urgent recruitment underway

    The Child Protection Unit (CPU) is facing a critical staffing crisis that has stretched its capabilities thin, as official statistics show reports of child neglect have almost doubled over the first eight months of 2026 compared to the same period last year. In response, the national Department of Social Services has launched an urgent recruitment drive to bring on additional frontline staff capable of processing the growing backlog of abuse and neglect investigations.

    Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Social Services Minister Senator Barbara Cartwright publicly confirmed the staffing gap, after being questioned about newly released departmental data. The figures paint a clear picture of rising demand for child protection services: between January and August 2026, 184 reports of child neglect were filed across the country, up sharply from just 94 reports in the same eight-month window in 2025.

    “Many social workers had left the department over recent years, but a number of them are now choosing to return,” Cartwright told reporters. “Right now, we are in the active process of recruiting and hiring new social workers to fill out our ranks.”

    The minister declined to share further details on what has driven social workers to leave the department, or how many additional positions the agency is looking to fill to meet current demand. She did note that she has held closed-door meetings with CPU leadership to discuss systemic improvements and expanded support for frontline staff, adding that the department is exploring broad changes to strengthen the entire child protection ecosystem, but offered no specific policy proposals to back up that statement.

    The shortage of social workers comes as overall child protection case volumes have risen across the board. In addition to the jump in neglect reports, the department recorded 441 total child protection cases between January and August 2026, a slight increase from 429 cases in the same period of 2025. Reports of physical abuse climbed from 83 to 106 year-over-year, while claims of sexual abuse also rose marginally from 134 to 145.

    When reporters pressed Cartwright on whether growing economic hardship and poverty were contributing to the sharp rise in child neglect reports, she acknowledged that household financial instability places disproportionate burdens on children, particularly impacting their ability to succeed in school.

    “Children end up carrying the financial burdens of their parents,” she explained. “When a family is facing instability at home, kids go to school carrying that stress, and they simply cannot learn as well. I truly believe that if we lose our children, we lose our nation, that is why we have to prioritize addressing child poverty.”

    Asked what immediate support the government is offering to at-risk families to prevent child neglect stemming from financial hardship, Cartwright emphasized that long-term improvement in household economic security is the core solution. “If we can lift up parents, they can lift up their children,” she said. “Parents need to upskill themselves, pursue better employment opportunities, explore the options that are already available to them, and work to improve their family’s overall circumstances.”

    A senior ministry official, speaking on background to clarify the department’s processes, explained that child protection officers are tasked with investigating all reported claims where children are suspected to be in danger. Once an investigation is completed, cases that require formal intervention move to the court system, where judges determine whether it is necessary to issue a care order to remove a child from an unsafe home environment.

  • Laroda denies receiving money from Gardiner amid House row

    Laroda denies receiving money from Gardiner amid House row

    A fiery exchange erupted in the Bahamas’ House of Assembly this week, pitting two sitting Members of Parliament against each other over allegations of ties between a convicted drug trafficker, political donations, and lucrative government construction contracts.

    The confrontation unfolded during legislative deliberation over proposed amendments to the country’s Anti-Terrorism Act, when Long Island MP Andre Rollins brought forward explosive claims. Rollins publicly questioned whether convicted and incarcerated drug trafficker Eric Gardiner had made financial contributions to the ruling Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), noting that multiple construction companies tied to Gardiner have secured multi-million dollar public works contracts from the current administration. Beyond the donation allegations, Rollins called for full public disclosure of all entities awarded government contracts through the Beaches and Parks Authority, and issued a direct call to private contractors: any time a sitting MP or government minister demands an under-the-table cash kickback in exchange for contract approval, workers should document the interaction and report it immediately to authorities. Rollins emphasized that contract earnings belong to the business, not elected officials, stressing that corrupt kickback demands have no place in Bahamian public contracting.

    Myles Laroda, the Bahamian Minister of National Security and MP for Pinewood, pushed back aggressively against the claims. Laroda flatly denied ever receiving financial contributions from Gardiner, and stated he has no memory of ever meeting the trafficker at all. He pushed back against the implication that political patronage in contracting is a practice unique to the current PLP administration, pointing to long-standing patterns of preferential contracting that date back through previous terms led by the opposition Free National Movement (FNM).

    Laroda noted that the FNM held four consecutive terms in national government over recent decades, and during that time never moved forward to implement campaign finance reform that could have curbed patronage practices. When the PLP retook power in the 2021 general election, Laroda argued, the current administration has operated within the same rule framework inherited from the FNM. He also implied that FNM leaders have a history of downplaying connections to convicted drug traffickers, stating, “I have lived long enough in this Bahamas to hear a former prime minister sanitise a former drug dealer of being reformed, campaigned with them, and was very influential. Everybody have receipts.”

    Beyond defending his own record, Laroda warned against the repeated public naming of individuals tied to active criminal proceedings, noting that politicians from every major party have family members and associates whose actions they do not endorse. In a candid admission that upended the typical political back-and-forth, Laroda acknowledged that political patronage in contracting is a cross-party tradition, going so far as to admit he personally benefited from government contracts awarded under previous FNM administrations. He argued that the long-standing political norm of “to the victor goes the spoils” has remained consistent across both PLP and FNM governments, and even claimed that FNM-affiliated contractors are more likely to win work under the current PLP than reverse. “I was the anomaly,” he said of his own FNM-era contract award.

    The allegations center on Eric Gardiner, a career drug trafficker who is currently facing new federal drug trafficking charges in U.S. federal court in New York. Gardiner first came to public attention in the Bahamas after a May 12 plane crash in the Atlantic Ocean that occurred while he was traveling between the Bahamian islands of Abaco and Grand Bahama. When U.S. authorities rescued him after the crash, they reported he was carrying $30,000 in Bahamian currency. Gardiner’s legal team later produced a bank slip showing $20,000 withdrawn from Top Notch Builders, his construction firm that has been linked to major Bahamian government projects including the Eight Mile Rock administrative complex and the Carmichael Village housing development. This is not Gardiner’s first criminal conviction: he previously served a decades-long sentence in U.S. federal prison on charges related to cocaine importation.